A/N: Apologies for the lack of updates recently. I had a slight accident at work so now have soft tissue damage in my hand/wrist which means I have to type one handed and it takes a while. Thanks again to everyone who's reading and for all the lovely reviews!
"How could you be so stupid?" Rob Fitch roared at his teenage daughters, his face turning more and more red with every word. "Both of you! Two vampires! Two!" He slammed his fist down on the desk and then held his face in his hands. "We can't tell your mother about this!"
"We tested Cook! He's not allergic to silver!" Katie objected, though had the good sense to fall quiet when Rob and Samuel both glared at her. Her silence, as usual, did not last for long. "And Ems said Naomi isn't either-"
"They're probably kin." Samuel sat perched on the end of Rob's desk, his expression as troubled as Rob's. His gaze was fixed on Emily as she sat quietly in the corner of the room, staring out of the window at the empty car park. She looked lost in her own thoughts, but Samuel picked up on the subtle way her eyes kept scanning the street, looking for any sign of movement. Emily Fitch would one day make an excellent hunter; despite letting two vampires get so close to her.
"A handful of us aren't allergic to silver. It's rare and usually linked to only a few bloodlines. The boy, Cook is it? He's the younger of the two; he listened to the girl when she told him to step down. I'd say she was his maker. I'll see what I can dig up on them both."
"Thanks mate. Let me know what you find out. I'm going to keep the girls home until Jenna finishes work. Can you go pick James up for me?"
"Of course."
"I'll come." Katie offered, not looking forward to a day stuck in the gym. "The school don't know Sammy, and he does look a bit creepy. No offence." When Katie and Samuel left to pick up James it left Emily and Rob alone in his office.
"Don't beat yourself up love. Without the silver there was no way to know-"
"Dad. Just don't. Please." Emily wasn't ready for a speech from her dad. She wasn't ready to have him looking at her like she was a china doll. She needed to take her mind off things. Training had always helped clear her head so she changed in to the spare gym clothes she had in her locker and hit the treadmill.
The gym was quiet in the mornings and would be until lunch time. There were only a few people in the whole building and most of them were pensioners taking an aerobics class so Emily had the treadmills all to herself. That was until a young brunette walked in and started the treadmill a couple down from Emily's. She had her headphones in and paid no attention to Emily as she started off with a light jog. The other girl was fit and it wasn't long before she finished with the warm up and increased her speed, eventually outdoing Emily.
She increased her pace, trying to match the other girl. Her legs were much shorter than the other girl's and within twenty minutes she was struggling to keep up as a dull cramp spread through her leg. From the corner of her eyes Emily caught the other girl smirk as she increased the pace yet again. The little redhead's competitive streak reared its head and she forced herself to increase her own speed. "Fuck!" She cursed as the cramp turned in to a shin splint and her leg gave way. She cradled her leg as she sat on the floor in front of the treadmill.
"You should have had a longer warm up." Emily looked up to find the stranger standing over her. She was biting her lip, holding back a smile as she offered Emily her hand. She begrudgingly took it and got back to her feet. "You need to walk it off and maybe next time stick to your own pace."
A blush crept over Emily's cheeks at being caught out. "Next time I'll be ready." "I'm sure you will." The other girl unashamedly raked her eyes over Emily's small frame.
"Sweetheart!" A middle-aged man with short cropped sandy hair called out to the girl from the doorway. He looked more than a little irked. The girl turned to look at him and shot him a wide innocent smile, the sickly sweet kind Katie often used on their father to wrap him around her little finger.
"Coming daddy." She looked back to Emily and gave her a wink. "See you next time."
"Fuck me, can you stop thinking with your dick for five minutes?" Katie sneered as she caught Emily watching the girl walk out of the room.
"Do one Katie." Emily rolled her eyes at her older twin. "Oh, I forgot, Effy's not here is she?"
"Bitch." Katie snapped back, glaring daggers at her sister. "Just because your girlfriend's a fanger!"
"She wasn't my girlfriend!" Emily growled out, the pain in her shin increasing her anger.
"Fucking good job you didn't shag it!" Katie laughed, though the sound died in her throat as she caught sight of her sister's pained expression. "Fuck, you didn't?"
Emily slumped on to the floor and cradled her leg as she let out a heavy sigh and hung her head in shame. "Yesterday."
"You're kidding! Fucking hell Ems! Your first time and it's with a fucking vampire!"
"Keep your fucking voice down!" Emily hissed, glancing around to make sure the room was still empty. The last thing she needed was her Dad or Samuel overhearing that; or worse James, their perverted little brother.
Katie sat down beside her and draped an arm around her younger twin, trying to comfort her. Emily forgot to be angry as she rested her head on Katie's shoulder and fought back tears. She had instantly fallen for Naomi and the feelings she had developed for her had been stronger than any she'd ever felt before and she had gone further with her than any other girl she had been with. She had trusted her implicitly and the blonde had betrayed her. "Want me to stake her?"
"No." Emily sniffed, she wiped at her eyes as she pulled away. "Like you could stake a vamp."
"You can talk. Didn't get that fucker last night did you?"
Katie had only been teasing when she'd brought up the vampire that had escaped, but it had stuck with the younger twin, nagging away at her for the rest of the day. Being cooped up in the gym with nothing to do but train hadn't help take her mind off the vampire either. Things had only gotten worse after they'd gone home and Jenna had found out about Cook and Naomi. The twins had had to suffer through yet another patronizing lecture on the dangers of trusting strangers and testing for vampires. Emily excused herself to her room after dinner, insisting she wanted some time to herself when Katie offered to watch a film with her.
Carefully closing the door behind her she went to her bed and pulled out the rucksack from underneath it. Inside was everything she would need to go hunting. The clothes were functional rather than fashionable. Stripping off her jeans she strapped up her injured shin so that it wouldn't cause her any problems and pulled on a pair of black combat pants that she tucked in to her sturdy boots. Removing her shirt she put on her Kevlar vest, it was stab proof and bullet proof, because even vampires occasionally carried weapons, but it was still light enough for her to be able to fight in. A plain black hoodie finished off her outfit and she filled the pockets of her combats with what she would need, including silver handcuffs, her knife and a stake. She opened her bedroom window and slipped out of it silently. She crept across the roof of the garage and lowered herself to the ground with practised ease. She and Katie had been sneaking out of the room they shared for years.
The sun had set a few hours earlier and the streets were dark and silent as Emily roamed them in search of signs of vampires. She doubted she would have to look very hard for James Rosenberg. Even if he didn't have the scent of her blood he would still easily find her. She had helped kill his brother. His twin brother. Rosenberg would find her; there was no doubt about that. She just had to be patient.
Unknown to Emily she had been followed from the second she left her house, but the vampire who was following her was not out for her blood. The blonde hung back as far as she could without losing sight of the other girl. Emily was a good hunter and she was cautious to check for signs she was being followed, but Naomi had over a century on her and managed to sink in to the shadows every time Emily looked around. She had gone to the Fitch household to try and speak to Emily, but when she had seen her sneaking out of the house she had decided to hang back and follow her. From the way she was dressed she was clearly hunting and Naomi had a feeling the stake in her pocket had her name on it.
Naomi knew she was angry with her. She was a hunter and she had slept with a vampire; even worse she thought Naomi was responsible for attacking her as a child. She needed to talk to her, to get her side across. If Emily knew she'd had nothing to do with her attack, and that she hadn't consumed human blood in almost twenty years, then maybe they could still have a chance to work things out. Naomi had never wanted a human so badly. She wasn't about to give up her newfound obsession just because her family were hunters.
Naomi needed to be patient and plan what she was going to do. Emily was armed and in no mood to listen to reason; Naomi would only get one shot to set things right and to do that she would have to immobilise Emily as a threat. She had been following her for over an hour when Emily made her first mistake. She veered away from the city streets and crossed over the Bristol Bridge in to Castle Park. The park was empty and the second they were under the cover of the trees Naomi made her move. Not feeding on human blood meant she was slower and weaker than many of her own kind, but she was more than capable of taking on a human.
Emily didn't see her coming. She pounced in the blink of an eye, her footsteps barely making a noise as she took the few steps she needed to grab hold of the smaller girl. She wrenched her arms behind her back and swiped her leg, dropping her to the ground.
Emily screamed as her injured leg was kicked out from under her. The grass was cold and damp with frost as Emily landed on her front. Her landing had been controlled, her attacker helping to lower her to the ground rather than letting her fall face first. Her arms were pinned securely behind her back and as much as she struggled she couldn't free them. She had suspected she was being followed and had thought a fight in the park would be more private than a brawl on the high street. She had been stupid for going out alone and she was about to pay for her mistake.
She wouldn't give up without a fight though. She was a Fitch. Fitches didn't just lie down and die. She kicked her legs, ignoring the pain shooting through her injured one and thrashed her body, trying to dislodge her attacker. "Stop fighting!" A harsh yet familiar voice barked in her ear.
"Naomi?" Emily's rage was reignited and she started thrashing all the more.
"Stop! Emily! Please." Naomi pushed her arm up her back just far enough to cause her some discomfort and stop her from moving. Her voice changed as she added, "You'll hurt yourself." She almost sounded like she cared. Like she was human. Emily wasn't buying it.
"Go on!" She spat out with as much bravado as she could muster. "Finish what you started! That's why you're here isn't it! Go on then! What are you waiting for?" Emily lay on the ground; her eyes clenched shut as she waited for the inevitable pain of fangs sinking in to her flesh.
"I'm here to set things straight." Naomi let go of her arms, though she remained where she was straddling Emily's hips. Emily reacted the instant her hands were free, flipping them over so she had Naomi pinned beneath her and her hand around her throat as her other hand scrambled for her knife. Naomi didn't fight her. Letting Emily take a dominant position would make the smaller girl feel safer and might even make her more inclined to listen.
She had taken precautions of course. Emily's stake lay a good ten feet away from them and her knife was safely tucked in to Naomi's pocket. "Emily, please. Let me explain!" She implored the smaller girl to listen to her. "I'm not the one who attacked you. I swear! I would never hurt you!"
"Really?" Emily scoffed. "So what do you call jumping me in the park?"
"Second date?" Naomi tried to crack a smile but Emily wasn't amused. "I'm sorry. I came to your house to talk to you. I need you to understand Emily. I am a vampire, and I'm no saint. I've done things I'm not proud of, but attacking you is not one of them! I abstain from human blood. I haven't touched a drop in almost two decades. I swear!"
"How am I supposed to trust you?" Emily snapped, though the fact she was talking to her at all was a good sign. "You're a vampire!"
"And the tree who brought you to school this morning isn't?"
"That's different…Samuel is family." Emily gave up looking for her knife and sat back so she was resting on the other girl's stomach. Naomi propped herself up on her elbows and waited for an explanation. Emily bit her lip, toying with the decision to share one of her secrets. "It's how the Fitches became hunters. Samuel was my great grandfather's brother. He was turned in the thirties, he drinks from humans, but he's never killed. Not once. He and Dad work for the council, taking out vampires who go against the treaty."
"I've killed." Naomi saw no point in lying to her. Emily wouldn't have to dig very deep to find out about Naomi's sordid past. "I'm not proud of it. There isn't a day that I don't think about the lives I took; but I'm different now. I don't hunt and I don't drink human blood-"
"That's interesting."
Emily yelped as she was grabbed by her hair and yanked backwards. A burly skinhead held her by her ponytail and laughed as she lashed out at him. His fangs were out and far too close to Emily's neck. Naomi jumped to her feet and rushed forward to save her. By the time she spotted James Rosenberg and the stake in his hand, Emily's stake, it was too late to stop. Naomi's eyes widened as the wooden stake sunk in to her abdomen, splintering as it shredded her insides. She dropped to her knees and clutched her stomach, holding the stake in place to try and stem the blood that was pouring out from around it. "An abstainer…your kind makes me sick." James spat on the ground as he sneered down at the grunting blonde. "Treating the humans like equals. They're nothing but fodder!" Emily cried out again as the skinhead yanked cruelly on her hair. A growl ripped its way out of Naomi's throat as she struggled to get back to her feet. Rosenberg kicked her square in the stomach, sinking the stake in even further. She dropped back to the ground, spluttering as she choked on her own blood.
"Eugh!" Rosenberg's head snapped around as his friend starting making choking noises of his own. He found Emily's hand covering the skinhead's mouth, forcing him to choke on whatever she had shoved in to his mouth. The burly man dropped to his knees and clawed at his throat. Silver beads dropped from Emily's hand as she pulled it away.
"How cute, the little girl thinks she's a hunter-" Rosenberg's words were cut off as Naomi shot up and lunged Emily's knife straight in to his neck. The blow was clumsy and though it would have killed a human it would only slow Rosenberg down for a few minutes. The knife was silver so it would buy them some time. The burning pain of the silver as well as the blood loss would slow him down. Naomi wasted no time in snatching Emily's hand and dragging her away. They needed to get somewhere safe; fast.
They ran from the park and over the bridge back towards the city centre. Adrenaline was the only thing keeping Naomi going through the pain, but after a few minutes of running even that wasn't enough. She stumbled and fell to the ground. "Keep going!" She growled at Emily as the younger girl stopped to help her back to her feet. She pushed her hands away and growled at her. "Go!"
"I'm not leaving you!" Emily snapped back at her, for all the blonde had deceived her she couldn't just turn off her feelings for her. "What are you doing?" Emily yelled as Naomi yanked the stake out of her stomach, biting back a scream as the wood ripped out of her flesh. Emily's hands instantly went to the wound, pressing against it to try and stop the blood flow. Naomi pushed her hands away again, though her actions were growing weaker as she lost more and more blood.
"You have to keep going! He'll be right behind us! Emily, please…what are you doing?"
"Saving our lives." Emily ripped her bandage off her hand. The cut had re-opened in her struggle with the skinhead and fresh, warm blood was welling up in the palm of her hand. She shoved it under Naomi's nose, but the blonde wrenched her head away.
"No!" She growled, using every ounce of self-restraint she had left to refuse the blood. She was tired and weak and had lost far too much blood. If she allowed herself to feed from Emily, to give in to the greatest temptation she had ever faced, she wasn't sure she could stop. "Just go!"
"I'm not leaving you!" The stubborn redhead repeated again, her eyes wide and pleading as she tried to force her hand to Naomi's lips. Once again the blonde refused to acknowledge it. Taking matters in to her own hands Emily snaked one hand around the back of the blonde's neck and forced her head forward as she brought her bleeding palm to Naomi's lips. The second the blood touched her lips Naomi's fangs shot down and sunk in to the soft flesh of Emily's palm. At first the bite stung and Emily had to force herself not to pull away, but the pain quickly eased and it became almost pleasant as Naomi's tongue gently lapped against the inside of her hand. "Ok, that's enough." Emily tried to pull her hand back as she began to feel light headed, but Naomi's hands had clamped around her arm, keeping it in place as she feasted on the sweetest blood she had ever tasted. Naomi had spent so long fighting the temptation to feed on a human again that she couldn't just give it up.
She heard Emily shouting at her, felt the smaller girl trying to pull away, but the rational part of her mind had shut down. Her body was running on pure animalistic need for blood. She felt Emily's pulse slowing as her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Reluctantly Naomi relented and stopped feeding. The wound in her abdomen was far from healed, but Emily's blood had helped her enough to be able to carry herself and Emily. The smaller girl was close to passing out and could barely stand. There would be no lasting damage though; she would be ok after a big meal and a long sleep.
Naomi pulled out her mobile as she lifted Emily over her shoulder and continued to put as much distance between them and the park as she could. She dialled a familiar number and arranged to be picked up a few streets ahead. When she got to the meeting point she found Cook waiting in a car she didn't recognise. There was a good chance it was stolen, but Naomi could care less. She got in the back and cradled Emily on her lap as Cook floored it and got them out of the city centre as fast as he could.
"Christ Blondie, what's going on?" Cook narrowed his eyes as he looked at Emily's unconscious form in the rearview mirror. His eyes flashed to Naomi's mouth, where Emily's blood was still smeared around her lips. He caught her tongue darting out to lap up the last few drops and had to hide a small smile.
"I'll explain later. I need to get Emily home-"
"You're taking her home like that? With her fucking blood all over you?" Cook scowled. "They'll fucking stake you before you ring the doorbell!"
"Fuck." Naomi wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve and ran a hand through her hair. Her heart was beating ten to the dozen as Emily's blood coursed around her body. It was like a sugar rush and she couldn't think straight. "My house. I'll take her to my house. She can sleep it off there."
"Gina's gonna kill you."
"Tell me about it."
The lights were off when Cook pulled up outside the Campbell house. He offered to help Naomi inside with Emily, but she refused. The last thing she needed was for Cook to be there when she walked in with an unconscious Emily. Besides, taking Emily's blood had increased her possessiveness of the smaller girl tenfold. She didn't want any other vampire touching her; even if that vampire was her childe. After giving Cook her thanks she got Emily inside the house and up to her room. She laid the little redhead on her bed and began carefully undressing her, removing her boots and combats and her hoodie and body armour. She left her in her underwear and her vest and draped the duvet over her while she went to the bathroom to fetch the first aid kit.
Gina was waiting for her at her door when she got back. "You've fed on her." There was no anger or accusation in Gina's words, just an underlying sadness that was like a knife twisting in her guts.
"I can explain…" Naomi trailed off as Gina took the first aid kit from her and disappeared inside her room. "We were attacked. I was hurt and Emily…I didn't want to, she made me, I swear!"
"Enough." Gina silenced her with a single sharp word as she set to work on the cut on Emily's hand. Naomi's bite had helped it to clot, but the wound was inflamed. She sterilised the area before wrapping a clean dressing around it. Naomi sat perched on her bed, her hand running through Emily's hair while Gina worked. "We'll talk about it in the morning." Gina left without a second glance, unable to look her childe in the eye. Naomi couldn't blame her. Gina had been right to worry about something happening. Naomi should have had the sense to distance herself from Emily Fitch the second she had realised just how much she wanted her.
After fetching some orange juice and a chocolate bar, Emily would need them in the morning to get her strength up; she slipped in to bed beside her. She couldn't fall asleep even if she tried. Her body was wide awake, fuelled by Emily's blood and her senses were on overdrive. The very scent of Emily lying beside her had her stomach doing flips. She wanted to reach out and touch her to, to press her lips to her soft yielding flesh and taste her once again. She didn't of course. Emily would be mad enough at her without waking up to find her groping her.
Instead she lay in the dark, keeping a constant vigil over the other girl, waiting expectantly for every breath and every steady beat of her heart, reassuring herself Emily would be okay; at least until she woke up and found herself lying in Naomi's bed. Somehow the blonde wasn't expecting the same reaction as the first time Emily had woken up in her bed.
