Thank you so much for the lovely reviews! I found this chapter quite frustrating to write. I wanted to get it done and out of the way without rushing it. Eight characters in one place at the same time, trying to give each character something to say or do without being pointless; I literally wanted to bang my head against a brick wall. Let me know what you think about this chapter and if there is anything that could be improved upon.


Grandpa stood outside Lucy's front door with a stuffed raccoon under his arm as a gift for the "happy couple". Although it was saddening to say goodbye to such a fine piece of work, it was his duty to protect his daughter and if that meant having to sit through dinner with Max then so be it. Grandpa knew he had to give Lucy the impression that he was making an effort, it would be easier to talk her out of the marriage if she didn't think he was set against it from the start. The door opened and Grandpa was met by Max.

Max politely introduced himself, extending his hand to shake the old man's. He knew he had to play nice, for Lucy's sake, though that didn't mean Lucy's father wasn't an unwanted nuisance. His own boys were already causing enough complications as it was and Lucy's father was just adding another to an already volatile mix.

Grandpa forced himself to return the loathsome bloodsucker's welcoming gesture. Grandpa pulled his hand free of the creature's grasp and replaced it with the raccoon. "I brought you and Lucy this!"

"Thank you!" Max said, taken by surprise as the raccoon was thrust upon him with force. It was certainly a unique gift, one that had earned itself a place out of sight in the basement. Max invited Grandpa inside. "Lucy's just finishing up in the kitchen. Would you like to take a seat? Can I get you a drink?"

Grandpa declined the drink but took a seat on the sofa as he watched Max enter into the kitchen and close the door behind him. Grandpa looked at the photographs perched on the mantelpiece. There were some of Sam and Michael as children and one of Lucy's late mother, eight years later and he still missed her. Footsteps sounded behind him and Grandpa turned round to see Michael coming down the stairs. His eldest grandson no longer resembled the smiling boy in the photographs; he was sullen and looked as if he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. "Michael, is everything alright?" Grandpa enquired.

"Fine." Michael answered grimly; his mother had made it clear that Grandpa wasn't to know what was really going on. Michael tried making conversation. "I don't know if you know yet but I've got a girlfriend, her name's Star. She lives here so does Laddie." Michael told Grandpa all about Star and Laddie, conveniently leaving out the parts that involved vampires.

Grandpa listened with interest and realised that it wasn't just Lucy and her boys that required saving from Max, there was a young lady and child that needed help too. "Michael, remember when I told you there were some bad elements around Santa Carla?"

"Yeah, Grandpa" replied Michael, wondering where this conversation was going.

"Well, we're about to have dinner with them"

Michael was silent. Was it paranoia or was his grandpa saying what he thought he was saying? Before Michael could ask any questions, Max returned and Michael decided not to pursue the subject any further for now.

"Michael, would you go and fetch the others? Dinner is nearly ready" Max smiled, the evening seemed to be going well so far. He wanted to get the dinner over and done with as soon as possible, he could relax once the old man had gone home.

Michael reluctantly did as he was asked but couldn't resist sniping "I'm not your errand boy, Max!" before heading back up the stairs.

Max chose to ignore Michael's comment this one time on account of present company. Under normal circumstances such disrespect would not be tolerated. Max turned to Grandpa "would you like to go through to the dining room?"

Grandpa acquiesced to Max's request, secretly proud that Michael wasn't making life easy for the spectacled vampire.

Paul emerged down the stairs and Max was annoyed to find him alone. "Where's Dwayne?" he demanded in hushed tones, after all he didn't want Lucy's father to overhear.

"He's gone." Paul answered casually, there was no point trying to hide the truth. "He went out through the window, went to meet up with David and Marko."

"Didn't you try and stop him?" Max asked angrily. It seemed his boys were becoming more defiant by the day; clearly they needed a few hard lessons in respect and manners.

Paul shrugged his shoulders, "hey, don't shoot the messenger." He had tried his best to convince Dwayne to stay, he'd even used Laddie as an excuse, but Dwayne had no intention of sticking around and, as his mother used to say, "No point crying over spilt milk".

"I'll deal with him later. Hurry up and go sit down, dinner's about to be served. And take your hands out of your pockets!" Max hoped that Dwayne's disappearance was just a minor blip in proceedings and not a sign the evening was taking a turn for the worse.

Everyone had taken their places at the dining table. Grandpa was seated at one end and Max at the other. Michael and Star sat on either side of Grandpa, Lucy and Paul sat next to Max, and Laddie and Sam occupied the spaces in the middle. Everybody ate their food in awkward silence until Grandpa decided to kick-start the conversation. "So, Max, how long have you been in Santa Carla?"

All eyes turned to Max, awaiting a response. "A few years, why do you ask?" replied Max, trying to keep his answers as vague as possible.

"Well, seeing as you're planning on marrying my daughter, I thought it best I get to know you a little, find out what sort of man Lucy is involved with"

"Dad..." Lucy cringed; trust her Dad to inadvertently let the cat out of the bag.

Michael just stood up and walked away from the table. There was no way he was going to have Max as a step-father and he would certainly let his mom know that when there wasn't an audience.

"Michael, wait!" Lucy called after her son, getting up to go after him.

"Lucy, give the boy some space to calm down and clear his head" advised Grandpa as the front door slammed behind Michael.

Lucy sat back down forlornly, disappointed at Michael's reaction. She had hoped that he had gotten past his resentment towards Max since their chat earlier on in the week.

"Congratulations, Mom!" said Sam supportively. He wasn't going to be over-dramatic like Michael, in fact he thought it was great news, it meant he got the chance to hang round with Marko and the others on a regular basis, they were much more fun than Michael. Plus his mom deserved a little bit of happiness.

"Yeah, congratulations!" Paul agreed, giving Lucy an encouraging smile. He knew Lucy and Max wouldn't last, especially if David had his way, but as far as potential "mothers" go, Lucy wasn't a bad choice.

"Congratulations!" Star smiled weakly, making eye contact with Paul. She too knew the reunion was going to end in tears, one way or another.

Grandpa viewed the wild haired vampire with suspicion before speaking to Max again. "Lucy tells me that you've got four sons, so where are the other three?"

"They didn't want to come" Laddie chimed in helpfully before Max could answer.

"Oh, and why's that?" Grandpa asked the child in a friendly manner.

"Because David doesn't like Lucy." Laddie answered honestly. He shrank back into his chair when he saw the stern look he was getting from Max, though he didn't know why he was getting such a look, all he'd done was tell the truth.

Grandpa looked at Lucy who averted her gaze. Awkward silence resumed as everyone finished eating their meals. "Been stuffing any more dead animals lately, Grandpa?" Sam asked, hoping to diffuse the tension and steer the conversation away from anything vampire related.

Grandpa was thrilled to have his youngest grandson express an interest in his hobby. "Indeed I have, Sam. Perhaps you'd like to come over sometime and view my latest works?"

Sam forced a smile. "Thanks, Grandpa!" He couldn't think of anything worse than having to spend an afternoon at his grandfather's house pretending to like taxidermy. "How's Nanook?"

Grandpa knew Sam was fond of the dog. "He's happy. He has the run of the fields, a warm bed to lie on and he eats through dog food like there's no tomorrow."

"Can I see him?" Sam understood and accepted why Nanook couldn't live with them but he still missed his four legged friend.

"Sure you can, come over whenever you want. Just phone ahead before you do so." As happy as Grandpa would be to have his grandson visit, he didn't want Sam popping over when the Widow Johnson was round.

"Thanks, Grandpa!" Sam said again, genuinely smiling at the thought of seeing Nanook, even if it did mean having to look at his grandfather's taxidermy collection.

Dinner was concluded in an amiable fashion. Grandpa complimented Lucy on a lovely meal and bid her goodnight. Paul decided that the time was right for him to leave too. He happily changed back into his normal clothes before roaring away into the night on his motorcycle. Laddie went to bed whilst Star and Sam retreated to their rooms, leaving Lucy and Max to sort out the dirty dishes.

"I thought that went rather well, didn't you?" Max remarked whilst drying a large dish that wouldn't fit in the dishwasher.

"It went okay, I suppose" Lucy agreed. "I wish Michael hadn't walked out like that though"

"He'll come round" Max reassured her. "I think it's just the surprise. After all, it wasn't exactly how we planned to tell them."

"I know. We still need to tell David, Marko and Dwayne. How do you think they're going to react?" worried Lucy.

"I'm sure Paul will pass on the good news to them for us. Why don't you go to bed and I'll finish up here." Max was rather proud of Paul tonight; the boy had proven he was able to do as he was told. As for the other three, Max would just have to think up suitable punishments for them.

"Thank you" Lucy said, giving Max a kiss on the cheek.

As Grandpa arrived home, he thought about the events that had transpired that evening. Max had obviously fooled everyone into thinking that he was a nice family man and it would be difficult to prove otherwise. The three absent vampires were intriguing, they seemed to be a sore subject for Max and the look he had given the young boy hadn't gone unnoticed. Grandpa knew he would have to ask Michael more about them, particularly this David, whose name seemed to come up repeatedly. As for Michael, it was clear he didn't like Max and that would make him a valuable ally on the inside. He would be able to keep an eye on things without raising suspicion. The question was how to convince Michael that vampires existed?