Fixed?
926 Words
The candles had burned low.
Most of the ritual markings on the floor had faded into smudges of ash and silver dust. Dawn’s gray light crept through the chapel windows, weak but steady.
Vespera sat wrapped in Elias’s cloak near the old stone altar.
She looked fragile.
Her white hair fell loosely over her shoulders, and the unnatural glow in her eyes was gone. Her skin still looked pale, but no longer like cold marble.
Just tired.
Human.
Elias knelt beside her, gently pressing a cloth against the small cut on her wrist where the chains had rubbed her skin raw.
“You should rest,” he murmured.
Vespera watched his hands quietly.
They were rougher than she remembered.
Scarred.
Older.
“How long… was I gone?” she asked softly.
Elias hesitated.
“Years.”
Her gaze lowered.
Something heavy moved across her expression.
Before she could speak again, Mirella’s voice cut through the quiet chapel.
“This isn’t over.”
Elias exhaled slowly.
“Mirella—”
The witch stood across the room, arms crossed tightly.
Her eyes hadn’t left Vespera since the ritual ended.
“You saw it,” Mirella continued. “The curse didn’t disappear. It’s still in her.”
Vespera lifted her head slowly.
“Good morning to you too.”
Elias ignored the comment and looked back at Mirella.
“She’s alive. That’s what matters.”
“That’s exactly what worries me.”
Elias stood.
“You’re exaggerating.”
Mirella stepped closer.
“Am I?”
She nodded toward Vespera.
“Her heart stopped during the ritual. Then it started again. That shouldn’t happen.”
“I’m right here,” Vespera muttered.
Neither of them answered.
Mirella continued, voice firm.
“She’s something new now. Not fully human. Not fully vampire.”
Elias shook his head.
“She’s my wife.”
Vespera watched them both carefully.
Her eyes lingered on Mirella for a moment.
Long enough to notice something.
The tension in the witch’s jaw.
The way she kept glancing at Elias when he wasn’t looking.
The faint bitterness in her voice.
Vespera’s brows lifted slightly.
Oh.
Interesting.
She leaned back against the altar stone, watching the argument like someone watching a play.
“You’re too close to this,” Mirella said sharply to Elias. “You’re ignoring the risk.”
“And you’re assuming the worst.”
“Because I know what vampires are capable of.”
Vespera chuckled softly.
“Do go on.”
Mirella shot her a look.
“Your hunger will return. It always does.”
Elias stepped between them slightly.
“She hasn’t attacked anyone.”
“Yet.”
Vespera sighed.
“You two argue like an old married couple.”
Elias rubbed his temple.
“Vespera—”
But she had already turned her attention fully to Mirella.
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
“You don’t like me very much.”
Mirella didn’t answer.
“That’s fine,” Vespera continued casually. “But let’s not pretend it’s just about safety.”
Elias frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Vespera smiled faintly.
Her gaze flicked toward Elias.
Then back to Mirella.
“You want him.”
The chapel went silent.
Mirella’s eyes flashed.
“That’s ridiculous.”
Vespera tilted her head slowly.
“Oh?”
She studied the witch carefully.
The way her shoulders stiffened.
The way her eyes flicked toward Elias for just a moment.
Vespera laughed quietly.
“Oh my.”
Elias groaned.
“Not this again—”
But Vespera sat up straighter.
“And here I thought witches were supposed to be subtle.”
Mirella stepped forward sharply.
“You have no right—”
“Relax,” Vespera said lazily.
Then she smiled.
But this smile was slightly sharper.
The edges of her fangs peeked just slightly against her lip.
“So that’s why you’ve been dragging your feet,” Vespera murmured.
Elias blinked.
“What?”
Mirella’s expression hardened.
“That’s not—”
“You wanted him to yourself.”
Her voice dropped lower.
Predatory.
“And then I came back.”
Elias turned toward Vespera.
“Your teeth—”
She froze.
Her hand instinctively lifted to her mouth.
Her smile faltered.
For just a second.
Then Mirella pointed.
“See?” the witch snapped. “That’s exactly what I mean!”
Vespera’s eyes flashed suddenly.
A faint red flickered deep inside them.
“I’m still in control.”
“Are you?” Mirella shot back.
The vampire side stirred again.
Vespera stood abruptly.
The movement was too fast.
Too sharp.
The air in the room seemed to tighten.
“You should be careful what you accuse me of,” Vespera said quietly.
Her voice had deepened slightly.
Her pupils narrowing.
Elias stepped forward quickly.
“Vespera.”
She didn’t look at him.
Her gaze was locked on Mirella.
“You come into my husband’s life while I’m gone,” she continued.
Her fingers curled slightly.
The tips of her nails darkening just a little.
“And now you stand here judging me?”
Mirella didn’t back down.
“You’re proving my point.”
Vespera’s lips pulled back slightly.
Her fangs were definitely visible now.
“You’re jealous.”
Elias grabbed her arm gently.
“Vespera, stop.”
The contact made her pause.
Her eyes flickered toward him.
The red glow faded slightly.
Her breathing slowed.
For a moment the chapel went quiet again.
Then Vespera sighed softly.
“See?” she muttered.
“I’m fine.”
But Mirella wasn’t convinced.
And neither, deep down…
was Elias.
- Writer
