by Donna Haley
But the one thing I was certain about? My life would have been boring as hell with Draven. I thanked Lucifer every single night for bringing Severus into my life and teaching me what true, passionate love is. No matter how hard life could be with him, it was a life filled with love.
“So, Kieran was Draven's maker as well?”
I nodded and ran a hand through my recently dyed blonde locks. “Yes, a bit incestuous, I know, but according to the papers I found, he inherited nothing when Star staked Kieran. I’m pretty sure that’s why he came looking for me. He wanted what he thought was rightfully his. I’m pretty sure he'd also been searching for the truth on how Kieran had met true death for centuries.”
“Did he ever find anything?”
I saw the worry etched on Aaron's face and smiled warmly. “No, there was nothing to be found now was there? Star and I made sure that no one could pin it on us. I played the grieving wife to perfection and the state settled his estate quickly since we'd married under human laws. Besides, back then, we were still just folklore and no one would have believed anyone who tried to tell them that Kieran Blood had been staked by his sister-in-law who also happened to be a vampire. I really do miss that time period sometimes. It was so much easier to get away with killing someone and be able to blame it on the monsters everyone feared. Of course, I was the monster that they had nightmares about but I didn’t look like a monster so they never once suspected.”
“So how did he come to find you?”
It was another simple question that didn't have quite as simple an answer. I shrugged my shoulders and told him what I knew from the notes I'd found in his belongings.
“It seems he was looking for Kieran for help with a problem he was having when our maker met true death. Losing a maker is almost as bad as losing a child. Many vampires end up going to ground for long periods of time when they lose a maker or a bonded. The loss is overwhelming and torturous at best. Apparently Draven did just that, and when he arose he set about trying to find who was responsible for Kieran's final death. What he found was, well, me. I don't think he expected to find that he had a vampire sibling or that his maker had married her.”
“He never let on that Kieran Blood was his maker too?”
“No, not once. I'd have been a lot more cautious around him if I had known. Given that Star and I essentially planned Kieran's murder then executed that plan, I sure wouldn't have been marrying another progeny of his. I like to live dangerously but I’m not stupid.”
Aaron let it all sink in for some time before he spoke again. “Do you think he wanted you to know the truth?”
“Yes, I think that he did, but I also think that Draven believed he was in love with me and didn't want to hurt me, even though I'd hurt him repeatedly. He could have used that information anytime he'd wanted to try to come between me and Severus but he never did. I can't speak for him, but I felt the love he had for me and it was real. He could finally let me in on the secret he'd kept for hundreds of years at his death.”
“Would it really have changed anything though? Mrs. Severus, you said yourself that you loved your husband in ways that didn't make sense. So how could anything Draven might have said have changed that?”
I took a sip of my tea and tried to find the way to explain the complicated world of vampire loyalty to this breather. I'd almost forgotten that he wasn't a part of our world.
“It's complicated, but had Draven made it known that he and I shared a maker, he could have insisted that I swear loyalty to him. It would have been hard to not do so because we are drawn to those we share a maker with. We share the same blood, so the connection is too strong to ignore. I suppose that is why I took to Draven as quickly as I did.”
“But you didn't love him.”
“No, I did not love him. Not the way he wanted me to anyway. Perhaps if I'd never have met Severus, I could have loved Draven enough to stay with him. But it was already too late, long before our paths crossed. That chance meeting with Severus in 1342 was all it took. My heart has belonged to him since that night in London.”
“And yet you still married Draven.”
“Yes, well, you see, as I've explained, I didn't think Severus would ever be an option for me and I was just trying to be happy with what I had. Of course I could never get him out of my mind or my heart.”
He nodded then, and I was sure he had more questions but he wasn't sure he should ask them. Luckily for him my darling husband chose that moment to make an appearance.
The smile brightened the entire room as he leaned down and kissed my cheek. In a shocking move, Severus turned to Aaron and said hello. For the first time since I could remember, he was making an effort to notice the other people around us. And for a split second, I was hurt. I know it sounds silly, but there was a time, not that long ago that he'd never have noticed another soul in the room. As my smile faded a bit, Severus and Aaron struck up an easy conversation. I could tell that Aaron was happy to hear Sev's side of things, even if it was just for a short time. I found myself reliving the tale as my husband told it.
Chapter Twenty-Six
His touch electrified my skin and it wasn't the first time. We were happy, happier than we'd been in quite a long time. Our lives were going good, the girls were growing fast and we'd made Rome our permanent home. Severus was once again making the effort to be home. Lucifer had actually given us a break as he focused on this new love he'd decided was what he wanted and I wasn't about to complain.
We were standing just outside the house, looking out over the vast estate that we called home. His arms wrapped around my waist as I leaned back into him. I could feel the heat radiating from him and it warmed me.
He'd often talked about how he loved the feel of my cold flesh against his. We were the perfect contrast he'd said when we first met. And we were. I thought of how different we were and I knew that he was thinking the same. This bond of ours was often just as much a curse as it was a blessing at times.
I could see the way I looked in his eyes. To Severus I was beautiful. He loved this version of me just as much as he had the previous. I could see the comparisons he made and it warmed my heart to know that he actually preferred me this way. He claimed that my body finally matched my insides. I'd laughed then, but he'd been so right.
Before I'd been tall and thin, a model's figure. My strikingly pale blonde hair and even paler skin had made me seem almost ethereal at times. I was classically beautiful but it didn't fit who I really was.
As his arms tightened around me I could see that now, at least in his mind, I matched inside and out. This rebellious little vampire looked the part perfectly now. My pink and black hair was cut in layers that seemed to frame my delicate face. I was short and looked fragile and my husband whispered in my ear that he loved that about me.
I turned in his embrace to study the man I'd loved almost my whole existence. He hadn't aged a day. His body was muscled and tan, his dark hair fell in waves and more often than not a stray lock seemed to hover just above his eyes. We were a study in contrasts but together we were a striking pair.
As I brushed that ever present stray lock of hair from his face, he lifted me off of my feet and kissed me slowly. I wound my arms around his neck, my hands lost in that glorious mane of hair, and enjoyed every second I got to spend with him like this.
I looked up, torn from that night by Severus' deep laughter filling the room. Turning he looked at me with a quizzical look before the realization spread across his face. In an instant his grin turned wicked and our eyes locked. We both forgot that Aaron was in the room for a moment. I chewed my bottom lip nervously, in that little way that I knew drove my husband mad with desire.
He moved the few steps that it took to be in front of me and lifted me from the chair I sat in. The kiss we shared was tender and filled with all of the emotions we both felt from the memory of that night. It had been a night that meant so much to us both. Pulling back from the kiss, I looked over Sev's broad shoulders at Aaron,
pleased to find a smile on his face. Tilting my head I placed a kiss on my husband's neck and squirmed in his arms, trying to remind him that we still had a guest. His groan told me that this wasn't over as he sat me back to my feet and took his place in my chair. Reaching out he pulled me down onto his lap and told me, in a raspy voice filled with desire, that I should continue the story for Aaron.
My laughter was loud and I shook my head. “Darling, he doesn't want to hear about our lovemaking again.”
His hand rested on my thigh in that way only true lovers touch and his eyes never left mine. “Then tell him about Paris in the snow.”
Aaron spoke up then, causing us both to laugh. “I'm open to hearing about Paris.”
My smile widened as the memory bloomed and my voice was quiet when I began to tell the tale.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
We'd been living at the beach for months and the girls loved being there but I was beginning to get restless again. That's what usually happens when you've lived as long as I have. Severus could sense that I needed a change of scenery and suggested we go somewhere the girls had never been. I shrugged, not sure it was a good idea, but desperate to get the hell out of the sun.
After much thought he brought up the idea of taking Vivi and Viv to Paris, where it was snowing, and my excitement grew. I loved the snow and it had been years since we'd actually found our way to Paris. We owned an apartment there and I was quick to agree that it was a great idea.
He laughed as I bounced and called down to the housekeeper to please pack the girls' bags as we'd be gone for a few days. Severus kissed my shoulder and went down to tell our daughters where we were headed while I gathered the few things I'd need to take along.
Even though we hadn't been there in some time, the apartment in Paris was fully stocked with anything Sev or I would have need of. Within the hour he was snapping us there. We'd just gotten the girls settled in their rooms when it began to snow.
Sev and I called them out to the living room and we watched in amusement as they squealed at the sight. Vivienne and Vivica had never seen snow before and it was quite the treat to see the world through the eyes of our two year old daughters. We quickly bundled them up and watched as they ran around playing in the snow.
Severus held my hand and I gave his a squeeze. Our twins' laughter brought smiles to our faces. Letting go of my hand he made a snowball and threw it at me. I screamed and ran towards the girls. Soon it was Vivienne and I against Vivica and him.
It was one of those moments I'd cherish as time went by. We were so happy that night and it was all because we were just a normal family. Even though nothing about our family was normal we were happy and that was all that counted. The girls' powers were growing and I was struggling daily with how to control them. But for that one night, we were just a mom, dad and kids.
That week passed too quickly and soon we were back at the beach but I wasn't happy there. Severus could tell that I was still restless and offered the suggestion that we go home to Rome. A soft smile played on my lips as I nodded. I'd missed Rome and the house where we'd spent so much of our life together. I was anxious to get back.
Being back in Rome calmed me almost instantly. I don't know what it was about being there with my husband but it always seemed to be just what I needed. I spent the nights running through the woods that surrounded the estate. Severus never asked me questions about what my kind did or why we did it. He just accepted that there were times that I needed to be vampire.
Running was a release for me and it was the quiet time when I could let my thoughts run as free as I was then. Often, I'd combine hunting with running and this was one of those times. I couldn't explain why I needed it. This was a happy time for us but my need was strong.
So I ran and searched for my next meal.
Hunting was different now but it was still a way of life for some of my kind. Back when I'd first been turned and for most of my undead life, we hunted those breathers that were alone or in the wrong place at the right time, well, right time for us that is. Now, I hunted the lowest of the low. More often than not, the young hustlers or drug dealers were easy targets. No one really missed them if they didn't show up the next morning and so they were prime targets for vampires, among other supernaturals.
I hadn't realized how much I was craving human blood until that first night. The need flourished with each stride I took as I moved at vampire speed through the shadows of the city. That first taste of warm, metallic blood was enough to send me into a frenzy. I couldn't get enough. I didn't understand until later, when I was back home laying next to Severus, that I'd been denying myself something I needed to survive.
Don't get me wrong, the bottled stuff will sustain us, but it will also drain us to the point of near nothingness if it's all we consume.
“Wait, are you telling me that it's a lie that a vampire can survive strictly on a bottled blood diet?”
I looked back at Severus as his grip on me tightened and he nodded. I wasn't really sure this was something I should be sharing with a human but I wanted him to know what it was like to be me.
“Yes, my dear Aaron, that is what I'm telling you. Vampires cannot survive on synthetic blood alone. We can go years, perhaps centuries, though the studies haven't shown long term effects of it yet. But sooner or later, we will weaken and the hunger will become too intense to ignore. We must feed on fresh human blood, it is how we've survived for millions of years and it is a necessity. The bottled stuff doesn’t come close in taste or nutrients. Eventually even the most hardcore of mainstreamers will be overcome with the need for fresh blood.”
I watched the fear cross his face and how he shifted back in his chair involuntarily. Sev's whisper was soft in my ear.
“He needs reassurance that he's safe here, babe.”
I looked back at my husband again and shook my head before turning to face the human.
“You have nothing to fear here, breather. If I had lured you here to kill you, you'd already be dead. I'm an old vampire, younger than others but there are so many more newborns now than there were before. I can control my hunger for much longer than the newborns, but some of them have never tasted human blood and those are the ones you should be worried about. The first taste of human blood is powerful and it becomes an addiction rapidly. For those that have never been allowed to experience it, it can become something of a feeding frenzy when they finally do. It’s a secret the higher ups don’t want broadcast.”
Aaron stared at me in silence for a very long time and I could tell he was still concerned about his own safety here.
“We don't go around eating our friends, Aaron.” I kept my voice quiet and reassuring. It was a trait us vampires had perfected over the centuries. We could convince most humans of anything we wanted them to believe but this time, I was telling the truth. I liked this young man and even if I had been starving I wouldn't have hurt him.
“But won't the others like yourself be angry if I publish these stories?” He was visibly shaking now and I felt the need to calm his fears.
Shaking my head, I added authority to my voice when I spoke this time. “No, you're under my protection, and Severus'. No one in the supernatural community will bring harm to you or anyone you love.”
“Under your protection? What exactly does that mean?”
It was Severus who spoke this time. “It means that she has put word out among vampires that if you are harmed they will meet true death in a very painful way. My wife is modest and doesn't like to exert her authority, but she is quite powerful in her own right. As she explained, no harm will come to you as long as you find favor with Sunshine.”
Aaron looked at both of us, his fear subsiding some as his smile widened. I nodded at him to let him see that my husband was correct in what he was saying.
“He speaks truth of course. Since the moment you stepped foot through that door, word was spread that you were under my protection. Should any supernatural being try to harm you in any way, I wil
l destroy them.”
“But why?” His voice was still a bit shaky and I can't say as I blamed the human then. It was a lot to take in.
“Because I like you, nothing more.”
“Then I guess I should thank you, Mrs. Severus.”
“Silly boy, there is no need to thank me for something I give freely. You've been kind and listened to me ramble on for months now. You’ve earned your protection and my friendship.”
Severus shifted in the seat beneath me and I looked back at him with a grin, knowing that it was time to allow Aaron to be on his way. The times alone with my husband were few and far between lately and I was ready to enjoy being alone with him for several hours before he left again.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
That was the last night Aaron came by to hear my stories. I imagine he buried himself in writing them out from his recordings and notes. He would call here and there when he needed clarification on something but I didn't see him for several weeks.