Sorry about the delay in getting this up! I blame Band of Brothers. I can't stop watching it! That series cost me two days to type this up, plus I've been dead tired at work! But it's so worth it. Heehee... Anyway, here's the next chapter. There's a touch of play in it but nothing to get excited about. Read on!

"What's on your dress?" Star asked softly as Detta and Marko entered the cave.

Detta gave her a jaded look. "Well hello to you to." Star's eyes fell to her hands and Detta looked down at her dress, seeing blood smeared on the fabric. "Kool Aid. Guess I spilled some," she answered, shrugging her shoulders.

Star looked up at them again, her face worried, but didn't say anything. She sat on the couch alone, Paul on the fountain and Dwayne and David in chairs around her. Paul and Dwayne looked apprehensive, David smug, staring after the two as they came in.

"You need to stop drooling on yourself," Paul called after her, an anxious look on his face that was feebly hidden underneath a small smile.

Detta smiled back. "I'll try."

Marko clamped onto her wrist and guided her to their back room of the cave so she could change her dress.

"There's never going to be a way to keep myself clean, is there?" she said, removing her dress, standing in front of Marko in nothing but her boots. "Hand me a dress, please?"

"Probably not," he answered, grabbing one of the dresses draped over a jutting piece of stone. "When you feed, that's all you think about. Being tidy is the last thing on your mind when all you know is blood. It's only after that you realize that you're smeared in it."

He held the dress out for her to grab but yanked it back when she reached for it. She rolled her eyes and held out her hand, waiting for Marko to hand her the dress.

"What's going on out there anyway?" she asked, nodding to the entrance of their tunnel.

Marko instinctively looked as if the scene were just before them. "My guess, tonight's Star's night."

"He's not going to turn her."

"Not like I turned you, no. The bottle."

"What bo…wait, the one he tried to get me to drink from the first time you brought me here?"

Marko nodded, the dress still held firmly in his hand, shaking it slightly, taunting her bare body with it.

Detta scoffed. "She'll be dead in a week. Does Max know about this?"

"Probably. But I think, at this point, he just lets David do it for entertainment. He knows they won't last."

"So what's the point? Why waste the effort?"

Marko shrugged. "I guess to keep David off of Max's back for a while. He gets restless, like a kid. Gotta have a new toy every so often. He'll get bored with her eventually, start using her and being obvious about it. He likes to force them to give him a reason to kill them."

"You think they've…"

Marko shook his head. "David won't fuck a mortal. He'd end up killing her anyway. He likes to have 'em around for a while so he waits until they're at least half."

"What a nice guy. Now can I have my dress?"

He smirked and waved the dress in front of him. "You're going to have to come and get it."

Detta marched over to him and yanked it out of his hand but he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her naked body up against him.

"You are insatiable," she laughed at him.

"You complaining?"

"Nope. But I know someone that will if we don't get out to the lobby."

Marko didn't answer but slid his hand up her waist, moving it to grasp a breast, his thumb rubbing onto her nipple. Detta let a low growl rumble in her throat as she leaned close to Marko's mouth and flicked his lips with her tongue. He lowered his face along her jaw, nipping at her skin, slowly easing down her neck. Detta leaned backwards when she realized that Marko wanted to continue lower, her hand wrapped around his neck. His hand pushed up her breast and his mouth found her nipple, sucking and flicking at the tip, sending quakes through Detta's body. She ran her fingers through his hair, grabbing onto it tightly, her eyes rolling into the back of her head.

But before either could continue further, a resounding 'get out here now!' bounded into them from the lobby, the sound reverberating off of the rocks. Detta's eyes snapped open and she could feel Marko's mouth release its hold on her.

She rolled her eyes and while still in her arched position, yelled back, "Boo!"

She flung herself up so she was face to face with Marko. She kissed him quickly before shimming out of his arms and throwing her dress on.

"Looks like we'll have to tuck it back until later, huh?"

"Easy for you to say," Marko returned, adjusting his pants.

Just before Detta walked out of the tunnel, he grabbed her arm and pulled her back, placing his hands on either side of her face and kissing her deeply. There wasn't any lust in this kiss. Not this time. It was much deeper. It was something Detta wanted to wade around in, find out more about it but he pulled away, smacking her ass and goading her to walk out of the tunnel.

David rolled his eyes as the two walked into the lobby to join the others. "Ridiculous," he muttered.

"I'm sorry, did you say jealous?" Detta asked with an air of sarcasm.

He glared at her, giving her a look she recognized to be the same as when they first met. If she had a soul to harvest, she might have been worried. But she could still feel emotion. Having a soul, she always thought, was what controlled that. If becoming a vampire was supposed to be rid of your soul then, according to her own thoughts, she should be emotionless. It was another question she needed to write down on her 'to ask Marko' list. But now was not the time.

"About time the rabbits joined us!" Paul laughed to break the lingering silence.

"Rabbits?" Star asked, her face puzzled.

Detta smirked. "We harbor carrots in the back. I'm surprised we're not orange, actually."

She moved to the couch that Dwayne had moved to position himself on and sat next to him, propping her feet up on the table in front of her. Marko remained standing nearer to David, a look of knowing anticipation on his face.

Star looked around at the relative strangers surrounding her. Over the last couple months, she hadn't really gotten to know anyone. Everyone, including David, had closed her off, not willing to accept her. She thought of leaving but where would she go? Where could she go? She had had a definitive place to sleep for a while now and David, albeit painfully slowly, was warming to her more and more. They would go out on their own, not just with the group and she would talk to him, pouring her heart out about where she came from. He would give her pieces of information about himself, where he was from, his family, how he came to Santa Carla but it was superficial information. She wanted to know more about him, not just his circumstances. But she could feel him holding out, waiting for something. He wouldn't touch her either, not in any sexual way. He'd kissed her quite a lot but nothing beyond that. She wasn't upset. A little frustrated maybe. It's not like he didn't seem interested but why the wait? Wasn't she pretty enough? Star absently ran her hand through her hair, brushing it to the side, her shawl falling from her shoulder, her bare feet starting to get cold. She pulled her legs up underneath herself and covered them with her skirt.

"Glad you could finally join us," David said snidely to Detta and Marko but kept his eyes trained on Detta.

"Remove the stick from your ass, David. I don't work on your schedule."

"Testy."

"Sick of it!" she said, her eyes wide.

The others remained silent, Star the only one looking between David and Detta.

"Not now," he returned through clenched teeth. Detta merely rolled her eyes away from him. "Marko, food would be good."

Detta watched as Marko obediently obeyed David's command, heading up and out of the entrance to fetch them dinner. She wondered why Marko obeyed so willingly, why all the boys did. She hadn't been part of their group for that long, not by their standards, and there were dynamics that she didn't know about yet. She hardly knew about Marko's history let alone any of the other boys. The more she thought about it, the more she realized she knew more about Star than anyone else, her thoughts anyway. She knew Marko, sure, but his past was a mystery to her. Another thing to add to her 'ask Marko' list. It was steadily growing.

"You like it here, Star?" David broke the silence after Marko left.

She gave him a slight smile, wrapping her shawl a little tighter around her shoulders to block out the chill. She shifted her gaze around the cave quickly, her eyes falling upon her own little nook in the wall. She had hung sheer, shimmering pieces of fabric, half-heartedly blocking her area from the rest of the cave. She had a neat pile of clothes in there and a mattress to sleep on, candles around her bed. More than she ever had since she left home.

"I do. It's strange, though," she started, her brow furrowing slightly, "how none of you are around during the day."

David raised his eyebrows at her. "Business as usual. You'll find out about that soon enough."

Star shrugged her shoulders. "It's nice to find other runaways that live off the street." This elicited laughs from all of them. "What?"

"We're far from runaways," Dwayne answered.

"And I own a house across town," Detta added.

"So what are you guys doing here?" Star looked confused.

"We prefer it here," David said. "We're here by choice, not need."

"But if you could live in a home…"

"This is a home. Just not a conventional one," David answered her question before she could ask it.

"That's all I ever wanted," Star said, looking down at her hands. "Some place, any place, to call home where everyone gets along, where there aren't any accidents…"

"Why did you leave home, Star?" Detta asked.

She had this image in her head of this prima donna girl that got fed up with not getting her way so she left. She knew it was the wrong image but this girl was too soft, undamaged, to have anything serious happen to her. She could only see some spits of memories jumping through Star's head; a screaming man, a screaming woman, she was crying, there was a little boy…

Star let out a heavy sigh before speaking. "My step-father killed by little brother." She looked up at Detta and stared straight into her eyes, daring her to make a snide remark. There weren't any tears in her eyes, just a sense of loss, an empty hole where a piece of her used to be. "He said it was an accident, that Jason tripped and fell down the stairs but I know better. He never liked him, my stepfather. They never liked each other, even though he was only ten. Jason was the scapegoat for all of Bill's problems. Thank God he never wore sandals. His toes were twisted from the amount of times Bill stepped on them.

"I was in my room. I heard them fighting. Jason just wanted to go to the park," tears started to creep to Star's eyes but she coughed them back. "But Bill wouldn't let him go. Next thing I know, there's thudding down the stairs. I run out and Jason's on the landing, his head hanging in an inhuman position. And his eyes. Can't forget those. I see them every time I shut mine. Just staring at nothing. Mom was hysterical; Bill consoled her, one of his few moments of tenderness with her. Her and Jason could have compared notes on bruising. I'm surprised Bill still had a voice after the years of yelling at Mom. She yelled back but not for long. His hand always shut her up.

"After the funeral, he didn't waste any time in going back to his old ways. Except now I was the scapegoat what with his punching bag dead. So I left. Been gone months now. I shouldn't have left Mom there but I had to save myself. If she wouldn't even protect us, wouldn't protect her son, I was as good as dead. And I'm not ready to die yet."

There was a stony silence in the room after Star finished. No one quite knew what to say. It was a story no one was expecting. Detta now realized why Star had this air about her that came off as "freed." She had escaped death once, just like Detta had. The ending was different, of course, but that one circumstance, that they had both eluded their own demise, moved Star up a notch in Detta's ranks. She was able to relate with her about something, even if it was something terrible. She leaned back on the couch after she realized she had been perched forward, listening to Star's story intently.

"Gives her a whole new depth," Dwayne mumbled to her.

Detta looked at him. "But…" she whispered.

"She's trouble."

"You feel it too, huh?"

Dwayne nodded and looked down at her before looking over at Paul. He had the same look about his face as he absently tapped his hand on his knee to an invisible beat. He shrugged his shoulders and the three of them turned to David as he began to speak.

"There's no death here, Star," he said with a smirk, but an endearing one. A very strange combination. "You don't need to worry about that anymore."

Detta felt a surge come from David, a strange mix of elation and anticipation. Star wasn't as weak as they had all thought, just in the important ways so that David could manipulate her to his advantage. There was a touch more to the story, though. Detta could feel that. Guilt. She blamed herself for her brother's death. David could feel it too. Hell, he could probably see the entire scene playing out in her head. He had played on that. Perhaps she had already told him the story. Either way, it was her biggest weakness and his biggest target.

"Food!"

Marko hopped down the makeshift stairs at the cave entrance, carrying a few plastic bags stuffed to the brim and balancing four large pizza boxes on one arm. Instinctively Detta stood up to help him since no one else seemed to do so.

"How the hell'd you balance all of this on your bike?" Detta asked as she grabbed the pizza.

"Skills," was all Marko replied as he set the bags down.

No sooner were they placed on the ground did Paul attack one of the pizza boxes still in Detta's arms.

"I'm starving!"

"Damn, so am I! Could I put these down please?"

Paul had already grabbed a couple slices of pizza out of the box before Detta had placed them onto a small table in front of her. He managed what she knew to be a 'thanks' but what managed to come out of his mouth only sounded like food sliding down his throat. Detta's brow furrowed and she managed a smile at him before rummaging in one of the bags for her food. Marko always knew what to get her if Italian was on the menu. And he did. A Styrofoam container of ravioli and sauce was placed at the bottom of the bag. She picked it up, grabbed a fork and reclaimed her seat on the couch next to Dwayne. Marko sat on the fountain nearer to Paul.

There was a ritualistic element to this night. It seemed like it was something that had played out for these boys many times before, some more so than others. Next to Detta, Paul was the youngest and there were only two other girls he had seen. He was remembering them now as he chowed on his pizza. His eyes were open but they had glazed over; they were busy watching the scenes in his head. Two girls, both blondes. Sweet, naïve, neither lived long after their first drink from David's bottle. The scenes suddenly disappeared and Paul snapped his head towards her. Detta was caught in her prying but instead of giving her a 'fuck off' look, Paul's face merely read 'that's it.' He wanted to share his memories with her, give her a glimpse of things to come, of girls to come and subsequently go. But there was an order, a method to their madness, something that said first this step, then the next. Detta felt that next step coming up.

"Detta, get me my wine."

She nearly choked on her food as she turned her head towards David. "I'm sorry?"

He raised his eyebrows to her. "My wine."

She scowled. "Your legs broken?" He sneered at her. "You can't get up and get it yourself?"

If blood could boil, David's certainly would have at that moment. His eye twitched and his hands clamped tighter to the arms of his chair. Star looked back and forth between the two, her face riddled with anxiety. You didn't need to be a vampire to feel the tension that was quickly filling the room. Still, Detta did not move. She did not answer to David's beck and call. Instead, Dwayne lifted himself from his seat next to her and walked around the back of the couch. Behind it sat a cluster of shelves littered with odd trinkets and whatnots that have collected over the years. But that bottle Detta was able to pick out immediately. It was ornate, covered in gems and faded gold plating. She wondered if they had found it or if it was made for them. Or maybe it was something that Max passed down to them. Maybe that same ritual that was held in her living room revolved around that bottle as well. A couple drops of her own blood were floating in that piece of ornate glass. All of theirs were but it was mostly David's and Max's. They were always supposed to be the dominant blood. She didn't understand why but having Marko as her dominant broke this unspoken law of their group. David and Max were the only ones that really cared but now Marko had to bear her weight. He had held up fine so far and she was still alive so everything seemed to be going ok.

Dwayne handed the bottle to David and rejoined Detta on the couch. David kept his eyes fixed on her, his glare penetrating her. They were going to have words later and she knew it.

His face then changed, looking almost sarcastic. "Wine?"

Detta cocked an eyebrow at him. "You know I don't like that wine, David. Too bitter for me."

Her particular emphasis on the word 'bitter' stung him and he flinched when Star wasn't looking. Detta ground her teeth and turned away, looking off into the cave and blindly played with her fingers. She was sick of looking at him.

He rolled his eyes away from her and back towards Star. He leaned forward, holding out the bottle towards her. "Star?"

She looked apprehensively at it and then around at the others in the room. Detta turned her head back, careful to look only at Star and not at David. She felt like an errant teenager but she couldn't help it. David was acting like a child and she was going to stand her ground. Star looked at the other boys and then directly at her, a hint of pleading in her eyes. Detta could feel David's eye boring into the side of her head but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of looking at him. What was she going to do? Tell Star it was blood and make her run away? She'd be dead and who knows what would happen to Detta. She didn't even know what to say to her. There weren't any words of encouragement she couldn't offer, no advice to give. Had any of the girls before her said no? If there had been they surely would have been food before the sun rose.

She sighed while looking at Star. Here was a girl that had hidden strength that she kept buried inside her. She was outwardly weak, frail, looking for a place, for people, that would protect her. That blood was a protection, sure, but it was a death sentence for her. But Detta didn't know about the other girls, if they were completely weak or showed potential like Star did. From what she felt off of David for that brief moment, Star was a rarity, if not a first. She didn't know. She didn't have enough information to know so she just looked at her, rather defeated, giving her an 'it's your choice' look.

Detta looked over at Marko who was staring intently at her. Lost within her own thoughts, she never felt his eyes on her but they were full force now. When she looked at him this feeling of relief came over her. He was worried she was going to say something to Star. His body visibly slackened and he repositioned himself on the fountain, leaning back in a more relaxed, casual manner, and all eyes turned back to Star. They weren't being inconspicuous about anything. They weren't trying to be. All except David wanted this to be over.

Star looked back at the bottle and then up at David. "What kind is it?"

David smirked. "California. A local vineyard. A little dry, not everyone's taste, but it's still good."

She hesitated for a moment before reaching out to take the bottle from David. She was going to drink it. Detta could feel it. Star wasn't good with peer pressure even though the only one pressuring her was David. Granted, none of the others were doing anything to stop it. They were just spectators at a game.

Star fondled the bottle a little, turning it around in her hands, staring at the decorations embedded around it. She stared at the liquid as it swished around inside. It did look strikingly similar to wine. Blood should have grabbed at the glass, left a trail of itself but this didn't. 'Vampires have different blood,' Marko had said. 'Different properties. We don't bleed like humans do.' It wasn't much information but it was enough of an explanation for the time being. Detta watched as Star discretely sniffed the mouth of the bottle, trying to detect any foreign scent that she should be aware of. After several long moments, Star brought the bottle to her lips and tipped it back, letting the blood within pour down her throat. She brought it back down and handed it back to David.

"You can have more." Star shook her head and pressed the bottle back to him, wiping her mouth with her fingers. David took it and took a drink himself before corking it and setting it aside. "Is it good?"

Star shrugged her shoulders. "It was alright."

"You've had better." David smiled as he read her mind.

Star gave him a blushing half-smile, not wanting to say it out loud. "If you say so."

The tension in the room seemed to thin out, deflate once Star had drank the blood. The boys seemed to ease up. Paul got up to grab more pizza while Marko and Dwayne finished what they had started eating before.

No longer feeling obligated to be there any longer, Detta stood up and started making her way away from the small crowd. "I need to go to work. I'll see you all later."

Marko made to stand up but she quickly shook her head. "I can walk."

He brushed the crumbs from his hands and shook his head in return. "You're not walking."

Detta didn't protest. She had neither the want nor the energy to and really, to have a few minutes alone with Marko would ease her nerves a bit. They had reached the top of the stairs on the cliff when thumps could be heard on the wood and the stairs began to shake. They both turned around but both were taken by surprise by the charging David. He grabbed onto her throat like a handle on a piece of luggage and brought her to her knees. Marko had been knocked backwards and fell down the top half of the stairs leading to the bikes.

"You will not humiliate me like that again!"

Detta pried at David's fingers, trying to release their grip. The feeling was uncomfortable. There was no breath to stop but she still maintained that human reaction of gasping for air. She looked into his face and although he wasn't in his full vampire form, his eyes were blazing yellow. Quick steps could be heard on the wood behind her and David's grip was released from her neck. He stumbled back in surprise as Marko shoved him away.

"She doesn't know yet, David!" Marko yelled over the waves crashing below them.

"I am not your fucking lackey, David! I don't answer to you!" Detta yelled at him, struggling up from her knees.

David lunged for her again but Marko stepped between them, holding his vampire brother back. It was the first time she had ever seen him really stand up for her.

"Stop! I haven't taught her yet!" Marko struggled against David's weight.

"I don't know about your fraternal ways and your rituals and your method of doing things, David. But get over it, kid. Has your head always been this big or is this what getting turned did to you?"

He lunged at her again and managed to swipe at her face, his nails catching her skin and drawing blood. Just as quickly as he lunged, he backed off, no longer flush against Marko. David backed away but still stared intently at Detta, Marko standing as mediator between them.

"You're a fucking fledgling compared to me, Detta. Remember that. Don't you dare think you can come in here and change everything to suit you. We have an order here for a reason. And you," he turned to Marko, "you need to get on teaching her our ways."

"I have been," Marko said defiantly.

"Not enough."

"She's a vampire, David. Not an encyclopedia. She may not be human but it doesn't make her perfect. I'm not about to unload everything I know onto her all at once."

David looked back to Detta and sucked on his check before turning back to Marko. "Her failure rests on your shoulders, Marko. Remember that."

"How could I forget? You remind me every night. So does Max."

Detta stepped in front of Marko, putting her in the dangerous position of buffer between him and David. "I will not fail."

David smirked snidely. "We'll see."

He turned and walked back down the stairs towards the cave. Detta remained, her back to Marko, staring out at the water. They stood in silence, not touching, until Marko stepped up to her back and rested the side of his head against hers. She didn't recoil or force him away. Instead she welcomed him, leaning back into his body, he placing his hands on her waist.

"You still have a lot to learn," he whispered into her ear.

He could feel her body nod in agreement. "I know," she replied before she whirled around to face him, staring into his eyes. "But I don't care what I learn. I will never answer to him. He doesn't deserve that, not from me."

Marko nodded in return. "I know." He knew she would never forgive him for trying to kill her, for that deceiving plot to silence her. And he didn't blame her but the rules went against that and he didn't know if there would be room for compromise. But that moment was not the time to worry, not yet. "Come on. Lets get you to work."

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