I grabbed Julie’s hand as we walked up the large stone walkway to Celadine’s front entrance.
"Thank you," I said.
"Thank you for what?"
"Well, for giving them a chance and for trying to understand," I replied.
She stopped then. "Avery, I trust your judgment. And, plus, I've seen them both and I couldn't even tell."
"What do you mean you couldn't tell? You can see the difference between vampires and humans?" If there was a major distinction then I felt silly for not seeing it right away. They’d appeared a little too perfect looking, but not inhuman.
"Sort of, well, we're supposed to. I’ve never met one that I know of. But I read that since they’re a threat to fairies, we have a built-in defense thing. We should be able to sense one vampire in a room full of humans."
"And you couldn't?" I asked, skeptical.
"No, it's weird. Maybe it's because I’ve lived in Iron World my whole life. Perhaps I never developed the extra sense or something." She shrugged like it was no big deal.
"I guess. It would explain it," I agreed and inhaled a deep breath. "Ready?" I asked, motioning toward the door. Julie nodded and I banged the old, gigantic brass knocker. We stood there and waited a few moments until someone came to the door.
"Hello, ladies," greeted the most beautiful voice in the world. Well, in my world at least. I stared up at Jack’s magnificent and flawless face. His vibrant blue eyes peered into mine and I wanted him to wrap his iron arms around me.
"Ahem," Julie coughed interrupting the moment. I’d almost forgotten that she was standing there. Actually, I’d forgotten where I was for a second.
"Oh, sorry, Jack, this is Julie. Julie, Jack," I quickly introduced them.
"Pleased to meet you, Julie, formally," said Jack in the polite manner that he often used. I’d once thought that he was mocking me all of the time with that smug politeness, and I’m sure that he sometimes was, but now I knew that it probably came from his years of living in old Europe. Or maybe his mother had raised him that way. Who knew?
"Please, come in. Celi is waiting in the den."
We followed him to the den, which was at the far end of the house and, ironically, in a sun room. The white moonlight shone through the glass ceiling and illuminated the room in a pale blue glow. Celadine had furnished the place in old Victorian style furniture, like the rest of the house. Almost everything was white and silver.
The room was stunning, just like her. My boss sat on a beautiful loveseat, wearing a black pantsuit. Her dark dreadlocks were let loose down around her shoulders and rested in a pool behind her. She smiled and stood to greet us as we entered the room.
"Avery, darling, come, sit by me. I've missed you."
I went to take a seat next to her, while Julie took the large chair next to me and Jack decided to remain standing. He leaned on the door frame looking like a flawless statue, waiting for us to talk about the reason why we’d come.
"So, what is it that you need? Is there anything that I should be concerned about?" Celadine asked. "Are you alright?"
I looked to Julie for answers. I didn't know where to start.
"It’s hard to explain. First I wanted to ask you a few questions," I started. "Before I told you about Julie, did you know? Like, could you tell...what she was?"
Celadine smiled in relief. "Avery, I could smell fairy all over you the moment I met you," she explained.
I suddenly felt a little self-conscious. "You mean in my interview?" I asked. She just nodded.
"And Jack, what about you, could you, um, smell it on me too?" I asked awkwardly.
We all looked to him standing quietly in the doorway.
"Yes, yes I could. But I had already known that you would," he admitted. "You know, from Celadine."
"Why didn't you guys ever say anything?" I asked.
"Why would I? It was not my place to say anything. If you wanted me to know then you would have told me," Celadine answered.
"Well, how come you guys don't seem to be affected by her?"
I sensed Julie shift in her seat then.
"Jules, are you uncomfortable? We can go."
"No, no. I'm fine. But I shouldn't be. I mean, I’m as unaffected by them as they are by me."
"Avery," Celadine began. "Jack and I are a little different. We would never allow ourselves to become monsters like others of our kind." She put her arm around me and smoothed my hair like a mother would. But, in the corner of my eye, I could see Jack tense uncomfortably.
"I know that. But, I wanted Julie to know it too."
"So, now that we have that sorted out, maybe we should talk about the real reason we’re here," Julie suggested.
"Yes, you said on the phone that you may need our help?"
"Yeah, it's a long story, though. Are you familiar with any fairy culture?" Julie asked them.
"Somewhat. I do know your rulers and I am familiar with a few that reside here in Iron World, as you call it," answered Celadine.
"Good, that will make it easier then. Well, there is a really dangerous fairy out to get Avery."
Suddenly, I felt the air become tight. The two vampires in the room tensed at the thought of me in danger. Jack moved in closer and took a seat. Julie looked to me to see if she should continue. I gave her a slight nod.
"Her name is Evaine. She’s sort of like the right-hand man to the Seelie Queen. When Avery was a little girl she painted a picture of the old kingdom, when Orion once ruled it. Someone bought it at an art fair that summer, and I think it might have been Evaine. And now Queen Mabry has her out to collect Avery because of it."
"But why would they want her because of that?" asked Jack, now in on the conversation. "I mean, it’s just a painting. And why would they wait so long to come and find her?"
"That’s what I thought at first, too” Julie continued. “But, time passes differently in Faerie. What seems like years here, is actually only days or weeks there. And the fact that they are threatened by this painting can only mean one thing. Orion is not dead, and the Queen knows what happened to him, but not where he is, and she fears that Avery knows. Only a monarch could have told her what the old kingdom looks like from the point of view that it was painted in."
"Wait, what point of view? You never said anything about that before," I interrupted.
"Avery, that scene is painted as if the artist were sitting on the balcony of the castle, looking out over the kingdom. No regular fey could have told you how to do it."
I felt sick all of a sudden. "So, Mabry thinks that Orion described it to me, but he didn't!" I cried.
"But Tess did. Do you think it's possible that she may know where he is?" Julie asked.
"Don't be ridiculous, Jules. Tess believes in all that stuff, but don't you think that I’d know if she was friends with a fairy king? Besides, she didn't even describe that to me. She just talked about the stories and the scenery so much that I made up that painting from my imagination. This is just all a big coincidence."
"Well, if Mabry is responsible for Orion’s disappearance and she thinks that you may know his whereabouts, then you're in serious trouble," Jack pointed out angrily.
"Yes, and that's why we might need your help. Evaine has already approached me twice. The second time, I would have died if Jack hadn’t saved me. I don't want to test that whole ‘third time’s a charm’ thing."
"It's settled then. You must come and stay here, with us. We can protect you. No fairy is going to dare come into the home a vampire," Celadine claimed. "Well, except you of course." She smiled at Julie.
"Yeah, I’m crazy like that," she joked.
"Oh Celadine, thank you for the offer, but I can’t stay here forever. I have the feeling that Evaine isn't going to stop until she has me, or has…killed me." I looked around the room at everyone’s grim expression. No one liked that idea.
"Then what do you suggest we do? We can't protect you in the daylight. The safest place for you to be is here," Jack added, st
ill angry.
"I know that. But I’m not going to give up my life because of this. I’ll still go to school and work at the gallery. She only approaches me at night, and it's only when I’m close to the woods. I just want her to leave me alone. She needs to know that I have no information, I pose no threat, she has to give up eventually," I argued desperately.
"Well, we could purposely look for her one night. I could threaten her to stay away," Jack offered.
"Maybe. It’s an idea," I agreed. "I didn't really have a plan when I came here, actually. I just wanted to know that you guys would be there if I ever needed your help."
"Oh of course darling, I'm offended that you felt the need to ask. I will always be here for you, for anything," Celadine assured me. I rested my head on her shoulder and she softly kissed the top of my head.
"Thanks."
"Well, then," Julie started as she stood up. "I'd better get going, Lattie’s probably freaking out right about now."
"Do you mind if I stay here for a while?" I asked while sneaking a peek at Jack from the corner of my eye. He was already looking at me.
Julie saw the discrete exchange and grinned. "No, of course not. I’ll call you when I get home.”
"Thank you." I stood and gave her a hug. Her platinum hair smothered my face as it usually did. It felt nice and familiar, comforting in all of this new found chaos. "I'll walk you out."
After Julie left, and later called me to let me know that she had gotten home safely, I could finally let out the breath that I had been holding in all night. Celadine and I had retreated to her beautifully decorated bedroom to talk about the upcoming Halloween party. I sat on Celadine’s oversized red couch, watching her rummage through a jam-packed walk-in closet only to throw each outfit on the floor.
"What about this one?" She held an authentic black Victorian gown with cream lace and frills to her body and modeled it in front of me.
"Celadine, it's a Halloween party. You have to wear a costume," I replied.
She raised her eyebrows. "But this is a costume. You can find cheap replica's in any costume store in the city," she claimed.
"Yeah, but it's technically not a costume. You probably actually wore that as an everyday outfit once. Didn't you?" I teased.
She threw the gown on top of the growing pile. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I did." I watched her smile as she recalled a distant memory. "I wore that gown to a magnificent ball in Europe. It was 1860, winter time, and the night was completely silent as I walked down my street. Soft snowflakes lightly fell down around me as I made my way to the ball."
"Did you have a date?" I asked. A silly question, really. Celadine was absolutely gorgeous, an eternal beauty. I'm sure she probably had flocks of men wanting to be her date.
"Yes, I did." She let a look of sadness quickly wash over her face.
"Celadine, I'm sorry if I touched on a bad subject."
She forced a smile. "I have nothing to hide from you. I will always be your open book.” My boss sighed thoughtfully. "I was in love once, you know, with a human. He was everything I had ever hoped for in a partner, a companion."
"Really?” I asked, thinking of my own similar unconventional relationship.
"His name was Derek. He loved me so much. I told him what I was, and he still loved me. But, he grew to become obsessed, overwhelmed with the idea that I was going to live forever and he was not, he begged for me to make him like I was…a vampire." As Celadine spoke the words it was as if she relived the hurtful memories. Pain and despair chased across her beautiful features.
I held her hand in mine. "What happened to Derek?" I knew the answer was probably bad because there was no Derek in her life right now that I knew of.
"Well, after years of me refusing and him continuing to obsess, he disappeared. I was devastated. Months later, he showed up at my doorstep with a bit of a surprise. He had searched for another vampire, one who would be willing to change him, and that is what he found. But he was not like us. He fled Europe, once he realized the mistake he had made when he saw that I could not love him anymore. Derek’s predatory desire to murder innocent people made it impossible for me to even be near him."
"Celadine, are you and Jack really the only ones of your, um, nature?" I asked.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, from what I’ve gathered, it sounds like vampires are savage monsters. But you and Jack are two of the most loving, compassionate and human people that I know."
"A vampire may appear to be quite normal actually, even show signs of compassion and love. But it wouldn’t be real, they have no soul. It would be for show, to lure you in the way a predator would. To this day, we still do not know why we are the way we are. But I’m thankful every day for what I became.” She paused for a moment. “But, I won’t sit here and tell you that my brother and I are completely innocent, either. We still have the predatory urges and the…thirst. I won’t lie to you, we have slipped from time to time and I will have the rest of eternity to be tortured by those awful memories.”
We sat on the couch and I rested my head on her shoulder. I heard what she was saying but I just couldn’t find myself to be frightened around her.
"Avery, can I tell you something else about Jack and I?" "Yes, I want to know anything you would share with me." I had lifetimes of things to learn about them. But, I doubted that I’d ever really know all there was to know. After centuries, I was certain there would be things you’d choose to keep to yourself, like the ‘slip-ups’ she spoke of, things that I would never be lucky enough to discover. I’d take what I could get.
"If you choose to let us be a part of your life, then I feel it's only fair for you to know certain things."
"Okay..." I replied hesitantly.
"Well, you know that Jack and I are twins, right?" I nodded. "Well, we are closer than most regular twins or siblings. We are connected, linked. I can read his mind and he can read mine. I sometimes feel what he feels and vice versa if the feelings are really strong enough." She was looking at me as if I should understand something more.
"Oh! Do you feel what he feels for me?" I asked. That would be weird and slightly awkward.
"Not exactly, I developed a bond with you first. Avery, I love you. But my feelings are of a motherly or somewhat sisterly nature. I will always care for you and protect you."
"I see,” I paused to let that sink in. “And Jack, what are his feelings toward me?" I asked, unsure if I even wanted to know the answer to that question. Maybe he didn't have any actual feelings for me. Maybe they were all influenced by Celadine’s emotions.
"I don't think that I’m the person you should be asking. I could answer you, but Jack and I try to give each other as much privacy as we can."
"Oh, okay," I replied disappointedly. I looked down at my lap and fidgeted with a strand of my red hair. Celadine gently took the strand from my fingers and twirled it in her own, eyeing it curiously.
"You know, it is very strange that you would have this vibrant, beautiful hair color and not have green eyes. Do you dye it?" she asked.
"No, it’s real. Tess told me that we’re Irish descendants. That's probably where I get it from. I wasn't lucky enough to get beautiful green eyes to go with it." I envied Celadine’s intense violet eyes and wondered if stunning eye color was something most mythical beings had? Julie had beautiful green eyes, and then there were Jack’s marvelous cerulean blue ones.
"Avery, your warm brown eyes are magnificent, don't you ever doubt that. I love them."
"Thank you," I replied shyly. "Um, I’m going to go get something to drink. You want anything?" I was hoping that she wouldn't see through my rouse to go find Jack. Ever since last night, I hadn't been able to get him alone. I had so many more questions now that I’d spoken with Celadine.
She searched my face and then grinned. "Yes. I'll have a Coke." And she began to clean up the heap of clothing on the floor. I could still see the grin in the corner of her mouth.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIV
E
BONDS