Under your spell {A Vampire Romance}

Under your spell {A Vampire Romance} [#11]

Original Publish Date: 5/12/2009

 I woke with a gasp of air, as if I’d just surfaced from almost drowning or was taking a new breath of air for the first time. The first thing I registered was the cold sweat drenching me from head to toe. I knew my temperature was high but my body began to shiver nonetheless.

 Then came the pain. I tried to move and every limb of my body screamed in protest, pounding with pressure in rhythm with my heart. Someone was screaming and as I fought through the layers of drowsiness back to my senses, I realized it was me. My throat hurt worse than perhaps even my body but I couldn’t control the sobs and screams I reacted to the pain with.

 I didn’t know where the hell I was, what was going on, or why I was even in pain.

 Suddenly I felt a large pair of hands grip me firmly and I began to struggle, as much as it hurt to do so. They didn’t let go though, and I was wearing out fast due to the weakness of my body. Everything felt unreal to me, like a very bad and very painful nightmare. What little I could make out of the shapes in the darkness began to spin and I felt myself slipping away into yet another state of unconsciousness…

 My eyes quickly fluttered open to a room similar to Lucian’s, illuminated only by various herbal candles scattered here and there. I didn’t dare try to move in case what I had dreamt actually turned out to be real. I tipped my head ever so slightly and very carefully to the side to look down at my arm.

 I gasped in fright. What I saw scared me more than when I saw the arrow through my arm. There was a large bandage over the entry point, thank god, but every vein in my arm that spread from that point was black and very much visible.

 Trying to move my arm proved useless, it was practically dead at my side. I tried to call out for help but my throat was so dry it came out as a muffled croak. Tears began to burn behind my eyes and all I wanted to do was scream. I felt like I was going to die just sitting there helplessly, my body thundering with every kind of pain imaginable. The tears that threatened finally spilled over and traced rivers down my cheeks. What if my arm was poisoned and I was about to die? Where is everyone when you need them?

 Suddenly the door burst open and Lucian rushed in to kneel at my side. “Noelle…” He said my name repeatedly as if he were cherishing it, like it was the greatest thing in the world. He took my good hand and laid kisses all along my knuckles, my palm, and each individual fingertip. I wanted to knock him senseless but couldn’t muster up the strength. Lucian looked up and saw me glaring at him, which made him laugh and me want to punch him more.

 “You may not want me around right now, but this is the only time where you can’t kick my ass to make me leave. I’m staying with you Noelle.” He gave me a sympathetic smile then slid onto the bed next to me. I wished I could move away but my body shuddered at the thought, which sent prickles of pain all over me.

 Lucian held my hand between both of his and lay back against the pillows to close his eyes. I didn’t want to look at him, but no matter how hard I tried, my eyes kept straying to his face. Among his masculine beauty – a beauty beyond comparison – there were lines of strain and his forehead creased every now and then in worry. I came to find through all of my studying of him, that not only was he the most beautiful thing I had ever laid eyes on, but he was also the most puzzling.

 There was no telling how long I watched Lucian as he breathed steadily in his sleep, but suddenly my gaze was ripped away by the slamming of the bedroom door. Seilauna walked in at a furious pace and threw papers down into Lucian’s lap, who was now wide awake.