9. Just try not to fall overboard. #2
“It could be worse,” Emerick replied, and he poked my nose again. “How many shapes will she be able to access?”
“More than you will be comfortable with,” my father replied. “Her bird of prey shape will be the easiest for her, as that is our line’s innate form. I can assume four aquatic forms, five mammalian forms, three reptilian forms, and seven avian forms.”
Emerick whistled. “That’s impressive. I can do more than one form, but I struggle with it.”
“That is better than most. Try not to worry yourself. In time, you’ll likely learn her primary avian form due to extended exposure.
Everyone in my brood can assume my feline and my primary avian form, and most can assume an aquatic form as well.
I will give you lessons while I am giving her lessons.
For tonight, I will help her shift back to human, after which you will take her home and tuck her into bed, as surely the excitement from the outing and the acquisition of kittens will do her in. ”
“Hopefully, she will remain awake long enough to finish the tour of the ship.”
“She should, but it’s likely you’ll be carrying her in from your car.”
The cruise ship boasted four ballrooms, and the grand ballroom on the second deck stole my breath.
Everything about it screamed of luxuries long past, the crystal chandeliers sent rainbows of color and light dancing across the polished floor, and bejeweled curtains drawn up along the walls broke up the space without taking away from the majesty of the place.
While I regretted having resumed human form, I did my best to keep from napping inappropriately.
My father would be proven right, however. The instant I sat down, I would be clocking out for the day, and that was that.
Rather than complain over having pushed myself more than wise, I said, “We’re definitely hosting the wedding ceremony on this ship, Emerick. We’ll use all the ballrooms for our games. We can even offer up the stake that rids Breckenan of his foul life as a prize.”
My husband chuckled. “You’re going to start a brawl for the right to own that stake should you do that.”
I could see how that could happen. “We will have a rule where invited guests cannot kill each other, obviously. Unwanted vermin who are foolish enough to come aboard can enjoy being torn apart by those wishing to own one of my babies.”
“You’re assuming one of your stakes is going to end his life. What if it’s one of mine ?”
I huffed, lifted my chin, and refused to look at him. “My stakes will be the victor.”
“We could attempt a mutual murder, you know. We could both drive our stakes into his heart at the same time.”
The suggestion captured my attention, and I regarded Emerick with a raised brow. “Do you think he’s going to just stand there and let us do that? I mean, I am not against this idea in the slightest, but it sounds like you’re indulging in wishful thinking again.”
“There are ways we have to make him stand still,” my husband informed me in a solemn tone.
“Teach me,” I ordered.
My father snickered. “You need to master shapeshifting first, Pepper. It’s not that he doesn’t want to teach you right away, but it’s refined magic—the kind that can backfire dramatically.
Once you’ve mastered three forms, you will likely be skilled enough with your magic to paralyze a foolish, young vampire.
You might not even need magic at that stage.
Those of my line tend to have a presence—and we can intimidate other vampires with it. ”
“Thank you for not doing that to me,” Emerick stated in a neutral tone.
“You’re welcome. I will save a few surprises for when we are on board and headed to Europe, but there is a tea parlor restricted for my use; I will make certain the crew knows you and your husband are added to the list of those permitted to enter.
It is a quiet space, and trust me when I say we will need a quiet space. ”
“How are we going to handle the blood needed for so many vampires on board?” I asked, furrowing my brows. “Can we even store Wagyu for that long, Emerick?”
“The bottles of blood we use are magically enchanted to have a shelf span of six months,” he replied with a smile. “Please don’t worry. The blood we use doesn’t need to be refrigerated or anything like that. We will just put bottles in storage and in suites as needed.”
My father pointed at the floor. “Your blood will be stored in several places across the ship. We have a section of the cargo hold dedicated to the preternatural, and every suite has a wine rack and refrigerator, allowing vampires to keep their blood at their preferred temperature. I prefer mine at room temperature but Benoit likes his chilled. The magic used for storage prevents blood from coagulating right down to the freezing point.”
“That explains a few things,” I admitted. “I probably should have asked before now.”
Emerick leaned towards me and kissed my cheek.
“Don’t worry about it. You’ve had a lot to worry about, and the specifics of how we store blood isn’t one of the things you needed to worry about.
We always take extra blood when we’re traveling by sea in case of accident or injury.
In a pinch, we will go fishing. Fish blood isn’t ideal, but it does work. ”
“That would have to be a large fish,” I muttered.
“If we’re desperate, we’ll hunt whales,” my husband admitted. “But we try to avoid that. We do take precautions, though. I’m hopeful Breckenan and his lot are unaware of the extra steps we have to take to travel at sea.”
“It’s unlikely; he travels by plane when he goes long distances.
” My father shrugged. “I will be having the blood stores locked down; if we get any stowaways of vampiric bent, we’ll find out about it in a hurry.
It only takes a few days for that lot to become desperate, and desperate vampires are not sensible vampires. ”
I huffed, lifted my chin, and said, “I could go weeks without being a menace.”
“That is because you are my daughter, and being my daughter makes you immune to bloodlust. Your brothers are resilient, but you have inherited everything our line has to offer.”
“We weren’t imagining that, then,” my husband commented.
“You weren’t. It’s part of why I’m pleased she’s in your brood.
Every last one of you could begin falling to bloodlust, and her presence in the bonds would stabilize you.
That is our role and duty. We issue punishment as needed—and we provide salvation when we can.
I do wish those sons of mine had more of my tendencies, but even their presence can help.
We are still vampires, but our role is to provide stability and hope for those in the darkness. ”
It still amazed me how my father had painted a picture far from the reality of our situation throughout my childhood. In the future, my trials would become the foundation for other children like me to make it to adulthood without suffering as Edgar had suffered.
One day, the vibrant boy would grow into a man, and with luck, his learning disabilities would resolve as his brain was given the opportunity to grow. Curious over his situation, I asked, “Did I have learning disabilities like Edgar?”
“Not to the same extent, but yes. Every time your growth stalled, you would have similar problems. You are worried about his future, I’m guessing.
He should begin developing and become a rather normal child as he is given a chance to age appropriately.
He won’t lose any of the skills he’s earned, like his art.
He will benefit from maturity, however. I can’t tell you if he will fully mature.
You stalled out earlier than I thought you should, but as you were healthy and as happy as I could make you under the circumstances, I did my best not to worry about it. ”
With every question I asked and he answered, my respect, admiration, and awe over everything he’d done grew. “Do you regret having me?”
“Never. From the moment we confirmed your mother was pregnant with you, we wanted you . Then to discover your gender? The older a vampire gets, the lower the chances of us having a daughter. You were a miracle from conception, and your mother and I never lost sight of that. There were difficulties, but we never regretted them. So, no. We never regretted having you. Should I ever have another child, I will take everything I learned from having you and make certain my wife is fully prepared—and a vampire. That way, we can prevent your hardships. And should we need to make a difficult decision, we can do so with grace.”
“Because not all vampiric children with defects have resolvable defects.”
“Correct.”
“And should Emerick and I wish to have children?”
“You can make that decision as you please, just be prepared for your children to inherit vampirism as you did. Your predisposition problems will be real. It is your choice if you take precautions to keep your children from rising. However, the choice may be taken from you. We would have had to stake you at the moment of your death to prevent your rise, and no parent is willing—and had you died in your crib, like the child in Japan, you would have risen before we realized you had passed.”
“We’ll discuss it carefully,” Emerick promised. “Do you think Breckenan will find a way to board the ship?”
My father shook his head. “No. But he will find a way to come at us while we’re going to port or are nearing shore.
Unlike him, we will be ready. From the outside, it appears as though we sail into a trap.
In reality, quite the opposite is true. And don’t you worry about your ship, Pepper.
Should she sink buying us all a better future, I will rebuild her to her same specifications.
I have her original blueprints along with every change I have made to her through her long life.
With luck, she will endure some damage and be fit for sailing in time for your wedding. ”
“We could delay the ceremonies for her refit if necessary,” I grumbled.
Emerick laughed. “Nobody would have any problems with that. Everyone will understand the significance of your father gifting you with your ship and your desire to have our ceremony on board. Just threaten to start crying should anyone complain. Between myself and your father, anyone who thinks about questioning your choice of ship will change their mind in a hurry.”
I laughed at the thought of my husband and my father teaming up to keep vampires and other preternaturals at bay. “I’ll keep that in mind.”