Torn Between Souls

AGE

“I don’t...I don’t know what to say,” I say, looking at the phone in Matteo’s outstretched hand.

“Rose, we are leaving in just a few hours. Call them,” he says firmly.

I raise my eyes to his again, and finally sigh. I take the phone, and quickly punch in the house phone number. I wait as it rings. Once. Twice. Maybe I will get lucky and they won’t pick up. It rings a third time, and Wanda’s voice echos through the phone.

“Rose? Rose?” she says quickly, and my eyes fill with tears. How I’ve missed her voice.

“Hi aunt Wanda,” I reply quietly.

“Oh by the goddess you finally called!” she almost shouts in glee, and then quickly she scolds me, “Why didn't you call me sooner? Rose you should’ve told us as soon as you met Mateo. As soon as you knew your powers were coming out!”

I felt a pang of anger, “Maybe if it hadn’t been hidden from me for so long.”

“Don’t you dare, Rose, this was your mother’s wish. I was not going to go against her word."

“Rosie girl?” echos Roy.

His voice is slightly muffled, but it’s there.

“Wan, leave her alone,” he chuckles.

“I’m sorry Rose, I was just so worried. Are you still coming? Please tell me you’re coming,” she says hurriedly.

I nod, “Yes, we are taking the jet to New York, and then we are taking a private car to Pennsylvania to mask our scent more. Matteo says we are stopping for an evening in Philadelphia to confuse them a bit further. He’s going to plant a trail there, but…”

I look to Matteo for the rest, as it confused me, and he gestures for me to hand him the phone. I pass it over.

“Wanda, Roy. We will land in New York, drive down to Philadelphia, and switch cars with a colleague of mine. We will heavily scent the car, and he will drive to Florida. Another colleague will be laying a scent in California as well. We will see you Friday evening.”

I couldn’t hear what Wanda said, but after a moment, the phone was handed back to me.

“Okay Rosie girl, we will see you in two days, be safe okay?” I hear Roy, before Wanda chirps again.

“If you get kidnapped again Rose, I’ll kill you myself!”

Matteo growls softly, and I smile to myself.

“I promise I’ll be safe. I love you guys.”

There is a pause, and Wanda is serious now, “We love you so much, Rose. We will figure this out. Together.”

I nod to myself, and we say our goodbyes, before I hang up the phone, and hand it back to Matteo.

“Now that that is over with, we can take a look at your hand,” he smiled down at me.

I nodded eagerly. Since my magical episode, my arm had been feeling much better, and the bruises on my hip and thigh had almost vanished. Matteo speculated it had something to do with the powers I held, because there was no way otherwise I could have healed so quickly. He was taking off my cast today, to see if my arm had progressed enough to stop wearing it.

I sat on the couch in the study, and Matteo kneeled on one leg beside me. The coffee table held various instruments for removing it, and examining my hand. He cut the cast open, as I had done so often to my patients before, and he pulled it off. The skin was slightly puckered, and certainly there was some bruising. He used a warm, damp cloth and cleaned my arm softly. I winced as he rolled over one of the darker bruises, but overall i felt fine.

He released my arm, and looked up at me, “Move your fingers, mio fiore.”

I looked down at my hand and slowly began moving my fingers, stretching them slightly, and then slowly make a fist, before stretching my arm out slightly, which made me wince. I pointed to the area.

“There is still some shooting pain here, I don’t think the bone has fully set yet,” I said, my voice sad, I was so sick of the damn cast, “Maybe we could settle for a brace? I can wear it at night and take it easy for a few more days?”

Matteo sat up, and placed a kiss on my forehead, “You know best, principessa.”

I smiled at him, and craned my neck forward, catching him in a careful kiss. Matteo responded, and our lips melded for a moment before he pulled away, eyes dark. He was so sultry. Gosh I loved this man, this vampire in front of me.

“I want to mate with you,” I said quickly, the words slipping past my lips faster than I could think of the consequences.

As soon as I did, I slapped my good hand over my mouth, and just stared at Matteo wide eyed as his eyes darkened further and a rumble built in his chest. He grabbed my chin, angling my face away from him as he kissed along my jaw. He kissed me softly behind my ear, and then trailed down till his nose was pressed against my jugular. I was frozen in place as he inhaled deeply, his hand on my chin tightening.

“You don’t even know what that entails, Rose,” he said in a guttural voice.

“Tell me,” I said breathlessly, bringing my hand up to wrap in his thick hair.

A hiss escaped him, and I felt his tongue flick out and lap at the skin there. I felt the dampness pooling in between my thighs, as my heart raced, and I squirmed beneath him.

“Stay still, little one, of I’ll take you here and now,” he said again, and a soft moan escaped me, but I stilled.

“When vampires find their mates,” he began, “Which they don’t often do, they have to feed on them during the mating.”

His fingers leave my chin as he pulls away from my neck. His dark eyes watch as he traills his finger down my chest, stopping atop my breast, just above my heart, and my breath catches.

“Here. At your heart. I would bite you, and feed from you, and then you, little one,” he says as he meets my eyes, “You would have to feed from me.”

“I’m not a vampire,” I say breathlessly, clenching my thighs further.

I loved when he called me little one.

The thought of tasting Matteo didn’t scare me...it enticed me, but my curiosity was eating at me in turn.

“I would open my skin for you, since you can’t bite through it as I can, or another vampire could. And you will drink my blood. Once our blood has been combined through this, and we’ve consummated the union, our bond would be complete,” he responded, “My scent would live within you, mingling with yours, and vice versa. Anyone who comes within a mile of you would know you belonged to me.”

My eyes fluttered closed, and he cupped my face, stroking my cheek with his thumb as I leaned into him, “Vampire bonds are forever, mio fiore, you would never be free of me for as long as you lived. And when you died, I would die too.”

My eyes flashed open, and his were back to green, a small smile on his face, “You couldn’t leave me. My possesivness of you would grow tenfold. My lust would be unmatched. Your very soul, every part of you, would belong to me.”

“Why won’t you then?” I asked quietly, “Why are you holding back?”

“Because you could still leave,” he responded, his smile sad, but there, “I’ve waited almost a hundred lifetimes for you, Rose, and you’ve known me but a few months. You are still young. You are a witch, so you will live long, and age slower than you know. You may have two hundred, three hundred years ahead of you with how powerful you are, and if I take you, you would spend every single one of them permenantly bound to me.”

I wanted that. Why didn’t he understand I couldn’t live without him? I loved him, he loved me, and I just wanted to belong to him. I was strong, and independent, but I couldn’t imagine my life without him ever again.

Matteo stood up, and grasped my hand, “Come, let’s eat, and then we will head to the airport.”

I hesitated, I didn’t want to leave this conversation behind, but I didn’t want to push Matteo again, so I nodded and took his hand. We passed the huge mirror in the study, and I pulled Matteo to a stop, drinking us both in.

I was dressed in a pair of soft, tapered, and slightly fitted, beige trousers, which seemed to be a staple for me now, and a long sleeve, white v-neck blouse. I wore a pair of blue flats. My curls were knotted at the base of my neck, a few red strands jumping free. I stood a foot shorter than Matteo beside me. Matteo wore his signature look of dark trousers and and a button down under a soft, yet scratchy charcoal sweater. This was how we always seemed to be dressed, me in warm, rich tones, and Matteo in his dark, cool tones. We were so opposite. It was incredible we were two halves of the same whole.

Matteo gave me a small smile in the mirror, “Are you ready?”

I nodded and we made our way down to the dining room. Elisa sat at the head of the table as always, with Ada to her left. Matteo sat to her right, pulling my chair out for me to sit on his right, but only after he had given Elisa a kiss on the cheek.

Marianne brought in a feast as usual, mostly for me. It was too much for just one person eating, but she wouldn’t budge. I was starving though, and I was thrilled to have use of both my hands again. I piled my plate high with toast, fried eggs, and fruit. Ada and Matteo were speaking about their brother, who apparently had helped save me, but had disappeared quickly after while I ate. Elisa was quiet, sipping her cup of blood, and I was content. I would miss this. My aunt and uncles house held much organized chaos. There was a peacefulness to the secluded manor.

We finished breakfast, and Matteo left to take our bags to the car outside, whilst Ada gave me a kiss on the cheek and told me to be safe before she skirted away for a work call. I was sipping a cup of tea Marianne had brought me, when for the first time in an hour, Eisa spoke.

“Do you know how old Matteo is, strega?” Elisa asked firmly.

She still referred to me in the slur she used when I first arrived at the manor, but now she used it almost as a term of endearment. Almost. I though back to Matteo’s words earlier. 100 liftimes.

“He’s told me a few times in clues, but he’s never flat out told me,” I replied.

She nodded softly, peering into her glass, before meeting my eyes, “Matteo was born in 1005 AD.”

My eyes widened, “Matteo is...he was born in the 11th century? He’s over a thousand years old!”

She nodded, softly, “I’m going to tell you about Matteo’s creation. Do not tell him I told you.”

I shook my head, “He’s just moving our bags, he won’t be gone long.”

“Marianne sent him out to feed,” she replied quickly, “We have a bit of time.”

I nodded and sat back in my chair, watching her intently. She looked into space, her eyes not focusing on anything tangible.

“Matteo was born in 1005, to a young woman names Elea. She was gorgeous. She died during childbirth. She was still a child. They had lived in the village you saw coming in towards the manor. My husband and I lived here. I knew of his birth only because the local goatmen came in, and begged us to allow him to keep a goat to feed the child. He was not Matteo’s father, but he was a good soul.”

“We granted his wish and allowed him to keep a goat Matteo could suckle from. I watched Matteo, I always felt drawn to him when he was a boy, I don’t know why. Maybe because he was always so stern, so serious. Just a child, and yet he seemed so old. He was only 10 when the goatman died. The blacksmith took him on on my suggestion, but Matteo...I did not know how the blacksmith would harm him.”

I went away for several years, and when I returned, Matteo was a teen. He was starkly handsome, and strong, but he was broken. He worked for the smith, but he was being beat, relentlessly. He didn’t fight back. He let it happen. I will never understand why as one blow from Matteo could’ve likely killed the smith.”

“He was shy of twenty when he met Anila,” she said quietly, and looked at me.

I felt my breath catch in my throat.

“He fell in love with her, instantaneously. She gave him a strength he hadn’t had before. He left the smith, and he came to us, and begged to be able to work in the armory, to create weapons for us, but also to make money, as he wanted to be with Anila. She loved him just as much as he loved her. They courted eachother for a few years, and then, Matteo got her pregnant.”

I felt a tear I didn’t know was there run down my cheek. Matteo had a child.

“The pregnancy was hard for Anila. We suffered a long winter that year, and she became ill. She gave birth to a stillborn in the spring, and it ripped her and Matteo apart. They were devastated. However, Anila never recovered. Her illness worsened. Many of the people knew, or at least suspected we were dark creatures, and Matteo came to us again. To me.”

“The tower of a man I knew fell to his knees, and begged me to save her. To make her one of us. To give her immortality. He said he couldn’t lose her. I loved him then, I had watched him grow, and I was terribly devestated by the loss of his child as well. A son.”

“D-did you?” I asked softly, the tears rolling down my cheeks.

“No. I did not. Because I did not wish my bloodlust on anyone,” she said flatly, looking into the fireplace again, “Anila died shortly after. The illness took her. Matteo buried her next to their son in the woods. And then, my worst nightmare came true. Matteo began to fade away.”

“He became ill. And he gave up. He didn’t try to seek help, he was just ready to die, to be with them. I had him brought to the palace, to Matthew and I. I insisted he fight, I told him to try to survive, and he would not. So I begged WIlliam to turn him,” she said quietly, closing her green eyes.

“I had turned Jeremy without issue, but when I turned Celine, her bloodlust consumed her. She went on to wreck havoc for over 600 years before she was killed. I refused to risk turning him, and creating a monster, but I wanted him to live.”

I reached my hand out, and gently laid it on Elisa’s arm. My sniffles and her silence filled the room for several minutes before she continued.

“William knew how much he meant to me, and he did it. Matteo was in control from day one, but for a long time, he hated me for keeping him from them,” she added, “But I didn’t care, because he was alive. Matteo has never, in all his years, found another like Anila. Her black hair, and wide blue eyes, and the fact that she had bore him a son all made me think, coupled with the fact that Matteo had never had anything but a s****l encounter after that, that she had been his mate. That she had been his fate, and I stole that from him.”

She met my eyes, and placed her hand on mine, gripping it with almost too much strength, “And then a red haired witch appeared on my doorstep with Matteo's heart in her hands, and despite my distaste for you before Rose, you have given me back my own life, knowing I did not ruin his.”

I couldn’t speak. I coudn’t think. All I could see was green eyes, and sadness, and forgiveness, and strength, and...acceptance there. Before I could say anything, Elisa stood, kissed my cheek, and left the room.

It was a period. An ending. But also a beginning.