The four
vampires congregated around the fireplace that was now lit to give the room a
more homely feel. Caius’ tall, pale physique leaned against the mantelpiece in
front of Evie, who was sat in one of the armchairs fiddling with the fringing
on one of the arms. Varsee had taken the other chair and had pulled a face when
Alexander first sprawled across her lengthways, but now she seemed content as
she languidly played with his hair.
“How long
have you been settled here?” asked Caius, first to break the silence.
Varsee
furrowed her brows and looked to Alexander as if to find the answer on his
face. “Erh…must be coming up to twelve years. We’ve move around a lot since our
Maker passed. But, I dunno…” She took in the room with a smile and snuggled
into the armchair. “We like it here.”
“When the
Nest doesn’t bother us,” added Alexander with distaste.
“Nest?”
inquired Caius. “There’s a Nest around here?”
“Yeah. They
were the ones that attacked Evie.”
Evie
shuddered at the memory and Caius frowned apologetically to her, as if sorry to
bring it up. “Will they attack again?” he asked, looking back to Varsee.
“Not while
we’re in here but out there-” She shrugged. “We’re hoping the Court will sort
them out.”
Caius’ face
flinched at the mention of the Court and his eyes casted to the floor. Evie’s
heart constricted at the anguish that set his body taunt.
“Evie told us
you had a run-in with the Court. That they were the ones that made you Turn
her. What they did…was awful.”
“I’m
surprised they didn’t just kill you.”
The three
vampires shot Alexander a sharp look. He held up his palms with a shrug. “What?
It would have been easier, right?” Varsee swatted him on the back of the head.
“But the fact they didn’t-” He scowled at his sister and rubbed his head,
“shows that clearly they had a little thing for you. Maybe that’s why they
haven’t come after you since you killed those humans.”
“Can we
please stop talking about the Court?” mumbled Caius, sounding dreary.
Varsee lifted
her palms before going back to stroking Alexander’s hair like he was a cat.
“I’m sorry.”
He showed her
a faint, thankful smile. “So, do you have any more progenies?”
She shook her
head. “Not at the moment, just Evie. So don’t worry, she has my full
attention.”
“Not that she
really needs it,” chimed in Alexander. “Having a progeny that’s already been a
vampire? That’s like buying a puppy that’s already been housetrained.”
Evie pulled a
face, feeling a little insulted by the comparison.
“Plus, it’s
not like you’re a single mum.” He gestured to Caius with a sweeping hand, “with
her dad still around, you’re like divorced parents trying to make it work.” He
snorted.
The idea
that Caius playing the role of her dad made Evie feel queasy and shift in the
uncomfortable chair awkwardly. Caius too, look at little disturbed at the
thought and sent her a sideways glance.
But she
guessed in a way he had been a father figure. He had been her role model. He
had introduced her into her new life and watched her grow and develop as a
vampire. And he was still here, watching over her to make sure she was okay.
I have never known a Maker and a progeny to
be in love. It’s just so…peculiar.
She thought
back to how Varsee had compared her progeny to her children and shuddered. But
Evie and Caius were different. The lingering bond between them was proof of
that.
“Do you have
any progenies, Alexander?” Evie asked, finally entering the conversation to
dissipate the hanging silence.
Alexander’s blue eyes flicked to her. “Not at
the moment.” He snuggled closer to his sister, burying his head into the curve
of her neck. “I lost most of them in the Rage and the few I Turned since were a
little…erratic. Got themselves caught feeding without consent and were forced
to meet the sun by the human authorities.”
“That’s what happens when you Turn those who
aren’t worthy,” sighed Varsee.
“I guess you
wouldn’t win father of the year,” Evie jested, getting him back for the
awkwardness he had planted between her and Caius.
The
atmosphere in the room suddenly shifted. Varsee bowed her head as Alexander’s smug
expression was wiped clean. What replaced it was boiling rage. His eyelids
started flickering as his eyes grew dark and glassy. His jaw set. His hands
turned into fists.
A cold wave
washed over Evie and she found herself shrinking back into the chair as he
pushed himself off of Varsee and flew to his feet.
“Yeah, I
guess you’re right,” he spat in the direction of Evie but it was as if he
couldn’t even face looking at her. He turned to the rest of the group but his
eyes were casted downwards. “I’ve had enough of this Happy Families shit.”
Then he
stalked off, kicked open the kitchen door and disappeared.
Evie and
Caius looked after him. “W-what was that about? What did I say?” asked Evie.
Varsee
lifted her head. Her eyes were heavy and mournful when they met Evie’s. “Do you
remember me mentioning that Alexander had chinks in his armour?” Evie nodded
and Varsee sighed. “Well, you just hit one. A pretty big one.”
“W-why? What did
I do? It was just a joke,” said Evie, trying to defend herself as guilt ate
away at her.
Varsee
sighed. “It’s really not my place to say. If you want an explanation, you’re
going to have to get it out of him yourself.” She rose to her feet and looked
to the kitchen.
Evie nodded
and stood up. “I’d better go and apologise.” She sent Caius a sideways glance
as if for support but he still seemed bewildered by Alexander’s outburst.
Nodding to herself, she headed to the kitchen.
And found it
empty.
Just as she was about to turn round on
herself, she noticed that there was a light on outside, lighting up the square
of frosted glass that filled the top half of the backdoor. She paused when she
reached for the handle, suddenly feeling nervous.
An image of Alexander snapping and baring his
fangs at her made her want to draw back. But she was in his home. Sure, it was
Varsee who had welcomed her in but he had fought off the crazy Nest vampires
alongside her and practically saved her life. The last thing she wanted to do
was make him regret it. Even if he wasn’t the nicest person in the world.
Sucking in a
breath, she opened the door with a wince.
He was sat on
the step, curled in on himself with a cigarette dangling between his thin
fingers. The gleam of the floodlight fixed at the corner of the house bounced
off his long blonde hair as it blew in the breeze. He turned his head at the
disturbance, one shining blue eye peering at her through loose strands of hair.
He sneered and looked back ahead.
A huge field
spread out before them. Even with her vampire sight, she couldn’t determine how
far back the emptiness was. It was like when she looked through the window,
everything was just black except for the sprinkling of stars that covered the
sky like sugar.
But she did
notice that the section where the floodlight reached was cordoned off by a
rather flimsy fence and the upturned soil of empty flowerbeds ran along it,
separating the garden from the grazing field.
Finding her
voice, Evie managed to stutter out, “I’m sorry.”
Alexander
huffed and took a drag of his cigarette, his face shielded from her by his
hair. “For what?” he asked as he exhaled, puffing smoke into the clean, country
air.
“For
upsetting you.” She dropped down beside him and tucked her knees up. A flagged
strip ran along the back of the house. Evie placed her socked feet flat on the
concrete and re-rolled up Varsee’s jeans just for something to do in the
silence that followed.
“You didn’t
upset me,” he said, resigned. “You just…reminded me of something I try my best
to forget.” He let out a humourless laugh. “Not like I should even bother,
anyway. The past…is the past.”
Evie stayed
silent beside him. He turned slightly and cocked an eyebrow as he tipped some
ash onto the flags. “Did Varsee tell you?”
She shook
her head. “She said nothing. Just that…I hit a weak spot.”
There was
that laugh again, and he nodded. “A weak spot? That’s one way of putting it.”
“If you
don’t want to tell me, that’s fine.”
He regarded
her and took another drag. “The past is the past. No point hiding from it, is
there?”
Her
shoulders sagged. “I guess not.”
As he looked
back into the vast blackness, Evie noticed something change in his eyes. There
was a clouded emptiness in them as if he were working on autopilot. “I was a
soldier in World War One. A member of the British army. Joined as soon as I
turned nineteen. Three years later, in 1916, it was in the Battle of the Somme -as
it’s called- where I lay in No Man’s land, bodies around me left right and
centre, a piece of jarred shrapnel sticking out of my gut.
I thought that was the end for me. And I’m not
going to lie, I was terrified of dying. Not like that. Alone in the dirt.And then, through the ash and bloody mist, I
saw him, wandering around the bodies, checking for life. Godfrey. I managed to
call out to him and he spotted me. Of course, back then, I had no idea what a
vampire was so when he chewed into his own arm and fed me his blood, I was a surprised
to say the least. Then something snapped and everything went blank.” He took
another long drag of his cigarette, jutting out his jaw as he exhaled so the
smoke streamed upwards.
“I woke up in
a bed with Godfrey sat by my side. He told me what had happened but all I could
think about was that I was still alive.
All I wanted to do was see my wife, to go back home and hold her in my arms.
But of course, Godfrey told me I couldn’t go back to my old life. After
pleading with him non-stop, he gave in and told me that I could see her but
only from afar, just so I knew she was okay.
“When we got
there, my heart sank. She had clearly gotten the news of my disappearance and
that I was more than likely dead.” His face pinched in pain and red pools
gathered under his eyes. “She was crying. I still remember the sound. But
then…she bent down, away from my view from the window and when I saw her
again…she wasn’t alone. Held close to her chest was a baby.” He shook his head
and stabbed his cigarette into the step, grinding it into ash. “She had been pregnant and she had never told me. She
had let me leave her. She’d given birth and I wasn’t there. I wasn’t there to
hold her hand. I wasn’t there to see him come into the world.” He swatted away
a tear irritably and clenched his jaw.
“I wanted so
desperately to be there for her, to help her, but all I could do was watch her
struggle. I watched my son grow up without a father. I was right there and I couldn’t help. I couldn’t
risk it. The thought of my hunger winning, of losing control-” He squeezed his
eyes shut, shaking his head. “I should have never let Godfrey take me. It was
like torture. I watched them both age, wither and die while I never changed.”
He hung his head and ran his fingers through his hair. “So you were right-” he
said through a tight laugh and looked out into the field. “I’m a terrible father.”
Evie’s
throat had seemed to have closed up while he was speaking and now, in the
silence, her lips were moving but nothing was coming out. Then his eyes flicked
to her, impossibly bright against the night sky. “I-I’m so sorry. I had no
idea.”
He just
shrugged and pluckedd a packet of cigarettes from his jacket pocket. “You
weren’t to know.”
And for a
moment, Evie just watched him as he lit his new cigarette, folding his hand
over it to block the wind. There was something in his face. Something that she
hadn’t seen before. Something that he had clearly tried to keep hidden. But his
mask had fallen.
He looked so
vulnerable and wounded. His face was sharp and pinched as if he were reliving
the pain. Then he shook his head, his fair hair whipping across his face, and
all that went away. A smile cracked on his lips as he surveyed the darkness and
lifted the cigarette to his lips. “So, what’s your story?” His eyes flicked to
her as he took a drag.
Evie
shrugged and hugged her arms. Of course, the cold air had no effect on her now
that she was a vampire again, so the action was more of a reflex. “You know my
story. Caius was forced to Turn me when he was caught having a relationship
with a human.”
“That’s
Caius’ story. I mean yours. Like, how
your life changed once you Turned.” A pause followed and Alexander leaned back,
resting his back against the frame of the back door. She could feel his gaze on
her, burning into her cheek as she stayed hunched forwards, looking ahead. She
shifted awkwardly and hung her head.
“I was
engaged.” It hurt to say it. It didn’t feel right. It was if she were retelling
a dream. “His name was William. We were getting married in three weeks. My
parents didn’t like me being with him. They thought I was just in it for the
money.” Her throat started to feel tight again and the backs of her eyes burned
with tears of guilt and shame. “We weren’t poor, exactly. We got by. But when I
started dating William, who came from a family of Old Money, they thought I saw
him as my ticket out. And so they shunned me, saying that I was a disgrace to
the family. That I was ashamed of who I was. But none of that was true.”
Her voice came out shrill and desperate, broken with tears, as if she were back
in that old, shabby house, pleading with her mother not to give up on her.
“I loved my
family but it was clear that they had lost all respect for me. So I moved in
with William, ready to start a new family with him.”
“Your family
casted you out because they thought you were going to cast them out?”
At the
sound of his voice, Evie picked up her head and turned to Alexander who watched
her with a pinched expression.
“Yeah…kinda.”
He huffed a laugh and lifted his
cigarette to his lips. “That’s ridiculous.”
Evie’s jaw
slackened, offended at how easily he was able to disregard the most painful
experience of life. The memory of which ate away at her every second of every
night. But then, as she stared at his light, easy expression, all of her anger
and resentment towards him dissipated. Because she knew it was just an act. She
had glimpsed at the real Alexander. The one stuck in the past. The one
torturing himself for something that he had no control over. And he was hurting
every bit as much as she was. He was just handling it the only way he knew how.
A small
smile curved on her lips and she looked up towards the stars which were
starting to fade as the night sky began to bleed into a deep navy. “Yeah, I
guess you’re right.”
The door
opened behind her and she turned to see Varsee looking down at her from the
kitchen, her blonde hair blowing back from her strong yet beautiful face. She
glanced to her brother still relaxed against the door frame. He gave her a
salute and a wink.
“Made
friends?” asked Varsee.
Alexander
grinned up at her like a Cheshire cat. “We were swapping stories.” He pointed
to her and looked at Evie. “Varsee
used to be a tramp.”
His sister
exhaled and rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t a tramp.
I was a homeless orphan.”
“Same
thing.”
Varsee just
gave him an exhausted look before her eyes fixed on Evie. “My parents died of a
sickness that spread through my village back in South America. A few years
later, living on the street, Godfrey found me. I was dying of hyperthermia and
he Turned me.”
Evie thought back to something Caius had
said to her, about being a lot older than him. “When did you get Turned?”
The edge of
her lips twitched, a ghost of a smirk. “The start of the fourteenth century.”
Evie’s
eyebrows rose, impressed. She’d never known a vampire older than Caius, well,
except for Guardian. “So, you’re like super ancient?”
She smiled.
“Please don’t call me that. Ancient makes me sound too old already.”
When the
information sunk in properly, Evie furrowed her brows. “But, hang on, how can
you?…oh.” It clicked. “You two are vampire siblings. Because you have the
same Maker.”
“Yup.”
Alexander bounced to his feet and flicked his cigarette into the garden where it
glowed against the grass for a moment before dying out. “She’s my blood sis.”
“Okay.” Evie
nodded, pushing herself to her feet as well. “The way you act makes sense now.
I was a little confused.”
“The way we
act?” asked Alexander but then he grinned and stepped into the kitchen, brushing
past Varsee. “Oh, you mean, our relationship is not the conventional brother and sister relationship?”
Evie
shrugged, now feeling a little awkward as he smirked at her like a mischievous
child. Varsee seemed relaxed. Her arms were folded across her front as
Alexander pressed his chest close against her side and lifted his lips to her
ear, his eyes still on Evie. “And she doesn’t know the half of it.”
A giddy
smile cracked on Varsee’s lips. Her eyes widened as if shocked by the little
giggle that escaped her and she quickly straightened herself. She turned and
looked to her brother, they were almost the same height but he still somehow
curled over her like a willowing branch. Their faces were only inches apart.
“The sun’s coming up soon,” she said with a slightly husky edge to her tone.
A spark
flared in Alexander’s eyes. He flashed Evie a smile before looking his sister
up and down and slipping past her. “Better get to bed then,” he said over his
shoulder as he sashayed through the kitchen.
A knowing
smile tugged on Varsee’s lips before she ushered Evie into the house. “Let me
lock the door. I think those sheep carcases have rotted away. I can’t even
smell them anymore. And we can’t be too careful about that bloody Nest.” She
slammed the door, turned the key and gestured back into the living room. “Caius
has gone to your room. I think there’s about an hour of dark left.”
For a
moment, Evie studied the vampire woman’s face, still completely amazed at her
age. It didn’t show. Vampires didn’t age the same way humans did, with wrinkles
and age spots. Ancients were able to detect the age of vampires due to years of
practice, but for newborns like Evie, the only way was through their eyes. Eyes
were the windows to the soul, as people said, and it was true. Look into a
vampires eyes and you could almost feel everything they had felt through their
passing years.
But as Evie
looked into Varsee’s eyes, she saw nothing but her reflection warped in her
storm coloured irises. She felt a little dizzy, like she was facing the heart
of a maelstrom.
“He’s
waiting.”
Evie blinked
hard and felt heat rush to her cheeks when she realised she’s been staring. She
smiled awkwardly and headed out of the kitchen, Varsee followed close behind,
switching off the lights.
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