Chapter 9

He was making towards me, but his footsteps stilled as he catches sight of me. His perfect black eyes widen, and I see joy and elation flitting through them. He gives me the biggest, blinding smile that I’ve seen in my entire life.

The love written in those black orbs of his make me tingle. I feel some part of me reciprocating the idea, though I don’t know anything about him. Nothing at all. Everything about him is so familiar, yet so unfamiliar. I had long come to the conclusion that he was in my past, before-amnesia self, but he must have played a large role in my life for my body to have such reactions.

“It really is you, Seraphina. You’re alive… I’m not dreaming…” His eyes well up in tears, and while it should have looked funny on a man as… handsome and well built as him, it made him more masculine. Everything about him was so defined… the sharpness of his gaze was like a knife staking through me.

I find myself smiling back at him, lovingly, without knowing why. My body naturally reacts to him, to his presence. His entire presence fills me with so much warmth that I feel like crying myself.

He begins taking small steps towards me, as if he were afraid that if he ran towards me, I would turn into mist. I am dimly aware the Ren is still fighting the Dragos vampires behind him, but I wait for him all the same.

“We couldn’t find you for so long… I didn’t lose faith, but I was losing confidence… But it doesn’t matter. You’re alive, and here! Seraphina, my love. Fina…” He moaned my nickname as if it hurt him so much to say it. He moaned it as if it were the sweetest medicine to his worst ache, and my heart melted.

My mind was a cloudy mess, and through it I desperately searched for his name. It felt so close on my lips. I almost had it on my lips.

L…Lor…Lorc…

Sharp pain stabbed through my head as if I’d just been shot a bullet. It felt like electricity had zapped through me, and I couldn’t help but fall to my knees, clutching at my head as if it were bleeding and my brain were drowning in the blood. I couldn’t even make a single noise of pain, for I was too caught up at holding up my head, afraid that it would fall into tiny shards if I didn’t.

“Fina!” He yelled, and I dimly saw him continuing his progress towards me. He was a few steps away from me, but pulled himself in a halt when a new presence appeared at my side.

“Princess, don’t try to think. Your body is not ready yet –don’t force the memories out.” A familiar voice fills my ear, and though his warmth seeps through my skin where he is supporting me with a hand on my arm, the warmth of the vampire standing before us overwhelms me.

I have to remember his name. I just have to…

“It’s you again! You betrayed us, and here you have the guts to hold on to Seraphina! Let her go and return to your beloved brother!” The man I desired for shouted at Kain, hostility open in his voice. Bringing on Kain’s lent strength, I pulled myself to my feet, desperate to get more of him. If I could just get to him, touch him, maybe breathe him in… maybe I could remember something. Just a name or maybe why I felt so longing for him.

“My loyalty has lain in the same place, within the same person for as long as I live. Do not doubt it, and I will never return to my brother’s ranks.” Kain’s voice is cold like ice; a quality of danger that you have never heard from him, until now.

“I don’t care where your loyalty lies, Kain. Give Seraphina back to us. She belongs with us, not with you.” The man fought back valiantly, and while my body wished so much to just get to him, I was too terrified at the unknown to move. Kain was familiar territory. Kain was protecting me. That much I knew. I wanted to know this man, but I wasn’t sure if he truly wanted to protect me, no matter how much I desired him.

“She will be safe with me. You take care of Dante and Kelsey and let her worry less while she fights to regain what is rightfully hers.”

“Dante and Kelsey need her too! Why can’t you see that you’re not protecting her but hurting her? You hurt her once, and you want to do it again!” The man was half-angered, half-begging. The pain in his voice hurt me too. Why was his hurt so strong?

“I hurt her once, for you led her to turn against me. Yes, she is yours. But I will not let her be harmed again until she regains what is hers. Until she has her kingdom back, I suggest you stay away and let me help her. After that; you will never see me or the Dragos ever again. After that, feel free to brainwash her. Feel free to tell her anything; only love her.”

“You will only harm her!” He stepped even closer, and I extended my hand desperately, desire burning within me. All I want is just to touch him, and feel him underneath my fingertips. That’s all I want… and I’ll remember something. I just knew it; I would remember something.

Kain’s arms snaked around my waist and pulled me back, keeping me in his soft, warm embrace. He puts his lips against the back of my head, sniffing in my hair; the action of gentleness shocking me so much that my hand just dropped, and I turned within his grasp to see him smiling at me so sadly that it broke my heart.

“How can I harm you, Princess? How can I ever harm you when I love you so much? How can I ever harm you when you are all there is in my life, when you are in my every thought, my every dream and every breath?” He whispers softly, a soft finger trailing down my cheekbones. The shock of his sudden declaration had me staring at him with wide eyes, but his smile is so painful. His hand smoothes my hair, and it feels like a lover’s caress.

“Ren, come. We have to go.” He says suddenly, breaking our sudden air of passion. I return to reality, finding the man only a few steps away, but frozen. The mixture of expression thrown on his face fills me with such pain.

Our fellow companion is finally done with the Dragos vampires and bounds towards us with the speed of a well-built athlete. The man’s attention breaks finally to watch the mage running towards where Kain is still holding on tightly to me, never willing to let go.

“So that’s how you keep her hidden… The mage…”

“Ren hides all vampires within his radius. If you, Dante or Kelsey can’t find her; then the Dragos cannot. If you love her, you will let Dante and Kelsey meet her. But only on my circumstances, and she must never meet you again until she regains her kingdom.” Kain says sternly, and the man staggers back, as if he’d been shot by a bullet.

“Must… I stay back for her sake?” He asks weakly, and I feel the need to break out of Kain’s embrace, to get to him and pull him in my arms, to comfort him and stroke his hair the way Kain has done mine.

“I caused this mess; I clean up this mess. If you love her and cherish her, then you will leave her in my protection and back off. You will take care of Dante and Kelsey and put her at ease about the security of her siblings. That is your role.” Kain’s voice holds no comfort for him, and I begin to struggle a little, my eyes only on him as Ren reaches our side. Kain’s arms are now a shackle for me more than a soft embrace, and I desperately clawed, desire burning.

“Seraphina, my love…… Is that your wish? Is this what you want? For me to stay behind the scenes, to do nothing except love you with all my heart?” His voice is now soft, pleading and bleeding as he watches me try to claw away from Kain’s embrace.

“L-Lor…” I tried to say his name, but only half of it comes out right. I don’t know the second syllable to his name, no matter how much I tried to come up with it. I dig through my mind again, attempting to place a name a second time, but it doesn’t come. My head explodes again, and my legs turn to jelly.

Kain’s arms around me support me, preventing me from falling to the ground as he presses my head close to his warm chest, my arms now losing energy to even fight him.

“She can’t remember you. When she crashed, she lost all her memories. She is not the Seraphina that you once knew. She is tame, unknowing. She’s not the woman you met; she forgot her experiences in the kingdom; the things that built her up the way she was. Seraphina is a raw gem now; she’ll be molded the way she’s cut.” Kain says, but my head is threatening to split open. I squeeze my eyes shut to try to deal with the pain, but energy has drained out of my body.

“Seraphina!” He calls as I go limp, but Kain keeps hold of me, still holding me to him.

“Let her go. I’ll let her return to you when she’s done regaining all that is hers. Until then… stop causing her so much pain.” Kain says softly, almost pleadingly.

“How do I help her regain her memories? I’ll do anything!” He begs too.

“Bring Dante and Kelsey. Ren will contact you on the meeting.” Kain instructs, and before more can be said, I felt a soft wind breeze pick up.

“Seraphina! Kain!” I hear his call of our names one last time, and we’re away from Mainland California.

Silence is all around us, and I feel myself back in the embrace of the silence of the island.

“Kain, you’re back so early? Ren? Princess? Why are you guys here? What happened to her?” I hear Mila’s voice far away, but making towards us as I struggle to keep my consciousness. I force my eyes open a crack, and watched blurrily as the two vampires make towards us.

Kain began walking, still holding on to me, carrying me.

Ren follows sheepishly, hanging his head.

“I will have a talk with you. All of you.” The tone of voice from Kain’s is frosty; a tone of voice that promised that the talk wouldn’t turn out right. Mila and Gabriel exchanged looks, and then hang their heads like naughty children caught breaking the furniture.

“K-Kain…” I breathed softly, my head still pounding.

“Yes, Seraphina?” He asks, but his tone is immediately soft and gentle, as if he wasn’t burning with anger inside, as if he isn’t smoldering with rage inside, waiting to unleash on our companions for letting me run to Mainland.

“D-Don’t scold them…… It’s not fair… to keep them locked on the island… R-Ren is still human… he still craves life…… I w-wanted to go there…”

“I know… Shh, just sleep and rest.” Kain cooed, but I know he’s trying to placate me.

“Don’t… It’s not their fault…… It was mine… Ren saved us from… the Dragos… I’m… sorry.”

“Just don’t be so silly the next time, Seraphina… I thought you were in danger when you appeared back on my radar, and neither Mila nor Gabriel was there with you.”

“I’m sorry…”

Kain walked us up the steps to the mansion.

“It’s alright. Just sleep and rest. It’s been quite a day.” Kain says softly, and I feel finally at ease again. Even though my head hurts, I smile as Kain tucks me into bed.

“Sleep, princess.” He says softly, kissing the back of my hand before he draws the covers over me.

“Kain…” I stop him before he walks out the door. He stops, and turns around to look at me curiously.

“Thank you…”