Of Light and Darkness: The Vampire's Daughter

She looked to see that they weren’t in front of her house, but rather just beyond her house, at the start of the dense forest. She could see the top of the mansion behind the trees. All of the lights were on inside, making her little castle glow. It looked so welcoming in comparison to the stormy witching hour.

However, in front of her was a rather large, dirt mound like that of a giant anthill — a very dark hole as the entrance to this strange abode.

“Okay, well…thank you for the ride. But I’ll be going back to my house now.” Charlotte glowered.

He chuckled down at her. “Not a problem, Charlotte. You did well. I thought you might’ve passed out.” He adjusted his goggles again.

Her mouth fell open. “You know my name?”

“Once you told me that you belonged to Valek, I knew exactly who you were.” He smiled, his wiry, frosted mustache bristling. “I’ve heard so much about you over the years. It is a pleasure to actually meet a human girl!” He extended a human hand toward his borough. “You’re welcome to come in for some tea. I make it myself!” he said proudly, his thumbs resting in his vest.

Charlotte looked again at the dark hole in the forest floor, squinting at it, and then back at the face of the Phaser. She turned once, glancing back at her house, and decided Valek probably wasn’t missing her right now, anyway. Why should she be in such a hurry to return to him? “Sure.” She smiled politely. “Thanks again, Mr.—”

“Trinozka,” he informed her, and grabbed her by the hand as they disappeared down the dark tunnel.

Her eyes didn’t adjust well to the blackness of the dirt-packed entrance. Her free hand felt around at the walls so she could guide herself more easily, even though Mr. Trinozka was doing most of the guiding for her. Her fingertips trailed across the winding tree roots and rocks hiding in the topsoil, until finally her eyes were met with a faint, warm light behind a set of patterned curtains.

When the spider pushed through, Charlotte emerged into a rather large burrow he had dug for his home under the forest. Multiples of trinkets, oddities, and collectables lined the walls, stacked next to crude, pillowy sacks that she guessed the spider used for couches.

Another Phaser was playing music from one corner of the burrow. A caterpillar type just as large as Mr. Trinozka, sat folded over a small bench before an old, upright piano. He did not seem to notice the pair had entered behind him as he continued to play.

“That sounds beautiful,” Charlotte said softly.

“That’s just Horris. He’s completely deaf.” Mr. Trinozka began removing his scarf and his knit gloves with the fingers cut out. He laid them on one of the couches.

“He’s deaf?” Charlotte blanched. “How can he play?”

“Charlotte, trust me, it is not a hindrance.” The spider leaned in close to her. “You do not need your ears in order to hear that which you wish to create.” He winked before scurrying off to a different part of the burrow. He called out to her, “Please, have a seat! I am expecting other company and tea will be on shortly!”

Charlotte did as he said, finding one of the large, fluffy sacks and plopping in the center of it. She struggled to keep herself upright, though the softness of it swallowed her, her knees folding up to her stomach.

“I really like your home!” she said so that he could hear her from the other room.

“Thank you.” The Phaser reappeared with a bronze teakettle in one hand and two ceramic jugs in the others. “Earl Grey or chamomile?”

“Earl Grey, please.” She smiled, continuing to try and find her balance in the chair.

His mustache bristled again as he disappeared once more.

“Where do you find all of these things?” Charlotte asked, her eyes scanning the various pieces. There were clock gears, and only halves of sets of human pairs of shoes. There were dented pots and pans, many books, cuckoo clocks, lamps, hunks of un-polished scrap metal, stuffed animals, sculptures, photographs, silverware, snow globes, and about a million other things that decorated the spider’s home.

“I’m a junk collector. I collect junk.” Mr. Trinozka reappeared again with four cups of tea in each of his hands. “Like Horris.”

Charlotte laughed.

He gave one cup to Charlotte, set one down on a small, crooked coffee table, and placed one on the piano in front of Horris before sitting down in one of the couches. “It’s what I do. One spider’s trash is another spider’s treasure,” he said, sipping at his tea. “You wouldn’t believe the things I discover.”

“Thank you,” Charlotte heard Horris grumble under his music.

Charlotte took a sip, too, the hot steam bringing warmth back to her cheeks. She smiled when she tasted the milk and honey, exactly how she liked it. She sipped at it again. “So, who’s the other company you’re expecting?”

As if on cue, a familiar burlap figure came rolling down the tunnel, landing on his backside facing Charlotte and the spider, reeling from dizziness.

“Ah, Edwin! Just in time!” Mr. Trinozka said, one of his arms stretching out to hand him his cup of tea.

Edwin took it, eyes still spinning. “Thanks. Hi, Charlotte.”

“Edwin!” She giggled. “You sure know how to make an entrance.”

Edwin grumbled something incoherent and sipped at his tea.

The evening went on like that for just a while longer and the three talked and laughed while Horris continued to play the piano, seemingly oblivious to the goings-on behind him. Mr. Trinozka told stories of how he obtained some of his more interesting pieces before Charlotte finally stood up, stretching out her arms and legs.

“I better get going. Mr. Trinozka, thank you so much for your hospitality.”

“Any time, my dear. Don’t be a stranger! Say hello to Valek, and tell him not be so careless with a lovely little girl like yourself.”

Charlotte smiled once to Edwin, patting him on the head, before turning and exiting out the long tunnel from whence she came.

The wind had finally died down and the walk back to the steps of her home was quick. She could hear laughter coming from inside. That was when she remembered. Evangeline.

Charlotte burst through the front door, expecting to see the two of them just on the other side. The room was lit, but empty. She looked to see slight shadows moving from inside the library. Her stomach twisted with a feeling she didn’t recognize. She crept over to the library door, hearing Evangeline’s unmistakable, musical laughter. It made Charlotte’s cheeks burn.

Slowly peering around the threshold, the thing she saw next made something hard and icy shatter deep within her chest. Evangeline’s long, sleek body leaned over Valek, who sat in his armchair, tie undone, shirt slightly unbuttoned at the top. Her lips moved slickly across his neck and up to his mouth, and the worst part was…he kissed her back.

Charlotte froze in the doorway, wanting to run out again into the storm. But her legs seemed to be nothing but bricks of lead. A feeling twisted in her gut, like shards of serrated glass, as the onset of salty tears stung the bridge of her nose. She hadn’t realized her satchel had dropped to the floor, shattering the empty spell bottles inside.

Evangeline jumped at the sound and looked to see Charlotte standing there in the doorway.

Chapter Five The Price of Sinning

“Char — Lottie…” Valek started quietly.

Charlotte saw herself out of body, staring back at him, slowly breaking into two pieces. Her mouth fell open in an effort to speak, willing something, anything to stumble out, but nothing would. Slowly, she turned and padded out into the night.

She walked a slow, even pace off the porch steps and back onto the stone footpath then stood there, sucking in a deep breath of rimy air. Exhaling, she could see her misty breath between the silvery plummets of rain. She straightened up and broke into a run. That was the only thing she wanted to do — the only thing her swimming mind could think of. She just wanted to run.

She prayed to God Valek was far enough away not to be able to hear her miserable thoughts, knowing if he