Lucian
“How old are you?”
“A bit over two hundred years. I was born in 1819.”
She pauses mid-chew of the cheese-flavoured cracker. “That’s…wow.”Ah, her preferred response.“Have you always lived here?”
“No. I wander constantly.”
This cabin was an accidental find last year. It was only meant to hold me over until life here grew boring too—like everywhere else eventually does. I’ve spent my days wandering the mountains, and after a few months, I was preparing to move on with the new year.
Until discovering Sawyer, that is.
Now, seeing my little human sitting in the middle of the cabin with a few stolen food boxes spread around her, the shitty heat system kicking on every so often, and only a bed and a couch—the ones that came with the place—I realize we can’t stay here long-term.
We need a better home.
“Been here for a few months,” I add, to answer more of that lingering curiosity she undoubtedly has about my living situation.
She reaches for what she’s called a “chip”—whatever that means. I stopped tracking human food inventions after my transformation. With modern technology and loosening health standards, processed food has been on the rise, and it’s become pointless to monitor.
“How did you become a vampire?”
A common question from any human when learning about an immortal—because she’s far from the first, even if there shouldn’t be any—and one I half-expected her to begin this conversation with.
“A transformation from human to vampire is only possible after the human dies with vampire blood in their system. The death triggers the healing properties within our venom, battling with the mortality of death, and results in a change. My own transformation was a seemingly random attack after a ball one night. Much to my mother’s chagrin, who was attempting to set me up with every eligible woman, I left early—only to get attacked on my walk home. Whyever he decided to drip his blood into my mouth before running off and leaving me too drained to survive, he made himself my maker, but never returned.”
Two hundred years, yet it exists in my mind like it only happened yesterday. For mortals, it’s been longer than two lifetimes. My family has long passed on, though my two sisters’ descendants continue, who I peek in on occasionally.
“Balls and eligible women,” she muses. “A whole other kind of world.”
“Every generation has its benefits and downfalls,” I reply, carefully picking my words. “My time as a human was much more refined, but each decade after offered something worthwhile.”
“What about this decade?”
You. You’re my something worthwhile.
“Technology, I suppose, has its highlights.”
Her eyes flick to her cell phone resting beside the bed. “Yeah, I get that. What about other vampires?”
“What about them?” Humans never enjoy using full sentences. At some point in societal development, maybe with that technology we just mentioned, they’ve grown lazy and everyone assumes what the other is about to say.
She exhales audibly. “Do some live nearby? Do you see others?” She leans closer and stops chewing as her pulse picks up again.
Fear. She’s concerned what happens if my brethren were to stop by, but has grown accepting of me. I can’t deny feeling pleasure by this.
“Most of us are nomads since we don’t get along with others well. It’s a preferable lifestyle I personally maintain.”Until now.“There’s thousands of us worldwide, and it wouldn’t be surprising if you’ve unknowingly walked by one in the past.” I pause, waiting for her reaction, but she returns to munching on food. “A few hours over the US border is where the North American vampire king resides.”
That gains a reaction—an uptick of her brow. “Kings within the vampire community. What’s he do?”
“Keeps the rest of us in line. He’s very old, very dangerous.” More so now. Word travelled that he took a witch as his Bride—his fated mate—which means protecting her is his entire focus.
I sit forward, my hands woven together and draped between my legs. “Tell me about you now. Your life is more interesting.”
She snorts around a water bottle. “Says thevampire. Yeah, no, sorry, before an hour ago, you didn’t even exist. I’m…whatever.”
She’s far fromwhatever. Red flashes though my eyes. She catches my warning, though doesn’t understand the true meaning behind it.
