10.1

Chapter Ten

Part One

God might had just given me an opportunity to sneak off. I should have been happy about it. However, now that the chance had presented itself, I had an upsurge of unexpected emotions.

I realized, just as I heard the door to the garage close, I actually didn't like any of this.

On the one hand, I was almost relieved that Gavin had been so easy to send off. Yet, surpassing that fleeting moment of relief was fear. If I were to be honest it was more than just fear, I was petrified.

The longer my feet stayed grounded, the stronger my anxiety became.

What was I doing?

I had the inexplicable urge to run out the door, and just moments before I had thought I could stay leveled headed. That was a joke! My emotions were strangling me. The desire to run pounded, hitched my breath, and for a moment I thought I would pass out from it.

The moment Gavin's car started I reacted instinctively. I lurched forward, flying out the door, and down the porch steps.

Gavin didn't give me a chance. He tore out of the driveway like a bat out of Hell, nearly hitting me in the process.

I jerked to a stop just as he might have pulverized me. I squeezed my eyes closed and felt the wind from his car woosh past me, blowing my hair all over the place.

Shaken, I crumpled on to the driveway. My hand gripped my chest. I had almost died!

Yelling at the top of my lungs I screamed at my brother, "YOU ALMOST HIT ME!"

Ragged breaths shook me as I watched him disappear in tears.

"GAVIN!"

Hitting the pavement, I screamed again, "GAVIN!"

My brother was already gone. He'd left me, but did I really have to cry about. I was the one to tell him to leave.

Why had I been so stupid? I could have gone with him or at least tried harder to stop Nana. Instead I'd just let the whole thing play out, and sent my brother in my place.

I didn't know where Nana was going. I had no idea what was going on in her mind but had just let her go anyway.

Whimpering I covered my face. I couldn't believe what I had done. My whole body throbbed from my heartbeat.

Should I have gone! Kyung could have waited another day. It wasn't like it was that urgent. It had been how many years since they had been murdered? What if whoever tried to kill me, or even my parent's killer, had been looking for an opportunity to go after Nana? I'd just given it to him!

They wouldn't though…right? I asked myself if the killer, the one who had hired those two men, had indeed known about Nana. Could it have just been…the two men?

A strange mish mash of feeling swirled around in my stomach. I just couldn't be sure. I wasn't positive that the killer didn't know what sort of family I came from. IF he did, then…then…I just didn't know. Wouldn't he have also sent someone to Nana's house that night?

I sat on the pavement holding myself, my mind racing with horrific thoughts. I couldn't be sure of anything, so why did I have such an anxious feeling?

Nana's unusual behavior not only left a bad taste in my mouth but also left a deep sense of dread. I knew something was horribly wrong with her! Something I, or Gavin had said set her off. She looked absolutely terrified. Something had swept over her with such fear that she had frozen from it. I was absolutely sure of it.

Trembling, I stared down the driveway. His car was already gone, in just a blink of an eye, so I couldn't warn Gavin. He thought he was invisible, maybe everyone did at his age, but I knew he wasn't. Nana wasn't. Even I wasn't, so what could I do? Should I go after him?

This was Hell. I felt pulled in two different directions. One was towards my brother, and Grandmother. The other was towards the mountain. I'd almost forgotten why I wanted to see Kyung in the first place.

I bit my lip feeling stuck. What should I do?

Closing my eyes, I tried to calm myself. I had to make a decision. Should I still peruse Kyung or run after my family.

Gavin might not have been as attuned to things like I was, but he certainly wasn't unaware. He had to feel a strange lingering feeling of worry. He had to, right? Nana left so quickly and under such obvious lies. Surly Gavin could get to the bottom of it? Could trust him on it?

Heavy weight settled in my chest. All the effort it had taken me to hide my emotions had now become too much. Tears began to trickle down my cheeks, one wet tear after the other.

It was a strange feeling. I hated myself. I also felt guilty for abandoning Nana when I knew something was wrong. Was that why I felt so anxious? Guilt?

Squeezing my shirt, right above my heart I pushed into that feeling, waiting for some sort of intuition. Were they actually in danger or was it something more?

Torn between calling Gavin back and running towards the mountain I sat, unable to move. I didn't know which was the move I should make. I couldn't feel anything.

I had planned on going back up the mountain to the shrine. I wanted to have our Guardian take me back home, to the place where it all started. What if that meant leaving those, I loved the most venerable?

Shifting though my emotions I put them aside and with shaky breaths I pulled myself together.

God had given me this opportunity. He had made it so easy for me to step away, surly nothing horrible would happen. It was too perfect of an opportunity. If Nana hadn't of remembered whatever it was, then she would have never let me out of her sight. Certainly, Gavin wouldn't have. So... this, had to mean that I needed to go to the shrine. I'd made the choice when I said for Gavin to go without me. He had asked and I said I wouldn't be useful. God's wishes or not, really, I had to deal with my choices.

Standing up I dusted myself off. I headed back into the house, putting my thinking cap on. I thought deeply over what had happened in the woods, picking apart every moment. When exactly had Nana started acting funny? I wondered about it, closing the door, and locking it behind me.

I walked back into my room for a change of clothing. Slipping into my black jean skirt, I paused. Halfway up my legs I stood in my bedroom with my skirt hanging, when it hit me. Had Nana's attitude changed when Gavin said something about…what was it? Oh!

My eyes grew large.

Yes! It was about him freezing in place. Gavin had I agreed that Nana had begun acting funny then!

Slowly I pulled my skirt up and buttoned it. Rolling the thought over in my mind I realized that Nana had seemed like…well…she wasn't surprised at all actually. Which would be sort of strange…wouldn't it?

"Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit," I swore aloud, "She freakin already knew."

I realized suddenly Nana's actual response to Gavin's words, were that HE froze you. It was Nana who'd been the one to declare Kyung, as the force behind Gavin's inability to move. She'd never mentioned that it was his fear that had left him motionless.

Chills hit me as little pieces that had not made sense before, began to fit together. It certainly wasn't the whole picture, but something began to form.

"This was why she's been acting strange," I recognized aloud, gathering that Nana knew way more than she had alluded.

I swallowed. That uneasy feeling from before cropped back up.

How on Earth did our little Nana know anything about Vampires? What reason would she have? How did she know that it was Kyung who'd immobilized my brother?

I stood there feeling as if the floor had flipped and I was hanging from the ceiling.

I mean, I'd always been aware that Nana had lived a colorful life before us…but I started to question just…how colorful?

Picking up my small backpack I threw in a flashlight, some batteries, and an extra sweater. I wasn't sure how long it would take. I also had no idea what waited for me at our old home.

Down at the bottom of my closet were the dirty sneakers from the woods. They sat there as if waiting for me. I peered down at them, staring at them for a moment.

It was sort of funny, them sitting out there for me like that. Especially when I'd just realized Nana knew about Vampires. These were the shoes that I had mysteriously shown up in after being chased through the woods. I now figured that Kyung had taken me home, so he must have gotten me the shoes.

Without a thought I grabbed them and ran for my door.

I marched up the mountain.

Alone it was kind of creepy, but it could have been due to me realizing Nana's slip of the tongue. Her unexpected familiarity with Vampires was unsettling to say the least. For the life of me I couldn't grasp how. How could she make a connection like that if she didn't know Vampires existed? Who could Nana know that either knew a Vampire or had seen a Vampire? Everything only led to more unanswered questions.

The clearing came into view and before I knew it, I found myself just a few feet away. It was a sight to be seen. With the sky turning pink, and the clearing bathed in its light I paused. It looked so magical.

Tossing an apple up and down into the air, the most magical being, Kyung sat atop of the shrine. He looked like some ethereal creature from a fairytale. He lounged on the rock. With his hair in somewhat of an up due, his legs crossed one over the other, he sat there just tossing the apple.

I guess it wasn't so off, him looking like a fairytale creature. He was a Vampire after all.

Just as I reached the hedge, Kyung must have heard me because he missed the apple.

Turning to look at me, the apple slipped past his hand. In a blink of an eye Kyung had dropped from the rock and scooped up the apple before it hit the ground.

My face soured slightly.

Would it hurt for him to have at least one imperfection?

"So," he joshed, tossing the apple into the air, "you have returned."

Clearing my throat, I answered, "Did you think I wouldn't? It's my family's shrine. Why wouldn't I be here?"

Kyung leaned back against the rock smiling at me, as he tossed the apple one last time.

The grin wasn't like the others I had experienced. It didn't contort into something inhuman; it didn't curl at the corners, or flash terrifying teeth. It was simply one of a man smiling at a woman.

I hadn't expected that.

Swiftly my body reacted and caused me to not only become nervous but…shy. The burst of butterflies exploding in my stomach left my face blushing. I felt like pinching myself to remind me why I'd come there in the first place.

Kyung looked up from the apple. It was as if he knew I'd reacted in some sort of way and he'd picked up on it.

His eyes changed into a very human looking color. I blinked. I'd forgotten that he could do that. I'd grown so accustomed to his molten lava eye color I'd forgotten that he could almost…almost pass as human.

Maybe an overly attractive human, but certainly not "I will eat you and suck out your blood" sort of person.

The image toyed with me, confusing my mind, and making my heart shudder…. inappropriately.

I swallowed.

"Could you stop," I struggled, searching for the right words and failed, "Stop that? Please."

H peered unblinkingly at me, trying to innocently play off what he was doing.

He had to be doing something.

"Stop…what," he questioned, like he didn't know.

"That," I said loudly, waving my hand around, "Whatever you're doing. Just…stop it. It's…it's unnerving."

His lip quirked.

"Am I making you nervous," he asked.

"No… it's just…weird. Ok?"

I got the feeling he was enjoying himself. The Vampire was preening a little too much to be unaware of what he was doing.

Continuing to flirt with me, he ignored my request by pouting at me.

"Stop," I said sternly, "I didn't come up here to…play with you."

He looked down at his feet pucker out his lips as if he were hurt.

"You are aware that the stone was built for me aren't' you? It's actually my rock," he said sounding a little dejected.

I tilted my head.

"Don't you mean shrine?"

He laughed, "If that's what you'd like to call it. However, I don't think of it that way."

My eyebrow arched.

"Then what is it?"

"How shall I put it...tomb?"

"Tomb," I quarried dryly, "You're saying there is a coffin under there?"

I'd just assumed it was a shrine, built to put the food near, and perform the ritual. I didn't know why there were weird markings on it. I didn't know why we had always chosen there to place the food. I just assumed it was the right spot. Now he was saying it was a…

I backed up feeling disgust bubble up.

"You're saying a dead guy is buried in there?"

A challenging expression filtered across my face. What exactly was he saying?

"We were standing on a dead guy grave this whole time?"

He walked up to me, shortening the distance between us before I could say anything.

"You do not believe me?"

I scooted away from him horrified.

"You've had us deliver food to some dead guy we don't know? THIS WHOLE TIME?"

He shrugged, "You could say I wasn't always fully alive. I mean I wasn't fully ever dead."

My chin dropped.

"Wait," I said pointing at him and then the rock.

"Your dead body is there? You have two bodies?"

A smile lurked around his lips.

"Certainly not. I clearly only have one."

"Then who is there," I said unable to stop my own bundle of confused panic.

"No one anymore."

"So your saying that was you."

He pursed his lips still nodding, softly.

"You most likely are having a hard time understanding."

Looking pointedly at him I folded my arms, waiting for him to elaborate.

He shrugged turning on his heel.

"That's it," I asked aghast, "You're just going to rattle off some nonsense and not explain?"

He leapt back upon the rock, and lounged once more.

"That's it…as you put it," he smiled.

It was a smirk. He was enjoying himself.

"So, what," I asked walking up to him, "you sleep there or something? Did you die and then come back to life? Like I seriously don't understand what you're getting at."

His head whipped around so quick; it was almost comical.

"Certainly not," he said far too quickly, his face animated, "why would I sleep there?"

"I don't know! You said it's your rock isn't it? A tomb?"

He narrowed his gaze, swinging his long legs over the rock. He leaned down on his knees, so he was almost eye to eye with me. Kyung's eyes swirled back to their original color.

No longer looking human, the color inside his iris rolled, and for the first time I wasn't scared. I was annoyed and they simply just looked like eyes to me.

"Dead people sleep in tombs," I remarked with certainty.

His lip quirked.

"You certainly don't let anything slip past your notice. You take things quite literally."

I snorted.

"Well, how else was I supposed to take it? You called it a tomb."

He sat back nodding.

"Perhaps you are correct. I chose the wrong set of words."

"Then what are the correct words?"

He pointed at me, giving me a playful wink.

"You certainly have always entertained me, and now I know why."

"And why is that?"

"You are funny."

"I'm funny," I barked on the verge of being miffed.

Who was he to call me funny? There wasn't a single funny thing going on!

"Humorous," he added lazily swinging back into his lounge position.

"You are twisting my words and taking them the wrong way," he admonished, "I said funny. It's not a bad thing. I can be a good thing. It's more…interesting."

My eyes narrowed.

"Interesting? You want interesting," My voice began to rise alarmingly high.

I was about to lose my lid.

Kyung held up his hand halting my rising steam.

"You see," he loudly said overriding my voice, "I've met you on a few occasions, and each time you have never bored me."

I froze.

"Ah…what?"

"You've heard me," he replied, "every time I've met you, I've always been surprised. I'm never quite sure what will come out of your mouth."

"A FEW," I gasped, alarmed, "we've met a…a few times? Not…not just…the…the woods, and the restaurant? My parents…"

"I see you are surprised."

"Of course, I am surprised," I yelled, "how many times have…have you played with my mind?"

Horror struck I could only stare open mouthed. It was a good question. How many times had he done this without my knowledge?

His eyebrows shot up as if he didn't know what to make of what I had just asked.

"Why do you act as if I've done something horrible?"

"Because you have, "I shouted, "What if I did that to you?"

"But you couldn't."

"BUT what if I could," I questioned exasperated, "Would you like it if I erased every time, we've ever met? Like you had no clue who I was? You couldn't remember anything but yet here I was able to remember everything you didn't?"

He thought about it a moment before commenting, "Would it be better if I didn't remember either?"

"NO! THAT'S NOT THE POINT!"

Kyung's dark eyebrows narrowed, and he said solemnly, "So then it would be only me, who didn't remember?"

"EXACTLY!"

"I quite enjoy my memories of you."

Sputtering I glared at him indignant.

That wasn't the point.

He smiled impishly, "You could say I've been somewhat of a Guardian Angel to you."

"That is not what we are talking about!"

Again, he had the balls to appear confused. If anyone had the right to be confused it was me.

"Well, isn't that what you call a heavenly being that looks out for a human?"

"If they are sent by God," I breathed completely put out by him.

I gave in. Pinching the bridge of my nose I realized that he was simply incapable of understanding what it would be like. He was insane. A Vampire who apparently thought he could compare himself to a Godly creature.

"How do you know if I wasn't," he countered.

"What," I laughed leveling him with a look, "An Angel?"

I waited and saw that the Vampire was actually quite serious.

"Are Vampire's so different from Angels," he casually asked.

I couldn't believe my ears, I thought he had to be joking.

"You're pulling my leg. Right?"

He looked down at himself remarking, "No, I'm standing here."

Snorting, I rolled my eyes looking away from him. I couldn't believe my luck.

"Well," I said dragging out the word, "for one, Angels don't suck out human blood!"

I watched the light bulb in Kyung's head flick on. He jerked to attention.

Snapping his fingers, he exclaimed, "That's right!"

"What's right," I asked leery.

The strange look that overcame him, left me nervous. It distorted the human like performance he'd been successfully putting on. It wasn't as if I'd forgotten that he was a different species from me, it was that he was so believable that I had left my guard down.

Not loving the look in his eye, I backed up slowly.

Putting out my hands, as if they'd guard me against a Vampire, I asked carefully, "Kyung, what are you doing?"

He smiled, it curled hungrily at the corners of his mouth.

I began to feel exactly like what a Turkey did near Thanksgiving Day.

"Let's think about this," I reasoned, "You don't want to do this."

"I do," he said.

My heart leapt.

"No," I said with my voice shaking, "No you don't. You don't want to eat me.

Eagerly, he nodded, "You're right I don't want to eat you."

I swallowed.

"Then…then…why are you stalking me into a corner?"

"Stalking you?"

I nodded, "That's what you're doing. You're stalking me into a corner."

My back hit the tree. Behind me the motion rippled up the tree, shaking it's leaves showering down on top us.

Plucking a leaf from his head Kyung peered at it as if it were the leaf's fault.

"Did you forget Kitten? You and the others forgot your donation."

I paused blinking up at him like I wasn't home but my lights were on.

"Don't act so confused little kitten," he purred, his hot eyes smoldering, glowing at me, "you know what I'm talking about. You've been doing this since you could walk."

Blinking dumbstruck I could just stare at him. I had absolutely no idea what he was referring to.

"I… know?"

Toe to toe with me Kyung looked down. I peered up at him still feeling like a hunted Turkey.

"Your blood little kitten," he sang my name, adding, " Did you forget?"

I swallowed an audible gulp.

Shit. I did.

He reached out, and I flinched squeaking.

His hand gently patted my head in a soft petting motion.

I froze under his hand, looking fearfully at him from the corner of my eye.

He laughed at me, smiling, "Why do you look so scared when this isn't anything new?"

"Because," I replied.

His head tilted.

"B…because," he prompted, seductively.

I swallowed again.

"No?"

"No," he said, his hand pausing.

He on a laugh he asked, "What do you mean no?"

"I…I don't want you…to…kiss… me…like that again."

His eyes shot wide and then crunched together as if I'd just uttered the most bizarre thing.

Sure, I had given blood countless times. This time was different. I had never done so in person to the person it was for! Every other time that Kyung had taken my blood was when he was…slobbering on me! Honestly, I wasn't sure I could handle that. My heart felt ready to leap out of my chest.

His hand hovering over my head dropped.

"Did…did it offend you that much?"

I looked down, unsure as to what I should or shouldn't say.

It wasn't so much that it offended me, in that it just felt weird. I mean was actually making out with me or was that just the way he…you know drank blood? Did he do that to everyone?

"It…it couldn't have offended you that much," he wondered aloud.

"Well how would you know," I shot back too quickly.

We stood there in silence. Just looking at one another.

I didn't know if I had said something wrong and he was indeed going to eat me, or if I'd just hurt his pride?

Apparently it had been his feelings.

He turned; his head was down. Walking away with one hand in his pocket, he looked almost defeated.

"I guess if it is that distasteful to you… I could attempt another way."

"Do we have to do it at all," I probed, and he quickly turned.

His eyes were hot and surprisingly angry.

"Yes," he seethed.

I held my hands to my chest feeling nervous.

"Why," was all I could squeak out.

He stared at me, his body rocking with his heavy breaths.

"Why," he spat hissing at me, "because of that!"

His hand pointed at the rock. His body trembling all over, he raged.

"They cursed me to lie here for all of eternity," he fumed, "a dry empty shell, unable to die yet unable to live!"

"Who?"

A powerful gush of air came at me, blowing all my hair everywhere. I opened my eyes to see his chest.

Swallowing, I tiled my head up inch my inch, fully regretting what I had said. Maybe there were questions better left unanswered.

The sky had begun to turn darker, so his eyes became more molten than before. I could feel the heat coming off of him in waves but knew that the anger wasn't towards me.

"I," he said clipped, "Will. Not. Go. Back."

I nodded quickly.

I sure as heck wasn't going to be sending him back.

"No," I agreed, "No you won't go back."

"Good," he replied through a lopsided grimace, "I am glad that we agreed on that."

Well, I wasn't the one arguing with him on that. I'd only asked who had done it.

He turned away from me and stormed back to his rock.

Slowly I hedged towards him, watching for any sudden movement.

"Did I…say something wrong," I whispered.

"Unless someone willingly gives their blood as a sacrifice, then I am bound to return under this rock."

"Under the rock? You mean under this rock?"

"Buried," he snapped.

"Buried," I repeated oddly, "How are they going to burry you? Aren't you like better than they are?"

His glowing hot gaze flicked up. His energy changed.

Kyung's head dropped and he smiled.

"You think so?"

His long hair had fallen out of his up do and was hiding the rest of his expression. I could ascertain that whatever I had said appeared to not only please him, but he found it flattering.

"There are a great deal of many things you do not know. There are creatures that you've never seen, who live among mankind, unnoticed. So," he said toying with me, "How are you to know if I am the strongest of them all."

"I just…assumed."

I could see a smile form on his face once again before he looked away hiding it.

"I don't understand. How or really why will those…creatures burry you?"

I thought he wasn't going to answer me. He breathed in and out, his shoulders rising and falling. It looked like he was studying me for a long moment before speaking.

"My kind has always been a jealous kind. It doesn't matter if one doesn't play in politics. A person's birth is threat enough. I have many who don't mind me gone. With someone such as myself or anyone of my kind away, other creatures can do as they please."

"And what is it that they want to do? I thought it was a Vampire who murdered my parents."

"It was," Kyung quickly said, darkly adding, "He's a lowly Vampire who without one such as myself, can think he is invincible. They are looking to take our place, but there is an order to things."

"What sort of order?"

"Kitten there is always something bigger and far worse than yourself. There are things in this world that is unfathomable. Some wish to gain power, some money, but there are others who only wish for more havoc."

I could feel a prickling sensation against my skin.

"Those who crave destruction will stop at nothing to achieve it. They will hurt anyone who might be in their path."

"Were you in their…path?"

He looked down at the apple, tossing it once more.

"At times."

My eyes fell to my dirty sneakers deep in thought.

Reaching out he ruffled my hair saying absently, "Your kind is also among the other creatures."

I looked at him.

"My kind? You mean humans?"

Smiling he asked, "Did you think you were one of them?"

I blinked alarmed.

"You had to be aware that you're a bit different, right," he asked hesitantly.

"You're saying…I'm not exactly… human?"

He shrugged, "I not saying you're not. I'm only saying that there may be subunits. Different…strains we'll say."

"So, I'm like some…like some variant of the…the flu?"

"There has always been your kind," he laughed, simply adding, "Who knows why. Maybe it was God leveling the playing field?"

"But why," I asked heated, "Why would he do that? What purpose would he have?"

Kyung shrugged playfully.

"I'm not God so I would I know."

Blanching I cried out, "Because you're the one who put it out there! You're the one who said I was like some flu!"

"I never said you were like the flu. I'm only saying that I've been around for many centuries," he reasoned with a shrug, "I've seen more than enough of your kind to know they exist. I'm not sure as to why but they do. Isn't an added boon though?"

"Why? Everyone treats us different, talks trash about us, and acts like were going to hell! They act like WE are defective!"

Kyung shook his head, "Not defective. More effective."

I seethed.

With my hands on my hips, I rolled my gaze away from him. Not sure as to why this conversation was causing me to become so agitated, I challenged him on another front.

"Then out of all the…the "more effective humans" did you choose us? You could have chosen any other family."

He shook his head intime with his finger.

"It's not quite so simple."

"Then make it simple."

He took in a deep breath, turning around to lean on the rock.

"Do you know what these symbols mean?"

Kyung rubbed his hand along the etched symbols.

I moved just a sept closer to him. I too faced the rock.

I'd always wondered exactly who had put them there and what they had meant.

"You've always wondered, haven't you?"

I glanced up at him, it was mostly dark now, but I could still make him out in the moonlight. He was smiling.

"Can you feel the power running from them?"

Highly confused, I reared back.

"From where?"

"The symbols. You can feel it if you put your mind to it."

"I've been here thousands of times. Billions of times," I corrected, "and never once had I felt anything other than the bumpy scratchy feeling of a rock."

Kyung winked at me daring, "Well you weren't looking for it before."

He took my hand, in his. I might have swooned inwardly at the touch.

I hunched my shoulders as I slightly pulled away from him. I needed to add some much-needed space.

"You feel it," he asked, once he placed my hand against the rock.

I couldn't feel anything. I was too distracted. His hand had covered mine, and I could feel his skin over top of mine. Somehow the moment began to feel like a guilty pleasure.

"Close your eyes," he instructed, his voice jolting me, "Concentrate."

With him not even looking at me, and all his attention was on my hand, I felt like I was some pervert. I basked in the glow of his skin against mine. He wasn't even giving it a second thought.

He quickly looked at me, and my cheeks turned into fire.

"Will you close your eyes?"

"Oh…ok."

Awkwardly I did as he asked.

There I stood with his hand on mine, feeling not just the touch of his hand, but the heat from his body. It was extremely hard to concentrate and all I could think about was how panicked I'd been about the thought of him kissing me. Now, I was standing there, eyes closed secretly wishing for it.

What the heck did I want?