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"Half-breeds are also ular humans We, on the other hand, cannot

"In order to be a true vampire, one would have to be turned by a true vampire, one who fed with the intent Vampires are not allowed to turn just anyone - it would inflate our race too greatly They must receive permission in advance from the Master Council"

Caitlin furrowed her brow, trying to take it all in

"You have some of our qualities, but not all And since you are not a full breed, unfortunately, the vas to a coven It is too dangerous not to Noriven that you are mixedthey would never allow it No coven will"

Caitlin thought hard If there was anything worse than finding out that she was so out that she wasn&039;t truly so anywhere She was neither here nor there, stuck between torlds

"So then as all this talk about the Messiah? About The One?"

"Our doctrine, our ancient law, tells us that one day a er, a Messiah, will arrive, and lead us to the lost sword It tells us that on that day, ill begin, a final, all-out war between the va in the hu that can stop it, that can save us all, is thissword And the only person that can lead us to that is the Messiah

"When I witnessed what happened to you tonight, I felt certain that it was you I have never seen any other vampire immune to such holy water"

She looked up at him

"And now?" she asked

He looked off into the horizon

"I am not so sure"

Caitlin stared at hi up

"So," she asked, afraid for the answer, "is that the only reason you savedsword?"

Caleb stared back, and she could see the confusion in his face

"What other reason would there be?" he answered

She felt the wind sucked out of her, as if she had been hit by a bat All the love that she had felt for hi out in a single breath She felt like crying She wanted to turn and run, but didn&039;t knohere to go She felt asha back tears, "at least your ill be happy to know that you were just doing your job That you don&039;t have any feelings for anyone else Or for anything but some stupid sword"

She turned and walked away She didn&039;t knohere she was going, but she had to get away fro She didn&039;t kno to one a few feet when she felt a hand on her ar down into her eyes

"She&039;s not my wife," he said softly "We were o It only lasted a year In the vas easily There are no annulments"

Caitlin tossed his hand off of her, "Well, whatever she is, she&039;ll be happy to have you back"

Caitlin kept walking, right for the steps

Again he stopped her, this ti directly in her path

"I don&039;t kno I&039;ve offended you," he said, "but whatever I did, I am sorry"

It&039;s what you didn&039;t do, Caitlin wanted to say It&039;s that you didn&039;t care, that you don&039;t really love me That I was just an object, a uy I&039;ve ever known I had thought that this time, maybe, it was different

But she didn&039;t say that, instead, she just lowered her head, and did her best to suppress a tear She couldn&039;t, though She felt the hot tears strea down her cheeks There was a hand on her chin, and he raised it, forcing her to look up at hi sincere "You were right It was not the only reason I saved you" He took a deep breath "I do feel so for you"

Caitlin felt her heart swell

"But you must understand, it is forbidden The laws are very strict on this A vampire can never, ever, be with a human, or a half breed, or anyone who is not a true vampire The punishment would be death There is no way around it"

Caleb looked down

"So, you see," he finally continued, "if I were to feel so for you, if I were to act for soood, then it would mean my death"

"So, then, what&039;s to become of me?" she asked She looked around, "Clearly, I&039;o?"

Caleb looked down, shaking his head

"I can&039;t go ho for me So are these evil vampires What am I supposed to do? Go out there on my own? I don&039;t even knohat I am anymore"

"I wish I had the answer I tried I really did But there is nothing more I can do One cannot defy the Council It would mean both of our deaths I arounds If I did, I would be banished from my clan forever You ain he spun her around

"You must understand! You are merely human Your life will end in 80 years But foris short Mine is endless I cannot be banished for eternity My coven is all that I have I love you I feel so even I don&039;t understand So I&039;ve never felt with anyone in 3,000 years But I cannot risk leaving these walls"

"So," she said, "I&039;ll ask you again What&039;s to come of me?"

He just looked down

"I see," she answered "I&039;m not your problem anymore"

Caleb opened his one

She made her way quickly across the terrace, and down the stone staircase This ti into the Bronx in the dark, New York City night She had never felt more alone