Marked For Life

Chapter 2

It had been a restless night, Samantha had only been able to get a couple of hours worth of sleep. Still, she remained in bed, looking once again at the piece of paper she had received the previous night. The note was no longer neatly folded but instead it was now wrinkled and shabby. She had read it over and over, hoping something had changed. She felt the chills down her spine as she read the note unmistakably knowing who wrote it.

Sam,

I am not sure what to write. I know it's been a while, and I hope you can grant me just one night to explain it all to you. I will come back tomorrow at sunset. If you decide not to open the door, I will understand and will continue to protect you from a distance, as I have done all these years.

Your brother,

Justin

It had been fifteen years since her brother's death, or at least that was what she had believed all those years. The letter had assured her of a few things, one, Justin was alive, two he would come back and the last, he was a vampire. She looked around her room, for the first time feeling the emptiness and the coldness surrounding her. She could hear the sound of her own heart beating.

"All this time?" Samantha asked herself, anger taking over for all the feelings that began to build up. "A vampire?" Samantha's memory took her back to their adverse childhood.

Justin helped their mother up from the floor. The fall had taken them by surprise, but they knew it was only a matter of time before she was bound to a bed. Justin forged a smile as their mother made a joke about him being faster than light. Samantha simply watched, rigid. Thoughts of sorrow invaded her. She met her brother's gaze as he lifted his mother in his arms, and saw his unspoken fears. At seventeen, he was stronger than any other boy his age, even stronger than those who had already turned twenty-one, and he was wiser than most men in the neighborhood. She had to be strong for him. She had to let him know she would be able to handle it all by herself in his absence. She felt his worries and followed him. The moment he laid their mother on the bed, she took charge by undressing her mom and telling him to set up the tub. Her mother's beautiful gray eyes glistened, but no tears were shed. She saw so much of Justin in her. She had no idea how she would manage any of this without him, but she had no choice. Justin had joined the armed forces to better provide for them, and she was grateful.

"Ready, Sam?" Her brother's voice showed no anxiety. He was born to defend and protect.

Samantha had finished undressing her mother and wondered how someone so stunningly beautiful, young, and full of life had changed so drastically in months. She didn't know how long her mother had, the cancer had been detected too late.

"My sweet Sammy." Her mother's voice softened her heart. "You will be just fine."

Her brother's presence gave her comfort, and she responded with a soft yet firm voice she barely recognized. "And so will you."

"Sam, you have to make sure she takes the morphine, even if she doesn't want to." He spoke fast.

"I know, Justin. I will make sure..." She was cut off as he continued.

"And she has to eat, even if it's just a little. She has to have something in her stomach." He looked devastated.

"Please don't worry about us, Justin. We'll be fine. Trust me. I can handle it."

"Sam, I'll be back." He promised.

"We'll be here."

But nothing turned out to be just fine. Her mother had died weeks after her thirteenth birthday, and since her brother had never returned from the war, Samantha had been taken to Mercy Smile Foster Care. Tears threatened to escape as she recalled the heartbreaking memories.