The Man In The Mountain (The Vampire Series - Book 1)

Chapter 17 - Old Friends, New Problems

Persephone was anxiously waiting in the airport with Kit. He seemed overwhelmed by the building. They were able to keep his mind occupied by talking about whether or not Twilight vampires were faster than planes. With a lot of googling and some math they ultimately came to the answer of no they weren't. They heard the announcement for the Denver flight landing, and Kit started bouncing anxiously on his heels, rocking up to look around. His face suddenly lit up with one of the biggest grins they'd seen on him and he started running, seemingly barely remembering to not go too fast, towards two men at the front of a group.

"Ercole! Victoire!" They looked over to him and matched his grin, rushing forward. They slammed into him, embracing him strongly, and started kissing him on the cheek, Kit grabbing their faces and returning the gesture with gusto. Persephone felt relief and a large amount of happiness for him. His friends were alive and doing well. Kit got to continue his life in a way even though the world around him had changed. They could hear them talking in loud and excited French, and they introduced him to a younger man who looked like he was in his early twenties, Kit leaning down to exchange kisses with him as well while shaking his hand. He also shook the hands of three other people, two women and another man, all of them following Kit over. Victoire and Ercole were walking on either side of Kit, arms linked with his as they chatted.

"Victoire, Ercole, je presente Persephone, Dillion, et Alex, mon amis," he said, that flawless French rolling from his mouth. "Persephone, Alex and Dillion, meet my friends Victoire and Ercole!" He said. The one on his left stepped forward with a close-mouthed smile, holding out his hand. He was shorter, with silky black hair excellently styled and pale, flawless skin. He was wearing a large pair of sunglasses and a three piece navy blue suit with a matching wool peacoat.

"Enchante! Any friend of Christopher's is a friend of ours!" He said with a strong French accent. "I am Victoire Laroque, and zis is my husband, Ercole," he said, gesturing to the man on Kit's other side, much taller with dark brown hair and a scruffy beard. He and Kit were built nearly identically, both massive, solid walls of muscle that towered above the crowd. He was wearing jeans and brown leather boots, with a nice gray shirt and a black leather jacket. "And zis is our son, Anton," the young man waved from behind Ercole, other hand in his hoodie pocket. He was lanky, with shaggy, sandy blonde hair and blue eyes.

"It's such a pleasure to meet all of you. These are my best friends, Dillion and Alex," they gestured to the girls. The three men each shook their hands, exchanging pleasantries before Kit grabbed the couple by the shoulders.

"TON MARI?" He said in shock. They laughed and nodded, and Kit immediately started rapidly talking to them in French while hugging them tightly.

"He's asking about their wedding," Anton said with a smile, seeing the lost look on their faces. "Allow me to introduce the rest of our group. This is Daniella, Stefan, and Eliana. Daniella and Stefan are married, and Eliana is their human girlfriend," the three others stepped forward with smiles. Daniella was a tall brunette woman with vibrant blue-green eyes, Stefan an equally tall Mexican man with a kind smile, and Eliana was a relatively short brunette with olive skin and a massive grin. Persepehone were almost knocked off their asses with how gorgeous Daniella and Stefan were.

"Lovely to meet you three," Daniella said with a smile.

"Tara is going to lose her goddamn mind," Dillion said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Oh yes," Persephone said lowly. "It's really great to meet you, really. Thank you for coming, we really appreciate it," they reached out and shook all their hands. "If you're alright with it, we rented two vans to take you to the hotel and we can also give you a ride to pick up the car you rented later as well."