The Sacrifice of True Love

Prologue: 50 years of Searching

“Welcome to my humble abode, m’lady.” I heard Adam said as he walked in the door. 


He’s been gone for over five months, I was getting worried.  He’s never been gone this long before.  I quickly plated my omelet and sat down at the table.  “Hey, you’ve been gone a long time.  I was getting worried that something might have happened.  Who did you brought home?” I said as I took a bite of my omelet.


“Shh, she can hear us.” He whispered and closed the kitchen door.  Then he sat down across from me.  “So I wasn’t able to locate Carter but I found the next best thing.  Gretchen is Carter’s niece.  She can lead us to him, eventually.” He smiled. He must have traveled a long way, he looked exhausted and worn out.


I shook my head, “Carter didn’t have any brothers.  He was an only child. You must have gotten the wrong Thomas.”


“No, this is the right Thomas.  I’ve been traveling city to city trying to track down the name of Carter Thomas but nothing until I came across this article in a Nebraska newspaper.  That’s where I found Gretchen Thomas who is the daughter of Carter’s little brother.  Apparently your spell worked and a year after you left, his mother gave birth to a son.”


I wasn’t expecting Mrs. Thomas giving birth to another child at her age, “Okay, suppose she can lead us to him but why did you turn her?”


“Well, that’s why it took me so long to come back.  I wanted her to help me find Carter at first but then, the more I got to know her, the more I love her.  Tatianna, I’m 130, is time for me to love someone.”


“So this is the girl you chose? Are you sure, I made that ring for a reason and it was protect whoever you’ve chosen from the sun when you turn her.”


“Of course I’m sure.” He whispered, “You just have to get to know her.”


Suddenly, a girl maybe in her early twenties appeared before us.  She was barefooted with a pair of soiled jeans and her brown hair looked slightly unkempt but her brown eyes were so similar to Carter’s that I swear he was in the same room.  “What did you mean you made this ring to protect me from the sun?”


I stared at Adam and gave him the stern face but he gave me the face that seemed to say, please, just give her a chance. I rolled my eyes and faced Gretchen, who was still standing there with her arms folded in front of her chest.  I stepped back and bowed with sincerity.  “Welcome to our home, Gretchen. Now as to regard to that ring on your left ring finger, I created it to help whoever Adam has chosen to be his eternal partner to have a normal life, one where she is allowed to walk in the sun.”


Her jaw dropped a little as she heard my explanation.  Apparently, Adam told her very little about this.  What a shock.  I remembered I had to press him to have him tell me how he had been able to walk in the sun. 


I looked over at Adam and Gretchen, none of them said anything and the room grew utterly silent.  I guess I need to get to know this girl in order for her to lead me to Carter.  “Gretchen, can I show you the garden?”


I turned and walked toward the back door into the garden.  “Wow, this is beautiful, did you do all this?” She asked as I watched her step onto the grass.


I blushed slightly, “Actually, I just designed it.  It was Adam who did all the heavy lifting.  You got to love vampire strength, right?” I chuckled lightly but her face remained clueless, confused.  “Look, I know how you feel.  Adam can be subtle, sometimes.  He can also be a little stupid.  I kind of figured him out that first day I met him.”


She put her hand out to signal me to pause, “Wait, 50 years? Then you’re a vampire, too.  How many girls had he turned?”


I laughed, “No, I am not a vampire.  You don’t have to be a vampire to be immortal.  I’m a witch.  We can control our aging process although nowadays, I’m more like a healer than a witch.”


“So how did you meet Adam?” She asked. 


I paused and sighed, I haven’t told anyone my story ever since I woke up in that second story bedroom two days after I was rescued by Adam.  Since then, I’ve been living here, protected from the outside world and I swore to myself I would never tell anyone else the story of my past life as Lilianna Jameson because without Carter, my past felt incredibly bleak.  “He saved me, actually.” I told Gretchen.