Woman King

CHAPTER 23

I woke up the next morning knowing I needed to hit the books if I was going to have a meaningful relationship with William. My degree was in American history, not world history, and my education felt incomplete. The man I wanted to be with had walked across the Western Front and watched the dawn of Prohibition. While my education may have been extensive, to truly understand William, I would need to delve deeper.

Luckily for me, my best friend ran the library system. With one stroke of a computer keyboard, Lily could locate any book I needed. I had texted her on the way over to make sure she was free.

When I arrived at her office, she was sitting at her desk, reading her email. I noticed she was wearing new eyeglasses, a pair of thick black rectangular frames that had become a fashion statement for the elite nerds of cities everywhere.

“I like your glasses,” I said as a way to catch her attention. “You look like a very sexy East German spy.”

“Why thank you,” Lily said, fingering the frames. “I know they’re a bit of a fashion cliché, but I like how they look.” She turned away from her computer monitor and looked up at me. “What brings you to the Main Library today?” she asked. “I thought you were off to Palo Alto.”

I slumped on the edge of her desk and hid my face in my arms. “I am going to try to head down there for a few hours,” I said, “But Levi is out of town and after last night, I’ve decided I need a quick research assignment.”

“Hmmm,” Lily said. “What happened last night?”

“If you must know, the main thing is that I have been acting like a silly, moonstruck child,” I said. “William is vastly more complex than I ever imagined.”

Lily stood up from her desk and walked to my side. “I don’t want to say ‘we told you so,’ but that is what Elsa and I were trying to tell you,” she said.

I didn’t reply. I was too busy sulking, my head still buried in the crook of my elbow. “What did you find out last night?” Lily continued, the alarm audible in her voice.

Her concern caused me to laugh. “It’s not what you’re imagining,” I said. “In fact, you’ll be quite surprised to learn it’s the opposite. I’m the one with the dark secret he didn’t approve of.”

“What?” Lily said. “Listen, let’s get out of here and have a cup of coffee. When we’re done, I will help you find whatever books you’re interested in, or drop them off at your house while you’re on your way to Palo Alto.” I followed Lily out and we walked up Van Ness to a nearby coffee shop to order cappuccinos.

“OK, now tell me everything,” she said, “and start at the beginning.”

I sighed. “William’s life is much richer and more complicated than I gave him credit for,” I said, sipping my espresso drink. “I saw a handsome man in faded jeans who played in a band and gave him a one-dimensional biography. But he’s not human. Maybe I could have taken a human man at face value, but William was born in 1830. It turns out those 181 years make quite a difference.”

“That makes sense,” Lily said. “What did you learn?”

I tilted my head back and closed my eyes for a moment. I was trying to think about where to begin. “He is a former confederate soldier reborn in Baton Rouge as a vampire, a citizen of Paris at the time of the World’s Fair, and a volunteer ambulance driver during World War I …and that gets us to only about 1917.”

Lily was obviously delighted at my predicament. “Yes, I can see what you mean.”

“Wait,” I said, holding up my hand. “I haven’t told you the best part yet.”

She raised an eyebrow, but did not speak.

“He was a member of the Council. He ended his involvement at some point, but we didn’t get that far in our conversation.” Lily’s eyes were wide with surprise. “Yes, I think you may be starting to appreciate the situation,” I said. “But here is the real kicker: I found out about his work for the Council when I told him what I was doing. And you know what? He didn’t like it at all.”

“I’m confused,” Lily said. “Why not?”

“He said that humans deserve to live out their fates and that intervention is wasted on them,” I said, again growing anxious about my situation with William.

“And then what?” she asked. “Did he ask you to stop working?”

I shook my head. “He didn’t ask me to do anything,” I said. “I’m not sure he had to, though. I mean, it’s clear that he disapproves.”

Lily shifted around in her armchair. “I wouldn’t jump to any conclusions,” she said, patting my hand. “As you said, this isn’t some regular guy from the Mission who plays in a band. He is much more complicated than that. I think you need to discuss this with him further before you can understand what he wants. It’s possible he will ask you to do nothing.”

“Why do you say that?” I asked, wondering how Lily could be so sure.

“For a number of reasons,” she said. “First, he is not the first Other to feel strongly against intervening in human events. This is a frequent topic of discussion in my own family. It is a common theme, and one that you will encounter more often as you wade deeper into the Council’s affairs. Second, William has lived a long life and may have seen what ultimatums do to relationships. It’s possible he will never ask you to change your life, but he is certainly entitled to question what you’re doing.”

“Why is there opposition to the Council’s work?” I asked, realizing I probably should have known these things before I allowed myself to be tattooed by a witch.

Lily walked over to a window and regarded the passersby on the sidewalk, before she spoke. “They are the watchers, the invisible hand. The work of the Council is hidden from view,” she said. “It goes unnoticed by humans and, in the opinion of some, doesn’t always make much of a difference in the long-term.”

“But, if you know you are going to live forever, why wouldn’t you try to ensure the world is a pleasant place to live?” I asked, some of the bewilderment of my situation showing.

“I’m not William, Olivia,” she said. “I think you need to ask him why he left the Council. That is an important part of his story that may tell you a lot about why he feels the way he does. But one theory may be that after many years he came to realize his actions were only a drop in the bucket.”

“Yes, but if you get enough drops, the bucket will slowly fill up,” I said, feeling slightly defeated.

Lily took my hand in hers. “Olivia, are you falling in love with William?”

I nodded.

“I think I have been in love since the moment I first encountered him in the tunnel, even before I knew who he was. I know it’s silly.”

Lily smiled. “No, it’s not,” she said. “But I do think it’s time you introduced him to your friends. If you love him, then he needs to know the people in your life.”

“He is playing at a club tonight. I was planning on going after I get back from Palo Alto. Do you want to come?”

Lily nodded. “I’ll text Elsa and ask her to come too,” she said, smiling. “You might as well expose him to everything at once.”

“OK,” I said with a laugh. “You’re right.”

Lily grabbed my hand once again. “If you love William, you must try to accept his perspective of the world. It may always be less optimistic than yours; he’s been around longer and has had more time to be disappointed by humans.”

I knew that this was good advice, but the human in me was itching for a rebuttal. “You know, Lily,” I said as we were gathering our things to leave, “It’s possible that one day an Other will do something to disappoint a human.”

Out on the street, we went our separate ways, Lily promising to choose a few books for me about the Civil War and European history. I walked to my office and picked up a few files and then got in my car to drive to Palo Alto.

It was an easy day of reviewing website text, editing fundraising appeal letters and creating a schedule for house parties through a network of volunteers. I left feeling that I had put in a good days’ work in Levi’s absence. During the afternoon I texted with Lily who confirmed she had found several books I would enjoy reading, and that she and Elsa would be joining me at the Treasure Chest for William’s performance. My stomach tightened at the prospect of assembling the whole group, but Lily was right. I couldn’t separate him from the rest of my life. It was time I brought everyone together.

Once again, I got home in enough time to shower and change. Elsa and Lily were in the kitchen having a drink when I arrived. Lily was educating Elsa in the ways of mixing a dry martini, and she had assembled the shaker and other tools of the craft. Just as I was finishing upstairs, I heard the doorbell ring. Elsa answered the door and I was surprised to hear not one, but two men’s voices coming from downstairs. As I descended, I found both William and Aidan in the entryway.

“Hello there,” I said, amused at the picture before me. “I assume you two met on the sidewalk?”

“Something like that,” Aidan said quickly, turning his attention toward Elsa. “Is that a martini you’re holding?”

She smiled and nodded. “Lily has been trying to convince me that this is a good drink, but I don’t care for the gin. Would you like it?”

“Don’t mind if I do,” he said, his Irish lilt more on display than usual.

I looked over at William. “Follow me and I will get you a drink,” I said, wiggling my eyebrows. William came along, and as soon as we were alone in the dark of my dining room where I kept a small bar, he grabbed me and pulled me toward him.

“You smell good,” he said, burying his face in my hair and then he kissed me. “And you taste good.”

“Thanks for being such a good sport,” I whispered. “I hope you don’t mind being with all of these people.”

“I have been waiting to see if you would introduce me,” he said. “I wasn’t sure you wanted them to know about us.”

“I wasn’t sure either,” I admitted. “It’s less complicated when we’re alone.”

William kissed me again. “Darlin, complicated is my middle name. Now come on, or your friends will think we’ve run off.”

We walked back into the kitchen, everyone suitably outfitted with cocktails. After a round of drinks, Aidan said he would take Elsa and Lily with him in his car. I tried to look over at Elsa and gauge her response, but she wouldn’t let me catch her gaze. Even hard-as-nails time-walkers need a boyfriend, I mused, and I was happy she had found someone who suited her so well. As we walked to our cars, I gave Aidan directions to the club.

William opened the door to his car and helped me in. “Aidan and I know each other,” he said, moments after pulling away from the curb. “I don’t think he wanted to be the one to tell you, to surprise you, so he sort of changed the subject back at your house. I didn’t realize that he was Gabriel’s deputy, otherwise I would have said something last night.”

I wasn’t surprised. After everything I’d been through in the last few weeks, I was prepared to hear anything.

“How do you know each other?”

“Occasionally I have worked for the Council unofficially to help them locate things,” he said. “Aidan has been my contact for some of the assignments in Europe.”

His connection to Aidan struck me as too close for comfort. “Did you know about me from Aidan before we met?”

“I knew you would ask me that,” he said. “Honestly, I didn’t. It’s a coincidence, call it fate, but I swear I had no idea of your involvement with the Council. I’ve never even met Gabriel.”

It was obvious he was being honest from the moment he began to speak. I also knew he was aware I would pick up on any deceit in a minute.

“You’re right,” he said. “I know you can read me and I can often hear your thoughts, too. Makes for an interesting relationship, don’t you think?”

“How easy is it for you to hear my thoughts?” I asked, as we pulled up in front of the club.

“It varies. Sometimes it’s so clear, it’s as if you’re in my head. Other times, it’s more of a vague whispering. Why?”

“I’m taking a survey,” I said, climbing out of the car. “You’ll find out later.”

We walked into the club together, but split up inside. He went backstage to find Cat and John, while I scanned the room for my friends.

I spotted Aidan standing near a booth in the corner of the club with a clear view the stage. As I walked over, he slid in, inserting himself between Elsa and Lily. I slid in next to Lily, arriving at the same time as our waitress, who came to take our drink orders.

“I recommend we start with Champagne, or in this case, sparkling wine,” Aidan said, frowning at the wine list. His dismay made me laugh. The Treasure Chest was definitely a beer kind of nightclub; any wine on their list would need to be drunk with caution.

“OK,” I said enthusiastically. “I’ll let you lead tonight.”

This caused Elsa to snort into her drink. “Won’t that be nice for a change?” she said, drawing laughter from all of us. I did have a tendency to take the lead. Maybe tonight was a sign that I was ready to let go a bit.

A bottle of sparkling wine was delivered to the table, just as William’s band came out to play the opening set. He took his place on stage, picked up a guitar and gave me a wink as he began to play. Not surprisingly, given the group I was with, everyone noticed our interaction.

“Are you and William quite serious?” Aidan asked.

“You know William,” I said. “He told me the two of you have worked together before. What do you think? Is he serious?”

Aidan glanced at Elsa, and then back at me. “I think anytime a man with William’s background decides to share his life with a human, it’s serious.”

“What about his background?” I asked. “Do you mean because he’s a vampire?”

Aidan looked over at William playing and stared at him for a few moments before he said, “It’s really not for me to say, but William is a tracker, Olivia. He has a long history of finding objects and people that have gone missing. When the Council needs help locating something, he is one of a handful of individuals we’ve called over the years. Has he told you anything about his life?”

“A little,” I said, “We’ve barely made it past the 1800’s.”

Aidan nodded. “I’m sure he will tell you the rest by and by. Now in the meantime, let’s drink to our friend William,” he said, raising his glass. After our toast, we sat together watching the band, our conversation kept to a minimum because of the music.

When William’s set ended, he walked directly from the stage to sit with us. I made room at my end of the booth and he slid in, pressing snugly against me. He glanced over at the glass of sparkling wine in front of me.

“I’ll remember that,” he said. “You see, I was right about you and castles.”

I called the waitress over and ordered William a Jack Daniel’s, neat. William gave me a tip of his cowboy hat, a gesture that reminded me of the day I first saw him in the battery tunnel above the Golden Gate Bridge.

“You’re sure that day in the tunnel was a coincidence?” I asked, hating myself for still doubting him. William crossed his fingers over his chest where his heart had once beaten.

“Scout’s honor,” he said. “I go up there sometimes to play my music and get away from the city. I never expected to run into someone like you, much less see you again at the Bluegrass Festival.”

“OK, I believe you,” I said, turning to face the other three pairs of eyes watching our conversation. “It’s just that it’s an incredible coincidence.”

Aidan sipped his drink, contemplating a reply. I could see him formulating a response; his eyes gave him away. Elsa was leaning in against him, watching him intently as he began to speak.

“The world is a smaller place than you realize. We all share common interests and similar talents,” he said. “Our paths, while different, have led us all to the same place. I, for one, am glad. After all, the best breeds travel in small packs.”

“That sounds suspiciously like another toast,” I said, cajoling the group to clink glasses for a second time.

Afterward, Lily got up from the booth to stand at the bar with William’s band mate John. The first time we met, I was so nervous that I had not studied him closely. Now, upon further inspection, I realized that he was quite striking. He was as tall as Lily, with long brown hair and green eyes. Dressed in skinny black jeans and a gray T-shirt, he was handsomely disheveled. Lily must have liked what she saw, because she was leaning quite close to him, hanging on his every word.

“Is John single?” I asked William, who had been following my gaze.

He laughed. “Darlin, John is in a band in San Francisco. Need I say more?”

I looked over at my best friend, a fairy hiding in plain site of humans, and decided she could take care of herself.

“Olivia,” Elsa said, breaking into our conversation, “Aidan and I are going to leave. We’re going to look for a place to grab a bite.”

I remembered that it was a full moon tonight and wondered if Elsa would go running with her boyfriend in the park. It was sort of a romantic vision, the two of them frolicking in the moonlight.

“You should go to Stow Lake. It’s a good place to swim at night,” I said. “Just don’t try to get on the small island, it’s covered with sharp blackberry bushes.”

Aidan laughed, “Do you know this from experience?”

I nodded. “Elsa gave me peyote tea when we first met. I spent an entire evening running through the park, seeing colors and hearing voices. Lily thinks I disappeared.”

“We all agreed I made the tea too strong,” Elsa said. “But it worked. She regained her sixth sense.”

“It was extraordinary. All except the part where I woke up in the lily pond next door to the de Young.”

“You spent the night sleeping at the pond?” William asked.

“I was drawn by a voice in my head,” I said. “What I thought was a voice, anyway. It was a hallucination.”

I noticed Elsa gently place a hand on Aidan’s leg and I assumed she was anxious to leave, so I signaled for our waitress to come over so we could settle our bar tab. William waved her off, telling us that the drinks were on him tonight. Aidan slapped William on the back.

“If I had known that, I would have stayed for another round,” he joked, and bade us good night.

Not long after Elsa and Aidan left, we gathered up our belongings to leave. I looked up to find Lily, and saw she was still standing at the bar.

“Do you think Lily will be OK with John?”

“I think Lily can take care of herself, Olivia. She isn’t some naïve human woman. I suspect it will be harder on John when it’s over.”

I glanced one more time at the bar as we were leaving. I caught Lily’s eye. She turned to me and waved, clearly delighted to have a playmate for the night. We exited the club and walked along Divisadero Street for a few blocks until we reached William’s car. It didn’t take long to load his Subaru, and soon we were on the road to my house.

“I’m sorry I can’t invite you in,” I said, as he pulled into my driveway. “I have a busy day tomorrow and need some rest.”

“Not a problem,” he said, walking me to my door. We agreed that we would see each other soon, but I was hesitant to make plans with all of the work I had coming in the next few weeks.

William kissed me deeply on the lips.

“Remember,” he said, “I don’t sleep. You can call me anytime