Chapter 40
FORTY
Rosalia will finally be reunited with her mother and father, who met tragic ends before her. Despite the many trials and tribulations that life presented her, Rosalia’s journey ended surrounded by love and happiness, with the man who stood by her side and helped her through the darkest of times.
Rosalia finds herself unburdened and embarking on a journey to a realm beyond our understanding, where the storms of life can no longer reach her. It is a place where love endures and where she will forever reside in peace.
Last night, I wrote my own eulogy, and for the first time, I was truly honest with myself about my emotions. I was in love. In the past, I felt that I didn’t deserve to be. But I was wrong. I finally felt free from the confines of my previous life, free to start the journey of my new life.
My heart felt raw as I handed the letter to Imalda. I asked her to make sure Vail received it. Imalda agreed, and I hugged her, promising to be home soon. She knew what Draven and I planned to do, and she was happy for us.
Draven reassured me that we could continue living in the mansion, given that it was far enough from Elmcross that no one would visit us. He had lived there his whole life without getting many visitors, and those who did would come to the door, greeted by Imalda, who wasn’t a suspicious person.
Imalda helped us with our bags and waved goodbye as we entered the carriage. I knew that we would return soon, but something inside of me feared that it would never be the same.
We travelled for three hours down a bumpy dirt road along a mountainside.
I did not know how Draven managed to sleep through the whole journey as I was grasping onto my seat at every unexpected turn.
The curtains were pulled tight across the windows as the driver needed sunlight to see the path ahead, so I sat in the carriage in the dark, trying not to vomit.
Upon dusk, the carriage slowed and halted.
I couldn’t get out fast enough, and my legs felt stiff as I stretched my limbs while looking at my surroundings.
I noticed in the dim light that we arrived at a small cabin in the woods.
The driver took our bags out of the carriage and left.
I heard Draven ask him to return and bring us home in the spring once the roads were cleared.
“What is this place?” I asked Draven as he opened the front door for us. I walked in behind him. The cabin was surprisingly cozy despite its plain exterior. It had a quaint kitchen that made me smirk, knowing that Draven most likely never used it.
“This is where I would come whenever I needed to leave for a couple of days. I would hunt here and perform experiments with Dr. Montgomery. It would allow me some time to heal without the fear of you seeing me after the fact. Also, no one could hear me scream,” he said.
My hand went to his arm at the thought of him in pain, and my heart clenched.
I had seen him in the sun for only a few minutes; I could only imagine the sort of torture he put himself through for the experiments.
The idea of Draven facing that ordeal alone, with only the cruel Dr. Montgomery by his side, filled me with unease.
We lay in bed that night, tangled together in the sheets. Draven trailed kisses along my spine, and I turned to face him, but he pinned me, his hands on my wrists, and proceeded to kiss more along my back. We decided that tomorrow night would be when Draven turned me.
I wanted one last day in the sun.
“How does it work?” I asked him.
He halted kissing my back momentarily. “I am assuming you are asking about the transformation?”
“Yes,” I nodded. He flipped me around, so we were facing each other.
“I am surprised it took you this long to ask.”
“I feared that dwelling upon it too much might overwhelm me and lessen my desire to continue,” I admitted.
“Well,” he began, kissing my jaw, “I will bite you here.” His fangs came out, and he trailed them along my neck.
He was gentle, but the soft points of them across my skin made my nipples peak.
“I then drink your blood, and when your heart almost stops, you will drink some of my blood,” he continued, putting his throat to my mouth, and I kissed it, “and then the transformation process will begin.”
“Will it hurt?”
“Yes.” He locked his pale eyes onto mine. “You are going to die, my heart, but then you shall live again. It is hard to explain … Don’t worry. I shall be by your side the entire time, and you will not be alone.”
My heart swelled at his words.
“Do you have any further questions?” he inquired.
“Do you believe I will find happiness as a Blood Hunter?” I asked him.
“For a long time, I resented my transformation. I loathed myself and the world around me. But in time, I found peace with it … only after I met you. I truly believe you will find happiness as well, my heart, knowing that you chose this path. Together, we shall live for eternity by each other’s side. ”
He lay his head on my chest, listening to my heartbeat. “Close your eyes, I want you to enjoy your day tomorrow and not be tired.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
I drifted off to sleep in Draven’s arms, dreaming that I was a bat soaring through the forest under the cloak of darkness.
December 22, 1891
I awoke early to the melodic sounds of birdsong and found Draven peacefully asleep beside me.
I tiptoed across the bedroom, gently closing the door behind me.
Wrapping a long coat around my shoulders, I slipped on my boots and opened the front door.
A brisk winter wind swirled around my legs as I stepped outside, and I inhaled deeply, savouring the crisp scent of impending snow in the air.
I spent all day outside, walking around the forest, often taking breaks to face sunrays through the trees.
I found a small creek that began to freeze over and a sunny spot next to it.
I took off my coat and shoes, leaving me utterly naked in the natural world that surrounded me.
I wore only my wedding ring and the necklace my mother gave me when I was young.
I didn’t feel exposed, merely chilled. I spread my coat out on the ground and lay down upon it, allowing my body to soak in the warmth of the sun’s rays one last time.
As I lay there, tears streamed down my cheeks.
This would be the last time I felt the sun.
I closed my eyes, allowing myself to be fully present in the moment, to absorb every sensation, every sound, every fleeting ray of sunlight.
It was a farewell, not just to the sun, but to the world as I knew it.
There was also a sense of acceptance, of surrender to the unknown that lay ahead.
As the sun began its descent beyond the horizon, I reluctantly rose and wrapped the coat around me.
I could feel my stomach growling, and I went back to the house to eat my last human meal.
We hadn’t packed much food, knowing I wouldn’t need it for long, but when I entered, I was greeted by a lavish spread Draven had prepared.
There lay roasted meat, vegetables, and a delectable cake baked by Imalda.
Draven had even brought out the port from the night he first dined with me.
After I finished my meal, Draven touched my cheek, turning me to look up at him.
“It is time,” he said.
The stars blanketed the sky above the surrounding forest as the winter wind swirled around my legs. Draven held me tightly, and I realized that once I surrendered to him, I would belong to him for eternity. My blood would be his, my heart, my breath, and my very soul.
Draven lifted me so that only the tips of my toes brushed against the damp earth where we stood. His cold hands ran up my back and brushed through my long hair. My skin prickled as every instinct in me told me to run, but I had already made my choice.
I threw back my head, exposing my neck. Fear and anticipation coursed through me as Draven leaned in, his breath cold against my skin. His lips brushed my throat a heartbeat before the sharp graze of his fangs. I closed my eyes, my heart pounding rapidly in my chest.
In that moment, time stood still. The world faded away, and all that remained was the sensation of his cool lips and the promise of eternal connection.
I had chosen this path willingly, but the gravity of it all hit me like a tidal wave.
Becoming a Blood Hunter was an irreversible choice, a plunge into darkness.
His voice was soft and reassuring as he whispered in my ear, “You are mine, our bond is unbreakable, and I will cherish you for all eternity.” His words were a solemn vow.
With a deep breath, I nodded. And then, as his fangs punctured my skin, I felt a rush of sensations. Pain mixed with ecstasy.
The pain was sharp as his fangs sank deeper into my flesh.
My body tensed, and I struggled to not pull away.
I clung to him, my fingers digging into his back, anchoring myself as he sucked my blood into him.
Shortly, the pain began to recede, replaced by a growing sense of euphoria.
I felt like I was floating, weightless and free.
My breath began to steady, and a warmth spread throughout my body, starting where our bodies were connected.
A moan slipped out of my mouth, and I clung tighter to him as I wanted him to take more of my blood.
It felt different from the last time he fed from me.
Last time I was scared for his life, and this time I was willingly giving him mine.
He drank and drank until my vision started to fog and darken.
He held me tighter, and I could feel my limbs go limp as I started to fade.
I began to feel at peace. I was ready to leave this world and begin my journey into the next.
However, he stopped. He pulled back, bringing a dagger to his own neck. He ran the blade over his skin and then cut it open. Blood flowed down his own neck.
“Drink, my heart,” he said, moving his head aside, exposing his neck to me.
He placed my lips upon his neck. His blood felt hot against the coolness of his skin.
I drank, allowing his blood to fill my mouth.
I gagged; it tasted like iron and salt, but I was too weak to pull away.
Then the change began to take hold. It started as a subtle current.
My heartbeat slowed as I continued to drink from Draven’s neck; the world around me began to blur and fade some more.
The sensations of pleasure intensified as a moan escaped from Draven’s mouth.
He held me, his embrace both tender and possessive as if I was claiming his very soul.
I drank deeper out of the desire to fully unite with him.
We were not just sharing blood anymore; we were sharing our souls with each other.
Then something I wasn’t expecting happened.
Flashes and visions of Draven’s life cascaded into my mind.
I began to see Draven’s memories, spanning over a century of his existence.
Moments of passion with a red-haired woman.
Draven’s torment at the hands of Dr Montgomery.
Imalda’s arrival on a rainy night, frail and desperate.
I felt the loneliness that had led him to seek this eternal bond. A whirlwind of his thoughts and memories swirled within me, elusive and fleeting, impossible to grasp onto.
Draven, as a child, standing before a mirror with a woman, his mother, singing to him.
Then, I saw myself through Draven’s eyes.
In the river that fateful night. I sensed his thoughts, his pity for my helpless humanity.
He could not bear to watch me drown. In his thoughts, I saw him that first night, as I did in my dreams, hovering over my body.
He drank from me, and then he stopped when he felt my pain, my anguish, and it drew him back to a haunting memory of him and Emily.
Then I saw her, Emily, covered in blood and a small figure next to her, just as lifeless.
I felt his pain and his realization that my pain matched his own, and then felt his choice to let me live.
Time seemed to stretch and warp as we remained locked in that intimate exchange. The pain from his bite had long since healed. I was not Rosalia anymore; I was now a part of Draven, and he, a was part of me.
Finally, I pulled away from his neck, gasping for breath. My body felt electrified. Not dead, but more alive than I have felt in months. Draven’s eyes bore into mine, filled with love and relief.
“Forever you are mine, and I am yours until the end of time,” he whispered, his voice a soothing melody in my ears.
“Am I a Blood Hunter?” I asked, then my heart stopped beating, and the blood in my veins ran cold.
I looked at him, searching for advice as an intense burning spread through my body, and I dropped to the ground in agonizing pain.
I shut my eyes, but the pain intensified, coursing deeper through my veins.
It was as if I were engulfed in flames while simultaneously submerged in an icy river.
I opened my eyes, but I could not see my surroundings.
I saw my life flashing before them: I saw my father coming home from a hunting trip; I saw my mother reading a book by the fireplace; and I saw Vail, her hair like a halo in the sun.
I saw Draven, standing above me as the soft flakes of winter’s first snow began to fall.
And then I saw darkness.