The Night's Baby

by Stina

  “Yes.”

  “What is it?”

  “Now that we are here with the Ancients, there is something that I need to tell you. It’s something about our pasts. Something that I hope does not change the way you feel about me.”

  “Just tell me. There’s nothing that you can tell me that could ever change the way I feel about you.”

  “Don’t make promises that you cannot keep, my love.”

  “Kesh, you’re scaring me. Say whatever it is so we can move past it.”

  The look in his eyes right then was one she’d never seen. It was deeper than sorrow and not close enough to fear. It was unreadable.

  “Kesh . . .”

  “It might have been written in the stars for our paths to cross.”

  “What? What do you mean?”

  “Adie. I’m talking about Adie.”

  “Well, what about Adie? The fact that she turned you?”

  “No, I’m talking about before she turned me.”

  “Okay, Kesh. This isn’t making any kind of sense to me.”

  “Before she turned me, she was very special to me. I cared about her deeply, and when she died, it consumed me.”

  “You were . . .” Adirah’s forehead crinkled up as she suddenly realized what he was trying to tell her. “Kesh, were you in love with Adie?”

  “Yes, I was in love with her before she died. And many years after.”

  It felt like all the breath in Adirah’s chest had left her for dead. She sat on Kesh’s lap, frozen in shock replaying his words in her mind. Surely, he hadn’t said what she thought he did. He was in love with Adie? Her great ancestor? She suddenly had no urge to touch him any longer, let alone be in his presence. Kesh tried to grab her arm so that she would not move, but she snatched away from him. She couldn’t believe what he had just told her. She stood up and turned her back to him, trying to find her words.

  “Do I remind you of her?” Her voice was a raspy whisper. “Is that why you fell in love with me?”

  “No, Adirah.”

  “How long have you known?”

  “Not too long.”

  “How long have you known!” She tried to, but she was not able to mask the shake in her voice. The tears had snuck up on her and were making a warm path down her face.

  “Not too long after your accident last year. It was after I fell in love with you. I always wondered why I was so drawn to you, but then the pieces began fitting together.”

  “On what? That I reminded you of the woman you’re actually in love with?”

  “No, my queen. That this is fate! Don’t you see?”

  Adirah scooped Adis into her arms and shot piercing glares back toward Kesh. Her heart ached something vicious, and it was not a feeling that words could fix. Fate? How could she find comfort in fate when she was his choice number two?

  “See what, your lies? The other vampires thought you loved me for my humanity. But they were wrong, isn’t that right? You love me because it is Adie’s blood that runs through my veins!”

  “That’s not true, Adirah. Please don’t think like that.”

  At that point, Kesh had gotten to his feet too, but he didn’t dare go near her. Although the only thing he wanted to do was hold her in his arms and reassure her, he knew that would not be a very smart move. Still, the look of hurt on her face made him feel a despair in his stomach that he was trying to avoid. That was the reason he danced around telling her for so long, but being so close to Dena he knew that he’d better tell her or someone else would.

  “I thought I was special to you.”

  “You are, Dira,” Kesh said with a plea in his voice. “I love you with every part of me. Don’t you understand? I love you, Adirah.”

  “But I’m not the love of your life, am I?”

  To that, Kesh was quiet. He could not lie to her; he refused to, even if the payment for his truth was to watch the tears pour seamlessly from her eyes. He hated seeing her that way and tried to take a step toward her, but she backed away from him.

  “Stay away from me! Just stay the hell away from me!”

  Her shouts hurt his heart more than his ears. She ran from the room, and he let her go. He deserved her anger and did not want to ignite it any more than it had been already. He sighed deeply and hung his head in defeat.

  “I knew you hadn’t told her.”

  The voice caught Kesh off guard, but he knew who it was. “I never thought I would have to.”

  Dena stared at Kesh with a glassy expression before her eyes softened. “You look miserable. Take a walk on the grounds with me.”

  When Kesh hesitated, she waved her hand slightly in the air and used her power to nudge his back, forcing him to take a step forward. “Come on. I don’t intend to bite you.”

  There was no telling where Adirah had gone to in the large castle, and he figured she wouldn’t be showing her face for a while. Also, Dena had the power to make Kesh float to wherever she wanted him to go, so why not go willingly?

  As he walked alongside her, he learned many secret passages in the castle to get to the lowest level of the castle. When they were finally outside, the pair walked in silence for a few minutes. They passed many other curious vampires outside enjoying time together. As they passed, many of them broke out into a fit of whispers. If they caught Kesh’s eyes, they would instantly look away.

  “I guess they aren’t too pleased with my presence here.”

  “Who, them?” Dena asked. “No. Every vampire in the world is welcome here.”

  “Then why does it seem like they fear to look me in the eye?”

  “Your name precedes you, my dear Kesh. Do you not know who you are?”

  “Yes, I am king of the Sefu.”

  Dena chuckled and shook her head. She raised her eyebrow at him as he walked beside her. The concentrated look on his face let her know that his mind was elsewhere, but she needed him there and to understand who he was fully.

  “No. You are Kesh. King of all vampires.”

  “All vampires?”

  “Yes.” Dena nodded. “Aside from us Ancients, you are the strongest vampire alive. You have only slightly tapped into the power that Adie passed to you.”

  “What kind of power?”

  “You, Kesh, have every power of an Ancient in you. The only difference is that the normal things that can kill a vampire can still kill you too. It would just take a little longer.”

  She winked at him, and he stopped walking. He was trying to take in all that she had said.

  King of all vampires?

  “Wait!” Kesh jogged to catch up to her, and she stopped. “If what you are saying is true, why haven’t I tapped into the powers yet?”

  “Because, just like us, you need to be trained.”

  “When will my training start?” His voice was too eager, and Dena noticed it.

  “Once you come back with both clans in tow, and once my niece forgives you.”

  “One of those, I can definitely do.”

  “And the other?”

  Kesh’s shoulders slumped slightly. “I don’t know how to bring her back.”

  “You don’t believe that she still loves you?”

  “The way she looked at me—”

  “She still loves you,” Dena interrupted in a matter-of-fact tone.

  “How do you know?”

  “Because if she didn’t she would have sent you flying across the room, but she didn’t.”

  Kesh didn’t know why, but he found himself laughing. He and Dena smiled at each other before continuing their walk.

  “But will she ever forgive me?”

  “Give her some time,” Dena said. “Given we survive what’s to come, she’ll come around. Adie was special to all of us. She was our heart. Unlike the rest of us, she always had a soft spot for the humans. She never wanted to harm them, and she would prefer to drink from an animal if she could help it. When she abandoned us to fight a war for them, I was so angry at her. I—”

  “Yo
u what?”

  “I said some things that I wish I could take back. So I apologized, right before she left the castle for the last time, in hopes that she would stay. But she still declined. She said she couldn’t stay here with us.”

  “Why?”

  “Because after all the boy toys she’d had in life, she messed around and fell in love.” Dena touched his chin ever so softly. “With you. A mortal boy back then. She gave her life for you, Kesh. At the time I didn’t understand, but now I do. After spending time with Adirah and baby Adis, I would die for them. More than once. The difference between the two loves is that Adie is gone. Cherish her memory, but release the hold that you have on it. Because Adirah is here. Whether Adie knew what she was doing back then or not, she let you go a long time ago. It’s time you do the same.”

  “I don’t know how to let her go. I’ve tried, but—”

  “Too many unanswered questions?”

  “Yes. I feel as if this weight on my heart is not fair to Adirah. But I do not know how to free myself from it.”

  “What do you think will help you move on?”

  “I don’t know.” Kesh’s shoulders sank for a moment. He thought of Adie’s beautiful face and her graceful nature. He wondered if she’d always been the person he knew. “What was she like? Before she came to North Carolina?”

  “Adie was a handful, I’ll tell you that.” Dena chuckled.

  “How old were you when Dracula turned you?”

  “I was twenty-five, and Adie was twenty-three. Dracula chose when it was time to turn us into his soldiers, but he gave us a choice. He’d grown fond of us over the years, especially Adie.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “See for yourself.”

  Dena placed two fingers on Kesh’s forehead and sent him back in time.

  The two girls’ giggles filled the grassy clearing as they ran side by side together. There was something about feeling the earth between their toes and looking up at the night sky that always made them happy. They were playing a game, one of the many nameless games they played, to see who could collect the most beautiful flowers. The trick was that it was dark, so sometimes they thought they were plucking a beautiful flower, but in actuality, it would be a weed.

  “Adie, look!” ten-year-old Dena said to her eight-year-old sister. “Fireflies!”

  Adie already had spotted them. They both forgot about their flower hunt and dropped the ones in their arms to the ground. They danced around in a circle, and it was like the fireflies were dancing with them. Their long dresses twirled in the light wind of the night, and they sang a song that they made up long before.

  “Sisters forever, sisters together. You and me! A bond never broken, Dena and Adie!”

  Dena grabbed Adie by the hand, and the two of them ran around and around as fast as they could before collapsing in the soft grass. Adie scooted close to her sister and rested her head on her arm, and their eyes fell on the stars.

  “What do you think is up there?”

  “Heaven,” Dena answered with a smile. “It’s so beautiful, the only answer can be heaven. That’s why I’m not scared to die.”

  “That’s because you’re crazy, sister. “

  “Maybe.” Dena kissed Adie on the forehead. “Your crazy sister Dena.”

  “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Adie said and then sighed suddenly. “I’m afraid to die.”

  “Why, sister?

  “Because even though the stars are beautiful, there are so many beautiful things down here too. What if there aren’t any flowers in heaven?”

  “I’m sure there are more beautiful flowers there than there are down here,” Dena assured her. “And I’m sure there are also as many sweet cakes as you can eat!”

  “Mmm.” Adie smiled at the thought of a warm apple pastry melting on her tongue. “I would like that a lot!”

  “I know you would.”

  The two lay there for as long as they could stand the itchy grass, which was a long time. When finally Dena felt that their mother would be worried about them, she sat up and pulled Adie to her feet as well.

  “Mother is going to have a fit if she sees all this grass and dirt in our hair. Here.” Dena knelt down so that Adie could see the top of her pinned-up bun. “Help me and I will help you.”

  “Fair.”

  Adie picked off every small stick and piece of grass that had latched on to Dena’s curls. When they were all gone she bent her head down so that Dena could do the same for her. Dena was right: if their mother knew that they were rolling around in the dirt again, she would have both of their hides for dinner.

  Dena grabbed Adie’s hand once she was all finished and prepared to head back to their small cottage when she heard the sound of a branch snapping in the distance. She whipped her head to where the sound came from, fearful that a wild animal had heard them playing. Her eyes skimmed the edge of the forest that she and Adie were not allowed to enter when, finally, her eyes set on something.

  What she’d heard was not a wild animal. With the moon as her only light, she was not able to make out a face, but she was positive that there was a tall man standing beside a group of tall bushes.

  “Do you see him, Dena?” Adie whispered and gripped her sister’s arm tight.

  “Yes,” Dena whispered back. Her heart had either slowed or stopped completely, and she was frozen in place. She wanted to take Adie and run to their cottage, but she was too frightened to do even that. If she screamed, she was certain that her father would be able to hear her, yet her mouth refused to move. It was almost as if she were in a trance of some kind; and, when she blinked, the man was gone. Still, something told her that they were not alone.

  That’s when she felt it: his breath on the back of her neck. She jumped and spun around. Sure enough, there he was, up close and standing with his hands behind his back.

  He was probably the most handsome man Dena had ever seen, with his perfect jaw structure and high cheekbones. His skin was the color of smooth cocoa and, up close, Dena could tell that his eyes were a different color than any she had ever seen before. They were amber and looked as if they were looking right into her soul.

  “How did you get over here so quickly?” she asked, not understanding what had just happened. “That’s impossible.”

  “I thought I would be a gentleman and come grab these for you since you dropped them.”

  From behind his back, he presented the flowers that the girls had dropped, only before he handed them to the girls he waved his hand over them once. The girls watched in disbelief as the flowers transformed from lilies and daisies to roses right before their eyes. They were the prettiest roses they’d ever seen. They were as red as the blood in their veins, and the stems were greener than the healthiest grass. Adie must have forgotten that the man was a complete stranger, because she pulled away from her sister and stepped forward to grab the flowers from the man’s hand.

  “Adie!” Dena tried to grab her sister, but it was too late.

  “Don’t worry,” he said. “If I wanted to hurt you, then you would already be in pain.”

  He split the dozen roses in his hands and gave six to Adie and held out the other six to Dena. Reluctantly, she took the roses and instinctively put them to her nose. She inhaled them and gasped at their scent. “They smell like peaches!”

  “Mine smell like my favorite apple pastry!” Adie said in awe as she inhaled the smell of her flowers. “But, mister, how did you do that?”

  “Magic!” he said and waved his hands in the air again for theatrics.

  “Who are you anyways?” Dena asked.

  “My name is not important to you yet. But, in due time, you will know who I am.”

  “Why are you talking so weird?”

  “Adie!”

  “What? I don’t even know what ‘in due time’ means!”

  The man chuckled at the girls’ exchange before running a smooth hand down Adie’s cheek. He smiled down at her, and she found herself smi
ling back up at him.

  “Adie, dear Adie. I knew I always liked you.”

  Adie opened her mouth to say something but a voice that both she and Dena recognized interrupted her. “Dena! Adie! Supper is ready!”

  “Mother!” both girls whispered in unison.

  If she caught them talking to a strange man in the night, she would be madder than if she found grass and sticks in their hair. Dena looked from the man, who gave her a slow smile before waving his fingers, to her mother slowly approaching with a lantern candle. She turned back to the man to tell him that they had to go, and she sucked her teeth with wide eyes.

  “He’s gone,” Adie told her. “He moved really fast, Dena. Faster than anything I’ve ever seen! I can’t wait to tell Mother and Father.”

  “No!” Dena told her as her mother got into hearing range. “You must not say a word about the man to them. They will worry.”

  “Where have you two been hiding? I’ve been looking for you for five minutes!”

  Their mother, Ivory, put her hand on her hip and examined the girls top to bottom as if she was looking for something but didn’t know what it was. The girls were stuck for a moment, not knowing what to say.

  Dena finally cleared her throat and gave her mother the most believable smile that she could muster. “We just were running after fireflies,” Dena said, telling half of the truth.

  “What’s this you have there? Are you hiding something?”

  “No!” Dena spat out before she realized her mother was asking about the flowers she’d subconsciously placed behind her back. “Oh, these? Adie and I picked them earlier.”

  “Is that true, Adie?”

  “Yes. Tell her, Adie.” Dena’s eyes prompted Adie to say something, and she saw the thick line appear on her little sister’s forehead. It always came when Adie was about to do something that she did not want to do. Dena felt horrible for asking her to lie to their mother, but there was no other way. The last thing Dena wanted was to go to sleep with a raw bottom. Still, if Adie didn’t say something quick, their mother would know Dena was lying.

  “Yes, Mother,” Adie finally said. “We found a rosebush with only twelve roses. We picked them because they would look so beautiful on the dining room table. Don’t you think?”