Abandoned Blood

Welcome back from a nice holiday off. I hope everything went well for you all and everyone got what you wished for. Things are about the same as they have been for me, so I guess that's an improvement. We had a white Christmas at my house, got to see my daughter sled down the hill for the first time. Yeah, it was fun.

Now here's the usual legal stuff. Though inspired by true events, the following story is borne of my own imagination. Any resemblance to any actual event, either past or present, or person, either living or dead, is completely coincidental. This story contains graphic violence of both the mind and body, including but not limited to rape, mental and physical torture, and murder. This story contains explicit sexual acts between two female characters, among other people. If you are not of legal age in your locality to view this tale, don't blame me if you get in trouble. If this sort of thing offends you and your delicate sensibilities, you need to do two things: 1) Ask yourself why you're on this website, then 2) Get the fuck off. This story is copyrighted to me. I have no problem with you downloading it for your own enjoyment (and possibly your partner's as well... wink, wink) so

long as you have my expressed written permission. Simply put: Ask me first, don't steal it.

If this is your first time reading this story, then welcome to the family! I welcome all forms of emails--comments, concerns, compliments, and complaints. Those who have written in to me know that I am very grateful to hear from you. For those who are "timid" (yeah, that's a good word) you need not fear my infinite wrath, I'm pretty laid back; all of you invited to share with me your thoughts and insight. Thank you and good night!

Now sit back, relax, and enjoy part 14 of Abandoned Blood.

Chapter 14

My eyes hurt. My head hurt. Everything about me hurt. I had several paper cuts on my fingers from flipping all these freaking pages. It was like studying for my midterm, which was coming up in about a week--damn it. All day my routine consisted of: pick a book, read through it, absorb information, close book, put book away, lose information. I don't think my brain could possibly fit anything more into it. I wasn't even reading the pages anymore, I was just mindlessly staring through the print as if it would start talking to me. I think the last one actually did at one point.

Nadia and Amber were staring into their respective computer monitors, combing through about two hundred years worth of records and news articles. The clicking of the mouses was the only noise that broke the silence of the room. That was until my head fell onto the table, thudding with an echo loud enough to wake me back up.

"We've been at it for hours," I groaned, stretching my arms over my head. Neither one looked back at me. "What the hell are we looking for again?"

"Anything that can help us out," Nadia said, her attention locked on the screen. "Part of research is having patience, Charlene."

"But we're not getting anywhere," I pouted like a five year old. My stomach growled. "And I'm hungry."

"We'll get you some food in a little bit," Amber said, getting up from her seat. She walked over to my table with steps I couldn't hear. "You have no idea how close we really are, Charlie."

My pursed my lips and crossed my arms. "Enlighten me."

"Well, from what little there is about dhampirs, we discovered that you actually have a linage of vampires somewhere in your family tree." The perkiness of her voice was less than contagious. If she was trying to cheer me up it wasn't working. "If we can find which one of your relatives had the virus we'll be in a better position to focus our search as to how you came to receive it."

"Yeah then what?"

"Understanding the how is the first step to figuring out the why," the petite vampire said. Bookworm would be a good word to describe this chick. A blonde bookworm of a vampire, probably some laboratory assistant before the virus turned her, though she didn't look old enough to have graduated high school. I guess there had to be a nerd-vampire hybrid somewhere.

"And how many steps are there in between?" I asked, my eyes threatening to close yet again.

Amber shrugged. "I have no idea. It varies case to case."

My eyes widened. "How many 'cases' have you had?"

"Several." Damn it all. I hate those closed, one word answers. "And each time was different. My first one took me four years to get figured out." I rolled my eyes. "But the next one took me five." I let out a humored noise. "Maybe I should shut up."

"That might help," I agreed. I looked back at my text, "Understanding Your Inner Vampire", and huffed. Understanding? My ass. All this thing did was leave me even more confused. It kept going on and on about the fluctuating chemicals of the brain and how the natural instincts came to be. I got the same thing about humans in my biology class--hell, even some of the Latin wording was the same--and I didn't get it then either. "Would it help to have a blood sample?"

"Not yet," Nadia said quickly--a little too quickly if you ask me. "We need to pinpoint not only the variety but limits of your abilities before we can do any blood work."

"So all of this reading is for nothing?" I asked, sarcasm dripping from my every word. It was all I could do to stay awake.

"Not at all," Amber intoned. "If we can identify which abilities and powers you have, the less time we'll spend in the lab."

"Amber," I huffed, "You're great at answering questions, except the right ones." She shied away from me, her eyes showing the sting of the comment. "Now, please tell me what the hell all of this reading is doing besides wasting my time? I've read through nearly five vampire history books, skimmed over a dozen anatomy and physiology texts, and read over a hundred pages of diaries belonging to confirmed vampires." I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. I should probably wash it sometime today.

"It's never a bad thing to have too much information," she answered meekly. "I thought maybe you could find some similarities between what you've been through and what's been written." Is she about to cry? No wonder she hid from Father Darien, the girl was afraid of even a little frustrated venting.

"Look Amber, I'm tired and I'm starving. And on top of all that Nadia STILL needs blood. In short, I'm freaking exhausted with a lot to do, so don't take my little ranting too personally, okay?"

My answer came from the computers. "Charlene, I'm okay for now."

"No you're not," I rebutted spinning around. "It's been nearly three days since you last fed and you said yourself that you 'did something that drained you', if my memory serves me right."

Nadia lifted an eyebrow, the look in her eye annoying me. "Do you need to get laid?"

Amber snorted. Hearing her say that in her accent sounded weird. I almost laughed--had those words come from Travis I would have. "Why, do you?" I shot back, not liking her ease with the phrase.

"Of course," Nadia beamed.

"Should I leave?" Amber asked, undoubtedly picking up on the shifting emotions.

"Why would you leave? I've a-a-always wondered what it'd be like to wrangle a three-way with two vampires." The poor blond didn't know how to take sarcasm. She looked between Nadia and myself a few times, her pupils almost fully swelled. Nadia grinned. Maybe that wasn't a bad idea. "I'm kidding, Amber. Relax. Geez, ever hear of sarcasm?"

"Sorry," she muttered, heading back to her computer, "It's just been a while since I've been around normal people."

I scoffed. "What the hell are you talking about? You said you've seen me at Father Darien's place." Then I added, "Normal people..."

"Yes, I did. And after that night he kept me locked in the basement to help him figure out what you are." My eyes widened. "I haven't seen the light of day for nearly a month, no pun intended."

"Shit," I said under my breath. "I'm sorry to hear that." I fell back in my seat. Something that the asshole said came back to me. I looked the bookworm square in the eye and asked, "Is that why you're here? That asshole send you to help us?"

Nadia cringed at my favorite pet name for her master, but stayed in her seat. She's been getting better at accepting how I feel about him. Amber even blanched at how easily I said that. "No," she answered, shaking her head. "I'm here because Nadia asked me to help." She broke eye contact and added, "I owe her a lot."

"I bet you do," I accused. Maybe that wasn't fair. I mean, the first thing I did when I last saw Tiffany was run right to her. I never gave a second thought to how Nadia might feel about her. Maybe her opinion of my ex was as high as mine for her master. I'd like to think that if these two have a history together they wouldn't mind me asking about it. "Anything between you two I should be aware of?"

"Nothing like how you're thinking, Charlie," Amber said.

"Really? What am I thinking then?"

"Sexual." She sighed, then Nadia's throat bobbed up and down. The blond vampire push some of her hair behind her ear. "Nadia helped me once Father Darien took me into his fold. She was like a big sister to me. She would talk to me in a way that made everything bearable. Father Darien would make me do things that went against everything I thought was right, Nadia kept me sane." Why is that first part a recurring statement? "If it wasn't for her, I would still me his little toy."

I saw a smile behind the glance she gave my vampire. "Do you love her?" I asked as evenly as I could.

"Of course," she admitted freely. "Like I said, she's like my big sister. She looks out for me, so I do what I can to help her when she asks."

"Well alright," I said feeling the adrenaline of the situation wearing off. "No worries then." It made sense. Henry and I were the same way.

"Worries about what?" Amber asked, again looking between me and Nadia. From the look on her face I'd have to say that she just became the most dense person I know. It made me laugh, actually. Nadia too. "I don't get it."

I waved it off. "Don't worry about it." I turned my attention to Nadia. "Well? Anything?"

She leaned back and stretched her arms above her head. "Not yet," she said through the groan. I made a noise to show my frustration. When I looked back to her, she had her eyes locked on mine. I knew she was reading my aura; I could feel her prodding, but if you ask me it wasn't necessary. Even Amber knew I was done for the day. "Ready to go? We can always try again tomorrow."

"We can?" I quipped. "Oh goody!"

"Let's go."

"Let's."

We piled into the car without saying a word. The silence between us was weird considering we've spent a good ten hours in a quiet library. It was, shall I say, not altogether uncomfortable but far from pleasant. I don't know why, but the tension was escalating. Everything was fine one minute, the next it seems like the shit was gonna hit the fan.

"Nadia," I said, chest tight, "Do you mind?"

"Mind what?" she asked innocently. Her accent made it sound almost genuine.

"That aura... thing. It's making it hard to breathe in here."

"Amber, can you breathe?" my vampire asked, looking into the rearview mirror.

I heard a sharp inhale. "Yes."

"What's your problem?" I would have screamed it if I had the air. "Seriously, Nadia... if I did... something wrong... I wish you'd just... tell me." That was tough.

I could have sworn I saw Nadia roll her eyes. "After everything we've been through, everything that I've taught you, and you still don't know when to just shut up." I was taken aback by her tone, but probably shouldn't have been. "Charlene, what you just did back there was beyond immature." What is she, my mother? "You have no idea what it's like living with that man."

"What?" I breathed, my vision getting grey on the edges. "Where is this... coming from?"

"He spoke to me in the library," she said as if doing so would get her killed. "He doesn't like that I have both you and Amber."

"Then... why are you taking... it out... on me... like this? Nadia... seriously. Knock it... off." Her lips curled into what I could describe as a Father Darien smile. Shit. "Who am I... talking... to right now?"

"Enjoy your research time, little morsel?" Nadia said in his voice. God damn it! "I did."

"Sure thing... asshole." I rolled down the window hoping in vain that it would do some good. "Miss me... already, huh?" My vision was darkening still.

Her/his smile broadened. "Oh my dear little dhampir, you have no idea. Having a problem re we?"

I grinned in spite of myself. "What?... You always... leave me breathless." Stupid thing to say, I know, but I thought it was funny. Maybe it was the lack of oxygen to my brain, but everything was starting to be funny. Like the fact I couldn't breathe. Or that bird crashing into the car beside us.

"My dear little morsel, how you amuse me," she/he all but sang. "You know how to put a smile on my face. What did you find out?"

"Nadia not saying?" I woke up at the impact of my head hitting the dashboard. Shit, I was about to pass out for good here pretty soon.

"It doesn't matter what she's saying, I want to know what you have to say."

"I say... go fuck... yourself."

Nadia's throat let out a laugh so loud it echoed through my window. "That a girl, little one," he/she intoned. "You've done well to stay conscious this long. Good. Then I can have more fun with you the next time you come to see me."

My eyelids were about to shut. Or is that just my eyes going blank--I couldn't tell anymore. "Good luck... with... that. Fun... times." I let out a little giggle. Suddenly the idea of physical torture sounded really good as long as could get one sweet huff of air. My heart slowed to barely beating. My hands were cold.

"Good girl, little morsel. Thank you for your time."

It was like drowning then coming up for air. My lungs sucked in as much oxygen as they could hold. I nearly hyperventilated when his hold on me let go. My stomach was in knots and my sides hurt. Nausea quickly replaced the need for air. Panic overtook me. I looked for a way out of the car. I tried to unbuckle my seatbelt but some annoying voice told me to calm down.

Still out of breath I yelled back, "I've gotta get out of here!" I fumbled with the door handle. It slipped from my fingers when it should have opened. What the fuck? "Let me out!"

"Charlene! Stop!" My mind's eye gave that sweet voice a face. A face I knew very well.

"What the hell was that?" My vampire's eyes searched me for the answer. If she didn't know then I was screwed. "Nadia?

"I don't know," she admitted, "But I do know that Father Darien is not happy with the progress we're making."

"What progress?"

She grinned. "Charlene, you must understand how far ahead of him we are already. He knows next to nothing about who and what you are." Like we know more? "But what we know already is lightyears ahead of him. All he knows is you name and you're a dhampir. That's it."

"What more do we know?" I asked, my head hurting again.

"He showed me somethings just know," she said, her pitch dropping some. "By themselves they make no sense whatsoever, but tying them to the reading I was doing right before we left... it all fits!"

Now she's acting like a five year old in a candy store. "Thanks to your 'reading' he knows all of this too." I tossed my hands up. "Fuck me. Nadia he reads your mind every time he's in it."

She beamed. "Not anymore."

My face slackened. I think my heart skipped a beat. "You're serious?" Her bobbed with the enthusiasm of the kid in a candy store. "I-I-I don't know..." I was speechless. Just say it, Charlie. You're speechless. You're overjoyed. You're ecstatic. You're... happy? "When did you figure out how?"

Her proud smile broadened. "About the time he started making you suffocate." I didn't like the sound of that word, but it would make sense. The bastard lives to torture people. If he couldn't take his anger out on his favorite target, it only makes sense to go after her Watcher. It wouldn't be the first time, either. My stomach growled, making us both look down.

"What do you want to eat?" Nadia asked as we drove down Ft. Donelson Blvd, the main road of the business district on the good side of town. My mouth was watering at all the restaurants going past us.

"I don't care," I drooled. "Food."

Nadia sighed. "What kind of food?"

"The edible kind."

"Any particular flavor strike your fancy?"

Strike my fancy? I let out a little laugh at her use of the phrase. She had to be starving more than I was to say something as ridiculous as that. "I don't know... um, how about the Jade Dragon just down the street? Chinese sounds really good right now. I haven't had any in a while, come to think of it."

"Good," I heard her mumble. "Amber, we're eating chinese today."

"Okay," she said without looking up from her book. I almost forgot she was sitting back there--she hasn't said a word since before we left the library. Quiet as a mouse fits a little too well. If the old phrase of "watch out for the quiet ones" holds true, she would be the most frightening person on the planet. I shuddered at the thought of what she could do to a person.

Wait. Amber was back there this whole time and didn't some much as flinch? Something about that wasn't adding up. How could she have not known what was going on? How could she just sit there and read her book while I was nearly suffocated and then argued with Nadia/Father Darien?

"See, even Amber likes it," I announced, shaking the thought from my head.

"What do I like?" I laughed nervously. She closed the book and leaned forward. "What's so funny?" Nadia let out a giggle. "Come on guys, what's so funny?" My sides were hurting in spite of it all.

"Nadia, if we were in a sorority, this would be the girl we duck-tape to the tree in her underwear in the middle of the night." The petite blond punched my arm. "Hey, don't blame me if you make it easy."

"Not. Cool." Her voice was hard, but it sounded cute coming from her. "That's not a nice thing to say, Charlie."

"Oh, did I rile up the poor little bookworm?" Amber flopped back with a huff. I think I saw her middle finger adjust her glasses. "Lighten up, tootsie. Try to have some fun for a change."

Nadia's look hardened at that. "Okay, Charlene, that's enough. She's put up with that kind of crap her whole life."

"No, really? I would never have guessed." I felt Amber's aura touching mine. It wasn't as rough as I would have expected from someone who was getting teased. This was more like a harsh caress, a hopeful poke for understanding. My mood soured a little. In the few moments we were connected, she showed me a memory of her in what I guessed was middle school. A group of tormentors knocked her books from her hands, shocking her more than anything. One of the girls shoved her face-first into a locker, shaking her glasses from her face. That girl's boyfriend stepped on them. They proceeded to shove her into a locker, another girl ripping a lock of hair out of her scalp. "Sorry, Amber," I said once the connection was broken. "I took it too far, didn't I?"

She shrugged. "Only a little."

We pulled into the restaurant. We walked immediately to a vacant table and sat down. None of us said anything until after we had our drinks and soups ordered. "That happen often?"

"Too often," she said with a voice of contempt. The corner of her mouth twitched and her eyes swelled. A small, momentary look of pride washed over her face.

"So you got them back, I take it?"

"Yeah," she breathed. Nadia just sat back and put her hand atop mine. I'm sure she's heard this story before. "It was my last day of school. The day I showed you was my last as a human. One of the girls who put me in that locker later cut her hand on my shattered glasses. I don't know why she bothered to pick them up, but I'm glad she did. Her blood smelled so sweet. I craved it, I needed it. It burned in my nostrils for hours, to the point of pain and back. When a teacher finally let me out, the first thing I did was run my fingers over the dried blood on the cold door. I don't remember much after that, but I do remember how upset my parents were at me for letting them pick on me."

The waiter came back with out drinks and soups. Coke and egg drop for me, Sprite and wanton for the two vampires. Weird that they ordered the same things. I asked for the sesame chicken, while they got matching chicken with cashews. Maybe I'm just reading too much into it. Oh well. Whatever. "You were saying?" I prompted as I poured some soy and duck sauce into my soup.

"Anyway, I made the mistake of telling my parents what happened. My father was furious, my mother was scared." That sounded all too familiar. "I told him about wanting the blood as if my life depended on it. He told me to get out." She took a sip of her soup, a look of pain and regret flashed over her eyes.

"So how did you get back at the bullies?" I asked, taking a sample of my own. Perfect.

"It was a few days after the whole school found out. I was living off some homeless bleeder when the girl who cut her hand walked by with her posse in tow. I don't know, something in me just clicked. I attacked her first. I think I blacked out after the first scream because the next thing I remember was looking down at four sets of cold dead eyes while the other two were huddled in a corner behind a garbage bin." A look of disgusted pride replaced the pain. "Blood was all over the place. Two of their heads weren't attached anymore. It was... horrifying. But lovely. I orgasmed from the warm blood running all over me and I hated myself for it. But I couldn't stop. Their crying wouldn't let me stop. If they had just shut up I could have stopped..."

"I get it," I said before she got too carried away. I touched her hand that had a death grip on the tablecloth. Amber recoiled faster than my eyes could follow. She was standing over her fallen chair clutching her hand as if I burned it. "I'm not going to hurt you, Amber."

"It's not me I'm worried about," she warned, her eyes narrowing. She breathed in even but shallow breaths. Shit. I think I pushed her too far. Nadia, you've got my back right?

"Amber, you're amongst friends here," I said as calmly as possibly. I didn't move, that would only set her off. "Sit down and have lunch with us. There's no need for all of this." Nadia didn't move either; I knew she was close to losing it too.

Amber inched forward, her steps heavy and nervous. She was more worried about what might happen than actually doing it. Comforting. She pulled her chair back into place and slowly eased herself into it. Her eyes never left mine. The air around the table slackened as her pupils receded. I looked past her to see the kitchen crew completely weirded out.

"It's okay," I called out. "We're fine." I turned back to the small blond and asked, "We are, aren't we?"

"Yeah," she breathed. "Sorry about that..."

I put a hand up. "I'm the one who should apologize. I should have known making you relive something like that would set you off. I've seen it happen before," I said, directed more at Nadia. Amber didn't say anything. She just adjusted herself up to the table and spooned at her soup. Nadia was still a rock. I made a face that begged her to explain.

"I've never seen her do that before," she confessed. "Amber, how could Charlene scare you so much?"

The blond vamp shrugged. "Maybe because I don't know what she's capable of." Yeah, Charlie, watch out for the quiet ones.

"Funny, me neither," I intoned. "Isn't that why we're out today instead of studying for out midterms coming up in about a month?" Nadia's slight pause was the only show I got that she acknowledged that. "Yeah, some of us have schoolwork to get done," I added.

"Sorry about that, Charlene," Nadia mumbled. "This is slightly more important right now."

That stung. I put my spoon back into my soup and sat up straight. Maybe I should have seen that one coming. Maybe I should have just kept my ass at home today, pretending to be as sick as I felt. Ever since all this shit happened, I've been saying a lot of maybes. "Explain."

Nadia's shock didn't surprise me. "This is your life. It's only going to get more complicated."

That one made me laugh. "Funny, my high school guidance councilor said that exact same thing to get me to go to college."

"I'm serious, Charlene."

"SO AM I!" I slammed my hands on the table. "In case you forgot already, I almost died today. That rat-bastard gets his kicks out of torturing me and my friends."

"What do you want me to do about that?" she asked as if I was chiding her.

"Give me my life back," I said, the edge in my voice cutting her deep. "You took it away, you can give it back." Why was I having a breakdown in the middle of a restaurant? I don't care. It felt good to get out.

"I didn't take it from you, Charlene," she all but whispered, taking my hand into hers. "He used me to take it from you. He's been after you for a long time. He sent me to watch you."

A tear fell down my cheek. "Is that you're at my school? To do your master's bidding?"

"That was my purpose, yes." Her eyes gave a silent apology, mine just continued to leak. "He wanted me to make sure that you eventually came to him so he could see how you would handle yourself with him around. You did very well." The vampire tried to put on a smile, her guilt pouring out of every pore.

"Ah, fuck that!" I tried to pull my hand from hers, but failed. "Let go of me Nadia. Now!"

"No! I promised you I wouldn't leave you. Remember? I wouldn't lie to you."

Now it was my turn to feel guilty. I believed her when she told me about what she's done to keep that asshole as far away from me as possible. She did it all to keep me sane, just like she did when Amber came into the coven. "Why?" I begged. "Why did you do all of that, then turn around and protect me from him?"

"Because I had to," Nadia said without thinking. "He would have driven your sanity away. He tried to do that to every vampire who comes to him."

"But I'm not a vampire," I reminded her. "Why would you go out of your way to protect a lowly human? I was less than nothing to you back then."

Nadia paused, affronted. "That's not true."

"Yes it is. I don't remember a lot of it, but I remember that feeling of abandonment you left me in. I was just a meal, just another hopeless bleeder to used than tossed away for the next vampire to find."

"I never did that to you. No other vampire has touched your blood; I've seen to it that that remains so." I should have felt grateful for that, but I don't know what I was feeling a lot of things. "I've told you all of this once before. You were always important to me."

"Why? How? You didn't even know me until the night you raped me."

"Do you still not understand how important you are to me, Charlene? It goes beyond just being my Watcher."

"What the hell are you talking about? I'm just a meal and experiment. If I'm lucky I'd be a link to you getting your sanity back." Her face showed how much that one hurt. It wasn't fair, but I've been feeling it for a long time now--the veneer had finally worn off. "Am I right?"

"Not entirely," she mumbled.

"Not entirely?" I repeated. "How is that not--"

"Because I love you!" she screamed.

I fell back in my chair. I didn't know what to say. Only now did I realize that she still had ahold of my hand. I looked around the room. Whenever my eyes found a person, they would turn away. I gazed across the table. Amber sat in utter shock--from the argument or admission? Or both? I've never had anyone confess something like that... like THAT. All of the anger, rage, and pain simply vanished in those four words. "Nadia, I-I-I don't know what to say," I stammered as I looked back to her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean for it come out like that." Her eyes dropped away. A couple of tears of her own threatened to escape. She looked around the room, anywhere but my face. She was nervous? The same woman who has killed four people--that I know of--without a thought is nervous about saying she loves me?

"It's okay, Nadia," I said, not finding anything else. Jesus, I sounded like she was in the hospital or something.

"No it's not," she breathed. "Vampires aren't supposed to fall in love with their Watchers; I've made that mistake before."

"So it's a mistake for you to actually care about me, is that it?"

"You need to understand the vampire culture, Charlene. Watchers come and go, much like bad boyfriends or girlfriends. They come, get you to love them, then they disappear and you never see them again. They just break your heart and stomp on the pieces. It can't be helped, it's just the way it is. We tie our sanity to them, but not our love. To do so would be, well, just look at Marianna."

Again, I had no idea what to say. I go from a meal ticket to student to girlfriend to loved in the same conversation. I don't think I'll ever understand vampires, but at least Amber's subconscious nodding helped confirm it. Nadia's said something like this before, but now it has a whole new meaning. Everything that she's done for me suddenly made sense. The house. The clothes. The constant harassing from Father Darien. She did it all because she loved me? "Nadia..."

"You don't have to say anything," she said softly. "I wasn't going to tell you for a while."

"When? When did you know?"

"As cliche as it sounds, when I first saw you." That made me laugh. "I'm serious. I told you once that I spoke to Father Darien about getting someone else to watch you. Your aura was so strong, stronger than every other human's I've ever some across."

I didn't want to think about it any further. "Let's just enjoy our lunch. Or is it dinner by now?"

Amber gave a nervous chuckle. Shit, I almost forgot she was over there again. I'm guessing that happens a lot. "Smell for yourself, Charlie," she said. "They haven't even started cooking it yet. I bet they heard your conversation and decided to come watch. Drama changes things."

I laughed. "True that. Just look at all of those crappy TV shows nowadays. I miss Looney Tunes."

Amber looked at me like I just spoke in a foreign language. "What's Looney Tunes?"

The food did help my mood somewhat. Having a full belly makes me a lot less bitchy, but it wasn't enough to help me understand what happened fifteen minutes ago. After Amber asked the Looney Tunes questions I figured it was a good time to just shut up and eat. Besides, this place makes the best sesame chicken, so enjoying it while answering the poor blond's question would have been nearly impossible. Note to self: Get Amber away from the books.

Nadia dropped Amber back off at the house. She said something about needing the older books to help piece together what she learned today. I think it was a good ploy to get her away from us for two minutes. Speaking of weird people, Sven should be getting back in town in the next few days. I haven't heard from him in a while, not that I think that's odd, it would just do some good to give him some shit for some reason. Or maybe I'm just feeling a little homesick. I haven't been there in a while either.

And I know why. I still have no idea how I'm going to break the news to my parents about all of this. 'Oh yeah mom and dad, not only is your daughter gay but she's also a pseudo-vampire.' It's laughable to think about. At least confessing that I was a lesbian wasn't THAT out of the blue. After dad ran off to drown himself in a sea of Jack, mom mentioned that she had a feeling for a while. But this? And after what I saw him do to Stacy, I don't know. If he were to have that kind of reaction in front of Nadia as hungry as she is I don't know what would happen. Would they fight? Would she kill him in a moment of bloodlust? Would he just straight up shoot her? Why are my thoughts so violent?

We were passing some moderately upscale houses. Shit. She was taking me home. Even in my half-asleep state I recognized some of the houses. Nadia was doing the whole pheromone-thing to help me relax--I'd say it's working a little too well. "What are we doing here, Nadia?" I asked after we made another turn.

"I think they have a right to know what's going on with their daughter," she answered like the wise old hag she often pretended to be. "Besides, it might do you some good to see your family."

"How thoughtful." I let out a heavy breath and adjusted my seat.

"Do you have a plan on how to tell them?"

I laughed a little. "No."

"Well, I think honesty is the best policy here." She kept looking side to side as if she was waiting for someone to ambush us. "They had a little tif when you told them you were gay, so they shouldn't be too surprised by anything you tell them."

If she was trying to be funny it wasn't working. "If you recall, my dad put my girlfriend's head through a wall not two seconds later. The man scares me sometimes."

"But he loves you."

"And he scares me," I repeated. "And there for a while I thought he'd never love me again after what happened that night, but that was me being a typical frightened teenager I guess." I stopped for a second to let those feelings pass. "I don't know, Nadia. I've got a bad feeling about this one. I've seen what happens when he gets angry." And you. "I haven't thought about it because of that." We came to a stop. Panic coursed through me. "Nadia! No!"

"Don't worry, I'll be right next to you the whole time," she said, getting out of the car. That's exactly why I'm worried, I almost said. I'd rather do this alone and get my ass kicked than see her ripped my father's throat out defending me. She tapped on my window. "Coming?"

"Do I have a choice?" I groaned as I unbuckled my seatbelt. I took a deep breath and opened my door. Nadia held it open for me like a proper lady--weird analogy. She linked her arm in mine before we headed towards the door. A million more things started racing through my mind, going faster the closer we got.

I didn't see her ring the doorbell, or even knock, but my mom appeared in the threshold with a warm smile on her face. Immediately she took me into her arms, her grip tighter than I recall. She gave a nice, passive hug to Nadia and ushered us in. "Welcome back, honey!"

She closed the door behind us, sealing me to my fate I mused. "Where's dad?"

"He'll be back from the store in a few minutes." The older version of me took a long hard look at my face. "Something wrong?" I nodded. She immediately turned her attention to Nadia, who took a symbolic step back. "Charlie, what's the matter."

"I've got something to tell you. You and dad. Together."

"Well come on in," she said with a shove on my arm. I looked at the door like it would magically open and I could escape. When I didn't budge, mom's face fell. "Would you like to sit down at least?"

"No, mom, I'd better not. But I think you should." Nadia squeezed my hand behind me. "When dad gets home."

Her eyes scanned mine. She didn't know what to think. "Would you like something to eat or drink? You're not looking so good."

"I'm fine, mom, we just ate actually." Well, sort of. Her nerves were starting to tighten. It wasn't fair to keep her in the dark like this, but I didn't think I could say what I had to say a second time. This small talk wasn't helping either one of us, but I couldn't just stand in her house and not say anything--if I ever saw her again, I'd never hear the end of it. Shit. I could smell the perspiration on her skin. Anytime dad.

"How have you been, Nadia?" mom asked in a desperate attempt to change the topic. "My little girl keeping you up at night?"

I think my vampire just blushed. "No, Mrs. Coventry. We've been doing really well together."

She smiled at that. "That's good to hear, hon. Her last few girlfriends just used her for a few dates and romps-"

"MOM! Not cool!" Both women smiled at my embarrassment. I come over here to talk about something serious and this is what I get? I should be so lucky. "Is that roast cooking?" She glanced back to the kitchen. "With potatoes, carrots, and au jus. You over did the seasoning a tad though, but I'm guessing that was an accident. You got frustrated by that, but said 'Fuck it'. Earlier today you stubbed your toe on the couch and took it out on the laundry. "

She looked back at me with her mouth open. "Charlie... how did...?"

A sheepish grin was my response. Nadia's other arm touched mine. I could almost hear her nodding that what I said was the truth. "That's what I came to talk to you and dad about."

My mother just walked into the kitchen. I'm sure she was mumbling something along the lines of how bizarre that was. Tell me about it. I haven't been able to stop saying that for nearly a month. It's not like I enjoy reading people like that. It's saved my ass a couple time, but it's maddening. Human beings were not meant to bear the mental baggage of other humans like that. Feel what they feel as they feel it. See what they saw and how bad it traumatized them. But then again, I'm not a human. And neither is the girl who was making my hand turned blue.

"Nadia," I prompted, looking at our hands. "Please?"

"Oh sorry," she said. "Now I see why you're so afraid. She does a good job of masking her true nature behind that veneer of suburban manners."

"Interesting way of saying it. Normally people just use the phrase: plotting bitch."

"I heard that!" came the bitch's voice. "And you'd be right." That made me laugh a little. Memories of how she would plot against me and Sven swarmed through my head. The way she would get us to behave and be nice to each other could only come from a master of manipulation. I think those three words sum her up better the other two. I laughed at the thought of it.

"So true mom," I mumbled. I heard dad's car pulling into the garage. I had minutes if not seconds. The aluminum door closing was like a requiem knell ringing beneath the house, like the very pits of hell were warning me. The familiar cadence of him coming up the stairs went in time with me trying to will my heart to slow down.

"Honey, whose car is that on the curb?"

Alright, it's go time.

"Dad," I breathed.

I spun around. "Charlie," he said incredulously. "When did you get here?"

"About five minutes ago." Okay, heart, slow down now. Nadia was uneasy as it was. "Mom said you'd be back soon so I just chilled back for a while." Chilled back for a while? Good one, Charlie.

"Nadia, it's nice to see you again." He pulled us both into a hug. "I was beginning to think you weren't ever coming home."

"Funny, me too." The little joke didn't help me as much as I'd hoped. Better get this over with. "Mom, come in here please."

Dad look around. "What's going on?"

"Charlie has something she wants to say to us," mom said as she entered the room. Dad's face fell a little. She took his hand. "Relax honey, it's not she's coming out of the closet or anything."

"No, she's done that already." His tone was all business. Great.

"I don't know how to ask this, so I'll just ask. Is there a history of vampirism in our family?" There I said it. It's out n the open, they can chew on it any way they want. And from the shocked expressions, I'd say it tasted awful.

"Why would you ask that?" dad asked, breaking eye contact.

"Be-e-ca-a-use," I drawled out, trying to find the right words. "I think I may need to know."

"And you would need to know this because?"

Damn it, would you just say yes or no? But now I see where I get my interrogation tactics from. I pulled mine and Nadia's clenched hands in front of me and held them in my other. Nadia's pupils were swelling. I didn't want to read their auras if I didn't have to. "I came across some interesting reading today," I lied. "I was hoping you could help me out."

"I don't believe this," dad said, slapping his legs. He turned to his wife and accused, "You said you took care of all that. Damn it, Miranda, you said..." Mom grabbing his hand cut him off.

"So that's a yes?"

"I told you to care of all that crap. Damn it, Miranda, I said when she was born that this would come up. She wasn't supposed to find out. Not ever!"

"Find out what?" Even Nadia looked confused. "What would I find out?"

"That you dyke mother's great aunt..."

"Arnold! Shut up with that!" That took me by surprise. I looked at Nadia, who was having a hard time reading her aura as well. "Charlie, please sit down."

"No," I said when I felt something touch my aura. "Mom, what the hell is this?"

"Tell her Miranda. Tell your little dyke-daughter what you didn't do. Tell her about how fucked up her life is going to get." He looked at me with an even harder sneer. "You think you had it tough coming out of the closet? You ain't seen nothing yet." He had no idea?

"I said that's enough," mom commanded, her voice booming off the wall. Nadia's pupils were a solid black. She was as frightened as I was. "I knew this would happen someday," she mumbled. Dad got up and went into the kitchen. My money was on he'd go to the whisky bottle. "Charlie, honey, we're not normal people."

I scoffed. "That's the best you can do?" She knew all along that this might happen? "Mom, please, what the fuck is going on with me?"

"Watch your mouth, Charlene." I rolled my eyes. She took a deep breath. "Do you recall visiting your great, great aunt Betsy in the hospital?" I thought back to it. I'll never forget that day; it was the first time I saw a dead body. "Well, she was a vampire and I was her Watcher." Mom picked up on my eyebrows rising. "That's not the first time you heard that word."

I shook my head. Everything I knew was falling apart right before me. My own mom was a Watcher, and never bothered to tell me. I forgot how to breath for the second time today. My vision started to get blurry and blue. I wanted to say something, anything, so, "What's dad saying about calling her a dyke?" was what came out.

Mom shrugged. "The truth. She was gay, and I'm bi in case you were wondering." My vision had fully changed over. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to tell you any of this for another few more years." My ears were ringing. "Charlie?"

"I'm a dhampir." I don't know how that managed to get out, but it did.

My mother was taken aback by that. "What are you talking about?"

My brain was on autopilot, my voice was steady. "I'm neither human or vampire." I could smell the whisky bottle sloshing less and less. "I'm both, but I'm neither. Father Darien is after me..."

"How do you know about him?" Her voice turned panicked. "Charlie, how do you know about Father Darien?"

"Nadia. He sent her after me, but I don't know why. Neither does she."

Mom stood up and started pacing. My face was going slack and pale. My knees buckled beneath me. "No," I heard her say. "No, no, this can't be happening."

"What? What can't be happening?" Nadia asked for me. Mom went into the kitchen. Nadia practically carried me after her. Dad was standing over the stove with an empty bottle next to him and full bottle of gin poised to take over.

"Tell her yet?" he growled. "You tell her about how fucked up her life is going to get?" Mom stood next to him, her arm going around his shoulders.

I fell into one of the chairs at the table. I forgot how to think. They knew this whole time? They knew! "You're my husband, Arnold. I hoped you of all people would understand."

"Oh I understand perfectly," he spat, throwing her away from him. "I understand that my kids aren't mine and that my only daughter is a fucking bitch dyke whore!" What the hell was he talking about? "You fucked up my life one too many times, Miranda." He threw his glass into the sink, shattering it all over the place. "You tricked me into marrying you and taking care of your kids!" He turned to me and said the same words I heard all those years ago. "I want you out of this house! Take that bitch-dyke with you."

"I loved you, Arnold." Yeah, I bet she did. "That's why I put up with your shit all these years."

"No, no. I've had enough of this shit." I heard the distinct sound of metal sliding through wood. Mom screamed something. Nadia hissed. "I want all of you to get the fuck out of my house!" My eyes caught the light reflecting off of something shiny in his hand.

Nadia renewed her hissing. "ARNOLD!" The next thing I heard was a loud thud. My mom was shouting. Nadia's aura exploded hard enough to knock me off the chair. The last time that happened Adriel chased me down the hallway with a knife. My blue vision changed back to normal. I looked under the table as a sickening smell reached my nose. Nadia was on top of my dad, her teeth sunk deep into his neck. "GET OFF HIM!" mom shouted, trying to pull off of him.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing. "What the hell are you doing?" I said in a voice I didn't recognize. "Nadia, get off of him."

My vampire's head reared back. "HE'S MINE!" she hissed. Blood poured out of her mouth.

My whole body shook. Tears threatened to escape. "Nadia, please get off of him," I said softer, but not without the panic. A flicker of understanding flashed over her face, then disappeared. "Please, Nadia. He's my dad..." My mom wouldn't shut the hell up. "Mom stop! You're making it worse."

That understanding was long gone; she understood perfectly. She attacked her own father in a fit of bloodlust for a lot less. His arms and legs stopped moving. I couldn't tell if he was dead or unconscious. His eyes glossed over empty. The vampire just continued sucking on his neck not caring either way. I thought I was going to be sick.

"NO! YOU BITCH!" Mom bent over and picked something metallic off the floor. Adrenaline surged through me when I realized what she was about to do. She swung the knife at my vampire with a reckless abandon. She started screaming something in a language that I wasn't so sure was meant for humans. Nadia dropped the man and flew back to the sink. She hit with enough force to bend the center divider.

"MOM! What the hell are you doing?" I lunged between them.

"SHE KILLED HIM!" She answered, the knife dripping with blood. Nadia's aura started to subside a little. "She killed my husband." Both of us looked down to the bloodless corpse. His mouth hung open at an impossible angle. "That animal drained my husband," she said again but with more hate. "Get out of the way, Charlene Candice."

Oh shit, this was beyond bad. The last time I heard her say my middle name was the last time this woman ever laid a finger on me. And she just watched my vampire kill her man. Mom pointed the knife at me and made a motion for me to move. I shook my head. "No. I'm not going to let you."

"He killed your father."

I shook my head again. That logic wasn't going to work on me today. "That man is not my father, you said so yourself." Nadia's aura relaxed a bit more. Good, she's calming down. Maybe I should too. "Can you tell me who is?" A tear leaked out of her eye. Mom's aura became unreadable. Shit. She was adamant about this. "Can you at least put the knife down?" I took on a more defensive pose. "Mom? Please?"

"She killed him!" The deranged woman lashed out at me. I barely felt the blade cut into my palm. I jerked back, colliding with my vampire. My hand smacked her in the face, my blood ran over her mouth. The energy coming from her picked up instantly. Nadia threw me to the floor and leaped at my mother. What happened next was too fast for even my new eyes to follow. All I remember was the rich stench of something vaguely familiar. It's what's been stinking up Nadia's back yard for days now.

"NADIA!" I dove to her side. She had her hands around her throat. Blood leaked between her fingers. Her eyes were wide with surprise. I held her down when she tried to move, crying out at the frightened look on her face. I couldn't stop myself. "Nadia, no." I put my face next to hers and looked in the direction of a groaning noise. "Mom?"

She sat hunched against the cupboards, the knife sticking out of her ribcage. Her eyes lolled in her head. She had minutes, maybe. She tried to say something, but all that came out was a gargling sound. She coughed up what looked like a piece of a lung. Her lips moved in what I took as an apology. I didn't move. I felt nothing as I watched her die. What the hell is wrong with me? She coughed one more time before falling over the body of the man she married. My eyes hardened with hate. Hate for all the years of lies and deceit. Hate for her doing nothing as that man drank this whole family into denial. Hate for the world and everything it's put me through.

Nadia's head turned slightly. "Hold on, Nadia," I said as even more tears fell. "I'll take care of you." Blood was all over the place, doing god only knows what to her--it was making me sick. "I'll take care of you, I promise." It was all I could do to not throw up. "Can you stand up?" Nothing. "Nadia?"

I looked down to my vampire, my girlfriend. The grip on her throat was slack, her eyes were closed. I cried again, but somehow managed to cradle her into my arms and pick her up. I carried her out the door and into the blinding light of the waning sun. I sat her into the car and fumbled around in her pockets for the keys. "Please don't die on me," I thought out loud as I started the car. My hands, clothes and hair was saturated in drying blood. Without thinking I just drove. "Hang on, Nadia." I called the only person I could think of to help us and told her meet us at the hospital.

"Someone help me please!" I called out as I came through the door of the ER. Nadia was lying across my arms like a limp fish. A flurry of motion ensued. Someone called for a gurney; someone else told me to let her go; another person tried asking me how it all happened; someone tried to pry her out of my arms. It was chaos. The room seemed to spin. I watched a team of people in scrubs wheel her through a pair of doors then disappear around a corner. Whoever was next to me said something about sitting down. That's a good idea. The moment my ass touched the chair, vertigo set in.

"What's your name?" the voice asked me again. It was a soft masculine voice. My vision focused on his face. He looked like he belonged on Grey's Anatomy with that caring, charming smile and day-old stubble. Those honey eyes were piercing. If I were single and straight, I'd have no problem making a move on him.

"Charlene Coventry," I said, barely above a whisper.

"Who was that you brought in here?"

"Her name is Nadia Anichka Viktoria Domitrovich." I wasn't going to cry. I'm stronger than that, Father Darien said so. "She was, um, attacked."

"By who?" asked Derek Collins, R.N., according to his tag. "Those are some pretty bad cuts."

By who? My mom. I couldn't say it; the words were right there, but they wouldn't come out. The whole thing started replaying in my mind. The way Nadia looked at me as if someone came and took the soul right out of her. It looked so wrong. That was the true nature of what she is, that's what she went to such lengths to get away from. She didn't want to become that... that thing that killed my parents. My insides started shaking. Damn it, I wasn't going to cry. "Our attacker," I said, the image of her blood-ridden mouth sticking like a snapshot in my head. "I didn't recognize him." That was true enough.

Derek nodded his head. "Do you have an address?"

I took a sharp inhale. "1865 North Lawn Street." The nurse's eyes doubled in size. "It's exactly what you're thinking," I mumbled in an attempt to guide him away from the truth--it'll come out soon enough.

"And what is your relationship with the patient?" he asked after clearing his throat.

"I'm her girlfriend," I said without thinking. We confirmed it not an hour ago.

"I see," Derek muttered. If I didn't know any better I'd say he was displeased to hear I didn't play on the right team. "Does she have any insurance?"

I shook my head. I always have hated that question. "When can I see her?" I asked to direct the attention back to my vampire.

He slid his pen under the clip of the board and stood up. "I can't make you any guarantees, but I'll tell you what I'll do. I'm going to check on her and give you a prognosis as soon as I can." After the day I just had, I'll take that at face value. "Can I get you something before I go? Coffee? Soda? Sandwich?"

"No, I'm fine, but thank you, Derek." He gave me a reassuring smile, but it wasn't working. Nice guy. It's good to know that places like these still hire people who actually care about the patients and their loved ones.

Those last three words made me pause. Nadia said that she loved me, but did I really love her? How could I not after all the crap we've been through in the short time we've been together? If I had to ask myself that question, was it true? I tossed my hands up and fell back against the chair. My eyes started watering again. Damn it! I wasn't going to cry anymore tonight. Frustrated tears or not, I wasn't going to cry. Anger replaced the frustration. If that's what it took for me to keep myself under control, then I was going to be angry.

Maybe that's what I needed right now. Maybe I just needed to be fucking pissed off at everything. In less than a day everything I thought I knew about myself was ripped apart. And that fucking bastard was somehow a part of it. How did my life get so screwed up? And through no fault of my own? Not fucking fair! If I wanted to mess my life up, then it should be my choice; it should be up to me to fuck everything up.

"Charlie!" came a somewhat mousy voice from the double-door. "What the hell happened?"

"Amber? What the hell are you doing here?" I asked, directing my anger at her. "How did...?"

"Father Darien called me," she said, stopping dead in her tracks at the tone of my voice.

I was at a loss for words. "How did he--?"

"You don't think he knows when one of his own is near death?" I don't know why, but that made me hate him even more. Or was it the fact she said that as if I should have known?

"I don't give a flying fuck about that asshole! What are you doing here?"

Hurt washed over her features. Mission accomplished, Charlie, someone else feels as low as you do. "I care for her too, remember."

"Yeah, well, where the hell were you when she was bleeding to death in MY arms? Reading you goddamn books! You weren't there for her. For us." I pointed a shaking finger in her face. I paused and sobered. Something's wrong here. When I turned my hand over, my heart sped up then nearly stopped. The cut on my palm was gone. I fell back into my chair, staring at the spot as if it would start talking next."What the?"

"What the what?" the blond vampire asked coming closer. "Charlie?"

"It's gone." I looked up to her then back to my hand. "The cut that bitch gave me is gone." I couldn't believe my eyes.I ran a nail over the area but felt nothing. There was no evidence of the cut. "Amber, it's gone."

Her eyes widened too. "Damn," she breathed. "Well, that's one down. How many more to go, I wonder?"

"One what?" I asked blinking.

"One of those abilities we talked about earlier." She started laughing like a scientist who just made a discovery. "This is fascinating." She took my hand in hers and started looking it over.

"Wait, if I have this ability, then Nadia should too."

"Yes she does. I've seen it myself. Why?"

The realization brought a growing smile to my face. Everything that I felt today came out as one giant laugh. I couldn't help it, it was too much. "Then her cuts should be fine by now."

"Nadia was cut?" I nodded, trying to shake off the fit that was still brewing. "Where?"

"On her arm and across her throat."

Amber dropped my hand like it was on fire. "Oh shit, Charlie, is she still alive? How much blood did she lose?"

The laughing died, my smile fell. "I don't know. A lot, I guess."

A deep terror came to those eyes of hers. "Did she eat anything before hand?"

"Yes, that's why we were attacked." It was weird how we had to think before we spoke.

"Then she might still have a chance," she intoned. "The cuts may be gone, but so is the blood."

Just then Derek came back into the waiting room. The sad look on his face wasn't helping me any. I couldn't bring myself o read his aura, and apparently neither could Amber. "Derek, how is she?"

"She's alive," he said as if I wouldn't believe him. "But how--I have no idea. There was some evidence of a struggle and she suffered severe lacerations to her arm and throat. I've never seen anyone lose that much blood and still be alive." I've heard that one before. "We won't have have the blood work back from the lab for at least another twenty minutes, but she is in dire need of a transfusion."

"I'll do it," I said quickly. "I'm supposed to take care of her. Where do I signt?"

Derek chuckled nervously. "Why don't we sit down, Charlene?"

"Charlie, please." He took me by the arm and sat us down by the counter. I'm guessing it was so some of the other staff could hear the conversation. Amber stood behind me, her hand resting on my shoulder.

"Okay, Charlie. You need to understand something. I've been doing this for over a decade and I've never seen anyone with only four pints of blood in them still be alive. She needs a massive transfusion. I'm talking three or four people."

"No, I'm the only one she wants blood from." He gave me a questionable look. "Just tell me what form I have to sign, any phone call I have to make, I don't care. She's all I have."

"It's more complicated than that, Charlie."

I held back my ire. "Then simplify it."

He took a deep breath. "Does she have a Power of Attorney or close relatives?" I shook my head. "Are you even in her Will?"

My eyes narrowed. "What's that got to do with me giving her a blood transfusion?"

"As much as I hate it, without the blood work I can't just strap you down and start pumping. You need to understand, without any legal documents that prove you two even know each other I can't do anything. I appreciate you wanting to help her, but--"

I grabbed his collar and shoved him against the desk. "YOU need to understand that I'm the one who takes care of her. No one else. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if someone else's blood is inside her. I don't give a flying fuck about that other crap, she's all that matters to me!" People were giving us some weird looks, Amber included, but I didn't care.

Derek waived off a uniformed security guard. "Let's talk about this down the hall."

Amber's grip on my shoulder tightened. She was trying to pull me away, but I'd be damned if I was going to be fed that line of red-tape bullshit. I threw him back against the counter. "If we're going in there so you can convince me not to do this..."

"Not at all. Let's go," he said, straightening his shirt. We got up and went through a different set of doors successfully leaving behind all the confused faces and one angry receptionist.

I've never been a big fan of hospitals. Maybe it's the stigma that these places exist because bad things happen to good people. If the world was a better place then we wouldn't need hospitals--babies can be birthed in the bathtub. Besides, that sterile smell makes me think something is wrong. We wove our way back to what I assumed was the nurse's lunch room. Given the bland walls, tables, and chairs, I doubted that someone with the alphabet soup after his name ever came in here. The soda machine caught my eye only because all of the low-level lights were on. "Please take a seat, I know this isn't the best place but it'll have to do."

"Don't you have a station?" I asked as I continued to look around.

"Yes and it's full of nurses at this hour." The distinct ping of him locking the door spun me back to him. "I felt this was more of a private matter."

I gulped. "Obviously." My adrenaline started to rise. So did Amber's. It was never a good idea to keep a disheveled vampire from an easy escape. That goes for dhampirs too if I had my way.

"I don't know how else to say this, so I'll just say it. Nadia is going to die before we get any blood work back. The human body cannot sustain life for very long once that much blood has been lost. She's lucky she's lasted as long as she has." His tone was borderline caring. I could tell he wasn't often the bearer of bad news, which only made him vulnerable to not seeing exactly who, or what, was he was in a locked room with.

"Is that all?" I asked as if hearing those words were no big deal. He blinked at my casualness. "Like I said in the lobby, you need to understand certain things here. And judging from the way you're sitting to that look you gave me back there, you're in no position to get any of this." He didn't like the implied insult. "I'll keep this short and say that all she needs is me. It's a very simple concept. Just hook me up next to her and leave the room."

"It's not that simple," he intoned, trying to downplay it. My blood pressure was on the rise again. Amber's aura touched mine; she wasn't feeling all that great about this guy either. I hoped I wasn't this ignorant.

"I don't care what it takes." It came out as a growl. "I am giving her my blood whether you like it or not." He sighed and shook his head. In the instant it took him to do so I leapt over the table and pinned him to the wall. Decency be damned, I was pissed off and he was going to know it. "Look at me! Do you think I'm joking? You're a nurse, your job is to make her feel better, now you know all you need." My hand wrapped around his throat. His eyes bulged. He often wasn't on the losing end of a fight either. "Take me to her Derek Anthony Collins, Jr. Right now!"

With his face red and swollen, he nodded. I let go and backed off so he could get some air. The man fell to his knees and sucked in as much as he could, coughing after a few breaths. Amber came up behind me, but I shrugged off her attempt to take my arm. Derek stood upright and led the way. For some reason I didn't like it. No one gets attacked then acts like that. "What do you see?" I asked Amber through my mind.

She didn't answer. Rather she stopped dead in her tracks and stared. Derek held the door open and waited. I turned around at the silence. The blond bounced her focus from me to him and back. "Charlie, I didn't know you could do that?" she said breathlessly. I knew she was still battling her virus-born instincts, and the scene just a second ago was a good cover for her nervousness.

"Me either," Derek said rubbing his neck.

I smiled. "Been able to for a while now." She looked away. "Well?"

"He's more than what he says he is," she answered back, her voice in my head. "I can't see anything, and I doubt he's that dense." That made me stifle a giggle.

"Are we going or not?" Derek asked impatiently.

"Yes, we're going." Amber looked at him like he was some kind of enigma. I walked past her out of the door, catching that fleeting look she gave him. It was a sneer at best. She was like the librarian who just found out her boyfriend was hiding something. It was actually cute to see her like that. But she was right. He didn't respond to being called by all three of his names. He didn't give me any weird looks for throttling him. Hell he didn't even try to fight back. All he's spoken about is the bureaucrat bullshit to keep me from seeing Nadia. Something about him didn't add up.

We walked down another series of hallways. I kept my eyes on the floor to keep him from thinking about what I was thinking. By the time we got to the room I'd memorized the tile pattern. It's weird that I was in the most sterile environment on the planet and no one has offered me a clean, bloodless shirt. That would explain why Amber's been on edge since she arrived.

Nadia's hear tart monitor beeped with a disturbingly long slowness. It was too quiet in here. The breathing apparatus didn't have that distinctive hissing. There were only a few wires coming off of her which I thought was weird. Maybe they just give up on patients hay think won't survive the night. It was dark; the sun had finally set.

Next to her bed was the TV stand with several drawers filled with blankets and whatnot. She looked so wrong lying there. Her hair was matted and crusted over with blood from both of my parents. I always thought that our places would be reversed, that I'd be the one on the bed. I touched her hand, letting a tear slip. She moved slightly at the contact of both. The thought of trying to call out to her came and went.

"Okay," came Derek's voice from behind the curtain, scaring the crap out of me. "Charlie, take off your shirt if you would please."

"I'm sorry?"

"I need the vein in you upper arm," he prompted. Oh yeah. Doctor, hospital--wake up Charlie. "There's a robe in the drawer by your foot, go ahead and put it on." I looked back to my vampire and stroked her cheek. "I've got everything I need to begin once you get yourself situated." He came around the curtain and stopped.

"Can you wait out side the door for a minute please?" I asked, my voice shaking. "You too Amber, if you don't mind?"

"No," she breathed, grabbing him and escorting him out of the room. I didn't take my eyes off of my girl for a second. She looked so helpless. All of those talks we've had about her pre-Father Darien life made sense now. I'm sure my face looked similar to his, seeing this beautiful woman begging for help. It wasn't right to just do nothing. She said the same thing to me as she did to him: I need you. And I need her. I felt sick comparing myself to that asshole, but it was true. I gently kissed her and rubbed my cheek against hers.

I took off the shirt she had made for me. The it was strange that I was no nearly as involved with what happened in that kitchen and yet I was still covered in blood. Her blood. All of her essence spilled over me like a protection she gave me when my own mother tried to kill me. The fabric stuck to my skin. There was so much that some of it was only partially coagulated, looking like a black tar substance stuck to me. Good thing I decided on a black bra today, I thought if only to keep myself from feeling depressed again. I folded the garment and placed it under the bed. I didn't want anyone finding it or touching it; who it was would only wash it. That was my job. I take care of us.

"Come on in," I said after smoothing my atrocious hospital attire.

"What I'm about to do never happened," Derek warned. I nodded, silently thanking him. I still didn't like the fact that he was hiding something from us, but I'll take the favor. I learned the hard way to let people just be nice--the world could use more people like them.

On the flip side of that, also know that people will do favors only to get something bigger in return. I'll deal with that when it comes up. "What do I have to do?"

"Just lie down on the other bed and try to relax." Derek tried to stay professional. He got to work preparing the room for what was about to happen. I flopped down on my bed but couldn't relax. Like I said, I hate hospitals, and the fact that this was going to involve needles wasn't helping. "Jesus Charlie, calm down. I can hear you breathing from here."

"I hate needles," I said pointedly to the ceiling.

"Who doesn't? But if it makes you feel any better I hate sticking them into my patients."

"It doesn't." I took a deep breath to slow my heart down. I felt myself pale. "This is gonna hurt like a bitch, ain't it?"

"Well, in all honesty, I don't know how much a bitch hurts like, but you'll be feeling it tomorrow and the day after." I almost threw up. "The good news is it won't be from the needle, it'll be from your body rushing to replace everything that was lost. Actually, if I got my math right, you shan't be well for nearly a week." I turned my gaze at him and he shrugged. "It's just the way the body works. Think of it like it's yelling at itself for being stupid."

That last bit was to show how much he disagreed with this. "I'm not being stupid, Nurse Jackie," I answered back sarcastically. "I don't expect you to understand, but this is the smartest thing I've done in nearly a month."

He paused. "Damn girl. Just how fucked up is your life?"

I decided not to be offended, instead I laughed. "Very." He didn't need to know that I just watched my parents get killed today. Or that the woman lying net to me was a vampire. Or that her master orchestrated everything that has fucked up my life. No, he didn't need to know that. "Is that normal for people in my situation?"

"Based on all that I know about you and her, I don't know." He hooked the hoses up to Nadia's I.V. then readied mine. "In all of my years doing this, I don't know what normalcy is an enigma. I've seen people fully recover from injuries that should have killed them. I watched as someone died from just a scratch. Is that normal?"

It felt good to know that there were other people who shared my definition of normal. But the feeling was short-lived. He pulled my I.V. out of its wrapper. He grinned at my blanching. "Before you stick me, can you get Amber in here?"

"Why? She's right outside the door."

"Please?"

He huffed, obviously wanting to get this over with. "Fine." I lipped my thanks. I didn't hear the door open, but knew she was in the room. Out of the corner of my eye I watched a blond mop of hair bounce across the room.

"You okay, Charlie?" she asked as she stroked my hair.

"Ask me tomorrow." I turned my attention to Derek and sighed. I pulled the sleeve of my gown up and said, "Just do it."

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you."

I bit my pillow to keep from screaming out. It felt like a hot poker going into me. It was beyond pain. The steel just kept going and going; I felt it poking around inside my vein. I couldn't look at it. Someone said something about it ending. Are they freaking kidding me? My arm was on fire! I willed myself to not start thrashing around; it would pull the needle out and we'd have to do this again.

"Hold her!" a man said. I felt a pair of soft hands grab my shoulders. I was thrown back onto the bed. When did I get up? "It's in. Now all we have to do is wait."

"Wait for what?" I got out, finally opening my eyes. My blue vision was blurred over with tears.

"I'd say about six to eight hours," Derek answered, looking at his watch then to the blood flow meter. I didn't even realize how many machines my hoses went through until now. Nadia's heart rate monitor instantly started beeping off the charts. She sucked in a huge amount of air, spiking her oxygen tank's needle. Her back arched off the mattress and fell back just as quickly. She landed with enough force to move the whole thing. Just as fast as it happened, it was over. Her heart went back to a normal rhythm, even if it was getting back the cadence I recognized. "I've never seen anything like that before," Derek confessed. "What the hell was that?"

"How the hell should I know? You're the nurse, remember!" I shouted though I wanted to know too. I read nothing about the reaction to this being that violent. She was about two steps away from waking up, ripping the leads from her, then ripping open the throat of the one responsible. I've seen her do that before; it isn't pretty. Amber just stood beside me in a dumb shock.

"Get out, Derek," she said after another moment. We both turned to her. She grabbed his arm and pulled him to the door. "Just do what you promised me and stay the hell out of here. I'll call if we need something." He tried to protest, but it was too late. She came back over to my bed and asked, "Charlie, what the fuck was that?"

I was taken aback by her choice of words. "I have no idea."

The brain goes through a lot when the body loses that much blood. I saw images that looked like a bad LSD trip. Colors and pictures everywhere; some of those pictures were without colors, others were like the color bled away from the picture. I remember being very confused about what was going on. Voices came out of the pictures, and sometimes from the colors. Sparkles would flash in time with the words, a nice silvery zeal forcing me to blackout subconsciously.

Time and space simply didn't exist. I just was. I was lying on a bed, or standing upright but strapped to the bed depending on the dream, with my hoses going into Nadia. She would stir every now and again. It felt good to know I was helping her get over an attack brought on by my parents. She was all I had now. My parents were dead and Sven won't be home for a couple of days... oh shit. I completely forgot about him. This is bad. Very bad.

My eyes fluttered open, then immediately shut. "Who the fuck left the curtain open?"

"Sorry, Charlie." I froze at that voice. That sweet feminine voice, one that I haven't heard in a while.

"Sylvia?" I tried to open my eyes, but couldn't. "What the--"

"Hush now, hon," she said, touching my head. I liked her soft fingers running through my hair. "You've had a long night. Don't over do it by worrying about why I'm here."

"How's Nadia?" I choked out, my mouth drier than a desert. "Water?"

"Sure." Sylvia called back over her shoulder and told Amber to fetch me a glass. "Nadia's fine. You saved her life, you know." I nodded, but I couldn't speak. "Don't try to talk. I'm surprised you're even conscious."

I welcomed that little bendy-straw that was pressed to my lips. Opening my mouth, Sylvia inserted it like I was a lame child huddled underneath a blanket. Where the hell did a blanket come from? I sucked down the water, even thought it was beyond nasty. I should have seen that one coming, but sight would be a gift at this point. Sylvia left the curtain open.

"Another?" she asked kindly. I nodded. As much as I hated it, I needed it. It was the only thing that could hasten my convalescence so that Nadia could get something in her. She hasn't fed properly in a while. "I don't see how you can drink this stuff," Sylvia said with that "yuk" voice I recognized from last summer--dad burned the chicken, long story.

I went to answer only to have that straw shoved back into my mouth. How she knew about this was what I wanted to know. But that will have to wait for later. "What note?" I squeaked.

"The one you wanted translated."

How did she get that? "What?" I asked, wincing.

"Just rest now, hon. Let the water do it's job."

"Where's... Nadia?"

Sylvia looked over her shoulder. "She's asleep, but don't worry. Amber and I are watching over you."

"No..." I groaned. "Enough sleep." Sylvia put her hand on my chest when I tried to get up. "Talk. Don't... argue." I tried to push my aura against hers, but I wasn't anywhere close to strong enough.

"Candy Cane," she cajoled, "Just try to get some rest." If she was thinking I was too weak to argue, she was dead wrong.

I shook my head, almost violently. "Talk." Damn my throat hurt. "I... no sleep." What?

My brother's girl sighed. "As stubborn as ever, even when you're surviving on half." They took that much from me? Explains a lot. "Where should I start?" she mumbled to herself. I tried to sit up, but she was right about that--bad idea. "Adriel gave me your note. He said something about it falling out of your bag the other day. Anyway, he came to me to get it translated."

So Sylvia knows Adriel. Given everything else that's happened over the last twenty-four hours, I really should have been surprised. She smiled as if I needed a warm face to look at. "You been home?"

"At your parent's house? No." Oh good! "Ambrosia," she chuckled. "Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time; it really took me back."

I winced when I asked, "Why?"

"She's Amber's grandmother and my old business partner back in college. I'd know that handwriting anywhere. The language, in case you were wondering, is what you might call the 'missing link' between Latin and German. There aren't that many people who can still read it. You should be lucky Adriel knew me."

"W-why?"

"I've known Adriel for years now. I met him when I first moved here from Canada." That was a new one. I always thought she heralded from Long Beach or Daytona. "He was the first to find me when I was looking for the coven."

My eyes widened. I put up a hand to get her to stop while I sipped what was left of my blood-water. "Don't tell me that-"

"No." She laughed as if I was joking. "No nothing like that. They called me because of my uncanny ability with old languages. They wanted me to translate a lot of their old texts into English and French. I'm, for lack of a better word, a canicula. In most societies that's an insult, but in their world it's just the opposite." Okay, still don't know what that means. "I'm not immortal, but my lifespan is much longer than a typical human's. That's why I agreed to do it, to find out exactly what I am. After thirty years of searching, I still haven't a clue."

I would have laughed if I could. "Me too..."

"What?"

"Me... a dhampir. Just found out."

Sylvia's face went serious. "You're a dhampir?" I nodded. "I... I don't know what to say to that. I din't think they existed anymore. In all my reading I've only ever come across about a dozen confirmed dhampirs, and all of them have been dead for a long time." I really didn't need to know that, Sylvia. Thanks. "Wow, do you know what this means?"

That my life is more fucked up than I could ever imagine. That my parents kicked me out of the house because of it. That I'll be walking around with crosshairs on my back my entire life. The list goes on.

Noticing the sardonic look on my face, Sylvia quickly asked, "Who told you?"

"Adriel. And Father Darien." My throat was screaming at me to shut up.

"Both of them confirmed it?"

What is this, and interrogation? I get enough of the crap from everyone else. I nodded.

"That explains a lot then," she said softly. I motioned for her to continue. "Adriel asked that I keep an eye on you. That's why I hooked up with your brother." Again, I would have laughed if I could. "Don't get me wrong, I love him, but that's why. I'm sure you've been thinking about it for a while." I smiled in answer.

Nadia groaned. Both me and Sylvia looked at her. Amber was at her side a second later, worry making her vamp out. My vampire stirred at her touch. A pang of jealousy went through me and quickly died. "Charlene..." she mumbled just above a whisper.

"She's here, love," Amber said, stroking her hair. I felt her aura rise and fall. So did Amber. "Say something."

Another moan escaped her. "Charlene... I need you."

A tear dripped down my cheek. She really did love me. She was alive by a thread and all she could think about was me. I tried calling out to her, but my brain forgot how. Thirty minutes, Charlie. Remember, you timed it once. "Water," I mumbled.

Sylvia scrambled to refill my glass. Amber broke out into tears. Nadia was like her big sister so I'm sure she was having a hard time seeing her like that. Nadia protected her from Father Darien like she did with me. I couldn't wrap my brain around how much that took from her. She has so much love in her to do that for two people. I couldn't fathom her motivation. Nor did I want to. The humiliation, the shame that she wore in his presence said it all; Nadia protected us from sharing in it.

"Here, Charlie. Take a sip," Sylvia said a moment later. Sip, my ass. My vampire was awake. She needs to feed. She needs me. I need to go to her. I gulped more than half of it down before the bitch took the straw away. "Take it easy."

"She needs blood," I gasped, finally able to breathe. "I'm her Watcher." It hurt my throat to say it, but it was true. That's why I'm here. "Move. Amber, help me up."

"No, Charlie, stay down. You're not ready yet."

Pissed I threw off my blanket and rolled. I hit the floor with an audible thud sending a shockwave up my penetrated arm. It hurt like like a mother fucker, but my vampire needed me. No one else can help. Propping myself up, I willed my legs to work. I shook off whoever was pulling at my arms. The distance between us was only a few feet, but it might as well have been a few miles. The room spun, the nausea began anew. I managed two steps before falling over Nadia's bed.

"I'm here, Nadia," I whispered. I stroked her hair, she moaned her appreciation. "I know you're hungry. can you sit up?"

Her eyes flashed open. It scared the shit out of me, but I didn't budge. My heart sped up as those black eyes stared up at me. In one quick motion, she pulled me down to her and bit into her mark. I didn't have time to react. And I didn't want to. Her teeth going into me felt so right. After last night, we both needed this.

The saliva from her tongue numbed the initial pain. Her lips suctioned to the nape of my neck, her north began to suck against my skin. I could feel the blood flowing out of me. Her heart monitor started speeding up. My legs were getting weak with the passion of it all. I felt myself getting wetter and wetter. I moaned in ecstasy, my hands clawing at her skin. She bit down harder, her dull teeth tingling the soft tissue. I almost climaxed from just that much.

Her aura coated mine, filling me with a warmth I have't felt in days. She was desperate for this. I happily fed into her desire to bring me closer. As my clit throbbed for attention, I let Nadia dig into my neck. I ground my hips into the edge of her bed, sending the juices of my orgasm spill out. My throat burned, but I still squealed. This was so right; we both needed this. My body spasmed the more she drank. My pussy erupted. My eyes shot open, everything coated in that azure haze darkening around the edges. Nadia pulled harder on my neck, rocking the entire bed. The frame pushed my zipper against my swollen clit. That was all it took. My limbs went limp and the last thing I saw was Nadia's blood-ridden smiling face. My lips curved into a smile.

"We did it." Then everything went dark.

To be continued...

Here's a snek peek at the next episode of "Abandoned Blood":

Charlie is still recovering from her fateful night at the hospital. Nadia, Amber, and Sylvia go to the lab to do some research, leaving the dhampir to her own devices. And protection.