The Blood In Between (The Safe Haven Trilogy Book 3)

by Randall G Ailes

  “But this is unkind. This is madness. It is as if you wish to dangle me before a hungry lot.”

  “I do. And with any luck there will be a reaction. I am doing you a favor, an immense one. Spare me your whining and ready yourself to do it.”

  “But, I will be exposed. They will see me. Word will spread of a harlot nakedly walking among the deckhands. I will be ruined.”

  “You are already ruined. Will you accept your lot in life and just offer yourself up after you have fought so hard for your freedom.” Don Lucido interrupted. “Fight to be the captain of your own ship. Understand the tools you have within you and utilize them artfully.”

  Lucido grabbed my blouse at the chest and drew me to him.

  “Let go. Let go of me.” I clawed at his hand. I hit it. I swatted it. And he held me firm, no matter my outrage until I tired and broke down to tears and still he held me, but now pushed me against the wall. After that, things got quiet. My hands dropped from his, to my side. I felt I dangled there, helpless. “Please, release me.”

  “They think you are a vampire or are becoming one. Fix me with a look right now that a vampire would if I were one of the crew, and you have nothing to fear from anyone on this ship. Do it! And, I will let you go.”

  I was mortified, and raging with anger, not just at don Lucido Del Rio, but at life and all that had happened to me since my village had been marauded. I slowly lifted my eyes to his and flashed such hatred. Getagin, who was near, groaned.

  “Now, lower your eyes and bring them back slowly. This time, drop the hatred, use that for strength, send me a look that sends me a warning and is drenched in power.”

  I did this and Lucido released me, stepping back.

  He spoke while still regarding me. “Getagin, see to it that she walks the deck in the manner I have instructed. If she does not, throw her overboard and the little one too. If you do not heed my word on this, Getagin, you will have to deal with me.”

  Then he strode back to our cabin room. I attempted to race after him, but Getagin held me back. “Don’t bother, he’s gone.”

  I was, of course beside myself with worry. I wanted to beat upon don Lucido, scream at him and rail on him that this was no kind of rescue, that he was exploiting me every bit as much as the river people had and still wanted to do. But, don Lucido was gone and he’d placed the welfare of Mia, Getagin and me squarely in my hands. I cried for most of the day and even once, considered dashing out of the cabin and flinging myself over the rail as an act of protest, and in defiance of what was now placed in front of me. But when I really looked at it, trouncing around nakedly before the hardened crew was not as bad as death. I had been placed on display several times by the river people, in my cage as a thing of beauty and to taunt the lust from those in the room whose minds should have been on their card games, and those times I hadn’t been naked…barely dressed maybe, but not naked.

  I found myself wondering where Lucido had gone when he had disappeared just before sunrise. Certainly, he hadn’t gone far. The rays of the sun were not far from making a show. He must have made shelter below deck. As I sat there in contemplation, Getagin spoke to me as if he had read my thoughts.

  “Don Lucido is far away, Veria.”

  “How do you know? Where could he have gone with such a late departure?”

  “Don Lucido , he is a cagey fellow. He is somewhere but I have no doubt he is far away.”

  “How can you be sure? The sun was just about breaking the horizon.”

  “Because, he wants to help you.”

  “But that makes no sense. If he cared, he would be close-by in case I needed help.”

  “No. You would learn nothing if he helped you. You would act differently, knowing he was near-by.”

  That response washed through me like a rogue wave rolling up to shore, destroying any sandcastles I had built. I sat there momentarily as if the wave had reached its pinnacle and now was retreating.

  “I have been thinking.” I said. “That I can show the look don Lucido urges from me, but I need something of weight that I can say.”

  “What have you come up with?”

  “I have nothing. Anything I have come up with has no bite.”

  “First, you need an attitude.”

  --------

  In the early evening my anxiousness had been building all day and the Sun’s flirtations with the nearing horizon only added more stress. We were in our cabin. Mia, who had been discontent most of the day, had just awoken from an unscheduled nap and was playing with a dolly that Getagin had made out of well-placed knots and rope. I had been rehearsing various possible deck-walking situations with Getagin. He wasn’t impressed.

  “Do you remember, not long after first meeting you, when our wagon was stopped by the Great Milan and his riders?” Getagin asked.

  I nodded.

  “I had to look for any opening I could, and if I found one I kindled it like a spark, hoping to turn it into a flame. I saw an opportunity where they had convinced themselves that they had control and I saw an area of vulnerability. While two men searched the wagon for you, Milan was parked before the horses, making sure I didn’t gather the team for an escape. I climbed down from the wagon and he couldn’t stop me without leaving his post before the horses. I used this freedom to step among those horses and eventually loosen one of the team, which proved to be our escape.”

  I nodded again.

  “You have to be watchful for opportunities like these and be ready to exploit them for your purposes.”

  “If you have one of those frightening horses around right now, I could use it.” I teased. I could see he was trying to shore me up for my task, which was rapidly approaching.

  “I have a suggestion although you won’t like it.”

  I raised my eyebrows, interested in any help.

  “Take off your clothes and keep them off until you take your walk. Your situation is already strange enough without the added burden of shyness.”

  I’m sure he saw the suspicious look on my face.

  “You can reveal yourself to total strangers but not around those you trust?”

  --------

  I was hoping for a blanket of clouds across the sky which would block out the brightness of the moon, allowing me in the dimmest light possible for my excursion. Alas, there were tears and holes in this blanket.

  I rocked Mia for a long time, hoping she would fuss, but she went right to sleep. So my time holding her was a delay tactic, except there was a strong feeling of goodbye. Finally though, I stood, bare-foot and bare-everything else and went to the door. Getagin met me there.

  “You are a bride of the vampire. That is what they think. Use it, but don’t mention don Lucido as a threat. That would be cheating. This is about your power.”

  I stepped through the doorway and padded forward without looking back. I felt that this journey should appear as a nonchalant walk and so I went to the rail and gazed out. The darkness might aid me in many ways, the small jitters and such, but I tried to present myself as one who was unconcerned and unembarrassed. Something else I felt, but had no way of knowing, my movements should not be like someone awkwardly moving toward a cover up, as if I was stepping out of a tub toward a towel. No, I knew what don Lucido was urging. He wanted slow and sensual, not fake or overacted, but confident and relaxed. This was a situation where I actually had some experience as a beautiful thing for the river people. After standing by the rail, looking outward for a few minutes, I trailed my fingertips along it as I went unhurriedly forward toward the prow.

  At first I saw no one except one crewman at the wheel, and as soon as I saw him I did not look there directly again. I had decided that where possible, I would not meet someone else’s face or their eyes. Through side glances, I noticed there were three gathered by the wheel. I had hoped not to see anyone at all, but if I did, I’d hoped it would be a one to one encounter. To my left were the rail and the sea beyond. To my right, I was pulling even with the trio, who had
been talking but now was silent. I slowly passed and eventually reached the prow without word and without incident. I stood there staring out, and feeling the silence thicken and the weight of their eyes pressing against my back. I attempted to present the image of a woman soul-searching…looking for answers in the vastness. I believe it was a very good try.

  Now was my return, the completion of my clockwise circle. They still huddled together but I was quite certain they murmured under their breaths. I knew lewd looks; the darkness hid theirs from me. My promenade was now bringing those at the wheel to a point where two or three quick strides would bring them directly to me.

  One of the group said. “Has mi lady forgotten her cloak this evening?”

  I would not continue my forward movement. That would appear too weak and could be read that I was frightened and scurrying away. I slowed to a stop and regarded the three crewmen. I so wanted to hide my nakedness with body contortions and placement of my hands, but that also would indicate weakness on so many levels. There was no roar of wind or water. His words word clear as mine would be when I said them. I remember hearing the ship’s ropes complaining as they slid or clung, working to the ship’s demands.

  “Do you think I need one?” I returned.

  They glanced at each other and the man, who turned out to be the one manning the wheel said, “No, lass. ‘twould be a shame I think.”

  “I walk the deck when I want, as I want. You can live with this or die.”

  The three of them stood there, silently measuring my words. Once taken in, they checked with one another for support. My response was strong, sassy and flirtatious. It paid them no respect and I read in their movements and exchanges, they had meant to have some fun with me, but were now uneasy because of what I had said. I needed to follow up quickly, with something stronger

  “This ship is a fine vessel and its crew is skillful and true. I have no quarrel with its speed or its ride. So please do not spoil my regard by accosting me as I get some air. In return, I shall not hurt you. But watch the flutter of your tongues as you speak of my walks, and keep yourself a proper distance, or I will reach down your throat and tear that tongue free…and eat it before you as you drown in your own blood.”

  I maintained my eyes to theirs, and cast a look upon them that conveyed my seriousness. While an awkward silence ruled, I returned to my stroll in the night and said nothing more. It was my hope that I had left them less certain of themselves when confronted by me. At the far end of my journey I dallied outside the door though I really wanted to jump inside and collapse into a puddle. I watched over the rail several minutes before slipping inside the cabin and being greeted by silent applause and a hug from Getagin.

  29

  Though I could offer a tale from each of my naked wanderings following the first, they would likely be as long as the one I have shared. Each venture had its particular flavor, and although they became less worrisome, each also held its challenge. Let it be said that through the stop in Constantinople, and the next in Athens, my confidence grew and the crew’s adjustment to my outings became more accepted, if not anticipated. They actually seemed to rally around me protectively as they got to know me. It was as if I was part of the ship or a ship’s mascot, almost a point of pride for everyone, and yet I was the woman or the daughter of each man individually as well. By the time I was to leave I was surprisingly comfortable to stand nakedly among them.

  I found Constantinople exciting and Athens even more so. Cities of their size and population were unimaginable to me. I kept waiting for don Lucido to rejoin me but Getagin said this was doubtful. Don Lucido had his own agendas and though he kept track of me, he was concerned about living his own life and following its courses. He had set up a safe place for me to begin again at life and that I could repay him by living a full life. The last time I had seen him he had been walking frustratingly away from me. I had thought my next encounter with him was only days away. I was hurt by this. There were things left unsaid, triumphs to be shared, and “thank yous” to be given. I felt like a spoiled child being sent to bed early with no supper, and confined to the house, barred from seeing my friends. I have explained about the sights over the railings and the challenges of being unclothed and walking among ruffians. I haven’t conveyed the loneliness of being in my situation. I had few friends of the same age or even just friends who were more like me and less likely to examine my soul, or sleep during the day only to dine on others at night.

  Don Lucido Del Rio was a vampire, a being of great power and intrigue…a killer and a predator. And yet, I walked in his world and among his people. There is an almost irresistibly seductive attraction to vampires, even if they are death-bringers. It’s part of their make-up. And yet, I had no father, no mother, and no family…don Lucido was a champion for my causes. He kept an eye on me from afar. I mattered to someone…I mattered to him. He helped me escape terrible entanglements and used his influence to clear the way or help me along. I didn’t know him enough to love him as a soulmate, but certainly enough to desire this. And now my journey with him was ending without so much as goodbye.

  Getagin tried to console me. “His world is different than ours. He doesn’t need carts and wagons for travel. Distances aren’t much of a challenge. Time doesn’t work in the same way. You don’t find him, he finds you. Few have his friendship and even fewer, his trust. Most that cross his path shake in their boots. You have done so twice and he has helped you out both times and watched out for you from afar. I’d say you have done alright.”

  “But you have done much the same with him.” I said. “And you see him regularly.”

  “I see him when he wants me. I am under his employ. Mine is not an easy job.”

  “Perhaps he will hire me.”

  Getagin smiled. “Here is what I will tell you, little one, and then we are finished speaking of this.” He paused to gather his words. “You are important to him…enough anyway that he does what he can to make your road easier. He spends time and resources on you. To me, that means he intends something for you. I don’t want to put it like he wants to use you, but if I were you I’d follow what leads he has given you.

  “Leads? I am not aware of any leads that he has given to me.”

  “Veria, care for Mia, if that is what calls you. Live your life. Learn, always learn. He’s a big one on learning. He told you to go out into the world and live, love, and have lots of babies-- if that is what you desire. Mostly though, I think he wants you to do what you desire and …enjoy it. Now as a symbol of belief in you, he has arranged a place for you to live. I believe he mentioned this?”

  I reluctantly nodded.

  “Then we must leave now and make the connections he has arranged, and then I’m afraid my duties take me elsewhere.”

  I had very little to pack as I’d boarded the ship straight from fleeing my home with what little I could carry. I tried to talk Getagin out of his plan to hire a cart and driver to transport us to our destination but he would not be turned from this. I had looked forward to a bit of walking and Mia was boundless in her energy. I couldn’t imagine that after the confinements of a ship, she would be very welcoming to the restrictions of riding in a cart, but I was wrong. She seemed to enjoy the streets and alleyways taking a keen interest in other boys and girls that she noticed as we made our way. I ended up being very glad we had traveled by cart, because we surely would have been a tired bunch, after it seemed to take half a day to arrive at a place far from people yet in the middle of the city.

  It was called, The Square, and I could see why. At one time a large building, a church, I’m told, or a church yard, stood in its spot. The lines of the walls and foundation marked easily where the structures had been. Some areas the walls dropped to nothing and could be crossed over, simply by a normal stride, still other parts of what once was, stood tall, at least three stories. There were spires of old brick and mortar that seemed to reach to the sky, and dilapidation and fallen piles, where the stretch to the sky had
faltered and collapsed. Vines of grapes and ivy, along with over-hanging trees hid much of the rubble’s stark corners and contrasts. There seemed a natural stage to pull up next to and unload our cart. There were four or five long broad steps to a wide landing, which might have been a grand entrance to the interior of what was once a mighty building. There were tables for vendors and tradesmen, kids were playing near their parents and people shopped various stands of produce.

  There didn’t appear to be anyone there to greet us as we unloaded. What I was carrying was basically Mia and a few other items, yet Getagin had several bags with him. I had noticed this before, when we were first getting into the cart but hadn’t thought of it since.

  “Most of this is yours. Some of this is for you to give to others, and some of it is for me to give to others.” He said.

  The commerce was brisk and crowded, enough so that we were not really noticed by passersby. I followed Getagin as we mounted the stairs and walked into what was known as the square. There were spires of broken building and columns resembling ribs of some deceased giant, but work was being done to tile the square and it looked near completion. We crossed the tiles already placed and continued until we came to an entry way that was squared and certainly built into the remains of the building. I suspected there were rooms and halls underground, unseen where some people dwelt. There were remnant sections of the once proud cathedral, still big enough to house a few apartments, though these places varied in size and were dispersed throughout various surviving structures.

  “What happened here?” I asked Getagin regarding the wreckage around us.

  “I’m not certain, but my guess is either that this collapsed during an earthquake or fell victim of some warfare, perhaps long ago, slowly falling apart. There is still safe lodging here but notice the gathering of buyers and sellers is over by the steps, and there are certain areas of rubble no one goes near.”