Page 26 of York

“You said that they mostly kill humans. I would have thought that you didn’t care for humans being a vampire. Some of the smut books I read say that there are even vampires out there that think of humans as cattle and that they’re there for the vampires’ entertainment. I’d hate to think that was true.” He said that it wasn’t. That humans and vampires got along well. At least those that he’d seen. “I hope so. I’d hate to be killed simply because I happen to be a vampire now.”

“No one will be able to kill you. Just keep remembering that.” She said that she would, but it would be hard. “I know that. I have trouble remembering that too when I’m working. It might be just a scary thing to be in a job, and they’re trying to kill me too.”

“I don’t want to know.” He kissed her again and told her that he loved her. “And I love you as well. If it’s really bad, don’t tell me, please. I don’t want to worry about you when you go out. I’m going to find the person that saved you and tell her what a wonderful person you are. She more than likely knows that, and that’s why she did it. But from now on, I’ll be here when you get home, but I don’t want to know details. All right?”

“Yes. I might like that better anyway.” They talked about other things, things that were going on in the household, but he never brought up his job again. He could understand why she didn’t want to know what he did when he worked. It was difficult on him as well. As soon as they settled into the couch again, he knew the exact moment when she went to sleep. Holding her, he thought of the day that he’d been piked.

He’d been working with his dad. He’d been about seventy-five by then and had been working for other castles that were having trouble with their people. They never realized back then that the people that headed the castles were as bad as they could be, but they would help the people as best they could so that they’d have a better life.

Their own castle sat near a waterway and had good people living in the grounds. They paid a fair wage and made sure that there was plenty for them to eat when the winter months came around. Dad had been a good lord, and in turn he’d learned to be a good man too to the people that depended on him. He’d not thought of the castle in years and wondered if Rose would love to go and see it. He’d have to take her soon. She’d be lady of the castle and might enjoy ruling there for a while.

The day that he’d been hurt, the pike had come from the sky and hit him in the shoulder. It went through his shoulder to his chest and down into his right leg. Trying to lift himself off the pike had proven impossible; the pain of it nearly unbearable. Just as he was giving up hope of getting free from it before the sun came up, there was a glow that came from across the lands and straight towards him. He remembered thinking it was the sun that was coming up and he was going to die.

“Hello, Lord York.” He’d forgotten until that moment that she’d known his name. “I’ve come to help you.” Suddenly it was as if he were there with her again. Now he could see her face and remember that she was wearing a crown. “You know me. You’ve always known me.”

“You’re Lady Aurora, lady of the earth.” She said that was right, and he was suddenly free of the large pike and lying on the ground. “I need to get to shelter. I won’t survive out here in the sunlight when it comes up.”

“Do you think I’d not protect you from my light when I saved you from this death? Nay, you’ll be fine. And someday I will come to you again. For a favor. You’ll do it for me because I have saved you this day.” He asked if she was blackmailing him. “Nay, only a favor for a favor. You can say no to me. I will understand.” Then she was gone.

He laid there on the couch for a long time. Just thinking about the conversation that he’d had with the Lady Aurora. He couldn’t remember a time when he knew her before, but he did remember everything about her that day. How not only had the sun not bothered him and hadn’t since, but also that she’d left him with more magic than he’d had before.

All his wounds after that day healed quickly and without any kind of scarring. Not even the pike had left a mark on his body. The only thing that bothered him now was the pain in his shoulder when he used it too much. He wondered now if she’d given him that as a reminder of the deed she’d done for him that day and for him to remember her.

He decided that he was going to try and find her from now on. Call to her as he might well have done that day. He tried to remember if he’d done anything different when he’d been hurt, and all he could think of was that his blood had touched the earth. Could that have alerted her that he’d been hurt? He didn’t know, but he was going to find out.

The longer he lay there, the more he thought that he could find her. She said that he would owe her a favor, and now that he had Rose in his life, he would do just about anything for her. It was because of Lady Aurora that he was alive to meet her, and he’d never forget that. Shifting a bit on the couch, he smiled when Rose moaned.

Without Rose in his life, he wouldn’t be the man he was today. He knew that he’d changed; even his brothers had pointed it out to him that he was a different person than he’d been even six months ago. They said he was more relaxed and friendly. More a part of their lives than he’d been before. He liked this new version of himself and would gladly tell them that if they asked. He loved his family a great deal.

Thinking about his mom, he wished his father was still alive. His getting the silver in his blood had killed him. They’d not known enough about it to have been able to save him back then. Not even now would he know what he could have done to save his father. The silver had gotten into his bloodstream somehow, and they didn’t know how to get it out. He would have called to Lady Aurora had he thought about her, but now it was too late. All he could do now was mourn the loss of his dad and did so every day. As far as he was concerned, his father was the greatest man on earth. And he loved him for his training both on and off the field that they’d done together as men.

His mom was someone that he thought of daily. He could go to her too when he had a problem. She’d never been one to pull punches either. She would tell you straight up if you were fucking up too. He loved that about her. And would love her for all time.

When Rose woke up, he told her what he remembered. She was happy for him and made him go into the yard and call for her. He didn’t know what that had to do with him calling for Lady Aurora, but he did as she asked. Just as soon as he was in the yard, he felt like it was the right thing to do.

“Lady Aurora, lady of the earth and beyond. Come to me, please? I wish to have a word with you.” Nothing happened, but then he wasn’t really surprised. Neither he nor Rose knew what they were doing when it came to her. “Perhaps I call for her with my blood?”

“It’s worth a try.” He bit open his wrist and let a drop or two of it splash to the ground. He was a little afraid of what might happen, but when nothing did, he was disappointed. “Maybe you have to need her. Do you?”

“Not really. I mean, I’d love to talk to her again. Find out what she’s done since I’d been hurt. I told you that she was the reason that I can take the sun, didn’t I?” Rose shook her head. “She’s also responsible for me being able to not scar when I go on my job. I know she’s had a lot to do with my job that keeps everyone safe.”

“We’ll look for answers from all the others around. Someone has to know something about her. We’ll just keep trying.” Yes, he thought that was a great idea. They’d keep trying. “We’ll start with the books that I get from the library. They seem to have the most useful information in them about our kind.”

He did wonder if vampires wrote the stories in those books. He’d never read one, but he was sure that someone out there was making money off the covers alone. He was going to look into reading them as well. It couldn’t hurt.