The Other ElizaBeth

Chapter Two

Waiting, for me, have been lived shortly...

For what's to contemplate is the death we never accepted

And the deaths we accepted has never been contemplated.

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I will honestly tell you. This story is an open plot. I don't know where this leads me but I have only one goal...to prove that not all vampire stories are circulating in human-vampire love affairs.

I tell you right in this moment, I'm not into love stories. There will be glimpses of it, but the story will not circulate on that part.

This part might give you all the ideas already. This part is also the door to meeting the immortal characters. Enjoy!

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Jaw dropped in disbelief, the disappearing figure of Gina had me clearly heard every tick of my watch's hand after her last words diminished in my ears.

"You're moving to Tagaytay," was all I involuntarily repeating over and over to myself. It's exactly what she told me.

I am moving to Tagaytay, and that means I have to move particularly in our ancestral house. The last place I wanted to visit; not that I have bad memories there, but the fact that there's more cherished moments with my biological mother in that place have made it so uncomfortable.

I wished not to involve myself again and dwell in her memories as not to be that same girl I was a year ago, but to convince Gina that way would mean I am not really clinically healed. The image of the hospital and the stinging smell of alcohol makes me sick even more.

After waiting for my aunt to prepare her BMW and ignited the engine, I slowly moved and seated at the backseat of the car.

The whole ride was silent and even if I felt Gina would want to open a conversation, she must've sensed I was not in the mood to respond, so she chose to focus on the road. It was a three-hour ride from the city.

I doubt Gina knew how I hated long rides. All the rides give me restlessness. I can't even close my eyes or drift into a nap. The voice of my biological mother still echoes inside my head as I remembered her saying not to sleep in the car as to not give me surprises when I wake up.

I was not sure but when Gina took the last left turn, it was a literal rocky road and little carabao grasses tickled the wheels as we drove further to the deep unsounded clearing as the sun waved goodbye in our faces. Despite of several years gone past, it was the unfamiliarity that took over my state.

After a moment, the fogs around seemed to move away itself and proudly introduced to us the old rusty gate from afar showing up the intimidating exterior of the mansion, and as we ascended, letters above the rusty gate became clearer this time.

Santerri. I read.

"Welcome home, Bethilda." I heard Gina turning off the engine as we have entered the ghostly ancestral mansion.

I never even bothered to cringed my nose to what had Gina addressed me and kept on beaming at the porchlight which is the only new thing around. All of what I'm seeing are the walls of the house covered in moss and vines climbing up until the roof comparing it to the picture I have in mind back in my childhood where little vines occupy the walls. This house would be mistakened as haunted, literally.

"The house will not wait for you forever to look inside. C'mon out, Beth."

I hesitated for a while then decided to get out of the car and followed Gina as she advanced to the main door.

All what I've seen was the slow opening of the old dark wooden door at my aunt's face. I have seen some carvings on the door that looked like gothic. Compared outside, the interior was a proud fan of dark wooden materials; it led us to the grand hall of the ancestral mansion, swept clean and no trace of dust since I haven't sneezed for a while.

"Hello? Aunt Darling!" Gina's voice echoed all over the place, it sounded like the place had never heard from anyone in a long time that it had to be awakened. Gina called the name again, and a voice replied from the second floor.

A woman in her round-shaped body descended from the staircase and placed a smile as she have seen us. I bet she's around her forties now. "Oh Gina, it's you!" The woman hugged her tight.

"Aunt Darling, how are you?"

The woman laughed, showing little wrinkles. "I'm a bit lonely here that I live alone. I'm glad your niece has finally decided to live here! She will surely love this place."

My brows rose. She's gotta be kidding me?

"Oh sure she is! She even convinced me to move unto this day."

"Oh she's just like Belind—"

"Where's my room?" I but off. Talking about my mother makes me uncomfortable. Gina should've known that—or she really thought I'm healing already?

The two ladies stopped in a trance and looked at me with warmth.

Aunt Darling smiled. "Oh you would love it here, Ida! Come. It's upstairs." She started to climb again.

Gina motioned her head as an approval, then I started to follow the old lady.

The grand staircase is a cliche to be describe as grand. It's extravagant! It was the perfect fully-furnished dark wooden stairs and the swirl designs of the balusters and the handrail made sure every person to come will surely look at it in awe.

The next floor was an inviting entity. The wooden materials were all simple but grand. Many doors were there and at the center of them was an arch to the hall where Aunt Darling and I entered.

As to my memory, twelve paintings were hung there on each side of the hall. Each were introduced to me by Aunt Darling as what had my mother done in the past.

Her words crept into my head and I began to shake a little. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes...

It was morning. Mom let her two fingers be enveloped with my tiny hand as she was pointing to the six paintings on our right side. I never did understand before that those people in the paintings were my ancestors. Mom was telling something about Santerris, Anglican Aristocrats who moved to Spain and had been a part of the Peninsularis during Spanish period in the country.

Santerris had been the most powerful among the families in England and Spain, and when they have decided to partake an important role in our country, even the King Philip II himself showed submission to the family. This family had never been the talk of the town—never had been popular aligned to the aristocrat families in Spain, for they share credo of "Nuestros ojos no deben ser recordados" or "Our eyes must not be remembered."

"That's Señor Adolf Santerri I. He is the head of the family. No one knows his family background prior to his marriage to Mila of Luxembourg." Mom pointed at the first portrait showing the face of an English man with white curl hair.

"They have five children: the eldest was Adolf II; the second was Felissa; the third was Donnabella; fourth was Elizabeth V; and the youngest was Demetrius. Mila and Elizabeth migrated to the Philippines when on 1578, selected families from Spain was granted to be Peninsularis in Manila. Those remaining children in Spain died on 1589 except for Adolf II and Demetrius." Mom shifted to the left side facing another six portraits and continued. "Adolf II had a terrible disease and died eventually, so Demetrius was the only one left. He married Maria Felicidad of Spain and they bore a child they named after Demetrius' father and brother. It was Adolf III. Adolf died during his stay in Spain and orphaned his beloved son Adolf IV. Then the sixth generation was born on the evening of September 1922 in Luxembourg.

"He is the sixth Santerri who owns the name of our ancestor. He was eighteen at that time when the Wehrmacht of the Nazis attacked Luxembourg. The remaining Santerris believed that the sixth generation Adolf is still alive and have rumors that he migrated to our country after the World War II subsided.

"During that time, Santerris became more isolated in the noble class, and the ones left was the feminine Santerris who never bore the name anymore. The last child of the Santerris is you, my Bethilda." Those were the last words I remembered from her.

A wooden double door was located at the heart of the mini hall.

Aunt Darling looked at me proudly. "This is your room, Ida. This was once used by the late Lady Mila of Luxembourg. This is the most luxurious room in this mansion." She opened the doors and there crept the exquisite interior of the room.

This is 30 times luxurious than my 1.5 billion condo unit.

Aunt Darling must've been talking during my inspections and have noticed her bid goodbye then left me.

Arms crossed. It's not actually bad to stay here. The good memories will be my shield to those nightmares I wanted to avoid.

A knock interrupted me and saw Gina's head peeked at the other opened door. "You'll be fine here with Aunt Darling?"

I smiled a bit and nodded. "This is a lot better than my miserable unit, I guess?"

Gina smiled in relief. "I haven't seen you smile in a while, you know that?"

I paused and decided to sit at the bedside and patted the space to welcome her. Gina moved and sat beside me.

"I know you need space, Ida. This will be the last time I'll push you out of your box. If this doesn't help, then you can go back to your unit. Just give this place atleast a week. How's that?"

I looked at her in surprise. As I thought about it, it would be a good barter for my anxiety to subside. Nothing is to regret or to worry.

As an answer, I nodded and smiled at her. The rest of the night would be a battle, I guess. A good night sleep will do.