Peter POV

As I watched the tiny slip of a girl give an almost imperceptible nod of her head and begin to tremble, I heard Charlotte's sharp intake of breath. I had to wonder what this girl had been through. I don't know what could have caused her to be mute. In all my years of existence, I had never met a mute vampire, and I have met a lot of vampire. This was unchartered territory.

"That's okay," I gently whispered, "we just want to help. First off though, lets get you fed."

When she heard me say that, Charlotte unceremoniously dropped the heap of man in front of the girl. When she didn't move, just sat completely still, Char took the initiative, "Don't worry sugar. I gotcha a scumbag who was out looking to hurt some girls on their way home. He don't deserve to live."

Abby sat completely still, clutching at her throat. I looked at her questioningly. She was starving, as was clear from the dark circles and pitch-black eyes. She seemed to be holding her breath. "Do you not want to kill him? Do you drink from animals?" I tried asking, despite the fact that the man was already dead. Maybe she was like my brother's family and was averse to killing the humans. I sure hoped not. That was a terrible way to live, and I didn't want that for this girl I was coming to care so much about. Abby looked up at me with questioning eyes, like she wasn't sure what was going on, what she was feeling, or what to do. "Darlin', have you ever fed before?"

As I asked the question, Abby's eyes seemed to well up with tears that surprisingly dripped down her face. I was vaguely aware of my mate racing off to find another meal for her. Despite my utter and complete shock at the fact that she was crying, which shouldn't have been possible, I knelt down next to her and drug the body closer to her. "It's okay darlin'. Here, let your instincts take over." I took my finger and sliced into the still warm body. As the blood began to drip down the corpse's neck, Abby's eyes seemed to dilate the rest of the way to completely turn her eyes black and she let out a little whimpering growl sound. Her head shot down to the slit throat, and she began to drink.

She wasn't the neatest eater, but compared to any other newborn or vampire as hungry as she was, she did an impeccable job. Blood dripped down her face as she finished slurping down the human juice box. I had barely heard Char come back, but as I was pulling the first body away, she slit the next one's throat and slowly brought it to Abby.

Abby immediately grabbed the body with panicky, jumpy hands and began to drink deeply. As I looked back at Char, I saw a look of compassion on her face. I could only image she was thinking back to the beginning of her life as a vampire, when Maria would withhold feedings in order to manipulate those in her army. I could see a flicker of affection in her eyes before it was covered back up with worry for the girl, and I knew we were on the same page about Abby.

As she finished up with the second body, Abby looked up at me with clear, ruby red eyes. I have to say, I was surprised that she wasn't territorial over her meals. Newborns tended to want to guard their meals for a while after finishing, their instinctual sides telling them they couldn't let anyone get close. Either the girl trusted us greatly or was seriously lacking some major instincts.

"That better darlin'?" I questioned as she looked up at me with timid eyes. As least she wasn't backing away, curling up in a ball any more. We could work with this. She gave a small nod and glanced back at Charlotte biting her lip and ducking her head to hide behind her hair. "Well, we better take care of these two. Then Char and I have to grab a bite to eat as well. After that, we can go back to our place if you want. Can't very well leave a baby in the city on her own." I said the last part contemplatively to myself, considering where we go from here.

I slowly stood and held my hand out to her. She ever so slowly stood, ignoring my hand and stared at me. I didn't take any offense to this, as I was sure it would take her awhile to become more comfortable with either of us. As it was, we had already made some great progress; I wasn't going to press my luck.

"Come on Abby. Let's go wait on the roof top while we wait for Peter to come back with a meal for me and him," Char said to Abby with a small smile on her face. She threw a look to me that clearly said to not argue with her.

I threw up my hands, backing away with a cheeky grin. "Message received sweet cheeks. I'll go find us something." With that I turned around, trusting that my mate would take care of our girl.

Char POV

"Come on Abby. Let's go wait on the roof top while we wait for Peter to come back with a meal for me and him."

I kept my eyes locked on Abby after Peter had left the alley way, careful to keep a light smile on my face to reassure her. Abby kept glancing around nervously now that we were alone. It seemed that my goofy mate provided her with a sense of security. I knew how she felt. Whenever Peter left me, I felt a nervous energy until he got back. He calmed me, and I knew that I was always safe with him nearby. On top of that, I knew he was safe with me as well.

Peter and I had always worked as a team, ever since our sire had turned me to be a part of that whore's army. We always had each other's backs and kept each other safe. Having him away from me, I couldn't assure that. I felt a twinge of pain as I thought about the other man who always worked to keep me safe. Shaking off the thought, I tried to focus on the now.

Abby looked up to the roof, our destination, and back at me with a scared look. "Just bend your knees and jump. Trust me, we will make it," I gently reassured. "Let's do it together." I held out my hand to her, hoping she would take it.

Shyly, Abby slipped her hand into mine and together we jumped up. It was obvious she had never done this before. She made a quiet squeaking noise, leading me to wonder again what kind of introduction she had to this life. Her sire should have taught her these kinds of things. When she fed it was clear that no one had shown her how to do it before. It also brought up the question of how old she was. Despite the grace brought from being a vampire, she was like a newborn calf on wobbly legs.

Her grip on my hand tightened as we gracefully landed on the roof top. I kept hold of her hand as I walked us away from the edge of the roof. As we stood waiting for Peter to return, I continued to observe this little baby that we seemed to have picked up this evening, almost like a human stops to pick up a gallon of milk from the store on their way home from work.

I felt this surge of affection for this slip of a girl. She was clearly on her own and had no clue what was going on.

"Hun, can I ask you some question? You can not answer any of them if you feel uncomfortable. I just want to get to know you a little bit," I asked with a gentle smile, hoping to gain her trust and some answers to the mysteries surrounding this situation.

She gave a tiny nod of her head, giving me the go ahead. I'm not honestly sure if she would have told me no. The girl seemed scared of her own shadow.

I paused before asking, "How long have you been like this?" Abby stared at me somewhat nervously. I quickly realized she was not going to answer out loud, whether from being unable or too nervous, so I rephrased the question. "Have you been like this long?"

She shook her head telling me that it hadn't been long. "You know what we are, right?" I was nervous the girl didn't even know that she was a vampire, granted she had just drank the blood from two bodies. To my relief, she nodded her head.

"Do you know how long you've been a vampire?" Again a nod yes.

"Has it been more than a year?" No.

"A half a year?" No.

"5 months." She shook her head no. As I continued to count down months, she continued giving me a negative answer.

"3 weeks?" I asked desperately. No again.

"2 weeks?" At that, I finally got a head nod yes.

I had to ask the question that was bothering me since bringing her second meal back. "Was this the first time you have feed?" She looked down as though ashamed by the answer and nodded her head.

I gave a slight gasp. I was filled with righteous furry on this girl's behalf. Some irresponsible vampire had turned the girl and just left her without even teaching her to feed. At least I hoped that was the case. Any other answer was unthinkable. With trepidation, I asked, having to be sure, "Do you know who turned you? Have you met your sire before being turned?" At this question, she started shaking clearly afraid of whoever had brought her into this life.

Without thinking, I flung myself at the girl, feeling the desperate need to hold and comfort her. While we were not mates, I could feel a strong bond with the girl and was filled with sorrow, knowing that these past two weeks must have been hell for her.

At my sudden movement, Abby flinched violently out of my arms, falling to the ground and pulling her legs to her chest, making a tight ball. I could've smack myself for my foolishness.

"Oh honey, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you," I whispered to her, gently putting my hand on her knee. I felt her stiffen but kept my hand lightly sitting on her knee. "Come on darlin'. Please, look at me. I'm sorry." I slowly saw a pair of ruby red eyes peak out at me from above her knees and gave her a little grin.

I heard Peter jump up on the roof behind me. "Abby the first thing you will learn about me and Peter is that we tend to act without thinking. I'm sorry I startled you. Granted, Peter thinks about his actions even less than me," I stated with a little smirk.

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm a smart cookie and I know what I'm doing!" As Peter exclaimed this, I gave Abby a wide-eyed look with an incredulous shake of my head. To both Peter and my surprise, Abby looked at us both with a little smile on her face.

Glad that she was no longer frightened, I stood up at a human pace, so as not to startle her again, and turned to my silly mate. Despite his childish moments, I couldn't image how I had ended up with such an amazing man to spend my forever with. He took care of me and made me laugh just as much as he drove me crazy.

I looked at his feet and scrunched up my nose at the filthy humans there. Glancing back at Abby with a smile, I walked over to the bodies, picking one up. Peter stood and watched me drink my fill until I dropped the corpse to the ground with a lick of my lips. He gave me a quick kiss and grabbed his own dinner, drinking until the blood ran dry.

When I turned around to check on Abby, she had a wide eye look on her face. Worried that we had scared the girl, I slowly walked to her.

"Hun, you okay there?" I asked softly. She gave a little not and looked up at me expectantly. She really was just a little baby vamp, looking for some guidance.

I stretched out my hand to her, which she took standing up quickly. I looked at the girl affectionately, considering our next move. Abby probably needed at least one more human before we went home. As much as I hated to think it, the girl was also a hot mess. She had blood stains going down her front from her previous meal and was still covered in grime and dirt from sitting in an alley for possibly two weeks.

"I'm going to grab her one more before we head back," Peter explained before zippin' off. I was even more grateful for my mate, as we seemed to be on the same page.

Peter quickly returned with a body, cutting its neck and bringing it over to Abby. I hastily stepped back, so as not to upset her with being to close. Normally, a newborn wouldn't take their meal from another vampire's hands, but our girl was seeming to be anything but normal.

Abby took the body from Peter and quickly drank her fill, draining the body fully. As Peter went off to dispose of the bodies, I walked over to Abby and started straightening her out, fixing her clothes and trying to wipe away the excess blood. As I did so, I explained, "We are going to head home now. We live about an hour outside the city." I glanced up to examine her face as I felt her start to shake and whimper.

I was confused at first but quickly realized my mistake. "Oh hun. We were hoping you would come with us and stay with us for a while, as long as you like." I just about let out a squeak when she threw her arms around me, clutching onto me. "Oh sweetie," I whispered sadly, "don't you worry. We have no plans of letting you out of our lives just yet. Pete and I like you too much." I grinned down at her as I said this. My heart just about broke seeing her desperate, hopeful expression.

Peter walked up behind Abby and put his arms around the both of us saying, "That's right baby doll. We're hoping you'll stay with us for a long while."