Page 10 of To Save a Vampire
She is very good at deceiving everyone around her. Suddenly we’ve become quite the accomplished lying family, she and I. Her dishonesty should make me nervous, yet it doesn’t. I know when she lies and when she tells the truth. She would never lie to me. She has no reason to. We are honest with each other, if no one else.
I haven’t lied to her since I was fourteen and brought Ripper home. I snuck him into our quarters. I told my mother he wouldn’t be any trouble or take any extra food supplies. Even then I knew that that was a lie.
Pets are non-contributing companions in society, but Ripper has lived with us ever since. He was neutered immediately, to eliminate the pet population, and after that, he was part of our family. The guards of the camp are just waiting to catch the dog alone to get rid of him once and for all. The skittering and nervous animal stays out of sight for the most part, like he knows what would happen if he didn’t.
So here I am following a liar and a pike to my secret place.
When I was younger, my mother wanted to leave the camp and go out on our own. We walked for hours to the most beautiful waterfall I have ever seen. It was like a haven of water in the dying desert. Ky eventually talked my mother into coming back to camp after a few days, but, once a year from then on, Ayden and I came back and camped out.
Last year, after we received the rejection letter on our requested union, we came here again, and wasted hours talking about staying at the falls forever. Like my mother, however, I set aside my unrealistic dreams and returned to camp.
I can see the falls in the distance, and I can almost taste the moisture in the air. My heart pounds, my side is killing me, and all I want is a drink of water.
It takes less than a moment for us to cross the open space between the forest and the pool of water. The water tumbles beautifully down into the small clear lake that we stand beside. A rocky opening within the cliff is barely seen a few yards above. Dirt and dust coat the crevices of the side of the cliff, centuries of wind and rain and life in general piling into the cracks.
I pick up Ripper and tuck him into Ky’s pack. Not because his pack has the most room but because I’m currently not on speaking terms with my mother and there’s no way the little dog would go compliantly into Forty-four’s bag. Instinctively I start climbing the slick rocks, my fingers finding the familiar grooves. I ignore the stabbing pain soaring through my palm. I don’t wait for them to follow; I’d actually prefer as much distance from them as possible.
As soon as my hands reach the cold wet floor of the cave, my legs start to give out and I force myself up over the ledge. Pain bites into my spine as I roll onto my back, looking up at the jagged ceiling. Deep breaths push into my lungs; I can actually feel the sweat running down my neck. It’s still midday outside, and there is plenty of light slipping into the cave through the clear running waterfall that separates me from the rest of the world.
But I find instant peace here.
I hear the others climb into my safe haven one by one, stealing away the calming magic the structure offers me with each person who enters. I realize this is no longer my safe place. I’m still not sure why we are running, but, if I had to guess, the falls are now Forty-four’s safe place.
My mother and Ky walk past. Ky drops Ripper off at my feet and the little dog wastes no time licking up the puddles at the fall’s edge. Ky and my mother start setting up camp. Ky starts a fire effortlessly as if he’s using a bow drill every day in his spare time. My mother digs through our packs and lays out thin blankets. I continue to lie lifelessly on the ground still heaving to catch my breath.
I should clean my wound. I know I should. Infection is a huge risk without proper cleaning and bandaging. I’m just too tired to move right now.
Just as the burn in my chest starts to subside, Forty-four’s boots land before me and his face appears above me with the crystal waterfall behind him. Like an angel glancing through the heavens. As hard as I try, I can’t will his image out of my view.
No one bothered to speak to me about or even ask me if I wanted to come along on our little family vacation, but this pike knows everything, and I know he is the sole purpose of the little adventure. I roll over so I no longer have to look up at him. I’m facing the wall now, and I do my best to pretend to find comfort on the jagged floor. In my mock comfort, Forty-four’s face appears again.
“Seriously, can you not take a hint?”
He gives a half smile and kneels down beside me to sit in the limited space I have left between myself and the wall. Ripper growls at Forty-four’s closeness, before skittering away like the wimp he is when Forty-four gives him a side glance. I peek up at Forty-four again as he takes my injured hand. It reminds me of when he captivated me at the compound. I jerk my hand away, pain shooting through my palm at my roughness. I hold it to my chest in the safety of my arms.
He clenches his jaw tighter and starts to remove his shirt. My breath catches and my eyes grow wide as his chest becomes exposed. I try to look away from the hard lines of his stomach—the flawless muscle that flows over his body—but I can’t. I won't. I realize my mother and Ky behind us have stopped working. Maybe they, too, are mesmerized by the perfection that has just been revealed.
Should we clap now?
No?
Forty-four takes no notice of the audience he now fully has. He rips the shirt apart into long strips and, once the shirt is entirely shredded, he returns to my side with an outstretched, demanding hand. I swallow harshly, putting my sole focus into his eyes and not his perfect body as I sit up and extend my injured palm to him.
He really does just want to help me. The monster the people of my community have imprisoned for decades is a bit kinder than I expected. Maybe he’s not the animal Dr. Shaw believes him to be. Maybe none of them are. Or maybe he’s as good of a liar as my mother.
“Thanks,” I say in a quiet, nervous voice.
I can hear my mother and Ky moving within the cave again.
I watch as he rinses a strip of his shirt under the falling water and then starts to unwrap my old bandage. His beautiful features focus on his task. The sun reflecting off the water lights up his face, emphasizing his silver eyes and his strong jawline that makes me want to trace the angles with my fingers. My hand flexes at the thought of it and then stings when he wipes the still fresh blood away. I breathe slowly through my teeth, trying to release some of the pain.
He stops as soon as I make a noise. “Sorry,” he says in a rough whisper. I watch him breathe in pain of his own as soon as he speaks.
It surprises me every time he speaks, and I find myself sympathizing with him again. I try to talk a little to keep my mind off my throbbing hand.
“At the compound yesterday,” As I speak, his silver eyes meet mine for only a second before continue with his work. “When you spoke to me, you captivated me, didn’t you?”
He smiles and shakes his head, his eyes never leaving the thin cut in my palm.
