Chapter Seventeen
'Okay, I've been asking around and I've made a few discoveries.' Diandra was looking from Jess to Larry as she spoke. Tally scowled, assuming Diandra had decided that she wasn't worth making eye contact with. The four of them were sat around the Devereaux's kitchen table discussing the Laila situation. 'I spoke to a witch I went to college with, she's an expert when it comes to all the different branches of magical practice. From what I told her she said it sounded as if this spell was derived from the ancient magical tradition of Vedauria.'
'Vedauria?' Jess asked. 'I've never heard of it.'
'Not many people have,' Diandra replied 'There are only a handful of true practitioners in the whole country - and none of them are the type of person who goes around helping people out of the goodness of their hearts.'
'So what do we do?' Larry asked.
'We find one of them.' Diandra said matter of factly. 'And get ready to break into your piggy bank Tally,' she added finally turning to her youngest niece. 'Because the kind of help we need isn't going to come cheap.'
'You expect me to pay someone?' Tally asked sounding annoyed.
'Yes!' her father yelled. 'That is unless you want the death of an innocent girl on your concience Tallulah. We are all going to have to chip in to raise enough money.' Their father was really mad, Jess couldn't remember the last time he'd called Tally by her full name.
'Innocent?' Tally sneered. 'Laila Warner is a lot of things - innocent ain't one of them!' Jess couldn't believe her ears. It seemed that all of Tally's remorse had evaporated over night and she was back to her usual obnoxious self.
Their father gripped the edge of the table and spoke through gritted teeth. 'Just go to your room. Go to your room and stay there.'
Tally got to her feet scowling. 'Don't you want me where you can see me?' she asked sarcastically. 'For all you know I could be up there mixing potions to wipe out half the towns population.'
'Tally,' Diandra said, warning her niece gently. 'Don't push us.' Tally knocked her chair to the floor and stalked out of the room.
OOO
Luke was lying on his bed staring up at the ceiling. He just couldn't figure her out. After what had happened yesterday he thought the two of them had come to an understanding - they still loved each other. Okay, so neither of them had actually said those exact those words, but they had kissed and it felt so right - she had spoken in his mind, she'd told him that she'd missed him. So why had she spent the whole day ignoring him again? Maybe it had been stupid of him to expect her to break up with Caleb, it was obvious to anyone with half a brain that she loved him very much - and Caleb was in love with her too.
What right did Luke have to turn up and try to come between them? He liked Caleb, he didn't want to screw around with his life - but just as he had always known that there was only one girl for him, he believed that Jess would know there was only one guy for her. And Luke expected Jess to realize that he was that guy. But Luke knew things weren't that clear cut now - he knew that Jess must have had at least one life time between this one and the one when they were last together. He could tell by looking at them that Caleb and Jess had been together before. Luke hadn't found Jess in her last lifetime, but maybe Caleb had.
Luke, it's me. I know you're in there. Come outside. Now!
The voice worked it's way into Luke's head like an icy mist. Luke groaned and covered his eyes. Starla. How had she found him here?
Go away Starla! I told you before - keep away from me!
But I have a message for you, from Lavinia -
Don't call her that!
Starla's chuckle reverberated around inside his head like an evil butterfly fluttering it's wings against the walls of his skull. All right - if you're not man enough to face me, that's fine. But don't tell me you don't want to know what she has to say.
Why should I believe that it's really a message from her? Luke asked in his mind.
You don't have to - the choice is yours. Either way the message is this; come home - it's where you belong.
Luke sheilded his mind from Starla and thought for a moment. Home. He had never had a home, not since he lost Jess all those years ago. Sure, he'd had places of residence - but he hadn't had a home in the true sense of the word. And now he was expected to believe that Lavinia wanted him to go back to her and the others. Either that was a lie, or she and Starla were playing a trick on him. The last time he'd seen her she'd gone to great lengths to tell him just how much she hated him - she didn't need him anymore, she hadn't needed him for a long time. But his instincts had been to protect her, he just couldn't shake them no matter how hard he tried, not after he had failed her so badly, so many times.
I'm leaving now Luke. But remember - we are the closest thing you have to a family. You'll never be happy without us.
Luke sensed Starla's presence retreating and soon she was gone. He couldn't believe Starla actually believed that he'd never be happy without them - there was only one person he felt that way about. He just had to find out if she felt the same way. And he had to find out now.
OOO
Jess was shocked when she opened the door and found Luke stood on her porch.
'Luke? What are you doing here?'
'We need to talk.'
Jess shifted her weight from one foot to the other nervously. 'I don't think we have anything to talk about,' she said quietly.
Lukes eyes grew wide with surprise. 'You don't think there's anything to talk about? Nothing at all? I mean was I hallucinating last night? Did I imagine the whole thing?'
Jess shook her head, hiding her face behind her hair. 'I'm sorry Luke, it was a mistake - it shouldn't have happened.'
'How can you say that?' Luke asked. 'You were there, you know how it felt, it was right - you know it was Jess.'
'How can it be right?' Jess snapped. 'I have a boyfriend! And I cheated on him. Do you have any idea how terrible that makes me feel?'
'You're asking me if I know what it's like to feel gulit? Of course I do, I've done more terrible things in my lifetime than you could imagine - things that tear me up inside. I've broken the hearts of people I loved, so yeah I think I have an idea.'
'And there I was thinking you were the male bloodsucking equivalent of Mother Teresa,' Jess said. Luke couldn't help but crack a small smile before growing serious again. 'So... what? We just pretend last night never happened?'
'No, that's not what I'm saying,' Jess replied. 'Let's just not dwell on it, okay?'
'How am I supposed to do that Jess?' he asked sadly. 'I can't stop thinking about you. I haven't been able to stop thinking about you for over three hundred years.' The sorrow that haunted his eyes seemed to go on forever. 'Now that I've finally found you, you don't want anything to do with me.'
Jess couldn't stay mad at him. All she could think about was the way she'd felt in her dream when Luke had been killed, the overwhelming grief, the pain she had felt at the thought of never seeing him again. She stepped onto the porch and placed a hand on his earnestly, looking up into his sad, sad eyes.
'I'm so sorry for your loss Luke, what happened to you and your wife all those years ago - it wasn't fair. You deserved to have a happy life, to grow old together, you, her and your baby girl.'
'We have a second chance Jess,' Luke whispered.
'No Luke, there is no we. Don't you see, I'm not her. I'm Jess Devereaux. Jess Devereaux was born on the nineteenth of August 1987, she's never been married, never had a baby. The first time she ever set eyes on you was two weeks ago. Your wife, the girl you love and miss so much - I don't even know her name - but she died a really long time ago. She's gone Luke. Let her go.'
Tears welled up and fell from his eyes. 'But you're standing right in front of me,' he said in a whisper.
Jess fought back her own tears and squeezed his hand gently. It hurt her deep inside to see him cry, but she knew there was nothing she could do or say to make things better. 'Let her go Luke. It's time.'
Luke didn't reply, he just stared down at the ground as the tears rolled down his cheeks. Jess had never seen a vampire cry before. She didn't think they were capable of it.
'I know how much she loved you,' Jess said softly. 'You were everything to her. She wouldn't want to see you hurting like this.'
'Why are you talking like she was someone else?' Luke asked quietly, his voice tinged with pain.
'Because she was,' Jess told him. 'She was a wife and a mother and a human. I'm none of those things.'
Luke looked right into Jess's eyes. 'Our roles don't define who we are Jess, neither does our humanity or lack of it. It's our hearts that make us who we are. Death may steal all that other stuff away from us, but it leaves our hearts untouched. Our hearts will always be the same. You're still the girl I fell in love with when I was ten years old, regardless of the fact that you have a different name and a different birth date. It's you Jess. It will always be you.'
Jess didn't know what to say. So she just stood and watched as Luke stepped off the porch and walked away slowly into the night.
