Zac stood, “He wouldn’t have to run. And he doesn’t have to stay here,
Ike. There’s a whole world out there and plenty of places where he could be
free to come and go however he chooses.”
Isaac shook his head, “It’s not that simple—“
“Why not!?” Zac hissed.
“Because you know why! Because he drinks blood to live and he dies when
the sun comes up! What, do you think he should just get a job on the night shift
somewhere and find 24 hour daycare? They have to have their own kind around them
and they need people like Mr. Jones around to watch out for them during the
day.”
“You and me could do that—“
“You’re 15 years old!” Isaac cried. “That’s not what you want to do
with your life, and it’s not what he’d want either. Besides, it’s too
dangerous. He knows it and you know it. We already tried it.”
“That’s ‘cause we were on tour! People constantly watching and taking
pictures and stuff!” Zac reasoned.
Isaac was shaking his head, “It doesn’t matter! Don’t you remember
Thanksgiving and stuff? He doesn’t act like he used to! He bit Charlotte—he hurt
her, I was there! He bit me, for Christ’s sake!” He took a breath and
calmed himself, “And while he was at it, he made sure I understood. He made me
promise never to trust him or any of the others. And I don’t.”
Zac sighed and shut his eyes. “Fine. Whatever.” He said. He looked from
Isaac to Taylor, then back again, “I’m going to bed. See ya in the
morning—or whenever.” And he left, pushing past his brother.
Isaac stepped over and sat on the bed. He picked Isabella up, careful not to
wake her, and pulled the towel back over the window, to keep the sun off Taylor.
He placed his hand over his brother’s, “God, your hands are huge.” He
smiled. “Tay, I don’t know if you can hear me or not, but I’m just doing
what you asked me to and I hope you know that. It’s not about love. You know I
love you. This is about doing what’s best for everybody, you included.” He
looked down at the little girl in his arms. “Someday, maybe we can do things
differently…”
~~~~~
When Sonya’s car pulled in front of the house, the driver got out and knocked
on the door. Mr. Jones answered, “You made excellent time.” He said, looking
at his watch.
“Yes, I believe we did. The girls only needed one stop and they seemed to have
conducted all their business at once.” The man answered.
“Very good.” Mr. Jones said. He stepped out into the early afternoon sun.
“Let’s move the car over here under the shade of this tree.” He directed.
“I’d rather not subject anyone to any unnecessary pains.” Both men stepped
over to the car, Mr. Jones peering inside. “Is that a safe?” He
asked, looking at the square box that sat in the back of the S.U.V.
“Yes, sir, it seems to be.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out an
envelope. “Mistress Melanie said to give this to you.” He said, handing it
to him.
Furrowing his brow, he took it. “Interesting...” He said, and he backed up
so that the man could move the car. Opening the note, he recognized Melanie’s
scrawled handwriting.
Jonesie—Camille decided (on Beatriz advice) that a safe would be the perfect
way to get the Little Prince back to NYC and her royal highness “safely”—Haha!!!
The combination is in her bra. But don’t you be pawing her unless necessary.
Actually, come to think of it—you take it, just in case she decides to let him
out of there prematurely…
See ya! Mel
Mr. Jones shook his head and folded the note, placing it in his pocket. He
looked up to see the Volvo now parked in the shade of the tree, it’s windows
down. “Thank you.” He said, walking over to the car. “If you don’t mind,
I’d like you to retrieve the combination to this container and put it safely
in the hands of the Lady Beatriz. It’s very important. Stop in St. Louis and
there will be another gentleman there to help with the driving duties.”
The man sighed, “Yes, sir.” He said.
Mr. Jones smiled, “You shall be rewarded. The Lady is very generous with those
she can depend on.”
“Oh, I know that. It’s just been a long drive. I was hoping to spend a day
or two here before making the trip back.” He replied.
“I understand perfectly. And that was the plan. But, it seems something urgent
has come up and the young master is needed back in New York sooner than we’d
hoped.” Mr. Jones said.
Again, the man took in a breath, “Am I understanding that you’re planning on
putting him in the safe? I mean, I couldn’t help but overhear them
talking about it.”
“That seems to be what will happen, yes.” He looked at the young man’s
face, knowing it sounded cruel; even barbaric. “I assure you, he’ll be in no
danger. There should be plenty of air for the time it will take and he fed late
last night. For a person…like he is,” He said, “fifteen hours is not so
unbearable.” Still, the man didn’t seem convinced, “He has some talents
that make him a bit hard to handle at times. And of course, he’d like to stay
here, and that just isn’t possible right now. We’re just trying to make this
as easy on him as we can.”
The man shook his head, “By locking him in a safe?”
Mr. Jones sighed now, “You’ll understand someday.” He turned toward the
house. “Come in and have something to eat, then I’ll need you to help me get
things going. I’m not sure how much I can count on the others here.” He
said, opening the front door.
Inside, the man looked at the house; there were family pictures on the walls,
toys on the floor, books on tables and food in the kitchen. It was perfectly
normal looking. When he’d taken on this job, he’d assumed he’d be thrown
into a world of supernatural darkness and powerful otherworldly beings. But,
while they did do some out of the ordinary things, generally, they weren’t that
different from some humans he’d known; at least, not on the outside. In fact,
the goth characters he’d hung around with probably appeared more weird in
their habits and lifestyles than these real-life vampires ever would. It seemed
that the whole idea for them was to blend in, not to stand out as different to
the humans they fed on. In fact, he’d been told countless times, that their
survival depended on it. Still, he hadn’t been doing it for so long that he
took things for granted yet. And putting a person in a safe to be transported
across state lines was just not something he felt comfortable about. He watched
as a woman with very long blond hair walked into the room.
“What’s going on?” She asked, leaning back against the counter. “I
don’t think I’ve met this gentleman.”
Mr. Jones opened the refrigerator and pulled out sandwich makings, “This is
James. He’ll be driving the Lady’s car back to New York City.” He said,
placing the items on the table. “I hope a sandwich is enough.” He looked at
his watch, “Time is getting away from us. We need to be doing what we need to
do.” He said.
She furrowed her brow, looking very much like her son, “I thought you and
Taylor were taking the car back together.” She said.
Mr. Jones turned to face her as he poured the man a glass of Coke from a bottle,
“Isaac has informed me that Taylor would rather not return to the city, and
we’re just going to make sure that he gets there. The Lady will take care of
things after that. We shall keep you informed.” He said.
She didn’t say anything, but she stepped out of the room and into the hallway.
“Walk!” She called her husband. His voice came up the stairs from the
basement and she asked him to join her in the kitchen. She then called Isaac and
Zac in the same way. Once they were all present, she sat at the table. “Mr.
Jones has changed his mind about some things, and I just thought maybe we should
all discuss it.”
He found himself facing four grim looking people. “Um, it seems that Taylor
would rather not come back to the city.” He stated, “But, as you know, that
is not acceptable.”
“That’s not what he said last night.” Walker said.
“True. But I do not trust that he won’t decide to just not come with me.
After all, I’m just a man and he knows that. In any event, it’s been decided
that we’ll be on the road before he awakens, and that should lessen the
possibility of any sort of disagreements.”
“So, what are you thinking?” Walker asked.
“Well,” he started. “I was thinking we should just remove him from his
room and place him in the car. He won’t wake up.”
Zac furrowed his brow, a look Isaac knew meant trouble. “So, you want to
kidnap him.” He stated.
The man took in a breath. Zac could be more stubborn than either of his
brothers, including the one asleep on the floor above them. “Not exactly,
Master Zachary.”
Immediately Zac responded, “See? You just tipped your hand. You only call us
that if you’re lying or being snotty.”
“It’s not kidnapping.” Mr. Jones reasoned. “It’s saving his
life, possibly.”
Zac shook his head and sat back in his chair. “Whatever. Call it what you
like.” He then looked over at Isaac and he was done.
Mr. Jones sighed and looked at Diana, “I just think if he wakes up and he’s
already on the road, it will be easier to get him back to New York. Camille and
Melanie are outside in the car, and if he doesn’t want to go back…well, they
can persuade him.”
Zac rolled his eyes at the word “persuade” and Isaac huffed, “Dude, what
do you think we should do?! You know he’s not gonna want to leave.
Remember in “Lost Boys” when the vampires come to the house? You want Zoe
and Mack to see something like that?”
“I really wish you wouldn’t watch things like that.” Mr. Jones sighed,
“It’s rubbish.”
“I’m not an idiot.” Isaac shot back. “I know they don’t fly and they
don’t have yellow eyes and stuff. But I don’t doubt they’d do whatever it
took to get him if he was here. I mean, there’s been two of them outside the
house for who knows how long!!”
Diana put her head in her hand, leaning on the table. “I can’t believe this
is still happening…”
“Well, I haven’t watched that movie, but I think I can see what Ike is
saying.” Walker said. “I’m not too comfortable with that whole idea
either.”
“Then you understand the need for haste.” Mr. Jones stated. “In fact, if
you’re ready James, we really should be moving along.” He said, watching the
man wipe his mouth and drink the last of his soft drink.
“Yes, sir.” He said, standing. He’d watched and listened, fascinated by
the situation.
Walker looked at his wife and sighed, then back to Mr. Jones, “What do we need
to do?”
“We just need to get him in the car and we’ll need a blanket or something to
keep the sun off him.” He looked sympathetically at Taylor’s parents, “The
girls are in there right now—I assure you, he’ll be quite safe.” A look
passed between he and the other driver. At that moment he wished he had the same
ability to silently speak to the man as the people he lived with, but since he
didn’t he had to just hope he realized the situation they were in and that he
wouldn’t say anything about the fact that another sort of safe would be
involved in the trip. He’d just decided that would be too much for Taylor’s
family to take.
Another sigh and Walker stood, “Alright,” he said, turning to the boys,
“let’s get him down here.”
Isaac stood, but Zac still sat, next to his mother. “C’mon, Zac.” Isaac
said. “It’s not like it’s gonna hurt him or anything. He won’t even wake
up.” He said softly.
Zac suddenly stood up, “It just sucks! It’s not fair and you know it.” He
said, his voice losing it’s angry tone.
Isaac placed his hand on Zac’s shoulder. “It’ll be alright. Maybe he can
come back once all that stuff is worked out, huh?” He asked, turning toward
Mr. Jones.
“I don’t see why not. The Lady hasn’t forbid it.” The man answered.
“Don’t hurt him.” Diana said.
“We shall be very gentle.” Mr. Jones answered her. He looked at James, “I
believe we shall place the young master in the front seat, next to me.” He
said.
“Yes, sir.” He answered, and he backed up so they could pass.
“Come along, they can be quite heavy. We may need your help.” Mr. Jones said
to him, and so he followed them upstairs.
Once there, they stepped into Taylor’s room. Avery lay there beside her
sleeping brother, her head propped up on his shoulder, a small lamp on the table
illuminating the book she was reading. “What’s going on?” She said, her
eyes locking with Mr. Jones’.
“For heaven’s sake, young lady!!” He said, clutching his chest, “I
thought you were in the pool with Jessica and the others.”
“It’s too cold to swim.” She said.
“Well, the others are swimming.” He said.
She furrowed her brow. “I just don’t feel like swimming. What’s going
on?” She asked again.
“Honey,” Walker said, stepping towards her, “Taylor has to go back. Mr.
Jones is going to take him back to his home, now.”
“But he’s not even up yet.” She looked at the clock, “It’s not even
two o’clock yet.”
“Mr. Jones knows that Taylor wants to stay here with us, but he really has to
go back home. He has things he has to be there for, or he could get in trouble.
And we don’t want that.” Her father said.
Diana walked toward her, “Come on, sweetie. You and me will go down and write
him a letter, okay?”
With a sigh, the little girl got up off the bed, laying her book down on the
bedside table. She looked at her brother one more time before going out the door
with her mother.
“I think I’m going to start calling her ‘Wednesday’.” Mr. Jones mused.
“She’s only weird where Taylor’s concerned.” Isaac said.
Mr. Jones just shook his head, and stepped over to the bed. He turned to Walker,
“May we use this bedspread? I can send it back to you as soon as we get
home.”
“Sure.” The man answered glumly. “Nobody uses this bed now, anyway.”
“Very well.” He said and he looked down at Taylor. Nothing odd, he observed.
Then he began to pull the sides of the cover up around his body, tucking in the
sides. “This should be thick enough to keep out the sun, no problem.” He
said aloud. Zac looked away as he covered up his brother’s head. “Alright,
James, you and the boys, see if you can lift him. If you need help, we old men
will do what we can.” He said, trying to lighten the mood. He backed away then
and stood next to Walker.
The three of them stepped over. Isaac furrowed his brow for a moment, “How
about if two of us grab the top, and somebody else grab his feet. We don’t
want to have a repeat of the last time we did this…”
James glanced at him, wondering what all this family had gone through. “Well,
I’m a little bigger than you two, so which end do you want me on?” He asked.
“I’ll take the feet.” Zac said solemnly.
Isaac sighed, “Alright, buddy. That’ll work.” Then, they each took their
places, and lifted their burden from the bed. Isaac didn’t think Taylor
weighed anymore than the last time, but there were three of them instead of just
two, so he couldn’t be sure.
Soon, they’d managed to get to the bottom of the stairs and Diana stood beside
the door to hold it open. Her face was emotionless, but her voice let Mr. Jones
know she was not happy. “Here, can you give this note to Taylor once he wakes
up?” She said, handing a folded piece of paper in his direction.
“Of course.” He said. He put his hand on her shoulder. “I’m sure
everything will be alright. The Lady wouldn’t allow anything or anyone to hurt
him.” He assured her.
“I guess it all depends on how you look at it.” She said, watching as her
son was carried out her front door, cocooned in a blanket to keep the deadly sun
off him.
Mr. Jones didn’t have an answer for that, feeling pretty much the same way.
“I shall contact you the moment we get there.” He said, and he bowed to her.
He picked up his bag and followed out the door. On the porch, Jessica, Zoe and
Mackenzie all stood, shivering under their towels, their blond hair glistening
in the bright autumn sunlight. Avery stood as well, her arms crossed over her
chest. The door slammed on the car and Zac walked up the steps and into the
house without a word. “Do you have the document I asked you to get from Miss
Camille?” Mr. Jones asked James, as he and Isaac stepped up onto the porch.
“Um, yes.” He said, feeling in his pocket to make absolutely sure.
“Very good. Then we shall be on our way.” Mr. Jones replied. “Isaac—“
He said, holding his hand out. Isaac shook his hand and went to stand beside his
father and mother.
“Is Tay in there?” Mackenzie asked. “Cuz, he just got here. Why’s he
gotta go already? And what’s in that big box?”
“I thought Tay wasn’t coming back no more. I thought he was with Grandma up
in heaven.” Zoe stated. “But then, he came back to see the babies…”
Diana watched as Mr. Jones spoke briefly with the young man, then they both got
into the cars. “He did. But now, he has to go back.” She said, then she
turned and went back in the house.
Mackenzie looked up at his father, knowing he’d been lied to, but not sure
exactly what it all meant. They all watched as both cars pulled out of the
driveway and disappeared around the curve.
~~~~~
James’ cell phone rang. “Hello?” He said, flipping it open.
“I can see a shady place up ahead. It looks like a driveway. Pull over there,
and we’ll do what we need to do.” Mr. Jones’ voice answered. He did as he
was told, and pulled the Jaguar in behind the Volvo. He got out and walked up to
the man. “You know he’s pretty heavy, but I think between us, we can get him
into this.” Mr. Jones said as he opened the hatch. “Thank God they placed it
on it’s side.” He mused. He opened the hatch on the car, then he stepped out
into the road, making sure there would be no stray cars coming down the road,
witnessing Taylor Hanson’s body being placed inside a heavy metal box.
All was clear and he stepped to the front of the car, opening the door and
pulling the body out onto the ground. James came to help, and between the two,
they dragged it to the rear of the car. “Man, why are they so much heavier
than the rest of us?”
“It’s quite complicated, and I’m not sure I understand fully.” Mr. Jones
said, grunting as he dropped Taylor’s feet. “It has something to do with a
different configuration of muscle to bone…that sort of thing. It’s really
quite extraordinary.” He peered into the safe. “I think he’ll fit
nicely…” He mused as he climbed in. Once he was beside the safe, he gestured
for James to lift the body up to him. Glancing toward the road again, he spoke,
“Alright, unwrap him quickly—we don’t want sun or human eyes seeing
him…”
He did as he was told, then grabbed Taylor under his arms, lifting him towards
Mr. Jones’ outstretched hands, “Good Lord…” The man said, straining
under the weight of the thin boy. He managed to shove him in with the other man
pulling at the same time. Between the two, they got his long limbs into the box
and then, gently, they moved his head into what would be the most comfortable
position possible.
With a sigh, Mr. Jones stepped down onto the ground. “Thank you, sir. Your
assistance has been invaluable. And thank you for not mentioning the traveling
arrangements for the young master. I’m sure his family would rather not know
about it, as you can imagine.”
“Well, I can’t imagine his Mom being supportive of that, let alone that
brother. I thought you were gonna have some trouble with him.” The man
answered.
“Yes, indeed. Not much gets past that boy and he’s never shy about speaking
his mind. It would be rather refreshing, actually, if it weren’t always at the
wrong time...” He said. “But, he also understands a great deal more than he
gets credit for, I believe, as do the rest of the children. They’re a
remarkable family.”
“They must be.” James said, shaking his head.
“Very well. You be on your way. St. Louis is about 5 hours from here. You’ll
be meeting up with a second driver at the rest area at mile marker 17. You must
make it to New York before us, or the young master will have to spend a longer
time in this prison than necessary—which would not make him or the Lady
happy.”
“Yes, I can imagine.” James answered.
“See you there, drive carefully, do not get pulled over or anything of that
nature.” Mr. Jones said.
“Will do.” The man answered, and he walked toward the Jaguar and got inside.
When he’d gotten far enough away, Mr. Jones went around to the front of the
car and returned with his bag. He sat on the edge of the car and looked at the
sleeping boy, his arms and legs curled around him and his face peaceful. He let
out a deep breath, then opened the bag, pulling out a bottle and a syringe.
“You are a strange one, my boy.” He said, glancing at his watch. He
calculated that Taylor and the girls would be awakening in about two hours. The
sedative he was about to inject into him would hopefully keep him out throughout
the length of the trip. It was enough to put an elephant to sleep for hours and
to kill a human. He watched as the clear liquid filled the syringe, then he
tossed the empty bottle back into the bag. He leaned in, “I’m sorry. I just
think this will be easier for everyone involved.” He said. Then, he reached in
and did the job he’d been hired to do. He closed his eyes and flinched when he
closed the door with a clank and spun the dial, hoping all would go as planned.
~~~~~
When the sun began to sink in the sky, Camille began to stir. Looking out the
window, she noticed she was moving. She was still in the car. Yawning, she
stretched her arms, “Hey.” She said.
“Good evening.” Mr. Jones answered, turning down the soothing voice of Eva
Cassidy in the stereo.
“Where’s Taylor? Are we there yet?” She asked.
“We’ve been there and we are on our way home.” He answered.
“Where’s Taylor?” She asked again, sitting up.
“He’s in that box in the back.” He said.
“I don’t hear him.” She said.
“He’s sleeping. And I’d like for him to stay that way, so don’t try to
do that mind speaking thing you do.” Mr. Jones said.
He could tell she was pouting without looking at her. “Well, I wanted to see
him. What’s gonna happen when he wakes up?” She asked. “I mean, he’s
locked in, right?” Beside her, Melanie opened her eyes.
“Yes, he’s locked in. Very securely, I might add.” He said.
Melanie stretched her legs out in front of her, “It’s a good thing this
hearse is a big one…” She groaned, “since we get to spend like, three days
in it.”
“It could be worse, Miss. You could be locked inside a cold, dark, metal
box.” The man answered, his voice not hiding his bitterness.
“True.” She said, pulling her hair up and rubbing her neck. “I don’t
hear him.”
“He doesn’t want us to try.” Camille said.
“Well, he ignores me half the time anyway,” Melanie stated, sitting up and
straightening her clothes, “so that’s no problem.” She looked in the rear
view mirror, “So, you spun the dial, right? I don’t want him coming out of
there and trying to kill us in this tiny space here.”
“I spun.” He said, turning the music back up.
“Alright. Hey, you can stop anytime you want to. I could use some grub.”
Melanie said, opening her purse.
He just looked at her and continued driving.
~~~~~
Beatriz stood at the window, handing bits of papaya to Montezuma through the
brass bars of his cage. She looked at the clock as it struck five. James had
been there and left, leaving her with a piece of paper with three numbers
printed on it—the combination to the locked box the girls would be bringing a
wayward Taylor home in. Mr. Jones had called and spoken to her about the
situation the day before and they’d agreed it would be best to get him there
as quickly and quietly as possible. It wasn’t common knowledge that a vampire
could be tranquilized with just the right amount and type of chemicals, and she
wanted it to stay that way. She’d wondered at times if she shouldn’t just
get the elders together in a room and use it on them, then behead them all, one
by one. She smiled, thinking about it. Perhaps she could somehow manage to get
them all in one place with no bodyguards or security of any sort; just she and
them…and maybe Taylor, if he was ever to get the stomach for it. Her thoughts
were interrupted by the ringing of the phone, “Lady, the car is here.” A
voice said when she picked it up.
“Thank you. I shall send Kirk down.” She answered. She placed the phone down
on the table then made her way back to the girls’ room where he’d set up
house while they were gone. “Kirk, they’re here.” She said.
“Cool.” He said, sitting the guitar he was playing down on Camille’s bed.
“Help them bring their package up.” She said, and then she waited.
~~~~~
Mr. Jones stepped out first, followed by a grumbling Melanie, holding one end of
the safe, “Jesus fucking Christ, this thing is heavy…”
“Do not say things like that about Jesus or I shall crucify you so you’ll
have a little sympathy.” Beatriz said.
Melanie rolled her eyes and they sat the heavy thing down as gently as they
could. “How ingenious of you…” Beatriz said as she stepped over and began
to turn the dial on the door. “I didn’t think you had it in you.” She
said, eyeing Camille.
“Well, you said he had to come back. And I didn’t want the old farts having
a reason to do something mean to him.” The girl answered softly. “God, I
hope he’s okay. I kept thinking we’d hear him banging or that he’d be
cursing me in my head or something.”
Melanie sat on the arm of the couch, “Maybe they broke his neck shoving him in
there.” She said.
“He was not shoved in there, thank you.” Mr. Jones spat. “I’d say
it would have more to do with a lack of oxygen.”
“Oh.” Camille blurted, “Is he gonna be okay?!” She asked worriedly.
“Of course.” Mr. Jones responded, “He’s survived worse conditions.”
With a turn of the handle, Beatriz opened the door of the safe. Inside, Taylor
looked the same as when he’d been placed there.
Beatriz looked at Mr. Jones. “Shall we pour him out of there? Or just wait
‘til he wakes up?” She stood, “He will wake up, I assume?”
Mr. Jones peered into the box, “His chest just moved, so he’s not dead,
Madame.”
“Very good. It would be a shame to have killed such a lovely creature.” She
smiled.
“Indeed.” He said, “Particularly since this was all about saving
him.” He said and he reached in and began to pat Taylor’s cheek. “Hello?
Rise ‘n shine!” He shouted.
After a few more promptings Taylor began to stir. “Want me to pull him out of
there?” Kirk asked. But even as the words left his mouth Taylor’s hand
slapped the side of the box. Slowly, he pulled himself upright.
“My God! Look at his pupils!” Melanie exclaimed. “You’ve been holding
back!” She accused Mr. Jones.
“Not at all.” He said. “He’s just very young and he breathes more than
the rest of you.” She furrowed her brow, then leaned in closer to the boy.
“Back up and give him some air!” He said, pulling her back a little.
“He’s high as a kite!” She said, giving glances toward Kirk and Camille.
“Need help there, little buddy?” Kirk said, putting his hand out to Taylor.
“Kirk!” Taylor said, his face lighting up. “I haven’t seen you in
forever!” He took Kirk’s hand and pulled himself into a standing position,
swaying a bit, but remaining on his feet. “Whoa…” he blinked his eyes,
then turned to the girls who just stared at him. “Camille!” He burst out
upon seeing her. He may have been going to hug her but the result was a stumble
into the side of the box, then a tumble to the floor.
“Oh, Taylor!” She cried, rushing to his side. She rolled him over and was
met with laughter. “What did you do to him?!” She accused Mr. Jones.
“Nothing.” He said. “Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.” He turned to
Beatriz, “Lady, may I take my leave? It’s been a long week.”
“I’m sure it has.” She answered, picking Taylor up under his arms and
flopping him onto the couch. “Go ahead. I’d like for you to be here
tomorrow, though. After that, take a week off.”
“Thank you, Madame.” He said. He then stepped over to the couch and pushed
Taylor’s hair out of his face. “Good night, Taylor. I shall see you
tomorrow.” He said to the boy.
Taylor furrowed his brow, “How come I’m here? I was home, but now I’m
here.” He said.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Aren’t you hungry?” Mr. Jones
asked, looking at his watch. “You should go feed. Or perhaps you’d like to
eat in this evening?”
Taylor scrunched up his face, “I don’t like that.”
“Very well. Enjoy your evening, sir.” Mr. Jones answered and he turned to
go.
“Where’s my babies?” Taylor slurred, but the man just kept walking.
Kirk looked at Beatriz, but said nothing. “Taylor,” she said, “let’s go
out, you and I.”
Melanie and Camille looked at one another, “I don’t know what they did to
him, but he’s seriously tripping!” Melanie said silently. Camille
nodded, still watching.
Beatriz turned her attention to them. “Thank you for helping Mr. Jones
retrieve our prodigal son.” She stepped over to her desk and opened the
drawer. When she returned she handed Melanie a wad of cash. “I believe Kirk
and I can handle him for now. Go have fun.” She sat down next to Taylor,
who’d closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the soft cushions of the
sofa. She looked up at the girls, “Of course, you know, the details of the
past few days do not need to be shared with anyone.” She said seriously.
Melanie snorted, “No problemo. I think we’d like to just stay under the
eldatorial radar as much as possible.”
Beatriz smiled, “A very smart way of doing things…”
Melanie stood, waiting for Camille, but the girl just stayed put, looking at
Taylor. “C’mon, whatever they didn’t give him will wear off by the
time we get back and you can have your lovey dovey reunion. I’m hungry. That
guy in St. Louis was about as big around as our Lord and Master there…” She
groused.
Quickly, Camille walked over and took Taylor’s hand, “Bye, Taylor.” She
said softly.
His eyes opened slowly and he held onto her hand. “Stay here, we’ll
snuggle.” He smiled at her and pulled her closer.
“Oh…” She smiled back, “I can’t.” She said, looking over at Beatriz,
then back to him, “You’re going out with the Lady.”
He whispered, “I’m mad at her.”
“Why would you be mad at me?” She said, sitting down next to him. She
looked up at Camille, “Go on.”
He looked at Beatriz, into her dark eyes, “‘Cause you knew.” He
said sadly.
She said nothing until Camille and Melanie had gotten into the elevator. She
sighed, “Well, I didn’t know, but I did find out after the fact.” She
said. Kirk watched, wondering what would happen. His heart ached for Taylor, not
only because of the situation with his family and his children, but because he
knew the Elders’ wanting him couldn’t be a good thing.
“You knew, too.” He said to Kirk.
Kirk sighed, “Yeah, I did.”
“Why was I the last to find out?” Taylor asked, rubbing his face and trying
to clear his mind.
“Taylor, you’re not the last. Melanie and Camille don’t know anything
about it.” Beatriz said. “In fact,” she said, throwing a look at Kirk,
“I was out of the loop on that one for a while as well. I guess I couldn’t
be trusted with that sort of information.”
“We just felt like, the fewer people who knew, the safer it would be for
Michelle and the babies.” Kirk said.
Beatriz looked into Taylor’s eyes, “I don’t think you understand how
important this is, Taylor. Our kind do not reproduce. I’m still not certain I
believe it, but if Sonya and Mr. Jones say it is so, then it is. No one needs to
know anything about this. If you care for those children, then you’ll put them
out of your mind to protect them from those who’d want to use them.” She
said.
“What about those people in the trees?” Taylor asked.
“They’ve been asked to pay no attention to what goes on in the house.
Besides, the idea is so preposterous, they’d never even consider that the
children could be yours. They believe one of your brothers has had a little…
indiscretion that has come to stay at your house in Tulsa.”
“Well, why are they there?” He asked.
“I just don’t want to take any chances. If the Elders suspect anything, I
don’t want them to try and get at you through your family. I just don’t
trust them.” She watched his face as her words sunk in. “Don’t worry
though—you are the strangest and most dangerous thing they’ve
encountered.” She said, raising an eyebrow.
“Well,” He said, blinking his eyes and shaking his head, “if you’d have
told me they were gonna be there, I wouldn’t have gotten so scared.”
She stood, “Hmmm…it didn’t sound like you were the one who was scared.
But, whatever. Let’s get you dressed and go have a bite.” She smiled.
“I’m not really hungry.” He said, as she rolled her eyes.
“If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard you say that…” She said.
She reached down and took his hand, pulling him forward. “Kirk and I will just
dress you ourselves if you don’t want to cooperate, but you’re going to feed
whether you think you’re hungry or not.”
He stood up on wobbly knees, wondering what they’d done to him. “You know,
Mr. Jones is a big fat liar. He told me I could spend the day with my family and
then we’d come home. Then, next thing I know, I wake up in a stinkin’ box,
feeling like a snail in a shell…” He complained, staggering a bit as Beatriz
guided him toward his room.
Kirk sighed and sat back down on the couch, feeling guilty. He’d only go in
there if the Lady needed him, he decided. She was perfectly capable of rousing
Taylor, and if not, then it served them right for drugging him or whatever it
was they’d done. He shook his head, thinking of the way Taylor had been
treated since the beginning. When he’d gotten involved, he’d just thought it
was another case of a rogue vampire, endangering the rest by being reckless. But
in reality, the recklessness had all been on the side of those who’d attacked
the boy. He’d had a wonderful life and family and a career he loved. Now, he
was being used as a pawn in a power struggle between Beatriz and the Elders. He
knew it wasn’t her fault, but he wondered if she couldn’t do more to stop
it.
In Taylor’s room, the same thoughts were going through Beatriz’ head. How
could she send him away to live with the Elders, especially when she knew they
had something up their sleeve. The didn’t just take in young ones to nurture
and guide them along their way. She watched him look through the clothes in his
closet, knowing he’d find nothing he liked. He never did. He looked at a blue
button down shirt and watched as it fell from the hanger onto the floor.
Reaching for it, he lost his balance, falling into the closet. She would have
laughed if she hadn’t been the cause for his clumsiness. “For heaven’s
sake,” She said, standing, “let me help you.” She pulled him up, then
picked up the shirt. “Here…” She pulled the shirt he wore off over his
head and guided his arm into the sleeve of the clean one. “I’ll bet you
couldn’t hold your liquor when you were living.” She mused.
“I never got a chance to have much liquor. I was only sixteen!” He spat.
“And if this is what it feels like, I don’t think I missed out on much.”
“Well, I assume liquor has improved through the ages. It was certainly vile
tasting when I was a young woman. Fermented, rotting vegetables, their juices
turning to poison. That’s all it is, you know.” She said.
He smiled at her, “You were a young woman once, huh?”
She buttoned up his shirt for him, “Of course, I was.” She looked at his
jeans, “I guess you can get by with those…”
“Okay.” He agreed.
She looked at his face. His eyes were dull but they were still a lovely shade of
blue and his lips still a perfect shape for the rest of his face. She pushed his
hair out of his eyes, “I missed you.” She said. “And I’m sorry that we
kept them a secret from you.” She put her arms around him, hugging him.
“Please don’t just disappear like that again. I was afraid you’d been
killed…or worse.” She said, pulling back again, and kissing him on the lips.
“Hey, do you want to see the pictures? Mr. Jones sent them as soon as they
were born.” She said, her face brightening.
“Yeah…” He said, sadly. She pulled him by his hand into the hallway.
As they passed Kirk she spoke, “We’re going to look at the babies, do you
want to see?”
“Sure.” He said, smiling at Taylor. “I guess they look a lot different
now, huh?” He said.
“Well, I never saw ‘em before, so I don’t know. But they never look like
when they’re just born—all wrinkly and squishy and stuff.” Taylor
answered. “I guess she had ‘em natural…”
Kirk snorted, “Very.” He said.
Beatriz opened the large wooden cabinet that held her computer. She moved the
mouse, waking it from its slumber and she opened the page with her email on it.
“You sit here.” She said, guiding Taylor into the chair. “All these ones
from Isaac are pictures of the twins.”
He clicked on the pictures, one after the other, watching the changing faces of
his own children, from a few hours after their birth, up until about a week
before he’d gotten there. “My gosh…” He said. Most of the pictures were
just of the babies themselves, but some showed different family members holding
them or feeding them. He stopped when he saw one of Michelle, smiling shyly, and
holding Isabella. He sighed, “I still can’t believe it.” He said. “I
mean, I just met her like, twice.”
“It only takes once.” Beatriz said. She looked down at Taylor, “It really
is something miraculous. I don’t know what it means, I really don’t. It’s
just…not supposed to happen.”
“I feel really bad, I mean, she’s only like sixteen or something, right?”
Taylor said.
“She’s seventeen now.” Kirk said.
“I guess I ruined her life.” Taylor said.
“Oh, I don’t know about that.” Kirk answered. “I think what she was most
upset about was that you weren’t there with her. She was pretty sad that you
were dead, not unlike all your other fans. Only, I guess she had a pretty good
reason to be upset—at least, she knew you. Sort of.”
“Well, she’d been fucked by me.” Taylor said.
Beatriz smacked him, “Taylor!”
“I just mean, we didn’t have a relationship.” He said, rubbing his
shoulder. “I feel bad about that. I really liked her and stuff, but I didn’t
want her to end up dead, so I sent her away.”
“All’s well that ends well.” Kirk said. “I think your family treated her
well, and I think she was okay with how things turned out. I’m not sure why
she left, but I’m sure she’ll be okay.”
“She probably left for the same reason I did. When that big stuff happens, you
just want to see your Mom and Dad and know that some stuff doesn’t
change…” His voice drifted away. He turned to Kirk, “Why’d she leave her
folks though, if she thought I was dead? Was she just wanting financial support
and stuff?”
“They threw her out, is what she told me.” Kirk said.
A look of horror passed over Taylor’s features, “What!? Why would they do that?!
That’s just insane.”
Both Beatriz and Kirk looked at the naïve boy before them, “Honey,” she
said, “not everyone has a family like yours. Some would find a teenage
pregnancy a shameful thing.”
“Well, I’m sure my Mom wouldn’t be thrilled if something like that
happened, but she’d get over it, and I’m sure she’d never throw anybody
out of the house for it!” Taylor exclaimed.
“She wasn’t real happy when we got there, I can tell you that. She figured
it was just another girl trying to take advantage of everything.” Kirk said.
“But, it didn’t take long for her to warm up to Michelle, and of course,
when everybody saw the babies, any doubts they might have had went up in smoke
when Elijah came out the spitting image of you. Your Mom says he looks just like
you did.”
Taylor smiled, “That’s what they say. I don’t think I was as fat as he is,
though…” He said. He went to the next picture, shaking his head as he saw
Zac holding Elijah with his father right there with his video camera. “I
can’t believe they edited that video they sent me. I thought it was weird how
it was all choppy and stuff.” He looked at the last picture that had been
sent. “You can’t trust anybody these days, Kirk. Not even your own
family.”
“Nothing new about that.” Kirk uttered, walking back out of the room.
Taylor turned to Beatriz, “Why did you all abduct me from my own house? I told
Mr. Jones I’d come back, and he told me we could stay another day.”
She picked up a brush from the desk and ran it through her hair, “It’s an
odd situation we find ourselves in here, Taylor. Not only did you disappear
without a trace, but you have these children which complicate our world beyond
belief. It would have been better for everyone if you hadn’t found out about
them, but as usual with you, the logical and easy way out never happens.” She
stepped closer to him and gently ran the brush through his messy hair. “You
are the best and the worst thing to ever happen to me, I believe.” She smiled,
“Outside the taking of my humanity centuries ago…”
“Was that the best or the worst?” He asked.
“I’m still here, aren’t I?” She said.
He snorted, “That doesn’t exactly answer the question now, does it?”
“Exactly.” She stooped down to be face to face with him. “Again, I’m
sorry that we had to take you like that.” She said. “It was imperative
though, that you be back here by tomorrow. We couldn’t take any chances on
your not wanting to leave.” She paused, just looking at him. “I don’t know
why, but…the Elders want you to come to them.” A look of disgust crossed his
features and he rolled his eyes. “It’s worse.” She said. “They want you
to leave here, and live with them—“
“What!!? No fucking way!” He cried. He prayed that in his cloudy state of
mind that he was just hearing her wrong.
“I know it sounds awful, but I can’t imagine they’d want to hurt you or
else they’d have just ordered it done. I think they just want you on their
side. Which, is maybe a good thing.” She said. She didn’t believe it, but
she hoped it would ease his mind.
“No.” He said. “No, I’m not going.”
“Let’s go feed.” She said. “And we’ll figure this thing out.”
“There’s nothing to figure out!” He shouted. He covered his face with his
hands and slid from the chair onto the floor.
Kirk had come back, hearing his outburst. He stood in the doorway, watching as
Taylor’s fragile mental state slipped back down a notch. Beatriz looked at
him, “What am I supposed to do?” She asked.
Kirk shrugged. “This sucks, man…” He said.
She sighed. “I’ve packed all his music and his papers and things. Also, his
clothes…” She said, walking toward Kirk. She whispered, “I think it’s
best we just go on and go now. It’s not going to get any easier.”
He was shocked to see tears in her eyes. In the many years he’d known, or
known of her, he’d never seen or heard of her breaking in any way.
“Alright.” He looked over at Taylor. He lay on the floor, his arms covering
his head. “Do you want me to grab the bags, or help you here?”
“I’ll do this.” She said. He nodded, then left the room.
When he got to Taylor’s room, it was immaculate. All the usual mess had been
cleaned up and put away, or packed into the two large bags by the door. The
dingy little bear sat on top of one, it’s dark eyes looking at him and making
him feel even more guilt than he had before. “Don’t look at me like that,
none of this is my doing.” He said, shoving it under his arm and picking up
the bags. He went back out into the hallway, surprised to see Taylor and Beatriz
standing beside the elevator. “Is that it?” He asked.
She nodded and hit the button on the elevator. She had her hand wrapped around
Taylor’s arm, seemingly holding him up. His face was void of any emotion, and
Kirk wondered if she’d put him in a trance. But, the glassy surface of them
when their eyes met let Kirk know he was aware of what was happening. He
didn’t know what Mr. Jones had done to the boy, but he was glad. It had been a
well thought out plan, perfectly executed. They’d gotten him home to New York
in one piece, and not very capable of fighting back. They stepped into the
waiting elevator and he wondered if he’d ever see the boy again, once they
dropped him off with the Elders. For years, he’d not really given any thought
to the way things worked in their world, but now, he was seeing firsthand how
cruel and unfair things could be for those who made waves. “Wait!” He said,
suddenly and he reached over and hit the button to open the doors again. He ran
back to the girls’ room, grabbed the guitar and came back. He handed it to
Taylor, “You don’t want to not have this with you when you need it.” He
said. He looked at Beatriz as she swiped at her eyes, and again, they began
their descent.
