2. Scarred Past

I drained another vial when the thirst was getting hard to control (which was often). It has been a couple of months since the whole transformation deal, and every one in the mansion had adjusted to the point of it being the normal routine. I had visited Keah on the beach secretly. We understood each other. It turns out she understood more of my life better than anyone could. As a parting, I would give her a kiss on the cheek after each meeting.

My new birth as a vampire has been the best thing that happened to me. I can now lift things more than thirty times my own weight (and still counting! I haven't been able to get my hands on anything more than that), I can run almost as fast as the speed of light (okay, maybe not that fast, but pretty close!), and I have ultra-sensitive senses. It's been quite a trip! I love it!

"Hey, Caleb?" Jas said as she watched me throw the vial away. It shattered at the bottom of the bin. I scowled at the mess.

"Hmm?" I looked back at her.

"What do you want to do today?" She was calm and lying on my bed.

"I haven't thought about it yet."

We sat in silence for a while. She shifted on the bedding to look at me. "Can you hear Dad?" she smiled.

"Yes, I could if I concentrated, but I don't want to. Right now I want to take a shower."

She frowned as I walked into the bathroom off of my room and shut the door. I turned the hot water on, and then littered my clothes in a small corner. The room was filled with steam in no time. I climbed into the falling water with the hot on all the way. I stood there with the water on my back for a long time. A mint smell drifted up to my nose; breaking my trance. I sniffed a couple times to find where it was coming from.

Turns out, my shampoo bottle's cap was open and the shampoo was dripping from it. I rolled my eyes at myself and called myself a retard. I emptied some of the mint shampoo into my hand, threw the bottle into the position it was before and scrubbed the soap into my hair. The hot water washed it out soon after I placed it under the stream. The water ran down my back with no end. Then, I sighed and regrettably turned the water off. I draped a towel around my waste and opened the door. The glass fogged up immediately. Hanging on to the towel, I searched my drawers for at least something to wear. I ended up with some jeans and a white button-up shirt. I also grabbed a long metallic, embroidered silver robe on to block my face and body from the sun.

As I slipped on the right sleeve, my shoulder tingled. I looked at it. Then I saw the scars of which I'd gotten from hell fire. Hell-scars are different than what you think. They kill even when barely even touched, but my whole right shoulder got caught in the blaze. At first they were pitch black and it hurt like shit! I was six when I had obtained these, and yet I still wonder why I still live. A pentagram was in the middle of everything, but instead of being black, they are a whitish pinkish color. They became that color about a month after the incident. I examined them for a while. I haven't any feeling in the shoulder since, so why had they tingled. They never have before. I shrugged the shirt the rest of the way on and buttoned it up.

I had promised to meet someone earlier in the week. Dad had set it up, so I have no idea who I was meeting. I trudged down the hall towards the front door (the door out if the den is the back door). The chestnut doors opened when I entered the large stone room. The bodyguards were standing tall and ready (crap). I sighed and slumped towards the circle of black robes. They followed me out another set of wooden doors and to a small horse drawn carriage. The driver had his face covered by his top hat and his high-collared coat. He opened the door open for me as I approached. I stepped in without a word. The red satin seats were bathed in the golden sunlight. Shortly after I sat down, the coach jolted and started to move forward. The horses' hooves clopped along the cobblestone path onto the dirt road leading to town. I stared at my white hands as the carriage bounced on the uneven ground.

"So, how was your morning Caleb?"

This shocked me. No other person except my family and some excepted personnel could call me by my name. "You are not permitted to call me by name," I growled.

"Oh, yes I am," he murmured.

"Excuse me?"

He pulled over, and switched with one of the guards. The door opened and he climbed in across from me. He was laughing slightly.

"Get out," I said coldly.

"Come on! Is that any way to talk to your older brother?"

He pulled off his hat to reveal himself.

"Rider?!"

He was my brother! Rider Winters, my blood brother. His face was almost the same as the last time I saw him.

"I thought you moved to Cerex!"

"I did, but I wanted to come see my little brother. I would've come sooner, but it was difficult getting out of the country at the time! King and Jullien have put more restrictions on leaving for Moradia." He rolled his eyes. "Anyways, since I have an inside source, they let me slide, but still going through paper work and other nonessential stuff.

"It's getting nice over there. I wish you could see it! The flowers are in full bloom and the phoenixes are everywhere! It's completely amazing!"

The carriage jolted and turned onto another road.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

He grinned the grin he always smiled when he was doing something mischievous. "To the very edge. A place in Moradia where you can see into Cerex."

I smiled back. I took off my hood since I figured I didn't need it where we were going.

"So, how are you faring in Cerex?"

"Oh, helping out in the royal library. . ." His smile faded. "Mom says she wants you there as soon as possible. . . She also says she loves you. . ." He watched me carefully.

I stared at him. He knew what I thought of our mother. A traitor. She left me crying on the steps of the Moradain Palace; she never looked back. I was about five then. After all this time, I still held that against her.

"We have a sister."

My eyes opened wider.

"Yeah, her name is Anya; she's about ten now. She asks about when she's going to meet you."

I couldn't speak. I have a little sister! Damn. . .

"She's there isn't she?"

"Hm?"

"Anya."

"OH! Yeah, she's there."

We were silent for the rest of the trip. I replaced my hood on my cloak. Meeting Anya was not the first thing I wanted to do, but I am with my brother. He helped me through Vincent's torture. But ever since I was taken in by the Lucre family, he went to Cerex to stay with our mother. Or should I say, his mother. My mother was Hannah now; not Kayla. I despised both of my parents at the age of five. Neither Vincent nor Kayla are my mother or father. And Anya will never be as close as I am to Jas.

The carriage stopped. Rider got up and opened the door. He waited for me to follow. I considered running away, but remembered that I wouldn't see Rye for a while after this. I stumbled out of the cart, and followed him though the thicket of the forest. We emerged from the bushes to come across a grassy cliff. I picked some speed and walked out to the edge.

Rider was right. I could see the blooming cherry trees and the phoenixes flying above the clouds. There were so many colors; there was purple, gold, red, and so many others. I stared up to ski in awe.

"Rider!" A small girl ran out of nowhere and slammed into Rye. I examined them curiously. Then I realized that the girl was Anya. She looked almost exactly like Rider.

"Hey, Anya!" He gave her a choke-hold hug. "Have you been behaved for Mom?" He raised his eye-brow.

Her face reddened.

He laughed and looked at me.

"You know, you don't need the cloak. She already knows. . ." He looked down.

I glared. He shouldn't have known either. "How did you know?" I growled.

"Well. . . The Crofts knew and they told Mom, who told us. . . Caleb, I wanted to be there so badly! But I couldn't get past the Royal Guard without the Crofts knowing. I'm sorry. . ."

Sadness colored his eyes. I sighed, and gave him an apologetic look. "Its fine, I guess. I was just shocked that she knew as well."

Anya looked at me with a confused look. Then smiled widely.

"Big Brother!" she screamed. She ran from Rider and slammed into me. "You're my small-big brother right?"

I stared at her. As I was focused on Anya, Rider pulled my hood off. He also stripped the whole cloak off.

My skin literally shimmered. I glared at him with a killing look. He smiled back and threw the robes on a nearby log.

We talked and played for hours. Anya couldn't get her fill of me. She wanted to know everything about me; my favorite color, about Dad and Jas, and (regrettably) my love life. I grew silent on the subject. I told her that I didn't want to talk about it. She just shrugged and asked about my other favorite things.

And, then it happened. My right shoulder was engulfed with pain.

"CALEB!?"

I curled up on the ground clutching my shoulder. The pain was getting worse, and it was spreading. I was able to hold back the worst of my screams.

"Caleb? Is it the scars?" Rider whispered in my ear.

I didn't want to open my mouth, so I merely nodded. His hands lifted me up into his arms. I clenched my teeth hard.

"Rider? What's wrong with Caleb?" Anya's voice was strangled with fear.

"Anya, go home to Mom," Rider ordered.

"Why?!"

"Just do it!"

She left with some of the bodyguards.

We got to the mansion late. The guards helped carry me in.

"What's going on here?!" William stormed into the room.

They lowered me onto the velvet couch as if I were very fragile glass. I was still writhing in pain. Rider removed my shirt sleeve, but I couldn't help make it easy for him.

"No," Rider whispered.

"What the hell happened?"

I managed to open my eyes long enough to see that my hell-scars became black again. Then I passed out.

I awoke in my bed; the covers scattered around me. I must have been turning around again. But I haven't done that since the scars. . . I looked at my shoulder to find that they were covered by violet bandages. I made a go at them, but a hand caught mine in the attempt.

"Oh, no you don't."

Rider looked exhausted. I pushed myself up with my right arm. Although it was really sore, I made no sound or gave away that it bothered me. Our eyes still held each other as he shifted up into a sitting position as well.

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