Past Life

by C S Winchester

  “Are you still going to retire next year?” she asked.

  “I think I might be delaying it for another couple of years. You know how expensive life is today, and I want us to have a good life. Maybe I'll go part-time instead of retiring.”

  Frankie smiled indulgently. Her father had planned on retiring at 60 but had been delaying it for nearly five years now. Next year he would be 65, but his company would be pleased to keep him on. Frankie thought that he kept putting retirement off to avoid spending too much time with her mother but she never said as much. Frankie and her Dad had a sort of silent solidarity, and neither called the other one out on their chosen avoidance tactics.

  The doorbell rang and Frankie breathed a silent sigh of relief.

  “I asked a friend to join us, I hope you don't mind.”

  “Not at all, love,” her father smiled and Frankie went to let Dante in.

  Dante's eyes scanned her from head to foot then back again as she opened the door.

  “Eh, I suppose you'll do,” he grinned.

  Despite her foul mood, Frankie laughed. She held her arms open and Dante stepped into her embrace.

  “You have no idea how pleased I am to see you,” she said quietly.

  “Mm,” he moaned. “You should be grateful more often. This is very pleasant.”

  Frankie lightly thumped his back with her fist. “You can't help yourself, can you?”

  “I can, it's just that I don't often try.”

  “Come on, I'll introduce you to my Dad,” she said, stepping out of the embrace.

  Dante stepped inside and Frankie closed the door after him but before they could go any further, Frankie's mother came downstairs.

  “Oh my!” her hand fluttered to her chest in a ridiculously girlie gesture. “Francis, you didn't tell us that you were expecting company.”

  “Mum, this is Dan, a friend of mine. Dan, this is my mother, Cecilia.” She could see her mother was charmed by his looks. For a religious woman, she could be awfully superficial, though Frankie had to admit he did look good this evening, dressed in a black suit and dark blue shirt.

  “It's a pleasure to meet you, Dan.” Her mother rushed down the stairs and held her hand out.

  “The pleasure is all mine, Mrs Wright.” Dante knew exactly what to do and say. He could tell that this was a woman who valued old-fashioned manners, and Dante laid it on thick. He took her hand and raised it to his lips, eliciting a schoolgirl giggle from her. He looked from mother to daughter.

  “I find it hard to believe Francis is your daughter, you don't look nearly old enough to have an adult child.” That didn't quite have the reaction he was looking for, but she smiled pleasantly.

  Cecilia wasn't what he'd been expecting, she was fair haired where as Frankie was dark, she was also taller than Frankie and striking, but not at all pretty, unlike her daughter. Frankie was curvy and soft whereas Cecilia's figure looked hard, and any feminine curves she might have had were hidden by her old-fashioned style of clothing, although she was meticulously groomed and made up. All in all, Cecilia reminded him of an Amazon woman, dressed as a 1950's housewife.

  “Let me introduce you to my husband,” Cecilia said, slipping her hand through his elbow and leading him into the living room.

  “Dan, this is Peter, my husband.”

  Frankie's father got up out of his chair and shook hands with Dante.

  “Very nice to meet you, Mr Wright.”

  “How do you do, Dan.”

  “Well, it's getting late, shall we head to the restaurant?” Frankie suggested.

  “Oh, of course,” her mother smiled. Frankie got the idea that she would have agreed to anything at this point, as long as Dante was there.

  “Shall we follow you, dear?” her dad suggested.

  “I'll drive,” Dante suggested. “No point in taking two cars.”

  “That's very kind of you, Dan, but we don't want to put you out.”

  Dante saw Frankie roll her eyes at her mother's comment, and tried to hide his smile.

  “Nonsense, Mrs Wright. it's no trouble.”

  “Oh, call me Cecilia, please.”

  “If you insist, Cecilia.”

  They headed out to Dante's car. When Frankie first met Dante he had driven a four wheel drive which was rather difficult to get into, but thankfully he'd bought a saloon car recently, which was much easier.

  As was tradition in her family, the men rode in the front and Frankie and her mother got into the back. Her mother called it a mark of respect as her father was the breadwinner. Since Frankie earned more than her father, she rather thought it was more a mark of disrespect, but she'd had this argument far too many times before to try again.

  All the way to the restaurant, Cecilia kept trying to communicate silently with Frankie, asking who Dan was and if they were a couple. Frankie kept her gaze firmly on the window to avoid having to respond. Thankfully the restaurant wasn't far, just five minutes down the road in Newhaven Harbour and they were soon pulling into the car park.

  As they walked the short distance to the restaurant, Frankie's mother grabbed her elbow and held her back as the men walked ahead.

  “Who is this Dan?” she asked.

  “He's just a friend, Mum.”

  “Are you sure, you two were hugging when I came downstairs.”

  “Yes, I'm sure. We... We lost a mutual friend a few months ago and he's been a great support to me. Well, we've been a support to each other, I hope. But that's all that's between us and we are not romantically involved.”

  “And what happened to Alex?”

  “Alex... betrayed me.”

  Cecilia shook her head. “Women these days! You need to be more forgiving, Frankie. Men are built differently, you can't always expect them to be monogamous.”

  “He didn't cheat on me, Mother.” Frankie swallowed down the lump in her throat. “He's the reason our friend died and I can't forgive him for that.”

  “Oh well, maybe things will evolve between you and Dan,” her mother assured her. “You must keep your options open. There aren't that many available men at your age.”

  Dante took the opportunity to turn and wink at Frankie

  “He heard you,” she hissed at her mother.

  “Don't be ridiculous, he can't hear from this distance. He's just being friendly. You're always so negative, Francis. No wonder you're still single.”

  Frankie sighed in frustration. “Mum, stop it, please. Let's just have a nice evening.”

  “I will not. It's no wonder he doesn't see you as a romantic possibility when you wear such high collars and gaudy colours. I know you like red, but looking like a scarlet women isn't attractive to a man. You should wear more pastels.”

  “Like you, you mean,” Frankie finished for her as they paused at the entrance to the restaurant. She could see her father and Dante being seated inside.

  “I'm just saying that at your age, you can't afford to be picky. You need to smarten your ideas up, young lady, or you'll end up an old maid.”

  “I hate to break it to you, Mum, but I haven't been a 'maid' in well over a decade.”

  “You delight in upsetting me, don't you?” her mother asked with tears shining in her eyes. Frankie always thought that her mother had missed her calling, she could have been a world class actress.

  “Yes, I do when you're judging me. Wasn't it Jesus who said 'let he who is without sin cast the first stone'?”

  “I'm not judging you, sweetheart, I'm trying to help you. I just don't understand why you're so wilful”

  “That's because you were so busy trying to turn me into the perfect little god-fearing Christian, that you never got to know me.” She went into the restaurant, effectively ending the conversation.

  She plastered a smile on her face as she approached the table and sat down.

  A few moments later a waiter arrived with their drinks and Frankie was pleased to see that Dante had ordered her a large whiskey.

  Thankfully dinner itself
was a relatively pleasant affair, as Cecilia focused her attention mainly on Dante. She wanted to know his whole life story, where he was from in America, how come he ended up in Edinburgh, how he and Frankie had met; she questioned him incessantly.

  What was surprising was how she talked Frankie up to him, though Frankie didn't think that the picture she painted was at all realistic. Frankie and her father chatted a little but mostly they just listened and tried not to laugh.

  Dante ate the food he ordered, which Frankie hadn't been expecting. She knew vampires could swallow food, but she had never seen one actually eat because they had to regurgitate the food later. But he played his part to perfection, even ordering dessert and talking her mother into it. Usually her mother followed a very strict diet and never ate sweet things.

  Dante then entered sainthood when he insisted on paying for dinner. He excused himself to go to the bathroom and as soon as he was gone, Cecilia leaned towards Frankie.

  “He is wonderful, darling. Well educated, well travelled. He even knows his scripture.”

  “We're not like that, Mum.”

  “Trust me, that one is a keeper.”

  Frankie wondered what her mother would say if she knew the truth about him.

  When Dante returned, they left the restaurant. Cecilia took her husband's arm and suggested a quick walk along the harbour before going home. Frankie was about to protest but Dante was, typically, all for the idea. Her parents hung back, giving Dante and Frankie a chance to talk.

  “You do realise that you'll have to marry me after that performance,” she said. “Mum won't rest until that dream comes true.”

  “Maybe that was my plan,” he said with a wink.

  “Hate to break it to you,” she said with a teasing smile,”but you're not marriage material.”

  “Your mother thinks I am.”

  “Ah but she doesn't have all the facts, does she?”

  “Well, we'll get married in name only then, wouldn't that get her off your back?”

  “Oh no, then comes home making, children and pressure to quit my job and look after you.” Frankie smiled at the absurdity of it all and leaned against the railings. She looked out across the Forth River. “She'll never be happy so it's pointless even trying to please her.”

  “Aren't you letting her stay in your home to please her?”

  “She caught me off guard and I didn't have my arguments in place. I've been conditioned to give in to her manipulations for years, breaking those habits is hard.”

  “Frankie, I don't mean to pry but... is she your biological mother?”

  “No, I'm adopted.”

  “That explains a lot.”

  “Does it?” she asked a touch sharply. She didn't like talking about her adoption.

  “Yes, like how you look nothing like either of your parents, and how your personalities are so different.”

  Frankie nodded, this wasn't news to her.

  “Have you ever tried to find your real parents?” he asked.

  “Once. It can't be done.”

  “I thought those things were quite easy these days?” he questioned.

  “They are for most people but I was a foundling. I was abandoned in a church when I was about two days old.” She kept her eyes glued to the horizon.

  “I'm sorry.”

  Frankie shrugged. “It's not your fault.”

  “No. But I do understand how you feel. I was abandoned too.”

  Frankie looked at him. “Really?”

  Dante nodded. “I was raised in a church orphanage, destined for the priesthood.”

  “So what happened?” she asked. Priest to vampire was surely an unusual career path.

  “I didn't much like the nuns' ideas of punishment, so I ran away from the orphanage when I was twelve.”

  “What did they do?”

  “Lots of things, all equally cruel. Plus a few of the brothers couldn't keep their hands to themselves. The streets were tough but all things considered, they were safer.”

  Frankie looped her arm around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder. “I'm sorry.”

  “It's not your fault either. Besides, I was only on the street for a few months. I picked the wrong pocket.”

  “Whose?”

  “Joshua's.”

  “He adopted you?”

  “Not exactly. I wasn't looking for a new father, but he did take me in and employ me as his day person.”

  “Day person?”

  “It's not such an issue these days, but 400 years ago vampires needed someone to do tasks that could only be done during the daytime.”

  “I'd never even considered that,” she said as she shivered in the cool night air.

  “Why would you? You're cold, shall we head back to the car?”

  “Yeah, probably a good idea. I think the summer is officially over.”

  “That's what passes for summer in Scotland?” he teased.

  “It's not so bad up here,” she said. “And it's not like I can get a tan anyway.”

  “Sun bathing isn't exactly on my bucket list, either,” he agreed, taking his suit jacket off and draping it around her shoulders.

  “I'm fine,” she said, shrugging the coat off.

  “Don't be silly,” he put it back and held it in place on her shoulders. “You'll catch a chill.”

  Frankie smiled. “Thanks, but I don't get sick.”

  “What, never?”

  “Well, hardly ever. I've never been seriously ill, anyway. Never even had a temperature that lasted much more than a day.”

  Dante was beginning to see why it was so hard for her to talk about being abandoned. She had lots of questions; questions about her gift, her health and probably lots of other things that set her slightly apart from her peers, but that she had no answers for.

  “If you ever do want to find out, I might be able to help,” he offered. “Just let me know.”

  “Thank you, but I came to terms with not knowing years ago.”

  They met up with her parents at the car and headed back to Frankie's house. Frankie could tell that her mother was bursting to ask what had happened between them on the walk; she was sure Cecilia had observed their every move, but Frankie was in no hurry to have their conversation examined.

  Dante pulled up outside her house and got out of the car to say goodnight to everyone. He and Frankie spotted Will at the same time, sitting on the front step, waiting for her.

  Chapter Six

  Frankie closed her eyes and wished for just a few moments to herself, but when she opened them again, Will was still there.

  “I'd better go.” Dante leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Call me if you need me.”

  “Don't forget this.” Frankie slipped his jacket off.

  “I think your need might be greater than mine,” Dante glanced to her parents and Frankie realised that she'd have to talk to Will outside if they wanted privacy.

  Frankie nodded and ushered her parents over to Will. She could see her mother's eyes positively twinkling with excitement.

  “Will, these are my parents, Cecilia and Peter. Mum, dad, this is D.C.I. William Campbell.”

  Though her mother knew that Frankie had dated Will at university, she had never met him in person. Frankie had never allowed her mother to meet any of her boyfriends, although that was only really two people, Will and Alex.

  Her parents said 'hello' to Will, then Frankie did her best to usher them inside as soon as she could.

  “Will you join us for a nightcap, William?” her mother asked, positively delighted at the chance to grill him.

  “He's here for work, Mum. You and Dad unpack and settle in, I have to talk to Will in private.” She grabbed Will's arm and pulled him away.

  They walked down the road for a short way, then sat down on the wall that separated the grassy bank that lead to the beach, from the pavement.

  “How are you?” Frankie asked.

  Will sighed. He seemed more grumpy than angry now. She hoped t
hat was a good sign.

  “I don't know. I feel like I don't know anything any more.”

  Frankie wished she knew what to say to make him feel better.

  “How do you deal with it?” he asked her. “Knowing what's out there?”

  “I've never had to learn to deal with it,” she answered honestly. “I'm one of the things that's out there, so I've always been aware of the supernatural around me.”

  “I just don't know what to do with this. What are the rules? How does it work?” He suddenly seemed to realise something and turned to her. “And why the hell are you taking your parents out with a vampire? And how could you let him do that to you?” he pointed at her neck, looking revolted at the memory.

  “One at a time.” Frankie took a deep breath. “Okay first of all, that's the first time Dante has ever fed from me.”

  “That you know of. He could have put the whammy on you like he did me.”

  “He couldn't. Their mind control doesn't work on me.”

  “Why not?”

  Frankie shrugged. “Probably because of my gift, but I don't have any concrete answers. All I know is that a vampire has never successfully vamped me.”

  “That's what they call it, being vamped?”

  “No, that's my slang. But drinking blood is just what they have to do to survive, Will. They don't hurt anyone and it actually feels very nice.”

  “Yeah, I saw,” he sounded bitter.

  “Oh, don't get possessive on me. That's the first time and I only did it, because it seemed like the quickest way to get you to believe us.”

  “So are you guys dating now, is that what this little 'meet the parents' is all about?”

  “No, my parents turned up out of the blue and surprised me. They were driving me mad and I just needed a friend. Any other night, I would have called and asked you to come out with us.”

  Will relaxed slightly.

  “So you and the leech?”

  “Nope, never.”

  “So can I ask what the draw is? Why do you spend time with something that can kill you?”

  “First of all, anyone could potentially kill me, even you. Second, I have an agreement with the vampires and Dante is my contact to them, so I have to see him. Third, they don't leave psychic impressions like humans do, so I can touch them without being bombarded by all their memories.”