The Vampire's Crimson Kiss (Editing)

Chapter 38/As thick as thieves

I sat with Molly but she was too weak to eat. Despite Mary's attempts I was not willing to break with Molly. The nurse had heard about the children we had rode in with. Mary had explained that the children needed homes, but with the marks of Malthus and Uncle Jimmie hiding them would be a dangerous task. if Malthus and his coven in exile turned up looking four hours than anybody found hiding the children would be flailed as an example. Her idea was to leave the weakest behind here take the rest with us and distribute them on the way.

While I sat looking into the heavy lids over Molly's eyes I could feel Mary's tension. She desperately wanted to get moving, she had also willingly given the Whole Earth Army the greatest propaganda it could possibly wish. They have fed on you now they want your children, it's so sickening even there familiars help the children escape. 

"A loyal familiar would have killed the children and burnt evidence." Said very quietly while Molly slept.

"Why didn't you then ?" I said.

Mary looked away and shrugged "I guess you're having a bad effect on me, but as far as vampires go, compassion will get you... Did I ever tell you why I became a familiar?".

"I thought you had been captured?" I said softly so as not to wake Molly.

Mary got up went over intended the fire herself.

"I had a friend, I had known her from before we could walk." Mary began, almost as if she wasn't speaking for my benefit "We were as thick as thieves as my mother said. We were always there for each other you know. One night we had gone to this club. It was my idea, my friend had seen this boy at a party and we were looking for him. She was too shy to admit it but she was really soft on him. We thought he might be going to this club on the lake edge. It was dangerous the only way there was by boat. Everyone had said not to go but we did and promised to be back before sunset. We had gone along it was late. She was normally the sensible one and I was the one that kept pulling into trouble. The boy you wasn't there and I wasn't sure the Ferryman would come back before dark. I ended up having one of those stupid arguments you have. They played our song." 

"'Are you trying to convince me your made out of gold and can't be sold?'" Mary half sung. "she wanted to stay to let it finish. I want to leave.   So I went to the ferry and left her behind. I shouldn't have done that. She was convinced that she had just caught sight of the boy. We argued. So I went home in a stink. And in the morning discovered that the familiars had raided the party after curfew. It's really just recruiting trick. If we pretend to only abduct criminals then the people of the Lake towns are far less likely to argue against the blood harvest."

"What happened to her?" I asked.

"Next morning I was told she had been arrested and charged with being out after curfew." Mary said not looking at me "I felt terrible, so every night that week I went to every place they told us not to go. I stayed up, hanging around in places trying to get captured and eventually for my sins I was. I arrived hoping I could find her. Unfortunately, they had just started a coven war. Someone had managed to poison one of the feast maidens with Silver in her bloodstream. I searched and searched I met people who had met her she was trained to be a feast maiden and I guess had been killed during the panic the assassination. I thought if we were there together and perhaps she could go through it. But I always felt I'd letter down."

Mary reached over and felt the pulse on Molly's slender arm. Mary put her hand on Molly's Head.

"Goodbye Molly, I hope one day I can have kids like you."

I felt Molly's arm. She was gone. I looked at Mary, it was clear that now we would have to ride to Sadismann with my news.

"There was nothing you could have done about it," said Mary getting up. She had seen more than her fair share of death. 

"What was the name?" I asked "the name of your friend?"

"My friend?- that was such a long time ago, 10 lifetimes or more. Her name was Elizabeth" 

We went to the horses waiting out side and began to ride hopeing against hope it would be in time to stop the marriage.