Irene hated Santa Carla. She had only been once when she was newly turned, and she never wanted to come back. It was too bright, too loud, there were too many people. She never was one for crowds, never had been. Once she had been given permission to leave, she never looked back. Granted, the overcrowded boardwalk made for a perfect hunting ground, but so did her home on the other side of the country. A small seaside town in North Carolina, Wilmington wasn't a crazy place, but it had its fair share of tourists. The seaports were a plus too, made it easy to get people away from groups.

While Wilmington a was relatively normal place, Santa Carla was nowhere near normal. It was a complete 180. Teenagers roaming the boardwalk smoking and laughing at something stupid while the older generation threw disgusted looks their way. Shops lined each walkway, some popup shops spaced along the middle for clothes and ear piercings. Irene's head hurt as she ventured further into the crowd, pushing past a group of guys who were trying to hit up a few girls.

The girl grimaced at the sound of someone vomiting up the contents of their stomach as she passed a rollercoaster. She was a long way from home.

"Just get in and get out." She mumbled to herself as she tried remembering where Max's video store was. It'd be so long since she'd been there, she surprised herself when she stopped in front of the shop. Her eyes trailing up to the sign that she hadn't seen in years and hadn't wanted to ever again. "Just get in and get out." She repeated. "Simple."

As Irene entered the store she scanned over for her sire. Behind the counter stood a darker skin woman who smiled at her. "Hey welcome in, can I help you find something?" She was pretty, Irene noted. Walking up to the counter she nodded and went to ask a question, but someone interrupted before she could.

"Irene?" A familiar voice asked. Closing her eyes, she turned towards the voice, and there in all his age-old glory stood Max. Just looking at him made her want to punch him. The smallest details only further encouraged the act. From the glasses that sat high up on his nose to his jacket that covered a button-up even though it was months past jacket weather. Did Santa Carla even get cold? He motioned a hand for her to move over to him and she obliged, offering a smile to the girl at the counter who reflected one back. "What are you doing here?"

Irene sighed as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You know I wouldn't be here if I didn't have to be." She said, not wanting to give the full reason as to her visit. How were you supposed to bring up the fact three-fourths of a coven were dead? "Aileen, Victoria, and Abby. They're gone." Like that she guessed.

"They ran?" Max pressed further into it and it took all the girl had not to groan. He wasn't always the smartest. "I thought I told you to not let them out of your sights." He really had a lot of faith in one of his oldest creations. Note the sarcasm there.

"If they ran, I wouldn't have gone across the damn country to tell you!" She responded, her voice rising. "I'd be out there looking for them. You know since I cared more about them than our own sire." Her words hit a nerve with the man as his eye turned cold. It wasn't a rare occurrence when the two were near each other. Irene hated him. Max hated the fact she didn't willingly let him control her.

"I knew I shouldn't have let you leave California. I knew I shouldn't have trusted you to take care of a group alone." His tone was beginning to match Irene's. The two stood almost face to face if it wasn't for the height difference, glares both covering their faces. It wasn't until the sound of engines broke their eye contact that a familiar smell made its way into the girl's nose and this time, she let out a groan.

"Today just keeps getting better and better doesn't it." Irene mumbled, backing away from Max but not bothering to turn around to see who had caused the noise. She knew who it was, and she wasn't in the mood for smartass comments about her being back. The scent never drew closer so she could tell they weren't moving, probably watching the scene fall out in front of them. "Well, now that you know what happened. It's back to Wilmington for me. Maybe we'll see each other in another 50 or so years, yeah?"

Before she could even turn around Max her tightly, a hand on each shoulder holding her down. For being so old, the man was strong. "Oh no. You're not going anywhere." He commanded and she felt her body go rigid before he removed his hands from her. "You're not going back to North Carolina. You're staying right here." Although he released his grip she still wasn't moving, she physically couldn't move a single limb. Struggling only made her more tired so she gave up, it'd been a few days from her last feeding, so she was already feeling weak.

'Fuck you.' She thought before giving a cheeky, "I don't think I'll be able to stand in this spot forever." Max's glare returned as he looked down to her.

"You're not leaving Santa Carla. You had your chance to prove yourself and you failed." Irene's eyes widened at his statement. There was nothing she wanted to do more than to leave this runaway and tourist trap to her simple life in Wilmington. She could still hear the music from the merry-go-round that was a ways away. She could still smell the stale popcorn and hotdogs that made her nauseous.

"You can't be serious! First, you take my human life away, and now my actual life?" It was a good thing the video store wasn't packed, and the few shoppers were busy trying to figure out what to watch that night.

"You're not to leave this town. That's final." Max's stern voice echoed in Irene's ears and her arms fell limp at her sides, showing the return of her movements. "Now go find something to eat and came back here before sunrise. You'll be staying with me, just like old times." Although that last sentence would have sounded gleeful Irene only heard a prison sentence. Max gave her a smile that didn't meet his eyes before turning around to help a guest who seemed to be in deep thought over two movies.

Irene's chest rose heavily as she took a deep breath, not necessary but she was hoping it'd calm her down. Spoiler alert, it didn't. She stormed out of the store, not paying attention to her surroundings. She needed to feed, more than usual. Being so focused on finding a meal and being pissed at her sire she hadn't notice four bikes and their owners watching her storm off, or the smirk that took over one of their faces.