Sacrifice (Absent Shadows Trilogy Book 2) (9 page)

~ Chapter Nine ~

Being a married woman wasn’t going to change me; running had always been, and would always be, part of my make-up. So the following morning I raced across to the gardens and after three fast laps I slowed down hoping to spot Elizabeth.

‘Henry and I loved your wedding,’ said Elizabeth when she appeared a few minutes later. ‘It was so nice of you to hold the wedding here so that we could come.’

‘It wouldn’t have been the same without you,’ I replied genuinely.

She smiled. ‘Sam was so handsome, wasn’t he? And you … you were so beautiful. I wish I could have been a bride, or at least a debutant. You looked magical in that dress. I would love to be able to wear a dress like that,’ she said, looking down at the ground, pouting.

‘I’m sorry, Elizabeth. I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.’

She looked up at me, and was all smiles once again.

‘Yes, you’re right. Not meant to be. Anyway, that’s not why you’re here—to talk about the wedding. I can tell there is something else you want to talk about. It’s something that you keep trying to push out of your mind. Is it something to do with a ghost?’

‘Yes, a ghost. I thought you might be able to help me understand what happened, and how to act next time. If there is a next time, that is.’

I went through the details of what had happened that day in the gardens when the young ghost had asked me to help her find the gun. Elizabeth’s expression darkened the longer the story went. And when I told her the girl’s father wanted to see me, she frowned.

‘I wish you’d told me about this before. You should have come to me for help, when she first approached you.’

‘I know that,
now
. But at the time, everyone was so busy with their plans … it happened just before the encounter with Zunios. I didn’t want to be a burden. And besides, she seemed so innocent. I just thought I was helping. But now, well, now I’m not so sure.’

‘Neither am I. And I’m not sure meeting this man—this Mr Shaw—is such a good idea either. Oh, Lili, this could get quite tricky.’

The tone in her voice frightened me, and I drew in my breath.

She shook her head, and reached out as if to put her hand on my arm. ‘Oh, oh, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I don’t mean to scare you or anything. Don’t worry about it now—you’re going on your honeymoon. We’ll talk about it when you get back—you’re not planning to meet with him before then, are you?’

‘No, I said it would have to be after—and I didn’t promise to meet him, just that I’d think about it.’

‘Good. I’ll speak to Henry and some of the others in the meantime to see if anyone knows of her. Everything will be fine. Really, it will.’

‘Thank you. I’m sorry to leave this with you—and to run off like this.’

‘Don’t be. Remember, you’ve just made my brother the happiest man in the world. And that makes me happy. You enjoy your honeymoon, and the baby. How exciting—I’m going to be an Aunty!’

‘You’re right. I hadn’t thought of that.’

‘Neither had I, until now. I must say it’s not something I ever expected to happen.’

‘Well, I don’t think Sam did either,’ I said, then started to giggle.

That set Elizabeth off and the two of us sat there giggling away. What a sight I must have made to anyone passing by—sitting on that bench, laughing my head off for no apparent reason.

~~***~~

Tom took off with Erranase that afternoon, giving us the house to ourselves for the first week. He’d offered to move out altogether, but I wouldn’t hear of it. After all, it was his house before it was mine. Besides, the layout gave us privacy and we did have our own bathroom. And it wasn’t like he expected me to cook for him or anything. He wouldn’t even be home most nights. Like Sam, he rarely slept. But he did need a place to shower, keep his clothes, and park his truck. Not to mention the fact that the large flat screen TV in the living room seemed to get a fair amount of his attention. But all in all, I was pretty sure it would work out just fine.

I felt good—unexpectedly good. I seemed to have more energy than ever, and my face was glowing. I’d been a bit concerned about how fast this baby was going to grow, and what that might do to my skin, but Crystal had given me a jar of emu oil cream and another jar of some herbal cream that smelled like lavender, and together they were to help with any stretching that my skin would undergo. I rubbed them all over my stomach and hips every night, and I certainly felt no discomfort. Everything would be fine. Or at least, that’s what I kept telling myself.

At the end of the week we left on our honeymoon. Our first stop was Cairns in the far north and from there we hired a four-wheel-drive and drove up to Kuranda where we stayed in some lovely cabins that backed right up to the rainforest. The sounds at night were nearly deafening—frogs and birds mostly I supposed, but who knew what else lurked in those woods.

On the second night, Sam was gone when I woke in the middle of the night, but at sunrise when I opened my eyes he was beside me, looking relaxed and gorgeous. There was no need to speak about where he’d been.

Later that morning, we took a ride on a very old train, and then a short boat trip to Green Island to see the crocodiles. Sam didn’t think it was funny when I compared him to the crocodiles—they too couldn’t help what they were. I actually thought the babies were really cute, and I got excited when I was able to hold one.

Kakadu was the next stop. It was a magical place. The rock art intrigued me, and I think I could have spent hours studying it. But the humidity overwhelmed me, making it difficult for me to take long walks or be outside for long periods, so I made Sam promise to bring me back another time, perhaps in winter—their dry season. We did what we could, and we celebrated my twentieth birthday at the Mirrai Lookout at sunset.

The next stop was Darwin, where it was even more humid than Kakadu. I found it nearly unbearable. But we managed to see a few of the tourist things—the most memorable being the day we took a boat trip down the Adelaide River where we watched as crocodiles jumped up out of the water to snatch bits of meat from sticks held out by the guides. These prehistoric creatures fascinated me. Their simplicity and power intrigued me so much so I had to fight back the urge to reach down and touch them as they swam alongside the boat. And I found it interesting that unlike some dogs I’d seen recoil from Sam in the gardens one night, these creatures didn’t seem the least bit worried about Sam’s presence.

We were near the end of the third week of our honeymoon when we arrived in Alice Springs. I felt like I’d had enough, mostly from the heat, but I also suspected the rapid changes my body was going through were partially to blame. It was now only just a little over a week until I’d give birth. It was still so hard to comprehend
.
Almost as hard as it was to comprehend how this gorgeous man, my husband, could look at me with so much love in his deep blue eyes, even when I now definitely felt and looked pregnant.

Sam pulled two chairs under the shade of a big umbrella, and we sat by the pool at our hotel holding hands. I felt so much love for him that I thought I’d explode. It really shouldn’t be possible to be this happy, should it?

‘I spoke to Mladen, this morning,’ he said, smiling at me. ‘Everything is ready for us. He’s beside himself at the thought of a new student at the school—he said it’s been a while since they’ve had one.’

‘Is he? Well, I hope they know what they’re doing,’ I said, suddenly remembering that I was about to hand over my baby to a man I’d never even met. We would stay for only two weeks after the birth.

‘I don’t think there’s anything to worry about … he’s been doing this for hundreds of years. I’d say he knows what he’s doing. And after all, he raised Michael, and look how good he’s turned out.’

‘I know, and I’m sure you’re right. It’s just … I mean … it’s all happening so fast, I can’t get my head around it. I’m going to be a mother. Me. Can you believe it?’

‘Yes, looking at you now, with that bump sticking up from the middle of you, I can believe it,’ he said, winking at me with a grin on his face.

I pulled at my shirt until it loosened, hiding the outline of my stomach as best I could, and then frowned for his benefit. Then we both laughed.

We sat there in the shade for a long time, listening to the sounds of the world going on around us. I think I must have dozed but when I opened my eyes Sam was still sitting exactly as he’d been—looking completely relaxed. We had the pool to ourselves now—the few people that had been here earlier must have gone while I slept. And although it was hot in the direct sun, the temperature here in the shade was bearable. And it was just so incredibly peaceful.

I sat there thinking, still finding the whole thing so hard to believe. And the funny thing was that by the time it sunk in, it would be over. We’d be back in Melbourne, and life would simply continue.

Sam looked over at me, and squeezed my hand. ‘It’ll be fine. I promise. It’ll be over quickly, and you’ll get to hold your young son. And did I mention that Crystal offered to meet us there if you would like? She’s assisted with quite a few births—helping the mothers with the separation afterwards. She’d be really happy to come, if you want. In fact, I think she’ll be disappointed if she doesn’t get to come.’

‘Oh, that would be awesome. I’d feel so much better if she was with me during the birth. I mean, I don’t know that I want you to see me like that.’

‘Done. She’s actually looking forward to seeing Mladen again. She misses him and the others at the school. After all, Mladen’s the closest thing to a father she’s ever known.’

~~***~~

The flight from Alice Springs to Perth wasn’t long but with all the fiddling around at the airport it seemed to take most of the day. When we arrived in Perth Sam wondered if we should spend the night, but I wasn’t tired. I just wanted to get to the school and get settled.

We hired a car for the drive, which Sam said would be about two hours. At first, the scenery was similar to Melbourne—lots of houses and small shopping centres. Then we reached a reasonable sized town called Northam. But not long after that we left civilisation behind us as we travelled north, then headed east along dirt roads that were deserted with the exception of us.

I hadn’t seen anything to suggest we had arrived anywhere, but suddenly Sam made a right turn and within a few minutes we pulled up in front of a large set of gates. The property reminded me of an English country estate from a period movie. I halfway expected a young girl wearing a long dress to come running toward us to open the gate, but then I spotted Crystal. She’d obviously arrived before us.

By the time the car stopped in front of the school building, Crystal was there to help me out of the car. She put her arm around my shoulders protectively as she led me inside to make the introductions. Sam disappeared and I could only assume it was to park the car.

Mladen was nothing like I’d expected. They kept referring to how old he was, so I expected him to look ancient and scholarly. But he actually looked a lot like Michael—dark hair and eyes, tall, and very handsome. He appeared to be in his mid-twenties. The only things that gave away his age were his careful speech and his polite manner; characteristics of someone who’d been brought up in a different time.

He smiled when Crystal introduced us, and extended his hand to shake mine. His grip was firm but gentle, and his smile was friendly. A moment later, Sam came in from parking the car, and Crystal introduced him to Mladen. I realised then that this must have been the first time they’d met in person. Their greeting was quite formal and reserved, neither extending their hands, but both bowing their heads slightly.

With the introductions complete, Crystal showed us upstairs to the room we would share. She explained that Mladen wasn’t accustomed to having couples stay, given that the vampire fathers had never before accompanied their human mistresses. But we were given the largest room at the school, and it would be cosy—just fine for the short time we’d be here.

~~***~~

Crystal made a lovely hostess, even though she was no longer technically part of the school. She showed us around and introduced us to a few of the staff. The school was very impressive, and the more I saw, the more I began to feel comfortable about leaving my child here. Everyone appeared very experienced and professional, so I knew he would be in good hands.

The days before the birth were utter relaxation. We took short walks, and watched movies, and read, and talked. And I took naps. Me, taking naps—unbelievable—I’d never taken a nap in my life.

Then, at what I imagined could be exactly six weeks from when I would have conceived, I began to go into labour. It did feel odd—all this movement going on inside me—but it wasn’t what I’d call painful. But when I put my hands to my protruding belly, Crystal and Mladen stood up and escorted me upstairs to the delivery room. The room was white and sparkling clean.

Crystal helped me change into a gown and then helped me onto a bed that was very much like an examination table in a doctor’s office, only a bit wider. She stood beside me, and placed her hand on my forehead and spoke very softly saying that everything would be fine and it would be over before I knew it.

A few minutes later there was a strong contraction and I caught my breath at the unexpected pain. Mladen stepped up on the opposite side of me and put his hand on my shoulder and said, ‘This won’t hurt, just a simple injection—nothing more than a pin prick. It will help you relax.’

I closed my eyes as the needle came toward me, but he was right, after the initial prick I didn’t feel a thing and I certainly relaxed.

~~***~~

When I opened my eyes sometime later, I recognised the room that Sam and I were sharing. I was in bed, leaning back against several pillows. My limbs felt heavy, but I was in no pain at all.

Crystal stood beside the bed, and spoke to me in a voice that was almost like a lullaby.

‘How are you feeling, Lili?’

‘Fine … just a bit tired is all. But I’m not in any pain or anything.’

‘I didn’t think you would be. The baby is fine. Perfect, actually. Everything went smoothly. You may feel a bit groggy for a while, until the sedatives completely wear off. Just relax and let yourself fall back to sleep if you can. The rest will do you good.’