The Nememiah Chronicles Collection

Chapter 9

“Are you sure she will wake up?” I recognized Lucas"s voice, heard anxiety in his worried tone.

I recognized Lucas"s voice, heard anxiety in his worried tone.“Yes, she will wake up. She has very grave injuries and she"s suffering severe shock.” This was Ben"s voice, soothing and reassuring. “Jerome has her sedated with a significant amount of morphine; he says she"ll wake when she"s ready.”

This was Ben"s voice, soothing and reassuring“We should have taken her to hospital.” Lucas"s voice again.

Lucas"s voice again“Lucas, you know it"s better to keep her here with us. We don"t know what Ambrose told her, how much she knows. It would be dangerous for us all, if she"s aware of everything and speaks to hospital staff. What if she tells them our secret? We would have to run immediately and none of us is ready to leave yet. Besides, Jerome can access all the medical equipment we need and bring it here.” This was a woman"s voice, light and lilting.

This was a woman"s voice, light and lilting“Marianne, you think she"s better here with us. Gwynn has made her attitude about Charlotte very clear.” Lucas"s voice again and I detected a note of annoyance in his tone.

Lucas"s voice again and I detected a note of annoyance in his tone“You know what Gwynn is like. She"ll come around.” The calm and reassuring voice said. She must be Marianne. “William will calm her down, he always does.”

The calm and reassuring voice said. She must be Marianne“I don"t believe Gwynn is our primary concern at present.” Ben again, his voice low, composed. They all spoke so swiftly, I had to concentrate carefully to pick up everything that was said. “Charlotte may or may not know what we are and we must ascertain how much she knows before we can make further decisions.” I felt the sheets being drawn up over my chest, and the weight of a blanket being adjusted. “Right now, I"m more concerned with her injuries and Jerome says further damage could be done if we attempt to move her.”

Ben again, his voice low, composed. They all spoke so swiftly, I had to concentrate carefully to pick up everything that was said.I felt the sheets being drawn up over my chest, and the weight of a blanket being adjusted.Holy s**t, I think I"m still alive. How strange. I was certain I should be in pain, but there was nothing tangible, only the sensation of being both warm and comfortable. Perhaps I was dead, I mused. Maybe I was dead and this was all some bizarre hallucination, some final quest before I entered the afterlife.

No. Not possible. No hallucination could possibly be this bizarre.

There should at least be some discomfort, after the injuries I"d received at the hands of that… thing. There was no physical suggestion of any pain, however, only the softness of the bed and the weight of warm blankets lying across my torso. Why was it so dark? As my senses returned in increments, I figured out my eyes were still closed and I decided I rather liked it that way. For the moment, I would lay here with my eyes shut, keep still, and silent. I still had no idea what I was really dealing with. If these people were vampires – keeping in mind that it was a completely preposterous idea – why hadn"t they killed me? A sudden, chilling thought entered my mind. Was this another sick game, did they want to nurse me back to health, so they could chase me as the other one had?

thing“I warned her to stay out of the forest, I told her not to go back in there. I thought they had moved on. I would never have stopped trailing her, if I"d known there was still danger from Ambrose and his Kiss.”

“We"re fortunate Marianne had the vision and we got there in time. Acenith and Ripley have investigated the surrounding forest and it seems the other three had moved on, only Ambrose stayed behind.” Ben spoke again, and his voice was composed and gentle. “They are still searching for the body of his last victim. It must be close by; he"d fed very recently to bleed out as he did.”

Ben spoke again, and his voice was composed and gentle“Can you see anything, Marianne? Can you see what her future holds now?” This was Lucas again, his tone pleading.

This was Lucas again, his tone pleading“I"ve told you, this isn"t an exact science, and I"m not brilliant at it in the first place. You know I don"t see exactly what will happen, only glimpses of possible future events, which I have to try to decipher. She"s extremely difficult to read and what I"m getting seems to be centered on events that will happen soon, not occurrences that are often months away, as I see with members of our Kiss. Quite often, she plunges into blackness, as if she has no future. It makes my head ache.” It was the lilting voice again. She didn"t sound evil, although I heard frustration in her voice when she answered Lucas. I couldn"t comprehend what she was talking about, but in my peaceful state of mind, I dismissed it as part of the strange dream I was experiencing.

It was the lilting voice again. She didn"t sound evil, although I heard frustration in her voice when she answered Lucas. I couldn"t comprehend what she was talking about, but in my peaceful state of mind, I dismissed it as part of the strange dream I was experiencing“I wish we knew how much she knows. It would help if we could get some insight into these…” I heard Ben"s voice and he grasped my wrist gently, running his thumb across the skin. I knew what he was seeing – the scars from my previous suicide attempts, the most recent only a week or so ago. They were tentative cuts and although I"d opened the skin, I"d failed to cut deeply enough to complete the job. The scars left behind were still red and angry.

I heardBen"s voice and he grasped my wrist gently, running his thumb across the skin“I wish I knew why she is so desperately unhappy and I wish I hadn"t been the cause of her melancholy increasing.” Lucas"s voice was edgy, and I was stunned by the intensity of his words. What did he mean?

Lucas"s voice was edgy, and I was stunned by the intensity of his words. What did he mean?“You did what you thought best, Lucas. Nobody is blaming you for the decisions you"ve made.” I felt a cool hand against my forehead. “She"s deeply conflicted. There"s a great deal of pain in her thoughts, her emotions.” This was another woman speaking, her voice holding a trace of an accent, perhaps Irish or Scots, though I couldn"t figure out which. By the proximity of her voice, I figured she was the one touching me, her fingertips brushing my hair away from my face gently. It took every ounce of willpower not to cringe away from her touch, but I was determined to keep my return to consciousness a secret.

I felt a cool hand against my foreheadThis was another woman speaking, her voice holding a trace of an accent, perhaps Irish or Scots, though I couldn"t figure out which. By the proximity of her voice, I figured she was the one touching me, her fingertips brushing my hair away from my face gently. It took every ounce of willpower not to cringe away from her touch, but I was determined to keep my return to consciousness a secret.“If you had listened to me in the first place, none of this would have happened.” The one called Marianne spoke, her voice smug. “I told you Charlotte was coming into your life. What I don"t understand, is why you fought against it so vehemently.”

The one called Marianne spoke, her voice smug.Lucas swore. “There is the tiny complication of her being human. There is also the fact that you said I would meet her – you never mentioned anything about me nearly killing her.” I could hear amusement in his voice when he spoke again. “And Marianne, as much as I adore you – we all know your ability is haphazard, to say the least.”

Lucas swore.I could hear amusement in his voice when he spoke again.“Well, thank you for that vote of confidence! I happened to be remarkably accurate this time, but if I"d told you the meeting would take place when you hit her with your car, you would never have driven anywhere again,” Marianne responded sweetly.

Marianne responded sweetly“You"re possibly right, but I wouldn"t necessarily have believed you,” Lucas admitted, his voice rueful and I could imagine him smiling when he spoke. “I nearly killed her. Thank God there wasn"t any traffic around; I could never have pulled off that maneuver on a busy road.” There was no trace of bragging, his voice was calm, filled with quiet confidence. “I knew when I spun the car ninety degrees that it would be her. I thought I had missed her, but that tiny nudge was enough to give her a serious concussion and stitches.” He sighed heavily. “Humans are so fragile.”

Lucas admitted, his voice rueful and I could imagine him smiling when he spoke.There was no trace of bragging, his voice was calm, filled with quiet confidence.He sighed heavilyThey lapsed into silence and I contemplated his last sentence, turning it over in my mind endlessly. "Humans are so fragile". That meant there was undeniably something curious about him. There seemed to be much I didn"t understand, about what was occurring here and my mind sought to dismiss the whole vampire story as ludicrous. Yet what other explanation did I have? At least I had answers to a couple of questions – Lucas had known my name before I told him, and he had definitely been driving more than twenty miles an hour when he hit me. Despite this, I seemed to have even more unanswered questions now, than before.

had“We aren"t going to get any answers yet. We should leave her to sleep.” Ben"s voice was calm, his tone filled with authority. “Lucas, you must go and feed.”

Ben"s voice was calm, his tone filled with authority“I don"t want to leave her.”

“You need to go. You don"t want to lose control.” The as-yet unidentified woman spoke. “I"m sure Striker would love to keep you company.”

The as-yet unidentified woman spokeLucas sighed. “Alright. I"m not going far and I"ll be back as soon as I"ve fed. I want to be here when she wakes up.”

Lucas sighed“We"ll look after her. I promise you,” Ben said sincerely.

Ben said sincerelyThere was the sound of a door opening and closing quietly, then the room fell into silence and I mulled over what they"d said. I didn"t have a clue what it meant, but my heart fluttered at the idea of Lucas not wanting to leave me. It was flattering, even if he was a vampire. The insanity of it crossed my mind again and I still wasn"t entirely convinced as to whether I was alive or dead. The question was – what did I want the answer to be? My whole world had tilted on its axis and I didn"t know which way was up, or what the hell was going on.

I considered opening my eyes now that I was apparently alone. If I opened them, I could conclusively answer the question of if I was alive or dead. Possibly. Dependent on what I saw, of course.

I pondered for a few minutes, trying to make a decision. I was honestly terrified about both options and wasn"t confident I truly wanted to know. At this moment, I felt safe and secure, exactly the way I was. While they thought I was asleep, it appeared I was safe. What happened when I opened my eyes? If they did have a secret, if they really were vampires… I dismissed the thought instantly. Vampires were a myth, a legend. Yet what other explanation did I have for what I"d witnessed in the woods? And so many questions remained unanswered about Lucas and his friends.

Without a doubt, opening my eyes would be a very bad thing. I didn"t know what the situation would be when I did, and I found it remarkable to discover that after weeks of almost continuous insomnia, I actually did feel rather sleepy…

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The second time I drifted into consciousness, I decided immediately that I was still alive – being dead couldn"t possibly be this excruciating. Every nerve ending throbbed with agony and I knew from experience that I"d been alive when I"d woken from a serious injury with severe throbbing pain. I couldn"t decide what hurt most – my arm ached, my foot pounded and my ribs – they felt as if they"d been smashed into a thousand pieces. To add insult to injury, my head was hammering. Nope, I decided glumly – definitely not dead.

I lay stock-still, listening vigilantly for sounds of people in the room, but there was nothing to be heard, other than the steady beep of something nearby. I assumed it was medical equipment and could feel the pressure of a monitoring device on my finger, which seemed to confirm my speculation. It occurred to me that perhaps I was in a hospital and I wondered if they"d brought me here. I fleetingly pondered how they could have explained my injuries. A car accident, perhaps, or a drastic and near-fatal fall from the top of a tall building?

For another couple of minutes I listened cautiously for sounds in the room, but the only thing I could hear was the steady beeping of the monitor. With effort I blinked opened my eyes, attempting to establish my bearings.

The room was darkened, a small shaft of light coming from somewhere on my right. A magnificent pendant lamp hung from the ceiling, the crystals illuminated in the reflections from the soft light. Within my line of sight, the walls were richly decorated with brocade wallpaper in the palest blue, confirming this was certainly not a hospital. No medical facility had ever been decorated this lavishly, from my limited experience. I turned my head incrementally to investigate further and moaned, squeezing my eyes shut as an avalanche of pain swamped my senses.

“Charlotte? Charlotte, can you hear me?”

I was terrified when I heard his voice, and kept my eyes squeezed shut. A mental picture of how I"d last seen him, physically decapitating another person assaulted my mind and my ears rang from the sub-human grow that had erupted from deep within his chest. It was a terrifying image, and one I was unlikely to forget.

“Charlotte, please? Please, open your eyes. I"m begging you, Charlotte?” His voice was gentle, no indication of anything evil or fearsome lurking in his tone. There was a long pause. A sigh. And then his fingertips touched my cheek tenderly, icy cold but incredibly gentle as he ran them from my temple to my chin. The stroke made me shiver and I warily forced my eyes open.

He was inches away, watching me intently and I could see the tension in his expression. It rapidly turned to relief and he smiled warmly when he saw my eyes open. “I can"t tell you how happy I am that you are awake.” Then he must have seen something in my eyes that made him scowl and he moved away, the smile swiftly fading.

I watched him cautiously, unable to tear my gaze away from his face. A tumult of emotions washed over his features and I saw nothing threatening – only pain, conflict… and distress. As though something wounded him, more than he could bear. When he spoke, his voice was hushed. “Ambrose told you. You think I am a monster.”

I was speechless. Even if I could have forced any words out, what was I going to say? Lucas turned and strode to the door, wrenching it open and letting it slam shut behind him.

Terror gripped my limbs and adrenaline pounded through my bloodstream as I started to panic, believing he would tell the others and they would come back to kill me. The rapid pace of my breathing caused pain to burn in my chest and I took a deep gulp of air, hoping to soothe the terrible ache. It was a dreadful mistake, as a sharper pain rippled through my sides, as if a dozen knives were repeatedly stabbing my torso. Tears slid down my cheeks and I lifted my hand to wipe them away, only to discover my left arm was in a plaster cast and from the weight around my foot, so was my right ankle. I was trapped here, with no way of escaping.

“Charlotte.” Ben appeared beside the bed, wearing a crisp white button-down shirt and black trousers. He smiled compassionately, holding his hands out with his palms facing me. “Please try to relax, hyperventilating will not help. Try to breathe slowly and shallowly. If it will make you feel more at ease, we will arrange to transport you to hospital immediately. I assure you, we have absolutely no intentions of harming you in any way. Take slow and steady breaths, please, that"s right, good girl.” His baritone voice was soothing as he coached me quietly. When I had settled a little, he reached for a Kleenex from the box on the table, dropping it into my hand and I wiped my eyes and sniffled, clutching the tissue in my fist.

“Is it true?” I demanded. My voice was rasping, my throat parched and it was hard to swallow. “Are you… vampires?” The word sounded unbelievable, even as it left my lips.

Ben poured a cup of water from a plastic jug and dropped a straw into it before handing it to me. I sipped the water, eyeing him distrustfully while I waited for an answer.

“Yes. It"s true,” he stated quietly. His posture remained relaxed; he was loose-limbed and calm, watching me with nothing in his expression to suggest any animosity or threat.

“Why are you keeping me alive then?” I yelled angrily. “You could have let that— that thing, kill me!” In contrast to Ben"s relaxed manner, every muscle in my body was stiff and unyielding and I wasn"t certain it had anything to do with the injuries I"d sustained. Eyeing the tall man standing beside me, I waited for him to leap, to bare a set of fangs as the other one had done, and kill me.

thing,“Neither Lucas nor I would have allowed that to happen,” he interjected hurriedly. “We"re different from others… like us.” Again, he held his hands out before him, attempting to diffuse my temper.

I eyed him distrustfully. “Different? How?”

“I think Lucas should explain the specifics of our lifestyle to you. I give you my word that Lucas, I and our friends will do nothing to harm you, if we can possibly avoid it.”

“Why keep me here then? Why didn"t you take me to a hospital?” I was skeptical and couldn"t hide it, even if I"d possessed the energy to attempt a ruse. His expression remained passive, but I didn"t know him and couldn"t imagine trusting him. If he really was a vampire… they killed people. Murdered humans, for their blood.

killed“We can only stay in an area whilst our true nature is kept secret. As you can imagine,” he smiled weakly and shrugged, “humans find us frightening. We weren"t certain if Ambrose exposed our circumstances to you. As a precaution, we decided it would be best to care for you here, until we ascertained what you knew, and then we could make decisions from that point—”

“Whether or not to kill me?” I shrieked angrily.

Ben shook his head. “No, Charlotte. We will not harm you.” He placed his hand on my arm and I flinched, causing a further round of agony through my bruised and battered body. Ben swiftly removed his hand and sighed heavily, brushing his fingers across his forehead as he watched me silently.

“Why are you so cold?”

“We don"t have blood flowing through our bodies as you do.”

“You"re… dead?”

deadBen pursed his lips together, shaking his head. “Not exactly.”

“I don"t understand,” I eyed him distrustfully, “and I don"t want to.” I needed to get out of here, away from these people before they harmed me. Would they really take me to a hospital, if I asked them to? Even if they agreed to such a demand, could they be believed?

“I can understand why you don"t trust us. Our reputation precedes us, but I wanted the opportunity to explain our situation to you, to ask you to keep our real identity a secret and not mention to others what we are. Regardless of whether you agree to the request or not, we"ll take you to the hospital immediately, if that"s what you want and absolutely nothing will happen to harm you. I give you my word.”

I pondered on what he"d said for a good while, wondering if it was possible to believe him. To trust them. He remained beside the bed, waiting patiently for me to speak. He made no further attempt to convince me, and his silence was welcome as I struggled to come to a decision. My arms were wrapped across my chest defensively, the tissue still clutched in my fingers as I tapped against the plaster cast. “Who did this?”

“A friend of ours, who happens to be a Doctor,” he responded quietly.

“Another vampire?” Panic edged my voice, along with a healthy dose of hysteria.

Another vampire?Ben"s eyes twinkled and he smiled. “Relax, Charlotte. No, he isn"t vampire.” For a long moment, he watched me carefully, his expression becoming serious again. “As you can probably imagine, vampires don"t make good medical practitioners; the access to blood is far too tempting.”

I glanced again at the neat cast on my arm and the plethora of medical equipment they"d been using to keep me alive and comfortable. None of this made any sense. If they were intending to kill me, why would they bother treating my injuries? When that other vampire, Ambrose… had broken my arm, the bone had pierced my skin. I hadn"t noticed at the time, but there would surely have been blood involved and yet here I was, alive and breathing. They hadn"t attacked me when it would have been easy to do so – instead they"d tried to save me. Lucas had killed Ambrose to protect me.

“So you really are,” I swallowed deeply, “a vampire?” Even as I voiced the word aloud, I expected Ben to laugh and shake his head, tell me this was all some sort of outrageous prank. For a little while, I"d been under the misguided illusion that Lucas was an angel – the possibility of him being a vampire was even more absurd.

Ben nodded, his face somber.

“Oh.” What else could I say? Even as my mind pushed the idea away as fantasy, the reality of what I"d seen was inarguable. The vampire in the forest had fangs; I"d seen them extend from his gums as I"d watched. The incredible speed and fighting ability Lucas had displayed – there was no way to explain it away as normal human behavior. And their eyes… they were definitely not typically human attributes.

“Charlotte, I promise we won"t hurt you. The only thing I"m asking is that you don"t disclose what we are to anybody. It would cause us no end of problems; we have to move regularly as it is, but we would prefer to stay here for a little longer, if we could.”

I considered his request for only seconds. What point would there be in telling anybody? Who would believe such a fantastic story? Despite my suspicions and fears, Ben struck me as being truthful. Something in his voice reassured me of his sincerity and I looked up at him, some of the trepidation beginning to subside. He radiated a reassuring calmness that suggested he would keep his word. I managed a faint smile. “I"ll keep your secret.”

The relief in his expression was tangible. “Thank you. We appreciate it greatly. Will I organize transport to hospital, or would you be willing to stay here for a while? Your recovery is our top priority, no matter which choice you make. I should warn you, with the injuries you"ve sustained; the transport to hospital would be quite arduous.”

“Can I— I think—” I grimaced, tongue-tied by abject nervousness, which was still flooding my body. “I need to think about it.”

Ben grinned and nodded. “Of course.”

There was a soft knock at the door and Ben turned towards it. “Come in, Jerome.”

Before I had a chance to ask how he knew who was standing behind a closed door, Doctor Harding from the hospital walked in, smiling broadly. “I hear our patient is awake.” He limped across to the bed, glancing over my plastered arm with a practiced eye. “You really do have knack for getting into enormous amounts of trouble, young lady.” He was carrying a bag, which he placed on the table beside the bed and proceeded to open, drawing out a stethoscope, and placing it around his neck.

I watched him doubtfully, my brain still struggling to catch-up. How could the same Doctor who"d treated me in hospital after the concussion, now be walking into a vampire"s house, seemingly without a care in the world? “Doctor Harding?” I muttered incredulously. He was in his late forties, a little less than six feet tall with a portly figure and sharply defined features, which were at odds with what seemed to be a generally amiable personality. He walked with a pronounced limp that made his gait appear extremely awkward, but in the few times I"d met him, he"d never used a cane for support.

“At your service.” He paused for a second, glancing across at Ben questioningly.

“She"s only been awake for minutes,” Ben said, as if answering some unspoken question.

“My timing is perfect then,” Doctor Harding announced agreeably. He turned back to me, his gray eyes sparkling. “There"s nothing to worry about, young Charlotte, you"re safe now. Lucas will look after you, he"s a good man.”

I raised my eyebrows, finding it hard to believe he was suggesting I could actually be safe in the situation I"d found myself in. Surely, he knew these people were vampires?

Doctor Harding settled on the edge of the bed, patting my plastered arm. “These people are my friends, Charlotte. I trust them to keep you safe while you recover from your injuries.”

“You"re not… one of them?”

He ran a hand through his receding gray hair before he responded. “No, I"m not vampire. I"m a doctor and at present, I"m your doctor. Lucas and Ben requested my assistance when you were attacked and I treated your injuries. I"ve given Ben some instructions, so he can provide you with pain relief and keep an eye on you in my absence, but I"ll visit twice a day to ensure your recovery progresses smoothly.” He stood up again, giving my arm another brisk pat. “I"d like to examine you, if that"s okay.”

I glanced at Ben who smiled reassuringly. “I"ll leave you in Jerome"s very capable hands. Rowena has been waiting for you to wake up, she would dearly love to be caring for you, and I"m certain she"s organizing a meal as we speak. Are you hungry?”

I nodded, and my eyes grew wide as I repeated his words to myself. Rowena? Another vampire? She wanted to look after me? Was that even possible?

Ben seemed to sense my bewilderment and spoke softly. “Rowena is my wife, in every sense of the word, but she is also vampire. Being vampire doesn"t make her evil, Charlotte – just as humans do, we have the capacity to love, to share our lives, to care for others even if it"s not something that is practiced by all our brethren. Rowena is a very loving and compassionate woman and she wants to care for you, to help nurse you to good health.” He offered me another comforting smile, his brown eyes filled with warmth. “I"ll be back shortly.”

Doctor Harding reached for my wrist and I cringed, yanking away from him. He immediately dropped his hand to his side and eyed me with sympathy. “I"m sorry about that,” he murmured, “you"re obviously nervous, and rightly so. It"s not everyone who survives such a brutal vampire attack.” He motioned towards my wrist. “May I?”

I nodded curtly and he again took hold of my wrist and checked my pulse, his eyes focused on his wristwatch. “Very good,” he murmured before he let go and picked up a thermometer from the bedside table, popping it into my mouth. “May I check your ribs?”

I nodded again and he pulled the covers down from my torso, lifting the medical gown, to check my chest. “I"ll try not to hurt you,” he murmured, carefully probing my ribs and I bit my lip at the throbbing even his gentlest touch created. “I"m so sorry,” he apologized, pulling the gown down and carefully tucking the sheets back up around my chest. “You have seven broken ribs; there will be a great deal of pain for some time to come. Fortunately, there"s no evidence of any punctures to your lungs, which is a miracle in itself.” He settled on the side of the bed again, watching me observantly. “On top of the ribs, you have a broken ankle and a compound fracture to the radius and ulna in your right forearm. I had to use a plate to secure the bone, but it should heal just fine.”

Ben appeared in the doorway and knocked on the wall, announcing his presence.

“Ah, Ben. Everything is looking good. No sign of edema, so the swelling may be under control, but keep an eye on her fingers and toes for a few more days. I"ve given you plenty of morphine and you know how to administer it, keep to fifteen milligrams every three to four hours, but overnight you can give her thirty milligrams before she settles down to sleep. I"ll pop in tomorrow morning on my way to work, see how she"s doing. Any signs of problems, call my cell and I"ll get out here sooner.” With another bright smile, Doctor Harding collected his bag, dropped his stethoscope into it, and departed.

“I hope that wasn"t too uncomfortable for you,” Ben said quietly, as he approached the bed.

“Not as bad as what preceded it.” Flashes of memory were beginning to assault me and I trembled as I recalled the creature ripping my jeans away, the look in his eyes as he"d announced he was about to r**e me. “I thought he was going to kill me,” I admitted hoarsely. The horror of what had happened suddenly hit me with full force and I started to shiver, my teeth chattering together.

“He very nearly did.” Ben sat down abruptly on the chair, his eyes filled with fury. “Charlotte, I want you to understand that Ambrose is the most evil of our kind. We abhor that type of violence.” He took a deep breath and looked into my eyes, his own softening. “In fact, my friends and I abhor any type of violence. We took the only course of action available to stop him. I know you must be deeply revolted by what you saw last night, but it is not a true example of who we are. Vampires overall deserve every ounce of bad publicity they"ve ever had, but our small Kiss is not like that, Charlotte. We had to stop him from doing that to any human again.”

who we areConsidering his words, I believed he was heartfelt in what he was saying. “I think I believe you.”

“Thank you,” he responded. I watched him quietly for a few seconds as the pain subsided again and he seemed happy to sit quietly and wait for me to speak.

“What"s a Kiss?” I questioned.

“It"s the term used for a grouping of our kind. A Kiss is a group of vampires who live together.”

“Like a flock of seagulls?”

Ben laughed, and the sound was deep and joyful in the quiet room. It made me smile sheepishly. “Yes, like a flock of seagulls, or a gaggle of geese – even a herd of cows.” He settled back in his chair, his posture relaxed as he watched me with mild amusement.

“I guess that was a stupid question,” I admitted shyly.

“No question is a stupid question, Charlotte. You have elected to stay with us, for now, and I would be concerned if you didn"t have things you wanted to know.”

“How many of you are there?”

“Our Kiss has nine members currently living here. There is one other, but he"s been travelling for a number of months.”

“Nine?” I felt my eyes grow round. “There are nine vampires here?” Perhaps staying wasn"t such a great idea.

nineBen smiled encouragingly. “None of us will hurt you, Charlotte. Lucas will not allow it.”

“And he"s… in charge?”

“He is our leader, yes.” Ben glanced at his watch and stood up. “Speaking of Lucas, I must go and find him.”

“He"s angry with me.” I"d caused his abrupt departure from the room earlier, without saying a word I"d obviously made my terror and revulsion patently obvious.

Ben shook his head and patted my arm, and I was calm enough not to flinch. “No, not angry. He"s hurt and confused. He"s sure you think he"s a fiend and he"s gone out into the woods to think. I believe if I explain what you and I have been talking about; it might help him to see that things aren"t so bad.”

“Would you tell him I"d like to see him?” I paused, considering this unusual turn of events. “Could you tell him— I"m very sorry – about how I reacted.”

“Of course. In the meantime, Rowena is on her way up, she"s bringing a meal for you.” He leaned over and whispered. “Please try and be patient with her, she"s desperate to care for you and I would very much appreciate you letting her have her way for a little bit. She does love having someone to care for, and we vampires don"t need a lot of mothering.”

I nodded cautiously, wide-eyed as he flashed me another brilliant smile.