Legacy of Blood - By J. L. McCoy Page 0,50
I’d come in here and see how you were holding up.”
I sat back on my heels and sighed as well. “I’m a wreck, Hagan. And I’m scared. I’m a total fucking freak of nature and I proved that to them in there.”
Hagan nodded. “You are kind of different,” he conceded with a tilt of his head.
“Kind of different? My eyes turn completely black, I can control my venom output, absorb Divine Powers, and go toe-to-toe with trained killing machines. ‘Kind of different’ left the building after I threw up the bagged blood.”
Hagan chuckled and I looked up at him in exasperation. “They’re going to kill me, aren’t they? How will they do it? Will they cut my head off? Dismember me and then burn the pieces?” I screeched, my panic starting to rise with each word.
“Breathe, Morrison,” Hagan sighed as he put one heavy hand on my shoulder to calm me. “You’re getting ahead of yourself, don’t you think?”
I sat down on my butt and put my head in my hands. “I think I’m going to puke.”
Hagan chuckled and said something in Gaelic as I felt him pat the top of my head. “You’ll make it through this, Morrison. Ruarc can be an asshole sometimes, but he’s a fair asshole.”
I took a few deep breaths as silence filled the room. “Why do you care?” I asked suddenly. “I mean, you went to bat for me when you didn’t have to. You stood up for me, defended me, and trained me. Why bother?”
Hagan sighed and rubbed his right temple. “Why bother?” he scoffed. “Because I think you’re worth it, Morrison. There’s more to you than just a pretty face and a smart mouth. I saw your potential during our very first training session. You can imagine how surprised I was. Now quit worrying. You’re giving me a bloody headache.”
We were silent for a while and during that time I mastered the art of levitating two candles around the room at the same time. After setting the candles back in their holders, the coffin caught my eye again.
“Why did I wake up in a coffin, Hagan?” I asked curiously. “And why was it filled with dirt?”
Hagan sat up in his chair and glanced over at the coffin. “That coffin was the coffin your maker was reborn in. Archer’s father made it for him before he was turned. It’s kind of a tradition with Day Walkers, to have their children born in the same coffin they were.” Hagan saw the grimace on my face and he chuckled as he continued. “It’s not weird in our culture. What’s weird to me is being buried in the ground and waking up there. Imagine how frightening that is.”
“Is that why the dirt is in the coffin? Is it somehow needed for rebirth?”
“Aye,” he nodded. “The dirt is from Ireland, our home. The days are long gone where we bury our children and wait for them to rise from the ground. They are now placed in coffins upon the dirt of our native country. We try to stick to the ways of our father Aodhfin’s rebirth as much as we are able, though we modernize where we can.”
“Weird,” I pursed my lips, deep in thought. If I had to choose, I’d much rather wake up in a coffin instead of a grave. Just imagining myself having to claw my way out of the ground gave me chills.
There was a knock at the door and Hagan and I flashed to stand. The redheaded guy I had fought earlier asked me to come into the sparring room because a decision had been made regarding my life. I swallowed thickly and tried to calm my sudden sense of dread. I looked at the faces of those in the room as I entered, trying to gage any hint of my fate. Their faces gave nothing away so I used my new power of empathy. The only emotion I was picking up was calm resolution. Crap! I stopped in front of Ruarc and waited for him to speak; Hagan was at my side again thankfully.
“We were gathered here today to determine the authenticity of newborn vampire Skye Everleigh Morrison, daughter to Archer Rhys, leader of sliocht Fearchar and direct descendent of Cináed, blood son to the blessed one Aodhfin, the father of us all,” Ruarc commanded everyone’s attention. “After completing four sanctioned tests, her fate has been decided.” I watched as Ruarc took a step back and joined the Army in formation.
“Brothers