ḾṎᕍ⁅ᖇṈ ℄Ṏv⁅ | The Lost Boys

ᏨᏲᾀᑬt⁅ᖇ tᏲḭᖇtẙ-ᖴḭv⁅

I would've thought I'd take the news harder given how I reacted the first time. Perhaps it was the close-call, or the high that came from consuming human blood. Or, perhaps, becoming a creature of the night killed the rational, emotional human part of my brain.

"I'm ... like you," I reiterate.

David's face is hard to read. "It was the only way."

I nod and look back at the broken human below me. I didn't recognize them. They must've been chosen for convenience rather than revenge.

Revenge. The last time I'd been truly awake, David and the others seemed hell-bent on capturing one of the little boys.

"Where's my family?" I step around the body and head for the exit. "You didn't hurt them, did you?"

"We haven't gotten that far, yet," said Marko.

David's firm hand on my shoulder stopped me in my tracks. "It isn't only because they killed you. They took Star and Laddie. That can't go unpunished."

"It wasn't unprovoked," i say, "them taking Star and Laddie."

"What do you mean?"

A beat of silence. All the boys had varying degrees of confusion on their faces. Did they really not know?

"Star came to us the other night. She wanted Michael to take them away and somewhere along the line the plan evolved into, well, it evolved into that shitshow we went through." I shift my weight, crossing my arms. "My little brother, Sammy, made these friends who think they're vampire hunters. They're under the impression if they killed the head vampire then all half-vampires would go back to normal."

David studied me. He let me go and put a finger to his lips, concentrating. "So, that's why you came here."

"I couldn't watch you die." I turn to them, "Any of you. Those little shits decided—once they saw you—that they wanted to stake all of you. If you're going to punish anyone, punish them. Sammy wanted no part of it. He tried to stop them but they didn't listen."

"And Michael?"

I frown, "What about Michael?"

"Where does he fit into this?" finished Marko.

Shrugging, i say, "I dunno. He doesn't want this--he wants to be human. And he wants to protect Star. If you're asking if he wants you dead..." I wince. The five of them had hung out every night for a week. I'm not sure how deep that bond went. "I don't think he was against the Frog's plan."

The air grew tense. David set his jaw, untapped rage hidden behind his crystalline eyes.

Dwayne, who I'm nearly positive never liked Michael in the first place, is seething. His whole body is tensed, silently seething and probably regretting allowing Michael to get so close.

Marko isn't fairing much better. He's gnawing on the tip of his thumb, looking like he might bite it off at any moment. And Paul, I'd never seen him look like this except once, that night they took me to the bonfire.

David inhaled sharply and dropped his hands. "Even if that is the case, we need him to turn. I think you can be the key to accomplishing that."