Life felt so short.
***
Just after midnight, the party died down and the guests said their goodnights. Helena plopped herself down in the sand between Jess and Ann. They stared at the dwindling flames, listening to the low crackle of the logs and the crashing waves in the background.
"Thanks Lena, that was the best birthday I've ever had," Jess said and squeezed Helena's hand.
Helena put one arm around Ann and the other around Jess. "Love you guys."
"Love you too, Lena," Ann said.
Helena wished she could bottle this one moment in time and keep it safe forever.
Forever. She sighed inwardly. How silly. Nothing is forever. Change was the one constant in the universe; this much she knew. Lately, the air was thick with it, like a sticky mist blanketing everything around her. Even her bones knew it was coming.
Seeking refuge from her dark thoughts, her mind gravitated toward those deep chocolate-brown eyes and thick mane of shiny black hair. She sighed. Was he her future? Her new steady rock in the endlessly evolving universe?
"Heeey. Got any for us?" a gruff voice spoke out from behind them.
Helena sprang up and turned to find a hulking man staggering toward the fire. He looked disheveled and was clearly inebriated.
"This is a private party." Helena crossed her arms.
The large man stepped into the firelight, providing a better look. He wore only a leather vest and dirty jeans. His heavily inked biceps were the size of footballs, which he made a point to display by crossing his arms over his chest.
"Private? Don't be rude. I don't like rude people." Another six men approached and stood behind him.
Crap! Not good.
The large man moved toward Helena. Sinister intentions flared in his bloodshot eyes.
She swallowed. They were three girls, including her, against seven nasty looking men. "We're just leaving; take what you want." Helena grabbed her purse and tossed it to the man's feet. She only needed her keys to survive, and those babies were in her pocket.
Helena glanced at her friends. Jess had her cell casually gripped in one hand and was likely trying to hit the emergency call feature.
Not going to work. Helena had checked her own cell multiple times throughout the evening, hoping Niccolo might have called, but there was no reception out here. Must have been why Ann called from a payphone earlier, now that she thought about it. How ironic. They'd come to this beach to avoid being hassled by police or party crashers. Now she'd give anything for the former.
Helena looked at her friends again. The glow of the firelight revealed the panicked looks on their faces. If they stuck together, they'd have a chance.
"Let's go," Helena said to Ann and Jess.
One of the men moved to the path that cut through the sandbank and wooded area to the dirt parking lot. "You're not going anywhere, bitch," the large man said. "We came for a party. You and your friends are going to give it to us."
Like hell we are. I've survived jungles and vampires; you don't know who you're messing with. Helena racked her brain. Jess, Ann, and Helena were in great shape. They ran on the beach every day-okay, three times a week-and surfed all the time. These guys were big, but clearly weren't athletes. Or sober. Or felony free. We have to run for it.
At the far end of the beach was another trail that led back up to the dirt parking lot. If they ran fast enough, they'd get to their cars before the scumbags caught up.
Helena gave a knowing look at her friends. "Run!"
As if they'd been thinking the exact same thing, the girls turned in unison and sprinted toward the far end of the beach.
Helena flashed a glance over her shoulder after several seconds.
No! Helena's pounding heart skipped a beat. Ann was missing.
Helena stopped in her tracks and turned. None of the men had followed, but one had Ann by the hair several yards from the bonfire. He was dragging her kicking and screaming.
"Shit!" Helena turned to Jess, panting. "Run, Jess! Get to your car, drive until you have a signal, and call the police!"
"Are you fucking insane, Lena? I'm not leaving you. Or her."
Helena didn't have time to argue or think through the consequences. She ran toward the sandbank, straining her eyes for anything she could use as a weapon. All they needed to do was free Ann. They could outrun these men again. She hoped.
Ann's scream soared through the air.
Helena and Jess both picked up grapefruit sized rocks and sprinted toward the fire. All but two of the men were riffling through the ice chests. One of the two held Ann by the hair; the other had thrown himself on top of her.
Helena launched herself and pounded the side of his skull.
He fell to his side. "Ah! You bitch!"
The other men jumped in and grabbed Helena. She felt a fist slam into her face. Blood poured from her lip as she crumbled. Next, Jess screamed, and then … there were blood-curdling cries from one of the scumbags.
Helena rolled onto her back to witness the men collapsing one by one like falling dominoes, landing face first in the sand around the bonfire, grasping their gushing throats.
"What the … ?" She heard a gurgling sound to her right and turned her head. An enormous man held the largest of the scumbags by his neck. Only now that man didn't look so large. He looked like a tiny bug about to be squashed by an angry giant.
Helena gasped. The giant was Niccolo. His shoulder length black hair was loose, and he was dressed like he'd walked straight off the Milan runway, wearing a black turtleneck and slacks.
Niccolo snapped the man's neck and threw him like a rag doll. He rushed to her side, immediately reaching for her face. "The bastards! Killing them was too kind!"
"How did you find me?" she whispered, her eyes wide with shock.
Niccolo swept his hand over her forehead with affection. "Mio cuore, I will always find you. Forever."
***
The phone ringing in Helena's ear jolted her from a coma-like sleep. Her hand fumbled with the handset, twice knocking it to the floor before she finally managed to connect it with her face. "Hellooo?" Her voice sounded like she'd eaten sandpaper-covered jalapenos.
Although the curtains were drawn and blinds closed, a sliver of light sliced through a narrow gap at the bottom of the pane. She glanced at her clock on the nightstand. Two P.M.?
"Lena. Jeez, there you are! Why aren't you answering your phone? Are you hung over or something?" said the voice on the other end.
"Jess?" Helena's memory jogged. She rocketed from the bed and fell to the floor with a thump! She reached for her lip as she righted herself back into bed. It was swollen and definitely tender. No, not a dream.
"Oh my God. Are you okay?" she said into the phone. The last thing Helena remembered was Niccolo holding her.
Jessica laughed. "Depends on your definition of ‘okay.' Did you have to bust out the tequila last night, Lena? I've got the worst hangover. We're talking permanent brain damage. I don't even remember going to bed."
Hangover? Jess didn't drink last night, and there was no tequila. Only drunk biker rapists and one very, very pissed off vampire.
"But, I do remember," Jess added, "your smokin' new boyfriend and his buddies! Can you say ‘yummm?' Why didn't you tell me you were seeing a sex god? In fact, they all looked like they just hopped off of the fabulous-man-bus. Can I have one for displaying in the new shrine I'm going to build in their honor? Or a photo? An autographed photo? Naked, of course."
What the hell is going on? "Sorry? But could you repeat that part about … " Helena realized the shower was running in her adjoining bathroom and had just been shut off. Oh my god … Niccolo.
"Jess, let me call you right back. I don't feel well," she whispered.
Helena silently put down the phone and tiptoed to the bathroom door. What should she do? Run? Knock? Walk in? Get naked? And … how should she feel? Excited? Freaked out? Angry because he hadn't called for three weeks? Relieved, because the wait was over and she could finally start asking all those questions swimming in her head?
The door swung open, and Niccolo boldly stood before her in his birthday-suit-glory, his unforgettable diamond-cut abs glistening with drops of water.
A whoosh of air left her lungs. I'm going with … naked and excited!
His thick black hair dripped as he ran her pink towel over it. She wanted to swoon at the sight of him: there in her room using her favorite towel. Dreams really did come true. The only things missing were the hour-long foot rub and a happy ending. Pervert! Stop that.
The muscles in his right bicep flexed underneath the solid black tribal symbols tattooed down his arm in a neat line. "Helena, love. Glad to see you're up," he said all too casually, as if the entire situation were just another day in the life of a domesticated sitcom couple.
"What are you doing here? How did I get home last night? And what did you do to Jess? Hey! And why aren't you asleep in some coffin right now?"