Chapter 26 Starry, Starry Night

Chapter 26 Starry, Starry Night

Dorothy had just settled down on the bed to take a nap when her phone rang. It was Clark and she answered it eagerly. "Hi," she whispered, her voice a bit breathy from excitement.

"Hi, Dorie! Guess what?, You'll never guess?"

"Um, I don't know. Why don't you tell me?"

He could hear the laughter in her voice and said, "I fed fresh today! First time and it went great, honey. I'll be out of here in no time at all. Tonight we're going to take a walk at the mall or a market or something. And I'll feed fresh again tomorrow and, Dorie? If that goes well I'm coming home in just a couple of days. Vaygar is helping me through it and has been working on some physical training with me as well outside. Honey, it won't be long and I can hold you in my arms and I'll be there for you when the babies are born. He tells me that Alexander will not come until I am ready because I need to protect you and his sister."

"Goodness," she said, frowning. Vaygar seemed to think he had some type of mental connection with the twins, Alexander in particular. Rose said that Vaygar had very strong psychic gifts and that she would most likely have those as well. Dorothy didn't see how because there was nothing about her now that bespoke of being psychically tuned. "Clark, I am so relieved; I just want to feel your arms around me, honey."

"I know. Dorie, it won't be long, I promise you. Just hold on a little bit more, girl. I won't let you down."

"I know, Clark. I've always known that."



OOOOOOOOOOOO


Mick pushed the end call button on his phone and sat it down on the desk, a bit shaken up by what he'd just been told by Logan. Clark had just fed fresh today, successfully in fact.

Clark wasn't a descendent; apparently they make the transition in a few days. It was only a week since Clark had been turned and yet he'd fed fresh and hadn't had any control issues. He would do so tomorrow and tonight he was going out, out to walk among humans.

Mick could only hope that Vaygar knew what the hell he was doing.

It wasn't that Mick was wishing for anything bad to happen; it was just that it was all happening so fast. In his experience it didn't work that way. Or did it? It had taken him a full month to be able to socially engage humans with no worry of losing control. How could that have been?

Because of that he'd kept Logan isolated for a whole month, just to make sure. And he'd tried to keep Beth isolated as well; that one didn't work out as planned and certainly wasn't necessary. Now it looked as if Clark was going to be ready to go home in a couple of days. The truth was he reflected, he had fed fresh and been around humans in his first week, at Josef's place, under the careful and critical eye of his friend. It was only around Coraline, that he felt as if he'd lose control. He realized now that she had kept him that way so he'd be dependent on her. The thought of that, the memory rang true for him in a way that it never had before.

Mick was genuinely happy for both Clark and Dorothy. He could only hope it would go well because one thing was for sure, Dorothy needed him to be with her.

He heard Beth step off the elevator and glanced at his watch. It had been a full hour since he'd talked with Logan; a full hour that he should have used to start some dinner. Dorothy was upstairs, taking a nap because she wasn't sleeping well at a night. Mick hadn't heard her get up so he figured that she was still sleeping.

He met Beth in the living room and gave her a hug. He had lots to tell her, about Catherine's visit and about Clark.

"Hi," Beth said, heading straight into his arms. "Um, it's good to be home!"

"Hard day at the office, dear?" he teased.

"Not too bad; does it have to be a bad day for me to be happy to be home?" She grinned at him before adding, "What's for dinner? I don't smell anything and I'm starved! I think my house husband if neglecting his duties!"

"Oh, he is? Shame on him. Maybe you could overlook it, just this once?"

"I think I can manage that. Where's Mom?"

"Sleeping, for about an hour now. Probably the best for her."

Beth nodded, knowing how often her mom had been up in the night. She headed into the kitchen a pulled out a carafe of A+ and raised an eyebrow at Mick in question. At his nod she poured two glasses and handed him one of them.

Mick leaned against the counter and told her about Clark.

"Wow, that's wonderful! Maybe he'll be back before those babies are born."

"I hope so. It just seems so soon. If anything were to happen I don't know how Logan will handle it."

"Mick, you need to stop worrying about your fledgling. Vaygar is helping, it will be okay."

He nodded again and took her glass before rinsing both of them out putting them in the dishwasher. "Beth, Cat came to see me today."

Beth looked down for a moment; she had a feeling she knew what this was about and so she prepared herself for trouble. "What did she have to say?"

Mick told her of their conversation and Beth almost held her breath in anticipation of what Mick might think about it. It didn't matter that she could hold her breath for, well probably forever, either.

"I want to go and see her, Beth. Soon."

"You…you're kidding, right?"

"No, I'm serious. Maybe tonight before I change my mind. Do you think your mom would be unhappy if we left for a little while?"

"Do you think mom would be unhappy about what?" Dorothy asked, slowly descending the stairs. With her belly so big she couldn't see beneath her feet so she literally just felt her way down.

"Mick has decided to go and see his sister," Beth said.

"Mick, I'm so proud of you! I don't might a bit. It's not like I'm alone, what with the vampire squad next door," she said, with a nod of her head in the direction of Brody's apartment.

"Okay then. Well, let's get you girls fed first. Beth has told me that she is starving."

"Let's do it," Beth said, looking in fridge. There had to be something in there that would be tasty.


OOOOOOOOOOOO


Starry, Starry Night

After dinner was finished and the dishwasher was running Mick and Beth said goodbye. Dorothy had settled in on the couch with a murder mystery to read. She would talk to Clark again later, when they could Skype. She was anxious to hear about his walk among humans.

Her heart was heavy; maybe it was the impending birth of their children, something they could have had a long time ago, if it hadn't been for her fears. In the end though, perhaps her fear had been justified…

Early June, 1980

"Come on, Dorothy, snap out of it! It's been 2 days since Clark left. I know you miss him but you have to stop living like a boring old nun!" her best friend, Merri told her as they sat outside in Merri's back yard and sipped their Coke's.

"Merri, you don't know, you can't understand. Kip is still here; he's going to college here and you'll still see him sometimes. Clark will be a world away!"

"But not forever, Dorothy. You said you love him enough to wait and you will."

"But will he? He's going to be out there in the world, around women, adult women who, well you know, well, let's just say they aren't virgins!"

"And you are?" Merri laughed and as she saw the crestfallen look on her friends face she realized the truth. "You are, aren't you?"

Dorothy nodded, feeling miserable about that. "I tried to get him to, uh, you know. Before he left, but he wouldn't. He didn't want me!"

Merri reached for her friends hand and squeezed it lightly in a show of support. What Dorothy had told her was a bit surprising; Clark and Dorothy were so much in love and it seemed natural that they would have done it. "Dorothy, it wasn't because he doesn't love you; Kip says that you are Clark's world and all he talks about is the future you two have. He's just being smart; not starting something that either of you are ready for before he went."

Dorothy held back a sob and hugged her knees to her chest as she rested her chin on them. Part of her knew that what Merri had said was true, but it stung that he hadn't taken what she had offered. She didn't really want to do it yet, but it made her feel insecure that he wouldn't do it.

Just then Mrs. Macintosh called out the back door, "Dorothy, your mom just called and said it was time for you to get home, young lady. Hadn't you two chatterboxes noticed that it was dark now?"

Neither girl had and they both stood guiltily and brushed their shorts off before heading into the house. Dorothy sat her empty can on the counter and headed to the front door, waving goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Macintosh.

"Dorothy, do you want me to give you a lift?" Mr. Macintosh asked, frowning when she quickly shook her head no.

"Thanks anyway, but I'll just cut through the park, it's a lot quicker. Bye, Merri. See you tomorrow?"

"Yep, you can count on it!"

Dorothy quickly ran down the steps and through the yard, crossing the street to get to the park. It was dark and a bit creepy she decided. It wasn't like she hadn't been there at night before but never alone. She hurried across the grounds, past the play area to the far side, which was through the trees. She cast a look around her, suddenly feeling unsettled. Maybe she should go back and take the long way around the park?

He'd been watching her since Griffin had left. He couldn't believe his good luck; here she was, all alone walking quickly through the park. He suddenly stepped out of the trees and stood in her path, making her jump and let out a small shriek.

"Well, it if isn't Clark Griffin's girl. And where is Clark by the way? Oh yeah, he's not here. How ya doin' Dorothy?" He took a step closer to her and reached out and touched her face. "Looks like you been crying. Missing that jerk? Here, I'll make it all better for you!"

A minute later she was on the ground, screaming uselessly because one hand covered her mouth while the other ripped her shorts off and then her panties. Dorothy tried to twist and heave his body off of hers but it was pointless; he was too big and too heavy. Instead she stared at him with hate filled eyes and saw his laugh in response before he swung and hit her hard, the blow cutting her lip and leaving a bruise on her cheek.

It didn't take long and for that she was grateful. She lay there, staring up at the stars in the sky, mourning what was just taken from her. She didn't know a lot about sex but she knew that it was supposed to be given with love and this had been anything but.

Sobs tore through her body; great heaving sobs that almost made Martin feel guilty. Almost. He zipped his jeans up and tossed her ruined panties at her and then picked them back up and stuck them in his pocket. He knelt down and said "A souvenir I think. And Dorothy? If you ever tell anyone about this, your parents, Griffin, anyone, I'll kill them, got it? You are mine, MINE and you'd better remember that. If you ever let Griffin get close to you again I'll kill him. I promise you and you had better believe me." He slapped her again, just so she would understand that he'd meant what he said.

With that he walked off nonchalantly, as if this had been an ordinary stroll though the park. She curled into the fetal position and let the tears flow in an effort to wash him away but he was firmly in her head. She knew that he meant what he'd said, that she could never have Clark. She got to her feet and pulled on her shorts, realizing that she couldn't fasten them because he'd ripped the button and the zipper. She held them together and ran for home, thankful that her mom was the only one there. He father was away for business in Fresno and she hoped she could get into the house and too her room before her mom could see her.

As she opened the front door she knew that it wouldn't be possible. Not only was her mom in the front room but so was Shelly Griffin, Clark's mom. Both women rose to their feet as she came in and Grace immediately started crying, knowing instinctively what had happened. Shelly was right behind her and both women were questioning her about how she was, what had happened, a million questions that Dorothy didn't want to answer.

"Mama, please, don't make me talk about it. I just want to take a bath!" she cried.

"Dorothy, some man has hurt you. We need to call the police!"

"NO. No, Mom, you know how they treat girls when this happens. They make it seem like it's our fault. You know that. Please, Mrs. Griffin, you have to know that too. I don't know who did it. I can't identify them, what good would it do?"

Shelly's heart was breaking for Dorothy, but at the same time she knew the truth of Dorothy's words. It was the girls who suffered when rape went to trial; why were they dressed in such a revealing manner, why were they at that place, etc.. "She has a point, Grace. Maybe it's best to just get her cleaned up." If she had just seen who did it then they might risk calling the police but it was still chancy.

"Dorothy, are you sure you don't know who did this?" At her daughter's negative shake of the head Grace felt so angry, so helpless. "I need to call your father, Dorothy."
"Mama, please don't. PLEASE…I feel so ashamed, so dirty. Please don't tell anyone about this. Please…" her words were punctuated by more sobs. "Mrs. Griffin, you can't tell Clark, please, just don't."

Shelly nodded, understanding the reason for this request. If Clark found out about it he would want to find the person and it would never let Dorothy put it behind her and find peace and that is what she needed, to find a way to make peace with it.

It was against her better judgment but Grace acquiesced to her daughters pleas. Six weeks later he would have to be told.

Dorothy was shaken out of her memories by a knock on the door. She realized she had been crying when she felt the wetness on her cheeks. She stood up, hastily wiping the tears away and looked at the security camera and saw Rose standing at the door. It would do no good to ignore the knock because the vampire would know that she was in here.

As Rose waited she could scent the tears that Dorothy had been shedding. She didn't sense any problems within the loft but Dorothy had been crying. She made herself smile when Dorothy opened the door, trying to appear unconcerned when in truth she was not only concerned but curious as well.

"Hi, Rose. Did Mick and Beth ask you to stop by?"

"Um, no. I was visiting Brody and thought I'd stop and see you while I was here."

Dorothy nodded, lightly biting her lower lip. She didn't really want company, but she also didn't want to be left alone with the memories. She knew that as soon as Clark was home she needed to tell him what she had concealed all these years, about Martin's threats. They would have to find him because he'd never leave them alone otherwise.

"Come in, Rose," she finally said.

Rose scented her indecision and said, "If this is a bad time, I can go. It's just a social visit, Dorothy."

"No, please, come in. I'm going to make some tea, would you like some?"

"Yes, that sounds lovely. Can I help you?"

"No, just have a seat. It won't take me long." Dorothy got the kettle heating as she pulled out tea bags. "Is chamomile okay? It's either that or the red raspberry pregnancy tea," she laughed.

Rose smiled and said, "Chamomile is perfect, thank you. How are you feeling?"

"Ready to have these babies. However, Vaygar tells me that Alexander tells him that he and his sister are not coming until Clark is back." She laughed because it seemed preposterous to her that Alexander was talking to Vaygar and she told Rose as much.

"Well, he does have amazing psychic abilities, Dorothy. Really. This is probably very possible."

Dorothy set the mugs down on the counter with a clatter. "Rose, how in the world? I mean, talk to a baby not yet born? It takes them a year of more to actually understand what you are saying sometimes and longer to respond and it's only simple language at that."

"It can take awhile for them to respond, I agree, but is it that they have no understanding or that their bodies aren't yet to the point where they can respond? Dorothy, I don't have that much of a psychic gift. Some yes, all of the 13 have at least basic ability, but Vaygar has always had a very strong ability. Beth's ability to communicate with Mick when she was kidnapped is more from Vaygar's genes than mine, even though her DNA is more prominently mine. I expect that since Vaygar is your only antecedent that you will have very strong gifts as well; most of his descendents do."

"I just don't think that can be true, Rose. I mean, I don't have any ability now. So it's just going to magically appear when I'm turned?"

"I suspect so. Seriously," she added when she saw the skeptical look that Dorothy gave her.

Dorothy filled the mugs and carried them to the table where Rose was sitting. She was mulling over what the vampire had said and she just couldn't quite wrap her brain around it. Frankly, being psychic wasn't something she ever even wanted. After all, they said her grandmother always knew when someone was going to die. Every single time. It was eerie Dorothy always thought. And then it all started to fall into place. Her grandmother. Dorothy's descendent line came through her mother. She told Rose about it and she nodded in agreement.

"So maybe there are a few of those talents out there, in your family, Dorothy."

"Maybe, but I don't want to know when someone I love is going to die, Rose."

"And you may not. Also, keep in mind that you'll have training to help you direct your gift."

"Really? I can control it?"

Rose nodded. "Yes, you'll learn so much when you train."

"About that…Rose, how soon before I can be turned? How old do the babies have to be?"

"As a descendent, it only takes a couple of days for you to acclimate. You will have complete control, Dorothy but you'll still need a couple of days to get used to the elevated sensory sensations. That is the difficult part. How soon do you want to be turned?"

"I want to breast feed the twins for as long as I can but I also want to be turned as quickly as possible. Does that make me a bad mother?" She felt very guilty over the thought.

Rose smiled. "Not at all. You can be turned very quickly; you can pump milk for the babies for the couple of days you'll be away. Also, when Clark is back, make sure you take a bit of his blood every day, just a few drops as it will help you heal much more quickly. Your body will return to normal in a few days or so that way."

"Does that mean we could, um, be together?"

"Yes, but you're going to be so tired with twins in the house that I'm thinking you'll be too tired for many extra activities," she said with a laugh.
Now that was something to think about!


OOOOOOOOOOOO


Mick pulled the old Benz up into the driveway at Maeve's house. Beth scouted the yard but didn't see Noodle anywhere and decided the little dog must be in the house. Surely the car in the drive must have attracted the occupants attention so Beth went to open her door but was stopped by Mick's hand on hers.

"I don't know if I can do this, Beth. How do I do this?"

"Why don't you let me go and talk to her for a moment, to sort of prepare her?"

"Is that any better than just seeing me? I don't know."

Beth sensed he was waffling on it and quickly opened the door and stepped out of the car and closed the door. She saw the front door of the house open up and waved and called out to Mrs. Carter, aka Maeve St. John. "Hi Mrs.Carter. I'm Beth; remember I met you the other night? I'm a friend of Lani's. May I talk to you for a minute?"
Mick listened from the car. This was it, his moment of truth. He hoped that it wasn't a huge mistake.


To be continued…


AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rape is always a difficult subject to deal with. I didn't go into any real detail because of that fact but it was necessary to complete the chain of questions started in my first story, Beth's Diary. The question has always been posed as to why Dorothy never told anyone and kept Clark away from her for so many years. This was integral in her life, her fear that Martin would find out. When he did, he tried to kill Clark and Dorothy has a great deal of guilt over that. We aren't quite done with this yet, so hand in there with me.

Also, another thing to mention; young women today are often unable to understand the issues dealing with rape in the past. Granted, it can still be horrible now to go through a court proceeding where rape is concerned but in the past, it was usually an all out attack on the woman and her loose morals or manner of dress. Women and girls 'enticed' or 'excited' men to do such things and the poor guy just couldn't help himself. That is the reason why so many women didn't report rape. If you've ever seen the movie, The Accused, you'll have a good understanding of the situation. It is a movie well worth seeing, however it is very graphic.

Dorothy was a sign of her times, as Grace and Shelly both knew. Even if the rape had been reported, Martin might very well have never been arrested or charged. That is a very bitter pill to swallow, even now, I understand.

I hope this chapter wasn't too upsetting for any of you. I tried to do it in the least invasive way possible.