“I think there’s not.” Vanora enjoyed the sensation of the warm water shifting beneath her feet as she slowly kicked to stay afloat. The pool had been built long before the new regulations restricting pool depth, so it was eight feet deep at one end and four at the other. She felt a bit like a mermaid with the water lightly splashing her face and neck.
“Well, in my book there are varying degrees. You work your way around the bases. You know what I mean? Oh, wait. You wouldn’t know!”
“I’m waiting for someone special.” Vanora shrugged.
Rhonda made a face and rolled her eyes. “You’re not waiting until marriage are you?”
“Well, what if I did? There’s nothing wrong with that. But, no, actually, I’m waiting until I’m in love with someone.” Vanora tried very hard not to think of a certain vampire with amber eyes.
Rhonda rolled her eyes. “Romantic crap.”
“Yeah, romantic crap.”
“Sex doesn’t have to do with romance or love. Lust is very, very fun.”
“In your eyes maybe.”
“Why are you being such a prude? You know my brother still thinks you’re hot.”
“Your brother is a dick,” Vanora reminded her.
“True. True.”
“And I’m not a prude. I’m just…careful. I mean…c’mon, how many boys have shown real interest in me?” Vanora actually hated most of the boys at school. After she found out there was a bet going around that her nipples were as white as the rest of her, she’d decided to never let any of the idiots close enough for them to find out.
“Well, they’re all stupid. I went to freakin’ Europe to get laid rather than let those losers touch me.” Rhonda swam to one of the inflatable chairs they’d tossed into the pool earlier and clung to the armrest. “I can see why you’re all dramatic and romantic though. I mean, this house. C’mon. How could you not see yourself as some sort of romantic heroine? You actually have gargoyles on the house. Gargoyles!”
Vanora splashed Rhonda again. “Shut up!”
Rhonda splashed her back with vigor.
“Girls, I’m fixin’ a nice dinner for ya both. Don’t ya think you should be comin’ in now? The sun is setting.”
“Oh, not yet! It’s so nice!” Rhonda gave Miss Robbins her most adorable look.
Miss Robbins fussed with her apron and implored Vanora silently with her eyes. Vanora knew Miss Robbins hated to be around the vampires, but that she wouldn’t want to leave without making sure the girls were fed and taken care of.
“I’m really not hungry, but you can just put the food in the oven and we can eat it later. Alisha is going to show Rhonda some of her artwork when she gets up.” Vanora swam to the side and smiled up at Miss Robbins. “We’re okay. I promise.”
The automatic lights flickered on around the pool. That seemed to unnerve Miss Robbins even more. “Well, okay. But…ya don’t stay in there until you’re a raisin, ya hear?”
“I hear.” Vanora pushed off from the side and glided through the water to the inflatable chair. She hoped Miss Robbins hadn’t heard any of their discussion about sex. She tended to gossip and Roman was freaked out enough as it was. Vanora thought it was silly how he seemed to suddenly realize she was not a little girl.
Rhonda waited until Miss Robbins was in the house, then swam around the chair to bob in the water next to Vanora. “Seriously though, you should maybe get a makeover or something and totally hit up a dating site. I hate that you’re so horribly single.”
“Makeover?”
“Yeah. Like you used to talk about getting. Dying your eyebrows, eyelashes and hair. The blue contacts? That way a guy will just think you’re a bit on the pasty side, but not an actual albino. Not that there’s anything wrong with being an albino, but you know.”
Vanora knew that Rhonda was trying to be helpful, but each word drove another nail into her heart. It had taken her a very long time to embrace the fact she was never going to look like everyone else and that she wasn’t a freak of nature. The night of her birthday, Armando had actually gazed at her like she truly was beautiful. That had made her feel a bit more secure in her appearance and identity. Now that her looks were being brought into question again, it hurt.
“I’m sorry, Vanora, I shouldn’t have said anything,” Rhonda said after too much time had passed without a response.
“I get what you’re saying. I used to think the same way, but if a guy doesn’t want me for who I am, what’s the point? Why should I change myself?” Vanora sounded far more defensive than she liked, but her mind kept wandering to the moment when Armando had told her she was a moon goddess. He had told her she was lovely and she had believed he meant it.
The delicate skin around Rhonda’s eyes was turning slightly blue from their long time in the water and the chlorine rimmed her eyelids with red. Yet it was the pity in her friend’s eyes that made Vanora want to flee the pool.
“I hate that you’re alone,” Rhonda said at last. “You’ve never even been kissed.”
“Actually,” Vanora said, slightly preening. “I have been.”
“When? How? Who?” Rhonda seized her hand.
“My birthday. Someone you don’t know. And…it just sort of happened.”
“Why didn’t you tell me before?” Her friend looked both excited and miffed.
“Well, it’s awkward,” Vanora answered.
“Awkward? Of course it was awkward. It’s always awkward!” Rhonda hesitated, then said cautiously, “Was it with a girl?”
Vanora giggled. “No, no. It was with-”
“Good evening,” Armando’s voice said.
Swishing about in the water, Vanora gazed up at the vampire in surprise. Standing with his hands tucked into his jean pockets, he lifted an eyebrow at her. A quick look at the skyline revealed the sun was just vanishing below the horizon. Her eyes slightly narrowed while she wondered just where he had been sleeping that he had arrived so quickly after sunset.
Rhonda launched herself to the side of the pool, the water cresting around her in a large wave that splashed into Vanora, making her sputter. “Hello! I’m Rhonda!” She extended her hand to Armando, her smile openly flirtatious.
Amused, Armando squatted to extend his hand. “I’m Armando.”
“Arrrrrrrrrrrrmmmmmmmmandooooooooo,” Rhonda purred. She cast a curious look at Vanora before peering up at the handsome man. “I’ve heard about you!”
Vanora deliberately dove into the darker depths of the pool and swam for the far end, away from the vampire and her friend. She could hear their voices muffled by the water, but didn’t want to know what they were saying. The awkwardness of the moment was almost too much to bear. Finally surfacing and dragging in a deep breath, she pulled herself out of the water. Her body felt heavy and clunky after so much time in the pool, luxuriating in the sensation of weightlessness. Dragging a towel around her and shoving her feet into her flip-flops, she trudged over to a deck chair and sank onto it.
“Well, I am a patron of sorts of her sister’s artwork,” Armando was saying.
Vanora dragged her bathing cap off her head and shook out her hair.
“I’ve seen her work online, but tonight she’s actually going to show me her gallery. I don’t get to visit often,” Rhonda said pointedly, “so I’m really, really excited.”
“You know how artists are,” Armando said, shrugging. “They need their space.”
It was difficult not to admire the way Armando’s curls hung perfectly around his high brow and the muscles shifting beneath his maroon silk T-shirt. Vanora vigorously dried her arms and legs, trying to block out the conversation at hand. It was all small talk, but she felt as though both Armando and Rhonda were watching her furtively.
“Well, she’s kind of secretive.”
That one sentence uttered from Rhonda’s lips pulled Vanora’s attention back to the conversation.
“Yes, she is. I hear there is a boy at school that likes her, but she’s being very elusive,” Arman
do answered.
“Oh?” Rhonda widened her eyes.
Vanora glared at her.
“Him! Oh…we…don’t talk about him.” Rhonda waved her hands at Armando, indicating he should lift her out. He took them and dragged her from the pool. Shivering slightly, Rhonda giggled. “You know how it is. When a boy likes a girl and plays it all coy.”
Armando lifted an eyebrow. A very slight inclination of his head in Vanora’s direction made her squirm nervously. “Is that what he’s doing?”
“Well, there was this kiss…”
Vanora thought about shoving Rhonda into the pool and drowning her.
“A kiss?” Both of Armando’s eyebrows climbed upward.
“Oh, yeah. A kiss,” Rhonda said, conspiratorially. “Didn’t she tell you?”
“I can’t say that she has.” Armando finally turned his golden eyes directly on Vanora. “So a kiss.”
“It meant nothing,” Vanora said significantly.
“But she really likes this boy,” Rhonda continued, skipping over to the deck chair where her things were heaped. “I mean…a lot.”
“Really?” Armando followed in Rhonda’s dripping wake.
“Completely. She’s been crushing on him for years. Absolute years.”
“She’s totally lying,” Vanora said quickly.
Rhonda threw her an annoyed look. “I am not. That boy you’ve crushed on all those years obviously likes you back since there was a kiss.”
“A kiss,” Armando said, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. “How old is this boy?”
“Oh, my God! Shut up, both of you!” Vanora slid to her feet and smacked Armando with her towel. “It’s you, dumbass! You! No one else! No mystery boyfriend at school! It’s you!”
Armando grinned, clearly pleased.
Rhonda howled with laughter, falling back onto the deck chair, long legs curled up as she rocked back and forth.
“Oh, fuck both of you!” Vanora stomped past them, her flip-flops squelching wetly along the cement.
Darting around her, Armando opened the door to the house. He smelled delicious. Vanora glared at him instead of taking another sniff.
“Shut up, Armando.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Haven’t you said enough already?”
“I’m just pleased you’re not wasting your time with ridiculous boys at school. They’re not worthy of you,” Armando said, suddenly quite serious.
“And who is?” Vanora stared into his eyes defiantly.
Dark lashes hooding his eyes, Armando glanced toward Rhonda, who was busy drying her hair and trying to catch up.
“Who is?” Poking him in the chest with one finger, Vanora waited for an answer.
“Not me,” Armando said at last.
“You’re damn right,” Vanora said, her heart hurting, but not allowing herself to fall apart. “Come on, Rhonda. Armando has somewhere to be.”
Rhonda brushed past Armando, giggling.
Vanora shut the door in his face.
“So, what’s she like?” Roman asked, trying not to sound irritated even though he was. Sitting on the brocade sofa in the library, his fingers plucked at a frayed thread on the armrest.
Armando shrugged. “Any teenage girl.”
“That’s not very specific.” Roman frowned. He knew he was being overly protective of Vanora, but he couldn’t help himself. His sister was determined to move to Austin and at some point live with her best friend, Rhonda. Roman hadn’t seen Rhonda since she was ten. He remembered her as a precocious child that was a bit boy crazy. The constraints on his life chaffed at him at times like these.
Studying the tomes on a bookshelf, Armando answered, “She’s a pretty girl, a bit flirty, outgoing, and is loyal to Vanora. Protective even.”
“You figured this out after ten minutes?”
Turning, Armando smirked. “I’m a quick study. Besides, I’ve lived long enough to have a certain understanding about women.”
“They’re girls. Young girls.”
“They’re women. Young women. In another age, they would both be married and with children.”
Roman’s frown deepened. “Well, in this age, they’re still young. Vanora has a lot of living to do before she settles down, gets married, has a family, a career…”
Drawing a book off the shelf, Armando flipped it open to look at the copyright page. “A first edition. Very nice.” After a long pause, he said, “Who is to say Vanora wants all those things. Isn’t she going to inherit money at some point? What if she decides to live a life of leisure? Travel the world?”
With a shrug, Roman slid to his feet to prowl around the room. He felt like a caged animal since he was unable to leave the library. Vanora and Alisha had promised to keep Rhonda out of this area of the house. Glancing at his watch, he wondered how long it would be before Rhonda departed.
“Roman, I realize that you want a certain life for Vanora, but she may choose another road to travel.” Armando returned the book to the shelf and selected another.
“I wanted her to stay here, you know,” Roman admitted. “Attend college in Houston and live at home. It was Alisha who insisted we should encourage her to leave. That living here with us may not what’s best for her anymore. There is so much for her to do and experience away from us. Yet…”
“You want to protect her.”
“Yes.” Roman glanced out the window toward the mausoleum. “I also want her to have the life Alisha and I cannot. To live in the light, not the darkness. To find love.”
“You can find love, Roman.” Armando faced Roman. “Vampires do love. Some vampires stay together for centuries, only parted by death. Does being what you are diminish how you feel for your sisters?”
Shaking his head, Roman sighed. “If anything, I feel like I love them more. Like they are my children, not just my sisters. It wounds me to see them hurt in any way. I want to crush anyone who causes them pain.” It was difficult to admit even to himself that on more than one occasion he had considered putting an end to Sin. Roman did not like to admit to the darker aspects of his nature. He prided himself on being in control of his destiny, yet he was trapped in the library by a seventeen-year-old human girl.
“That’s the vampire curse. We cling to the things we love most, but we also can destroy them if we’re not cautious.” Armando slumped into a chair. “Maybe you should keep Vanora in Houston. Maybe not in the house, but nearby. Your love for her is an anchor to your mortal coil.”
“What is your anchor?”
The surprise on Armando’s face was unexpected. “My anchor?”
“Yes, yours.” Roman drew the curtains, blocking out the mausoleum.
Running his fingers lightly through his hair, Armando exhaled slowly. “My career mostly.”
“Really?” Roman wasn’t too sure if his cursory interaction in his family’s business dealings was enough to keep him tethered to the mortal world. There were nights when he drove through Houston just to see that it still existed, but it could be unnerving when his predatory instincts took over. It was too easy to spot prey hurrying through the night. Even a grocery store could bring out his vampire instincts if he saw someone parked far from the entrance.
“You. Alisha. Vanora.” Armando slightly shrugged. “Your law.”
Though Roman was flattered, the answer didn’t satisfy him. “You’ve killed,” Roman said in a low voice. “You know what it’s like to kill and not feel remorse.”
“Yes,” Armando said simply.
“And your friendships and career are enough to keep you from that?” Roman sat across from Armando to better scrutinize his friend’s face. It was a question he had wanted to ask for some time, but had been reluctant to utter. The words shone too much light on Roman’s own darkest fears.
“Let me be frank with you. At times it’s not easy. We are predators. Our instinct to hunt never goes away. And once you kill…there is a taste for it. Not just the blood, but all that comes with it. It’s into
xicating. It’s empowering. It’s easy to lose all sense of self to the predator that is within us. Yet, the man who I was when I died remains.” Armando pressed a hand to his chest. “I am still Armando. I am still the man I was when I was mortal. There have been moments when I have lost myself in the more terrible times of my existence, but…” Armando trailed off, his amber eyes growing distant.
“But?” Roman prompted.
“I find my way back. Something or someone comes along that reminds me of who I once was and still am, apart from the hunger. Writing about Spain and the history of the colonies reminds me of my heritage. Being your friend, seeing your struggles, your determination inspires me. Alisha’s artwork reminds me of my own days in the sun.” Armando hesitated. “Seeing Vanora grow into a young woman helps me remember the beauty of humanity.”
Rubbing his face, Roman considered his friend’s words while trying to sort out his own thoughts. “My sisters keep me strong even when the hunger comes. I think of them and I don’t want to fail them. I admit to a certain amount of trepidation about losing Vanora. When she wasn’t here…Alisha and I both struggled.”
Armando tapped his fingers on the armrest. “Then maybe she should stay here.”
Adamantly wagging his head, Roman said, “No, no. She must have the chance to live her own life. Apart from us. This darkness. Sometimes I wonder if it was a mistake keeping her here. When she returned from her vacation with her cousins she was so happy.” The mere thought of Vanora being gone and living in the huge house alone with Alisha depressed Roman. “But, perhaps, Vanora leaving will allow me and Alisha to move on. Find a new purpose for ourselves.”
“You have time,” Armando reminded him with a wry smile.
“I miss Norma. She was my girlfriend when I died,” Roman said, surprising himself with his candor. He usually didn’t share this much, but he felt strangely emotional at the thought of all the upcoming changes. “She’s married now with three kids. I felt lost one night and looked her up on that site Alisha’s been on a lot. Facebook? I think it’s new. I don’t know. Alisha had her laptop open, so I looked up Norma. She looked happy.”
“So that’s why you’re so maudlin?”
In Darkness We Must Abide: The Complete First Season: Episodes 1-5 Page 23