CURSE OF THE BLOOD MOON

Scarlet could feel something warm press against her nose, she turned her head but couldn’t shake it off. She could feel something digging into her hair and as much as she tried to shake it off she couldn’t.

The sun was in her face and was adding to her discomfort, she squeezed her eyes before opening them. She squinted allowing her the time to adjust to the bright light that was streaming into the room.

When she finally sat up, she couldn’t see what was causing her earlier discomfort. She looked around the room finally realizing the different surroundings that she was in.

The room was white with beautiful shades of pink and blue around it. Everything seemed bright and clearer than when she fell asleep. Her hand dropped to her belly as it had done countless times before, but this time something was different.

She threw the blue quilt off her body in a panic. Her hands still searching her body for the child that was there before she had fallen asleep, but nothing. Her belly was flat and empty suggesting that either it was born or she had a miscarriage.

She stood on her feet but fell back on the bed. Her legs were wobbly and didn’t seem strong enough to hold her up. She tried standing up again and this time she could hold herself upright.

Scarlet took a step forward and when she did, she realized something that she hadn’t seen before a cot. She breathed in a sigh of relief knowing for sure that her baby had been born, now all that was left was to find him.

She walked to the window and peered outside, she couldn’t help but be in awe at the thick forest she saw. It was beautiful. Everything seemed clearer, that she couldn’t help but think that she was still in her dream. A new dream, because the one she just woken up from, left a lot to be desired.

Scarlet could hear a little giggle behind her, but when she turned she didn’t see anyone. Instead, she heard the light sound of running feet. She followed it out of the room and into the hallway and down the stairs. She appreciated the beauty of the home she was in, although she didn’t exactly know who it belonged to.

As she went down the second flight of stairs, she had voices that she recognized immediately. Vincent, Eric, and Solara were cheering for something or at something. She went through what seemed to be the dining room to where they were.

The room only had a huge flat-screen television and a couple of armchairs. She stood at the doorway watching them, engrossed in the play station they were playing. She stood there for a while watching how happy they were but part of her was afraid that they would disappear just as they did before.

Kayla was sitting at the far end reading a magazine oblivious of what the boys were doing.

“Kayla.” Scarlet’s hand flew to her throat, it hurt her to talk. Her throat felt dry and scratchy. She was trying to swallow some saliva to soothe the ache in her throat.

Scarlet didn’t notice that the rest had seen her until she felt all their hands around her. She stood still afraid to move and risk losing a limb. They were all strong immortals who seemed to have forgotten that she was just a human.

“You guys are going to crush me.” Her voice was as raspy as before.

“Oh my God, Scarlet. You are awake.” Kayla had managed to beat all the other hands of her and was now holding her in a tight bear hug.

“Why? Wasn’t I supposed to be? You can only sleep for so long K.” Scarlet didn’t understand what all the excitement was about.

She had a lot of questions to ask, like how they got her here in the middle of the night when her son was born and where was the baby?

When they pulled away and gave her some air to breathe, Scarlet noticed a little person hiding behind one of the seats. She assumed he was the source of the little feet sound, but didn’t pay him much attention. She had her little boy to find.

“Kayla, where is my son?” she looked at her friend for answers, the others were seating on the sofas their game abandoned.

“Scar, maybe you should sit down.” Kayla’s voice was tense, she had to find a way to tell her, to not shock her back into an unconscious state.

“Why? What happened to my baby?” Scarlet could feel the panic rise in her chest. Something was wrong. She was sure if everything was fine, Kayla would bring her, her baby, and not ask her to sit.

Kayla forced her into the seat and she followed.

Scarlet noticed Stephan wasn’t there either and for the life of her, she didn’t know what to make of the disappearance of the two boys in her life.

“Tell me.” She prepared herself for the bad news. A couple of theories running through her mind, Stephan had taken the child for a walk, or the child was dead and Stephan couldn’t bear to face her.

Kayla turned and held her hand out to the little boy behind the seat. “Come here, don’t be afraid.”

The child came out of his hiding place and took small steps towards them.

Scarlet looked at his face and couldn’t help but gasp. She saw Stephan’s eyes looking back at her, his grin on the small face and her brown hair on his head. The child looked exactly like Stephan, but his features were more delicate.

She shook her head in disbelief. This could not be her son. Her child was only a day old, he was born that night when she was sleeping or out cold. The child she saw before wasn’t less than two years old. He already had a full set of teeth and a perfect understanding of the English language.

“Kayla, what’s going on?”

The child climbed into Kayla’s arms, his eyes still fixed on Scarlet.

“This is SJ. Your son.”

“Huh?” her mind was blank, it was like mush. She couldn’t think of anything else to say.

This child wasn’t a baby, he was a toddler. A walking toddler. He raised his tiny hand and waved at her.

Scarlet just stared at him, trying to think of what she had missed the past twenty-four hours. She remembered picking out a house with Kayla, which had to be the one they were in because they had the same features. She remembered the baby kicking and the pain that came with it. She remembered that the last thing she heard was the mention of Zen’s name.

“Zen.” She whispered, unsure of the fear that seemed to be creeping up on her.

She turned to the little boy, who was now climbing into her arms. He shook his head and repeated his name, thinking that she had called him Zen.

“I’m SJ and you are my mommy Scarlet.” He smiled at her and she couldn’t help but fall in love with the little face.

“That was a complete and coherent sentence, Kayla. New-born babies don’t speak or walk. What aren’t you telling me?” Scarlet’s eyes were still fixed on the little child who stared back at her.

She watched as his little fingers combed through her hair and stroked her cheeks. He cupped her face in both his little hands and pressed his nose against hers.

Scarlet laughed, finally realizing he was the culprit who had woken her up that morning.

“How old is he?”

“I’m two years old.” His sweet voice rang in the air again.

“Kayla I’m freaking out over here, would you like to tell me how this happened.” Scarlet knew it was either two choices, his son had grown incredibly older overnight or she had been unconscious for two years.

“Four months,” Kayla responded.

“What? Four months. How what happened?” Scarlet was in shock, it didn’t feel like she had been out that long, it felt more like a night.

“SJ, why don’t you go play, the Play Station with the twins and Eric?” Kayla suggested to the boy.

“No, I want to stay with my mommy. She’s finally awake and I want to play with her. You can talk when I take my nap.” SJ adamantly refused his voice exhibiting such authority.

Scarlet was shocked and amused, she had never seen anyone not following Kayla’s instructions. The child leaned on to her chest and his little hands held tightly onto her clothes. It was as if he expected someone to try and pull him away.

Vincent tried to, he approached him with his hands held out, but the child wouldn’t go to him. But when he tried to get closer he suddenly stopped and groaned.

“What?”

“The little kid has his shield up, there is no getting him out of there.” Vincent abandoned his failed attempts and went back to his play station.

“What does he mean?” Scarlet couldn’t see or feel what he was referring to.

“He does that a lot, especially when we would try and put him in his bed when he was in yours. He wouldn’t move at all. He would say that he was watching over you, waiting for you to wake up.” Kayla smiled at the child who was now hiding under Scarlet’s hair.

“How long has he been doing this?” Scarlet felt guilty for leaving her son alone for as long as she did.

“Since the night he was born. Before he was born.” Kayla shivered at the memory of that night, she had been sure that her friend was dead. “He shielded you, so we couldn’t help you with the birth. Maybe I should just show you.”

Scarlet’s eyes were wide in horror, as Kayla’s memories of that night flooded her mind. She was in shock at how her wound had healed almost immediately after birth. Her hand fell on her belly and she rubbed over the white flannel dress. SJ’s hand followed and it seemed he too has a perfect recollection of the night.

“He remembers it too. According to him, he was protecting the both of you.”

“But I was.” The child’s voice sounded defensive, “I had to make sure you were healed first.”

“Thank you.” Scarlet didn’t know what else to say. She didn’t know how to react to anything at the moment, everything seemed unreal.

“Where is Stephan?” she asked Kayla, knowing that if she didn’t get an honest answer from her, her son would tell her and that he did.

“He went on a trip.” SJ twirled her hair around his tiny fingers.

“He went back to Rio.” Kayla clarified.

She knew what that meant, but wasn’t sure of the reason why. She sat in silence for a couple of seconds, trying to take it all in. Something was wrong and she had to find out what. But now she had to learn the mystery that was her son.

“How fast does he grow?”

“He started walking four weeks after he was born, then the talking followed. In size, he only grows a few inches every week. We only say he’s two because of the talking and the walking. And it also a safety net, in case someone asks him.”

“Where’s Nikki, I need her to explain this to me.” Scarlet hadn’t seen the other three beats in the room with the others.

“They went back home, Eric stayed behind. We are to call them in case anything happens.”

“So what did she tell you about SJ?”

“She isn’t sure, but she assumes his growth would take longer time than any other beast, because of the vampire gene.”

“Ok, that’s fine. Baby go play with the others I need to speak to Aunty Kayla.”

“I want her back.” SJ narrowed his eyes at Kayla before climbing down and running to where the others sat.

“He is just like his father. A few feet taller and he is Stephan.” Kayla smiled at the child.

“I need to change out of this dress, and then we’ll go out and talk.”