Love Is the Beginning by Caroline Hanson

Author:Caroline Hanson [Hanson, Caroline]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Host of the Hills
Published: 2012-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

The next week passed in a blur. He didn't have much family, so his uncle, a confirmed bachelor, came to stay with him at the closed hotel. Uncle Vito slept on the couch. Neither of them went into his parent’s room. Jack didn't want to leave the hotel, but staying was awful too. His childhood home had changed. It was no longer a place of safety and familiarity, but a prison that reminded him of the crime he'd committed against his parents.

How could he stay here? Be in this little town and walk by the hotel every day? He wanted to leave. He wanted revenge. And he didn't want to be afraid. He often thought of that girl and how unafraid she'd been. What had made her like that? How could he become like her? Was it something her father taught her?

And then, on the eleventh day, he heard the door close in the lobby. He peeked out, frightened of who it might be. Vampires would kill him. Or people he knew would try to console him. Both were bad.

Nate was looking around the lobby. He seemed fine. “Jack. I hear you met my daughter, Valerie.”

Jack studied Nate, inspected him like he might still see blood pouring out of his body if he looked hard enough. He'd wondered if the man would come back. If it would be painful to see him again. But somehow it was better. This man had tried. He'd almost lost his life trying to help Jack's parents.

“I wanted to tell you that I am sorry. Sorry that I failed you, Jack.” Nate’s voice was gruff, his flat American accent easy to understand. “The plan was to wait. I had some back up, and they were supposed to arrive and help, but things got out of hand, and the confrontation was sooner than it should have been. No one stood a chance. You're lucky you survived. That's what your parents would have wanted. You know that, right Jack? That all a parent wants for their child is for them to go on and live a useful and happy life? It seems impossible now, but when you start enjoying things again, living again, embrace that. Because that's what they would want for you. You can't feel guilty about living.”

Jack made no response. The man waited, looked around the lobby for a while, his posture indicating he was in no particular hurry. Jack examined the man. He was about six feet tall and had graying hair that had originally been a light brown. He was pale, and life had weathered his skin and features. He didn't have laugh lines like Jack's father had, or a sense of calmness like Jack’s mother. This man seemed tired, but determined. Like a soldier.

Finally, Jack found something to say. “She said you hunt them.”

The man nodded. “Yes, I do. It takes a lot of planning because they are powerful, smart, and much stronger than we are. It's hard work and it’s dangerous.” Nate’s keen gaze was watching Jack.

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