After talking to Robert once again in the
realm, I knew he wasn’t ready to face the truth about Elaina. It confirmed that I would have to stop her on
my own. I figured the way to do that was
to find out more about the plight of the vampires. I decided to ask Doreen about them the next
morning.
I was thrilled when I entered the caravan
and saw not only Doreen, but also Helen.
Between the two of them, I knew that I’d get all the information I
needed.
I sat down in the chair across from
Doreen. “I’m glad you’re both here. I once again need help,” I said.
“Not another fake reading I hope!” Doreen said, not hiding her displeasure at
the thought.
“No…nothing like that. What do you know about Janet Pok.”
Doreen and Helen gave each other knowing
looks. I had the impression that they
both knew a lot about Robert’s boss.
“What do you need to know hon?” Helen asked in her familiar, kind and
understanding tone.
“Who is she? When did she move here and
what were the circumstances?”
“Janet is a long time citizen of
Moonlight Falls. She’s the lead
investigator within the police department.
She arrived here shortly after the Vampire
Round-up and was one of the first vampires to
fully integrate into our society,” Doreen began.
“Yeah, she even married a human. She
actually has a lot of power in town, particular among the other vampires,”
Helen added.
“So what is this Vampire Round-up you
mention?”
“I don’t really know all the details-”
Doreen started.
“I do.”
Helen said with emphasis, “It was a dark time for vampires. They were being persecuted, hunted down and
killed by the dozens. A handful of them
escaped to Moonlight Falls, led by Janet.”
Helen continued, “The citizens of
Moonlight Falls promised to protect them, but only if they signed an
agreement. According to the agreement,
vampires of Moonlight Falls can feed on humans with the human’s consent, but
cannot kill them. If they purposely kill
a human, the agreement is voided and once again, the vampires here would be in
danger of being captured and killed.”
“They also cannot change a human into a
vampire without that human’s written consent.
Any human wishing to be turned into a vampire, must register with city
hall,” Doreen added.
That explained why Janet kept pressing
Elaina to get Robert’s consent. “Why
were the vampires being hunted down in the first place?” I asked.
“The vampire race has a sordid history of
violence. They were being killed because they were
vicious killers themselves. A group of humans grew tired of the
violence and organized themselves; training vampire hunters world wide, whose
whole purpose was to eliminate the vampires.
Thanks to Janet, the vampires here discovered a different, non-violent
way of life. Janet made sure to enforce
their new lifestyle by becoming a police officer.”
I allowed it all to soak in, but I still
had one question that was unanswered.
“How come some vampires like Janet can be out in the daylight?” I asked.
“You don’t know?” Doreen asked as if it were obvious. “Alchemy.
Janet has a lot of connections.
She has an alchemist on payroll who makes a special sunscreen that
allows her to be out at any time.”
“Alchemy?” I said to myself out loud. If alchemy could allow a vampire to walk
around in the daylight, I wondered what else it could do.
I
needed time to found out. “Doreen, I
need some time off. I have a few things
that I need to take care of.” For their
safety, I didn’t want to give them details of what I was planning.
Doreen stood up, “I guess this is goodbye
then,” she said with a touch of finality in her voice. “I hate to see you go, but it’s not like I
didn’t see this time coming.”
I stood up in front of her. “Don’t look so sad…it’s not goodbye forever,”
I said, wondering if Doreen was confused by my need for a few days off.
“I think it is,” Doreen said, “I can see you completing your mission
soon.”
Helen nodded slightly in agreement.
“Yeah…but, then I can come back and
continuing helping you contact spirits,” I said, realizing that I was the one
that was confused.
Doreen and Helen once again exchanged a
knowing look and I felt as if I was left out of some sort of silent
conversation.
Helen walked over and pulled me into an
embrace. “You don’t understand
honey. Once you complete what you are
here to do, there’s a good chance that you’ll cross over,” she said quietly
into my ear.
“Crossover?” I asked with a smile on my
face still not fully realizing what she meant.
“Yes,” Helen said. The look on Doreen’s face also confirmed what
Helen was telling me.
“But I’ll just be in the spiritual realm,
right? I could visit you all while you
sleep,” I said hopeful.
“No dear.
The spiritual realm is sort of a transitional place between the living
world and the unknown. A spirit who
crosses over can no longer visit the realm.
No one knows exactly where they go because…well…they cannot return to
tell anyone.”
I thought about Helen’s words for a few
moments.
“Thank you both,” I said before walking out the door.
Helen and Doreen stood there for a few
more moments. “You think this has
something to do with that dead girl?”
Helen asked after they thought I was out of earshot.
“Desirae
Healy?” Doreen asked rhetorically, “Yes… if
Desirae was
really killed by a vampire, then Janet would do anything to hide the truth.”
“Yeah and it looks like Josephina is
willing to do anything to save Robert,” Helen added.
“Do you think she can do it?” Doreen asked.
“May God protect us from the vampires if
she doesn’t.”
Labels: Moonlight Visions
