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I had to think for a minute before I understood the last sentence

"I think I see," I said, finally

"It took me a while," my father said, "but when I understood, I felt comfort beyond measure I had a sense that I’d always known these truths, but only when I heard the words did they begin to guide my actions

"The next time that Malcolm came by, I told him I’d have no more of his cannibalistic nonsense With Dennis’s help, I was strong enough to return to my studies and to live with my affliction"

"Malcolm left you alone?"

"Eventually, he did At first he tried to argue otherwise He said that iven me a chance to live forever

"But vauarantee of eternal life Contrary to the Internet lore you’ve brought ed states lives h their own acts of aggression or arrogance They die as painfully as mortals do"

"Surely there are compensations?"

My father had clasped his hands beneath his chin, and he gazed at me with an expression as close to love as I’d ever seen in his eyes "Yes, Ari," he said, his voice soft "As I said before, there are compensations"

My father paused to answer a knock on the door Solasses of Picardo on it He shut the door and carried the tray to lass on the left," he said

Another first, I thought, taking the glass My father set down the tray He took the other glass and raised it in a toast: "Gaudeaitur / iuvenes du," I translated "I’ll have that inscribed on my tombstone"

"Mine as well" It was our first shared joke We clinked the glasses and drank

The stuff tasted awful, and I guess hed "Another taste to be acquired," he said

"Or not," I said "What’s in this stuff?"

He held the glass up and swirled the red liquid "It’s an aperitif From the Latin aperire"

"To open," I said

"Yes, to open the taste buds before a meal The first aperitifs were made from herbs and spices, and the roots and fruit of plants"

"What lass "The recipe is a secret, created and kept by the Picardo family"

As we sipped our cocktails, e of state," as my father calls it, immediately are aware of their new nature But when a vaet a child, that child’s nature is indeterminate

"I’ve read atrocious accounts of parents exposing a half-breed child to sunlight -- using ropes and stakes to tie it down, then leaving it to see if it burned," he said "But photosensitivity isn’t a certain sign of vaeneral population, sensitivity to sun can fluctuate widely"

I wasn’t sure I liked the term half-breed

"I used the historical term," my father said "Today, we prefer to use the term diverse"

I took a small sip of Picardo and forcedit

"Isn’t there a blood test for vampirism?" I asked

"Not a reliable one" He crossed his ar the muscles in his neck

My father told me that vampires exist everywhere, in every country and in every profession Not surprisingly, many of them are drawn to scientific research, particularly areas involving blood, but others serve as teachers, lawyers, farress to Internet ru out of the box" -- a euphe one’s vampire nature

"I doubt he’ll do it anytime soon," my father said "Americans aren’t ready to accept vaated by fiction and filain "And the Internet"

I took a deep breath "What about the raphs?"

"I wondered when you’d ask that question" He gestured toward the shadowbox on the wall and beckoned me