The Donor to a Vampire (Donor #1)

Chapter 12: Atonement

Ly almost needed to find a sedative when we exited that room since I was hysterical after witnessing that thing moving. He looked so lost in the mids of my blubbering and screaming, unknowing what to do to calm me. It appeared that distance and familiarity was the key to getting me to regain my composure.

When I was pacified enough to speak but still with stammered words, I revealed to Ly what kind of monstrosity I had seen in that room.

"Dess," Ly began quite patronisingly, "you have lost quite a lot of blood, and it could be that you were hallucinating due to it."

"I know what it is I have seen!"

"Dead cannot return to life, let alone crawl out of a locked cage." Ly rationalised, "Especially if the person who did the slaying is my father."

"Your father is a Dickhead."

I winced in pain as Ly removed the makeshift bandage from my wound, and I couldn't help but grumble about it. With each ribbon of cloth that Ly peeled away, my dried blood came off with it, causing me to glare at the wall with pain and frustration.

"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you in advance," Ly let out a bitter laugh, but his smile quickly evaporated as he took in the state of my skin.

It appeared as if I had been attacked by a merciful shark that decided to spare my upper limb. Averting my gaze from the wound, I took deep breaths, feeling dangerously close to losing consciousness.

"I would have thought you were exaggerating," I said throatily.

"I am sorry you have met Andrey; you would be better off if you didn't. He is like a disease, spreading and infecting everyone he encounters."

"Not to mention sending people into an early grave with that room." Answering back with a whisper, I winced in pain as I jerked with my injured shoulder.

Ly bit into his palm hastily, and while still oozing with blood, he placed it on my shoulder, healing the massacre his fathers' fangs had made. The skin visibly began to knit itself together, rapidly recovering, and within seconds, the pain all but disappeared, as did the wound. Ly rested the other palm on my cheek and gently grazed with his palm up and down my skin. Then he offered me a smile and rested his forehead against mine.

"How did you become such a good man with a father like that?" I pondered out loud.

Expecting Ly to tense and shy away, he surprised me by smiling sweetly, almost serenely. "My mother was the kindest, most cheerful soul you could find on this Earth," he said. "Without her, I would be the same if not even crueller of a monster than him."

"Was?" I asked in a small voice.

The usage of the past tense saddened me. I had hoped this young vampire had someone to show him tenderness in the harsh world he was living in. Surely he could not be deprived of his mother.

Ly started to say, "She died because of-" but then stopped himself and said, "She died."

Without saying a word, I gathered him close and hugged him tightly. I knew the pain of loss, and in moments like this, hearing 'I am sorry' only made the memory of a loved one's death feel fresher, twisting the knife in my chest even more.

"Why are you comforting me?" Ly asked guiltily. "I should be apologising and begging you to forgive me for letting that man anywhere near you." As he muttered in my neck, he sighed happily and nestled into it, enjoying as I instinctively stroked his hair.

It took me by surprise how natural it felt. When someone has a close relationship with their mother, it's natural that they pick up some of her habits and tendencies over time. In my case, my mom would always stroke my hair and comfort me when I was feeling sad or sick. As a child, I didn't fully understand the significance of this gesture, but I knew that it made me feel safe and loved. As I grew older, I began to appreciate the depth of my mother's compassion and how she always knew just what to do to make me feel better. So when I found myself instinctively stroking the hair of the person I cared about, I realised that this was a part of my mom that still lived on in me. Even though she was no longer with me, her spirit and love continued to guide me in how I treated others.