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“The American Revolution,” Vincent said.
“Just when this starts to feel normal, you say something like that,” I replied with a chuckle. “You really are old, aren’t you?”
“I’m the oldest vampire I’ve ever known,” he said, his eyes clouded with either memory or sorrow; I wasn’t sure.
Neither of us said anything after that, and I eventually fell asleep, Vincent beside me.
35
VINCENT
The next evening, I sat with Julian as he ate dinner. He’d made some sort of stew from various canned goods, but he didn’t seem to be savoring it, just shoveling it in. We were both still off balance from the previous night, but we were careful with each other, measuring our words and touching each other with calculation.
I glanced at the rifle Julian had moved from the front door and set beside the fireplace. “I smelled gunpowder in the air when I woke up this evening,” I said.
“I wondered if you’d notice.”
“Since you were in bed with me, I thought everything was probably okay, but I have to admit it gave me a start. Were you shooting today?”
Julian nodded, scooping up the last of his meal. “Yeah, I felt like some target practice.”
“I see. Does this have anything to do with last night?”
“Yeah. I won’t lie; what happened scared the crap out of me. I don’t want to be in that situation again. I’m not an idiot. I know I couldn’t go up against a vampire…but maybe a werewolf,” he said with a laugh. “But it does make me feel better to think I could do something to protect myself if I needed to.”
“I know you could. And if you need to take on one of us, remember to aim for the head next time. It won’t kill us outright, but a headshot will slow a vampire down for quite a while.”
“Good to know,” he replied.
“As for werewolves, you can shoot them anywhere, and they’ll go down just like a human. But you don’t need to worry; they like humans a lot and sometimes mate with them, too. I guess we have that in common now,” I said, smiling at Julian’s shocked expression.
“You can’t be serious.”
“Well, not completely. There aren’t any such things as werewolves, at least not as you think of them. However, there are shapeshifters. They can transform into animals at will. I wouldn’t call one a werewolf to their face, though. They’re a proud and dangerous group.”
“You’re not kidding?” Julian said.
“No. They exist. I met two on my way here. I’m pretty sure I encroached on their territory—inadvertently, of course.”
“Oh, of course,” Julian said, shaking his head. “It’s a lot, but I believe you. It’s just that the world isn’t what I thought it was.”
“I wouldn’t lie to you,” I said seriously.
“No, you just wouldn’t tell me,” he replied, an echo of pain from the night before in his voice.
“Julian, I’m sorry. I truly am. My…mental state was something I preferred not to think about, let alone discuss out loud.”
“I get that, but it’s still a shock, on top of everything else.”
“For me, too,” I said.
“Can you promise me something, though?” Julian asked. “Promise you’ll let me know if you start feeling different or if you think something is wrong. I don’t want you to keep that to yourself. I need to know you’re being honest with me and not holding anything back.”
“Absolutely. I promise,” I said. “You’ll need to know. And keep up with the target practice. I’m counting on you to keep yourself safe, even from me.”
Julian swallowed. “It’s a deal,” he said at last.
We sat in silence for a while. Julian pushed his spoon around the empty bowl without looking at me. Finally, he glanced up to meet my gaze.
