Chapter Eight.
F ather couldn’t stop apologising and blaming himself, and I turned to him in anger.
“What were you doing?” I exploded. “Do you think you’re superhuman disregarding a weather forecast like that?”
“What weather warning?” Father asked, puzzled.
“What?” Pari replied in disbelief. “Marcus, you must’ve heard it or been informed when you picked the boat up.”
Father shook his head in denial.
“Of course you were, you just chose to ignore it,” I snapped.
“No, I wasn’t warned, and I hadn’t had the radio on today. No alert had been issued; the harbourmaster would have mentioned it. We had a chat before I left.”
Angrily, my eyes narrowed.
“Jacques, I wouldn’t endanger the children. It’s more than what my life is worth to bring harm to these. I could not hurt them,” Father continued desperately.
Father had not been warned. What was going on here?
“Don’t worry,” Inka said, touching his arm lightly.
“The kids could’ve been killed,” Father whispered.
Tears shone in his eyes, and I knew he spoke the truth. Father wouldn’t have put the children in harm’s way. He doted on them and cared more for them than himself.
My anger drained to be replaced by puzzlement.
“Surely the harbourmaster would’ve told you. Why didn’t he warn you?” Ana questioned, having just reached us.
“Father was set up, so he didn’t return,” I explained. My concern increased as I saw Father’s face go blank. What was it he wasn’t telling me?
“What’s going on, Father?” Inka asked, picking up my worries.
“Nothing,” Father answered firmly in a tone that brooked no argument. In an aside, he whispered, “Not in front of the children.”
By that time, the remaining Vam’pirs had gathered and recognised that something beyond what we understood was occurring. No one said anything till the wind died down enough for us to return to my father’s villa. We only broached the subject again after the youngsters had eaten and gone to bed.
“What’s happening?” Eduardo asked.
“Things are getting worse,” Marrin answered, speaking for my father.
“In what way?” Kait demanded. He was seething. After all, Kait’s niece, Cleo, had been in danger.
“People shun us more than ever. Verbal harassment or physical altercations occur in the streets. Nothing aimed at the children, just at the adults. We are the most outspoken supporters of you, Jaq. You’re blood, and we won’t let anyone abuse you, verbally or otherwise. Of course, feelings are still rising, and we don’t help ourselves.”
“Ever since I refused to cut from the family, Willam and his relatives have been increasing the abuse. We didn’t tell you for fear of worrying you. We thought that you didn’t need that added pressure and kept quiet,” Uralla continued in her soft voice.
“Inka’s parents are some of the worst offenders. They are threatening legal action over Mihal on the grounds that we associate with outlaws. People are advocating for you to be given that status. Legally, they might have a point. Genetic tampering is illegal, and although it was authorised, the law still stands,” my sister Julia continued.
Mother sat quietly, studying her fingernails. It had been ages since I properly looked at her. Mother had lost weight; worry lines that had appeared.
“They will get Mihal over my dead body,” I muttered.
“But that’s the problem, Jaq. You are. The reports from the hospital that say you’re dead, are still held on record. Inka’s parent’s argument is that you’re deceased, and they want Mihal as compensation. They argue that we’ve a large family, and they’ve no one, and people listen to them.
“They heartlessly manipulate for pity that their only child, their beloved Inka, died in service to her community. The tide of feeling is turning against us and you,” Julia elaborated, not looking me in the eye.
“They play for sympathy,” Inka said in disgust. “It was them who turned their backs on us. On me. Now, they want my son, and they couldn’t even show me love and compassion. How dare they?” Inka spat as she stood up.
“Sit down, Inka,” Father ordered. “Going there means you’re playing into their hands.”
“How can it?”
“Because they can claim that you are terrorising and threatening them. Damn easy for somebody to get bruises and say someone else inflicted them. You’ll make it worse for us not to seem spiteful and petty.”
“They are not having Mihal,” Inka raised her voice.
“And I don’t intend to let them,” Father said, rising to stand in front of the fireplace. “Jacques, I’ve given this firm consideration. I suggest that they come to live with you.”
“With us!” Ami exclaimed.
“Marcus, we can’t watch the children in the daytime, and I fear for their safety,” Li’zel said, flicking hair out of her eyes.
“Li’zel’s right, Marcus. They are more vulnerable with us than with you,” Tobais added.
“I disagree. Today just shows how much danger they were in. The harbourmaster was prepared to kill, whether they were children or not. It would have looked black on me. The monster would’ve twisted everything to look like my fault. The information that there was a storm brewing was deliberately withheld when I took the boat out. Maryn’s now sixteen, and capable of watching the children during the day.”
“Jacques, we fear that one day we will have to inform you that a child is dead,” Mother added.
“Why have you not said anything before?” Julius asked.
“We didn’t realise that murder featured in their black hearts. Harm towards us, the adults, yes, but not against the children. Otherwise, we would have sent them away ages ago.”
“Are things that bad, Father?”
“Obviously. Your mother’s poor health prevented her from joining us last time. We are not welcome anywhere except with families in a likewise situation, and that has played heavily in your mother’s illness.”
“I’m so sorry. Wish that I’d never heard of the damn experiment or Maurick. If I had only known…” Grief stricken, I knelt at Mother’s feet and took her hands in mine. Mother seemed so frail. It broke my heart to see her so.
“Jaq, this is not your fault, it never was. I have never blamed you,” she replied.
“Well, we will take the children for their own safety, but we’ll also take you,” Ami stated, drawing my gaze.
Ami’s face was inscrutable, and I wondered what she was thinking.
“Ami, we can’t just up and leave…” Father began.
“Yes, you can. What is here for you now? Jacques and Inka live in Mora, and so will Mihal. There is nothing for you to remain here for,” Raymone interrupted as he stood. “We’ll take you tonight. Tomorrow during the day, Taran can bring you back so you can level a charge of attempted murder against the harbour master. And to collect your belongings. Marcus, you can’t stay here another night with people attempting to harm you.”
“Raymone is right. You are coming with us even if we have to take you by force. Now, get some things together we are leaving,” I agreed. Taking Mother by the arm, I pulled her carefully to an upright position.
“Yes, start moving,” Inka said in agreement.
Sadly, I watched my family walk into their respective rooms. The fact they did not even raise a single argument intensified my fear. The situation must have been dire for them to agree so quickly.
I hadn’t realised just how ill my mother had been, and this made me feel awful and very selfish. Vam’pirs should have known exactly what was happening on Kaltos. But we hadn’t, and now my family was being forced to flee from their home like we had been.
I knew for a fact that they wouldn’t be the last of our acquaintances to leave. Silently, I resolved to bring up building more villas back at Mora.
A gut feeling suggested we would be needing them. Seti drew my attention as I came in at the end of a sentence he was speaking.
“…why do they still trade with us?”
“Greed exists where it didn’t before,” Julius said, blinking like an owl through his glasses.
“But where has that come from?” Antonio asked.
“No doubt we are blamed for that as well,” Ricardus answered.
“As well as what?” Antonio turned to Ricardus. “Kaltons surely can’t blame Vam’pirs for everything that has happened. Kalton greed and fear have been developed by themselves, not us. We left Kaltos, so they should be returning to normal. Remove the infection, and you heal the wound.”
“Life doesn’t unfold that way unless in a medical situation. The damage had already been done. Kaltos won’t recover from this for a while. No, listen,” Ricardus cut Antonio off before he could interrupt. “Vam’pirs may have been innocent, but that is irrelevant. Kaltons blame us for every wrong they perceive to be committed against them. Vam’pirs may be miles from them, but that doesn’t matter. The Kaltons are not thinking logically.”
Ricardo sighed and looked away.
“Like you, I thought that the Kaltons were above this pettiness, but obviously, they aren’t. These sentiments have always been present, but we concealed them instead of embracing them as part of our everyday lives. When something like this happens, it overloads the emotions. That is precisely what occurred. An overload. Kaltons just are not used to dealing with fear, greed, and horror, so no one knows how to handle them,” Suzan surmised. “The feelings overpower these simple individuals.”
“I’d hardly call them simple!” Diana laughed, waving her hand towards the electronic devices in the room.
“Diana, I don’t mean it that way. Yes, technology is there; it always has been. But Kaltons are simple. They have had a straightforward life and had nothing challenge them. Kaltons are emotionally undeveloped, maybe even backward. Maurick and Claudias did more harm than they realised they would.”
“As Vam’pirs, we’ve grown while the Kaltons regressed?” Julius inquired.
“Yes. Exactly,” Suzan agreed.
“Does anyone realise that we have ceased thinking of Kaltons as our people? We refer to them as a separate race?” Nathan asked, throwing another point into the mix.
“Nathan, I stopped when the Kaltons made it obvious that the perpetrators of the crime would go unpunished. How can we consider Kaltons as part of our community after their treatment of us? Worse than they treat our namesake. Our namesake would have been killed humanely. We were denied that choice, so let Kaltos and its biased assholes rot,” Li’zel said, standing and spitting in the fire. Her beautiful face was twisted with hate.
“Them why are we helping my family? Li’zel, why were you searching for the children?” I challenged. “Is it possible that you hope that one day, the Kaltons might overcome their prejudices and accept us?”
“What, with open arms and a fanfare?” Li’zel shot back sarcastically. “Jacques, I’ve no wish to return here. Of course, I’ll help the kids and your family. They are among the few who have shown us respect and kindness. No, I would not turn on them, and I would kill any who hurt them. Bear that in mind, Marel.”
We turned around in surprise and noticed Marel was standing behind us. No one had noticed him enter the villa.
“How much have you heard?” Eduardo asked.
“Most of it, and you are correct. None of you have been treated fairly by your people, and I think your diagnosis of Kalton emotions is correct. Kaltons are inexperienced in confronting something of this nature and are unsure of how to manage it. Kaltons are emotionally repressed. In time, they will grasp the necessary lessons, but not immediately.”
Father inquired from the doorway, “Why are you here, Marel?”
By his expression, I guessed he’d heard most of it, too.
“Marcus, I came to warn you to leave now. There is a crowd gathering, threatening possible danger. I would not see any of you hurt.”
Mother gasped, and her hand flew to her throat. Just entering the room, she had no knowledge of the previous discussion. Devastated, Mother clung to the doorway for support.
“No… I didn’t want to think… to believe they meant…” Mother broke off, the strain too much for her and collapsed in a heap.
With a cry, I rushed to her side and lifted her into my arms. Mother was as light as a child. I was saddened even more, unable to accept that I had not seen the warning signs.
“Here is medicine for her. Now you must go. Your blood will be ready as usual,” Marel said, passing Marrin a bag.
Marel pushed Marrin none too gently towards the entrance of the villa. The other Vam’pirs had gathered the children amongst themselves. Father and I were the last to leave. He looked around, hurt and sad.
“To understand our people would do this…” he broke off, unable to continue.
Sadly, I took Father’s arm and led him out, and we glanced back together. So many joyful memories mixed with some tragic ones. All gone, no more would we see our home.
In the distance, I could notice firelight. I sensed the threat the people approaching offered. It was not a crowd, as Marel had delicately put it, but a mob. As I dragged Father away, the group let out a roar and gave chase.
“Move!” I yelled. My heart pounded in fear, as they seemed to close. I couldn’t cope with pulling Father, as I still held Mother.
Pal appeared, taking Mother out of my arms, and I grabbed Father up in them instead.
“Teleport yourselves!” Pal cried as he disappeared before my eyes.
In panic, I found myself unable to do that. My mind wouldn’t focus. I slung Father over my shoulder and ran. I could run faster than the mob (even carrying him) and raced towards the dock, where a flurry of activity surrounded our boat.
“Run, Jaq, run!” Inka screamed in fear as another crowd appeared to cut off our escape route.
I pushed myself harder, desperately trying to outrun them, and soon, I could see that I wouldn’t reach safety.
“Leave me. Save yourself. You’ll make it if you let me go,” Father panted over my shoulder. Instead, I tightened my grip and forced myself to go faster. We were running parallel, the mob and I, and I knew it was just a race to determine who reached the dock first.
The baying crowd did, and I paused, not knowing what to do. Panic was completely in control, and I realised there was to be no escape.
Some of the mob attempted to board the boat as it departed, but were stopped. Inka was screaming that they couldn’t leave me. Kaltons shot flaming arrows, trying to set the vessel alight, and Vam’pir’s flinched in fear.
Kaltons surely meant to kill us.
Then suddenly, arrows of fire flew back towards the mob. Anton and Taran fired repeatedly in defence. The boat was pulling away from Father and me. I dithered until Pal appeared. He had returned for us! Pal snatched Father from my arms.
“Jaq, you have to ‘port!”
“I can’t concentrate!” I cried, full of fear.
Now, the mob was shifting its focus in our direction. Their yells got louder as the other crowd beached the crest of the hill. I was surrounded. Wildly, I looked around in self-disgust. I would let my family down because I was afraid!
“Jaq! Look at me, not them. You have to run as fast as you can towards the boat and jump.”
“Pal, I can’t!” I cried in panic as flaming flew towards us. Burning death! Pal grabbed my face.
“Run!” Pal yelled and pushed me.
Pal ‘ported’ and I could see outlines on the boat waving. Taking a deep breath, I ran. I closed my mind to the noise and arrows and focused on the ship. This was not easy, and as I ran, terror chased me.
But I raced past the mob and approached the end of the pier. Frantically, I leapt and missed the boat. My hands grabbed the edge of the deck, and I desperately scrabbled for purchase when strong hands pulled me on board. That was when I felt a burning sensation between my shoulder blades.
“Jaq’s on fire!” Ami yelled.
Uralla grabbed a bucket of water and threw it over me just as I screamed in terrible pain. The flames went out in a wet hiss, and I rolled about the deck as people tried to comfort me. My screams were ear-spitting and terrible to behold. “Get below!” Ricardus cried, picking me up as more arrows flew towards us, setting the boat alight. We headed for shelter. Taran and Julia (my sister Julia) set about with buckets of water.
Anton desperately spun the wheel into a spin, trying to head for the open sea, but the vessel wasn’t gaining speed. We hadn’t even left the harbour.
“Cut the anchor,” Uralla yelled to Father, seeing the issue.
Anton threw him a Carma.
Father plucked it out of the air and began to hack the rope that tied us to Kaltos. Other boats were being boarded now as the hysteria reached an epic peak.
“Kill them! Burn them! Save the children!” the shouts filtered down. All we could do was cower in the hold, afraid of the fire that meant instant death.
Our rejection of Kaltos was as absolute as their dismissal of us. We had never harmed or threatened them. But Kaltons hated us enough to try and harm the innocent and non-Vam’pirs among us.
The boat lurched and came free of its imprisoning tether, and finally, the nightmare was over as it shot forward. It was a while before we spoke, each shocked and profoundly wounded emotionally.
We had never witnessed anything like this before, and we believed without a doubt that the Kaltons intended to kill us tonight. We hadn’t realised how deeply seated their hatred had become. The sight had been terrible to behold.
Taran entered the hold, seeking to ensure we were well.
“Yes,” I whispered.
No , I thought to myself. I am in terrible pain. An arrow had caught me right in the middle of my shoulder blades and burnt me badly. I tried to move but whimpered instead. At once, Inka was at my side, gently peeling the ruins of my tunic from my skin. It was a black and blistered mass. I wept as the others crowded round.
“Here, try this,” Maryn said, holding out a pot.
It was a salve, and once on, it soothed the pain to a dull ache. Then I realised who had given it to me.
“Creator! The children!” I whispered.
“They’re okay; someone is with them,” Inka answered.
“They saw?” I asked, thinking of Mihal and how frightened he must have been.
“Yes, but they are reassured that they are safe,” Ami stated, crouching at my feet.
Ami gently stroked my leg. It was meant to be reassuring, but it wasn’t. In deep shock and pain, I just wanted to curl up and die. The agonising sensation came back, and I realised that the salve was ineffective, which I pointed out. Inka added more, but within minutes, it disappeared once again, leaving the agony to resurface fully.
“Leave it,” I demanded after a third application faded in the same amount of time. “It obviously doesn’t work on us.”
I would have to suffer the pain—and the scars that the wound would leave. I considered myself fortunate to escape with my life intact. The emotional wounds would require a long time to heal. What had happened affected everyone on the boat, Vam’pir and humans alike.
Li’zel paced the hold, muttering threats under her breath, and I was afraid of what she might be contemplating. It became clear when she spun around and faced us, crying, “Do you still think they’ll continue to give us blood?”
“If not, we’ll just take it,” Ami answered from my feet.
“We can’t,” Antonio said from a dark corner.
“Why the hell not?” Taran demanded vehemently. “You have done nothing wrong, and even tonight proves that. If you had attacked them, you would have killed some of them. Instead, you ran, showing more consideration than what they showed you. You should have fought back. If I were in your shoes, I would have.”
Julius softly stated, “That’s not who we are.”
“Why not? I have had enough insults and threats to last me a lifetime. Next time I’ll fight,” Tobais exclaimed.
Shocked, I stared at him.
“Tobias, we can’t. We are superior,” Eduardo reprimanded gently.
“So fucking what?” Nathan demanded, throwing my tunic in Eduardo’s face. “It’s time to make a stand. I’m with you, Ami; we’ll just take what we want and fuck them. Why should we bother to give them any consideration? They’ve shown us none!”
“Nathan’s right,” D’vid said. “Not all Kaltons pursued us, but a sufficient number did. Screw them all. I wouldn’t spit on a single one of them. Let them have their petty, sick, little lives. The only reason I’ll have something to do with them is if they deny us blood. If they choose that action, I will go back and take it forcefully.”
Most of us nodded even though Julius and Eduardo, along with Seti and Curtan, looked decidedly unhappy, but it stood. If we were denied a single drop of blood, then we would take it.
The rest of the journey homeward had been filled with comforting the humans. They were very distraught, especially as the fact emerged that Anton had seen my former villa go up in smoke.
Mother took some considerable calming because, although she had missed most of what had happened, she was able to fill in most of the gaps. Sadly, Mother was beside herself in worry and fear. She had lost everything, home, friends (not that she had many left) and an identity.
We spent most of the time trying to reassure her she was needed by us. I am proud to say that all the Vam’pirs respected and admired Mother for her sacrifices. Plus, she’d also coped with the hate levelled at her in silence.
Mother hadn’t even moaned once that she was sick or scared for her family’s life. She was obviously ill, and Maryn, kind and gentle child that she was, gave her medicine. Maryn refused to leave Mother’s side and was like a little shadow if my mother moved. Clearly, Maryn had known the extent of the illness that had stricken Mother, but she, too, had kept quiet, not wanting to upset anyone.
I couldn’t blame her, after all, Maryn had been through her own nightmare. And Maryn was still having to deal with reoccurring dreams that frightened her at night.
She appeared happy that she was leaving Kaltos far behind. I overheard her say to Diana she was looking forward to beginning a new life.
Stefan, too, seemed quite pleased with himself and bragged how he had helped by putting out the fire. Julia nodded but added in an aside that she had kept her eye on him. I suppose that with two Julia’s in my tale, things are going to get confusing, so I’ll call my sister Ju. By the way, the other Julia didn’t appear to be bothered by the incident.
Julia just absorbed the situation into her system and ignored the repercussions of what happened. She had nodded her agreement to taking the blood by force and that was a surprise in itself. Later, though, Mera got out of her that Julia was deeply troubled by the height of feeling against us and worried after Kierran’s and her own families.
Ana promised to find a way to inform them about Julia’s well-being.
Julia replied that she only wished to know they weren’t suffering the same as what mine had. If they were, then would someone extend an invitation at them to come and live at Mora. But please, would the message stress, Julia didn’t want to see them.
And that was a concession in itself. It was comforting that Julia still thought of them and loved them. She wasn’t ready for visits, but it was the first time Julia had mentioned her family or even Kierran’s name. Ricardus asked if Julia wanted them brought over for her sake, but she just shook her head. It wasn’t much, but it was reassuring to know that Julia was aware of her surroundings.
Julia was not the only one to be concerned about relatives. Everyone worried apart from Inka, Diana and me. Diana only had her two children to worry about, and she later told us that she had seen her ex-husband amongst the crowd.
It also emerged that Inka’s parents and D’vid’s family had been present as well.
As far as D’vid was concerned, if he ever saw his family again, then he would kill them outright. D’vid had more than enough of the farce they presented to outsiders.
We reached Mora just before daybreak and had to rush up the hill to our home with the sun nipping at our heels. Not everyone made it to their coffin, and we fell into heaps on the floor. The important thing was we weren’t at risk from the sunlight.
◆◆◆
The next night, as we woke up, there was our usual supply of blood and another family waiting for us.
Li’zel’s parents had come over, as they had been staunch defenders of their only child. Their home had been burned, too. We inquired if there had been any trouble getting the blood, and they replied no.
Marel had threatened the population with us coming back and taking it by force. When we asked for clarification, they grinned smugly and said Marel had simply left it up to people’s imagination. Clever bastard.
Amazingly enough, something that I didn’t realise till later that night was the fact that my shoulders were healing. The pain had dissolved into a dull ache, and the skin had started to peel, showing a pale white skin underneath. Marel had informed us we would heal quicker than usual, but I really had thought that I would have scars from the fire.
Within thirty-six hours, the burnt skin had completely come away, and there was no scar tissue or anything to indicate that I had ever been wounded. My pride was salvaged as I could still show off my physique without worrying that I might frighten everyone. Believe me, I was that vain.
Over the next few weeks, we had a steady stream of people arriving to stay with us permanently. Many were our families, but we were surprised when others, who had no blood ties to us, arrived. More than we expected had enough of the prejudices running riot around Kaltos. We were also touched when they said that they trusted us more than their own race, and by that, I mean Kaltons.
The majority of the population was shocked by the turn of events. Many sent gifts and other items to try and make amends. Despite the officials’ efforts, the mob remained elusive, despite many being identified. One questioned how hard the authorities searched. Feelings were high at the moment on Kaltos, and the refugees believed it was safer for them to distant themselves from any threat.
Especially as they felt we would rush to their defence and risk harming ourselves should they be attacked. True, at least the first part.
Soon, we had over three hundred people living in Mora, and we were occupied with building housing for them to live in.
Nights were spent clearing the forest away, so more villas could be built. Tobais was kept busy as orders for wooden furniture came in. More than he could hope to deal with. Luckily, there were several other wood smiths among the people who emigrated to Mora, so he had help. We maintained the system of bartering and trading for things.
Kait (the other wood smith) would take the orders and support Tobais, but he seemed happier trying to settle individuals. Most of them arrived with very little. We felt we could not trade with them until they were on their feet. Out of kindness and respect, we gave furniture and necessities as gifts, waving away thanks and promises of repayment.
Vam’pirs had plenty, and it felt good to help folks and be accepted. None of the old prejudices transferred across, and we embraced what we were. The refugees offered to keep donating their blood, which we told them to forget . Let the Kaltons do it , we said.
Kaltons had shunned us and not tried to make peace and accept us, so let them make amends that way. If their perspective was different, it didn’t matter to us.
And life went on.
Our whereabouts were kept hidden; only those living at Mora knew where we were. And for their own protection, they were not exactly sure where we were on the continent.
The sole Kalton in the know was Marel, and we trusted his silence that he’d sworn to us ages ago.
Years passed, and I watched with pride as the Morans, as they identified themselves, grew. The Phase remained the same, but multiple births were more common.
Then, all of a sudden, I was celebrating Mihal’s fifteenth birthday. It had been fourteen years since the disaster , as we now referred to it. The time had flown by, and we didn’t know where it’d gone.
Mora had become the embodiment of what Kaltos aspired to be.
No racism, no hatred.
Morans, who had fled Kaltos, left the prejudice behind and came with open hearts and minds. Mora had grown into a close-knit community that heavily depended on each other. The villas were in close proximity, and I could say that this was the first proper town that we’d encountered since we had turned.
It was heavenly… for a while.