“No, that’s just the first time. We don’t have to kill to feed,” Emma stated. “Vampires always charm their victims first, that way they can be sure they’re not a living weapon. There’s always a loophole in nature.”
“Are you really strong as well as fast?” She had already seen the speed at which they could move when Emma blocked her from running out of the house.
“Yes, we are extremely strong,” Zachariah responded, still grinning, amused by the childlike fascination she seemed to have.
“Can you fly?”
This time he let out a full laugh, “No, we’re not superheroes or bats. However, we can jump fairly high.” With that he quickly crouched and propelled himself upward, grabbing a branch about thirty feet up and dangling.
Kelly hooted with glee at the sight, something she had never seen before. She felt like a kid watching amazing tricks at the circus. He swung his feet to gain momentum and let go of the branch, doing a couple of flips on the way down and landing on his feet with complete grace.
“Oh my gosh, that was awesome!” She exclaimed, extremely impressed.
“Emma and Zachariah used to do stuff like that all the time when I was a kid to entertain me. I loved it! I always wished I could do the same and they always had to remind me not to try anything!” Daniel reminisced, thinking of how awesome his childhood was with these two around. “To this day I’m still fascinated with the thought of being like them…”
“No! Don’t talk like that,” Emma interjected. “We should have been in our graves centuries ago, forever is a long time. Don’t even think of being like us.”
There was an awkward silence and Kelly decided that was enough questions for the day. She didn’t want to cause an argument between everyone. After a while she eventually spoke, amused by the situation, “A couple weeks ago if you told me that I would be at Davenport Manor, walking through a forest with Daniel Davenport and Zachariah Dancy…to get to a cemetery, I wouldn’t have believed it.”
“But, the believable part is that I’m a vampire, you’re a living weapon, and we’re heading to the cemetery so you can talk to a two-hundred-year old ghost…right?” Zachariah joked.
“Ha! Yes, that part is completely normal,” she giggled. She couldn’t help but be slightly attracted to him, but didn’t want to seem like she was bouncing from guy-to-guy. However, Kelly was one to state what was on her mind, sometimes without thinking it through first. “You know, if I didn’t already have a little connection with Todd, I would totally be into you, Zachariah.”
Zachariah threw his hands up in front of her and rebuffed, “Whoa, Nelly! No offense, but I’m not getting myself mixed up with a living weapon. That’s dangerous to my health!” He mockingly put his hand over his heart.
Kelly snickered, “Good point! I’d feel really bad if I accidentally killed you. Plus, I’d have death threats from all of your crazy fans.”
The path led them out of the forest and into the vast field that held every Davenport ancestor. Just in front of them lied the large crypt that contained the original family; all but Emma, whose space inside remained forever empty. She decided the first way to try to make contact with Elizabeth would be by sitting on the bench directly in front of the crypt. It was where she would often go to connect with her family, whether they could hear her or not. Although, she was fairly certain that Elizabeth wouldn’t communicate with vampires present.
“We’ll have you sit on the bench here and try to make contact with Elizabeth,” Emma instructed. “She may not want to be around us and might be more likely to communicate with just you.”
“What? You’re leaving me alone to chat with a ghost? I don’t think so!” Kelly exclaimed.
“I’ll stay with you then,” Daniel coaxed. “Plus, I know what we’re trying to communicate, so I can help you along.” He looked to Emma for approval, who thanked him and began to walk away with Zachariah.
She didn’t want to get her hopes up that they would be able to use Elizabeth through Kelly, but they had to try. They turned to look back at Kelly and Daniel, who were discussing what should be said to Elizabeth should she decide to appear and communicate. Zachariah put his arm around Emma as they continued walking the path back to the Manor, hopeful that this would help them find their friend.
“Elizabeth…are you here? I’m Kelly, a friend of Todd’s…”
She listened for any response, her eyes gazing around at their surroundings. All she could hear was the cold, late afternoon breeze and a few birds chirping in the distance.
“Elizabeth, if you can hear me, we really need your help finding Todd. We fear he is in danger, but have nowhere to look. Please…if you can hear me, communicate with me.”
She sat in silence once again, hoping for an answer or a vision of Elizabeth’s spirit. She turned to Daniel and shrugged, feeling like she was letting him and his family down. She knew that she was their last hope.
“Nothing…” Kelly said blankly.
“Let’s just wait here for a while,” Daniel suggested. “Emma said she was at peace, but she’s still around.” Daniel stood up from the bench and pleaded, “Elizabeth, you’re my sixth-great aunt, my family. Please help us find Todd, he’s a good person and a dear friend. I know you were fond of him…”
They waited, but the only thing they heard was the occasional dry leaf dancing over the grass, taunting them into believing they had heard something.
“Did Todd easily contact her?” Kelly asked.
“He really didn’t try much, it kind of freaked him out. She usually sought him out when he least expected it. Although, he always said that she had a very calming presence, never frightening.” Daniel decided to leave out the story about the night when she woke Todd in the middle of the night with blood all over her. Just to get his attention, of course, no need to be subtle.
They chatted for thirty minutes, occasionally calling for Elizabeth to join them. The last remnants of the sun’s light touched the clouds above and darkness began to fall upon the cemetery. They decided that it is a lost cause for now since there was no sign of Elizabeth’s presence at all.
They entered the house and saw Emma and Zachariah cuddling together on the couch while watching the television on the wall. They looked up with hopeful faces that soon fell when they read Daniel and Kelly’s own looks of defeat.
“Nothing, huh?” Emma stated.
“No, I’m so sorry, Emma. I tried, but didn’t see or hear anything unusual,” Kelly confirmed.
“Well, it was worth a shot,” she said as she released herself from Zachariah’s arms and rose from the couch to walk over to them. “I really appreciate you coming out here to try and help. I’ll go ahead and have our driver take you back home now. I’ll call you if I find out anything.”
Kelly nodded as she gathered her purse and looked around for one last time, taking a mental picture of her time here today.
“Another thing…and this is very important…you must not tell anyone anything that you heard here today,” Emma’s eyes turned dark and menacing. “If I find out that you told anyone about us, I will personally hunt you down. Understand?”
Kelly’s face was serious and understanding, “Yes, I completely understand. My lips are zipped.”
Zachariah picked up where Emma left off, “Also, never tell anyone what you are. If you ever find yourself in a situation where you feel like it may be a vampire trying to charm you, just go along with it. Otherwise you’re likely to be killed on the spot.”
He proceeded to show her what it was like when a vampire tried to charm a human and what one might say. “If they’re suspicious and tell you to stab yourself in the leg, just do it. That’s better than being dead.”
They waited for the driver to pull up in front with the car, but instead he entered through the front door looking confused. He explained that none of the cars would start. He tried the Escalade, the Mercedes, Daniel’s car, and all of the spare cars in the garages, but none of the engines would turn over.<
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Emma raised an eyebrow and half-smiled, “We might have just received a sign. Looks like you’re spending the night, Kelly. Hope you don’t have plans for tomorrow. We’re about the same size; I’ll give you pajamas and clothes to wear.”
The thought of being stuck at Davenport Manor wasn’t such a bad thing, most people would have killed to have such an experience. Kelly was uneasy about it though, knowing that the reason she was stuck was because of a supernatural occurrence. She doubted she would get much sleep.
Emma picked up on her anxiety and added, “You can sleep in Todd’s room if you like.” She had an agenda though – not only was Todd’s room the first place that Elizabeth appeared to him, but it also happened to be Elizabeth’s room when she was still alive. Emma thought that if Kelly stayed in there, she might present herself.
Kelly smiled at the thought of getting to sleep in Todd Foster’s bed. Emma brought her up the grand staircase in the center of the foyer, then up the left set of stairs leading to the bedrooms. They walked side-by-side down the long hallway, the clicking of Emma’s heels echoed off of the walls. Kelly gazed at the intricate architecture, amazed by the detailed carvings framing each doorway. As they neared their bedrooms, Kelly began to notice the large portraits hanging over some of them, just as Todd did when he first arrived at the Manor.
“Is that you?” Kelly asked, pointing at the portrait hanging over Emma’s door.
“Sure is! That was painted back in 1813 when I was just twenty-three years old. This is Todd’s room,” Emma said as she reached for the door handle.
Kelly looked up and saw a portrait hanging over the door that kind of looked like Emma, but not quite. “Is this you as well?”
Dammit, Emma thought. “Uh, no…that’s actually Elizabeth. So, that’s who you’re looking for.” She smiled sheepishly at her.
Kelly, trying to remain nonchalant, stated with a smile, “She’s pretty.” When they entered the room and flicked on the light, Kelly stood there shell-shocked. She had never seen such a bedroom in her life! A huge four-post bed with a canopy, a couch in front of a fireplace, a chaise lounge near the oversized window; this was unreal!
Emma giggled as she lightly shook her by the shoulders, “You okay?”
“This is insane! This is Todd’s room?”
“Yup, and I’m right across the hall if you need anything. Zachariah and I don’t sleep, so if you need us, just yell. We can hear throughout the house.”
After Kelly took a moment to check out the room, they returned downstairs and Emma led her to the kitchen where Zachariah and Daniel were. Daniel was preparing dinner for himself and Kelly; nothing fancy, just pasta and sauce from a jar. Zachariah had heated up a glass of blood for Emma and sipped from the one he already had for himself. They had thrown out all the cases of blood that they previously had and bought all new ones just to be safe.
During dinner they had lively conversations while getting to know Kelly. She couldn’t help but notice the slight differences between the humans and vampires at the table. Emma and Zachariah’s dialects would sometimes sound like they were from another time, which they were. Depending on their emotions when they spoke or the words they used, a smidgeon of the English language from the 1800s would show through. They would sound like they had an accent from time-to-time, but the accent wasn’t one that Kelly could describe.
“What was your favorite era in history?” She asked them, curious about the events through history they had seen.
Without hesitation they simultaneously answered, “The Twenties.” They glanced at each other and laughed. Clearly in-tune with each other after being together for two-hundred years.
“And you’ve lived here the entire time? I use the term ‘lived’ loosely here!”
“Yes, we have never lived elsewhere. I have remained with each generation of my family. Since Elizabeth died…and technically, I did as well…the only remaining child in my family was my brother, Christopher. He was Daniel’s sixth-great grandfather. I have known and lived with all of his descendants.”
“Isn’t it difficult staying with your family? I mean…”
“They don’t live forever, I know. And yes, it’s terribly difficult, but we have never allowed ourselves to get too attached. I mean, we care about them, but we would be emotional train wrecks if we allowed them to fully enter our hearts. Then, there’s Daniel here,” Emma said as she lovingly put her arm around him. “Neither of us have been as close to anyone as we are with him. I love him like he’s my true brother…even more than my own brother!”
“It just sucks because we know we’re going to have to say goodbye one day…” Zachariah solemnly added.
“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” Emma exclaimed, putting her fingers in her ears. “No talk of that! I don’t want to think about it yet!”
“Okay, moving on!” Kelly quickly tried to change the subject. “Tell me about Todd.”
Emma carefully picked the right words to say. She didn’t feel that now was the right time for Kelly to know about her intimate history with Todd. She did explain how she was a fan of his work and thought he was perfect for the role in the Ticking Through Time films, but that she had to charm the casting agent to pick him. She told her that she would always feel guilty for doing that because if he had never come to Davenport Manor, his life would never have been turned upside-down. On the other hand, he always said he had no regrets. She spoke of his kindness and humor, always willing to partake in some friendly banter. He easily made friends, even with the people who didn’t want to be friends. With that statement she eyed Zachariah, who raised his glass proudly.
“How did you tell him you were a vampire?” Kelly asked.
“I didn’t really plan to tell him, it just kind of happened. I didn’t even need to speak, he saw everything unfold right in front of him,” Emma explained. She continued on about the story of the night in Chicago when the six men attacked them, but left out the part that they were on a date. He was both fearful and fascinated with her.
“You saved his life!” Kelly said.
“I did. He would have died, I heard him bleeding internally and his heart was becoming weak.”
After dinner they moved into the parlor where they continued talking, Kelly completely enchanted by their stories from history. She was amazed with the thought of Emma and Zachariah being together for so long—never aging, never getting sick, never dying.
“Forever is a long time,” Kelly acknowledged. “You’re completely loyal to each other?”
They both gave wicked grins and shook their heads “no”. They clarified a vampire’s version of morality and that it was almost non-existent. Zachariah told her about the pull between a vampire and their maker and how he and Emma were pretty unique compared to some. He was careful with words as well, not wanting to slip up and tell about his jealousy toward Todd when he first came into the picture. He normally wasn’t jealous of other men with Emma as long as they were vampires. But, he was fearful of her having a relationship with a human since, after all, he was a human when he first met her.
It began to get late and Daniel announced that he was going to bed while yawning widely and stretching his arms. It was contagious and Kelly felt a yawn coming on that she couldn’t suppress, her body telling her that it was tired, no matter how freaked out she was. She bid everyone goodnight and started up the staircase with Daniel. His bedroom was a few doors before hers and after he shut his door behind him, she felt the sudden isolation of being in this huge, elaborate hallway completely alone.
She tried to walk quickly, yet calmly to her room. The only sound was of her bare feet lightly slapping on the cold, marble floor. She found the familiar door amongst the many that was to be her bedroom for the night. She opened it, flicked on the light, and shut the door behind her quietly, as if to not disturb someone who may be inside. She stood for a moment, cautiously looking around the room for something out of the ordinary, but seeing or hearing nothing. It was too quiet; there was n
o way she would be able to sleep in this kind of silence.
She flitted over to the nightstand where she saw a remote control for the television that was mounted on the wall. After examining the buttons for a moment, she turned it on and flipped to channel nine and had a rerun of Friends on. She saw that Emma had placed a pair of soft, button-down pajamas on her bed and then extra clothes for the following day.
She’s so sweet, she thought to herself. Then she remembered how terrifying Emma looked when she revealed that she was a vampire. She shook the thought away and was about to change her clothes when she noticed the large portrait of what looked to be Elizabeth hanging on the wall. Her painted eyes stared directly forward at the artist, but Kelly felt as if they were watching her no matter which direction she moved. She made eye contact for a moment, but quickly broke it out of fear that she would see something strange.
She changed her clothes quickly, feeling as if the portrait was watching her, which was a childish concern. Her imagination was getting carried away and she shook her head and quietly laughed at herself for being such a chicken. She should be enjoying this experience! No one she knew would ever have this kind of opportunity. Here she was, a normal girl from Mount Prospect, and a lucky winner of two tickets to the movie premiere. Her whole life changed because of that one event! She was in this famous, historical, and heavily guarded home where three celebrity heartthrobs lived. It was also the secret home to vampires, ghosts, and whatever other supernatural creatures that went bump in the night. Her wild imagination swiftly came back.
She tried to keep her back to the portrait, but the nerves in her body wouldn’t let her relax. She had to go to the bathroom, but was almost afraid something would jump out at her during an undignified moment. She certainly couldn’t have Emma come in there and hold her hand; she had to be a logical grown up about this…which meant pee as fast as she absolutely could. She ran in there, did a quick check behind the shower curtain, did her business faster than the speed of light, flushed, and scurried out. She turned off the light, but stopped to backtrack and turn it back on. The sound of the toilet refilling was a nice addition to the background noise she tried to create in the room. The extra light was an added bonus…that was going to stay on for the night.
The Living Weapon (Davenport Manor Book 2) Page 8
