Be Careful What You Wish For

Chapter 39

After a few seconds that felt like an eternity, Tobias and Cecilia sprang into action.

With their combined vampire speeds they managed to get the necessary things in a matter of seconds after which they started setting off.

As they exited the house through the back door, Tobias threw a longing look back at his house. It was, after all, his home for such a long time and it was difficult to let it go.

Struggling with a lot of conflicting emotions, one of the most prominent ones being guilt for leaving the nearby graveyard, from Celeste, Cecilia's hand found her way into his.

She gently squeezed his hand as a sign of support and somehow he knew that it was okay. They were doing what was necessary to survive, and Celeste would have understood that. She would have wanted him to be happy.

For the first time in a long while, he thought that maybe he did deserve to be happy and to do that he needed to protect his family. No matter what happened and how they got along at a given time, he knew, deep down in the very core of his being, that they were a family. An unorthodox family, but still a family.

With the cooler filled with the blood that they had left, and his free hand in Cecilia's, he turned his back to his home, to his past and headed off to the future, and all the surprises it might hold.

Cecilia was worried about Tobias, and how he would handle being away from the place where the love of his life rested, but she had a feeling that they would be okay. No matter where they went, what they did, she knew that as long as they were together, everything would be okay. Tobias might feel bad for leaving the memory of Celeste behind, but Cecilia decided to make sure that he was okay every single day they were away.

As for Helen, Cecilia didn't worry about her as much, not because she didn't care about Helen, but because she knew Helen was a survivor. Although Cecilia despised what Helen had done, the blatant disregard for human life that she had shown, upon hearing her life story, Cecilia couldn't help but be more understanding.

If she had been through all that, Cecilia was sure that she would have been much worse for it, but Helen somehow found the strength to go on and even do the right thing from time to time.

That was the type of strength Cecilia admired and after everything they had been through together, she realized with a start that she cared about Helen. No matter how cold Helen could be at times, Cecilia started thinking of her as a friend. How could she not like someone who saved Tobias's life and took care of him for all those years?

Running at full vampire speed, Cecilia couldn't help but wonder where they were going. They were just blindly following Helen's lead since she knew the direction from which the council would be coming, so they ran in the opposite direction, but she hoped there was also some sort of plan involved.

"Do we have a plan or are we just going to run away from them, forever?" Cecilia asked as they ran.

"Of course I have a plan," Helen said.

"Would you mind sharing?" Cecilia said, some agitation seeping into her voice.

Although she had accepted Helen as part of her family, it didn't mean that she wasn't annoyed by her constant cryptic answers and the air of superiority that surrounded her. Tobias didn't seem to mind any of that, but it rubbed Cecilia the wrong way.

Upon seeing the agitation in Cecilia's eyes, Tobias decided to do something to prevent the two most important women in his life from killing each other.

"Helen, it might be easier to keep up, if we know where we are going," he said soothingly.

"Fine. A few miles to the south from here, there is a small abandoned house that is believed to be haunted. We will be staying there until tomorrow, then we will go on for a while until we reach the waterfront where a boat will be waiting for us." Helen said.

"Why a haunted house?" Cecilia asked.

Strange as it was, she didn't feel comfortable staying at a haunted house, but she guessed it was a leftover reaction from her human days.

"There is a lot of supernatural activity there, so the power and the smell of it should mask our scent even if for a short time," Helen said.

The tone of her voice suggested that Cecilia was an idiot for not knowing that, but Cecilia decided not to argue. It was clear that they were all agitated by the fact that they had to go on a run, and she didn't want to make it even worse. Cecilia had a lot more questions to ask but decided to stay quiet and follow Helen.

Instead of focusing on what was to come, Cecilia focused on her running, on the feeling of her unnaturally strong muscles moving at the speed of lightning. She enjoyed the feeling of the wind whipping her hair in every direction, and she couldn't help but think that it was nice that she could use her powers freely, that she didn't have to measure her every action. There was something immensely alluring in just running freely, enjoying one's strength. However, all too soon, Helen stopped, and they followed suit.

As Cecilia took in their surroundings, she knew that, had she been human, chills would have run over her body at the sight of the house they were supposed to stay in.

There was certain dark energy clinging to the very essence of the house, and Cecilia could feel it like a physical presence, like a shadow looming over the world. She gulped loudly and stared at the structure in front of her.

It was a stone building, the size of a large house, and the energy coming off of it was as cold as its walls. The windowless holes were strikingly similar to empty eyes sockets, and yet, Cecilia had a feeling of being watched by the house itself. It felt as if it threatened to devour them whole and keep them in its dark belly for an eternity.

Sensing Cecilia's distress, Tobias slowly approached her, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay, trust me. I know that it feels...wrong....but I can assure you, nothing will happen to us. The feeling will go away soon enough. After all, we are vampires, a part of the supernatural world, we go with the flow, so we don't get swept away. For a human, this place would be dangerous, but not for us. You are feeling strange because it's your first time seeing a haunted place, but soon you won't be overwhelmed with the feeling. Do you trust me?" Tobias asked.

"Yes," Cecilia said immediately.

After she said that, he slowly guided her towards the house, murmuring encouragements as they went on. At first, it felt like walking through thick honey, but after some time, it became easier and she could relax into Tobias' guiding embrace.

Once they were inside the empty lifeless structure Cecilia could feel that she had already gotten used to it and that it wouldn't be as terrible to stay there as she initially assumed. However, she still leaned into Tobias' embrace, relishing the feeling of his strong supporting arms around her shoulders.

Tired as she was, she pulled Tobias down with her, and they settled against the wall, his arms still around her shoulders. She lowered her head on his shoulder, using him as a pillow. She knew that vampires couldn't get tired, but that's how it felt to her like everything was a bit too much, and she needed the relief of sleep.

Surprised, Tobias settled on the ground, enjoying the fact that Cecilia got so much comfort from his touch, from his very presence. Content with the situation at hand, he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, while Helen, as the most experienced vampire, kept guard.

Although she was keeping watch, Helen couldn't help but cast glances at Tobias and Cecilia's sleeping figures. She couldn't remember the last time she had seen Tobias so happy. He held on to Cecilia as if he was afraid that if he let her go, he might lose her. It warmed her dead heart to see hope for the future, and she vowed to herself that she would protect them, no matter what.