Julien Gregg's Twilight in Babylon: The Vampire Saga Chapter 4

 Chapter Four
Powerful

"It's different for me to know that your dad knows all about me and the
rest of the Maxwells," Edward said when we were in my room. "Does he know
about the Forsaken?"

"He knows it all," I said. "I was blown away by all that he knows. He said
a witch knows a vampire when he sees one, and that he knew the Forsaken
when he sees them, too."

"That's wild," he said. "When I was a human witch I never saw a vampire so
I can't say if that's true or not. I believe him because he knew we were."

"He also says that Billy wasn't going to break the treaty or the Council Di
Vampire because he also knows that the tribe has a gene for shapeshifters
and that they're all secret so he wasn't breaking the rule of
secrecy. However he did break his vow to Jacob because Jacob is the chief
of the tribe now."

"That's a bunch to think about," he said. "Your dad was right about the
treaty and Council Di Vampire, but Billy broke the tribe vow. We'll talk
about this with the Tribal Council."

I went to sleep after that. I was so exhausted. I woke up around eleven,
and I woke up Charlie. He thanked me and we both got dressed to be there at
two o'clock. Edward was with me and Charlie didn't seem to care about
that. He said good morning to Edward as well.

"You know that he wasn't breaking the treaty or the rule of secrecy from
the Council Di Vampire, right?" he asked Edward.

"Yes," Edward said. "Beau told me about that last night. What he almost did
was break the vow to the tribe."

"Well that will be for the Tribal Council to decide what to do with him,"
he said. "He's my best friend and I don't want him to be in trouble with
the vampires or the tribe to be honest. He knows secrets that he keeps but
breaking them in front of Beau makes me angry but I'll deal with him
myself."

"The Tribal Council has called the conference," Edward said. "We'll tell
them what really happened when we get there."

"Good," Charlie said. "Like I said I don't want him in trouble with the
vampires or the tribe because he didn't break the treaty or the rule of
secrecy."

"He won't be in trouble with the vampires," Edward said. "He won't be in
trouble for breaking the rule of secrecy either. He will be in trouble with
the tribe because he broke his vow. Do they all know that you already know
the secrets?"

"No," said Charlie after a moment. "He doesn't know it either. That could
actually break the treaty that he would tell someone that he doesn't know
that the person knows it already. I knew about the treaty from a vampire."

"Who told you about the treaty?" Edward asked.

"A vampire named Mikey," he said. "He was dating my brother Kale."

"How did Mikey know about the treaty?" Edward asked.

"Because he was confronted by tribal men when he was hunting a criminal who
crossed into their reservation," Charlie said.

This was news to me but it was also news to Edward. I wondered if Gabriel
knew this. I looked at Edward who shrugged his shoulders like a human. I
smiled and he smiled back at me. I looked at Charlie and he was smiling at
us.

We left for the conference with the Tribal Council at one-thirty. I rode
with Edward and Charlie drove his cruiser. When we arrived at the hotel we
saw all of the cars that the vampires and Forsaken drove. The tribe was
just arriving. Jacob watched me and Edward and shook his head. I felt bad
about that but I was still staying beside Edward.

There were ten of them. All were young except for Billy who looked like he
was frightened. Jacob and the others took their seats on one side of the
table in the conference room.

"We're here to hear what Billy Black, a tribal man said to Beau Swan," said
Jacob. He said it formally.

"He told me that he was going to tell Charlie that Edward was a vampire," I
said. "I told him that would break the treaty, but I didn't know it would
not and neither did he. He told me that knowing about Edward also broke the
rule of secrecy that was made by the Council Di Vampire."

"Billy Black," said Jacob. "Did you know that Charlie Swan knew of the
treaty or the rule of secrecy?"

"No, I did not," he said.

"Did you know before you talked to him that Beau Swan knew about the treaty
or the rule of secrecy?"

"No, I did not," said Billy.

"Then you broke the treaty by telling Beau that you knew that Edward was a
vampire and threatening to tell Charlie," he said. "Do the vampires have
anything to say to this?"

"We don't believe he broke the treaty by telling Beau who already knew,"
said Gabriel.

"It is decided that he broke Tribal Law by ignoring an order from the
chief," said Jacob.

"That has nothing to do with the vampires," said Gabriel.

"No it does not," he said. He gave me a smile and a nod before we all got
up and walked out of the room.

It seemed to me to be a formal meeting run by a teenager who didn't really
know what he was doing but I didn't say anything. Jacob was young to be
Chief but he'd learn what he needed to do as time went on.

"That was not run well," Edward said. "Jacob Black has big shoes to fill."

"He certainly does," I agreed. "I know it wasn't run correctly but he's
young."

"Yes," he said. "Billy Black is in hot water with the tribe. Your dad
didn't want him to be but Billy put himself in hot water."

"I agree," I said. "I didn't know the treaty at the time, but I knew I
wasn't breaking the secrecy rule from the Council Di Vampire."

"No, but until I turn you I'm breaking the rule of secrecy," he said.

"But I'm a witch," I countered.

"So you're saying that because you're a witch I'm not breaking the secrecy
rule?" he laughed. "That's brilliant and for some reason I hadn't thought
of that."

"Are you serious?" I asked, incredulous.

"Yes," he said. "You never use an overt power so it's easy for me to forget
the fact that you're a witch. That means that you would know the secret
anyway. That lets me off the hook for the secrecy rule."

"That's right," I said. "I just thought you'd have already thought of
that. It was obvious."

"Well with the threat posed by Billy Black, the vampires that aren't like
us, and keeping you safe that one just slipped through the cracks."

"I'm sorry that you have to keep me safe," I said.

I was sorry about it. If I could just figure out what my power was I could
use it and hopefully defend myself. I mean I wasn't initiated but I had to
have more than just the shield in my head.

When we got to my house Edward came in with me. Charlie was already sitting
at the dining room table. We went in and sat down. He didn't say anything
for a long moment. Then he sighed.

"My best friend is in hot water with his tribe," he said. "And the tribe is
being run by a child."

"Yes," Edward said simply. "Jacob is too young and inexperienced to run the
tribe. But he will get better at it with age and experience. I'm just glad
there was no push on the treaty. Jacob as chief could make life for the
vampires very uneasy."

"He wouldn't do that," said Charlie. "Jacob is a good kid. He'll see his
way through all of that vampires and humans bullshit. Now he knows that
we're witches so he could take offense to that as well."

"Why would he?" Edward asked. "You're still living breathing humans. That's
what he'll take issue with. If I turn Beau in Babylon the tribe will come
for us."

I was silent the whole time they were talking. I just stared at the three
wick candle in the center of the table and wished that I could light the
three wicks. I gasped when all three wicks were aflame suddenly. I looked
at Edward and Charlie and they were both looking at me with wide eyes.

I drew the fire back with a thought. The wicks smoldered. Then I lit them
again. I gasped again and so did Charlie. Edward had become a statue. I
looked from him to Charlie and back again.

"Beau," Charlie said slowly. "You found your power."

"It's a power that I'm familiar with in more than one way," Edward
said. "Every Maxwell vampire has at least one gift that Eric Maxwell
had. I, as a witch could read minds. I wasn't very good at controlling it
when I was human. Now that I'm a vampire I'm great with control. I never
had pyrokinesis as a power. My cousin had that. As a Maxwell vampire I have
the power of combustion. I can incinerate the dead. It comes in handy when
I feed. There's no evidence left that way.

"But Beau," he continued, "has the actual power of pyrokinesis. It's
terrible and fantastic at the same time. Its terrible because trying to
help him develop the power could be dangerous and fantastic because he can
use it to defend himself if he learns to really use it."

"Why is it dangerous," I said. "I can just light candles."

"No," he said, shaking his head. "You can burn anything."

"Anything?" I asked, stunned.

"True pyrokinetics can burn anything they choose," he said. "They can even
make flames dance on the water."

"Surely I'd have to be initiated to do that," I said.

"You would," he said. "But you can do a lot of damage uninitiated as well."

"That's scary," I said. "I wanted an active power but I didn't want to be
destructive."

"Well, careful what you wish for," he said, smiling as his phone rang. He
answered it and then said, "He just lit a three wick candle, put it out,
and lit it again with his mind." He was quiet for a moment and then, "I
know how dangerous it can be. I don't know how to help him with this." Then
he hung up the phone.

"Archie?" I asked, smiling.

"Yes," he said. "He just saw you burning someone."

"I don't want to burn anyone," I said quickly. "That's not how I'd choose
to use my power."

"Remember what he sees isn't exactly the future," he said. "It's what could
happen. You have to be careful."

"I will be," I said forcefully. "I don't want to kill anyone with this
power."

"Well we're gonna have to test it," he said. He looked at Charlie. "With
your permission."

"He needs to get a handle on it before he burns the house down," he said,
smiling. "Go ahead and help him if you can."

We went to the Maxwell House and Archie was waiting for us. He looked at me
oddly at first and then smiled. He hugged me and I hugged him back. I was
worried that they'd all be afraid of me because I had pyrokinesis.

"We're going to help you learn some control," he said as he came down the
steps. "We should probably go to the back of the house and face the river."

I had never been behind the house before so I got my first sight of the
river. The water was running slowly and it looked beautiful with trees,
bushes, and little bulrushes all around the bank.

"Archie has set up a few things that you can burn," Edward said. I noticed
that the others were watching from the glass side of the house. That made
me nervous and he noticed. "Calm down. It won't hurt anyone."

"Okay," I said.

I worked on my breathing and watched as Archie set up an old table, an
archery target, and a stack of old shoes. I looked at the old table and
thought about it burning. That didn't work so I took a few breaths and
centered it in my mind. I looked at the middle of it and thought of it
burning. It smoked but didn't burn at first. I kept looking at it and
finally told it with my mind to burn. It burst into flames rather quickly
after that.

"Try to pull it back," Archie said, watching it burn.

I looked at it and thought about putting the fire out. It fizzled and
popped but the fire went away. I breathed a sigh of relief. Archie slapped
me on the back while Edward stood a few feet away from me. I turned to the
archery target.

"Try to only burn the bull's eye," Archie said, smiling at me.

I looked at the bull's eye and thought about burning it until it started to
smoke. Then before I knew what was going to happen a bolt of fire shot from
in front of me into the bull's eye.

"Oh my god," I gasped.

"It's fine," Archie said. "That's the way the power works. When you get
worked up it turns into bolts of fire. Try to calm down and pull the fire
back."

I looked at the burning bull's eye and thought about putting it out. It
took me a few tries but it finally went out but kept smoking. I was
breathing hard and trying to keep calm. It was hard for me but I tried
anyway.

"That's enough for today," Edward said. "He's breathing hard, Archie."

"Yeah," Archie said, "I think we're done for the day. Do you know how you
started each fire?"

"I commanded it to burn with my mind," I said. Then I moaned as a pain shot
through my body. Edward was at my side in a minute. "I'm fine," I said. "It
was just an errant pain from somewhere."

"I was expecting it," said Edward, confusing me.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because every time my cousin would burn something so big he'd get a pain
through his body as soon as he pulled the fire back. Think about it,
Beau. The fire doesn't want to be pulled back. It wants to burn."

"Who did you see me burning?" I asked Archie.

"A red headed woman," he said. "There was an overturned automobile and you
were on the ground bleeding. You laughed as you set her on fire."

"That's crazy," I said.

"Maybe it's not," he said. "It was a very clear picture in my head. It's
going to happen."

"Oh god," I sighed and sat down on the ground.

The others came outside after I'd stopped burning things. Jason and Elfric
came right up to me. Elfric handed me a glass of cold water. It helped
things but I just looked at them all.

"You have a mighty dangerous power," said Gabriel. "In vampires it only
works on necrotic tissue. That's how we burn our victims."

"Edward told me about that," I said. "I just figured out I could do it
today."

"You're tired," said Jason.

"Yes," I agreed.

"Edward, take him home so he can rest," Gabriel said. "We don't want him to
overdo it."

"All right," he said and I followed him to his car.

"I'm all right," I said as he put the car in gear and backed out of his
parking spot in front of the house.

"You're tired," he said. "You exerted yourself like you never have
before. That's draining."

"I am tired," I agreed.

We drove in silence and for once I wished that I could read his mind. He
said nothing as he drove me and I wondered if he was a bit afraid of me. I
didn't like that thought so I decided to confront it.

"Are you scared of me?" I asked him.

"No, Beau," he said. "We're in love, so I doubt seriously that you'd try to
set me on fire. I'm a little worried about Archie's vision. I saw it in his
head. You were hurt badly when you set that woman on fire. I don't know why
but I think she's the one who hurt you."

"That's crazy," I said. "I only know one red headed girl and that's
Angela. She wouldn't hurt a fly."

"I know," he said. "It's a conundrum."

When we got to the house I told Charlie what happened but by then my words
were slurring. He sent me up to bed. Edward told me he'd be with me in a
moment. I left him to talk to Charlie about what had happened at House
Maxwell.

I was asleep almost as soon as my head touched my pillow. I didn't even
realize that Edward had come into the room. I didn't wake up until Saturday
morning. The dance had happened the night before. I'd missed seeing Mike
and Mitch in their tuxes but so much had happened yesterday anyway.

"You're finally really wake?" Edward asked me as I sat up.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"There were a few false starts for you," he said. "You talked a lot in your
sleep. Mostly about not wanting to hurt anyone."

"Strange," I said. "I don't even remember dreaming."

"Well you did," he said, giving me that famous crooked smile I loved so
much.

"I need a shower," I said. "I can't believe I slept in my clothes and
didn't change."

"You were tired," he said.

"I'll say I was tired," I laughed.

I grabbed clean clothes and headed for the shower. I was in there for a
little bit but I was basking in the hot water. Then I dried off, brushed my
teeth, and got dressed. We went downstairs and found Kale at the table.

"I hear you found your power," he said with a grin as we came into the
kitchen.

"Sure did," I said. "It drained the energy out of me to use it though."

"It's like that for all of us uninitiated witches," he laughed. "You'll get
the balance eventually. Pretty soon you'll light the fireplace on cold
nights."

"That'll be the day," I said as I got a bowl, spoon, the cereal, and milk.

"That doesn't look healthy," Edward said.

"Well I'm too hungry to cook anything," I said.

He got up and took the bowl and spoon from me. He put the cereal back in
the cabinet and the milk back in the fridge. Then he got out eggs, bacon,
and bagels. He made scrambled eggs and bacon and toasted the bagels. He
built me a sandwich and handed it to me.

"I'm impressed," Kale said. "For one who doesn't eat you can sure cook."

"Food Network," Edward deadpanned.

"I'm guessin'," said Kale. "I gotta head to work but thanks for breakfast."

"Any time," Edward said as Kale got up and left the kitchen.

"He must be done with inventory," I said.

"Do you have to work today?" he asked.

"No," I said. "I only work on weeknights. It gets too busy on weekends for
me."

"Is that Kale's rule or yours?" he asked.

"Kale's," I said.

"I was about to tease you about being afraid to work at the store on
weekends," he said, smiling at me.

"Well, I'm off today so what do you want to do?" I asked.

"I'd like to show you a place I like to go to when I'm alone with nothing
to do," he said. "You'll need your hiking boots."

"All right," I said and got up to find them in the closet. I put them on.

"You might want to pack a bag of food in case you get hungry while we're
there," he said. "I don't eat so I never think of it."

I packed a bag with nuts and a sandwich and off we went. I drove my truck
and he gave me directions. We left Babylon and drove down the one oh one to
a thick wooded area. He had me stop there and the rest was a hike. I wasn't
looking forward to the hike but I followed behind him.

It took us almost an hour to come to a meadow that was all grass and
flowers. There was almost a perfect ring around it that was trees. It was
sort of beautiful. Edward spread the blanket he'd been carrying. I didn't
know where it had come from. We sat on that and I put my book bag on the
grass beside us.

"So," he said. "You now know what your power is and you have a rough idea
of how to use it."

"Yes, but it really drains me," I said.

"I noticed," he laughed. "You'll get the hang of it if you keep
practicing."

"Until I burn the red haired woman," I said.

"About that," he said. "I've been thinking. You said the only red haired
girl you know is Angela, but the woman I saw in Archie's vision wasn't
Angela. It was a stranger that I've never seen before. I only saw her just
before she was engulfed in flames though."

"Can we not talk about that?" I asked, holing up my hand to ward off
anything else he had to say about it.

"Sure," he said. "We can talk about school if you like."

"Why would we talk about school?" I asked.

"Don't know," he said. "We could talk about the next dance."

"That'll be the Spring Fling," I said. "I don't want to go to it."

"I think you should," he said, looking at me intently. I suddenly
remembered him saying that he wanted me to have all of the experiences of
high school.

"That's right you want me to experience high school," I said with a sigh.

"I'll go with you," he said. "You'll be fine."

"You've never seen me in gym class," I stated.

"No I haven't," he said. "But judging from the amount of times you stumbled
in the forest to get here I think I can figure out your problem. It won't
be a problem with me."

"Oh yeah?" I asked, smiling. "How's that?"

"It's all in the leading," he said with a smug smile.

"The leading, huh?" I laughed. "You think you can make me not be a klutz on
the dance floor?"

"Something like that," he said.

"Well I'll think about it," I said.

"Good," he said. "I really do want you to have the whole experience."

"Have you gone to any of the school dances?" I asked.

"No, none of us have," he said. "We don't do dances usually."

"So this is all about me?" I asked.

"The others say they'll go to the dance if you do," he said.

"Oh they do, do they?" I laughed.

"I'll think it over," I said.

"We have time," he said. Then he pulled me closer and my heart began to
beat faster.

He kissed me like he'd never kissed me before. I kissed back and put my
arms around his waist and pulled him closer. We made out like love sick
boys for a long moment. He broke the kiss and smiled at me.

"I've never done this here," he said.

"You've had sex before though, right?" I asked.

"Yes," he said. "I've had sex with one person one time."

"Only once?" I asked, curious.

"Sex is part of the bonding processes, Beau," he said.

"Oh," I said. "Jason."

"Yeah," he said. "Jason isn't gay so there's nothing between us."

"All right," I said. "He's really into a girl at school. I've noticed."

"Yeah, but he'll never talk to her," he said. "He has to tell her the
secret and she has to accept it before anything major will happen between
them. The bond makes him extremely fertile and makes sure that his children
will be male."

"Why?" I asked.

"Originally, you were supposed to bond a married man who could father your
fledglings," he said. "It hasn't been done that way in a very long
time. Your first drone will be a member of the Forsaken, and you can't turn
one. It's against the rules and the penalty is death."

"I'll remember that," I said. "But there are no unbound Forsaken around," I
said.

"There's a farm full of them not far from Babylon," he revealed.

"How do you know this?" I asked.

"Because Nathan went to meet them," he said. "They're just a family of
Forsaken with cattle."

"Do they not hunt people?" I asked.

"Not the Forsaken," he said. "They only time they bite a human is to turn
him into a Forsaken."

"They can do that?" I asked.

"They can but it's rarely done," he said. "Forsaken are usually born
instead of turned but Nathan is a turned Forsaken."

"Wow," I said.

"It's not something that he talks about," he said.

"Obviously," I said. "I wouldn't say anything to him about it. Trust me."

"I do," he said. Then we went back to making out.

He was pawing at me but to be fair I was pawing at him too. He finally
broke the kiss and asked me how far I wanted to go. I smiled and slipped my
hand up the leg of his shorts to answer him.

We went back to making out but now I was trying to undress him. He was
doing the same thing to me. First my shirt came off and then his. We both
stood to take off our shorts and underwear.

Edward naked was a sight to behold. He was chiseled to perfection
everywhere. I could see the muscles in his legs and thighs, and his stomach
came to a "V" right where his crotch began. His dick was big but not a
monster. It was about the same size as my own.

I took it into my hand and he moaned. I remembered that he'd had sex with
Jason once so it wasn't like he didn't know what he was doing. He pulled me
down to the blanket again and then he went down on me. I saw stars! It was
the most amazing feeling in the world. He worked me into a frenzy pretty
quickly. Then he seemed to know that he had and moved up my body to kiss
me.

I moved down his body and tried to do to him what he had done to me. I knew
to watch my teeth, and I was surprised that I could take all of him into my
throat without gagging. He moaned and writhed on the blanket for a few
minutes and then he pulled me back up his body.

"I want to make love to you," he said. "I have a way to make it not hurt if
you'll let me."

"Of course I'll let you," I gasped.

He used his own saliva to wet his dick and then he was at my entrance. He
pushed and was inside me and all I felt was full. He began the back and
forth motion and really made love to me. He kissed me several times while
he did this. I was riding a high wave of pleasure. I didn't think it could
get any better than this. He continued to rock back and forth with my legs
over his shoulders. Then he pressed himself against me and stopped.

"Ready to do me?" he asked with a smile.

We switched positions and I used my saliva to wet my dick. I pushed and
entered him and it was warm and constrictive. It was so much better than
his mouth and I did the same thing to him that he'd done to me. I hoped I
was giving him as much pleasure as he'd given me. He moaned and kissed me a
lot so I imagined that he was having a good time. All too soon I felt my
orgasm building. I picked up the pace a bit and then held myself against
him and let go. Then we were kissing and cuddling.

"That was amazing," I said.

"It was for me, too," he said. "I'd had sex one time before but it was
nothing like this."

"That's good to know," I laughed.

"You sexy nervous boy," he said and kissed me again.

We packed up and headed back through the forest. I did a little better with
the hike that day. We drove back to my house and he went in with me. Kale
was there but Charlie hadn't come home yet. I put my uneaten lunch in the
fridge and started on dinner.

Edward sat at the table and watched me cook. He seemed enthralled with all
that I did. It was strange to have him be so attentive when I was usually
the one staring at him. I didn't say anything though. I put the meatloaf in
the oven and started to peel potatoes. He helped.

When it was time I boiled the potatoes. When they were about done I made
gravy and got a box of rolls out of the pantry. I put them on a cookie
sheet and put them in the oven. Dinner was done by the time Charlie came
in.

We ate, well Edward didn't, but he sat and talked with us while we
ate. When the meal was over he did dishes with me while Kale and Charlie
went into the living room to watch television.

It was still unreal for my dad and Kale to be in the house and know that
Edward was here and not bat an eye. Charlie had thrown me for a loop when
he told me we were all witches. Now of course I knew that I was a witch
with a very powerful and destructive power.

Before I knew it Renee and Phil were in Babylon for Christmas. Thanksgiving
had been a feast that I'd cooked myself, shocking Charlie and Kale with my
abilities. They were shocked that Renee and Phil had flown in from Florida
to be with us for Christmas.

Charlie had Christmas catered and all we had to do was put the turkey and
pies in the oven and heat up the sides. We had presents for each other and
a tree was up. I got more music files and stuff for the truck. Charlie
bought me clothes that I was sure were picked out by Kale. Renee bought me
stuff for the truck and a game for my computer. Phil got me a signed
baseball. It was signed by the twenty-one seventy Chicago Cubs. I loved it.

"Where's this boyfriend I've been hearing all about and haven't seen?"
Renee asked me. She was smiling so I knew that she wasn't upset.

"He'll be here in about an hour to take me to his parents' house for
Christmas over there," I said. "You'll meet him then."

"Where is your truck?" she asked.

"It's at Edward's," I said. "I was too tired to drive back after the
bonfire."

"They had a bonfire at their house?" she asked.

"No," I laughed. "I parked the truck at Edward's and rode with him and his
brother to the bonfire at the school."

"Oh," she said. "What, he's just going to come and get you?"

"Yeah," I said.

"That's no good," she said, smiling. "I need to interrogate him. This is
your first boyfriend. Come on, Beau."

"There's no need for an interrogation," I said. "Besides he'll spend the
day with us before you leave to head back to Florida."

"Good," she said. "I so happy that you're happy, Beau. Friends, a
boyfriend. Wow."

"The kids here refuse to be ignored," I said with a smile. "And Edward just
wouldn't be left alone either. It took a bit for us to admit to each other
that we even liked each other. Now we're good. His family is extremely nice
and I like all of his brothers."

"All of them?" she asked. "How many does he have?"

"He has four brothers and two cousins living with him and his family," I
said. "They live with two doctors and a financial planner."

"That's exciting," she said. "You didn't tell me this on the computer. I
had to wait until I got here from Florida to learn that there was a
boyfriend."

"I didn't want you to hop a plane to come and interrogate him," I laughed.

"Am I that bad?" she asked.

"I don't know," I said. "I never had a boyfriend before."

She laughed and hugged me. "Oh, I've missed you, Beau."

"I've missed you, too," I said. "How are things in Florida?"

"They're great," she said. "The house is so nice, and Phil is playing for
one of the local double A ball teams."

"That's great," I said, happy for both of them. "That's what he wanted."

"Yes," she said. "And they told him his star is rising fast."

"That's exciting," I said.

"It is," she laughed. "Oh, baby boy things are working out for both of us."

"It sounds it," I said. "I never thought I'd have so many friends but I
have them now."

"What are your friends like?" she asked.

"Well, I'd say my closest friend is Mitch Weber," I said. "He's kind and
considerate to everyone and never says a bad thing about anyone. Mike,
Eric, and Tyler are your typical teenage boys."

"No girls in the mix?" she asked.

"Sure, Angela, Jessica, and Miranda," I said. "They date the boys."

"Of course they do," she said. "Are there any other gay kids at your
school?"

"Sure," I said. "I don't really know them but I see them in the halls. One
kid has a rainbow flag taped to the outside of his locker."

"Well how about that," she said, smiling. "I miss talking with you, Beau."

"I miss talking to you," I said.

"You know Phil doesn't travel as much now," she said. "You could come and
live with me and Phil in Florida. Oh, Beau you'll love it in
Florida. There's sunshine every day, the ocean is just blocks from the
house, and the food there is incredible."

"Mom, I want to live in Babylon," I said. "I have friends, a boyfriend, and
Dad and Kale here. I want to stay here."

"Yeah?" she asked. "I thought sure the ocean would tip the scales in my
favor."

"Sorry, Mom," I said. "I'm happy here."

"Well you could be happy in Florida," she said.

"I could, but I'm not going to move there," I said gently.

"Well alright then," she said and started to search her large purse for
something. I thought it would be a tissue and hoped she wouldn't
cry. Instead she pulled a large vanilla envelop out and handed it to
Charlie.

"What's this?" he asked as he accepted it.

"Custody," she said. "We now share custody."

"Thank you," he said. "I was going to ask you about that but I hadn't found
the right time."

"Well now we have shared custody but you have physical custody," she
said. "If he decides to move to Florida we can reverse it."

"Sounds good," he said as he put the envelop on the table. Just then there
was a knock on the door and Edward came in.

"Edward come and meet my mother and stepfather," I said, beaming at him.

He came in and hugged Renee and then looked at Phil. He smiled and said,
"You're Phillip Dwyer! I saw you on television in front of the Sky High
Sports Complex in Orlando when you were signed to the Florida Gators."

"That's me," said Phil, blushing slightly.

The man was a good looking blonde haired, blue eyed, muscle man. I was a
little upset when Renee brought him around to meet me because he was in his
late twenties and she was in her forties. But I had grown to like him over
the time after they married.

"I've seen you play on the Sky High Sports channel," Edward said. "You're
good."

"Thank you," Phil said. "Would you like me to sign something?"

"Sure," Edward said, reaching in his pocket and pulling out a baseball. He
handed it to Phil while Renee got a black permanent marker out of her purse
and handed that to him as well.

Phil signed "To Edward, my favorite fan from Phillip Dwyer number
twenty-two, Florida Gators twenty-one seventy." He handed the ball to
Edward with a killer smile. Edward smiled back and glanced at me and than
back at Phil.

"Thank you," he said. "I'll put this with my other baseball memorabilia."

"Cool," Phil said, grinning again.

"We really need to get going," Edward said. "My parents are expecting us."

"You kids have fun," said Charlie. "Say hello to Doctor Gabriel for me."

"Will do," Edward said. He turned to Renee and Phil. "Renee, Phil, great to
meet you both. I wish we had more time."

"That time will come," Renee assured him.

We got out of there after that. Edward drove back to his parents house. He
didn't say anything at first and I feared that he was angry with me. Then
he turned and smiled at me and took my hand in his.

"Merry Christmas, Beau," he said.

"Merry Christmas, Edward," I said back.

That was all that was said on the road to his house. When we got there I
saw the place was all lit up with twinkling lights. He smiled at me and
told me that they all loved Christmas. I laughed at this and followed him
inside.

"Beau," said Elfric as we came in. "You're finally here."

"Sorry we took so long," I said.

"Nonsense, you arrived at just the right moment," he said.

We followed him into the family room. I had not been this far into the
house yet. It was all brick with a hardwood floor. Plush furniture lined
the walls that weren't glass. It was all white.

"Have a seat, Beau," Roman said. "We've been waiting for you."

"Sorry to keep you waiting," I said as I sat down next to Edward on the
sofa. "You guys waited to open presents until I was here?"

"No," said Elfric. "We opened gifts this morning. These are our gifts to
you and we'll open the stack of present you brought with you."

"Okay," I said and smiled. Roman started to hand out presents.

From Elfric and Gabriel there was a long shallow box. I took the wrapping
paper off and opened the box to find two plane tickets to Orlando. I smiled
and looked at them. Elfric said, "So you can visit your mother."

"Thank you so much," I said and he hugged me.

From Nathan I got hand carved wall plaque. It was a wolf. I smiled at him
and he told me that he'd carved it himself. I thought that was a miracle
with his big hands, but then he was a cardiologist. From Jason and John I
got a GPS system that was better than the one in the computer in the
truck. The box was empty and Jason told me that it had already been
installed. I laughed at this and thanked him.

Roman and Emit got me another empty box but this was for a car
stereo. Roman told me that it was not only installed but programmed and
everything. "I worked on the computer in you truck as well. It won't be so
loud anymore and I've removed the fail safe of sixty-five."

"Thank you," I said with a smile.

Archie and Jasper got me a very nice thick sweatshirt that was the Babylon
Knights, the name of all of the sports teams at Babylon High School. I
thanked them for it. They both said they had no idea what to give me.

Edward gave me a chain necklace that looked like it was braided. It was at
least eighteen karat gold. I loved it and he put it on me. He also gave me
a music file with all of the classic piano pieces that I loved. He said
he'd played them all and recorded them with his computer and made the
file. I thanked him and kissed him.

I had got each of the boys a sweatshirt from school. Edward got a necklace
that was similar to the one I was currently wearing. For the adults I got
plaques with their names and titles engraved in the wood. I'd made them in
wood shop. They looked great, and they were all happy with what I gave
them.

"So are your mother and stepfather staying long?" Elfric asked me.

"They'll stay at a hotel tonight and fly back to Orlando tomorrow after a
little chat with Edward," I said and smiled.

"Do they know the secret?" asked Elfric.

"No," I said. "Renee isn't a witch or shapeshifter so she can't know the
secret unless Phil is bonded and she is his wife."

"Yes, that's correct," said Elfric. "I just wondered if she knew because
Charlie knew but I guess if she's not married to him he can't tell her
either."

"No," I said. "The secret stays with the ones who can know the truth about
us all."

"Very good," Elfric said, smiling at me. "I know it's difficult to keep
things from your mother, but this secret would do more harm than good."

"Believe me I know that," I said. "Renee would freak out and tell people. I
have made my decision to keep her as much in the dark as I can."

"Good," Elfric said. Gabriel nodded.

"I'll do my very best to behave," Edward said with a smile.

"See that you do," Gabriel said, smiling as well.

We left so that I could be home before curfew. I drove my truck which was
much quieter and drove much smoother. We got back to the house to find that
Renee and Phil were already at the hotel.

"Your mother and Phil left right after you did," Charlie told me. "They
didn't want to sit and talk with us."

"Well, Edward can talk to Renee tomorrow," I said.

"Did you get nice gifts?" Kale asked, smiling at me.

"I did," I said, pointing to the necklace around my neck. "This was from
Edward. It almost matches the one I got for him. I got a new stereo for my
truck which is already installed, a New GPS system with an upgrade to the
onboard computer, a wall plaque of a wolf carved by Nathan, and Gabriel and
Elfric got me two tickets to Florida to visit Renee."

"Wow," said Charlie. "That was extravagant."

"Yes," I said, smiling.

"Well you kids go on upstairs but keep the noise down," Charlie
said. "We've both got to work tomorrow. Be happy that Kale is giving you
the day off."

"I am happy," I said. "Thank you Kale."

Edward and I went upstairs to my room. He lay on the bed and I put the
music file that he'd made me in the player and turned the music down so
that it was light. He smiled at this and I joined him on the bed.

"What's Renee like?" he asked.

"She's scatter-brained most of the time," I said with a smile. "She forgets
to pay bills, and write the balance in her checkbook, she misplaces her
debit card, and she can't seem to keep hold of a cell phone to save her
life. She's a great cook and bakes like a pastry chef. I took care of her
until she met and married Phil.

"She's kind, loving, and a bit erratic at times," I continued. "She loves
with her whole heart and she'd walk through fire for those that she
loves. She can be serious one minute and playful the next. She was my best
friend in Crippen."

"You sound like you miss her terribly," he said softly.

"I do," I said. "But if I can't have her in my life once I'm turned then
keeping her at a distance now is the right thing to do."

"If that's the way you feel," he said, but he clearly didn't think much of
the plan.

"No it is," I said. "Because with Renee spending the time I have left with
her would just make it harder for her to not fly out here to demand to see
me."

"She can see you, Beau," he said. "You just can't tell her the secret."

"You mean lying to her," I said. "And if she visits here a lot she's bound
to notice some things and start to ask questions."

"Then we'll visit her in Florida," he said. "You don't have to cut her out
of your life."

"You told me not to try to have a relationship with my human family," I
said. "What's changed?"

"No, you're right of course," he sighed. "It was just listening to the way
you described her and the longing I heard in your voice. I didn't want you
to have to cut her out of your life so quickly."

"Well I have two tickets to go and see her," I said. "It isn't like I'm
cutting her out of my life tomorrow."

"No, you're right," he said. "I forgot myself there for a minute. It seems
that human emotions are surfacing for me after all."

"You do fine in the human emotions category," I said with a smile.

"I try to for you," he said. "Being a vampire can become very self
supporting, almost self centered. Your world is open to a whole new host of
opportunities and you go through them with total direct attention and don't
notice the world around you at times. With you I'm trying to be more human
in the way that I act around people. Take the kids at school. I hadn't said
more than a few polite words to any of them. Now I've talked to Mike,
Mitch, Eric, Tyler, Jessica, Angela, and even that nasty girl named
Lauren."

"So you're changing?" I asked.

"Yes, for you," he said. "You're human still, and even after you're turned
you'll still be mostly human for a long time. You won't get that drive and
determination at the start. It builds up over time."

"Hasn't living among humans kept you out of that drive and determination?"
I asked.

"No," he said. "I have more degrees than anyone in the house. I've studied
art, music, nursing, botany, and so much more. I'm the best musician in the
family and I have the most experience in the outside world, much more than
the rest of them. Roman and Emit continue to matriculate over and over
again. They start college but never finish because we move so much. I took
time away from the family to go to college quite a few times at several
different schools."

"I don't know what to say to all of this," I said. "I plan to go to college
to study something or another. Of course that'll be after I'm turned, so I
could probably study anything I chose to. Edward we'll be human with each
other all of the time, though. You didn't have romantic love before. Roman
and Emit, Archie and Jasper, Gabriel and Elfric, they all have romantic
love to keep them firmly rooted in their humanity."

"Gabriel and Nathan insist on working with the public," he said. "I always
thought that was what kept them human."

"If that was so you'd be more human because you matriculate and go off to
college more than any of them," I pointed out. "It's romantic love that
makes the difference."

"You must be right," he said, smiling at me. Then he kissed me.