Confessions Of A Vampire (17 page)

Her frail body lay lifeless on the bed. He explained that the nurses had given her the babies to hold and with them in her arms, she passed away. My heart broke as he talked about the smile that had lit up her face when she'd stroked her sons' cheeks.

She'd pressed gentle kisses to the top of their heads and told them to take care of their daddy for her and that she loved them. Malachi told us that her last words had been to him.

“
I'll always be looking down on you, Malachi. I love you.”

And then she quietly slipped from this world. My tears stained his shirt as I held him. My child stood taller than me by almost a foot, and that night, in a stark white hospital
room, he seemed smaller than his little boys in the neonatal intensive care unit
.

I would have given anything, including my own existence to bring her back
but it was impossible
. I worried that he wouldn't survive without her. He spent the night in a rocking chair next to the incubators his sons lay in. With each beep of the machines that were keeping them alive, he grew stronger in his reserve to make sure they knew how much their mother had sacrificed for them.

He whispered promises that he'd never leave them for any reason. He swore he'd always be there for them when they needed him.
My heart broke as he told his children that he’d be a better father than his own had been. It was a promise I knew he’d die to keep.

“So that's why he doesn't approve of his father's absences. It all makes sense now.”

I nodded and nothing else was needed.

“Mrs. Severus, did the boys survive?”

“Yes,” I smiled as I said it. “They are five years old now and healthy and happy. Damian looks just like his father while Darian favors Izzy. Mal tells them about her every night and they spend a lot of time with her family. I'm quite sure Izzy is looking down on them and protecting them.”

“And Malachi and Severus? Are they okay?”

I chewed nervously on my bottom lip as I tried to find the right way to answer this. “Malachi tries very hard to understand his father, but I'm not sure they will ever be okay.”

Maybe he saw how upset I was at this or maybe he just wanted to move on, but he steered the conversation towards a different direction and I was very thankful he did.

“Can you tell me more about the years before you and your husband met back up?”

Again, I nodded
and let
the memory draw me away from the emotions that had threatened to burst forth.

Chapter Twenty-O
ne

There were many years that Star and I were living together. We shared everything and enjoyed the times we spent together.
She’s always been my best friend and we’d always found a way to make the most of our lives over the years.

My sister had a bit of an obsession with powerful men. She'd shared the beds of kings, counts and presidents. Of course those unions benefited us both. We could come and go in any town in England, Scotland and Ireland without question. And soon that carried over to America. The Spencer girls were well protected and we used it to our advantage.

I, on the other hand, always preferred the bad boys. I could be found most nights keeping company with the street urchins or criminals. I craved the excitement they offered. So as my sister spent her nights in palaces, I wandered the streets looking for trouble.

It was a warm summer
evening, just past twilight
when I met a man that would offer me some of the most thrilling nights of my life. His thirst for causing trouble rivaled my own and I felt as if he were a kindred spirit. We clicked immediately and soon we were raising Hell all over Chicago

I met Al not long after he'd married Mae. Little did she know but her husband enjoyed ladies on the side. While the little woman was back home in New York, Al was busy learning the ropes from Johnny T
a
nd that's how we met.

Like I said, my sister had a thing for powerful men and on occasion she'd find one that wasn't always on the up and up. Johnny and Star were hot and heavy and I was along for the ride. Not that I minded. Prohibition was in full swing and we all spent a great deal of time breaking the laws and Johnny let me perform in his speakeasy some nights.
Back then, in the
Roaring
Twenties I fancied myself a singer.

It was one of those nights that he called me over to meet an “old friend” of his. Al was just in from New York and word on the street was
that
he was being primed to take over Chicago. We just hit it off. Both of us liked violence and Al didn't seem to care that Star and I were a bit different than everyone around us.

We did a good job of blending in but anyone who took the time to study us could easily see that we weren't exactly 'normal'. But I'd never wanted to be normal anyway
, normal was boring and I was anything but boring
. Johnny and Al never commented on the iciness of our skin or how we were never seen during the day. According to Star, Johnny knew that she was a vampire and found it exciting.

While Johnny explained to his friend that I was St
ar's sister, I could hear the
thoughts
running through her mind
. She wanted this meeting to go well and I plastered a smile to my face and did my very best to charm him. I took a seat next to the dark man with the guarded eyes and let the long slit in my dress fall open to reveal long, ivory legs covered in black nylons. As I shifted in my seat I noticed his gaze fell to the garter peeking out from under my dress and I grinned.

Every man, even a married one liked a little peek of a girl
’
s garters. I'd been on this Earth a long time and I'd shared my bed with more men than I could count, all in an effor
t to feed myself, of course. O
ne thing always remained the same, no matter the year, the season or the man.

A beautiful woman showing a little flesh will always attract the attention of a powerful man. It was knowledge that I used to my advantage. I c
harmed Al that night, as he confessed to me a few months later. That
began a friendship that would last until he was sent to prison some odd years later.

But it was the time in between that was worth talking about. Al and I shared a hatred of Valentine's Day and we'd been busy coming up with a plan to make this one interesting, in ways only we could.
When you put a gangster and a vampire together, things can get out of hand quickly. We talked of murder and bloodshed the likes of which this city had never seen.
Our plan came together
in a seedy speakeasy
in 1929 and Al let me have a little fun amidst the bloodshed. Of course, he never got his hands dirty, but he ordered his men to hold their fire until I'd had my fill of blood.

The men, hardened criminals most of them, stood in horror as I savagely drained several humans of their blood. When I was done, they came in and cleaned the scene up some. It would become a widely publicized massacre and we all sat back and laughed
at the fact
that no one suspected that a vampire had been running wild in their fair city.

They never did pin that one on Al, but it wasn't long after that that we had to part ways.

“Are you telling me that you knew actual gangsters?”

I grinned, giving a barely perceptible nod towards Aaron. “I did.”

“Wow, you've lived quite the life, Mrs. Severus.” He paused and thought for a moment before he continued. “What's been your favorite part?”

“The quiet times with Severus, when everything was going well.”

“Tell me about them.”

I laughed quietly and nodded. My smile lit up my face as I let the memories come flooding back.

Chapter Twenty-T
wo

The quiet times in his arms were rare but when I had them, I cherished them. We lived in a world where we were apart more than together and death was always at the forefront of our lives. But when we were together, the rest of the world faded away.

We often spent nights under the stars. When Severus was home, no one could tear me away from his side. We laughed and talked. His hand always held mine. No matter how upset I'd been when he parted, I was always thrilled when he returned.

Those times he was home for extended periods were the best. I'd
lie
in bed
with my head on his
chest for
hours on end just listening to the steady rhythm of his heart. I'd drink in the sweet, spicy scent that I loved. As his fingers wove through my tangled tresses, I would often give a quiet sigh of pleasure.

The kisses to the top of my head, the way he draped an arm around me protectively, those were the things that showed me that he loved me. We talked of everything and nothing, all at once. And then there were times when no words were needed.

The time before the twins were born was magical. We sunbathed on the beach and Severus taught me how to surf. I was horrible at it, but he never gave up trying to get me to my feet on that board. The day I actually managed to catch a wave, he rewarded me by covering me in kisses. Our laughter floated on the breeze that cooled us and soon his teasing kisses turned to passionate ones and we couldn't keep our hands off of one another.

As our bodies brought each other pleasure, our souls connected again and the bond strengthened. By then we were bonded so well that we could access each
other’s
gifts and use them when needed. But even as exciting as that was, it still didn't compare to how exhilarating it was to be one with him.

What I had with Severus, I've never had with another. One kiss could send me soaring. One touch could leave me begging for more. I was so in love with him then and I still am, even now.

As much as he's hurt me over the years, he's also given me something no one else ever could. He'd given me safety. It was what I'd been desperately seeking since the last four years of my human life. I'd thought that after being turned I'd find it, but it wasn't until I met Severus that I understood what it meant to be safe.

With Sev, I knew I'd never have to look over my shoulder. I knew that he'd always be there to keep me safe, even if it was by letting me fight my own battles. He wasn't trying to change who I am. He loved me despite my loud mouth and attitude. He seemed to like that I didn't let others opinions of me affect what I thought of myself.

With him I could shrug off the girl the world expected and just be me. And that was when I was the happiest. He saw past my awkwardness and loved me for it at the same time. I'd never experienced that until I met him and fell in love.

There were nights we'd dance on the beach under the moon and not rest until the sunrise colored the skies. And then we had days where we lounged in bed all day, eating junk food and watching daytime
TV
. We'd make fun of the people on the talk shows or just ignore the
TV
altogether and spend the day relearning all
of
the
secret spots of the other
’
s body.

Our life together was amazing and we were more in love than ever. And then it all fell apart. It's a day I'll never forget. We'd been playing on the beach, the sun warm and inviting after a long and rainy weekend. Severus looked amazing in his shorts, his bronze skin shimmering in the sunshine.
With each breeze that floated in off the ocean,
I could smell the coconut of the sunscreen that I'd applied to his
well-toned
chest earlier in the day
.

One minute he had me thrown over his shoulder, my laughter surrounding us, and the next we'd both stopped at the scent of another demon in the area. Severus spun and set me on my feet, stepping protectively in front of me
.
  I peeked around him trying to see who had him so on guard.

What I didn't know was that other demons in his realm didn't like the idea of him being married to me. They said it was unnatural and that he should be with his own kind. Of course he was smart to not tell me about this because I would have ended up rushing straight down to Hell and
trying
to fight them all. I can be a bit impulsive when I'm angry.