Date: Tue, 10 May 2011 11:42:11 -0700 (PDT)
From: Nate House <extreamlucky14@yahoo.com>
Subject: Abandoned Blood 16

Hello everyone! Welcome back! It's been a little while since we've all
gotten together so let me fill you all in on what's going on with me. First
and foremost I am feeling much better. After my stay at a mental home
(others call it a halfway house) I've discovered an interesting irony:
being in the worst place imaginable is the best thing that's ever happened
to me. Ever since then I've had nothing but good news. My daughter is
getting big and we're only getting closer. My book is nearing full
completion, gearing up for print and to go on eBooks. My sales career is
kicking off. I'm helping my mom sell her house (it was on the market for a
week and we've already got a buyer!) My brother is getting his Afghanistan
tour cut short so he'll be home in time for my birthday! And I'm getting to
reconnect with all of you!!

I'm feeling much better, both physically and mentally. My pacemaker was
replaced last Tuesday. It's still a little tender but overall I feel great!
To all those people who have written in to me, Sam, Korina, Korenza, Ellen,
Namie, Wolf, Sher, and Anita to name a few, I wish to impart my heartfelt
thanks and well wishes for you too.

Now sit back, relax, and enjoy the latest episode of Abandoned Blood.

********************

Chapter 16

Nadia and her surprises. I will never tire of them, but I'll never get used
to them either. It seems like every week she has a new "surprise" for
me. Granted the last few have been nice, but that wasn't always the
case--just ask Father Darien, Tiffany, Travis, and/or Henry. But this was a
good day so far for the most part, and damn it, it was going to stay that
way, which is why I regretted asking, "So what's the surprise?"

She just smiled and replied, "If I tell you it won't be a surprise now will
it?" I don't know what it is about this chick, but whenever she says those
modern phrases with such ease with her eastern European accent, it just
makes me hotter for her.

"A hint?" I tried putting on my pouty-face, but her beautiful, perfect,
vampiric smile rendered it useless.

"A hint?" she repeated. "How about this: think hard enough and you'll know
exactly where we're going and what we're going to do."

I groaned my disapproval. I didn't want to think, let alone think hard. I
rested my head against my hand on the window. I looked over at her and took
in her outfit with a new disregard. I've noticed over the past few weeks
that she dresses a certain way for every occasion, albeit one I don't
understand in the least. She was dressed in something somewhat elegant, not
like our first meeting, but much better than when she's just bumming around
the house. And I was in a pair of black jeans and a
corset-looking-bodice-tank-top thing. She said she designed it herself, and
I'd believe it. That's another thing I've been having a hard time getting
used to: my clothes being taylor-made to me.

We made a few turns and stopped at the light. Nadia leaned over and kissed
me on the cheek. "Close your eyes," she murmured in my ear, her vampire
pheromones lulling me into a near-stupor.

I did without a second thought. I trusted Nadia with my life--shit she's
saved it I don't know how many times. I inhaled her scent like the flower I
knew her to be. She may be a sadistic killer that'll rip your insides out
in no time flat, but it's not like she does it for no reason. It's simply
the nature of her being. Is it terrifying? Yes, but it can't be helped.
Besides she does it mostly to keep me safe and in some twisted way it's
kind of sweet--blood and guts aside of course.

Looking at her so content made my heart flutter a little. I like it when
she's like this, peaceful, relaxed, at ease with herself. I know about her
childhood and when she became a vampire by virtue of a shared pain-filled
memory, and I'm very much aware of her degrading situation with the local
master vampire, Father Darien, but my brain is still on the fence about how
I feel about her. Yes she's protected me a lot from the little street
demons and from the master himself. I adore her for that. She's taught me a
few things about fighting them off and she takes care of me in ways I never
could have asked for. And for that she's important to me. But there's one
final threshold before it becomes something more. I'd like to think I'm in
love. I'd like to think I had the courage to tell her that, but I've been
burned by love too many times before. Yes, one time is too many. Of course
it doesn't help my confusion any that she's already said those three little
words to me.

"We're almost here," Nadia's sweet voice said, pulling me out of my own
little world. I looked up and noticed that we were parking in front of the
Were-House.

This is my surprise? I almost said. We both have been here countless times
before, and a few as a couple. "Okay, Nadia, I'll bite. What's the
surprise?"

"Remember, Charlene, answers always lay within," she said with a charming
smile, showing me a slip of fang.

"Okay Miss Fortune Cookie." She giggled as we got out of the vehicle. I
held her hand as we walked up the sidewalk.

I couldn't help but notice that her grip was a little tighter than
usual. ''Something wrong?"

"Just nervous," she retorted looking down.

After a moment, I prompted, "About..."

"Your surprise."

Of course she was worried about that. I swear she had to be the biggest
worry-wart I knew. She's worried about how I'll react to my surprise, but
doesn't think twice about ripping a man's throat out of his neck. I don't
think I'll ever understand vampires. Hell, her hand started to tremble when
we were a few feet from the door. "Jesus Christ, Nadia relax. It's just
us. You don't have to worry so much if I like it. Chances are if it came
from you, then it's awesome."

"I hope you think that in five minutes." I let out a sigh.

Marcus met us at the door with his marker in hand. "Evening ladies. You two
know the drill. She me the cards." Both of us had them out and ready for
the question. Even though I'm underage, he marked me able to be served
alcohol. I like having good friends.

"Enjoy yourselves ladies." The tall black man winked at me as I passed
him. There was a glint in his eye that told me he was in on whatever Nadia
has waiting for me. It was almost creepy, he's never done that before.

There was something else that piqued my attention. Or should I say
something that was missing? We walked through the dark entrance tunnel to
no noise whatsoever. In light of recent events, yeah I was a little freaked
out. My grip on Nadia's hand tightened.

"Relax, Charlene," she coaxed in her eastern european accent.

"Why is it so quiet in here?" I couldn't hide the panic in my
voice. "Nadia? Nadia!"

A booming sound of a heavy electric guitar shook the air. The chord played
for a few seconds before the rest of the band kicked in. It scared the shit
out of me. The stage spotlight turned on to reveal Sven standing at the
mic. The place went from dead silent to roaring like a concert. I spun to
Nadia, her face smiled brightly in the dim light to show me her
fangs. Sven's voice bellowed out a tune from another one of my favorite
Five Finger Death Punch songs, "Never Enough".

"What is all this?" I had to shout over the noise. Nadia either too wrapped
up in the music or flat-out didn't hear me. I nudged her arm. I repeated
the question only to get an even brighter smile from her. It may have just
been me, but her fangs seemed longer. "Nadia, are you okay?" I asked with
my mind Her eyes dilated. "Never better," she answered back.

"IT'S NEVER ENOUGH/NEVER, NEVER ENOUGH! NO MATTER WHAT THEY SAY!" Sven sang
out. He knew it was one my favorites that Kerberus has covered. As I looked
into Nadia's swollen eyes I could see the gears in her head turning.

Our eyes stayed locked for another few seconds. The band started fading
into the background. The crowd noise seemed to be a mere whisper. I heard
Nadia's voice in my head once again, whispering sweet things that only I
held dear. My heart melted as she spoke. She stepped into me. Her hand
traveled up my arm, her strong fingers raking my skin with just enough
pressure to give me goosebumps. Her eyes blackened fully. I more than
welcomed the pheromones she threw at me, though I put in a little
resistance.

"Don't do that," she all but growled.

"Why not?" I asked coyly, the question steaming off my lips.

"We haven't gotten to your surprise yet." She had to force the words out of
her mouth. A pained expression slowly replaced the hunger. "If you keep
doing that I just might lose it here and now."

I loved hearing those modern American phrases in her accent, especially
when they come out in a raspy breath. "I though you liked to be teased."

"Not in public with this much free energy in the room." Her other hand
roughly grabbed my waist. She balled the fabric of my top in her hand,
fighting off the urge to rip it off. "Charlene... Stop it." I love making
her beg.

"How can I do that when you're tugging at my clothes?" Nadia let go of my
top. I ran my hand down the length of my body as seductively as I could,
smoothing out the fabric. I noticed a few holes where her claws grabbed me.

"IN THE END, WE'RE ALL JUST CHALK LINES ON THE CONCRETE; DRAWN ONLY TO
WASHED AWAY. FOR THE TIME THAT I'VE BEEN GIVEN, I AM WHAT I AM... I'D
RATHER HATE YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU ARE, THAN EVER LOVE YOU FOR SOMETHING
YOU ARE NOT. I'D RATHER YOU HATE ME FOR EVERYTHING I AM, THAN EVER YOU LOVE
ME FOR SOMETHING THAT I'M NOT!... IT'S NEVER ENOUGH, IT'S NEVER ENOUGH..."

Nadia continued staring at me with her blackened eyes. I tried to read her
aura like a book written in a different language. The words were right
there, but I couldn't quite make it out. After I heard Sven sing those
lines everything became a room of nothingness, save us two. I don't think I
could put my finger on it, but as eerie as it was for her to do that, it
felt right. We were the only people or things that were in the room, almost
literally.

Nadia reached out and touched my cheek. I closed my eyes as her fingers
gently rubbed against my skin. My head fell against it, my hand covered
hers. I kissed each one of her fingers. Her thumb wiped away a tear that I
didn't know I let out. Before I knew what happened, my vampire pulled me to
her and kissed me fully.

Her lips were both rough and sensual. Nadia's strong hands held me to her
as our mouths massaged one another's. Her tongue traveled over my lips
knowing damn well that would get my juices flowing and there wasn't a
fucking thing we could do about it right now.

Fuck it! I reciprocated. My tongue mashed against hers, savoring the
rough-soft texture. Her hand moved up to my breast, her mouth groaned
against mine. Her breathing was getting hoarse. Her aura blended with mine,
coating me with every emotion and sexual thought running through her
mind. I moaned when her hand squeezed. My hand slipped under the skirt of
her dress. Naughty little thing took her panties off without me realizing
it. And her juices were flowing. I teased her a clit. Her head reared back,
then covered my wounded shoulder. Her fangs touched my delicate skin, her
tongue tickled my scar. I shoved my finger inside of her and immediately
went for gold. I touched her G-spot with just enough force to get her off
without making a mess. Her tongue's pressure matched my own. I think we
orgasmed together. If my surprise was finger-fucking my vampire during my
brother's concert then it's the best surprise ever!

"All right, that felt pretty good," I heard Sven say to the Were-House. I
opened my eyes to find Nadia standing her usual arm's length away
clapping. I ran my fingers over my lips to find them completely dry. Okay,
what the hell just happened? "We're happy to be playing this stage tonight
to give a little surprise to a special someone." That got my
attention. There's no way that troll is talking about me. "Terry, point the
light on her. There she is!" I shut my eyes as hard as I could. "My baby
sister, Charlie! Happy Birthday!"

What! I thought amidst the enormous applause and cheers. What the fuck is
he talking about? My birthday isn't for another month. I tried calling out
to Nadia, but everything about the room bombarded my senses. The air filled
with emotion so rapidly and the odor of alcohol-laced breath hit me so fast
that I nearly collapsed. And would Terry shine that fucking light somewhere
else?  "Nadia..." I drawled as I felt my head going numb. "I don't feel so
good."

The only thing I remembered after that was my half-brother making a crack
about singing a hoedown.

******************** "Charlene? Honey, can you hear me?" My eyes cracked
open. Looking down on me was Nadia's perfect smile. I groaned and put my
hands over my face. "She's awake," I heard her say to someone else.

"About freakin' time," an all too familiar voice scoffed. "After all we had
to do to make this happen."

"What are you talking about, ass-wipe?" I hissed through my hands. "My
birthday isn't for another month."

"You see that?" my brother spat. "Not even a 'thank you'."

I could only groan at that. My blood was boiling and my head felt like it
was in a fucking vice. "Nadia, Sven, could one of you get me some aspirin
please?"

The troll cracked up. "Damn, Charlie, you are such a lightweight."

I slammed my fists on the ground and sat up. "Shut the fuck up!" I
screamed, regretting it a second later. "Just tell me what the hell is
going on here."

"We thought you might like it," Nadia apologized. "Sven is going on a big
tour in three weeks and wanted to do something nice for you." Great, now I
have guilt AND a fucking migraine. "We thought you knew about the tour." I
hate it when this strong woman refuses to meet my eye like that.

"Nadia I'm..."

"Don't bother," Sven chided. "I thought a concert dedicated to you would be
the best gift I could give. But no-o-o. You had to go and fuck it all up."

"Hey, why don't you shut up." I shouted standing up. Ow. "I've had a really
bad last couple of weeks and then all of a sudden I pass out in the middle
of a fucking club. Give me a break here."

He chuckled. "That's the thanks I get for all of this..." We both tossed
our hands up in defeat. Weird. We stared at each other for a couple of
minutes. For some reason I couldn't get a read on his aura, or his
mind. His memories were nothing but a brick wall. I changed my vision over
just to see if I could get a response from him. Nothing, but a harder
glare. "A bad couple of weeks huh?"

"Yeah," I answered tightly. I never was good at fighting him--the last time
he nearly put my arm in a cast. "Why?"

"So I see that you've already found out the truth. That only took nineteen
years."

"What truth?" If he knew anything about anything, now was the time to get
it out of him.

"That my dad is not your dad." I nodded my head. "So did she tell you who
your real dad is?"

I shook my head. "She really didn't have a chance to."

"Why not?"

My mouth hung open. Shit. "I thought you knew."

"Knew what?" he asked in an soft, steady tone.

"That mom and dad are dead." Again, I got no response from him beyond a
simple blink. His stance became somewhat defensive, probably from hearing
it come from his baby sister more than anything, but other than that he
didn't move a muscle. "Nadia killed them when dad attacked her. Mom tried
fighting her off with a kitchen knife, but Nadia overpowered her and killed
her. There was so much blood. Mom cut her in the wrist and on the neck,
they bled out on the floor." A shiver went up my spine remembering that
much. "It was... sickening."

He gulped. Good, a reaction. "How did she kill them?" His light tone
cracked a little.

Okay Charlie, think. Don't speak, think. Telling him that vampires exist
and one killed our parents could set him off in ways I can't, or would ever
want to, imagine. Telling him that I'm the person who is supposed to keep
her sated and sane would only add to that. But how can I lie after I just
told him she overpowered dad? It wasn't like there was a gun involved or
anything. Mom was the one holding the knife, not Nadia.

"Charlie?" The sound of my name brought my eye back to his. They were
pleading; he needed to know what really happened.

"Sven, when I tell you this, promise me that you'll believe me. Tell me
that you won't think I'm crazy, or full of shit, or anything like that." A
pain-filled nod was my answer. I took a deep breath and blurted out, "Nadia
is a vampire."

It didn't have the effect I was expecting. He just continued to stare at
me, but now there was a tear in his eyes. I made a gesture to get more than
two words out of him. "And you're her Watcher?"

What the fuck... Seriously, did I miss the day when all these people got
together and had this conversation? "You knew about all of... this, this
whole time?"

"No. I figured it out when Sylvia told me a story about our great aunt." My
half-brother sat down on the sound box behind him. "If you recall, mom used
to tell us that Aunt Betsy was ridiculed, shunned, and abandoned by our
family right about the time you were born. I never understood why, she was
always nice to me and mom. But in Sylvia's version mom was much more to her
than a great-niece. She was her Watcher. They had a sexual relationship
that the family never spoke about. You reminded everyone so much of her
that the family decided to never allow you to see her with out another
family member around." That explains all the tension at the family
Christmas parties.

"I remember grandpa going on and on about how the two of them bewitched men
into living with them, and, in mom's case, marriage. He told us stories
about his own grandmother having a sister who wasn't normal, who was always
kind of 'out there'. His family didn't shun her, but they didn't talk to
her either. Sylvia laid out our genealogy dating back to that point. She
said she got it from some old texts that were laying around one of the
university's depositories."

I believed that last part. What I couldn't believe was everything else. How
was it that Sylvia could tell him, but not me, especially after she came to
visit me in the hospital? "When did she tell you all of this?"

"About two weeks ago."  Go figure. "And since then I've been spending my
time trying to piece together everything that's happened to you in the last
two months." His mood went from stale to sour in a heartbeat. "What
happened to their bodies?"

I shrugged. "I have no idea. When mom cut Nadia's throat I lit out of there
and took her to the hospital. I haven't been back to that house
since. Father Darien came to our room and told me that he 'took care of it'
for me, but that's the last I heard of anything."

Sven's eyes doubled in size. "You're on speaking terms with that son of a
bitch?"

Then my eyes doubled in size. "You know of that son of a bitch?" At least
we share an opinion of the man.

"Yeah, mom said he used to come to the house every so often to check on the
family. She said he was an old friend of Aunt Betsy's, but then went on to
describe one night a while back when she got wasted with some friends and
ended up in an alley somewhere. She said the last thing she remembers was a
pair of 'screaming blue eyes looking down at her'..." He paused as he and I
shared a realization. "Oh shit..."

My eyes widened, my heart sank. "No. No." I shook my head, the pain faded
into a black hole of nothingness. "No! I can't accept that." My brain
switched into autopilot. "No. He can't be..."

Nadia came back with a glass of water in one hand and a couple of pills in
the other. "Charlene, what's going on?"

I started crying when I looked her face. There was no way I could say it
out loud. "No," I mumbled, then said again and again with increasing
force. "No. No. No! NO! NO-O-O! It's not ture. THERE IS NO FCKING WAY HE'S
MY FATHER! NO!" That's not true. That can't be true.

"Charlie, calm down," a man's voice said.

I pulled out of his reach and wrapped my arms around myself. I fell to my
knees, then fell to the floor. I cried, then screamed, then cried some
more. My fists started to hurt the harder I punched the floor. "Charlene,
talk to me," came Nadia's sweet voice. I felt her arms around me. I stopped
thrashing, but continued rocking. She kissed my head and asked, "Who's your
father?"

My eyes cracked open. She looked so beautiful, so strong. How could I sit
there, wrapped in her warm embrace, and tell her that her eternal tormentor
was my father? The man whose sole existence was to make everyone around him
suffer and die was the man who fathered than girl she loves. It would
destroy her from the inside out, the outside in.

"Charlene, please, tell me. Who's your father?"

"Father Darien."

********************

Next time on Abandoned Blood:

Charlie tries to come to grips with the latest revelation in her fucked up
life. Even with the overwhelming evidence, she refuses to believe it.
Nadia, Amber, Sylvia, along with Sven, get together with Travis and Henry
to try to get to the bottom of it. The whole time Charlie considers telling
them about the book still in her backpack.

Meanwhile: Tiffany and Marianna struggle to stay one step ahead of Father
Darien and his army of street demons to get their own realization to the
girls in question.