Amaranth (19 page)

“It’s for your own good.”

“I’ll decide what’s good for me. Look, you said work with
what I’ve got, right? Well … you were right. I’m in your world now, whether I
asked for that or not.” I placed my hand on his arm. “So let me in.”

He sighed heavily and stood up to retrieve the journal from
the coffee table, slowly slid it toward me. “There was a war. A bad war. Samira
is bound by
Gérard
, the original conjure father, the
one who gave her power, to send immortals to Amaranth to be freed from their
curse. But nothing stops her from running the city the way she wants to. Those
who go there … pay a price. A lot of persecution goes on. The inhabitants
rebelled against her and her servants, and almost everyone died.”

“Arianna?”

“No, thank God. But of course, Samira and her army won, and
after they won, the survivors were forced to submit to her rule again, and it
got worse. Eventually things settled down. All thanks to a leader who stepped
in and helped restore the peace there.”

“A leader?”

He nodded. “Someone from the inside.” He watched while I
casually flipped through the withered pages. “Once peace was restored, Samira
executed the leader and his wife, then covered it up.”

“Okay, so Gavin’s angry with her for persecuting the
immortals? She’s ruled for centuries, it doesn’t seem like that is going to
change any time soon. What makes him think he can change that? Or that he has
to be the one to do it?”

Joel pulled his eyes from mine and pointed to the necklace
that hung from my neck. I followed his signal, grabbed the locket between my
fingers. “I don’t understand.”

“Did Gavin give that to you?” he asked, looking at me now.

“Yeah, he told me it was his mom’s.” I looked down again at
the locket, popped it open to examine the delicate inscription inside.
If my heart had wings it would be with you always
. My
eyes ran over it, searched for any connection. All I knew from what Gavin told
me was that his father was killed and then his mom disappeared. I looked back
at Joel, stunned. “No. Please don’t tell me his parents had anything to do with
this.”

“What did he tell you about them?”

“His parents were the leaders? They were killed … in
Amaranth?” I sat back, heartbroken, my words strained, my throat tight. “I
can’t believe this.” I pulled my old trusty menthols from my pocket, lit one
up. “Samira killed them? So he went there for
revenge
?
He’s putting his life on the line for something that can’t be undone?”

“No, it’s more than that. He wants justice, to help the
people there. He wants to see everyone set free from her rule for good.”

“That’s insane. That’s impossibly ambitious. It’s like,
killing
God
.”

“No,” Joel replied, his tone sharp. “She is
not
God. She only wants to be.”

I shook my head, astonished. Then I remembered. “Wait, he
told me his mom left just a few years ago. You’re saying this war happened back
in the 1800s.”

“I wasn’t kidding when I said our kind has been trying to
resist Samira’s rule for a very long time. It isn’t only those of us living
here on earth, but those living in Amaranth, too. The war happened back in the
late 1800s, shortly after Arianna wrote that passage. But Gavin always says
it’s been five or six years. To him, it feels like it was just yesterday. He’s
carried the burden with him, to avenge them, for over a hundred years now.”

He grabbed a smoke from my pack and lit one up for himself.
“Gavin’s lived in his grandfather’s house in Louisiana for years, he just
traveled to Europe now and then to get away. His father
chose
to go to Amaranth. His mother couldn’t take
living in the house without him, so she up and left. She went to join him. They
helped bring peace to the city before Samira killed them. She got rid of them,
and then made the people think it was an accident, that they’d eventually be
forgotten. She fooled them all.” He shook his head, angry now. “Their deaths
are the reason Gavin became one of us.”

“Why kill them? Those poor people…” my hand automatically
made its way back to my locket, clasped it tightly as I stared off into space.

“She uses people to get what she wants, and then destroys
them. It’s all rooted in the hoodoo and Voodoo side of things, the fact that
Samira and
Gérard
are hybrids: part witch, part
vampire.” He chuckled. “Freaks the supernatural, you might say. The people
stored away in Amaranth give them unlimited, permanent energy, keep them in
rule. So she’ll do whatever it takes for the people to see her in a trusted
light. Showing false compassion for the loss of their leaders resonated with
them. They respected her more for it. It made them feel she cared about them.”

“That’s why Gavin changed? To avenge his parents?”

“That’s another story for another day.” He exhaled, his tone
definite.

I snapped the locket shut and gazed forward at a picture on
the refrigerator of him, Gabe and Gavin, in what appeared to be some sort of
pub.

“When we were human.” He nodded to it. “Not too long before
he lost his parents, actually.”

“Samira already has so much power,” I continued, disgusted,
trying to understand. “What is she after, then?”

“She’s bound under
Gérard’s
spell,
has to keep shuffling people in to the city to feed his power. But she’s had to
wipe out the entire city once already. It’ll get harder and harder for her to
continue down that road.”

He rested his cigarette in the ashtray and stole a piece of
my orange, cut it up in little random pieces, a kid playing with food. “Still,
she’ll continue to take advantage and cause the people to suffer as long as she
reigns. She hates that they get to have their curses lifted.”

I blinked, my focus still frozen on the old picture in front
of me. I took another drag, enamored by the sight of Gavin as a human with his
warm brown eyes. “You said he was still human when his parents died in
Amaranth. How did he find out about them?”

“He would go visit them.”

“In Amaranth?” I turned to him, curious now.

“Yeah, every month when the portal opened.”

“I thought humans couldn’t enter.”

“They can, but they
don’t
.
Gavin was an exception. It was a part of a deal his parents had with Samira.
Their service for visitation rights, and no harm done to Gavin.”

I turned back to glare at the picture once more,
homesickness washing over me. I needed to get back to Louisiana, and fast.
Stretching, I turned to glance at the clock on the wall and gave an exaggerated
yawn. “Sorry to cut you short, but I’m beat. Would you mind if I passed on the
sightseeing tomorrow after all? I think I’m ready to go home now, and I really
should smooth things over with my boss if I want to keep my job.”

“Okay, sure,” he replied, taken aback by my sudden change of
subject. He stopped toying with the orange and looked over at me, confused.
“Well, uh, let me just get some things together and we can leave.” He headed
into his bedroom, left me with the quiet. I glanced at the picture of Gavin one
last time and ran my fingers over a page of Arianna’s journal before I shut it,
ready to bid London farewell.

“Sorry about the food I didn’t eat back at your place, I can
pay you back for that stuff.”

“Absolutely not necessary.” Joel smiled at me graciously.

“These eggs are great.” I washed the last bite down with
orange juice, ready to head in to work. Carol generously forgave my absence,
thanks to the supposed flu bug, and gave me permission to work a night shift to
make up for it. I was shocked she’d kept me around this long, but her
“punishment” fit my new lifestyle perfectly.

I smiled at Joel. “Breakfast for dinner is my favorite.”

“Glad you like that. I don’t get to do this very often.” He
laughed, scooted back into the kitchen to adjust my radio’s volume. An old
cassette of Johnny Cash’s greatest hits played as he started washing the
dishes. I eyed my vintage floral apron that he wore, slung low on his waist,
swaying as he moved. I started chuckling again, caused him to swing around and
glare at me.

“Don’t start that again. It’s not my fault you don’t have
any masculine aprons.”

“That’s because aprons aren’t masculine, genius.”

“Don’t make me have you for dinner, princess.”

“Whatever, Betty Crocker. Knock yourself out.” Winking, I
slipped out of my chair to toss my plates into the sink next to him, smiled as
I admired the apron one last time. His broad shoulders and tattoos enhanced the
ensemble, added to my amusement.

“If you can’t handle a vampire confident in an apron, then
get out of the kitchen.” He jabbed me with a wet spatula and I shoved him back,
then grabbed my bag from the table. “Let me know if you hear from them?”

“I can’t hear him when he’s there, remember? I promise I’ll
let you know as soon as I know something. It’s going to be a while—”

“I know, I know. Wishful thinking.” Grabbing my coffee, I
made my way to the door.

“Have a great day at school, honey,” Joel called after me, a
goofy smile on his face.
Well, at least the babysitter
doubled as entertainment.
Giggling like the child I didn’t think I’d
ever been, I slammed the door.

By the time I made it to the bookstore, my mind was on
overdrive, trying to figure out how Gavin was suppose to tackle his whole plan
and make it back to Louisiana. On the way home from London, Joel broke down the
specifics and explained them in human terms for me. Still it sounded
impossible. And just plain reckless. Apparently, he intended to get everyone to
rise up against Samira, break free from Amaranth with them, and
then
come back to the real world. Quite the hefty
feat, and much more than he originally let on. Still, there was a lot I didn’t
know, and that gave me some peace. I kept looking at my watch, remembered
sunset was imminent.

I walked in the door to find good old Carol rushing to hug
me, her multicolored floral dress an eyesore. “So good to see you, dear. We’re
so happy to have you back again.” She latched onto me.

“Thanks, it’s good to be back.” I immediately felt guilty
for what I was about to do, but I knew I had to stick to the game plan. I
wouldn’t have come into work at all, knowing I was about to give up my favorite
job for good, but it was an excuse to get away from Joel, and I had to make it
look convincing in case he checked on me.

“Well now, I know coming in for a night shift to help out
with inventory isn’t at all appealing, but we really need the help.” She winked
and straightened her dress. “Feel free and start right here, and let me know if
you have any trouble.”

“Actually Carol,” I peered around, taking in the last
glimpse of my beloved bookstore, “I was wondering if it would be all right if I
took my break early tonight.”

“I don’t see a problem with that. No, not a problem at all,”
she shook her head as she spoke. Her fire-engine-red curls bounced around as
her head moved. “Just get a few of these shelves taken care of, and then you
can leave when you’d like.”

“Great.”

“How is everything with that fellow of yours? Haven’t seen
him around here lately.”

“He’s fine.”

“No trouble on the romance front, then?”

“Everything’s peachy.” I waited for her to get the hint.

She stared at me for a second with those curious old-hen
eyes, waiting for me to elaborate, no doubt. I waited, glanced around. “Good to
know dear, good to know,” she finally said, “Well, I best stop dilly-dallying,”
she adjusted her glasses and left me alone. Without wasting a second more, I
hurried off.

After rummaging through a few shelves, I dashed out the door
as soon as Carol was out of sight and jumped into my Jeep, making sure Joel was
nowhere in sight. I’d told him to meet me at nine when my shift ended to follow
me home, so as far as he knew, I wasn’t getting off for at least a few more
hours. But vampires were stubborn. And sly. For all I knew, he was hanging out
around the bookstore to make sure Andrew didn’t show up. Or to make sure I
didn’t do something stupid.

I struggled to find my way to the bayou and watched the sun
sink down to the earth, the loyal crescent moon becoming more and more visible
as the sky went black. Joel knew the cycle, knew tonight was the last crescent
we’d have until next month, so I was really pressing my luck. Still, I figured
he’d never assume I’d do something this senseless. My tires jumped as I made my
way off road, down a path I vaguely remembered from the night Gavin drove me
there. I took advantage of the last few seconds of daylight, hoped that seeing
my surroundings in the light would help jog my memory and lead the way.

Getting frustrated, I slowed down, leaned over the steering
wheel to look out into the dead clearing in front of me. The sky now a dark
void; my headlights only illuminated the ground and the trees directly in front
of the car. I grabbed my flashlight and jumped out into the darkness, shined it
on the trees in front of me, searched for any sign of the bizarre oak tree. I
staggered forward, squinted as I approached a slope in the ground that led to a
part of the bayou’s shoreline. I spun around and frantically searched the trees
again, sure that the clearing looked familiar, but uncertain I’d driven far
enough along the bank to reach the right spot.

My back to the water, I turned my head to the right,
remembered the location of the tree in relation to the water. Moving the
flashlight in front of me, I breathed a sigh when I saw the rebellious branch I
was looking for, staring me in the face, daring me. Thrilled that my
directional instincts had been right, I glared up at the taunting moon and
adrenaline rushed through me. The sounds of the night coalesced with my
heartbeat. It was time.