Chapter 42 #3
Monique sighed. “If you will excuse me. I’m heading to the sitting room, it’s a little stifling in here.” In a smooth blur she was gone. The tension from the table left with her. I collected pieces of carrot off the table and sat them on the edge of my plate and took a bite of pumpkin.
I watched Dahlia summon the wine bottle down to pour another drink.
“Well, Dahlia.” I watched in amazement and awe. "I think it’s safe to say we are not exactly the same.”
She stopped the fork as it was about to enter her mouth. “Yes, Amy, we are, you’re a witch too.”
I thought she was joking so I laughed. The room seemed to still and I was conscious everyone was looking at me, the laughter died, and I felt my face color. Rubbish, there was no way. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“I was going to wait until you were . . .” She paused, fluttering out a hand as if trying to find a suitable response. “A little less rattled, but now seems as good a time as any. You are just like me, you just don’t know it yet, it’s my job to train you.”
Not once in my entire life had there been a hint of any special abilities.
“Stop it, Dahlia you’re . . .” I searched or the right words in my own head, scrambled around and found none. She’d clearly made a mistake, or she was bat-shit crazy. I was leaning towards the latter. I finished my glass of wine.
Karson was analyzing my face, his face mysterious, broody, dark, as if he was considering her claims. It was enough to settle knots in my belly.
“Surely, Karson, you don’t think . . . for goodness sakes,” I said defensively.
Karson stood up walked down, refilled my glass of wine, making it a little larger than normal.
“I think your mind is just opening to a world you didn’t know existed this time yesterday,” he answered, non-committal.
I took a large gulp of wine. I was no more a witch, whatever the hell that actually meant, than a vampire. My head started to throb like it was all too much for it. I changed the subject.
“What time are you leaving tonight?”
“As soon as it’s dark,” he answered, seating himself back at the table. “We’ll drive back to Church Heights when I get back, but don’t wait up, I’ll wake you if I'm late.”
“It’s over a twelve hour drive, you’ll be tired.
I can fly home in the morning, and you can stay here.
” Here with all the other vampires. I didn’t know what it meant for me, where I would go now, if I could even stay in Church Heights.
I loved living with Ethan. I did love living with him.
I considered him a friend—had considered him a friend.
I should have known, like every friendship I’ve ever had it would fall apart.
“It will take less than six hours at night, and I do not tire like humans.”
I shot my eyebrows up. “Six hours. Karson, it’s what, a thousand miles away? You would need to be doing nearly two-hundred miles-per-hour. I’m not travelling with you at those speeds.”
“Your maths needs some work,” he replied, carving through a piece of meat. “And you will be perfectly safe, I have above average driving skills.”
“Of course you do,” I muttered, rolling my eyes. “Don’t you sleep then?”
“Yes, but I only need a few hours, I’ll sleep once we arrive.” He forked the red, slimy lamb into his mouth.
I couldn't eat anymore. My stomach churned. The thought of what they were heading out to do rested heavy against my soul. I couldn’t help but feel partly responsible.
I stood up. “If you will excuse me."
Karson frowned, and glanced at my hardly touched plate. I moved to the sitting room, wine in hand. Monique was standing by the fireplace, she threw me an annoyed glance and promptly strutted from the room.
I lowered myself to the couch, Dahlia joined me not long after.
I could hear the faint murmur of their voices.
I guessed they were talking about the plans to murder people.
Vampires. I swirled the wine around in the glass, watching the red smear rise around the edges and fall back down again, twisted, rise and fall, twisted, rise and fall.
Karson entered the room. “We won’t be long, pack your bag, we leave when I get back. If I’m not too late, otherwise we’ll go tomorrow night.” His eyes left mine and moved to Dahlia. “I trust you’re okay to look after her, while I’m away.”
Dahlia nodded, she didn’t look at him. I don’t think she had quite forgiven him for his outburst. He turned to walk away.
“Karson,” I called out.
He paused and pivoted back. “Yes?”
“If there is any other way to settle this without death could you please take it.”
He looked at me thoughtfully, then disappeared as quickly as he’d entered, leaving me with no answer. The sound of the car starting and driving off followed soon after.
“I guess that’s a no,” Dahlia said bitterly, “they’re cruel bastards, with no compassion. I can see you like him. You need to resist his allure, a vampire takes what he wants, when he wants it. They kill mercilessly, they have no real feelings, no empathy, no love, don’t ever forget that.”
I didn’t know much, but I had seen the emotion on Ethan’s face when Katrina and Robert were killed, he was devastated. That’s not the traits of an emotionless being. I’d seen joy, and anger in them both. “Dahlia, that’s absurd, Karson and Ethan both have feelings.”
“You think that?” Fury burned from her words. “You have no idea.”
“I live with him. I know him and he maybe a vampire, but he’s good.
” As I spoke the words I realized it was true.
I missed Ethan, missed his humor, missed his voice.
It didn’t matter to me what he was. I knew who he was.
At least I hoped I knew. Besides, the thought of up and leaving again, ached to the core of my heart.
“Good,” she spat, ‘the only good vampire is a dead one.” She stormed from the room.
I watched her stride out, unease chewing at my stomach.
I went upstairs and called Ethan. I needed to hear him say everything would be alright.
We’d get through this, somehow. He answered in two rings.
I held my breath and there was a long pause as if both of us didn’t know what to say, finally he broke it. “Amy, are you alright?”
I paced the room. “Yeah. I mean . . . yes, I’m fine.”
“You don’t sound fine.”
“I am. I’m just a little tired.” Overwhelmed. Shell-shocked. And mildly, deeply, concerned.
“Why did you go to Portland?” His voice hardened. “Do you know the danger you’ve put yourself in?”
I laughed bitterly. “I have a fair idea.”
“Jesus, Amy,” he breathed and didn’t finish.
“Ethan?”
I heard him draw a breath. “Yes?”
I stopped pacing. “Katrina and Robert’s car accident wasn’t an accident,” I said, softly. “I came to ask Karson if he did it. He said he didn’t . . . I believe him.”
There’s a long pause, his voice sounded pained when he spoke, “What makes you think it wasn't an accident?”
“I read the medical reports, don’t ask me how, I won’t tell you. But there were ligature marks on Katrina’s wrists, and a wound to the back of her head and more, but I’ll tell you the rest when I get back.”
There was a long silence, I could hear his breath much louder and faster than before.
“Ethan . . . are you there? Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m here. I’ll see what I can find out, are you coming ho— are you still going to stay here?”
Warmth seeped through my limbs. He wanted me to stay. “Yes, maybe, I think so. I don’t know. If you want me to? If it’s easier on you if I move out, that’s okay, I understand,” I rambled.
“No, I want you to stay. I just didn’t know if you would want to, now that you know.”
“It’s okay, I’ll just have to start waxing instead of shaving, and perhaps you should chop the vegetables from now on, just in case.”
He laughed. “We can talk about it tomorrow.”
I smiled. “See you tomorrow.”
“Okay . . . Amy?”
“Yes?”
“If you ever pull a stunt like that again I’m going to kill you myself.”
My smile grew. “Yeah, yeah, see you.” I hung up, feeling a hell of a lot better than I did before I called him. Light rain tapped on the window and drizzled down the pane. I pulled the curtains closed, turned on the lamp, and laid down on the bed, listening to the rain.
Maybe everything was going to turn out alright after all.