Shadows of Love
Human Sunshine
Sun woke early in the afternoon and slipped quietly from the bed. Draven's death
slumber always fascinated her but she didn't have time to watch him sleep today.
She needed to try to get back to her dad's house to grab her journal and her
bank book.
Draven had paid for everything for her from the moment she opened her eyes that
night, but now she wanted to pull her own weight. Her grandparents put money in
an account for her when she was younger and she had plenty of money to pay for
her own food and clothes.
So she snuck out of the house while the vampires were sleeping and somehow
managed to avoid the only other human that lived in the house. She had her
driver's license but the sun felt so good on her face that she decided to walk
the few blocks to the house. A decision she would later come to regret.
Stopping two doors down she waited and watched the house. Star checked the mail,
came back out to sit on the porch swing then went back in. After she'd made sure
that her father wasn't there, Sun ran up the steps and opened the door quickly.
Slipping into the house silently, she took the stairs two at a time and tiptoed
into her room closing the door very quietly.
She was going through her nightstand looking for the bank book when she heard
the footsteps stop at her door. Her eyes closed and she stifled a scream when
she smelled the Old Spice in the air. He was here.
Her fear held her in place for just a second too long. Before she knew what was
happening her body was flying across the room. Hitting the wall and sliding down
it, she still held the scream choked in her throat. She wouldn't give him the
satisfaction of that scream even if it meant her death.
Her father's fist connected with her jaw hard and he yanked her to her feet by
her hair. His cursing filled the room and Sun could only make out a few words.
Vampire whore, stupid slut, these were all words she'd heard before. She
wouldn't give in. She'd promised herself that she'd never let her father see her
cry ever again and she planned to keep that promise.
She stood her ground as his fist connected with her nose, the blood flowing as
it broke. She never made a sound. Inside she was silently screaming for Draven
and she prayed that he'd be able to make it in time. For the first time in her
life she cursed the sun.
Her father picked up the baseball bat she kept hidden behind her bed and swung
hard. The last thought that went through her mind was to beg her Dusk to not
risk himself for her.
Draven's eyes flew open. He couldn't feel her and for the first time in his
existence Draven Blood was terrified. His growl shook the windows of the house
and he sped for the door. The sun was setting as he stepped out the door. He
opened himself fully to the pull of their bond trying to get a feel of where Sun
was.
Within seconds he was standing in front of her father's home. He burst through
the door and flew up the stairs. Fear gripped him when he saw the blood pooled
on the floor of her bedroom. Hoping it wasn't hers he ran a finger through it
and brought it his lips. A loud snarl escaped him when he tasted her.
He sensed Star before he ever saw her. Turning slowly he faced the younger girl,
noticing her tears.
“Where is she?” he growled.
Star shook her head and cried harder. “I don't know,” she
sobbed.
“Think hard, Star. Her life depends on it.” He paced the room, frantic and
angry.
Star stood silent for what seemed a lifetime for Draven.
“Grammy's house,” she whispered. Star looked up at him, pleading, “Don't let him
kill her. She's all I have.”
Draven didn't wait to hear the rest of what she had to say. He sped out of the
house and tried desperately to feel her through their bond.
Sun lay in the bed of her father's truck, her heart barely beating. Every bump
jarred the broken bones and bruised her even more. Her eyes opened as her body
screamed in agony. Crossing the railroad tracks sent her spiraling back into the
darkness. She'd lost the connection with Draven and felt completely alone,
knowing that her father intended to leave her for dead or worse.
She tried desperately to open her eyes when he drug her from the truck and
across the yard. She could smell the pine needles on the ground beneath her,
could feel the rocks digging into her flesh. His name came out in a single
breath.
“Dusk.”
Draven growled even louder, running as fast as his vampire speed would take him
towards her. He could feel Sun slipping away from him, could feel her pain and
it nearly brought him to his knees. He reached her grandmother's estate just in
time to see her father drag her into the barn.
Speeding towards her, he caught her father and threw him across the field. Not
bothering to look back he dropped to his knees and tore into his wrist, pressing
it to her mouth, demanding that she drink.
He waited long enough for his blood to dull the pain enough before picking her
up and speeding her back to the nest. He forced her to drink once more while
silently begging her to live.
Sun pushed his wrist away, opening her eyes slowly for a second and whispering
to him. “No, let me feel this. Let me be human, Dusk.”
Shaking his head, he let the bloody tears fall at how strong this tiny little
human girl truly was. She never ceased to surprise him with the strength she
could find to survive anything. He was proud of her for never giving in or
giving up.
For two weeks she lived with bruises and pain. The bones healed slowly and he
suspected that her heart never would. As much as she tried to hide it, he could
feel her pain as if it were his own. He never mentioned it, just absorbed it and
sent her comfort.
Eventually her body healed and she was back to the Sunshine whose smile lit up
his nights. But she was never truly the same after that night. It was as if she
realized just how fragile her life really was. How important being Sunshine was
to her and how he'd risk anything to save her.
They never spoke of that night at her request. She wanted to forget it but
Draven knew that she never would. This would be the memory that haunted her for
eternity. The moment she realized that she wasn't immortal.
TO BE CONTINUED....