The woman in my arms shakes her head as if pushing off the Mother’s concern. She doesn’t want to appear weak even now. She’s making her cheeks raw from the salty tears, and yet her pride won’t allow her to admit that she’s upset. Silly little thing.
“Did Everette ever tell you why vampires exist?”
“I told her that we’re created because of the need or desire of another vampire.”
The Mother nods her head, staring intently at the back of Farah’s head. “You always had a way with words, Everette,” she says sarcastically.
“I don’t know what you mean.” My body tenses with irritation. How can she be making jokes when Farah is crying?
“It’s not as simple as that. Humans spend their entire existence searching for meaning, a reason for their existence. They’re usually so busy searching for that meaning that they completely miss it.”
She’s talking in riddles. Damn it. But she’s caught Farah’s attention. Her head lifts away from my chest and I almost want to pull her back against me, so I can protect her from whatever information the Mother has decided to impart.
CHAPTER THREE
Everette
“Religion. Love. God. Humans are constantly searching for something more. Something greater than themselves. Something that can give meaning to the monotony of their days.”
Her words mirror my thoughts on the matter. I’ve thought that exact same thing more than once. Comparing myself to them. Those silly little creatures that don’t even know why they exist.
“Vampires pride themselves on knowing why they exist,” the Mother continues. “It’s terribly dull if you ask me, but they believe their existence is purely the result of the whims of their creator.”
Even though I’ve thought the same thing myself, her wording irritates me. She says it like she thinks we’re fools for believing such a thing. I glance at her and notice that she’s watching me closely, seeing more than I want. I hate the way she seems to see everything. It makes me feel more like a child than the centuries old vampire that I actually am.
“I imagine the reason why Everette hasn’t changed you yet is more to do with your purpose than his desire for you.”
Blinking, I bare my teeth, preparing to growl at her.
“He’s worried that he won’t be enough for you.”
This time I do growl at her. The girl in my arms, the only thing preventing me from pouncing on her. I grip Farah’s thigh a little too tightly and she lets out a little pained gasp, making me recoil. I can’t hurt her.
“It’s a heavy burden,” the Mother’s words are whispered, “believing yourself the reason someone else exists.”
“What do you want, Mother?” I ask, my voice harsh.
“I want your happiness.” It’s hard to believe something so simple. Her motives have never been so pure. Not once in the long time that I’ve known her.
“You don’t agree with him?” Farah asks, leaning towards the Mother. I don’t understand the question. “That vampires exist because of the… whims of their creators.”
The Mother smiles brightly at Farah as if she’s a precious child who has worked out the most difficult of puzzles.
“I couldn’t possibly presume myself so important.” The Mother nods her head emphatically. “It’s a ridiculous notion.”
“Then why?” Farah asks.
“I don’t know.” The Mother shrugs her shoulders. “I’ve asked that question myself, quite a few times. But I know I cannot give another being’s life meaning. No matter how much I care for them.”
It’s easy to see where her thoughts have gone. She’s thinking about Kirdem.
“Do we need a reason?” The question surprises me. Farah has reached out her hand to the Mother in a comforting gesture. She’s actually patting the hand of a deadly vampire without so much as a thought for her own safety. Is she completely bonkers?
“I think most people do, humans and vampires alike. Everette certainly needs to.”
“I do not,” I begin, but there isn’t much bark in my voice. I’ve always known why I exist. I knew my purpose, and it had certainly given me comfort. I’d even laughed at the little humans searching for a reason for their existence. “This is a silly conversation. If I wanted to discuss the reason for my existence, I would have had this conversation with Plato or Aristotle or Socrates.”
“You’re not that old?” Farah’s eyes widen in surprise.
“No. Of course not. I’m not even sure that the Mother is that old.”
The Mother merely smiles knowingly as she takes a bite of her breakfast.
“How old are you?” Farah asks. It’s a question she’s asked before, but now I see little reason not to answer her. She’s as good as dead already.
“I was born in the sixteen hundreds.”
“You’re four hundred years old?”
“Give or take.”
“Did you know… No. You couldn’t have.” She shakes her head disbelievingly.
“Did I know who?”
“Oliver Cromwell.”
“Yes. The Mother changed me after the civil war to ensure that stability would return to the realm.”
She’s blinking up at me with an unfathomably confused look on her face. She has thousands of questions and her upset has temporarily been forgotten.
“You look very good for four hundred,” she murmurs.
If I wasn’t a vampire, I might blush. Her voice is hushed, unintentionally seductive, and if the Mother wasn’t here with us, I’d have her naked and screaming my name within seconds. My body reacts to her, my dick growing hard beneath her.
She must feel it because the little minx wriggles her goddamned arse, looking up at me with mock innocence.
“Why are you telling me this?” Farah asks the Mother. I don’t know how she can be so unaffected. She knows exactly what she’s doing to me, but she’s not letting on at all.
