Forever Young Birth Of A Nation (67 page)

A minute passed and Celine looked away from
Marie and said “I cannot hear Aunt Marie.”

“Try again, sweetheart. Marie, please put
your hands on Celine’s cheeks and do not look anywhere but into her
eyes.”

In seconds Celine smiled and speaking out
loud she said “Yes Aunt Marie. I would like a piece of apple
pie.”

Marie threw back her head laughing giddily
as she scooped up Celine and danced around the room saying “Praise
God! Praise God for His miracles” as she kept kissing Celine who by
now was laughing non-stop as they whirled about the kitchen.

“Oh Celeste! Oh, oh, oh! Oh, Celine! This is
marvelous! Oh my! Oh I cannot wait until the others get home!”

Laughing giddily herself, Celeste said “Now
leave Celine with me and go into the dining room and let us try it
again.”

Marie rocketed to the other room and said “I
am waiting, Celine. I am on the other side of that door in my head.
Come in now.”

A minute passed then and it remained silent.
Celine looked at Celeste and shook her head. Celeste kissed her and
said “Come to the kitchen door now Marie, where you two can see
each other.”

In seconds after appearing there, Marie
broke out into a radiant smile and looked directly at Celine who
giggled as she said out loud “Yes Aunt Marie, I would like some
milk with that apple pie.”

Laughing uncontrollably now, Marie again
flashed across the kitchen to pick up Celine and began to dance all
about the kitchen laughing and praising God as she held Celine
above her head as Celine laughed uncontrollably herself.

Aimee and Xavier wandered into the kitchen
to see what all of the ruckus was about, so Celeste explained a bit
to the two of them and had them to take a seat and watch.

“Marie, please go back into the dining room
now and this time I want you to concentrate on what Celine looks
like. Just try to see her face and her eyes. Celine, you do the
same thing.”

“I will, Mama.”

In a few seconds Marie laughed excitedly and
came to the door with a dazzling smile saying “Yes, Aimee is
wearing your dress today” as Celine nodded, laughed and clapped her
hands.

Marie then said “Wait now and I will tell
you why she is wearing your dress today” as she flashed back into
the dining room. In seconds Celine giggled and said aloud “she is
wearing that dress because it is getting too tight and you just
bought me a new one yesterday!”

Marie rocketed back into the kitchen giddy
with laughter as she again scooped up Celine and danced about the
kitchen holding her aloft as all of them laughed. “Oh my God! This
is wonderful! Oh, oh, oh!”

After the laughter died down Celeste said
“Now go into the dining room again and wait there, Marie.”

“I am waiting. Go ahead” she said from the
dining room.

Celeste spoke then saying “Marie, this time
visualize my face instead of Celine’s face.”

An interval of time passed and then Marie
shrieked in laughter and rocketed into the kitchen excitedly saying
“You want some apple pie too!”

Celeste laughed and nodded excitedly, saying
“Now go back into the dining room and give me an answer.”

Marie rocketed to the dining room again and
in seconds Celeste shrieked with laughter as Marie came back
smiling at her saying “Well, what did I tell you?”

Celeste ran to her said “You said I could
have the apple pie, the apple tree, the milk, and the cow!”

The five of them erupted in spontaneous
laughter then as Marie gathered up Aimee in one arm and Celine in
the other and Celeste grabbed Xavier and all of them danced and
whirled around the kitchen. When everyone had settled down a bit,
Celeste said “Now we are going to get down to some serious
business. Let’s go to the parlor where it is more comfortable.”

After they were all seated Celeste spoke
“Celine, I want you to read all of Aunt Marie’s memories of
everything that she ever talked with Cosette about, and I am going
to read them with you.”

Marie stared at her wide-eyed as she began
to comprehend what Celeste was trying to do. Then she turned to
Celine and patted the sofa next to her and said “Sit here
sweetheart. This might take a while.”

Carrying the newspaper that Cosette had
given her, Priscilla approached Yvonne with a serious look on her
face. “Yvonne. I have something here that you ought to see.”

Turning from her conversation with Stefan
and Grundy she raised her eyebrows inquisitively as Priscilla
handed her the newspaper, pointing to the article with a heading
that said ‘2
^nd
BODY FOUND WITH SAME NECK WOUND’.

Yvonne gasped as she saw the header of the
article, reading it as both Grundy and Stefan came to flank her,
each of them reading it too. Stefan shook his head as Grundy softly
cursed.

Priscilla said “Do you think this is
Roland’s doing?”

Grundy answered “Who else?”

“I don’t know, but I wondered if maybe it
was one of ours. We have all of those new ones now and they mostly
have to stay in the cellar of the main house.”

“Let’s go talk to all of them now. Maybe we
can tell who it is by the way they react” said Stefan.

Shortly they were in the cellar talking to
the latest members of the coven. All of them exhibited universal
surprise at the grisly news, so Yvonne went to talk to the other
members who had been in the coven longer.

During all of this Priscilla slipped away to
see if she could talk with Cosette. It was mid-afternoon and she
wanted to see if there was anything else that she could do to help
matters. She was careful to double back three different times and
each time, she waited patiently but never saw anyone following her,
so she carefully made her way toward the Millhouse home by a
roundabout way.

***

“I have seen all of Aunt Marie’s memories of
Cosette, Mama.”

Celeste nodded saying “I have too
sweetheart. Come sit on my lap now and we will try to talk to
Cosette.” Celine got up on Celeste’s lap and straddled her legs,
putting both hands on her mother’s cheeks and Celeste placed her
hands likewise. “Now let’s go visit Cosette and we are going to go
right through her door and say hello to her; ready?”

“I am ready, Mama.”

The two closed their eyes and their combined
minds’ eyes reached across half of a continent and an ocean to a
fashionable home on Manhattan Island where a lovely young lady with
honey blonde hair and gray eyes was sitting reading the daily
newspaper.

***

As Cosette read the paper about the war, her
mind was inexplicably being pulled to think of Celeste and Celine.
This persisted so that she finally put the paper down and turning
sideways on the sofa, she lay back and closed her eyes and thought
I do miss everyone. I suspect Ian goes through these spells too.
I have been here in this land five years now and I think that
finally I’ll find him, but at what cost?

***

Celeste said “Quickly! Someone bring me a
mirror!”

Marie rocketed away and returned in seconds
with a lovely hand held silver mirror, handing it to Celeste.

“No, Marie. Please hold it so that I can see
my reflection” she said while moving her hands from Celine’s cheeks
to place them on each side of her head. “Move your hands like I
did, Sweetheart.”

Celine moved her hands up to the sides of
Celeste’s head too and closed her eyes again, thinking of Cosette
and her doorway.

***

Cosette sighed and released her frustrations
then, and warmed herself with remembrances of the family. She
suddenly began to see a picture of Celeste and her lips were moving
as if she was speaking. Cosette concentrated and the picture came
fully into focus and in her mind she heard faintly
Cosette.
Cosette. It is Celeste. Can you hear me?

She sat bolt upright and said out loud “I
can hear you, Celeste! Truly I can!”

The image said again
Cosette, think the
words in French. Think the words that you want to say to me. Just
think them and I may hear them if you can hear me.

Lying back and closing her eyes again she
focused only on Celeste’s image and thought
Celeste, I see you.
I hear you. Is it you, truly?

Oh yes, Cosette; yes, yes. It is me and
Celine is helping me aren’t you sweetheart?

“
Yes Mama. Cosette is talking to us,
Mama. Hello, Aunt Cosette.”

Cosette’s eyes filled with tears as she
opened them and then she closed them again and said
hello,
Celine. When I saw you last you could barely talk. Are you truly
helping Mama talk to me?

Yes, Aunt Cosette.

Oh my! I am crying Celine.

Oh don’t cry, Aunt Cosette. Mama is crying
too and so is Aunt Marie, but Aimee and Xavier are laughing.

It is good crying, Celine. I am so happy and
so grateful to speak with you. I have missed all of you so much. I
was just thinking of you today.

We know, Cosette. We see you sometimes, and
we see Ian too sometimes. We see you better though. And we never
talk to Ian.

Cosette, Cosette?

Yes, Celeste. I hear you too. I cannot
believe this. I can’t stop laughing and crying too!

I have something important to tell you about
Ian.

I’m listening. Oh praise God I am
listening!

He knows where the coven is and he is going
to spy on them tonight. He’s looking for Grundy and will kill him
when he finds him. We have an idea to help him. Can you still hear
me?

Yes, yes! Tell me!

Get your friend Priscilla to do you a favor
tonight.

Yes, yes go ahead! Tell me!

See if she can find a way to get Grundy to
be in that house alone some way tonight, or tomorrow night.

She heard someone knocking on the back door
loudly.
Someone is at the door now.

Go get it. We will talk again soon. Goodbye
Cosette.

Oh my! Yes… yes we will. Goodbye! Goodbye
Celine.

Goodbye Aunt Cosette.

Opening the kitchen door, she saw Priscilla.
Hello, Cosette. You look like you have been crying” she said with
some concern.

“It was good crying, Prissy. What brings you
here? It’s dangerous to come here. We were to meet tomorrow.”

“I had to tell you this. We have five more
vampires. They are
imprinting
now.”

“I see. That’s not good.” She walked to a
window and looked out, frowning as she pondered the information.
Turning to Priscilla she said “Is there any way you can get Grundy
to be in the house alone tonight?”

“Oh my! I don’t know. Grundy is taking the
new ones out to hunt tonight, to teach them to use cups and a knife
for feeding. They are afraid to do it in the daytime. Someone could
see them… you know… with the leaves down and everything.”

“Ian knows that all of you are at the
Stedman’s home and he may come there tonight.”

Priscilla gasped and covered her mouth with
both hands, saying “How do you know that? And…and how can he
know?”

Cosette smiled and said “Trust me, it is
true. There are more things about us that I will tell you in good
time. For now though you had best be getting back, hadn’t you?”

“Yes. What are you doing?”

“I have to stay here. I would not feel right
leaving, knowing that vampires are watching the place. The
Millhouses are due back any time now.”

“I’d better go” she said as she hugged
Cosette. “Oh, do you have a newspaper?”

“Here, take this one.”

“Thank you. I will try to think of
something. Good bye.”

“Goodbye, Prissy.”

It was a drizzling rainy night in London
when Robert Milliken and five other male Adept vampires approached
the home of Miles Edwards. He spoke in a low voice, saying “Both of
them are here according to my investigator. Moreau got here late
today while my man was still watching the place. Steven, you take
these two and go check the guest house while we check the carriage
house. We’ll meet back here.” Nodding, Steven said “Yes sir.” and
he flitted away with two of the others.

Robert and the other two moved stealthily
toward the carriage house and one went up the steps to the door
while the other two leapt to the roof and went to peer into the
dormer windows. Neither window was locked so soon Robert and his
companion were inside. Going through the living area for the
Chauffeur they quickly determined that it was empty and soon they
had met up with the others.

“No one in the carriage house. What about
out back?”

“No one there either sir.”

“All right. That leaves only the main house
itself. I will go to the door and knock. Miles will recognize me
and allow me in. You five enter by way of the dormer windows and
come downstairs. Check the bedrooms upstairs before coming down. If
Moreau is not there, he must be downstairs, so be sure not to spook
him too soon. Remember that these two are both big and strong;
questions?”

“None sir.”

“All right. Let’s get to it.”

Knocking on the door, Robert only had to
wait a short time before it was opened a crack by Miles Edwards.
“Mr. Milliken?”

“Yes Mr. Edwards. It’s me. Might we talk
about something? It is urgent, sir.”

“Yes. Come in” he said as he stood aside.
Then after closing the door he said “Right this way, Mr. Milliken.”
As they sat down opposite each other by the hearth, Edwards said
“is it something about the bank? I sold my shares to your new
senior partner as you know, but I will help if I can.” He looked
distressed about something.

Smiling then, Robert thought
you sold
your shares to my employee who is my proxy. I own that entire bank
now but you don’t need to know that.
What are you distressed
about?
With a disarming smile he said “No, no. It’s not bank
business at all that brings me here. I came because of something
involving Henri Lafayette.” His keen vampire eyes detected the
other’s eyes widen slightly at the mention of that name.