***
I smelled the sunrise and waited for the slow drain of strength and energy that always came, but this morning it didn’t come. I didn’t think this could be real, but for some reason the sun wasn’t affecting me the way it used to. I walked to the window and opened the curtain, letting the direct morning light land on my face, but it didn’t burn. I didn’t feel the need to overt my eyes.
I had not been able to withstand direct morning light since becoming a vampire. I had never been a morning person as a human, and I had regretted every missed sunrise since. I had to see how far I could take this. I opened the front door and felt the sun's warm light. I walked out onto the pouch and looked up at the roof. I took a breath that I didn’t need and walked straight out into the light of the sun. That’s when I felt the heat.
The heat threatened to burn me as I looked back at the pouch and wished I had never left its protective cover. Then I felt a coldness that started in my core and traveled thru my limbs and out my hands. Then my entire body changed to mist and became solid again, but now I didn’t feel the heat of the sun. All I felt was cold water flowing thru me. I opened my hands and watched the water gush from my palms like one of those small garden fountains.
“Lily, what are you doing?” I heard Matthias yell from the pouch.
“Her water powers negate the sun’s powers against her” I heard Nola say.
“I can stand in full sunlight without it burning” I said more to myself than anyone else. Ten years without a sunrise and now I could watch every sunrise for eternity. I closed my eyes and tipped my head back to feel the full light of the sun on my face.
“Since you can be in sunlight now we can leave after breakfast” Matthias said.
“I can stand in full sunlight” I told him as if he should understand that was all I could think about. For ten years I had lived without the sun. I couldn’t explain how it felt to stand in the early morning sunlight.
“I know” he said.
“No, you don’t” I told him.
“This means a lot to you” he said.
“Ten years without a morning” I said. A smile crossed his face.
“You need to come in” he said.
“Just a minute longer” I said.
“You have eternity” he said, and he was right. I never had to miss another sunrise. I followed Matthias back into the house where I instantly smelled bacon and eggs cooking. “My cousins got in this morning” he told me.
The house was full of a happy togetherness that I hadn’t felt since becoming a vampire. Being a vampire was all about power plays and mind games. I found the whole family breakfast to be wholesome and comforting. I didn’t realize how much I missed being human.
“Who’s the vampire?” asked one of two men sitting at the kitchen table. He had big brown eyes that sparkled with the light of a smile that didn’t quite reach the rest of his face.
“The better question is why is she here?” the other man at the table asked. The second man had dark, narrow eyes that felt like they were boring into me. His thin lips drew a hard line on his face. I wondered if he got headaches from clinching his jaw.
“She’s my guest. I’m taking her to the Island” Matthias said. I wished everyone would stop putting labels on me. It was like I wasn’t a person anymore. I was a vampire, but I wished I could just be Lily again.
“Well, I guess Gran is letting anyone into the house now. Next, we’ll be inviting the Queen over for tea” the man with the dark narrow eyes said.
“These are my cousin’s Bryce” Matthias pointed to the man with the happy eyes, then to the man with the dark eyes “and Lucas”. Megan was sitting next to Bryce and she was looking at him as if he was her whole world. There was so much love in those small eyes. I wished I could know what that felt like, but I was not destined for love or happiness. I had accepted that, but now seeing it like this was bring up feelings I didn’t want to feel.
I did my best to push the unwanted feelings out of my mind as I took a seat at the table. Matthias sat next to Nola who was at the head of the table. I looked at the empty plate in front of me; I was grateful no one bothered to pass me any food because that would have been awkward. Matthias’s family shared stories and laughed at inside jokes. I tried not to pay too close attention to the happiness around me because I knew it would only remind me of the family I had lost.
After everyone was done eating, I tried to help Nola and Megan clean up, but Nola only gave me a hard look that told me I was not welcome in her kitchen. I conceded the kitchen to Nola and walked into the living room where Bryce and Lucas had found a ball game to watch.
I walked out the front door and sat on the porch swing. The swing was one of those wooden benches that were hung from the ceiling. There was no padding, but I didn’t need it. I held onto the chain as I rocked back and forth. I smelled the warm sweet scent before I heard Matthias come out from the house. He sat next to me on the swing.
“So what happens now?” I asked.
“We go to the Island” he said.
“Then what?” I asked.
“Then we will be at the Island” he said.
“Then all our problems will dissolve.” I said.
“You will understand once we are on the Island” he said.
“Where were your cousins?” I asked. The fact that I hadn’t heard them come in the night before was still bothering me. There wasn’t much that my vampire senses missed.
“They were hunting” he said.
“What can you hunt in summer?” I asked. My dad had gone deer hunting every winter.
“Anything they can find” he seemed to not understand the question.
“But it’s not hunting season” I said.
“They don’t pay attention to hunting laws” he said with a smile. "We should get going. The sooner we get to the Island the better” he said. As we walked towards his truck I noticed that he was carrying a black duffel bag. I watched him he load it into the bed of his truck as I took a seat on the passenger side. We were driving for about an hour before I noticed that we were headed north.
“If we are going to an Island shouldn’t we being heading towards water?” I asked.
“The Island is on another plane. The only way to get there is thru a portal. The closest portal is in Jackson” he said.
“What do you mean it is on another plane?” I asked.
“The Island doesn’t exist in this world. That’s how we are going to escape from Endora. Only someone with a blood bond to the Island can let someone in or out of the Island” he said. We drove for another hour. Then I noticed that Matthias was headed for the Jackson airport.
“I thought we were taking a portal? Not getting on a plane” I said.
“The portal is at the airport” he said.
“Why?” I asked.
“Can you think of a better place?” he asked. I couldn’t, but then I had never thought about where to put a portal to another plane before. Matthias parked the truck in long term parking. He told me the portal was in the men’s bathroom at the airport. I guessed they didn’t have a lot of women coming and going from the Island. “I hope you don’t mind what people will think” he said as he led me into a stall.
“It’s not like it’s my first time in a men’s room” I said and he laughed. Once we were in the stall he shut the door. Then everything was dark and the air was cold. I felt goose bumps forming on my arms and I rubbed them to keep them warm. Then I realized that I was cold. I hadn’t felt cold since becoming a vampire. My scenes felt dull. I took a breath and felt the air fill my lungs. I put my hand to my chest and felt the familiar thud…thud…thud…
“My heart is beating and I’m cold” I told Matthias, expecting him to be as shocked as I was. He just smiled at me.
“This place exists outside of the supernatural. You aren’t a vampire here” he said as he pulled out a black robe from his duffel bag an
d wrapped it around my shoulders. I held it tight and took the warmth it offered.
“Our leader will want to meet you” he said. The portal had brought us somewhere outside. Without my vampire senses I couldn’t tell what time of night it was, but I knew by the height of the moon that it had to be late. I followed Matthias as we climbed up a hill and thru a stone city until he stopped in front of a small building with a guard in front of it. I watched as Matthias spoke to the guard. “…then wake him up” was all I heard of what Matthias said to the guard. Then the guard left., presumably to wake up whoever Matthias had told him to. I followed Matthias into the small building. We let ourselves into the small office. Matthias eyed the small chair on the opposite side of the desk.
“You can sit there, but I wouldn’t” he said. I didn’t sit. We both turned as we heard the door open. A man who looked like he was barely in his thirties walked thru the door. He reminded me of a caged tiger.
“I’m Father Caligari, I’ve waited so long to meet you” he said.
“I’m Lily Culpepper” I said. Even though I was sure he already knew my name, I didn’t know what else to say. “What happens now?” I asked. The words just fell from my lips. It was a simple question, but the answer to it would decide the fate of the rest of my life.
“You’ll live here” he said.
“Forever?” I asked.
“I’m afraid you’re not going to be able to leave ever” he didn’t even look at me when he said this. “We will make some more permanent arrangements for you”.
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“There is a small house on an isolated part of the island. You can make a good life for yourself here” he said.
“As for tonight, I’m sure we can find something for you” he said.
“She can stay with me tonight” Matthias said. Caligari raised a brow, but didn’t say anything.
“Very well, and as for you Matthias, I’m a man of my word, you will have your payment. You’re bond will be broken after you leave the Island” he said.
“I thought…” Matthias trailed off.
“You can’t stay on the Island without your blood bond. You will need to leave tomorrow” Caligari said. “Now, if you will excuse me I would like to get back to bed”. I followed Matthias to a small cold room that I assumed was his room. It was furnished with a nice twin bed in the corner, a chest, and a desk and chair.
“So, that’s why you brought me here” I said. “It was the only way you could be free”.
“That’s not the only reason. You’ll be safe here” he said.
“And you’ll be gone” I said.
“I didn’t know I would have to leave” he said.
“What happens if you stay?” I asked.
“Then my life will continue to belong to the Brotherhood” he said. I knew what it was like to live a life that wasn’t your own and I couldn’t ask that of him.
“Lily, if I could…” I thought I had given up on a life with Matthias a long time ago, but now hearing the words from his own mouth hurt more than anything I’d ever experienced. It was like my heart was falling, but the rest of my body was staying still.
“No, you should leave. You should be free to live your life” I told him.
He closed the gap between us. I ran my hands up his chest, letting them rest on his shoulders. We just stood there looking at each other, waiting. Maybe we were waiting for the moment to be right, or maybe we were waiting for the moment to pass, but it didn't. When his lips touched mine the flame inside me became a full blown fire.
“What happens now?” I asked.
“Now we get some sleep. You take the bed. I’ll sleep on the floor” he said, and I wanted to tell him that I wasn’t tired so that we could have more time until I realized how tired I was. I had almost forgotten what it was like to be tired.
CHAPTER 9