CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
MARY LOUISE paused in front of the small café; pulling out a piece of crumpled paper from her purse—the one Victoria had given her the other day. According to Victoria's note, she was at the right café, and she was instructed to meet Margret here at 12:00pm in the afternoon. Mary Louise was already twenty minutes late. She had spent most of her morning debating whether or not to actually go, but the nagging in the back of her mind reminded her that she had promised Victoria she would—to show her she could be better than her vampire self.
Mary Louise took a deep breath and pulled the café door open and stepped inside. The café was quaint and modestly decorated. There were people sitting at the various tables. Some people were with human company, others on their phones or portable computers.
Mary Louise scanned the café, spotting Margret sitting in the back. She noticed Margret appeared to be staring absent-mindedly at her hands, which were clasped together on the dark wood table. Memories of Margret lashing her with a whip, as she screamed out in pain, flooded her brain. It would be so easy for her to rush over to Margret and pull her heart out, but that would just show Victoria that she wasn't in control, and she was trying so hard to redeem herself.
Taking another deep breath to work up the nerve, she slowly made her way into the back of the café. Margret noticed her, and a large smile crossed her face as she got up from her chair and hugged her daughter tightly.
Mary Louise was taken aback by the hug, and never returned it. Yet, at the same time, the hug felt comforting and familiar—like of a time before Margret found out she was a Siphoner.
Margret separated from the hug, her smile still large as she looked at her daughter. There were tears welling up in her eyes—happy tears.
"I didn't think you would come," Margret said as they both took a seat opposite each other at the small circular table.
"I wasn't sure I would come," Mary Louise answered, and the smile Margret was wearing suddenly disappeared.
"Well," Margret finally said, "I'm glad you did."
A Waitress came by, placing a teapot in the center of the table, along with teacups and milk, sugar. Margret smiled politely at the Waitress, before she was off to attend to another table.
Margret grabbed the pot and poured some tea in both their teacups. "I hope you don't mind I ordered us a Breakfast tea. I recall it being your favourite."
Mary Louise took a look at the orangey liquid. Since turning into a vampire, she began to acquire different tastes for human food. Most of the foods she enjoyed as a child, she now hated.
Margret frowned. "Oh dear. Maybe I should have asked if you could still eat human food."
"It's fine," Mary Louise said. "We can still eat and drink…it helps curb our hunger for what we really want."
Margret swallowed uncomfortably, knowing her daughter was referring to blood. "Anyway, what have you been up to for the last 130 years?"
"I'm so glad you asked," Mary Louise said in a fake cheerful tone. "After being tortured by my own family, I was on the streets for a year before some nice man took me to meet Lily and other members of the Gemini Coven who were cast out for being Siphoners as well."
Mary Louise noticed Margret getting more and more uncomfortable, and she knew she should have stopped, but she was having too much fun. "Lily turned me into a Vampire, and then were planning on killing the Gemini Coven, but they got to us first and trapped us into a prison world for 110 years, where we were desiccated for most of it."
Mary Louise went on to talk about Mystic Falls, the Armory, and her almost dying and how she finally ended up here.
"That's quite a story," Margret said, unable to look Mary Louise in the eyes. Part of her felt guilty that her daughter had suffered so much.
"What about you?" Mary Louise asked. "What have you been doing since 1877?"
"I'm sure Victoria told you we defected from the Coven, after we realized the mistake we made when we found out you were a Siphoner. We spent some time looking for you, and we figured you might be dead. I guess we were half right about that. Then, your father found a spell for immortality for those who defected with us. We've been travelling the world since."
Mary Louise took a sip of her tea. Margret's words sounded sincere, but part of her didn't believe them. As she put her cup down she asked, "So, why did you want to see me?"
Margret's mouth quivered slightly. "You're my daughter. My child. There hasn't been a day that has gone by since you ran away in 1877 that I haven't thought about you."
Mary Louise rolled her eyes. Her words were sharp, calculated—angry. "But you couldn't think about me as your daughter and child when you found out I was a Siphoner. When you all were lashing me for something that was out of my control. When I cried and begged for the pain to stop. When I was praying for my death that would not come."
Tears rolled down Margret's face. "I've done terrible things that I am not proud of. But you have to understand, we were so influenced by the Gemini Coven that they made us believe you were an abomination."
Margret paused, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I know you are hesitant to believe me. But we have changed. Your father, Ephraim, Samuel, and Noah—we do not hold those same views anymore. Watching this world evolve has opened our eyes to certain things. We want to make it up to you. Be a family again."
Mary Louise leaned back in her chair, wondering how exactly they planned on doing that. There was no way they could erase the months of abuse she had received at their hands.
"We would like you to come over for dinner tomorrow night," Margret said. "Victoria will be there, and we want you to bring your girlfriend, Nora."
Mary Louise shot Margret a surprised look.
"Don't be mad, but Victoria mentioned the two of you were a couple."
"We are," Mary Louise said quietly. "We've been together for almost 137 years."
Margret smiled. "I'm happy that you found someone. All of us are."
Mary Louise seemed confused. It was hard for her family to accept her as a Siphoner, and she for sure thought that they would disapprove her being a Lesbian as well.
"I know what you must be thinking," Margret said as she looked at her daughter's perplexed face. "If you had told me that you were gay back in 1870s, I probably wouldn't have taken it so well. But, I told you we have changed. There are some things a person is just born with."
Margret placed her hand on top of Mary Louise. "Please consider it. We would love both of you to come."
MARY LOUISE returned home an hour and a half later. She was surprised she had even stayed that long with Margret, but after the awkwardness had passed, they were able to have a decent conversation. The fact that she had not killed Margret proved it had been a somewhat successful afternoon.
The Sanctuary appeared to be quiet, too quiet, and she wondered where everyone was. It was a beautiful day, and she thought they might all be in the Court Yard, and she started to make her way toward the back.
"You're home," Came Cynthia's voice from behind, which caused Mary Louise to spin around. She noticed Cynthia was struggling to carry several boxes stacked on top of each other.
"Let me help you with those," Mary Louise said as she walked over to Cynthia.
"Thank you," Cynthia said as Mary Louise took a couple of boxes. "How was it?"
Mary Louise shrugged. "It was fine, I guess. She invited me over for dinner tomorrow…with Nora."
Cynthia raised both her eyebrows. "That's interesting. Are you going to go?"
Mary Louise shrugged again. "I'll ask Nora, but I haven't really given her an answer either."
Mary Louise followed Cynthia up the stairs and into her Master Bedroom. "Where is everyone?"
"Sage and Nora went to the mall. Jonas and Barron are out for a run. And Adam and Callum are at this science convention."
"So you're here by your lonesome?"
"You're here now," Cynthia said. "Besides, it gives me a chance to go through all my jewelry."
Mary Louise carefully placed the boxes down and began to look at the pieces of jewelry that were spread out on the bed. There had to be over a hundred thousand dollars worth of it.
Cynthia observed Mary Louise looking at the necklaces. She was kind of glad everyone was out of the house. It gave her a chance to finally be alone with Mary Louise. She had many opportunities to bond one-on-one with Sage, Barron, Jonas, Callum, and even Nora when they first got here. But because of Mary Louise's circumstance when she came into The Sanctuary, they just never had a time to be alone and talk freely.
Cynthia noticed Mary Louise look at the rings, something she looked longer at compared to the necklaces and earrings. "Can I ask you something personal?"
Mary Louise turned her attention to Cynthia. "Of course."
"Have you thought about marrying Nora?"
Mary Louise let out a small chuckle. "Would you believe me if I told you we were engaged twice?"
Cynthia seemed surprised. "You were?"
Mary Louise nodded. "I proposed on our 133 year anniversary. I was even given a better ring by Julian, a man I viewed as father figure. There was a situation involving Julian and one of our family members, and I chose to side with him over her, and Nora called off the engagement."
There was sadness in her voice as she continued, "Lily and Julian were linked together, and I had unlinked them in case her biological sons succeeded in killing Julian. She didn't know, and she staked herself in the heart thinking she would take him down as well. Nora and I broke up for some time after that."
"I'm sorry," Cynthia said.
Mary Louise gave her a small smile. "The second time, Nora proposed to me with a ring made of candy. But, within seconds we were tasered from behind by the Armory and separated for three years."
"Have you talked about it since?" Cynthia asked.
Mary Louise shook her head. "I sometimes have this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach that maybe these are signs that we aren't meant to be together. Every time I want to talk about it, I get too nervous. I'm afraid that Nora might not want to marry me anymore."
Cynthia felt her heart break for Mary Louise.
"But still, I would love nothing more than to marry Nora."
"Hold that thought," Cynthia said and she made her way into her massive walk in closet. Mary Louise heard her shuffling through her things, and she was curious as to what Cynthia had gone to grab.
When Cynthia came back, she was holding a small black box in her hand. Mary Louise knew it was a ring box.
"Open it," Cynthia said as she handed the box to Mary Louise. Mary Louise looked hesitant, but she opened it to reveal a beautiful tiered ring, made from white gold. In the center was a light blue diamond, and beside it, slightly lower were two smaller clear diamonds, followed by even smaller diamonds that were placed halfway down the ring.
"This is gorgeous," Mary Louise said. She was completely captivated by it.
"It was my mother's," Cynthia began to say. "Unlike Adam, my family didn't come from money, and my father was in love with my mother on and off since high school. They had a lot of ups and downs, especially considering my Mother's parents disapproved of him because he couldn't give her everything."
Cynthia continued, "Anyway, they had been dating on and off for almost ten years, and one day he proposed to her with nothing but two promises: one, that he would love her until the day he dies, and two, that when he had enough money he would buy her a ring."
Mary Louise smiled. Being a hopeless romantic herself, the story reminded her of Nora proposing with the candy ring, and how that was good enough.
"My father worked hard, and he became successful and was able to provide for his family. And he did keep his promise. He did love my mother until the day he died, and on their 20th wedding anniversary, he proposed to her with that very ring. On their 21st anniversary, they renewed their vows."
"That's a beautiful love story," Mary Louise said as she closed the box and extended her arm to give it back to Cynthia. However she didn't take it.
"I want you to have it," Cynthia said, which caused Mary Louise to widen her eyes in surprise.
"No, I can't," Mary Louise protested.
"My mother was a believer in true love. She loved my father long after he passed, and when she died there was a smile on her face because she knew she was going to be with him again. She fought endlessly for people to marry the people they love, from interracial to same-sex marriage."
Cynthia gently grabbed Mary Louise's extended hand. "I have no use for this ring, Mary Louise. My mother and my father would want someone who loved as deeply as they loved each other to give it to the person they love. They would want you to give it to Nora."
Mary Louise hugged Cynthia in thanks, and Cynthia returned the hug.
"I don't know what to say," Mary Louise said, deeply touched by Cynthia's generosity.
Cynthia smiled. "When the time is right, you'll know exactly what to say."
SAGE found Nora looking at a jewelry store window. Her arms were full of various bags. The two of them had gone on a major shopping spree, and it felt as though they had cleaned almost all the stores out.
As Sage got closer to Nora, she noticed Nora was staring at a white gold, light green diamond ring, with small clear diamonds going down the middle. Sage noticed that the diamond almost matched Nora's eye colour.
"Oh. My. God," Sage said as she stood beside Nora.
Nora, who was so focused on the ring, hadn't noticed Sage had come back.
"Are you…are you planning on asking Mary Louise to marry you again?" There was excitement in Sage's voice.
"I don't know. We haven't talked about it, and since we haven't talked and all that has happened, what if she doesn't want to marry me anymore?"
Sage titled her head. "Nora, Mary Louise loves you. She would have married you when you gave her a Ring Pop."
"That was three years ago," Nora said. "And we didn't even see each other in that time. Things change…"
"Do you love her?" Sage asked.
"Of course I do. I love her more than anything in this world."
Sage watched as Nora turned her attention back to the ring that had her interest. She knew Nora loved Mary Louise, and she knew Mary Louise loved Nora.
"What are you doing?" Nora asked Sage, as Sage suddenly grabbed her arm and led her into the jewelry store.
A Saleswoman greeted them with a warm smile. "Good Afternoon ladies, what can I help you with today?"
"My friend here wants to enquire about the green diamond ring you have in your display window."
Nora shot Sage a disapproving glance.
The Saleswoman motioned for them to follow her. "Yes, one of our most popular engagement rings." She turned toward Nora. "What we recommend is having a close friend send a picture to the boyfriend and give him subtle hints at what ring you want."
"Actually," Sage said. "The ring is for her girlfriend. They have been together for a really, really long time."
"My apologies," The Saleswoman said. "And congratulations."
"Don't congratulate me yet, I am not even sure she'll say yes," Nora answered.
"Of course she will," Sage said. "How much is this ring?"
"It's four thousand dollars," The Saleswoman said.
"Four thousand!" Nora exclaimed.
Sage smiled at the Saleswoman. "Excuse us for a moment."
"Sage, are you nuts? I can't buy that," Nora said as Sage pulled her aside.
"Yes you can. Adam gave us money after our missions. You have more than enough."
Nora felt guilty. Somehow she felt like she didn't really earn that money as she had more fun killing the members of the Veiled Coven. It hardly felt like work.
"Look, you've clearly been staring at that ring for awhile while I was off buying things I don't really need. If you left this mall right now, would you regret not buying the ring?"
Nora sighed. She would regret it, and it would be on her mind. And Sage knew that.
"You buy it, we'll put a cloaking spell on it. Mary Louise won't know and then when you are ready, put a ring on her."
"And what if she says no?" Nora asked.
"If Mary Louise says no to marrying you, it will be a very cold day in Hell. Listen to me; what you have with Mary Louise is what everyone wants. True Love. You don't have to propose today, or tomorrow…but imagine a perfect opportunity comes up and guess what, you didn't listen to your dear friend Sage and missed an opportunity to ask the woman you have loved for over a century to marry her…again."
Nora sighed. She hated how right Sage was. This ring was simple and so Mary Louise. There might not be another ring like it.
Nora's heart suddenly began to race like it had when she picked up the candy ring at the gas station. She wanted to marry Mary Louise.
Nora caught the attention of the Saleswoman. "I'll take it."