by RWK Clark
∞
Now Isabella was four years old, and even though she was half human, she showed the sharpness and intelligence of her vampire heritage with great power. Both Patrick and Rose were very, very proud parents indeed. The girl showed great promise, and they knew that the Powers were pleased, both with her existence and the contributions that they both made to it.
She was also strikingly beautiful, even for such a young child. She had long, silky blond hair and eyes the color of rich, sparkling sapphire. Her eyelashes were so long and lush that they threatened to tangle together when she blinked. She was a very attractive young girl indeed, and her catering parents loved to contemplate how breathtaking she would be when she was fully mature.
One of their favorite things to do with Isabella was to take her to the large park only a mile from their home. They would let her play for hours on the toys there, and the girl adored going. It was on one of these trips that the family made the acquaintance of the Master’s queen, Rasia DeSai.
The entire family was familiar with Rasia’s existence and rule, but not all had come to meet her personally. As the matriarch of the Family Rasia had a lot of responsibilities, not to mention a son of her own. No one had ever seen him, either, but they all celebrated his existence. He would one day master them all and rule the world.
The world they lived in was a beautiful place. There was no crime anymore, because there was no law. They all shared everything, give and take. It was perfect on Earth, and the memory of the world as it was before was like a poor impression of a bad dream in the minds of everyone. The Family accepted the changes that had taken place, embracing all aspects of ‘turning’ with open arms and hearts. It was the selfishness of human nature which permitted them all to do so heartily.
∞
Patrick and Rose stood on either side of Isabella as they walked into the park area, holding her hands and swinging the child back and forth. She laughed with giddiness, tickled each time her feet left the ground. It was a beautiful day, and they would all enjoy their time here together.
As soon as Isabella saw the playground equipment she began to twist her tiny hands in an effort to escape her parents. “Mommy, daddy, let go! I want to play!”
“Go!” Patrick shouted with love. The couple laughed and released their daughter, who ran with all of her might to get to the toys. Patrick looked at his wife and smiled; things could not be more perfect. He would not trade his life for anything.
They took a seat on a bench that was situated facing the playground. Rose snuggled against her husband, who draped his arm over her shoulders. They watched Isabella, smiles of love glued to their faces. She was completely intent on all of her climbing and sliding; it was as if she were all alone, without her parents, thriving in the atmosphere at the playground.
They were only at the park for about ten minutes when a young boy with longer raven-colored hair ran past them toward the playground equipment, startling both of them. They turned to see if he had supervision following him. A woman was rapidly approaching, though she seemed to take no notice of their presence on the bench.
“Lucien, slow down please,” she shouted after the tot.
But the youngster paid no attention. Instead he made a beeline for Isabella.
∞
“Hello,” he stated simply, looking up at her as she dangled by her knees from one of the gymnastic bars on the playground.
She looked at him, her long blond hair nearly touching the ground. “Hi,” she replied. “Wanna play with me?”
The boy Lucien wrapped his arm around one of the supporting poles on the playground equipment and kicked aimlessly at a rock on the ground; for some reason he suddenly felt very shy. “My name is Lucien. What’s yours?”
“Isabella. Didn’t you hear me? I asked you if you wanna play.” The boy nodded, and with that Isabella did a flip and landed perfectly on her little feet on the ground, exhibiting all the grace of a seasoned feline.
Lucien’s eyes grew wide. “Cool! How did you learn that?”
“I don’t know,” Isabella replied. “I never did it before.” The two smiled at each other and ran off to climb the steps leading to the slide.
∞
“Well, they seemed to hit it off,” said Rasia as she neared the bench. Patrick and Rose nodded and smiled in agreement.
After a moment Rose spoke. “I am Rose Gilliam, and this is my husband Patrick. Our daughter there is Isabella.”
The woman, who had long red hair and striking green eyes smiled tightly. “I am Rasia.”
Now the smiles left their faces and they were suddenly serious. “Our Queen,” Patrick began. “I am so sorry. I did not recognize you.” Both Patrick and Rose stood immediately to demonstrate respect for their queen.
Rasia smiled tightly at them and nodded. “Please, sit. Don’t concern yourselves,” she replied. “Lucien and I do not often venture out, but today he was not content to play in the courtyard. Let us be parents together today.”
Patrick and Rose sat back down, and the three adults sat in silence, watching the children take turns on the slide, each laughing hysterically with each trip down. After only a few turns apiece they made their way to the swings, walking and talking, though their tones were low and hushed.
Rasia watched the interaction closely, though Isabella’s parents did not seem at all concerned. The kids continued to giggle and whisper to each other. Then Lucien turned to Rasia and smiled with satisfaction. The hair on the back of Rasia’s neck stood up. He always seemed to know something she did not, and it was infuriating to her that the Powers seemed to trust a young boy more than they did her.
He reached down and took Isabella’s hand, then they began to walk to the swings, clenching their hands together, their parents forgotten behind them.
Chapter 6
“Lucien, are you coming to my house for my birthday dinner?” Isabella and Lucien were in the family room at the White House playing video games. The two had become instant best friends, and now three years had already passed.
Isabella was already in a sort of childlike love with Lucien. In her mind, she would marry him someday, and of this she had no doubt. Sometimes her nearly seven-year old mind would fantasize for hours about their wedding and all of its details. She would go through her mother’s magazines and fantasize about wedding cakes and dresses. She knew it would be just perfect when the day came.
“Of course I will,” he replied. “Now hush. You are only trying to talk to me because you are losing.”
This made Isabella laugh so hard she dropped her game controller and nearly fell out of her seat. “You always figure me out,” she told him.
Suddenly the door opened and Patrick entered. “Isabella, it’s time to go. We have a lot to do at home to prepare for tomorrow.” She would be having family time during the day to celebrate her birthday, but the dinner with Lucien and his mom was what Isabella was truly looking forward to.
The girl stood and groaned. “Do I have to go? Can’t you and mom take care of it?”
“Isabella, we have talked about this. We do these things together,” her father told her in a calm, controlled tone that meant business.
She kicked at the carpet. “Ugh,” she said. “Lucien, I have to go.”
Now Lucien turned his attention from the game, even going so far as to put down his controller without pausing it. “Mr. Gilliam, surely you can make an exception.”
Patrick looked at Lucien. The boy had made him a bit nervous ever since he had first gotten to know him, and this was a feeling that had not lessened over time. “Lucien, her mother and I have made plans for tonight that include Isabella.”
Now Lucien stood and walked up to him calmly and looked up at him, making sure they made direct eye contact. “Don’t be such a bastard, Patrick.”
Patrick’s flesh broke out in goosebumps. This child was straight from hell. “Lucien, I don’t appreciate how you spoke to me. Do you not have any respect?” He turned to his daughter
. “Isabella, come now!”
The girl darted for her father, not because she wanted to, but because he was her father. Patrick took her by the hand and began to back out the door. “Lucien, I don’t know that I even want you to come for the dinner tomorrow unless you change your attitude and start behaving with respect.”
Lucien just looked at the man and smiled. He shifted his gaze momentarily toward Isabella, they looked back at Patrick. “Of course, Mr. Gilliam, you are right. I apologize, and I will be at dinner tomorrow.”
Patrick continued to look the boy in the eyes; he didn’t mean a word of what he said, Patrick knew with surety. He was simply fixing things for the sake of Isabella. Rather than challenge the boy’s apology though, he simply nodded and left the room with the girl, who dragged unenthusiastically after him.
Once the door was closed Lucien opened his mouth and let out a blood-curdling scream that was accompanied by a growl that seemed to come from some unseen beast. He turned and kicked his game console, then picked the unit up and smashed it against the wall. He then ran over to the bookcase next to the television and turned it face down, spilling all the books to the floor. Finally, he pushed the television itself face-first to the floor, smashing its screen to bits.
Rasia ran into the room as Lucien tried to catch his breath. She was stunned as she looked around at the destruction this small seven-year old boy had managed to dole out on the room.
Finally she spoke to him quietly. “Lucien, go to your room. I will be up to speak with you in a short while.”
He looked and her and clenched his teeth. Then he balled his fists. “I will go, but know I would have rather done this to you and your pathetic friends,” he said. “Consider yourself lucky.” He then rushed past her and ran down the hall toward the stairs.
Rasia turned her attention back to the room. For the love of the Powers, the small child had turned the place upside down! Patrick had told her what Lucien had said to him, and she had been heading in to confront him, only to discover his violent behavior. With each passing day her fear of her son grew stronger; she had no idea how to take any next step with him without the Powers providing her with wisdom and strength. She would certainly fail at raising this boy without the guidance they provided her with.
She made her way back to the dining room where she had been having coffee with the Gilliams and Desirae, the nanny, before the incident between Lucien and Patrick. “Desirae, I need you to have Ronald clean up the family room,” she said quietly. “Lucien has had some sort of… fit. Then I want you to go up and talk calmly to him. Find out what set him off, please. I’m sure he will not confide in me.”
Desirae rose to do Rasia’s bidding, leaving the room in a hurry. Rasia sat at her place at the head of the table and put her head in her hands. How could she properly raise the future ruler of this world when he despised her? The Powers had stopped giving her answers long ago; all they bestowed on her now for her sacrifices was the strength to survive him, and she was utterly and completely lost most of the time regarding the next proper step to take.
Well, she would give Desirae a few minutes with the boy, and that time would also serve well for Rasia to calm down her emotions and gather a bit of courage to confront his actions herself.
He was only seven, but with each passing year he grew more cocky, and yes, more dark and determined. Patrick said the boy had used the word ‘bastard’ in reference to him. Rasia had never known Lucien to behave that way with other adults, particularly Isabella’s own father or mother. It was a dark and depressing omen. She returned to the dining room to finish the rest of her coffee before going upstairs to deal with the boy.
∞
“Lucien, can I come in?” Desirae stood outside the boy’s room and waited for a response.
After a momentary pause she heard his voice come through the door. “Yeah, sure. Come on,” he said.
Desirae turned the knob and entered the room. It was dark, the heavy curtains pulled and no lights on. She reached to her left and flipped the switch, flooding the room with sudden bright light. Lucien sat on the bed cross-legged, a look of dark rage over his face. Desirae was at once uneasy.
She cleared her throat. “I know you are upset, Lucien, and I just wondered if I could do anything?”
He continued to look at her in silence, only shaking his head in response.
She approached him slowly and sat on the very edge of the bed at its foot. “What happened?” she asked softly, her hands trembling slightly. Lucien noticed, and it amused him.
The boy turned to her. “I am tired of all of you grown-ups,” he said. “I don’t know how, but someday I will make all of you pay.”
Desirae took in a sharp breath. She was very familiar with Lucien and his erratic behavior, but it never ceased to shock her. This was the son of the deceased Master? She found it very hard to believe, as the Master was never so evil and disrespectful to those around him. He showed great love and care to the members of his Family.
She continued to look at the boy carefully. He was a mass of tension, and his eyes were dark and brooding. He was sitting on his hands, and his own anger was driving him to rock back and forth. Suddenly the nanny was filled with compassion. The boy was only seven! Future leader or not, how did they all expect him to behave the way Rasia truly demanded? It was impossible.
Her wary gaze softened a bit. “I know how you feel,” she began.
“Do you?” He turned to her, his eyes blazing, and Desirae thought for a fraction of a second that a grown man was seated before her.
Suddenly he pulled his right hand out from under his leg and swung it in her direction. She flinched, but what was happening barely had time to register in her mind. In a flash the boy Lucien buried a pair of scissors in her throat so far that the tip of them came out the back of her neck.
Desirae froze, the injury rendering her motionless. With wide eyes she stared at the boy, who sat smiling at her, watching as the blood poured out of the front of her neck, ran down his hand and arm, and finally pooled in one of the folds of her light jacket.
The last clear thought the nanny had was that her eye was twitching. She fell over on the bed, dead and lifeless. Lucien continued to watch the blood flow for a few minutes, his small hand still firmly grasping the scissors so he could feel her heartbeat until it finally stopped.
As if on cue another knock came at the door, and before he could respond Rasia came in, and what she saw stole the breath from her lungs.
There was Lucien on his bed, calmly sitting and watching the bloody, lifeless body of Desirae as it lay there. It took a moment for the scene to become clear to Rasia, then she came to her senses and gasped for breath.
Maintaining as calm a demeanor as possible, Rasia spoke to her child, but she did not look at him; she continued to look at the lifeless body of the one-time nanny. “Lucien, go shower immediately. I need to clean this up,” she told him with a still voice.
He rose and walked past her, and he smirked at her as he hit his elbow hard against her hip. Why not take the opportunity to cause the witch a bit of pain while he was at it? She ignored the intimidating act though, and once he was gone she sighed aloud. “Oh, Desirae. I should have known better. I am so sorry.” She pulled the blankets and sheets on her son’s bed free of the mattress and wrapped them around the body, then she went to the hall phone and called Martin Lamb’s extension.
“Martin, Lucien has made yet another mess,” she said into the receiver. “I need help to clean it up.”
As she put the receiver back on the cradle she thought about Cyril once again. How would he have dealt with such exhibitions of violence from their son? She would never know, as she really didn’t even know her husband that well. Rasia turned and went back into Lucien’s room to wait for Martin, where the lifeless body of Desirae, blood-covered and pale, was waiting to be taken care of.
∞
Isabella and Lucien sat in the back yard of her home after her birthday dinner. They had e
aten all the pizza they could stuff into themselves, along with chocolate cake and strawberry-vanilla ice cream. The girl felt so fat and satisfied that all she could do was smile and moan. Lucien was quietly doing the same.
The sun was beginning to go down, and the evening was beautiful. She felt satisfied that her friend had been able to come. “Lucien, where is Desirae?” she asked.
“She didn’t feel good,” he told her.
“Oh,” she replied. “I was thinking that before we know it we will be grown-ups, you know?”
He turned to her. “Yes, faster than we expect, I think.”
Isabella’s stomach fluttered. “I love you, Lucien. Do you love me?”
He looked off into the darkening sky. “Of course. You know I do.”
“Someday I would like to be your wife,” she said quietly. She could feel the blood rushing into her cheeks, and she was glad it was dark outside.
Lucien had taken hold of her hand in the dark, and now he squeezed it gently.
The poor, beautiful girl. Didn’t she know he had no idea what love even was?
He turned to her. “We’ll get married someday, so don’t worry Isabella.” He squeezed her hand again and looked back to the sky.
Isabella smiled and rested her head against the tree trunk, closing her eyes with quiet satisfaction. She felt happy and content.
She only wished that Desirae had been there for pizza; she really liked Desirae.
∞
Inside the house Patrick, Rose, and Rasia sat huddled in the breakfast nook in the kitchen drinking glasses of Cabernet and talking in hushed tones.
“I tell you, I don’t know what to do with him,” Rasia was saying. “It seems he doesn’t have a sane bone in his body, and this child is to rule the Family and the world? Oh, Cyril, I need you now!”