Beyond the Afterlife

CHAPTER 10

"Are you done looking around my house? You can sit down when you're finished."

Hannuel turned to the woman who had spoken. He couldn't tell if she was just being kind or if she was naive. In this day and age, who would let a stranger into their home? That's dangerous. But it didn't matter—he needed to learn how to use the smartphone he had just purchased.

When he left the lair, one thing stood out: everyone was constantly interacting with their phones, poking and swiping at the screens. He overheard a group of students saying that whenever they needed to know something, they just used their phones and the internet. The internet was said to be free in cafes. Yes, it was risky for him to spend so much time in cafes, but he had no choice. He needed answers about this girl—why couldn't he hear her thoughts?

Just like now, he was staring at her.

He knew there were countless thoughts running through her mind, yet he had no clue what they were. And why did he decide to search for answers online? There was only one reason. He had overheard the students discussing vampires, even mentioning different types, including his race of astral vampires. If someone was foolish enough to leak information about his kind, he would need to deal with it. He knew that the belief in vampires was part of mortal traditions, but he never imagined there would be articles about his race. He needed to see how much humans knew about his kind.

Hannuel sat down on the sofa the woman indicated. He continued to stare at her, as if he was suspicious of her intentions. Perhaps she had a plan against him; maybe that's why she welcomed him so easily.

Whatever. She posed no real threat to him. She was just a mortal. The only thing unusual about her was her thought blocker, and that's what he intended to find out.

"Your name?" he asked. She suddenly smiled, and it felt as though a warm hand was caressing his insides. What was this woman, really?

"Oh, that. You don't even know my name, yet I let you in. You should be grateful—you're the only stranger I've ever let into my house." She smiled again as she spoke.

Tss. Why? Why did she let him in?

"I'm Lyra," she said, extending her hand toward him.

Hannuel recognized it as a common gesture, a handshake. He wanted to reach out and take that smooth, white hand, but he hesitated, unsure why he felt a nervous sensation creeping up as he stared at the hand belonging to the girl who called herself Lyra. Just as he was about to take her hand, she withdrew it and took a sip of her drink. She seemed embarrassed.

"Alright." She scratched her neck with the hand she had just extended to him. "I guess shaking hands isn't your thing." She added.

He wanted to correct her but chose not to comment. Instead, he took out his cellphone and placed it on the coffee table.

"Teach me how."

The woman rolled her eyes, clearly irritated by him. Perhaps he was being too rude. Not that he cared—he needed to learn how to use the gadget.

"Fine."

The woman picked up the phone and sat next to him. He ordered her to come closer so he could better observe what she was doing with her hands.

"First, you have to press and hold the power button."

The phone made a strange sound that sent a shiver down his spine, just as it had the first time he heard it. Lyra glanced at him, raised an eyebrow, but said nothing about his reaction.

"Then, when the home screen loads like this, you start navigating. Since your phone is new and doesn't have any apps installed yet, we'll go to the Play Store first."

"Play Store? I don’t need silly games! I need something that can give me information, something that can answer my questions about you people." Hannuel was annoyed.

What this woman was teaching him seemed irrelevant. And what did she take him for, a bored creature in need of entertainment? Huh!

He saw the woman blink as she stared at him. He stared back at her, but realized it was a mistake. The longer he looked into her sparkling eyes, the more the rhythm and pulse of his heart changed.

What the hell is this?!

Lyra suddenly laughed, catching him off guard. If her eyes seemed to draw him in, her laugh was a comfort to his boredom.

"You are... a crazy, crazy man, do you know that?" she said, still laughing. "I'm talking about the Play Store app on the phone. Where have you been hiding that you don’t know about cellphones?"

"Eastside Heights Subdivision," he answered without thinking.

It was too late when he realized he had revealed the location of the decaying mansion where his family lived.

The woman turned to him, surprised. "In the main city?" she asked incredulously.

He didn't bother to respond. It was too much information already.

"By the way, you're from the city, so why are you so out of touch with the world?"

"Would you just teach me how to use the damn thing? I didn’t accept your invitation to come into your house to chat. I just want to know how to use this damn thing!" he snapped, irritated.

What kind of woman was this? A newscaster? A reporter? Why so many questions?

The woman's expression darkened, clearly not pleased with his response. But again, he didn't care. He just needed to know how to use the mortal’s contraptions.

"Huh! How ungrateful can you be? I let you into my house, and this is how you repay me? Maybe I should just kick you out!" she muttered under her breath.

Despite her attempt to keep her voice low, Hannuel heard her clearly—his hearing was ten times sharper than that of humans. But he chose not to react. This was getting boring.

"Fine." Lyra sighed, clearly running out of patience.

She began tapping furiously on the phone screen. He wasn't even told what she was doing. After a few minutes, she handed the phone back to him. "I’ve installed the apps I think you’ll need. I also connected you to Wi-Fi to download them. It’s up to you to sign up and create your accounts. If you need anything else, you’ll have to figure it out yourself. Google is there, you can ask it." She pointed to an app labeled "Google." He still thought it was some small creature that lived inside the gadget. "If you get lost, just use Google Maps to find your way," she added, speaking so quickly that he could barely keep up. She seemed eager to end their tutorial. "That’s it. You can leave now." She waved him off dismissively. The woman had become bratty, too.

"How do I get Wi-Fi?" he asked, still irritated. He had heard that apps wouldn’t work without an internet connection.

"Buy it! Get it installed in your house. You look rich—you can afford it." Her eyes flicked to the label on his jacket. "If you don’t have anything else to say or if you don’t plan on saying thank you, get out of my house. You’re making me too busy."

She was straightforward and rude. It seemed his behavior was unwelcome. But he didn’t care. He had gotten what he needed. He stood up, ready to leave.

"Wait," Lyra called out as Hannuel was about to leave. "I have one question for you."

He turned to face her, noticing her intense gaze. "The first time we met, I knew it was the first time I’d seen you."

"And?" he asked impatiently.

"Then... how did you know where I live?"

He sighed. "Simple. I’ve seen you passing by and entering this house."

"H-How? I mean, you’re from the city, and this place is a bit far."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "You said you had one question. I answered it. I won’t answer a second."

"What?!" she exclaimed in disbelief.

He ignored her and left, walking out the front door. He could still hear her shouting.

"You ungrateful brute, come back here! Hey!"

Smiling, he quickly left Lyra's house, exiting the gate. Why did he find it amusing to see the girl angry? Her cheeks turned red when she was upset, making her look more adorable and charming. And then there was her name. Lyra.

"What the hell? Get a grip, Hannuel! Why are you thinking of a mortal as adorable, charming, and...beautiful? You should be wary of her. She’s different. And maybe, she’s a threat to your privacy!" He felt foolish.

Frustrated, he headed back to the mansion, taking the new cellphone with him. Duty first. Perhaps he had endangered their food source by hanging out at Lyra's house.

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