by Dara Nelson
“Ummm, ewww,” I said.
“Not for me,” he smiled, “because it was then that I began to have hope again that it had actually worked. I got in the tub with you and used the shower to rinse everything away. I bathed you. You were unconscious but then you suddenly screamed, dug your fingers into my arms and pleaded with me. You begged me to make it stop. ‘Please make it stop’ you screamed. It was torture for me to hear because I knew I couldn’t make it stop. I had done this to you. I had put you in the worse pain you’ve ever felt and there was nothing I could do to stop it,” his voice was a whisper. I held him, waiting for him to continue when he was ready. “You continued screaming off and on for a while, begging and pleading with me to make it stop,” he continued. “Finally, you let out a horrible cry of anguish so loud that it cracked the window in the bathroom and then you collapsed in my arms. You were completely silent and still. I finished cleaning you off, dried you, put on a fresh nightgown and carried you to bed.” He shook his head as if trying to erase a memory. “I could only sit back and wait then. Wait for you to wake up. Wait to be sure it had actually worked and that you were still you.”
I sat back and let this sink in for a few minutes, then reached up and took him in my arms. “I’m sorry you had to go through that,” I whispered.
He pushed me back, surprise on his face, “What the hell Sarah! Sorry I had to go through that? You’re the one who went through it, not me, I could only watch. Your concern for others still staggers my mind. This proves that you’re still you,” he shook his head in amazement.
“Okay,” I replied. “I’m sorry I had to go through that, and I’m sorry you had to see it. Better?” I asked.
“Better,” he said and took me into his arms.
Suddenly Matt sat up. He was stiff and tense.
“What’s wrong?” I whispered.
“It’s Carlos,” Matt said through gritted teeth. I looked around the room, confused
“Where is he?” I asked.
“He’s not here. I told him to leave earlier, just to be safe. He’s in my head now,” he said
My eyebrows shot up (well, this is new, I thought), then Matthew’s face fell, “The Enforcers… they’re coming?” he said, but not to me. I grabbed my nightgown and threw it on. “Oh, no. Please, no,” he whispered as he stared at the door. Suddenly it flew open and in floated six figures, dressed in black robes, black hoods (thankfully) hiding their faces. Two of them glided over to us. I saw their eyes then, eyes that frightened me to the depths of my soul. Clinging hard to Matthew’s hand, I opened my mouth to scream. As two of them reached out and touched our temples, they silenced my scream and plunged us both into blackness.
Chapter Eight
My eyes flew open and quickly took in my surroundings. I was on a bed, in a stone room. There was a big wooden door (locked I assumed) with a small set of bars near the top and a hatch near the bottom (which I assumed was for food, or in my case, blood), and I was alone… utterly alone. A sudden ear-piercing scream cut through the silence. I shot out of the bed, instantly in a panic, frantic that it was, but hoping and praying that it wasn’t my Matthew. Another scream and I began to calm down a bit. I knew that scream, I had made that scream a few days ago. That was the scream of someone going through the change, it couldn’t possibly be Matthew. I sat back on the bed, a little calmer now, but I had to know Matt was here too. I had to know he was okay. I began to trace the scar on my palm. I hesitatedbetween each trace while waiting to feel him tracing his. I was just beginning to feel the panic growing in me again when I felt him. The tingle flowed through my scar and then throughout my body. I smiled, relieved that he was okay. I could bear this as long as he was okay. I could get through anything as long as he was okay. We both continued this, our comforting of each other, until I was startled by someone unlocking my door. I shot up off the bed and stood straight and still, waiting, as the door slowly opened.
He, or specifically it, because I couldn’t tell whether it was male or female, was in a long blood-red robe with the hood pulled up to conceal its face. A pale, bony finger pointed at me and motioned for me to follow. We walked, or I walked and it glided, down a long hall passing many doors just like mine. I struggled to slow down. If I wasn’t so scared, I would’ve laughed at how ridiculous I must’ve looked. As we approached one of the last doors, it suddenly opened and another figure in a red robe floated out, bowed his head to the other and floated next to him… and out of the door walked Matthew. His eyes met mine andI was just getting ready to throw my arms around his neck and hug him, but a slight shake of his head told me not to. He fell in to step next to me and quietly took my hand. Okay, I thought, as I took a deep breath and squeezed his hand, now I really can do this. We continued to the end of the hall where they unlocked and opened a door and we walked into a room. It was huge, rectangular in shape, and straight out of medieval times . We had entered at the back corner of the room, and I turned to my right and saw five hooded figures seated at a huge table at the far end of the room, watching us and waiting. We were ushered forward to two chairs near the front of the room. They were in the center and facing the table. We slowly sat down, well as slowly as I could. I was a new vampire and slow seemed to be nearly impossible for me right now. All five vampires pulled back their hoods then, and I saw their faces for the first time. They each had long flowing, beautiful, shining hair - a redhead, a blonde, one with grey hair and two with dark brown or black hair. Their skin was pale, almost transparent, and it glowed. But it was their eyes that struck me the most. Intense, shining, black eyes that had such depth to them. I had to avert my gaze because I truly felt that if I stared at them for too long I would be pulled in to them. There were two females (the blonde and the redhead) and three males. The one in the middle spoke then. It had an ancient voice, much like the voice of Sekhmet in Egypt, only deeper and stronger. “Remain silent until you are asked to speak,” he said sternly and a chill went down my spine. This wasn’t a good start. How am I supposed to reason with them if I can’t speak? How can I beg? How can I plead?
“As you are aware,” he said, looking directly at Matthew, “you have violated our oldest rule - to never reveal yourself to a human. A violation that can have a penalty of imprisonment or death.” Matthew nodded slightly at this and my eyes darted from him to the Elders. It took every ounce of control I had to not scream “NO.” My hand squeezed his so hard that I actually saw him wince out of the corner of my eye. I loosened my grip a little… and waited.
“You were also able to turn a human. This wasn’t a rule because no vampire has ever done this besides us, so this is not a violation. It deeply disturbs us, but we’re also intrigued. You will both be enlightening us in great detail about how you were able to do this.”
I started to relax slightly at this, thinking all they wanted us to do was tell them details, but flinched when Matthew squeezed my hand hard this time… enlightening them must mean something more than just telling them. I grew tense again… and waited for more.
The one speaking turned and looked directly at me and I sat up straight, “Youwill now show us why he is with you, why the link changed.” My mind raced. I was completely confused. I started to open my mouth to say ‘Show you? How am I supposed to show you?’ but stopped short when Matthew jumped up and said, “NO! Please NO! Please let me show you.”
The Elder who had been looking at me whipped his head around to Matt and said, “SILENCE!” Suddenly Matt grabbed his head, let out a shattering scream and fell to his knees. I immediately started to go to him but heard the voice say, “You will sit,” and something invisible forced me back into my chair. I could only watch helplessly as Matt curled up into a ball and whimpered on the floor in front of me. Somehow he managed to meet my eyes with his (Oh the pain in them- it hurt me, it terrified me) and mouth, “I’m so sorry,” before covering his face with his hands again. “Now,” the voice said to me, “you will show us.”
My head was instantly filled with a blindi
ng white light. I squeezed my eyes shut but the light was still there. And then the pain hit.
For someone who had just gone through the change, I thought there was nothing worse than that pain. I was dead wrong. I tried to stifle the scream that was begging to come out. I gripped the arms of the chair until they shattered into sawdust then moved my hands to the sides of the chair, where they didn’t last long either. I clenched my teeth as I felt this pain moving through me, slithering like a snake, like it was searching. Probing my mind until it must have found what it was looking for there because then I felt it move down to my heart. Moving around it like it was searching for a way in. Circling. I hopelessly tried to brace myself for what I knew was coming. It was at the moment that it found its way in, the moment that it penetrated my heart, that my scream was finally released.
When I woke, I had no idea what time it was, or what day it was. I was back in my cell. I sensed that I was being watched, but I really didn’t care right now because I was on the bed and I was in complete agony. Even my eyes hurt when I tried to look around. I heard a someone approaching the door, heard the slot slide open, heard a tray being pushed through, could smell the stench of the evil, could feel the blood calling to me, but I just wanted to give up. I didn’t want to move, I just wanted to keep the pain away. As if sensing what I was going through, I felt my scar begin to tingle. I knew Matthew was trying to help me up, trying to help me feed, helping to bring my strength back, helping me remember my reason for being. For a full minute I just lay there trying to draw some comfort from my tingling scar. I imagined that it was him lightly caressing me. I started to feel my heart beat a little harder (ouch, that hurt). I gritted my teeth and brought my hand up to look at it (there is no pain like this pain). I whimpered as I brought my other hand up and groaned as I tried to touch my scar. This continued for quite a while, this was all I could manage right now, even thinking about moving any more than this hurt too much. I tried to cling to the happy memories of the last month… seeing him for the first time, our first kiss, the first time he told me he loved me, our first time together in the hotel, our first time together after I’d been changed. I could feel each memory helping a little. My love for him was forcing its way to the surface as it slowly pushed the pain down.
“Okay, okay,” I said, “I’ll try.” I knew he could hear me. I had to try to do this for him. I slowly rolled over onto one side… it felt like I had rolled in a bed full of sharp needles and broken glass. I gasped and cried out. I really, really wanted to stop there. “Please, no more,” I whispered and I lay there for a moment, feeling the pain back on the surface.
He waited for a few seconds, then I felt my scar tingle again and I heard him whisper, “Please, Sarah, please.” Hearing his voice, it was easier to bring the love back up and push the pain down.
“Don’t stop talking to me,” I said. I listened to his gentle words of love and encouragement as I gritted my teeth, pressed down on the bed and forced myself to sit, trying unsuccessfully to not cry out.
I stayed there for a minute, still as a statue, feeling my scar tingle, listening to his words, until he said, “I’m so sorry Sarah.”
My eyes flew open, and I hissed, “STOP!” and he was silent. “Don’t you ever tell me that you’re sorry. You have nothing to be sorry for. You didn’t do anything, this was done to me and to us. Now, please, just tell me how much you love me so I can keep going.”
He did just that as I tried to stand up, but I heard him gasp when I fell to the floor. “I’m okay,” I said, “My legs just hurt too much to hold me up right now, but I think I can crawl, so keep going, okay?” He continued his soothing words. And I moved an inch closer to my goal with each word he said, until finally, I was there, sitting and gasping at the effort it had taken. I picked up the pint and inhaled deeply… then screamed at the pain as my fangs released, drank and then passed out on the floor.
I heard footsteps approaching and I opened my eyes. Looking through the crack under the door, I groaned, knowing they were coming for me. I would either have to move or get hit by the door. As the key turned in the lock, I pushed myself out of the way bracing for the pain I knew would come, and was a little surprised that it wasn’t quite as bad as before. An ancient finger told me that I was to follow him and my mind screamed ‘You have got to be kidding me’, but I pulled myself up and found that I could stand, barely, if I leaned into the wall. I used the wall to move forward, much too slowly according to the guard who kept impatiently looking back at me. Halfway down the hall, I looked up and saw him standing there, waiting for me, his eyes trying not to show the pain he felt for me. The instant I saw his face I felt the pain and love flip-flop and I started walking a little better, a little faster, anxious to reach him, to touch him. I remembered from the last time that I wouldn’t be able to hug him, as I so desperately wanted to, so I reached my hand out to him. But he surprised me by saying to the guards, “May I pleasebe allowed to help her the rest of the way?” They looked at each other, then nodded slightly to Matthew, and I felt the love completely overtake the pain as he swept me up in his arms and kissed my forehead. I knew I would get through this now.
He carried me to the front of the room, where they had kindly replaced the hard wooden chairs with a softer, padded sofa, and Matthew sat down with me still wrapped in his arms. He cradled me on his lap and I rested my head on his shoulder. I turned my head to look at the Elders, and as I made eye contact with the red-headed female I could swear I saw sympathy flicker in her eyes for a second. I began to feel a tiny glimmer of hope in my heart. As a guard emerged from a side door carrying a tray with four pints of blood, the one in the middle said, “Feed first.” I whispered to Matthew, “I don’t want to, it’s going to hurt, and besides, I just fed.”
Pain filled his entire face as he softly said, “No, Sarah honey, the last time you fed was ten days ago.”
My eyes grew wide and I gasped, “Ten days? I’ve been out for ten days?”
“Yes sweetie, I’m so s-” he started to say, but didn’t finish because my finger flew to his lips and his eyes met mine and I softly shook my head. “Please honey,” he whispered as he handed me the first pint. My eyes begged him “NO” but I softly nodded my head, inhaled and quietly whimpered as my fangs released and I drank.
He gently took the empty bag from me and started to hand me another, but I pushed it away and said, “You first,” and tried to smile. He opened his mouth to protest, but then his eyes softened;he nodded his head, drank and placed the empty back on the tray. I didn’t protest much when he had me finish the last two. I knew I needed it more than he did at the moment. But then I stiffened as the guard left the room. I didn’t want to know what they were planning now, but I truly felt death would be better than repeating what I had already gone through. I pressed myself closer into Matt’s chest and waited.
The Elder in the middle spoke first, “After seeing what you have shown us, and, in the days that followed, witnessing the intense connection you two have, we find ourselves in unknown territory. Never before have we faced something like this. To just dismiss what you have and eliminate you, might not be in our best interest. We feel that it would be better to study you and to learn. Therefore we have decided to allow you to live, but with the following conditions: We have attempted a few times throughout history to choose mates for vampires, to lessen the loneliness that permeates our existence. We are frustrated to say we have had very little success in this. After learning from you, we are wondering if perhaps our failure is because we don’t have love in our own lives. Perhaps because we don’t feel it ourselves, then we can’t find it for others. So our conditions for your survival are as follows: First, that you will never create another vampire and never reveal your knowledge of the change process to others. And second, that you will now search the world for suitable mates for any lonely vampires who seek them. But you must know that if a vampire is created as a mate for another and that match doesn’t work, it will be your responsibility
to destroy the newly created vampire. They can only exist if the match is right. If you accept these conditions, we will allow you to survive. We have decided that we will call you Recruiters. Do you accept these conditions?” he said.
Matthew and I didn’t hesitate a heart beat as we looked in each other’s eyes and said together, “We accept.”