Chapter 23 Biggest Part of Me

Lani sat at the table, her face pale in the cool morning air. Three pairs of eyes watched her closely, and three sets of ears listened, trying to determine how much distress she was in.

"How - how long until Rose get's here?" Lani asked, a hand resting on her stomach.

"Not long now, Sweetness," Josef told her.

"Is it still hurting, Lani? Are you still having pain?" Beth asked.

"I don't know, I mean, no, it's not hurting right at the moment. It's just really scary, Beth. I don't want to lose this baby!" Silent tears streamed down her cheeks and Josef knelt between her legs and held her close.

"No, Sweetness, no, that isn't going to happen. It will be okay."

"Lani, I think this happens a lot in pregnancy. Just hold on," Beth said, trying to remember if Robbi had ever mentioned anything like this. She was scared to death for Lani because she knew it would devastate her if she were to lose this baby; Josef too for that matter. Beth could still hear the baby's heartbeat and it sounded steady, which surely was a good thing.

Three vampire heads perked up as they heard a car in the driveway. Together they breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Rose was here. It didn't take long for Franklin to bring her to the terrace.

"Well now, Lani, what is going on?" Rose asked, already pulling a stethoscope out of a bag to listen to the baby's heartbeat.

"I don't know, Rose. I just suddenly felt this - pain - I guess, low in my stomach. It scared me."

Rose listened intently for a few moments, a small frown marring her face. "Lani, was it a sharp pain? How long did it last?" she asked, trying to determine what had happened exactly.

"I - it only lasted for a few seconds. It was, not really sharp, actually. I just felt it briefly. What's wrong, Rose? Please, just tell me the truth."

Josef held her hand, nodding at Rose in a signal to just be frank with them. Rose stood up and put the stethoscope away in the bag and snapped it shut, the click sounding loud in the quiet of the yard.

"Do you really want me to be honest?" she asked, watching Josef and Lani carefully.

Oh god, Beth thought. She's lost the baby! But if that was true why could she still hear the heartbeat?

"Please, just tell us," Josef said, a choking pain threatening to keep him from speaking.

"Okay, here it is. Lani, what you felt was your baby moving! You are fine, and so is the baby." Her words were spoken gently, with a good deal of kindness.

"Wha - what? It's okay?" Lani said, positive she'd heard Rose incorrectly. Her hand went back to her stomach, touching it with shaky fingers. She looked down and said, "You're okay in there, you're okay! Josef, we're still pregnant!" Teary-eyed laughter spilled from her and her relief was evident, as was everyone else's.

Beth, Mick and Josef all started talking at once; each one thrilled and excited at the news. "So it wasn't really a pain?" Josef asked.

"Well, it's a fluttering more like," Rose explained. "It can feel somewhat like a cramp at times, especially at first. Lani, you're going to feel it much more from now on I'd say. And in a few months you'll be wishing it was only these flutterings."

"But it is normal, then? It just took me by surprise, I wasn't expecting it. It really did feel weird." She tried not to feel embarrassed about it, but couldn't help the slight blush that swept up her face. "Ooh, there it is again!" This time she laughed, loving the feel of the movement in her body. "Josef, our baby is okay!" she declared to the man she loved, and pulled his head down for a kiss.

After his kissed her, he tossed a brilliant smile over his shoulder at Mick and Beth. "Just call me daddy," he laughed.

Franklin who had heard the good news stepped out onto the terrace and said, "Now that we know that everything is fine, shall I serve breakfast?"

Four heads nodded yes and Lani said, "Rose, would you like to join us?"

As Franklin sat the plates of pancakes down she noticed the chopped up peanut butter cups in them, the topping of sliced jalapenos. Her eyebrows rose a bit and she said, "I've already eaten, thanks. I'll just um, leave you to it."

Beth was speechless, understanding why Franklin had asked if she'd like something different. She managed to mumble goodbye to Rose as she stared at her plate. Perhaps if she scraped the jalapenos off? Somehow she wished she'd asked for blood.


OOOOOOOOOOOO


Biggest Part of Me

Carl pulled Cami a bit closer to him, placing sweet, nibbling little kisses along her neck and breathing in the delicious scent of the woman he adored with all his being.
Cami shivered a bit in his arms and laid her forehead against his. “So you are sure you’re ready, love?”

“Absolutely, Cami. I’ve worked out and mastered what Kenji has taught me and Heroku says I am ready and that he will do this whenever we choose.”

Cami nodded, but lightly chewed her lower lip as she thought about what was going to happen. Heroku would take his life and she would give him her blood so that he could complete the journey. It was a terrifying process but a bit exciting as well.

Heroku had made the decision to do it this way for several reasons; he didn’t want Cami to carry the weight of taking Carl’s life. He thought it fitting that her concern should only be about bringing him back. Heroku would basically mentor him and teach him how to handle his new vampire self while Cami would nurture his emotional needs. They would be married right before this happened so that they could begin their path together united as only vamps can be, connected by blood.

Cami remained silent as Carl studied her face. A silent, lone tear slipped down her face, tracing over her pale cheek and Carl’s heart sped up a bit. What if she no longer wanted to marry him?

“Cami?” he questioned softly. “Have you changed your mind?” He felt like his heart was going to stop as he waited for her answer.

“No, absolutely not!”

“Then what is wrong?”

“It's just, you’ll lose your mortal life and while we’ll be together for always, I guess I feel a little guilty for being the cause.”

“Cami, you are not the cause; this is my choice to make. I made it on my own and I’m anxious to get it done. I could still love you whether or not I’m a vamp, but I want this, Cami. More than you could possibly know.”

“How soon?" she asked.

“Soon, next week or maybe two weeks from now? I just need to put in for my vacation time. Heroku says to plan two weeks, for the honeymoon, but also for my training.”

“Two weeks? It took me so much longer than that.”

“Baby, you were turned under such different circumstances; Heroku says you were almost feral by the time his men found you. I’ll have him and you both helping with my training. I’m going to be just fine.”

She nodded, feeling a bit more composed about it. "I am excited about our life together, Carl."

"Me too,Cami. Now, come here and let me love you. I need you Cami!" His fingers and then his lips traced a delicate path down her throat and teased the hollow of her neck. He felt her shiver in delight and it was all the encouragement he needed. His lips stroked over her sensitive flesh, thrilling and arousing her beyond what she'd ever experienced before. Each time with him their bond increased and so did the pleasure she felt.

His touch elicited a soft moan from her and he smiled against her breast, before sliding his mouth up to capture hers, sealing their lips together in a passionate kiss as he entered her body. His tongue mimicked the movement of his body as it thrust into hers and he knew that it would never be like this with anyone else, this sense of fulfillment beyond any human understanding. As they both approached the epitome of the pleasure he said, "Cami, I need to taste you, your blood."

"Carl?" she questioned, confused.

"Bite your finger, baby. I need to taste you, when you come for me."

Heroku had told her that he would ask for this, but it seemed almost unreal to her. She bit her finger and he pulled it into his mouth, sucking on it rhythmically. The blood made him feel as if his whole body was throbbing with the pleasure he felt. When he felt her bite his neck he spiraled into her arms, knowing, no, understanding the blood bond now
.
They were both complete.


OOOOOOOOOOOO


Logan sat strumming his guitar while Clark paced the room, a scene that had played out all too often in the past couple of days. Logan got it, that Clark was beyond frustrated but he didn't know how to make it better for his fledgling yet. Logic (and Mick) told him it was too soon to take him out into the world, but so far, from what Logan had seen Clark was doing really well. When were they going to give him a chance?

Clark had the best motivation possible for controlling his inner vamp - a wife who needed him there when those babies were born. He had handled everything so far really well, with exceptional control even and it seemed to Logan that maybe they needed to give him more of a chance. Logan just hadn't determined what that chance might be yet.

It had only been a week since Clark had been turned. That's not really a long time, and yet some vamps never even had seclusion for any length of time and they were fine. Mick had kept him secluded for a whole month; by the time Mick told him he was ready for the world he was a bit freaked out, afraid he'd go crazy around people.
He didn't want Clark to experience that.

Logan valued Mick's help and guidance but he also understood where Clark was coming from. He needed to get his fledgling out of here soon; he just needed to figure out how to do that, just in case.

"Logan?" Clark asked, seeing that his brother had stopped strumming the guitar and was staring off into space.

Logan realized that he'd zoned out for a few minutes and laughed or tried to in an effort to keep his thoughts to himself.

"Um yeah, Clark. What's up?"

"Nothing, really. You just looked like you were far away."

"I - I was just thinking about Audey. I didn't have the chance to talk to her about a baby when I was home. We got, uh, preoccupied with other things."

Clark grinned, knowing full well what those things were. He was more than ready for those things himself.

"You don't want to talk to her about it over the phone, do you?"

"No, not really. I think this is a face-to-face kind of thing. If she doesn't want to do it, then I'll be able to tell if we're together. On the phone, not so much."

Clark nodded, understanding. Their sense of smell told them so much about how a person was feeling; frankly, it was amazing and something he'd never imagined. If someone wasn't telling the truth, it wouldn't be hard to know that in person; over the phone? Not nearly so easy to know what they thought; he understood that in a way never before imaginable.

"You really would like a child, wouldn't you, Logan?"

"I…yeah, I guess I would. I never even considered it before, because of circumstances. I'm a vamp, and I never had anyone in my life that made me feel like I'd like the chance. With Audey, it's so different, Clark. I think she'd make a great mother, but she chose to be with me, knowing that children weren't a possibility, so maybe that means that she never really wanted them anyway.

"Well, nerdo, unless you ask her, you'll never know!" Clark told him and Logan couldn't help but notice the twinkle in his eye.

"Yeah, you're right. Gotta ask." His fingers resumed his strumming, picking out an old Ambrosia song.

More than an easy feelin'
She brings joy to me
How can I tell you what it means to me
Flow like a lazy river
For an eternity
I finally found someone who believes in me
And I'll never leave
She was… yes, she was the biggest part of him.


OOOOOOOOOOOO


Vaygar cruised on his bike up through the Hollywood hills, enjoying the cool day as the wind whipped through his hair. The ride up to Kostan's place was enjoyable; he hoped that his purpose there would be just as enjoyable.

Rose had told him that in her opinion, Dorothy only had a week left before she delivered, if that and he was frankly concerned about Dorothy's state of mind if her husband wasn't with her. Not that Dorothy wasn't a very strong woman; she was. But giving birth, while a very natural state was a scary prospect and with Clark being away from her it was increasing Dorothy's stress incredibly.

Rose had told him, what limited information she knew about Dorothy's past; that she had been raped and Beth was the result of it. She went through all that with the help of her parents and they had stood by her every step of the way it seemed. When Clark had come back into her life she had kept him at arm's length, a fact that Rose didn't particularly understand.

She knew that he wasn't Beth's father, even without knowing that he wasn't a descendent. Why did she push him out of her life? Obviously they'd always loved one another; Clark had apparently always been in her life. He'd waited for years for her and his perseverance had paid off eventually. In Rose's mind, men who were that devoted and unshakable in their love were few and far between.

Vaygar agreed completely; Clark Griffin was more than worthy of being Dorothy's Guardian and it was his job to make that happen. He just wished they had a bit more time to make it happen.

For someone who is a descendent, a turn is quick. They maybe need a day or so to rest and recuperate from the turning, but they are pretty much ready to take on the world. They could control the blood lust, and usually felt it only minimally. The time after a turning was more of an adjustment period; getting used to the new senses and sensations that the vamp experienced.

Other new turns did have that blood lust, to some varying degrees usually. He'd spoken with Mick St. John, whom he admired greatly but Mick felt that a month or so was called for in regards to new turns. Vaygar respectfully disagreed.

He needed Clark ready to go and it needed to happen quickly. His mission today was to meet and discuss this with Clark and his sire, Logan Griffin, who also was his brother. Where the problem came from was that Logan was the fledgling of Mick; if he carried his sire's feelings about this, he might not be willing to let his fledgling go quite so quickly. Vaygar could only hope that Logan would be reasonable and understand what was at stake here.

Since Dorothy was one of his descendents, he felt compelled to move heaven and earth for her and right now that meant bringing her husband home.
He could only hope that Clark was ready.


To be continued…