Indulge (3 page)

I could tell he was trying to make peace so I smiled at him. “Thanks. So what are you going to do when we get back to Naos? You won’t have to watch over me anymore. You can live your own life.”

He looked hurt by my words, which surprised me. I had meant them to be kind. He couldn’t have enjoyed giving up his life to pretty much babysit me for eighteen years.

“This is my life, Claire. You are my purpose. Before I was assigned to you I was an ironworker. I dreamed of joining the Blood Guard. Then you were born and the entire region rejoiced at the miracle. Humans, vampires and Blood Mates from all over came to Naos to offer themselves into service. I was one of them.”

“That just sounds so bizarre.” I had said it more to myself than to Arrick. I had never heard of vampires having children before. In fact, up until now I had never known it was possible. Apparently it was. And I had no clue what the Blood Guard was. Some kind of army?

“Not bizarre. Just rare. It is a miracle that Nyx has passed only to the Zakarians.”

“Sounds like Nyx plays favorites.” I could tell my comment came off as snotty when Arrick failed holding in a growl.

“Must you always look at things so one dimensionally? It is not playing favorites,” he said, his tone rising in pitch. “It’s her granting the faithful a gift, so that they may live a full life even with such a great sacrifice.”

“What great sacrifice is there for someone who will live forever?”

Softer now, Arrick said simply, “Family.”

I had hit a sensitive nerve with this subject and I made a mental note to be wary of it in the future. Growing up, I knew nothing of Nyx. But I had to admit that I probably wouldn’t have survived my transformation without her. Connecting with her as I locked onto the limitless night sky was probably the only thing that kept me alive during the most painful experience of my life. Well, one of the most painful.

The more I thought about Arrick’s answer, the more I realized it sounded very much like something Nicolae would say. He too had told me how important family was. In a small way I guess that explained why he had me kidnapped. Only the Zakarians could have children. I should hate him for what he did, but how could I? He wanted a family and so did I.

“What is it like for a vampire to have a child? I mean… how does it happen?” I blushed at my question and hoped that Arrick wouldn’t start giving me the birds and bees talk, but I was curious. It couldn’t possibly work the same as it did for humans.

Arrick smiled, “It is a bit of a mystery actually. A vampire can be pregnant for decades or even centuries before she will even start showing, if it even happens at all.”

I couldn’t imagine what it must feel like to be pregnant for that long. I recalled a girl in school who had got knocked up at sixteen and how much she whined about how terrible it was. That had to be nothing compared to years upon years of it.

“So… Ione carried me for decades?”

“Yes. Or longer. There is no way to tell for sure. A vampire doesn’t even know she is pregnant until she starts to show and the birth might not be for a couple more years after that.” He glanced at me and grinned at my perplexed expression.

“I still don’t understand how it’s even possible. I mean… vampires aren’t human.”

Arrick laughed loudly, which only frustrated me. Why was it that everyone found my limited knowledge of Vampires so entertaining? Irately, I raised my eyebrows and folded my arms at him.

“Sorry. You just sounded like those human protestors who think vampires are some sort of undead, soulless being.”

I sighed heavily. I did worry that I was soulless. That someday the animal inside me would consume what was left of the Claire I used to be.

Sensing the emotions of my thoughts, Arrick grabbed hold of my hand. “You’re not, Claire,” he said reassuringly.

“How do you know?” Hot tears of frustration raged down my cheeks. I tore my hand from his grasp to smear them away.

“Because I know,” he said sounding like a smartass and I just rolled my tear-filled eyes. “I might not be a vampire, but I’ve been around them a very, very long time. If you were soulless would you be crying right now?”

I aimed the a/c vent toward my face and exhaled, “I guess not.”

“If you were the undead wouldn’t you have had to die and rise again?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright then,” Arrick said triumphantly.

“Fine, I get your point. You still haven’t answered my question though.”

“I know I haven’t.” He looked at me and smiled softly, even when I raised my eyebrows defiantly. I hated it when things weren’t explained clearly to me. “Sometimes it is best for a mother to explain to a daughter.”

I was stunned. Arrick was withholding the information so I could share the moment with my mother. I could feel his love for sense of family emitting strongly from him and it made me heart swell. Arrick wanted family and valued it as much as me. It was heart-warming to know we had that in common. Maybe we really could have more than just the bond that connected us through an ancient vampire ceremony.

My body sensed the rising of the sun even before its rays broke the horizon. I crawled into the back of the Mercedes and latched the curtains to prevent any light from entering. This would be my last day’s sleep before we arrived at Naos. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I prayed to Nyx that it would be a better home than the last one. Then I prayed that Nyx could even hear my prayers during the day, before falling into a deep dreamless sleep.

The sound of the Mercedes door slamming shut startled me awake. I shoved the curtains away from the windows to see nothing but darkness through the dark tint. Just as I began to expand my senses to find where Arrick was, he pulled open the car door swiftly and poked his head in, an excited smile planted firmly on his chiseled face.

“You look awfully happy,” I said sleepily as I rubbed my eyes.

“Very. Is there something wrong with that?” Arrick offered his hand to help me pull my cramped body out of the back seat.

“No.” I rolled my eyes, not wanting to have another debate with him.

Finally free of the Mercedes, I stretched my arms and legs, allowing my muscles to flex. His excitement confirmed we had arrived, but as I looked around I realized my surroundings were nothing like I thought they would be.

“This is it?”

“Almost. We have to leave the car here.” Arrick pushed up the trunk door and flung our bags over his shoulder. “Just a quick walk over the hill there.” He pointed with a shake of his head and slammed the trunk shut.

“Okay…” I looked toward the hill that was aglow with the brightness of the moon. I couldn’t recall ever seeing grass reflect the light with such intensity before. “So, then where are we now?” I asked Arrick as I offered to take a bag from him.

“It’s not heavy. I got it. We are just outside of Naos. Like I said, the city is very old and the streets weren’t quite built for cars back then. Anyone who drives must park at one of these storage areas.” He pointed his thumb toward a silver sports car I hadn’t even noticed was there.

We made our way onto the small concrete path that led up the small hill only a few hundred yards away. The closer we got the more I could sense the city. It was buzzing with power. I could sense Nyx as strongly as I could the night of my transformation and it made me quicken my steps. “Wow,” I exhaled as we neared the peak.

“You haven’t even seen it yet,” Arrick laughed.

“No, but I can feel it.”

He smiled at our shared excitement. I raced to the top, and Arrick joined in the run behind me. The sprint did not make me the slightest bit winded, but the view that lay before me took my breath away.

The city hugged the rocky coast, allowing the full moon’s light to reflect off the crashing waves of the shore. It was bathed in its beauty. The buildings were tall and smooth, every one seemingly unique in shape and size. There were round towers with arched windows and large square buildings with iron lined railings that swooped and twirled. All were lined with roof tiles that seemed to sparkle in the night like a billion stars.

“Wow.” I couldn’t think of anything else to say. The city of Naos really looked like a city blessed by the Goddess of night.

“You said that already,” Arrick smiled and wrapped his arm around me, as he took in the sight. “No matter how many times I’ve looked at it from this vantage point, I think it gets more and more beautiful every time.”

“I can imagine,” I agreed as I focused my vision to take in every inch of its beauty. “How does it reflect like that? I asked, pointing at one of the rooftops. It looks like it’s made out of stars.”

“They are made from Zakarian sand. The beaches further south sparkle with it at night. It’s luminescent sediment; it reflects light. All the roof tiles are made of the sand. And other things like glass, sand art, um…” Arrick tapped his finger to his chin, trying to think of other examples.

“Well, it’s amazing. I don’t really know what I was expecting, but this… this is really indescribable.”

“Wait till you are in the middle of it. It is like another world compared to…” Arrick caught himself, but I still knew what he was going to say. Naos was looking to be a much more beautiful place than where I had come from.

“Let’s get going,” I said, and yanked a bag from his grasp despite his protests. I was more than capable of carrying one and I needed something to do. As much as I was already taken by the beauty of Naos, I wasn’t going to let it win me over completely until I knew more about it.

When Arrick started to walk I decided to take the lead and sped to the entrance of the city a towering archway that curved over a cobbled street between two cream buildings. I could clearly see people bustling back and forth on the street at the other end. The city was full of life and a positive energy fluttered out toward me.

I wanted to walk out into the crowd, but I didn’t know what the Zakarian people thought of vampires. Back home, vampires lived in their palaces and mansions, only seen on special occasions. Mysterious rulers from afar that had little to no interaction with the average citizen. Arrick hadn’t told me of the customs here, so I waited the few moments before he flashed to my side.

I looked up at him, raising my eyebrows, but he obviously didn’t get what I was hinting at. “Which way do we go?” I asked. “Do we have to take back alleys?” I wasn’t sure if I could be seen in the city streets. A killer vampire might or might not be after me, and I certainly didn’t want to put these people at risk.

“Straight through,” Arrick pointed and began walking.

“They’re okay with vampires walking through the streets?” I asked, keeping a slow pace behind Arrick. I wasn’t exactly afraid, but I didn’t want to start things off here on the wrong foot either.

“Of course, Claire.” Smiling at me, he waved me forward to walk beside him. “Life is different here. You’ll see. Vampires, humans and Blood Guards are all equals here.”

The alley spilled out into the city’s busy marketplace. Dozens of vendors had elaborate booths to sell their goods as people flowed every which way. Some carried recent purchases, others chatted with friends, and even more just appeared to be walking casually, appraising the available merchandise with complete content.

A plump woman, with stark white hair smiled broadly at me. I returned her smile, making sure to not reveal my fangs, which made her giggle. She offered a small, tear drop shaped vial filled with a purple liquid. “Perfume for you, sweetie?”

“Um…?” I looked to Arrick, unsure what I should say.

“She would love to try it.” Arrick took the vial, pulling the tiny cork stopper from its top. “Just a sample,” he whispered to me and I offered my wrist. A drop of fragrance left the bottle’s mouth and the smell instantly hit me. Lavender. I loved lavender.

Wrist poised in front of my nose, I breathed the scent more deeply. The merchant lady grinned. “It’s lovely,” I managed to say after probably too many seconds of sniffing.

The lady beamed widely and happiness expelled from her with incredible force. If the entire market hadn’t already been so full of emotions, I might have been knocked over by the impact of it. She looked to Arrick wide-eyed and he nodded, which sent her in a flurry as she wrapped the vial with a thin sheer fabric and then dropped it into a tiny purple pouch.

Arrick took the pouch and handed it to me. “Thank you,” he said.

He and the merchant shook hands for a few seconds - then her hand went to her pocket, stowing her pay and her attention moved on to the next customer.

I looked down at the small pouch and then back to Arrick. “Thanks.”

“Just don’t say I never got you anything.” He winked at me. “Besides, you made her so happy when she saw how much you liked it, I couldn’t say no to her. Could I?”

I recalled the old lady’s happy face and agreed. “I don’t believe you could.”

Tucking the pouch into my pocket, I stuck close to Arrick as we weaved our way through the mass of people. Even though I no longer ate food, I was still impressed by the wide array available. There were cheeses, fruits, dried meats and baskets overflowing with nuts I had never seen before. I paused and eyed the cheese for a brief moment, remembering the pasta I had in the kitchen with Robin. The scent made me miss her and my heart ached.

Arrick quickly noticed I had fallen behind, but I waved off his questioning expression and trotted slowly to his side careful not to pick up too much speed.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah. There is just so much to take in here, ya know?” I avoided his eyes even though I knew he sensed my sadness. Now wasn’t the time or place to have the discussion, so I hoped he wouldn’t pry.

“That there is,” he sighed with satisfaction. “You still haven’t seen the best of it yet, so hold on to your panties.”

I looked up to Arrick and his child-like grin completely confused. I wasn’t sure what I thought of chipper Arrick. Sure, it was nice to see him happy, but it was making me jealous that I wasn’t as happy as he was. Not yet at least, but I had plans to make sure I would be. Plans that involved one very unvampire-like best friend and one devilishly cute vampire named Dmitry.