Loved by Morgan Rice

discovered, or vandalized?” she asked.
    “Possibly. Unless…”
    She waited. “Unless?”
    “Unless it has become overgrown. There is a tradition among vampires, a way to pass a clue on to generations. We build a stone cottage, and then plant wisteria, thorns, layers of thickets closely around it. If left alone, it grows wildly, quickly, so thick and deep, that over time, if it were a remote place, it stays untouched and is virtually impossible for a layperson to see. This way, centuries later, the initiated could still find it.”
    He looked around.
    “The one advantage we have here is that this forest is remote. That gives me hope.”
    “Assuming that was a real map,” Caitlin said, playing devil’s advocate. “Maybe it was planted by someone. Maybe it’s a false lead.”
    Caleb looked at her and smiled.
    “You have a very sophisticated mind,” he said. “Perhaps you are over thinking this. Yes, that is possible. But I doubt it. That scroll was genuine.”
    He took her hand as they walked deeper into the forest, the only sound, that of leaves rustling. She could feel the cold sinking into her bones.
    Caleb suddenly removed his large, leather coat and draped it around her shoulders. As always, she was amazed at how he could read her mind, and touched by his generosity.
    “No,” she said, “I can’t take your – “
    “Please,” he responded. “I am not cold.”
    As he draped his coat around her shoulders, Caitlin loved the feel of it. It was surprisingly heavy, and the inside was still warm from his body heat. She loved the smell of the leather. It felt so worn in, so comfortable, as if he had been wearing it for hundreds of years. It was way too big for her, but somehow it fit perfectly. Wearing it, she felt as if she were his. As if they were boyfriend and girlfriend. She loved the feeling.
    Caleb looked down, checked the scroll, and looked back up at the woods. Still nothing.
    Caitlin turned herself, in every direction, and squinted into the darkness with all she had.
    As her eyes adjusted, she thought she spotted something.
    “Caleb,” she said.
    He turned, and she raised a finger.
    “See that? On the horizon. It looks like a thicket of branches. Do you think?”
    He looked at it and squinted. Finally, he took her hand, and led her towards it. “Nothing to lose,” he said.
    As they walked towards it, leaves rustling, getting closer, Caitlin felt encouraged. It was a huge, impenetrable thicket of tangled branches and thorns. It almost looked like a wall. They circled it, and it must’ve been 100 feet deep in every direction. It was impenetrable. If anything fit his description, this was it. No one could get anywhere near this thing, unless they had a thick machete, and were willing to spend days chopping. Whatever was at its center—if anything—would likely be untouched.
    But then again, maybe this was just a huge thicket of branches and thorns, and all that they would find for their trouble was more thorns.
    Caleb nodded slowly. “Yes,” he said. “This could be it.”
    He studied it for a while, the finally said, “Stand back.”
    Caitlin took several steps back, wondering what he would do.
    Caleb pulled his sleeves down, over his hands, shielding them, then reached in, and with his incredible strength, tore at the thicket of branches. It was incredible, like watching a chainsaw attack the pile.
    Within seconds, he had cleared a path, just wide enough for one person to walk through. He was already lost deep in the thicket, when she heard his voice call out: “Here!”
    Caitlin walked through the narrow pathway, through the wall of branches, a good 30 feet deep, and finally caught up to him.
    She saw, over his shoulder, a small, stone wall.
    “You found it,” he said, and broke into a grin.
    He cleared some more branches, and revealed a small, arched entryway to the tiny stone cottage. He entered, taking her hand, and she followed close behind.
    It was dark and musty, and they both