“Just trust me.”
Alessandro was impatient. “We have no time for a discussion.” he quickly wrapped a hand over my mouth and lifted me up with the other. I struggled against him, but he didn’t seem to notice. Michael nodded at him and opened the window. His grandson jumped out with me without making a sound. He held me in a tight grip as he raced across the lawn to the hedge that surrounded the perimeter. It was a giant hedge, at least two yards tall. He vaulted it without effort and set me down on the sidewalk.
“I don’t mean to interrupt anything, but why the rush?” Ryoko had jumped the hedge right after Alessandro had landed. He put an arm around my shoulders. “Do they always treat you like that?”
“It may have looked a little misleading, but we’re merely trying not to miss our flight,” Alessandro lied without blinking.
“Oh, you mean when you had a hand over her mouth and hauled her off across the lawn? Yeah, that might be misconstrued.” Ryoko gave me a look that said he cared. “Melanie, you’re freezing. Don’t you have a coat? Come, I’ll take you back inside where it’s warm.” Before Alessandro could protest, Ryoko picked me up and jumped back over the hedge with me, then carried me back into the house through a side door. I felt like Tweety, the bird in the Tom and Jerry cartoons. The question was who was Tom and who was Jerry. Alessandro had followed us. His wary respect for the dragon was obvious. Ryoko set me down and casually looked back over his shoulder. “You should go, or else you’re going to miss your flight.”
Alessandro didn’t heed him, but hurried up the stairs, probably to alert Michael of yet another thwarted plan.
It could be disadvantageous to be a dragon. Who knew? “Ryoko, I’m not a dragon!”
“Why are you so sure?”
How could I explain without giving everything away? “I still don’t know what I am, but if I were a dragon, I would know.”
“What are you hiding from us? How can you be so sure? Come with me!” I followed him obediently. We went back to the front hall, where Kadeijosch, Hugorio, and Michael had made themselves comfortable.
“Hugorio told us that Nikelaus thinks you’re a Halfling,” Kadeijosch addressed me as soon as he spied me.
Michael interrupted him: “Melanie, shouldn’t you be on your way back to Salzburg?” I shrugged and sat down next to him. He opened his arms and I nestled into his embrace. Ryoko explained to Kadeijosch where he’d found me.
“Michael, what language are they speaking now?” I had whispered my words, but they had all heard me.
“We’re speaking Terakon. Is there really no difference for you?” Kadeijosch asked. I couldn’t hear the slightest difference between my German and the language they had just used. I looked at him and shook my head. “None.”
“It’s hard to believe. I mean, you have to know what language you’re speaking at any given moment, don’t you? You speak Terakon when you address me, then you turn to Michael and switch to German. Please be honest.”
“Kadeijosch, I am being honest. Maybe I’m not always telling you everything, but I haven’t once lied to you yet. I keep doing things intuitively, acting by instinct without consciously deciding to do so. Sometimes these things almost kill me. Michael thinks my body is not strong enough for my abilities.”
“Could you explain that in more detail?”
“Can Hugorio understand us when we speak … Terakon?” He shook his head.
“The thing is, when I manipulate magic or try to thwart it, I get a kind of choking fit afterwards. Not while I’m doing it, but right after. My body hurts and I can’t breathe. It feels as if something is squeezing the air from my lungs. In most cases, I faint after a few moments of that. I wake up exhausted. By now I can feel it coming, as if something smothering is moving towards me.”
“Interesting. To me that doesn’t sound like your body is the problem.” Ryoko chimed in: “Why are you so sure that you’re not a dragon?”
“I can’t tell you. I promised Michael I wouldn’t tell anyone. And since I don’t understand your world and hardly know the consequences of what I do or don’t do, I have to trust his judgment.”
“You’re scared and I understand that. We’re certain that you are one of us. The worst thing that can happen to you is that you have to live with us for a month. When your month is over and you’ve met everyone, it’s possible that one of the dragons is interested in you. And then you decide whether you want to give him a chance or not. If not, you can go home. Michael is an important and appreciated friend, which means that probably you’d only have to go through one meeting and could go back within a day.”
“I love Michael, even if I sometimes want to murder him for being so obstinate.”
“Then you will go home after a month, maximum.”
“Is that a promise, no matter what I’m about to tell you?”
“It’s a promise.”
“Can you both promise me not to tell anyone else, not even another dragon?” I wanted to make absolutely sure.
They nodded gravely. I trusted them, judging by their aura, their wisdom, patience, and respectability. I simply had to trust them, and I knew they would not disappoint me. “My father is not human, but if he was a dragon, I would have seen that.”
“So you really are a Halfling! How do you know?”
“My babysitter Moravia told me. She couldn’t tell me anything beyond that, because she is bound by magic. I didn’t know anything about your world before I met Michael. My parents had hidden it all from me. I wanted to protect them, so I didn’t tell them about my new problems. When I finally resolved to confront them about the whole thing, they had vanished without a trace.”
Ryoko stared at me with his mouth hanging open. “It’s impossible. I had given up hope.”
Kadeijosch patted him on the shoulder. “I told you she is special. Your father must have found a way to hide his true identity from you.”
Hugorio cleared his throat. He was getting impatient. Kadeijosch nodded and focused his attention on the Filguri. “I’m rather certain that she’s not a Halfling, but she is definitely a dragon.” Then he gave Michael a grave look. “Michael, she wants to fly home with you tomorrow. Do you promise to watch over her?”
“She’s already under my protection and her safety is important to me even without your request. That was the reason I wouldn’t leave her alone in Salzburg while we all came here.”
As soon as Hugorio made a move to approach me in any way, Kadeijosch and Ryoko found a way to intercept him, distract him, and keep him from touching me again. It was getting really late and I was tired, but Michael still had to discuss things with them, so Kadeijosch accompanied me upstairs to my room. At the door he took my hand and looked into my eyes, imploring me to listen to him closely: “Don’t tell anyone about your parentage. Michael doesn’t need to know that you told us your secret.” Once again he then put both hands on my cheeks, looked into my eyes, let his forehead touch mine for a long moment, and then looked into my eyes again. And once again I could feel that this was a very meaningful gesture, but I didn’t understand.
Michael had come up behind us, concerned and powerless. I didn’t want Kadeijosch to get his hopes up in vain: “I’m sorry, but I’m not a dragon. My father is not a dragon, and I was told that there are no mixed breeds. I understand how much this means to you, but please don’t be disappointed.”
He smiled. “If we were wrong, it wouldn’t be your fault. And it’s not as important to me as you think.” Then he turned to Michael and told him he would wait for him downstairs.
The events of the day were replaying in my head. I barely noticed that Michael had come into the room with me. I only realized what was going on when he kissed me and practically tore the clothes from my body. I was not in the mood for any of this? Did he have to get this passionate every time another man had given me some attention? My whole life was sliding into an increasingly tangled chaos; I had so much on my mind. Exasperated, I stopped him when I was standing naked before
him. He studied me with a demoralized expression. He couldn’t understand my reaction. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m scared.”
“Of the dragons?”
I shook my head. His eyes widened in shock: “Scared of me? I know I can be a little gruff sometimes, but …”
“Michael, no. I’m always in the dark, I have no idea how your world functions, and I never know what to do; I always seem to do the wrong thing. I trust Kadeijosch and Ryoko; I know they’re not going to hurt me. But what if one day you can’t save me in time? If I die, fine, but I couldn’t bear to be forced to become somebody’s plaything.”
He shook his head with desperate insistence, before cupping my cheeks and looking into my eyes. “Melanie, I will watch over you and make sure nobody can touch you. The episode with Nikelaus was just abysmal luck. I would have saved you.”
When he kissed me again, he was no longer rough and demanding, but loving and tender. He lay on the couch with me and simply held me in his strong arms. Yes, he was the man that I loved. The dice had long been cast; I belonged to him. It was as if an invisible band was tying us together. I needed him and he needed me. He slowly began caressing me, exploring every inch of my body anew. With every touch, my inner turmoil subsided more and more. This time it wasn’t pure desire or lust that was driving me; it was the relieved feeling of falling into his protection, letting him catch and cradle me. I enjoyed being pleasured by him. He took his time and slowly awakened my body. He didn’t let me take off his robe, but did it himself. When my lust began to grow, I pulled him closer. He shook his head and caught my hands, pushed them gently upwards, held them in place on both sides of my head. He hunkered over me and kissed me until I felt my arousal must surely drive me insane. I thought I was about to explode when he said: “I won’t let anyone take you away from me.” He shifted his position and thrust into me. My loud moan brought a smile to his lips and he pushed in deeper. I was already soaring when he began to move rhythmically inside me. Floating on my own orgasm, I felt his thrusts become harder and then he came inside me. I breathed in deeply and murmured an “I love you” when I exhaled. He drank me in, overwhelmed with his own shuddering climax, and whispered: “My Melanie, my precious.” Then he kissed me. He held me in a loving embrace and stayed until I fell asleep, even though they were waiting for him.
The next morning he came in and woke me with a kiss, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “If we want to catch our plane, we have to go now.”
Before we left the house, I took my leave of Ryoko and Kadeijosch. “We’ll meet again, little sister,” Ryoko said. Kadeijosch stroked my arm in a protective manner. “Thank you for your trust, little sister, and take good care of yourself. Goodbye now.” They had spoken Terakon.
A car stood waiting for us in front of the house. Michael seemed tense. He took the driver’s seat. I had come to appreciate and love the dragons, so I felt a little wistful about leaving. I looked back and met Kadeijosch’s eyes, a fact that wasn’t lost on Michael. When we pulled out of the driveway, another car passed us on its way in. “Elke? That woman behind the wheel looked just like my sister.” Michael was so nervous that he didn’t hear me. He stepped on the gas, and I repeated my observation a little louder. He didn’t react at all, focused on the road and eventual dangers or obstacles as he was. He only relaxed when the plane was in the air.
“Michael, could you make sure that nobody can hear us?”
He nodded and moved his hands, murmuring. “Done. You can speak now.”
“Are there really no mixed breeds?”
“No, and you are the only female creature that’s half dragon.”
“I thought you were positive that I’m not a dragon.” He laughed out loud. “Melanie, you are a dragon. If you speak Terakon, you are a dragon, no doubt about it. I merely threw in some contradictions to buy us time, and of course the dragons are well aware of that. One of my arguments was that your blood is toxic to vampires. That is a trait that points towards Filguri. How could I foresee that Hugorio would show up and that Adlen would tell him about it? Ryoko tried to stop her, but it was too late.”
“Please don’t tell me he thinks I’m a Filguri!”
“He heard to speak Terakon with the dragons. He definitely thinks you’re a dragon. The only problem is that he’s convinced that you’re also a Halfling.”
“Great. So in the long run it would have been safer at home. You knew that dragons speak their own language, and that only dragons can understand and speak it?”
“Yes, of course I knew that.”
“Well, then why didn’t you realize I’m a dragon when I understood Rebekka? You heard her speak Terakon on the phone, didn’t you? Shouldn’t that have been the moment you knew?” Maybe I sounded a little reproachful. No, I definitely sounded reproachful, and pissed. Michael wanted to slap himself.
“I was so stupid. We could have saved ourselves the whole ordeal. Please forgive me,” he sighed.
“I thought I was the only one who makes mistakes.” Relief flooded me at the realization that he was fallible, too.
He looked thoughtful, and quickly told me what was on his mind: “Melanie, if you hadn’t seen a way out at Nikelaus’ place, if you had been sure you could never escape, what would you have done?”
“I don’t give up that easily. There’s always a way.”
“I know, but what if there hadn’t been.”
“Giving in was not an option.”
“Just imagine you would be certain there was no way out.”
“You wouldn’t have asked if you didn’t already know the answer.” We were both silent after that.
22 REVELATION
Stefan and the others had already landed in Salzburg when Michael and I stepped onto our plane. Thus when we entered his house, it was busy with people. Alessandro patted me on the shoulder. “Hey, little dragon, welcome home. I didn’t think I would see you again.” The others greeted my with similar cordiality. Michael received a simple, “Hello, boss.”
I was confused by the enthusiastic reception. “Yesterday at the dinner table I got the feeling you were all mad with me for allegedly humiliating Michael.” They explained that it had only been a show for the sake of the dragons.
I remembered Michael’s Christmas present. The last Peri had barely finished his sentence, when I rushed up the stairs without explanation, and barged into our room. Two minutes later I stormed down in my motorbike gear and headed straight for the garage. “Michael, I’ll be back soon,” I said softly, knowing he could hear me anyway. There it was, at the far end of the cavernous garage, my motorbike, a blue 1978 BMW R45. How many times had my father knelt before this thing and tinkered and polished with abandon? Michael had had the machine checked and its tank filled. I pushed the button for the garage door, got on my R45, and off I went. I was already close to my old apartment, when I remembered that I still hadn’t thanked Jeremeia for his help. If there was a good time to visit a castle full of vampires, it would be in bright daylight, with the sun out and the skies clear. Michael had told me that Jeremeia was a born vampire. Then sun couldn’t hurt him, but it was lethal for the vampires he’d turned.
A short while later I parked the bike close to the castle’s front door. I knocked, but nobody answered. I had come all the way; I wouldn’t give up so easily. I pushed the wooden door open and entered. The interior was cast in darkness with the help of lightproof blinds. Probably Jeremeia wanted to make sure his lackeys wouldn’t accidentally be roasted by the sun. I knocked on a random door and opened it cautiously. My gaze lit on a woman with long, blonde hair who stood with her back to me. Jeremeia was across from her and tried to catch my eyes, but I was fully focused on the woman. Her posture was all too familiar. My hands were sweating with anxiety when I softly whispered: “Sarah?” She turned and gave me a sheepish look. “Melanie, hi, how are you?” I was so happy to see her. My concern for her had been nagging at me, especially after she’d acted so strange on the phone. I ran towards her
and flung my arms around her neck. She had some explaining to do, but for now I was just glad to see her.
She extricated herself from my hug and pushed me away. “You smell incredibly good. Please keep a little distance, because my self-control needs a little practice still,” she explained with an apologetic shrug.
Wow, she’d grown strong! I took a step or two backwards and stared at her. My stomach clenched with the realization that she was no longer human. It was hard to believe.
“What are you doing here?” she asked me with an encouraging wink.
“I wanted to thank Jeremeia for his help recently, when I had been poisoned, but right now I feel more like tearing his head off. If I had the necessary strength, that is.”
Jeremeia gave me a haughty look that betrayed his amusement.
“You promised me that nothing would happen to her,” I accused him. He made a gesture as if to say, ‘where’s the problem?’ He didn’t see why I was complaining.
“She’s a vampire!” I hissed, venting my frustration.
“I had to make a decision. The only alternative would have been her death,” he explained, and his next words sounded slightly offended: “It is an honor to be turned by me.”
I ignored him and focused on my friend. “Sarah, I’m so sorry.” She shook her head to stop me. “No, if anyone should apologize, it’s me. It’s all my fault, because without me you wouldn’t be in this mess in the first place. You never wanted to go home with them. I dragged you along when we went to Miachel’s place, not the other way round. Plus it’s not actually that bad. Okay, so I miss the sunshine, but better a vampire than dead, don’t you think?”
“Michael would have found another way,” I insisted naively. It brought home how dearly I had missed her. I wanted to fling my arms around her again, but I refrained, not wanting to make it more difficult on her. “You know how worried I was, don’t you?” I asked, unable to keep the reproach out of my voice.
“I didn’t want to have to lie to you, so I simply ignored your calls. Well, we both know what I am. Do you know what you are?”
Peris Night: Terakon (Secret Language) Page 32
