Chapter 11: a new home

Lesandra introduced Pietro to the other vampires, then showed him upstairs to his new room.

"You're lucky we had a free room," she said. "The guy who lived here before got staked by a hunter 'bout a week ago."

"A hunter?" Pietro said.

"Yeah, they're human bastards who track down 'monsters' and kill them," said Lesandra. "One of the reasons I invited you to join us, actually. I could tell you were pretty new to this life, and loners usually get picked off the easiest."

"So it was a pity invite," Pietro smirked.

"Hey, you said it, not me."

"The guy who got killed... what happened?" Pietro asked. "I mean, what happens when a vampire gets staked?"

"Wow, you really are new," said Lesandra.

"I've been kinda shut in the last few months."

"Well... he turned to dust. Just... poof. Nothing."

Pietro glanced around the room. Someone had lived here just a week earlier, and now he was dead without even a body to bury.

"Hey," said Lesandra, pulling him from his thoughts. "There's a bathroom through there, why don't you get cleaned up while I see about getting you some new clothes. You're not gonna make a very impressive vampire in jeans and a hoodie."

"Thanks," said Pietro.

"It's no biggie. You're one of us now. We look after our own."

Lesandra left, closing the door behind her. Pietro went to the bathroom she had indicated and stripped off his mud-caked clothes, then turned on the shower and got in. The feel of the hot water on his cold skin was comforting; ever since he'd become a vampire, the heat of a shower had been one of the only two things that let him experience warmth. The other had been Clint. He sighed and closed his eyes, forcing himself to stop thinking of Clint. He knew if he kept letting his mind wander back to him, all he'd feel was regret and pain. So he shoved the thought aside and focused on washing up.

Once he was finished, he turned off the shower, wrapped a towel around his waist, and went back into his room. Lesandra had left a little stack of clothes on the desk chair. He picked up the clothes and looked at them; black skinny jeans, a dark grey v-neck, and a leather jacket. Pietro wasn't normally one for leather – it slowed him down too much – but Lesandra was right, if he was going to embrace the life of a vampire, he needed to look the part.

He got dressed, then pulled on the beat up black combat boots she had left for him. If he thought the leather jacket would slow him down, these certainly would. It would take a lot of work to get used to running in heavy boots instead of his lightweight track shoes.

Just then there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," he called.

The door opened and Lesandra stepped inside.

"How do I look?" Pietro asked.

"Like a real vampire," said Lesandra. "Does it all fit okay?"

"Yeah, it's just the right size."

"Good. We'll get you some more things tomorrow night when I take you out hunting."

"Thanks again for all this," Pietro said. "I... well, I was pretty lost. I don't know what I would do if you hadn't brought me here."

"I told you, it's no biggie," said Lesandra. She went over and sat on the couch. "So... you ran away, huh? What were you running away from?"

"Myself, I guess," said Pietro, joining her on the couch. "Or... something I'd done."

"What did you do?"

"I was hurting someone I love."

"What did you do to them?" Lesandra said.

"I'd rather not talk about it," said Pietro, looking down at his hands.

"Okay, I won't pry," said Lesandra. "There's plenty of secrets in this house. We've all got a history, and lots of us would rather not share. For example, and you're not to breathe a word of this, Suzanne and I both reckon Jim was in the mafia with Al Capone before he got turned."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously."

Pietro chuckled.

"What? I said I was serious!" said Lesandra.

"It's not that, it's just... when you think of vampires you think of names like Dracula. Not something as normal as 'Jim'," said Pietro.

"Hey, we were all human once. Just a bunch of regular Joes," Lesandra said. "I was a telephone operator back in the day. Had a sweetheart who was off fighting the Nazis. Never did see him again."

"I'm sorry," said Pietro.

"It's fine. I've had seventy years to get over it," said Lesandra. "What about you? What were you before you got the bite?"

Pietro turned away again.

"I was no one."

"Sure you were. Everyone's somebody."

"I'd rather not talk about it."

"Aha, see? You were somebody," said Lesandra. "It's only a matter of time before I figure it out. I think I'm close to getting it out of Jim, you know. I'll get it out of you too."

Pietro gave her a skeptical smirk, but secretly he was worried. He knew he was signing up for some shady characters joining the coven, but if Lesandra figured out who he was, that he was an Avenger, he ran the risk of putting everyone he loved in danger. He had left to keep them safe, to keep Clint safe, and he wasn't about to put him back in the line of fire. He would have to play things close to the chest now, to lie about who he was and where he came from. It was a hell of a way to start out making new friends, but it was what he had to do. No matter what happened, Pietro knew that the secret of his identity was one he'd have to take to the grave.