Turned

Chapter Twenty Two

Matt walked to work before me, I took less time to get to work. I was starting to feel the thirst but I brushed it off, it would be fine until I got there, then I'd have to drink, hoping they hadn't revoked that right because I decided to live with Matt again.

I wanted to try and be human, as human as someone like me could be. I wanted to fight for what was mine, what I could do and what I could be. I wasn't going to give up just because life could be hard sometimes, just because it could be painful and sometimes, cruel. I wasn't about to run from life because of it, I couldn't.

I promised him that I wouldn't freeze him out, I'd tell him the truth no matter how cruel or painful, he wanted to know... he had to know. My heart felt like it was a million pieces but I had to do it, be good, be better for Matt, for Lena, Leo and Nick, not in any particular order.

Finally, I got to the door, felt like hours but was only a few minutes. Hiding had never been my strong point but I had to.

I finally made it upstairs, still hiding as I made my way into the lounge, my hand on the fridge.

I wasn't going to let anything get in my way, I pulled it open and grabbed the nearest bottle of blood that I could find, downing a few mouthfuls before I wiped my mouth. The hunger was irritating, getting worse and worse each day.

Finally, I walked down the stairs, smiling to myself, hoping I hadn't missed a bit on my face or it would be awkward.

I stood behind the bar, waiting for the place to open but I didn't mind the quiet, no music, no people, just pure silence. I loved those moments, the moments where the hunger wasn't so bad, I didn't feel like I'd been hit by a bus, just a car.

I was so busy washing the bar, I hadn't seen Sapphire make her way down the stairs, I only heard her heels clicking on the ground, the eerie silence taking me back to that night, the night she made me.

I looked up, scanning her pretty black dress, her mocha skin and strong lipstick. "Sorry, what can I get you?"

"I wanted to make sure you're okay" she commented.

"I'm fine, no problems here" I replied, faking a smile.

I didn't realise just how fake I sounded until it was too late, until the words were out there and I couldn't get them back. She didn't say a word, she didn't need to, it was written on her face, she didn't believe it... didn't believe me.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"I will be" I promised.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she questioned.

I wanted to say no but I couldn't... I ended up agreeing, following her. If anyone knew why I felt so awful, it would be her, she'd know why.

She sat me down opposite her with nothing readable on her face, not a single emotion. I didn't know if she was going to stake me or talk to me but for some reason, the stake seemed like a more pleasant idea, I didn't know why, it just did to me.

She didn't say anything, just waited for me to talk but I didn't know where to begin. She sat opposite me, just waiting, ready to listen.

"I... it's Matt"

"What's happened?" she asked.

I took a deep breath and told her everything, convinced she already knew half the story. I wanted to know why I wanted to kill him, why out of everyone I knew, it had to be him. Why did my hunger set its sights on him?

"It is because you care about him"

"And my parents?"

"Because somewhere inside, you're still angry with them. In a way, they'd make the perfect meal for your thirst, it would release all your... abilities along with all that anger. It is our blessing and curse, to thirst for the blood of those who, in our opinion, have wronged us"

"But why?"

"Because it tastes the best" she admitted.

I didn't push her for any more answers, I knew her past and as much as I didn't like what she did, I understood it, I didn't judge without all the facts, I looked at it as a very grey area, what happened when a frightened, wronged girl became a vampire. It wasn't her fault, she couldn't control what she was or what happened and I understood why she had few regrets about it.

She stood up and called a name, one that made me shudder. "Caleb"

"You called for me?"

"Yes, of course I did. What have you learnt from our coven cousins?" she asked.

"This... this is probably best spoken about... in private"

"I should probably go..." I started.

"Stay. Caleb is once again out of order. If I wanted to speak in private, I'd have called him once you'd left"

"The covens have been silent for some time"

"I am aware" Sapphire snapped aggressively.

"They have moved on, I cannot find them... it looks like they have been... defying the laws"

"Explain" she ordered.

"There's no easy way to say it but I think the covens have run, I think they've literally run"

"Long established covens don't just run, they don't just pack their bags and leave, something's scared them, forced them to run"

"What would be so powerful?" I asked.

"Definitely not you" Caleb joked cruelly.

Sapphire gave him a fierce, furious glare. He nodded and cleared his throat. "Other vampires, sometimes or... the worst, hunters"

"Vampire hunters?" I questioned.

"They are weak, they were obliterated the last time they came here, I doubt they're at full strength after thirty dormant years... if it's them, they're being bold and that worries me"

"Why? You are stronger than them, you could swat them all like flies if you wished to" Caleb commented.

"Because for them to come out of hiding, it means they are looking for someone or something and it's worth getting nearly killed over it which means this object, whatever it is, is of some value and importance to them and they will not rest until they have it"

"So? We'll find it first" Caleb reassured her.

"We don't even know what they're after!" she snapped. "Leave us, I have things to discuss with my newest protégé"