Chapter Nineteen - The Vampire That Walks in Light
A few weeks had passed.
Under a moonless and cloudy night, Zea picked through the pieces of burned wood and ashen metal that once had been her mansion. She stopped momentarily to look at her phone and wondered if she should send that email with her questions. Would they answer? Everyone seemed to be avoiding answering and asking questions after Elijah said all was good when they landed in San Francisco.
Scroll destroyed. Everyone saved. The end.
But this was not the end for her. She sighed when she found her old flintlock pistol that was still intact. She grasped it in her hands. This was one of the few items she had recovered. She had been coming here every night since they returned. Raine had promptly burned the mansion into the ground before she left for London.
Zea took a deep breath to stop herself from crying. All things that had been House Eagle, the many years she had built up, were gone. Transferred or given to the EC. At least Raine kept what she said about letting those who did not want to join the EC, go without harm.
One of them had texted her, “Good luck.” And that was it.
“And here you are moping around once again,” said a voice from behind Zea.
She didn’t need to turn around. She had sensed him watching her for sometime. He did not die after all, one of many of Raine’s deceit she had discovered.
“Just go Aric,” she said, turning over her old flintlock pistol in her hands. “The EC has won.”
Aric laughed maniacally. “Oh Elizabeth, is that it? All those that died for your stupid cause was for nothing,” he said spitefully.
Zea took another deep breath. She tucked her pistol into her leather jacket. Then she turned around and drew her sword from her back. “You want to kill me so you can go up the caste? You’re still going to be fodder to them,” she said.
“Who said I want to kill for them? I want to kill you for revenge,” snapped Aric as he lurched for her recklessly.
Zea easily twirled around him, catching one of his arms and twisting it behind his back. She shoved him against the pile of burned wood that she had been going through moments ago. She pressed her sword against his neck.
Aric struggled despite Zea’s blade at his neck. “You going easy on me?” he growled.
“I don’t recall wronging you in any way,” she said calmly.
He laughed, but it was robbed of any happiness. “Obscuralis Post 246. It was your call even though Elizabeth, no, Raine said not to attack and retreat.”
“You weren’t there,” recalled Zea as she furrowed her eyebrows. It was the disastrous mission that had many of their members killed.
“No, but Diane was. Nearly all of them died because you didn’t think a First would show up!” Aric was crying angrily. His bottom of his face was nearly covered in bloody tears.
“James’ sister,” she said softly. She remembered the perky vampire and had tried to emulate that in the letters she wrote to her brother. She hoped wherever James was that he was safe.
“Fuck you! You don’t deserve to utter her name,” spat Aric.
Zea recognized the passion and heartbreak that tinted through Aric’s anger. She once had that. A lover’s anguish over loss.
“I’m so sorry,” she started.
“Your sorries won’t bring her back. Doesn’t bring any of them back!” barked Aric.
Zea could feel that the sun was coming up. She would have to leave, but she also didn’t want Aric to try to kill her and she didn’t want to kill him either. “I am going to let you go. Tomorrow night you will leave the city and never return.”
“I am never going to stop. You will have to kill me now,” snarled Aric.
Zea’s jaw tightened. She brought up her sword to knock Aric out. At least she can take his unconscious body back to her new place before deciding what to do with him next.
A bone cracked. Aric forced his arm bone to break under her grip as he turned around with a clawed hand aimed at her head.
Zea shifted her grip and plunged her blade into Aric’s chest, making sure to avoid his heart. Aric lurched forward and wrapped his limbs around her tightly in an awkward embrace. He coughed up blood onto her shoulder.
“I am going to make sure you die with me,” he coarsely whispered into her ear.
“If you were planning on keeping me here until the sun rose, it’s not going to work,” she said. “You can die by yourself.”
Zea overpowered Aric and broke through his grip. He landed on the floor as she pulled out her sword out of his chest. He coughed up more blood.
“I didn’t think either.” Aric heaved. He looked up at her tiredly. “Good thing...you’re not faster...than light.”
Hidden UV flood lights turned on suddenly.
Aric skin sizzled, smoked and bubbled, but she did not. She was perfectly fine standing in the flood lights. Aric’s brows burned away in a rash of blisters as he looked up at her wide eyed.
“You fucking bitch! You were sunproof all this time,” he blurted angrily.
Aric tried to get up, but the light ate away at his skin that was now oozing and crisping up. Zea rushed to pull him out, but he struggled, pushing back at her, screaming, still trying to kill her. When she finally got a hold on him, he was far too gone. In her hands, his body turned to ash and crumbled between her fingers.
Then the morning sun came up just as the UV flood lights turned off. For a while Zea stood there, staring at her hands. She was bathed in the morning sunlight perfectly fine.
Zea started to recall—to put things together.
A flock of pigeons flew over her.
“Leora,” she said under her breath angrily.
Raine wasn’t the only one who had deceived her.
***
“You’re on fire this morning, Leora!” called out Jones.
Leora gave a thumb up right after she finished taking an order on the last morning batch of customers. “Just doing my job, boss!” she said happily.
Kip, passing her by, tapped her on the shoulder. “Thanks for covering me,” he said.
“No problem! You covered for me when I was out for two weeks,” she said. “You coming to my new apartment welcome party?”
“Yep, I will be there,” he said and winked.
Oh, boy, I hope he’s not going to shoot his shot. Josephine would kill him, she thought.
Leora had gotten a raise and was able to have enough money to move out of Elijah’s place. She had thanked him and said she was going to pay him back for the time she lived with him. He said it was okay. Which was totally strange since he was always demanding she pay rent on time?
The front entrance of Golden Arches slammed open. Distraught, partially covered in dry blood and crazy light blue eyes was Zea at the entrance. She pointed at Leora.
“You,” said Zea.
Zea marched to Leora at the cash register. She slammed her hands on the counter. “What did you do to me? Who the fuck are you really?” she shouted.
Jones quickly came to Leora’s side with a package of toilet paper. He eyed Zea with a ‘don’t mess with her’ face. “Is your friend going to be trouble?” he asked.
“Don’t call security. I’ll handle this. I’ll take my five minute break now. Is that okay?” said Leora.
“Approved,” said Jones, his eyes not leaving Zea even when he backed away to disappear into the restroom.
“Follow me,” said Leora to Zea.
Zea, seeing Leora’s fellow coworkers eye her like the manager, nodded slowly. She came around the counter and followed Leora to the back where they went out of the restaurant. They walked around the employee parking lot and stopped in front of the garbage bins.
“Alright,” said Leora as she removed her Golden Arches visor. “First answer, I gave you my blood. Granted, I did not think it would go beyond healing—which is surprising.” She rubbed her chin.
“How?” snapped Zea. “Maybe I believe the healing but not this!” She rolled up the sleeves of her jacket. “I am not burning.”
Leora shrugged. “I have no idea,” she said.
“Bullshit!” said Zea. She picked up Leora by the front of her shirt and hauled up the shorter vampire. “And I remember your head being ripped off. You should have been dead!”
“Let me down and I’ll explain along answering your second question,” said Leora calmly.
“No! You tell me the fuck now!” snarled Zea.
Leora sighed. Small black veins appeared at the sides of her face.
Shakingly, Zea put Leora down.
“Y-you,” said Zea, trembling. She could no longer control her body. Just like Nova.
“Yeah, learned it from seeing that person do it. Not important. Anyway, are you going to let me answer your second question or not?” said Leora.
Zea, feeling Leora release her hold, begrudgingly nodded her head.
“I wanted to tell you when we got back, but Josephine is, uh, really likes to be around me a lot and nosey. She’s almost too much, HAHAHA. I was gonna text it too, but I got busy with the party and job.” Leora looked at her phone. “Wow, five minutes go by fast. I better make this fast.”
Leora cleared her throat.
“I am and always Leora. Nothing has changed,” she said. “However, what I am about to tell you, you can’t tell the others.I don’t want them to treat me differently.” She took a big breath.
I am….
Epilogue: The Calm Before the Storm