The Fear

Chapter 4: Family Reunion

We were laughing and chatting understandably when I heard Trouble speaking to someone in the woods off to my right.

"Her name is Katarina, and she's a Horror. Now, I think you'll__" he was cut off with a shocked gasp. Matt and I turned our heads to see Trouble conversing with a dark being, partially covered by the branches.

His hair was pure black, spiky and slicked back. His hazel-green eyes were round like mine, staring at me, and his features had the same sharp, pointed quality mine did. He could only be around twenty-two, no shorter than six foot three, and intensely familiar. Besides the starkness of his face, he wore entirely black.

"Kit Kat?" he asked with a thick accent. The accent was Baltic-European, and the nickname triggered memories. I stood without thinking.

"Audi?" I responded in a distant voice, remembering fragments of my early childhood. Before I was adopted, I lived with my real parents. And an older brother by only a few years, with the same dark hair as our father, Tėtis, and face like me and Mamytė, our mother. I couldn't pronounce his name, I was only a year old, but I called him by the part I could say. "Audi." He called me Kit Kat in English because it was his favorite candy bar. I could remember my brother's full name now; because I'd heard Mamytė said it many times.

"Klaudijus."

Before I knew it I was running toward him, my legs carrying me faster than I'd ever run before. I didn't even care who was watching, though it would be hard considering we were shrouded by the forest. Audi was running too, and we collided like stones, knocking the wind from both of us. We fell to the ground on our knees, shadowed by the forest's dark trees. I could feel him crying on me, my own tears rolling down his leather jacket. His gloved hands stroked my loose hair as I buried my head in his chest. We just stayed there, a sobbing heap of Lithuanian gheists who almost forgot about each other. I could feel the dewy grass soaking into my leggings but didn't care, knew my face was sticky and unattractive but couldn't think less of it.

"Katarina," he whispered, kissing my forehead. "Katarina, mano sesuo. Kur jūs buvote?" Translation: "My sister! Where have you been?"

"Skatinti namus Amerikoje ir Lietuvoje," I cried, too upset to speak my second language. Translation: "Foster homes in America and Lithuania." He shh-ed me, brushing hair from my face and lifting it up gently by the pointy chin. The same one he shared.

"Do not overwork yourself, little sister. It is not a good habit for such a young child." I laughed through my tears at the advice. He was a very caring person, soft in his words and actions. How could I have possibly forgotten him? I kissed his cold cheek and dropped my head on his shoulder, smiling and weeping. This type of happiness was new to me; I will never love someone the way I love my brother.

"I won't, brother. I missed you." His hand fell to my back and rubbed it soothingly.

"As did I, Kit Kat, as did I."

After Klaudijus, or Claudius, by his American pronunciation, helped me up and cleaned off our tears, I noticed he wasn't alone. An African woman around Rayne's age and a striking man had come with him, watching us from behind a large willow tree and waiting for us to gather our thoughts.

The girl was very pretty, with her dark hair cut in an angled style and she towered over me by at least four inches. She was the only African American demon with hazel-green eyes. She held herself with poise and danger. Her eyes exposed something lethal about her personality, suave. A female James Bond aura that dared you to come closer, but be prepared for the unexpected.

But the man caught my interest more. He was dark, both in good looks and character. The sparks of red in his eyes, black hair slicked back against his ovular skull, the tall stature, it was intimidating but sexy. He looked about twenty-eight, maybe younger. The three words coming to mind were hot, sexy and seksualus. Okay, seksualus is the Lithuanian word for sexy, so it doesn't count. The way he held himself was confident but shadowed; he was a mystery to the eye. I couldn't imagine how many women had flung themselves at his feet and never had a taste.

"Katarina, this is Rhiannon and Mordred. Guys, this is my little sister." Claudius kept his arm around me as I was introduced to waht was probably the last of the demons. Rhiannon shook my hand with a strong grip.

"It's a pleasure. I never thought I'd meet one of my best friend's siblings," she said warmly. I smiled back at her.

"I never thought I'd meet my sibling. Are you friends with Rayne?" I asked. She gave a secretive smile to Audi.

"Actually, we are a bit more than friends," she replied, holding up her hand. A silver promise ring glinted off the firelight. I made an exaggerated "Ohh..." sound, which made her smile wider.

"I am honored to meet you, Katarina." Mordred held his hand out with gentlemanly poise. I let him take mine tentatively. He brought it to his dark lips, brushing the knuckles. He was such a gentleman!

"I am delighted also, Mordred. Shall we join the others?" I asked. He nodded with the most curt and controlled of nods. Not even I could be so secretive with my emotions. I smiled tightly and let Claudius maneuver me back to the group.

Everyone seemed to stare as we reentered the bonfire, be it from the corner of their eyes or blatantly. We sat on a bench next to Trouble and Olisha, Rhiannon sitting by Rayne's feet and Audi on one end. I sat in between him and Mordred, leaning my head on my brother's shoulder and my arms locked around him. I'd missed him. Too much.

I spent the night talking to everyone. They all seemed to be genuinely pleased that I was related to Claudius. Was it because he seemed a bit too depressed beforehand? I didn't know, but the gheists all enjoyed talking to me. The whole night was a mess of emotion and chatter. There was some point I passed out, but I woke up again when Claudius shook my shoulder gently.

"Time to go inside, Kit Kat. You can't sleep out here, unfortunately. Do you need me to carry you up, Princess?" I mumbled something like "Screw you" before nodding. His arms slid under me like a cradle, picking me up off the bench and leaving the backyard. I could feel the vibrations of his thumping footsteps across the grass. I struggled to keep my eyes open before he whispered, "Don't worry, sesuo. Just relax and let me take care of you. I've been waiting for years to do this." I nodded again, and dozed off into true sleep.