41. Juliet

Everything is shimmering.My hands, my clothes, Silas's hair. Everything is flecked with tiny specks of silver. I can't get it off me. I can't get it off him. It's coating his lips. It's hanging off the ends of his eyelashes.

"Silas." I whisper, holding his hand in mine. "Silas, please wake up. Please. Don't do this to me."

They came and got us off the rooftop. My hysterical screaming told them I was there. I twisted my ankle throwing myself back across the expanse between the buildings. I didn't even feel it.

I still see Silas's face when I close my eyes, the moment he looked at me, the split second before he collapsed to the ground, those tiny silver specks poisoning his system. The National Guard had a contingency to take out the Afflicted, and they'd dumped it straight on top of us.

And killed Silas.

A nurse comes into the curtained cubicle, and casts a glance over Silas's body. She regards me with tight lipped sympathy, and pats my shoulder.

"I'm sorry, hon." She gestures to my ankle. "They said you'd hurt yourself."

"It doesn't matter." I clasp onto Silas's hand, and the fact that it's still warm makes me almost angry. I could almost believe he was just sleeping.

The nurse puts a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Well, when you're ready, you let me look at it, OK?" She leaves without another word.

I lay my head on Silas's chest, gazing at his motionless face.

"You're so beautiful." I trace a finger along his jawline. "You can't be dead. I won't let you be dead. That's not fair. I've lost everyone else."

I curl my fingers around his, and tears slip down the side of my face. They pool on his chest, glimmering with those tiny shards of silver.

"I didn't finish telling you about Paris." I sniffle and bite my lip to stop myself from crying again. "You know, I'd have thought you'd have gone there, Margot being French and all. I guess maybe it was bad memories, huh? Anyway, I think you'd have really liked it. The galleries were amazing. They had these people set up by the Seine, they'd be there with their easels, and everyone had a different art style, it was so fascinating to watch."

I lean over him, stroking the dark tendrils of his hair from his forehead.

"I discovered macarons there, and I made myself sick with the green ones. I told you about Kaden throwing up everywhere, well let me tell you that was nothing compared to me." I laugh, brushing away the tears that keep running down my cheeks. "And throwing up green, well that was so much worse."

Footsteps rush past the cubicle, voices talking about IVs and saline and Can we get another stretcher down here? People are hurt, people are dead. But I can't face all that and offer to help. Instead I nuzzle my face into the crook of Silas's neck.

"You know, you made me want to live again," I whisper to him. "I didn't want to when I… I went to the stream. Even though you were so nice to me, I didn't see life being any good. And then… You know what it was? You know what the moment was? When I woke up and you were there. It was like, I nearly died and then my reason for being here was there." I bite back a sob. "I thought you were a monster, I thought you were darkness and badness and all that shit, and I was so wrong. You were my light, Silas."

"And you were mine."

I back away with a gasp, my mouth dropping open. It can't be. It's not real. I'm dreaming.

Silas smiles at me weakly, his eyes a dull shade of brown.

"Hello, angel."

With a strangled cry I throw myself on him, one sob after another tearing out of my throat as he wraps his arms around me.

"Come on now." He strokes my hair, his chest shaking as he coughs. "It"s alright, don't cry."

"You were dead!" I look down into his face, shaking my head. "I don't understand, you were - they dumped the silver, and you, you were - you were dead."

The curtain opens behind me, and the nurse appears on the other side of the bed. I back up as she leans over him, turning his head side to side gently, then gesturing for him to open his mouth.

"Well, this is unexpected." She regards Silas critically. "Hmm. We have a doctor here from the National Guard, he's an expert in fee - in vampire health. I'll have him come take a look at you."

"Silver should have killed him," I say stupidly. "How is this possible?"

The nurse shrugs. "No idea, I deal with humans, not vampires." She lifts an eyebrow. "You look like shit though, so that silver definitely weakened you. Stay down, and I'll send the doctor along."

She leaves, and Silas and I just stare at each other.

"Sorry I scared you." He coughs heavily, rolling on to his side with a groan. "Fuck me, I feel like shit, too."

I help him settle back on the bed, and he winces as he smiles at me.

"Guess it just wasn't my time yet, ey?"

I sit back down and take his hand. "I don't understand, but I don"t really care either. You're here. I thought I'd lost you."

"So did I, angel. But fuck am I glad I'm still here."

The curtain flies open with a loud hiss, and a man in a white coat strides in. He pushes the silver glasses he's wearing up his nose, and looks at us both with raised eyebrows.

"I'm told we have a vampire who's immune to silver in the house?" He crosses his arms over his chest. "Impressive."

"Hardly immune." Silas coughs heavily, a loud rasping echoing through his chest. "I feel like death."

"Feeling like death and being dead are two very different things, my friend." The doctor rounds the bed, and I move back so he can examine Silas. He shines a light in his eyes, and grumbles something to himself. He inspects Silas's fangs, then straightens up. "When were you turned?"

"1995."

"And what do you know about your maker?"

Silas rolls onto his back, hissing in a sharp breath of pain. "I mean, plenty, why? What do you need to know?"

"Anything unusual about her appearance?"

Silas frowns, his eyes scanning the ceiling. "Um, I mean, not really."

"Nothing unusual about her eyes?" The doctor is smiling in a way I don't understand, as though he's anticipating something amazing is about to happen.

"She had blue eyes, nothing unusual-"

The doctor hacks out a laugh and balls his hand into a fist. "I knew it."

"Knew what?" I ask. "What is going on here?"

"Your boyfriend's maker, she was an Original."

"Husband," I snap, and the doctor rolls his eyes. "What do you mean an Original?"

"That's not possible." Silas tries to sit up, but has to stop, and collapses back down onto the bed. "She was turned during the French Revolution, she told me about it, many times. She was 31 years old in 1792. She told me all about her life. She wasn't an Original."

"Only the Originals had human eye colors," the doctor says.

"That's a ridiculous myth," Silas scoffs.

"And they were famously the only vampires immune to silver." The doctor gives Silas a meaningful look. "She passed that on to you. Only the offspring of the Originals can withstand silver. There aren't many of you, but we've met a few and are having a lot of luck using their blood to make new vaccines."

"Is that so?" Silas sounds instantly curious.

"Sure is. It's something we should have been working on the whole time."

"So you'd want to do that with me?"

I spring to my feet. "No one's poking and prodding him when he's in this state."

The doctor laughs jovially and holds his hands up. "Relax, hon, no one's going to hurt him." He smiles warmly at Silas. "But, if you were willing, we have a big lab up in Philly. You could both move up there, we'd make sure you had everything you needed."

"There's a colony there?" I ask cautiously.

The doctor gives me a warm smile and nods. "You two probably don't know this, but the vampires and the President have signed an agreement. Rebuilding efforts are underway."

My heart drops straight down into my feet, and I collapse into the chair. Silas raises his head, alarmed.

"Jules, are you OK?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I just can't believe this is happening."

The doctor"s kind smile moves to me. "Good things are coming, I promise." He looks back down at Silas. "You'll probably feel terrible for another day or two, but we'll get you some blood and you'll be back to normal in no time. Then, if you decide you want to, I'll arrange for you to come up to Philly. I'm Doctor Harris, by the way."

"Silas." He lifts a trembling hand, which Dr. Harris takes and gives a brief shake. "And this is my wife, Juliet."

"Great to meet you both. I'll leave you to consider my offer."

"Sure thing, thanks doc." Silas raises a hand in acknowledgement, and Dr. Harris leaves with a nod.

"Jesus Christ." Silas runs a hand over his face, and it dawns on me that this is huge for him. Sure, the world is righting itself outside these walls, but within them a huge chunk of Silas's just tilted right off its axis.

I scoot forward in my chair and take his hand. "You OK?"

"Yeah, I am, really. I just…" His brow furrows, and he drags his teeth over his lip. "Why would Margot lie to me? Why would she say she'd been turned then when she hadn't?"

"Maybe she had something to hide? Maybe she was running from something?"

"It must have been something huge for her not to tell me." Silas frowns up at the ceiling. "To make up a whole life, an entire story, that wasn't true? What is an Original running from if they do that?"

"Must have been something pretty big. Maybe that was why she was a loner?"

"Even the vamps in Boston were fooled by it." He sighs heavily, before looking back at me. "Anyway, we'll never know, I guess."

"I guess not." I puff out a breath. "So, Philly, huh?"

"I want to help." Silas's voice is thick with determination. "If my blood can somehow help, can somehow make vaccines for people to be healthy, I want that."

"Of course." I grip his hand tightly, and press a kiss to the back of it. "Wherever you want to go. I'll go with you. Forever."

He pulls me down to him, and wraps his arms around me. "More than forever, angel. Forever's not enough." He kisses my forehead, and I nuzzle into him.

Everything's going to be alright now.

* * *

I'm watching TV.I'm sitting on a couch, Silas sitting beside me, his fingers entwined with mine, and we're watching TV.

Folks are jammed into the room around us, so silent you could hear a pin drop. All eyes are fixed on the grainy screen as our President appears behind a lectern. I still remember her from the emergency broadcasts when the Affliction first became a concern. She looks the same, just a little older, grey strands through her brown hair.

She smiles warmly at the camera, and opens her mouth to speak.

Silas squeezes my hand as she recounts the events of the past two weeks. The riots in Boston. The rebellion against the vampire covens in Boston by humans and vampires alike. The National Guard being disbanded for the improper use of Afflicted. The new virus they'd released that was slowly killing the Afflicted, their numbers dwindling by the day.

"All Human Preservation Compounds will be disbanded." Her voice is strong and confident. "We know these facilities caused widespread suffering, and we will provide every support necessary to assist humans to transition back into a normal life."

She turns to her side, and gestures for someone to join her. A man appears at her side, a vampire, his blonde hair hanging to his shoulders. His rusty eyes look out at us from the screen, and he smiles.

"We have made huge advancements in the creation of a synthetic blood alternative that provides identical nutrition to human blood," he says, and the room bursts into murmurs. "The harvesting of human blood will be on a strictly voluntary basis, and only until the synthetic alternative is perfected." He turns to the President, and she smiles warmly.

"He's bitten her, he has," Silas mutters under his breath. "Look how she's smiling at him."

I shove him with my elbow. "Shhh."

"Seen that look on your face before."

I suppress a giggle. "Shhh."

"We will move together as one," the vampire on the screen goes on. "One people, with a common purpose - to rebuild our world. Together."

"Together!" Someone calls at the back of the room, and everyone bursts into applause.

I look at Silas, and his mouth lifts into a smile. He looks like himself again, even though his eyes are a lighter brown than they were before. He's back to full strength, with the help of a lot of blood, and a new supplement Dr. Harris developed.

I lean over and kiss him softly. His lips are so soft and warm.

"You ready?" I ask quietly as the room around us continues to celebrate the possibility of this new future.

He nods. "Sure am. Let's go. They'll be waiting for us."

We get to our feet, leaving the jubilations of the colony behind us. Outside, snow is lying thick on the ground, and a guard is sweeping it off our truck. Dr. Harris is waiting for us with two other people, waving a greeting as we approach.

"I can't tell you how glad I am that you agreed to this." He shakes our hands, and Silas chuckles.

"Happy to oblige. Sort of looking forward to a fresh start." He puts his arm around my shoulders, and kisses my temple. "Been something of a rocky start to married life as you can imagine."

The doctor laughs loudly. "A baptism of fire as they say. Well, they found you two a great apartment, everything is waiting for you."

I look up at Silas. "Can't wait."

"Me neither." He kisses my forehead. "Me neither, angel."

Our truck bumps along the road behind the doctor's vehicle, two escort vehicles flanking us as we make our way to Philadelphia. I stay under Silas's arm, watching the landscape slip by.

"You know," he says after a few miles, "now that the world's going back to normal, we might be going to Paris sooner than we think."

I can't help but laugh. "You think so?"

"Sure, why not?"

"I promise not to throw up green macarons all over you."

He laughs out loud. "Yeah, I did hear you talk about that." He smiles down at me. "Forever, ey?"

"No, not forever." I lean my head against his chest, the snow around us glittering as the sun beats down. "You were right. Forever isn't long enough."

"Not nearly long enough, angel."