Talisman 01 - The Emerald Talisman

for me.
    Together, we walked over to the edge of the cliff.
    “Wow,” I said, peering over the side, feeling a little woozy. “I wonder if anyone ever gets to go down there.”
    “I wonder . . .” he said, as he pivoted his body towards me, circling me in his arms.
    His touch made me hold my breath. I looked at him nervously, but gladly wrapped my arms around his waist in response. The last thing I expected to happen next was for him to jump over the cliff, carrying me with him in the process.
    I squealed and grabbed his torso tighter. We soared through the air, out over the cliff and floated towards the sand 1000 feet below. Within seconds we touched down and he made sure I had my balance before letting go.
    “Feel familiar?” he asked, emerald eyes twinkling, searching my expression.
    “Oh. My. Gosh,” I said, remembering the cliff. “Is this how you were able to catch me?”
    I would have never believed it if I hadn’t seen it in the daylight. Nicholas laughed and nodded his head. I laughed too, marveling how insane that night had been.
    “So you can fly too?” I asked in amazement.
    “Well . . . not really. Just jump far distances.
    “ . . .. not all vampires can fly?”
    “No,” he said and his smile faded from his face.
    “I’m confused.”
    Nicholas looked back at me tenderly.
    “Phil’s acquired the gift to fly—a very rare ability—something a very powerful vampire wouldn’t want to share freely. I suspect they never intended for you to come along and take him to the hospital, of all places. The transfusion sustained his life and the venom changed his body. He was never supposed to become a vampire.”
    His explanation didn’t help explain things and I inadvertently reached up and held the base of my neck, wondering if I’d naively just missed a vampire feeding frenzy. What could’ve happened if I was a little bit sooner? I shuddered even considering it.
    Nicholas continued to gaze deeply into my eyes and I lost my train of thought. I looked away and felt my cheeks grow hot.
    “Come on,” he said in a happier tone and motioned for me to follow.
    We walked next to each other towards the water. Every once in a while, I’d watch him. His intrinsic beauty overwhelmed me. I couldn’t help it. Today he wore a woolen sweater that showed the contour of his strong rippling arm muscles. I really wanted to reach out and lock my arm in his.
    He caught me stealing a glance and gave me an inquisitive look. I looked away embarrassed, but could see his smile from the corner of my eye.
    Once we reached the waterline, I discovered hundreds of perfect sea shells and sand dollars on the abandoned beach.
    “Wow!” I said while picking up a cantaloupe sized conch shell, putting it up to my ear. “I guess the shells wash up and sit here since nobody can comb the beach.”
    Nicholas watched in amusement as I started to make little piles of treasures.
    I giggled and wondered how I would take the shells home with me.
    “I forgot to bring a bag,” I said in disappointment.
    “Hold on.”
    Nicholas sprinted across the sand, nimbly climbed up the cliff edge where the car was parked, disappeared for a minute, and then returned with a beach bag, all in a matter of seconds.
    My mouth fell open.
    “Would this work to hold your shells?” he asked smugly, playing off his immortal talents, holding out the bag.
    “Um, sure,” I said after closing my mouth, but still staring at him, taking a second before retrieving it. “How did you do that?”
    “It comes with the territory,” he said quietly. “It’s no big deal.”
    “You can run, jump, climb and see at night. How is that no big deal?”
    “Now flying would be something,” he said playfully, but I knew he really would like that gift.
    “I don’t understand the power thing.”
    “Well . . . it’s like with humans. Some people can do things others cannot. Vampires are gifted with special abilities too, passed from the one that creates them.”
    “Like what?” I asked.
    “Well, the ones I know of are the ability to read minds, turn into animals, understand and speak different languages, plant thoughts, invoke feelings, hypnotize, just to name a few. Whatever is helpful for a vampire to lure its prey, besides being stealthy and incredibly beautiful.”
    Lure its prey?
    His comment gave me chills as I remembered all the vampires I’d encountered already—in particular the ones that wanted to bite me.
    “Do you have any special