Silver Blood

Renee POV

I peeked out the window of the hotel, cringing as my skin sparkled in the light. This was the last thing I ever wanted, to be a vampire...to lose my children. Usually, I would have a spell cast over my skin, but I needed to hunt and for that I would take a day off from traveling. It had been so long since I'd fed that I could feel my body becoming weaker.

"I'm coming in, Renee." Vera called. Vera was the last of my coven. She had a human in her arms, asleep. She gave her to me. I bit into the neck remorsefully, taking all the blood I could. By the time I finished, Vera was shoving another victim into my arms. When I finished, she took them away for me. She always took care of me, like my Bella used to.

The flood of memories began to rise to my mind. I was the leader of my wiccan coven. I was the most powerful witch in my coven. Under me, Rosalie and Vera were almost tied. The two of them were friends and I always thought that was why they ranked so close. I often had to scold Rosalie for being so shallow, completely consumed in her own beauty and power.

I hadn't expected that I would fall in love the way I did. Nor that it would be with a regular human. When wiccans touch they can sense if that person has wiccan blood in them or not. This man, Charlie Swan, had no wiccan blood whatsoever! I didn't really give him a thought. Somehow, though, he made his way into my heart. Maybe it was the clumsiness that I found adorable.

We married and had two children. A son named Benjamin and a daughter named Isabella. They were half wiccan, but they were immensely powerful. My blood made them powerful. My Isabella was the responsible one. She always took care of me. Benjamin was as reckless as I was and she sometimes had to keep us both in check.

They continued to grow in power every year. They were the pride of the coven. Rosalie envied them, I knew, but she had never sought to harm them.

Then that vampire James showed up. We protected the humans in our territory. We decided that as long as he did not hunt in our territory we had no reason to harm him. Rosalie expressed interest in him, but the coven tried tp dissuade her. He was dangerous and I could see him with an eye on my children.

One night, I made the desicion to see his intensions. The coven gathered--except Rosalie, whom I had entrusted to watch my family, and Vera, who had went our for supplies. We made a looking glass and saw his intensions: He wanted to steal my babies, To change Isabella and Benjamin when their power reached it's zenith. He wanted Benjamin in his coven and wanted Isabella as his mate. He would change them both.

I was outraged. And my poor, defenseless Charlie, ignorant of the magic around him...of the life his wife lead. I couldn't let anything happen to him. I would stop him, I was determined.

But Rosalie had warned him of mt plot. Rosalie had fallen in love with him and the idea of having a powerful coven. She'd been completely seduced by him. As long as she could be his mate, his wife, she would help him make his coven. She was completely ignorant of the full truth behind his plight.

Rosalie took Bella and Ben away so that they would be safe and the coven would be open to attack. James slaughtered my entire coven and Charlie. He'd tried to kill me, but while he was drinking from me I forced him off. My blood ability as a wiccan is a very powerful, physical force field that I can exert from my body. I forced him off of me and the venom began my change. I kept the force field up as long as I could and he took the chance to escape.

I awoke to Vera standing worriedly over me. She had seen the wreck and layed all the coven to rest, my charlie included. She had placed a binding spell on me so that I could not move or attack her when I first woke up.

I told her I was resolved to search for my children. She was resolved to accompany me. Vampire or witch, she was still part of my coven.

Not all wiccans have blood abilities, powers that they can use without casting spells or making potions. My blood ability came with me during my change and became more powerful.

I didn't want change Vera. She was young and still had hope to live a full life. She used her wiccan abilities to help disguise my skin in sunlight and brought me victims when I was too weak to hunt. She puts them under spells--sleep spells that give humans the most beautiful dreams. She also cast spells to prolong my thirst so that I can take as few victims as possible.

I can't use my other wiccan talents. My eyes can no longer read spells, but my mind can remember the ones I used most. I have to think of them often so that the memories don't get blurry. I haven't tried to use them, yet, because I'm not certain if they will work. I can't make potions, since that requires spell reading or sometimes chants to be complete. I haven't really tried to read spell books, so I don't know if I could relearn my craft.

Vera takes such good care of me...helping me to track James. It's been maybe a five years since I lost my children...my family.

Isabella...Benjamin...I am coming to save you.

A/N:I really like this chapter, because I've been waiting to tell the story of how Bell and Ben got with James since before I actually wrote the story. I started this story with this idea, instead of figuring out the plot of this story. I have one now...I think...

So far, this is my favorite chapter.