VD We're Stuck Here 90
Chapter 90
Instinctively, the two vampires moved in a blur, one to the left and one to the right, taking them out of the line of fire if Claudette was holding a weapon. Kol hauled Barbara with him. Then they saw Claudette lower her arm and the smile on her face vanished.
"It's a fish!" Kol announced. "She's caught a fish." He smiled at the dark woman and her own smile returned. She came up the slope, the fish flopping to get away. The woman's dress was wet most of the way up her legs.
Elijah relaxed from the tense moment and put a smile on his face. Although the others had caught fish in the creek before, it was not easy to do so, especially bare-handed. They all would share bits of baked fish for supper along with other foods. He told her she had done a good job.
Barbara, listening to the language that was foreign to her ears, asked Kol, "I still don't understand. Why does a slave from Africa talk French?"
"It's not French like in France, love. It's pidgin French, maybe from Haiti."
"Pigeons talk French?" she asked in surprise.
He laughed and explained. "No. It's a mix of French with her language. Slaves learn it so they can be understood when a bunch of languages are spoken. Whites speak it to them for the same reason. Many speak pidgin English."
"Oh. I can't make sense of anything she says."
"It's alright. Hand gestures mean a lot. You ladies got her washed up and dressed."
"She doesn't trust us."
"That doesn't surprise me. You didn't trust us when you first got here."
"You're right. I was scared."
"Well, you aren't scared now."
"Not most of the time, but sometimes I remember you all are strong and dangerous."
Kol hugged her, tickled her side and made her laugh.
Elijah had to smile a little as he watched his brother. Would he himself become attached to Claudette? Would she come to enjoy his company? He didn't know, but he hoped so. He was tired of being "alone," although he was by nature an introvert. He loved to read. He always was thinking and observing the world around him. He loved deep discussions with people who really knew things that interested him. Freya was one of those people.
At one point Claudette asked Kol a question and he told her to ask Elijah. This told the new woman that she "belonged" to Elijah. Although he had initially abused her wildly, he had been calm since. This confused her and she didn't know how he normally acted, but in her mind she was his slave and she would have to do whatever he asked of her. If he even bothered to ask.
As a result, she ended up in his bed that night. He didn't insist on having sex, but he did bite her neck. It was with some relief that she realized that the evil vampire could take some blood surprisingly gently and then leave her unharmed. It took quite a while for her to relax and go to sleep. Elijah was satisfied and he too went to sleep, this time with a warm human next to him.
In the morning the group set out to do their chores. They had well-established routines, but they needed to find a way for Claudette to help. The women, now four of them, decided who would do what. The two men set about doing their jobs and then the group gathered for a nice breakfast. Claudette was not comfortable sitting at the same table with the "masters," and she was hesitant to eat much. She was unable to grasp that she was equal to the others, so she kept quiet and ate what was offered to her.
While the others were used to having a strange dome overhead, Claudette found it weird and spooky. It did not help to allay her fears when Elijah told her it was created by magic. He cautioned her not to touch it. The truth was that the new dome material was not like the old one. A person could touch it without being zapped by power. Nevertheless, no one had tried to knock a hole in it.
Elijah was pleased to find that Sarah chose to come from town to speak to him. She came accompanied by John and Alexander. Although she could not see Elijah, nor he see her, they did talk. She wanted to tell him how much she had enjoyed the sharing of books and their chats. She would always remember him as a good friend. As for her future, she and her fiancé were to marry the next morning and then they would begin their journey eastward. After a half hour of visiting and chatting back and forth, the farm group bid the town folks goodbye, with only John promising to come back as always. Despite his promise, he would never talk to the inside group again.
A/N This is a short chapter, but I have plans for the next one. I hope everyone is safe in this time of sickness and death. Stay well.
