by Jen Pretty
My hands planted firmly on the floor my knees on bent arms. Every ounce of concentration went into steadying myself on my hands, grounding me in the moment.
I tilted forward and lifted my feet off the mat so I was balanced perfectly over my hands. I stayed in that pose, feeling Durga’s energy mix with my own and the peace my body felt at being so balanced and in control. I uncoiled my body and stretched out into a plank. My strong core easily supported my body.
I moved through my advanced routine, ignoring the muscle complaints and stretching out the stiffness before going into my cool down stretches and relaxation, lowering my heart rate and easing the muscles into a more relaxed state.
Finally sitting cross-legged on the floor, I pressed my palms up on my knees and shut my eyes. I counted my breaths until I faded into nothing.
***
“Back so soon, Durga?” Shiva said in a raspy voice as his snake slid up his arm to wrap around his neck.
“I’m Lark. Remember?” I replied, horrified as the snake made its third loop around the god’s neck and bit its tail in an oddly playful manner. I had no idea snakes could be playful, but that’s what it looked like -- a puppy biting its tail.
“Oh, yes, of course. Welcome back child, why have you come?” He said quickly. I raised an eyebrow at him before I continued.
“Someone killed a vampire in the city to the north. Do you know anything about that?”
“What?” he asked. I knew he heard me. He was an ancient Hindu god. He started fiddling with his long dreadlocked hair and then adjusted his animal skin loincloth.
“I said—”
“I am a very busy god. Perhaps you can come back some other time when I am not so busy.” He said, cutting me off. “Goodbye now.”
***
I fell over with the force of Shiva expelling me from my meditation.
“Jesus, that is a weird god,” I said, standing up and turning to head back to my room.
“You know that is a bizarre statement,” A voice said from the doorway. I looked up to find Darya standing there.
“What?” I asked.
“You said, ‘Jesus, that is a weird god’,” she replied.
I thought about the words for a second and laughed. “I guess you’re right. Shiva is weird though. Not what you expect from a deity.”
“I lived in Russia when the Durga was there. Her name was Elliana. She and Vaughn were pretty close and I lived in his coven at the time so I had occasion to hear her speak about Durga. She never spoke about Shiva, though.”
“Oh,” I said, taken aback by the information. There weren’t any notes about Shiva and Vincent had been pretty concerned when I started visiting with the deity, but I assumed that was normal. I remembered Shiva had expected Durga the first time I visited and this time he expected her too.
“Perhaps it is because you meditate,” Darya offered.
“Ya, maybe that’s it,” I agreed, mostly to drop the topic. It could be as simple as that. But today Shiva was weird…er than usual.
“I am heading up to have breakfast, would you like to join me?” She asked.
I took a deep breath and let go of the feeling of unease that had settled quite firmly in my stomach.
“Sure, that sounds great,” I replied. “I’ll meet you in the dining room. I need to run and have a quick shower.”
“Alright, I’ll save you a seat.” She flashed me a smile before turning, and we walked up the stairs to the hall where she turned one way, and I, the other.
I showered and changed into clean yoga clothes since I had classes this morning. Durga was restless the whole time, but I managed to keep her at bay. I walked back down the hall towards the dining room, staring down at my phone as I sent a text to Trevor to make sure he was coming. I tried to include him in as many classes as possible. He fit best with the teenagers because he was so young. They accepted him and, once I told them he had been sick, they made an extra effort to make sure he felt welcome. It was a good environment for him.
I was about to hit send when I walked straight into a solid chest.
My phone spun out of my hand and I crashed to the floor as the rest of the person I had run into came into view. It was a huge vampire I had never seen in the house before. He hissed and leapt upon me, pinning my body to the ground. He didn’t waste any time, sinking his teeth into my throat before I even had the chance to scream. Durga shoved me out of the way and called our knife. The knife sunk hilt deep in the throat of the vampire above us, and he went limp, but the damage was done.
I tried to scream, but the vampires jagged teeth had shredded my vocal cords. I gaped, trying to pull in air. All I got was thick blood, filling my lungs. Durga attempted to push the heavy dead body off us, but her strength was wavering as my vision tunneled down. The sticky wetness on my neck ran down and pooled below me. It spread around me, soaking into the plush carpet of the hallway. I screamed in my head, unable to make a sound. As my world turned grey, the heavy weight lifted off me and saw Frankie’s green eyes staring into mine and then there was nothing at all.
***
“I’ve already closed the city, what more do you want from me?”
“I want to know how that bloodsucker ended up in your house!”
“And I told you that all vampires must present themselves to me. He had just arrived from overseas and was here to pledge his allegiance to me. That’s how it works!”
“That’s not good enough! She could be dead!”
“She is the Durga. She can’t die!”
I moaned, having heard more than enough of the two idiots fighting. I was decidedly not dead, but my throat felt like mincemeat. I was pretty sure something had died in my mouth. Durga was restless under my skin, like an angry snake, slithering just under my surface. The sun was burning through my closed eyelids, and, oh yeah, some vampire had tried to eat me.
“Open your eyes, Lark,” Frankie said from right beside me. His voice was raw like he had been yelling for a while.
I peeked out one eye but immediately closed it again. I heard the blinds close and darkness fell on my face. I opened my eyes and looked into Frankie’s worried ones.
“Thank you,” I said to Vincent who stood behind Frankie, beside the window.
“I’m sorry, Lark,” Vincent said, his voice calm now too. “The vampire who bit you had a reference letter from Vaughn. It was a forgery. I should have realized sooner.”
“It’s ok. I’m pretty tough,” I replied, closing my eyes again. My voice was hoarse and raspy like I had smoked a pack a day for thirty years. My neck was whole though, and the vampire was dead.
“Do you think your fallen brother sent that vampire here?” Frankie asked, pulling me back from the edge of sleep.
“That is what I am thinking. If not, someone else wants Lark dead bad enough to make up this elaborate scheme.”
He had a point. One enemy was better than two. Shit. “Did you check for bombs?” I asked, sitting up so fast my vision dimmed.
“Yes, Cedric led the sweep. He had the same thought you did, but there are no bombs in the house or on the grounds,” Vincent assured me. I crumpled back to the bed. At least, there was that.
My eyes closed of their own free will this time. I could still feel Durga rummaging around inside me, but I was too tired to stay awake.
“Good night, Lark,” Frankie said, smoothing my hair back from my face. The last sound I heard was the door clicking shut behind the two men as they left me to my day sleep.
DURGA
Foolish girl, she is too easily distracted by her mobile telephone.
I pulled on Lark's boots this time, before grabbing her money cards, and sliding out the window into the bright sunlight. The vultures were circling. That old bloody demon had sent more than one of his minions to my city and today I would ensure they all paid for their insolence.
The streets were crowded downtown when I got off the city bus and walked through the streets following my senses. These humans had no
idea the danger that lurked under their noses.
I ended up in front of a tall building made of glass. The pull was coming from within. Pity that there were so many humans about, but I would not stand by while enemies walked my city. I would send a message to that fool, Vernon. He might find it amusing to play games with Lark, but I was not a toy.
The elevator carried me up to the 17th floor. When I exited, I could feel them very close. Nearly beside me. I took a right, my boots tapping across the hard tile floor. I stopped at a closed door and sent out my senses. Four, at least. I called the knife to me and it sat in my palm like an extension of my arm. I raised my boot and kicked the solid door, knocking the whole frame into the room. All four vampires pounced on me at once, but I was stronger than these young demons.
I slid my knife through the neck of one of the vampires before the first of their blows reached me. Without Lark to hold me back, the fist to my head barely slowed me down and I sliced the second vampire across his torso. As I swung my arm back, the knife dragged across his throat, ending his miserable existence.
Teeth dug into my shoulder as the third vampire wrapped his arms around me, pinning my arms to my sides. I dropped towards the ground, sliding my knife into his foot as I went. Then I jumped back up, kicked the vampire in front of me away and spun to finish off the one who had tasted my blood. My blade cut through his neck so fast and hard that his head hit the ground before his finished crumpling.
That left me with only one vampire, I turned to find him kneeling on the floor. I stopped and looked at him, my breaths coming hard and fast. Making my body twitch with untapped energy. I wanted his head.
“Please, Durga. I knew nothing of this plan. I swear it.”
Lies.
“I just wanted to come here and live a quiet life.”
More lies.
The vampire began to sob, but I could see through his fake cries of innocence. I pounced and knocked him back on the floor, slicing his face to let the blood mingle with the air. He hissed and snapped his teeth at me, proving what I already knew from the scent of his blood. He was a liar and a murderer. His head sliced clean from his body like it was nothing more than a rope mooring a boat to shore. I rose and straightened my back. My neck cracked as I turned my head, feeling much more relaxed now that my city was free of the vermin.
Perhaps this was a better way to go about my work --no interference from humans or useless vampires. Lark need never know.
I left the tall glass building, my black clothes hiding the blood stains, and walked to the bus stop. I boarded the bus, flashing Lark’s bus pass at the driver and took a seat in the back row. A young human man sat across the aisle from me and he kept glancing my way. Lark was beautiful and I was glad to have the attention of a young human man. I stared at him until he looked my way again. I smiled and he smiled back before turning his eyes back out the window. How adorable, these humans.
I got off the bus and walked back towards the mansion that shared the backyard with Vincent. I passed joggers and women pushing baby carriages. One of the mothers called out a hello, but I continued on my way. I scaled the fence and walked through the small forest between houses. The ground was wet from recent rain, bringing the scent of pine and decay to my nose. I climbed the side of the house to get back into Lark's room. After changing, I put the bloody clothes into the laundry hamper and climbed back into bed. It was getting on in the day and Lark would rise in another hour or two. She would have no work to do tonight. I had taken care of it on my own and no one regurgitated any food.
It was an excellent night.
CHAPTER SEVEN
LARK
I woke up exhausted. My arms and legs were as heavy as my eyelids. My clock said I only had an hour before I needed to be at the studio for my mom and tot yoga class and I had flaked out on a couple of them recently and couldn’t miss anymore.
I rolled off the bed and stood up, eyes still mostly closed as I staggered to the shower. I had never felt this tired before. Even after a full night of drinking with Frankie, I always woke up the next evening ready to go. I was worried there was something wrong with me, but had no time to deal with it now. I would check in with the healers after classes.
I had a quick shower and got dressed, still having trouble keeping my eyes open. A stiff breeze came in through my window. I slid it shut and tried to remember if I had opened it before I went to sleep. My mind was mush. Coffee would fix me.
In the dining room, I skipped the dinner foods and went straight for the good stuff. I filled a mug and added lots of sugar to give the caffeine extra help in reviving me and then I slumped down in a chair next to Drew.
He took one look at me and did this exaggerated startle thing that he liked to do. It was annoying. I rolled my eyes back into my head.
“Rough day, Lark?” Vlad asked from across the table.
“I guess I’m not sleeping well. I have no energy at all.”
“That isn’t normal,” Vlad muttered, sitting back in his chair to survey me.
“Stop looking at me. I need to drink extra coffee and I’ll be good to go,” I said, taking a long sip of the hot beverage.
“Hmm.” He grunted in reply.
“Hey, Lark, could I join your class tonight?” Trevor asked from down the table.
“Sure, Trevor. It’s a mom and tots class though, so as long as you don’t mind being the only guy there, I’m sure the moms wouldn’t mind you joining them.”
“That’s not a problem; I love children,” he replied before getting up and trotting off, I assumed, to get changed.
Two cups of coffee later, I was less like a zombie. I met Trevor at the front door and we walked out to my waiting SUV. Vincent was interviewing humans for the job of house manager, but it would be a long process because he couldn’t just post an ad in the paper. He had to find a human who already knew about vampires. Either born into a vampire house or accidentally initiated somehow. There was a list. It wasn’t very long.
In the meantime, the mechanic had been bringing our vehicles up when we called. It wasn’t a big deal, but having another person in the house who didn’t drink blood, would be nice.
Trevor and I climbed in and pulled down the long driveway to the road. We cruised along, I was lost in thought for a while, until Trevor cleared his throat, bringing me back to the car.
“Can I talk to you about something, Lark?”
“Sure, what’s up?”
“I would like to have something to do during the day, like the rest of the vampires. A job, maybe. Uhm, could you talk to Mr. Crowden for me?”
“Sure, I’d be happy to talk to him for you. What kind of job would you like?” I asked as I pulled into the parking lot at the studio. There were already a few cars in the lot, including Randy’s.
“I’m not sure. I worked at a clothing store for a while and that was nice and easy. Before I was turned, I had dreamed of being a reporter, like for a newspaper, but I would have to go back to school to do that. If I had a job, I might be able to afford it someday.”
I shut off the ignition and turned to face the young man. I could see him being a reporter, carrying a notebook and asking questions.
“Alright, I’ll talk to Vincent for you. Come on.”
His face lit up like a sunrise. “Thank you, Lark.”
We stepped out of the SUV as one of the moms was unstrapping her laughing toddler from her car seat.
“Oh, hey, Lark,” she said lifting the child to rest on her hip and grabbing her yoga mat. “I didn’t realize you lived in my neighbourhood.”
“Oh?” I asked, perplexed.
“I waved hello this afternoon. You waved back, didn’t you see me? It was around two pm or so?”
“Hmm, I don’t think so. In the Parkland Heights neighbourhood?”
“Yeah, some of the other moms and I go for a walk around that time every day. I’ve never seen you out before though.”
I glanced at Trevor, who had a perplexed look on his face. It p
robably matched my own. I let it go. There was no way it was me. Maybe she had seen someone who looked like me. Weird that it would be in Vincent’s neighbourhood though.
“Hey, Randy. Thanks for taking care of things for me yesterday,” I said as I stopped at the reception counter.
“No problem, I’m wondering, though, if you might want to hire on another instructor for emergencies.”
I hadn’t thought about that. It was a good idea, business-wise. Perhaps I could give away some of my classes too. I wasn’t expecting to have so many students.
“That’s a good idea. Do you want to post an ad?”
“Will do. Have a good class, Lark.” Randy smiled and went back to furiously typing on the keyboard.
Trevor wandered into the men’s changing room and I got set up at the front of the class with my yoga mat.
The room filled quickly. Lots of little ones tottering and crawling around as we went through some basic routines to warm up and tone muscles. Trevor only made it through half the class before toddlers surrounded him. He read them stories and played games from the box of toys I pulled out to keep them entertained. He was a natural with children and I was a bit jealous. He made it look easy.
By the end of class, not one mom had needed to leave with an upset child and none of the kids wanted to go. Trevor was a baby whisperer. The moms all thanked him as they left.
“You were a hit,” I told him as the last mom walked out the door.
“I told you I like kids. I didn’t have any siblings so I don’t know where it comes from, but I used to entertain the kids at the clothing store I worked at while their moms tried on clothes. They are so much fun,” Trevor said.
I shook my head. “I have no idea what you are talking about. If I look at a baby too long, it will start crying. Every time.”
Trevor laughed and pushed the door open to leave.
“Thanks again, Randy,” I called over my shoulder.
“No problem, Lark. Take care,” he replied, waving.
We drove home, and as I parked the vehicle, I yawned for the fifth time.