"President Lincoln was a good man, but still a politician. A desperate one at that. He did what he had to keep the union together." Aleera gave him a smile that didn't have any humor in it. "Exactly. Women have much more freedom then they did in the days I was human. A woman must always obey her father, brothers if she has any, uncles, male cousins, husband.  I was married at the tender age of twelve and bedded at seventeen.  I was beat for my husband's inability to give me a child." Aleera left it there. That era of her past is one that she leaves in the grave. The world back then had not been kind to women. Especially in Northern Europe. "Like you I was saved by being turned." She leads him away from the barn, not really planning on going one direction. "Understand that I do not bewitch any who choose to stay with me. Elders often have our own charm. We offer protection, security." She pauses to  see if he is still tense. "Try not to think about the thirst. It will only make it worse."