“Well, thank you. But I am a reporter, too. I want to act though how I think they should. Reporters can be great things when they act as truth-tellers, when they expose the powerful if they’ve abused that power–and they almost always do–or when there’s something people need to know to make an informed choice,” she said.
“You’re right,” he agreed.
But he also knew that they couldn’t have “good” reporters like Rachel telling people the truth about Vampires. It was too nuanced for reporting. Maybe there was too much darkness in them. But she would say that she was simply bringing light and light was curative.
But Vampires live in the dark.
“Have you given any thought to–to what we talked about before?” she asked so hopefully.
“About? Oh… my mother. No, I haven’t had time. Too much to consider here,” he said.
“But when you’re turned, it’s my understanding that you can’t see humans alone for… awhile,” she pointed out.
He wasn’t sure if that was really going to be true of them. He was certain it wouldn’t be. But it was a consideration. If he was going to see his mother, would it be better to see herbeforehe was turned?
One last time as Grayson and not Ashyr?
“I’m still thinking,” he said. “I’m not rejecting it out of hand. I just need time.”
She nodded. “Yeah, of course, I’m sorry. I guess just coming here, seeing the allure of Vampirism, I had this thought that you–you would go away again.”
“Not forever,” he reminded her.
“What’s forever for an immortal being? A year is nothing. Five years? Ten years? Fifteen? Twenty? Whole lifetimes can be gone before you might even realize it,” she said.
That was quite the understanding for someone so young, but then he realized why she had learned this lesson already.
“You’re thinking of the time I’ve already been gone,” he said.
“Did it feel long to you? It felt like a long time to me. But short too. So short. The years just flew by. I imagine for a Vampire it would be even more like that. Years like minutes. Decades like hours. Centuries like months?” she made the last sound like a question.
“Yeah, I think it’s like that.”
Faster actually.
“So I just don’t want to lose you for another decade or more,” Rachel said, smiling, but eyes filled with tears.
He nodded and pulled her into an embrace. His chest and throat felt tight. He couldn’t say any of the words that seemed to want to come out even if he wasn’t sure what they were. When they pulled away, Rachel was smiling and swiping away those tears.
“My makeup,” she said. “Is it all smeared?”
“You’re still good,” he promised her. “Camera ready.”
“Excellent. You better move on. Wow.” She looked past him. “I think Christian Thorn is waiting for you.”
Grayson turned around and saw the handsome blond-haired boy. Christian was dressed all in black like the other Kaly, even though he was an Eyros. But through Balthazar, he had received Kaly blood, too. He was a Speaker to the Dead and would be invaluable to the Kaly tonight. But it was odd that Christian was waiting for him. Christian lifted a hand in greeting.
“You’re right. I better get going. But I’ll see you after,” he promised here. “Maybe a glass of wine or some food?”
She nodded eagerly. “Absolutely. If you don’t mind me working while we eat and drink.”
He shook his head. “No worries. You gotta do what you gotta do. Get the scoops out the door.”
With a final squeeze, he turned from her and headed over to Christian who was waiting for him. Christian looked elegant in form-fitting black pants, black boots and a long coat with a high-collar that framed his delicate face.
“Hey! To what do I owe the pleasure? Or am I just really late?” Grayson laughed, but he saw that other students were still arriving.
“You’re not late at all,” Christian assured him. “Caemorn thought it would be a good idea if I was your guide tonight.”
