Zamani (23 page)
Authors: Angelic Rodgers
After Liz and Vivienne met
with Martine and heard Alex’s voice, she cut herself off from everyone,
including Vivienne.
She’d called
Liz and gone by The Ruby multiple times over the days following the
consultation, and she was frustrated and agitated by the lack of contact.
Liz finally texted her a simple “I’ve
finally returned to the world of the living. Meet me at The Ruby.”
Vivienne immediately went to
The Ruby when she got the text.
As
she walked in the door, she could sense a difference in Liz.
She was calmer somehow, and more self-assured.
She smiled at Vivienne when she spotted
her.
Vivienne felt relief wash over
her as she realized she hadn’t lost her.
“I’m so sorry I cut you off,
but I had a lot of processing to do.”
Liz poured Vivienne a drink and slid her sketchbook over to her.
Within the pages, Liz had drawn sketches
and scenes that explained the months since Alex’s death, as well as sketches
that included pictures of Olivia and of Christophe.
Vivienne sat quietly as she carefully
examined every image.
Finally, she
asked Liz what it all meant; the story Liz told her was one of reincarnation
and vampires.
“So, you think you’re a
vampire and that’s what Martine, I mean Alex, was referring to when she said
you had been changed?”
Vivienne was
still looking at the pictures in the sketchbook, some of which appeared to be
sketches of Wren feeding on Alex, as well as of Liz and Olivia locked in an
embrace.
She also spotted a picture
of Christophe.
“And my brother is
part of this how?”
Liz put her hands on top of
Vivienne’s.
“He’s one reason I’m
alive.
He’s working for Olivia and
he watches over me.”
Vivienne nodded. “Olivia is
the reason he’s gained confidence.
She allows him to be an active player in her scheme, not just a
chauffeur.”
Liz could see Vivienne
was putting the narrative together. “That explains his sudden bitterness toward
the women in the Garnier family. And, I was cheering him on because I thought
he was now at least living his own life.
Instead, he was just following Olivia’s orders.”
“When I made you leave my
house after we met with Martine, I called Ai.
I knew if anyone could help me figure
out this whole vampire connection, it would be her.”
She paused.
She could sense a flare up of jealousy
from Vivienne.
“When she came to
talk to me, something happened.
I
fed from her, Vivienne. I know this is not rational, but I am a vampire.
I know that now.
And, Olivia is the cause of all of
this—everything that happened.
She’s the cause.”
She slid
the sketchbook from Vivienne’s hands and turned to a sketch of two women in
gowns that looked Victorian.
Vivienne
had seen it earlier but had skimmed past it quickly.
Now she looked closer.
While the two women had Olivia’s and
Liz’s faces, Liz had written the name “Daniela” above the figure that looked
like her.
“I’ve been here before.
That’s what the dreams have been about, and why all of this happened.
Olivia has come for me.
I’m not sure how Alex and Wren figure in
just yet, but I do know I have to take the upper hand in this situation with
Olivia.
Will you help me?”
Vivienne was too stunned to
actually speak.
She instead nodded
and waited for Liz to reveal her plan.
When she’d finished, Vivienne nodded and simply said, “It can’t hurt
anything, I suppose. If you’re wrong, that is. If you’re right, at least we’ll
be on our territory.”
Olivia was more radiant than Wren had
ever seen her when she visited to tell her the ritual would take place in three
days time. Wren was to abstain from feeding and to refuse all food trays, in
part to help explain the disorientation that Tiffany would demonstrate after
the transfer.
Tiffany hadn’t been
turned, and the guards would not respond to her in the same way they did Wren.
As far as anyone among the prison staff would remember, Wren was always
confused and disoriented.
She was,
after all, a crazed murderer.
Olivia was flush with
excitement over having found the secret, and her excitement worked to Wren’s
advantage. Even though Zofia’s lessons were effective, Wren worried Olivia
would somehow discover the truth and know Wren was not just submitting to her
desires.
Olivia’s excitement and
anticipation of the ritual and transfer were just distracting enough that Wren
knew her thoughts and secrets were safe.
The three days were
incredibly long for Wren. The time seemed to stretch.
She was beginning to feel the edges of
desperation on the evening of the third day.
She needed to feed, but she
resisted.
She wondered about
Tiffany; even though she suspected there wasn’t much in Tiffany’s life, she
felt guilty about taking it from her.
Wren pledged to come back to those feelings of guilt later; now she
needed to concentrate.
She cleared
her mind best she could and waited.
The sensation started as a
tingling, much like how a hand or foot feels when it’s fallen asleep and is
just starting to revive.
Wren
slowed her breathing, forcing herself to not panic.
She could hear what she thought at first
was the sound of her own heart beating loudly in her head, but as she slipped
under, she realized the sound was that of drums.
The temptation to hyperventilate was
strong, but she worked through the panic and soon the tingling stopped and she
felt a dropping sensation, as in a dream.
The landing was abrupt and for a second she thought she had merely
fallen asleep.
The surface she was
on, however, no longer had the slight give of her thin mattress.
She put her hands on the floor beside
her hips and sat up before opening her eyes.
The second her eyelids flew
open, the drumming stopped, replaced by Olivia’s triumphant laughter.
As Wren’s eyes adjusted to the light,
she saw Christophe and another man with large drums nestled between their knees
and she saw Olivia, who smiled at her and simply said, “Now to complete the
ritual.”
She had no idea who the poor
man was who was meant for their dinner, but she didn’t hesitate.
The days of not feeding and the effort
of the ritual and transfer made her desperate to feed. Olivia handed her the
ritual knife, the handle cool against her palm, as Christophe took the drum
from Tony.
Tony stared blankly, his
eyes glazed. He seemed to recognize the body in front of him, but Wren felt a
shudder of confusion and maybe revulsion, too, as she kissed him on the
mouth.
It was as if he sensed the
person inhabiting Tiffany’s body had changed.
She slid behind him and pulled his head
back. He offered no resistance as she quickly slid the knife along his neck and
quickly placed her mouth over the wound.
Olivia and Christophe joined her in the feeding, each latching onto a
forearm, draining him completely.
Kirby and Mike were out of
town, so Liz and Vivienne had the house to themselves. They cleared the living
room of furniture and swept and vacuumed before drawing the circle that would
hopefully protect them both. Vivienne had no real experience with establishing
contact through telepathy, so she sought out Martine’s advice on channeling and
on protective measures.
She set up candles in the
four compass points, as well as a large white pillar candle that she’d carved
protective symbols and Veve into inside the circle.
When Liz was dressed appropriately in a
white ritual gown that Vivienne had worn before, Vivienne motioned for her to move
inside the area bordered by the candles.
Before they sat on the cushions she’d placed on the floor, Vivienne drew
a circle using holy water from St. Ann’s. She’d read that holy water was
effective in holding back the undead. She kept the bottle in her hand in hopes
that she wouldn’t have to use it again.
She lit the candles and they sat.
Vivienne didn’t expect it to
work.
Or, more accurately, she
hoped it wouldn’t work.
She didn’t
think Liz was crazy, but if it didn’t work, she could stay in denial about
Christophe and what she suspected was going on with him.
Olivia’s laughter was the
first sign that the summoning was successful.
And Vivienne’s worse fears were
confirmed as Olivia confirmed she’d robbed Vivienne of her brother. “He’s so
precious, don’t you think? Your grandmother certainly did a wonderful job of
grooming him to be subservient.”
Liz was the first to
respond. “I will fight you, Olivia. I’m fully aware of who I am, and I am not
subservient to you.”
Vivienne took Liz’s hand. “I
vow to help you in your fight against Olivia.” She still held the bottle of
holy water in her free hand, and she threw it at Olivia. The drops of water
shimmered in the air as if in slow motion; Olivia’s form shattered into falling
glitter, her laughter lingering after all other traces of her were gone.
She and Liz embraced in the
circle, both of them crying silently.
It wasn’t clear to either of them who initiated the kiss. They both were
breathless by the time they pulled back.
“Will you come home with me, Liz?
I don’t want to leave you here, and I can’t stay.”
Liz grinned, suddenly a
little bashful.
“I don’t want to
stay here tonight either.
We can
leave things as they are and come back in the morning.
We’ve got plenty of time to clean up
before the boys get back.”
Vivienne drove as quickly as
she could without crashing and without getting pulled over for speeding.
Once they were safely in her house, she
turned to Liz and kissed her again.
They were as breathless as before, even though the danger was gone.
She led Liz to her bed.
Later, as they sipped wine under
the covers, Vivienne said to Liz, “I hope that I didn’t rush things.
Don’t think this was just a reaction to
what happened, Liz. I want to see where this goes.”
Liz squeezed Vivienne’s
hand.
“I was just about to say
something similar.
I can’t
guarantee I have all of my shit together, though. It doesn’t seem quite fair to
pull you into this any more than you already are.”
She paused and poured more wine for both
of them.
“Christophe being under her
control isn’t your fault. I would be fighting her even if she wasn’t after you.”
“There’s also the fact that
I’m still pining after my dead girlfriend.”
Liz stared at her glass.
Vivienne put her hand under her chin and
kissed her sweetly.
“There’s nothing wrong with
that.
I would worry if you weren’t
still grieving.”
They sat for a
minute before she continued. “Besides, in African religion, death is viewed
much differently.
For you, and for
everyone who knew her, Alex is
Sasa.
As long as you are here to remember her,
she exists between the worlds of the living and the dead. She lives on in you,
Kirby, and Mike. When all of you are gone, she will be
Zamani
; in that
state, she is revered as a long ago ancestor and joins those from the
past.
I should expect that until
you are gone that she will live within you. To wish anything else would be the
height of selfishness.”
Liz felt tears falling as
Vivienne talked.
“Will you teach
me?
I want to know what you know,
to become a Voodooienne.”
Vivienne nodded.
“I will teach you, but I also want
something from you—I want to be a vampire.”
Liz shook her head. “I
can’t.”
Vivienne replied, “You have
to.
Let me explain.”
The two stayed up most of
the night, opening another bottle of wine. Vivienne explained how her
grandmother had plans to take over her body and leave her in the shell of an
old woman. Liz knew she had no choice. If she didn’t turn her, she would lose
her.
