The Vampire Pirate's Daughter (12 page)

I sit down on the grave of my mother and
sweeping the long grass away with my hand gently, I look sadly at
the headstone. Her date of death matches my original date of birth.
I notice the grave of Francois next to hers. I remember the day he
was buried, I watched from the shadows of the trees.

From the corner of my eye, I see a
shooting star cross the night sky swiftly, and my thoughts
involuntarily return to Andrew. We grew close in that last week
before Amanda and I left to come here. I doubt I will ever see him
again, even if he professed his undying love for me. He did not
really understand the concept that we could never be together. Even
if I wanted to love him and I wanted to spend forever with him, I
could never turn him. If I did go as far as making him like me, we
would always be fugitives and looking over our shoulders, waiting
for them to catch up with us and to kill Andrew and me brutally and
painfully. I must spare him from that, and so, in a way, I am glad
that Amanda and I moved away. There might have come a time when I
would have wanted to keep him with me forever despite the dangers.
Although I used to have a short future planned of going to
university and finding a job, the one thing I have learned from all
my years is that things never happen the way you assume they
will.

I will always remember those feelings Andrew
awakened in me. Innocent, nervous feelings I have never experienced
before. I convince myself that love was not in my future, not my
destiny, and that it is better for Andrew to move on and hopefully
he will think of me every so often.

I get up from the ground and stretch my legs.
Slowly I walk back to the house and when I walk into the room we
attempted to make livable, Amanda is already fast asleep. I sit
down on the chair opposite her and then slowly, as it gets later, I
start easing down toward the uncomfortable cushions, but sleep does
not come.

Unable to fall asleep, I look through the
window up at the many stars I have not seen in the longest time. I
look for the Southern Cross, despite the fact that I know, you
cannot see it up here in the northern hemisphere at this time of
the year.

*

I wake up when Amanda touches my arm softly.
Fleetingly I consider that I had eventually fallen asleep whilst
looking up at the night sky.

When I open my mouth to ask her what her
problem is, I hear her urgent whispered hush.

I sit up slowly, frowning, and she sits
down next to me. She whispers, “There is someone here.”

Quietly I reply, “Can’t be. Maybe it’s
rats.”

“Although it sounded like footsteps, I also
thought it was only rats or something in the walls, but a loud
screaming woke me up completely.”

I stand up and take her by the hand, but she
pulls me back determinedly.

I hiss softly, “This house belongs to me and
I am going to see what is going on. If there is anybody here, I
will chase them away.”

Suddenly there is a loud yell from outside
and hurriedly Amanda and I move toward the window.

I move the curtain aside and the railing
falls from the wall with a loud clang.

Before terror fills me, I see six men running
across the lawn. Two figures float across the old, broken pond
while another man grabs onto a scared running woman and then I see
that familiar stance as he bends down and hides his face in the
nape of her neck.

One of the running men stops abruptly and
turns toward the house. Searchingly he looks toward the house and
then he sees me, as Amanda gasps.

I follow her gaze as the woman, in the arms
of the man who caught her, collapse. He drops her to the floor
without a care and I notice that she is lying deadly still. The
other four men fall over her and I see them ripping her body
apart.

Amanda says softly, “My god, Susie. Go hide.
I do not know if we can defend ourselves against them. They are
savage!”

I look back at the man who noticed me and I
see him walking slowly, deliberately toward the house with a smug
grin across his face.

The moon is bright and I notice his light
colored hair, long enough to touch his shoulders. His shoulders are
broad and strong. He strides with long steps and I am unable to
move away from the window as I stare at him. He mesmerizes me by
the sheer confidence he portrays.

Amanda turns toward me and it is the first
time ever that I see fear in her eyes. She insists, “Susie.
Hide.”

Rebelliously I reply, “No! If they attack
you, you will need my help.”

She still wants to be firm, pushing me toward
the door further away from the main door, when a deep voice
resonates through the room. “What do we have here, uninvited in my
home?”

“My home,” I reply defiantly.

Across Amanda’s shoulder
I see him look at me more
intently.

His eyes move from mine toward the
portrait of my mother over the huge fireplace.
He smirks, “My apologies.” He walks closer
toward us and then I see a brief moment of disappointment in his
eyes, when he realizes we are not dinner.

I hear the other five men come into the house
noisily and when they walk in, I see one hurriedly wiping the blood
from his mouth with the back of his hand. I hear another growl
softly, deep in his throat.

They immediately take an attacking stance,
but the blonde haired man standing only a few feet away from Amanda
and me, holds his hand up in a cautionary motion.

Amanda moves in front of me and slowly
deliberately, she nudges me backwards toward the door behind
us.

The man says, “Forgive my rudeness. If I may
introduce myself, I am Callum Duvereax.”

He steps forward and Amanda steps back,
pushing me backwards with her body.

Callum stops and then he turns toward the
five men standing behind him. Smiling friendly, he says, “May I
introduce my companions. Justin.”

A blonde haired man, lean and effeminate
steps forward and he bows at the waist, folding his one arm around
his back and the other across his stomach. Amanda cannot help
herself and she curtseys back involuntarily.

I move away from her, but she stops me
with her arm, pushing me back behind her. I see Callum notice the
way she is protecting me. I cannot blame her for being overly
protective, especially after the fiasco with Ethan.

Callum says amused, “Peter,” and Peter steps
forward. Peter is older looking with a hairless scalp and a full
beard.

He announces them one by one and individually
they step forward, bowing slightly toward us. Callum seems to be
their leader and without his instruction or agreement, they would
not kill Amanda and me.

He names the remaining three, Edward, who has
dark, black hair and a goatee, Claude, who is extraordinarily tall
and muscular with short, cropped brown hair and a jovial expression
on his face and Herman, who is slim with reddish, curly hair and a
serious appearance. It looks as if his frown is permanent.

Callum looks at Amanda enquiringly. “May we
sit and have a civilized discussion. I have some questions.”

Amanda nods slightly.

We remain standing, while the six men sit
down on the chairs. The dainty French antique chairs look too
flimsy to carry their weight, but I am impressed with the durable
quality when none of the chairs collapses under them.

Callum looks up at Amanda. “Would you take
a seat?”

Amanda says defiantly, “Say what you need to
say. I think you should ask your questions and leave, it is
improper to be here at this time of the night.”

Callum looks at her amused. “This time of
the night?” He laughs suddenly. “This is our day and yours too. Am
I wrong in presuming you are not human?” I see a greedy glint in
his eyes. He did not get any blood from the woman earlier on,
because he came to investigate us and thought we were people who
found an empty château and decided to spend the night.

I feel Amanda gasp, because this confirms
her initial guess that they are savage. They do not move in the
normal circles of the community, because then they would have known
that times have changed, they would have known about the big yellow
‘sunshine’ pill. These six men have continued to live at night and
I realize that the rumors are true. There are still savages amongst
us.

Amanda says adamantly, “No we are not human,
but we have evolved and can live under the glaring sun.”

Callum sits up straight. There is shock on
his face. “What? Why don’t we know about this?”

He looks toward the other five men and they
shrug while looking up at Amanda expectantly.

I feel Amanda sigh. She reaches for my hand
and then she pulls me along. We sit down on a chair, away from them
and Amanda makes sure she is still between them and me.

She asks Callum directly, “Where have you
been all these years that you do not know this?”

Callum answers, “Living at night and hiding
in old houses and cellars. We have been keeping to ourselves.”

Claude says, “We have always wondered what
happened to everybody. We never came across anybody. The two of you
are the first other vampires we have seen for decades.”

Amused Herman affirms, “We thought we were
the last of our kind.”

I feel sorry for them, as I say, “You have
missed so much. The day is so beautiful.”

Amanda nudges me and I hear her soft
hush.

Abruptly Edward says, while looking directly
at me, “You look very familiar. What is your name? Have we
met?”

Amanda replies, “No, you have never met her.
She has always been with me.”

Callum looks at me ponderingly, while Edward
continues thoughtfully, “You look familiar.”

Amanda replies hurriedly, “This house belongs
to her.” Amanda points up toward the portrait up against the
wall.

Edward smiles as recognition dawns in his
eyes and then he says skeptically, “You are Susanna? You are
William’s Susanna?”

Amanda says, “Yes, she is.”

Edward laughs unbelievingly. “You must be
kidding me!”

Callum interrupts him, “Later, Edward.” He
turns toward Amanda again. “Tell me how you are able to live in the
day.”

Amanda starts to explain, “Joseph, a vampire,
who grew tired of living by night invented a serum. After drinking
it for a prolonged period, it builds immunity in our systems
against the sun.”

Callum shakes his head doubtfully, while
the other five men stare at us in amazement.

Callum asks after a while, “You live amongst
humans?”

I reply, “Yes, we do. We live normal
lives.”

Amanda interrupts me and says
admonishingly, “We do not live savagely and we do not kill
indiscriminatingly. We live with humans as their neighbors. We shop
with them and are friends with them.”

Claude asks curiously, “You do not need
blood?”

I laugh. “Of course we do but there are ways
to deal with it. If you have lived amongst humans for a while, you
are able to resist as long as you drink one human every thirty days
or so.”

I see a despondent longing in Callum’s eyes
and I feel immeasurably sorry for him.

Peter and Justin become restless and then
Peter says, “It is almost dawn, we must go down.”

I have forgotten and have lost the ability to
sense dawn as it approached.

They stand up as one and then they move
toward the door.

When he reaches the door, Callum turns
around. He looks directly at me, and asks, “You will be
here?”

I nod my head yes and I remind him, “This is
my house.”

I did not fall asleep after that and I see
the sun peek up over the horizon while staring at Amanda, fast
asleep on the opposite couch, unseeingly.

I think about
Callum, who is handsome and confident, secure in
himself. His jaw is square and muscular. His blonde hair falls
softly around his face and brushes his shoulders. His eyes are a
dark, dark blue. He is built powerfully and he has a brilliant,
dazzling smile.

Andrew is also handsome, but more boyish, not
so secure within himself, but to his defense, he is seventeen and
only seventeen. His dark coffee-brown hair is short and his dark
brown, almost black eyes are broodingly serious. He is lean and
muscular and his arms when he folds them around me are strong.
Unfortunately, he is very human.

I wait for Amanda to wake up and it is a long
time before she eventually opens her eyes lazily.

She stretches. “I cannot remember when last I
stayed up so late or, must I say early.”

I reply, “It’s been a while.”

She stands up from the couch. “We better get
ready to go to the shops and get those supplies. I wonder if there
is a refrigerator here.”

“
I doubt it. No one has lived here for
almost a hundred years.”

“We will have to buy one then, and a
generator, unless you want to go the electricity department in the
village and have it reconnected.”

“The electricity wiring in the house was
installed when electricity was first discovered and we will have to
rewire everything, before having the current reconnected.” I add,
“Besides, who will I say I am? Although we know I am the rightful
owner of this property, I am going to have to proof it and that
involves paperwork.”

“Another thing I will have to add to my ‘to
do’ list.” Amanda always makes sure to get the correct paperwork
required whenever we move - she has become very experienced in the
art of forgery.

She throws her head forward and puffs her
hair vigorously. She throws her head back again and her silver
blonde hair cascades over her shoulders. She is the envy of many
human girls. She asks, “So? Are you ready?”