Dear Citlali [Completed]

Chapter 22. Citlali

I met Citlali in 1475 in Tenochtitlan.

It took only seven words for tears to blur my vision. My hands were shaking.

Once we had located the notebook corresponding to the time I was interested in, Dovi and Kai had left me alone in the sitting room at my request. Kai had prepared an indulgent coffee for me that was smoking on the small table next to the couch.

I took a deep breath and continued my reading.

I met Citlali in 1475 in Tenochtitlan. It was during the earthquake that struck the city. Houses were falling. From where I was, it seemed like the entire city was crumbling. I ran to take shelter when I sensed the presence of what I know now was a vampire.

At the time, I had never met one before. I thought this strange feeling I was experiencing could mean it was another immortal. I could not pass by this opportunity. I felt irresistibly drawn towards them. And in the alley, I saw her, Citlali. She was so beautiful.

She didn't see me as she entered a building in search of a safe place to stay. But that house was not a good choice and, before I could join her, it crumbled with a deafening sound.

My heart skipped a bit, and I didn't think. I ran into the rubble to find her. The air was filled with dust. I couldn't see much but, after a few frantic moments, I noticed a hand protruding under a beam. It was the only part of her I could see. She was completely buried under stones and wood. Even if I was not as strong as I am now - I was only 72 - I was strong enough, though, to lift all that was crushing her body and to pull her out.

When I took her in my arms, the ground had stopped shaking. At least for the moment. I carried her in a safer place and I sat down on the floor, her head resting on my thighs. She was unconscious at first but her wounds healed quickly, and she moved. When she opened her eyes, she sat up and pulled away from me.

She looked at me with a wary expression, and I tried to reassure her. "You're safe. I'm like you."

Citlali narrowed her eyes. "Not like me, no," she said. But she didn't look scared anymore, once the fear of being identified as a vampire by a human had left her, and she even smiled as if to reassure me.

Together we helped a few people who had been harmed during the earthquake and then we found a place to rest, not thinking for an instant to go our separate ways. She thanked me for helping her and we talked. She was as keen as me to learn things about the supernatural world. She was younger than me but we were both so clueless. What we shared, thus, were more questions than answers.