Deadly Morganville Chapter 9

You'll never want to leave…

Disclaimer: I only own Cecile. Rachael Caine created Morganville Vampires.

please review what you thought :)


Michael's warm, but pulse lacking hand lingered under my chin for only a heartbeat. His eyes were full of knowledge and understanding.

"Michael! Game on!" a voice yelled from back downstairs. A hint of a smirk played at the corners of Michael's mouth.

"Is there a third controller?" I asked him. Mike seemed surprised at that.

"Uh, yeah I think there is." He finally answered after giving it some thought. I grinned up to him, I loved playing video games!

He smiled back. "Better not keep the man waiting." He opened the door then and headed downstairs to his friend. I stayed back for a second to get my thoughts straightened out. This had to be his room. I realised this when I looked at the noticeable contents.

He was a tidy guy. A made bed, clothes put away, curtains drawn.

I tip toed out of the room not wanting to over stay my welcome. A thought occurred to me, why would Michael ask – well think – if I had a place to stay? It seemed rather peculiar to me.

I looked right from the door down the hall. Three other rooms where there. The girls and Shane must live in them. Unless Shane camped downstairs with the telly all night long.

As I descended the stairs, one step in particular creaked. Only softly though, but I could clearly hear it. Michael looked in my direction for no particular reason and returned his gaze to the TV screen. My damp socks betrayed me when I stepped onto the main floor; they slipped from under me making me flail for the staircase railing. Shane looked over to me then, I had made enough noise to get the attention of an army. He looked concerned for a moment before he noticed who I was.

"Mikey, you never said we had visitors." He said before finding his manners and nodding his greeting to me. I righted myself and gained balance on my socks.

"In my defence," Michael said. "You never asked."

"And technically I'm only one person." I corrected Shane's sentence for him. That got me a look only a mother could love from Shane.

"Smart arse." Shane muttered turning back around.

Michael tossed me a controller –much to Shane's horror- and to my surprise, the girl who was always picked last in Baseball games actually caught the controller. I was quite chuffed with myself while I shuffled over to the couches.

"Are you any good?" Shane questioned.

"Pffft. Any good?" I repeated planting my posterior next to him. I bet I could beat you without reading your mind. I thought to myself with a smirk.

Shane must have taken what I said the wrong way 'cause boy was he surprised when I kicked his arse.

Time flew by while I survived the Zombie Apocalypse. Shane and Michael were baffled as to how I had beaten them. That's what you get for spending a heck of a lot of time playing video games with your older brother.

"Best to fifteen." Shane said in disbelief and rubbing his confused head staring at the screen.

"Dinner!" I heard be called out before I got to answer him.

"Some other time maybe." I said and smiled innocently to him.

I heard Mike chuckle before he put his controller down.

The food they called dinner consisted of Macaroni cheese and sausages that looked like an afterthought.

"Dig in." Claire said.

I was tempted by the enticing smell of the golden food, but my guilty conscious reminded me of what I had nearly done. It spoiled my appetite just thinking about it. I really wanted to apologise to Eve, even if she hadn't noticed the danger she was in.

I'm dreadfully sorry Eve. Trust me when I say I didn't mean it.

From the corner of my eye I saw Eve lift her head up and look at me, but then shook her head and returned to setting the table.

My plate was reasonably full after I had finally gotten the serving cutlery. My first bite was a cautious one. I still wasn't entirely sure if I could eat the food I once could.

My taste buds starting having a party full of flavour once the Mac had touched my tongue. I couldn't get enough of the food, it was yum!

Claire must have seen me shovelling my food because she giggled and commented on my hunger.

"Did Eve find you out in the dessert?"

"Seems like it." Eve laughed.

"Hey! Leave my friend alone, she has a healthy appetite." Shane in his shining armour intervened.

Michael nearly chocked when Shane had said that. My eyes snapped to him, in fact all eyes locked on him.

Please don't tell them. Not yet. I willed him.

Michael dislodged the food by hitting his chest.

"Wrong hole." He huskily apologised.

Dinner had continued as any normal feast. Afterwards we retired into the living room to digest.

We spread ourselves around the room, Michael and I sat on opposite ends of one couch and Shane and Claire were on the single seater. Eve was on the floor.

"So Cecile, how long have you been in Morganville?" Eve asked looking up to me from her position on her belly.

"A few days." I replied. "I came for school."

"I thought I recognised you!" Claire said pulling away from the snuggle her and Shane were in. Anybody would think they're in a relationship.

I raised a brow to her. "You went to TPU?" I queried her.

"I still do." She replied matter-of-factly.

"Don't hate me for saying this, but I thought you were in high school." I said to her. Claire opened her mouth to reply, but Shane interrupted and said,

"Long story. She's a nerd," Claire punched him in the arm.

"Ow! Let me finish. She got sent up a year, was too good for that. Then she got put into smarter classes and is now getting extra tutoring from a Va-"

"Shane!" Eve hissed. Claire's eyes widened, Shane bit his tongue and looked to his feet and Michael sat back in his seat looking smug.

I knew what he was about to say, but I desperately tried to look for an alternative word so the topic wouldn't arise. But my mission failed and I was forced to ask,

"A, what?" I tried looking completely oblivious to the fact that he was about to say Vampire.

"You're dead Collins." Eve muttered turning herself into a sitting position.

"This town isn't normal Cecile." Claire said slowly and surprisingly calmly.

The three of them looked off edge though; Michael and I stayed Founder serene.