Part III.

ELLIOT COLLEGE.

Chapter 13.

FAILURE TO BLOOM.

Elliot College was located just outside of New Haven. We caught the local train and arrived at our stop at around eleven in the evening. The school's shuttle was done for the day, so we had about a mile walk ahead of us. The night had cooled off nicely, and the air was filled with the fantastic scent of evergreen and flowers.

Rei led me down a dark road leading into the trees. It felt like we were walking into a full-blown forest. (Then again, I grew up in a desert, so what do I know about forests.) Insects buzzed this way and that, and I could hear the high-pitched squeaks of bats above us. They swooped down occasionally to gobble up insects. At least they could tell where the heck they were going. It was a new moon and we pa.s.sed only a few houses on the way. If I wasn't following right behind Rei, I could have easily wandered off into a ditch. It was like walking into a closet and shutting the door. I was making a mental note to go buy a flashlight when I chanced a glance up at the sky.

"Wow," I said, my mouth gaping. "Is that the Milky Way?"

Rei chuckled. "Have you never been outside a city?"

I flushed with embarra.s.sment and kicked an unfortunate pebble across the gravel road. "My father wasn't much of a traveler. We went to a state park a few times-but you could still make out the neon."

Rei smiled and tilted her head up. "I love this about Elliot. I could not see the stars very well in Chicago, either. But here? It is staggering, no? Think how much there is left to explore."

"Yea..." I wasn't staring at the stars anymore. These past few moments, it was as though we had crossed an invisible barrier. Rei looked more relaxed. She wasn't constantly sweeping for invisible enemies, and she wasn't trying to hide her nature. I guessed we had some sort of tactical advantage now. I felt much better too. Her antsiness had been contagious.

"Rei, did you really grow up in Chicago?"

"Of course. Can you hear an accent of some sort?"

"No, but your...what do you call it...your vernacular is kinda funny."

"Ah, yes. I believe this is because my family is very old."

"Wait. Your kind has, like, families? Like with real kids and stuff?"

Rei rolled her eyes. That hadn't come out right at all.

"Yes, Dieter, I have a father and a mother. And for that matter..." Rei took my hand and swept my fingers down the inside of her forearm. Her skin was as soft as silk. I shivered at her touch. She guided my fingers between the tendons above her wrist.

"Relax, fragile mortal."

One beat. Two. A third coursed under my fingers.

"See?" she asked.

I raised an eyebrow. It was so unexpected. Her heart pumped blood. About half the speed of my own, but a beating heart nonetheless.

"No matter what your cinema might suggest, we are not zombies, Dieter. We too live, breath and die. It's just that the supernatural world is no longer careless with its secrets. The Imperiti have lost the privilege of such knowledge. All the rumors and legends you have heard are-"

Rei stopped speaking and looked into the brush.

I heard it too...a rustling noise. Something large was crunching through the undergrowth, and it was coming this way. I cursed to myself. Was this day ever going to freakin' end?

"Fine! What's a few more?" I yelled to no one in particular. Flinging my duffle to the ground, I stepped in front of Rei and summoned my best Chuck Norris. Vampires, goons, black sorcery, third-degree burns, heart attacks, horrible flashbacks, two ruined pairs of jeans, two wasted cups of coffee, and one puked up Danish later I just wanted to find a bed and go to sleep-but if I had to kick in a few more teeth to get some, so be it. "Bring it on, b.i.t.c.hes."

Rei looked at me perplexed. "Dieter, there is only one-and he is a male." She walked over to the source of the rustling, squatted down, clapped her hands, and in a mushy voice called, "c.u.mo! Come here boy."

An absurdly ma.s.sive bark erupted from the darkness.

Ah, so Rei owned a trained grizzly bear. I began to back away slowly. From the underbrush came sounds of struggle. The beast was coming closer, but needed to move some trees out of the way first. My Sight tingled, and I tensed as its aura struck me full-force. It felt like...well...it felt like a giant feather pillow dropped on my head. I had absolutely no idea what that meant.

"Gyere ide, c.u.mo. Say h.e.l.lo to the new grub."

Three cubic feet of white dreadlocked hair lumbered out of the darkness. He thundered over to Rei, skidded to a halt, and raised his paw. Rei rubbed the beast's giant head and mewed. The furry monster responded with a series of noises reserved for exuberant elephants.

Pointing a shaky hand at the white behemoth I asked, "What is-that?"

"c.u.mo," Rei replied between goochi-goochies.

"c.u.mo?"

"Yes, c.u.mo the Komondor. He's my most n.o.ble retainer."

c.u.mo looked in my direction, let out a yowl, and bowled over Rei.

"Fasz kivan!" Rei yelped. "c.u.mo, no! Bad c.u.mo!" But it was too late. c.u.mo the Komondor bounded towards me with surprising speed.

I frowned at Rei. She hadn't done anything to actually stop him.

c.u.mo launched to a rather impressive height and landed right on my chest. I stuck out my hand reflexively, but quickly thought better of it. (Best not explode the Queen of Darkness' dog.) The wind knocked out of me, I lay pinned and dazed. c.u.mo barked in triumph and took a seat directly on my diaphragm. I wheezed as one hundred plus pounds of dog emptied out my lungs. Beside me, my left hand started twitching all on its own. Surprised, I clenched it tightly.

"Don't hurt him!" Rei screamed. "I swear to G.o.d, Dieter Resnick, if you hurt my puppy I will throw you into a f.u.c.king tree."

"Get-him-off-me," I pleaded.

"Well, it doesn't work that way exactly," she explained. "You see, my most savage acquaintance, Komondors are guard dogs. They defend their territory against all intruders. And you were not even decent enough to greet him. No wonder he thought ill of you."

c.u.mo barked in agreement.

Rei patted him on the head.

"Isn't he gorgeous?" she continued. "The breed is designed to be white and s.h.a.ggy in order to blend in with a flock of sheep. Most interesting, no?"

"Help," I gasped.

"Goodness. You people and your incessant need for oxygen..."

Rei leaned over and started petting my head.

"Good boy, Dieter. Good boy," she said.

c.u.mo's dreadlocked head drooped down and sniffed me. Something inside all that hair appeared to be making a decision. With a deep sigh, he stepped off my crushed guts and gave my face a cursory lick. He paced a few feet off, curled up, and took a nap.

"Why?" I asked. "Why do you own a polar bear?"

Rei crossed her arms and pouted.

I scratched my head. Okay, that was a new one. Vampires could pout. Noted.

"You intolerable twerp! Of course we can pout. And I will have you know that c.u.mo the Ko-mon-dor comes from the finest line of Hungarian guard dogs ever produced by my mother nation. One does not own a Komondor of such stature. The dog chooses whom he will serve. He is most impressive. As to be expected from his fine breeding, he likes working nights and has done a superb job protecting my sheep. Not a one lost in nearly two years. And unlike most other creatures, c.u.mo's company is enjoyable."

I struggled to my feet and dusted myself off. I guessed I was in the "most other creatures" category. "Okay. Fine. I take it back-but sheep? Huh? And you go to college here, right? How the h.e.l.l does Mr. c.u.mo here even fit in your dorm room?"

"I keep sheep for their blood. They're genetically modified to produce blood that's much closer to a human's. We call the product, Gen Mod."

"This sheep blood, is it...close enough?"

Rei shifted uneasily.

"That would be a no?" I tried not to, but I shuddered anyway.

"If I was to use your plebeian vernacular, Dieter, I would say: Gen Mod tastes like s.h.i.t."

I started laughing. "And you're telling me human blood tastes better? I mean, stars above, Rei, my own blood tastes nasty. I can't imagine drinking someone else's."

"Yokel, do not think with your tongue. Blood tastes differently to me."

I scratched my head. "Do you not eat solid food at all?"

"Correct. Fluids only. My body cannot digest solids just as your body cannot digest gra.s.s."

I guess it made sense. I remembered watching a nature doc.u.mentary on vampire bats. Blood is hard to process, and the transition to feeding on it requires dramatic physiological changes. Vampire bats consume a liquid only diet too. The bats have to handle large volumes of fluid relative to their body weight. As a result, their kidneys have become vastly more efficient than other mammals. And that wasn't the only modification. A vampire bat's stomach and intestinal structure are drastically different from other bat species.

"So what about c.u.mo?" I asked. "He's the size of a couch. Do they let him live in the dorm with you?"

I felt a sharp twinge of pain as Rei walked over to her dog. She knelt down and started petting him.

"I am not allowed to live in the dormitories, Dieter. The other students are not comfortable with my presence. Dean Albright has granted me use of the groundskeeper's cabin for lodging. I a.s.sume your feeble eyes cannot see it, but my domicile is only 100 meters in that direction," she said, pointing into the darkness. "It is a reasonable compromise. The cabin is twice as large as a normal dorm room, and I am not greatly affected by the cold, so last winter was fine. Besides, I have c.u.mo. He keeps me company, so I am not at all lonely, and..."

She was babbling. I had only known Rei for about 36 hours. In that time, she had faced three men in a fight to the death, healed my wounds, and put up with all my stupid questions. She had even bought me a cup of coffee. Yes, a part of her was hideous. I could still sense the monster hiding inside her tightly managed exterior. That part of her was terrifying. I had seen it in action. She had tortured a man without an ounce of discomfort. Yet despite whatever urges Rei struggled with, she still managed to maintain some of that stuff called humanity. The mental fort.i.tude that required must have been formidable. I found her efforts admirable, but I could sense her situation here at Elliot hurt her gravely. How did I know? I had no freaking idea. All that mattered was that I knew, and it made me furious.

"...and I have a yard too. I never tended a garden before. It is most amusing. I even went to purchase fertilizer at a home improvement market! You should see the Night Cereus that I planted. They are night bloomers, you see. According to the manual, they will do so in the next week. You should come over when they do and watch the-"

"Stars above, Rei, stop it!" I said firmly. I was physically shaking. I didn't understand why, but I suddenly wanted to hurt something. I wanted to break it with my hands, to keep on hitting until nothing was left.

It took me aback. Since when did I have a temper like my father's?

Shocked, I tried to get my emotions under control. "I'm sorry." I took a few deep breaths. "It's just..."

Rei eyed me, her face deadly serious. My behavior must have worried her, but I didn't care. It just made me angrier. Why was she worrying about me? She should be the one who was angry. She should be the one demanding justice.

"Rei, I don't give a d.a.m.n what anyone thinks," I said pacing down the road. "That policy is bulls.h.i.t. It's freaking discrimination. You need to protest it. And if they refuse, well, I'll, I'll-"

Not say another word? My voice had cut off as if I were choked. I tried to swallow but couldn't. Confused, I turned to look at Rei.

"Silence," she hissed.

It was Rei. She was somehow willing me silent. How the h.e.l.l- "You will do no such thing. This is none of your concern, you plebeian fool. What do you know? Nothing. You know nothing. You have no right interfering in my business. I did not ask for your help. I did not ask for your...pity." Rei's eyes burned. She spit the word out like poison. This was beyond mere annoyance. I had poured grease on a simmering fire. "How dare you? How dare you tell me what to do?"

The air around me dropped a good ten degrees. My Sight flared, and an icy burn raked my skin. I shivered. Rei's aura was fluctuating and uncertain, but there was a part of her-and it wasn't a small part-that wanted to tear me limb from limb. I understood now: Rei had her pride, and I was trampling on it. This was her battle. I had no business sticking my nose in it. It would probably hurt her even more if I did. And to hurt her like that...the thought of it was unbearable. A rush of shame surged through my body. I was being selfish and stupid. I was in the wrong. But still the rage remained. I felt drunk from it. It was taking a physical effort just to keep it under wraps. Desperate, I dug my fingers into my palms. The freshly healed skin winced in protest. I ground at my teeth to contain it.

Rei looked at me sternly. "You shall-"

"I'm sorry," I said stiffly. "I wasn't thinking." I was acting just like my father. I didn't want her to know it. It was shameful. "You want to handle this on your own. I respect that." I looked away from her eyes. I still wanted to scream. Still wanted to deal out some pain.

Rei took a step back and gave me the strangest expression.

I kicked the gravel. Yeah, this whole conversation was getting a bit awkward. "Listen," I said, "I've taken up a ton of your time-not to mention nearly getting you killed-what do you say, Ms. VPS? You need to deliver me somewhere, right?"

"VPS?" Rei crossed her arms and smirked. "Correct. I am to deliver you to Dean Albright so he might fashion you into something less embarra.s.sing to your race."

"Fair enough. Shall we?" I asked.

"Dieter?" she asked, her brow furrowing. "Do you trust me?"

"You saved my life, Rei. I consider that a confidence builder."

"Then I wish to ask you for a favor first."

"Sure, what do you need?"

"No, Dieter, it is not what I need, it is what you need. You are about to be given an offer. No matter what you think of the terms, no matter what your gut tells you, I want you to accept it unconditionally. I do not believe the alternative is available to you. Besides, you can always change your mind later when you are better informed." She gave me a toothy grin. "And a faster runner."

I shrugged. "Fine." Why not? Rei hadn't gotten me dead yet.

"Oh and Dieter, there one more thing-and this is for both of our benefits. Do not mention the weft-link to anyone. It would be most ill-advised. Just avoid close contact with me for at least a month. The link will dissipate on its own."

"Alright. But what about the Night Cereus?" I asked with a grin. "You said they were about to bloom, didn't you? Don't you want me to come and watch?"

Rei looked in the direction of her home. "I misspoke. I often forget the limitations of your people's senses. You wouldn't be able to appreciate them."

I was starting to recognize that tone. Rei was in I'm-done-talking mode. We walked the remaining quarter-mile in silence.