Blood Secrets

The Night Is Young

Everything happened so fast that she didn't think it was even possible. At the arrival of the invitation, she first thought there was something wrong. It was when she witnessed how the compelled tourist slammed the knife to his neck that she realized just how ruthless these vampires can be.

For the whole night and morning, they were staying in the Sylvaine mansion. They couldn't afford to get to the city where some vampires might recognize them. Esme went to her shop as she had to take something with her. She also needed to talk to Leila. Aedion stayed at the mansion too. Naging totoo nga ito sa pangako nito na hindi ito magdadala ng gulo. After what Lorcan did to his lover, he had no choice but to side with Lorcan. The young wolves in his pack were taken and were cursed to stay wolves except on the full moon. The only way to break it is to kill the witch that cast it. A feat that might require the help of the strongest vampire family.

Night came and Eleanor seemed to have already prepared everything. Bigla nalang itong pumasok sa kwarto niya at inilatag ang isang damit sa kama niya.

Nagtataka naman siyang napatingin kay Eleanor. Eleanor just looked at her as if expecting her to already have an idea of what she was trying to do.

Ngunit nanatili siyang nagtataka sa babae. She knows it's a dress. She just doesnt ubderstand what Eleanor was doing there bringing a dress.

"Im feeling generous so I am lending you a dress," saad nito at saka siya tiningnan mula ulo hanggang paa. "If you are coming with the Sylvaines, you have to at least look like you belong."

"I am not a Sylvaine kaya hindi ko na kailangang magbihis kagaya ninyo—"

"You have to and I dont want to go with you if youre wearing one of your hideos blood slayer uniform."

Hindi siya makapaniwalang nakatingin sa babae. "We don't even have a uniform. Even if we do, I am not going to wear it around creatures who would kill me the instant they see me as a threat."

Eleanor waved a dismissive hand. "Doesn't matter." She gestured her arm to the dress on the bed. "This is from the '60s. I wore this at a party too." Eleanor looked at her. "Wear this and I expect you to return it without any damage or I will gut you and hang your innards in the balustrade."

Napakurap naman siya sa sinabi nito at bago pa man siya makasagot ay lumabas na ito ng kwarto.

Napatingin siya sa damit na nasa kama. Nilapitan niya ito at tiningnan. Looking at the elegant dress and the undoubtedly expensive stones studded on its fabric, she knows Eleanor is really going to gut her alive.

"Ang brutal naman magbanta ng babaeng 'yon. As if I'm really going to destroy this dress."

Agad naman niyang isinukat ang damit at agad na tiningnan ang sarili sa salamin. The dress fit her perfectly and she's amazed at how Eleanor guessed it right.

"Just as I thought, it would look perfect on you."

She whirled and saw Lorcan standing by the doorway. Nakatingin ito sa kanya habang suot niya ang damit ba pinahiram ni Eleanor.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I'm the one who told her to lend you that dress. I think that's the only one in her stash that would fit you."

Napataas ang kilay niya sa sinabi nito. "You told her this would fit me?"

He let out a smirk before he entered the room. Then he gave her a sideward glance. "It doesn't really take that much guess."

She shifted on her feet when she noticed Lorcan looked at her from head to toe. Nang bumalik ang tingin nito sa kanya ay ngumisi ito. She rolled her eyes at nagdesisyon na huwag nalang pansinin ang sinabi nito.

"Tell me about Julian Cestmont," she said as she faced the mirror again. Alam niyang delikado ang ginawa niya. Turning her back on a vampire is the first lesson she learned from what you should not do when you encounter a vampire. And yet here she is, having a normal conversation with one.

"There's nothing more to tell, Nadia. Sinabi ko na ang lahat tungkol sa kanya. If you wish to know more, I would suggest you be vigilant later."

Humarap siya sa lalaki ngunit laking gulat niya nang nasa harapan na niya ito. Muntikan pa siyang matumba dahil sa gulat at buti na lang ay nahawakan siya nito sa bewang.

She bristled at the feeling of his hand on her bare back at nanlalaki ang mga mata niya habang nakatingin kay Lorcan. The man, however, just smiled as though he knows exactly what he was doing.

Agad siyang lumayo mula sa lalaki at nanatili itong nakatayo sa harapan niya.

"Can you please not do that again?" sabi niya.

"What, catching you when youre about to fall?" Nakangisi pa rin ito sa gawi niya.

"No. Stop appearing in front of me so suddenly."

Lorcan tilted his head. "Shouldn't you be used to that by now?"

"I will never get used to that. Especially with someone who just almost choked me to death a few hours ago."

He let out a low chuckle and she couldn't believe how he could still laugh at that but she has come to realize that when it comes to Lorcan, everything is amusing for him.

Nakita niyang may kinuha ang lalaki sa bulsa nito at ibinigay sa kanya. It was a small velvet box. Nagtataka siyang nakatingin sa lalaki but Lorcan just nodded at her, urging her to open it.

Binuksan niya ito at nanlaki ang mga mata sa nakitang laman niyon. Agad niya itong sinara at ibinalik kay Lorcan.

"No, thank you," she said.

Lorcan's expression changed. "Why not?"

"This dress is enough. I am not going to receive any more from you. No matter what happens, Lorcan, me, and you are never going to be something close to friends. You have posed great use for me as of the moment. Ans you are the same. But as soon as this will be over, you are going to go after me to kill me."

Lorcan smiled and looked at her as though she just said the most interesting thing. Then he said, "Despite how tempting that idea is, it did not occur to me, dearest Nadia, to go after you and kill you." Nakatingin si Lorcan sa kanya at ganoon din siya. She couldn't help but see that he was being serious when he said it. Ngunit hindi kaya ng sarili niyang paniwalaan o isipin kung totoo man ito o hindi.

In her mind, she had already formed an image about the vampires, of how ruthless they are and what they could do. She doesnt want to change that. Dahil kung magbabago ang tingin niya sa mga bampira, magbabago din ang tingin niya sa bampirang pumatay sa mga magulang niya. It was the only thing that kept her going. Without it, what would be her purpose?

She heard someone came from the door kaya napatingin siya doon. Nakita niya si Kai na nagtatakang nakatingin sa kanilang dalawa ni Lorcan. Tiningnan niya ulit si Lorcan.

"I thibk youve done enough," she said and she saw how Lorcan was also surprised at her change of tone. And then he nodded before he gave Kai a look over his shoulder. Akala niya ay may sasabihin pa ito ngunit agad din itong nagpunta sa pintuan.

Kai walked over to her, still wearing his baffled expression. "What's he doing here?" tanong ng lalaki sa kanya.

"Just gloating," she answered before she turned and faced the mirror. Tiningnan niya ang repleskyon sa salamin. The dress fit her perfectly indeed. Naramdaman naman niya ang braso ni Kaiden na pumulupot sa kanyang bewang. She tilted her head to let him rest his chin on her shoulder.

"I will be with you tonight," he said. Nginitian naman niya ang lalaki habang nakatingin sa salamain.

"Thank you, Kai." She turned to give him a quick kiss bago siya kumawala sa yakap nito.

"Kailangan ko nang mag-ayos. I have a feeling that Eleanor's going to hang me upside down if I don't prepare."

Narinig naman niyang tumawa nang mahina si Kai sa sinabi niya.

"Then I will see you downstairs, Nads." Naglakad na palabas ang lalaki at agad naman siyang nag-ayos.

Matapos ang ilang minuto ay kontento na siya sa ginawa niya sa kanyang mukha kaya agad din siyang bumaba. Sakto namang bumaba na rin si Eleanor. It didn't escape her eyes how Eleanor looked at her from head to toe. Ngunit hindi na siya nagulat. Ganoon nga talaga ang ugali ng babae. Having lived for a thousand years has probably taken a toll in her personality.

Nakita naman niya itong bahagyang tumango na para bang approve ito sa pag-aayos niya. She ignored her and went down the stairs. Naabutan nila sina Esmeralda at Leila sa baba kasama ni Kai.

"Where are my brothers?" tanong ni Eleanor.

"They're already in the car," sagot naman ni Kai. Nilapitan siya ni Kai at hinalikan sa labi bago sila nagpunta sa magiging sasakyan nila.

For the whole ride, tahimik sila. Lalong lalo na siya. Isa sa rason ay hindi niya kailan man naisip na darating ang panahon na ito na makakasama niya sa iisang sasakyan ang mga bampira. She never thought they could go over an hour without killing each other. Yet here they are, going to a party together.

Although Lorcan did tell her a lot of death threats and had almost killed her and yet, here they are, fighting a common enemy. "So tell me about your parents, Nadia," tanong ni Lorcan. Nasa unahan ito katabi ni Sebastian na nagmamaneho.

"Nothing much to tell. They died when I was very young," she answered.

"Too bad," he said. Ngunit alam niyang inaasar lang siya ng lalaki.

"Were your parens vampires too?" balik tanong niya. Hindi siya papayag na maaasar siya ng lalaking ito. Naramdaman naman niya ang kamay ni Kai na humigpit ang pagkakahawak sa kanya. As if warning her to be careful on what she says. She knows Lorcan's temper very well now. At kampante rin siyang hindi siya nito magagawang patayin. At least not now.

When she looked at the rearview mirror, nakita niya si Sebastian na pokus lang sa pagmamaneho.

"They were not," Sebastian said.

Tumingin naman si Lorcan sa gawi nila. "My parents were humans, Nadia. Me and my siblings were once humans."

Nagtatakang napatingin siya sa lalaki. Magtatanong na sana siya nang magpatuloy ito. "There was no one born a vampire because vampires can't procreate. We were made."

"You mean you were...sired?" tanong niya. Ramdam din niyang naghihintay din ng sagot si Kai sa tabi niya.

"A witch made them," said Esmeralda. Napatingin naman siya sa babae. Hindi niya maintindihan kung anong ibig nitong sabihin. In all those years that she was a blood slayer, she didn't know about this. The only vampires they have encountered so far were sired from another older vampire. Meeting the Sylvaines, one of the oldest vampires in the world, made her realize there is still so much she doesn't know.

"What do you mean a witch made them?" tanong ni Kai.

"Before vampires, witches already existed. There was this particular coven led by a very powerful witch. The Sylvaines...they were the product of a witches' wrath. She said it's punishment for them that they won't be able to go out in broad daylight," sagot ni Esme.

Hindi makapaniwalang napatingin siya kay Lorcan na nakangisi. "Well, our family is known to be ruthless once upon a time. My father led a group of soldiers. Witches during that time were the talk of the town and they live in hiding as the soldiers would execute them. But my father found where their coven is and executed the witches. Now, you may wonder how he was able to do it. He asked the help of other covens to execute this particular coven."

"Why?"

"Because they practice black magic," Eleanor said. "While the other witches were burned alive, the coven leader made it out. And as her way of revenge, she came back with her dark magic, came into our house, killed our parents, and cursed us."

"So that's how you became vampires?" tanong ni Kai.

Tumango naman si Eleanor. When she looked at her, she could see the sadness in her eyes but as soon as she blinked, it was gone.

"The population of vampires grew and we hunted every coven, trying to find that witch who cursed us. But we'd soon realize that going against a witch is futile."

"The witches--stewards who balance the supernatural world--have made a decision to control the population of vampires," Esme said. And then it all dawned on her.

"The witches made the werewolves," she said ngunit umiling naman si Lorcan.

"There were already werewolves before vampires. But they're not deadly. The witches spelled their bites to become deadly to the vampires."

"Then how did you become a hybrid?" tanong niya.

Nakita naman niyang ngumiti si Lorcan. "I was the son of my mother from another man. A werewolf man to be exact."

"So when the curse was placed on you, you also became a vampire." Kai gasped. Like her, he too found it hard to grasp the revelation.

"And you never found this witch?" she asked.

"We didn't. Her whole coven is dead and there was just her."

Umiling naman si Esme. "It wasn't just her. If there is no coven left, mamamatay din dapat siya. But since you are still vampires, that means the spell is in effect, which means the witch who cast the spell is still alive. Or she had descendants that made the spell still working."

Natahimik silang lahat sa sasakyan. Nagpatuloy naman si Esme. "The most possible scenario is that she cloaked her descendant. Witches are supernaturals but we don't live that long. Especially with what she did, defying all rules of nature, she would have been tormented by our ancestors."

"So if this witch descendant dies, the curse placed on the Sylvaines will be removed..." she trailed.

"And the Sylvaines will cease to exist because without their vampirism, they would be nothing but humans. Humans who should have died many years ago," Kai continued.

"Which also means that all the other vampires we sired will also die. Isn't this wonderful that we're talking about scenarios of our extinction?" Lorcan said.

Bigla namang tumigil ang sasakyan at saka niya namalayan na nasa harapan na sila ng isang malaking mansyon.

"We're here," Sebastian announced ngunit bago pa man sila makalabas ay humarap muna ito sa kanila. "You know too much information about us. I would suggest you keep it to yourself and not tell anyone about it. This witch descendant may be hidden but once other vampires hear about this, they will do everything to find this witch."

Bigla naman siyang kinabahan sa sinabi nito at bago pa man niya mamalayan kung anong balak gawin ng mga ito, naramdaman niya ang hawak ni Eleanor sa kanyang mga braso at hinila siya papalayo. Lorcan lurched and held Kai's head.

Lorcan stared deep into Kai's eyes before he said, "You will not remember but we have talked about here. You will get out of this car without any memory of what you heard. You will walk with dear Nadia into this mansion and you will stick to her no matter what. If she does something stupid, say, telling out enemies or even your anti-vampire group about this witch descendant, you will drive a knife straight to your throat."

"No, no, no!" she screamed but it was useless. Binitiwan ni Lorcan si Kai at napakurap ang lalaki.

Lorcan had just compelled Kai. Horror she had never known before struck her.

Before she could even say something else, Lorcan turned to the witches and said, "You know what we're capable of. If you do something stupid, you know what happens. We may not be able to compel you but it's easy to kill your coven."

Esme's jaw clenched but did not say anything. Tumingin naman si Kai sa kanya. The look in his eyes really told her he doesn't remember what he has heard and now the Sylvaines are using Kai as leverage against her.

She turned to Lorcan after she broke free from Eleanor's hold.

"I no longer wonder why it's just the three of you. You strongly demand trust and yet you can't give it yourself. You are monsters. Ruthless monsters," she spat. Nakita lang niyang ngumiti si Lorcan.

Then he said, "Dearest Nadia, we've been called worse."

And he went out of the car.