The Purity of Blood: Volume I (42 page)

I put her bags
in the back of the car as she tossed her purse on the front seat.
 
She lingered at the open door and stared at
me with those big brown eyes as I walked over to her side.
 
Standing there, she looked hesitant to
leave.
 

“You’ll drive
safely?” I murmured as I caressed the side of her face with my knuckles.

“Of course,” she
whispered back, her eyes closed as she concentrated on the feeling of my hand
on her face.

“Will you miss
me?” she asked, as if unsure of my answer.
 
What a ridiculous question.

“Yes.”
 

The real
question was, would she miss me.
 
So I
asked.
 

She smiled.

“I wish you were
coming with me, but my parents – well, I’m not sure how they’d feel about you …
about us.”
 

It was only
logical.
 
After all, I was a
monster.
 
What woman in her right mind
would want to introduce
me
to her
parents?

“It’s
alright.
 
I understand,” I said to ease
her discomfort.
 
Looking into her eyes, I
sighed.
 
“This wasn’t supposed to happen
… us.”

“Then why did
it?” she asked so innocently, staring up at me with those big brown eyes again.

“I don’t know, but I wish to God I did.”

After we said our goodbyes, I
watched her drive away until that ridiculous car of hers was finally out of
sight.
 
I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I
had seriously considered following her home and keeping tabs on her while she
was gone.
 
But I forced myself to keep my
feet planted firmly on the ground.
  
She
was always going to be in a certain amount of danger because of what she was,
and I had to accept that and move on.
 

Besides, it was
unlikely the blood hunter would attack outside the area he’d been stalking
her.
 
He was comfortable here and most
likely already had his place for his attack picked out.
 
I shuddered at the thought.
 
No, she was safe as long as he didn’t think
his prize was threatened.
 
I would do as
much as I could to ensure her safety, but I knew at times like this I had to
let go and have faith that she’d come back to me.
 
Faith, an interesting concept, and one I was
desperately struggling with as I watched her car drive out of sight.

Dear Lord, please bring
her back to me in one piece.

A few minutes later, I walked
back across campus to my car and drove up the winding road to an empty
home.
 
I rambled around aimlessly for
hours, too restless to settle down to any one activity.
 

Where was she now?
 

Was she home yet?
 

She’d promised
to call when she got there.
 
Everywhere I
turned the house was filled with a memories of her.
 
Eating at the table, sleeping in my bed, on
the floor in front of the fire.

Finally my phone rang.
 
Answering it before the first ring had even ended; I felt a small bit of
the tension in my body ease when I saw her name on the display.
 
She quickly said she’d just pulled into the
driveway and hadn’t even gotten out of the car yet.
 
I couldn’t believe how relieved I felt just
hearing the sound of her voice.
 
Then she
had to go, saying her mother was running out the front door to greet her.
 
This was right; she needed to be with humans
that loved her.

About eleven I walked on to the
balcony, dropped down into a chair and stared out over the calm waters of the
lake below.
 
Putting my phone on the arm
of the chair, I hoped it would ring, hoped she’d know enough to text me
periodically just so I could keep my sanity.
 
And yet I also wished she wouldn’t grow as attached to me as I already
was to her.
 
All things considered, it
would be better for both of us if she forgot about me – for a while at
least.
 
No, I mustn’t call her, I need to
let her detach if she could.
 

After another
hour had slowly ticked by, I heard the sound of his car turn off the main road
and onto the gravel.
 
As it did, my heart
sunk.
 
A few minutes more and I heard the
garage door open, then the kitchen door and finally the sounds of footsteps in
the house behind me.
 

I’d been
dreading this moment for weeks now, but was glad it had come while she was
away.
 
It gave me a little more time
before he knew the whole truth.
 
Reluctantly, I got up and walked into the kitchen to find him sorting
through the pile of mail on the counter.
 
We seemed so normal on the surface sometimes.

“You’re back.”

He turned to
face me.
 
His eyes looked tired.
 

“Yes.
 
For how long, I’m not sure, but for a while
at least I think.
 
I take it Sara is
well?”

“Yes, I saw her
this morning and she was fine.”

“Good – I’m
grateful to you Daniel, very grateful.
 
You have no idea how much this meant to me.
 
I know it must have been difficult for
you.
 
She’s – a very potent individual.”

I wasn’t sure
how to proceed.
 
I wanted to confront him
with the truth I’d learned off Sara’s laptop, but wasn’t sure this was the
right time.
 
Of course, would there ever
be a good time?
 

“So will you
tell me where you were now?”

“I needed to
watch over another asset of mine that was in danger.
 
Thankfully, that danger seems to have passed
for the moment.”

“Is that what
Sara is, an asset?” I inquired coolly.

He paused,
tilting his head to the side.

“In a manner of
speaking, yes. – What’s wrong Daniel, I’m sensing a lot of hostility towards me
right now.”
 
I watched as he studied my
face impassively, like the scientist he was.

“I thought I
knew you better than this, Randall.
 
But
you don’t seem to trust me anymore and it’s making me question everything I
thought I knew about you.”

His face
softened at this.
 

“I wish it
didn’t have to be this way, but it’s best for everyone involved.
 
You need to have faith in me for a little
while longer.
 
Before you know it, Sara
will have graduated and moved on and you’ll never have to see her again.
 
I know it will be difficult for you in the
coming years knowing she’s here on campus.
 
I’d understand if you wanted to take a sabbatical until she’s
graduated.”

I suddenly felt as
if I’d been kicked hard in the gut.
 

“Now that I’m
back, why don’t you take a few weeks off and get away for a while.
 
You’ve more than earned a little
vacation.”
 

He smiled and
with his bag over his shoulder started towards his room at the back of the
house and disappeared down the hallway.
 

Never see her again?

The words echoed
around in my head like a death sentence.
 
I knew I had to tell him something.
 
I paced back and forth in front of the windows in the living room
considering what my best course of action was.
 
If I confessed everything that had happened while he was gone, I knew it
would not end well.
 
But I was equally
aware that, come Monday morning, he was going to know the whole truth whether I
wanted him to or not.
 
I had to find a
way to soften the blow as best I could before then.
 
But how to say it?
 
Is there a way to soften a mortal blow?
 
Before I could think on it any more I heard
his footsteps in the hall and looked up to see him reappear in the living
room.
 

“So how did
classes go?
 
Do you have notes on what
you covered?
 
I’d like to get a head
start and map out a plan of attack for next week.”

When I pointed
towards the desk, he walked over, picked up my notes and casually sat down on
the sofa to look them over.

“A quiz, huh?
You must have been in a good mood,” he laughed to himself as he looked over the
results.

“Yes,” I said,
still pacing.
 

After a minute
he glanced up.
 
“You’re pacing
Daniel.
 
You’re anxious about
something.
 
What is it?”
 

He looked at me
as if he had a thousand times before, like the concerned father he’d always
been to me.
 
I was about to disappoint
him, anger him.
 
But when I thought about
it, I wouldn’t have changed a thing that had happened in the past few weeks
even if I could.

“I know who she
is,” I said as I stopped and looked him straight in the eyes.
 

His expression
didn’t alter.

“Who?” he asked
looking down at my notes as if I were talking about a complete stranger.

“Sara.”

“What is it you
think
you know?” he asked, still
scanning my notes.

“I’ve been
spending time with her.”

His movements
stopped.
 

“She’s very
interested in genealogy and has an extensive database on her computer.”
 

I didn’t need to
say anymore.
 
I could tell he knew
exactly what I was talking about.

He looked
up.
 
“I wish you hadn’t found that out
Daniel. – But now that you have, I suppose I don’t have to lie quite so much
anymore which I’m grateful for.
 
You
understand that I’m in a difficult position here.
 
I have a duty to watch over her, a
responsibility I take very seriously.”
 
He paused, looking deep into my eyes as if attempting to read my
mind.
 
“Exactly how much time have you
spent with her?”
 
I could see the mounting
curiosity in his eyes.

“Enough to know
that she’s not exactly … a normal human.”
 

He twitched
slightly at this.

“How so?”

“She seems to
have overly developed reflexes and strength for a human – among other
things.”
 
He tried not to smile at my
words but failed.
 
“Unfortunately, she’s
a little too confident in her abilities.
 
I fear this may be her downfall in the end.”

“Yes, I’ve
considered this,” was all he said in reply.

“She also –”

“What?”

“She also talks
in her sleep.”
 
At this he shot me a glare
that I wasn’t sure how to interpret.
 
“But it’s not her that talks.”

“What do you
mean, not her?”

I had his
attention now.

“It’s like
another personality or her subconscious mind, but it isn’t the Sara I
know.
 
I’ve only heard it once, but I had
a short conversation with it, long enough to know that she has a very complex
mind.”

He got up and
walked around the room rubbing his chin deep in thought.
 

“How long ago
was this?”

“A couple of
weeks.”

“Did you say
anything to provoke this voice into speaking?”

“No, it spoke to
me first.
 
I hadn’t said a word.
 
What did you do to her, Randall?” I asked,
fishing for information.
 
But even then,
I couldn’t keep the accusatory tone out of my voice.

“Nothing.
 
I didn’t do anything on purpose.”

“On purpose!
What is that supposed to mean?” I felt my anger rising and wasn’t sure I wanted
to stop it.

“She’s the first
one that I’ve spent so much time with.
 
I
couldn’t help myself.
 
So much time
exposed to me like that. – It never occurred to me there could be side effects
…”

I ran over and
slammed him up against the wall.
 
How
dare he sound so cold and callous about her!

“What did you do
to Sara?
 
Tell me!” I demanded, barely
controlling my rage.

His eyes wide,
they were filled with shock, and seeing myself reflected in them, I almost
didn’t recognize the man staring back at me. Realizing I’d shown a bit too much
of my hand, I released him and watched as he slumped down to the ground.
 
Straightening out his clothes, he looked up at
me with a raised eyebrow.

“And I’ll ask
again – How much time did you spend with her?”
 

He was starting
to understand.

“Enough that I
don’t want anything to happen to her.”
 

I turned away
knowing my face was about to betray the depth of my emotion.

“I see,” he said
coolly behind me.
 
“Yes, I see exactly
how it is.
 
– As I said, I didn’t do
anything to Sara on purpose, but there may have been a few unforeseen side
effects to my constant visits to her.
 
You have to understand, I’ve been studying her since she was a
child.
 
I know her better, more
intimately than anyone else on this earth.
 
I know her wants, her desires, her hopes and dreams.
 
I’ve helped shape them in a way as well.
 
I’ve guided her to be the person she is
today.”