Breathless

by Heather C. Hudak

  “This is it Chaseyn—your one chance to put an end to this,” Mina called. “You know what you have to do.”

  For one brief moment, Frost would have to break free from our embrace in order to slit her own wrist so that I could drink of her blood. This would complete the transformation. I was all too eager, and just as reluctant to release her from my grasp as she was to release me. As she pulled away, gingerly disentangling my fingers from her hair, Chaseyn lunged forward, pushing her to the ground. She lay on her back struggling to break free when Alexei eased his way out of Mina’s loose hold and almost literally flew across the yard to fend off Chaseyn.

  The two wrestled together—a mess of legs and arms kicking and punching—in a lump on the ground. Yearning for the nourishment my body needed, I reached out for Frost, and, gaining her attention, pulled her closer. Despite the fact that I was near death, I had gained immeasurable strength.

  Alexei forced Chaseyn to his feet, drawing him farther from where I lay crumpled beside the swing I was so peacefully employing just a few moments earlier. In one swift motion, Alexei pushed Chaseyn back against the old oak tree, and the ground rattled when the weight of his body nit its trunk.

  “You inherited more of me than I would have thought possible,” Alexei said gleefully.

  “You can’t take credit for any part of me,” Chaseyn said through gritted teeth. He was holding up to Alexei, but for how much longer was uncertain.

  “Ah, but I can, son,” Alexei said smugly. “We both fancy the same woman.”

  Pushing with all his might, Chaseyn managed to gain a few feet of space and grab Frost just as she was about to open her own vein for me to drink. Swiftly, Alexei swooped to the scene and slashed a small, clean gash in Frost’s wrist before tossing his son a good five feet through the air. Chaseyn’s body came to an abrupt halt only when it made impact with another large tree, which snapped in half and tumbled quietly over. Alexei’s laugh roared powerfully through the yard in a din that rivaled a thunder clap. There was no time for him to rejoin the effort, so he did the only other thing he could and called out to me.

  “Cordelia,” he shouted madly. “Please look at me.”

  Chaseyn was on his knees. I looked at him swaying there in the pale glow of the soft moonlight. The breeze blew through his perfect locks, which were adorned with bark chips from the fallen tree.

  “You have to look at me,” he called. “Forget about Frost.”

  As he said the words, I felt the first drop of her blood on my skin. Narrowly missing my mouth, it landed in the crease at the corner of my lips. My tongue struggled to reach the solitary bead.

  “Stop it, Cordelia,” Chaseyn begged. “You mustn’t taste even a single speck of her blood, or there will be no way to reverse the process. Please.”

  During Chaseyn and Alexei’s tussle, Mina had escaped inside. Now, she returned with Eli—who had fallen asleep on the couch earlier—at her side. The two of them lunged toward Frost, tackling her to the ground. At the same moment, Chaseyn leaped from the ground and rolled me as far from the scene as he could. By now, the open wound on Frost’s wrist had started heal, and I was breaking free of her trancelike hold.

  “Now,” Chaseyn yelled as he tossed Eli a thick splinter he had been cradling gently in his hand. In true quarterback form, Eli caught the stake one handed and rammed it into Frost’s chest, in the place where her heart would be if she had one. Frost let out a horrifying groan before collapsing limply in Eli’s arms. Acknowledging defeat, Alexei looked at Chaseyn and I huddled beneath the eave and sounded his displeasure.

  “You may have won this time, son, but this is far from over,” he warned then disappeared into the thick black of night.

  “Is she dead,” Eli asked Mina, clearly horrified by the potential crime he had just committed. “It would be self defense, right? What’s the story?”

  “She’s fine, Eli,” Mina assured. “A stake through the chest is simply a means of incapacitating a vampire temporarily. Once we remove the stake, she will heal immediately. I’ll take care of her from here.”

  I was slipping in and out of consciousness as they debated the matter of how to proceed, my blood having been drained nearly dry. Chaseyn had made provisions for just such an event and had a supply of my blood type on hand. Meanwhile, Mina scooped the rumpled mass that Frost had become into her strong arms—not to be seen again in Amarillo.

  “What is all the ruckus out here,” my grandma shouted from just inside the door to her house. “I’m trying to get some sleep, and it’s nearly impossible with all this noise.”

  Chapter 30 - Healing

  One would think that being drained of all your blood to the point of near death would be very exhausting, but it was surprisingly refreshing. The healing process began almost immediately. Although, I later learned that it was enhanced by an ages-old herbal remedy that Mina had in her possession from a recent visit to Romania.

  “She had hoped we would have no use for this but knew that if our plan went awry, we would need to stimulate immediate regeneration of any cells that were depleted during the attack,” Chaseyn explained, trying to sound matter-of-fact. “As I’m sure you have concluded, it expedites the healing process by increasing the speed of blood flow through the veins.”

  For at least three hours after the attack, I lay forlorn in the darkness of the master bedroom while Chaseyn struggled to bring my vitals back to manageable order. Thanks to Frost, I had inherited a temporary, but very powerful, ability to hear every step as my grandma paced back and forth in the hallway.

  “What is in that stuff? I feel great,” I said, hoisting my upper body onto my elbows. It was around noon—only nine hours after the fateful event that had left me practically for dead.

  “Whoa,” Chaseyn said, guiding me back down to a restful position. “Not so fast. I know you’re feeling better, but you still need to rest.”

  By Tuesday, my body had regained its full strength, and Chaseyn felt certain I could make the short flight home comfortably. Though I would miss my grandma, and even Hank and Eli, I was happy to be making my way back home.

  “Here, put these on,” Chaseyn said, handing me a pair of ridiculously large DKNY sunglasses.

  “I’m not wearing these,” I protested. “I’ll look like a cricket.”

  “Trust me. You’re going to want to keep them on for a least a few days.”

  Stepping onto the front porch in the morning light, I immediately understood. My sight—which, along with my other senses, had been heightened due to Frost’s bite—had not yet been restored to its former state. The sunlight stung like salt on an open wound, and I squinted hard against the bright rays.

  We had shared so much over the week that I knew we would be connected forever by our vows of secrecy and traumatic adventures. I thanked the three of them profusely for all of their goodwill and glad tidings. To Eli’s surprise Chaseyn decided to leave the V-Rod in his possession so that he could make the airborne journey home with me.

  “Don’t get too cozy with her. I’ll be back in a few weeks to pick her up,” Chaseyn warned, stroking the handlebars. Eli nodded vigorously, as we drove away with my grandma at the wheel of her 1988 Plymouth Reliant. I knew Chaseyn would never have the heart to take back the bike—it was his way of thanking Eli for helping save my life.

  It had only been ten days since I had left home, but I was an entirely different person. Ten days. That was all. Yet, I felt a lifetime older, wiser. Moments after touching down, we were making our way through the long corridor to collect our baggage. My mom was waiting patiently to greet us. In an unexpected show of affection, I ran to enwrap her in my arms.

  “Lia, you look really well,” she said, her eyes glistening with a dewy sheen. “I thought—”

  “You thought I would look a little worse for the wear,” I added, laughing for good measure. By now, Mina’s mystical remedy had healed most of my wounds so that externally I looked much the way I had when my mom had last seen me. “I’m su
re grandma exaggerated things a bit.”

  “But I saw the wreckage on the news,” my mom added. I had almost forgotten about the Wonderland fiasco and had certainly not considered the fact that it would be covered by television media. “The mirrors were an awful mess.”

  “Oh, mom,” I said, brushing off her concern. After all, those events were the least of my worries in the big picture. Touching the places on my wrists and neck where Frost had left her mark, albeit nearly nonexistent now, I continued my reassurance. “I was a little black and blue at first, but I’m fine now.”

  “I was so worried,” she added anyway. I knew the remains of the stitches entrenched in my temple would give her a fright, but she managed to maintain a brave face for my benefit. “Chaseyn, I’m so glad you brought her home safely, but why were you there?”

  “It was the four-month anniversary of the day I first laid eyes on Cordelia, and I wanted to surprise her. I really hadn’t planned on staying long, but I couldn’t leave once I knew she had been hurt. I’m sure you understand.”

  She nodded in agreement and put her arm around me as we walked through the revolving doors to exit. Chaseyn followed behind with my bag. As I slipped the sunglasses over my eyes to shade them from what I was sure would be an overpowering burst of light, my mother looked at me curiously.

  “I caught a case of pink eye from Eli, and my eyes are a bit troubled by bright light. I’ll need to wear these for a few days,” I said quickly. She seemed satisfied with the hasty explanation.

  During the drive, my mom jabbered on about all that I had missed at home—namely a myriad of wedding preparations for her pending nuptials to Kevin. I bobbed my head up and down at all of the right moments, I hoped, knowing that I was preoccupied with my own thoughts of the future.

  According to Chaseyn, Alexei had numerous children who were prepared to do his bidding should a suitable opportunity arise. What, exactly, had become of Frost, I was uncertain. Neither Chaseyn nor Mina would explain the exact measures they had taken to ensure she would never again be in a position to reprise the events of which she had executed this past week. However, having survived her attack, she could no longer commit the act of transforming me into a vampire herself. She could only aid another in his or her attempt. This was a small bit of comfort, though I doubted she would be part of such an ambush again.

  As we pulled into the driveway, I made a promise to myself that I would not worry about Alexei and his intrepid offspring, with the exception of Chaseyn. I could not live in fear of the seemingly inevitable. Once he had carried by bag upstairs, Chaseyn kissed my cheek and left my mom and I to catch up on the most current local events. She pulled swatches and samples from a big box in the kitchen, and together, we reviewed the wedding selections she had already made and those still in need of confirmation. After a few hours of idle chitchat and picking at finger foods, the doorbell rang, and my mom hopped to her feet.

  “I have a surprise for you,” she said smiling. Seconds later, she reappeared with Addie at her side. We held each other in a long embrace before retreating to my bedroom to catch up.

  “I was so worried about you,” Addie gushed. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  Unlike my mom, Addie made me recall every detail of the tragic funhouse escapade so that she could picture what it must have been like to live through such a terrifying event. Then, she got down to business with the latest local gossip. Normally, my mom would frown at Addie staying over on a school night, but she made a special exception on this particular occasion. We spent the entire night talking and giggling. It was good to be home.

  Unfortunately, our sleepless night took its toll the next day. In class, I could barely keep my well-shaded eyes open. The tale of my misfortune in Amarillo had become an epic saga, and I spent most of the lunch hour telling half truths about the actual events. Chaseyn added to the story as needed to lend credence to my statements. By the end of the first week, almost everyone in the school—regardless of their grade or relationship to me or anyone else at my regular cafeteria table—had been privy to the details.

  Given recent events, Chaseyn found it difficult to let me out of his sight for even a moment, and my grandma continually checked in—raising my cell phone minutes off the charts and arousing my mom’s suspicions.

  “She just misses me, mom. That’s all,” I told her often. “To be honest, I kind of miss her, too.”

  It wasn’t a lie. I did miss my grandma, but her non-stop surveillance was becoming a nuisance. She had taken to regularly interrogating Chaseyn using web cams and instant messaging services. It was endearing at first, but now, I wanted nothing more than to return to my life as a normal teenage girl living in a quiet mountain town.

  Spending time alone with Addie had become my saving grace. From lip syncing our favorite songs in front of the vanity in her bedroom the size of a football field to spending Saturday afternoons scouting for designer sample sales at the local mall, we fell back into our old routine. Of course, Chaseyn and Rob were still a big part of everything we did—often trailing three stores behind carrying Addie’s bevy of boutique purchases—I had a renewed faith in friendship and closeness with those I loved.

  Weeks passed, and life seemed as though it were completely normal again. At least as normal as life can be when you are destined to be a vampire bride and must always be keeping a watchful eye for potential aggressors.

  Chapter 31 - Past Lives

  There was little I had yet to learn about Chaseyn. Now that I knew the entire truth about his family and my unfortunate destiny, there was little reason to keep secrets. Each night as I lay in bed waiting for sleep to come, he would tell me stories of his past. He was always just outside my window, waiting on the ground below watching for any suspicious characters to make an appearance. Of course, my mom had no idea, so we were forced to communicate via telephone. Still, I knew he was only a few feet away, and I could feel the chill of his presence in the air.

  For some time though, I had contemplated the parts of Chaseyn’s past that had not yet been revealed to me. One night, while Chaseyn and I lingered amongst a crowd of our friends at a house party, I decided that I could no longer put off knowing the answer to one of the thoughts that had invaded my mind on numerous occasions. I dragged him out to the dance floor and pulled him in close.

  “Chaseyn,” I said softly as we circled around the outdoor dance floor in the glow of the pale moonlight. “There’s something I need to know.”

  “Anything,” he said sincerely.

  “I’m not sure you will want to talk about this,” I added.

  “I have no secrets from you.”

  After a few moments pause, I decided to quash my curiosity and ask the question that had been plaguing me for weeks. Regardless of Chaseyn’s response, I needed to know the answer. Though I was uncertain why it hadn’t occurred to me before, it was something I needed to know now.

  “I need to know,” I started to speak, but the words refused to leave my lips. It seemed maybe I didn’t want to know after all. “You’ve had so many more years to experience life. I wondered—”

  Again, I tried to speak, but no sound escaped my mouth.

  “Yes,” he said, already knowing the answer to my unasked question.

  That one word made my heart plummet into my stomach. Chaseyn had been in love before. It was ridiculous to think in all his years on Earth that he might have been untouched by another until now, but it still hurt to hear the truth.

  “Once. A very long time ago,” he continued.

  We had stopped moving now and were just standing in the center of the room. He stared down into my eyes, looking for some sign that he had not left me completely shattered.

  “Cordeli, say something,” he urged.

  Try as I might to fight the strong emotions welling inside me, tears sprang to my eyes, falling uncontrollably down my cheeks to my bare shoulders. In one swift move—so swift I feared someone might recognize his superhuman abilities—Chaseyn swept m
e outside, away from prying eyes.

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m being silly. I knew. I mean, of course I didn’t really know, but a part of me knew. It’s just hard to hear. I guess I had hoped that we were both experiencing this for the first time.”

  “We are, Cordelia,” he assured.

  “But, we’re not,” I replied, trying to stop the saltwater flow from its constant stream.

  “It’s true, I was in love, but it didn’t feel anything like this,” he explained.

  I looked at him with hope, but I still felt cheated.

  “Lia, where are you going,” Addie shouted as I ran out of the room. “Wait.”

  But my legs just kept pushing forward. I ran with a speed I did not know was possible for someone of the human form. Chaseyn didn’t try to stop me, though I knew he would not be far behind. First, he had to contend with Addie’s incessant interrogation over what had just transpired. He was vague but honest, and she expressed instant concern—instructing Rob to wait while she tracked me down.