Page 125 of Bent Out of Shade
Sadie unfurled her shadow, which grew larger, rising off the ground until it stood on its feet. I squeezed my eyes into thin slits against the dazzling light, the white of my child’s eyes morphing to a jet black.
“Ready?” she said.
Celeste nodded. “See ya, gramps. Thanks for letting me see Ian.” She snapped off a salute.
Zev pulled out a kippah from his suit pocket and began to pray. “Yitgadal v’yitkadash, sh’mei raba b’alma di v’ra chir’utei; v’yamlich malchutei b’hayeichon u-vyomeichon…” The vampire fell away to reveal the rabbi he’d once been, Zev rocking back and forth, his Hebrew uttered in a rich baritone.
Sadie’s shadow reached out its arm made of hard light and touched Celeste’s shoulder.
“Y’hei sh’mei raba m’varach l’alam u-l’almei almaya…”
Celeste stiffened, her face turned up to the ceiling. Black threads of magic streamed from her body into the shadow and a pained cry tore from her throat.
“…b’rich hu, l’ela min kol birchata v’shirata, tushb’hata v’nehemata da’amiran b’alama…” Zev kept his eyes locked on his granddaughter. He shouldn’t have been saying the Mourner’s Kaddish while she was still alive, or without a minyan, but he wasn’t reciting it as a comfort. His voice was raw, his chant more a whip than a prayer. This wasn’t meant in supplication to God, Zev was branding this moment on his very soul.
Celeste’s magic slowed to a trickle, her features twisted in an exaggerated grimace.
Vincenzo and Sabrina observed the death with a solemnity I hadn’t expected, though he kept his arm tightly around her.
“Y’hei sh’lama raba min sh’maya, v’hayim…”
Celeste’s corporeality dissipated, her form became translucent, and her voice died out.
“…shalom aleinu v’al kol yisrael, v’imru amen.”
Sadie screwed her face up, her soft grunt crashing into the ensuing silence as she tried to remove the final strands of the vampire’s magic.
Celeste was barely visible and yet her look of terror forced me to turn away. That didn’t help because it would be forever seared on my brain. I just prayed this wouldn’t destroy my daughter’s soul.
Sadie strained forward, her arms outstretched. Her light filled the room so brightly I was scared that all the vamps would be turned to ash, but it died in a snap.
I blinked my way through the black dots swimming in my vision.
Celeste stood there, fully corporeal and still undead, patting herself down, her mouth hanging open.
“Our deal is fulfilled,” Zev said to Sadie.
“You used her?” I lunged at him, but it was my daughter of all people who pulled me back.
She jutted her chin up, her chest heaving. “Did you know that it wouldn’t work?”
Zev hesitated then shook his head. “Not conclusively.”
“Take me home, Vincenzo.” Sabrina’s muted plea broke the stare down happening on my side of the room.
I should have checked in with the female vampire or introduced myself or something, but the only thing I cared about was Sadie.
“Sades?” I was almost scared to speak and have her cold stare turned on me.
Her granite expression softened somewhat when she faced me, but not enough.
I held out a hand and after a moment, she took it.
“Let’s go, Mom,” she said quietly.
The case from hell was over.
* * *
