Savor

by Duncan, Megan

  Fox rose then, and kneeled before me bowing his head. I looked at my mom wide-eyed and even she had no clue what he was doing. Fox pulled a small box from his pocket and held it out to me. “Bine ai venit, Claire.”

  My mom clasped her hands to her chest and her mouth fell open. I didn’t know what Fox said and stared blankly at the box he held in his hand. I realized he hadn’t moved and remained kneeling still holding his offering. I tentively took it from him and held it out before me as if it would burst into flames. All eyes were on me and with my heart hammering in my chest and my mind swirling with countless scenarios for what the hell was going on, I lifted the lid.

  Inside the small box was a pillow of red velvet. Placed upon the velvet was a sparkling gold chain. I lifted the delicate gold knotting and my eyes were drawn downward to a small ruby dangling there. It was exquisite, yet as pristine and new as it seemed I could feel the history behind the item. “It’s beautiful,” I said, in honest awe of the item. “But why are you giving this to me?”

  “Claire! Show some manners.” My mom kept her tone controlled, but couldn’t keep the anger from reaching her eyes.

  Fox waved her off. “It is a gift from the royal family, Claire. To their new daughter.”

  I instantly dropped the box and necklace onto the floor and had to bite my tongue from slinging a mouthful of curse words at him. “What?”

  “You have been chosen. It is a rare honor for the family to welcome a new member and brings a time of great celebration. Your presence will fortify the strength of our region. The power in blood lies not only in its ability to sustain us, but in the power it represents. Having another pure blooded vampire would make our region a formidable force against those who seek to destroy us.”

  “Wait! So, they only want me to make them more powerful and who is seeking to destroy us?” I couldn’t wrap my head around what he was telling me. The vampire royal family wanted to adopt me? This was crazy.

  “There are those who do not agree with our way of life in this region. They display their hatred like a poison among our people.” Fox spat the words with such intense hate that the tingling sensation I had felt when I first saw him returned.

  “I don’t get it, what could I possibly do?”

  Fox picked up the necklace off the floor and handed it to me as gently as someone would a newborn child. “You have been chosen, Claire. You will join the vampire royal family and be honored with the gift of immortality.”

  I fell back into my seat in complete shock. I didn’t know what to say to that. I just turned eighteen and now I was being told I was going to be an immortal. I had plans, I wanted to get my own place, find a boyfriend and a great job. I didn’t want this. He had to be out of his mind.

  I just sat there shaking my head, fighting the stinging tears that were desperately trying to fall. “My daughter is going to be a vampire?” my mom said wrapping her arms around me. Fox simply nodded, looking pleased with himself.

  “Claire will live with the royal family and begin her training and her transformation.” I looked up, wanting to protest, until I saw the challenging look in his eyes. “Your mom will be provided for. Anything she will ever need will be taken care of.”

  Fox handed my mom a thick envelope and she took it in her hands only to stare at it in shock. “This is amazing,” she said. “My daughter is going to be a vampire.” She hugged me excitedly and jumped out of her seat commenting that we needed to celebrate such wonderful news.

  “What if I don’t want to?” I asked Fox when my mom was in the kitchen, folding my arms defiantly.

  “I’m sorry, Claire, but this is not a gift you can refuse.”

  “You can’t just come in here and take away someone’s life!” I snapped back at him.

  “You should be honored to be given such an opportunity.”

  “But I have a life. I have friends.” I started to sound pitiful as I realized there was no fighting it. How could I say no to the ruler of our entire region, to our vampire king? I couldn’t.

  “Let us toast!” my mom chimed in as she strolled back into the room carrying three glasses filled with wine. “To the King, and to the soon to be newest vampire royal family member, my daughter, Claire!”

  We each raised our glasses and drank. I didn’t share the expressions of happiness that my mom and Fox did. I could only wonder how I was going to say goodbye to my best friend and the life I had planned for myself that I would never have.

  After listening politely to my mom rant about her political views, Fox had agreed to give me the rest of the day to get my affairs in order. By nightfall, I would have to have all my things packed and have said goodbye to everyone.

  There was really only one person that I cared most about saying goodbye to and that was Liz. I had known her practically my whole life. It wasn’t like I was going to move away, it was more like I was going to disappear. We would probably never see each other again.

  When I reached her house it was already buzzing with excitement. Half the neighborhood had seen the limo on our street bearing the symbol of the royal family. She didn’t even believe me at first that they had come for me until I pulled the gold necklace out of my pocket. Her shock turned to sadness and I vowed that I would find a way to see her again.

  I knew she wasn’t really upset with me, but with the situation. It wasn’t just my life that Fox had forever changed, but that of my mom and Liz, and who knows who else. Liz and I had plans to go to college together and then buy houses on the same street after we got married and let our children play together. Liz and I wanted the whole fairytale life that we had dreamt up when we were little, but now it had been snatched away from us and I feared our friendship would never be the same. I knew I would never be the same.

  Chapter 3

  Fox arrived at dusk, the black limo pulling to a smooth stop in front of my house. After tonight, it wouldn’t be my house anymore. My mom had helped me pack and talked animatedly the entire time as if I were just going off to college. She was so wrapped up in her own excitement that she didn’t even notice I never answered any of her questions nor did I share any of her enthusiasm. The day before I had found a new respect and admiration for the vampires and tonight all I could feel for them was frustration and growing anger.

  When Fox exited the limo, he walked in briskly without waiting for the door to be opened for him. My bags were loaded and I hesitated at the doorway to my bedroom, taking one last look, trying to remember every memory I had ever had there. I grabbed the carrier I had put Louie in and was surprised at how heavy he was. They wanted to take me away from everything I knew and loved, but I wasn’t going to let them make me leave him behind.

  As I walked out the front door, Fox eyed the carrier and I shot him a defiant look. He didn’t say anything, which gave me a small sense of victory. My mom stood at the end of our yard waiting for me, and I suddenly felt so sad about having to leave her. I had made so many plans to move far away from her, but now that I was doing so against my will I didn’t want to.

  As she hugged me tightly, I saw the curious faces of several of our neighbors as they tried to figure out what was going on. I was certain that by morning everyone would know, but I wouldn’t be around to see it. My mom would most definitely announce it at one of her meetings, her voice so full of pride like I had accomplished some kind of incredible feat. Only I was being simply selected as a political agenda, like a pawn. I had never felt so used in all my life.

  Before getting into the limo, I looked up the street toward Liz’s house. I couldn’t see her. She said she wouldn’t see me off; that she didn’t want to see them take me away, but I had hoped she would show up anyway. The sting of her absence hurt, but there was nothing I could do about it. I promised myself that I would make things right. Someday.

  I slid Louie’s carrier onto the smooth leather seats and crawled in after him. I expected that Fox would ride with me, but he firmly shut the door and walked to the passenger side front seat. Before I kne
w it, we were making our way down the street and my mom’s smiling face was slowly fading as we drove away.

  I had never been in a limo before, and had always thought that when I did it would be a thrilling experience. However, at the moment it felt incredibly lonely. I opened the door to Louie’s cage and started to scratch his head. His purring was familiar and comforting.

  “What are we going to do, Louie?”

  I cradled the carrier as I looked around the limo. It was top of the line, with a fresh new car smell. The interior was all black with gold and wood trim. There was a television located near a small mini fridge. I opened the fridge, hoping to find at least a bottled water, but it was empty, so I flipped on the television. There was nothing particularly interesting on, but the sounds helped to break up the rambling thoughts inside my head. I tried to remember how far away the royal family lived and recalled someone mentioning that it was about an hour outside of town. People would go there as a sort of tourist attraction, simply satisfied to just look at it from outside the huge iron gates that surrounded it.

  I settled in for the long drive and fell asleep, exhausted from the stresses of the day. The sensation of the limo coming to an abrupt halt startled me awake. My short nap did not do much to make me feel any better.

  The door of the limo opened and the cool night air flowed over me. I saw Fox standing a few feet away, waiting for me to exit and I toyed with the idea of just staying firmly seated on the smooth leather interior. I didn’t want to leave and if he wanted me he would have to pull me out.

  When he continued to wait patiently I gave up and grabbed onto Louie’s cage as I exited the limo. We had pulled up alongside what must have been a side entrance to the huge palace that the vampires lived in.

  “Welcome to the palace Noire, Claire. You can leave your items here; they will be taken to your room.” Fox’s tone had changed and he seemed kinder. I had decided that I didn’t like him, even when he was being nice to me and hoped that I wouldn’t have to see him much during my stay at the palace. What was I thinking, of course I would see him. I was going to be stuck here forever.

  I sighed heavily and handed Louie’s cage to the eager hands of what I guessed was a servant. “Please be careful with him,” I said as she carried him away.

  “Yes, your highness.”

  The title she had given me shocked me and I looked to Fox with my mouth hanging open. “Don’t look surprised, that is what you will be and the staff has already been instructed to treat you as such. Now, let us get going, we have a lot that must be done tonight.”

  I quickened my step to keep up with Fox’s long gait. The palace wasn’t as medieval as I had expected, but was more like a modern mansion. The décor didn’t match that of the blood bank, but the beauty of it was just as great, if not more.

  The tiled floor of the hallway was a beautiful marble and the cream walls were lined with intricate tapestries depicting epic battles or lovers in an embrace. There were great wooden doors leading to rooms I could not see. Beautifully painted vases filled with a variety of fragrant flowers standing in alcoves, blanketed the air with their scent.

  The hallway led to a luxurious foyer that was circled by a grand staircase. The steps were lined with a weaving iron banister that swirled in delicate curves. Above us hung an enormous chandelier that seemed as large as the room. “This place is beautiful,” I said in complete awe.

  “Thank you, Claire. It pleases me that you enjoy it.” A deep soothing voice echoed down from the top of the stairwell. It was the voice of Nicolae Noire, vampire king of our region. I glanced up at him seeing that he was much more impressive and spectacular than any portrait or vampire statue I had ever seen.

  He made his way, steadily and with purpose, down the stairwell until he came to a stop in front of me. His expression was not what I expected. A welcoming smile looked down at me and I glimpsed fangs protruding from it. The sight of them gave my body the urge to run immediately away, but as if sensing it, Nicolae offered his hand to me.

  I looked back to Fox, seeing that he was kneeling and wondered if I should be doing the same. Fearing that I should not leave the King waiting any longer, I placed my hand in his and he firmly grasped it. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Claire. I am King Nicolae Noire.”

  I gave a small curtsey after he let go of me and kept my eyes downward not sure of what I should do. “Foxworth, please send for Robin Willow. Claire, would you follow me?”

  The King turned to walk down another hallway. I kept a slower pace as I walked behind him, surveying my surroundings and the King as well. He stood impressively tall, with a lean frame and angular features. His skin was a beautiful caramel and he had dark hair that was just slightly flecked with gray. He dressed in a similar suit as Fox; however it seemed a more appropriate attire for him. Fox seemed to be uncomfortable in his suit, and I quickly gathered that he had had to dress the part when acquiring me. However, with the King, the suit looked as if it were made for him.

  As we entered through a set of heavy wooden doors we walked into what must have been the most amazing office I had ever seen. The King took his seat behind a large oak desk and I walked into the room slowly gaping at all the overflowing bookshelves, gold framed artwork, huge hand painted maps and large animal skin rugs covering the floors. I caught the reflection of flames from the blazing fireplace dancing in the frozen eyes of a lion’s head on one of the rugs.

  The King sat, offering his hand toward a large antique armchair for me to sit as well. I was completely engrossed with the beauty of the place and as I sat in wonder the King allowed me to take it all in as he sat, looking quite amused.

  “It has been so long since we have had visitors. We’ve become so accustomed to this place that it takes a new pair of eyes to remind us of its beauty,” the King said.

  “I’m sorry.” I didn’t know what else to say. I still felt afraid to look at him. It didn’t help that my only encounters with vampires involved two very large and imposing men. I was stared to wonder if there were any women vampires around.

  “No need to apologize. You will have plenty of time to admire the rest of the grounds and I am sure you will find them all equally impressive, but for now we must get down to business, as they say.”

  I gathered my courage and locked eyes with the vampire King. Sitting behind such a regal looking desk I almost expected him to be wearing a crown and a royal robe trimmed with some kind of feathery border, but his black suit and maroon button-down shirt made him look just as powerful. I thought of Liz for a moment, thinking that she could probably name the designer without even having to look at the tag.

  Nicolae twirled a large gold ring around on his finger. It was adorned with a sparkling ruby much like the one on the necklace Fox presented to me. “I am sure you have a great many questions for me, as this decision was presented to you quite quickly. We do not usually do things as such, but it has been a very long time since we have had the opportunity to welcome someone into our family.”

  His deep voice spoke the words so soothingly and I could sense the slightest hint of an accent that I guessed must have been from lifetimes ago. “Foxworth was instructed to explain the basics of the situation to you, but by the confused look on your face I would guess that you still do not understand what is happening?”

  “No, sir.” I tried to sound as polite and respectful as possible, but I had a lot of questions for him. Like for starters, was he crazy, but of course I would never say that.

  “Before you ask anything, let me explain a few things for you.” He stood up then and walked toward the fire, grabbing a prod to poke the embers. “What you may not have learned in school, is that the royal family is more than a clan of vampires cohabitating in this estate, it truly is a family. Many, many years ago I swore an oath with the humans of this region, that no vampire would shed another human’s blood, if humans would willingly donate their blood in return. In doing this, I created a peace in our corner of the world that has saved a great man
y lives.”

  The King paused for a moment, letting the glow of the fire skip across his features. I saw his brow wrinkle as he became lost in thought and I tried to think of something to say. I searched through my memory and pulled some words my mom used in the past. “You created a peace for mankind that would never have been possible. Many humans flee the regions of the east to come here, and live a life of freedom, free from fear.”

  I was impressed with how mature I sounded and smiled. He returned my smile and continued. “What is not known to the world is the sacrifice we had to make for this peace to be possible. Yes, we would survive on the blood offered willingly to us, but we require more to sustain us in our immortality.”

  He looked at me, urging me to understand what he was saying, but all I could do was stare at his fangs and worry that what he meant was that he wanted pure blood like mine to feed from. He sighed heavily when he saw me tremble and looked away.

  “We desire family. An immortal life is a lonely life, and without the ability to feed on those we choose, it is not possible for us to grow our family. We would like for you to join our family, Claire.”

  I opened my mouth to speak, but quickly snapped it shut deciding that I should probably think my answer through in order to be sure I did not offend him in some way. I still was not sure how or why I was going to be in this “family”.

  Remembering a comment that Fox had made to me, I replied, “I am honored to be offered this opportunity your highness, but I don’t get why I have been chosen.”

  “Decades ago, my wife and I decided we were ready to expand our family, but because of our roles as the King and Queen of this royal family, we had to choose our newest family member a bit more carefully. Others have chosen as they wished, but with our position of power we needed someone who could continue that position on their own. Blood is not only what feeds us Claire, it also determines our strength. You are of pure blood, as am I and my Queen. A vampire born of pure blood is highly respected and honored in our culture.”