My Angel E.C.

Ch.5

"Of course your dead. You're a vampire," I said, very confused at the moment.
        Elizabeth shook her head. "I don't think you understand."
        She casually laid down, clearly not making any attempt to explain herself or her statements. She opened her book to a page near the middle and resumed reading. After a while, I decided that if she had wanted to attack me, she would've already, but I remained where I was.
        We stayed like that for some time, her reading and occasionally flipping pages while I tried to read her mind again, though I knew, by now, that it was futile.
        "Did you know you scrunch your eyebrows together when you're thinking hard on something?"
        I had been staring at the people strolling through the park- giving up on my attempts to figure out her thoughts, instead trying to figure out why I couldn't read them- when she spoke. I reverted my gaze to her and found her looking at me with her book resting on her chest
        "No, I didn't," I replied.
        "Well, you do, now."
        "Okay." I didn't know how else to respond.
        Elizabeth grinned at me. "Still wondering why you can't read my mind?"
        I nodded my head, hoping that meant she'd tell me something about her strange ability.
        She sighed. "Well, it's really none of your business, and I've already told you why. But since you still seem puzzled. . ."
        "I am. I don't understand. This is unusual to me-"
        "You're lying." She cuts me off with a smirk.
        "What?"
        "This has happened to you before, probably a long time ago. Maybe not so long in your measure of time, though."
        "How would you know that?"
        "Easy. That was my talent." Elizabeth's smirk vanished, she sat up, closing her book, along with her eyes. Something, besides her behavior, bothered me, something she had said.
        "Was?"
        "When I was human, I could read people so easily. I could tell what someone was feeling, if they were lying. . ." she trailed off.
        "That sounds like my brother. He can control people's emotions. My father told us that we took on the strongest characteristic of our human selves when we turned."
        Elizabeth nodded. "Sounds about right. I always hated it when people lied anyway. Who's your father? Not biological, I presume?"
        "Carlisle Cullen," I replied, nodding.
        "I've heard of that name. Nomads who go through talk about his lifestyle, which I'm guessing is yours, as well."
        I nodded again.
        "Interesting." Elizabeth's eyes opened. "Hm, you're quiet, aren't you?"
        I shrugged, causing Elizabeth to chuckle.
        "Alright, well, I don't see a point in putting this off any longer. You want to know what I meant when I said I'm dead."
        "Yes. If you're a vampire, that should be a given, right?"
        Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Obviously, but that's not the case here."
        I felt my eyebrows furrow. "What do you mean? You have no heartbeat, but you're living. That basically defines what we are."
        "Apart from the diet," she muttered before standing up.
        "Elizabeth, please, just explain to me what you mean. No more riddles." I pinched the bridge of my nose. I had to know, I had to understand. Maybe it would explain why I was unable hear Bella's thoughts as well.
        "What? You expect me to give you my life story after knowing you for only a couple of hours and having only talked to you for five minutes total?"
        "Please," I pleaded again.
        She pursed her lips. "Fine." Then a smile grew on her face. "Alright. Well, I'll explain it this way. For one, I'm here; you can see me." She paused to see if I was following. Of course, I could see her. I gestured for her to proceed.
        "But, I am dead," she continued.
        I shook my head. "I don't understand. We're vampires. We're all dead."
        "No, you're a vampire. You're undead. I'm dead."
        I was frustrated by then. "So what are you, a zombie?" I theorized, though I knew the idea to be completely ridiculous.
        She giggled, obviously amused by my answer and frustration. "I'm pretty sure zombies don't exist-"
        "I realize that."
        "-and even if they did, they'd still be undead."
        I exhaled harshly, losing my calm façade . I wonder if Bella had felt this way when she tried to figure out what I am.
        "But you don't make sense. You say you're dead, but you're hear alive. You look perfectly healthy, yet you have no heartbeat. You're obviously not human, and you say you're not a vampire, so what are you?"
        She sighed sadly. Her emotions seem to change often, I noted, from amused and happy to upset and well, depressed.
        "Of course, you wouldn't know. You've never met someone like me. I'm alone, always alone. Think, Edward, think."
        Elizabeth rose from her position in the grass and placed the book in my hand. She seemed careful not to make sure our hands didn't brush, only holding on to the edge until it was secure in my grip. "Here. I've read this one before anyway."
        "Why do you always leave your books for anyone to steal?" I asked, my previous question, again, coming into play.
        "It's not stealing if I leave them for people to find, is it? Sometimes, books create the needed adventures for people who can't have their own and let them just live. Enjoy it, it's a thriller." Elizabeth winked and walked off. I glanced down at the book, as she brushed past.
        The Woman in Black by Susan Hill.
        I looked back up, and as expected, Elizabeth was gone from sight.
        Sigh. That only left me more uncertain of the girl than before. Who was she?
        What was she?