I watched giddily as the saloon burned from the edge of the graveyard, watching as my mother's one true pride and joy went up in flames along with the bodies of those that had denied my happiness. The ash was beautiful as it fluttered through the sky, illuminated by the blazing fire and the embers that floated up into the night sky. The sound of the saloon collapsing woke some of the town residents that lived further from the main square. Several had come running with their measly buckets to splash the structure with water but it was too far gone to be saved and the bodies inside along with it.

The residents remained unaware of my presence in the graveyard as they tried to tame the flames. I stood in front of a grave that was marked similarly to mine, a stick pushed into the ground with a dirt stained white rag tied to it. Just like my grave there would be no stone or wooden cross, just a body in the ground that everyone wanted to forget about. This grave was across the graveyard from where I had been buried, the freshness of the grave the only indicator of who was buried here. My Jonah. Even in death they wished to keep us away from each other. To deny us even the smallest show of kindness by keeping us separated for eternity. I kneeled over his grave and spoke to the disturbed soil as I would have the man had I been able.

"I did it, Jonah. I made them pay." I said softly as I stroked the ground lovingly.

"I wanted to join you, I still wish to join you, but I think we are forever meant to be apart. We have been ripped apart at every twist and turn, denied the smallest of pleasures. Why should I be surprised that someone else sought to keep us apart if even in death? Though I think this was a gift, Jonah. Someone gave me the power to do onto them as they had done onto us. I hope I've made you proud." I kissed my fingers and pressed them to the dirt before standing and heading into the trees and away from town.

I left town that night and never looked back, leaving humanity behind. I stuck to the wilderness and preyed upon travelers as they crossed the rough terrain headed farther west. Every caravan was the same, with men whispering of gold and the possible fortune just out there waiting for them to uncover. All desiring better for themselves while wishing ill of others who wanted the same. The same greed that had been whispered by the men while I had been human.

Since childhood humanity has disgusted me. Having been raised in a brothel above a saloon I was exposed to the worst of humankind from the very beginning. Scenes of drunkenness, greed and sexuality weren't uncommon and kept Madame rich. By the time I was old enough to be declared a woman I was expected to earn my keep or risk being thrown to the street to starve. There was no other options than do as Madame demanded and see to the pleasure of the foul men that patroned the bedrooms above the saloon, there was no one that would take mercy on a whore's daughter and certainly no one that would allow their son to marry one.

There had only been one person to ever look at me as anything but another of Madame's soiled doves and that had been my Jonah. He too was an outcast just as I was, another being trapped in that pitiful town by mortal ties, ties that he had attempted to sever and had ultimately ended in his demise. He had been the only good human being that I had ever known and my heart ached with his loss. He hadn't deserved what had become of him and often I wished that he had been given the same second chance I had been given, the chance to watch those that had cursed us destroyed.

I was in the wilderness alone for I'm not sure how long, but I knew it had been years. Despite my distance from humanity I noticed the passage of time with the change in attire, wagons and the motivations of the travelers. The whispers of gold and fortune changed to whispers of work as the types of travelers themselves changed. These men spoke in an accent I had never heard before and whispered of something called a railroad that would cross the United States connecting it coast to coast. Those were the whispers in the final years of my isolation.

One night I was hovering on the outskirts of a traveling party, this one carrying women and children joining their husbands and fathers who had found work somewhere farther west. The party was large, larger than usual. I was waiting for one of them to wander away from the group. It made less of a mess when I could take my time and relish the kill instead of attacking them as a group and chasing stragglers. If I was lucky they would stay to search for the missing and I would get another meal or two before they abandoned hope and left.

One of the men had stood up from around the fire and walked away toward the forest. My mouth began to water and I started shifting to intercept him when I heard noises coming from the other side of the encampment. The small noise was the only warning there was before a man and a woman raced into the opening, each latching on to the neck of the closest person. A scream resounded through the group and the man stopped his advance toward the trees to look back at the chaos. With a snarl I raced toward the man, draining him quickly before tossing his empty corpse at the invading couple with a snarl. The remaining travelers were now slaughtered bodies sprawled on the ground where they had been discarded. The only one left was a young boy of roughly ten years who sat huddled under the wagon struggling to breathe through his fear. I could smell his adrenaline from across the camp site.

At my snarl the two others froze, the male fell into a crouched position in front of the woman, protectively blocking her from my view and any access I may of had to her. The man stood tense, a growl rumbling in his chest while I could vaguely make out that the woman was mimicking his position from her place behind him as she peeked out from under his arm. The man set me on edge, he was covered in bite marks, the scar setting off the warning bells that screamed danger and his aggressive stance showed that he was more than prepared to kill me.

I readied myself, mimicking his posture as I waited for the man to make a move. I was trying to anticipate what kind of move he would make and was debating the merits of making a run for it as instinct seemed to lose its grasp on my actions and my brain started analyzing the situation and understanding the odds of two of them against one of me. For a long moment we just stood there staring at each other. I didn't want to fight them, I didn't like the odds of two against one and there was nothing that could come from it now as the bodies laid cooling in the night air.

I knew from their eyes that they were like me, and from their appearance they seemed far more experienced when it came to a fight, more than likely having the knowledge and experience I lacked to maim or kill me. I only knew of what my own body had been able to withstand through the years and I didn't seek out maiming myself since my rebirth and therefore lacked the knowledge of how to defend myself. I had never encountered anyone like me before and also didn't know what would keep them from trying to fight me. The only thought I had was a human one, to use my words and speak with them. I hadn't heard my own voice since the words I'd spoken to Madame before I drained her oh so long ago.

I took a steadying breath and braced myself for whatever was to come as I stopped the growl that had been rumbling in my own chest and chose my words carefully. It didn't matter that it went against the instinct for self-preservation to speak harshly to these creatures that I was hoping to live past encountering but I refused to revive any part of my human life by submitting or cowering to these creatures.

"Hope you are sated. You've ruined at least two meals for me." I growled out, my voice sounding foreign to my own ears. The man's brow furrowed as he fell slightly further into his crouch. With the motion I could see more of the woman standing behind him and she looked confused, but remained tense.

"You're not going to attack?" He asked harshly after a long pause, his voice sounded more like a snarl but his face showed his uncertainty and confusion. I decided to take a chance as I continued to scowl at them but straightened to a normal stance from the crouch I'd assumed when they'd posed to fight.

"Is that what you would prefer? I don't see what it would get you now? Won't bring these humans back." My voice was still harsh and sounded more like a snarl as I groused and gestured to the mangled bodies that laid around the clearing. The man seemed caught in an internal debate as his brow remained furrowed, his eyes focused steadfast on me while remaining tense, likely in case this was a trick. Despite the male's continued hostility, the woman straightened her stance and took a small step to the side. She was still blocked and protected by the male but she was more visible to me and likely I to her from her new position.

"You're not like the others." She stated softly and I raised a brow in question.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I snapped.

"The others in the wars." She stated and I looked to her irritation from her lack of explanation.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." I stated and returned my attention to the male that was starting to relax while remaining on guard, his eyes never straying from me as his arm remained extended to block the woman.

"We didn't smell you when we entered your territory. We didn't know you were here." He stated and I tilted my head at the comment.

"Why would I go around marking my territory, do I look like a dog to you?" I asked unsure whether I should be insulted and the man seemed increasingly confused by my answer.

"No, not in the same way as a dog. The others, the ones we've come to know, they all mark their territory with marks in the trees and their scent from repeated patrols of the area to keep others out and they fight to keep what they have and to gain more. Had you been like the others, you surely would have attacked us instead of speaking." He explained and I hummed my understanding though I understood very little.

"You're the first I've seen of my kind." I stated tersely and the two seemed shocked, their eyes widening before both let their eyes search me, the knowledge seeming to make them think they would find something new, probably looking for a sign I was lying.

"You've never seen another vampire in these parts? How long have you been here?" The man asked.

"Is that what we're called? As for time, I don't know and I don't care." I said and they again looked surprised. The woman once again looked me over while the man seemed to be thinking hard about something.

"Well your clothes are dated at least a couple years." She stated and seemed to be doing some sort of calculation in her mind.

"I have gone through many sets of clothes. My clothes as a human were much different" I dismissed with distaste for her attempt to figure out what I didn't care to know. The man took a step over to block the woman once again, glaring at me as he again moved to protect the woman.

"We mean no harm." He said calmly. The harshness of his previous words was gone, though the glare told that his intentions could change should he perceive a threat from me. The action brought forth anger as I glared back at the two.

"Do you? You speak of marking territory and fighting for it. You, not moments ago, mention that the territory I roam is not marked and that is why you invaded without thought. Are you not looking for territory? Is it not your plans to fight me for territory like you have learned from these 'others' you speak of?" I scathed and the couple tensed again though I held steady, not moving as I watched the two.

"That is not our intent!" The woman exclaimed defensively.

"We ran to escape those that fight for territory. To escape those that use others of our kind as tools in their fight only to be dispatched once they are no longer useful. We want to be free of that life." The man spoke valiantly, desperate for understanding. His words saddened me. I decided to impart some wisdom I had learned through my years of solitude.

"You both must still be new to this life. There is no freedom here. The only freedom you have obtained is freedom from human weakness and from those that wished to control you. You traded in one set of shackles for another. Now you are a slave to your thirst and wander without purpose." I said empathetically, better they know now.

"We are not without purpose, we found purpose with each other, a reason to live, to forsake the submission we had shown to those that controlled us. What would you know of breaking free of the thirst, you are as we are, slacking your thirst with the blood of women and children!" The man's voice grew in anger as he spoke. I smiled in the face of his offense, the anger all too familiar even after all this time.

"Far more than you. I had been watching this group for two days and waiting for them to exhaust before setting up camp. I watched and waited for one to break away from the group, waiting makes things easier. Once one is away from the group they can simply disappear without a trace, without sending the others running and screaming. With one missing the travelers stay with hopes of finding them and you get a chance at another one and possibly another before the travelers leave to save themselves. They never know what happened and you receive two, sometimes as many as three meals before it's over. Enough blood to slack the burn for months till the next group of wagons come." I said angrily before pointing to the bodies.

"Instead, see what you have done? You attacked and the group scattered, turning your meal into a frenzy, getting your fill in one go. Now there will be no meal in the days to come and you have left a witness." I pointed to the boy under the wagon, he whimpered and tried to conceal himself more behind the wagon's wheel.

"If not for your interference, he would have been allowed to travel on with the remaining travelers. Instead he will die tonight just like the others." I said with a sneer. The woman opened her mouth but I was already in motion, snagging the boy from beneath the wagon and snapping his neck before he could make a sound. I threw the boy at their feet, watching as they stumbled away from the corpse aghast by my actions.

"Learn to control yourselves. Your thirst and your tongue." I sneered and walked away from the encampment, leaving the two to clean up after themselves.

I figured the couple would take exception to their treatment and hoped that it would send them on their way. Instead it brought them back. The next evening, they sought me out. I assumed they had returned to fight for the territory and was prepared to fight back the best I could, but was caught by surprise when they stopped just short of where I waited for them and had planned to use the only thing I had to my advantage, knowledge of the land, to make the first move. Instead of walking into the attack they stopped and an unconscious human man was thrown onto the ground below me.

"Can you consider this a reparation for our callous behavior?" The male called out. I shifted to be able to see the male with the woman standing just a step behind him. She was scanning the area while his eyes looked toward me. I pursed my lips and gently fell to the ground, never taking my eyes off the male as I moved closer to the human prone on the ground. I took a deep breath, taking in the heavy scent of alcohol and sweat that covered the scent of the human man's blood. The male and the woman stood several feet away, watching me with the same scrutiny I watched them.

"Is that all you wish to gain from this?" I asked sharply, refusing to accept the gesture without knowing what was expected from it. The woman frowned while her companion's lip twitched with amusement and understanding. They both stood in a relaxed stance, their legs stiff and their arms behind their backs.

"Yes ma'am, we just wish to rectify the inconvenience we posed to you last night." He spoke earnestly and I hummed as I overlooked the body again. I nodded and picked the human up and sunk my teeth into its neck, the warm liquid soothing the ache that hadn't been extinguished by the man I'd drank the night before. I drank carefully, not allowing myself to get lost in the action and remaining hyper aware of the couple standing nearby.

When I was done I let the body drop and the man smiled while the woman seemed to be eyeing the body on the ground with a look of confused horror. They remained watching me while I scrutinized the them. I wasn't completely sure how to take their behavior. I had no knowledge of vampire behavior to draw from and their actions weren't completely human either, at least not the human behavior I was used to. Their behavior set me on edge despite their obvious attempts to seem innocuous. I sighed as it became obvious that ignoring them wasn't going to make them go away.

"I suppose I can forgive your transgression." I grumbled and the man's lips twitched into a small smile and the woman's eyes seemed to truly land on me for the first time, she seemed startled for some reason.

"I appreciate that ma'am. May we introduce ourselves?" The male asked and took a hesitant step forward. I raised a brow at his question, it seemed odd to make such a request of something that was usually given freely. The couple were quickly becoming the strangest beings I had encountered.

"I don't see why not." I replied as I eyed the two.

"My name's Peter, ma'am and this is Charlotte." I hummed and gave a nod. The male took another step forward and was extending his hand. I looked at his hand for a moment before looking back up at his face. I reluctantly raised my own hand and placed it in his, he gently shook my hand and then let it go, taking a step back that I quickly replicated.

"My name's Abilene. I'd appreciated it for you kept that ma'am business to a minimum." I said stiffly and Peter nodded.

"As you wish." Peter said, the small smile never leaving his face and an uncomfortable feeling came to my stomach.