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We sat across from each other in the great room, in silence. Ankh-Re was hunkered down in an easy chair. He gripped its arms so tightly that I thought his fingers would bore through the leather.

He kept curling his bare toes in the carpet. I thought - you are not the only one who is nervous here.

With that thought, he looked directly at me.

“What am I suppose to say, Isis? What am I suppose to do?”

I sighed, and blocked my thoughts from him.

“I am so sorry…so sorry. How do I fix this?” There was a catch in his throat; Ankh-Re was doing all that he could to keep from falling apart in front of me. It was quite touching.

I forced myself to speak. “I know that the zombie infection altered you…but I can’t help but think that some part of you knew what you were doing, and enjoyed it.”

A gasp escaped Ankh-Re’s lips. He was about to speak, but decided against it.

“I love you” was all he said.

“And I love you” I replied. “Yet - there is some unfinished business that we have to deal with, if we are truly each other’s beloved.”

Ankh-Re stood up, and began to slowly pace back and forth. I noticed that the borrowed t-shirt and sweatpants he wore were too tight. He dragged his hands down his face, then faced me.

“I am thousands of years old, yet I am still an unruly, spoilt, jealous child.”

I knew that, yet I feigned ignorance. “How so?” was all I said.

Ankh-Re stopped pacing and went back to the chair.

“We both know that I get angry when I don’t get what I want. I cloak my true feelings with reckless bravado and jokes. I’ve done things to get a rise out of you, make you jealous, yet my antics barely registered. I was expecting you - Miss Perfect Goody Two Shoes - to go bat shit when I drained that girl dry, but you only seemed to show displeasure. As a matter-of-fact, you looked down on me, as you’ve done time and time again…”

What he said was true. I was always disappointed when he didn’t rise above the base elements of being a vampire. None of us have to kill to feed well.

“You were always so superior” he added.

“Really?” I replied. “Considering that you were of royal blood before becoming a vampire while I was a commoner, how do you figure?”

“You know what I mean!” he snapped. “I’m not speaking of our respective past circumstances…I’m talking about how much of a snob you can be sometimes.”

The heat of anger rose inside me. How dare he?

“So” I said flatly “Because you think I’m a snob, that gave you the right to slap me across the face, break my leg, and brutally rape me?”

Ankh-Re’s mouth fell open. He shook his head, but said nothing.

“Uh-huh” was all I said, as I stood up to go to a window. I needed some fresh air.

I felt his presence behind me, as I inhaled. When he placed his hands on my shoulders, I jerked away from him.

“I know that we are voicing truths that should have been aired a long time ago” he finally said. “It is obvious that I felt resentment towards you. You were always out of my reach. It just made me so angry. Out of all of the hundreds of women I’ve had over the millennia, the one that I truly wanted, wanted no part of me. The zombie infection brought all of my negative feelings to the forefront…in a very horrible way. I am so sorry, Isis…”

In regards to me not wanting any part of him, Ankh-Re was wrong…so wrong. I always wanted him…with the caveat that he ceased being an unruly spoilt child. I sure couldn’t change him…no one could. Those changes would have to come from within; he’d have to change himself. Maybe that time has finally come.

Ankh-Re followed me to one of the sofas, and sat down next to me. He took both of my hands in his. I did not jerk away this time.

“Look, Isis. Starting today - right now - let us be completely open with one another. You have every right to hate me. But know that from me, I will always love you. If I have to go to the ends of the world to prove my love, so be it.”

I just looked at him silently, staring into his green-flecked hazel eyes. What the hell did he have in mind?

“May I use your phone?” he asked, startling me. “I need Tony to bring me some clothes.”

“Of course” I replied.

When he finished his brief conversation with Tony, Ankh-Re walked over to the entryway; his helmet and gloves were still on the table. He smiled.

As if right on cue, Anna came into the great room, rolling in a tea cart. She gave Ankh-Re the once over, then left the room.

“She doesn’t like me much” he muttered, after Anna’s departure.

“She is just protective of me” I replied. “Not that I need any protection.” I poured us cups of mint tea, adding sugar and lots of lemon to my cup.

Ankh-Re raised a brow, but said nothing. He took his tea, and gulped it down.

Tony arrived thirty minutes later, with a huge smile on his face. Apparently, he was relieved to find his master in one piece. Ankh-Re changed clothes and took his leave, hugging me before he walked through the front doors.

“I begin my road to redemption now, Isis. It will be awhile before you see or hear from me.”

He climbed onto his Harley, which was where he had left it before all hell broke lose.

“What are you talking about, Ankh-Re? How long will you be gone?” What was he up to now?

Tony was already driving away in the Duesenberg.

“I’ll be gone for a few weeks - a month or two at the most, my love.” He rushed over suddenly, and gave me a soul searing kiss. Then he climbed back onto his bike, and rode away.









© MFH 2013