Chapter 20
Something was different; something was wrong. He was an intelligent man, and he knew his wife very well. So, the fact that he was unable or unwilling to admit to himself or to anyone else that Aislyn was acting peculiarly was blamed on a number of other things. She’d been sick. He was going through changes himself. Shannon’s death was disturbing to both of them, as was Kian’s disappearance. No, Aislyn wasn’t quite her former self, but who would be after a long illness? Additionally, she was nearly five months pregnant. She was certain she’d return to her usual disposition just as soon as the baby arrived.
When Aislyn refused dinner because she was nauseous and kept her eyes squinted because the light hurt her eyes, Aaron dismissed both as symptoms of the pregnancy or the illness. Her skin became paler; the circles under her eyes darker. Her skin was cold. He had never had a pregnant wife before, but he imagined all of these things could be because of the baby.
The butterflies in his stomach were just a reminder of why had married her in the first place; Aislyn was his perfect angel.
Aaron became quite good at living in denial. One day, walking into town, he passed a mourning party, carrying a tiny coffin to a grave. He didn’t have to ask how the child had died. He knew in his heart it had been yet another Vampire attack. He still refused to admit it was potentially his own wife who had claimed this wee babe.
It wasn’t until that very night, as he lay in a dreamless sleep, that a noise caught his attention. Half asleep, half awake, he opened his eyes. At first, he thought he must be dreaming, but sitting up and rubbing his eyes, he realized that what he was looking at was real. In the dim firelight, he saw Aislyn in the doorway, still wearing her white sleeping gown, but she had red liquid dripping from her chin, and before she realized he was awake, she used the back of her hand to wipe her face, and then licked the substance smeared across her knuckles.
Unsure exactly what to do, Aaron slid back down into bed. A few minutes later, Aislyn resumed her place next to him, but as he turned to face her, he could clearly see blood beginning to dry around her mouth.
He spent the next several hours staring at the ceiling above them, pondering what to do. How could he have let this happen? When, and by whom, had she been infected? Had it been right underneath his nose?
His best guess was that it had been Shannon. How she had been infected was beyond him, but during that time when Kian was unsure if anything was wrong, when Aaron was still pacifying him, she had likely made contact with his wife, changing their lives forever.
There was no way for him to know whether or not their child was also a Vampire. Just because the mother was one, did that automatically mean the unborn child would be as well? Resolved to seek out Ward or another expert the next day, he finally closed his eyes. Even then, however, he could not sleep. Whether he waited until the child was born or not, he would lose his Aislyn, a thought he could not fathom.
The next morning, he began to convince himself it was likely all a dream. Surely, his wife was not truly a Vampire. If there had been blood on her face the night before, there was none now. She had no fangs, and while her eyes were not quite the vibrant green they used to be, there were other reasons why they may appear darker.
Even though he wanted to dismiss the whole idea, he decided to at least head to town to look for Ward to see if he could answer a few other questions. On his way, he passed yet another tiny cross, this one very near the other. He began to realize there was only one possible outcome to this predicament.
Ward was not in the house where they had first met. He did a search around the village, hoping somehow he might be able to pick up on other like-minded individuals. Nowhere he turned did he find anyone who might be able to help him.
On his way back home, he happened by Kian’s parents’ house. There, in the back yard, he spied his best friend, chopping firewood. His initial reaction was to call out, but then he remembered; they were no longer friends. He stood in the road, staring in his direction for several minutes. Eventually, Kian looked up and saw him. Without a word, he dropped the axe and marched into the house.
With a sigh and a heavy heart, Aaron continued on his way, passing the crosses as he went.
When he walked in the door, Aislyn was there with a hug and a kiss, and things seemed much like they used to. She had dinner on the table, though it wasn’t much, and he sat next to her while she moved food around in her bowl, occasionally putting a bite in her mouth and removing it when she thought he wasn’t looking.
He went to bed that night still unsure what to do about the child. How could he punish his own baby for something so very much out of his or her control? None of this was even Aislyn’s fault, let alone the child. It took hours for him to fall asleep, and by the time he did, he was no closer to coming to a decision. He wished his Gen were there to help him.
The sound of the door creaking closed woke him a few hours later, but he didn’t bother to lift his head. He had no desire to see his Vampire wife lick the blood of an innocent child from her hand.
The next morning, Aaron awoke knowing precisely what he had to do.
