That Horrible Moment E-Book

Angel Rupert

• Herausgeber: Bentockiz
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

She wasn’t sobbing, but tears escaped her eyes. I’d never thought of the possibility that my decision would make people cry. At least I hoped they wouldn’t. I hated upsetting people in any way, and this is only a first reaction.

Leseprobe

Title Page

That Horrible Moment

Genuine Soul

Angel Rupert

That Horrible Moment / 7th of series: Genuine Soul / By Angel Rupert

Published 2023 by Bentockiz

e-book Imprint: Uniochlors

e-book Registration: Stockholm, Sweden

e-book ISBN: 9789198846966

e-book editing: Athens, Greece

Cover Images created via AI art generators

Table of Contents

Title Page

Introduction

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Introduction

Through books we come into contact with everything important that has happened in the past, analyzing also current events and putting our thoughts together to predict the future. The book is a window to the world, acquiring valuable knowledge and sparking our vivid imagination. It is a means of entertainment and is generally seen as a best friend, or as a slave that carries together all valuable information for us. The book is a friend who stays together without demands, a friend you call upon at every moment and abandon when you want.

It accompanies us in the hours of boredom and loneliness, while at the same time it entertains us. In general, a book does not ask anything from us, while it waits patiently on a dusty shelf to give us its information, to get us out of dead ends and to travel us to magical worlds.

This may be the travel mission of our books. Abstract narration, weird or unconscious thoughts difficult to be understood, but always genuine and full of life experiences, these are stories of life that can’t be overlooked easily.

This may be the start of something amazing.

Chapter One

When I got back to the campsite, I found the group was still gone. I wanted to join them and enjoy the time I had left on this trip. It would be hard giving them the news that I wanted to live a normal life instead of being a vampire. It meant that I would go back to the deteriorated state I’d been in before Mona saved me. This time, it would be for a more honorable reason. I was going to let myself die to spare the lives I could take rather than dying because I was done fighting. Hopefully, they would understand.

“Lucas?” I heard Nicola call.

I slowly walked in the direction of her voice. Nicola was waiting for me by the tent. I tried to force a smile and knew it wasn’t believable. My emotions were all over my face.

“Hey Nic,” I said once I was standing in front of her. “Are the others back too?”

“No. I was worried, but Micah wouldn’t let me check on you. Gallard convinced him to ease up.” She gave me a funny look. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” I lied. “Much better.”

I walked past her, and we made our way to the picnic table close to the tents. This day had been too eventful for my liking, and I was ready for a few seconds of normalcy.

She sat down next to me, and I slowly lifted my legs over the bench to put them under the table. Nicola continued to stare at me as if I’d grown a tail and I pretended not to notice. I hated feeling like this.

“You look terrible,” Nicola said, reaching over to touch my hand. I jerked it away and made a point to move further down the bench to create more space between us.

“Please don’t touch me. I’m not safe for you.”

Nicola pulled her hand back and looked away. I knew I’d hurt her, and it only made it harder for what I had to say. I never thought I would find myself in any of these situations, but I was determined to get through them without feeling overwhelmed and having an episode. Who knew what would happen if I blacked out with the new power I had?

“Lucas, something’s wrong,” she said. “You’re acting strange.”

“I’m just tired. I haven’t slept in days, and I’ve barely had any blood. Maybe Gallard will let me sleep some more before we train.”

“What kind of training are you doing, exactly?”

“Well, for one, I can fly.”

She nudged me. “Get out of here. Are you telling me you sprout wings or something?”

“The guy who created vampires cursed the race to the form of bats because it was the animal most similar to us. He wasn’t powerful enough to keep them that way, so we were left with the ability to transform at will.”

I forced myself to sit up straighter and looked at her. Her auburn hair had hints of red that I hadn’t seen before and her golden eyes were captivating. They were filled with a sadness that made my chest ache because I knew I’d caused it.

“Nicola, why do you like me?” I asked.

She moved closer to me, and I didn’t try to avoid her this time.

“Because you’re weird and kind of a dope sometimes. Did I mention that you’re a big nerd?”

“Is that so?”

Nicola looked at me again. “I do find you slightly more tolerable than most men.” She swung her legs around so we were sitting in opposite directions. “And despite the fact that you’re a vampire who could rip my throat out at any time, you’re the kindest and most thoughtful man I’ve ever known.”

Thoughtful? That was flattering. But there were other words I found that fit me better. Dangerous, unpredictable, cowardly. And stupid. I couldn’t believe I’d made this decision. I had mostly done it for Nicola, but I still wished I’d thought it through some more. It didn’t matter now. Soon, I would be gone, and I wouldn’t be a threat to her anymore.

“You shouldn’t be with me,” I said. “This whole thing is pointless.”

“What’s pointless?” Her eyes saddened even more.

I started to say something when I saw the others returning. I was partially grateful they’d cut our conversation short because I wasn’t ready to tell her about my choice. I needed more time to think about how I would give her my news. First, I needed to tell my family.

“What’s pointless?” Lucian asked. He’d decided to butt into our conversation. I planned to tell them about my decision.

“Nosy much?” I said.

“Yes, I have been told from time to time that I am intrusive.” He sat on the table opposite me, and the others sat at the table as well. “So, what’s pointless?”

I studied Lucian as I contemplated giving my answer. After reading about all the terrible things he’d done to my family before becoming an ally and later a friend, it was hard to look at him the same way.

What kept me from completely changing my perception was the memories of how he’d taken care of me after my parents were forced to leave me behind If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have emotionally recovered from the separation from my family.

“Could I speak with you three,” I said to Gallard, David, and Lucian. “Alone?”

The three of them nodded, and they headed for the woods. I didn’t want to talk to them there, but it wasn’t like we had very many options. I glanced over at Micah and asked him with my eyes if he wanted to come. He shook his head then suggested to the women that they go on a hike. Abe, of course, wasn’t leaving Robin’s side. All but J.D. agreed, so the two of us went to join the others in the woods.

Once we had gathered, I took a second to think about how I would break the news to them.

“After the incident this morning and reading my mother’s journal, I’ve been doing some thinking,” I began. “I . . . I don’t think that I want to—”

“No,” Gallard said. He looked like I’d just run over his dog with my car.

“You don’t even know what I was going to say!”

J.D. sucked in her breath, and I turned to see she’d started crying. She wasn’t sobbing, but tears escaped her eyes. I’d never thought of the possibility that my decision would make people cry. I doubted Gallard or Lucian would cry. At least I hoped they wouldn’t. I hated upsetting people in any way.

“You’ve changed your mind about all this, haven’t you?” David asked.

I couldn’t answer him out loud, so I nodded. Instantly, the expressions of everyone present became so filled with despair that I nearly changed my mind right then and there.

“Okay,” he said. “I guess we’ll take you back to Miami then.”

“Wait, that’s it? You’re not going to try and talk me out of it?”

“No, I’m not. I think your lying in a hospital bed dying of organ failure and starvation will do that for you.”