‘Right, if you need anything just let me know.’ She led him up a set of stairs and stopped in front of a locked door. After unlocking it she handed him the key. ‘This is the room. Hope you enjoy your stay. Breakfast is served between seven and nine in the morning.’
‘Thank you.’ Steven replied. He walked in and heard her quiet shuffle fading in the distance. Once in the room, he noticed the kettle. A cup of coffee could do wonders. He took it to the sink and filled it up to boil. A few biscuits wrapped in some coloured cellophane looked tempting, so he hastily unwrapped one and ate it in one bite. The remnants of a chocolate chip lingered in his tooth so he licked it off with his tongue. He missed homemade baking.
The kettle whistled and the switch flicked off. He picked up one of the mugs, popped a sachet of coffee and sugar inside and poured in the water followed by the cream. Whilst he let it cool, he picked up the bags he’d brought with him and started to unpack the new clothes and toiletries. A few minutes later he picked up the mug, took a sip and let the hot soothing liquid take effect. He seized the remaining biscuit, dunked it in the coffee and ate it whole for a second time.
A small television sat in the corner of the room so he turned it on, picked up the remote control and flicked through channels. It was weird to be doing something so normal again. In the time he had been away nothing had happened to improve the quality of day time television. He settled on a music channel and decided to have a shower. A shower and change could perform miracles. He had missed his designer gear.
It was time to get the old Steven Thorn back.
He took the neatly folded towel and made his way into the ensuite facilities. Inside the bathroom, he was pleasantly surprised to see a power shower over the side of the bath. Eager, he slipped off his clothes and made his way into the bath and turned the nozzle. At first the water was freezing but gradually it got burning hot. In no hurry, he put the plug on the bath and let the water collect so that he could lie in the water to think.
***
Catherine sat in a café across the road from the bed and breakfast and sipped her hot chocolate as she pretended to read the newspaper. She quite liked the role of vigilante. She was only supposed to only keep an eye on him, but they had not said she couldn’t talk to him. It crossed her mind that it would be simpler to ask him what he was planning to do. In a way, she might be able to help him better.
It was strange to sit out in the open with normal people.
It was no different being around them than it was to be around ordinary animals. She did not attack the livestock in the community at will so she was not going to attack out in the open either. The smell was different, she had to admit to that, but only in that it made her crave it more. It was like comparing chocolate to bread; both different and delicious. So far, she had not been overpowered by an urge to have human blood.
Her need for blood would arise eventually. That would be the next challenge.
After exhausting all the newspapers articles and rereading some several times she finally saw Steven walk out of the exit. She noted his change of clothes and wet hair and wished she’d also had the chance to freshen up. This cloak and dagger routine was not going to work for her in the long run. She’d never followed anyone in her life, she had never been known for her tracking skills.
She sighed inwardly, got up and got ready to make chase.
Back to Table of Contents
Chapter 19
Catherine
The wind, rain and chill took Catherine by surprise. She was not used to this weather. She knew all about rain from the Amazon, but she had forgotten how cold and drab it could be in Southampton. It was just as well she was wearing a coat. She did not want to draw attention to herself. To fit in you had to look miserable. To be honest, it was not hard. The climate in England left as lot to be desired. She was depressed already and she had only been in the country for a week. She would not trade the tropical climate of the Amazon for anything. It was where she belonged.
It was ironic. She obtained no sense of freedom here. In contrast, she knew the confines of the community had stifled Steven. It was sad for her to think that he had not given himself time to appreciate the true nature of living in harmony with nature. The life they had carved out in the Amazon was so much simpler than life here.
Lost in thought, she nearly missed the fact that Steven had jumped on the bus. Unsurprisingly, it was the one leading to the university. Seeing an empty taxi in the nearby taxi stand, she jumped in and asked to be taken in the same direction.
The bus stopped opposite the huge Hartley library and she asked the taxi driver to stop. She paid quickly and followed him into the entrance of the library building. When she got to the entrance, she paused and looked around casually.
‘Lost?’ a male voice asked from behind.
Startled, she turned around and came face to face with Steven.
‘I knew someone would figure out where I was eventually and you’re not that stealthy. How are you doing Aunt Catherine?’
Catherine chuckled. ‘I’m as well as could be expected. I didn’t really like following you around so I’m glad you figured it out. How did you see me?’
‘I didn’t, I sensed someone was around. When I looked out of the bus window I saw you getting into the taxi. Like I said, you’re not very stealthy,’ he grinned.
Catherine was amused. As much as she wanted to be annoyed with him she couldn’t be. She had always liked him. He was different to Emily. ‘Fair enough. Well, in that case I can cut to the chase. Can we talk?’
‘I thought we already were.’
‘No need to be like that,’ she frowned, suppressing a smile. ‘You know what I mean. Look I’ll get to the point. My mother wanted us to help you. So what do you need?’
Steven shrugged his shoulders. ‘I don’t need your help. I’ll manage on my own.’
She could not help being impressed by his attire. His smart casual look oozed confidence. With his dark jeans, shirt and dark brown leather jacket he was dangerous for any human girl, for sure.
‘Really?’ she scoffed aloud. ‘You can’t confuse everyone you meet. I figured what you got up to at the bank. Trust me, mind games only work for a while. Eventually, you’ll get found out.’
‘I don’t see how.’ He shrugged his shoulders in a childish manner.
‘Someone will notice eventually. They have a pretty good audit trail in the banking system.’
‘A what?’
‘You know, when people check that all the money’s accounted for. Eventually someone would notice that money was missing. You need to be cleverer than they are. We have been doing it for years, I can help you.’
Reluctantly, he gave a huge sigh. ‘Okay, I have been trying to figure this out in the dark. If you are serious about helping then I accept, but I don’t intend to go back. I hope that’s clear.’
Catherine smiled. ‘Crystal, we don’t intend to take you back, unless you change your mind.’
‘Not going to happen.’
‘We’ll see,’ she mused. ‘Anyway, Mum didn’t want us to take you back and I would never go against her wishes. Look, Dad will help you, when he’s more stable. When he does I intend to return to my family. So I’ll do what I can until I leave.’
‘Okay.’ He surveyed the library entrance and challenged, ‘How do I get back into university life? It’s nearly Christmas.’
Catherine started to walk away from the library, Steven followed. ‘It seems to me that you should think of where you want to be. Then we’ll arrange it. So, where do you want to be?’
Steven’s shoulders slumped. ‘I want to be near Caitlin but I’m rubbish at mathematics, so I don’t know how to get close to her. Studying Law I’d never be in any of her lectures.’
Catherine grinned. ‘Did you say mathematics?’
Steven shrugged, still in the dark.
‘Don’t you remember what I teach?’
‘Mental agility, oh,’ the penny dropped. ‘But, you
know how rubbish I was.’
‘What you used to be before the change has no bearing on what you can do now. Trust me. Let’s get to work.’
At last, there was something she could teach him that he would appreciate.
***
Catherine turned out to be a huge help. Not only had she managed to get them into the library using her means of persuasion, she was now on a mission to help him. Steven was not convinced the help she had in mind was something he welcomed. She was trying to convince him to become a maths geek. Not that he saw Caitlin in that light – he just didn’t see himself in that light.
A series of thick and heavy books with all sorts of strange mathematical symbols emboldened on the covers laid wide open on the table, a range of topics and calculations on display. Weird thing was they made sense. That was the underlying problem. Maths had never, ever made sense to him. Yet, strangely now it did. He had never figured bats could be mathematical in nature.
‘Have you had enough yet?’ Catherine asked, a playful smile on her lips.
‘Yes, I have. But, seeing as this is what I have to do, we’ll carry on with it.’
Catherine frowned. ‘Aren’t you enjoying this at all?
‘For the first time in my life, I can learn mathematical things immediately. Trust me it is impressive. But I still would not call maths fun, sorry.’
‘Well, you’d better change your tone if you are going to pretend to be a maths student. Don’t you see from everything you’ve read how important maths is?’ She leaned her chin on her tightly clasped hands.
‘I do get it, really. I never appreciated how much the world relies on calculations. It’s just that numbers were never designed to be my play toy.’
‘Fair enough, but you do understand it all now, at least. So, if we get you on to the system to start as a new student after Christmas you can fit in with the others. We’ll think of a way. All you have to do is pass the exams for the term and you’ll be like everyone else. Trust me if you can master the stuff we’ve just covered the rest will be child’s play in comparison.’
‘I’ll take your word for it.’ He still preferred Law.
‘And you are sure this is what you want? You want to go back to your old life, with that girl. Caitlin, isn’t it?’ Her eyebrows were raised.
He was tired of justifying himself. He had enough doubts of his own. ‘Yes, that’s her name. I fell in love with her and I am pretty sure she did love me. I have to know if she’ll love me again. I know it’s pathetic but I need to know.’
‘Okay, if that’s what you want. Just try not to be too disappointed if things don’t go to plan. She might not be that happy to find out what you are.’
‘Why do I have to tell her?’ He didn’t want to scare her off immediately.
‘Great place to start in a relationship, with one lie after another,’ Catherine added.
Did she have to sound so judgemental? ‘I can’t tell her straight away, can I?’
‘No I guess not. Steven, can I just remind you of something important. You still need human blood. Feeding off humans, as you have discovered, has its risks even if you don’t commit the crime.’
‘Jeff told you about the girl.’
‘Yes, he did.’ Catherine leaned back on the chair and folded her arms over her chest.
‘So, what do I do? Rob a hospital?’
‘It doesn’t do any harm. I’ll help,’ she replied. ‘Just don’t feed off any more humans. It’s too risky.’
‘Point taken, don’t worry there are plenty of animals I can feed on without raising suspicions. If you help me get human blood via a safer source it’ll be better. You will want some too I imagine.’
‘Yes, so we kill two birds with one stone.’
‘So, we’re agreed. We won’t kill anyone?’
‘Right.’
Not on his watch.
‘So, did you need help finding her? I guess you still don’t even know where she lives?’
Catherine was obviously one step behind for a change. ‘I already tracked her down.’
‘Impressive.’
She flicked back her hair behind her ears and clasped her hands together, all business like. ‘It would help if you knew as much as possible. Shall I do a thorough check?’
‘See if you can find out something I didn’t?’
‘Exactly.’
An hour later, they knew everything about Caitlin Chance. Her address, grades, report on the suicide – the lot.
‘She’s a smart girl,’ Catherine said, as she flicked through the papers.
‘I know. Not that she’d admit to it,’ he laughed. Caitlin was one of the most insecure people Steven had ever met, she never acknowledged her ability.
Catherine’s next question threw him off guard, ‘So, now you know where she is, what exactly are you planning to do?’
He shook his head and looked away. ‘I had not got that far. Start lectures and see?’
‘Maybe. I don’t suggest you follow her around. If she catches you you’ll only make her suspicious.’
‘I was not planning to become a stalker.’ If he was honest he would have admitted the thought had crossed his mind.
‘Good. Keep your distance for now, be patient. Time is your friend.’
The way she said it like it was true was silly. He did not know if she could see that he was not impressed.
‘Anyway, we have to bury my mum. Are you coming?’
Steven took a deep breath and sighed. ‘I owe her that much.’
‘You do.’
***
Jeff decided to lay Judith to rest in the sheltered section of the garden. A beautiful spot surrounded by a range of evergreen shrubs and majestic oak trees. A wreath of fresh flowers leant against the paved grave. It brought colour and beauty to the sombre scene.
‘Freesias were her favourite flower,’ Jeff reflected.
‘They do smell nice,’ Ian added. ‘Do you think she’s at rest now? I mean, do you really think there is an afterlife, heaven and hell and all that?’
Jeff knew he could always trust Ian to bring in a moment breaker. ‘Of course there is, without a doubt. Do you think we’d exist at all if it wasn’t for the greater good? Nothing happens in isolation. God does work in mysterious ways. It’s not up to us to question what the motives are behind every event.’
Ian tensed. ‘Sorry Dad, but I can’t accept that Mum died for the greater good. She had so much more to give. I know that death is a natural part of life but, I never thought we’d die.’
‘What? Did you think we’d be immortal?’ Jeff tried hard not to sound condescending. ‘No-one knows what happened to us. In the past few years, your mother and I started to notice that we were not the same.’
‘What do you mean?’
Jeff had not wanted to burden his son, he wished he had. It would have made it easier now. ‘We needed more animal blood. It seemed no matter how much we had we never felt satisfied. When we got here and your mother started to get ill it was purely a coincidence. She just knew she was home, I guess she was ready. There is no way of knowing whether by having human blood she would have healed. Personally, I think it might have extended her life by a few more years but that’s all. The truth is that none of us will live forever. If we tried to I’m pretty sure it would not be much of an existence. I believe our need for human blood would become insatiable. Then we would truly resemble vampires. I don’t want that, do you?’
‘Vampires, sounds so macabre. Millions of predators in the world, including humans, and yet you say vampires and everybody runs for the hills. It’s ludicrous really. We are human beings with different needs. That’s all. Doesn’t every species do what it can to survive?’
Jeff faced Ian, resolute. ‘Yes, to a point. The thing is not all predators have a conscience. We do. I don’t think you’d ever see a shark stopping mid bite, would you? They don’t think about the animal they’ve killed for food? They just take what they need. Do you think any of us can kill and n
ot be burdened with guilt indefinitely?’
Ian pursed his lips. After a moment, he added, ‘No, I guess not.’
That had given him some food for thought.
Back to Table of Contents
Chapter 20
First Contact
Jeff turned to face the house as he heard a car arrive in the distance. Two sets of doors opened and slammed, he gave a half smile. Catherine was back with Steven. She reminded him so much of Judith. She could convince water to turn into wine.
He was glad Steven was back. At least they would get a chance to talk. He had to be strong for Judith. He had promised to help him.
‘Catherine’s back,’ Ian said, his tone hostile.
‘Not now Ian, not now.’ Jeff did not feel like putting up a fight.
‘Fine, I’ll go off for a walk. I’ll be back later.’
‘Good idea.’ Jeff watched Ian saunter off and sighed. Ian was just like him, he wanted to protect everyone. This was not his fight.
Jeff stared at the gravestone. He wanted more than anything to fully understand why Judith had left him, it was just hard. They had decided years earlier to stay together. They had made a pact. Why had it ended? He could not believe another lone tear had run down his cheek. He ignored it. He did not want to move. He knew he was vulnerable. Even when he heard the gravel crunching as Catherine got closer, he stayed still.
‘You don’t need to be brave with me,’ Catherine said, as she placed her arm over his shoulder.
He wiped the tear away from his face and rubbed his eye in a vain attempt to pretend he had grit in his eye. ‘I know.’ Catherine would know the truth anyway.
‘Mum loved you so much. We all knew it. She would do anything for you. Remember that.’
Jeff thought about this and swallowed as he tried to get the words out. ‘She did everything for me. What did I do for her?’
‘What do you mean? You did everything you could to keep us safe. What else could you have done?’ Catherine stared at him with huge eyes.
The Evolution Trilogy: Hybrid, Complications & Return Page 44
