Bound

by Jennifer Dean

  “Yes, but don’t worry.” Easier said than done, I thought. “They just want to understand what about you makes me incapable of living the life I have known for a long time.”

  My eyes could only look at his hand over mine as I spoke.

  “A life without humans, you mean.”

  Not that Liam’s life was not full of humans; he did protect them daily. But he had never gotten personal with any. And to fall in love with one was certainly an oddity to his kind.

  “Yes,” he said.

  I couldn’t hide the need to escape from the vulnerability of feeling below standard for someone like Liam. How I wished it were easier to ignore the thought that he deserved much better, an equal soul mate who didn’t come with the weakness of being human.

  I sighed at the thought as my neck turned to look out the window. The trees had all broken free, almost dissipated with the last curve of the road, finally revealing a huge old antebellum Southern white-style mansion. My mouth gaped open as Liam pulled up the curved drive. My eyes followed the double stairs up to the large stretched porch. I wasn’t sure how many windows and identical green shutters there were because I lost count at seventeen. That didn’t even include the ones that I could tell wrapped around the rotunda on the right side of the Alexander Mansion. I took in the eight large columns of the protruding front structure that rose above the second-floor balcony. This was defiantly not a typical Washington, North Carolina home, but I remembered that the people who lived here were not typical either.

  I was still in awe when Liam cut off the quiet purr of the engine. I felt like I had just noticed when suddenly my door opened. Liam was standing like a gentleman slightly behind the door and waiting for me to exit.

  I stepped out and away from the range of the door, letting Liam swiftly close it behind me. I merely stood, distracted by the beautiful landscape he called his own.

  “Do you like it?” he asked.

  His voice was a whisper that gave my skin a chill of excitement that shot through my bloodstream ecstatically. I watched as he came to stand in front of me.

  “Are you kidding me? It’s gorgeous. It’s as if the architect was born during the Civil War.” I looked at him, shaking my head in disbelief. “All that’s missing is Scarlett O’Hara standing on the porch.”

  He wore a crooked smile.

  “Well, he wasn’t born then, but he certainly fought during the war,” Liam said.

  My mind thought of the only other he.

  “Are you saying William actually designed this place?” I asked.

  It wasn’t that I doubted William had the skill, only that the complexity of the structure seemed to be more realistically the design of more than one mind.

  “He has a passion for architecture. Mary, being a fan of Southern antebellum homes, asked him to design the mansion.”

  I have to admit it is fun to be proven wrong sometimes. I was still shaking my head somewhat incredulously.

  “I have to say, I didn’t know what I expected to see.”

  I blushed at my truthful thought while he concealed a grin. It was true I wasn’t quite sure what I would find with a group of immortals. Of course I knew they weren’t vampires, and the need for coffins or castles seemed moronic. But they weren’t exactly human either, so what would they require for shelter? Antebellum mansions, apparently.

  I was suddenly aware of my nerves as I felt Liam’s hand entwine with my right. I wanted to treat this meeting like the ripping off of a Band-Aid, that way if they disapproved I could get the sting over with. They’ll make him stay away from me, I thought. I knew he said it was irrelevant but how could the disapproval of the people he had lived with for one hundred and eighty-six years not matter? Surely he was lying to keep me calm.

  I shook my head at the pessimistic thoughts as I squeezed my fingers into his. When he began the walk, I felt three short squeezes sent back to me. Still, my heartbeat accelerated as he led me up the porch steps. My gulp seemed to echo as I moved my free hand to my stomach in hopes of settling my nerves. It didn’t work.

  I met Liam’s raised cheeks before I watched him turn back to open the door. I walked in slightly behind him into a room so large that I thought my own house would fit inside. I could imagine old-fashioned balls being held right in this very room. Even the grandeur of the winding staircase caught my attention, along with the beautiful large crystal chandelier that hung at its own grand height.

  The walls were painted with warm colors, decorated with classic antiques and beautiful landscape paintings, many that I was certain you could find in museums around the world, history they no doubt knew as their own.

  To my far left I could see a dining room with formal furniture beside a swinging doorway that I assume led to a huge kitchen. Dark wood floors were laid throughout the entire first floor, underneath several pieces of evenly spaced furniture that accented the walls.

  By the time I looked back down to my own level I noticed that Liam and I weren’t alone. A few feet away were whom I assumed to be Patrick and Mary Alexander.

  As Liam led me closer, I noticed Patrick was the same height as his son. His chestnut hair was thick and stopped at the middle back of his neck with a small natural flip on the end. His bright olive green eyes were inviting as his hand extended in a courteous fashion toward me.

  “Hello, Emma. It is a pleasure to meet you,” Patrick said.

  After seven hundred years, I wasn’t sure what I would hear. But his soft accented voice surprised me. I guess the four hundred years of his own heritage was currently outweighing the three hundred with his American coven. I extended my own hand into his, grinning at his politeness. He seemed very genuine with his gesture, but then again he could just be very well composed. Being seven hundred and fourteen, he’d had much time to practice.

  “Nice to meet you . . .” I paused, not sure what to call him. I didn’t want to be disrespectful. He raised his free hand and his grin widened at seeing my conflict.

  “Call me Patrick.”

  “Nice to meet you, Patrick.”

  He looked toward Liam as his wife now stepped a little forward.

  “I trust you understand why we found it a priority to meet with you,” Patrick said.

  I nodded somewhat shyly. “Yes, I’ve caused him to break the rules of your world.”

  I could see that he nodded in agreement before I shifted my focus to Mary. In comparison to her immortal children, her body was rounder but still thin. I imagined every woman would envy the long, loose medium brown loose curls-ones that that naturally flowed around her face. A face that was stunning with its youthful beauty, I almost felt like I was watching the Turner Classic Movies channel, names like Rita Hayworth and Ava Gardner came to mind. Of course, even they could never match the bright glow of her deep crystal blue eyes, the same that were watching me cautiously. It seemed to be easy to conclude that this kind of beauty was a standard immortal feature, just as much as the bright eyes. Not exactly a negative, I thought. When you’re forced to live forever, why not get the gift of eternal beauty? It seemed only fair.

  “I’m Mary,” she said.

  Though it was hesitant, her voice was warm, inviting, just as Patrick’s was before her. Hearing her name, I felt as if I were meeting the character of a book I had read before.

  “Nice to meet you, Mary,” I said.

  I felt a moment of awkwardness, going for the assumption of her preference for Mary. But it was clear from her smile that I had made the right choice. Of course, saying the first name of parents was always something uncomfortable for me. It seemed disrespectful, especially when being introduced. I would have to get used to that.

  I watched awkwardly as her gaze toward Patrick contained a mixture of euphoria and confusion. I knew it was confusion about what set me apart from any other human. I have to admit I still didn’t understand it myself. After one hundred and eighty-six years, what set me apart from any other girl? Only Liam could answer that.

  “Your prese
nce has put us in a bit of an unusual circumstance,” Mary said.

  This was it, the part where they told me to leave, to leave their son alone.

  “I’m sorry,” I said.

  I looked away and cringed as I expected nothing but the worst. The ripping off of the Band-Aid.

  “There is no blame on you. I certainly know what it feels like to love a mortal.” My eyes shifted up to her welcoming smile and hesitant eyes. “But it doesn’t change how we are breaking the rules by letting you be a part of our world. It is a risk for you to even know of our existence,” she said.

  Mary moved forward to touch my hand gently before gazing at Liam. Another small grin crossed her lips as if touching my skin revealed to her some secret.

  “But we have seen the change in Liam that you have brought. And though I am not his mother by birth, I, like the rest of my family, is bound to him by love.” There in her warmth I found a shame fill her bright deep blue eyes. “It is my doing that Liam must suffer this fate. So now, by all odds, that he has found something the rest of us are destined for, neither I nor any of my family will deny him the chance for true happiness.”

  There I could see a mother’s unconditional love. I knew she would do anything for her son. Her warmth had spread from her body into her words with every syllable. I watched as her eyes bounced back to me.

  “This is why we will face the consequences together.” Her lips had straightened out. “But you must possess the knowledge that your life is always in danger. Being so deeply involved with our kind will only bring our enemies closer to you.” She herself stepped closer to me, reaching for my hand once more. There was a sternness in the bright blue of her eyes. “I can’t say it is a wise choice, but still your choice to make none the less.”

  It seemed she had more to say as she stared into my eyes for a few long seconds, letting me gaze into the beauty of her blue. I hated to put this burden on these people I could so easily call family. As she looked up to Liam, she stepped back into Patrick’s arm.

  Just as I felt the boulder of my burden lock around my ankle, the door opened behind us. I turned to find it was Grace followed by her twin sibling William. In reality she was a century or two ahead of him.

  I had only a moment to look before I saw Lillian entering the room with something in her hand; it was my backpack. She met my gaze with a warm smile as she walked forward.

  “Here you are,” she said.

  She placed it into my hand.

  “Thanks Lillian,” I said.

  I stumbled through the words as if I was unsure I had permission to use her name in front of her. She winked at me. I had to admit it made me feel more at ease.

  “Nice to officially meet you,” she said. She paused as if she realized her first words to me may have been taken as rude. Of course I didn’t mind at all and grinned acceptingly. She then stepped back to gesture toward William, slipping what looked like a ring onto her left hand. “This is William.” With her hand now resting on his shoulder, I could see that it was her wedding ring. Now that she was away from the pretenses of school she could be married again. “And of course you already know Grace.”

  Grace looked to me like the regal princess that she was, although unlike our last encounter she now wore a more inviting smile. “Nice to see you again, Emma.”

  “Likewise,” I said.

  I looked back at William, not feeling quite as invited. He studied me quietly with a well-meaning grin. It was like he was unsure of me. Lillian waved her hand in dismissal.

  “Don’t worry about him. He’s just unsure about you. You make him uncomfortable.”

  My eyes shifted left to right. “Oh, is that all?”

  I heard Liam’s chuckle beside me; in fact, all the Alexanders began to chuckle, even William—well, at least he was a grinning in amusement.

  “Where is Jacob?”

  Yes, looking around I noticed the last coven member was missing.

  “On watch,” Grace said.

  I nodded with understanding “I’ll have to meet him another time then.”

  “Yes,” Grace said. Her sapphire glow brightened with a small hesitancy. I turned my neck back to Liam.

  “Can I see your room?” I asked.

  I thought, why not as long as I was here. I watched him grin before lifting me up and running me up the stairs. He set me down on my feet once we got to the open door to his room. He was waiting for me to go through first.

  People don’t realize how personal it is to enter another’s room. But now the moment presented itself and I could feel his own anxiety just as much as mine. Walking in, I found out his room was not just a room but was almost the entire left side of the house. The walls were a dark blue or maybe grey. There was a king-sized bed with dark wooden posts that sat against the right wall. I could feel his eyes on me as I stared at the untouched comforter.

  My gaze skipped over the small collection of vinyl records next to an antique music player, along with a few uniquely collected antiques from history. His history. Where my attention was really drawn was on my left at the wall completely covered with built-in dark-wood bookshelves. It was his own in-room library. My envy went right past anything I had ever felt.

  Facing the door and sitting at the wall across from where I stood and near the shelf were a green recliner and small circular table. I gave it but a glance before walking toward the shelves in order to gain a better view. Now I could see that all the books were in a specific order by author. Not one of the books seemed to have collected any dust. They looked well cared for.

  I stood near the first books, where I found someone that I knew quite well, Jane Austen. In fact, it was her entire body of work, even the unfinished stories that most found unfamiliar. Not being able to help myself, I carefully reached for Sense and Sensibility. Liam watched me curiously as I studied the book’s historical significance. My brow lifted with excitement.

  “This is a first edition,” I said.

  I turned to him, impressed, as my fingers delicately touched the cover.

  “Yes, but unfortunately she wasn’t given ownership when it was published,” he said.

  There was a thrill in his voice at my interest as I looked to confirm that he was right. It didn’t say A Novel By Jane Austen. Instead, it was credited as A Novel By a Lady.

  I felt the rise of excited goose bumps as I held such a piece of history.

  “I would love to have a first edition of this.” My eyes rolled and I wore a crooked grin as my head tilted side to side. “Well, of any of her works."

  Liam now stared at me with an expression I didn’t understand. I only noticed a smile that I took to be delight.

  “What?” I asked.

  I was curious about his newfound joy.

  “I’ve never met anyone who has the same love for reading as I do.”

  I bit my lip at the comparison. I was nowhere close to the same as Liam. I had to admit it was exciting to be with someone who shared the same hobby. But even with the considerable amount of literature I have read, my list was short compared to all the authors he had—a list I had unfortunately lost that same day.

  “My brother does. He’s the reason I even began reading.”

  Before I could elaborate, in the corner of my eye I spotted the outline of a trapdoor above us, a trapdoor on the ceiling. I looked back at Liam to find his focused eyes on the ceiling seconds before I watched it drop down to reveal the sky. There were no steps like you would find for an attic ladder because this was built for Liam, who had no need for them.

  He reached out his hand, which I took instantly before feeling the rush of his jump up into the air. I blinked in time to see that we were no longer in his room but were on the roof. When he placed me to my feet I realized it didn’t exactly have a designed balcony or cut-out flat surface to walk. But I had to remember that was because this house wasn’t for me. What’s inconvenient for a human is quite the opposite for an immortal, I’m sure.

  “Do you come out here
a lot?” I asked.

  “Almost every night.”

  “I imagine it must be quite beautiful when the sun sets and the stars come out.”

  “I hardly notice the beauty of it anymore.” He paused and I felt like that made sense. When someone knew they were going to live forever, how could they appreciate the beauty of the earth like a mortal would? “But it does give me time to think.”

  “About what?”

  “You, mostly,” Liam said.

  I made a small amused exhale. “I don’t need the stars for that.”

  His left finger curled at the touch of my cheek as his arms securely held me my body vertical.

  “I believe I had somewhere to take you,” Liam said.

  “Yes,” I said. “But I think now I’d like to stay and watch the stars from here like the mortal that I am.”

  “Very well,” he said. “Don’t move.”

  I froze with my slant as he jumped back down into the hole, with a smile on his lips. He was like a boy exposing his enthusiasm at having someone interested in his baseball cards. I knew very well that Liam had shown me the place by the river because he knew that I would be happy. But now I found myself content to watch from Liam’s spot, to see from his perspective.

  Within a matter of seconds, his jump landed him on the highest point of the roof. Once he stopped moving, I could see he had placed down several blankets, some to lie on and others to cover us—well, cover me. There was also one pillow. I was tempted to walk the roof but knew even the best of athletes had accidents. Of course I didn’t have to wait but a second longer before Liam was by my side and lifting me to my feet, just as quickly as he was now laying me down onto the blanket.

  I turned my body so that I could face him; such a wonderful sight.

  “So do you all live here?”

  “This is our coven home. We all share it but the others also have their own homes a few miles away.”

  “Do you?”

  “I don’t have much need for privacy,” Liam said.

  “What about me?” He looked at me with hard eyes. I wasn’t sure what made me say it, but I did.