Artemis
One thing my uncle taught me was to stay calm even in the face of chaos and he was right, which advised me from so many risky situations.
I slowly stepped out of the house, my hands raised in the air, every movement towards Sabrina. The cold breeze brushed against my skin but the tension in the air was palpable and colder. I didn't know who she was or what she was capable of, so I had to move carefully.
Her grip was still on Cressida's neck like claws and Cressida was terrified, her eyes filled with fear and panic, but I secretly motioned for her to stay calm cause panic wouldn't solve the problem. Whoever Sabrina met wasn't me but I understand I sound like a madman trying to convince her I was sane.
"I'm not going in without her, so let her go," I muttered my voice low.
Sabrina broke into loud laughter that echoed across the air like glass. "Aw, how noble of you. But I'm sure you know how this works, do you? I'm not backing down either! So it's either you hand me my ring or one of us dies which is obviously going to be her."
She flashed her fangs swiftly smiling in confidence, vampires were all the same they thought of themselves as scary but deep down they were insecure monsters scared to be subordinated.
I gazed deep into her hazel colored eyes, refusing to break eye contact. "Whoever you think you saw that night, wasn't me."
She arched her brows, her smile fading slightly.
"I have a twin," I continued. Twin sounded so bitter on my tongue because that meant I was admitting his existence after I've convinced myself so many times that he didn't exist. " he's the thief not me. That's his Job, he steals for a living, I fight. And if he stole your daylight ring, then I'll find him and bring it back."
She slanted her eyes, suspicious evidence on her face, tilted her head backward, studying me like she could read my mind and tell if I was lying.
"And why should I believe you?" she said slowly, " how do I know you aren't simply lying to me just because I have your lady in my grip?"
"I have no reason to lie to you lady," I responded. I had no idea if I meant what I was saying but right now I was concerned about Cressida's safety, since I didn't want to take things to the next level, I don't want to see her hurt because of me. "I don't need your ring. I don't want anything to do with a vampire, I just want my girlfriend safe!"
For some seconds she gazed at me, saying absolutely nothing, then, finally, she loosened her grip on Cressida's arm pushing her forward. Cressida stumbled right into my arms and I caught her against my chest before she fell.
Reliefs descended on me although I didn't let it show, I still kept my frown on.
Sabrina adjusted her red dress, it looked seductive but that wasn't any of my concern, she was a threat to me. She needs to be dealt with. A smile played on her lips like a violin. "You have two days," she said, raising two fingers in the air. "Two days to bring my daylight ring back to me. If you dare act funny, I'll end anyone you ever know and love."
She winked at me deviously before disappearing into the night with supernatural speed.
For a second I thought I could hear the sound of my own heart racing, but the Cressida sobs jolt me out of the reverie. She hugged me so tight her face was buried in my chest. " What was that about? That crazy lady almost killed me, and was that true? You have a twin?"
I hugged her tightly like I was scared she would slip out of my grasp again. " Yeah, that's a story for another day, you are safe now, no harm will come to you," I murmured into her ears
She looked into my eyes. I could tell she didn't believe me, at least not fully, I didn't blame her, what she just experienced was scary, especially for a human.
"Come on, let's get you warm," I said gently, leading her inside.
~
The door of the cabin clicked shut behind us, the lock in place. I led her to the couch wrapping her with a plush blanket, we were a few inches from the fireplace, she sat there, her eyes wide with shock, and her body stiff.
I should probably give her time to recover.
After what seemed like two minutes, she finally spoke, her voice soft. "I don't know why I came back, something just told me, you needed me."
I gaze into her eyes. "Don't listen to that voice, I can't take care of myself. You can't."
"Well you can't blame me for caring too much can you?"
I didn't respond. I just held her hands and squeezed them firmly.
She looked up at me, her lips parted, and she shuffled, wiping her face with the back of her hands. " Fine, I overreacted, you were right, we should take things slow, will give you the time you need and as from now henceforth I'm going to respect your career…. I just… I like what we have. I don't want anything ruining it!"
Something in me, softened. I kissed the back of her hands looking into her soft eyes now, and suddenly the guilt sank in. I wasn't sure I could give her what she wanted, even the bare minimum felt like a lot.
She didn't give me a chance to respond, she just leaned in, our lips melting against each other. It was gentle at first but then it turned rough. We were like two people starved of kisses for five years.
Finally, we pulled apart and I rested my forehead against hers. " I really need to go," I said.
She narrowed her eyes. "Where?"
"I have a promise to keep, I need to embark on this journey, one I've been avoiding for long." I got up on my feet and she did too. "Ever since we were born, we have been separated, but now… now life has decided we must meet, I can't let him ruin things for us."
"No, Artemis, you don't have to, we can leave the country, travel to Cuba, she won't be able to find us…"
"I'll be back," I said quickly, though I wasn't sure I believed it. "But this is something I have to do."
Her eyes shimmered, but she nodded. She didn't try to stop me. She never did. She knew my duty came first.
~
I packed a few things and walked into the night, leaving my cabin behind. My boots sank into the dirt but I didn't care, all I wanted to do was get the daylight ring so things could return to normal.
But another part was looking forward to seeing my twin.
I've only heard about him but haven't seen him. Not since we were separated. I wonder what he was doing? Of course, my curiosity took over at one point and I did some research on him, what kind of life he was living, and it turned out he wasn't chasing me. He was a Swindler who never stayed in one location. And I swore never to find him again and yet here I was chasing him down like a criminal that he was some vampire lady who showed up on my doorstep threatening to kill Cressida.
The first place I knew he would always hang was the club.
That was where he always liked to hang, noise from the music, alcohol, targeting vulnerable women and men. If he were anywhere, it would be here.
The popular club Eden. It was the biggest in New Orleans. Even though I rarely went to clubs, the ring was a place I'll always prefer. It set me in the mood to stay on alert always while the club weakened you.
As I walked in the music from the bass greeted me, the place was crammed as usual; it was Friday, what do you expect? Nine pm, perfect time to swindle. The last time I saw my twin, he was winning the poker game so perfectly. I studied him carefully and I knew, nah, I wasn't ready for a reunion, at least not yet.
I wasn't even halfway in the building when I heard a loud Italian voice ring out.
"Hey, you! Mason!"
Despite the loud music I could still hear it, I slowly turned to see who it was ....But I never made it.
Someone or something slammed into the back of my head. Pain exploded in my skull as I fell to the floor. My vision blurred and my world was spinning.
That last thing I saw was unexplainable darkness swallowing everything.