• Things Aren’t Always What They Seam
    Charlene Dotzler-Ferrell
    Once long ago…… that’s how they all start right but not this one this one is special this one is the story of seamstress and the barber.
    Five hundred years ago today there was a lowly barber who cherished every woman he was involved with. Well one night there was a very poor young lady with what seemed to be her father, mother and in her arms was a little baby girl. The barber was astounded there were new people that he could meet and get to know. He wanted to get to know the maiden the most. The following week he decided to follow her into the old bakery that has been closed for fifteen years. Then in the sweetest voice he ever heard she spoke “excuse me the shops not open yet but come back next week and I’ll be glad to be of assistance”. Being a gentleman he said “sorry ma’am I did not mean to disturb you while you were working” she giggled and he stepped out. She had the sweetest most beautiful laugh that he ever heard and yet he had no idea what lies behind that beautiful laugh. As she peered out the window of her shop she seen the man who fallowed her smile and she too smiled she liked his sweetness his mannerism and most of all his smell.
    The barber was clueless to who this family was or were they came from or what they were he had no clue that he had seen the only living vampires. He had no idea that the young lady he encountered was telling him to leave because of her thirst not because the shop was closed. She secretly hoped he wouldn’t heed her warning she wanted him for all the years to come she wanted a friend for her half-breed daughter she wanted his blood most of all. The barber fell in love with the young woman and didn’t even know her name. He secretly wanted her. He wanted to be with her night and day through thick and thin he wanted to marry her and he never felt this way before about any of the women was previously involved with and this was strange. The young lady was done for the day and started home she hoped her father had brought dinner she was quite parched from the encounter with the man earlier that day. “Evening father, evening mother how was Isabelle today”?
    “Evening Annemarie, belle was fine until we took her outside then she wouldn’t stop crying but you know how that is”. “True. Oh father I met someone today.” Her father nodded his head as he carved a deer raw and his hands got bloody. “What does this somebody look like Annemarie” “well father he’s human”. Her father was listening now it had been centuries since his daughter was in love so he stopped what he was doing to listen. “Annemarie you know the risks are you willing to make them”? “Yes father I know but you know the temptation that love causes on both sides. He had the prettiest crystal blue eyes the longest caramel hair and what seemed to be the smoothest light mocha skin color and he was so tall…..” Annemarie stopped short she knew her father heard enough of her fantasies and quietly apologized.
    The barber was mesmerized by the young maiden that he planned to frequently visit her even though the shop wasn’t opened to the public yet. “Hello Uncle Marcus” the barber heard as he walked in the door to the shop that he owned since his father died. “Hello my niece Emily. How’s the prettiest rose on the bush blooming?” Marcus had his brother’s daughter for the next month while his brother was out of town selling produce for money so he could support his daughter. Emily’s mother Katrina had passed away while giving birth to her so Marcus his brother John were left to care for the young girl. “Uncle, when will father be coming home”? He looked at his twelve year old niece and said. “Emmy I really don’t know but I hope soon because your starting to attract too many young boy’s around my shop not that I don’t mind I do need the money”. He playfully patted her head and she darted off to the back room to do school work that she had put off until her uncle got there. He smiled to himself as she skipped off and thought of how much she reminded him of the maiden at the shop.
    The next week after their first encounter Marcus decided it was time to see the beautiful girl again. Annemarie was walking in her shop, today was the grand opening for her. She was setting her work station up when the bell chimed (she didn’t need the bell but it was for props) to let her know there was a customer in. She looked to see who it was and it was the same gentleman who talked to her the previous week. “Why hello stranger”! She exclaimed honestly shocked to see him “how are you”? He smiled when he seen her surprise. “As well as you seem to be. I am sorry I have yet to properly introduce myself my name is Marcus what may I ask is yours “he had said. “Well now let’s see the last time I checked it was Annemarie” she told him playfully. “Annemarie what a beautiful name for a beautiful girl or shall I say young woman”. She giggled when he called her beautiful she had heard it from Marcello but she thought it was untrue. She had thought that Marcello had said that so he could bed her at night but apparently that was not the case. “I love your laugh it reminds me of my niece Emily Rose. What would you say in meeting her” said Marcus. Annemarie was pleased by the offer but was cautious when she answered the question. “Maybe next time” she kindly declined she had never realized that she was moving too fast and with someone she hardly knew the last time this happened was with Marcello.
    Marcello was Annemarie’s husband they had married when she was only seventeen. She was young and thought the world of her husband until the night of their anniversary. They had only been married for two years when one night Marcello went to the pub with some of his friends. It was mid-August and for that time of the year it was oddly cold outside but Annemarie didn’t ponder on the thought for long. As she waved to her husband an eerie wind came from the north from the old Ember house. She hurried in the house to clean before Marcello came home. Two hours later she was tired and falling asleep so she went to bed early that night. It was just hours before dawn the next day when Marcello arrived home. He smelled like he bathed in the liquor he drank but oddly enough he wasn’t. “Wake up you filthy wrench” he screamed as she stirred in the bed “Marcello what’s wrong” she asked sleepily. He all of the sudden became outraged and she had no idea that he wasn’t drunk. She was terrified she had done no wrong to him that she could think of. “You stupid girl get up now you hear me I SAID NOW”! She had thought she had seen every side and angle of her husband but tonight that was proven wrong. Just seconds after he woke her up he was tearing the clothes off her now fully exposed body. “Marcello wait what are you doing your scaring me half to death” the stress heard as clear as a bell in Annemarie’s voice. “You filthy wrench why haven’t you conceived my child yet, it’s been two years we’ve been married and yet we have no children why is that, ANSWER ME”! She was speechless yes they have tried in the past to conceive a child and was once successful but it died in the womb and they haven’t been successful since then. When she tried to answer his question the words were cut short with a smack to the face. “Look here wrench we are going to try this again okay so just relax”. All she could do was shake her head yes. It wasn’t over quickly either he took his time making sure he took his time. It was hard for her to go through this with him yet again this was torture. She had lived it one too many times to do it then finally she screamed. This wasn’t the kind of scream he wanted to hear so he stopped short to tie a cloth around her head to shut her up. Then when he was reaching his climax she went limp and passed out from exhaustion so he finished and gently picked her up and started bath water for her. When the tub was full he undressed himself and climbed into the warm water and laid there with his arms around Annemarie. He lies silently with her in the tub till he falls fast asleep.
    When Annemarie started to stir she noticed how angelic Marcello was when he was asleep she wanted this side of him to shine through when times were hard, this was the Marcello she fell in love with and still love even though he molested her. She wanted to conceive his child to start a family with him. As she started to get out of the tub she seen he was stirring and decided to wake him. “Marcello love we have to get up and dressed dear” she said trying not to make him mad. He arose with a big smile on his face “Annemarie I am sorry dear I was drunk and the fellows were saying you went trying to get pregnant because you don’t love me”.
    The memory broke off and she was looking at Marcus who was smiling at little trinkets that had been laid out. He picked up a gold button and was examining it when he said “well my dear it was nice seeing you again maybe soon you can meet Emmy she loves meeting new people” with that he left.