Immortal Souls (The Immortal Souls: Magic & Chaos)

Chapter 12

Jack arrived at Sam's house just as she opened the front door wearing her jacket. She smiled a genuine smile, which was something that Jack hadn't seen her do in almost two years. Who knew that a job would make her so happy, he thought, maybe I should have gotten her one ages ago.

"You sure did take your time."

"Not my fault," Jack replied, raising his hands defensively. "Death has a time difference."

She shrugged and closed the door, stepping out onto the porch. "It was a waste of a journey," she said. A kid riding by on a bike stopped to stare at her. She gave the kid an angry glare and he looked away. "Would you mind corporealising so I don't look like a crazy person?"

Jack de-materialised, then re-materialised, doing it inside the house so that the neighbours wouldn't see him appearing out of nowhere. When he was corporeal, he opened the door and stepped outside. Sam started walking, Jack beside her.

"Don't you want to know what I found out about him?" Jack asked, not wanting the day he spent wandering through Limbo then travelling to Athens to be a complete waste of time.

"Vampire," Sam stated.

Jack's shoulders sagged with disappointment. "And you couldn't have figured that out before I left?" Although the fact that the guy was a Vampire wasn't the only thing Jack had found out about him, it was pretty much the only thing he was able to tell Sam at this time. He had to keep everything else to himself until the time was right.

At least that's what they told him. If all of the rules had been made by Jack, then there probably wouldn't be any rules. As far as he was concerned, secrets didn't keep anyone safe.

"He wasn't close enough," said Sam. "I didn't find out until about ten minutes after you left. They should invent phones that work between dimensions."

"Did you know his name is-"

"Jamie," Sam finished. That wasn't what Jack was going to say, but he had been told that the Vampire answered to two names. "Yeah, he told me."

"Do you know he was in the library-"

"Studying Vampire mythology, hoping it would help him find another Vampire to explain what being a Vampire means," Sam interrupted again then laughed a little. "I know."

"Well do you know that's because-"

"His Sire abandoned him."

"How would you know that?" Jack yelled, not hiding his annoyance at the wasted journey. "You said he pushed you out of his head."

"Well, he spent the whole night hitting on me." Jack wasn't surprised by the fact the Vampire had been flirtatious with Sam, she was a naturally beautiful girl. She had an otherworldly aura that drew people's attention. And, when she wasn't in one of her more brooding moods, she was quite good company. Boys her age, and those somewhat older, often paid attention to her. Not that she ever returned their affections or advances.

Which was why Jack had to hide his surprise when he noticed that Sam's hair had a slight curl to it today, she had enough make up on that it looked like she'd made an effort but not so much as to make her look like she was trying too hard, and she was wearing a skirt. Jack couldn't remember the last time Sam had worn a skirt. It had to have been over two years ago. Sam chewed her lip for a moment as she stared up at the clouds while they walked, Jack smiled fondly at her.

At least she's happy, he thought.

"He's a complete idiot," she continued, shaking her head slightly. "He gave away a dangerous amount of information. He's like, the worst Vampire ever . . . and I peeked at his memories to fill in the gaps."

Jack was more than a little annoyed by the fact that Sam seemed to already know all of the information he was allowed to give her, but at least the time alone had been good for her.

Perhaps he should start leaving her alone more often.

"Did he seem familiar to you in any way?" Jack asked, knowing it was one of the things he couldn't tell her about, but wanting her to know just the same. She had a right to, and he felt like he couldn't know and not tell her, there were already too many things he had to keep to himself. To hell with those bitches, he thought, they can't tell me what to do.

Sam's nose scrunched up a little as she thought, she seemed confused by his question. "Um . . . Not really. I don't think I've ever met him before." She tilted her head at Jack. "Why?"

Consequences my ass, Jack thought as he smiled. "Because I-" A stabbing sensation shot right through Jack. He cried out in pain and doubled over, his body feeling like it was being ripped apart from the inside.

"What's wrong?" Sam asked, her voice tinged with concern, she reached forward to place her hand on his shoulder, but stopped before she touched him.

Jack took a few deep breaths to calm the pain. <Consider this your warning Hunter> Jack smiled bitterly at the sound of Lachesis's voice in his head.

"Nothing," he said as the pain evaporated. He looked at Sam and smiled, trying his best to ease her worry, he let a small laugh. "I was just about to tell you a secret is all."