by G. K. DeRosa
Nico barged into Roman’s room and tore him away from his dark musings.
“I’m going out. Are you going to be okay here by yourself?” asked Nico sarcastically.
“Enjoy yourself Nico, and please try to keep out of trouble, okay?” Roman’s older brother tone was back, and Nico knew the fight from earlier had been forgotten.
“Of course,” said Nico as he sauntered happily out of the house.
Roman was feeling a bit on edge, and felt the need to get out of the house as well. He thought a long walk would help clear his mind, so he headed out with no particular destination in mind. As he walked, he thought about Celeste and the uncertain future before her. He resolved to call Stellan to discuss it further in the morning.
Celeste took a big bite of the cheesy pizza and looked over at Brian who was wiping his greasy chin with a napkin. He was totally engrossed by the movie. She had let him pick and of course he had chosen Super Bad, a movie she had no interest in.
“Come on, how can you not like this movie?”
“It’s so stupid!”
“No it’s not, it’s hilarious! And there’s even some of that romance stuff you like. Boop!” he said and poked her nose.
She giggled and swatted at his finger. “Brian, you know nothing about romance and obviously the writers of this movie don’t have a clue either!” she retorted.
After he left, she had been clearing away the living room table and tidying up the kitchen when Rocky whined at her, looking up at her with big pleading eyes.
“Oh no! I forgot to take you out – poor guy!”
She hurriedly snapped on his leash and took him outside as his tail wagged furiously in excitement. The streets were so quiet she could hear the muffled sound of Rocky snuffling through the grass searching for just the right spot. As she passed by a tall oak tree, she heard a rustle and saw a bat hanging upside down from one of the lower branches!
First a falcon and now a bat? What’s going on with all of these weird winged creatures all of a sudden?
Slightly spooked, Celeste made a quick 180-degree turn to head back towards her house and found herself suddenly face-to-face with Roman. Before she could speak, Rocky let out a startled bark. He sniffed the stranger suspiciously and growled, his hackles raised in alarm.
“Oh hi,” said Celeste, unconsciously running her hand through her disheveled hair. “You surprised us, and nothing much gets by Rocky.”
“In a former life I used to be a ninja,” quipped Roman with a sly smile.
“What are you doing out here?” she asked.
“Well, I could ask you the same thing…”
“I live right there,” Celeste said pointing at her house with the white picket fence and wrap-around porch, “and I’m just taking Rocky for a quick walk before bed. So what are you doing here, really?”
She eyed him questioningly with a hand on her hip.
“I’m not sure actually, I just started walking and somehow I found myself here,” admitted Roman.
“You walked all the way from your place to here? That’s more than a couple miles, isn’t it?” Celeste asked.
“I’ve had some things on my mind, and I thought a good long hike would help. I went through town, kept walking, and found myself here admiring all of these beautiful turn-of-the century houses,” he said.
They continued their casual conversation for a couple of minutes, and Celeste couldn’t help but notice that he kept glancing over her head at the tree behind her. Finally she interrupted, “Did you see the bat up there?”
She turned around to point it out to him, but it was gone.
“No, I didn’t see anything. Actually, I didn’t think bats were native to Oak Bluffs.”
Celeste thought she saw a flash of concern in his eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. “They’re not. I’ve grown up here my entire life, and I’ve never seen one until today.”
“Well, I better walk you to your house just to be safe, we certainly don’t want one following you home.”
Roman accompanied Celeste to her front door and then he paused at the threshold.
“Thanks for protecting me from the scary bats,” she said jokingly, anything to break the silence.
He took her hand in his and she felt the familiar sparks, like tiny little explosions all over her skin. For a moment he looked at her longingly as if there were something more he wanted to say, but then he dropped her hand and with a quick goodnight hurried off into the darkness.
“We have a problem,” said Roman as he marched in the door and hurried up the stairs to Nico’s room. He found him passed out in bed, and Roman could smell the faint scent of liquor in the air. He shook Nico roughly until he finally opened a drowsy eye.
“Wake up!” demanded Roman.
“Okay, okay, I’m up, what is wrong with you?” asked Nico as he tried to sit up and snap his mind awake.
“There’s another one of us here in town.”
“Another pair of devastatingly handsome brothers?” teased Nico.
“This is not a laughing matter, Nico. There’s a vampire in Oak Bluffs. And I don’t believe this one shares our predilection toward blood bags.”
Roman went on to tell him about his midnight stroll, and how he had felt the vampire’s presence through town and as he tracked it, it led right to Celeste’s house. “It can’t be a coincidence that it was in a tree not fifty feet away from her door.”
“Okay, but what would he want with her?” asked Nico, “Unless he knows what she is…”
Roman had thought of that too, but there shouldn’t have been any vampires who knew about the Wilders. Their family secret had been kept guarded by powerful magic for centuries in order to protect them. Suddenly, a terrible thought crossed Roman’s mind – Fabian. He was certainly powerful enough to have found out, but would he dare interfere?
Nico interrupted Roman’s thought with, “It could just all be a coincidence. Maybe the vampire saw her out somewhere and followed her home. She is a rather striking young woman, and you can’t deny the appeal she seems to have with our kind. I know I feel incredibly drawn to her.”
“I suppose it’s possible. I have seen it before with others like her, but I’ve never experienced it myself,” said Roman.
Nico looked over at him skeptically, saying “Oh no?”
“Regardless of what the reason is that this visitor has dropped into Oak Bluffs, I think it’s time to consult with our dear friend Stellan, and the sooner, the better.”
The following morning, Roman pulled out his shiny midnight black Porsche 911. He rolled the top down, and revving the engine, readied himself for a road trip with his brother. They hadn’t seen Stellan in over fifty years, not since after their parents had died and they had fled Oak Bluffs. Stellan, like Fabian, was a very powerful sorcerer; however, unlike Fabian he did not practice dark magic. He had been close to their mother before they were all turned, and although he generally did not associate with vampires or any of what he termed “evil creatures,” he had always made an exception for them. Over the years, they had often sought his guidance, and he had proven to be a trustworthy and faithful friend. In fact, it had been Stellan who had informed them of the Wilders’ presence in Oak Bluffs.
***
Celeste tossed and turned in her bed as nightmares filled her subconscious. She was walking home from school when an enormous bat swooped down from the darkening sky and attacked her. She screamed as it tore at her face and hands with its claws and tried to bite her with its sharp fangs. Just as she thought she was dead for sure, a burly gray wolf with three-inch incisors bared had pounced on top of them, and she was able to roll away from the snarling fury. As she turned to run away, she glanced up in the sky and caught a glimpse of a colony of enraged bats descending upon the wolf.
At a distance, she heard an ominous grumbling and the asphalt began to crack and crumble. From the opening the most frightening creatures began to emerge – slithering, snake-like animals, six-leg
ged demon hell dogs, horribly disfigured ghosts, and other demons of all hideous shapes and sizes. Celeste shut her eyes in terror. It seemed like the gates of hell had opened up and spit into her backyard all the vilest creatures of the underworld. In a panic, Celeste, previously frozen and unable to move, found her legs under her and took off running. As she turned to look back, she saw that the demons (the only word she seemed to have to describe them) were chasing her. To her surprise, she found that the more she ran, the faster she got and the less fatigue she felt. After what seemed like she had been running forever, she turned around to find that nothing was chasing her anymore. She was alone in the middle of an unfamiliar town where she collapsed on the spot.
Celeste awoke with a start, her heart pounding and drenched in sweat. She went to her bathroom to splash cold water on her face. As she stood looking in the mirror at her tear-stained reflection, she felt so weak in the knees she thought she might pass out. “It was only a dream,” she said to herself out loud, hoping that the sound of her own voice would steady her. She pulled herself together and shuffled down the stairs looking for her mother.
Although Celeste was practically eighteen, she felt she needed some soothing words from her mother to forget all about her terrible nightmare. She found her mom in her hospital scrubs bent down in front of the refrigerator pulling out a variety of leafy green veggies and piling them on the counter.
After taking one look at Celeste’s pale drawn face, she dropped everything and rushed over to her. “What’s wrong sweetie? Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m okay, I just had the most horrifying nightmare,” she explained as she nestled into her mom’s warm embrace.
“What did you dream? Maybe you’ll feel better if you talk about it. That always seemed to help when you were younger.” Mrs. Wilder sat her daughter down at the kitchen table and began preparing her a cup of soothing chamomile tea.
Celeste had completely forgotten about that, it had been so long ago. When her father had first passed away, she had been plagued with horrific dreams for weeks. She was so young, only ten years old back then, and she must have buried those memories along with everything else around that traumatic time. She explained the dream to her mother, and found that she was shaking. She felt like she was reliving the whole thing again.
“This wasn’t the first weird dream I’ve had about birds and bats. It seems to be a new trend. And I even saw a bat outside the other night, and there’s a falcon nesting in the oak tree outside my window. It’s all so strange.”
At the mention of the bat, her mom looked slightly disconcerted. “Everything is going to be okay, sweetie,” she said, hiding the preoccupied look in her eye.
***
Stellan’s house looked exactly as Nico and Roman remembered it. It was immense, sprawling over five acres of land in a remote wooded area and seemingly untouched by modern civilization. It was rustic, completely built of the wood from the towering oaks native to the surrounding forest and exuded a cozy feeling of home.
As the brothers got out of the car, Stellan appeared, greeting them wearing his signature tattered blue robe. Sorcerers, unlike vampires, did age, although at a much slower rate than humans, and if they were great ones they could spell themselves against aging all together. Stellan chose the former and though he was several hundreds of years old, he looked to be only in his late sixties with graying hair past his shoulders and a lengthy beard. His kind gray eyes brightened at the sight of the boys.
Roman looked at him fondly, and asked, “How are you doing old man?”
“Now Roman Constantin, I know you have better manners than that. Your parents taught you to respect your elders,” he scolded. Smiling, he said, “It has been far too long, my boy,” and he yanked Roman into an awkward embrace. Nico, just steps behind, happily joined in on the long overdue reunion.
“It’s been much too long since I last laid eyes on the two of you. I’d like to start with some pleasantries, but from your tone when we spoke last night I imagine this is a rather urgent matter we need to discuss,” said Stellan, ushering the brothers into the expansive great room. The fire crackled and hissed as Stellan threw another log in the fireplace. Though it was late spring, it was much cooler in the countryside and the fire was a necessity to keep the dampness from creeping into the stately home.
Stellan situated his horn-rimmed glasses on his long aquiline nose, settled down in his brown leather club chair and looked at Roman expectantly. Roman, pacing in front of the fireplace, began by recounting the story of the new vampire in town and his concerns for Celeste’s safety.
“What if this has something to do with Fabian?” asked Roman nervously. “Do you think it’s possible that he has found out about her?”
“There’s always a possibility, but the question is why would he even want to interfere with guardian affairs? Those are matters beyond his concern, unless of course, he stumbled upon her while tracking the two of you. But you two haven’t been associating with her, have you?”
Stellan looked questioningly at Roman then Nico. “Humph.” He didn’t need a response; it was obvious by the looks on their faces. “What did I warn you two about before you came back to Oak Bluffs?” said Stellan, his voice rising as he moved to the edge of his seat. “You must not get involved with her; it is too dangerous for all of you. The only reason I told you about her was to protect you both, and now it seems I’ve done quite the opposite. Not to mention that I have put her at risk as well.”
All three men sat in silence contemplating their next move. It was of the utmost importance for them to protect the secret of the Guardian. For centuries there has been a balance between good and evil—without guardians the world would plummet into chaos with all the creatures of the underworld running rampant. There have always been certain family lineages around the world which are burdened with the task of keeping the world safe for humans. These families have been protected over the ages by supernatural forces, and the knowledge of their existence has been limited to a select few who made up part of the Council. It just so happened that Stellan was one of the select few, and with that knowledge came the responsibility to protect the guardians and their secret. Roman and Nico’s mother, Lilliana, having come from a line of great witches had also been tasked with the same obligation, that is, before Fabian intervened in their lives.
“Is it true about us being somehow drawn to her?” interjected Nico.
“Yes and no. I have heard of some cases where supernatural creatures are irresistibly drawn to guardians, but I’ve only ever seen it happen with a few vampires and werewolves. Since those two species are the closest to their former human selves, I imagine that is why the attraction is the greatest. As you know, there must always be a balance between good and bad, light and dark, and it seems that their light attracts your darkness and unfortunately the opposite is true as well,” Stellan explained.
“Well, I definitely feel something,” said Nico.
“And you Roman?” asked Stellan.
“Perhaps…” he answered with a guarded expression.
“She must be a very strong candidate if you are both feeling something so soon.”
“She’s also not bad to look at,” added Nico.
Roman shot him a murderous glance.
“So what are we going to do?” asked Nico.
“We are going to protect her,” answered Roman with a menacing sparkle in his eye.
Celeste found herself not wanting to spend the day alone after her mom left for work, so she decided to give Natalie a call. She paused to think about how quickly she and Natalie had become so close again. It was like they were back in grade school and no time had passed at all. Spending the day with cheerful, bubbly Natalie would surely get her mind off of her disturbing dream.
“Yeah, come on over, I was actually just planning on heading to the mall to get black gloves and a matching clutch for my prom dress. We can go together!” said Natalie over the phone.
Celeste loved people
watching, and the crowded mall on a weekend was a perfect place for it. She casually observed the happy couple walking in front of her hand in hand, whispering and giggling, oblivious to anyone else around them. She longed for that intimate connection with someone someday. She turned back to Natalie who was gushing over the fact that Brian was taking her to prom. Celeste listened happily as she recounted all the details of their phone conversation. When the topic changed to her dress, Natalie suddenly looked at Celeste in dismay.
“You don’t have a dress yet?”
The rest of the afternoon focused on finding Celeste the perfect dress. “You want something that’s not too ‘costumey’ but still clearly 1920’s style,” opined Natalie.
After what seemed to Celeste like hours, she found a sophisticated black flapper dress, knee-length with a matching bejeweled headpiece complete with a fancy white feather. She made a mental note to ask her mother to let her borrow her long pearl necklace, which would perfectly complete the ensemble.
“Okay, so you have the picture-perfect outfit, now you just need the perfect date to go along with it,” said Natalie with a smile. “Decisions, decisions, oh which of the Constantin brothers will you take?” she teased.
“Ha-ha, Nat, and I was planning on going solo actually.”
“No! We are ladies and should always be escorted by a handsome gentleman – especially for a Roaring 20’s Casino,” Natalie said affecting her most sophisticated accent. “Just leave everything up to me. I’ll make sure you have the appropriate arm candy to immortalize the momentous occasion of our senior prom picture.”