Between Darkness & Light

by Theresa Van Spankeren

  The rest of the ka-tet and I remained civil with each other, despite the resurfaced concern and tension. Matthew and I had fed both nights. Samuel had gone with us last night, but I spent much of my time alone, working on meditation and regaining my strength.

  Glancing toward the villa, I noticed the hum of voices from the building had stopped. I waited a few moments in case they started up again. When they didn’t, I cautiously walked back inside. Our sitting area was crowded when I entered and I studied each face in succession, looking for clues as to how to proceed. Most of my group, including Stephen, had small smiles on their lips, even if their eyes and minds were guarded. Kali was an exception, a slight scowl on her still bruised face.

  Our visitors were another matter. The three vampires I didn’t know, two men and a woman, stared at me with barely masked suspicion and hostility. My gaze slid to the German twins and was surprised to see expressions more closely mirroring those of my ka-tet. David looked concerned, but nodded in greeting. Christina smiled and said, “Hello, Julia. It’s been a while.”

  “Yes. It’s good to see you both,” I replied, standing by the door.

  Jeffrey looked at me, then at the other vampires. “Julia, this is Diego, Sandro, and Chiara.”

  I nodded, recognizing Sandro’s name. He was the leader of Florence’s group. He curled his lip at my name, but remained silent. The woman with him, Chiara, placed her hand over his, her olive skin making his paler hand stand out.

  The last man stared at me with calculating dark eyes. “I am Diego. I have taken Jarod’s place in Samuel’s Council.”

  Everyone’s eyes were on me, waiting for my reaction. I bit my lip as shame and remorse flooded over me. Jarod had been my benefactor in England and a friend to many – before I had killed him. I had known I was going to have to deal with this, especially with the rest of the Resistance, but I still dreaded it. After all, why should any of them trust me when I had turned on my own?

  “I – I am sorry,” I stammered. My breathing quickened as panic set in. What could I say? These people had trusted me and I had let them all down. How could I explain? The faces started to look a little fuzzy. The back of my neck started to tingle.

  “Deep breath, Julia,” a familiar musical voice said. I couldn’t feel her touch, but the soothing energy coursed into me. The woman in white.

  Mindful of the people watching me, I glanced behind me to see her standing with a translucent hand on my right shoulder. It was two days after my desperate calls, but I was relieved she was here. A shuddering breath escaped me as I followed her advice.

  She spoke again, calmly, but a hint of sadness colored her voice. “Say the truth. Be honest with yourself as well as them. You made a terrible mistake that cost lives. No one is perfect. However, you need to own your mistakes and you must understand that some people will never accept your apology.”

  I cleared my throat and said, “I know nothing I say or do can change what happened. I did an appalling thing.” I continued my explanation, leaving out who Gregory was to me. There were some things too personal for the rest of the Resistance to know about.

  Sandro shook his head. “I think she’s pazza,” he said.

  Chiara leaned over and whispered, “Mayhap that’s why she and Lane get along so well.”

  Diego frowned at the two Italians and looked back at me. “I appreciate your honesty, Julia.” His gaze moved to Samuel. “She is still linked to your ka-tet. Yet, I know from our earlier conversation that there is disagreement on whether her ability is real or not.”

  Matthew was the only one not to exchange glances with anyone. He stared at me, a look of curiosity on his face. Had he noticed that I looked behind me, even though he could see no one there?

  “Julia is ka-tet. We know her regret is sincere. We protect her as one of our own despite the uncertainty surrounding her other abilities,” Samuel replied.

  Hearing his words, I sagged against the wall in relief as Diego nodded. “I will convey that to the others when I depart here.”

  David looked at his sister. The firelight caught subtle reddish tones in his chestnut hair as he leaned forward. “I do not wish to reignite the debate. My concern is if she can be relied upon whichever the outcome may be.”

  Matthew turned his gaze from me to the twins. “Whether she is mad or a medium, Julia has better support and training now than she did five years ago. That fault lay with us and I won’t make the mistake again.”

  “Matthew, that wasn’t your error. You had been captured,” Mary Anne objected.

  He shook his head, but before he could argue, Christina said, “I think many share blame for what occurred, justified or not. However, it seems most would agree Julia is not a direct threat at the moment.” She smiled apologetically at me before continuing. “That leaves us with the topic of Lane Marlow.”

  “Word has gotten out that you have forged some kind of an alliance with him to fight Valentino’s followers here in Rome,” Diego stated.

  “Alliance?” Samuel repeated in surprise. “That might be overstating a bit.”

  “You didn’t kill Tyrell and others of Rome’s group with his help?” Sandro questioned.

  “We did, but there’s no formal agreement between us and Lane.”

  Our visitors looked perplexed. “Forgive my confusion, Samuel, but even reports from Valentino’s supporters talked about multiple times when members of your group and Lane fought together. That sounds like a formal pact to me,” Chiara said.

  My ka-tet looked at me. “Well, if anyone from our group has formed something close to an alliance with Lane, it’s Julia,” Samuel replied.

  I felt the eyes shifting back to me, even as I winced. I didn’t want their attention on me any longer than necessary. “Just a few chance encounters,” I muttered.

  “I think they stopped being ‘chance’ after the third one,” Mary Anne answered.

  “Especially when he offers to kill a Hunter for you,” Matthew added with a grin.

  I flushed and put a hand over my face. “Enough! It’s barely worth mentioning!”

  “I thought he works with Hunters?” Chiara questioned.

  “That has never been proven,” Diego replied. “That’s no minor thing, Julia, considering I’ve never heard of Lane offering help to another vampire before.”

  “Does he know that you aided Valentino five years ago?” Sandro asked. Silence descended upon the room at his question.

  “No. I didn’t feel the need to speak of that,” I replied.

  Sandro smiled as malevolence lit up his face. “I wonder if he would still be as inclined to help if he knew.”

  Fear threaded through my gut at his question, but I said, “Why bring up a mistake that lasted three days? Amita treated me as an enemy, so there’s no reason Lane needs to know.”

  “So you’ll hide it from him?” Chiara questioned.

  “No, but I won’t volunteer the information either.”

  Kali snorted. “Are you two that short on enemies that you wish to make one of Lane as well?” She looked toward the rest of my ka-tet. “Seriously, Samuel, you let these two fools be in charge of Florence’s group? It’s a wonder Amita hasn’t taken over more than Rome.”

  “Why, you impertinent ill-bred whelp!” Sandro snarled.

  Kali smiled as Matthew said, “Insulting her is a bad idea. You don’t want to know what happened to the Hunters who injured the girl.”

  Samuel stood up. “And that’s enough for one night.” He looked at Sandro and said, “I have no idea what Lane does or doesn’t know. As it stands, I don’t want him as an enemy, therefore I won’t say anything unless the question is asked. His help has been invaluable.”

  “Are you sure dealing with him is such a wise idea, Samuel?” David asked.

  He shrugged. “Wise? Probably not. Reasonable under the circumstances? Yes.”

  David shook his head. “I’m afraid to know what you’ve gotten us into now.”

  Samuel looked at Mary Anne.
“Will you show our guests where they can sleep?”

  She nodded and most of the group headed upstairs. As soon as the visitors were out of sight, I fled to my room. Grateful to be away from curious eyes, I collapsed across my bed. Dealing with the newcomers was exhausting. I lifted my head to thank my ghostly visitor, but the girl in white was gone. When had she disappeared?

  “She’s efficient. Come and gone already,” I muttered. A soft knock pulled me out of my musings. “Who is it?”

  “Matthew. Can I come in for a few minutes?”

  “Yes,” I said, stifling a yawn. I glanced up as I heard the other people moving on the floor above me. I might not get a chance to sleep until they quieted down anyway.

  Matthew entered and closed the door behind him. He looked at me, concern flaring in his dark brown eyes. “Are you all right, Julia?”

  “Being interrogated and laughed at is always fun,” I said.

  “Not everyone was laughing at you.”

  “I wouldn’t trust hunting with them either.” I sighed and noticed he held his journal in his left hand. For some reason it reminded me of his outing to the Medici residence. “I thought you would have travelled to Villa Medici by now. Wasn’t there some sort of event happening there?”

  Matthew nodded. “Sandro said the family’s arrival has been delayed by a week or two. It seems they want to ensure they arrive during the day.”

  I sat up and frowned slightly. “Are they suspecting vampires?”

  He shook his head. “No, but the increase of violence in the evenings and overnight hours around Rome hasn’t escaped human notice.” He fidgeted a moment, then asked, “Who was behind you earlier this evening?”

  Feeling defensive, I mumbled, “No one.”

  “Julia, it’s just us talking now. You can tell me.”

  Laughter and talking drifted down from above. I pointed at the ceiling and shook my head.

  “They’re not paying attention,” he said, but lowered his voice. “When Diego asked his question, you looked terrified, but you glanced over your shoulder and calmed down.”

  I hesitated before whispering, “The woman in white. Days after I tried to call someone, she appeared. It doesn’t make sense. I

  wonder if . . . ”

  Matthew smiled. “Maybe it does. I found something last night,” he said and handed me the worn journal, a page marked with a piece of cloth. I carefully opened it and read: People only I could see would appear at random. Thinking I could summon them, I called and called, but they did not answer. My father thought me a lunatic, but at last one soul, then another appeared. It happened days, even weeks or months after my initial call. When I asked Master about it, he told me that I was unpracticed, and I lacked the control to reach a spirit at a given time. He also taught me that success doesn’t just come from my own stamina, but the power of the spirit I am trying to reach.

  I turned the frail pages, but couldn’t read the passages on either side. The language was unknown to me. The passage in question was near the end of the journal and the ink was considerably less faded than the earlier pages. I read it several more times, before looking up. “This could have been written by me.” I squinted down at the page. “First scribed in 1305? Added 1505?”

  “It is a recent addition to this document, made long after I became a vampire. You may have realized it is the lone English account and it is beyond our last known case. The first date is as stated. The second date refers to when it was penned into this collection.”

  I ran my fingers lightly over the fragile page, as my mind swirled with questions. “This person was also thought mad. Who was this person? Do I not have good enough control? How do spirits gain power?”

  “Honestly, I think your control will come with time and practice. I’m still figuring out what gives spirits the energy to show themselves. As for your other question . . .” Matthew leaned over and pointed to tiny line of script at the bottom of the page. “There.”

  I looked to where he pointed on the page. Henry Kendrick, aged 16 yrs., 4 mo. I gasped, the book falling from my fingers. Kendrick was my maiden name. I tried to remember if my parents had ever spoken of my ancestors, but I drew a blank.

  “. . . Gifts tend to be passed through bloodlines. I do not know how common the name Kendrick is, but it’s quite the coincidence.”

  I shook my head, coming out of my daze. Launching myself off the bed, I hugged him. “Thank you,” I whispered. He had promised to find me answers, and he had. Matthew embraced me tightly, before pulling away. “You should show this to Mary Anne or Samuel.”

  He nodded. “I will when the opportunity presents itself. They have their hands full at the moment with our visitors,” he said. “Five more roommates; a few more annoying than others.”

  I smiled. “What now? How should I practice this? What method is suggested?”

  Matthew reached past me and retrieved his book. “I wanted to show you this earlier but Diego’s arrival put it off. I hope it puts your mind at ease.” He put his other hand on my shoulder. “Julia, I think you should focus your attention on learning your other abilities, especially the one you used against the Hunters. That can be used for defense or a weapon which can be very useful considering the number of enemies after us.”

  “Seeing the future and the new ability are just as unpredictable as seeing the dead.” I frowned, my excitement and relief draining away. “That telepathic power drained me psychically.”

  “Even more of a reason to learn how to use it. That power can save your life, if you can stay functional after using it.” He smiled at me reassuringly. “I’ll help you.”

  I tamped down my apprehension and smiled back. “Thank you, Matthew. Good night.”

  Chapter 17

  “Again.”

  I grimaced as I once again drew upon a small amount of the pulsing energy inside my mind and held it, focusing my eyes on the candle in front of me. The energy felt wild and untamed, even as I struggled to control it. I counted out an extra ten seconds before allowing it to dissipate.

  “Good. Tease out a little more this time.”

  My gaze darted to the right to see Matthew’s encouraging nod. “It was hard just to hold onto that much,” I said.

  “Do not hold it as long this time. Use the ka-tet’s power to keep the strain off you while doing it. I want you to release it this time.”

  “Release it on what?” I questioned, as I worked to do as instructed.

  “Use it on me,” he replied.

  I broke my concentration and turned to him. We were standing in my room, doing our best to ignore the loud chatter in the sitting room and the arguing going on in Samuel’s room beyond that. “Tell me you’re jesting. I incapacitated two humans with that power for several minutes.”

  “And you used every bit of that power to do it. I want you to use a little more than what you controlled a few minutes ago. Those Hunters had no telepathic ability at all. Using it against someone skilled in it might be harder. You should learn that now and not in the middle of a battle,” Matthew retorted.

  Sandro snarled a string of curses all the way from Samuel’s room, which increased the volume of the voices in the other room to be heard over it. I frowned at the door. “It’s almost bloody impossible to think with all that noise, let alone concentrate!”

  Matthew smirked. “Exactly! If you can learn to control it now with all the noise and distractions, you can do it in a fight.”

  I scowled and turned back to the candle, trying to regain my focus. A few minutes later, I drew upon a slightly larger amount of the power from earlier as well as strength from the ka-tet to keep myself from becoming spent. Incidentally, using the ka-tet made a closer connection with Matthew and I whipped the power at his mind as I had done to the Hunters about a week ago.

  It felt like I had struck a tree and I rocked backward from the perceived force. Placing a hand against the wall to balance myself, I sighed. Matthew had blocked it.

  “Santo cielo!” he ga
sped. He leaned against the opposite wall, a hand pressed to his forehead.

  “Are you all right?” I asked in alarm. Obviously, he had not blocked all of the power after all.

  “Si, just a little pain,” he hissed and looked up at me. “That was good, Julia.”

  I frowned at him. “No. I hurt you.”

  “No different than sparring,” he said. “How do you feel?”

  “A little tired, but not drained.”

  He looked up and said, “Think you could do it again without sapping all your energy?”

  “Matthew, I do not think you should attempt to block another one.”

  “Not me. Kali’s approaching the door. I want you to try against her.”

  “She’s only a child. No,” I said.

  He sighed. “She’s a natural telepath. If anyone can defend against your power, it will be her. Try it.”

  I scowled. “If she gets hurt due to me . . .”

  “I’ll take responsibility,” Matthew promised.

  Quickly, I pulled up the amount of energy I did the first time. I didn’t want to weaken myself or harm Kali, but I also trusted Matthew knew what he was doing. As the door started to open, I flung the power at her mind.

  The force was immediately reflected back at me, the equivalent of a castle pulling up its drawbridge. I staggered and nearly knocked the candle off the table. Damn, it hurt! As the last dots faded from my vision, I saw Kali standing in the doorway with her arms folded across her chest, her brow furrowed.

  “What in damnation was that about?” she demanded.

  “It’s my fault. Julia just followed my directions,” Matthew said, explaining the drills we had been conducting. “That was exceptional. You have to teach me those tricks,” he added.

  Kali gave him a scathing look before turning to me. “A little warning would have been appreciated.”

  “If she had warned you, we wouldn’t have known what a natural telepath could do in such a situation,” Matthew argued.