Chapter 37: Meetings Around Town

Previously: Danielle Slade, great grand-daughter of Adam Slade, has decided to help her new boyfriend, Clark, come to terms with being a vampire.

In this chapter Danielle and Clark both discover something new about the vampire community ...

His sleep had been deep and restful but, as usual, he was up early. One of the strange contradictions of vampire physiology was that although their minds and bodies operated at faster speed than that of humans they actually needed less sleep than the typical human.

On this morning, Clark awoke a full hour before Danielle so as his friend continued her slumber he made his way to the lounge to think over the events of the previous night and ponder what the future might bring.

As conflicting thoughts of his dark past, the possibility of a happy future, the risks of heartbreak all tumbled through his mind Clark alternately sat and stood, walked and stared. Idly scanning the room he noticed the spine of a book on Danielle's bookshelf; "The Idaho Connection – Carl Slade". Recalling that she had mentioned a Carl in her family Clark pulled the book off the shelf to read the summary on the back cover.

"It began one lost night on a lonely country road; two people from different worlds meet in a deserted diner far from home. From that one night a bold plan emerges to shape a shared future but as they start to reap the rewards of their success old secrets threaten to destroy everything they had built together. An unsettling tale of the effects past tragedy can have on those desperate to escape what they cannot face."

Intrigued, Clark started to read. As far from his own life as the story's setting was, the way the characters avoided any reference to their own pasts as they set up their new enterprise resonated with his attempts to hide his own history from the people he had met in Lucky Palms.

Engrossed in the book he didn't notice Danielle entering the room, "Morning Clark, didn't sleep?"

Startled, Clark leapt to his feet, "Oh, no, well, I, err, don't need much sleep ... didn't want to disturb you so I came in here for a while."

Danielle recognised the book, "Is that Carl's book?"

"Oh, yes, yeah, I noticed the name on the cover, he's your ..."

"Yeah, my uncle; that's the book that made his name, it was actually short-listed for the Sim Booker prize."

"Well, only read the first few chapters, but it's very good, very ... perceptive."

Clark's gaze dropped to look down at the book he was slowly turning over and over.

Guessing what he was thinking Danielle reached out to gently touch his hands, "It's not about us, we are not those people. Sure, we have stuff in our pasts that isn't pleasant but we're dealing with it, together, from the start."

"No, I mean, yes, I mean ..." Clark smiled, defeated by grammar. "I know, I suppose ..."

Casually dropping the book onto the chair behind him, Clark turned to embrace Danielle, "... I suppose I love you Danielle Slade."

Playfully pinching his side Danielle swiftly corrected him, "hey, there's no 'suppose' about it ... is there!"

"No, I suppose, err, no of course not!" Clark readily agreed.

"Look I'll have a quick shower, then I should get back, or Viv will have the locks changed! But thank you so much, for last night, you can't begin to understand how much it means to me ..."

After Clark had left to return home, Danielle felt strangely alone, the last twenty four hours had been so intense, she needed to share her feelings with someone. More than that, she started to feel the distance she had put, both physically and emotionally, between herself and her family, and it didn't feel good.

Perhaps now, as she started out on this new relationship, it was time to re-establish the connections with the family she had left behind. She set down to write two letters, one to her dear younger brother, Damien Brandon, and one to her uncle Carl. She had no idea where Carl was, after leaving sunset Valley he and Malia had set off to explore the world and had seldom returned to the country, let alone Sunset Valley or even Riverview. They did, however, write plenty of letters from the many places they visited and did their best to include a postal address.

Since she had arrived in Lucky Palms it was quite likely that they had moved on to some new exotic location, in which case they would have let Cleo and DB know. So, detailing how much she was loving her new life in Lucky Palms, that she had met someone special, and that, one day, she hoped to see them both again, she put the two letters into a single envelope knowing that Damien Brandon would forward the letter to Carl for her.

-- * --

Over the next few days Danielle and Clark spent almost every day together and, as the sharp winter frosts set in, a lot of that time was enjoying the winter festival events that were a seasonal draw for people across the county.

One of the most popular attractions was the outdoor skating rink but, as skilled as she had become on skates, Danielle was no match for Clark. Even carrying an umbrella to protect himself from the bright winter sunlight his speed on the ice was unmatched. Whatever the problems Clark had as a vampire there was no denying that there were definitely some benefits!

As far as Danielle was concerned, the most important new aspect of their relationship was that they were both now comfortable enough to be obviously a 'couple' in public.

Sure, anyone who had cared to could have recognised the signs a while ago, but now - now 'discreet' was not part of their vocabulary.

Even in the crowds at Great Sand Park, the two of them could hardly keep their hands off each other. Of course, they could have just been trying to keep warm ...

-- * --

Considering all the places Danielle and Clark frequented; Three Palms Lounge, Club DeVille, the Winter Festival, Great Sand Park, and more, the one feature they all had in common was that they were human oriented venues. Not once had they visited a bar or club that catered specifically for vampires. Clark had not even raised the idea that they should.

For Danielle it was important that Clark be wholly comfortable with who he was; that he should be able to spend time with other vampires. From what he had told her, there were clearly issues in his past that had stopped him integrating with the local vampire community so she would have to be very careful about what she wanted to do next.

Danielle decided the time was right to take their first steps into vampire culture. Having checked with Yolanda Shaw of the Vampire Community Council, it seemed the best place to go was the Red Velvet Lounge. Situated behind the Lucky Llamas Stadium just off the main highway intersection, it wasn't a place that attracted much passing trade and was seldom busy until night time.

Calling Clark over early one evening, Danielle told him of their destination. Normally enthusiastic to try a new bar, he was noticeably quiet about visiting this particular venue. She knew he would be nervous so reassured him that the place would not be at all busy and they could leave anytime he wanted, but that if he could find a way to relax around other vampires he could be so much happier.

In the end, it didn't take much cajoling to get Clark to agree, in his heart he must have known that he would have to face other vampires if he was to have any sort of real life in Lucky Palms.

As it turned out, Yolanda's description of 'rather quiet' was something of an understatement. Apart from one other customer, who left shortly after the arrived anyway, the barmaid was the only other person there!

Which was fine in that Clark wouldn't have a lot of new people to deal with, but rather disappointing that he wouldn't be able to start socialising with other vampires.

But, at least, it looked just like any other lounge bar in Lucky Palms. Apart from a slightly unusual decorative style and the prominence of the plasma sales point, there was little indication that it was a 'vampire bar'.

The fact that it had much the same selection of games and entertainments as any typical bar certainly seemed to help Clark relax. Perhaps these vampires really were no different to anyone else. Drinks, table football, even a one-armed bandit – these were familiar things. How could anyone enjoy all the same things and not be the same as anyone else, at least in the ways that mattered?

They stayed at the Red Velvet for just a couple of hours. A few more people, including a couple of local vampires, came in but Clark wasn't yet ready to engage much with them and Danielle didn't want him to start feeling uncomfortable.

Even so, Danielle was happy that their visit had been successful.

"Thank you Dani, I've had fun, I don't think I could ever have come here without you. I think, perhaps, we could come here again, it's cool."

-- * --

A couple of days later Danielle received an unexpected phone call.

"Hey Danielle, it's Mari, how are you?"

"Mari? Oh Marisol, hi! I'm great, thanks. How are you, it's been months?”

"Good, good, never been better! And, yeah, it's been too long – I met this guy and, well, y'know! Look we really must catch up. If you're about come on over this afternoon, it'd be good to see you again."

They had only just started getting to know each when Marisol suddenly disappeared, no one knew where she had gone but there had been mention of some mysterious new man in her life. Intrigued to find out more Danielle readily agreed to head into town later that day.

Just after mid-day, Danielle pulled up outside Marisol’s elegantly simple home, from the outside nothing much appeared to have changed – no sign that she had come into a lot of money or fallen on hard times.

But as soon as Marisol answered the door it was clear something very significant had changed …

Marisol Loera was now vampire.



Chapter 38: The Turning of Marisol