Centuries

Before:Part Two

  Spare clothes, trac phone, money, fake id.
  There. I think that's everything. I zip my dufflebag shut and hide it in a corner of the closet.
  Tonight is the fifth year anniversary of my marriage to Carter. Tonight is perfect. Tonight I escape.
 
One Week Earlier-
  "Hey, Carter, do you mind if I add someone to the guest list?"
  "Sure, honey. Who is it?" he asks.
  "Brady Youngblood," I reply.
  "A male, " Carter says slowly, through clenched teeth. I know that he is pissed.
  "Yes. I met his husband and their daughter at work the other day. We have become fast friends, and I'd like to introduce them to you."
  Upon hearing about Brady's marriage, the rage in Carter's eyes visibly cools. He agrees, and I lean over and kiss him. It's times like these that I imagine myself staying. We could be together, and never grow old. We could adopt a few kids. We could be happy. Forever.
  But I can't stay. Carter trusts me now.  I must leave before he catches on and this web of lies and illusions gets bigger. 
  Little does he know that the Youngblood family will be my escape.

Present Time-
"Are you ready yet?" Carter peeks his head into the bedroom.
  "No! Get out!" I yell. I throw a shoe at the door, but he dodges it, and I can hear his laughter as he leaves down the hall. I turn to the mirror to finish with my make-up.
  I hear a knock on the window. It's Brady, and I let him in.

Two Weeks Earlier -
  "Excuse me? Miss?"
  I look up from my computer. A tall, broad-shouldered guy with spiky neon-green hair stands in front of my desk.
  "How may I help you?" I ask politely.
  "Is Brady available?"
  "I'm sorry sir, but Mr. Youngblood is in a meeting at the moment."
  "Well, let him know that his husband, Magnus, and his daughter, Emerald,  are waiting for him." The guy, who apparently is Magnus, smirks and walks away, hand in hand with a small girl that I had not previously noticed.
  "Jen?" The speaker on my desk grates.
  "Yes, Mr. Youngblood?"
  "I have wrapped up with my meetings for the next hour. My husband and daughter should be here soon. Would you like to attend lunch with us?"
  "Uh, sure. I would love too. Also, they just arrived."
  "Great. I will be down soon."

The Mr. Youngbloods and Miss Youngblood, or Brady, Magnus, and Emerald, as I have been told to call them, take me to Red, the only human-vampire restaurant in town. We talk, and I discover that Brady and Magnus are vampires, and that Emerald was a human orphan that they adopted.
  It's strange, but I feel a type of closeness with them, especially Brady.  I didn't notice it when I interviewed for the job of his PA, but I do now. It's a strange feeling. One I don't remember ever feeling before. It's a sense of belonging.

Present Time-
  "Jen? You alright?" Brady asks.
  "Fine. It's just nerves." He nods, and I go into the closet. I grab the dufflebag and give it to him.
  "Good luck. Magnus and I will be waiting," he says, and he jumps out of the window.
  I take off the robe that I put over my clothes while doing my hair and make-up.
  I am wearing a strapless white dress that criss-crosses along my back and hugs my curves nicely. It's an amazing contrast to my dark hair.
  After leaving the bedroom, I meet Carter downstairs where the party is merely begining.

  Roughly an hour later, Carter asks about the Youngbloods.
  "They can't make it. Their daughter is sick," I lie. He beieves me, and we carry on.
  "Hun, I'm going to go grab a drink.  I will be right back." Carter lets go of my hand and lets me walk away.  Little dies he know that I hope to never see him again.
  I go outside.
  I slide into the dark car that's hiddrn from view. Unless you know where to look. The car makes it's way to the highway and picks up speed. We're long gone before anybody notices anything.
 
Carter POV-
  I'm pissed. Nobody has seen Jennifer in over an hour. I have men searching everywhere for her, but I can't help. I can't act as though something is wrong.  I keep greeting guests and making small talk. I try not to think about my runaway wife.

Brady POV-
  As Magnus reaches the highway, I hand Jen her dufflebag. She begins changing into a black sweater and leggings. An alarmed look passes over her face.
  "What is it?" I ask.
  "Carter," she says, "he knows that I'm gone."
  "How?" Magnus snarls.
  "He was bound to find out sooner or later. I only know because I have been practicing and testing our bond. I can read his mind now without him knowing I'm there."
  I'm impressed. I think back to the very first time that I met Jennifer. She was eight years old and wearing angel wings, standing at the front of the church singing. Of course, she doesn't remember this. I was 15, and the older brother of her best friend. She went missing a few years later, and I have finally found her. My little sister from a different mister.
  At this point,  Jen now has a blonde wig and blue contacts. We arrive at a gas station and trade cars with an unsuspecting human. We drive off into the night, in a totally new direction.
  Tonight is her escape. Tonight everything will change for her and for Magnus and I. For our little girl, too. Tonight is when we run. Jen will escape from Carter. I will escape from my ghosts. Magnus will escape from his past. Emerald will escape from memories of her horrid begining. Tonight is the night. The night we all will escape from something. Tonight is out night.