Chapter Twenty-Six
Aila
When I wake up, I’m in a strange room in a strange house. For one moment, I’m confused, but then bits and pieces start coming back to me.
Without Theron, the lavvu in the forest seemed oppressive and scary, so I followed the trail back to the inn. I spent some time wondering how many other hidden love nests the Riders had scattered over the island; all of them tempting and delightful. Just like the Riders themselves.
I felt safe. Every flight-or-fight reflex inside me had gone. I remember thinking, if only I could bottle what I was feeling and give it to every woman who felt the need to run, it would make me happy.
It’s not always vampires we should be afraid of.
I’d made my way towards the inn, blissful and content. And yes, I was beginning to plan my life around my feelings for Theron.
Dreams about how exciting it would be to ride down to South America or go up to Alaska on the Harley clouded my mind. No need to worry about dangerous predators of any kind, because I would be packing my own! What freedom.
I knew Theron loved me. He had from the start. It just took me a while to catch up.
Theron’s motorcycle had been back in its place. The bar room inside the inn was full of cheerful chatter. I was no longer revolted by the thought of seeing Piers. I knew Theron would protect me like he had always done.
But something—someone—must have stopped me from entering the bar.
I could see Theron and Piers sitting opposite each other, deep in conversation in one of the booths, and then… nothing. Everything went blank.
I better get up and find out what happened. I’m not worried, not by a long mile. How can I be stressed with Theron on hand to solve all my problems for me?
A white furry dog sits up and barks at me when I move. It’s a friendly bark.
“You’re Luna’s dog, aren’t you?” I pat the bed because I can see the dog is just dying to jump up. He comes to lick my face as I pet him. Running my fingers through the fur feels therapeutic.
I take the chance to look at the dog’s nametag hidden under its thick fur.
“Mu-oh-ta. Damn. I wish my phone worked here so I could look up what that means.”
Knowing I must not open any of the curtains drawn across the windows, I go to the bathroom. I get a bit of a fright when I look at myself in the mirror.
“Damn! Hideous much, Aila?” My face is so pale, I’ve lost my tan, which makes my skin look kind of beige now. Pulling down the bottom of my eye, I can see the inside of my lower lid is almost white.
That’s bad. It means I’ve lost so much blood that my system hasn’t got any to spare for the tiny capillary blood vessels.
There is human stuff in here: toothbrushes—unused, obviously—soap, facial wipes, moisturizer, deodorant; old, but not expired. So I use some.
But there’s no makeup. Why would there be? If I looked as gorgeous as Luna, it would be stupid to put makeup on. I guess I’m going to have to white-knuckle it until I can borrow some of my mom’s mascara and blush.
All I can do is try pinching some color back into my cheeks and biting my lips to make them pinker. Two pale blotches appear on my lower lip when I bite it, but they fade away as soon as I stop.
The dog is waiting for me when I come out.
I am absolutely starving. Wriggling into my jean shorts and tank top, I go downstairs into the kitchen. The layout reminds me of Ben’s house. I guess architects and floor plans are not a thing on Landslide.
I shouldn’t be complaining. I don’t even own a house.
It’s so easy to get lost in dreams of blissful domesticity now that I know Theron will kick Piers off Landslide and tell him to stay away from me.
I always yearned for a dominant lover who would take control of my life and protect me from the foolish decisions I made as a teenager. And now I have him.
Teenage mistakes can be a real problem when you have to face them alone, and knowing this doesn’t make me weak; it makes me a realist.
The kitchen is packed with long-life food. In the fridge and the cupboards. I guess it’s part of the window dressing the vampires use for when they have visitors.
“Theron told me you don’t take cream in your coffee, Aila? But I can run and get you some if you like.”
“Shit!” I nearly drop the coffee can.
Why is it always so shocking when a vampire suddenly appears? I mean, I’m living on Vampire Island, for God’s sake.
Muohta is overjoyed to see his dog mom is awake, dancing around her until Luna fills his bowls with food and water. When I see the expensive pet brand kibble and dried salmon, I’m thinking the darn dog eats better than I do!
“Morning, Luna. What’s the time, please?”
Luna points to a digital display on the kitchen wall. 3:12.
I attempt to make a joke. “A.m. or p.m.?”
Moving to help me set up the coffee machine, Luna smiles to herself. “P.m. I let you sleep. It looked like you needed it. You were exsanguinated pretty bad. That’s why you fainted.”
“It’s the price I pay for being with Theron.” Time for some straight talk with the only vampire who seems to understand my dilemma. “How did you meet Shadow?”
Luna watches me spooning cereal into my mouth.
“I’m not here to answer your chatty little questions, Aila. You’re not part of the coven or the club. Please don’t get my role of innkeeper confused with one of friendship.”
My spoon is poised halfway between the bowl and my mouth. “W-what?”
She makes an irritated gesture, rolling her eyes. “Try to see yourself through my eyes, Aila. Go on. Think of it as one of those trust building exercises.”
She can’t be serious.
“I’m twenty-eight, currently unemployed, and—”
Luna cuts me off.
“Allow me. You’re a transient, a piecemeal worker.
Nearly thirty and yet somehow still reliant on your mother.
You skate by using your hot looks and tight little body.
You like to play games with men’s hearts and mindfuck them with your ‘am I staying or am I going?’ bullshit.
If things don’t work out, no biggie, you’ll just move on down the road. ”
I open my mouth to try and defend myself, but Luna snarls.
“And knowing that you have huge unresolved issues with a very rich and very powerful man, you come to our island—my island—and then try acting all innocent when you drag your shit right into my front yard!”
I am speechless. Living with my mother has never forced me to see things from another person’s point of view before. And now I’m trying to stare down a vicious female vampire.
Luna’s snarl turns into a sneer.
“I could have respected you, Aila. If at any time during your relationship with Hunter, you had followed through on the advice he gave you, that would make me question my current opinion. But”—she pauses, licking her lips for the final onslaught—“but you are an airhead, no-talent honeypot! Even your man-eater mother has more dignity than you! At least she knows when to settle down with one man!”
I’m not sure which one comes first: the vomit or the tears. I’m spewing up the cereal and crying at the same time.
Scoffing, Luna goes to sit on the couch, muttering “fucking drama queen” under her breath.
I’m sniffing, wiping my eyes, and hunting for a paper towel roll to mop up the mess. Determined to face Luna’s accusations on my own, I use the boiling water to make a cup of tea and add lots of sugar.
Sighing, I enter the living room and sit down opposite Luna. She looks shocked to see me. I’m sure she expected me to run for the hills.
Best that I start talking. “I’m sorry. I was selfish, and I had tunnel vision. I’ve been running for so long, I never realized that was what defined me now.”
Luna doesn’t even acknowledge that I’m talking, but she is still here, so that has to be a good sign.
“The only thing you have wrong is my emotional investment. I love Theron. It was that crazy sex-magic insta-love thing that happened with us. Yes, I would like to be able to run away from my problems. And yes, I would like to see more of the world without my mother tagging along. But my sexual attraction to Theron has grown into true love. Please take that as our base point and let’s move on from there. ”
Luna is listening more intently now, I can tell. So I continue.
“Tell me what I can do to help, and I will do it. Stay. Leave. Apologize. Negotiate.” A big sigh escapes me. “I… I can’t go back to Piers. I’m not a sacrifice. But maybe it’s best if I cross over to Canada or the States. Take my problems with me.”
Fully engaged, Luna replies. “That ship sailed long ago. Theron would never allow it now. But there is something you can do to fix this, Aila.”
In the blink of an eye, a packet of cookies materializes on the end table in front of me.
Vampire speed is like vampire beauty: breathtaking.
I listen to Luna while eating the cookies, the slow crunch-crunch in my mouth adding some sound to the spooky silence in the rest of the house.
“Piers isn’t here because he wants the two of you to get back together. He needs you to sign an NDA. You’re not allowed to talk about your relationship with him. And he wants your mother to sign one, too.”
My heart soars. What a fool I’ve been! Piers is an adult now, and so am I. We’ve grown up and grown apart. The last thing he needs is for the stupid things he did as a youth to follow him into his thirties.
“Gladly! Yes. No problem. I’ll sign an NDA and make sure my mom does it, too.
Oh my God! I never thought that was the reason for him trying to track me down.
” I have to laugh. “Duh! I thought he was obsessed with me because of some nasty threats he made in the past. Now I feel like such an asshole.”
Luna lifts her eyebrows. “Really? You’re not going to shake him down for a fat check?”
“Ha! Don’t make me laugh. Along with our gypsy lifestyle, Mom and me are not exactly familiar with filing tax returns, if you know what I mean. The last thing I want right now is to make a large deposit into my bank account.”
“I’m sure Piers could arrange for you to receive cash or non-fungible tokens, Aila. Gold coins are easy to exchange if you don’t mind selling them at current market prices.”
“No, thanks. It’s reward enough to know I don’t have to be looking over my shoulder anymore.”
I don’t have to run anymore. I don’t need Theron to protect me. We can be together as equals. Poor, pitiful, pathetic me and my beast of a biker.
Luna’s back in the kitchen, sticking a meal into the microwave and setting the timer.
“That should be ready in a few minutes, Aila. Eat it. Eat anything you like. And then swallow a few supplements. Anemia is no joke. Wait here.”
I watch Luna dressed in her beekeepers’ outfit walk outside.
And then she’s gone.
I can’t work out if she hates me or not. I have so many questions I wanted to ask her.
Does she miss doom scrolling on her phone? Or food? But the biggest one has to be whether she misses the sunshine.
Luna was never one of the Original Seven. She’s modern like me.
I suppose knowing that she’s going to outlive all of her friends and family and loveable dog must make her sad.