Page 27

More light and heat filled the room and made Isabel much more comfortable. She felt more like a character in a fantasy novel than a horror story, now. Curiosity took over where fear had been, and she began wandering the room to get a better look at Sebastian’s quarters.

Not that there was much of interest. She picked up a few of the paintbrushes, interested to find bone handles and soft bristles. The paint pots were long-since dried, some made of metal and others carved from stone. A wooden wardrobe in the corner held an assortment of men’s clothing that looked like it belonged in a museum.

But it was the closet that gave her pause. She pulled the door all the way open and peered inside, finding a collection of brightly colored and intricately decorated dresses. Isabel’s eyes lit up. She pulled the closest dress from the rack and held it against her body. The deep red fabric was silky and even when just held against her, settled pleasantly.

“I have to try this on,” she announced to the empty room and began stripping to her underclothes. She stepped into the dress and struggled to tighten the ribbon in the back which closed the garment. Eventually she was able to squirm and stretch and contort enough to get the dress closed. She ran her hands down the soft fabric and smiled. Something about the dress felt so right and so comfortable.

Then it struck her. This was the dress from the painting back in Vernazza! She rifled through the other dresses, finding more familiar ones. But strangely, some of them brought to her memory scents or sounds that she had no context for.

On touching a ruffled cream-and midnight Renaissance gown, an image of a moonlit garden filled her mind. Cherub statues and gushing fountains sprouted from amongst the dark greenery and bright blossoms. Crickets serenaded the moon and a soft breeze rustled her hair. She looked to her right and saw Sebastian in a smart doublet and frilled collar.

He smiled, the stars in his eyes shining only for her. His mouth opened, but before she could hear his words, the vision faded. Isabel shook her head slightly as if trying to dislodge the strange scene from her brain. What in the world was that?

She moved that dress out of the way and ran her fingers down the next, a light blue gown with plenty of ruffles. Another vision overtook her eyes, this time the bright sun shining down as she stood on a white-sand beach. The surf crashed behind her, filling the air with the scent of salt and seaweed. Her bare feet felt pleasantly warm on the sun-baked sand and her cheeks stung from a little too much exposure.

A handsome man with doleful brown eyes and carefully-styled, short brown hair stood by her side. His face was soft and his frame was wiry with youth, and his shoulders slumped as he glanced over to her. “I thought we would be wed when we reached this age,” he sighed, reaching for her hand. But he withdrew it before making contact with her skin, and turned his face away. “I can’t believe you’ve chosen someone else. And now you’re moving to Venice for him? It’s like I don’t even know you anymore!”

Again the vision faded, and this time Isabel found tears running down her cheeks. “Joshua,” she whispered, though she didn’t quite understand how she knew the man’s name. The visions felt just like memories.Hermemories, as impossible as that was.

Or was it? Sebastian had mentioned ‘getting her memories back’ multiple times. Was this what he meant? Was she really seeing glimpses of lives she had already lived? The thought sent a shiver through her core out to her extremities.

She took a step away from the closet, but paused. One more shouldn’t hurt, right? Her hand trembled as she reached out for another dress, this one the red wedding gown she recognized from Sebastian’s painting. Her fingers barely touched the fabric before another vision burst to life.

Her surroundings changed very little. The room was less dusty and more tidy, and a much larger fire roared on the hearth. She found herself being carried in Sebastian’s strong arms and laughter bubbling from her lips.

“Finally!” Sebastian exclaimed, closing the door behind him with his foot and depositing Isabel on the bed. He unbuttoned his coat and the shirt beneath it, exposing his pale chest. “We don’t have to wait any longer!” He wrapped his arms around Isabel and began undoing the back of her dress, allowing it to fall forward and expose her breasts.

Rather than feeling shy about her nakedness, she allowed the sleeves to slip from her arms and the dress to slump to the floor. Sebastian took a sharp breath and scooped her up. He pressed his lips to each of her breasts and carried her to the bed.

“You are the most beautiful woman who ever lived,” he whispered as he placed her on the bed and began to unbutton his pants. “I have waited hundreds of years for Victor to allow our union. No,wehave waited hundreds of years. And now…you are finally my wife. My beloved wife. I will cherish you to the end of time.”

Sebastian joined her in the bed, straddling her and pressing his palms into the headboard. “Our waiting has come to an end, my darling. We are finally free to express the full measure of our love.” He began to kiss her with such vigor and passion that her heart felt as if it would beat right out of her chest. And she kissed back with equal fervor, every inch of her body aching to touch and be touched by this man.

CHAPTER22

Venice, Italy. 8 June, 2007

Sebastian chewed his bottom lip as he pulled out the small key and unlocked the door to his private quarters. His mind and his stomach swirled uncomfortably. What was he to do? The door swung inward and his eyes fell on Isabel, who had fallen asleep wearing one of her old dresses. He felt as if he’d been transported back hundreds of years to a simpler time.

His worries melted away with every step he took toward his sleeping love. He sat on the edge of the bed and brushed her raven hair away from her face, admiring how delicate she looked in the firelight. Time had no meaning as he watched her chest rise and fall, and her lips twitch as she dreamed.

Eventually his own eyelids began to grow heavy. He hadn’t properly slept in nearly 48 hours, after all. Even for his immortal body, that was a long period to deny it time to repair itself. Sebastian stripped down to a white undershirt and shorts, pulled a spare blanket and pillow from the closet, and made himself a bed on the floor. Things were rocky enough with Isabel that he’d rather sleep on the hard floor than have her wake up afraid or angry that he’d slept beside her.

He drifted to sleep quickly, and woke in a swirling dreamland. The colors of the ground and sky shifted and glimmered as if made of super color-saturated sands. He looked around, confused, and the harder he concentrated, the more solid the landscape became. He found himself standing in front of a blindingly white church, its doors propped open and sentinels standing on either side in gleaming coats of steel.

A large crowd of people dressed all in white pushed right through him, smiling and laughing as they made their way to the doors. Sebastian looked down and found himself robed in scarlet. He felt sad about this, though he didn’t really know why.

“Sebastian, let’s go inside!” called his favorite voice. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw his Muse standing barefoot on the grass, also clad in scarlet. Her face beamed like the sun and her aura was so warm that he felt all chill being pulled from his bones.

He opened his arms and she ran into his embrace. “Luce dei miei occhi,” he crooned and ran his fingers through her long hair. She nuzzled his chest and took his hand. She gently pulled him toward the open doors, joining the laughter and joy of the crowd around them. As they got closer, Sebastian looked inside and saw multitudes of people eating, drinking, hugging, kissing, singing, and generally making merry. The strongest feeling of peace he’d ever experienced radiated from the building and called to him.

Hand in hand and dangerously close to one another, the pair joined the stream. Sebastian again peered through the doorway and saw the faces of his parents and younger brother smiling at him. They beckoned him to come and he hurried his pace. How long had it been since he’d seen them? A thousand years? Tears formed in his eyes and he practically sprinted toward the doors with his Muse at his side.

But as they came to the threshold, the sentinels lowered their glittering spears and blocked the doorway. “Blood cries for vengeance against you,” rumbled the sentinels in unison. “And your sins have also blocked this woman from entering. Be gone from this place.”

The sun in the blue sky began filling with blood, its red light casting the Earth and sky in a hellish pallor. Where beautiful trees and flowers had bloomed, twisted black vines and thorned brambles choked out anything green. Warmth faded to a frigid cold, which caused both Sebastian and his Muse to shiver uncontrollably. The figures in white and the church disappeared, leaving behind shadows and a silent cathedral made of obsidian.

His Muse clung to his side, terror showing in the whites of her eyes. Sebastian attempted to enter the cathedral, but again sentinels in black armor crossed their spears. “There is no rest for you here!” they boomed, their voices like shards of glass. “You both must be cleansed by fire and by blood, or be cursed to wander for eternity.” Sebastian fell to his knees, clutching his head as a blinding burst of pain tore away his consciousness. Everything faded to white, then black.