

### THERE WILL BE BLOOD

### By Sasha McCallum

Copyright © 2017 Sasha McCallum

Smashwords Edition

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Table of contents

Chapter 1. A Strange Encounter

Chapter 2. Such An Unusual Girl

Chapter 3. Obsession

Chapter 4. There Will Be Blood

About the Author

Other titles by Sasha McCallum

Connect with Sasha McCallum

Sample of The Lake

1. A Strange Encounter

Below the tree, an image, half formed and swirling in the otherwise empty, grey air. A figure of darkness and my blood ran ice cold as I watched it. I heard a humming in my ears, my heart beat faster and it came closer; not moving but growing. I thought of Joseph; could it be him? The dark swirling immediately retracted then disappeared. The cold remained though, and the swirling darkness had left an imprint at the back of my eyes. I shivered.

"You saw it too, didn't you?" a woman's voice said from behind me and I turned and met with liquid green eyes. I was scared and the eyes told me she was too. I looked back at the oak tree in the distance and saw nothing but my eyes lingered. "You saw it, I can tell," the voice behind me repeated and I tore my eyes from the tree. She was beautiful, dressed in black. Was she here for a burial?

"I saw something in the air," I stammered, unable to explain myself logically. "It was nothing."

"The nothing scared you," she said with certainty and I looked away, toward the tree again. I did not want to think about it. "You'll give it power if you pay attention to it. It will use that against you."

I frowned. I could not grasp what she was saying.

"Andrea!" The woman turned and I saw a man wearing similarly dark attire, calling and motioning to her as he headed our way. "Come on," he said from a short distance. The woman put out a hand and clutched my arm, sending a jolt of panic through me. She leaned toward me.

"Don't let it know you see it," she said, hushed and urgent, then turned and walked away with the man.

Haley woke up with a start. She was bathed in cold sweat. Her phone read 6.18am. She immediately got up and went into the shower to try to wash her dreams away. The woman in the graveyard had scared her ...No, it wasn't the woman; it was that she'd seen the same thing Haley had. Was it possible?

She was warm and dry after her shower but it did little to ease the darkness of her thoughts. That would have to wait until her daily boredom swept it away. Without work the days stretched in front of her, impossibly long and empty. She largely ignored concerned calls from family and friends. She stuck to a strict diet, exercise and meditation regimen on autopilot in a desperate attempt to avoid thinking and remembering. Any excess thinking would allow ideas of self-harm to creep in and that was unacceptable. She didn't want to end up in hospital, didn't want to make things any worse than they already were. Dr. Fields told her that if she just stuck to her plans and did what she was told then eventually things would start to get better, that the sinking feeling when she woke up in the morning and which struck her every time she thought of Joseph would lose its power. She doubted it, but the alternative was despair, the alternative was blood and pain. Feeling sorry for herself was not a natural state for her, it was ugly and self-defeating.

She went to a local coffee shop and read. Sometimes, she needed the presence of other, normal, happy people around her, while still remaining essentially alone. It was a part of her slow reintroduction into society, as she vaguely hypothesized, though secretly she thought it might remain her only way of being a part of society forever. She doubted she would ever want much more than this.

It was there that fate chose to knock her autopilot off course. She was reading 'The Prophet' by Kahlil Gibran and it was not particularly interesting.

"May I sit here?"

She looked up, realizing she'd been spoken to. A woman stood over her, she stared around the coffee house; the other tables were occupied so it was unlikely she or the woman had much choice in the matter.

"Yes," she said mechanically and returned her eyes to her book. Her attempt to get through a paragraph was thwarted by the sensation that she was being watched. Perhaps she was expected to make conversation with the stranger; she found many superfluous things were expected of her lately. She looked at the woman who was indeed staring as she dipped a teabag into a disposable cup.

"You don't remember me, do you?" the woman said.

"Sorry," Haley was confused, she wracked her brain and then, giving the woman a long, lingering examination, it dawned on her. The green eyes from the cemetery, the strange encounter. "Yes. The graveyard last week. You were there, you said..." She narrowed her eyes and frowned.

"Not then," the woman responded quickly, as if she didn't want to think about that either. "We went to school together."

"No," Haley denied with confidence. "No, we didn't. I would have remembered you."

The woman looked at her very strangely then, as if she wasn't sure what to make of that. But Haley was convinced; this woman was absolutely beautiful, there was no chance she could have slipped under the radar at Haley's college. She observed her as she frowned into her tea. Her hair was dark and her skin was pale porcelain, her lips pink and full and those liquid green eyes stood out inside rings of black eye-liner. Her eyes didn't sparkle, they reflected nothing; they were the type of eyes that had so much depth they absorbed every glimmer of light around them. Two deep, geothermal pools. She could have stepped off the cover of a magazine if it wasn't for her complete lack of effort in the clothes department. Lack of effort? More like an effort to make herself look less than she was; perhaps she did, perhaps she was one of those people who got too much attention if she dressed nice and she didn't like it. Haley could understand that, she hadn't been making much of an effort herself lately.

"You've changed as well," she said to Haley, as if she could read her thoughts. "You've lost your smile. Life hasn't treated you well."

"Who are you?" She was puzzled now, the woman certainly seemed to know her. The woman laughed in response to this, a somewhat embittered laugh. Her teeth were white, small and straight, her canines dipped lower than the rest, making her appear predatory. She sipped her tea and ignored the question which infuriated Haley. It was nice. To feel something other than emptiness and regret. Anger was welcome here. The woman seemed to know this, there was a mirthful contempt in her eyes suddenly.

Haley stared at those eyes, they appeared to challenge and mock her all at once. It was an odd feeling, as if she were being shown another reality, one separate from the inane chatter and smell of coffee that surrounded them. One separate from the darkness and emptiness of her existence.

A knock then, loud and unwanted and she almost dropped her cup. She turned toward the window and saw Alison standing outside, her fist still up against the glass, peering in at her, waiting. What was she waiting for, Haley thought in exasperation. Couldn't she see that Haley was otherwise occupied? But with what was she occupied? When she turned back from the window the woman who was with her just a few seconds ago had absconded while she was distracted. What the hell? Her cup was empty and cold, and her companion had just upped and left? How rude. She clanged out of the door and Alison rushed to her with a hug. She searched the side-walks in confusion, but the woman was definitely gone. Again. Had Haley disassociated for a minute?

"Alison, did you see where the woman who was sitting with me went?" she said, raising her voice above her step-mothers impotent pleasantries.

"I didn't see her, sweetheart, no," Alison rushed on. "I'm sorry to interrupt you, but I saw you in there and I've been trying to call you for weeks. Walk with me, I must talk to you..."

Haley rolled her eyes and was practically dragged down the street next to Alison.

She arrived home to her empty, cold house later, having managed to successfully extricate herself from Alison's overly mothering concern. She sat down at her kitchen table and stared at the refrigerator, timidly testing the waters of her emotions to see if she was in any danger from them at present. She was not; it was safe to make dinner, eat and read, as her nightly routine dictated.

*

On a dismal Sunday afternoon, Haley sat in her kitchen practicing her meditation techniques. They were supposed to help her clear her mind of unwanted clutter. It wasn't something she would have done before, but now she needed to try everything, she needed to believe it would work and so she forced it on herself, and in doing this, was sometimes successful. She thought of floating in space, in darkness, weightless and alone, a disembodied wave of energy.

Her doorbell rang and she cursed, ignored it and re-entered her mind. It rang again. And again. She peered through the curtains of the living room to see who it was so she would remember to be angry next time she saw them. But it was an unexpected face. The green-eyed woman from the graveyard; the strange encounter. She thought quickly. Now was a good time to test her theory and she opened her front door and stood face to face; the green eyes looked back at her in silence, expression unreadable. She appeared solid enough.

Haley reached out and gripped her by the shoulder, her jaw dropped. She slid her hand up and touched the skin of her jawbone roughly, prodding her. The woman looked surprised and a little confused by the gesture, then she pushed Haley's hand away with a frown.

"You're real," Haley said and the woman's frown fell away into amusement.

"Of course I'm real. What did you think?"

"At the cemetery..." Haley stammered, "And then the other day. You just disappeared." She didn't know what she was trying to say. It was obvious to her now that her idea that she may have created the woman from her imagination was ridiculous and she felt like an idiot. "You keep disappearing. And you're completely weird," she tried unsuccessfully to explain herself.

"I'm weird? You're the one who zoned out on me the other day. I don't know what is going on but it's obvious something's wrong."

"You know nothing about me!" Haley said defensively then looked around in irritation. "What do you want? Why are you at my door?" She peered at the street outside, it was pouring rain, and the woman on her doorstep dripped, bewitching her with her eyes. "Come in," she said finally.

"Am I disturbing you?" she asked, following Haley into her kitchen. Haley gestured around the empty room.

"As you can see, I am all alone." She watched the woman settle into a chair and handed her a towel. Many questions occurred to her to ask; how did she know where Haley lived? Who was she? What was she doing here? But she sat impassively watching as she towelled her face and hair.

"Why are you alone?" the woman finally asked her.

"Why shouldn't I be? And shouldn't I be the one to ask questions?" she was still on the defence, but didn't she have a right to be? It was very strange, for her to just show up. And after that bizarre scene at the graveyard. Again, as if she could read her mind, the woman spoke.

"My name is Andrea. This was your mother's house, I didn't think you would still be here, but here you are."

"Still be here? I haven't been here for years. How do you know this was my mother's house? Who are you?"

"I told you, we went to school together."

"And I told you, there's no way. You weren't at Filton, I would have remembered you." That strange look again.

"Not Filton. Victoria."

"But that was..." It can't be true, Haley thought. She had a brain wave, went to a side cabinet and shuffled around. Eventually she found one and pulled it out. The year book for the final year she'd spent at Queen Victoria. She threw it on the table in front of the woman. "Prove it," she said.

The woman sneered slightly, and fingered the book.

"Do you have the year before this?" Haley did.

She flicked through the pages until she reached a photo of Haley's class when she was only 11 years old. She pointed to a figure and Haley studied it. It hit her then, it dawned on her slowly at first, a hard pill to swallow and she was tempted to stare back and forth from the woman in front of her to the photo but she couldn't tear her eyes from the girl in the picture. She remembered her. She had changed a lot, but now it was almost hard to believe she hadn't recognized the eyes straight away.

"You've changed too. You're beautiful Haley, but dark. So dark now."

Haley looked up from the picture into her penetrating eyes.

"We called you Andi, I didn't even remember your name was Andrea. You disappeared then too. What happened to you?"

She shrugged.

"We moved. What happened to you? Why are you alone? Why are you so dark? You used to smile all the time."

"I grew up. We all did," she said simply.

Andrea watched her, waited. What did she expect from Haley after all these years? What did she want?

"We were friends," Haley remembered. "You used to make me laugh."

"You used to like to laugh."

"And then you just left. Why didn't you tell me you were leaving? Say goodbye?"

Haley hadn't realized how raw she felt about it until now, she had never talked about it back then either. Not even to Joseph.

"Another life," she waved a hand dismissively. "We moved a lot. I was told not to dwell on it. I always remembered you though. When I saw you at the cemetery I recognized you straight away. I wanted to talk to you. But then..." A shadow crossed her face and Haley knew that what she saw was real.

"So, there was something there. What is it?" She looked into the green eyes. Silence and a frown. "Andrea. What is it?"

Andrea's eyes left hers and glanced at the pill bottles and packets on her counter.

"I don't know exactly what it is. A concentration of energy. Bad intentions, bad memories. I'm no expert. Awareness and fear of it gives it strength and that's not what you want. How often do you see it?"

"I've seen it six times. Mostly, I don't see it, only feel it. At the cemetery, that was the third time. It left when you appeared. Why?"

Andrea shook her head.

"No. It wasn't me," she said with certainty. She looked at the pill packets again. "You lost someone. Someone who was very important to you. Your grief is more profound than for most. Maybe it's not grief anymore. Who did you lose?"

How did Andrea know this stuff? She must just be guessing. Judging, by her presence in the cemetery, the stacks of pills on her counter, the darkness in Haley's eyes, her demeanour. Andi had always been clever when they were children. There were few other options but to explain herself, albeit briefly, Haley contemplated.

"My brother Joseph shot himself seven months ago," she croaked. "We were twins."

"I am sorry," Andrea said quietly. "I never met Joseph."

"Good. I can't be around anyone who knows him, anyone who makes me think about him."

"Do you think it was your fault?" she asked and Haley felt sick.

"Why would you ask me that? I know it wasn't my fault," she almost yelled.

"I'm not asking what you know, I'm asking what you feel."

Haley looked at her, tried to stare her down but Andrea's eye-contact and the intent that lay behind it was unfaltering. She was not a timid person, not easily deterred by anyone or anything, Haley judged. She averted her own gaze.

"You want to know what I feel?" she looked blankly into the space between them and tried to breath evenly. "Joseph was plagued with problems all his life, I feel it was unfair that he got all of them and I got none of them. And now that he's gone, the demons have nowhere to go but inside me. So here I am, and now I'm paying for having such an easy time while Joseph was alive. And all I keep thinking is that he felt like I'm feeling now all his life. And so many times I thought he was just weak. I didn't know, I couldn't have known..." she broke off with a sob.

Andrea came and knelt on the floor in front of her chair, she put her hands on Haley's. They were soft and warm and still damp from the rain.

"The doctors are probably telling you it's irrational. Guilt. But it isn't that simple. It's hard for a reasonable person not to believe in bad karma," she said easily. Haley dabbed at her face with her tissues and peered at Andrea with blood-shot eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I don't want to talk about this, or cry, or think about it. I don't know why I did. You should probably go."

"Do you want me to go?"

"No." She'd meant to say yes but no had come out instead. Andrea returned to her chair.

"I'd like to stay. I'd like to talk to you," she said.

"About what?" And Haley watched her mouth twist into an unpractised smile.

"Perhaps you could tell me what you've been doing for the past 15 years. Or I could tell you why I came back."

Haley sniffed and checked the clock. It was 4.15 in the afternoon and she didn't like the prospect of finishing her day alone and empty as she always did. A catch-up with an old friend was hardly what she would normally want to replace it with but Andrea was different. She had once been innocently special to her and now, for some reason she had reappeared and seemed to know things about Haley which were unexplainable.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" she asked pathetically.

"No."

"Oh..." She stared at her tissue, lost.

"I'd like a cigarette and a gin and tonic."

"Oh..." she said again and looked the other woman up and down. "You're soaking wet."

"Yes. I am," she agreed and Haley made a decision.

"Well... If you're going to stay for a while you shouldn't stay in those clothes. I can put them in the drier for you."

"Okay. Thank you."

"Come with me." She led Andrea into her bedroom and rummaged in her closet. "You're my size. Here, put these on."

Andrea immediately started stripping right in front of her. "Uh..." Haley turned around, embarrassed.

But there were two mirrors in Haley's bedroom and it was very difficult not to see her underwear-clad form behind her. She felt ashamed for not simply shutting her eyes. It shouldn't be any surprise to her that Andrea was not the skinny, shapeless child she once knew. Haley wasn't either. And yet her eyes refused to close, Andrea was stunning.

Back in the kitchen she poured them strong cocktails, carried them out to the patio and offered Andrea a cigarette.

"We can't smoke in the house, it's disrespectful to my mother's memory." She watched as Andrea sipped and puffed. She looked ridiculously good in the clothes Haley had lent her. "Better?"

"Mm, much," she shut her eyes and leaned back in the patio lounger.

"Why do you dress the way you do? Like you get all your clothes from goodwill?"

"Clothes aren't important," she said lazily.

"Do you do it to escape unwanted attention? You could be a model, Andrea."

She smiled mysteriously.

"Will you call me Andi? I used to love it, no one else except you and your friends ever called me that."

"It would feel weird."

"It feels weird being back in your mother's house. I remember hanging out here sometimes. Your mother was always so nice to me."

"She's dead now. Joseph moved into the house after she died. And now he's dead too." She looked out into the grey sky, thick droplets still fell from it beyond the roof of the veranda, but there was no wind, and it wasn't cold.

"You said you haven't been here for years. Where have you been?"

"I went away to University, of course. I didn't come back often," Haley sighed. "Then I worked in Singapore for a while. It's strange looking back, it's like looking at another person, another life. If I'd been told back then how much things could change in seven months I wouldn't have believed it."

"How does it feel, to have changed so much in so little time?"

"It feels... Like you said, it's dark here, but it's also like I've woken up, started seeing things the way they really are."

Andrea nodded slowly, looking into the rain.

"It's good, Haley. You don't realize it yet, but it's all part of a much bigger process. You will be a better person in the end," she said confidently.

"Why do you talk about these abstract things as if they're concrete and why do you talk about me as if you still know me?" Haley found it disconcerting.

"I do know you," she shrugged. "At least, I know the person you've recently become. Do you think you're the only one in the world to experience what you have? People tap into the darkness around them every day. Me, I've always seen it. I knew it when we were kids, and I knew then that one day you'd see it too."

Haley shook her head at her, but her words were doing something, making her feel less alone. No one had understood where her head was presently; everyone thought she was crazy and that she would get over it with enough time. Andrea extended a different view, a confident understanding which was so very welcome. Necessary.

"Is that why you can see the dark forms as well?" she asked.

"I assume so."

"If it was Joseph's death that initiated the change in me, what was it that made you see it?"

"That is a much more complicated story," she paused. "Have you told your doctors about them?"

"Yes. They believe I am hallucinating."

"Don't tell them," Andrea snorted. "Take back what you've said to them, admit they were hallucinations. I don't remember you ever having a problem with lying or fabricating particulars when we were young. In fact, you told lies better than most people told the truth."

Haley was surprised at how well Andrea remembered things, and every time she referred to the old times they shot through Haley's memory equally vividly, though she hadn't thought about them in years, and honestly would have assumed they'd disappeared from her memory banks altogether. What a strange day it was turning out to be.

"And then I became a lawyer," she said wistfully. "Very fitting."

"Hmm, law, not the direction I would have pictured you going in at all. Politics maybe, but law..." Andrea shuddered, as if the idea made her skin crawl and Haley felt the hint of a smile beginning to form at her mouth. It used muscles that hadn't been exercised in a long time and it felt awkward, unnatural. She quickly removed it from her face before Andrea noticed it.

"I haven't been able to work in months. What do you do with yourself these days?" Haley found she couldn't imagine what career would fit such a person as the one sitting across from her.

"Not much. I travel, I learn," she said simply.

"What do you learn?"

"Everything I can."

"What do you do for money?" Haley frowned.

"I don't have any money. Money isn't important."

"Who was the man at the graveyard? Your husband?"

"No," she sniggered. "I am not married. Philip is ...an acquaintance."

"Oh, yes," Haley nodded knowingly and felt another slight smile creep into her lips before Andrea looked at her and she quickly wiped it away.

"It's understandable that you don't remember him, I suppose. The mind blocks out so many impossibilities," she said.

Impossibilities? If he had been children with them then Haley wouldn't remember him anyway.

"It is absolutely not what you are thinking. Philip is family. One of my cousins recently died and we have some plots in the cemetery here. It's not the main reason I came back though."

"So you've lost someone as well."

"It isn't the same. I didn't care for my cousin, he was simply blood." She almost spat the last word and Haley decided to take advantage of a need to change topic.

"Tell me about the dark forms."

"We shouldn't talk about that."

Haley frowned. The wind had begun to pick up and the rain was starting to blow underneath their shelter. Haley ignored it, she needed to get answers while she had the chance.

"You're the only person who believes me, that they're real, the only person who's seen them too," she said, not willing to hide her desperation.

"I told you everything I know, trust me when I say these things are not to be paid heed. The best way to deal with it is to ignore it."

"If you don't want to talk about it, then why are you here?" she had to raise her voice over the wind.

"I'm here to see you, of course."

A fork of electricity lit up the darkening sky in the distance and shortly after, a low rumble. Haley was mesmerized, she watched in calm fascination.

"Haley. Haley!" Andrea shook her by the shoulder. "Shouldn't we go inside," she gestured toward the windows. "You can watch the storm from there if it's what you want."

"Of course," Haley said and got up. When she opened the ranch slider she almost had to coax Andrea across the threshold. Perhaps she was just as interested in the sudden violence of the weather as Haley was, she thought absently.

She invited her to sit down on the sofa and refilled their glasses. It was quiet inside, with the whistling of the heightened wind out of their ears.

"If you didn't come back for your cousin's funeral, why did you come back?" she asked with interest and Andrea appeared to think deeply about her reply.

"Vampires mate for life, you know?" she said and Haley raised her eye brows. Wow, she thought, Andrea really had turned into a strange one. Something old, long forgotten, ticked over in her mind and then slipped quickly away.

"That's interesting," she said, tempted to smile again. How odd, that's three smiles she's got out of me in the past 20 minutes, she mused. "What does it have to do with anything?"

"I came back to find my mate. I'm tired of being alone."

Haley laughed then, it was unexpected and gleeful and she didn't try to hold it back. Andrea smiled at her.

"Still the same warped sense of humour, I thought I might get one eventually," she said.

When she'd sobered, she looked at the woman who had once between her childhood friend. She saw it then, behind the beauty and the make-up, that young girl who had made her laugh so hard.

"I was engaged," she said to her. "We were engaged for a year. When Joseph died I broke it off straight away." She was surprised she was not only willing to talk about this but eager. She suddenly wanted to tell Andrea everything.

"That's good. Why did you leave your fiancé?"

Haley did a double-take. Why was it good? Andrea seemed to know everything else, maybe she knew the reasons behind her sudden abandonment of her devoted husband-to-be as well.

"My eyes were opened. I saw everything differently after that, especially the things that were supposed to mean the most to me. I realized I didn't care for him at all," she stated blandly, more to remind herself than to reveal information to Andrea. "In fact, I may even have hated him. It was all so... It's very hard to explain."

"You don't need to. I understand."

"How do you understand? How can you come back into my life and seem to know me so well?"

Andrea laughed, not an entirely amused laugh; it contained something like excitement. But her very annoying habit of not answering questions was again brought into play.

"Did your brother dislike your fiancé?" she asked and Haley was astounded.

"How do you know that?" Then again, she supposed it wasn't so strange, Joseph had disliked most people. But Andrea had never met Joseph, she shouldn't know these things ...Should she?

"Your brother is a part of you now, whether you like it or not," Andrea said casually, and sipped her drink as she watched the lightning strikes beyond the windows.

Haley was in silent shock, but determined not to reveal herself to Andrea. There was something eerie about her confident understanding, and something suspicious about how comfortable Haley felt with her -she shouldn't, it was unequivocal; she barely knew the woman.

"You spent some nights here when we were young," she said guardedly. "It's odd that you never met Joseph."

"You talked about him quite a lot. I felt like I knew him. You were angry because he'd been sent away to boarding school. You missed him."

"That's right!" The memory struck Haley. She sat in silence, her brain suddenly crowded with that particular period of her life. "When we were little we were inseparable, our father thought it was unhealthy but there wasn't much they could do about it. When he started showing abnormal symptoms his behaviour became erratic and they took him to doctors who said he'd grow out of it. They had a good reason then, to keep us apart, they thought that somehow he'd infect me," she sneered bitterly. "They sent him to a boarding school, my father's decision. I hated him for that."

Andrea watched her and listened. Perhaps she remembered all of this herself, but it was only just coming back to Haley. She needed to voice it, to make it real again. Andrea seemed to understand this, she seemed to understand everything. Haley looked at her. "And then you were there. That year after he left."

She reached over and took one of Haley's hands into her own, examined it closely.

"You used to bite your nails. You always said you wanted long, perfect nails. You got your wish."

"You have a good memory. Especially for someone so willing to leave the past behind."

"I wasn't willing, I was a child -I had no choice in the matter. And I don't remember well. All the other places we lived blur together but I liked it here, this place stands out in my memory. Every single bit of it."

She still had Haley's hand in her own. Haley tried to pull it back and Andrea held it tighter. Haley looked into her eyes and they stared back, so intense. She brought Haley's hand to her mouth and touched her lips to it. Her lips were cool, damp, her hand tingled where they touched it. Then Andrea let go and turned away, leaving Haley baffled. She had kissed her, it was erotic and yet not. No woman had ever kissed her like that, hand or otherwise.

Andrea was rooting around in her bag.

"Look," she said, pulling an item from it. It was a snap shot. "Do you remember?"

Haley looked at it in surprise. It was the two of them, so young, so happy. Carefree. That Andrea had kept it all these years was unexpectedly warming to Haley's cold heart.

"I wasn't your only friend here," she said, studying the picture. "There were a few of us. Have you looked up any of the others?"

Andrea waved the question away.

"They only accepted me into the group because of you. And I only wanted to be around them because of you."

Haley considered this. It was probably true, putting herself back in those innocent 11 year old shoes, it was always Andi she'd wanted to be with; often they would run off together, excluding the others purposefully. She frowned then, how badly she had missed her when she'd left. How upset she had been at her for neglecting to say goodbye.

"You're angry," Andrea said, observing her expression.

"Yes, I am angry. You couldn't even extend a brief phone call to explain what had happened?"

"It's good that you're angry. It means you cared about me. Like I cared about you. You seem to have blocked out a lot of what happened back then," she frowned. "I didn't realize. We'll have to start anew, maybe."

"You think you can come here and start straight back where you left off?" Haley was livid, it felt good.

"No," she smiled. "Do I seem ignorant to you? I wouldn't want that anyway, it's nice to remember, but neither of us are the same anymore. What I want is something much different. When I saw you at the graveyard I knew I'd been right. I knew what I wanted."

"You want to be friends again?"

"Something like that."

"I'm not in a good position for friendships. I'm not well, perhaps in the future when I'm better..."

"What about this; I come back to see you again and if you feel like inviting me in, you can, if not... It's up to you. You aren't unwell, Haley." She got up from the sofa.

"Are you leaving?" Haley began to panic, perhaps she had been too harsh, too honest.

"Yes. Thank you for letting me in. Thank you for talking."

"Okay," Haley felt lost. She didn't know what to make of the strange visit.

"Will you please do what I said?" her liquid eyes plead with Haley. "Present to the doctors like you are alright. All that shit they've got you on isn't going to help you. They can't help you."

"What will help me," she wondered out loud.

"What if I said I could help you? Would you accept my kind of help?"

"Yes," Haley said automatically. Then, "What kind of help would that be?"

Andrea smiled slyly, which did two things for Haley; it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and it sent a tingling sensation to her lower regions.

"I suppose you are going to find out," she said almost menacingly then adjusted her tone. "Will you bring me my clothes, please?"

Haley thought quickly.

"You'll be coming back, won't you?" she asked.

"I will."

"Then keep mine for now, it might give you more incentive to come again."

Andrea smiled.

"So you do want me to return?"

"Perhaps I do. Yes, I do."

She handed Andrea an umbrella from the stand before she shut the door behind her. She pulled the curtains in the living room back and watched her make her way down the street casually in the pouring rain and fading daylight. She swung the umbrella at her side.

Haley sat down at the kitchen table, stared again at the small figure of a girl from her year six class photo. Her mind went back to all those years ago.

2. Such an Unusual Girl

She looked at me like I was the only person in the world. And she told me stories, secret stories, forbidden stories. She told me of darkness, of creatures, of blood and flesh and eternal life. She talked about love and lies, destiny and death.

"Vampires aren't like humans. Our love is eternal."

She said these things with such conviction and I believed her. I believed she knew about such things. I wanted to believe her, she told me of a world different from the one I was trapped in.

"No one-night-stands then?" I would ask her, since I had recently learned about things like this.

She would laugh and shake her head and I would go willingly with her into our fantasy world. Re-entry into my harsh reality, home life without Joseph close, knowing he was suffering, was difficult. Something I put off as long as possible. Perhaps any alternative would have worked as well, but it was Andi who provided me with what I needed.

"A one-night-stand isn't love," she would say wisely. "They happen all the time, love doesn't." She understood so many things I had yet to learn.

"But you could have a baby from a one-night-stand," I'd say, as a test.

"Not me."

"No, well, not yet, we're too young."

"I will never be able to have a baby. I was born Blood, I'm not capable."

This fascinated me, I never tired of hearing about it. Her stories never changed, no matter what angle I came at them from; she was a superb fantasist. I enjoyed testing her and witnessing her pass the tests every time.

Sometimes her tales were gruesome, often they made me laugh. It was the way she told them, with utter confidence, and how she knew I liked the relief they provided from reality, comic or otherwise. How they made us, our world, separate from everyone else's -parents, friends, teachers. I could even forget about Joseph for a while. I developed trust in her stories, trust in her.

"One day, when the stars are aligned, things will change. You'll understand better."

For five consecutive nights after her reunion with Andrea, Haley dreamed of her, of their days together as children. They were not bad dreams, they confused and overwhelmed her with their nature, but they were welcome respite from her usual nightmares about the dark forms, and about Joseph.

Her attempts at meditation became drenched in day-dreams and memories from that interval. She did not fully comprehend how 15 years could pass with little thought of it and how now, it was everywhere, waking and sleeping. She could only imagine it must have been that off-handed comment Andrea had made during her Sunday afternoon visit; the comment about how vampires mate for life. At the time Haley hadn't consciously understood the reference, but had ended up laughing anyway. Now she remembered, all those stories, all those fantasies they had shared so long ago. They must still be fresh in Andrea's mind for her to say something like that; had she realized that Haley hadn't remembered? She was sharp, she would have known, Haley nodded to herself.

On the sixth night something different happened. She dreamed of Andrea as she was now. Adult, beautiful. She sat on Haley's sofa, kissed her hand. But she didn't stop there, she kissed her way up Haley's arm, Haley watched, breath held. She left a trail of damp up Haley's arm, kissed her shoulder, her breast bone, her neck, her jaw. She did it slowly, sensuously, and when she reached the side of Haley's mouth and Haley could feel her warm breath against her lips, she jerked awake, gasping for oxygen.

She had been holding her breath and she felt immense disappointment that the dream had had to end when it did. When she regained her composure and lay still, her thinking pattern returned to its analytical norm and she felt the dampness in her underwear and immediately got up and into the shower to wash her guilt and shock away.

She stared at herself in the mirror; she still looked like the same person she'd always been but felt completely different. She had never thought of a woman sexually before, not like this anyway. Never had a dream like that, and it was only the latest in a series of enormous changes that seemed to be taking place within her. Most of them, she recognized, had happened after Joseph's death, because of Joseph's death, but this one was something else. It was all Andrea. Why had Andrea and Josephs involvement in her life always been so separate but so inextricably linked? There was no way to find out for sure and maybe it was mere coincidence.

Andrea had said that Joseph was a part of her now. Perhaps that was why she was having sexual feelings for another woman. Though she was shocked and a little uncomfortable with these new developments, she was also feeling better than she had in months. The dark forms were no longer looming in her semi-consciousness, and she was so distracted by memories of childhood that she was not thinking of Joseph and his pain, nor her own. That was the first day she stopped taking her pills and the first day she began hiding the whole truth from her psychiatrist.

*

Haley fired an email to Till, who still lived close by and was a resident oncologist now. Dr. Matilda Jepson, unmarried as yet. Till was happy to hear from her and accepted her offer of lunch without hesitation. They had been at Filton together and had remained friends through University, so her knowledge of Till was much more recent than Andi, but it was still odd to be meeting up after so much had happened.

Chatty as ever, conversation was not awkward with Till, though she looked worn out, presumably from her long and demanding work hours.

"...When did you get back from Asia?"

"What?" Haley realized she'd been zoning again which was not good, she was here for a purpose; she would have to remain more vigilant."

"Asia? What brought you back? Are you working here now?"

"No," she shook herself lightly. "I'm on a bit of a sabbatical. You didn't know my brother died?" It was a necessary part of the conversation she had already resigned herself to when she'd contacted Till.

"Joe? ...Shit, Haley, I'm really sorry. I didn't hear about it, no."

"Suicide, you know he was always screwed up in the head."

Till nodded as if she was unsure how to respond to that.

"I had the worst crush on him when we were kids. It's the only reason I remember him so well." She peered cautiously at Haley. "How are you? Are you coping?"

"I'm still here, I'm trying," she shrugged, keen to change the mood. "Do you remember, back at Queen Vic, a girl who used to hang out with us for a while there; dark hair, green eyes, really pretty. Name was Andi."

"Course I remember Andi," she said quickly and Haley breathed a silent sigh of relief.

She was real then. So much of Haley's reality had been put into question lately.

"You two were so fucking irritating together," Till went on. "Always with your secret looks, your whispers and your private jokes," she chuckled. "The rest of us were pissed about your exclusive little club of two and pretty damn relieved when she never showed up the next year. Kids, huh? Fickle as hell. Why are you asking about her?"

"She came to see me recently."

"No shit. Andi? ...Wow, what's she like now? Why'd she make contact?"

"Did you know her name was Andrea?"

"Yeah, I think I vaguely remember that. So? What's she like?"

"Well, I mean, she's gorgeous and quite strange," Haley said honestly.

"What's new," Till chuckled.

"We didn't even speak for that long but it was so good to see her again, she didn't feel like the stranger she should have. I learnt almost nothing about who she is now though. Maybe because she hasn't changed much. I don't know." Haley felt like she was using Till as a sounding board for her own confusion.

Till didn't seem to notice or mind at all, she continued chatting at Haley about old times and Haley felt herself drift away again. At least Till remembered Andi, at least now she knew that she wasn't a figment of an overactive imagination or a psychotic break with reality. She had even remembered how close the two of them had been.

She gazed around her, there were attractive women here and it felt weird to look at them with her new eyes, knowing she now had real attraction for a woman. She looked across at her other childhood friend. Till was pretty enough, sure; she had an intelligent look about her which Haley found appealing. But these women inspired nothing close to what she felt when she thought of Andrea.

"...You're looking at me really weird, Haley. What's going on in that head of yours?" Till asked curiously, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Sorry." She considered her options. "Have you ever been confronted with ...unusual feelings?"

Till raised her eye-brows in amusement.

"All the time. Personally I quite like unusual feelings, I chase them," she paused and frowned. "What are these feelings? Does it have to do with Joe?"

"Not really, I don't think so. Maybe, uh..."

"Come on, spit it out girl."

"It's just... Well, Joseph always liked women. Loved women. Since he died I feel like some of him is inside me. His depression, his problems..." She paused and observed Till's frown. "And now, well, I've never really been interested in women in a sexual way..." she struggled to formulate her meaning but Till's face dropped into an easy grin.

"Oh geez, Haley, is that what this is about?"

"It's not funny, Till! It's all so goddamn new to me..."

"Most of us ended up sleeping with a woman at some point or another, if you didn't you must have been one of very few," she said, rolling her eyes.

"I'm not talking about sex."

"Oh, but you said..." she narrowed her eyes at Haley and smiled. "Wait a second, hold the phone... This is about Andi, isn't it? Holy shit!"

Haley looked down at her hands. She felt like a child again, embarrassed and guilty of something she shouldn't have done. Till just stared at her with that stupid smile on her face, finally stumped for words.

"Did you fuck her?" she eventually asked.

"No! For Christ sake, would you keep your voice down?"

"Why?" Till glanced around her shrugging, "No one gives a shit."

"I give a shit."

"Oh wow, this just gets better and better. It's a sensitive topic for you... And not because it's a woman either, because it's Andi," Till concluded and shook her head at Haley. "You two were always so damned exclusive. This is typical."

"Thanks for the crack analysis," Haley said irascibly. This had gotten weird and now she was only wondering how to worm her out of it without seeming uncivil or abrupt.

"Look, Haley, if I were you I'd be more worried about the other aspects of Joe's personality that might be affecting you," she stated simply.

"So you believe in that stuff?" Haley was surprised. "Dark forces and all that?"

"I don't know about spiritually but psychologically, yeah, for sure. Your twin brother has killed himself, it would be a huge surprise if you weren't all fucked up over it."

Haley could see she wasn't trying to be insensitive. She searched Haley's face as if looking for clues of damage then her phone beeped and the moment was lost.

"I've really got to run, babe," she said, staring at her screen.

"Yeah." Haley was silently grateful and continued drinking her coffee.

"I really am sorry to hear about Joe. I know how close you were," she gave Haley a long stare then got up and put a hand on her shoulder. "If you see Andi again, say hi. Take care of yourself, Haley, and stay in touch this time."

"Will do. Thanks." She barely looked at Till as she left. Her goal had been achieved and now the nuisance of being in a public place and the after effects of connecting with someone who had no idea what she was going through were making her feel sullen. She felt the presence of the dark forms knocking at her peripheral vision. She finished her coffee and began walking; movement was sometimes the best solution. Changing scenery, changing scents, changing faces; a multitude of expressions and snippets of conversations, voices on busy streets.

*

The day after her lunch with Till, a rainy, dismal evening Haley sat online looking at job advertisements. The doorbell startled her but, unlike the previous weeks, she rose to answer it immediately.

She stood staring at Andrea for several seconds. She looked different today, she had a black dress on. Another funeral perhaps? Whatever the reason, she looked breath-taking and Haley, remembering her dreams and thoughts for the past few days, could not prevent a vague blush from creeping into her cheeks as she observed her silently. The colour in her face clearly did not go unnoticed by Andrea whose eyes widened but expression gave little away.

"May I come in?" she asked.

Wordlessly Haley stepped back and allowed Andrea entry into her darkened hallway.

She sat down and closed her lap top, she stared at Andrea, waiting. Questions ran through her clouded mind but now that she had Andrea in front of her it was difficult to formulate them. The silence was not awkward, it was more like each of them were challenging the other to be the first to break it. Haley gave in.

"Why are you dressed like that?"

"You don't like it?"

"You look amazing. Are you going somewhere special?"

"Yes, here," she smiled at Haley who lifted her eye-brows. "You said you didn't like my clothes."

"That's not what I said at all." Haley felt ashamed of herself suddenly. Had she really been that rude? "Actually I find it interesting that you don't feel the need to impress people." She was attempting to make up for whatever she'd said but it wasn't sounding good. "Would you like a drink?"

"Yes."

Haley's mind raced; did Andrea really dress like that just for her? How sweet. And she felt the tingling again.

"Haley."

"Yes?" She handed her a glass and sat down.

"I don't want you to feel uncomfortable around me. I wish you wouldn't."

It didn't really help much to know that, she was uncomfortable because she knew so little about Andrea now. There was only one way to remedy it, Haley thought.

"Where have you been for the last 15 years? Where are you living now? Do you have a phone number?" she asked the questions in a rush, she felt a need to get them out of the way before she forgot them again. Andrea smirked at her.

"You want my phone number?" she asked blithely. Then appeared to rethink the playfulness and launched into a tirade of reality while Haley listened. "When we left here we went to Kent then Dover. Other places sometimes. I don't really live anywhere permanently but base myself mostly out of my grandfather's house in Wales. I've spent time travelling around Asia and America. I tend to avoid Europe when I'm not in Wales. I'm sorry, I don't have a phone at present, but I will get one if you want to reach me."

"I want to reach you," Haley said without hesitation. "You don't have a phone? Highly irregular, Andrea."

"Yes," she smiled. "I've always been a bit like that though, haven't I?"

Yes, she had, Haley thought. God, she's beautiful.

"Why do you avoid Europe?"

"Asian people bore me less."

"Have you spent any time in Singapore?"

"None, unfortunately. I like Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong. It would have been strange if we had met up again in Singapore," she said wistfully.

"Till says hello."

"Who?"

"Till. You used to get along well. I thought you said you remembered everything from your time here."

"Same old Haley, always searching for loopholes in stories. You think I'm trying to trick you?"

"Sometimes."

Andrea nodded as if that was only too understandable.

"Till remembers you anyway. Quite well in fact."

"Been doing some homework on what things used to be like?" She didn't wait for an answer. "I remember Till; brown hair, blue eyes, a little shorter and heavier set than us. Smart, crafty, and jealous of our closeness. She hid it well though, was always good to me. I respected her for that."

If Haley had been trying to trip Andrea up, she was failing, and secretly glad of it. She realized she was interrogating her, but if Andrea didn't want her to feel uncomfortable what more could she expect? Haley suspected that their knowledge about each other was far too unbalanced, she wanted to set it right. Although, in the back of her mind, she knew it wasn't Andrea's fault that Haley's memory was terrible and that she was an innately suspicious person.

"You said you're tired of being alone," she led.

"I am."

"Why aren't you with anyone? You could easily find someone."

"It isn't that simple. There have been people over the years, I suppose it's been the same for you. But as you also know, you can be with someone and still be alone. Perhaps that's how it was with your fiancé?"

"I guess so," Haley sighed heavily. "We looked perfect from the outside, no one could understand why I broke it off, least of all him. We would have made such a disgustingly quaint little family. It made me want to puke." Haley couldn't keep the scowl from her face but Andrea apparently found her description gratifying. "And what would have happened if Joseph hadn't died when he did? I'd probably still be with Kevin. Married with a baby on the way, I'd still be blind," she pondered.

"You shouldn't think like that. Your destiny is falling into place, it's about time. You were never blind, just not ready to follow the path less travelled. At least now you are able to recognize the silver lining, you can see that every terrible thing can have meaning, importance. Your brother would have understood why you left your fiancé."

"And you," Haley returned. "For some reason you understand, though we know almost nothing about each other anymore."

"Surface, all surface and superficial. Deep down you and I will always know each other."

"How can that be? We only shared one year together when we were so young."

"We imprinted on each other. It's simple and yet not easily understood. Do you remember what an actress you were? Always pretending, always lying in one way or another. Very few people were privy to your true self, I believe your brother was one of them, though I never witnessed it first-hand. I was another. At first I didn't know why you chose to show me who you really were, but I was honoured nonetheless, I loved you for it... And I returned the favour."

Haley thought about this in silence for a moment.

"You make me sound like a terrible person," she offered.

"Do I? I don't mean to."

"Why would you want to be friends with such a person?"

"You weren't a terrible person at all. You were a child who didn't know who she was supposed to be. You tried on every different character you could; some of them you wore to give people what they wanted, some to go along with expectation, some to rebel against expectation. You used yourself and others' reactions to you as a subject for experimentation. But there was always a small part of you that remained on the outside, an objective observer of your own behaviour and responses to it. That was the part I was privileged to get to know."

"Then it was inevitable that things would crumble around me. If my reality was really so thin."

"Yes," Andrea said carefully. "You feel lost now because you realize that you have no idea who you are."

She was making so much sense. No wonder she understood Haley's state of mind at present, she remembered everything. Andrea knew Haley better than Haley knew herself. It was shocking. And completely awesome...

"Why did I turn out to be that way?" she asked.

"I don't know. But you shouldn't think of yourself as wrong because of it. You were the most complicated, interesting person I ever met, adult or child, and your lack of direction and talent for subterfuge makes you perfectly suited to..." Andrea trailed off.

"To what?"

"To be one of us." She looked down at her hands as if she hadn't really meant to say so much and a very old, but very familiar feeling came over Haley.

"I must ask you an important question," she ventured.

"Anything."

"Those stories you used to tell me ...about blood-suckers..." But she couldn't complete the question, she no longer knew what she wanted to ask.

"You're remembering." Andrea smiled. "Are you scared?"

"No."

"You never were. You were special."

"You said you were one. Born Blood."

"Yes. What else do you remember?"

"You're killers," Haley said, surprising even herself with her directness. "You choose your victims carefully, selecting 'unworthy' lives. It doesn't make you good, but it makes it easier." She paused and studied the woman on her sofa. "When I knew you, you weren't a killer yet. Can I assume you are one now?"

"You still like my stories," Andrea said quietly.

That she had not answered the question didn't go unnoticed by Haley.

"You said one day I would understand..." Haley waited, captivated by her eyes.

"I remember." Her eyes had taken on an excited, glowing quality.

"I suspect your stories were true. That you are what you said you were." Haley felt hypnotized; she was unsure as to the context of their discussion, and no longer felt a need to define it. "You said vampires did their best to fit in, but you don't seem to feel the need."

"I turned out differently than the others," she explained. "My heart was broken, I didn't have much interest in things. They understood that at least, they allowed me my individuality."

"Who are they?"

"My elders. My family."

"Why did you tell me your secrets? Weren't you afraid of what would happen to you?"

Andrea's expression changed, darkened.

"I knew I wasn't supposed to be doing it. But you were different, important. I always knew that. Felt it. And you did what I asked, you never told anyone. You even forgot the stories yourself."

"Until now."

"That's right, until now. I should explain to you why I left when I did. I was overheard talking to you about it. It was unacceptable, after that we couldn't stay. But it was worth it, I wanted you to know."

Haley was shocked to hear this. Andrea had been taken away because of her? Any residual bitterness she felt dissipated immediately.

"Are you afraid of death?" Andrea asked her unexpectedly, her tone changed and Haley contemplated her reply.

"Yes," she answered finally.

"Why?"

"I'm afraid that the darkness will become all engulfing. It will be like a nightmare I can't wake up from. Sometimes when I wake up I experience a sinking feeling, but it's nothing in comparison to the relief I feel when I wake up from a nightmare. What if death means that the nightmare just goes on and on forever? No relief, no possibility of relief. At least when I'm conscious there is monotony, there is some control."

Andrea nodded knowingly.

"The way you talk now. So different, I like it," she said, gazing at Haley. "What about love?"

"What about it?" Haley cocked her head.

"Are you afraid of love?"

"People I loved are dead. Love and death..." Haley was getting confused. "I can't seem to separate the two so well anymore. I wish I could." She looked at Andrea who sat watching her like she could see inside Haley's mind, see her trying to work things through. "Will you tell me one of your stories?"

"What would you like to hear about?"

"Tell me... Tell me about us, you and me," Haley found herself saying.

"A story that hasn't been finished yet," Andrea thought carefully before she continued. "My experiences with most of the places we lived were dismal. All accept you. You were a shining light in my history, you always have been. People say that you can't fall in love when you're that young. But I always knew you were my soul mate. I made a promise to myself all those years ago that I would find you again."

It was only in hearing this that Haley realized it was precisely what she had wanted Andrea to say; her heart was pounding in her chest. Andrea said it with such sincerity, yet Haley still felt the need for clarification.

"Are you gay?" she asked.

"Gay?" Andrea chuckled. "You continue to surprise me. I would have thought you'd have taken more interest in the other things I've told you than with me being a woman." She faced her then, confrontational, confident. "My sexual preferences developed into something more specific than simple lesbianism."

"Oh?" Haley swallowed.

Why were they talking about this? Why was she still questioning her about it when the urge to change the subject was so powerful? Who was she kidding, she wanted to know. She wanted Andrea to tell her. She wanted Andrea. The full force of the knowledge hit her; she had never wanted anyone like this.

"Don't be scared, Haley." Her eye contact was unblinking. "Do you want to know what I like? What I think about at night? What I'm thinking about right now?"

Her eyes were boring into Haley and Haley couldn't look away, as much as she wanted to. She felt herself being pulled in, stripped bare. Her body tingled, her heart raced and heat formed in the limited space between them as Andrea edged closer to her. Andrea put her hand on top of Haley's, her touch firm. Her face was so close the yellow flecks in her irises were visible.

"Or should I just show you?" she asked and Haley felt like she couldn't breathe. "There was never anybody else for me. It was always you. I saw you that day at the cemetery and I knew it was time. You turned out so beautiful, so damaged, and I've waited so long to see you look at me the way you do now. Is it time? Are you ready to give me what I want?"

"I ..." Haley stammered. Andrea's lips were almost on hers. "I don't know," she said honestly and then watched in disappointment as Andrea pulled away from her. No kiss. She had wanted it so much.

Andrea sat back and the hand that had been on Haley's was removed leaving it cold and bare.

"You have to want it. You have to be ready," she said. She looked almost forlorn.

The spell was broken and Haley was confused and now very aware of the dampness between her legs.

"But ..." She leaned towards Andrea, she couldn't think of the right words for how she felt. Andrea locked her eyes back onto Haley's but she did not reach for her again.

"I don't want a casual fumble with you, I want us to be together, properly, and forever. I want you to give yourself to me completely." Her words were piercing and Haley felt like she was having a heart palpitation. "I'm going to go now, but I'll be back. We can reminisce some more, if that's what you want. I like thinking about us as children, it was a perfect time."

"You only just got here..." But when she checked the clock two hours had passed since her doorbell had sounded. How could that be? She stared at Andrea who shifted closer to her again.

She kissed her then. She leaned over unexpectedly, after Haley had already given up hope. The surprise of it added to Haley's pleasure. Her lips were soft, warm, wet. Her tongue snaked its way between Haley's lips and she opened up to it easily. The kiss was long and lingering, Haley's face became flushed and her body screamed to be closer to Andrea, to touch her. If it had lasted any longer Haley wouldn't have been able to stop herself, but Andrea pulled back just before the urge to grab her became overwhelming. Haley whimpered in protest. Andrea looked into her eyes and there was lust there, potent, magnetic. Haley leaned toward her again, she wanted that lust, to feel it, not just see it. She burned for it.

But Andrea rose and headed for the door. Haley was in shock. Please don't go, she begged her silently. Andrea smiled and licked her lips with one sentence before she shut the door behind her.

"Have a good night, Haley," she said seductively.

What the hell? What was that supposed to mean, Haley asked herself furiously. Then the throbbing between her legs spoke to her. It means me, it said. She wants you to take care of me! And Haley's eyes rolled back in her head, as the eroticism of the idea hit her. She could still feel the heat of Andrea's hand on hers, taste her tongue in her mouth and feel her lips. Yes, she would relieve her own tension, but it would be Andrea's image filling her fantasies. It hardly mattered whether Haley was interpreting Andrea's words correctly; the state she had brought her to left little choice. She didn't even make it out of the living room, she brought herself off right then and there, in the place Andrea had been sitting; it was easy and prodigious.

Later, when Andrea's presence had dissipated, her spell broken, Haley became wary again. Guilt and shame mixed with her earlier feelings of certainty. She couldn't decide whether to be disgusted with herself or whether to want more of it. Was Andrea playing games with her? Without doubt she was being teased, but was Haley falling prey to a worse kind of manipulation? When she delved into her own emotions she found that what she wanted, fundamentally, was to give herself up to it, a willing victim, no matter what the price. This was new to her, she had never wanted anything like it before. If anything, she had always been the one to prey on others. Like the way she had used Kevin, chewed him up and spat him out when she was done. With little thought to how much it might hurt him. Andrea was right, she had always been a horrific liar, even to herself; it had been a journey for her to penetrate her authentic feelings, and one which had only occurred since Joseph's death. What if now she was getting what she deserved? Payback for all that pain she had caused.

But Andrea had spoken of love. The way she used to. Could it be true? Had Andrea come back to claim Haley as her own? This was a mushy, romantic side of her she'd never felt in touch with before, at least not in adult life -maybe as a child. The concept of Andrea as her soul mate made Haley shiver with longing, as though she had been destined for this. Not because Andrea told her so, but because of the feeling in her chest, inside her soul. It was an old feeling, she felt sure, one that was only now resurfacing. Things had changed, and they were about to change much, much more. She could feel it, and she wanted it. The question of whether Andrea drank blood was immaterial in comparison to Haley's desire.

She had been so agitated when Andrea left she hadn't thought to ask for a way to contact her.

I may well be going insane.

3. Obsession

"You'll never die?" I asked her in wonder.

Andi smiled at me.

"Our bodies repair themselves faster and more completely, but that doesn't mean we can't die. Most of us die purposefully, by our own or someone else's hands. I've heard of some who died by accident, but never of sickness."

I chewed this over in my little mind.

"You mean you kill yourselves... Why would you do that?" I found it difficult to grasp.

"Some have done it because they lost their loved one. When a pair bond is broken it can be impossible to recover from. Some would say it's our only weakness, others believe it is a great strength."

"I can understand that as a reason," I responded, thinking of Joseph suddenly. "But why else would you do it?"

"Our lives are very long, we get tired. Tired of running in circles, the endless cycle of destruction and creation. We lose our Passion. Or," she looked at me pointedly, "we never manage to find it and lose Hope."

I loved the way she talked. She understood words and concepts that were new to me. I could listen to her for hours, asking her question after question. There were certain questions she couldn't answer and she seemed to like those ones the best, they brought her down to the same level as me, and we would theorize together. But mostly she had answers, and was patient with me; always attentive, always generous.

For days Andrea was a constant in her thoughts. She grasped that she was waiting for her return, staying at home as much as possible. The frustration mounted inside her and she became irked by her own emotions. Why was she being like this? Simply waiting around for Andrea to grace her with her presence was repugnant. Paranoia set in as she went over and over their interactions and realized that they hadn't even talked very much. What little they had said to each other had tended to have more meaning than any other conversation she'd had with anyone ever, but what if that was because Andrea's presence was so overpowering?

Andrea had called Haley beautiful and damaged and asked her if she was ready to give her what she needed? Why now? Because Haley was vulnerable? Bitch! What the hell am I supposed to do with that?

But that kiss ...and the orgasm she'd had afterwards... Wow. And so Haley cycled through frustration and uncertainty, lust and longing, and sometimes touched on a genuine fear that Andrea may not return at all. Despite her extreme moods, whatever Andrea had done to her was a vast improvement on how things were before and she badly wanted to be a part of her life again. Underneath her baseline suspicion she felt an unnatural trust in Andrea, as if she was not the type of person to say things lightly or go back on her word -whatever she had said to Haley was of utmost importance to her.

Andrea did return three days later. Haley was determined not to allow her physical presence to overwhelm her this time and to get some real answers -she seemed far more willing to answer abstract questions than practical ones. But seeing her sitting on her sofa again, drinking from her glass felt so good, it was hard to stay focused.

"So," Andrea began, "things got intense between us pretty quickly last time. Are you comfortable with that?"

"You kissed me," Haley said slowly, as if she still wasn't quite sure it was real.

"Yes." Andrea nodded. "You didn't seem to mind."

"I didn't," Haley replied quickly. "I really, really didn't." Come here...

Andrea chuckled, leaving Haley confused and more than a little discouraged. What she really wanted was to feel Andrea's lips on hers again; sooner rather than later. But maybe it was Haley that was moving too fast. She took a moment to consider how she'd been feeling for the past few days. Maybe, she thought, it's time to pull back.

"You said a lot of things to me before," she said, thinking about Andrea's confession of love and watched as her expression blanked over. It looked remarkably like she was trying to restrain herself. Haley decided to change tactic. "I know you said we shouldn't talk about this, but I've been seeing the dark forms again."

Andrea nodded and observed Haley.

"They still scare you," she conjectured. "They feed off that, your weakness. They're weak themselves, perhaps they are weakness. You can easily beat them if you learn to use your own darkness. You have always had so much natural darkness, so much potential to use it. You've let others indoctrinate you with their rubbish for way too long. Did you do what I asked? Did you tell your doctors you're fine?"

It sounded extreme to Haley's traditional side, but it was exactly what she wanted to hear. She felt herself being pulled in by it.

"Yes. I also stopped taking the pills they had me on," she said. "More because I didn't like what they were doing to me than because of what you said," she added defiantly.

"Do you feel better at all?"

"Yes." Haley didn't want to admit that it was probably Andrea herself that had done that. "Are you sure it's not you who's indoctrinating me?"

Andrea smiled deviously and shrugged.

"You're asking me, remember. And I will tell you; in order to feel better you have to accept the darkness, become one with it -stand with it not against it. Become the person you were always supposed to be, then you'll never have to be afraid of anything again. That's power."

Haley considered this.

"But at the graveyard... You were afraid too," she said and Andrea stared.

"I felt your fear," she conceded. "I was afraid for you. The idea that you were in danger from something so unnecessary was alarming. I was planning to find out where you were while I was here, and then saw you straight away at the graveyard. Chance, some might say, but for me, it was a sign that everything was falling into place. Compared to my elders I'm still very naive though; it seemed that I had made it back to you close to being too late."

It sounded a lot like Andrea was reiterating that Haley was what she wanted; what she had always wanted. And the way she was staring, unblinking into Haley's eyes said it as well. Haley liked it. A lot.

She tried to remain on topic.

"You think I'm a bad person?"

"I think you've got potential," Andrea smiled shrewdly.

"So you can help me with this? Learn to use the darkness?" Haley asked curiously.

"I can."

"How can you be so sure that I have darkness inside me?"

"Instinct. And destiny. My kind is very in tune with the way past, present and future are linked."

Haley observed her. Over the last few days she had remembered much more about their time together as children. Things came back to her quickly, so many things that Andi had told her back then. About the blood-drinkers. About herself. Flashes of insight that tended to explain completely the strange way in which Andrea had re-entered her life. Her paranoia over manipulation and mind-control was interspersed heavily with a deep need to believe everything Andi had told her, and everything Andrea was telling her now. Her desire to keep the two identities separate in her mind was simple discomfort in thinking about the child from her youth as the same person she wanted to screw her brains out now. Facts, thoughts and feelings were becoming entangled in her mind and as usual Andrea's physical presence was both complicating matters and oversimplifying them. She shook her head in a tragic attempt to clear it.

Andrea noticed this. Bemused as she appeared to be at Haley's expressions she also seemed to be having some kind of difficulty of her own. A struggle was occurring inside her too, Haley thought. But what struggle? She sat watching her, stunned to silence by her beauty and the complex sentences she imparted. Haley pulled at her ear lobe unconsciously. Her desire, as she looked and listened to Andrea was difficult to repress, she feared she may do something regrettable. She half-heartedly attempted to keep her comments small and safe.

"We were both so young," she said absently.

"I was treated badly by my peers in most of the places we lived. I was strange. You liked me though. It confused me at first, but I realized eventually why you did it. You knew even before I did that we were fated for each other, subconsciously anyway. Till, for example, was just a tad afraid of what you would do if she said anything nasty to me. They all were. The number of times you jumped to my defence at the slightest provocation..." Andrea smiled and something occurred to Haley suddenly, one of the nebulous doubts she was prone to.

"Do you feel some sense of lingering obligation?" she couldn't stop herself from asking.

"Don't be ridiculous," Andrea retorted and observed Haley. "You seem angry."

"I just think that you're not serious. You keep running away, you're playing games with me." It felt good, to actually say what was on her mind, to be honest, whether it made things uncomfortable or not. "Are you torturing me on purpose?"

"Impatient, are you?" Andrea leaned towards her, so close. "You're more receptive than I expected. Your subconscious is strong."

"Why do you always have to talk in riddles?"

"You are very sexy when you're angry."

Haley snorted in annoyance and went to move away from Andrea but she grabbed her arm and held her in place on the couch. Her strength was remarkable; Haley was shocked. She stayed put and looked at Andrea timidly. She felt Andrea's hand creep up the inside of her leg and a shiver went down her spine as she peered into those deep green eyes.

"I run because I'm afraid of what might happen if I stay."

"You? Afraid of me? No, I can't believe that."

"That's not what I said. I'm afraid of losing control, of hurting you."

Haley wasn't really thinking, only feeling -the pressure on the inside of her leg, the power of those eyes on hers. She struggled to remember to breathe.

"But maybe you want me to hurt you," Andrea said and Haley screamed a silent Yes!

The hand slid higher quickly, so close to touching her where she wanted it, she almost gasped. Then she remembered something. Fuck! Damn it to hell! She tried to collect herself.

"Um ...now is not a great time," she said hopelessly.

"I think it's the perfect time."

Andrea's mouth met hers and her hand pressed against the centre of her throbbing, she moaned and melted into the kiss. It felt so good, but momentarily she pulled away, needing to express herself.

"No, really, I'm bleeding."

"I know," Andrea said without missing a beat. "You're in your first day, your flow is heavy." She latched her mouth back onto Haley's.

"How could you know that?" Haley managed to mumble into her lips.

"I can smell it, Haley. It's driving me crazy... You want it so bad and I must taste you. This offers a safe way."

"Oh my God," Haley exclaimed and yielded quickly. It was all true then, she thought briefly, but didn't care.

Andrea pushed her down into the cushions of the couch; her physical strength was difficult to believe, Haley found herself resisting just so she could feel it. Other liquids mixed with the blood oozing from her now and she did not protest verbally again. If this was what Andrea wanted, Andrea could have it. And she did. Haley came hard against her thirsty mouth and she sucked Haley's juices dry; all of them.

They lay together afterwards. Haley observed her beautiful face, her eyes closed and her lips still bright from where they had tasted Haley's blood. The old Haley, from a year ago, would have thought it was perverse. She knew she wasn't supposed to like it, but she did. She felt actual love looking at that face beside her. Andrea opened her eyes; they glowed.

"Do you still think I'm not serious about you?" she asked. Haley remained silent, observing. Andrea was right, they belonged together. She couldn't explain it, couldn't understand it, but was utterly convinced of its truth. All these years and she'd only been half a person. With Andrea she was complete again. But what could she possibly do for Andrea? For this creature with everything? It should be obvious, she reminded herself -Andrea wanted her blood.

"It was all true then," she said after a long silence.

"You knew it was," Andrea replied with confidence.

"Are you going to bite me?" I would let you. I would do anything for you.

"It goes far beyond that, I want to make you mine. To turn you."

Haley's mind spun, she imagined she would be palpitating if it wasn't for her advanced state of relaxation after what Andrea had just done to her. She had suspected Andrea's intentions, but hearing them directly was something else.

"What does it feel like?"

"It hurts."

"How many people have you done it to?"

"I've bitten many people, but I've never turned anyone. You would be my first, probably my only. Very few people are allowed to be turned, the most important ones. For most, it happens because of love."

"What about your family? They won't like it..." Haley needed to get as much practical information as she could while she had the chance.

"They want me to be happy. They know my feelings for you; a vampire's love never fades. I've been granted permission to turn you, if, and only if, you reach the decision without any pressure from me and knowing all the facts." She went silent for a moment. "You won't remember but the man from the graveyard, that's my father."

"My God..." Haley was astonished. "He's even younger than I remember him." Despite knowing the details, the stories, witnessing evidence of their truth was still a shock to her system.

"Yes," Andrea nodded. "He doesn't need to pretend to be a regular Dad with an 11 year old daughter anymore. He liked you, Haley. And the fact that you are trustworthy runs enormously in your favour. He knew the things I'd told you and that you never repeated them. Perhaps there was a part of him that thought it wouldn't be believed anyway, but it was still a risk. He could have intervened but he left you alone."

Andrea leaned on her elbow, stared at Haley.

"What I'm offering you is a partnership unlike any other. I would belong to you as well and I would teach you what I know. You could be everything you ever dreamed of. As long as you fed you could stay young forever, you wouldn't have to worry about death or the darkness. You would be the darkness. I promised you I'd offer it to you when the time was right."

"You don't owe me anything."

"Look at me, Haley, and believe me when I say I will love you forever, no matter what choice you make. The complication is that we can't be together unless you are like me, I would have to turn you. Do you understand?"

"You want to turn me into a vampire..."

"Yes."

"You want to bite me..."

"Yes," she shivered when she admitted this. "But not today. You will need time to think about it, to be sure. I can wait." She sat up. "But it won't be easy, you taste exquisite. Thank you for letting me do that."

"You're thanking me?" You just gave me the best orgasm I've ever had. Haley watched with regret as Andrea rose from her position. "Are you running away again?"

"I am. It's hard for me to control myself when I'm around you."

"Why should you?"

"As I said, you need time. The blood is making it hard to resist but when the time comes, it will be much more than just that. Because I want us to be together for a long time. You haven't completely understood yet, you still have doubt. You remember all the things I told you about us when we were young? The different life you would have were you to agree to it. You can't let your difficult predicament at present back you into a decision." She looked at Haley, intent. "The world has changed since we were kids. It's going to change a lot more and I'm going to be around for a long time to witness it. I've never really had any appreciation for it before. If you were with me, I would, my family understand that. I could be passionate again, we could do so much together. I belong with you."

Haley reeled from her words. But the request for time was reasonable, she did need to think about things outside of the spell of Andrea's intoxicating presence.

"When will I see you again?"

"Soon."

Andrea pressed her mouth to Haley's lustfully then tore herself away trembling, and Haley could feel how hard it was for her. She felt it too.

"I...," she began, but the words were lost in the myriad of information Andrea had given her. I don't want you to go. But all she said was, "Aren't you going to tell me not to talk about this to anyone?"

"Haley," Andrea shook her head, "I never needed to tell you those things."

When she had gone Haley lay on the couch musing. She felt sure now that Andrea would be back, that she was not on her own anymore. She was confused about many things; if this was her destiny then why was she being asked to choose?

"Destiny is not as clear cut as we normally see it," Andi said wisely in her head. "We can't rush it, force it, or always expect it to go as we think it will. Even Bloods can be wrong and Fate can be altered by unpredictable energies."

She was giving Haley the opportunity to divert her own fate. Andrea wanted their life together to be built on a solid foundation, and it proved just how serious she was about Haley. It was true that the ramifications of agreeing to it would be profound, both positive and negative. Did she want pain? Did she want to turn into something that drank blood? Did she want to have a bond with Andrea for the remainder of what could be a very long life? Did she want her body to change?

Did she want strength, power, and control? Did she want to be part of a world in which she would receive constant protection and automatic loyalty from a family who would never opt out and die on her? Did she want to leave this droll, empty life behind and begin a new one with Andrea by her side? Yes. She couldn't see any way forward if she remained who she'd been, no good way forward. All of those paths were filled with boredom, fear, nightmares, loneliness, illness, doctors and most probably ended in an untimely demise at her own hands. However, Andrea had warned her to not allow her problems to dictate her choice, that that was an unwise way to make a good, lasting decision. But she knew what Andrea really meant was that she wanted Haley's love, her devotion.

So for the next few days she did her best to maintain her normal routine, even sticking to her doctor's appointments, minus the pills and the truth. She did not believe she was rushing into any decision based solely on unrealistic ideas. The fact of it was, her heart had known what to do from the time of Andrea's first visit, it was only a matter of allowing her brain to catch up. It didn't take long and with the extra time, Haley began to fantasize.

When Andrea hadn't appeared after four days, she began to get frustrated and worried again. A knock at her door sent her lurching up to open it.

"Oh, it's you," she said, unable to hide her disappointment when she saw Alison's smiling face in her doorway. Alison's smile fell away when she heard the non-greeting and Haley felt bad for her. "Sorry, I was expecting someone else. But come in, it's good to see you."

"Thank you, darling," Alison's face lifted again as she followed Haley inside. "How are you?"

"Fine. Good. Tea?"

"Yes, don't mind if I do." Alison settled in a kitchen chair and chatted pointlessly at Haley while she made tea. Haley cringed inside, but, she postulated, it was providing her with some relief from her silent, lonely obsessing. She stared at Alison's gradually aging features as she chatted away. Would Haley want to give that up? Aging gracefully had always been the politically correct way to view things, but Haley suspected that if people had the option to stay young forever most would invariably offer their souls for it.

Alison's face revealed her past to a degree, the smile lines around her eyes and mouth gave the accurate impression of a kind person who enjoyed laughter. How had this woman ended up with someone like her father? A man with the personality of a rock. Some say opposites attract. Was it like that with her and Andrea? No, she didn't believe so. There were differences but it was their similarities that had brought them together in the first place. Looking back, one of the first reasons she had been drawn to Andi as a child was her obvious contempt for the people who surrounded her. Once they understood that they shared that contempt, they had indulged in it together, each exacerbating the others. When she thought about it like that, their friendship had not been so innocent after all.

"...But tell me how you've been doing, Haley." The sound of her name pulled her back to the room.

"I'm well," she answered a little too mechanically, preferring to simply put up with Alison's senseless small-talk than to play a more active role in the conversation. "Yes, very well. Much better."

"You seem a little different," Alison said, frowning, and Haley wondered how that could possibly be a bad thing. "Who were you expecting at the door?"

"No one in particular." She tried to divert Alison's attention. "I had lunch with Till the other week. You remember Till, don't you?"

"Till, yes!" Her face broke into a wide grin. "Lovely girl. It's good you're socializing again. How is she?"

"Fine. Looks tired." Haley sipped her tea and began to formulate an imaginary appointment for the afternoon so she could get rid of Alison easily when the time was right.

"No wonder. A doctor now, I believe. She was always so..." Alison droned on. Haley tuned out but at some point noticed that the older woman was observing her with concern. Alison was indeed concerned, she was in the middle of lecturing Haley on how the so-called stages of grief were not neat at all and could flip-flop about for years.

"...Given Josephs importance to you and how badly you've coped so far it seems likely that you've reverted back to a denial phase. You don't seem okay, dear. Last time I saw you, you were clearly in the depths of depression, but now... You appear less depressed but you're not talking, your face is a mask. You really need to..."

"Alison, please. Can you take it down a notch?" Poor Alison, she thought she was helping. "I know you mean well but really, I'm fine. I'm feeling good and it's not denial, I know Joseph's gone and he's not coming back and that I feel guilty about it and blah, blah. You should quit with the self-help books, I have doctors to tell me how I'm feeling, I don't need you as well."

"No, of course not. I do want to see you pick yourself up though..."

"I am. I am," Haley thought fast and launched into an outright lie. "I've been looking at jobs available online. I think I'm in a much better frame of mind now, I'm ready to go back to work. I've sent applications to several firms. I'm expecting to hear back from them any time. One's in Singapore, a rival of my former firm."

"Oh..." Alison looked doubtful. "You're planning on going back to Singapore?"

"If I get a position, yes."

"You're just going to up and leave us? You know your father's health isn't the best. Shouldn't you try to look for something closer to home?"

"Dad doesn't need me, he never has; he never gave a stuff about me or Joseph. It was always up to you to keep reminding him to do fatherly things, and I'll always think of you as more of a parent than he is." She watched Alison's shy smile and knew she was pulling the right cords. "The fact of the matter is that I need to get back to work, and I need a change of scenery. It may not be Singapore but I can't stay here, everything reminds me of Joseph, it's not healthy. My doctors agree that I'm ready and that it will do me good."

"Really," Alison looked like she couldn't decide whether to be pleased or disappointed. "I mean it's wonderful to hear that finally. I will miss having you around though."

Haley reached over and grasped her chubby hand.

"I'll miss you too," she smiled affectionately. "You've been great for the past few months, you were there when I really needed someone. Nothing's set in stone yet, and I'll keep you up to date, okay?"

"Please, do. You really are very important to us." Haley almost rolled her eyes at the deliberate 'us'. "Remember, Haley, you won't have Joseph coming over to stay with you anymore. It's unlikely either of us will ever come. Personally, I think you should make an effort to stay closer to where your family is. But if you think it's what's best for you..."

You were never my family. Alison had made an admirable effort over the years, but 'family' to Haley had only ever included Joseph and their real mother.

Where was Andrea? Why had she still not remembered to gauge a method of contact out of her? Damn it! It's the sex thing... She keeps distracting me. Haley found herself nodding, which thankfully Alison interpreted as an agreement to whatever she was babbling about. Oh my God though, she thought. That orgasm was so worth it. She began wondering why she hadn't tried to reciprocate the favour. It seemed ludicrous now. The thought of having Andrea cum against her own mouth made her shudder. I wonder what she looks like when she has an orgasm. What she sounds like... It occurred to her then that she hadn't even been properly naked with her. What if she never got the chance? Did Andrea even want sex from her, or just blood? But she had mentioned something about sexual preferences so she must have them, she pondered.

"Haley, are you listening to me?" Alison said in annoyance. "I really..."

The telephone rang out suddenly. The land line. Haley frowned, very few people used the land line. She gave Alison an apologetic glance and went to pick it up. It was unusual for telemarketers to have such impeccable timing.

"Hello," she answered watching Alison sip disapprovingly at the last dregs of her tea. "Haley speaking."

Silence. That's odd, she thought about simply hanging up but an overwhelming feeling crept over her. She turned away from Alison.

"Andrea?" she asked, lowering her voice.

"Yes, it's me," came the reply and Haley's heart beat faster.

"Hold on a second." She put her hand over the mouth piece. "I've got to take this, finish your tea, I'll be back in a tick." And she went into her bedroom for privacy. "Hi. How did you get this number?"

"It is still listed in the directory under your brother's name. Am I interrupting something?"

"No, I'm so happy to hear from you."

"Yes?" The line was bad but Andrea sounded hopeful.

"Nothing's wrong, is it?"

"I wanted to hear your voice."

Haley's chest hurt. She thought quickly.

"This isn't going to work for me. I really need to see you."

"You are not scared?"

"I am scared. But I'm so much more afraid of the alternative, of you disappearing again. Listen I..." She sat down on the bed and spoke quietly. She was sure of herself but she was still nervous. "This is far from being just about sex, I feel love for you, a kind of love I've never felt before. I don't understand it myself, I can't explain it but it's the truth and it's so strong. You're all I think about, I can't go on like this."

"I understand. I feel the same way."

"So, can I see you? We don't have to do anything, we could meet somewhere public if you don't want to be alone with me; I just need to be around you so badly. Please."

"I do want to alone with you. If you are ready."

"Yes. Us together, it's all I want."

She listened and tapped the address Andrea gave her into her cell phone. Her excitement was palpable, she would be seeing her so soon!

"Sorry, Alison," she said going back to the kitchen, "it seems I have to go. I'm meeting someone from my grief counselling group. Bit of a crisis, I'm afraid. Do you mind if we continue this another time?"

"No, no." Alison picked herself up dutifully. "Good to hear you're still doing that." She gave Haley a half hug and patted her shoulder. "Thanks for the tea. Pick up your phone next time I call you, please. It worries me when you don't answer for long periods of time. It's something of a relief to hear you're doing better, I'll let your father know. Ta-ta."

She watched as Alison pulled away from the kurb outside and sped off.

Looking at the GPS coordinates of the address Andrea had given her, it would take at least twenty minutes to get to that part of the city. It was 4.30pm, she had an hour to shower and make herself look good. Andrea makes an effort for her, she will make one back.

4. There Will Be Blood

"If you were to be turned, you could be more powerful than me. Born Bloods are at a disadvantage. At least that's the way I see it. We have less physical potential. And I will never understand what it's like to be human. I wish that I could have experienced that. And I could never have a baby."

"Do you want to have a baby?"

"Maybe, I don't know. It seems like a very long life to live so alone."

"You won't be alone. You'll have me." I wanted her to understand this. I wanted her to trust me the way I trusted her. "Maybe," I pondered, "I could have a baby for you if you wanted one."

She stared at me with her big, pale eyes, a soft smile playing on her lips.

"You would really do that for me?" she asked and I loved her so much in that moment.

"Yes. I would do anything for you."

She looked shy suddenly and then she kissed me. A peck, hasty and tentative, on the lips and I knew that she loved me too and everything would be okay.

The building was ancient but huge and obviously well-maintained. There was no doorbell but a large, black, metal knocker in the shape of a lion's head. How appropriate, Haley thought. Her excitement at seeing Andrea again was mixed with a substantial amount of anxiety, but there was no chance she was going to allow that to stop her. The door opened as she reached for the knocker and Andrea stood in the doorway staring at her.

"You look beautiful," she said quietly and Haley took in her appearance equally spellbound.

"So do you." Oh... The heat was spreading inside her already. "Are you going to let me in? ...Or are we going somewhere else?" she stuttered.

"Please." Andrea opened the door wide and motioned her in but moved back so marginally Haley brushed against her as she stepped inside. The physical closeness and Andrea's scent sent a shiver up her spine. The dark foyer was sparsely furnished with highly polished wooden floors. She stayed close to Andrea as she clicked the door shut behind her.

"What is this place?"

She immediately regretted the question, she was not interested in conversing at present. Andrea, like always, seemed aware of her feelings. She came very close and peered into Haley's eyes as if searching for something. An answer, perhaps. Haley couldn't stop herself, she pushed her mouth against Andrea's but no sooner had she done it than she felt Andrea grab the back of her neck and pull her roughly back again. Haley stared at her, silent and trembling. Andrea loosened the grip on her neck and leaned toward Haley, she seemed to be inhaling her. Sniffing her.

"You really are ready, aren't you?" she almost snarled very close to Haley's ear.

"Yes," Haley whispered and Andrea licked her throat making her eyes roll back. She tugged her by the hand into the depths of the building; a bedroom and Haley felt weak at the sight of it.

"Do you give yourself to me completely?" Andrea asked.

"Yes," Haley quivered.

"To be with me forever?"

"Yes."

She bade Haley stand still and undressed her slowly, purposefully brushing her skin against Haley's as much as possible. It was torturous, Haley wanted so badly to fling herself onto Andrea, but she stood no chance against such strength. What Andrea wanted she would get. After her clothes she removed every piece of jewellery, laid her down on the bed and surprised her. She pulled out soft ropes and tied Haley's wrists securely to the metal bed railing behind her. Haley allowed it without protest.

"This is a symbolic gesture," Andrea said quietly. "We never have to do it again, if you don't want to." She ran her hands down Haley's vulnerable nakedness making her whimper.

"I need..." Haley began but Andrea put a finger quickly over her mouth to shush her.

"Trust me," she said menacingly and stood back looking at Haley for a moment. Her expression was one of unabashed lust, like a cat ready to pounce. She took her clothes off while Haley watched.

Oh fuck... Haley hadn't thought it possible for her to leak any more than she already was but by the time Andrea's perfection was fully revealed, she was running like a tap.

She crawled on top of her slowly and as soon as Haley felt her naked form against her own she felt pure euphoria. The few times she had taken drugs paled in comparison. Andrea began doing things to her body, exploring every inch with every part of her own, eliciting sensations that brought Haley to a state of nirvana. She proceeded gently, not fucking her, but making love. Her body was on fire, any fleeting thoughts that dared occur were instantly quashed by visceral pleasure. She was being worshipped. Haley lost track of time, lost track of the number of times Andrea brought her to a convulsing climax. At intervals she spoke to Haley softly of love, desire, perfection, beauty. Her words were as potent as her touch. Haley could do little but listen and feel, return her kisses, gasp and writhe against her.

There were times she could feel the moisture between Andrea's legs against her skin, but Andrea was concentrating only on Haley. Haley weakened, through a fog she wondered how much longer she could last like this. As if in answer Andrea brought herself up, straddled her and loomed over her staring into her eyes.

"Do you love me?" she asked firmly.

"Yes." It was the only thing Haley did know for sure right then. "I love you."

Andrea kissed her, then pushed Haley's head to the side and held it there. She licked her throat again, savouring the salty flavour of her skin.

"I am sorry, my love. This is going to hurt," she whispered in her ear.

Haley felt her fangs sink into her then, fully elongated. She could do nothing, she was immobilized; not just by the restraints and Andrea's strength but by her own force of will. She had wanted this, but it didn't stop panic from rising within her. It wasn't the pain of the punctures in her neck that made her panic, it was the sensation of her life force being sucked out of her. It was less gentle than she had imagined, faster, harder, greedier.

Then she felt something that changed her fear back into arousal. Andrea was grinding herself against Haley as she fed. Haley could feel their juices mixing together and her excitement picked up as Andrea's movements became more urgent, her feeding more frenzied. Haley began to feel drained, a different kind of weakness than before.

She let out a strangled cry but she was not sure if it was from the intensifying pain in her neck or from yet another orgasm, one she shouldn't really have been capable of in her state. At that Andrea pulled her fangs out and lurched up. Haley thought she heard her gasp the word 'mine' before, head back, body arched, blood staining her lips, she came, rubbing hard into Haley. The sound that emanated from her throat was not human and it lasted a long time. It was unlike any orgasm Haley had ever witnessed, though she was barely conscious and couldn't be certain what was real and what wasn't.

Andrea collapsed eventually, lying shaking against Haley, as she recovered.

Haley was completely spent, dazed, she felt as if she was in a dream. She knew one thing; before everything else she was deliriously happy. She couldn't fathom why, she couldn't even ask herself the question.

Through the cloud of her semi-consciousness she felt Andrea gather her wits and, in a rush, unbind Haley's wrists which simply flopped and had to be gently placed at her sides. She heard Andrea talking to her. She felt her offer her something. She pulled Haley into a more upright position and pressed something to her lips. Her wrist, where a gaping wound leaked.

"Open your mouth, Haley. Drink it. Please, you have to," Andrea said and the panic in her voice snapped Haley properly to attention. She did what Andrea asked. It tasted, felt, like hope. Possibility.

The last thing she remembered was that it didn't taste like normal blood; metallic. She lapsed out of consciousness.

She dreamed of floating. Of Andrea feeding her blood. Of Andrea talking to her quietly. Coaxing her. How much time passed she couldn't begin to fathom.

When she opened her eyes next her vision was clouded, her mind in a fuzz. She saw Andrea's blurred outline in front of her. Andrea gripped her hand, squeezed it, and clung to her.

"You are okay. It's going to be okay now," she said. She sounded relieved, as if Haley had jumped a hurdle and almost not made it. Haley took this as a good sign. She couldn't move, her weakness was overwhelming, but she felt contentment. With Andrea beside her, she dipped in and out of the dream world. She had no way of knowing how much time was passing.

"How long have I been like this?" she managed to whisper hoarsely when her consciousness was recognizable.

"A couple of days," Andrea told her. "Time doesn't matter."

"What happens now?"

"We stay here for a while. You'll be weak and parts of you will hurt. Your body will take time to adjust, both genetically and physically. You'll need my blood, a lot of it, over the coming days, and you must take it when I offer it to you." Haley closed her eyes and swallowed at the lump in her throat. "Don't be scared, I'll be here with you the whole time, I'll take care of you. Things will get better then, better than you would ever imagine."

"How long will it take?" she croaked.

"I don't know. It differs from person to person. Weeks, maybe. We are safe here, we won't be bothered."

Haley slipped away again. Days passed, indistinguishable from each other. She felt pressure inside her bones, her flesh, her veins, constant and difficult, like a full body cramp that wouldn't yield. Andrea stayed close, kept her warm with her own heat, gave her blood. She rubbed at her muscles, stroked her skin, her hair and talked to her softly about ancient things and about the future. Her discomfort aside, Haley had never felt such love, such tenderness. The blood she was being given started to taste better. Every time she drank it she felt the pain ease more quickly, strength returning. She began to anticipate it, then crave it. When the fog and pain started to clear, it was not a return to what she was before.

"How do you feel?"

"I can see things. With my brain. Amazing things. How can this be possible...?"

The sharpness in her mind increased rapidly over the days, revealing long forgotten memories. She could remember being a baby in a crib with Joseph, their secret communications. She could remember nightmares from when she was an infant and dreams she'd had through the years as if they were solid. All experiences real and unreal fused together in a single, perfectly synchronized chain of events. She remembered Andi's promise to her and how, when she'd left, her 11 year old self had still believed that one day she would see her again, that the promise would be kept. She could see those idea's dwindling through the years as she became more and more wrapped up in everyday matters. The memories pushed down but never destroyed, ever present in their obscurity.

Andrea played music for her and it sounded like heaven, the cells in her brain could dance to dissonant sounds, every note being matched to a particular image, sensation or memory. When she showered, each individual droplet of water that hit her skin was distinguishable; space and time had taken on a quality she could never have imagined. Andrea encouraged her to embrace these changes, and she asked Haley questions. Haley could answer her questions better now, she understood what Andrea wanted, what she was asking; be it subjective or objective. When Andrea explained things, she grasped her words and meanings effortlessly, the connection between them had become almost psychical and when it wasn't, Haley's instincts were profound.

"It's only been ten days. You are doing so well, I never expected this," Andrea told her. "You're progressing faster than I thought was possible."

Haley's body was still fairly weak, but her mind was not, she had never felt so good. Andrea was paler than usual; she had not left her side for more than a few minutes and Haley was concerned.

"You're not well," she said. "I'm taking too much of your strength."

"Yes," Andrea chuckled lightly. "You've almost drained me. I need fresh blood, we both do. I must find someone and bring them back here. I didn't think I would have to leave you so soon."

Haley could feel Andrea's reluctance and her doubt about whether Haley would be able to get through this part of the process so soon. But Haley was not afraid, if anything she was eager.

"I'll come with you."

"No," Andrea said firmly. "You're not ready. I'll be back quickly, I promise."

"Who will you get?"

"Someone appropriate," she smiled. "Don't worry, my instincts about people are very well developed. You should get ready, put something nice on. I've been told freshly turned vampires like to play with their food first."

Haley looked at her in dismay and Andrea laughed.

"Question them," she clarified, "make sure everything's kosher. You want to feel good about your first kill. It's all part of the process, it's necessary."

Haley breathed a sigh of relief. Although they had done nothing more than hold each other since that first night, Haley only felt desire for Andrea; her sexual appetite was slowly coming back to her but she certainly did not like the idea of sex with a victim. She was heavily anticipating the return of her physical strength for Andrea's sake.

She watched with regret as Andrea left and she began to prepare.

Her new appreciation for music was glorious, she didn't know how she had survived without it. She inspected herself in the mirror as she got ready, stereo blasting. Certain changes seemed obvious to her; her skin was softer and clearer, her eyes appeared a far deeper shade of blue. But she couldn't be sure if this was because her senses themselves were sharper now. Some things still had a way to go, her teeth hadn't evolved properly yet.

Andrea returned. She heard the front door open, click shut, shuffling, and a low voice. She had only been gone for half an hour but Haley was surprised at how much the small separation from her constant companion for the past ten days had affected her. It was the lack of connection that came with physical distance, she wasn't used to it; she had never felt more alone. Along with the sounds came a definite sense of Andrea's foresight, her ravenous elation. Haley didn't hesitate, she descended the stairs and observed the pair inside the front door. Andrea caught her eye, her expression betrayed nothing of what she was really feeling.

"He just followed me here," she said in a bored fashion to Haley as she hung her coat up.

"You didn't exactly protest, darling," her male companion said. He was older, expensively dressed, leering at Haley. Dispensing with any host-guest protocols, Haley went close and inhaled him deeply. The assault to her senses was startling and irresistible. She could smell the substances in his veins, the food he had eaten, the sex he'd had in the past twelve hours; she could sense his arousal at Haley being so close. The guy had scumbag written all over him and he wasn't a person Haley would have touched with a ten foot pole before but now the sense of his blood rushing beneath his skin made her own boil with anticipation.

"Well," he sneered, "looks like I'm in the right place."

Haley stole a glance at Andrea who narrowed her eyes. She remembered what she'd said about first kills.

"Maybe you are in the right place," Haley said still looking at Andrea, she couldn't pick up on her thoughts at present. "Come and have a drink."

"Yeah, I will," he followed her into the bar area with Andrea in tow. He settled down on the plush sofa and to Haley's dismay pulled out a bag of cocaine and started cutting it right there on the coffee table. He was oblivious to the situation he was in. Haley went about fixing drinks, watching him. Andrea appeared at her side.

"Are you controlling him or something?" Haley asked in a hushed tone.

Andrea let out a peel of laughter, but the man didn't seem interested.

"He's off his face," she said to Haley, "I only needed to make eye contact once and not discourage him. He's used to getting what he wants." They peered at him expressionless, disdain and hunger leaching from their auras.

"The drugs in his system won't cause any problems?" These were the little things Haley needed to be sure about.

"No," Andrea smiled.

"This is a pretty nice place for girls like you," he called out casually, holding his nose.

"He thinks we're escorts," Andrea said blandly.

Andrea was handing control of the situation to Haley and Haley's curiosity about what would come of it was overwhelming, an excitement built inside her. Whatever happened, she was about to taste her first human blood. She sat down next to the nameless man, she wanted to smell him more. She watched as he snorted another two huge lines then leaned back and put an arm around her shoulders. This was the first human contact she'd had since her changes so there were things she couldn't be certain about but she could make guestimates.

Nameless had been awake for over 24 hours, during which time he'd had sex with at least three different women, one of which was underage and one of which had been afraid of him. His confidence in his own physical prowess literally seeped from him; given the opportunity he would have no difficulty acting in and justifying violence. On top of the narcotics he'd consumed he had also built up a large quantity of alcohol in the past few hours and his body was beginning to lose some of its rigour; he was tiring, although the cocaine rendered him incapable of recognizing this.

She was lingering with taking in his scent and he mistook the closeness as encouragement of intimacy; he started slobbering at her shoulder. She cringed and pushed him back, held him away from her. That was a nice surprise, her strength was far greater than she had expected -perhaps it was the anticipation of a meal. He appeared turned on by her actions and tried again to throw himself on her. She held him back easily and he spluttered. Oh my, this is fun. She smiled at him and a tiny glimmer of confusion entered his glazed eyes, which served to put an added twist into her smile. She was very interested to find out exactly how easy this was going to be, so she decided to push whatever boundaries presented themselves.

"You're an idiot and a sleaze," she said with interest, still grasping the front of his suit to keep him away from her. "Are there any reasons why I shouldn't hurt you?" He laughed nasally at her and pushed his prickly face closer.

"Kinky," he grunted. "No baby girl, I am bad. Go ahead, punish me."

Haley shuddered in revulsion and brought her hand up quickly to grip his throat. It seemed like he was still enjoying himself. Andrea stepped close to them, looking like she was about to intervene.

"Your girlfriend looks jealous," the man said huskily. "Come over here, there's plenty of me to go 'round."

Haley returned her attention to him. This was stupid, she knew Andrea was indulging her need to 'play with her food' but this guy's version of fun didn't interest her at all. She was hungry, impatient. She tightened her grip on his throat, squeezed him. Finally an element of fear entered his otherwise empty eyes and he started gasping, turning red, and clawing desperately at her hand. His eyes bulged and Andrea stepped closer. Haley put up her other hand to stop her and kept her eyes on his; she was captivated. She could feel his fear, his panic, his desperate need for oxygen; it seeped from his pores. Spittle collected at his mouth, Haley found it repulsive but she couldn't look away. She increased the pressure around his windpipe slowly, never taking her eyes off his. The depth of the truth occurred to her at that moment. It wasn't hunger that was driving her, it was anger, pure hatred, as if this man represented everyone who had ever wronged her. She was releasing something built up over years and it felt good, to possess the ability to finally let it out. She was crazed, but she felt no disapproval from Andrea -if this was how she wanted to play the scene, she was welcome to.

"You would do it to me, wouldn't you?" she said to his bulbous face quietly.

He went limp, the hands trying to pull hers away from his throat fell to his sides, his head lolled. She finally relinquished her grip on his throat and he dropped heavily against the cushions of the sofa. Haley let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding and slid to the floor. Andrea fell on him in a flash. Her desperation clear, she grabbed his wrist roughly and gnawed at it. Haley watched in fascination, still dazed from the feeling of rendering him unconscious; drunk on her own power. After a couple of minutes Andrea pushed his limp, bloodied wrist towards her and lay on her back on the rug, eyes closed.

Haley stared at it for a few seconds before she picked it up and sucked at Andrea's puncture wounds. Not until the thick liquid hit the back of her throat did she grasp how badly she had needed it. She pulled his blood from him greedily and it hit her senses, her brain and eventually her body; she could literally feel the strength rushing into her muscles, bones, flesh. She drained him. She could distinguish the exact moment that his life force left him as she fed.

The rush was unbelievable, she dropped his dead wrist and sat back on her haunches. She shut her eyes, she could feel every ligament, every tendon in her body contract, snap into place, as she stretched each of her appendages, cricked her neck. When she opened her eyes Andrea was sitting up watching her, eyes glowing, intent.

"You're already so strong. You are going to be a great predator, Haley," she said with true wonder. "I knew you had potential but not this much."

Haley tilted her head at her. She had regained her colour, her vitality. She was striking, flawless, and something else... A different kind of hunger in her eyes as they looked at each other.

"I've created a monster," Andrea added with relish.

Haley stayed silent and it did not take long before Andrea launched herself at her.

Sex was completely different now. Haley could almost match Andrea's strength, domination, it was far more balanced. Their connection was infallible, they knew exactly what each other wanted, needed. They could feel each other, as if they were two limbs of the same body. Finally Haley had the chance to do things for Andrea, to Andrea. To make her scream the way she had screamed that first night.

A nameless, lifeless man lay a metre from them and they ravished each other.

*

"I'm sorry about before, with the man. I may have lost it a bit," Haley said when they finally made it to bed.

"No need to be sorry. You have anger. There will be times when you'll need to control it, but tonight wasn't one of them. I was glad you didn't want to take your time and I was ...impressed."

"Yes," Haley squeezed her. "I think I could tell how impressed you were," she said and Andrea laughed. "What about the body?"

"We'll put it in the furnace before we leave. When we've gone others will come, they'll take care of the rest. It was important to take these first steps by ourselves but we are far from being on our own. Your turning process is almost complete, we will have an abundance of help now in whatever way we need."

"We're leaving? I think I might actually miss this place."

"Mm, good times," Andrea chuckled. "You'll see it again, don't worry. Tomorrow we go to Wales. My grandfather's estate. We'll stay there while you get used to your new body, your new needs. Family members will want to meet you." She paused thoughtfully. "They will be quite shocked at your progress."

"What's he like?"

"Who?"

"Your grandfather..."

"Ah, well. He's not actually my grandfather and he's been dead for twenty years. He was an old familiar who did a lot of work for the family in return for favours. The property was purchased on behalf of us," she explained.

Haley was only half listening. She was relishing the feel of Andrea's body next to her and all the magnetism it exuded. They had been going at each other for hours, finally tapering off into gentle love-making and now just clinging to each other and talking. Their verbal communications were more of a pleasure than a necessity.

"I can't believe how good sex is now. You never told me that part of turning."

"I wasn't very aware of it myself. I knew your senses would be more acute but sex has never been like this for me either. It's unique to us. It's embarrassing but... I honestly never got much pleasure from sex until that first night with you."

"Really... But you're so good at it."

"I tried for years, but even with other Bloods I didn't get much out of it. I found being with somebody I didn't care about extremely off-putting, any connection I tried to make failed because I didn't really want it. I never cared about anyone except you. Ever. I told you I needed you."

Haley was silent for a while. She didn't need to be told anymore, Haley could feel it, and not just now, but the history of it, the full weight of it. Just as she could now easily see her own need for Andrea.

"It's exactly like you said. We're bonded."

"And now that you are one of us, our link is ultimate. I'd heard stories about this kind of power with close bonds but I had no real comprehension of it. I only knew I needed you."

"Why did you keep trying with people you knew it wouldn't work with?"

"I wanted to make an effort, maybe I needed to prove it was fruitless. I gave up eventually. Don't tell me you can't identify with the concept of acting as-if?"

"No," Haley nodded. "You know me, an actress through and through. But not with you, never with you." She stroked her stomach. "Why didn't you come for me sooner?"

"The stars..." Andrea spoke softly. "I thought about you so much over the years. What you were like at this age, what you were doing at that. We can be very obsessive and single-minded once we get an idea in our heads, especially when it involves love. When my family realized that I wasn't going to forget about you and that maybe I shouldn't, they gave me a warning. They said that if I was really serious I needed to stay away until we were 25. The age we stay at and the age I could successfully turn you. After that, there were things that needed to fall into place on your side of things. I had so much doubt about whether it would ever happen. Having you here with me like this is everything I ever wanted."

Haley still loved to hear Andrea talk.

"Thank you for coming."

"Thank you."

"Everything is going to be okay now."

"Yes. We will be great. Maybe a little co-dependent," Andrea smiled, "but great."

"I'm nervous about meeting your family properly."

"Don't be. You'll see, they'll love you like I do."

"I hope not like you do."

"Yes. You will be required to join in the family orgies," Andrea stated and Haley looked up at her.

"I'm joking!" she laughed. "Your face... No one else would ever even touch you again if I had my way," she said and Haley relaxed back against her.

"I bet you broke some serious hearts over the years," Haley mused.

"I wasn't promiscuous by any stretch of the imagination. Why, were you?"

"God, no. I'm just saying, the people you tried to make a go of it with... Wait, are they still alive?"

Andrea gave her a low growl and smacked her arm.

"...Hmm ...maybe one or two," she admitted.

"That's my girl," Haley chuckled.

END

About the Author

I started writing in June 2017. My plan was to write four short stories, all following similar themes and styles. They were to be experimental, to see what I was capable of and which direction my mind would go in. With the third story I swerved off course a bit but that's okay, it was interesting. I think my next four will probably follow more fantasy-horror themes than these. Maybe. I have not shown these stories to anyone prior to publishing on smashwords so have had no external input; any feedback at all would therefore be appreciated

Other titles by Sasha McCallum

Bathrooms & Psychiatric Offices

The Reader & the Writer

The Lake

The Arrangement

Daughter of Night

Said the Spider

Oculi

Pretty Ugly Place

Tinderbox

Connect with Sasha McCallum

mccallumsasha@gmail.com

Sample of The Lake

Chapter 1

Her mother's face was pale and drawn in the Skype window, her expression somehow both worried and guarded. Lauren herself had made an effort to look more presentable for the weekly call, applying make-up, fixing her hair and clothing and pushing her tone to be less mechanical without seeming forcibly cheery. Her mother was a smart woman and she knew Lauren well.

"I am glad you are painting again," she said, not looking particularly glad at all. "It's good therapy." She sounded helpless, hopeless and another twist of guilt hit Lauren full force. She did not like doing this to her, but it was necessary.

"You look terrible, Ma. You look worse than I feel."

"No. I am okay, I worry about you out there in the back of beyond by yourself, that's all."

Lauren knew. She knew the only reason her mother wasn't here now was because her father had convinced her that what Lauren needed were time and space. She was grateful to him for that.

"I just want to paint. There are things I need to work through," Lauren filled in the silence with unnecessary words.

"I know," her mother responded with a momentary expression of pain before she managed to wipe it away. "You have the heart of an artist, you should never have stopped." An apologetic glance then; she was uncomfortable telling Lauren what she should or should not have done.

"Ma, listen. Don't give anyone else my address, okay? I really need to be left alone for a while. No doubt you will be asked questions."

"Leave it to me," her mother nodded slowly. "Lauren..." she looked like a lost puppy, "...stay warm," she finished awkwardly.

Lauren felt like crying, she struggled to maintain an appropriate outward demeanor.

"I will. I love you, Ma."

Lauren had been awake for three days. It was four o'clock in morning and she had abandoned her work for the night, having painted solidly for the past 12 hours. She sat in the back porch with the lights off and watched the storm flashing over the lake. It was a rough night, the roughest she'd ever seen here. She enjoyed the tiny dots of color circling in her peripheral vision, the effect of being awake too long. A contented smile played at the corners of her mouth. She would make this last as long as possible. No sleep for the wicked.

But her head lolled on the back of her chair and she dropped off. She knew it had happened when she woke with a start to a clap of thunder. It was still dark and she still felt delirious so she can't have been out for very long. Something caught her eye; in a flash of light over the lake she spotted a dark figure near the water's edge.

She felt a surge of fear when she first saw it, perhaps because she hadn't quite regained full consciousness after her mini nap and she briefly wondered if she were still dreaming. Or hallucinating. It struck her though that it didn't really matter. As she watched, her fear was replaced by calm, simple curiosity.

Now she knew where it was she could discern the figure without the aid of lightning. A human certainly, battered by the wind, with loose material billowing violently around it. Lauren watched in silent fascination until the time came when she was both sure it wasn't a hallucination and that the person may be in need of assistance. Far be it from her to interfere with someone's 4am bout of eccentricity but a part of her was overly curious. Maybe she wanted to get in on it herself, she was at that stage of her prolonged wakefulness. She exited her enclosed porch via the ranch slider and raised her head to the angry, wet sky. Yes, she thought, a good night to be alive. A living night if ever there was one. She made her way slowly down the path toward the water line, delighting in the swirling raindrops, wind and darkness around her. Perhaps she would get lost in it, or walk right into the water and never come out again. The wistful smile played at her mouth and she squinted her eyes against the weather.

She searched and dimly picked out the figure still standing in the same place at the water's edge. She stopped and observed it from the closer distance. The billowing darkness was a long skirt and long, loose hair. Wild, Lauren thought. A wild woman; untamed. As she watched the figure dropped to the ground, somewhat surprising her with its sudden movement. Perhaps she had passed out, or died. She searched the surrounding forest and edges of the lake for any possible companions but found none.

Lauren made her way closer and stood over her, slightly concerned. The woman lay on her back, eyes open and directed at the sky. She was obviously conscious. When she saw Lauren a flicker of surprise entered her eyes, then returned to the darkness above her without further reaction. Maybe she was prone to hallucinations as well, Lauren pondered and lay down on her back beside her trying to figure out what was so interesting about the overhead view.

Ah, yes. It was quite stunning, drops slewing towards them it was very much like being on a powerful drug. In fact, she thought, perhaps the woman was on drugs. It would explain a lot. Lauren herself was not, she was so far into her sleep deprived state she didn't need them.

Her clothes were soaked through and she was getting cold fast. She turned her head, stole a glance at the woman who lay beside her. She must be freezing, Lauren began to worry. Where was she from? What was she doing this for? Was she trying to kill herself? Under the circumstances, hypothermia was a very real possibility. Lauren decided to try to help. She rose and looked at the woman.

"You cannot stay there like that," she said, raising her voice above the wild weather. "Come up to the house with me. I'll give you something dry to put on." The woman peered up at her; she appeared to be considering the offer. She got up and followed Lauren back to the house, which was invisible in the darkness, in silence.
