“I’ve never been better,” Brandon smiled, unable to turn away from the blaze. “I can’t believe you don’t see all the colors.”
Ashley looked at Brandon, one eyebrow raised, then back at the fire. “Looks like wood burning to me,” she said, unimpressed.
“I think what Brandon means is that everything looks different with his new eyes,” I explained as simply as I could. They would understand in time, but until then, it would be impossible to describe.
“Yeah, that’s it,” Brandon said. “And I can smell things, too. Like Derek and Ashley. They don’t smell like we do.” He looked at me, as if for confirmation.
“You’re right,” I confirmed. “It’s one of the first things that I noticed when I was changed, although I didn’t understand why at first. I think it’s a way to help us identify our own kind from normals.”
“So, what other things can I do?” he asked with intrigue.
“Honestly, I’m not really sure about everything that we can do,” I shrugged. “I have ideas, but I’ve never tried them myself, so I don’t know for sure.”
“Like what?” Derek and Brandon asked in unison.
“Well, like after Martin fed on me before he changed me,” I began, having to clear my throat, at the thought of him. “He was able to call me to him and he took my voice so I couldn’t speak. That makes me think that when we feed on normals we might be able to control them to some extent.”
“So,” Brandon said contemplating. “If I was to take a drink from, say, Derek, he would have to do what I say?”
“Oh, hell no,” Derek frowned, wrapping his hands around his neck to shield it from his brother. “You ain’t using me like no puppet.” He paused, and then added, “Besides, I ain’t no snack for nobody.”
“Derek, you couldn’t stop me if you wanted too,” Brandon sinisterly smiled, inching toward his brother. “Bo couldn’t.”
“Maybe not,” Derek retorted, unfazed. “But when Renee turns me, I’ll kick your ass.”
“Nobody’s going to do anything against your will, Derek,” I said, shooting a warning glance at Brandon.
“Aw, I’m just joshin’ ya,” he told Derek, unable to hide the disappointment in his voice. “But I really wanted to see if it would work though.”
Ashley looked from Brandon to me and then said, “I’ll let you try it on me, if you want.” Brandon perked up, as Ashley narrowed her eyes and then quickly added, “Just as long as you don’t make me do something stupid.”
“Does it work if their willing?” Brandon asked, looking back at me.
I just shrugged my shoulders. He walked over to Ashley, grinning from ear to ear. She must have looked uneasy, because his smile faded. “You sure?” he asked her. “Because it’s okay if you’re not. I was just curious is all.”
“I’m sure,” she said, trying to convince herself as much as she was Brandon. “But, be easy, Brandon, okay? You know I hate pain.”
“I would never hurt you, Ash,” he said. “You know that.”
“Yeah, I know,” she nodded. “So, how do we do this?” Then they both turned to me.
“Just do what comes natural to you, Brandon. Just remember, she’s not, Bo,” I replied with a wink.
He smiled sheepishly in response, blushing a bit as he did. He raised his hand to her face like a lover would do, and Ashley burst out laughing.
“What?” Brandon asked, shocked by the outburst.
“I ain’t your girl, Brandon,” she tried stifling her laugh. “So cut the look, okay?”
“Sorry, this is just somewhat personal, ya know?”
Ashley turned her head to look at Derek, and when she did, Brandon took hold of the opportunity. He struck fast. Ashley didn’t respond with a cry or a scream, like I had anticipated. Her head fell further to the side, and her eyes closed. After a couple of seconds, he pulled away, licking the blood from his lips.
“Wow, it’s sweet,” Brandon said. “Almost like sugar or candy, I sure don’t remember Bo tasting like that.”
“Well,” Ashley slowly opened her eyes. “Did you change your mind or what? Do it, or don’t, doesn’t matter to me.”
“But...” Brandon looked at me, bewildered.
“Wait,” I interrupted. “Ashley, how do you feel?”
“Fine, why?” she replied, looking at me with that same bewilderment.
I waved her question off with my hand, and called Brandon over to me. “Tell her in your mind to put more wood on the fire.” I whispered in his ear to keep her from hearing me. He did as I asked and closed his eyes in concentration. It wasn’t five seconds later that Ashley was walking over and placing another log into the fireplace.
It was at that moment that I realized how we could make our way back to Cuba. It must have been how they used Capie, I thought. It made me wonder just how guilty he had actually been in all of this. Had I taken the lives of men that were innocent, only doing what they were bound to do, under the influence of my kind? How many more would have to die? But more importantly, how many could we save? I thought, as I watched my first creation into this dark world play a few more games. I then took him out to explore, leaving the other two behind, even though Derek was begging to go along. After seeing his reaction, and their reaction to his, I knew it would be better if we went alone. I wanted him to get the most out of this experience and not have to be questioned every other second. There would be time for that later. For now, I watched in awe as he discovered his new world and understood for the first time how Martin must have felt watching me.
Chapter Two
The next night when Brandon and I awoke we went over to Bo, while the other two slept. We watched him closely, not saying a word. Before long, his eyes flew open. He looked from me to Brandon, then back to me. “Am I dead?” he muttered. Brandon and I glanced at each other then back at Bo, trying our best not to crack up laughing at his statement.
“No, sweetie, you’re not,” I softly whispered with a smile.
“This is strange, Renee,” he said as he sat up, looking about. “I feel really weak. I thought I was supposed to be strong.”
“Once you feed, Bo, you’ll feel a whole world different,” Brandon told him.
“And I’m next,” Derek said from behind us. He and Ashley had woken and Derek was already on his feet.
“Come to him, Derek.” I replied nodding toward Bo.
“Okay…Sure,” he said, standing completely still.
“Then you have to move your feet, Hun,” I said.
He laughed nervously, but slowly began to move closer as Bo rose to his feet.
“Don’t worry, Derek,” he said. “I won’t do it to you like Brandon did it to me.” He then turned to look at Brandon, and said glaring, “I owe you one, by the way.”
“Whatever.” Brandon shook his head.
“Close your eyes, kid,” Bo said turning back to Derek.
“I ain’t no...” but before he could finish, Bo was latched on, and within minutes, it was over.
Bo was supporting Derek’s body as the strength it had contained slipped away, then slowly lowered him to the floor. As Bo wiped the blood from Derek’s neck, the rest of us knelt down beside him.
Derek was crying, and with the little strength he had left, he looked up at me. “I’m scared.”
“I know, babe.” I tried to comfort him. “But if we don’t finish this, you could die.”
“You’ll be fine, little brother,” Brandon added, trying to hide the tears that were welling up in his eyes.
Derek looked up at me from the floor, tears running down the sides of his face, and nodded. That night continued on as it had for the others. I fed Derek my blood and then we waited to welcome him to his new family. He woke the next night, and the process began again with Ashley. And as she lay in darkness, the rest of us devised our plan.
“We need a boat, right?” Bo asked.
“Yeah, and weapons,” I said. “We can’t fight them one on one. We’re going to have to be quick
to kill. Our lives will depend on it.”
“Bo’s great with blades,” Derek interjected. “He’s showed us all how to use them.”
“And we know how to get them,” Bo added.
“Do you mean steal them?” I asked.
“Not really.” Bo looked over at Brandon. “My dad has collected weapons for as long as I can remember.”
I knew he hadn’t seen his father in quite some time, and that it was best that way.
“That would help a lot, Bo, but are you sure you wanna go back there?”
“He owes me big time,” he nodded firmly. “So yeah, I’ll go back.”
“Where does he live?” I asked.
A cunning smile spread across Bo’s face. “Corpus Christi.”
“Hmm, you don’t say,” I joked. “I guess that means we’re part way there. We’ll leave as soon as Ashley’s been fed.
“Hey, Renee?” Derek grabbed my arm. “Who’s she going to feed from?”
“I should have thought about that. Bo, you and Brandon go out and find a goat or lamb.”
“What about me, why can’t I go?” Derek asked.
“Because, who else will keep me company?” I replied with me best smile. “I don’t wanna be left all alone.”
“Oh, I get it. That’s right, y’all go and I’ll stay and protect the women.” Then everyone, including Derek started laughing.
The next night I had all four of my little ones at my side. We fed Ashley first and then shared the remainder of the goat between the rest of us. After Ashley had a short time to enjoy her new body like the other three had, I decided it was time that we broke things up. They all agreed, so we loaded up and headed for the coast. We drove for hours; the little ones talking about their new world the entire time. I just sit back and enjoyed having them with me.
“Ain’t nobody gonna push us around anymore,” Brandon said.
“Yeah, and we don’t have to worry about going back to that damn orphanage either,” Ashley added. “I hated that place.”
“That’s because we’re a family now. Ain’t that right, Renee?” Derek proclaimed.
“Sure is babe. And we answer to no one but ourselves.”
“Hey guy’s, don’t you think we better be looking for a place before the sun comes up?” Bo interjected.
“You’re right, Bo. Everyone, keep your eyes open for an abandon house or cemetery,” I said as Bo turned down a dirt road.
We drove a few more miles when Derek sat up a little straighter, pressing his face close to the window. “There’s an old house to the right.” He rolled down his window and pointed.
“Don’t stop, Bo. It doesn’t feel right,” Ashley whispered in a fearful tone.
“What do you mean, Ashley?” I asked turning to look at her.
“It’s in my head, Renee. I can see or feel people in that house, bad men.”
“How can you know that?” I asked.
“Ashley sometimes sees things. She’s always done it,” Brandon explained.
“Never once been wrong either…might want to listen to her, Renee,” Derek added.
“My ma use to tell me stories about folks like you that had special gifts.” I remembered her words as if she had just said them to me. “Bo, pull over by those trees.” Once we had come to a stop I turned back to Ashley. “I need you to try really hard, and tell me what you see inside that house. Can you do that for me?”
“Sure, I’ll try.”
I watched as Ashley closed her eyes and a few seconds later her head fell back against the seat. At first she was completely calm, then out of nowhere her body began to convulse and foam started running from her mouth. I was over the backseat and had her by the shoulders within seconds. As soon as my hands touched her skin, images began flashing through my mind. Three men eating out of cans by a fireplace, and in a form of slow motion my eyes moved across the room until I saw two little girls covered in filth, crying. They were tied together at the wrists, facing one another. “Shut the fuck up, or you’ll end up just like your ma,” came from one of the men.
All of the sudden my vision flashed to a woman doing the dishes, singing a song. She had no idea that she was being watched from the dark shadows of the night. Then just as fast as that vision came, the next that followed was almost too much to bear. The woman was lying face down in a pool of blood. Her head had been crushed in, she wasn’t wearing a stitch of clothing, and the two children watched in horror the entire time. My eyes flew open and I found that Ashley and I were both screaming.
The boys were pulling us apart. Brandon had to pin Ashley down in the seat, because she was thrashing about so bad. “They killed her... they killed her,” I heard Ashley crying over and over. I sat there in utter shock at what my mind had just witnessed. My breath came out as if I had run for miles without stopping, and my heart was racing in my chest to the point of exploding.
“We have to do something, right now,” I said looking up at Bo as he held me against the seat. “Let me go, Bo. I’m fine.”
He slowly removed his hands from my arms as if he wasn’t sure, and as soon as he did I took Ashley in mine. “Shhh...it’s ok now, babe. I’m sorry you had to see that, but honey you just saved two little girls lives. Now wipe those beautiful eyes, we have work to do.” She nodded, gave me one final hug and sobbed as quietly as she could under the circumstance. I told the others what I, what we had just witnessed, but before I could let them in on my plan, they were out the door and headed for the house.
“Shit,” I said out loud. “Ashley, honey, are you going to be okay staying in the car by yourself? I have to go after them.”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine, just get the girls. Renee, those are really bad men. What they did to the little girls...” She started crying all over again.
I gave her a quick hug, and a promise that I would do as she asked, but I had to hurry. My boys were pissed and those men could have guns. As soon as my mind thought on the harm the men could cause them, I ran at full speed. I came to a sudden stop at the tree line next to the yard, searching for any sign of my boys. I almost missed them, because they were hidden so well in the shadows. They moved in perfect unison on their stomachs in the grass, making their way up to the back of the house, moving like cats sneaking up on a juicy mouse. I watched in silence until they reached the back door, then I clapped my hands together one time, causing them to freeze in their tracks.
I held my hand up in a gesture, telling them to wait where they were. I then sprinted across the yard to the front door. I could only hope that they had some idea of what I was doing, and wouldn’t try breaking down the back door before I had a chance to put what little plan I had, into motion. I reached the steps and called out, “Betty, you home? Got them eggs you asked fer.” I slowly made my way up to the door. I was hearing all kinds of movement in the house now, from furniture being shoved around, to shuffling of heavy feet.
I knocked twice on the door and was about to call out for the second time, when the door swung open. A large man with a half grown, straggly beard and so much filth on his face you couldn’t tell what nationality he was, grabbed me by the throat and pulled me inside, shutting the door behind us. “Looks like we got ourselves another round boys.” The other two started walking closer so I played a little more helpless than I really was. One started to grope at my breast.
“Wait, please don’t hurt me,” I cried out loud. As soon as the words left my mouth, my boys made their entrance. The man that held my throat was so shocked by the presence of the boys, that he never saw my hand go through his body.
The man’s hand fell from my throat landing on my arm that now, looked as if it were a deformity attached to his body. His eyes traveled from their gaze at my arm, looking up as if in slow motion to meet mine. Once locked with my glare, they rolled back into his head, as his body slid off my arm and crashed to the floor, leaving me holding parts of his entrails in my hand. I threw the gore to the floor and looked over to the other two men that stood beside me. One
went for a weapon he had on his belt, and the other one pulled a gun from the front of his pants.
My boys were on them so fast that they never had a chance to use them. Little Derek was like a wild animal. He jumped on the back of the man closest to him, pulling his head back at a painful looking angle. He opened his mouth wide revealing his new set of long fangs, and the man began to scream. Derek laughed out loud then bit down on the front of the man’s throat before pulling back, ripping his wind pipe completely out. The man fell to his knees, with Derek still on his back saying, “You should have never hurt that woman. I’m the devil and you’re paying your due.”
The other man tried to run for the door, but Bo got there first. He pulled his long blade, as the man pointed his gun. Bo brought the blade up in a movement so fast, that I don’t think the man ever saw it move, and only felt his hand when it left his body. He grabbed his wrist and started screaming. “You cut my fucking hand off.”
“And what did you do to those little girl’s, mother?” Bo asked, raising the blade above his head.
“No! Wait… Please,” the man cried, raising the only hand that he had left.
“I bet that’s the very same thing that she said.”
Bo came down with the blade, slicing the man, starting at the forehead and ending at his mid-stomach. The man blinked, almost as if he thought Bo missed, then he fell forward, pushing Bo’s blade deeper into his body. Bo put a foot on the blood soaked corpse and kicked him backwards, in order to retrieve his blade.
We three Bo, Derek, and myself stood there covered in blood, looking down at our first kill as a family. “They were really bad men, right Renee?” Derek asked. His face was covered with that man’s blood, and yet he still looked so innocent.
“They were very bad men,” I replied. I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about what had just happened, until I looked over and saw the woman on the floor. She was face down, with her legs spread. Her hands were tied behind her back, and nothing covered her body but scrapes and bruises.
Suddenly Derek started kicking the dead man at his feet. “You sick son-of-a-bitch.”
Living in Darkness (Bloodbreeders) Page 24
