I didn’t know what he meant. I narrowed my eyes, trying to read him the way he read me. He must have sensed it, because he kept the stare locked between us, as though he was giving me the chance.
“I can’t do it,” I said. “I’m not a mind reader.”
“Stop digging so hard. Rather than searching for answers, listen for them. Let the instincts come.”
I looked at him again, trying. But nothing came.
“I can’t hear anything.”
He didn’t give up, even though I had.
“Tell me the first words that come into your head, right now.”
“Halloween,” I replied. “Halloween and… Garway.”
I thought I was stating some obvious guesses, but he gave me a nod of acknowledgement.
“Good. Keep going.”
“Keep going?” I took a breath, trying to clear my mind.
Instincts.
I let myself sink into my subconscious until I was back in the woodland, staring at the trapdoor, no longer afraid of what I might find in there. I looked into the depths and focused on nothing. Quiet.
Instincts.
My voice sounded distant when I spoke again.
“Halloween night… Garway church. Moonlight on the gravestones, and you, and me. Running. Dancing.” I kept my eyes closed. “The ritual. That’s what I hear, Hans. Ritual.”
“That’s good,” he said. “Let it flow.”
His encouragement kept me there, staring into the darkness in my imagination, and this time I saw images there like motion paintings in the depths. Like an overlay of instincts on instincts that didn’t make any sense. Imagination within my imagination.
I saw Garway church, and I saw us there, me and Hans. I felt my bare feet on the grass as I spun in the grounds like I used to do when I was a little girl, but I wasn’t young anymore. It wasn’t just Hans’ legs I bumped into when he appeared in front of me this time. My whole body pressed against his, and his lips met mine.
And then it ended. The motion paintings stilled and disappeared.But they left something.
I opened my eyes.
“I’m going to taste your blood,” I said, with crystal clarity.
He nodded gently.
“Yes. I’m certainly going to give you your first taste.”
“Am I going to be a vampire?”
“That will be your choice, Katherine, not mine.”
It was an easy choice to make.
“I want to be a vampire with you. I’m not going to lose you this time.”
He took my hand and kissed it.
“That’s a beautiful statement, but it needs to be the right time. You’re still a youngster in the world. You still have early sunrises, and afternoons with your friends, and twilights in the meadows to enjoy.”