Dhampir Love (Dhampir Secrets)

by Shirlee Lewis

  “Mildred doesn’t think you’re all human.”

  “What would make her say that?” he asked.

  “I don’t really know. All she said was she met some people in Italy that looked like you and they weren’t human.”

  “She’s guessing,” he said. “I look like any other human,” he added, and then smiled his half smile.

  “What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her,” I said. “Try not to let her see your flask. I’m sure she’ll really be curious then.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, and laughed.

  Tony and I settled in for the evening watching the news. All was quiet in Mayville. Bob, news anchor, reported Detective Cooke’s passing and announced his cause of death was an apparent heart attack. Funeral services would be announced as soon as they became available. The phone started ringing. We both got up to answer it. Tony got to the phone first so I sat back down on the sofa. Hearing a noise outside, I looked out the window to see Mildred standing in the middle of the road looking toward the house. What on earth! Getting up, I went to the door. Mildred saw me and started running back toward her house as fast as she could. For her to think Tony was strange was ridiculous.

  Standing in the doorway looking toward her house, I heard Tony hanging up the phone. “What’s going on?” he asked.

  “Nothing, who called,” I said, turning to face him.

  “Father has another shipment of equipment coming in tomorrow for the blood bank, and needs me there when it arrives. I have to sort the boxes and make sure there in the right rooms.”

  “Sounds like you have your work cut out for you then.”

  “Come with me,” Tony said, wrapping his arms around me. “I have something to show you at the blood bank.”

  I nodded my head yes, turning back to the front door. I closed and locked the dead bolt before heading to bed. Tony took care of the back door. From helping Mildred and planting, I was exhausted. The second my head hit the pillow, I was out.

  In the morning, Tony and I headed to Portland. As we passed by Mildred’s, I noticed she was standing inside the front door. When she saw the car, she hurried and closed the door. Now I knew for sure, Mildred was the strange one.

  The trip to Portland was tiring and traffic was backed up for miles. A semi had jack-knifed in the middle of the road. Traffic was being diverted to the off ramp and detoured to the next highway. Instead of a two hour trip, it was three. Tony took the opportunity to mention, me becoming his wife. He smiled his half smile and asked, “Now that you’re going to be my wife, I would like to know when?”

  “I really hadn’t thought about it,” I said, looking at the passing scenery.

  “I think since spring is here, we should start planning, don’t you?”

  “Are you in a rush to marry me?”

  “I just want you to be my wife and the sooner the better.”

  “I’m not going anywhere. I will always be the only one for you. You know that.”

  “Yes, I do, but I want to be able to call you my wife instead of my finance.”

  “Did you have a date in mind?” I asked.

  “I’ll leave that up to you,” he said, reaching for my hand and glancing at my ring. “I guess I’ll have to get you a wedding band.”

  “I don’t need one. This ring is the only ring I need,” I said.

  Tony parked in front of the blood bank, leaned towards me and kissed me. I hugged him and started kissing his neck. He moaned and whispered, “You need to wait until we’re home.”

  “I missed you last night.”

  “So did I, but right now we need to go inside.”

  I smiled the biggest smile because we were going to be married. I didn’t have a clue when, but I knew it was going to be soon. He was my Tony and I loved him with all my heart. “I love you,” I said, before we got out of the car.

  “I love you too. Will you help me with the boxes?” he asked, opening the car door.

  “Sure.” Looking around, I noticed Victor already had the sign out front. At the bottom it read ‘Opening Soon’.

  The delivery truck pulled up before Tony and I walked into the building. Two men exited the cab and went to the back of the truck. Tony talked with them and I went inside. All of the previous owners’ equipment had been cleared out. Tony carried a box to a room and sat it down. “Father said we should be open for business in a couple of months.”

  “I’m happy he is expanding his business.”

  After the boxes where in their rooms, Tony took me down a long narrow hall. Before opening the door, he looked at me and smiled. “This is your office,” opening the door. The room had a desk with a small lamp sitting on top and two filing cabinets in the corner. A door was in the west wall.

  “Where does that lead too?” I asked.

  Tony went to the door and opened it. “This is my office.”

  “Right next door to each other,” I said. “I like it.”

  “I can’t be far from you, Jess. I’d miss you being too far away from me.”

  I laughed. “Sure you would,” I said, with a smirk.

  Tony and I went to the Steak and Grog for dinner. We sat in a dimly lit corner of the restaurant. No one noticed Tony drinking from his flask. “I asked Malinda to be my bridesmaid, but you need a best man.”

  “Isn’t Malinda dating Mike?” Tony asked.

  “I think they’re still seeing each other.”

  “When we get back to town, let’s stop at the hospital and ask him.”

  “It sounds good to me.”

  Driving back to Mayville, I leaned my head on his arm. Closing my eyes I pictured myself walking down the aisle with my eyes on Tony standing at the altar. I wasn’t in a rush to get married because we were living together. I knew he wasn’t going anywhere and neither was I. Tony seemed to be in a hurry and asked me every day when we would say, ‘I do.’

  Before going to the hospital to see Mike, we stopped at the diner. Malinda was coming to work. She saw us and came over to the table. Tony had his arms folded on the table, my left hand rested on his arm.

  “Isn’t today your day off?” I asked Malinda.

  “New hire didn’t show. By the way—Congratulations! When is the big day?” Malinda asked.

  “We haven’t decided yet,” Tony answered. “Is Mike working tonight?”

  Malinda looked at the clock behind the counter. “He is. He should be there at eleven.”

  “Tony needs a best man and who better than Mike,” I said.

  Malinda winked at me and smiled wide heading back to the counter. I was guessing she was still seeing Mike.

  After drinking several cups of coffee, Tony and I went to the hospital. Mike was sitting at the nurse station. He looked up when the elevator door dinged and smiled when he saw us getting off the elevator. “What brings you two here so late?”

  “Tony and I are getting married and ….”

  “No kidding,” he said, getting up from his chair. “Congratulations Guys! When is the big day?” he asked, hugging me and shaking Tony’s hand. He looked down at my ring. “That’s a nice ring.”

  “Thanks. We haven’t set a date yet. We—well Tony would like to ask you something.”

  “Sure, what would you like to ask me?” Mike took a step back and leaned against the counter.

  “I’d like to know if you’ll be my best man.”

  “I’d be honored to be your best man,” he said, smiling from ear to ear.

  “Thank you, Mike.”

  Getting back to the house it was late. I went straight to bed. Tony stayed in the living room watching his favorite program. Sleep wasn’t about to come, so I started thinking about my wedding vows. I wanted to say my own words and let my heart speak. Getting a piece of paper and pen from the nightstand, I started writing. ‘Tony, when I first met you….’ I wadded the paper and threw it toward the waste basket sitting against the wall. Grabbing another piece of paper, I started again. ‘Tony, you have made my life complete…..’ Wa
dding up the paper I threw it toward the waste basket. Now was not the time to try and figure out what I was going to say. Laying the paper and pen on the nightstand, I closed my eyes, smiled because I was marrying the greatest man on earth. Soon I was asleep.

  In the shadows a black cloaked figure followed Tony. Running as fast as I could to catch him, I tripped over my feet. “Tony” I yelled. Tony didn’t hear me. He stopped at the end of a bridge and the black cloaked figure grabbed him. “Tony” I yelled again stretching out my hand. When I blinked, Tony and the black cloaked figure were gone. Searching through villages I asked everyone I came too if they had seen him. My Tony was gone.

  My eyes flew open and I sat straight up in bed gasping for air. I thought about the story Mildred had told me and guessed that was the reason for the silly dream. Turning to Tony’s side of the bed, he wasn’t there. Getting up I hurried to the living room. Seeing Tony asleep in his chair, I breathed a sigh of relief. I checked the front door to make sure it was locked. Going over to his recliner, gently laying my hand on his shoulder, he opened his eyes.

  “I must have dozed off in my chair,” he said, groggy as we headed down the hall.

  He climbed into bed and his eyes closed the second his head lay on the pillow. He started snoring lightly. Scooting close to him I hugged him until I fell asleep.

  Opening my eyes, the sun was peeking through the slit in the curtain. Tony was stirring beside me. I smiled when he kissed the top of my head. I got out of bed and headed to the kitchen, grabbed the calendar from the wall and sat at the table. I started looking through the months stopping at June. June would be a good month to have a wedding. It wouldn’t be too hot and we could have it outside; providing there was no rain. I smiled because Tony and I were going to be husband and wife. I was never as happy as I was the morning I told him I would marry him.

  Tony went to the refrigerator to get a fresh flask. The phone started ringing just as Tony was about to sit at the table.

  “Hello,” he said into the receiver.

  “Hello son. Did the equipment arrive at the blood bank?” Victor asked.

  “Yes father.”

  “I called because I have important news to share. I received a call from Thorment. He’s the head vampire of the Mortensin clan in Italy.”

  “I didn’t realize there were still vampires. You and William are the only two I thought existed,” Tony paused. “I can’t forget Charlotte.”

  I shivered when he mentioned Charlotte’s name.

  “Oh son, there’s a lot more of us than you know. I didn’t feel the need to say anything, until now.”

  “Is something happening, I need to know about?” Tony asked.

  “Thorment holds an annual meeting and has called me to come. He also wants you present.”

  “Me—Why,” Tony sounded surprise.

  “He is calling for Jason’s presence as well. Apparently, he’s having a problem with half-human offspring and needs to set ground rules,” Victor said, calmly.

  “When is this meeting?” Tony asked.

  “Next month. We shouldn’t be gone for more than a few days.”

  “I have to let Jess know. I’ll talk to her and call you later this evening,” Tony said, calmly.

  “That will be fine, son. I’ll wait for your call.” Victor hung up.

  Tony hung up the phone and sat beside me at the table. He looked at me with confusion in his eyes. “What is it Tony?” I asked.

  “Father and I have an important meeting to attend in Italy next month.”

  “What kind of meeting?” I asked.

  “Apparently, it has something to do with Dhampir’s. Father didn’t go into details. He said I have to attend the meeting. Something to do with rules for our kind,” Tony mumbled.

  “If you have to go,” trailing off the sentence.

  First thing that came to my mind was Mildred. Surely, she was just trying to rattle me. I couldn’t let that bother me.

  “I have no choice,” Tony said, and then hung his head. “I don’t want to leave you here.”

  Placing my hand under his chin, I tried to get him to look at me. “Tony—if you have no choice—I understand. I’m sure Jennifer will let me stay with her while you attend this meeting.”

  Tony didn’t look up. He sat with his head almost touching his chest. I got up, walked behind him and hugged him tight. He reached for the calendar and flipped it to February. Turning the page to March, Tony sighed.

  “Have you ever attended one of these meetings?”

  “No,” he whispered. “I don’t know what to expect either.”

  “If it’s just about rules then there shouldn’t be a problem.” Tony needed to get his mind off of this meeting. “Would you like to go to the park today?” I asked, closing the calendar. I glanced toward the window and looked at the sky. A few clouds lingered, but the day seemed promising for no rain.

  Tony kept his head down. “Sure.”

  Arriving at the park, we made our way to the duck pond and watched the ducks swimming in the water. The ducks, of course, went to the other side of the pond when Tony was halfway across the bridge. I could tell he was thinking too hard about the meeting. I wasn’t going to bring it up either. We sat on the bench facing the pond enjoying the quiet.

  “Were you looking at the calendar for any particular reason?” he asked, with sarcasm and a half grin.

  “I was just looking.” Maybe this was his way of getting the meeting off his mind.

  Tony turned toward me putting his arm around me. His free hand moved to my chin, turning my face toward him. “When would you like to be my wife?” he asked seriously.

  “I was thinking of a June wedding. It’s warmer and we could have it outside.” I laid my head on Tony’s shoulder and placed my hand on his leg. He put his hand on mine and intertwined our fingers.

  “What day in June?” he asked.

  I reached down into my purse and pulled out the day planner. Looking over June, I pointed to the twenty-fifth. A little over three months away, and that would give us plenty of time to plan and get ready. Tony would invite his parents. I would invite my small number of friends. We didn’t need a big wedding and the only church in town was nice and small. It would accommodate everyone. Reverend Malcolm could perform the ceremony. The park was also a good place too.

  “The church or…,” I said, looking around the park.

  “Please don’t say the park,” he smirked, turning up his nose. Tony didn’t like the idea of ducks at our wedding. The ducks didn’t care for Tony being here either. They were keeping their distance from him. Tony raised his eyebrow. “We have a little while to decide where we can get married. Not the duck pond or any part of the park,” he said. “Let’s walk, okay.”

  We walked over to the playground. Tony sat in the swing. I went to the picnic table and watched him start swinging. Watching Tony swing encouraged me to do the same. I got up and went to the swing beside him. We swung as high as we could go. Tony let go of the chain and leaped out of the swing. He landed light as a feather on the ground in a crouched position. Not fair, I thought to myself and smiled. I slowed my swing and got out.

  We took each other’s hand and started walking toward the animal cages. Every time we saw an animal it ran back into its home. Now that I knew the animal’s reaction to Tony, I didn’t care when they disappeared. At least, Tony got a glance of them before they took off.

  After seeing all the animals we could, we headed back home. Tony didn’t mention the meeting while we were at the park and I didn’t bring it up. I didn’t know what to say. All I knew was, if he had to attend a meeting in Italy, he would have no choice but to go.

  Tony went straight to the phone when we got home. I didn’t want to hear the conversation between Tony and Victor, so I went to the bedroom. I was changing into my nightshirt and heard a noise outside the window. Pulling the curtain open, I saw Mildred standing at my window. “What are you doing?” I asked angrily as I was opening the window.
r />   “There was a gray kitten and I was trying to catch it,” Mildred said.

  “At this time of night,” I said, sounding unhappy.

  “Frank got it for me earlier. It ran out of the house when I went to put the garbage out,” she said.

  “Put some milk out and I’m sure it will come back,” I stated.

  “That might work,” Mildred said.

  “Good night, Mildred,” I said, sarcastically.

  Closing the window, I put the episode in the back of my mind. Normally, I would have told Tony, but he had enough to think about with the trip to Italy. I went into the kitchen to check on him. He was still on the phone with Victor. I kissed his cheek and headed to bed. Little did I know Mildred was on the front porch listening to Tony’s conversation with Victor.

  Tony woke me up crawling into bed. He pulled me to him and hugged me tight.

  “Is everything alright?” I asked.

  “Father said, it was reported a dhampir didn’t protect his family. Apparently –Dhampir’s have rules they have to abide by.”

  “What kind of rules?” I asked sitting up in bed.

  “Father said we are to protect our family. We are great protectors. He said, one of our kind, didn’t protect their family member and it’s caused a devastating mess.”

  “What kind of mess?” I asked.

  “Father said Thorment didn’t go into details. The consequences are not good. The time has come for me to know the rules that are set forth for Dhampir’s.”

  “Tony, I know you will protect me to the ends of the earth. If you must attend this meeting, then please attend.”

  I had the feeling he wasn’t telling me all he knew about this mess. Tony hugged me tight. I didn’t protest because he was nervous about this meeting. When Tony knew what the mess was, he would tell me. For now, he needed to relax so I lightly kissed his neck. He released his hug a little. I kissed his neck with lots of small kisses. Tony moaned and I knew he was relaxing and forgetting his worries. He kissed my neck and bit it quite hard, making me flinch with a tingle that set my body on fire. His face bent over mine and I grabbed the back of his neck, nibbling on his ear, I panted, “we should do this more often”. The growl started from the pit of his stomach and it didn’t take much longer before he joined me and together we reached our climax. Exhilarated, we rolled to our sides of the bed.