Consanguinity

Chapter 2

Koehler woke up with a familiar face looking over her. Relief washed over Jeanie as she realized her sister was waking up.

"Where am I?" Koehler asked, her voice barely audible.

"We found you outside of the cabin. You were bloody and hurt. You were shivering. We had no idea what happened to you. You were passed out, so we pulled you inside. Koehler, it's been like two days..." Jeanie babbled, stumbling over her words, but Koehler wasn't really paying attention, she was overwhelmed by what had happened to her before.

"So you're telling me that I just magically showed up on your doorstep?" She asked, not believing that could be possible. The likelihood of that happening was next to nothing. But honestly, what exactly is reality anymore, she thought to herself. She did just find out that vampires are real. She wanted to look around to make sure her family was all there. Before Koehler could grasp her footing, her head felt fuzzy and little stars made their way into her vision. She clutched her head and squeezed her eyes shut.

"Woah, woah, woah." Jeanie placed one hand on her sister's shoulder and the other on her back. "You don't have to get up right away, you've been passed out for two days. Just take a second to acclimate to your surroundings. Give your body time to rest." She tried to advise her sister. "Grace and Sammy are fine, you don't need to worry about them." Jeanie walked over to the chest of drawers. She curled her fingers around the brass handle and gently pulled it open. She fiddled through the clothes until she found something suitable. She pulled out a large red wool sweater. Walking back over to Koehler she sat down. "Here." She placed it in her hands. "It's a little chilly in here, put this on and come out for breakfast."

"Breakfast?" Koehler asked.

Jeanie chuckled. "Who knew that our know-it-all big sister wouldn't have all the answers." She received a glare. "Well, Sam remembered that Ma'am and Pap had a cabin up in the state. We found a road, and followed it to the cabin. I don't know how that boy remembered something like that." She chuckled. "There is food, blankets, and extra clothes here." She pointed around the cabin. "We can stay for awhile to help us... cope with everything that has happened" Her happy demeanor fell. "We can go back soon since these people don't know who we are, right?" She asked looking for confirmation.

Koehler looked around the cabin purposely ignoring her sister. Jeanie noticed her sister's avoidance, but made a point not to push her any further. "How did he remember this?" There were all very little the last time they visited. Soon after, their grandparents died in an accident, and they hadn't come back since. Mom and Dad didn't like talking about them, and the siblings knew better than to ask questions. "Are they okay? Did any of them get hurt?" Koehler looked back over at Jeanie.

"They are fine. We are okay. Everyone is okay." She tried to comfort her older sister. "We are all shaken up because of well... you know... everything that has happened." Jeanie tried to spit out the words, but couldn't, so instead she just danced around the fact that their parents were dead. "You are okay, and we are all okay so that is all that matters." Both of them stared at the ground in silence.

"Please leave me, I will be out in a moment." Koehler asked of her sister suddenly. Jeanie stood up from the bed and walked towards the door. Her fingers wrapped around the cold door knob and twisted it open. She looked over at her sister's hunched over body one last time before leaving the room.

Koehler got up and wrapped herself in a blanket that hadn't been washed in years. The faint scent of Ma'am and Pap filled her nostrils. A smile made its way on her face. She slowly looked around the room. Broken memories of her and Jeanie giggling as children flowed through her head. Her smile grew as she heard the sound of her mother's voice calling them to dinner. She followed her memories as she made her way out of the room. She looked down the hallway and saw her Dad taking videos of Sammy stumbling towards him. His chubby legs were just strong enough to carry him. Next to her dad she saw her Mom carrying Grace. She chuckled at her Mom's annoyed look as Grace cried into her ear. She was always crying when she was little.