The Vampire’s Servant
Chapter 32

When the final bell rang, I was happy to have my first day of school over with. I wanted to go home and tell Victor everything. It would still be a while before he woke up though. At least an hour and a half. Then we had to test Val and Harmony's blood. I didn't even realize I'd let the flow of the other students take me nearly to the front doors until a familiar hand pulled me to the side of the hallway. It was Val. He had a slightly amused look on his face.

"You were all dreamy eyed, Echo. You need to pay attention or you might get swept away." He chuckled.

"I was thinking and lost track of what I was doing." I blushed.

"Come on. Everyone is waiting by your locker. I figured I would hang out here, just in case."

"Was it that obvious that I was having trouble today?" I asked.

"It's a lot of people and you're not used to it. I know you get stuck in your head sometimes and I didn't want you to end up hurt or lost. We've all been keeping an eye out for you ever since you were late to fourth period." He admitted. "Oh, goodness. I didn't mean to be a problem." I could feel tears in my eyes.

I thought I was doing well, but I remembered how often someone had found me in the hall and walked me to my next class. It was so easy to get distracted with so many things going on around me. Victor would be disappointed in me.

"Don't cry, Echo. We're all used to this, you aren't. You weren't a problem for anyone. We all love seeing you in school. Once you get used to it you won't have to worry. Until then, we're looking out for you. It's because we love you, not because we have to." Val smiled. He put his arm around my shoulders and pushed into the crowd. People made way for him as he guided me against the rush of other students. I felt a little embarrassed as people looked at us curiously before heading on their way.

Soon, there were very few people in the hall and we were arriving at my locker. Val had been right, Gray, Cam, and Harmony were standing by my locker. The boys looked calm, but Harmony was looking around like she'd lost something. Cam kept pulling her back when she started trying to wander off.

"Look, Val got her." He said as we closed the distance.

"I was so worried that you might have forgotten and went to get on the bus." Harmony told me.

"I was distracted and wandered away. Sorry." I admitted with another blush.

"Don't be. We're all here to help and keep you on track." She assured me.

I opened my locker and pulled out my lunch bag. Everyone was chatting while I put it into my backpack. I closed the locker and put my bag over my shoulder.

We headed out to the parking lot. Gray and Val led us to two cars parked next to each other. One I recognized as Val's, the other must have belonged to Gray. I followed Val to his car. I was fine with Gray, but I wouldn't get in a car alone with him. Harmony rode with us. I was happy to be with my sister and brother without anyone else around. Harmony and I sat in the back. She wanted to hold my hand while we drove.

"Are you really safe with the werewolves?" I asked.

"Yeah. They take care of us." She promised.

"What about... hunters? Did they tell you about them?"

"Yes. They told us where to go if hunters attack. How did you know about them?" Harmony asked.

"Some hunters came to the house last night. I hid while Victor took care of them. It was scary." I shivered.

"It sounds scary. Cam told me hunters don't attack much anymore. In the last few months there have been fewer and fewer attacks. Some rogue queen made up a team of rogues that hunt the hunters. Cam and Gray are teaching us about werewolves. I guess they had classes about them in their freshman year at their old school. The whole history up to now along with current stuff. That was something that came out in a newsletter from the Werewolf Association." Harmony said.

"The Werewolf Association?" I asked.

"Yeah. Three powerful pack Alphas three powerful rogue Alphas head it. They help make rules and mediate issues. They try to make the country safer for werewolves and humans." She explained.

"Like the Vampire Council does for vampires." I nodded. "Marius is one of the heads of the Vampire Council."

"I don't know much about how the vampires work. You'll have to teach me. I want to understand all of the supernatural people we'll be dealing with." She said.

"Me, too." Val said from the front.

"I'll do my best, but Victor hasn't had much time to teach me. Everything I know, I learned from Drew and things I observed." I told them.

"What sorts of things?" He asked.

"As they get older, vampires wake up earlier. Victor is over eight hundred years old and wakes up a couple hours before the sun goes down. He can also stay up until an hour or two after it comes up. It will make for lonely summers, I suppose, but the longer winter nights will make up for it. They also take less blood as they get older and they don't need it as often. Drew said that vampires lose their memory for a while after they're turned, but it comes back after a few decades. They don't all have the same abilities. I don't know what Victor's abilities are. Marius has the ability to project the image and feelings of death into your mind. He can do a couple things that are secret. He's really powerful with mind control, though. He told me I was the only person whose ever been able to resist it." I explained.

"Will he try to mind control us?" Harmony asked.

"He might. It seems like a test he puts people through. He tried it from the moment I met him. It was annoying, but he hasn't tried it since." I admitted.

"I hope he doesn't try it. I don't like the idea of someone mind controlling me." Harmony shivered.

"If Echo could resist him, odds are good we can too. Don't worry, Harmony. Echo won't let anything bad happen to us." Val assured her.

"That's true. I won't let anything hurt you." I promised.

We rode along quietly catching up while we headed to the house. When we arrived at the gate, I gave Val the code for opening it. Cam and Gray followed us in and we drove to the front of the house to park. "This place is huge, Echo." Harmony gasped.

"Yes, it provides a lot of room for many guests if we have them and there is always a sense of peaceful quietness." I smiled and got out of the car.

Cam was at the other car door quickly, helping Harmony out of the car and fawning over her. I loved seeing them together. She deserved someone to care for her. He seemed to really love her. "That's what the mate bond can be if both people accept it." Gray whispered from right next to me.

I almost jumped out of my skin. I hadn't even seen him approach. Why was he always so close?

"You felt it earlier when I hugged you. Our connection. It can be like theirs, if you accept me."

"You're too close. I warned you about making this more than a friendship, Gray. It's the only thing I can offer right now. You either accept being my friend, or you leave and never speak to me again." I replied sternly. He sighed and moved away. Had he thought I would leap into his arms after seeing my sister with her boyfriend? When I thought of someone taking care of me, it wasn't Gray and I didn't think it ever would be.

Gray seemed selfish to me and only wanted me because of some goddess' promise. He didn't know anything about me. He never took the time to actually learn anything, he only pushed over and over for me to be his.

"Cam and Harmony have known each other for a couple years. He knows a lot more about her than you know about me. He's been around her more than you've been around me. I'm not going to accept whatever you think this is and give up my life. I'm not meant for anyone. Either accept that or leave." I told him, heading to the door.

"What do you mean, you're not meant for anyone? Do you think you don't deserve love, Echo? You deserve everything. I'm sorry I wasn't the one to save you. I wish I had been. Don't push me away because of that. I want you to be happy. I know I can make you happy if you'll just accept me." He pled.

"Gray! Stop it. You said you weren't going to pressure her. You won't change her mind like that. Echo knows what she wants." Cam scolded.

I was grateful. It was hard. This wasn't what I imagined my life outside my parents' house could have been. I had only my sister and brother to love when I was there. Now I had Victor. I could learn to love Gray, but it wouldn't be the way he wanted. It had to be my way.

"I deserve love, Gray. I'm just not meant to be with someone the way you want to be with me. You have to understand. I don't feel comfortable with how close you always are. I never had people this close before. I'm nowhere near being able to accept what you're offering and I might never be. I'm still learning to be myself. You're right. My parents messed me up. This is who I am, though. You have to accept that, because it won't change overnight." I told him, moving away.

"I'm sorry. I'll work on it. Please still be my friend. I just need your patience. I'll learn to accept whatever you can offer. You're my mate and I want to be part of your life in whatever way I can." Gray said.

"Let's just get inside. I can make a snack for everyone and we can work on our schoolwork until Victor and Rosalynn wake. We can talk about this some other time." I replied with a sigh.

It had been a good day. I wondered what got into Gray that he went from the calm, caring person he'd been earlier, back to the high pressure pushy person I'd met on Saturday. Maybe it was too much for me and him to be in the same place for the day. It was too bad that he'd gone back. I had started trusting him a little.

I unlocked the front door and waved them in. As he entered the house, Cam scrunched up his nose and got that distant look in his eye that Trent and Gray got the other night. He snorted and shook his head.

"What was that?" I asked.

"They were mind linking. The wolves can talk to each other in their heads." Val said. "Guys, that's rude. You should talk out loud."

"I was just surprised about the smell. I didn't realize that a vampire's home would smell like that." Cam blushed.

"Smell like what?" I asked.

"Like something old and not quite right mixed with blood. You can't smell it because your sense of smell seems to be like a human's." Gray explained.

I nodded. Maybe that would change as I got healthier. I wouldn't tell them about that. I knew vampires had sensitive senses of smell too and there was a scent to werewolves that I'd heard Victor complain about. I wondered what it would be like to have such a strong sense.

Leading them into the living room, I got everyone seated and headed to the kitchen for after school snacks. I'd made some jerky last week and piled some onto the tray with some round slices of bread, cheese, deli meats, and fruit. I added some cookies and bottles of juice that had been in the fridge for the donors who ended up being hunters.

I settled the food onto the coffee table. Everyone was very polite and filled little plates with snacks, picking drinks and commenting on how nice the house looked. This was better. It was how I imagined having everyone here could be like.