Vampires Realm Prophecy 01 - Child of Light

think I would’ve been able to handle this whole crazy situation so well if I had been any younger.”
    “If you do not mind my asking, how old are you?”
    Her look turned pensive and she stared at the city in silence for a few seconds before answering, “I honestly don’t know.”
    She looked as though she wanted to cry as she said those words and the need to comfort her rose up inside him again.
    “We shall find out. Do not worry.”
    She smiled at him. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
    He stared at her, feeling as stunned by her words as she looked. If she had been able to blush, her cheeks would’ve been blazing. She averted her eyes, turning her head away from him and fiddling with the railing.
    He searched for something to say.
    “The last time I was here was insane.” He knew that she wanted to know about the things he’d seen and if it alleviated some of the tension between them, he was happy to tell her. She looked out of the corner of her eye at him. It was a small gesture, but it told him that if he continued to talk she would turn back around and face him. “I had not one but two hunters to track. I had planned to kill the weaker one first, but things rarely go to plan. I ended up fighting them both at once. It wouldn’t have been such a bad thing if the second hunter had not been one of the few good ones.”
    “What happened?” She turned a little more to look at him. If he kept talking, he’d be able to see her face properly again. He could see that she wanted to face him, but she was still embarrassed about what she’d said.
    “It was close. I haven’t been back since because of it. I can handle most weapons in combat, but two hunters with swords were beyond my capabilities when I did not have a weapon myself. The scars still haven’t disappeared, and I doubt they will now.” He subconsciously rubbed at his chest while he remembered the fight. It really had been close. Looking up, he found that she was facing him again, her eyes full of questions.
    “Did you kill them both?” she said and her eyes fell to rest on his hand which was still pressed against his chest. “Did they badly hurt you?”
    He couldn’t get over how everything seemed to fascinate her.
    “If it had been holy wooden swords they’d had, I would not be here today.”
    She reached out her hand towards his chest. Her eyes were locked on it in a distant stare and her brows were raised. She paused, clearly realising what she was doing and withdrew her hand.
    “So you still have the scar?” she said and he nodded slowly. He still had it. It served as a reminder of just how close he’d been to meeting his end and since receiving it he had worked even harder at perfecting his skills.
    “I would show you it, but... ” He trailed off when she averted her eyes again.
    She leaned against the railing and heaved a sigh. “Valentine? What’s Prague like?”
    He leaned beside her and his eyes settled on her profile. He’d thought she was going to ask him something more personal. He was beginning to get the feeling that she was avoiding asking directly. She was learning about him from his tales about the cities he’d seen and the things he’d done in them. All the way here, she’d been asking about them. He’d told her about the time he was nearly killed in Istanbul by nothing more than a group of angry people. He’d told her about his visits to Rome and Florence. He’d even told her about the times he’d spent in England with Mathias. She’d now added Paris and Prague to the list. She asked him about cities, but not about himself.
    All he’d asked her was about her family and how she’d learnt things without being out in the world to gain experience. He hadn’t asked her anything personal like how she’d felt to be trapped inside the house, or what she liked to do.
    It seemed they were both avoiding asking about each other. It was as though they were both trying to maintain their distance for some reason. He knew why he was doing it. A part of him believed that if he kept that distance between them, then he wouldn’t be breaking the law. It was pointless. They had already broken one law; they may as well break the rest too. The penalty would be the same. Nothing they could say or do would stop the Law Keepers from coming for them.
    He hated that name. It should have been his.
    Two centuries he’d spent working his way through the ranks of the guardsmen, from the lowly rank that was