by Sarah Dell
The female vampire with Castor rushed at Jane. She grabbed Jane by the hair and pulled her head back. The female vampire’s fangs shown off the light from the chandler as she bent her head to Jane’s neck. Then Jane spun around in the vampire’s grasp, and plunged the stake deep into her heart. The female vampire turned to dust before she even knew what was happening.
“Which one of you wants to be next?” Jane asked.
“You are not going to be able to take on all of us” Castor said. “Why don’t you be a good girl and put the stake down and I’ll make your death quick” Castor said.
“If I’m dead anyway, I plan on taking you with me” Jane said to Castor.
“Jane, you don’t want to do this” I said as I slowly walked towards her. I was hoping that Jane wouldn’t want to hurt me, but I stopped walking towards her when I saw her tighten her grip on the stake.
“Don’t tell me what I want or don’t want, you’re not better than the rest of them. You just think you’re better” she said. “You should be different, you know. They said you would be, but you aren’t different” she said. I had no idea what she was talking about. I wasn’t different; I was just a vampire.
“Jane, I know you don’t want to die” I said.
“I’m already dead, but at least I’m not the only one who is going to die. I plan on taking as many of you with me as I can” she said as she motioned towards the stake she still held in her right fist.
“I just want to know where you hid that stake” Tino said in his lazy voice.
“Come over here and I’ll show you” Jane said.
“Tempting” Tino said. I had to admit that Jane had guts. I knew that when I was a human I never would have been able to stand up to four vampires. In fact, I don’t think I would have the guts to stand up the four vampires now. I admired her even though I knew she was going to die. No human stood a chance against a vampire. The only reason she had been able to kill the first two vampires was because they weren’t expecting her to fight. Jane knew she wouldn’t be able to hold them off for very long, yet she wouldn’t go down without a fight.
I still didn’t understand how Jane had resisted Tino’s mind intrusion. I had to stop myself from smiling because the only good part of this situation was that I knew it was driving Tino crazy. Tino was even better than Endora at mind intrusion; it was his one source of pride. I had never seen anyone come out of Tino’s mind intrusion.
“Jane, just put the stake down” I said.
“I’m putting the stake down” Jane’s voice was playful, and it made me question if she meant what she said. To my surprise, Jane opened her both her hands and displayed her palms for the room to see, letting the stake she held drop to the floor. Tino rushed towards Jane; then suddenly I saw Tino fall to his knees with a wooden stake pointing out from his left shoulder. Tino pulled the stake out of his shoulder with a yell of pain.
“She has another stake” I said in disbelief. It was one thing for her to sneak in one stake, but it would have been impossible for her to sneak in two.
“She’s a land witch” Castor yelled in surprise. I stared at Jane. I had heard of witches that could control the land and everything that grew from it, but I never thought I would meet one. Land witches, along with all other witches, had been hunted to extinction, or so I had been told. Witches’ powers were passed down thru the generations. A witch’s power centered around one of the four elements. Land and fire witches were the two most feared by vampires as wood and fire were the two elements that could kill a vampire.
“All of you are abominations against nature, and you have to be destroyed” she said.
“Jane, you don’t want to do this” I told her. I didn’t feel the stake go in, but I did feel the cold surge of power. I looked down to see the stake lodged into my chest. I pulled the stake from my chest and I felt like the life had been drained from me. I needed blood. Jane was staring at me. Before she could put another stake in me I sank my fangs into Jane’s neck and drank deeply. Jane’s blood was different than any other blood I had ever tasted; her blood was rich and sweet. All I had to do was drink just a little more and she would be dead. For the first time since becoming a vampire I didn’t want to stop feeding; I wanted to drink every last drop of Jane’s blood. She would have killed me without a second thought. Jane had said herself that she was already dead. If I didn’t kill her one of the other vampires in the room would kill her.
“Stop, the queen would want her alive. She will want to make an example of her” Castor said. I made myself stop feeding from Jane, and I let her go limp against me. I could feel her blood filling every part of my body. Her blood made my head feel like it was spinning and, it made my body feel strong and more alive than I have ever felt.
“Let’s not let these unfortunate events spoil what should be a lovely evening” Endora said. “Besides, we still have these three lovely entrées to enjoy” Endora motioned at the other three girls that had come with Jane.
“Yes, we should go on with the meeting” Castor said as he reached for one of the girls. He turned her head so that her perfect sun tanned neck was exposed. I looked into her blank eyes, and I wished that I was her. She would never know the pain of dying, and it would be over before she even realized what was happening.
“Lily, take Jane down to the basement and lock her in chains” Endora said. “Tino, you should feed so you will heal” she said, and I watched Tino bite into another of the girls.
I lifted Jane over my shoulder and carried her down to the basement. I laid Jane down on one of the beds. I had taken enough blood from her that she would be weak for a while. I did my best to lock the chains around her so that when she woke up she wouldn’t be too uncomfortable, but I knew I had to make sure that the chains would hold her. Once I was done locking up Jane I started back up the stairs, but I stopped when I heard Endora and Castor talking.
“We never did talk about why you are here” Endora said.
“The Queen wants her; I can’t give you any more time” Castor said.
“She’s not ready” Endora said.
“Whose fault is that?” Castor said. “After what I just saw I’d say her powers are developing and your bond with her is hanging by a thread”.
“I can’t force her. You know if I push too hard I will lose the bond we have. Don’t forget about the potential she has” Endora said.
“Potential that will be wasted if she is not controllable” Castor said. “If she is not controlled she will become dangerous”.
“I have her under control” Endora said.
“For now” Castor said. “What happens when she discovers what she is?” Castor asked. “What happens if she discovers how to use her powers?” he asked.
“That won’t happen” Endora said. “What happened tonight was a fluke. You just have to give me more time” she said.
“I don’t have more time to give you” Castor said. “The Queen wants to meet her, and not even I can defy the Queen” he said. I waited until I heard both Castor and Endora go up to their rooms before I went up to mine.
I wondered about what I had overheard Castor say. I had always known that Endora wanted to control me, but I didn’t understand what she meant about my having potential or what Castor meant about me being dangerous. Never would I have thought I would hear someone call me dangerous.
I wondered why someone as powerful as Castor would be afraid of me. I wasn’t a threat to anyone. I couldn’t even make a kill. I looked at myself in the mirror and I tried to see myself under the makeup and clothes that didn’t feel like me. It didn’t matter how long I looked in the mirror, I couldn’t see the girl I used to be. It wasn’t just the clothes or the makeup, it was me. It was in my eyes; they were the same color and they looked the same, but they were cold and unfeeling. There was nothing I could do to change them back.
I looked deep into the green eyes that I inherited from my father. I desperately wanted to see something in those eyes that would remind me of the pe
rson that I used to be. This life had taken everything that I used to be and still it wanted more. It wanted something I didn’t think I could give. It wanted the very last shred of humanity that was left inside me.
If I could just give into the darkness then maybe it wouldn’t hurt as much. Maybe I could feel like Tino and Endora and maybe I wouldn’t care anymore. I just wanted to feel the way I used to feel. I didn’t want to embrace the darkness, but I didn’t have a choice.
I cursed Jane. If it weren’t for her I would have given in to the darkness and killed one of the other girls by now. I had been prepared to kill before her assault distracted me. I blamed her for making me stop and think about the kill. She had said that I was no different from the other vampires in the room, and she had been right; but I didn’t want to be like the other vampires. I didn’t want to kill anyone. I wanted to be the person I used to be. I wanted to be the girl with friends whose only worry was whether or not someone would ask me to the prom.
It wasn’t like I was making a difference by not killing. Every one of those girls died, and it didn’t matter if I killed them or not. If I didn’t make a kill soon, Endora would have no choice but to put a stake in my heart.
I don’t know why, but just then I thought about Matthias and his promise to take me away. I laughed at the thought. Did he really think he could save me from this life? He apparently had never dealt with vampires. No vampire could ever be free from their masters, and if their master died the blood bond would just be passed to another vampire.
I only managed to put Matthias out of my mind by thinking about the meeting with the Queen. I always knew that if I lived as a vampire long enough I would have to meet the Queen, but I had hoped that it wouldn’t be for a long time. From what I knew about the Queen she was not to be taken lightly. She had taken control of the vampire council during World War I, and she was not well liked.
I needed to understand what potential Endora and Castor thought I possessed, and I needed to understand what Castor had said about me discovering what I am. I didn’t understand why I was so important to both Endora and Matthias. There was more to this story that I didn’t know. I had to find out what everyone else seemed to know. What was I? I wondered. I felt like Matthias knew more than he had told me. Even though I knew I shouldn’t go meet him I had to go. I had to know what he knew.
CHAPTER 5
It was just after the sun had set, and the sky was still glowing a bright pink from the rays of the sun. I liked looking at the sky just after sunset. This red and pink light was the only glimpse of sun light had I would ever see. It was a reminder that the sun still existed even if I couldn’t see it. I’d had pale skin even as a human, and I spent a lot of time hiding from the sun. I wished I could go back to that time. I would bathe myself in sunlight every chance I got. No one could explain what it was like to never see the sun. It was like there was no happiness in the world; there was only darkness, and the monsters lived in the darkness.
The graveyard was quiet except for the rhythmic chirping of nocturnal insects and the gentle swaying of leafs in the wind. I could still leave and he would never know. But, I had to know what I was, and what he and Endora wanted from me. I couldn’t go to the Queen without knowing what I was.
“I knew you would come” I saw Matthias leaning against the trunk of a tree as I walked deeper into the graveyard.
“Nothing has changed, I’m still not going with you” I said.
“Then why did you come?” he asked.
“I need you to tell me what I am, and why you are here” I told him.
“I can’t tell you that” he said.
“Can’t or won’t?” I asked.
“I can’t tell you, but if you come with me I’ll show you what you are” he said. “I’ll show you a different life” he said. “You weren’t meant for this life. You were meant for more” he said.
“It doesn’t matter what life I was meant for, this is the life I have, and you can’t change that. You can’t change what I am” I told him. “I need to know what I am before I go before the Queen” I told him.
“No, you can’t go before the Queen” he said.
“We’re leaving tonight. I need to know what I am before I go” I told him.
“No” he said. “You can’t go there. You can’t go anywhere near her” he said.
“I don’t have a choice” I said.
“You can come with me” he said.
“We would never be safe. We would always be running from Endora. That’s not a life I want for you” I said.
“There’s an Island” he said. “No one will find us there. You will be safe there” he said. “Please just come with me”.
“I…” he was kissing me then. His lips were full and soft as they moved over my own lips. Before I knew what was happening, I was kissing him. Kissing him was a familiar action. Years ago we had kissed often; but this was different. We were different. We weren’t wide-eyed teenagers anymore. There was a passion in that kiss that hadn’t been there before. I would have done anything to make that kiss last forever. I would have done anything to be with him now. I wanted him and nothing else mattered.
“You’re going to come with me now, if I have to drag you kicking a screaming” he said. I was tempted to watch him try.
“Yes” was all I could say and it was enough. I didn’t know if we would make it to this Island, but going with Matthias was the best chance I had at finding out what I was. Endora’s wrath was a risk I had to take.
CHAPTER 6
“We don’t have a lot of time, and if you want to know what you are we need to go see someone” he said.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“There is only one person who can show you who you are” he said.
“I thought we were going to the Island” I said.
“We will, but first I promised you that I would show you what you are” he said. I thought about asking more questions, but I got the impression that I wasn’t getting any more information out of him.
I caught myself watching Matthias as he drove. I was confused about how I felt about him. I barely knew who he was now. He could be completely different from the Matthias I knew ten years ago. I also didn’t know what his motivations were and that made him dangerous. He said he worked for an organization that could keep me safe on their Island.
I didn’t want him to catch me watching him, so I turned away to look out the window. He claimed that he could save me. It was tempting to believe everything that he told me, but I knew that it would only make it harder for me when it turned out to be false. When Endora found us and killed him I would be heartbroken, but I had to try. I knew he wasn’t just going to stop trying. He had said he would die trying, but I hoped that wouldn’t happen. I just hoped that when Endora found us Matthias would be spared.
I knew that nothing good could come from what I was feeling. There were only two possible outcomes. I could fall in love with Matthias, he would not feel the same way about me, and I would have my heart broken. Or, he could feel the same way and I would have to go back to Endora and spend the rest of my unnaturally long life missing him.
Matthias wasn’t kidding about the long drive. The clock on the dash of the old Ford truck that Matthias drove didn’t work, but I guessed that we had been driving for over an hour before Matthias brought the truck to a stop in front of a street lined with small shops.
“Fortunes Told Here” I read with just a touch of sarcasm as we approached the shop.
“She only pretends to be a fake fortune teller, but she is really has the sight” Matthias told me.
“So you feel the need to see the future?” I asked.
“She doesn’t only see the future. She sees everything that a person is, was, and will be” he said as we walked into the fortune teller’s shop. The first thing I noticed as was the sweet heavy fragrance of incense. Heavy dark blue curtains covered the walls giving the room an otherworldly quality. Across the room there was a doorfr
ame laced with beads that fell in a curtain to the floor. There was a sign on the second beaded curtain that stated the fortune teller was with a client. Matthias sat down on the blue velvet couch in the waiting room as if he had been in the shop often, and I sat down next to him.
I looked up when I heard the sound of the beaded curtain being opened. A young woman left the fortune teller’s shop with a worried look on her face. I thought that whatever the fortune teller had told her couldn’t have been good. I wondered how she ever made any money if she always told her clients the truth. People didn’t go to fortune tellers for the truth; they went for the pretty lies about how their lives will turn out ok.
“I only take one customer at a time, and its twenty dollars for a reading” a tall, thin middle aged woman dressed in blue silk scarfs said as she walked across the waiting room.
“She is the one here for a reading” Matthias said. “She needs to know what she is”.
“She is a vampire, and I don’t read vampires” she said.
“You know she is more than a vampire” Matthias said.
“I know that she could be more, but right now she is only a vampire” she said. “I can show her what she could be, but it is going to cost you”.
“I assumed as much; you can take your usual fee” he said.
“For this I want more” she said.
“No, you’re not getting more” Matthias said.
“I want twice my usual amount. That’s my price. If you are not willing to pay then leave and stop wasting my time” she said.
“What does she want?” I asked.
“The same thing you take from humans; his life force” she said.
“You want his blood?” I asked and she made a disgusted face.
“Drinking blood is such a crude way of transferring life force” she said.
