A Clan of Novaks
Page 3
A number of people were already gathered in the clearing before the Port as we arrived. Many here weren’t even members of the League. I pulled out my notepad and began to check off our members to see if we were still waiting for anyone to arrive.
Kyle stood with his wife, Anna—both now in their mid-fifties—kissing and saying goodbye to one another. Although we made it a general rule not to allow humans to become members of the League, Kyle was an exception since he never left the sub; he was in charge of navigating it.
River stood waiting for Benjamin with their seventeen-year-old daughter, Grace. My lovely half-fae, half-human grandchild. The story of her conception was a long one, but River had managed to turn back into a human to conceive; then, after Grace had grown a few years, River had chosen to revert to a full vampire. Ben and River were members… and after today’s induction, Grace would be, too.
Cameron and Liana—also vampires now—stood with Jeramiah and their also turned daughter Pippa and son Cedric. Pippa and Jeramiah had gotten married two years ago. All were members, except Pippa and Cedric.
I milled about, continuing to tick off names:
Rose and Caleb—without their fifteen-year-old human daughter, Hazel, and twelve year old son, Benedict, both of whom I suspected were still tucked up in bed. Rose and Caleb had turned temporarily so they could have them, and then reverted back to vampires once they were old enough.
Kailyn, who’d just wandered over to Aiden.
Claudia and Yuri, saying goodbye to their human daughter and non-League member, eighteen-year-old Ruby.
Mona, Kiev and their strapping half-warlock seventeen-year-old, Brock.
Ibrahim, Corrine and their seventeen-year-old daughter, Arwen.
Jeriad with the beast of a son he’d raised with Sylvia, nineteen-year-old Heath.
Aisha and Horatio, who, although married, were still childless.
Ashley and Landis, standing without their thirteen-year-old human son.
Zinnia, Gavin and their vampire son, Griffin, along with his vampire wife, Becky.
Eli and Shayla—who’d first gotten together shortly after my son’s wedding—married but as yet without a child.
Micah and Kira; Abby and Erik; both couples also still childless.
I paused going down the list of adults to count the number of new members. I’d spotted only four: Grace, Brock, Arwen and Heath. Hm. So where is our fifth? As I noted the absence of Vivienne and Xavier, I realized…
Victoria
“You know that after Kyle, you’re the second human to join the League,” my mom told me as she zipped up the jacket of my black uniform.
I raised my light blue eyes to meet my mother’s violet-blue ones in the mirror. She looked concerned, but resigned.
“Yeah,” I said. “If an assistant to Kyle in the sub can even be considered a real member.”
“You might not leave the sub,” my mother replied, “but there can still be danger. You never know exactly what could happen.”
I grinned at her. “Well, you and Dad will be there to keep an eye on me, won’t you?”
She smiled back before picking up her own uniform from the bed. “You bet,” she muttered.
If my father had not instilled in me a love of mechanics and sub navigation since I was a child, I doubted I’d be standing here right now. Some of my most cherished childhood memories were of crouching alongside my father in a submarine, working on fixing something, or sitting in the control seat with him showing me how to maneuver. Now that I’d reached the age of nineteen, I wanted to use my skills for something meaningful.
And my parents understood that, as did the majority of other parents in The Shade. Long gone were the days when they used to hide their children away from the world in an attempt to keep them safe and sheltered—like Derek and Sofia had done initially with my cousins Rose and Ben. The ethos of parenting on our island had changed drastically in the past two decades from protecting to actively encouraging children to develop skills to help the outside world. All of us who expressed a wish to join the League underwent vigorous training, not just in combat, but also in other areas like first aid. Although, in theory, I’d have no use for anything other than my skill with machinery, I’d been prepared thoroughly like the rest.
I swept my straight black hair into a tight bun before grabbing my backpack, which I had already filled with a bottle of water, snacks, and some extra-warm clothes in case we hit a chilly spot.
My mother eyed me before placing her forever-cold hands on my shoulders and squeezing gently. Now she had a look of pride in her eyes, which I definitely preferred to her look of concern. She kissed my cheek. “Well, look at you all grown up,” she said.
“Yeah,” I muttered, half yawning. I really wasn’t used to getting up at this hour…
Glancing at myself in the mirror again, I had to admit I looked pretty kickass in this suit. It made my tall, slim body look lankier than ever—definitely not the build of a fighter. But, being fairly tight, it did highlight some musculature in my arms and thighs that I’d forgotten I had, built up from years of working with machinery.
“Vivienne, Vicky,” my father called from outside the room. “Are you two done in there? We need to leave.”
“You can come in,” my mother called back.
My father opened the door and walked in, towering over us in his own uniform. His eyes warmed as he took me in. “You look so grown up.”
“That’s what Mom just said,” I said, chuckling.
Kyle stood with his wife, Anna—both now in their mid-fifties—kissing and saying goodbye to one another. Although we made it a general rule not to allow humans to become members of the League, Kyle was an exception since he never left the sub; he was in charge of navigating it.
River stood waiting for Benjamin with their seventeen-year-old daughter, Grace. My lovely half-fae, half-human grandchild. The story of her conception was a long one, but River had managed to turn back into a human to conceive; then, after Grace had grown a few years, River had chosen to revert to a full vampire. Ben and River were members… and after today’s induction, Grace would be, too.
Cameron and Liana—also vampires now—stood with Jeramiah and their also turned daughter Pippa and son Cedric. Pippa and Jeramiah had gotten married two years ago. All were members, except Pippa and Cedric.
I milled about, continuing to tick off names:
Rose and Caleb—without their fifteen-year-old human daughter, Hazel, and twelve year old son, Benedict, both of whom I suspected were still tucked up in bed. Rose and Caleb had turned temporarily so they could have them, and then reverted back to vampires once they were old enough.
Kailyn, who’d just wandered over to Aiden.
Claudia and Yuri, saying goodbye to their human daughter and non-League member, eighteen-year-old Ruby.
Mona, Kiev and their strapping half-warlock seventeen-year-old, Brock.
Ibrahim, Corrine and their seventeen-year-old daughter, Arwen.
Jeriad with the beast of a son he’d raised with Sylvia, nineteen-year-old Heath.
Aisha and Horatio, who, although married, were still childless.
Ashley and Landis, standing without their thirteen-year-old human son.
Zinnia, Gavin and their vampire son, Griffin, along with his vampire wife, Becky.
Eli and Shayla—who’d first gotten together shortly after my son’s wedding—married but as yet without a child.
Micah and Kira; Abby and Erik; both couples also still childless.
I paused going down the list of adults to count the number of new members. I’d spotted only four: Grace, Brock, Arwen and Heath. Hm. So where is our fifth? As I noted the absence of Vivienne and Xavier, I realized…
Victoria
“You know that after Kyle, you’re the second human to join the League,” my mom told me as she zipped up the jacket of my black uniform.
I raised my light blue eyes to meet my mother’s violet-blue ones in the mirror. She looked concerned, but resigned.
“Yeah,” I said. “If an assistant to Kyle in the sub can even be considered a real member.”
“You might not leave the sub,” my mother replied, “but there can still be danger. You never know exactly what could happen.”
I grinned at her. “Well, you and Dad will be there to keep an eye on me, won’t you?”
She smiled back before picking up her own uniform from the bed. “You bet,” she muttered.
If my father had not instilled in me a love of mechanics and sub navigation since I was a child, I doubted I’d be standing here right now. Some of my most cherished childhood memories were of crouching alongside my father in a submarine, working on fixing something, or sitting in the control seat with him showing me how to maneuver. Now that I’d reached the age of nineteen, I wanted to use my skills for something meaningful.
And my parents understood that, as did the majority of other parents in The Shade. Long gone were the days when they used to hide their children away from the world in an attempt to keep them safe and sheltered—like Derek and Sofia had done initially with my cousins Rose and Ben. The ethos of parenting on our island had changed drastically in the past two decades from protecting to actively encouraging children to develop skills to help the outside world. All of us who expressed a wish to join the League underwent vigorous training, not just in combat, but also in other areas like first aid. Although, in theory, I’d have no use for anything other than my skill with machinery, I’d been prepared thoroughly like the rest.
I swept my straight black hair into a tight bun before grabbing my backpack, which I had already filled with a bottle of water, snacks, and some extra-warm clothes in case we hit a chilly spot.
My mother eyed me before placing her forever-cold hands on my shoulders and squeezing gently. Now she had a look of pride in her eyes, which I definitely preferred to her look of concern. She kissed my cheek. “Well, look at you all grown up,” she said.
“Yeah,” I muttered, half yawning. I really wasn’t used to getting up at this hour…
Glancing at myself in the mirror again, I had to admit I looked pretty kickass in this suit. It made my tall, slim body look lankier than ever—definitely not the build of a fighter. But, being fairly tight, it did highlight some musculature in my arms and thighs that I’d forgotten I had, built up from years of working with machinery.
“Vivienne, Vicky,” my father called from outside the room. “Are you two done in there? We need to leave.”
“You can come in,” my mother called back.
My father opened the door and walked in, towering over us in his own uniform. His eyes warmed as he took me in. “You look so grown up.”
“That’s what Mom just said,” I said, chuckling.
