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“Gramps?” I asked
timidly, peeking my nose around the office door. I wasn’t supposed
to interrupt Gramps when he was working, but I had a rather urgent
question I wanted to ask him.
He looked up from the
papers on his desk, smiling at me warmly.
“What is it Ness?”
I entered the room and
closed the door behind me. Not that it would make much difference.
There weren’t that many people in the house- in fact I think it was
only me, Gramps, Grandma Esme and Jake- and they all had hearing
strong enough to hear us, but a closed door made it more private.
“I was just
wondering... a few things.” I felt very embarrassed, and hoped I
wouldn’t sound silly. “I can go away if you’re busy.”
Gramps laughed. “It’s
nothing that can’t wait a little. What’s on your mind?”
He patted his lap, and
I bounced over to sit in it.
“Well... I was
wondering... why is Grandpa so different from us? I mean, I know he’s
human, but so is Jake - sort of - and they’re so different too.”
I felt myself flushing. “I don’t know how to explain it right.”
He laughed again. “You
still don’t know why Daddy told you not to bite him, do you?”
I shook my head and
blushed deeper. “Not really. I can bite Jake any time I want.” I
backtracked quickly. “Not that I do that so much any more.” I
wasn’t a baby; I didn’t need feeding, and most of the biting was
down to impatience when I was hungry.
Gramps looked at me in
a way I didn’t entirely understand. His smile dropped, and he
looked very serious.
“You have to
understand, Nessie,” he said, “Grandpa and Jake may both be
human, but Jake is a shape shifter, while Grandpa is completely
ordinary. Jake will heal fast, so your bites don’t make a
difference, but Grandpa would take a long time to heal, and he would
always have a scar from it.”
I frowned. “What’s
a scar?”
He chuckled, but the
serious look did not entirely leave his face.
“A scar is a mark on
a person’s skin when they have a very serious cut. It’s something
that never goes away. Here, look...”
He pulled out a little
photo album from the shelf above the desk. It seemed lost among the
medical journals and history books. This was a personal one, full of
family photos he liked to have close.
Gramps flipped the book
open to a page dominated by a photo of my parents, standing side by
side. Daddy wore a black suit with a white shirt. Momma was dressed
in a light blue chiffon dress. Flowers were pinned in her hair, and
she smiled at the camera while Daddy kissed her cheek.
Gramps pointed to a
spot on the picture. “See that?”
I leaned in a little,
my keen vision focusing in on the place he pointed to; her left hand.
A little curve marked the skin there, shining slightly in the light.
“What is it?” I
asked.
“That is a scar that
your mom had right up until she was changed. A vampire bit her there,
and, even though your dad sucked the venom out, the mark his teeth
left stayed there.”
My brain whirred as I
put the pieces together. It suddenly all made sense. Grandpa was
something so entirely different from us, and from Jake, something
that wouldn’t affect us could have a devastating effect on him.
“But why?” I
whispered. “Why are they so different?”
Gramps sighed. “I
don’t know. I don’t think anyone does. It’s all very
complicated.”
I gave him a quick hug.
“Thanks Gramps. For trying. I’ll let you get back to work now.”
He smiled as I jumped
down and ran out the door.
I wanted to ask Momma
about that scar on her hand.
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