Page 28 of Voyage of Fury and Fate

“Why are you here?” Patrice asks, looking me up and down.

“I want to be a mother,” I lie.

She sniffs the air in front of me. “You’re old. Why now?”

“Before becoming a vampire, I had eight brothers and sisters. I miss them.”

Patrice steps closer toward me. “What happened to them?”

I look at the floor. “One was killed by the vampire that changed me, another was changed by the vampire that changed me, and one of my sisters married a lycanthrope.” I clear my throat. “I don’t know about the rest.”

“What happened to the one that was changed?”

“Dead.” I don’t go into detail.

“Can we play with her, Mother?” Alexander asks.

“Oh, please, Mother. Can we?” the girl joins.

“I believe we have a mutual acquaintance,” I interrupt the children’s attempt to murder me. “Elijah told me he spoke to you earlier on my behalf.”

“He did,” Patrice agrees. She begins to walk around me, making me feel like prey. “How old are you?”

“A little over three hundred years old,” I answer truthfully.

“Why do you feel older?”

I shrug. “I’m not sure.” No one has ever told me that before.

Patrice steps behind me, placing a cold hand on my shoulder. It takes every part of me not to wince with her touch. “If I allow you to stay, what are your intentions?”

“To help with the children.”

“I don’t need help,” she retorts.

“I’m not implying otherwise. Being the eldest of nine, I always helped care for and feed my brothers and sisters. My mother never needed my help, but I was there in case she did. Being with the children wouldbring back those treasured memories I’ve lost.” I give myself a mental pat on the back for thinking under pressure.

She steps in front of me, pulling her hand away from my skin. “Caring for immortal children is not an easy task. They can be quite…temperamental.”

“Aren’t we all?” I laugh, hoping to ease the tension.

“Elijah didn’t share much information about you.” She ignores my attempt to ease the tension. Patrice steps toward an empty pew, sliding into the seat. “Enlighten us.”

My mind reels over how much of the truth I should share, and I decide on an abbreviated version. “I was taken from the ship that brought the rest of my family to America in the early 1700s.”

Patrice slides back, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “Go on. This has the makings of an interesting story.”

“I was kept aboard the vampire’s ship for a century until finally escaping.”

“I was right! This is going to be good.”

“Since escaping, I’ve been on the run, hiding from everyone and everything.” I resist the urge to fidget my hands while speaking. “On a trip to Charleston, I met Elijah, and we became…friends.”

“Isn’t he handsome?” She claps her hands. “And so well versed in usingevery inchof him, if you know what I mean.”

“We weren’t that kind of friends,” I interrupt.

“Oh, that’s a pity. He’s quite well-endowed.”

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