Some stories are so unbelievable that even when a vampire tells them, you don't know what to think. Hearing about how Meena was born was exactly that kind of story. I didn't think Olek was going to tell me, especially after the shut down the day before. So when he started explaining to me the story of what happened with Meena's mother, I was totally taken by surprise.
Olek had been human when he met Meena's mother. She had been human as well. Her name was Tirana and she was the most beautiful woman that Olek had ever laid eyes on. Her hair was long and flowing like silk, her eyes could pierce right through you with their passion. He had never felt such love and devotion as he did for Tirana. Tirana was from a local Illyrian tribe that inhabited the area. They were married not long after they met. Although Olek was Islamic, Tirana's tribe had converted to Christianity long ago when Christianity had swept through the area like a current fad. So to meet her wishes, they were married in the church and Olek was looked down upon by his people.
They left the area and started their lives in nearby Serbia. Life was difficult there, but they were happy. It was not long before Tirana was pregnant. Seven months into their pregnancy, they decided to take a stroll along the water. It was dark outside, but Tirana needed to stretch her legs and get some exercise. They were attacked and left for dead in an alleyway. However Olek was a smart man and knew enough to stop the bleeding of their wounds and keep them alive for four days. It was four days of utter agony for them both.
At the end of the four days, they both emerged completely healthy, wound free, and much more attractive than they had been before. Tirana was still pregnant, for which they were still grateful. She could still feel the baby kicking and wiggling around in her belly.
Olek and Tirana quickly noticed some changes about their bodies, however. They could move at inhuman speeds. They were extremely strong. They could hold their breath forever. They didn't seem able to inflict harm on each other. And their appetite for loving one another was insatiable. The worst was their craving for blood. Not sure how to deal with that, they began to feed off of homeless people in the streets, but Olek was always careful that they were not seen and the bodies were dumped in the water.
Scared that she would harm the baby, Tirana always made sure to eat plenty of regular food and drink a lot of water as well, despite the fact that it now tasted horribly. It took a while to notice that her belly had stopped growing. They started counting the days, the weeks and months. There was not much medical technology about having babies back then, but they knew enough to know that by now she was late in having the baby. They couldn't seek medical attention because they knew they were different than regular people and would be noticed.
After a year of staying permanently pregnant, Tirena and Olek came to the conclusion that there was only one choice- Olek would have to perform a Cesarean birth on Tirana by himself. He spent all day and all night for weeks studying medical journals and book after book on the subject. He tried to learn everything he could about giving birth- Cesarean births, complications, and anything related to labor and delivery in case they needed it. He wanted to take no chances with his wife and child.
Once he felt prepared, he broke into a local medical center and stole as many medical supplies as he could so that he could be ready for any possibility. Tirana and Olek took the supplies to an abandoned house nearby and got ready. He strapped her to the table and prepared her for surgery. Then he started to cut into her stomach. But there was no way to cut into her. Her skin was too hard, like stone. They should have expected this. He tried every tool he could find, even some from a hardware store, things made for cement, tile, metal. He felt cruel and like a fool for using these things on his beloved wife, but she begged him to take their child out of her body. It was no use. She remained pregnant. The baby just wiggled and kicked happily inside of her.
He unstrapped his forlorn wife from the table and they resigned from the idea that the baby would be removable from her body. That day forever changed Tirana. It forever changed their marriage.
TO BE CONTINUED...
