Authors: Morgan Rice
Loved (20 page)
“I’m so sorry, Caity,” Sam whimpered. “Please. Give her the sword. Don’t let her kill me.”
A tense silence blanketed them, as Caitlin clearly debated.
Rose began to snarl, heading slowly towards Samantha.
“Okay,” Caitlin finally yelled out. “If I give you the sword, you’ll let him go?”
“Yes. Throw it down,” Samantha ordered. “On the floor. Slowly.”
Caitlin hesitated another moment.
Then, suddenly, she threw the sword.
It landed with a clang on the floor, in the center of the aisle. Equidistant between her, Caleb, and Samantha.
At that moment, Rose ran and lunged for Samantha.
And Samantha aimed and fired at Rose.
*
There was suddenly a crash at the door, and in a blur of speed, Kyle and Sergei stormed in.
In the already chaotic room, this unexpected twist threw everyone off guard.
Kyle took advantage of the confusion.
Before anyone could react, he raced down the aisle, and in one blow, he managed to knock both Sam and Samantha unconscious. Her gun went skidding to the floor.
Caleb didn’t lose a beat. He raced right for the sword, which was still sitting on the floor.
But Kyle spotted it, too, and was dashing right behind him.
Before Caleb could reach it, Kyle jumped on top of him, smashing him in the back with his elbow, and knocking him to the floor.
Kyle landed on top of him, and the two of them, equally matched in strength, began to wrestle, only feet away from the sword.
Sergei took advantage of the confusion. He raced down the aisle, heading for the sword himself.
Caitlin had initially been too shocked by all the chaos, but now she jumped into action. She had to save Caleb. Kyle was on top of him, gaining the upper ground, and raising his thumbs to his eyes to gouge them out.
She jumped off the pulpit, flying through the air and landing 15 feet below, on the church floor. She raced towards Kyle, and with one blow kicked him hard in the ribs, sending him, just in time, flying off of Caleb.
And then, suddenly, without warning, Caitlin was in a world of pain.
She shrieked, as she felt cold metal piercing her back, her skin, her intestines, coming out through her stomach, then leaving just as quickly.
As she sank to her knees, she could feel the blood racing up through her throat, her mouth, her teeth, dripping down her chin.
In her shock, her agony, she looked down, and realized she’d been stabbed from behind. Through the back. By the sword.
“NO!” sobbed Caleb, as he turned to her, rushing to her side.
Caleb was so distracted, he did not see Sergei, standing over them, holding the bloody sword, pleased at his work, grinning an evil grin.
“You killed me before my time,” he snarled down at Caitlin. “Now I have returned the favor.”
Sergei suddenly raced off, darting down the aisle of the church.
Kyle scurried to his feet and raced after him, and out the front door.
As they ran past her, Samantha regained consciousness, and in one quick motion, she grabbed a hold of the unconscious Sam, hoisted him over her shoulder, and bounded off after them.
The church was now empty, save for Caitlin and Caleb. And Rose, lying off to the side, whimpering, bleeding.
“Caitlin!” Caleb cried, as he held her shoulders. He leaned over her, caressing her face, and could feel the tears streaming down his cheeks.
He had been too shocked by seeing her hurt to even think of the sword. He knew, somewhere in the back of his mind, that the others had left the building, were getting away, that they had the sword. The sword he had spent his whole life sworn to protect.
But now, seeing her lying there, bleeding, dying, it was all he cared about. Caitlin.
As she lay on her back on the church floor, Caitlin felt the world get so cold. She felt tremendous pain gnawing away at her back and stomach, felt the blood leaving her body quickly, and, dimly, felt Caleb’s hands on her face, holding her head.
She looked up and saw the church ceiling. And Caleb. She saw his beautiful face, looking down.
She knew she was dying. But despite everything, despite all the pain, she didn’t feel much sadness for herself. Instead, she felt sadness at the idea of not being with him.
“Caitlin,” Caleb said, sobbing. “Please. Don’t go. Don’t leave me!”
He cried as he rocked her.
Caitlin looked up into his large eyes, now a shade of black, and tried to focus on them.
Don’t go.
But she couldn’t.
“Caitlin,” he said, between tears. “I want you to know. I see it. I know who we were together. In our past lives. Now I can see it all,” he said.
Caitlin tried to speak, tried to find the words, but her vocal cords were closing up. Her throat was so dry, and the blood was garbling everything. She tried, but it came out in barely a whisper.
“What?” Caleb asked, leaning over close. “Say it again.”
He leaned all the way over, putting his ear to her mouth.
“Turn…me,” she said.
He stared at her in horror, not sure if he’d heard correctly.
With her last ounce of strength, Caitlin reached up and grabbed his shirt, pulled him as close to her as she could.
“Turn me!” she commanded.
It was the very last bit of strength she had.
As her eyes closed on her, she felt the world slipping out from under her.
And the last thing she saw was Caleb, getting closer, closer, his two front teeth protruding, longer, and longer, as he leaned.
And then she felt the exquisite pain in her neck, as his two teeth punctured her skin.
And then her world was blackness.
FACT VERSUS FICTION
FACT:
In Salem, in 1692, a dozen teenage girls, known as “the afflicted,” experienced a mysterious illness that led them all to become hysterical and to independently scream out that local witches were tormenting them. This led to the Salem witch trials. The mysterious illness that gripped these teenage girls has never, to this day, been explained.
FACT:
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s most famous work,
The Scarlet Letter
, is based upon the life of a real woman, Elizabeth Paine, who lived in Salem, and who was punished for refusing to reveal the identity of her baby’s father.
FACT:
Nathaniel Hawthorne did more than just write about Salem: he was a lifelong resident, and came from many generations of Salem residents. His great grandfather was one of the main prosecutors in the Salem witch trials. Hawthorne’s house is preserved, and it remains intact in Salem to this day.
FACT:
In Boston in the 1600s, Witches were hung on the hilltop of Beacon common.
FACT:
Elizabeth Paine is buried in the King’s Chapel burial ground in Boston. Her tombstone is clearly visible, in the first row of graves, beside the chapel.
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COMING SOON…
Book #3 in the Vampire Journals
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Also by Morgan Rice
TURNED (Book #1 in the Vampire Journals)
