Fallen Tears: A Blood Crave Novella (Blood Crave Series) (2 page)

Maybe
this
time he wouldn’t guess right.

“Nothing.” The word carried to Rowan’s ears and she smiled softly in satisfaction.

Bingo.

“Hah!” She spun back around, curls bouncing as she pointed a finger up at him. At the motion, his jacket fluttered to the ground. Rowan instantly felt cold once more. She ignored the fact, replying with a smirk, “You’re wrong.”

She was having way too much fun with this.

Raising an eyebrow, he glanced down, then swiftly bent forward to pick up the garment that had dropped to the ground. Brushing the water off with the back of his hand, he gently placed the jacket around her shoulders, again, replying, “You were thinking of a black hole which is, essentially, nothing.”

Rowan paused and blinked a couple of times up at him before slowly lowering her finger, the smile leaving her face. He was right. She hastily stuck her arms through the jacket sleeves, the coat dwarfing her body. She brooded, narrowing her eyes in concentration. Looking back at him, she asked another question.

“What’s my name?”

There was absolutely no way he could guess that!

“Rowan.”

She stared back at him, momentarily stunned, her mouth opening to form the shape of an ‘O.’ He went on speaking as if he hadn’t noticed her reaction, giving his jaw an absentminded rub with the pads of his fingers. 

“It’s a rather unusual name. But I have to say that I like it.” He said this without a second thought, his face serious as he gave a little nod.

Rowan swallowed loudly, still refusing to believe it. There was absolutely no way. She fired back another question. “How old am I?”

He didn’t hesitate. “Twelve years. Although you’re quite wise for your age, experiencing things most people wouldn’t experience in a lifetime.”

“Where’s my family?” Her voice cracked at the question, unshed tears stinging her eyes. She wondered how far he would go in answering her, all his responses so far correct.

How did he know?

“You don’t have any,” he stated gravely. His voice lowered as his eyes flicked away to stare up into the sky. “At least, not in this world. Your mother died when you were just an infant, so you never got to know her. Your father died an alcoholic only recently. He was all you ever had.”

Rowan couldn’t say anything at this point, for fear of tearing up again. She held back her feelings, refusing to feel the pain forming inside her heart as she tightly clutched her hands at her side, chin wobbling. 

She had to be strong.

It was what she had to do in order to survive in this world.

Blinking a couple of times, she wiped the side of her face before speaking again. “So you’re really psychic?” She didn’t think that psychics were real. From what she saw on the television, it was all a scam. At least, that was what her dad had always said.

As she looked at him, she thought she saw a small smile form on his lips. But that instantly disappeared as he looked back at her with a shrug. “If that’s what you’d like to call it.”

Rowan paused, again puzzled by his answer. “What else would you want to call it?”

He didn’t move from his spot, just inches away from where she stood. He seemed frozen in place as he calmly closed his eyes and exhaled, speaking softly under his breath as he gestured with his hand. “I prefer to be called lamia.”

Rowan stared up at him as she tilted her head to the side, eyebrows raised in confusion. Her twelve-year-old vocabulary was not at all impressive.

“Huh?” She had never heard of the word before and thought she might have misheard.

He looked directly at her and repeated the word, this time more slowly. “La-mi-a.”

Lamia.
Rowan tried to make the word register in her head but was interrupted as he spoke again, almost like an afterthought. “Although pop culture tends to label us as vampires.” He said this in a rather jaded way.

“Vampires?”
She couldn’t hide the shock from her voice, her eyebrows rising even higher, if that was at all possible.

“Hmm. I see you know the latter.” He didn’t appear surprised by her reaction. “Society has labeled us incorrectly, saying that lamia is always female—we can be either male or female. And the whole eating little children is a little far-fetched. Blood alone is sufficient in keeping us well nourished. Anyway,
vampires
just became another name for us.”

Rowan didn’t respond, just looked up at this guy in amazement. What he was saying couldn’t be true—there was absolutely no way. But for some reason, she believed every word that came out of his mouth. It was the strangest feeling, like when her dad used to tell her about Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy.

But regardless, she always believed every word he had said.

“I guess if vampires existed, you’d fit the part perfectly,” she mumbled under her breath. She eyed him warily from his shoulder-length black hair to his pale complexion, which almost seemed to glow in the dark. He totally looked like the dark, brooding vampire type.

“I beg your pardon?” He stared at her blankly as if confused by what she had just said.

Rowan ignored his question, pressing even further. “If you’re a vampire then are you going to drink my blood?” She spoke calmly, as if she weren’t afraid of the prospect of death, although her eyes were wide in apprehension.

He just said he didn’t
eat
humans.

Tilting his head back at her, he frowned slightly. “I wouldn’t do that to a child.”

“Hey now,” she retorted back, annoyed. Feathers slightly ruffled, she gave a pout. “I’m twelve years old, almost thirteen. I am not a child.”

He stared down at her for a moment, making Rowan suddenly feel uncomfortable. She awkwardly crossed her arms over her flat chest as she looked up at him, defiantly. “I may be small for my age right now, but I just haven’t hit my growth spurt yet.”

Rowan really hated the fact that she still looked like a ten-year-old.

“My apologies.” He raised his eyebrows, eyes slightly smiling. “I wouldn’t do that to a twelve-year-old. Is that better?”

She sighed loudly, but had to admit she enjoyed the fact that he found her entertaining. She tried asking another question. “Then why are you here if you’re not going to hurt me?”

Standing in front of her, he slowly raised a hand to the top of her head and patted it gently, his face serious. At first, Rowan was caught off guard at the cool contact of his hand against her. But she soon relaxed as she welcomed his touch, which almost seemed to have a familiarity to it.

Like family.

“Your heart cried out to me, Rowan. It reminded me of a time in my past and I had to come and stop your heart from crying.”

Those words were profound to her. She couldn’t speak, but it was unnecessary. He heard every thought and every pain she’d felt since her dad died, leaving her all alone.

The only thing she could do was rest her head against his chest as she stepped forward. Wrapping her small arms around his waist, she cried, finally releasing the anguish she kept buried deep inside for so long. He stood there silently, touching her head lightly as she sobbed. He waited to speak until she had cried out all the tears and just simply whimpered against him.

“Are you okay?” His voice was low above her head but she heard a trace of concern.

Embarrassed, Rowan withdrew her arms from around him and stepped back as she bowed her head. “Sorry.” Sniffing loudly, she wiped the remaining tears from her eyes using the back of both hands.

“No need to apologize. I realize words can be a powerful way of expressing oneself. I truly didn’t mean to make you cry. It appears I still have a lot to learn.” He grinned faintly as if remembering something. Then he spoke again, almost in a whisper.

“After all this time.”

Rowan was quiet, thinking about what he had just said.

He seemed sad, too.

“I can teach you!” she exclaimed, the words rushing out of her mouth before she could even think.

He raised an eyebrow at her sudden outburst, curious.

She went on. “You know, things that you need to learn. I’m really smart! I used to get As in everything before … before …” Her words then trailed off softly as she remembered her past.

“Before your father died.” He filled in the words she was struggling to say.

“Yeah,” she answered softly. But then all of a sudden, she felt strange. For some reason, his words echoed over and over in her head as the world began to spin, her mind foggy. Looking up, she watched as his mouth moved, but was unable to understand him at all.

It was blocked out by the sudden ringing in her ears.

Blinking slowly up at him, she found his face to be hard and unsmiling. Then it all became a blur and for a second, just before she passed out, she thought she saw her father staring down at her. Although she knew he couldn’t be real and was only a figment of her imagination. But still, she silently wished for her father to come back.

That was the last thing she remembered before everything went black.

CHAPTER 2

It was music that woke Rowan from her sleep. An unfamiliar sound, it was haunting yet calming. She lay peacefully on a soft surface, not wanting the music or the emotion of serenity that she was feeling to end. Breathing deeply, she finally opened her eyes as she blinked rapidly against the harsh lights that welcomed her. She realized she was lying on a white couch, a heavy jacket covering her body.

“You’re awake,” a voice said, the music stopping abruptly as the last note hung in the air. Rowan’s heart ached as the fading melodic tones were replaced by silence. But she still tried to pay attention to the voice that interrupted the haunting music.

The same man she had encountered earlier slowly walked toward her. His large body dressed all in black, he now blocked the harsh light from her eyes. He looked just the same as he did before, in this bright apartment. Eyes were as dark as onyx, midnight hair hung loosely around his face, and pale, gleaming skin was completely unblemished.

So that really wasn’t a dream.

She had thought the eerie man in the shadows had been nothing more than a figment of her imagination.

I don’t even know his name.

“Kaji.” He replied so casually, as if he hadn’t just read her mind.

Rowan sat up, slowly removing the jacket that covered her. Clenching the material in her hand, she realized it was the same jacket he had draped around her earlier. Setting it aside, she brought her hands on her lap as she tested his name on the tip of her tongue.

“Kaji,” she said, regarding him curiously. “That’s different.”
And you thought
my
name was unusual?

“Yes.” He seemed to like one-word answers.

“Does it mean anything?” She voiced the question, then shook her head suddenly as she had an afterthought, her mouth forming a slight frown. “Wait a minute! You read my mind, again. I really don’t like when you do that so would you mind stopping?” She peered up at him anxiously, waiting for his answer.

It really made her uneasy, his ability to easily read her mind. Who knew what she could be thinking at any given moment. Frankly, it wasn’t right for someone to know her innermost thoughts. She didn’t even keep a diary, for fear of someone reading it and exposing all of her true feelings.

“Sure. I apologize for the intrusion.” He didn’t seem to care one way or another, his voice calm.

“Okay, good.” With that settled, she relaxed her posture slightly. She realized Kaji had been holding something in his hand the entire time. She watched him as he set the object directly on her lap only to discover that it was a square, white plate with a sandwich neatly placed on it. She reached for it to discover that it was peanut butter. Smiling wide, she automatically brought the sandwich to her lips and took a huge bite, the taste of peanut butter filling her mouth as the paste coated her teeth.

“You haven’t been eating,” he said, taking a seat across from her on a single sofa. Crossing his legs, he gave a stern look. “Feeding is of the utmost importance, no matter if you’re human or lamia. You shouldn’t let yourself get hungry to the point that it makes you weak and pass out.”

Rowan took the last bite of her sandwich then licked her fingers, feeling blissful as she only halfway listened to his lecture. Then she grinned again, shocking Kaji at the suddenness.

“Are you really a vampire?” She eyed him suspiciously as if she still didn’t quite believe him.

Kaji rested back comfortably on the couch, placing his hands on his lap. “Yes. I can see saying lamia will be quite difficult for you.”

She ignored his last remark. “Prove it to me. Let me see your fangs.” She tapped her own teeth for emphasis, needing more proof than just his ability to read her mind.

Kaji raised his brow at her request but didn’t move a muscle.

“Please?” Rowan clasped her fingers together as she begged him, looking across at him with a pleading tone, jutting out her lower lip. “Let me see them. I’ll just keep asking until you do. I can be annoying like that, you know,” she added with a gleam in her eye.

Kaji still didn’t move from his position but finally spoke calmly, catching her gaze. “If I show you, you won’t ask again?”

“I promise,” she responded immediately, nodding enthusiastically.

Rowan didn’t take her eyes off him as she watched Kaji slowly bring his index finger up to the corner of his mouth. He pushed his upper lip upwards, exposing his teeth, allowing her to see one long pointed tooth that glinted dangerously at her.

Rowan swallowed hard, amazed at what she was actually seeing. Okay, so he was definitely telling the truth about being a vampire. She remained staring at him as he dropped his hand back into his lap, trying to figure out how someone like him even existed.