by Gayla Twist
It was rather pretty. Aunt Alice had one of the castle’s banquet halls converted into a ballroom in the nineteen-fifties. The parquet flooring had been laid by master craftsmen and the crystal chandeliers flown in from Czechoslovakia. There were four of them suspended from the ballroom’s vaulted ceiling and scaffolding had to be built to get them up there. A famous painter had spent nearly a month lying on his back on that same scaffolding covering the ceiling with blue skies, puffy clouds and scantily clad cherubs. Aunt Alice even had a little indoor band shell installed at the far end of the room to help with the castle’s acoustics.
Unfortunately that was right around the time that big bands and orchestras started dying out in America. Not that the undead weren’t always up for some type of ball, but it became increasingly challenging to supply the live music. Especially with a ballroom full of vampires as guests. It was a shame that the ballroom hadn’t seen much of its intended use, but it would suit nicely for a few flying lesson.
“Let’s get started,” I said, after leading her to the center of the room. “What has your experience been with flying too far?”
After giving it some thought, Haley said, “I seem to fly best when I’m not thinking about it. Like, if I’m angry or in a hurry or something. Then I can fly pretty well. But as soon as I notice, ‘Hey, I’m flying,’ then things start going wrong from there.”
“That’s your old brain in conflict with your new body,” I told her. “As a mortal, you’re thinking, I can’t fly. Although as a vampire, it’s perfectly natural.”
She nodded. “So, what do I do about it?”
I moved to stand in front of her and took both her hands in mine. “Close your eyes,” I instructed and for once she did as she was told. “Now try to relax every part of your body. Relax your arms, relax your legs, let go of any stress you might be hiding in the back of your mind.” I had closed my eyes after I’d instructed her to close hers, but I couldn’t resist taking a peek. She didn’t look completely relaxed, but she looked more at ease than when she had first flung herself into my arms in the great hall. “Are you relaxing?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said, suppressing a giggle.
“Good. Now try to concentrate,” I told her, keeping my voice calm, but a little stern. I intended to be a strict teacher. “I want you to think, ‘I am a vampire’. Just say it over in your head. ‘I am a vampire. I am a creature of the night. Gravity no longer confines me to the earth. I am free from its grip and I can now soar among the stars’. Things like that.”
I tugged a little on her hands and we both began to levitate into the air. “Gravity is only a state of mind. Once you know you are its master then it can no longer control you,” I told her while we rose higher and higher.
As we approached the ceiling, I tugged her down a little so she wouldn’t bump her head. She was as easy to guide as a helium balloon. “Okay now,” I said. “I want you to keep concentrating. I want you to remember that you are a member of the undead. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” she whispered, giving my hands just the hint of a squeeze.
“Okay then,” I told her. “Haley, open your eyes.”
Chapter 8
Haley
“Gah!” I let out an involuntary shriek and then lunged for Dorian, wrapping myself around him like I was trying to climb a coconut tree. I had known my feet were no longer on the ground, but I hadn’t realized how high we had risen.
“Haley, it’s fine. It’s fine,” Dorian assured me, but he still held me firmly so that I felt secure. “I didn’t mean for you to be startled. I thought you realized we were in the air.”
“Yeah, I kind of did,” I told him. “I mean, I knew we were up in the air, but I didn’t realize we were up in the air.”
Dorian chuckled. “It’s perfectly fine,” he assured me. “Just try to center yourself and remember what I told you. Gravity doesn’t affect you anymore. Not unless you want it to.”
He encircled my waist with his hands. “Put your arms around my shoulders like we’re slow dancing,” he said.
I felt wobbly, but I did as I was told, assuming he wouldn’t let me crash to the ground.
“What’s your favorite waltz?” he asked, once I was in position.
“Uh…” He had me there. I wasn’t even sure I knew any waltzes. “Isn’t there that one by Strauss?” I hedged. I thought the name was somehow waltz related.
“The Blue Danube?” he asked. “That’s usually most people’s favorite.”
“Sure.” The Blue Danube sounded fine by me. “Is that your favorite?”
“I probably prefer The Waltz of the Flowers, but I think The Blue Danube is easier to hum. Don’t you think?”
“Yes,” I readily agreed, although I had no idea how to hum either one.
“Okay then.” Dorian kept one hand on my waist and moved the other to tug my hand away from grasping his broad shoulders. He held our arms out away from our bodies so that we were in classic waltz position.
I kept saying over and over to myself, I am a vampire. I do not bend to the will of gravity. And Dorian won’t let me fall. Much to my surprise I found that it became easier to support myself. It felt almost like I was standing on the air.
Dorian began to hum, “Ba-ba-dah-da-dah. Bum, bum. Bum, bum Ba-ba-dah-da-dah. Bum, bum. Bum, bum,” and slowly he began to circle us around the room, our heads nearly grazing the vaulted ceiling of the ballroom.
I found that I did know the song ― probably from it being included in numerous movie soundtracks ― so I tentatively began to hum with him. I felt a little foolish, but if my maker was willing to make an idiot out of himself, then so was I.
It was so wonderful being in Dorian’s arms. He looked very dour, as if he was taking my vampire training quite seriously. But I was having a wonderful time. Soon we were swirling across the room, our speed increasing. It was as if I could almost hear the music playing in my head. I couldn’t keep a broad smile from spreading across my face. And soon Dorian was smiling too. Not as much as me, but he was probably use to flying.
“Haley. You’re a natural,” he said, spinning me even faster. “I knew you could do it.”
I let out a laugh and tilted my head back so I could take in the details of the painted ceiling as we twirled, cherubs whizzing past. It was just as impressive up close as it had been from the floor. “Faster!” I cried. “Spin me faster!” It was just so exhilarating being in Dorian’s arms as we danced across the air.
“You need to try it on your own,” he insisted.
“No,” I said, instantly feeling alarmed and clinging tighter to him like a toddler who doesn’t want to be put down at the beach.
“Give it a try, Haley,” he said. “I can’t keep my arms around you every time you want to fly.” But I still wouldn’t let go. In a very steady voice Dorian told me, “I promise it will be alright.”
He was right. I was being silly. “Just give me a moment.” I tried to focus. I was a vampire and I could fly. That shouldn’t be such a hard concept to accept into my brain. After all, I’d taken to drinking blood with very little struggle. “Okay,” I told him. “I’m ready. Let me go.”
It’s not like Dorian whipped me across the dance floor or anything. In fact, he was trying to be careful, being very gradual about my release. But almost immediately after his hands were no longer touching me, I began to wobble and descend. I am a vampire. I am a vampire. I am a vampire, I kept chanting to myself as I tottered across the ceiling. Gravity does not define me. I grew steadier and began to rise.
“Haley,” Dorian called from halfway across the room. “Look out for the chandelier.”
“Gah!” The next thing I knew I had collided with the lights. Teardrop crystals rained down all around me. Instinctively, I made a grab for an arm of the chandelier. And that’s when gravity knew that I was still its slave. “Help!” I called to Dorian, not sure how long I would be able to hold on.
In an instant he had an arm behind my back and another under
my legs, supporting me the way a groom carries a bride over the threshold. “Let go. I’ve got you.”
We glided toward the ground, smoothly and effortlessly as if Dorian was standing on an escalator. “You’re getting it,” he assured me. And then, flashing an amused smile, he added, “But you do have to watch where you’re flying. It’s kind of like driving a car that way.”
“Yes. I’ll try to keep that in mind,” I said, remembering the tree that had been my undoing. We were both silent for a moment, Dorian smiling, his strong arms supporting me, and me feeling foolish. Finally I said, “I think I’m okay now. You can probably set me down.”
“Oh. Yes, I forgot,” he said, keeping his arm around my waist, but releasing my legs. Dorian eased me to the floor, my body pressed against his. I had to fight to keep myself from shuddering from the pleasure it gave me.
“Thank you,” I said when my feet were firmly on the ground. “I guess I lost my head a little.”
“Anytime,” he said, his piercing gray eyes looking deeply into mine.
We were just inches apart, our chests still pressed together. It would have been so easy to lean forward and place a kiss on his lips. Was I just feeling giddy from being waltzed around the room or was Dorian also thinking about kissing?
“Are you ready to try again?” Dorian asked, pulling away from me. “I think we can do without the waltzing this time.”
“Oh,” I said, feeling my cheeks go hot, even though I wasn’t sure if vampires could blush. “Sure. I just…” He had obviously not been thinking about kissing me. I had been mistaken.
“What?” he asked, giving me a sharp look.
“Nothing. I just needed a moment to catch my breath.”
Chapter 9
Dorian
Haley was an excellent student. Given her recalcitrant nature, I had assumed that teaching her to fly would have been a challenge. But much to my surprise she listened to what I had to say and responded well when I made suggestions. There was that one brief moment, her body pressing against mine, when I’d set her on the ground after untangling her from the chandelier. The way she’d looked at me, I thought for just a split second that she would be receptive to a kiss. But then I remembered her words. “I know that you dislike me just as much as I dislike you.” When you disliked someone you usually weren’t very eager to be kissed by them.
I may have noticed that time was passing and we were getting dangerously close to dawn. If Haley was going to make it home safely, it would have been advisable for her to leave with plenty of time to get to her sleeping chamber before sunrise. I don’t think I exactly planned to have her practice flying until it was too late for her to reasonably expect to get home, but I did managed to ignore the time for as long as was justifiably possible.
As dawn grew near, I began to wonder if Haley had yet to develop the knack for sensing the rise and set of the sun. I’d have to train her if she hadn’t. Meeting the sun was believed to be the most painful way for a vampire to die. Not that anyone ever survived to confirm that belief.
“I think that’s enough flying for today,” I said after Haley had zipped around all four chandeliers and then zigzagged in between them like a downhill skier racing between flags. “You really are remarkably improved.”
“I have a good teacher,” she said, settling beside me on the parquet floor. “So what’s next?”
“It’s going to be morning very soon,” I told her. “There’s still probably time for you to fly home but…”
“But what?” she asked.
“But I’m not sure I’d advise it. There’s always the risk you might run into trouble and be delayed,” I told her. “And you don’t want to be tempted by your friend’s open invitation.”
Haley nodded. “That would definitely be bad.”
“You’re welcome to spend the day here, if you like,” I said, trying to keep my voice casual. It would be so wonderful to wake up at sunset knowing that I would see Haley shortly after climbing out of my coffin.
“I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you,” was her reply. She looked a little uncomfortable.
“It’s no inconvenience,” I quickly assured her. “In fact, it will give the staff something to do. I’m the only one here at the moment and I fear they’re rather bored.” When she still looked hesitant, I added, “We always keep a few guest rooms made up and a fully stocked refrigerator.”
“Well, okay.” She finally agreed.
“Good.” I couldn’t help but smile. And then I added, “It will be nice to have a bit of company.”
I could feel the sun starting to rise. The castle was perfectly sealed. The staff would have drawn blackout curtains over any windows. No ray of light could enter. But still I could sense it. I was about to say something to Haley. I wanted to ask her if she could feel the change in the light. But the expression on her face caused me alarm. I couldn’t tell if she was angry or ill. “Are you alright?” I asked, wondering if I had somehow offended her.
“I’m fine,” she insisted. And then she fainted dead away in my arms.
“What’s going on?” Haley asked as I was carrying her up the stairs to the second floor. “What happened?” She frowned as she noted that I was transporting her. “You don’t have to carry me.”
“Of course I do. You fainted.”
“No I didn’t,” she protested. “Vampires can’t faint.”
“We can and you did,” I informed her. “This is my fault for allowing you to live so rough.” It was shameful that I had neglected my progeny to the point that she could collapse with the rise of the sun while she was standing in a darkened room.
Haley’s head began to loll again. “Not your fault,” she mumbled as she pressed her face against my chest and closed her eyes again.
I took her to the guest room closest to mine. But as I tried to lay her on the bed, she emitted a small whimper and clung to me a little like a child who was exhausted from a long day at the fair. I couldn’t just leave her. That would have been cruel. And what if she woke up in the middle of the day needing me?
I carefully settled upon the bed with Haley still cradled in my arms and then arranged it so that she could rest with her head supported by my chest. Lying there with my arms around her was the happiest I had been in recent memory. And I had to admit, it was nice to spend some time with her when she couldn’t argue with me.
Haley rustled around a little. “Don’t most vampires sleep in coffins?” she murmured in a drowsy voice.
“Some do and some don’t,” I told her, pushing a lock of her hair off of her face so it wouldn’t get into her eyes. “The older ones usually do, but many younger vampires just sleep in a light proof room.”
“What do you use?” she said, nestling against me like a kitten snuggles in a pile of blankets.
“A coffin usually,” I told her. “Unless I have an overnight guest.”
“Mmphfff,” was her reply.
It was a cruel truth that the longer a person was a vampire, the more they forgot how to sleep. When I was first turned, I could close my eyes and lose myself to the darkness. It wasn’t exactly like sleeping, more like the oblivion of anesthesia, but there was a simulation of sleep. As the years passed, that oblivion became increasingly more elusive until I was barely ever able to lose consciousness for more than a few minutes each day. Meeting Haley hadn’t helped. She’d stolen any tranquility I had previously been able to find. The days became an endless torment of me having way too much time to think.
But holding Miss Haley Scott in my arms was paradise. My brain, which had a tendency to brood, felt tranquil and light. I closed my eyes and felt my consciousness beginning to drift. It was so peaceful. It was almost like I was a mortal again.
Chapter 10
Haley
I was having the most wonderful dream. I was all safe and warm and happy. Tommy was holding me and telling me how much he loved me. But it couldn’t have been Tommy Sherman. He didn’t have blond hair. Things came in and out of focus
like they do in dreams. The boy was handsome and strong. And I knew that he really cared about me. I knew it. There wasn’t just the hope of love like I’d had with Tommy. It wasn’t simply lust disguised with false words.
But part of me also understood it was a dream. On some level my subconscious knew it wasn’t real. The feeling was more like being caught up in a really good movie. I instinctively felt that there was no way anyone could truly love a loser, foster-care kid like me. But that didn’t stop me from enjoying the dream anyway.
When I first woke up, I didn’t know where I was. The room was pitch black, but that was no longer a problem. I could see everything. Keeping perfectly still, I took in my surroundings. I was on a large bed with some kind of ornately carved footboard. The room also contained an armoire, desk, and something that looked kind of like an old-fashion fainting couch for when women became so distraught from hearing a man utter a foul word that they had to stagger over to the couch and collapse. Even if that meant crossing the length of the room to do it.
All the luxurious furniture was a definitely clue that I wasn’t at my Uncle Kevin’s. That much was obvious. Glancing down, I noted that I was still dressed, which was a relief. I even still had on my boots. I cringed with the thought of my dirty boots on the lovely gray and lavender duvet cover, but it was a little too late to worry about that.
All of my glancing around the room was really just delaying addressing the fact that there was someone in bed with me. My head was cradled against his chest and his arms were wrapped around me. There was no rise and fall of his chest. I could hear no thumping of his heart. I realized that I had just spent the last ten or so hours in bed with Dorian Vanderlind.
Some subtle movements on his part led me to believe that he was awake and just holding very still so as not to disturb me. However much I enjoyed being in Dorian’s embrace, I knew there was no tenderness behind it. My dream of the loving, blond haired man was just a dream. It was time to face reality.