The Legend of the Blue Eyes (11 page)

“Lord Randolph wants to go over the reports
with you,” a startled Molina said to Devin as he stood at the door.
Devin nodded as he hurried over to a door on the left side of the
sitting room.

Arianna sat on the bed, staring out into the
sitting room. Devin returned from the door he had entered, dressed
in new clothes. He walked across the sitting room to another door.
He paused briefly.

“Molina can answer your questions about
dearg-duls,” he added, before heading through the door.

Molina stood in the doorway to Arianna’s
bedroom.

“Why don’t you get dressed for the day
first,” she suggested, shutting the door behind her as she
left.

Arianna dressed and found Molina waiting in
the sitting room patiently.

“So you have questions?” Molina asked.
“First, you can look around the apartment if you’d like.”

“Apartment?” Arianna asked. So far she had
only seen the sitting room and her bedroom. She hadn’t realized she
was in an apartment.

“The door on the left is Devin’s bedroom,
the door straight ahead leads into the rest of the estate, and the
door on the right here leads into the rest of your quarters,”
Molina explained. Arianna nodded as she cautiously opened the door
on the right.

Stepping into the large living room, Arianna
looked around. The plush sofas were facing a large-screen TV to the
left. Straight ahead were French doors leading outside. Arianna
walked to the doors and looked through the glass panes.

“What floor are we on?” she asked, seeing
that the balcony was several floors off the ground.

“The fourth floor, or rather, the top. Your
grandfather’s apartment is right below yours,” Molina replied.
“It’s past two; you can go outside if you want.”

“Past two?” Arianna asked.

“Along with a thirst for blood, your skin is
now more sensitive to UV radiation. If you go outside between ten
in the morning and two in the afternoon, the sun’s rays will
instantly cause severe burns on any skin exposed,” Molina
explained. Arianna hesitantly opened the doors and walked out onto
the veranda.

“We can go outside, into sunlight, as long
as it isn’t between ten and two?” Arianna asked, as Molina followed
her onto the balcony.

“Yes, but it’s still dangerous to stay in
direct sunlight at any time for too long,” she added, as she tried
to usher Arianna into the shadows.

“What else is now bad for me?” Arianna
asked. “Garlic or crosses?”

“Rubbish, all that movie stuff is rubbish,”
Molina replied, still trying to move Arianna, who remained in the
sunlight. Arianna sat down in the warmth.

“What about killing a dearg-dul then, no
stake through the heart?”

“A stake through the heart would kill just
about anyone,” Molina replied, and Arianna laughed.

“I suppose that’s true,” Arianna
replied.

“The most common way to kill a dearg-dul is
to drain their blood, or prevent access to fresh blood. We need
blood to survive. It gives us the non-human powers such as a good
sense of hearing and makes us heal quicker. Without blood, any
dearg-dul or night human would die,” Molina explained. Arianna
thought back to when she was sitting in the cell. The men who took
her were planning to deprive her of blood until she died.

“How long can you go without new blood?”
Arianna asked.

“For a new dearg-dul like you?” Molina
asked, and Arianna nodded. “Only days. Once you get used to
everything, and learn how to regulate the amount of blood you use,
you’ll be able to go weeks without needing fresh blood.” Molina
looked into the sky again. They were staying outside too long in
direct sunlight.

“How do you get fresh blood?” Arianna asked.
“Do you have to keep finding someone to drink from?”

“The fridge in the kitchen is filled with
packs of fresh blood like the one Gabriel gave you yesterday. There
are markets around dearg-dul towns that provide blood. Otherwise,
dearg-duls can take a keeper or custodian. Normally a keeper is a
human, but it could also be another dearg-dul or night human. There
a bond is made between the person, or ward, and the custodian so
that the custodian promises to provide blood to the ward.”

“Oh, but isn’t that a lot of responsibility
for one person?” Arianna asked.

“For normal dearg-duls like me, we can only
take one keeper, which is fine because I don’t require much blood.
For you, and other purebred dearg-duls, you need a lot more blood,
and therefore have the power to take multiple custodians,” Molina
explained, as she winced from the increased sunlight that peeked
from behind the clouds. “We aren’t the monsters you’re picturing,”
she tried to reassure Arianna. “And, like you, we are not this way
by choice. It’s just what we are. The biggest difference between us
and the movie versions of us is how we choose to live. It takes
time to get used to, but this is your life now.” Molina could feel
the skin on her arm start to bubble. “We need to go in now,” she
said quietly. “Please come with me.” Arianna finally noticed the
blisters forming on Molina’s exposed arms.

“What’s this?” she asked pointing to
Molina’s arm.

“Even though it’s later in the day, direct
sunlight will easily burn our skin,” Molina explained.

“This is my fault,” Arianna complained,
carefully looking at the blisters on the back of Molina’s left
arm.

“Don’t worry. It’s nothing a little blood
won’t heal,” Molina replied, leading Arianna through the living
room and adjoining dining room to the kitchen. Opening the
refrigerator, Arianna peered inside as Molina grabbed several
packets of blood from the bottom shelf. Her face changed suddenly
as she bit into the packet. The bubbles stopped growing, and began
to shrink. After Molina finished the second packet, the blisters
still remained but were much smaller. “Dearg-dul is named for our
undead properties. Day humans consider us undead because we don’t
die from normal things due to our intake of blood.” Molina ran her
hand over the blisters. “I guess they need a little time. I didn’t
realize they were so deep.”

“So, blood heals your wounds?” Arianna
asked.

“The same with yours,” Molina replied.

“But why are they still there?” Arianna
pointed to the remaining blisters.

“To heal you first need blood, and then you
need some time for it to work,” Molina replied.

“Is that night human blood?” Arianna asked.
She could still smell the faint odor on Molina’s breath. Molina
nodded. “So, will it heal quicker with dearg-dul blood?”

“The stronger the blood, the quicker it
heals,” Molina replied.

“Then my blood should heal you quicker
because I’m a purebred?” Arianna asked.

“Correct, but don’t get any ideas. It’s a
crime to drink purebred blood,” Molina answered.

“But what if I offer it?” Arianna asked,
feeling guilty that she caused Molina to get burned. Arianna took
the knife from the counter and sliced the palm of her hand. “You
have to follow my orders, correct? I order you to take some of my
blood to heal.”

Molina was stuck. It was true she had to
follow Arianna’s orders, but it was also true that it was a crime
to take it. Molina shook her head as Arianna held out her bleeding
palm. Hesitantly she licked the blood off Arianna’s hand, which had
already healed itself. The blisters faded until nothing was left
from the burn. Arianna smiled.

“My blood can heal that easily, even with
just a drop?” she asked, surprised that it had actually worked.

“Just a drop of your blood could heal over
fifty people. You know nothing of this world you are now a part of,
but you are the strongest I’ve ever met, and you haven’t even
finished turning yet,” Molina replied.

Arianna followed Devin and Molina downstairs
from the dining room into the apartment below hers. From the
lingering scent, she could tell that it was her grandfather’s
apartment. She curiously peered into the side rooms from the dining
room she was standing in, beginning to remember only fragments of
her childhood: the deep burgundy satin-covered pillows on the
couch, the leather-bound books stacked near his desk, the little
ship sitting on the fireplace mantel in a bottle. Lord Randolph sat
quietly in the formal living room, watching his curious
granddaughter. As soon as she realized he was there, she backed
into Devin. Lord Randolph had the same glaring indifference from
the night before as he looked to Molina, who was standing beside
Arianna. Arianna quickly understood, as she could also still smell
her own blood on Molina’s breath.

“I ordered her to take my blood,” Arianna
began. “It was my fault she got burned while outside with me.”
Arianna waited for her grandfather’s reply, but he said nothing.
With a wave of his hand, Molina bowed and returned up the stairs.
The fear in Molina didn’t decrease even as she left. Lord Randolph
was not a forgiving man.

“You seem to be fine,” he commented, as his
tone and facial expression changed.

Arianna looked at her own arms. It was true.
She had been sitting in the sun longer than Molina, but nothing was
burned. “I don’t know why, but I’m fine. We were only outside for
ten minutes or so.”

“Please join Devin and me for dinner,” Lord
Randolph added, as he stood and walked to the set table.

Arianna stared at the elaborate elegance of
the place settings. This wasn’t a normal dinner in her eyes. From
the delicate flower pattern around the edges of the expensive
china, to the lace napkins at three place settings, everything
indicated that it had been specifically arranged for Devin and
Arianna to join him for his meal. Lord Randolph sat down at the
head of the table as Arianna moved to the seat set next to him and
across from Devin. Arianna’s forehead wrinkled in confusion as food
was brought to the table by a maid.

“Don’t I need blood to survive? Isn’t that
my food now?” Arianna asked softly, afraid of her grandfather, who
was still mad.

The loud laugh at the head of the table
nearly made her jump. Lord Randolph’s tone changed as he replied.
“Yes, you will need blood to survive now, but you are not always a
night human. There’s a day human side to you too. So, for that we
eat food as well as blood.” Arianna nodded. The older man’s eyes
twinkled at his granddaughter. It had been ten years since she
left, but he had thought of her every day. Once a year, he had
traveled with Devin to check up on Arianna, but he never talked to
her. Each time, he found delight in watching her do just about
anything. Her mannerisms reminded him of his own daughter so much.
It was hard, year after year, to leave her behind.

Arianna sat uncomfortably through the meal
as she was waited upon by maids in black and white dresses. It was
too extravagant for her, but Devin and her grandfather didn’t seem
to find it odd at all. Devin and her grandfather talked to great
lengths about everything and nothing at the same time. There was a
clear bond between them. As the meal finished, the maids returned
with dessert. Arianna stared at the pie on the delicate plate. It
was her favorite, lemon meringue pie.

“Was it made correctly?” Lord Randolph asked
as Arianna took her first bite.

“It tastes just like Captain Lou’s,” Arianna
replied. “I didn’t know anyone could make it like him.”

“Lou did teach our staff how to cook,” Lord
Randolph replied, and Arianna stopped eating.

“Is Lou,” she began to ask, and Devin nodded
a reply. “I didn’t know.” Arianna stared at the pie in front of
her. Everything was so new to her; she didn’t realize that it had
always been happening around her. Just because she didn’t know
about it, didn’t mean that it didn’t exist. “Who else?” Arianna
wondered.

“More than we can list right now,” Devin
replied.

“But then, why didn’t anyone tell me about
all of this?” she asked.

“Because I ordered them not to, and Gabriel
did the same. Very few people knew who you were, and those who did
could not say. We wanted you to have a childhood free from this
world; the same world that killed both your mother and father, and
would do the same to you if they knew about you,” Lord Randolph
replied.

“Are Aunt Lilly and Uncle Dean really not my
family?” she asked earnestly.

“No. Lilly is a friend of your mother’s and
Dean is her older brother. Lilly was raised here at this estate
beside your mother, and they were the best of friends, almost like
sisters,” Lord Randolph explained.

Arianna turned to the entering maid, who had
the lingering scent of blood on her. Arianna’s sharp eyes quickly
glanced over the maid. She wasn’t a night human; yet, she had the
strong scent of blood all over her. Her blond curls bobbed as she
near Lord Randolph and bowed to him before speaking.

“Excuse me, my Lord,” she said quietly.
Arianna guessed she was not much older than herself. “Would you
like me to bring it in a glass or medical bag?”