Page 47 of Risking Immortality

I look at my parents, unable to speak. My mother gives me a reassuring nod. Oh shit, here goes nothing. “Erin,” I start. My voice is not confident in the least. “There is something I wanted to tell you, but it will require you to be… open-minded.”

“I like to think I am anyway,” she grumbles. “But, okay, go on, my mind is way open.”

“Right, well, okay.” Words are escaping me. I wrack my brain, trying to formulate a sentence that doesn’t make me sound nuts. “Okay, so… oh, hang on, wait there one second.” It occurs to me that maybe I don’t have to find the words. In the family office is a record of our family tree, our bloodline. We also keep ancient texts about our species. Maybe if I present them to her, Erin will come to her own conclusion.

I dart for the door, noting the many confused looks pointed in my direction. I don’t care. This is the first time I feel confident that I can explain things properly to Erin. The office door creaks open. I hear footsteps behind me. Unsurprisingly, Lucille barges in with a look that tells me she wants to rip into me. I raise my hand. “Luce, just help me,” I say, pointing to the texts and books.

Lucille picks up on my train of thought and nods. Together, we collect as much as possible before heading back downstairs. Everyone is exactly where they were minutes ago. Erin is raising her eyebrows at me. I stop in the middle of the room and drop everything to the floor. “Erin,” I say, a little out of breath. “I need you to come here and read through all this.” I wave my hand over the pile of books.

“You want me to read that?” she clarifies.

“Yes, please. Read it all and then we’ll talk.”

With a quick glance at my parents, Erin rises from the chair, takes a few steps forward and then drops to the floor. With one more look at me, she picks up a record of our family tree.

Stepping back, I lean against the wall and watch. Erin meticulously reads each document, pausing now and then to look at me and then my family. We are silent as she pours over everything on the floor.

My heartbeat is a runaway train. I watch on tenterhooks as Erin closes the last book on the floor. She stares at the ground for a few seconds before rising to her feet. Turning to me, she regards me silently. I can feel sweat pooling at the base of my spine. “Amelia,” she begins, and I am almost sure I am about to pass out. “Are you trying to tell me you and your family are vampires?”

Nineteen

Clearing my throat, I stand tall and look Erin in the eye. “Yes, that’s what I’m trying to tell you.”

“And even though I don’t think it’s the case, I need to ask; this isn’t some weird prank you like to pull on new girlfriends, or anything like that?”

“No prank.”

“Right.” What does that mean? Jesus, I’m nearly hyperventilating while Erin regards me. Her body language is impossible to read. “I’m going to take these books up to your room,” Erin begins. “Then I’m going to reread them and sit with the information for a little while. You,” she points at me, “are going to stay down here with your family. I need some time to sit with this.”

Erin leaves no room for conversation. She has already collected the books and is heading out of the sitting room. My family looks a little stunned. I stand there, not knowing what the hell to do.

“That went well, right?” I finally choke out.

“I think so,” Aliah replies. “She didn’t run out of the house screaming.”

“Yeah, that’s a good sign, sister,” Lucas adds.

“So, what? We just hang around and wait?” Lucille asks.

“Yes,” Father replies. “Erin has asked for some time. It’s the least we can do.”

“Let’s finish lunch,” Mother chimes. I have zero appetite, but I’m not stupid enough to argue. The food sits in my stomach like a bag of rocks. There has been no sound or movement from upstairs. I am fighting myself not to run up there and check on Erin.

“Here,” my father says, passing me a tumbler of bourbon. “This might help settle your nerves.”

“This is torture,” I reply, sipping the amber liquid. I like the burn down my throat.

“It’s going to be okay, Amelia.”

“I hope so, Dad.” The creak of a floorboard upstairs catches everyone’s attention. I hold my breath, praying silently that Erin isn’t trying to sneak out of the house and out of my life.

“Can you all go back to the sitting room?” Erin calls from the bottom of the stairs. The clock tells me Erin has been upstairs for an hour. Is that really enough time to fully comprehend what we have just dropped on her? Trust her.

We filter back to the same spots as before. Erin ushers me to sit in the armchair. I’m clenching everything as she paces back and forth in front of us all. “So, you’re vampires.”

“Yes,” I whisper.

“And from what I’ve read, vampires have been around as long as humans.”

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