I was outside in the field of flowers looking out toward the road as the sun sought to break free from the darkness. It was a moment before I realised Luna was standing behind me.
“Where have you been?” I asked without turning.
“Come now, Avery.” She moved to stand by my side. “You know you don’t want to know the answer to that question.”
I let the sound of the birdcalls fill the silence for a moment before I allowed myself to look at her. I assumed she had changed out of bloodstained clothing before coming out to me, and she was breathtaking in ivory, her hair pulled away from her face. After a few moments, she met my gaze, a small smile lingering around her mouth.
“I want you to come somewhere with me.” I held my hand out to her.
“Where?”
“There is something I need you to see.”
She shrugged and placed her hand in mine. With only a lingering glance at the sun still struggling over the horizon, we were away.
We made the journey deep into the woods in silence. We soon reached a grassy grove no more than two metres wide sheltered by deep emerald trees. I entered the grove with Luna, stepping into heavy peach sunlight. Surrounding us was an unseen circle of magic Lina had cast a few hours before. She could trap Luna and me in this circle simply by uttering a few words.
Although she was well hidden, Luna became aware of Lina seconds after we entered the grove. She gave me an amused glance before she turned in the direction Lina was hiding. Lina moved out of the trees into view a few seconds later.
“My dear child. My meddlesome little Lina. What do you really think you’ll be able to do here today?” She laughed.
Lina was completely speechless. For a moment her carefully constructed armour came down and her thoughts were clear for us to see as she stared at Luna. It was the first time she had seen Luna since her mortal death. She had prepared herself for this moment, the moment when she might have to kill her mother. But she had not anticipated the effect it would have on her to see her mother again, looking exactly as she had the first time she laid eyes on her. She no longer saw the killer she had come here to maim or kill, but the mother she had dreamt of and gone in search of at sixteen.
Luna smiled and took a few steps toward her, moving out of the circle of magic and I began to see all our careful plans unravel before my eyes.
“Lina!” I cried.
I gave her a mental push, hoping to snap her back into the present and the task at hand. Then I grabbed Luna and pulled her back into the circle. In the blink of an eye she had broken out of my grasp, her hand around my throat, anger blazing in her eyes.
“What are you doing?” she hissed.
Thankfully, she stayed within the circle.
It seemed my action spurred Lina on because I saw movement out of the corner of my eye as she threw a ball of herbs at Luna. The herbs hit her, and she shuddered as the magic reverberated through her body. She froze, her limbs turning leaden in a way that was akin to watching running water rapidly turn to ice. The fury in her eyes turned to surprise and bewilderment.
Lina moved behind me so she was facing Luna.
“Step out of the circle, Avery,” Lina said.
I moved Luna’s frozen hand away from my throat, watching her eyes widen with fear and anger as I did what her daughter commanded. I realised that up until that moment, I had believed Lina would trap and kill both of us. Indeed, it was difficult to move away, leaving Luna vulnerable.
I moved to Lina’s side as she said an incantation that activated the magic and trapped Luna within the circle. The spell to make Luna immobile wore off much quicker than Lina had anticipated and we had no way of knowing if the magic circle would be able to contain her until Luna tried to shimmer out of the circle. Her image wavered and disappeared only for her to reappear immediately, stumbling backward violently. She fell to her knees.
Lina breathed a sigh of relief.
“Let me out of here,” Luna said calmly when she got to her feet.
Lina began the incantation.
There is only one way a vampire can be weakened, and it is the reason why the world is not overrun with the undead.
With all things natural, and supernatural, nature insists on a balance, a natural protection. If creating another vampire was an easy thing to do, the world would be overrun with our kind and the human race hunted to extinction. The bloodletting involved in creating another weakens a vampire considerably and it can take decades to recover. Some never do. But our skin is almost impenetrable and heals quickly. It would also be difficult to overcome Luna long enough to inflict a large enough wound for our purposes.
Lina could use magic to create an opening in Luna’s skin that would stay open long enough for large amounts of blood to be shed. But for the magic to work, it had to be a part of Luna’s body that had been scarred when she was mortal, and which had deep emotional and psychological ties associated with it.
That was our plan.
Luna moved to the outer limits of the circle, attempting to push against it.
“How dare you,” she hissed. “Stupid girl! Do you think your childish little spells can stop me?”
She focused on a sachet of herbs Lina was holding. It disintegrated and fell through Lina’s fingers like grains of sand. Then she focused her mental power on Lina. I made a small movement toward the circle to enter it and try to stop whatever it was Luna was trying to do to her own child. But Lina’s hand came up to grip my arm. Her hold was surprisingly strong, much stronger than that of a woman her age, and I was kept from moving forward.
The grains of herbs that had disintegrated a few moments before rose into the air, distracting Luna. Her eyes widened as the herbs flew through the air like a vengeful dark cloud and into the circle to surround her. She looked on in amazement as it rushed at her, either dissolving on her skin or passing through it completely.
She made to launch herself against the circle once more, her fangs bared, but then went rigid and reeled backward as if she had been shoved back. She cried out as she was overcome by a spasm that rippled through her entire body, her eyes widening in shock and pain, almost rolling into the back of her head. She started shaking before us.
Lina’s voice rose to a deafening shout as she continued the incantation. Luna was overcome by another spasm.
She fell to her knees with a tortured cry. Luna’s gaze met mine. I saw pain and confusion, intense confusion, before her gaze was torn from mine as another spasm rippled through her body.
She doubled over in pain, revealing four long crimson lines of blood seeping through the back of her gown. Another streak blossomed, and she screamed in pain again. Her entire back was soon soaked with blood, staining the skirts of her gown and pooling on the ground.
Her eyes were glazed over, her features darkened with pain so intense it consumed her. Her mind was laid bare for the first time in so long. My throat clenched as I watched her transported to that whipping post, Master Henry flaying her with the whip so soon after the trauma of childbirth. She had been numb to the pain at the time, but she relived it now. The physical pain was as fire streaking across her back and blazing to every part of her body, her heart wrenched in two after giving away the child—Lina—that hated child she so loved now.
I felt nausea rise up as Luna continued to scream out in pain. My limbs felt weak as her mental anguish overwhelmed me. I almost made a move forward and it was only Lina’s grip on my arm that prevented me from going to her.
Blood soaked the ground beneath Luna. Her cries turned to whimpers and I caught one word amidst her incoherent sobs: “Avery.”
“That’s enough, Lina,” I said.
Her chanting rose in the air, even faster now. Her grip on my arm felt as if she would crush me, and it was well beyond that of an ordinary human being.
Fearing it would be impossible to break her grip, I reached for Lina’s hand and pulled it away from my arm. I placed my hands on her shoulders.
“Enough, Lina. That’s enough!”
At last, Lina opened her eyes and fell silent. She looked past me to Luna lying on the ground covered in blood, her expression unflinching.
“Take me home,” Lina said.
“Should we not—”
“Now!”
Luna was struggling to get to her feet. “Avery?”
I saw terror in Luna’s eyes and the crippling distress I saw every time I had to leave her on her own. But I did not want to antagonise Lina into continuing the assault.
“Avery!” Luna screamed.
I shimmered out of the grove with Lina, leaving Luna trapped within the circle whilst the sun rose fully to claim the land.
I took Lina home.
“Thank you. For sparing both our lives.”
She faced me and I saw sadness and exhaustion written across her face.
“Of course I did. You really think I wanted to kill my own mama?”
“You could have. In truth, it is the only way to be sure the killing will end.”
“It’ll end. You’ll see to that. I ain’t seen it before now, but you the only hope she has. But you in for a world of pain, that much I know.”
She entered the house and closed the door.
I returned to the grove. Luna was sitting along the farthest reaches of the circle, leaning against one of the trees in an attempt to get some shade from the sun. It offered her no protection and the sun beat down as merciless as if it was punishing her for all those she had slaughtered. Her thoughts were shielded from me, but her eyes told of her fury when she glanced up at me.
I wanted to pick her up and take her home, but Lina had warned me that under no circumstances was I to free Luna before sunset. I was reminded again of the seemingly unlimited nature of Luna’s strength and power, because no other vampire could have survived that amount of blood loss and remained coherent, let alone survive in the sun for as long as she had.
She only spoke when I made to leave.
“Avery? Avery!” She tried to get to her feet but fell back against the tree.
I disappeared into the ether, but could still hear her screaming my name.
I stayed nearby, listening to the sound of her heartbeat, a tattoo of hope I clung to. She was, and always would be, my only reason for existing, the only reason why I would continue to live. Without her, I had nothing.