Chapter 20 – Baring my Soul

“Yes,” she whispered, and no single word had ever sounded sweeter to my ears. “I need to tell Abby, though.” She turned around, put her books away, then closed her locker. “Give me a minute, and I’ll meet you back here, okay?”

“I’ll be waiting.” I leaned against the locker and crossed my arms, my gaze tracking her down the hallway as she approached Abby, who was talking to Isach.

I straightened and focused my all my attention on Chloe. Her heartbeat was erratic, and a wave of fear pulsed around her, presumably because of Isach. I wanted to kill him for making her feel that way.

Chloe spoke to Abby in a hushed tone. Isach didn’t interfere, and when Abby agreed to cover for Chloe, I relaxed back against the locker. Chloe rushed back toward me.

“Okay. I need to be back here by four,” she said, drawing a deep breath.

I pushed away from the locker and took her hand. As soon as we were out of the building, away from curious eyes, I scooped her into my arms and had us at my truck faster than she could blink.

When I put her down, she swayed on her feet. “Whoa,” she said.

“Sorry. Figured we were less likely to get caught this way.” I opened the passenger’s door.

She climbed into the truck and hooked her seat belt. Moments later, we were on the road and headed toward my house. I knew Jax wasn’t home, so he wouldn’t be a problem, but I had no idea where Dad was. Maybe going home wasn’t such a great idea. Besides, if I was going to bare my soul to her, I needed to start at the beginning, and that meant there was only one place I could take her.

“Okay, so you could literally go anywhere and do anything. Why on earth are you in high school?” she asked.

I laughed. “Old Man Moore, my nosy neighbor. He noticed Jax and I weren’t in school, so he called the truancy officer.” I rolled my eyes. “Dad gave us an ultimatum—go back to school or move again. Enrolling was easier. And I’m really glad I did.” I sliced a look at her, hoping she understood all I hadn’t said.

“I’m glad you did, too.”

I struggled not to show how ridiculously happy that made me. Maybe there was hope for the two of us. Of course, making her understand I wasn’t a monster was only half the battle, because once she was okay with what I was, we still needed to deal with the small matter of my family curse. One thing at a time.

“What else? That can’t be the only question on your mind,” I said.

“No, it’s not.” She shook her head. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

She shrugged.

“Look, the only way you’re going to be okay with this… with me… is to know everything. So, ask away. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

And I meant that. Whatever she wanted to know, I’d tell her. Even the not-so-great things I’d done in the past. As Sean so aptly advised—the only way to move forward was with total honesty and transparency. No matter how terrifying that was.

Chewing on her bottom lip, she nodded. “Jax isn’t happy I know, is he?”

“No. But he understands why I told you. He’s worried you’ll tell people about us, and that could be very bad,” I said, stopping short of telling her he was also pissed that I was so enamored with her that I refused to do the smart thing and leave town as opposed to staying and potentially starting a war with one of the most powerful covens in the world.

“I won’t tell anyone,” she promised.

Relief enveloped me. I’d known right from the start that she wouldn’t tell anyone, but hearing her confirm that was a huge weight off my shoulders. Now I could tell Jax to stop worrying over nothing.

“How old are you?” she asked.

“I was born in January of 1915. I became a vampire on my eighteenth birthday.” I checked the rearview mirror. “I’m a hundred and two years old.” I turned out off Route 73 and headed down the road that would take us toward my house, though I had no intention of going home.

I mentally prepared myself for her reaction to that information, because why wouldn’t she freak out about it? Even though I’d stopped physically aging at eighteen, I’d lived a long time. I’d seen and done things she couldn’t begin to imagine. Things I hoped I could shield her from for as long as possible.

“Your father?” she asked.

“My biological father is long dead. Sean is our adoptive father. He’s two hundred and nine.”

She once again fell silent, and I risked a glance at her. Her brows were furrowed, and she had a faraway look on her face. What could she possibly be thinking right now?

“What... why did you lie to me when I showed you that picture? That is your adoptive father, correct?”

“Yes.” I rubbed the back of my neck, then flexed my hand on the steering wheel. “I never imagined you’d stumble upon that picture, and when you did, I had no idea what to tell you. So, I lied. I was hoping I could buy myself a bit more time to figure out how to tell you the truth.” I reached for her hand. “I’m sorry for that, Chloe.”

I never wanted to lie to her, but I had, and she now knew that, so my only option was to admit what I’d done and beg for her forgiveness.

“And your brother?”

“A hundred and two, just like me. He’s my twin.”

“Well, that explains why you two look exactly alike.”

“I’m insulted you think Jax is as sexy as I am.” I gave her a wicked smile in the hopes of lightening the mood.

She laughed, and my heart soared. If only I could make her that happy every second of every day for the rest of her life. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that she wouldn’t let me. Even if she did come to terms with the fact that I was a vampire, the moment she learned I was cursed, she’d run for the hills.

“Do you… kill people?” she asked.

Of course she’d ask the one question I was dreading. “I have in the past,” I said carefully.

“But you don’t anymore?”

I raised a brow and gave her an incredulous look. Was that why she’d been so hesitant around me? Did she really think I went around killing innocent people? All her knowledge about vampires probably came from books and movies, which would make her reactions toward me logical. Vampires weren’t exactly docile creatures.

“No, not unless it’s absolutely necessary,” I said.

“Right.” She nodded. “So, you didn’t…?” She inhaled deeply and blew it out slowly. “Rachel? Marc? The hikers?”

“No,” I said firmly. “We only feed on animal blood.”

My first instinct was to be upset and offended that she thought I’d killed those people, but I had to remember the supernatural world was brand new to her. She had no idea how we lived or what rules we followed. I needed to be patient with her and fully explain everything.

“But they didn’t die of animal attacks or hiking accidents, did they?” she asked.

“No, but I promise you it wasn’t me or my family.” I squeezed her hand.

“Wait. There are others like you?”

“More than you realize.”

Her breaths suddenly became shallow, and I listened closely to make sure she wasn’t going to pass out or have a panic attack.

“Isach?” Her voice trembled.

“He’s not a vampire, if that’s what you’re asking. As I said before, he’s something much worse.”

“Are there any others in town besides you and your family?” she asked, her voice still trembling slightly.

I shook my head, and she let out a pent-up breath.

“But then…?” She tilted her head in confusion and narrowed her eyes. “How did all those people die? It was a vampire that killed them, right? And if it wasn’t you or your family…?”

“There are no other vampires that live here,” I clarified. “But that doesn’t mean others don’t pass through.”

“Pass through?” Her tone had shifted from fear to genuine curiosity.

Maybe I was getting through to her, showing her I wasn’t a monster who preyed on the innocent and defenseless.

“Secrecy is our greatest weapon. We can’t stay in any place too long, otherwise, people will realize we don’t age, so we tend to move around a lot.” I slowed for the impending stop sign and waited for the other traffic to clear the intersection before going. “Places like Keene Valley are perfect for vampires. It’s secluded yet close to bigger cities, and it’s easy to feed. An inexperienced hiker goes missing, succumbs to the weather, gets attacked by an animal. A near perfect cover.”

She shuddered and inched closer to the door, all but pressing herself against it. Whatever progress I made was gone, just like that. I shouldn’t have shared quite that much information with her. She wasn’t ready yet.

“But that’s not how you… how you feed, right? You said you only feed on animals.”

“Correct.”

A small frown pulled at my lips, but I didn’t comment on the way she was huddled away from me. I didn’t want to make her any more uncomfortable than she already was. Nor did I want to scare her any more than I already had.

“I don’t want you to be afraid of me, Chloe.” I let out a heavy sigh.

“So, how does everything work? I mean, I know what I’ve seen in movies, but I have a feeling it isn’t even close to the truth,” she said.

“Not all of it, no. In fact, most of it’s silly. We can enter a house without being invited. We have a reflection. Although we tend to avoid them for personal reasons, crosses and holy water don’t harm us.”

“Neither does the sun?”

“It doesn’t kill us, but it’s uncomfortable. It affects our vision a bit, and our skin turns red, like a sunburn. And like a burn, it’s painful, but bearable for short periods of time. If we’re out in the sun too long, though, our skin will blister.”

“That explains the sunglasses and long sleeves,” she muttered.

I slowed and turned into my driveway. “All of our senses are heightened, so we can see, hear, smell things normal humans can’t. We move a lot faster than you, too.”

“Yeah, I know. What I don’t know is how you’re not constantly dizzy.”

I grinned. At first, moving so fast was extremely disorienting, but within a matter of days, I adjusted. Moving that fast now was second nature. Though I could see how that speed would be difficult for a human.

Cutting the engine, I rested my arms on the steering wheel and turned to look at her. “Are you okay with all of this?”

“I don’t know.” She fidgeted with her hands and kept her head down. Slowly, she shifted away from the door and adjusted in the seat. “It’s a lot to process.”

“I know.” My voice was tinged with sadness. “For what it’s worth, I really admire how you’re handling it.”

She jerked her head up, eyes wide. “You are?”

“Yeah. You were freaked out, and you didn’t give in, no matter how charming I was.” I smirked, and she smiled in response. “You’re making me work. Honestly, I’m not used to that.”

Not that I hit on a lot of girls, but on the rare occasion when Jax convinced me to cut loose and have some fun, I didn’t generally have to work too hard to get a woman’s attention. Then again, I didn’t confess I was a vampire to the random women I spent time with.

“Thanks, I guess. Do you have any sort of special powers? Like, can you read minds or anything?” she asked.

I leaned back and let out a loud laugh. “That would certainly be useful, but no. I can’t read minds.”

“But you can do something?”

I was not about to tell her what my special skill was; at least not until I had the chance to tell her everything else first. She’d already learned my secret thanks to Isach. I didn’t need her learning the truth about my family curse—or the true depth of my feelings for her—because I was too weak to control my “gift.”

“Yes,” I said after a moment.

She scrunched up her face. “You said you’d answer any questions I had.”

“And I will. But some of the answers will have to wait until this weekend when we have more time. You did promise me two days, remember?”

“Yeah, and you said we were getting a jumpstart on those two days, so you’re down to one and a half days now.”

“I don’t think so.” I opened my door. “Today’s a bonus.”

I climbed out of the truck and met her around on the passenger side. Taking my hand, she got out of the truck. She glanced across the street, and I followed her gaze. Old Man Moore watched us from where he stood on his front porch.

Nosy old coot. Maybe I should’ve taken Jax’s advice and wiped the old man’s memories. Maybe then he’d leave us alone.

“Does he know about you?” she asked.

“I think he suspects there’s something different about us, but I doubt he knows we’re vampires. We’re very careful about how often we return to Keene Valley. We have to time it so everyone that could potentially see us right now is dead.”

Her breath caught. “Do you come back here often?”

“Yes. We have a long history here. Keene Valley is more of a home to us than anywhere else.”

She glanced up at the massive house. “Are we here alone?”

“Dad and Jax are… out.” I shoved my hands into my pockets. “Is that okay? Or would you like to go back to school?”

While I had no intention of taking her inside, I wanted the choice to be alone with me to be hers. If she wasn’t okay with this, we’d leave right now.

“No, it’s fine,” she said.

“Good, because there’s something I want to show you.” I walked at a normal pace until we were around the side of the house, out of view of Old Man Moore, and then I scooped her up.

She put her arms around my neck to hold on, and I was momentarily stunned by how perfectly he felt in my arms like this. A split second later, we emerged into a small clearing surrounded by trees and a towering stone structure in the center.

I’d brought her to our family cemetery.