I've Been Waiting For You

Chapter 57

"Do you think he mated with him?"

  The dark shadow perched on the rusted iron rails, scraping its long ragged nails against the marbled slab, leaving long deep scratches embedded into the surface. 

"He belongs to me. I don't care about his mating mark or who he's mated with."

  Fire danced across the interior from lit several torches, revealing skulls decorating the walls. An altar stood in the middle of the room surrounded by lit red candles which illuminated a reddish glint throughout the cave.

  A dark and dreary place where the air is thick with humidity, and the sound of water dripping from the stalactites.  

"It's going to be burdensome if he's mated. It'll just be hitch in my plans."

"Don't worry about those small details."

  Another dark figure stood, peering into a black book as sizzling black smoke erupted from a cauldron. Black liquid spilled over the sides, decorating the misshapen slab shaped like a table.

"He's hardly alone these days. They're keeping a tighter watch over him."

"Keep monitoring him. Those two guardians won't be with him all the time. He'll be celebrating his birthday soon and I've already received my invitation."

"What about his parents?"

"We'll have to find a way to separate them. His parents are too powerful for us to confront."

"Have they told him?"

"They're still keeping it a secret but we can work it to our advantage. If we get him on our side, we'll be indestructible."

  The shadow slither along the floor, fusing with the darkness of the cave.

"He's very strong-willed."

"They all submit sooner or later."

"The others have failed. What makes him so special that..." 

  The voice trailed off as a veined vase was thrown against the wall, smashing to pieces on the floor. The sound resonating in the deserted cave. The shadow approached the veiled figure, its nail skimming its robe.

"If anything happens to Markus, I'll make sure there isn't enough of you to sift through."

  The hooded figure trembled at the venomous words issuing that warning. It took a vial from its robe and filled it with the dark liquid, sealing the lid with acid.

"I've managed to acquire the right dosage this time. He needs to drink the entire contents."

"Will it cause him any harm?"

"No, it won't. He'll be malleable."

  The shadow was filled with jocundity, that its evil grin permeated pure coldness. Even though it wasn't at full strength, the thought of finally making Markus a part the underworld was a dark pleasure. His scent was enough to cause undeniable gratification. 

"This scent of his has a permanent mark on my soul. I've seen the way people's eyes lose focus and they go into a trance just talking to him."

"How is it possible that he was born with that particular scent?"

"The combination of two Supernatural creatures that were forbidden to love one another. They fought for the right to be together."

  Admiration could be heard.

"What about his mate, Mitchell? What are we going to do about him?"

"We should keep a close eye on him too. There's something mysterious regarding his origin and he doesn't seem to be an ordinary human."

"We can't have history repeating itself." The shadow took the vial from the veiled figure and stared at it. 

"Get him alone, have him drink this by any means necessary. No delay. When it's empty, take him into an empty room, and he's all yours. He'll be aware of his actions but won't be able to hold back."

"When the time comes, keep everyone distracted. I'll take care of the rest."

  The veiled figure held up a gloved hand, "If you fail and get captured, I won't be able to help you."

"I won't fail."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What time are your parents arriving Tuesday?" Mitchell asked, closing the car door. 

"2 p.m. on scheduled"

"So, we have two more days."

  Markus honked his horn at Kev before pulling out of the parking lot of the diner. He glanced in the rear-view mirror and saw Kev's vehicle tailing the back of his car.

  Mitchell tapped his finger on the dashboard, looking out the window. He would never get tired of Pine Crest soft colors scenery. It was really breathtaking. 

"After classes Tuesday, I'll take you to my house."

"Do I need to bring anything?"

"Change of clothes." Markus said with a sidelong glance at Mitchell.  

"No, I meant..."

"I know what you meant. Relax Mitchell, my parents will not be expecting you to bring anything."

  Both cars parked in front of his house and everyone exited their vehicles to walk up the driveway to the door. When he opened the door, his mom was standing by the window looking into the backyard.

"Hey, mom, what are you doing?"

  She turned to them with a smile on her face. "I was just looking at the garden."

"The garden?"

  Mitchell eyed his mother suspiciously. She was obviously lying to him. But why?

"You're just in time for dinner."

  The four exchanged looks with each other as she passed them to go into the kitchen.

"I  hope you guys are hungry because I've prepared a lot of food."

"Why?" Mitchell asked his mom as he sat down next to Markus at the table.

"Well, after you disappeared this morning,  I thought I should prepare dinner just in case we have company." She said, taking down plates from the cupboard. 

"Here, let me help you Sarah." Markus stood up to assist her.

"Thank you, Markus." She said placing the dishes on the table, along with the food.

"No problem."

"How are you feeling now?" She asked Markus when the table was set. 

  Markus looked over at Mitchell, staring at him with a smile. "I'm feeling much better. I just needed to replenish my energy with a good hard workout." He said brazenly.

  Mitchell could be feel the warmth of a blush as it crawled up his neck at Markus's implied words. He feigned indifference, and avoid eye contact with him but he heard Kev snigger. 

  Mitchell picked up his glass and took a sip of his drink. 

"I'm happy Mitchell was there to help you."

  Mitchell couldn't wait for dinner to be over.