I rest my hand on her leg and gently rub it. “I don’t want you to be scared, I want you to understand. When I am called away, it is not a choice. It is a requirement that I go, or there will be terrible consequences for my disobedience. I will never leave you for any other reason. Do you understand?”
A tear begins to form in the corner of her eye, and as I reach up to wipe it away, she smiles. “I’m sorry that I lost my shit, Roman. This whole thing is just so new to me. It’s moved so fast, and it is overwhelming at times. I was so worried.”
I pull her into my arms. “I understand, and that’s why I want you to know more about who I am and where I came from,” I reply. “I care very deeply about you, Fiona. More so than anyone I’ve met in five hundred years.” I want to tell her I love her, but I can’t say it. I’m not sure why, but the timing isn’t right. She needs to hear what I have to say first.
“Me too, Roman.” She gives me a small smile. “Now tell me about your creators, these Sisters.”
“Okay.”
I start telling her what I know, from the beginning, which is the luring of a human soul. “Clotho, the blonde goddess, who seems to float with gentility and speak with the softest of voices, compels a human. Basically, she picks her target. I know not what the specifications for her are, other than that most of us appear to have been turned in our early thirties, in human years.”
“So, she just goes around picking humans randomly?” Fiona asks.
“Truthfully, I’m not sure,” I admit. “No one really knows what makes the Sister pick one human over another. From what we’ve gathered about ourselves over time, we come from all walks of life. Good people, bad people, boring people, adventurous people; we’re all very different.” I think back to the many vampires I’ve met in my travels. There are vampires all over the world, in every city.
“Clotho makes promises of not only immortality but a life of wealth, happiness and a need for nothing. The appeal of a sexy and elite lifestyle draws in most humans, but we weren’t given a choice; we were compelled. Only the Sisters can make the determination of who becomes a vampire and who does not. It is then that we agree in exchange for the immortal, we will obey the Covenant for eternity.”
“You do lead a sexy life; I have to admit she fulfilled that end of the deal whether you were compelled or not. You certainly weren’t duped in that regard,” Fiona says dryly.
Letting out a small chuckle, I nod. “Yes, I suppose that is true. But what comes next is most unpleasant. Once we agree, under duress, of course, that we wish to live the immortal life, Atropos appears. Equally beautiful as Clotho, after all, she is a goddess, she takes away our human life.”
“What do you mean she takes away your human life? She killed you?”
“Well, close. She drained me of my blood to within an inch of my life. If not for becoming a vampire at that point, any human would die from blood loss alone.”
“What the fuck?! She sounds awful!” Fiona pulls the blanket up to her neck, balling herself up beneath it.
“It is not as bad as it sounds,” I say to reassure her, although that’s not entirely true. The thrill of being bitten, by a goddess, a beautiful, sexual creature is instant and euphoric. Until it’s not. It begins as a beautiful bond, a connection to her, but as your human body starts to shut down, lacking what it needs to keep the organs running, it becomes painful and suffocating. The heart slows down, unable to pump blood, as there’s not enough to supply the life force of humanity.
Fiona’s hanging on every word as I continue to explain the process of how we came to be. “What happens? Is this where you become a vampire, so you don’t die?”
“Lachesis, the third sister, then feeds you her blood.”
“That’s when it happens?”
“Somewhere after that. As a human, drinking the blood of a goddess is surreal, and at the time, all I remembered was being so thirsty. I think that if I truly realized I was drinking the blood of another being, I’m not sure I’d have continued if given a choice.”
As the words leave my mouth, I realize I never had a choice. My life is my life now, and I make the most of it. An animal instinct that is bestowed upon us somewhere in this process takes over from time to time, reminding me that I’m not human anymore, I am a savage. I drink the blood of humans for survival, and one day long ago, a day I do not remember, I survived on bread and hunting I’d imagine. I guesstimate this since my human memories were erased. I have no idea what my human name was if I had any loved ones who looked for me or what my human origin is at all.
“Fiona, I am sworn by the rules of the Covenant. It is part of my agreement in being alive at all. They are my masters, and when they summon, I must go. It is never a good omen when the Sisters visit.”
“Have you met them over the years? Do they summon you all often?”
“They do not. In fact, they’ve never summoned any Clutch of vampires who I have been near or around, and I’ve only heard stories. It is an unpleasant gathering, to say the least.”
“I’m so sorry, Roman. I didn’t mean to jump to conclusions.” She gets up, wrapping the blanket around herself. “Let’s get you cleaned up, and then let’s go to bed. You’ve got something all over your shirt.”
That’s definitely a story for another day.
26
Fiona
Roman and I are on our third straight day of staying in his apartment. The only outside contact either of us has had is paying for the delivery guy each time he brought me food. I wish I could say everything was perfect, and for the most part, it has been, except Roman’s incessant need to check his phone every few minutes.
“Do you need me to leave?” I ask, the second he picks up his phone.
“No, why?” Roman doesn’t look at me but sighs at whatever’s on his screen before setting his phone down on the coffee table. I’m tempted to pick it up, but it wouldn’t do me any good. I don’t know his passcode and wouldn’t get very far with it because of his quickness, which is a definite drawback in our relationship.