The Ballad of Aramei

by J. A. Redmerski

  So I’m good.

  I guess I just have a hard time believing that a girl as beautiful and as sexy as Daisy Mayfair—English accent and all!—wants to be married to me. Not that I have some sort of self-esteem issues or anything, but Daisy is far from being your typical girl-next-door. And guys like me usually only get the girl-next-door types.

  In darker news, Daisy and I had to move from Hallowell shortly after Isaac defeated his father in battle. Minna Abrahamsen, the Harvester, was hot on my trail. Harvesters are my kind’s worst enemy and nothing can be said, no bargains can be made for even the most innocent of us. They have and always will hunt us until we’ve all been reaped and are no longer a threat to this world. I wish I could just meet with Minna and try to convince her that I’m on her side now and that I could never do anything to hurt the ones I love.

  I’ve been hurting those I love for generations because of our ‘agenda’.

  But you can say that I’ve gone rogue now. I mean, not in a Zia sort of way, but I have officially, after living so many different lives, turned my back on my kind. I’ve even gone as far as committing the single most treacherous act that one of us could ever commit: I told Daisy everything about me, about Us. I told her our agenda and what will happen if we succeed. I told her about the gateways that have already been opened throughout the world: The gates in France, Alaska and China, all whose Charges fulfilled their destinies, unlike Adria who was supposed to help Aramei open a gate right here in Maine. And then the most famous gate of all: Sorrento, Italy, opened by Victoria Hizri’s Charge, Pelicia-Cinnia once known in her human life as Josephine.

  But that’s another story….

  Yeah, Daisy and I are still living in Maine, but I won’t say where until after we leave again. I feel like we’re always kind of on the run even though we’ve been pretty stable in this apartment for a long time. But we’ll move again, I know, because I’m not only running from Minna and other Harvesters like her; Genna left knowing where to find me and I’m fair game even to her now. But I’m also running from my own kind, those who aren’t exactly the same me, but who are above me and who I can’t hide my identity from. I fear what they will do to me, which is more than anything Minna or Genna could ever do. Punishment for failing to manipulate my Charge into fulfilling her destiny to sire Aramei will be severe enough. But the punishment for going rogue….

  I miss Adria. I miss her a lot. But we still talk and we still share our deepest, darkest secrets (she hysterically brought up to me on the phone just the other night something about Isaac trying to sweet-talk her into giving him an heir. I laughed my ass off on the other end of the phone. She didn’t seem to like that much. “You frickin’ jerk!” she snapped into the receiver. “Aww, come on, you know I love you,” I said. “And I’ll still love you when your two hundred pounds, waddling around the house and barely able to fit your fat ass through the front door.” No doubt, she hung up on me. And of course, she called me back an hour later acting like the conversation never happened.)

  Adria may no longer be my Charge, but she’ll always be my friend and I’ll always do anything for her.

  How long I live in this life, it’s never something one can tell. I could get run over by Mack truck tomorrow and be reborn into…Oh God, Adria and Isaac’s brat werewolf child. That would be my luck! Not a guy destined to be a billionaire, or the next Prince of Whatever country that still has princes and such. No, I’d end up snot-nosed little brat with a more hair than I want to imagine ever having to buzz off.

  But in reality, the chances are that, like always, I’ll outlive even Daisy who is almost immortal herself.

  Yeah…I always outlive them.

  ALEXANDRA

  There’s a knock on my bedroom door. I’ve been living in the Mayfair house ever since my now best friend, Rachel, beat the crap out of me in the basement that night. Other than my sister, no one is closer to me than Rach.

  “Who is it?” I shout across the room and when no one shouts back at me, I get up from the bed and waltz over to open it.

  Xavier stands there holding a bouquet of white roses, smiling from ear-to-ear.

  Flowers? Really? What is this, 1940?

  “What?” he says, noticing the repelled look on my face. “C’mon, what girl doesn’t love roses?”

  I smirk at him and let the door swing shut in his face.

  Just one more day of torture. Just one. I mean hell, it’s been a year and the guy is still trying to get in my pants.

  And it’s incredibly hot.

  Just one more day….

  NATHAN

  “Baby, are you ready?” my girlfriend of over a year says sitting across from me at our favorite table at the bar.

  Our relationship has been a secret…for many reasons.

  I drink down the last of my beer—I drink it for taste; werewolves can’t get drunk easily, unfortunately—and stand up, holding out my hand to her. She smiles up at me with those sexy bright green eyes, framed by jet-black silky hair. I could so easily force her ass up out of that chair and have my way with her in the back of the bar, but we really do need to get on the road. Got about a seven hour trip to Providence ahead of us.

  She grins up at me, already having read the sexual frustration written all over my features, and that grin of hers knows no bounds. She knows how to push my buttons and force the beast inside of me just a little to the surface. She loves it. But I often have to put that girl in her place. She loves that, too. She takes my hand and stands up, pressing her body playfully against mine, triggering a deep growl rumbling through my chest.

  “We have time,” she whispers and then tugs my earlobe with her teeth.

  I shut my eyes and inhale abrasively.

  “No,” I say and she looks up into my eyes, “I want this taken care of. When you’re not with me, I feel her in my skin. It’s like an infection—Genna, I-I can’t take it anymore.” I clasp my hands around her upper arms and peer down into her ethereal face.

  “I know, baby,” she says and her soft fingers move up my arms and take hold of my wrists. “Minna Abrahamsen’s time is almost up and you’ll be free of her for good.”

  I kiss her savagely, lifting her petite body into my arms; her legs straddle my waist. I grip her butt in my hands and growl into her neck. The music funnels around us through the bar and there’s no shortage of conversations and the occasional pool stick making contact with a ball, but all I can really hear is Genna’s rapid heartbeat pumping through every corner of my body.

  The kiss breaks reluctantly and she gazes into my eyes; her fingertips lingering upon my lips. “So are we sticking with the plan?” she says and kisses me softly one more time.

  I kiss her back in the same way and answer, “Yes, I’ll take Minna out while Saiulee does her thing in the basement with the Praverians in the safe.”

  Genna pulls my lip back with her teeth.

  I go in this time hungrily, wrapping my arms so tight around her small form that I could crush her ribs if I’m not careful.

  Alright…so maybe there’s a little time to spare before we leave for Providence.

  ADRIA

  37

  I JUST FINISHED PACKING the last of my stuff from my room at Aunt Bev and Uncle Carl’s house. It’s going to be hard saying goodbye, but I’m entering the next chapter in my life and chapters are never easy in the beginning.

  Hearing Isaac’s Jeep pulling into the drive, I head down the stairs with a duffle bag over one shoulder.

  Aunt Bev and Uncle Carl are standing at the foot of the stairs waiting for me. Yes, I did say that Uncle Carl was standing. About seven months ago, he started moving his legs on his own and they pushed his physical therapy sessions into double-time. He took his first new steps five months ago and is making progress every day. He’ll never walk like he used to and he’ll always have an obvious limp on his left side, but to Uncle Carl, a limp is a miracle. He smiles a lot now and has taken to talking so much these days that it’s scary. When I first moved
here, he hardly ever said anything at all. Now, Aunt Bev can’t get him to shut up!

  “We’re going to miss you!” Beverlee says reaching her arms out wide to me as I come off the last step.

  I hug her tight and she kisses me on the temple. Uncle Carl smiles like a dopey little boy and he pulls me into a hug. I work my way carefully between his crutches, trying to avoid knocking him off balance.

  “You’ll call us at least once a week?” Uncle Carl asks with some innocent demand tossed in there.

  “Of course I will; twice a week.”

  “And whatever you need,” Beverlee says, “money, food…a ride back.”

  I smile at her, knowing what she really means by a ‘ride back’.

  “This will always be my number one home,” I say, “You know that.”

  Beverlee beams proudly and I notice her eyes watering up.

  Isaac knocks on the front door and then let’s himself inside; this is just as much his home as is it mine. Aunt Bev hugs him the moment he steps up, jangling his keys in his hand.

  “Isaac, I know you’re responsible,” Beverlee says, looking slightly worried, as usual, “but I just wanted to make sure you checked all your tires, got an oil change; y’know, the basics.”

  She always asks this when we drive anywhere more than an hour from home.

  Isaac smiles and nods. “Yes ma’am. She’ll be perfectly safe with me on the drive down.”

  Uncle Carl and Beverlee exchange glances.

  “That, I do believe seeing as how you’re a…, well, you know.” Beverlee swallows the word ‘werewolf’ down. She and Uncle Carl still aren’t used to saying it out loud.

  Isaac grins.

  They know everything now. It was kind of hard to lie about what happened that night Nataša and her pack held my aunt and uncle hostage. I’m really kind of glad that I wasn’t here to witness it myself, but there was no hiding the fact that my boyfriend and just about everyone I know and hang out with, aren’t exactly human. I could’ve asked Harry to help with letting them ‘forget’, but he did explain that a mind can only take so much manipulation and that his power wouldn’t last forever. Eventually, they would start to remember bits and pieces. Genna helped erase their minds of the time I had disappeared when I was going through my transformation and that was enough messing around with their heads. So, I figured why not just tell them the truth about everything?

  And so after that night, Isaac and I sat down with them and pretty much turned their quaint little life as humans upside-down with the information. But we spared overwhelming them with anything other than werewolves. They still think Harry is as human as they are and it’s probably better that way.

  The story throughout the rest of the town was that a huge gang had come in from somewhere—there’s a lot of rumors flying around about what happened that night—and fights broke out all over the place. Thankfully, no one, not even Nataša’s pack, let themselves Turn in front of the humans. The fighting going on in the streets and in people’s front yards and even on their roofs, was blamed on gang violence. Some of Hallowell’s residents claim they saw some of these ‘gang members’ actually jump onto second-story roofs and others say they saw men leaping from one building to another. A group of students from Hall-Dale—including bitchy Tori and Cecilia, who became best friends, believe it or not—have started rumors about there being ‘vampires’ in Hallowell (because of the black eyes and claws we have when in our mediate form). Of course, no one really believes that, or they’re just not openly admitting it. Harry found Cecilia shortly after the night we trapped Zia and definitely had to use his Praverian powers to manipulate her memories.

  But she’s crazy by default and so whatever she says is almost always brushed off as mental illness, anyway.

  It could’ve been worse that night Bev and Uncle Carl got the shock of their lives; this whole town could be one big werewolf infection on the map.

  “Call as soon as you get there,” Beverlee says, taking me into yet another hug and I’m starting to think she’s going to cave and try to hold me hostage inside the house.

  “I’ll call you even before I get there, I promise!”

  Still smiling as brightly as ever, a few tears finally roll down Beverlee’s rose-colored cheeks. She lets go of me and I say goodbye for now. I’ll be back sometime on break.

  ~~~

  Six hours later and Isaac is helping me carry my bags up to the third floor to my college dorm room in Hudson Valley. I didn’t have to fill out paperwork and I got to bypass all the basics of getting in. It was like one night Isaac asked me if I wanted to go to college and when I said yes, everything was prepared for me in just a few days’ time. All I had to do was show up today.

  I guess it helped too that Isaac is who he is; I’m sure that sped things up a lot. This isn’t your average college; at least not our section of it anyway. There is only one requirement: you can’t be 100% human. Of course, there are humans in this school, but they’re oblivious to what we are.

  Isaac and I walk down a short stretch of hallway toward my dorm room and already I feel eyes at my back. It feels a lot like it did when I first stepped foot inside the Mayfair house as the new girl, except there’s something more comforting about this.

  A blond-haired girl wearing a pair of black skinny jeans and bright red lipstick walks up barefooted and smiles mesmerizingly at Isaac. She bows awkwardly, first and then says, “Ooooh my God…you’re the Sovereign.” She looks exactly like an obsessed fan-girl of any new lame boy band, minus the grabby hands, tears and screaming: I love you!

  Isaac nods, but doesn’t give her any more attention than that for fear of instigating her.

  She eyes me now and her giddy smile turns into a scary, hopeful look that I’m already beginning to recoil from.

  “And you must be Adria,” she says, hardly able to contain herself.

  We keep shuffling down the hallway toward my room, but she keeps up pace right beside me. By now, more heads are poking out of the doorways as we pass. Most of them wearing the same awed faces as the blond girl.

  “Yes, I’m Adria,” I say, “And your name is?”

  She looks blankly at me for a second as though so awestruck by us that she didn’t understand the question. I notice she can’t seem to stop sneaking a drooling glimpse at Isaac, too.

  “Oh!” she says, finally realizing, “I’m Nora Cunningham, your roommate.”

  My face falls, but I suppress the full strength of it before she notices and takes offense. I roll my shoulder so that my duffle bag strap will slide back in place and then I stop to reach out my hand. Nora shakes it vigorously, still smiling.

  “Next room up,” she says pointing and then she moves out ahead of us to escort us the rest of the way.

  “Oh my God,” she hisses a whisper to a girl standing in the doorway of the room next to ours. “It’s Isaac Mayfair. I’m roomin’ with his mate!” She jerks her head back around to face us, her cheeks flared up with color and she can’t seem to stand still.

  Why couldn’t I get the typical bitchy roommate that could care less who I was and only wanted to be sure I never touched her stuff?

  We slip inside the spacious room and I see that the rest of my stuff is already here—we shipped it ahead.

  “I’ll uhhh…leave you two alone for a minute,” she says with a carnal grin spread across her tanned face. She ducks out and slips out the door, shutting it behind her.

  Isaac drops the two suitcases he carried up and stands in the center of the room checking out the place, his hands buried in his pockets.

  I immediately start to unpack.

  “I’m glad you’re doing this, babe.”

  I reach into a box sitting on the floor beside my twin bed and start to pull out a few of my favorite things which always help me feel more at home no matter where I happen to be living.

  “Me too,” I say, looking over at him once. “And it’ll be good for me to be here learning what I can about all this werewolf stuff�
�.” I point at him momentarily. “—I don’t just want to be ‘the girl with the Sovereign’, Isaac. I want to earn my place and learn everything about the politics and…whatever else.”

  I catch a faint smile tug one corner of his delicious mouth.

  Diving back into the box, I tug out my small cork bulletin board I like to tack photos to and move toward my desk to mount it to the wall.

  “You’re already more than just the girl with the Sovereign,” he says. “And you don’t have anything to earn or to prove. You know that, right?”

  I push the tack in with my thumb and lean away from the wall, turning at the waist to smile across at him.

  “Yeah, I know, but just the same, I want to learn everything because it will make me feel better to know.”

  I go back to the box and as I reach into it to pull out my roll of posters, I feel Isaac come up behind me and he slips his hands around my waist. I lean up and take in the scent of him, closing my eyes and savoring the moment…because it’ll be the last for a little while.

  “You’re avoiding me,” he says, frowning, but he knows the reason why.

  I stop what I’m doing and step up to him. “I don’t know if I can go without seeing you for three months. I’ve been dreading this day, to be honest.”

  I feel the tears trying to push their way to the surface, but I hold them down the best I can. Gah! I hate this!

  Isaac pulls me toward him with his hands on my hips. He leans over and presses his forehead to mine. “I’ve been dreading it, too, but the first place I’ll visit when I get back from Romania will be here with you.”