Cadence made it back to her apartment in record time. She had cried so often in the last few weeks that she honestly didn't think she had anything left in her. Yet, as she locked the door and leaned back on it momentarily to catch her breath, she felt the tears stinging her eyes once again. Wiping at them absently, she resolved herself not to let him get to her, not to even entertain the notion of what it would be like to have to face Jack in combat, and taking her phone out of her pocket and setting it on the coffee table, she went to take a shower.
Despite her hopes that the shower would wash away her worries, it did little to nothing to make her feel better. Her IAC off, cut off from everyone, she took a few minutes to reflect on everything Aaron had said to her. She knew him to be both intelligent and fair. She had no idea what his reasoning in asking her to take out Jack could possibly be. It wouldn't be because he was jealous of Jack; that was certain. Nor could it be a bizarre form of punishment for her. The idea of simply asking him to explain himself entered her mind, but that would mean carrying on another conversation with him, and she just didn't think she was ready for that. Meanwhile, people would continue to die.
Cadence turned the water off and grabbed a towel. She squeezed the excess water out of her hair, wrapped a towel around it, grabbed another towel, and finished drying off. She had no idea what time it was and didn't want to turn her IAC on, but she began to think that taking a nap might be a good idea. She wrapped the second towel around herself and took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. As she exited the bathroom, she decided to go grab her phone off of the coffee table before heading to her bedroom. Considering that she was alone in her own apartment, she was not truly paying attention to anything other than the thoughts in her head as she entered the living room. "Holy shit!" she yelled jumping backward, startled beyond words. "What the hell are you doing in my living room?"
"Your IAC was off," Aaron replied from where he sat in the corner in the dimly lit room.
Grasping the towel around her even more tightly she said, "We talked about this before..."
"I sent you a text," he replied, nodding at the phone on the coffee table.
Shaking her head, she picked it up and saw that he had, in fact, sent her a text that he was coming in. "A lot of good that did me!" she replied, contemplating throwing the phone at him. "How did you even get in here?" she asked glancing at the door that still appeared to be locked.
"Does it matter?" he asked, his tone as calm as ever.
He had one foot resting on the opposite knee, his hands bridged in front of his face. Cadence could tell by his demeanor that she wasn't going to be able to simply toss him out this time. "What do you want?" she asked, a degree of tranquility beginning to return to her voice.
"Why don't you go get dressed, and I'll explain," he said, peering at her over his hands.
Cadence sighed deeply before turning to make her way to the bedroom. She hastily pulled on a suitable outfit and ran a brush through her hair, all the while cursing his name, despite the fact that she was subconsciously elated to have him in her apartment again.
Returning to the living room, she plopped down on the couch, as far away from him as she could possibly be, her air of disgust returning and showing itself at the highest degree possible. "Are you going to explain to me why I must be the one to kill Jack?" she asked, resting her head against her hand, her wet hair cascading down her back.
There was a lengthy pause while Aaron took a deep breath and collected his thoughts. Cadence watched in silence as he shifted in the chair, leaning forward, resting both elbows on his knees, and staring at the floor. When he began to speak, it was in an accent she had never heard before, an Irish brogue, and she thought for a few moments that he had suddenly become someone else.
"I was born in a little village near the town of Killarney, Ireland in 1829," he began. Cadence inhaled deeply, causing him to pause only momentarily before continuing. "We were farmers, all of us, well, all of us that were still alive. You see, long before there was a potato famine in Ireland, there was a holocaust of another sort. You may recall that I mentioned to you before that I had once lived in a situation where Vampires ruled, and the rest of us did what we could to survive. Do you remember that conversation?" He looked up at her momentarily and Cadence nodded, the look of bewilderment still on her face. Dropping his eyes, he continued. "At the time, we survived day to day, just trying to keep from becoming a victim. I was one of the lucky ones. The Vampires had an agreement of sorts with those of us who came from Hunter and Guardian families. As long as we agreed not to Transform, they would leave our families alone. And so my parents and my grandparents before them managed to keep our family intact, all on the promise that we wouldn't use our God given talents to defeat or threaten the ruling class of Vampires.
"Ever since I was a small lad, I had been fascinated with a beautiful young girl who lived in my village. She had fiery, curly red hair that hung down her back like a horse's mane, sparkling green eyes, and a smile that could make you forget all of your sorrows. When I was seventeen, I finally got up the courage to ask Aislyn for her hand in marriage. She was only fifteen, but she had no means of protection. She was human and could be taken at any time. I thought that, if I married her, she would be safe. I knew from the first moment I laid eyes on her that I wanted to spend my whole life with her. Back then, there was no thought of ever having anything. I envisioned my life as a potato farmer, tilling the land day in and day out, while Aislyn took care of our brood of children. I'd die at the ripe old age of forty-something, content that I'd spent my better years with a beautiful wife, having provided the best life possible for my children.
"Obviously, you know she said yes, and we were happily married for just over a year before life threw a fatal curve in the road. By then, the British government had seen the Vampires were no longer content to stay in their corner of Ireland. They were spreading out, some even claiming victims in mainland England and Wales. The British government made the ridiculous decision that they could somehow wipe out the Vampire population by getting rid of their feeding source. Thus, the Irish Potato Famine. Kill off the Irish, kill of the Vampires--or at least that was the ridiculous political idea at the time."
