Onbekend(23)

“A legend? That’s a lot to live up to. What does the legend say? Do I have to do something?” she asked.

“I don’t know the specifics.” Gabriel could see her disappointment. “I’m not a dearg-dul. You should ask Devin. I’m sure he can explain it to you.”

“But he’s not a dearg-dul either,” Arianna said.

“No, but he was raised by the most powerful dearg-dul alive today, so he has a very good understanding of dearg-duls,” Gabriel explained.

“Who is that?” Arianna wondered.

“Your grandfather,” Gabriel replied. “Most of the people, if not all of them, that are in that room there respect and fear him.”

“Do you?” Arianna asked.

“No. To me, he will always be that short crybaby that was older than me by a few years, yet always acted five years younger,” Gabriel responded. Arianna nodded her head as she stared into the room of dancing people. She had sensed the fear in the people in the room because they feared her grandfather.

“Why do I have blue eyes? Why am I, yet again, different than everyone?” she asked, not expecting a response. She had spent her life being different for as long as she could remember. She was always the child without parents. Though she loved her aunt and uncle dearly, they couldn’t hide the fact they were not her parents.

“Because you are not just a dearg-dul,” Gabriel replied.

“But Grandfather said I’m a purebred dearg-dul,” Arianna explained, confused by Gabriel’s comment.

“Purebred sounds like it means one-hundred percent, but really it’s a measure of the strength of your dearg-dul genes,” Gabriel explained. “You are also what we consider a purebred baku.”

“Baku?” she repeated, unsure of the word.

“There are more types of creatures that live off of human blood than just dearg-duls,” he replied. “Humans are food to different types of creatures which some call demons. We prefer not to be called demons, but rather ‘night humans’. This is yet another conversation you should have with Devin.”

Arianna felt light-headed. Her day had been filled, non-stop, with new sights, sounds, tastes, and ideas. Now, Gabriel was adding in one more piece of the puzzle. Arianna felt strained from trying to understand everything. Gabriel ushered her to a bench to sit down. She would need time to sort out what she was being told. Arianna stared into the vast dark sky dotted by tiny stars. In the past twenty-four hours, her life had changed by leaps and bounds, not the baby steps she was used to. She had been content in her own little world, living with her aunt and uncle. Their life, while sometimes a bit hard, was happy and full of love. She had friends, a home, a school, a life, but now it was all being taken away. Arianna winced as she felt her previous life shatter.

“Can I just go back to normal?” she asked.

“I wish it was that easy,” Gabriel replied. Gabriel put his arm around her and squeezed. “You should get some sleep. Things always seem better after the rain has passed.” Gabriel waved to Devin who returned, removed the coat, passed it back to Gabriel, and escorted Arianna back to her room.

“She’s more unbelievable than expected, right James?” Gabriel said, as Lord Randolph joined him on the patio, both men staring into the dark night. “She grew up too fast.”

“Agreed,” the older man added. “I thought it would take forever until she returned, but in the blink of an eye she was turning sixteen. She seems a bit stressed tonight. Did we do the right thing, sending her away to live with Lilly and Dean?”

“What choice did we have? Her parents were both murdered. Neither one of us could provide her with complete safety. We had to let her go. It was Travis and Tiffany’s wish.” Gabriel wrapped his coat around himself. “Though it would have been easier if Lilly or Dean had mentioned a bit about her past to her. She is in for quite a shock now.”

“I could already see it in her eyes. She’s confused, and it’s only going to get worse,” Lord Randolph added.

“Isn’t that what Devin’s for?” Gabriel asked as Lord Randolph sat beside him. “You trained him well.”

“Thanks, but that wasn’t my intension,” Lord Randolph added. “He filled the void she left. He has always been such an eager young man, wanting to learn as much as he can, as quickly as he can.”

“Then what happens now? Is it finally time to end this feud?” Gabriel replied.

“I hope it ends this easily, but it will take time,” Lord Randolph added. “I wish it would have ended sixteen years ago, but it didn’t. It has been so long that we’ve been on opposite sides. You’ve gotten old, friend.” Lord Randolph stared at the graying man beside him.