The Heart Of A Vampire

chapter seventy four: storytime kiddos

She paused, and for a moment he thought that he had lost her- that she had decided not to continue, that he would never know what had transpired.

Mentally, he cursed himself for his behavior- how stupid?

But then she spoke again, and he put any previous thoughts out of his mind, focusing on what truly mattered-

Her.

"Theo," she began once more, pausing to make sure he wouldn't interrupt. When he didn't, she continued.

"The paperboy. He was at my home last night- wanted to bring me the latest edition. I tried to pay him but dropped my coins. Bent down to retrieve, and when I looked back up, there was a knife in my face."

Her voice shook as she spoke, his eyes focused on hers comfortingly.

"I don't know for sure what he wanted.. he searched my house, presumably to find something to steal? I'm not entirely sure. What I do know is that he returned empty handed," she continued.

"He asked me if I'd ever been swimming. I said no. He told me I'd get to experience it that night. The next thing I knew he was carrying me over his shoulder to the lake. I think.. I think he was going to drown me," she whispered, her voice faltering for a moment before speaking.

"But he made a mistake- forgot his knife in his pocket, within arms reach. I grabbed it, tried to fight him off. There was a struggle- the next thing I knew, I could feel the knife plunging into my own chest. I remember pain. Then it all faded to black. The next thing I remember was waking up here."

She went silent, looking down at her hands, seeming not even to care for what his response or reaction would be.

At first, he wasn't entirely sure what to say, struggling to summon up any proper words. Was he to comfort her, interrogate more, display anger towards Theo?

Vlad had lived a long life indeed, and yet this was the first time he had found himself at such a crossroads- he had no proper experience under his belt to know what to do.

Never had he ever truly cared for someone, let alone had to deal with them post a traumatic incident.

"How.. how does it feel to get that off your chest?" he finally offered, the words feeling dry and scratchy in his throat.

She shrugged.

He understood immediately- of course she'd need some silence after detailing something like that to him.

And so he went quiet, mulling over her words. His thoughts however, kept tracking back to a particular character in her story- Theo.

"Does he live in the village?"

She shot him a puzzled look.

"Theo, I mean."

"Oh. I'm not sure, but I suppose he would."

"I gather you don't know his address?" he sighed.

She shook her head.

"Either way, I doubt you'd do anything good with it?"

"You mean stringing that bastard up in the dungeons and ripping him apart piece by piece?" he mused.

She recoiled.

"Ah, too soon? I'll refrain from describing any violence, even if he deserves it."

"However could I repay you for such kindness?" she grumbled sarcastically.

He paused, his breath hitching in his throat- he had gotten an idea.

A horrible, reckless, stupid idea.

And the typically calm and calculated vampire, for the first time in his life, acted on impulse, instinct, for once not thinking about the consequences of his actions.

"You could kiss me."

Immediately, his face went white-

What had he done?