Heart of Darkness Read online

  Amoria turned to me and smiled, her clear green eyes glowing with power. “Are you ready for this?”

  I knew she meant the dinner, the Grand Ceremony, and her and Dan’s departure.

  “Honestly? Yes and no.” I sighed. “I’m going to miss you.” My eyes burned, but I fought the tears, even though I knew sooner or later, I would definitely cry.

  “I know, but we’ll see each other again,” she assured me as she laid her hands on either side of my face. “You will be forever in my heart, my friend.”

  A soft knock interrupted us.

  “My lady,” Dan called as he walked in. “Our guests have just arrived at the gate.”

  “Show them to the entrance of the Welcome Hall. We shall be there shortly,” she ordered as she took my hand in her own.

  “It’s now or never. Let’s go show our guests how fabulous we look!” She gave me a wink and a grin, knowing it would make me smile.

  And it did. Slightly.

  We made our way to the Welcome Hall and walked toward her guardian throne, which sat on a raised dais, with white marble steps leading up to the platform. Amoria’s face became unreadable as she sat down and transformed into the woman I sometimes forget is so powerful. I stood to her left side, and Dan took his place at her right, as one of the house servants opened the door.

  “Lord Aladar of the Crimson Court,” the servant announced, introducing the new guardian.

  A chill filled the room as the man came striding toward us. He walked with an air of authority, respect, yet also with some arrogance. As he continued toward us, Amoria raised her hand and stopped him in his tracks.

  “Lord Aladar, we welcome you here,” she greeted him formally.

  “Lady Amoria of Faery, I’m grateful for your warm welcome,” he responded, his voice soft and deep, like the purr of a hungry lion.

  “My consort, Dan, and my human consort, Valentino,” Amoria gestured to Dan and me as she introduced us.

  Aladar looked straight at me with eyes the color of pure gold. I felt as if he were able to see directly into my soul. His eyes held power, of course, but there was also a hunger in them I didn’t expect. His hair was short, dark and curly. He appeared young, but not delicate, like most vampires do. His skin was strangely bronzed, as if it had been kissed by the sun. I could feel his raw, ancient power pulsing around him.

  Good lord! He’s so strong, I thought.

  “Welcome to our home, my lord,” I greeted him, then formally bowed.

  “A pleasure to be here, Valentino Celestine,” he responded.

  I wasn’t shocked he knew my full name, since I’d already noticed he appeared the type who would’ve done his homework when he’d been chosen to be the replacement for Amoria.

  “Lord Aladar,” Amoria began as she stood, “please join us in the dining room. I have some warm refreshments for you.”

  “That sounds delightful. I only brought my personal guards with me tonight,” he said as two men and one woman came in to stand next to him.

  Aladar introduced the trio as Talos, Robert, and Tamara. Talos and Tamara are vampires, and Robert is a shifter of some sort, judging by his aura, which is pulsing-hot.

  Talos was tall, fair-skinned, and dressed in a simple black tuxedo. He had bleach-blond hair and breathtaking red eyes, like two droplets of scarlet blood, but he appeared cold and emotionless.

  Robert was also tall, well-built, and was dressed in a gray tuxedo. He sported curly, ginger-red hair, and his eyes were the color of bright red copper. This man, though, was giving us all a friendly smile.

  Tamara, a blonde, radiated cold fury. Outwardly, she appeared to be calm, but I could see she was fuming on the inside. She was wearing a gorgeous blue satin dress, with sparkling matching blue heels.

  “The rest of my servants will come tomorrow, of course,” Aladar explained.

  “Of course. Please join us,” Amoria invited as she motioned the guards to follow. We waited for her to start walking, then Dan and I fell in step behind.

  Warm, human blood is served to Aladar and his two vampire entourage, and the shifter asked if he could have a glass of wine. I poured a cup of tea for myself, but neither Dan nor Amoria took anything to drink.

  “Valentino, you haven’t had anything to eat,” Aladar pointed out as he looked at me with curiosity. “Does the sight of blood bother you?”

  “Oh! Not at all. I don’t mean to be insulting, it’s just that I ate not long ago. Trust me, the sight of blood doesn’t bother me a bit. In fact, I just saw a bunch of it at a crime scene today,” I answered honestly.

  “Crime scene?” asked Talos, surprise in his tone. “You mean, you have another job besides being a human consort?” The last is said with an obvious tone of disgust.

  The fuck...? Ugh, vampires!

  “Why, yes. I do.” I answered, smiling tightly. From the corner of my eye, I could see Dan give me that “behave yourself” look.

  “Surely you teach your consort obedience and loyalty, Lady Amoria?” Tamara asked with a look of disgust at me.

  “Excuse me? What—”

  “Lady Tamara,” Amoria cut in. Her voice was calm, but you could sense the anger lurking inside her. Nothing is more dangerous than an angry fae. “Valentino has the freedom to do whatever he likes.”

  Tamara had openly insulted me, giving the implication I was incapable of doing anything more than to be a consort, which was obviously a position both vampires looked down upon. I was raging inside, and my hand was just itching to throw a fire bolt at this bitch and take her down. Already, Tamara was on my shit-list.

  Robert appeared surprised, while Aladar merely raised an eyebrow and remained silent, just watching.

  “Valentino knows the rules of the human consort and respects them. Not only that, but he takes his job as consort very seriously, and is excellent at it.”

  “What is it you do then, that has you looking at blood at crime scenes?” Tamara asked me, her gray eyes the color of storm clouds.

  “I’m a private detective.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, really. I investigate crimes that are tied to the supernatural.”

  “And why is that?” Aladar spoke up, his question seemingly genuine.

  Because I am half supernatural! But I couldn’t tell him that, and since I was still quite worked up over Tamara’s hostile attitude towards me, my mind wasn’t capable of coming up with anything convincing.

  “Lord Aladar.” Amoria quickly changed the subject. “How was Rome?”

  “Still amazing, my lady,” he answered with a smile, then took a small sip of blood from his glass. “How much time do we have before you must leave us?”

  “At midnight, my lord.”

  I checked my watch. It was already eleven-thirty. Damn!

  For the next twenty minutes, many other topics were discussed between the two guardians as they prepared for the switch, but I stayed as quiet as possible. I glanced over at Dan, and he sent me a reassuring smile. He knew how hard it was going to be for me to have to say goodbye to them.

  By eleven-fifty, everything in the house which belonged to Amoria and Dan was gone. Every room, I assumed, was empty, except for the main room where the grand mirror is located. That would be staying, for mirrors are gateways between worlds, and all guardians are required to have one in their home for communication, and also for emergency purposes.

  “Well, shall we begin?” Amoria asked as she gently pushed away from the table, then stood.

  “Yes, my lady,” Lord Aladar answered solemnly.

  Please, goddesses! Don’t let me cry, I prayed.

  We made our way to the grand mirror, where Aladar took his place in front of the glass, before turning to face me and Amoria. The Grand Ceremony was about to begin, which is the exchanging ceremony between guardians and consorts.

  “I, Amoria, Lady of the Seelie Court, give my human consort, Valentino Celestine, to Lord Aladar of the Vampiric Court, the new Guardian of Center City.” Her voice
was firm, and her face unreadable, as she guided me toward Aladar, who gently took my hand in his own. His was soft, yet cold, the complete opposite of Amoria’s warm touch.

  “I, Aladar, child of night, Vampire of the Crimson Court, shall take Valentino Celestine as my own,” he vowed to Amoria.

  I’m not yours! I inwardly screamed.

  “And he will serve as my consort, from now until otherwise.”

  Dan and Aladar’s personal guards were our witnesses to this ceremony, and all four said in unison, “Let it be done.”

  Amoria then placed her palm on the mirror, its shining surface filling the whole room with a brilliant and soft white light, as if the moon was in this very room.

  This is it. They’re really leaving.

  I could feel the tears running down my face.

  “Lord Aladar?” I asked, without looking at him. “May I say goodbye?”

  “Of course you may.”

  I walked silently to them and hugged Amoria tightly.

  “Well, I guess this is it,” she whispered to me.

  “I don’t want you to go,” I whispered in response.

  She pulled slightly back and looked at me, her eyes shimmering with tears of her own. “I know, but we’ll see each other again. Be strong.”

  I nodded and turned to pull Dan into an equally tight embrace next.

  “Remember, you can always come visit,” he whispered in my ear.

  His words finally forced a small smile from me. Putting a hand to my cheek, he wiped away my tears, then winked at me.

  I watched with pain in my heart as they stepped through the mirror, and soon, the light from the mirror dimmed, then vanished completely.

  They were gone.

  “Valentino?” Aladar’s voice forced me to turn and face him. “I would like you to come with me to make some arrangements.”

  “May I please have a moment alone first? I need to gather myself. I’ll join you shortly,” I weakly whispered.

  Without another word, the others silently exited the room, leaving me to stand alone. I desperately missed Amoria and Dan already, and the new guardian was waiting for me to make some kind of arrangements...now?

  What arrangements?

  I can’t do this, I thought to myself. I just can’t stay here tonight. It’s too much.

  I panicked. I was now on my own in this house with so many strangers, strangers who would probably hate, or even kill me, if they found out what I really was.

  Fuck this. I’m leaving.

  I quietly made my way downstairs by way of the balcony, and concealed myself with a cloaking spell, then I ran toward my car, jumped in and drove away, not even bothering to look back.

  In that moment, I really wanted to go home. I didn’t give a damn whether Aladar got mad or not.

  By the time I arrived home, I was exhausted. I checked my phone, but there were no messages. I felt so numb as I walked upstairs to my room, where I quickly removed my clothes and climbed in bed.

  As soon as my head hit the pillow, I began to cry myself to sleep.

  Chapter 2

  Getting out of the bed was really hard the next morning. My whole body was screaming in protest. My face felt swollen from all the crying I did last night. I just wanted to stay in bed all day and eat ice cream, but I knew that wasn’t an option.

  Depressed or not, I still had a job to do.

  After making the bed and straightening my room, I headed for the shower. The warm water relaxed my sore muscles. Even though I’m a half-supernatural being, I still have limitations. I can still get hurt, even though I heal quickly. It can be quite painful sometimes.

  After the shower, I dressed and headed to the victim’s antique shop to start my investigation on last night’s murder.

  Standing in front of the building, I could see the old-world charm. It was simple-looking yet inviting for anyone who collected rare items. It was still rather early, so the store wasn’t busy just yet. The open sign was lit, so I went inside. Looking around, I saw everything was neat and clean, but no one was around.

  “Hello?” I called out. “Is anyone here?”

  “Good morning! How can I help you?” I heard a voice answer from deep within the building.

  I then watched as an elderly, petite, Asian woman came out from the back to stand behind the counter. She was wearing a colorful traditional Asian dress and offered a welcoming smile.

  It troubled me I couldn’t sense her as I usually would. Could she be a witch?

  “The owner isn’t here right now, so I’m running the store temporarily,” she explained, looking at me with a bright smile.

  “Good morning, madam. I’m Detective Celestine, and I wanted to ask you some questions about the owner, Mr. Ken Bob.”

  “Oh my gods,” she whispered, the color draining from her face. “So, my vision was true? He really did die?”

  “Yes, he did,” I confirmed softly.

  She closed her eyes, and I gave her a moment to collect herself.

  “Can I ask how close you were with Mr. Bob?”

  “He is my best friend...well, he was.”

  “Is there anything you can tell me which might help me find out what happened to him?”

  She looked up. “Actually, he had been acting kind of strange lately.”

  That got my attention. “What do you mean?”

  “Well, this store was on the verge of being shut down. He was going to lose his apartment and everything, and he’d gone into a deep depression. He would shut himself in his office for hours, hardly coming out for anything, not even to eat! I was getting really concerned.

  “But two weeks later, he was suddenly acting all happy and positively glowing, as if he’d gone to a spa retreat for a week. He kept singing that everything is going to be alright. It was very odd. I was happy for him, of course, but it was very disturbing how his whole demeanor changed so suddenly.”

  “Did you see him talking to anyone who might have made you a little suspicious?”

  “I saw him talking a few times to some man I’d never seen before. At least, I think it was a man. There was just something...off about him. He would come and stay with Ken in the office all day.”

  “Did you happen to get a look at his face?”

  “No, I tried to, but every time he was near, I felt the urge to stay away. Like I was being pushed.”

  “Do you know if they were talking about anything in particular?”

  “They were always whispering, so I didn’t hear much. On one occasion, I did manage to overhear the man say to Ken ‘tonight was the night’ and that ‘it will be a new beginning.’ After that, the man left, and Ken was beaming the rest of the day, and seemed impatient to get home.” She broke down and started to cry. “Oh gods! How could this happen?”

  “I’m sorry, ma’am. Here, take my card and call me if you need me, or if you remember anything else.”

  As I left the store, I dialed the chief’s number on my cell, and he answered right away.

  “Got something for me?” he asked.

  I relayed everything the woman told me. “I’m guessing the murderer might be this same man. He could’ve been the summoner, and poor Ken fell right into his trap with the promise of good fortune, without even realizing it.”

  “We’re going to need the tapes from the security cameras to see if we can get a visual on this guy. Call me if you have anything else,” he ordered.

  “Alright. Will do,” I said, then disconnected the call.

  I took a deep breath to prepare for the worst, because I had a confrontation with a most likely pissed off immortal guardian next. Although I usually didn’t feel nervous, I did this time. I knew I shouldn’t have left like I did last night.

  It was close to noon when I arrived at the mansion. No guardian or guards were in sight because no matter how powerful they were, they wouldn’t be out in broad daylight. Well, except maybe the Were-guards. But guards normally stayed by their master’s side, no matter what. Considering Ala
dar is a vampire, they’d likely stay with him, watch over him, while he slept.

  Judging by the emptiness and the silence, I guessed the house servants hadn’t been requested to arrive yet, so I walked to the garden, and was relieved Amoria had ordered the garden to be left untouched, except for the upkeep.

  The scent of jasmine, honeysuckle and roses filled the air as I laid on my back on the ground between them. Letting my body soak up the sun’s rays, I could feel the pulsing energy of the earth fill me with a small amount of strength, and also calm me from within.

  Suddenly, I sensed another presence, which put me on edge. Springing into action, I jumped up and drew my gun, only to have it removed from my hand out of thin air.

  “Someone is edgy this morning.”

  It took all my self-control not to bolt and run to my car.

  “Lord Aladar?” I asked slowly.

  “Beautiful day to walk outside, Valentino,” he said calmly.

  “Um, yeah...I guess.” I said, still feeling shock from his sudden presence.

  “You look surprised to see me. I do live here now, you know.”

  I was surprised alright. The bastard was a vampire, walking around in sunlight!

  I didn’t interact much with vampires, but I knew no vampire, no matter how powerful and old they were, can stand the sunlight, for they belong to the night. That is their domain!

  “I didn’t realize I wasn’t alone.”

  Aladar was wearing a blood-red robe which was open, revealing his matching red boxers.

  A vampire wearing boxers... goddesses, give me the strength to keep a straight face.

  Besides that, he had a powerful physique, the light tan of his skin was bright against the darkness of the red robe.

  “So, you’re not surprised to see me in the sunlight?”

  “Of course not,” I lied, not wanting him to know just how very surprised I really was, though I have no idea why. “I know a weak guardian cannot replace a strong one. Whoever is taking their place must be very powerful.”

  “True enough. By the way, we missed you last night,” he said calmly as he looked me straight in the eyes. I met his gaze without showing any fear. Quite difficult, I must say. “Robert went to look for you, but you were gone.”