Page 3 of Finding Our Home

He blinked, like he was coming out of a trance. “A walk?”

I grinned. “Yes, a walk. The night is still young, and the weather is nice.” I stepped closer to him and held out my hand. “I’m Dorian. It’s a pleasure to meet you…?”

“Uh… I’m Neo.” He cleared his throat and pushed the hair out of his eyes before grabbing my hand to shake.

We both gasped as soon as our skin touched, and it was like a strange spark shot up my arm and straight to my chest.What in the hell is that?The warmth grew, spreading through my body, and all I could do was stare into his blue eyes. We held our hands longer than we should have, but I didn’t want to let go for anything.

But then he snatched his hand away and stammered out, “N-nice to meet you, t-too.”

I heard some snickering, so I glared over Neo’s shoulder at Remi and Dorothy, but that didn’t stop them at all. Stifling a sigh, I refocused on Neo and asked again, “So how about that walk?”

He nodded and stepped up beside me as I turned and headed out of the courtyard. I was tempted to put my arm out for him to grab or to hold his hand, but I refrained so I wouldn’t make him anymore uncomfortable than he already was.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him wringing his hands and pulling on his sleeves, not to mention I could smell his discomfort since he was so close to me. I wanted so badly to pull him to me and hold him—a feeling I didn’t understand—but I didn’t think he’d appreciate that very much, so instead, I asked, “How did you come to live on the island?”

“Oh, um, well… my village was sorta attacked by witches and the Dark Witch showed up. And, uh, some of the shifters helped me and a few others escape to a nearby ship. They brought us here.” His eyes took on a faraway look, making me regret asking the question. And again, all I wanted to do was hold him.

“I’m sorry. That was insensitive of me. I wasn’t thinking.”

“I-it’s okay.”

“No, it’s not. I know most of the humans that weren’t a part of my den were brought here after their homes were desolated. I’m sorry for the horrors you’ve seen, my treasure.” His eyebrows lifted, and his mouth opened at the little pet name. I had no idea where it came from, but since he appeared to like it, I’d have to keep using it.

“Everyone has lost people in the war,” he finally whispered.

“That doesn’t make it okay.”

Smiling a little sadly, he kept walking forward.

I wanted to lighten the mood, so I asked, “Would you like to see my favorite spot on the island?”

“Sure.”

I debated it for a good ten seconds, but in the end, my need to touch him was far too great, so I grabbed his hand and laced our fingers together. I expected him to pull away or get upset, but he gasped, then clung to my hand as tightly as I was clinging to his. With a grin, I pulled him toward the north-east side of the island.

“Are you taking me to the hot springs?”

I smiled. “Yes, but to one in particular that many don’t know about.”

When we walked past the bigger hot springs, I felt Neo tense up, and I knew why. There were several couples having sex and drinking blood in the pools, just like there always was. There were a lot of vampires and bestowers on the island, and not a lot of privacy. When we had time to relax, many came here to bathe and have some fun.

“Sorry,” I muttered. “That’s all… normal.” I waved my hand in the vampires’ directions.

He nodded his head but didn’t say anything.

I need him to trust me.“I can see that you’re uncomfortable, and I’m not sure how to rectify that, but I wantto try, so I’m going to tell you a little about myself.” I grinned at him, and he sent a hesitant smile back, making my heart flip in my chest. “My name is Dorian Mortas Kiebusinski, and I’m about one-hundred and eighty, give or take, which isn’t very old by vampire standards, but probably seems old to you. I was turned when I was twenty-two by a woman named Cassandra Tizane Kiebusinski.”

“You have the same last name as your… maker?”

I smirked. “It’s called a sire, and you take on your sire’s name when they turn you.”

“Oh, um, okay.”

“So anyway, she got me into some trouble—she wasn’t a very good person back then, neither was I, truth be told. But when I was shot in the chest, she chose to keep me rather than let me die.” I really didn’t know why I was sharing quite so much information about myself, but his breathing was evening out, so I continued, “She started out as someone I hated, but I grew to love her very much over time. She was killed about fifty years ago by a hunter.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Um, what’s a hunter?”

“Before the war, there were human factions that knew of our existence and killed any supernatural beings, regardless of whether they were good or evil. They were known as hunters. It’s hard to say whether or not they exist anymore since the war has things so… messed up.”

---