Dark Heirloom (An Ema Marx Novel Book 1) (10 page)

He chuckled.

I sat, but narrowed my gaze in warning.
He better behave.

“Okay, the Strigoians possess a couple of powers which set them apart from the rest of us,” he continued. “First, they can climb sheer surfaces. Second, they can shape-shift into bats.”

“Climb sheer surfaces? Like, the way insects walk up walls?”

“Yes.”

“Ha, yeah right.” I shook my head. Jesu stared back, his expression expectant. “Oh God, you’re serious? But that’s—”

“Impossible?” He sighed. “How can you keep disbelieving after everything you have already seen? Do you even believe you are a vampyre?”

I glanced around, not sure how to answer.

“No. I did not think so.” He frowned.

I bit my lip. His green eyes looked distant, as though he considered giving up, and I didn’t want that. I needed his help. I tried to think about climbing walls and shape-shifting seriously. The notion of it was so unreal, but I had to give it a try. Jesu was convinced that this was the way to figure things out, and at least he had an idea. I was completely clueless.

“Look, Jesu…” I forced myself to put a hand on his shoulder to comfort him. I tried to explain the best way I could without hurting his feelings. “I’m sorry. I’m not used to this. I’ve lived my entire life in a world where vampires were things of myth and movies. I’m trying my best, really, and while I can’t say that I believe in vampires or that I am one, I’m definitely not in Kansas anymore.”

Jesu blinked. “I thought you were from Chicago?”

“It’s an expression.” I sighed. “Never mind. The point is, I promised I would cooperate, so we’ll do things your way.”

“Try it, then.”

“Climbing walls? Now?”

“Yes, now.” He stood and motioned to the blank stone wall between the bed and the wardrobe. “Give it a shot.”

I gulped and faced the wall. It stood no more than ten feet tall. Not a big deal, except that I wasn’t Spider Man. “How?”

Jesu shrugged. “I am not sure. I am not Strigoian.” He stroked his chin. “Just try it. You either can, or you cannot, right?”

“Yeah, sure, why not.” I stepped closer. The light of day obscured most of the stones’ detail, even with the sunglasses on. I found two reachable spots extending out less than an inch. I took a deep breath and grasped the barely protruding stones as best I could. With one foot, I searched around for some place to wedge my toes so I could push myself up. My nails nearly broke as I tried to dig my fingers into the cement filling. I might have been strong enough to punch a hole in stone, but I definitely wasn’t cut out for rock climbing.

Jesu burst into laughter. I let go and rolled back on my left foot, which hadn’t left the ground. Crossing my arms over my chest, I faced him and huffed loudly. He was bent over, the tips of his ebony locks grazing the floor, as he slapped his thigh and gasped for breath.

“Don’t laugh, I’m trying aren’t I?”

He sucked in air only to bellow out more laughter as he clutched his waist. I rolled my eyes and sat on the bed with my lips pressed into a tight pout.

“I am sorry.” He grasped the edge of the bed to balance himself while trying to regain his composure.

“Humph!”

“Really, my apologies. You should have seen yourself. You act so human.”

“Well that’s what I was for the first twenty-three years of my life, thank you.”

“I’m sorry. Please, continue.”

“But I already tried. I can’t climb sheer surfaces… or rocky surfaces, for that matter.”

He bit his lip, trying to fight back another chuckle. “You were approaching it like a human would; you were trying too hard. Try it more like an insect.”

“Oh, like an insect? Is that the idea? Oh yeah, sure, no problem. Let me just go change into my grasshopper legs.” I rolled my eyes.

He sighed. “Have you no imagination? Do not try to climb the wall, do not think about it logically. Just go do it.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Go.” He pointed. “Get up there.”

“Ugh.” I stood and faced the wall.

“Just let the powers come naturally.”

God, I have no idea what he means. Climb the wall, but don’t try to climb the wall.
I grumbled to myself. Frustrated, I slapped both palms flat against the black stone. Something sticky oozed out beneath them.

“Ew!” I jumped back. A dozen fine strings of a clear, gel-like substance stretched like melted cheese, connecting my hands to the wall. Walking backward, the gel stretched over a foot long before the strings finally snapped. “What is this?”

Jesu examined my hands. “It looks like glue.”

“Where did it come from?”

He turned my hands this way and that way. “I think it came from the pores on your palms.”

“Is this normal?”
Who am I kidding—nothing within this castle is normal.

“I don’t know. Wait.” He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled the huge list of vampyre clans onto his lap. His eyes scanned the page for several moments. “Yes, it is normal. It says here the Strigoians secrete a thick, clear mucus on the palms of their hands and feet which allows them to scale any vertical surface with ease.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me. You could have
warned
me about this, but didn’t?” I stood with my arms outstretched, being careful not to get any goop on anything.

Jesu chuckled. “Sorry, I did not read that far ahead.”

“So this stuff will keep me anchored to any vertical surface, eh?” I kicked off my shoes, then peeled off my socks with my toes. “Here goes nothing.”

Holding my breath, I leaped two feet into the air with the palms of my hands and bottoms of my feet facing forward. My body smacked hard against rock, causing little black pebbles to crumble to the floor. Thank goodness I was numb or I might have gone into another coma doing that.

Panting, I realized my entire body lay flat against the surface of the wall, the left side of my face smashed up against stone. I wanted to push back a little so I could see, but I worried I would fall if I moved. Jesu was silent somewhere behind me.

“Am I ‘oing ‘ith?” I tried to ask.

“Well, you are not climbing, but you are sticking to the wall. At least both your feet are off the floor.”

I looked up, scraping my cheek. The ceiling loomed three feet above my head. I was determined to spider my way up the damn wall, even if it was only an inch or two.

Grunting, I lifted my right hand. The squishy goop tried to resist. It felt like I had Velcro gloves on, and was stuck to a sheet of felt. I pulled my hand above my head and slapped it down, feeling the ooze suction me to the wall as a new layer of glue seeped from my pores and gripped the stones for me. Not having to physically grab anything with my fingers felt odd.

I repeated the motion with my left foot, lifting it up and feeling the goop squish out a new layer when I replanted my toes. My knee scraped against the wall as I tried to angle my leg to get my whole foot as flat as possible for better traction.

After a minute of getting used to the Velcro sensation, I found a good reach-step-reach-step rhythm. The crown of my head bumped against the ceiling in no time.

“This is amazing!” I breathed.

“I am glad you are enjoying it. Come down so you can try shape-shifting.”

“Hold on, I just got an idea.” Arching my neck back so I faced the ceiling, I reached my left hand up and over, and laid it flat on the ceiling.

“Ema,” Jesu hesitated. “I do not think you should overdo it.”

“Shhh. I got to try this,” I whispered while placing my right hand parallel to the left one. My back arched at an uncomfortable angle. I had to think a moment about how to move my legs. If I lifted them too high, my knees hit the ceiling and I got stuck. I resorted to inching my way up little by little.

A single bead of sweat dripped from my brow, but it didn’t roll down. Instead, it rolled sideways and dripped off my ear. I was on my hands and knees, hanging upside down from the ceiling. And I’d never been so scared in my life. The goo began to thin and I didn’t know how to make myself secrete more.

“Jesu?”

“Yes?”

“I think I’m freaking out.” My breath rasped as panic bubbled in my stomach. “I don’t know how to get down!”

“Just crawl backwards.”

“I can’t. The glue is thinning and I’m scared.”

“Then let go.”

“What? No way.”

“I will catch you, do not worry.”

I squeezed my eyes shut. “I can’t.”

My instincts kicked in and aggression replaced fear.
Stop blubbering and pay attention. Back up. There you go. Here comes the wall, one foot and then the other.
But gravity decided to give me a reality check and I slid while trying to reach the wall with my right hand.

I screamed and flailed my arms around like propellers. Unfortunately, that’s not how vampyres fly. Jesu caught me in his arms, cradling me so that I was parallel to the floor, my feet still suctioned to the wall by the goop.

His bright green eyes sparkled as he looked into mine. “See?” his lips stretched into a sideways smile. “I told you I would catch you.”

Breathless, I couldn’t do anything but stare back. He pulled me away from the wall until the glue on my feet stretched into thin hairlines and finally snapped. I assumed he would set me down on the bed, but he carried me into the hallway instead. “Where are we going?”

“To the lavatory to wash your hands and feet. I do not know how this stuff works, but I do not want you getting stuck to yourself.”

In the bathroom, Jesu sat me on the edge of the porcelain tub with my feet inside the huge bath. He didn’t bother to turn on the light switch. Plenty of overwhelming rays still filled the majority of the wing, even though it was late evening by now.

I turned on the faucet with my elbow and then tried to adjust for warm water. I gave up when I realized I couldn’t feel a damn thing anyway. “I miss knowing if things are warm or cold.” I soaked my hands and feet under the water, but the glue didn’t appear to be soluble.

Jesu handed me a washcloth, but it got covered in goop and stuck to my hand. “You will get used to it after a while and you won’t feel as numb as you do now.”

“Can you feel if something light brushes against you? Not hear it or smell it. Just feel it?”

Jesu glanced at the floor. “I am not sure. I can hear and smell just about everything long before it gets close enough to touch me.”

I peeled the goop off my palms. The stuff didn’t stick to my fingertips. “Let’s say you have a sheet wrapped around you. Could you feel that?”

“I have never really thought about it before. I can feel this, though.” He rested a hand on my forearm. I tried to feel it too, but the sensation was nothing more than faint pressure against my skin. I had no idea if his hand was warm and soft, or dry and callused.

“How much of that can you feel exactly?”

“I can feel the heat radiating from your body when I touch you.” His angular cheekbones flushed bright blue. I was jealous. That was much more than I could feel.

“Is my skin still soft?”

“Yes.” He turned a darker shade of azure and looked away while removing his hand.

I grumbled. “Would you mind? I’d like to take a bath.”

“Of course.” Jesu rose and left the bathroom. I closed the door and stripped while waiting for the tub to fill. Lying down inside the claw-foot bath, I tried to stop the knotted web of thoughts and questions buzzing in my brain. I just wanted one moment for myself. One moment of peace.

Pushing out the vampyres, the wall-climbing, the bloodlust, the coma, and the attack, the only thing left in my mind was Anthony. A vivid image of his round face formed in my mind’s eye. His soft sandy curls fell over his hazel eyes just like they always did. I had the urge to call him, to hear his voice. I almost stood, wanting to get my dead cellphone.

Instead, I slumped deeper into the bath water and leaned my head against the wall of the tub, wishing more than anything that vampyres could cry.

Chapter 11

A week passed since I first awoke in a guest room in Jalmari’s castle. I figured out the routine here pretty quickly. During the day, everyone kept to themselves, hiding in the darkest corners of the castle, passing the time with quiet activities. At sunset, the castle brimmed with life. The maids came out to scrub floors and dust antiques. I learned the servants were all Neo-Draugrian. Most were
vampyres
, but a few were vampires.

The maids restocked the refrigerator every day just before dawn, bringing fresh bags of blood from a cellar by the box load. I wasn’t sure where the blood came from, and I didn’t ask. I wanted to believe it came from a normal human-operated blood bank, and not something horrifying like a vampyre butcher shop. Either way, I was happy no one expected me to hunt for my food.

Jalmari went on a business trip to Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Maria went with him, saying something about seeing her husband. Leena wanted to go too, but Jalmari refused to let her. She spent the days and nights stomping about her room, screaming to herself and breaking things. I heard all this while reading about vampyre history in the library, where I passed most of my daylight hours.

Sometimes the black cat curled up in my lap while I read. I tried to think of a name for him, and toyed with Felix, Shadow and Scout. Each time, the cat shook his head and hissed at me, not liking my ideas.

At night, Jesu and I tried out the many different vampyre powers in the secrecy of my bedroom. I learned that flying and turning invisible were two separate things. I could do one without the other, which was nice since it meant I could fly without losing my senses. I also figured out I could phase different body parts one at a time and, as long as I didn’t phase my torso, my clothes stayed in place.

I broke a number of items while trying to figure out what I could do. The walls had several more holes in them, and a wide crack split the wardrobe in half. Good thing I didn’t own much more than the clothes on my back.

In addition to phasing, flying, and walking up walls, I could also shape-shift into a bat and a wolf. I definitely had Strigoian blood in me. The wolf transformation meant I also had Vrykolakan blood. The small, Greek clan could also absorb human energy. Jesu said that adaptation was responsible for the Vrykolakan clan’s survival. Today, Jesu wanted to see if I had the energy-absorbing ability as well.

I stood before the bathroom mirror and brushed my black hair into a ponytail. “I don’t see how we can test this one. There aren’t any humans in the castle.” I tossed my brush into the backpack, grateful for remembering to bring it before going to visit my mother.

Jesu leaned against the wall just outside the bathroom door. “We are not staying here for this one, we are going out.”

I opened the door just enough to stick my head out. I didn’t have a top on over my bra yet. “Out? As in, out in
public
?”

He smiled. “Yes. You need some new clothes anyway. The things in your backpack are not going to last forever.”

I bit my lip. “Do you think I’m ready for that?”

“What is there to be ready for?”

“What if I attack someone? What if someone finds out what we are? What if—”

“You will be fine.” Jesu grinned. “Think about it this way; when you were human, you did not glut yourself every time you passed a restaurant did you?”

I narrowed my eyes. “That’s different. I couldn’t smell the food a mile away.”

Jesu sighed. “You will be fine. I will be with you the entire time.”

I popped back into the bathroom to put on my top. “Fine, but don’t blame me if the entire town is chasing after us with pitchforks and torches by the end of the night.”

Dressed and ready, we made our way to the foyer in the first wing. As we walked, I phased my right hand into a shadowy ribbon of smoke and let it glide through furniture, paintings, and anything else within reach. I hated phasing my entire body. Doing so made me blind, deaf, and mute. But phasing an arm or a leg was awesome because I could feel things when I did.

Of course, my skin was still numb and useless. I didn’t actually touch anything when phased, and it wasn’t my fingertips that told me how objects felt. Instead, the vibrations in the air, given off by the molecules of every single object, rippled through the molecules of my phased hand. My brain read the ripples of energy like Morse code and put a name and a feeling to everything.

And it didn’t end there. I could also feel sound waves when someone spoke or made a noise. I could feel ripples whenever something moved, and I could feel rays of heat penetrating my molecules when the sun was up.

The crisp, early-spring air greeted us as we stepped out into the night. The forest smelled fresh, and the stars sparkled bright in the hour of early dusk. A breeze whipped my ponytail against my face, yet my body remained at a comfortable temperature.

However, waves of ice blew against my phased hand and my molecules told me how truly cold it was.

“It’s freezing out here,” I told Jesu. He glanced down as I unphased my hand. The left corner of his lips stretched into a grin.

We walked side by side down a mud-laden path toward the wrought iron gate. Jesu pressed a tiny black button on the brick fence. The gate creaked to life, sending a screeching warning to all the inhabitants of the woods. The vampires have come out to play.

The aroma of dry wood and frozen earth overwhelmed my nostrils. The musky scent of fur and the sour stench of animal droppings surrounded me. Except for the scattering of dead leaves blown across a bed of dry pine needles, and the rush of gallons of icy water crashing against cliffs in the distance, the forest was as silent as death.

The animals heeded the gate’s warning. They were not absent, though. I could look in any direction and spot a bird or a squirrel. They stared at me with beady eyes, not daring to move a muscle. I was a predator now, and they were trying their best not to look like a meal. It didn’t work. Every heartbeat awoke my instincts. I wanted to hunt. Lucky for them, I clenched my jaw and ignored the urge, but could I control myself when I came face to face with humans?

Jesu took my hand, jostling me out of my thoughts. “How are you feeling?”

“Nervous,” I admitted. “The birds make me thirsty, and they’re so tiny. I don’t know if I can hold back from something larger and more appetizing.”

“You will be fine. Do not think that, just because you are a vampyre, you have to eat every living thing you come across. You do have self-control. Just tell yourself that.” He gave my hand a reassuring squeeze before letting go.

We walked on. Dead pine needles cushioned the ground and crunched with each step. The trees grew thicker, and the forest grew darker, yet the clarity of the night sky gave off plenty of moonlight and painted vivid details onto every leaf and tree trunk we passed. Once in a while, the thin spruce branches grew heavy and dumped piles of snow and ice on the ground. Rainbows of light reflected off the ice, creating a mystical aura that transformed the forest.

“These woods are beautiful.”

Jesu smiled. “You should see them in the winter when the Northern Lights are dancing.”

“I would like that.” A jolt of guilt shot through my core. Staying to see the Northern Lights implied spending the year here, and I didn’t intend on staying in Finland any longer than necessary.

The rumble of water crashing against the cliffs grew louder and curiosity gnawed at me. “Jesu, do you have a boat?”

“No.”

Of course not, that would be too simple. “Then, how are we going to cross the lake?”

A sly grin inched up his left side. “You are going to fly, I am going to swim.”

I rolled my eyes. “Let me guess, you have some sort of super swimming ability?”

“Of course.” His cute smile stretched wide, dimpling his left cheek.

“Won’t you freeze?”

“No.”

“All right, then there’s only one problem.”

“What is it?”

“I have no idea where we’re going.”

Jesu snickered. “Do not worry. I will point you in the right direction once we reach the clearing. There is only one village within fifteen kilometers of Kaamassari, you cannot miss it.”

“That’s almost ten miles. You expect me to
fly
ten miles?”

“Yes, and I expect you to fly fast if you want to have time to shop.”

I grumbled. “Why don’t you fly with me, and I’ll follow you?”

“I am not Neo-Draugrian. I cannot fly.”

“Then what are you?”

Jesu smiled. “I am a true Draugrian, like my mother.”

That explained why he never phased through doors like the others did. I remembered the journal I read by Mr. Goudy, and Jesu saying he was born human. I opened my mouth to ask if his mother had bitten him, but he interrupted me.

“Here we are.”

The forest gave way to a circular field blanketed in snow. The crescent shape of the waning moon smiled down on us, and the constellations of stars brightened like Christmas lights, welcoming my air-bound journey.

The animal side of me bounced with excitement. My human side gulped down an acidic mix of nerves and fear. I used to think flying would be the most amazing super power, but now that I really could fly, all I did was worry about falling.

Jesu put both hands on my shoulders. “You want to fly southeast all the way there.” He turned my body to the right so I faced the direction I was supposed fly. “Like I said, there is only one village within fifteen kilometers, so just look for the synthetic light.”

“Uh huh, sure. No problem.”

“One last thing; try not to land any place where you will be seen.”

“Land in the center of a big crowd. Got it.”

“Ema!” Jesu’s brows furrowed.

“I’m kidding.” I lightly smacked his hands away and smiled. “I can do this. I’ll just land on the outskirts and wait for you to find me.” But I wasn’t sure who I was trying to convince more, him or myself.

“Okay.” He nodded. “Go ahead. I will see you off.”

“What’s the name of the village? You know, in case I need to stop and ask for directions?”

He sighed. “Nellim. Now go.”

I stared at the black sky, squinting in the light of the moon.

“Ema?”

I answered without looking at him. “Yes?”

“Do not think about it. Just let yourself soar.”

“Thanks for the advice, Confucius.” I closed my eyes and imagined myself becoming weightless. Taking in a deep breath, I relaxed every muscle just enough to lift off the ground, but not enough to de-solidify. I wanted to be able to see, and there was a thin line between flying and turning invisible. Breathing out, I opened my eyes as my feet left the ground behind.

I could have flown as a bat, but this was easier. I didn’t have the knack for flapping my batty wings correctly yet. Plus, as a bat, I had to get used to the way things were from a tiny blind mammal’s perspective. Flying Neo-Draugrian style didn’t require much technique. Very simple— Up, up, and away. To infinity and beyond!

The spruce forest stretched on forever, like green fingers trying to poke the stars. This was the highest I’d ever flown, and soon to be the farthest. Compared to the ten-by-fifteen foot limit of my bedroom, flying over the forest felt both liberating and terrifying. I noticed the wind only by the way it tugged at my hair and clothes, making them flap against my skin. I worried a strong gust would blow me off course, but there wasn’t a single cloud in sight, and the night lay still.

My animal instincts screamed for joy. I decided to let them take over for a while. Surrendering to what I assumed was my Nephilim side, I closed my eyes and enjoyed the weightless glide.

Opening my eyes a moment later, I gasped, surprised at how high I was. The forest fell at least twenty feet below me. I teetered a little and panicked.
I’m going to fall for sure.

My logic kicked in.
You won’t fall if you calm down. Pay attention. Look ahead. Relax your muscles. Remember what Jesu said; don’t think, just fly.
My flight smoothed and felt more natural, as though the air carried me across the sky of its own will, and I sighed in relief.

As I approached the end of the island, I gasped in awe at the scene laid out before me. A dozen smaller islands, each one a shade of jade and amber, dotted the sapphire blue lake. The crystalline water stretched on for miles, and embraced the black night at the horizon.

Before now, the only other natural lake I’d seen was Lake Michigan. It was bigger, but it wasn’t nearly as beautiful as this one. I slowed to take in the exquisiteness, wishing I had a camera.

Soon the shore crept forward. I worried about boaters spotting me and kept an eye out for them, but the lake seemed devoid of human life, as did the mainland, which continued in more dense forest.

As I drew closer, I searched the area for artificial light, but I saw nothing suggesting anyone lived anywhere near here. I landed on a cliff, stepped into the thick layer of trees, and took a good whiff of air. I could smell just about everything,
except
people. Was I blown off course after all?