by LM DeWalt
“One more, Leilani!” I yelled down and prepared myself to jump.
“Ok, Mama!” Leilani yelled and held her arm in the air, her concentration focused on Melinda. Jose Luis stepped next to her and took her hand, trying to increase her power with his touch. This time, the fireball hit her in the head and her hair helped fuel the fire, igniting the rest of her feathered body. She tried to get away regardless, pumping her wings harder despite the fact that her right wing was burning. She veered toward the left and neared the edge of the building. A few seconds more and we’d be over the street. I clenched my stomach muscles and pulled my legs up, kicking her in the face. She screamed and stopped flapping her wings as blood poured down her chin. I opened my hands and fell to the roof, landing in front of Christian who was quick enough to wrap me in his arms. Neither of us could take our eyes off Melinda as she burned and floated through the air, her ashes floating away on the wind, just like her sister’s.
Beth still hugged Riley’s body to her, rocking her back and forth and murmuring in her ear. Pierce kneeled next to her and rubbed her back. Riley had been her closest friend. She’d lost two friends in this battle.
Jose Luis grabbed his sister and wrapped her in his arms, squeezing her until she complained. “Ouch! I can’t breathe.”
“How in the world did you do that?” Jose Luis looked at Leilani in awe. “I thought you couldn’t control it.”
“I lied to them. I practiced when I was by myself.”
“You are amazing.” He ruffled her hair before wrapping her in his arms once again. This time, she didn’t complain and squeezed him back.
Christian held me in his arms, kissing my neck lightly as he watched the two children celebrating the end of Melinda. Arturo’s end was also to be celebrated since he had kept them apart for many years.
“Did you hear what she called me?” I whispered.
“Yup, I did,” he whispered in my ear. “You are a wonderful mom.”
“Thanks. I think I finally believe you.”
Leilani ran over to us and wrapped her little arms around both of us. Jose Luis looked on for a moment, shrugged his shoulders, and came over to join in the group hug.
“It’s all over,” I said.
“It’s all over,” the other three answered. My stomach turned at the thought of what happened to Raul and Riley, but Christian squeezed us harder. He was right. The time to mourn would come soon enough. We deserved at least a moment to celebrate our victory, the end to the chaos Ian had caused in all our lives.
“Let’s go home,” Christian said and let us go, holding his hand out.
I put mine hand in his and smiled. “Let’s go home.”
EPILOGUE
Leilani stood at the kitchen table carefully placing her new notebooks and pencils into her backpack. Kalia took her empty cereal bowl and juice glass to the sink, stopping to greet me with a smile on her way.
“Good morning, Leilani,” I said as I approached her. Her smile lit up her pretty face. “Where is your brother?”
“He started school on his computer before I went to sleep last night. He has been working on it all night,” she replied, rolling her eyes. “I think he likes it.”
“I guess so,” I helped her put her arms through the straps of her back pack and then turned her to face me. Christian walked into the room, having gone up to check on Jose Luis as soon as we got back from feeding.
“I wish Alegría and Paco could come to my party,” Leilani said with a sad smile.
“I know, me too. But that’s a long trip just for one weekend. Since Aloysius bought them that apartment, they will be in the same building and we can see them when we go to Lima for Christmas. Alegría could even sleep over if you want.”
“I would like that,” Leilani said as her smile reached her eyes.
“Did Lily give you lunch money? She seems to forget that humans need food sometimes,” Christian said as he took the camera and aimed it at us. “Smile. Pretend you’re happy to be starting school today,” he teased.
“I am happy to start school. And, don’t worry,” Leilani smiled and straightened her skirt, wiping crumbs off with her hands. “I have everything I need for my first day of school in America, even my English.”
Christian laughed. “Yes, your English is very good. I guess you’re all set then. To the bus stop.” He turned and walked out of the kitchen and toward the front door. Aaron walked out of his office as Leilani and I passed, Kalia following right behind us.
“Is our big girl ready to go to work?” Aaron teased and held his arms out. Leilani ran into them without hesitating. She wrapped her arms around his neck and giggled.
“I’m not going to work. I’m going to school, silly.”
Christian snapped another picture. “Ok, let’s get one of all of us at the front door,” he said and turned toward the stairs. “Jose Luis, come on! She’s leaving!” he called up the stairs. Within moments, Jose Luis, his hair a disheveled mess, ran down the stairs.
Christian arranged us on the front porch with Leilani in front, and then set the timer on the camera. “Ok, everybody. Stand still and smile,” he instructed as he ran back to us and arranged himself next to me. The camera clicked a few seconds later.
“Can I go now?” Leilani asked.
“Are you sure you don’t want us to go with you?” I asked and knelt down to kiss her cheek.
“I am sure. I can do this by myself,” Leilani smiled and reassured us. “I just have to go down there by the mailbox.”
“Ok. We will be right here until the bus leaves,” I gave her another kiss and then took Christian’s hand as Leilani started down the driveway.
A few steps later, she paused and turned. I let go of Christian and started down the stairs, hoping Leilani had changed her mind about us accompanying her.
“Don’t forget about tonight,” she said and I froze. She was still determined to wait for the bus by herself. “You said you would take me flying if it’s not raining.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t forget,” I assured her and watched as her face lit up. One of her favorite things to do since we had returned to Oregon was to fly over the city while snug in my arms. She loved the view from the air and tried to name the buildings in downtown Astoria as we flew over them. Since it was Friday, I promised her she could stay up late so we could go flying without anyone noticing us.
“If you don’t mind,” Jose Luis said. “I’m going to go back to school.”
“No, you go right ahead,” I said and ruffled his hair more than it already was. Since becoming a vampire, Jose Luis had made the choice not to attend a regular school but to instead finish his education in an online school. He seemed to be adapting to and enjoying his new life, easing my mind a bit about his becoming a vampire at such a young age.
We heard the squeaking brakes of the school bus and turned to look toward the end of the driveway. The bus doors opened, and then closed a moment later before rolling back down the road. With Leilani safely on her way to school, we turned and entered the house. As we entered the kitchen, the front door opened and closed.
“Good morning, everyone!” Matt called as he entered the kitchen with his hands full of shopping bags.
“Good morning,” I said. “Coffee?”
“Sure, thanks,” He placed the bags on the table and went to the cabinet to grab a mug. Then he turned to me. “You just sit. I’ll get it.”
“What’s with the bags?” Kalia asked as she sat at the table with a cup of tea in her hands.
“It’s stuff for the party. You know, decorations, balloons, candles… Oh, and her present. Do you have wrapping paper? That’s the one thing I forgot,” he said as he came to the table with his steaming mug.
Since settling in Oregon, Matt had become a most beloved uncle of the children.
“You do realize the party is tomorrow, right?” I asked. Leilani was turning ten. She wanted to spend her birthday with us at home, watching movies and eating popcorn, but Kalia had in
sisted on a proper party. Of course, she would still make movies and popcorn part of the celebration.
“Oh, I know. I just wanted to make sure we were ready. Did you order the cake?” he asked. He was busy looking through the contents of one of the bags.
“Of course, we did. We have it all under control,” I assured him. “Aloysius and Fiore will be here tomorrow around noon. Beth and Pierce will be flying in with them.”
Fiore, Aloysius, Beth, and Pierce had flown to New York the day after the funeral. Aloysius thought Beth, especially, could use the distraction. She had been depressed since we buried Riley and Raul in the small, private cemetery just outside the city, the same cemetery where Aaron’s family was laid to rest over a century ago.
“Riley and Raul did so much for us.,” Matt said as he heard my thoughts.
“They gave their lives for our family. None of us will ever forget that,” Kalia said looking at Matt with concern in her eyes.
“Umm,” Matt started and continued to keep his eyes on the contents of the bag.
“What is it?” I asked impatiently. He had been acting a bit secretive since moving out to his own apartment the week before. “What’s going on?”
“Do you mind if I bring a guest to the party tomorrow?” He finally lifted his eyes and looked at me, trying hard to hide his impending smile.
“A guest, huh? Would this guest happen to be female?” I teased. Kalia, Aaron, and Christian all stared at Matt. Matt dropped his eyes back to the contents of the bag. “Ah ha! It is a female. Okay, spill.”
“Well, it’s nothing serious, yet,” He continued digging in the bag, averting our eyes with discomfort at our curiosity. “Her name is Michelle.”
“Is she a vampire?” Christian asked and patted him on the back.
“Of course she is and she’s a nurse,” Matt answered pretending to be offended, but his smile deceived him. “She’s anxious to meet all of you.”
“That’s my man,” Christian said and patted his back before returning to his seat with a wide smile on his face.
Before anyone could question him further on this new development, Jose Luis walked into the room. “I know I said I wasn’t hungry when you went to feed,” he said looking at Christian and me. “I was too busy with school to stop, but…”
“What is it?” I asked.
“I am hungry. Can someone come with me?” he asked looking around the room.
Matt pushed his chair out and stood. “I could eat. I’ll go with you.”
Jose Luis smiled and followed Matt out of the room.
Aaron rose and excused himself to go back to his office. Kalia gathered the empty cups on the table and took them to the sink, humming to herself, and turning on the water to start washing them.
“I can help,” I offered as I reached her side.
“No, I got it,” she turned and smiled at me. That smile didn’t reach her eyes. I knew she was still struggling with Maia’s death, but I also knew she was hurt by Maia’s deception.
“It will stop hurting, in time,” I said and wrapped my arm around her shoulders. She leaned her head against mine.
“I know. I will be fine,” she kissed my forehead and turned her attention back to the dishes. “Let me know when you’re ready to go. We need to finish our shopping before Leilani gets home from school.”
I nodded and left the room with Christian. When we reached our bedroom, I closed the door and headed toward my dresser to look for a shirt. Christian walked up behind me and turned me to face him.
“What’s wrong?” I asked as I looked up into his eyes, those eyes that still made butterflies dance in my stomach.
“Nothing at all is wrong. That’s just it,” he wrapped me in his arms and I rested my face on his chest. “Since the day we met, it’s been nothing but chaos. And now…”
“What? You miss the chaos?” I teased.
“Absolutely not! I love our life together. All the chaos was totally worth the end result.”
“It really was, wasn’t it?” I sighed against him.
“Completely. If it is at all possible, I am even more in love with you now than I was before. Does that make sense?” He stepped back a bit to look at my face.
“It makes total sense. I feel the same. I wonder if it has anything to do with us being parents now. Did you ever imagine that would happen for us?”
“Honestly, no. I accepted the fact that we couldn’t have children together, but it happened, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world,” he said and leaned his head toward mine. “I would marry you all over again.”
“And I would—” My response was interrupted by his lips pressed against mine. I wrapped my hands around his neck and tangled my fingers in his hair. The fire in my body was fueled by his kiss as he picked me up in his arms and carried me toward our bed.
As he laid me gently against my pillow, his sparkling blue eyes looked into mine and into my soul. “Kalia won’t mind waiting a bit to go shopping.”
“What’s the hurry when we have all the time in the world?” I asked as I pulled him down over me.
“That’s right,” he said and covered my lips with his again, his body a perfect fit against mine. “We have eternity together.”
“Eternity,” I sighed and pulled him to my lips again. An eternity full of love.
Acknowledgments
I would as usual like to thank my husband, Neil, and my sons, Jason, Ryan, and Collin for their patience and understanding while I’ve been locked away in a room writing. I could not fulfill this dream without their support. I would also like to thank my friends and family for listening to me rant about plots and characters, and for having patience when my mind wanders in the middle of a conversation. Thank you, as always, to my wonderful publisher and editor, Michelle Halket—you are a blessing. I would also like to thank Mattheu Sayenga for answering my law enforcement questions and for inspiring the cop/vampire (and also for teaching me English). A special thank you to the winner of the title contest, Patty Trala Nichols, and to all who participated in the contest. Lastly, I would like to thank my cheerleaders, the ones who do all the bragging for me, James and Denise Fahr, Kirsten Vetter, Michelle Sayenga, Doug Nichols, Josh Bees, Holly Friedman Pron, and Michael Pron—thank you for believing in me. It means a lot!
About The Author
LM DeWalt is a Peruvian American who has been living in the US for 30 years. She works as a teacher of ESL, Spanish, French, and accent reduction and is also an interpreter and translator. She has written for several Spanish language newspapers but her passion was always to write novels. Her love of vampires, and all things paranormal, started when she was seven years old and saw Bela Lugosi’s Dracula.
She currently resides in Northeastern Pennsylvania, where it’s way too cold, with her husband, three teenage sons and two cats.