Chapter 20 Dreams
Lily
My mother is already in my suite when I bring Eli back from daycare. She’s in the third bedroom upstairs, enjoying her soaps on the massive flatscreen TV hanging from the wall.
“You’re early, mom,” I tell her. “I don’t start work for another few hours.”
“Did you know that this bed can recline?” she says, with an astonished chuckle. She presses a button on the remote and her legs fly up into the air, supported by the bottom half of the mechanical bed. “If I set it at just the right angle, it completely alleviates my hip pain!”
“That’s great, mom,” I say with a smirk. “Do you want anything for dinner? The menu is on the side table.”
“Oh, don’t mind if I do!”
The three of us decide on our meals (alfredo pasta for me, salmon for mom, and dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets for Eli) and we have dinner while talking about our days.
It’s the most relaxed I’ve felt in a long time.
Not having to cook or clean has made a huge difference.
I feel like I can actually spend time with Eli now, instead of just running back and forth between work and the apartment.
He tells me all about how they learned ballet moves today at daycare, and they read books about different types of birds.
He’s also making some friends, kids of other guests at the hotel.
I’m so glad he’s getting to spend time with kids his own age.
“I traded my pony doll,” he says, showing me a new, orange Princess Pony. “Just for today. We’ll swap back tomorrow.”
“That’s great, E,” I tell him. “I’m glad you’re making friends.”
“Just make sure not to get too attached, Elijah,” my mother says sternly, skewering a brussel sprout on her fork. “We don’t know how long we’re going to be here, and you don’t want to be sad when you have to leave all your new friends.”
“Well, I think it’s good to make new friends here,” I say, addressing my mother. “Why wouldn’t we be here for a long time? We have the suite for as long as we want it. Ms. Espina wrote it into my employment contract.”
My mother scoffs. “For as long as you work here, yes, but you know how employment is, especially for women.”
I grimace. “What do you mean, for women?”
“Well, once you start seeing someone, don’t you think he’s going to find it a little odd, that you live at the hotel where you work? You know how men are, honey, they don’t like to feel threatened. I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s why Dylan left. I told you that getting this job wasn’t necessary…”
“First of all, I left Dylan, mom, not the other way around. And second, maybe I don’t want to get back into dating men right now…”
I don’t mention that I’m more than happy to see one particular woman…but there’s no way I’m going to talk about that with my mom.
“Well, I think that’s a mistake.” My mom gets that annoying, pious expression on her face.
“Eli needs a father, honey. And you’re not getting any younger.
Are you going to waste the best years of your life on a job that’s never going to love you back?
Trust me, you’ll regret it, if all you do is work here and live here, and then suddenly you’re forty and you’ve got no husband or anything to show for it.
Eli will leave for college and you’ll be all alone.
This hotel room is going to seem pretty empty then. ”
“Mom, I’m not talking about this with you right now,” I tell her. “Eli, let’s get ready for bed.”
I take Eli upstairs to give him his bath and read him to sleep.
But what my mom said starts to get to me.
She’s not wrong, I suppose. And the idea of ending up all alone in this suite isn’t very appealing.
I’ve been so focused on leaving Dylan and setting things up for me and Eli that I never thought any further ahead.
And the truth is…I don’t want anyone other than Renata. Now that I’ve been with her, I can’t imagine being with anyone else. This thing with us is so new, but…but it feels so real…
Eli’s so tired from daycare that he quickly falls asleep after The Cuddliest Caterpillar, one of his (and my) favourite bedtime books. I can’t help remembering how Renata put him to sleep. It was so sweet to see her with him.
I close his bedroom door quietly and say good night to my mom. But I don’t want to stay here, in this quiet suite. I need to talk to someone.
And I know the perfect person to talk to.
“Two rum and cokes, please,” shouts the customer beside me at the bar. She wears a bright red bodycon dress and her curly hair is up in a tight ponytail on the top of her head, accentuating her long neck.
Should I start wearing my hair up? The Succumb club is the hotel’s speakeasy nightclub, located on a secret, underground floor that’s only accessible by the service elevator.
While most people aren’t explicitly aware of the existence of magic, those in the know (or who believe the rumours) frequent this club in the hopes of attracting a real vampire.
It’s a completely different vibe from the rest of the hotel.
It’s dark except for the red and purple strobe lights.
The oval bar is at the center of the dance floor, and there are secret booths lining the back of the club, for vampires and living humans to… well, you know…
“Coming right up,” Amara responds cheerfully, mixing the drinks behind the bar. Tonight, she wears a purple tank top and her long box braids are pulled up into a knot at the top of her head.
I wonder again if I should be wearing my hair up. Is that a vampire tip I wasn’t aware of?
Amara hands the customer her drinks and then she spots me. “Hey, Lily! Can I get you anything?”
“Hi Amara,” I say with a smile. “No thanks, I’ve got to start work after this.”
“I don’t usually see you down here,” she notes, leaning over the bar.
“I wanted to talk to you about something, if that’s ok,” I tell her nervously.
I didn’t really think too much before I came down, and a part of me hopes that she’ll say she’s too busy.
But the club is still quiet. The music isn’t quite ear-splittingly loud yet, and there are only a few customers, since it’s still daylight outside.
“Of course,” Amara replies brightly. She grabs a bottle of wine and pours herself a glass. “What’s going on, Lily? Is it your son?”
“No, that’s not it.” I pause, trying to get my thoughts in order.
But Amara beats me to the punch. “Is it…Renata?”
I’m glad she’s not a vampire, so she can’t see me blush in the dim crimson light. “Yeah.”
The witch nods, and takes a sip of her wine. “You’ve really got it bad for her, huh?” Amara already guessed about my feelings for Renata months ago, before I’d even fully admitted it to myself.
I exhale. “It’s just…it’s not like you and Celine. You’re both magical, and you know how to navigate things. But Renata…she’s my boss. And she can be so…”
“She’s got a wall up?” Amara asks with a grin. “Yeah, I think I know a little bit about that.”
“I thought it was just physical,” I continue. “Although that part is really nice…”
Her grin widens. “You’ve…?”
“Yeah.” Now I’m sure she can see me blush, even in the dark club. But it’s nice to be able to talk to her about this. “Only recently. But I think I might feel…even stronger about her, you know?”
“I know,” Amara replies gently.
“But it’s impossible.” I shake my head. “We couldn’t be together, not properly, anyway.”
“Does she know how you feel?” Amara asks. “Maybe you should tell her.”
“Oh my god, no.” Just the idea makes me anxious. “That’s too much. Plus, I don’t even know if she likes me, you know? She doesn’t give much away.”
“That’s true.” Amara chuckles. “Renata’s a complicated person.
But I think that hard shell is protecting something.
It’s not easy to be a vampire, especially an old one.
The magical world is dangerous, and Tudor was a demanding Creator.
I think he put a lot of pressure on Celine and Renata, so they had to be really tough in order to survive.
It’s hard for them to be vulnerable. But they don’t need to be tough anymore. Or at least not as much.”
I consider her words. “That makes sense.”
Amara takes another sip of her wine, then spots Xia, who comes to join us at the bar.
“Hi, Amara, Lily,” she says. She seems a little distracted, which is odd for her.
“Hey, Xia,” Amara says, pouring Xia a shot of whiskey. “Is everything ok?”
“It’s so bizarre,” Xia says, taking a seat beside me on a barstool. She shakes her head, then takes the shot of whiskey from Amara and downs it in one go. “The past few weeks, I’ve been having the wildest dreams. I just had one last night.”
“Really?” I ask. “Like, going to work without wearing pants? Or flying?”
“Well, I can fly in real life,” Xia says with a cocky smile. But then she gets serious again. “No, no, it’s not like normal dreams.” She gives Amara a look.
“Oh.” Amara frowns. “It’s like…?”
“Exactly,” Xia confirms.
“It’s like what?” I ask. “A witch thing?”
“Yeah,” she sighs. “They’re intense dreams, like the kind of nightmares I got after I left my coven. I can’t help but feel like they’re telling me something, but I have no idea what.”
“What happens in the nightmares?” Amara asks.
“It’s just red eyes, following me everywhere. But I’m inside the hotel. I thought maybe it’s because of the attacks on Elmwood, but it only started recently.”
“That’s not a good sign.” Amara bites her lip. “Maybe you should tell Celine about it.”
“That’s a good idea. I’ll go up to the office. They should be rising in a little while.”
“I’ll go up with you,” I tell her. “Thanks for the advice, Amara!”
Amara waves at us both, and we head upstairs to the office floor.