Crimson

09

I could smell her all the way down the hallway, her scent unmistakable. Then again, I didn't need her scent to tell exactly who it was. The sickening feeling spread inside me as I rounded the corner from the stair well.

I stopped in the middle of the already dim hallway to glare at the light that flickered above me for a few seconds, the bulb teetering between life and death. I began walking again, my steps heavier the closer I got to the accursed woman. Her looming presence was infecting the building and I wondered if the humans who resided here could sense her overwhelming darkness as well. The hallway seemed to get longer and longer with each step that I took. Her aura alone was daunting, like a buzz in the air, she always held a powerful and commanding figure. My mood soured more and more with each step I took towards the apartment. Hostility and malice was in the air, the chemosignals coming to me in a flood. Hopefully they hadn't tried to kill each other yet.
Bolts of electricity seemed to jump from the door knob to my hand even before I touched it. Growling, I took a tight hold of it and pushed the door in. Her dark eyes flicked upwards and met mine as a sinful grin spread widely across her face. Her dark hair was flipped over her shoulder as her attention focused on me.

"Hello Kai," she said with a nasty undertone.

"Cleo," I regarded her coldly.

"Now now, that isn't the proper way to greet your long lost sister, is it?" She crossed her arms over her chest as she spoke, shifting her weight onto one foot. "Nara let me into this sweet little apartment of hers and all you do is glare at me."

My eyes swiveled to Nara who lounged on the couch, clearly uncomfortable with the situation although she would never say so. Her foot bounced up and down with a constant rhythm and she wrung her sweaty hands together in her lap. Her attempt at concealing her nervousness was in vain.

"You were banished, I can't possibly greet you the way you want me to."

She let out a dramatic sigh. "We're family, it shouldn't matter."

I sent her a glare and almost spat my next sentence at her. "Of course it matters, you almost had us all killed."

She rolled her near black orbs. "Get over yourself, Kai, it's in the past."

My blood boiled, rage filled me to the brim as I clenched my hands into fists at my sides and my teeth gritted painfully together. In the past? She wants me to forget about the day that she ripped our family to shreds and threw our relationship away like we meant nothing to her. I will never forget about that day, her wish will never be fulfilled. Nara stood up and moved to where I stood, her hand coming up to rest lightly on my shoulder. Our eyes met for a brief second before turning back to our sister, a whole conversation held in just one glance. "He's right, Cleo."

The playfulness was wiped from her, her true demeanor showing through the act she put on, the mask she wore. Her face was hard as stone, her pale skin and black hair making her even more haunting than before. Cold, emotionless, distant. All defining factors of the Petran family. But that's all she is now, a ghost from the past.

"The Petran siblings all under one roof and I thought that you might have been slightly less aggressive towards me after all these years," the eldest of the three spoke.

"What you did was unforgivable," Nara growled.

"What I did was to try to save you, and this is how you repay me. Father casts me out, my mother refuses to see me, and my siblings still harbor hatred towards me." By now she must have realized that this was a futile attempt to separate us.

"No Cleo, you tried to kill us."

Her jaw flexed, and her body went still, her figure becoming even more imposing than before. Anger leaked from her being as ahe struggled to control herself.

Cleo was about to say something when the sound of a door creaking open echoed down the short hallway and into the living room. Cleo's head whipped around to take in Liam who froze in front of the three of us. "Ah, so the little mouse finally shows himself. I thought this place reeked of human stench."

"No! Cleo!" Yelled Nara, but she was already diving towards him, all blood red eyes and fangs and malice. She slammed Liam roughly against the wall, her hands coming into contact with his bare torso. Nara stood frozen next to me, her eyes wide as she took in our sister examining the human.

"How could you not share some with me?" Her crimson gaze flitted back to Nara before turning and licking Liam's neck where his pulse was. I simply watched the exchange between the two of them, Cleo testing Nara as her hands roamed what she assumed was her play toy.

"Stop," growled the vampire beside me. But Cleo just threw her head back and laughed maniacally.

"I don't see why I can't just have a little taste."

As soon as Cleo leaned down to run her fangs along the terrified human's skin, Nara pounced on her and tore her away from Liam, throwing her to the other side of the room. When Cleo landed, she bared her fangs at Nara.

Neither payed and heed to Liam who stood glued to his place. Said male stared straight forward, petrified as he allowed himself to slide down the wall to sit on the cool floor. I could see the jump of his pulse from across the room.

"How rude, not inviting me for dinner," sneered Cleo as she stared into Nara's now blood red eyes. Nara advanced and shoved her away more towards the center of the room, putting Cleo between me and her.

Nara's glare was stone cold.

"Wait a second, he isn't your little pet, is he?" A grin came across her face at the realization, the realization that Nara had a weak spot and could be punished. I could see the need in her for her little sister to suffer, for her to be bloodied and bruised.

When Nara didn't respond she threw her head back once again, her laugh one of pure darkness. "This is new, I never thought it would be you to do it but here you are, in love with a human."

Nara had no response once again, the only noise echoing around the room was Cleo's cynical laughter.

"You need to leave," I commanded in a harsh and unforgiving tone.

As soon as the words left my mouth, all fell silent. She looked at me, her head cocked to the side in judgment.

"You're telling me that you're okay with this? For that, you could be punished too if she's caught. Or rather, when she's caught."

"She's the only sister I have, and she won't be because you won't be telling anybody. What makes you so sure that you can march back and someone will listen? You'll be dead the moment you show your face, you won't even have time to utter a word," I growled, crimson eyes swirling into view.

Her blank face stared back at me and the anger came surging back into her being. Her body buzzed with it, her muscles twitching as she wanted so desperately to attack.

"Leave Cleo," my commanding voice struck her.

Reluctantly, she slowly moved towards me to exit the apartment, taking her sweet time. Her glare was one of fury as she passed. I grabbed her shoulder to stop her for a moment to whisper into her ear. "Just know that if you ever try to come back to us again, I won't hesitate to rip you to shreds."

She opted to stare straight ahead. "I can't believe that you're protecting her."

"She's family."

"And I'm not?" She looked over her shoulder at me, a certain deathly expression held within the bloody red depths of her eyes.

"Not anymore."

Author's Note:

Hey guys! Thanks for reading, much love for you! But I would just like to know what you all think of this new character Cleo and if you want to know more about her.

Thanks for reading <3