CURE THE NIGHT By Harry Ubhi

CHAPTER TEN

He approached, cloaked, walking in slow movements towards him. He wasn’t alone, several vampires escorted him, their eyes blood red under the moonlight. Ethan saw a captive in their midst, the captive being shoved and pushed as the group made their way towards him.>

Ethan stood his ground, they came closer and closer, it was then Ethan recognized the captive, Darris!

***

Ethan opened his eyes, the dream has changed, he remembered Victor saying the curer dreamt of the originals, some of the past, some of the future and some are warnings… shit! Was Darris in some kind of trouble?. Since the odd events of yester night, he had left the vampire community, taking an excuse of wanting to tidy up some stuff. Ethan knew there was more to it, Darris still felt anger and remorse at same time.>

It took some seconds for Ethan to notice he wasn’t alone on his bed. Lowering his gaze, a smiling Amber rested her head on his bare chest, her hair sprawling over his chest as she looked at him with sparkling eyes, something peculiar to the half bloods.

“hey, were you watching me sleep?” Ethan asked

“yes, you’re cute when you sleep” She replied, beaming.

“come here” Ethan rolled her over, placing himself above her as he placed his weight on his elbows digging into the soft foam. He planted gentle kisses on her lips as she moved her arms around his neck again, he stopped her, remembering what happened last time she did that, getting in her grip wasn’t the problem, getting out was. Amber seemed to understand.

“I won’t hurt you” she giggled in between kisses

Ethan felt his mind being encroached again as their minds linked. He could hear her every thoughts, he searched her mind all he could see was Ethan, Ethan and more Ethan. Ethan kissed along her neck, she was receptive this time as she let out soft moans of pleasure. Like a voice speaking into his mind, he heard her

I love you Ethan

His heart skipped a beat, he knew she loved him, he had seen it in her mind but this was the first time she declared it. He knew she was waiting for a reply. Ethan raised his gaze to see her face, her face of anticipation as the link faded.

He did love her, she had made him love again, she had tamed him, broken his defenses, the tower he had built around his heart. He felt so protective even though logically, it’s the other way around. She was his world, his everything.

“I love you too, Am” He replied, filled with emotion.

Amber’s face lit up again at the words, it was like her life depended on it. “Am? I like it!” she said, kissing him again

The huge bang on the door ruined the moment.

“fu*k” Ethan cursed

Amber responded with silent giggles as the big bang continued at the door.

“I’m fu*king coming, jeez!” Ethan yelled, climbing down from bed, he glanced at the wooden wall clock, 5pm, almost dusk again. 

He turned the door knob and opened the door, it was Richard. His facial expression was of a scared guy.

“it’s Darris, he is gone! They have him” Richard rushed through the words

Ethan felt a piercing pain, his dream, was that the future? He punched the wall with his fist. “who has him”? Ethan asked, Amber was already by his side.

“the full bloods, they sent a mail, they know about you, Ethan. They want to make a trade, you for him”. Richard said.

Amber gasped, covering her mouth with her right hand as a wail threatened to burst through.

“does sir Victor know about this?” Ethan asked

“yes, he called for you they are waiting at the conference room” Richard replied

Ethan turned to Amber, her sparkling eyes turned red, a tear fell from her left eye prompting Ethan to hug her tight.

“it’s gonna be okay, Am” he assured

“will it?” Amber replied, clearly in a saddened voice

“I promise”. Ethan released her from the hug, walking past the door as he headed for the conference room behind a leading Richard.

***

The conference room was a huge hall with a long table at its center with several chairs around it. The chairs at the two extreme ends were huge and more exquisitely crafted than the rest. Several pictures were hung on the wall, most of them were of Victor in different centuries. There was also a picture of a woman in a white flowing gown, probably Amber’s mom, her hair white as snow. In another picture was a group of men, vampires as Ethan observed due to their visible fangs, they all posed around a man sitting on a chair, his face much darker than them all, he is Draco. Victor was to the far right in the picture and his gaze was on the man on the chair, Draco.>

The conference room wasn’t empty, Victor had taken his seat at one end of the long table, several other vampires, mostly men, had occupied the chairs around the table leaving the chair at the other extreme end of the table vacant. Ethan needed no soothsayer to tell him that seat was for him. Other vampires lurked around the hall as the sharp florescence at every corner illuminated the whole place.>

Ethan took the vacant seat, the hall silent as a graveyard. Amber stood behind her father’s seat, resting her right hand on his left shoulder.

“we all know why we are gathered here, the full bloods has decided to move the first piece” Victor said in his thunderous voice.

The murmur around the hall increased before dying down naturally

“they want to make a trade, Darris for the curer” Victor continued

“no way!” an anonymous voice yelled

“we might all be in great peril, for years Draco had pondered this secret hideout, he might get it out of Darris” one of the seated men said, his left eye missing.

“what do you say we do?” another said

“we are not going to run!, I say we take this as an opportunity to strike!” the one eyed man said

“we risk his life!” a clearly angry Lucy rose to her seat very close to Victor, Ethan didn’t notice her presence until now, she cast a fierce look at him. “he should go” she said pointing at Ethan, “what use is he of anyway? We survived without him for years, he is the cause of all these, he and Darris must have had a fight or something that made my mate leave. Curer or whoever he is, he is just human!, we…..”

“Lucy!” Victor yelled in his thunderous voice, the lights blinked several times before coming on again.

Lucy hushed, taking her seat again, still with the fierce look on her face. Ethan felt the urge to say something, she was right, he was just human but that was his greatest strength.

“Ethan has something to say” Amber said

Ethan had felt her in his head, he looked at her and felt the worry in her, the doubt, the uncertainty, it touched him and that was all it took to send determination, courage like a river down his spine.

“Darris and I never had a fight, he is a good guy, he felt guilty for something that wasn’t entirely his fault. I would do whatever it takes to get him back! Who says we can’t get him back and kick some fu*king full blood as* at same time?” Ethan said, agitatedly.

Cheers filled the hall and Ethan could swear he saw a hint of a smile on Victor’s face.

“now if you all may let me, I do have a plan” Victor said, the hall quieting down again.

Richard came up behind Victor’s seat, spreading a what seemed like a map on the table, as he revealed the plan. “the full bloods have made a proposal of an exchange of Ethan for Darris at the valley. As we all know, they will like to make the trade by night as they cant by day, Ethan and I will go into the valley towards the exchange point. Others shall situate themselves on top the mountains, far from sight and hearing of the full bloods. In the last few minutes, we have made purchase of UV lights, which we shall install on the mountains by day”

“UV lights?” Ethan asked, confused

“yes, the UV lights will be like our mini sun, it cannot kill the full bloods per say but it will weaken them, we shall put them on unexpectedly just before the exchange, that’s where the others come in , giving us the perfect opportunity to strike”. Richard continued

“that is the plan, tomorrow night, we make the exchange, is there anyone here with a much better idea?” Victor asked. The silence suggested not.

Victor stood, as everyone stood along in unison, he smashed his fist on the table.

“let’s kill some full bloods, shall we?” Victor said

Ethan could see his eyes going darker; someone has messed with the wrong guy.