Nine

Dreams and nightmares whispered along my soul as I laid in bed. I could barely remember what was happening. I woke up for moments, feeling Beth next to me sometimes, and by myself other times. Her body heat comforted me most of the time. A fever had taken root, and I drowned in Beth’s body heat.

I felt lost to an ocean of madness. I sometimes gibbered. Other times, I simply moaned. Realization painted my thoughts the short times I was awake. If I didn’t take control, mother and aunt would have drained me dry. It didn’t even seem like they were aware of their own urges. They only wanted to feed and I was the only one who could sustain them. I should have heeded what my cousins were saying, but my own hubris weakened my control. I knew it was something I had to be aware of for the future.

The flashes of time began to slow. I slowly began to feel my strength return. The fever broke and the nightmares faded away.

Then, I woke up.

Beth opened her eyes as I sat up. She snuggled closer, gently trying to pull me back down, but I waved her hand away.

“I’m feeling better,” I said.

Beth sat up, her breasts exposed, and rubbing her eyes with her hands.

I turned to her and smiled. “How long?”

“Three days. Dana and I took turns. Your mother told us that our energies would slowly heal you as your life force regenerated.”

Beth hesitated before she continued with sad eyes. “Our mothers couldn’t tend to you since they feared they would attempt to drain you. They wished there was another way.”

I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood up. I walked over to my dresser and began rummaging through for some clothes.

“Don’t be mad at them. They couldn’t help themselves,” Beth said with a pleading edge.

I turned my head and smiled at my cousin. “I’m not mad. I actually feel better than I did before. It feels like I’m a new man. I want to talk to our mothers and tell them it will all be okay. I don’t want them to worry.”

The sadness in Beth’s eyes vanished and was replaced with a bright gleam. She slipped out of bed and gathered her clothes.

I looked to the window as I pulled out a shirt and pair of pants. The sun was low in the sky, as evening approached.

“Aunty Rose said she had a surprise for you, when you woke. She wanted to show it to all of us.”

“No time like the present,” I smiled and got dressed.

The longer I was awake, the better I felt. It was like my body was jumpstarted to a new level. I held no malice toward my mother and aunty Lily. I wanted to find them and tell them how much they mean to me. The dreams swirled in the back of my mind, telling me darker impulses to follow. Was it the dark gods? Was it the dreamlands? Was it me finding my place in our shared destiny?

Fully dressed, I rushed out of my room with Beth in tow. My stride was wide and my heart filled with power. We made our way to the top of the stairs of the foyer. I took the first step down, ready to look for the women I loved, when something crashed into the front door.

Time slowed down as the lock to the front door of the mansion shattered, wood splinters raining down to the carpet. I froze as I felt Beth next to me. We watched as a man and woman, armed with shotguns, waltzed in with foul intent in their eyes. They wore trench coats with arcane symbols on them. The pair looked up at us, and aimed.

“This den of darkness will burn!” the man shouted before his finger touched the trigger.

I cursed silently in my mind, knowing this day would come where hunters would find us and destroy everything my family created. Little did they know, the darkness whispered to me and I knew this would end bloody and raw for any who attempted to silence our sacred coven.