Vampire Queen's Soulmate

Rodrigo

Deep within the rainforest of a Caribbean island, night fell quickly. The trees were dense, the forest floor thick with life, both plant and animal. The night sounds began within moments of the sun setting. Among the wildlife, in the dark, a man walked, his step sure as if he'd been here his entire life. And he had. Many lifetimes, in fact.

Rodrigo stepped quietly about the trees. His night vision was on par with the cats that roamed about. He hummed softly, a song lost to time, lyrics not forgotten or spoken, but still running through his mind. The night air was warm and humid. His long black hair was fixed in one long braid that fell down his back. Dressed only in shorts, he walked barefoot through his forest. He had walked this path countless times, for many, many years.

It never ceased to amaze him, though. Nature. Nature was an amazing thing, a living, breathing, thing, in which we are all connected, whether we realize it or not. Rodrigo had been connecting with nature and the spirits that roamed it for as long as he could remember. He was a high priest in his group of practitioners, held in high regard by his peers and by the people he served. People came from all over the island to see him, seeking spiritual guidance, cleansing of the body, and herbal concoctions that aided them in healing a multitude of ailments. Some requested spells for money, for love, for fertility. His work was commendable, valuable, his gifts of communicating with spirit and nature were highly revered and sought after.

Rodrigo came to a stop by a river. He sat down at the bank. Kneeling forward, he cupped his hands in the cool water, splashing it on his face. The night sky was visible here, the trees not so dense in this part of the forest.

He looked up at the stars and began to focus on his breath. Inhale deeply, hold, exhale all the way out, hold, repeat. Connecting with spirit, connecting with his team in spirit, he thanked them for allowing the connection and for being by his side for guiding and protecting him. His gaze became unfocused as he entered a meditative state. He came here most nights to meditate, as it was extremely peaceful, and he enjoyed the time to himself. His days were always busy with the people.

As the healer sat in meditation, a bright golden light surrounded him. Colors began to swirl in his vision. Purples, blues, greens, red, orange, yellow, silvery white, gold, all blurred together, dancing and weaving before him. Images of ancestors came through, whispering messages in his ear. Rodrigo's vibration rose higher, the golden light that surrounded him pulsed even brighter. His head still raised to the sky, he smiled and closed his eyes. He opened them again a moment later. Now, instead of the forest and the river and night sky, a vision of a woman rushing through a house appeared before him. The woman was stunningly beautiful, and she seemed distressed. Rodrigo watched her call for someone to help her. There was something about her that he couldn't quite put his finger on at the moment.

"Rosa! Liane! Come quickly!" the woman exclaimed. Rodrigo could feel her emotions from where he sat. Anger, he felt strongly, disbelief, shock. Sadness was the undertone. He sensed that she was in a different part of the world than him. Yet she had features that reminded him of his own heritage. He watched as the women she called came running, and then they were moving again in a different direction. The house was large, the walls painted a dark purple, blackout curtains hanging in the floor to ceiling windows. Those curtains were opened, revealing a night sky. Rodrigo noted this with interest. The trio reached a bedroom, and the first woman opened the door. They went inside, and the two others gasped in horror.

"My Queen! What has happened!?" Rosa exclaimed, rushing to the bed. Liane followed Rosa, a hand fluttering close to her mouth in disbelief.

"I don't know, Rosa. It was our normal routine. I needed to feed. When I released him, he was dead." Esme replied.

A queen? Rodrigo's brow furrowed. Was this the vampire Queen of the western hemisphere, then? He had heard of her, of course, but had never seen her before. He chose to stay off social media and did not bother with newspapers. He liked to stay in obscurity, for old times' sake. But if the rumors he'd heard of her were true, he was looking at an extremely powerful and ancient vamp.

"What do we do, mistress?" Liane was asking now ; Rodrigo turned his attention back to the scene unfolding before him.

"I don't know. Dammit, what do we do? How could this happen? He is my servant. He has given himself to me countless times, and never have I even come close to draining him. I don't understand how this is even happening." Esme ran a hand over her forehead, very clearly stressed.

"Do you want us to remove him from the bed, my queen? Or would you like a moment." Rosa asked gently. She knew how much Esme had cared about Caul.

The queen sat next to her lover.

"You'll need help moving him. I will stay with him until you return. Then we'll make preparations for a memorial." Esme stroked the dead man's hair absently.

Rosa nodded and motioned for Liane to follow her. The two left, closing the door with a click.

Rodrigo watched silent tears roll down the vamp's face. Esme looked down at Caul, still stroking his hair.

"Who are you?" she asked, raising her head and seemed to stare straight at him.

Rodrigo knew she knew he was there. He closed his eyes a moment, and when he opened them again, she was sitting across the river on the opposite bank. She tilted her head, sizing him up.

"Who are you?" she repeated. Rodrigo smiled lightly.

"You know who I am, reina." he replied. Esme returned the smile, using her thumb to dry the tears that had spilled down her face.

"Si, Ojo. Se quien eres." she said softly. "You are a healer. A medicine man. You see what others do not. Yes, I know who you are."

Rodrigo didn't think to be surprised that she knew what the people called him, the nickname his grandmother had given him so many years ago. But he was, in a way. What else did she know?

"You'd be surprised to know what I know." she read his thoughts. Rodrigo smiled again. He shielded himself immediately, throwing up a barrier between the vamp and his mind.

"I heard you were strong, Ojo. I could feel you the moment you entered my home. Which is strange." Esme tapped her cheek.

"What is strange, reina?" Rodrigo asked.

"That you would even be in my house." she replied matter-of-factly, her green eyes narrowing just slightly.

" I am meditating. I meditate every night in this spot. I get visions of things, places, people, all of whom may be in another country, another time period. It is not so far-fetched that I would have a vision of you one day." Rodrigo said calmly.

Esme stared at him. Slowly, she rose from her seat on the grassy bank. She floated across the river, her robe flapping gently about her. She stopped when she reached him, sat down next to him. She crossed her legs, mimicking him in his meditative pose. She rested her chin on her hand, looking at the moving water just in front of her. Rodrigo looked at her. He admired her in this moment. He had had dealings with vampires before, even now, he had regular communication with one, a friend of sorts/. None compared to the energy of this one. She was calm, controlled, yet the energy rolled off of her in waves. He felt as if he were to let her, she would drown him in that energy, and that she wouldn't give two shits if it killed him. He had a lot of respect for others who were different, who practiced different faiths, different modalities of healing, and different ways of living.

"Do you believe that things happen for a reason, Ojo?" Esme asked, breaking the silence. Rodrigo thought about it for a moment.

"It has been my experience that they do." Rodrigo said simply. Esme turned her head and pierced him with her peridot gaze.

"You have more to say. You've shielded yourself well, but I can tell you have more to say on this subject." she said accusingly.

"Sure, I do. But I feel that simple will do for this moment. What my thoughts are beyond this moment are for another time." Rodrigo replied. He met her gaze unwaveringly.

"You're not affected by my gaze." she stated.

"No, I'm not."

Esme thought about this. She needed him here. She had heard a lot about this man. What if he could help her figure out why Caul had died? This was something she hadn't experienced in centuries. When she was a new vamp, figuring out her abilities, she had accidentally killed many people. An older vamp had taken pity on her and helped her to control her urges, her energy, so that she could feed but not drain, unless she wanted or needed to. If this healer wasn't affected by her vampire wiles, she could have use for him.

"Would you be willing to come to me?" she asked, choosing her words carefully. She knew that he wouldn't take a demand well.

"Why? he asked.

"I believe that you could help me. I need help figuring out why...this happened"

Rodrigo stared at her. He could sense that she was being truthful. He nodded slowly.

"I will come. But it will take me time to prepare. There are things I will need to take care of before I leave my home. Perhaps we can meet again, like this in the next few days?" he suggested.

"Today is Thursday. Saturday night, then?" Esme said

"That works." Rodrigo replied. Esme smiled. She reached out and put a hand on his cheek, gently. Their eyes met, his gray eyes to her green. Suddenly, he was caught up in her gaze, a warm, melting feeling coming over him. His breath caught. He leaned into her hand, and her fingers stroked lightly against his face. Her eyes changed then, black encompassing the green, the whites of her eyes. Stars danced all around, in the sky, in her eyes, mirrored in Rodrigo's. His eyes were on her lips now, full, sensuous lips. How he wanted to kiss those lips. No. He couldn't. He raised his eyes back to hers, this time his were changed in color. Once a light gray, now became a hard dark steel. He pressed his forehead to hers and lowered his shields just a touch. Let her see what he was truly capable of. What truly ran through his mind. Things that he hadn't dared let loose in centuries.

Esme released him with a jerk, the stars still twinkling bright. She tilted her head slowly, a smile still on her face.

"Interesting."she whispered. She touched her fingers to his lips, then leaned in close and whispered in his ear.

"Saturday."

Rodrigo closed his eyes, focusing on his breath, getting it back under control. When he had come back to himself, he opened his eyes. He was alone, with the river, the night sky, and his trees. He looked up, the stars twinkling, shining bright against the black mass.

"Holy shit."

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