Chapter 10
Leah stared up the stairs after David. He moved slowly, deliberately. A breeze from the shattered window brought her attention back to it. She turned away from the dead man and looked at the rain still trickling in. Even through the low, heavy clouds outside, the sky was brightening. She knew she needed to sleep, new vampires could not survive in sunlight, and dawn was coming quickly. She had a few more minutes, at any rate.
“David.” She called out softly, climbing the stairs. “I don’t have time to play hide and seek.” Most of the rooms were open, and empty, but she barely glanced into them, heading towards the place where she knew he was waiting for her.
She stopped, facing the outside world from just inside the room, David’s back to her. The rain had slacked off, and the sky to the East was rapidly filling with crimson. The balcony faced that direction, and the sun would scorch her if she dallied.
“I didn’t want this to happen, David - none of it. Asche saved me. I didn’t ask him to, he did it on his own. Once his blood touched my lips, I had no choice, do you understand? Can you?” She paused, looking for a hint of reaction in the still form before her. “He gave me just enough to survive, to make me completely dependant on him. Once you’ve tasted vampire blood…” she shuddered slightly. “…it’s more addictive than anything mankind has ever created. Alcohol is nothing compared to this. Hell, it’s probably easier to give up crack than to wean yourself from a vampire who has let you have a taste of his blood. Even if you could - it’s a slow, painful death. What was I supposed to do?”
“Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?”
Leah sputtered in response.
“You didn’t want it to happen, but it did. Fine.” David responded, miserably. “Neither of us asked for this to happen, but we’ll both stay like this, unless I can do the one thing I said I would never do.” David still faced east, the clouds still shrouding the sun rising rapidly. “I always promised you I’d never hurt you.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
She turned away from him and headed downstairs, away from the light. As she passed through the kitchen on her way to the basement, her eyes skirted the room, stopping on the door to the pantry. There were still two bodies inside that needed to be disposed of. Instinctively, she looked at her hands again. They were clean, for now.
Leah shuddered at the thought, realizing that she would have blood on her hands for years to come, and when she blinked, she could again see the evidence of what she had done before. She blinked again, and tore her eyes away from her hands. This was her new reality, she would have to accept it. David, too, would have to accept what he’d become…whatever that was.
She had just reached the door to the basement when she heard a sound. She turned and scanned the room, seeing nothing. She bristled, and tried to reach out with her newly heightened senses. Still nothing. She was nervous, she decided. Some last object had fallen after Asche and David’s fight. Either that or David had followed her.
She turned and faced the door she had just passed through. “David?”
~ He’s still upstairs feeling sorry for himself. ~
Leah gasped in surprise at the voice, and tried to find its source. “Who’s there? Show yourself, or I’ll have Asche tear your head from your body.” She tried to sound convincing, but she was truly scared, and her voice wavered.
~ We both know Asche is dead. You should be too. And as for your request, I’m breaking so many rules right now just speaking to you that I’ve lost count. Let’s not be greedy, Leah. ~
“Um…are you some sort of ghost?”~ Boo! No. I’m what brought your fiancée back to fix things. That's what I am. But he won’t finish his job, which means either I stick around, or leave the imbecile here and hope for the best. ~
There was a pause during which neither spoke, and then the voice continued.
~ It’s not like you’re going to be around much longer anyway. Listen up. ~
Leah’s head snapped up as she noticed the sound the voice was speaking of. It was a car. A large car, coming up the driveway, and gradually it came to a slow stop.
“Who…?”
~ I’ll give you a hint. He’s ugly, and old enough to be able to walk in sunlight without any problems. ~
“Kelegar?” She had heard rumors about Ravenstrom’s right-hand man, the one who was sent out to clean up the really big messes. None of the rumors were good, either, and a chill ran down her spine.
~ Heh, give the lady a prize. Now you have a couple of choices here. One is that you let Kelegar kill you - because I doubt he’s here for sociable reasons. ~
“David won’t let him hurt me.” Leah stated, flatly.
~ David? He’s powerless now. Kelegar’ll rip his head off and shove it up his ass sideways if he tries to intervene. ~
“I see.” Leah glanced at the basement door, then turned and went back the way she came.
~ Much better. ~
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Leah squinted against the gathering brightness on the horizon. She could barely make out David, a dark silhouette against a rapidly approaching sea of light. She closed the door to the balcony quietly, and walked over to him and sat down beside him on the edge of the balcony.
“Fancy meeting you here.” Leah tried to sound cheerful, a tough job, considering. “Looks like it’s going to be a nice day, huh?”
David said nothing, looping an arm around her shoulders instead, and pulling her close.
“Yeah, I guess it will be.” He said quietly. The sun broke through the clouds as he kissed her forehead. “Thank you.”~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Ciela sat on the tiny balcony at Jayna’s shop, watching the sun rise. Her finger still stung from where she’d pricked it moments before.
Michael’s bike was still downstairs; Jayna had been successful in convincing him to stay for an early breakfast. She wasn’t hungry, but the concept of sleeping until noon held great appeal for her right now. Standing up and stretching, she was struck with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, which quickly turned into the strange certainty that David was gone for good.
She wandered downstairs just as Michael was getting up to leave. “Hey, do you mind some company for the day, Mike?”
“Well, I’ve got to go to work…but I can pick you up later if you want.” He began, uncertain what she was asking.
“It’s ok, I’ll crash on your couch if it’s all the same with you.” She moved towards the door. “I just want to get out of this house for a little bit. A change of scenery, you know how that goes.”
“I’m not complaining, but what brought this on?” Mike asked as Ciela put her arm around him in a half-embrace, burying her head against his chest.
“David’s gone.” She said, just barely above a whisper.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Kelegar stepped out into the early-morning sun and crossed the balcony leisurely before crouching down to examine the still smoldering remains that sat there, undisturbed. The wisps of smoke coming from the twin columns of ash reminded him of Auschwitz, the scent-memory buried somewhere in the back of his mind coming to the forefront and making him smile. Had anyone been there to see this strange phenomenon, they would most likely have had nightmares for years.
The Nosferatu picked up the samurai that sat by what had been David’s side, and turned it over in his hands. The intense heat had blackened the blade, but should be easily repaired. He went back inside as a slight breeze came up, and shook out the tattered, still-dripping coat by the collar, and draped it over his arm. He crossed the driveway amid a flurry of ash, as the remains on the balcony above began to scatter in the wind.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Jayna turned off the water in the bathroom and listened carefully. Aquarius was snoring soundly, so the sound she had heard was obviously not him. She heard it again, a tapping sound, followed this time by the front doorbell ringing. Cursing under her breath about bad luck and lousy timing, she pulled her robe tighter and went to the door. She looked through the peephole and saw Kelegar standing there, ugly as sin and larger than life. She considered ignoring him but realized that would serve no purpose other than get Zan into more hot water with his sometime employer.
“May I help you?” She asked as cordially as possible, opening the door for Ravenstrom’s right-hand fang, hoping he didn’t read minds.
“My Lord wished for me to return your wares. They are slightly damaged but not severely.” At her slack-jawed silence, he added. “The Revenant and the vampire child are gone. The Master also wished for me to inform you of this, and to let Mr. Aquarius know he will be in touch... soon.” He handed her both the sword and the coat that had once been David’s, then turned and left before Jayna could say a word.