Third Person, an alley in L.A.
Recommended song: Low by Kelly Clarkson
I sat there for hours. My phone rang four times before I turned it off. I didn't want to talk to anyone right now, and that wasn't going to change anytime soon. The first two times it rang, the caller had been Mick. The third time Guillermo called. The fourth time it rang was when Mick called again.
At least the sun was going down and I had drank blood back at the morgue. I didn't have to worry about my vampire needs for a little while.
I thought as I sat, thought long and hard. I wanted to go back home but I didn't want to see Mick. All I felt when I thought about him was betrayal.
Then there was my mother. She knew how badly I wanted to meet my dad. She could have told me Mick was my father before she left. I couldn't remember ever feeling like I wasn't able to trust my mom. Now that changed.
Betrayal was my main emotion in my thoughts about my mom and Mick, who I refused to think of as my dad.
I used to love my dad, even though I never knew him. He always remembered my birthday. I saved every card he ever wrote to me; he always wrote a long note about missing me so much and to never forget he loves me. It seemed like he actually loved me, but now...
Now I just felt betrayed. How could Mick not have told me?
My thoughts went back to my mom. She kept this hidden from me for fifteen years. That was my whole life. How could she let me go for fifteen years without meeting my dad? Did she care about my feelings at all?
It seemed like nobody did.
Guillermo apparently knew as well, meaning Josef probably did, too. Why did they never tell me? Had my mom and Mick asked them to never say anything about it to me? I remember asking Josef who my father was a few years ago. All I got was a sad smile and a "That's for you to know when you get a little older."
I was a little older since the time when I asked, so why did everyone keep me in the dark?
This whole situation could have been avoided if someone had just told me the truth.
Deep down I was happy that I found out who my father was. But I didn't like the way I found out, and I never would. I didn't like how it was kept a secret from me when Mick was right there.
What harm would it have done if I was told that Mick was my father? Why would it have been such a bad thing?
I was debating between staying here and going back home. I chose to stay here. The emotions-mainly hurt and betrayal-were still too strong for me to go back home.
I started to think I was mad for no reason. I was lucky to have a father who loves me (even though I was doubting it at the moment). Chloe had to suffer through abuse at the hands of her so-called father. She could lie all she wanted to and say it wasn't true, but I knew it was. I tried to keep this in mind, tried to keep thinking how lucky I was, but I couldn't help feeling angry.
Though I always hated being part vampire, I never blamed it on my father before. He was the reason I was a vampire, yet I never held it against him. Now that I knew Mick was my father, now that I knew he held that secret from me, I was mad. Maybe if I was completely human, I'd like human food. Who knows? But instead I had to be only part human, and the other part vampire, and that was Mick's fault. Maybe it was immature to think this way, blaming Mick for anything I possibly could. I wanted to be mad at him just for the sake of being mad at him. He held back the secret I considered to be most important to me. I figured I had every right to be mad at him.
Third Person, the morgue
Recommended song: Nobody's Home by Avril Lavigne
Mick's hands were almost shaking when he dialed Beth's cell phone number. How was he going to tell Beth that he lost their daughter? He was a father and his responsiblity was to take care of Vivian.
I failed as a parent, he thought. I've waited fifteen years to be able to see Vivian and I turned out to be a terrible father.
He was absolutely dreading this call.
"Hello?" Beth answered.
"Beth," Mick began. "Vivian knows. She found out."
Beth slightly gasped, but she did know her daughter, and it wasn't that much of a surprise that Vivian was able to uncover the truth.
"She got mad that I didn't tell her and she ran off." Mick hesitated before continuing. "I don't know where she went."
"No! My baby is missing. You have to find her, Mick!" Beth said frantically. "Have you tried calling her?"
"The first four times it rang before it went to voicemail. I guess she turned her phone off because after that it just went directly to voicemail."
"I'm taking the next flight home," Beth declared.
"I'm sorry," Mick whispered. "I should have ran after her. She just...hearing what she said...it made me freeze. I couldn't move. It's all my fault."
"Don't say that. It's my fault. I should've known Vivian would find out and react like this."
Mick sighed. "Neither one of us told her. It's not your fault."
"I have to call the airport and schedule a flight."
"Okay."
"And Mick? I love you."
Mick was silent for a moment, thinking things over. The last time they told each other of their love had been when their family was forced apart.
But he knew his answer. "I love you, too, Beth."
Although it was never spoken, they both knew what the other was thinking-they loved their daughter.
When the call was ended, Mick put his head in his hands. This was all his fault. He should have told Vivian from the beginning. Now he was the reason she ran away, totally losing contact with everyone. Everything could have been avoided if he had told his daughter the truth. What kind of father was he?
Mick had no idea where to start looking for Vivian. He figured he'd need all the help he could get, so he called someone who he could trust.
Josef was about to pull into the parking lot to drop Abby off at her hotel when his phone rang. When he answered it, he heard Mick say, "Vivian is missing."
"What's wrong?" Abby asked when Josef finished talking.
"My niece is missing. Vivian's technically not really my niece, but we're close."
"Let me help you find her."
Josef shook his head. "Abby, you've been on a plane all day. You should relax."
"I want to help." Abby was right to the point.
"Fine. We're going to the morgue to see Mick, Vivian's father."
Abby stared at Josef for a moment. "There's something else I should know, isn't there?"
Josef waited to reply until a minute later. "Things are...complicated for Vivian. She's never met Mick until this week and she just found out that he's her father. She got mad and ran off."
"Well then don't wait here any longer. We have to find her."
Josef didn't hesitate to turn the car around, driving above the speed limit to make it to the morgue in record time. He and Abby immediately got out of the car when they pulled into the parking lot. They quickly went inside, not wasting any time.
Josef couldn't remember the last time he had seen Mick like this. His friend was pacing, obvious worry taking over his face.
"Do you have any idea where she could have gone?" Josef asked.
Mick shook his head. "I have no clue. She just ran out of here. I knew I should have followed her. But what she said made me freeze. I wasn't thinking fast enough to stop her."
"We'll find her," Josef stated, trying to keep his voice confident. "Between all of us, we'll find her. Mick, this is Abby. She wants to help find Vivian."
"Thank you," Mick said, sincerity in his voice. He pulled out the school picture of Vivian from this year that Beth had given him and handed it to Abby. "She's fifteen. She's about five feet and four inches."
"She's beautiful." Abby's whisper held sorrow. "We'll be able to find her, Mick. Don't worry."
"We should all go in different directions," Guillermo said. "That way we'll find her faster."
The four of them left the morgue, each one travelling on foot in a different direction. Abby kept looking at Vivian's picture. She compared it to every girl she saw that appeared to be around fifteen, desperately trying to find Vivian.
Mick felt like his life had just been taken away from him. Finally, after fifteen years, he could see his daughter. Now Vivian hated him, and Beth would never forgive him if they didn't find-
No. They would find her. He couldn't think like that.
Abby was passing an alley when she caught the scent of blood. She stopped abruptly, looking down the narrow passage. Near the fence, curled up in a ball, was what appeared to be a person. She cautiously approached, staying alert.
She could tell it was a girl. Walking closer, her hope faded when she discovered that it wasn't Vivian. But she realized the girl was badly hurt, and Abby would not walk away knowing she could have done something to help.
The girl had red hair that fell in thick curls. A bruise had formed on her cheek, looking like it had been a particularly painful injury. Her clothes were torn, causing the girl to shiver. Abby could smell blood, some dried and some from fresh cuts.
Even though this was not Vivian, Abby was too compassionate to leave the girl alone. She was a doctor, a pediatrician, and it was her job to make sure the girl was okay.
"Can you tell me what happened?" Abby questioned softly.
The girl gasped when she heard Abby speak, slightly scared when she realized someone was there beside her. "He...he did this." She released no further information. Her voice was quiet, as if she was scared to speak louder.
"Who's he, sweetheart?" Abby kept her tone gentle in order to keep the girl from becoming more frightened than she already was.
"My father." She paused for a moment, then continued, "He was drunk and then he passed out. I ran away while I had the chance."
That was awful, just beyond awful. Abby was disgusted by the girl's father and she hadn't even met him. How could someone do that to their daughter? She thought back to how worried Mick was about Vivian, how he would do anything to get her back safely. Why couldn't all fathers be like that? Why couldn't all fathers be full of love like Mick was for his daughter? Abby felt like crying for the terrible situation this poor girl was forced to go through.
"I'm a doctor. I'm going to see what I can do to help you feel better." Abby's voice was soft and comforting. "By the way, my name is Abby. What's your name, sweetie?"
The girl shook her head. "I already said too much. Please, just...leave me alone."
But Abby wasn't going to do that. This girl in front of her was abused, in no shape to be left alone. "Everything is going to be okay. Honey, please tell me your name."
"Chloe," the girl whispered.
