Blood ties - Passion : there's nothing else worth living for – Chapter 5
"What is it, Victoria?" he said, grinning, seeing her speechless. "Are you chickening out ?!" he teased her.
"It's complicated..." she replied, looking awkward.
"Hey, that's my line!" he mocked her.
"I hate it when you do that!"
"I know." His grin broadened.
"Stop it, Henry!" She swatted him. "This is serious."
"Wow-oh, you've got to stop doing that if we must spend the rest of a lifetime – eternity ? - together," he said looking at her expectantly.
"Oh! Here we go! Mike and Coreen had seen it coming."
"Well, Vicki, it's not as if we – you – had a lot of time on our hands... You're getting blind, for God's sake!" She could see he was aggravated.
"I know," she stated calmly.
"Vicki, listen. When I left, I thought you would somehow cope with it, find a solution with Mike. Now, it's a very different thing. I guess we've settled you and I are staying together, haven't we?"
She was looking at him dreamily. "Yes?" he prompted. She nodded. She didn't want to have this conversation but she knew he was right. "So," he went on, "Let's face it. You have two options. Either you choose to live your human life and we'll cope with it... or you ask me to turn you and we'll cope with that too. That's your call." He looked at her intently, waiting for an answer.
"Henry, are you telling me you'd be ready to live with a blind, aging and eventually old and decaying woman?" She was dumbfounded. Henry loved women, beautiful and young women, and he was a womanizer.
"Yes, Vicki, this is what love and passion are about. This is what I feel for you. You've no idea... I searched for a woman like you throughout the centuries. It's your soul that's beautiful. The soul does not get old, it does not change because someone is blind. If this is what you want, I'll be honored to live this whole life with you." She felt tears prickling her eyes.
"What about the vampire thing? I thought two of your kind cannot live together more than a year or so," she prompted.
"That's quite true, generally speaking, but I've made research and heard about couples who've found a way of being together."
He went on telling her about some vampires who'd share territory, not exactly living together all the time, needing their private space, much like some modern couples, but spending quality time together. He'd even heard of a coven in South America, up in the mountains, who'd learned to school their aggressive behaviors so they wouldn't turn on one another. It required time and love but this was not what was missing between them, right?
"So, you see, it's your call. And don't look at me like that, Vicki, as if you expected me to give you the right answer – there's no right answer. What you'll choose will be the right decision." He said, cupping her face with one hand and looking into her blue eyes.
"This is also about you, Henry. This is also the choice of a human lifespan against eternity, as you said."
"No, love. I'll go with what you decide. I want you, whatever the way." He laid a hungry kiss on her lips then added: "You know what? Let's not rush into this. Let's pack your things and reach Niagara Falls before sunrise. We'll grab something for you to eat on the way. You'll get plenty of time to think about it on the way back."
Henry drove fast. Vicki was usually reckless but still, he scared her driving so fast, his left hand casually resting on the wheel while his right arm was wrapped around her shoulders, at times massaging her neck or caressing her hair. She didn't dare tell him because she knew it was vital for him to get home before the crack of dawn.
He stopped once to get gas and joined her in the station as she was picking a pack of cookies and a soda for her delayed dinner. He came to stand behind her, lifted blond strands of hair from her shoulder and kissed the base of her neck, sliding his hand around her waist. She sighed with content then froze, hearing the woman at the cash register whispering to her husband in a disapproving tone: "This is unnatural. She must be a decade older than he is..."
Henry steered Vicki towards the cashier's desk, tightening his hold on her waist, caressing her side to soothe her.
"You know, Ma'am," he said, to the lady with a charming smile, "That might be so but older women can be quite intoxicating... Besides, looks can be deceiving," he added, winking at her, making her blush. He turned to Vicki, planted a kiss on her nose and opened the door for her, doing a mock bow. "M'lady ?" he said, ushering her out.
The man and woman behind the counter were nonplussed. "Wow," the woman said wistfully, "she is one lucky girl!"
"From the way he acts around her, I'd say he is the lucky one," her husband countered.
They reached the car, doubling up in laughter. What Vicki didn't know though was that Henry had had Coreen on the phone after filling the gas tank. He had told her they were going back to his place and that they'd just had a serious talk about their future. Coreen knew he was ready to do anything for Vicki but she felt concerned when he said he was ready to live with her as a human being if she didn't want to be turned. "How will you feel when she dies and you still have the eternity on your hands, Henry?" she'd asked him worriedly. "You'll be left all alone. Even vampires have a heart! It's not healthy for you..."
"Coreen, if she chooses that solution, we won't have to worry about that. I won't survive her... And I forbid you to talk to her about it..."
If only he had known... Just right after he'd talked to Coreen – when they were having the unpleasant conversation with the woman at the gas station – Vicki had made her decision.
They arrived at 3:00 a.m. at his apartment. They'd talked in the car while she ate her cookies and made arrangements for the day ahead.
"Listen, Vicki," he'd said, "my apartment is not suitable for a human being. There's no kitchen and you can't live on takeaway food forever. I want you to call my contractor. He's a nice guy and worked on the place when I moved to Niagara Falls. I'd told him it was just an artist's studio so I didn't need one. Call him and tell him to drop by around 9:00 p.m. so we can discuss it. He's used to coming at night. I told him I didn't want to be disturbed during the day, when I work, so they worked on it at night. And take my credit card. Go shopping for whatever is missing – food, fridge, microwave oven... I want you to feel at home."
This was very considerate, she reflected. She knew it was a big step for him, having a woman home. She kissed him on the cheek and put her arm around his neck. "You know, I don't need much. I've told you so, no surprise here, I'm not the housewife type. I never cook, so microwave and fridge sound nice."
When she first stepped into his apartment, she was flabbergasted. It was the exact replica of his place in Toronto. He smiled at her reaction. "It's hard enough to have to change places every so often. At least, this feels like home," he said wistfully.
"You've been very lonely, haven't you?" she said, coming to wrap her arms around his waist.
"Yeah, but it's over. I got lucky." He smiled down at her. "Make yourself comfortable and get some sleep," he said, leading her to the bedroom. "Tomorrow is going to be a long day. I hope I can see the contractor early in the evening so I can leave right after."
She tensed. "Where are you going?"
"Nowhere, my lady, do not fear. I just need to feed."
"Henry, I thought you'd take my blood from now on..."
"No way. Only in case of an emergency." He looked at her doubtfully. "What is it? There's something on your mind. I can tell from the worried furrow between your eyebrows. Yes, I know you well," he added, laughing at her surprised look. "So...?" he prompted.
"Are you going to make love to them... the girls you're going to feed on?" she asked in a small voice.
"Is that what's been worrying you?" She nodded. He tightened his embrace, his gaze still plunging into hers. "I think we need a little pep talk here. Maybe I should have explained earlier what I had in mind when I said lifetime or forever. I meant it, Vicki. It was like taking vows. And it's a promise I won't break. I've found my mate. There'll be no other women. I'll still feed on them and I'll do it gently, but from now on, you're the one... ok?"
She was staring at him, tears streaming down her face. "Ok?" he repeated. She nodded.
"Hey, don't you cry..." he pleaded, brushing the tears off her cheeks.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't know what to expect. I'm not the over jealous type. I was scared I might lose you or that you'd tell me you couldn't do otherwise..."
He laughed. "Come on, Vicki. You don't have to be so self-conscious with me. Where's the old Vicki who kicked my ass a couple of times when she didn't agree with me?" he teased her, tickling her waist, making her squirm and giggle. "Now, that's better! Let's get you some rest and while you sleep, I'll work on my new graphic novel. Deadline is the end of the week and I'm darn late. My editor is gonna kill me!"
She burst out laughing. "As if he could!" Then she added before disappearing into the bathroom: "And you've got it all wrong, by the way. It's not graphic novel, your Lordship", she grinned at him wickedly, "they're called comic books!" she added, hurriedly closing the door before he could reach her. He smiled at the closed door. The old Vicki was back and she was all his.
When he woke up in the evening, his first thought was for her. He was still afraid she might disappear but she was there, in the living room, sitting on the floor, old books from his bookcase spread on the floor, a pen and notepad in hand. He noticed that she had her glasses on but thought it wise not to mention it yet.
"Evening, my dear," he said, bending over her and kissing her head. "What are you doing?"
"Hi," she said, lifting her head to get a kiss on her lips. "Been busy studying."
"I can see that..." he answered, taking a volume in his hand and flipping through it. "Vampire studying? Are you planning on a new teaching job?" he teased her.
"Nope, just curious, living with a vampire and all that, wanted to know about your history..."
"Ok, I don't mind. I should have known – you can't help being curious. That got you into trouble a lot of times, if I well remember... But it could prove helpful this time. By the way, did you go shopping?"
"Yep! Rented a huge fridge and a microwave oven. And got food too. They'll be delivered in about an hour."
"Good girl! That'll do for now until we get the kitchen. What about my contractor? What time does he come?"
"He's not coming," she said matter of factedly.
"Ok, didn't like the idea of a girl making the appointment, right? Let me call him before I leave," he said, looking for his phone.
"No, Henry, don't! I did not call him, 's why..." she said awkwardly.
"Vicki, I need to know you have all the comfort you need if you're going to live with me."
"I have all the comfort I need. Don't worry about that. Listen, why don't you go feed and we'll talk about that later, ok?"
"Now, you've got me worried. What's going on? I won't leave until you tell me."
"Please, Henry, humor me. I'm ok. We'll talk later in the evening," she insisted.
"Ok" He hugged her and gave her a long, tender kiss then grabbed his jacket and left.
He came back a couple of hours later, feeling refreshed but still worried. She was sitting on the couch, eating yoghurt and cereals.
"Now, Vicki, you're not reasonable. You need to put meat on those bones! You've lost weight and you're not eating properly. Let me take you to a restaurant so you can have a proper meal," he said, holding out his hand for her to join him.
She shook her head and patted the seat next to her: "Come and sit down, Henry, we need to get this over with."
Now what, he thought, feeling anguish tighten his stomach.
"Hey, relax," she laughed. "You asked me a simple question before we left Sherbrooke and I intend to give you a simple answer, 's all!"
"Hey, you don't have to rush into this..."
She shushed him. "Let me talk, will you? I made my decision when we left the gas station but I wanted us to settle before I gave you an answer. This is my final decision. You said it was my call so I don't want to discuss it – you listen, you agree and then you do as I say, 'kay?" she said, looking at him enquiringly.
"Yes, Ma'am," he said, saluting.
"All right, Henry, I want you to turn me and that means no waiting – I want it now."
He gasped and looked at her, speechless. "Ok, but..."
"What part of no argument did you not understand?" she said with a mock threatening look.
"Do you want to do it now because you're losing your eyesight?" he couldn't help asking. "Yes, I saw the glasses!" he added, wincing.
"Nope, not doing that because of my eyes. I know you can help me with that, at least for a time, if you give me more blood. No, it's simply because I'm sure of what I want and when I want something, I sure don't like to wait to get it. Listen, Henry," she added, caressing his hand, "I realized in that gas station that having you for a lifetime was simply not enough. Forever is more like it..." Then she added before he could reply: "But to tell you the whole truth, I'd rather have all my senses to take advantage of every single moment we have together. I couldn't bear not seeing your face every evening when we wake up." She leaned towards him and kissed him.
TBC