I apologize for the wait. It was hefty chapter
Chapter 21: Truth
Beaux woke to the sound of twittering birds and a stream of sunlight cascading from an open window. Was that window open yesterday? He wondered distractedly as his hand made a futile attempt to cover the intense light.
He squeezed his eyes shut and rolled over sluggishly, tugging at the white sheets that covered his bare torso. Then, he felt a soft, warm surface against his lips, gently tingling under his breaths. His eyes snapped open.
Beaux gasped as Meliah pulled her arm away in sleepy stupor. She huddled to the opposite side of the bed, leaving in her dreamy wake, a very stunned vampire. He bolted upright and pulled the rest of the sheets around him. How could he have forgotten?
His frantic hands automatically jumped to the neck and confirmed the memories of the night before. Beaux felt his metallic blood crusted unnaturally over a miniscule scar above his collarbone.
Meliah had created a small incision on his neck and extracted his blood for what seemed like centuries (a miracle it was that he had yet the energy left to breathe). His memories flew backwards and he saw the mirrored halves of his life. Beaux had bitten Meliah in this way before. Had she felt this way when he had taken her blood? It was as though her heart and his beat as one, in a ceaseless, rhythmic wave. And he felt his energy being drained from that single exit; his blood flowing backwards to meet Meliah's thirst. When the blood thickened, she became excited and began enlarging the wound with her canines. The sharp sting that each intake had induced was only surpassed by the elation of sacrificing his sustenance to his beloved. Beaux collapsed unto the bed while she greedily devoured every drop.
Beaux turned to gaze at Meliah's sleeping figure. The light exhaling, the small part between her lips, and the expression of tranquility – no trait could indicate her secret, warped nature. Beaux twisted in frustration as she brought her hands over her head and let out a deep sigh of contentment. He could not decide if he liked the other Meliah – the temptress and mischievous fox.
"How could I have let this happen?" Beaux whispered to her softly. Meliah, of course, could not hear him; her mind lost to the surreal wonders of her imagination. Quickly, Beaux took advantage of this opportunity to place a tender kiss on her brow, still damp with perspiration. He pushed her dark locks aside.
"Disgusting," a cold, but familiar, female voice rang from behind him.
Beaux swung around in surprise as Cecilia prodded the corpse of the serving boy with a tentative foot. The blood, thick after setting overnight, had pooled under the flesh, creating a horrifying odor. Cecilia glared at the face of the boy. She expertly gathered the edges of her brilliant caramel skirt and sidestepped the body in a single move.
"An eye, Beaux," Cecilia began, exasperatedly forming an almond-shaped loop with her index finger and thumb, "I asked you to keep an eye on her – not everything else!"
"Cecilia," Beaux breathed. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh?" Cecilia whistled through her teeth. "I apologize. Was I disturbing something rather private?"
Beaux glanced nervously at Meliah and began edging his hand along the edge of the bed in search of his clothes. "Well," he admitted sheepishly, "Yes."
"It looks to me like the 'main course' is finished. So, get up, Beaux, I have news."
With an awkward hop, Beaux slid off the mattress and walked to his armoire for a clean shirt. He caught Cecilia giving Meliah a hard stare before walking out of the room. Beaux could already feel his stomach contracting uneasily as he dressed and met his cousin, leaning cautiously against the copper-colored walls, in the hallway. She looked anxious like a child reluctant to admit that she had broken her mother's favorite vase.
"What is it?" Beaux whispered as he shut the door behind him.
"I went to the Coven House as I said I would. But when I arrived, the tension was beyond the imaginable. There have been some boisterous young fledglings causing a ruckus in the South. The Assembly has temporarily put our – um – situation on hold. So I took the time to do some research."
"What type of research?" Beaux asked, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.
"What do you think I researched?" Cecilia snapped as an agitated finger stabbed the air. "Good Lord, her case, remember?"
Beaux could not help feeling offended by Cecilia's irritable tone, but he tried to quell her temper. "It's not her fault," he pointed out.
Cecilia rolled her eyes and put an impatient hand on her hips, "I don't give a damn whose fault it is!" she hissed.
"Continue," Beaux coaxed. His voice was soft and gentle but his mounting anxiety was as prominent as ever. Cecilia's eyes became incredibly dark and she pursed her lips into a thin line.
"There have been only three documented cases of vampire bites on a living mortal. All three have enough similarities to lead me to believe that there are clear symptoms, which means we may be able to predict what will become of our curly-haired friend."
"What are the symptoms?" Beaux asked urgently, tugging at Cecilia's hands in plea. She gently wrapped her fingers around his palms and spoke quickly.
"Well, all three instances noted vast shifts in character. The bite creates some sort of an alter ego, bloodthirsty and vicious. Meanwhile, the victim's original personality becomes increasingly disoriented and susceptible to the domineering persona of its so-called 'evil twin.' By biting that girl, you've created another entity, one that is clearly infatuated with you - one that needs you."
"Does that mean that this, other Meliah, thinks she's in love with me?"
"More or less," Cecilia murmured. She looked curiously into Beaux's eager green eyes. "But don't raise your hopes, dear. She's in love with her creator – not necessarily you."
"Oh."
"-Which brings me to my next point. Your bite has altered her genetically. Her body's adapted to become parasitic. Meliah will have to drain the blood of other human beings in order to survive, and her other self needs your blood to sustain her mentality – her thirst. She acts like a vampire. But she is not – and I repeat – not one of us."
"I'm confused," Beaux admitted.
"I'm saying," Cecilia spoke slowly, "That the other Meliah only exists as long as you keep letting her feed off you."
Beaux's hand jumped to the scar on his neck. "So if I don't let her drink-"
"Don't you get it Beaux?" Cecilia whispered. Her eyes were downcast and oddly blank. "If you stop her from drinking your blood, Meliah won't have the mindset to hunt her own prey. Then, she, too, will cease to exist. Neither one can live without the other…"
"In heaven's name!" Beaux exclaimed as he pounded an angry fist into the wall. "What am I supposed to do?"
"I don't know, Beaux. The cases I read about all had the same result." Cecilia turned her fair face away from Beaux's forceful gaze, but not before he saw a thin stream of tears trailing her glassy cheeks.
"They didn't-" Beaux could not finish his sentence. He felt his heart dropping helplessly from behind his rib cages.
"Yes. All three of the vampires either abandoned or killed their victims."
"Hell!" Beaux spat angrily. "You know I won't-!"
"I know," Cecilia murmured sadly. "I know very well. But there aren't many alternatives. You've created a half-vampire. And the Coven is not tolerant of vampires who Create without permission."
"I'm not going to hurt her," Beaux vowed. "I need to meet the Assembly. I need to do something."
"We don't have a lot of time."
Beaux sighed and ruffled his hair in a frustrated manner. Everything seemed to be getting more and more complicated. This was not exactly the kind of life he had imagined – not for him, not for Meliah. And now the element of time was quickly warping their chances for survival. Could things get any worse? Beaux thought.
"Hello?" a familiar voice echoed from inside the bedroom. Beaux heard a tumble and a muted "Ow!" before the caller resumed her appeal for assistance, "Is someone out there? Please! Hello?"
I spoke too soon. Beaux let out an exasperated sigh before slumping over.
"It's her!" Cecilia whispered with an impatient hop. She looked at Beaux's face – desperately in search of some hidden answer. But to her disappointment, his expression was apprehensive. "Well, what are you waiting for? Go!"
With what Cecilia hoped was an encouraging shove, Beaux got uneasily to his feet and opened his room door. He could barely manage to keep his voice even upon seeing Meliah, sitting on the edge of the bed and rubbing the knee that had been bruised by the mahogany chair. She was his Meliah – the one he had fallen for.
"Are you all right?" Beaux asked as he moved to press his cold hand upon the swelling. Meliah's eyes narrowed until he could only see the glint of her irises. Reluctantly, she adjusted to place her aching leg over his lap.
"I knew this place looked familiar," Meliah finally broke the silence. "What am I doing here?"
"You came with me yesterday, remember?" Beaux murmured her cautiously as he pressed his forefinger against her knee. He did not want to remind her of the deaths. Not now…
But Meliah's eyes were already widening with understanding. "Oh no," she sighed. "Oh no, please no." She squeezed her eyelids together and groaned as though her entire body was in physical pain.
Sick with anticipation, Beaux quickly pressed his hand against her mouth. "Shh," he hushed. "Don't think about it."
Yet, that was apparently the wrong thing to say. Meliah's body became rigid. "Not think about it?!" she repeated furiously as her eyes snapped open. "How can I NOT think about it?! My Mama is dead! My Papa is dead! Andante is dead! They're all DEAD! It's the only thing I can see! All I can see is their bodies, the rotting flesh, the blood-"
"Meliah, please," Beaux begged as she struggled out of his grasp. "This isn't the time."
Meliah rolled her eyes. "Then when is the time?" she growled. "Easy for you to say, you're the one that did this!" She threw a tasseled pillow into Beaux's face. Her hand fervently sought another one but she was interrupted by a shout from the hallway.
"Uncle!" Cecilia's voice was urgent. Beaux looked up in time to see his father pry his arm from Cecilia's delicate fingers.
"You want to put your money where your mouth is, darling?" Vincent asked Meliah from the open door.
"What are you talking-" Beaux's frantic question was quickly cut off.
"Tell me," Meliah ordered Vincent, her eyes alight with a hysteric passion. Beaux reached to cover Meliah's ears, but she nearly clawed his hands in her angry attempt to evade him. Beaux moaned; the gleam in Vincent's eyes was too familiar.
"You killed them," Vincent stated casually, "You killed everybody – not Beaux."
"Vincent!" Beaux screamed. He looked around for Meliah, who was suddenly kneeling in front of him.
Meliah's face had caved. "Beaux," she mumbled, "Is that true?"