Page 48 of Cursed Lifeline (Eternal Love)
Forty Seven
Esme
song: game of survival |Ruelle
“Again! This time with heart!”
Sucking in a deep breath, I turn bitterly on my heels. My right leg rises quickly and violently hits the target Silas is holding. He stumbles back from the force, but rights himself and attempts to hold his ground before I deliver the next blow. Turning briskly, I punch at the target with my right, and then my left. The board falls from his hands. Swiftly, I give him a right kick that he instantly blocks with his forearm. Without pause, I swoop low and sweep his legs out from under him. He hits the mat and lets out a strangled grunt before trying to catch his breath.
“Were you this bad of a trainer with Celeste,” I ask, panting. He scowls up at me. “No wonder she met an unfortunate end.”
Sweeping his leg out, he lands me on the mat just the same and growls, “Check the attitude, Es. It’s not becoming on you in this life.”
Rolling my eyes, I rotate onto my side and start to rise when a pair of violet irises catch mine in the shadows on the gym’s second floor. Gaze locked above, I rise to kneeling as Caelum steps forth from the far side of the mat and Silas says, “Training is complete for the day.”
Getting to his feet, Caelum steps to his side and the duo look over their shoulders in the direction I was just staring off into. But the ghostly presence of my diligent stalker is gone. Vanished. Just as quickly as he came.
“A little early to call it quits,” Caelum suggests.
Silas gives him an irked look.
“He has a point,” I shrug.
“Training or no training, we’ll run out of time long before you’ll ever truly be ready,” Silas mumbles bitterly. Attempting to let his comment roll off my back, I fail when he opens his mouth next and says, “Do us all a favor this time, Es, and keep your head in the game.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I snap.
He looks over his shoulder at the second floor of the gym, then utters a hurtful slew of words that amount to more than any of us have heard him say in two lifetimes.
“It means, in your past life, you chased dark, twisted fairy tales your naive heart dared to hope could one day come true. Your priorities lay in romantic fantasies that held you captive with violet eyes and promises they could never keep. Don’t fall for the same bullshit in this life, Esme, and maybe we’ll stand a chance at defeating the monotonous merry-go-round we all can’t wait to finally stop fucking spinning on.”
Shouldering past, he takes his leave with angry, bitter strides. When he reaches the door, and it violently slams shut, I jolt slightly and ask Caelum, “What the hell is his problem?”
Having to step in and take Alfred’s place while he’s been under the weather has obviously made him more crabby than usual.
“Hell if I know,” Caelum sighs, crossing his arms over his chest as he studies the direction Silas has just stalked off in.
Annoyed, I stride past him to the opposite side of the room to retrieve my gym bag. Grabbing my water bottle, I take a large drink before toweling off the sweat that’s pooled down the back of my neck. Bending, I stretch my calves, then my thighs.
“You did good today,” Caelum smiles reassuringly as I grab my things and start to walk towards the exit. “But if history could teach you anything, remember, don’t underestimate your opponent. Just when you think you can trust someone is usually the moment they deceive you. The worst part is, betrayal never comes from your enemy, but always the one you consider your friend.”
“Geez,” I sigh. “With Alfred gone, you two waste no time trying to put me in my place. Tell me, have you both been holding this in for two centuries, or have I done something lately to royally piss you both off?”
Caelum grins, “We all just want to help. That’s what we’ve been called to do. Just like your calling is to do like Silas says, and keep your head in the game.”
“I’ll be honest, I prefer Alfred’s guidance to Silas’s and your harsh assistance.” Caelum shrugs. “When is Alfred coming back?”
Caelum swallows hard and remains silent.
After a moment when he still has yet to answer, I say, “Failure, though it may prove fatal, is not the end. You’ve been around long enough to know that, Cal. Considering everything that has happened, I’d say it’s the courage to continue that counts. Trust me, in this life, I have more daring courage than I did in any of my last.”
“We’ll see about that,” he taunts, with a friendly wave goodbye.
As we part ways, and I exit the building, I’m immediately overcome by the sensation I’m being watched again. It settles around me like a bad omen before my skin breaks out in nauseating goosebumps. The telltale signs of a headache pinches between my eyes. I may like it when Felix is lurking in the shadows, but I get a sinking premonition that whoever has their eyes on me right now is not Felix. After the grueling hours I’ve put in training with the watchers today, I’m really not in the mood for another fight.
At least not one of this kind.
A flash of movement in the dark alley across the street catches my attention. Seeing as my apartment is three blocks north of here, the odds of making it there without conflict are slim, no matter how fast I run. So, I opt for a different tactic.
Pulling whoever it is from the shadows.
Vampires are attracted to the same things as normal humans.
Money. Fame. Fancy or expensive things.
Beauty.
I’m not vain, but I’m not ignorant to think I don’t have assets either. As my senses tune into my surroundings, it’s obvious whoever is watching me is male. A woman vampire is more of a sleuth. Preying on the sexual appetite of the living and flaunting what she knows they desire. Male vampires, on the other hand, are attracted to the sexual curves of their next kill.
Turning my back on the dark alley, I drop my bag and bend forward, searching for something I know I won’t bother to find. Not yet, anyway. With my ass sticking out from under my tennis skirt, a distant clatter of metal across the street echoes to me on a sinister breeze as the air around me becomes electric with hungry energy.
Straightening up, I reach around my back, under my shirt, and unclasp my bra. Looking up at the lonely street lamp overhead, the one perfectly illuminating the show for whoever is watching, I reach back between my breasts and pull the bra free. Bending once again, swaying my hips from side to side, and placing it in my bag, the night’s cold breeze caresses my bare nipples, making them sharp enough to cut glass.
As the energy in the night escalates, an electric static increases its shrill, piercing frequency. I grab the stake in my bag and stand tall. When the pulsing current spikes its sharp climax, I turn quickly and kick as hard as I can to my right. The vampire who was in mid-flight stumbles back and hits the lamppost next to us with a hard metallic thud that rings throughout the empty street and reverberates with an alarming rhythm through my soul.
“Pretty curves I’d love to sink my teeth into,” he hisses, eyeing me up and down like I’m a steak dinner he’s been thinking about devouring for weeks.
Eagerly, he pushes off the metal pole and quickly starts to come closer.
“It’ll come at a price,” I breathe heavily, taking a fighting stance and trying to read which way he’ll attack next.
“No price you haven’t paid before, slayer.”
He lunges for me, but I’m quick to react, and his face connects with my foot as I backflip twice to safety. He howls out in pain before angrily finding me in the shadows and running full speed in my direction. His stupidity is my gain as I raise the stake before he makes impact and plunge it quickly into his heart. He staggers back with wide hysterical eyes.
“You bitch.”
Raising an eyebrow, I smirk. “Like a fine wine, I’ve found I get better with each life.”
Turning slightly, I raise my right leg and kick the stake into his heart as deep as it will go. He screams out maniacally and drops to his knees. I catch my breath as he falls face up on the concrete and quickly perishes into a pile of dust.
All too soon, the sensation I’m being watched washes over me yet again. I’m in no shape to fight off multiples. One was enough to call from the shadows, but if it had been four or five, I’m not sure I could’ve come out victorious. A despondent shiver rises up my spine as I turn, take in the deserted street, and glance around quickly for any clue of where they might be hiding. But whoever is watching is happy to stay hidden.
Kneeling, I pick up my stake from the floor and quickly return to my bag. Stashing the bloody weapon away, I gather my things and hurry off in the direction of my apartment.