Vampire Twins Meet The Pack (Book One)

Chapter Forty

The next morning I woke up in a cold sweat. I had had a nightmare last night, but it was an old one so it didn't bother me too much. In it the rogues who had killed our parents came after us, when Steve and Patricia were out at dinner. Peter, Mark, Ryan, Jaydon, Jenni and I tried to keep them away from Lanie and Sam, and the boys tried to keep me and Jenni out of it too. But we refused, and we managed to take down quite a few before they got Mark. Then they got Peter. Then Jenni. Ryan, Jaydon and I tried to kill the rest of them, but then one of them got Ryan, and someone went after Lanie. Jaydon ran to save her and was killed too. Within five seconds Lanie and Sam were dead, and then I was too.

Once I was awake I shook it off, grabbing my favorite pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. I stepped into my bathroom and turned on my radio and the shower. The hot shower relaxed my muscles and washed away the remnants of the nightmare. I stepped out feeling a lot better and put my hair into a fishtail braid before heading downstairs.

I didn't want to hang around the house that day. The nightmare had put me in a sullen mood. I knew Lanie would still be in high spirits from her birthday yesterday, and Bishop's gift in particular, and I didn't want to bring her down. With a sigh I grabbed a roll and some beef jerky and headed for the door. When I stepped outside the sky looked a bit stormy so I went back in to grab my sweatshirt. Nobody else was downstairs, so then I just headed out. We were allowed to come and go as we pleased; nobody would miss me if I was gone for half a day.

I walked as I ate my breakfast, then morphed into a wolf and ran the rest of the way to the treehouse. Lanie and Sam had never taken to the treehouse the way that Jay, Jenni and I did when we were little, so it had become my hideout instead of their play place.

I had long ago swapped out the little kid chairs for big cushions that were scattered about on the floor. I had some books on a small shelf in the corner, and a low table in the middle. I flopped down on my stomach and stretched out, enjoying the breeze blowing in through the open door. Yesterday had been a good day, but even though today had started out horribly, I aimed to make it better.

After a while I grabbed one of the books and started reading. I reached out and kicked the door closed; the air had started to smell like rain. If it stormed then I would be nice and cozy here. All the holes in the walls were patched up, and the fancy glass windows tightly closed. It could storm all it wanted and I could be just fine.

After a few more hours I got tired of my book. It was one that I had read about a million times before, so I already knew how it was going to end. Besides, hadn't my life become enough like a storybook lately? First two vampires in my house, then Steve's long lost brother shows up. I shook my head. Yeah, I didn't need to read any storybook for a while.

I fell asleep after putting the book back on the shelf. This time it was nice and nightmare free. Instead I dreamt of riding horses and ice cream and dancing in the rain. It erased all memories of the nightmare from my mind.

I awoke some hours later to the sound of raindrops drumming on the roof of the treehouse. I pulled back one of the curtains from the window and grinned at the sight of the pouring rain. Still smiling, I flopped back down on my pillows and prepared to let the rain sing me back to sleep.

My eyelids had just closed again when there was a quiet knock on the door. 'What the heck?' I thought. 'Who would come out here to find me in the middle of a rainstorm?' But begrudgingly I got up and pulled it open.