Written by Sara Watson
Disclaimer: Laurell owns the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter Series.
TopCow owns Witchblade, Fathom, Darkness, and the other comic characters in this story.
I own the original characters.
Chapter One
My mind was running away from me as the wind from the rolled down window spilled through my dark hair. The image in the side view mirror mimicked my mood. My brown hair was flowing out behind me. The back window of Cameron's truck was wide open. My hair seemed to flow out of that too. My eyes were distant. Like two tiny brown animals burrowing beneath thin dirt lines. The small black spots under my eyes revealed just how tired I have been lately. My lips quivered at the chill of the brisk tease of the wind. This August night wasn't too kind on my bare skin. I suppose I shouldn't be wearing what I have on either. A white tank top midriff bearing shirt was covered barely by a white cotton shirt with my favorite pair of blue jeans. The knees of these 'perfect pants' were torn out. Just the way I like them. I'm still carrying a gun. Inner pants holster, thank you, and a silver cross. I'm slowly wearing myself and my soul away. My mindless chatter will soon become nothing more than a ploy to keep me sane. What the hell have I been eating?
The night sky was so much like a reverie. The beautiful purple clouds wove its way through my mind. I kept drifting back to a time when I was under water. I kept questioning myself as to why the hell didn't I just grab one of my other guns in my holsters. Was I that out of it? Selena did get a pretty good kick in on me. Damn, I sure do feel stupid now.
My shoulders felt tense under the half moon that graced itself on the sky tonight. My heart continued to tell me something wasn't right. It thudded differently. Oddly, under the feel of my hand that rested calmly on my chest. The beat gave my mind the feel that something was going to change. Maybe there will be deja vu. That's Matrix talk for you. Maybe I'll actually realize why the hell I'm letting Cameron get so close to me. Maybe it's just the mood tonight. Maybe I'm overreacting. I'm betting on overreacting. It could be that Cameron is actually getting to me. That could be what's different. Screw that. Something bad is gonna happen.
Cameron's hand danced its way around the steering wheel as he turned quickly into my graveled down driveway. The white panel I recently paid for almost glowed under the moon's radiance. The long stemmed red and white roses I planted yesterday in front of my living room window left a deep, skinny shadowed mark along the wall. It swayed back and forth as the wind caught use of it. The grass in my yard was nearly ankle deep. Time to cut it again. Hey, I haven't been home lately. It seems the guys that show some form of interest in me always end up taking me home with them. Next thing you know, a werebat will be dragging me home. I can just see it now. My claws in the dirt, scrapping away. His toes carefully entangling my legs. Me kicking and screaming at him, begging him to let me go. He takes me to his lair. I watch him shit his bat poop everywhere. I must stop this. I'm the queen of the bats. No need for this extra added on stress. It's not like I'm stressed enough. My best friend leaves me alone to die. Well not die, I was already in the hospital. It's just the idea. She leaves me alone with him.
I flick my eyes to the corner, making sure Cameron doesn't notice me looking at him. His brown hair was waving in the August winds. His brown Polo shirt only brought out his eyes more. Those beautiful chocolate eyes catch me by surprise every time. They can melt me down to nothing any day. I think he knows that. He uses it on me any chance he gets. Lust is such a powerful thing.
"Your house is very unique." His left eyebrow was raised. I'm suggesting he expected something quite different. His bad.
My eyesight flowed out in front of me. Ahh. The feel of home raced back into my veins. I wanted to jump out of the truck. Kiss the ground. Hug my house. Damn, being away from home can be painful. Not to mention embarrassing.
"Yeah, it's home alright." I opened the truck, stepping out into the dark civilization. A smile spread across my lips as I took in a large deep breath. Cameron's laugh was muffled a little by the inside of the truck. I stepped forward slowly, stretching just a bit from the long ride. Watching a three hour movie can be horrible on someone's muscles. I extended my arms out into the mist of the night. Letting my power overflow me. It reached out into the deepest shadows. The hallowest openings. There was no tug, no feel. Just a few lonely spaces of empty heartbeats. A smile returned to my face. There was nothing out... There. In the house, someone's in there. I felt it like a small bug landing on your hair. It's a tiny feeling, but you know it's there. My body began to slip away into immediate self-defense. I turned my head back to see Cameron walking up to me. He noticed my panic.
He leaned down to me with a worried look riding on his features. His voice came out dripped in heavy fears.
"What's wrong?"
My hands were reaching for my gun. "Someone's in my house."
"I'm going call the police."
"Aight." He ran back to his truck, started it up, and was off. Damn, he trusts my feelings and my intuition. He surely was infatuated with me.
Okay Sara. Think. Have I felt this power before? Don't know. Only one way to be sure. I stretched out my arms again. My chest heaved up and down as I took in a deep breath. Yes, I know that power. From where? My mind was racing through stored up facts. Pulling up names and faces I'd thought I had long forgotten. Claudia, Barkley, Killian, Andromeda. My heart stopped beating for a few seconds. It was Andromeda.
Her five feet eight inch frame slowly walked out of my house clapping. I looked up to see her wearing one of my white tank tops. Her face was arranged in a beautiful collection of overused hatred. Her smile was jaded. Fake as anything else on her. The green eyes that seemed to burn through me held even more hatred than her face. What the hell did I do to her? Her beautiful long hair was held together in a tight braid that flowed behind her. She was wearing black jeans that would have been loose on me. Unfortunately for her, it was tight and too short.
"Bravo Sara. You finally figured out who I was."
My mind began to cloud. How the hell did she know?
"I know what you are thinking," she walked up closer to me, revealing more of my clothing.
"I like the cross you have on. Did you ever think of buying one?"
Her laughter pierced the night. Her green eyes stared down at me in a shimmering shade of hatred. She was trying to intimidate me. Doesn't work.
I rolled my eyes slightly. I wanted her to know that I didn't fear her, but I didn't want to leave her unattended.
She walked closer to me, taking a few steps behind me, placing a hand on my shoulder. My entire body was one tense, tight muscle. If I had to move now, I doubt I'd be able to make it in time. She'd kill me.
The grip she had on my shoulder tightened when two headlights gleamed its way past us.
Her eyes returned back to me in a fit of terror.
"Sara, I bet you have no clue why I'm here."
"Well aren't you just brilliant."
She squeezed my shoulder tighter. I didn't even make a sound. No need to give her anything to boost her enthusiasm. Her face was right next to mine. Just not in front of mine. I could feel her breath through my hair.
"It'll be nice when you're not around."
"Missing Cameron, bitch?"
Her hand held on to my shoulder tighter. My gun was hidden in my right hand beside my breast. She stared down at me with a look of pure hate.
"You may have his attention now, but I'm the one he'll come back to fuck."
"Well that's good. I wouldn't have sex with him anyway."
She took back her hand, cradling it against her. Her eyes held something distant in them now. Like she didn't understand. She stepped a few feet forward until she was directly in front of me. She bent down, making eye-to-eye contact with me. The brown of my eyes were reflecting back at me. Her green eyes were like little mirrors revealing a deep dark hole inside her. There was nothing there. I'm guessing Cameron was her soul. Her true honest soul.
"You think you're better than he is? That he isn't worth a fuck? Believe me, he's the best sex I've ever had."
I laughed in her face. "You would know."
She grabbed my throat, raising me a few inches off the ground. My feet were frantically trying to keep my balance. She raised me high enough to which I could see her face to face without her bending over. Her face held an arrogant expression that would have pissed me off more, but hey, look who's off her toes. My gun was dangling in my fingers.
"Don't play with me." A light flashed over her face. We both turned our heads to see a car coming.
She began to put me down until the car passed my road right up. Hurry up Cameron.
"I heard Cameron only likes you because of your power."
A smile curled its way upon my face.
"Why are you smiling?"
"Nothing really. Just thinking about the last time I kissed Cameron."
She tightened her grip on my throat. I gasped, letting my gun drop to the ground. My voice came out as a harsh whisper. "His lips are so soft. I nearly fell in love with him that moment."
"Lies, lies. You're a lying bitch."
"I know you can smell a lie. You know I'm not lying."
She turned around with my throat in her hands. My feet were barely touching the ground. Scraping the grass, trying to catch myself. She kept turning until we both faced my living room window. In a moment as quick as lightning, she lifted me above her head, and threw me like a rag doll through my window. My face smashed against the window, it cracked against my skin. I felt warm liquid running down my neck, as my legs were jammed into the wall. They began to grow numb. Like they separated from my body. My heart was in my throat as my body crashed onto my black leather couch. My right hand knocked my black lampshade onto the floor. Glass was falling down on my face, mixing with my blood. I quickly tried to put my hands in front of my face, but my right hand wouldn't move. I think it might be broken. My left hand covered my face to shield me. The glass fell all around me. Against my legs, my stomach, my neck. I tried to move to the side to escape some of the fallen glass, but I couldn't move. I was stuck. My body began to slowly loosen itself up. I was either going to pass out or numb my entire body. I'd take the numbing part right now. Andromeda might have a good meal of me if I pass out.
The pain began to fade away until Andromeda's green eyes swam into my vision. I immediately tried to sit up, but she placed her hands on my face. Her voice was breathy, like she'd been running for a while. My heart sped up. I caught it in my throat, beating like a mad man against my neck. My fear was running over me as her hands slowly wiped some of the blood off my neck.
"I can feel your pulse like a drum in my head. It excites me, Sara. I want to lick the blood off your neck right now, but a lupa must control herself."
I was almost to the point of yelling. "Just like when you screwed the other werewolves? Did you control yourself then? When you broke Cameron's heart the first time, did it feel good?"
Her eyes fell to the ground. She was feeling remorse. Maybe even pity. Pity for herself. What a worthless emotion.
"They needed me."
"Sure they did."
Her anger flared over my flesh. "How would you know? You are only a human. Just because you're the bats den mother doesn't mean you know anything about wolves."
My smile returned. "There's only one word to sum up what you are."
Her face came in lower to mine. "What is that word, Sara?"
"Slut."
Her hand slammed against my forehead like a freight train hitting a car. My body was nearly swallowed by my couch. Andromeda screamed outloud in desperation when she heard a door shut outside. She came running at me with her arms outstretched in sheer panic. I immediately sat up. I reached for my ankle holster praying the gun didn't get smacked out when I hit the wall. The feel of cool metal touched my skin. Yes, it was there. I quickly jerked it out, but she was on me. She knocked us both on the ground. My head bounced off my black lacquer table my grandmother gave me years ago. My body was pinned to the ground as Andromeda tried to rip my clothes off. I heard Cameron's voice yelling in through the window. Andromeda never budged. Her hands grabbed my shirt and bra and ripped them off in one piece. I screamed when she pulled a bit of my skin with it. Blood came pouring out of my side. She bent her head over, trying to get a better view. My breathing became jagged and edgy. I was going to hyperventilate. I saw Cameron's feet as he stepped inside the door. Andromeda's face was almost buried into my stomach. She licked my side, and I screamed. Habit took over from there. I raised my gun into her face. She tried to back away from me but I came too fast. I pulled the trigger, one, two, three times. Both Cameron and I watched her fall back onto the floor with three bullets in her head. Blood and brains were flowing onto my floor. Her eyes flickered open. She briefly looked up at Cameron smiling. Her last words were, "I will always love you."
Cameron's shocked eyes glared down at Andromeda in horror. His chest was heaving. He was about to throw up. His cheekbones were sharp and deep. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Oh God. I hurt him. Shit, I'm hurt. The pain in my side was immediate and thorough. It felt like a three degree burn. I tried to stand up, but my legs decided to remind me how numb they were. I sat there holding my hurt arm against me, while a fire truck, ambulance, and police car came. How did Cameron know I'd need an ambulance?