I Face My Monsters

Chapter 19: For Him...

Vale had a lot to think about. The rest of the day was spent in deep contemplation and self-reflection. Having an exceptionally attractive man - vampire he may be - interested in getting to know her was completely new territory for her. She had never been in a relationship before. she had always been focused on surviving until the next day. Walt, Henry, and Murdock had helped make every day not seem like a tragedy, and her work gave her a drive and purpose. 

But deep down, she was tired... The burden she had been bearing was too much for her to carry alone anymore.

She wanted to spend the next few weeks getting to know the Cullens, Carlisle in particular. She still had to go to work, but she resolved to spend every afternoon, weekend, and day off with at least one Cullen. 

The kids had to go to school that day, and they all kissed her cheek goodbye as they made their way out the door. Even Rosalie gave her a hug and a bright smile. "Bye Mama!" Jasper smiled, pecking her cheek. "Feel free to explore the house." said Alice, "There's coffee on the counter for you and I left some food in the fridge. Carlisle will be home early today, so you can expect him about 1:00." 

Vale made the coffee, then decided to explore the house. She absorbed the vampiric style of life in quiet contemplation. "Graduation hats. No beds but for mated pairs. I suppose Carlisle would have thought it a bit pushy to put up a bed for me, which is fine. Very gentlemanly. The sofa in his office isn't so bad." She stopped in front of a painting. 

Her head tilted to one side as her eyes tried to decipher the picture. Three men, obviously vampires, stood in the foreground. They looked like kings. Another figure stood afar off: Carlisle. He didn't look like them. He was dressed in fine Victorian-style clothing, but his expression bore something other than the proud, threatening faces of the other three. Sadness, regret, powerlessness. Her heart lurched. She knew what it was to be powerless, and she had solemnly sworn that never again would she become prey to powerlessness. But what could make Carlisle, the most powerful person she knew, feel that way?

Her eyes flicked back to the Vampire in the center, the one in the grand red coat and narrowed. In that moment, she considered becoming a vampire. The desire to protect the downtrodden and powerless had been her driving point ever since she regained control of her own life.

Carlisle didn't know it, but his mate's still-beating human heart began to beat for something else.

For him.