Second chapter, hopefully you'll like it, I own nothing and all that :)
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The hospital waiting room was cold. That was what was the most distinctive part of it to Marie, not the grimy and greasy old magazines piled in the corner, not the TV suspended from the wall displaying the news of an upcoming election. The vending machine with its brightly lit confectionary was similarly of little interest, almost as little as the long cut along the back of her wrist which hand five small stitches in it. It was from where she'd raised her hands to cover her face when the car window had smashed. It was the cold that had seeped into her bones with one look in the police officers too red eyes. The scream from her mother that had been abruptly cut short.
"Billy's with her," whispered Irene's voice in her ear frantically trying to awaken some response in her younger sister, she squeezed her hand tightly, clinging onto some sense of hope, "He won't let anything happen to her, he'll protect her."
Another desperate squeeze and Marie could almost have winced, it was the tightest her sister could manage, but the bruises around Irene's upper arm were testament to how much tighter the grip of a monster was.
"And dad will be here soon," her voice cracked a little, "dad will come, and he'll protect us, he will. They need him."
The cold intensified and Marie tried her hardest to latch onto it, she grabbed onto the ice pulling it closer to her, calling it to her with a voice she rarely used.
"Ria," it was hard to speak, when she was concentrating on the coldness, "you need to go and get a cup of hot chocolate from the machines at the end of the hallway. You need to go now."
Irene stilled her in her seat going rigid, "What?"
"Please," whispered Marie turning to look into her eyes, they were a clear grey, like smudged charcoal, "please, please go get some, the chocolate will make it better."
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Irene stared blankly at the machine, it had taken her too long to find it. Marie had said it was at the end of the hallway, but when she'd asked the nurse it had been through a maze of corridors that took her away from the waiting room, closer to the intensive care unit. The machine was at a cross road between two corridors, and what was worse was the fact it was out of hot chocolate. As she was about to turn to head back Irene stopped dead, his voice came floating down the hallway, he was just around the corner.
"She's too old to adjust to life here," his tone was slimy, the way lawyers always spoke on court TV, Brandon, "I know you need the scientist, and the rest of the family will learn. She's been difficult from the moment they arrived, better to just remove the threat."
"To deprive three young children of their mother Brandon," the voice was emotionless, uncaring. It sent a shiver of ice down Irene's spine, "That's a great cruelty."
"She's a corrupting influence," hate, it filled her up every time he spoke, it was all consuming, "better she not wake up, for the sake of the town. She committed a crime, surely this would be the kindest punishment."
"A kindness indeed," the voice was resigned, tinged with almost a hint of regret but Irene knew the woman felt none of it, not truly. Determination melted away the ice as her spine straightened she knew then she had to do something, "You are right, a crime has been committed, and the towns laws must be upheld."
"Yes," said Irene her voice clear as she turned the corner and walked down to confront the pair discussing her mother's fate. Brandon jumped a little in shock turning to face her. The woman with him gave little reaction other than to tilt her head slightly to regard Irene with an impassive face, like she had known she was there all along, "You're right a crime has been committed, but it was not on the part of my mother."
"Irene," Brandon's voice was almost a hiss, "You shouldn't be here."
"I am not talking to you," said Irene pointedly ignoring him and fixing her gaze on the woman, "I am speaking to you, you're the one in charge aren't you."
"That I am child," her gaze met Irene's and in it was only one thing she could identify, power, the power of the arctic as it crept over mountains, of glaciers as they crushed and reshaped the land.
"You see what I mean Founder," hissed Brandon quietly, "the woman has taught them no respect, they need..."
She held up her hand and Brandon stilled immediately, it was the same way he had stilled them all in the kitchen, all accept Marie.
"What is it you wish to say Irene?" She found her feet walking forward until she stood before this strange woman, in her mind she couldn't decide whether she was a god or a demon. Perhaps some sort of Pagan deity would have been more appropriate, an entity neither good or bad.
"Protection," said Irene putting as much force into her voice as she could, "That's the premise all relationships in this town are founded on correct."
The woman made no response so Irene continued, "in return for a small tax on the blood of your adult," she stressed that word particularly, "residents."
The founder regarded her coolly, and Brandon let out a low growl in the back of his throat.
"Contracts are signed by consenting adults," said Irene quietly, "would it not be stated as an abuse of that contract, if either of those stipulations were ignored."
"Those under the age of sixteen, are automatically protected from such things are they not ma'am?"
"Say what you mean," said the woman, her voice had a strange chill to it, as if an anger was bubbling underneath the surface. Irene almost flinched at that, she may have been smarter than most of the high school population, but she was still only ten years old.
"My thirteen year old brother has two bite marks on his left shoulder," her voice was steady as she gazed at the woman, "something that should not have occurred being that he is legally below the age of consent, and since he is protected. What reason has my mother to try and escape, to abandon her husband, other than to protect her children from an abuse which never should have occurred. This breach can be lain entirely at Brandon's feet. He is the one to blame for this whole situation, and murdering my mother as he would suggest," Irene's voice cracked, "Trust me when I say it will do nothing to resolve it."
The woman's face softened, "you speak very well, for one so young," a barely heard sigh escaped her lips.
"Will you leave my mother alone?" she asked ignoring the compliment, the woman shot her a glare and Irene's tongue stilled. Brandon was glaring daggers at her an ugly scowl twisting his face but he seemed to know it would be best to keep his mouth shut.
"Yes child your mother will live," said the woman quietly, Irene let out a sigh of relief as the woman began to turn away.
"And him," her eyes remained steadfastly on the woman's face, unwilling to acknowledge the monster at her side, "will you make sure he behaves like a protector is supposed to?"
The woman stilled a little and she was once again met by the full force of her gaze, it was like being crushed under an avalanche. The woman's mouth twisted a little in disgust.
"On that Irene, you have my word," her eyes snapped to the side as the force of her glare fell on Brandon. He visibly flinched, "Come Brandon, it seems we have much to discuss."
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Irene stood in the doorway of the waiting room, Marie was curled up across two chairs cradling her wrist to her chest, she looked exhausted and she supposed the shock and stress of the day must have caught up to her. As she watched Marie lifted her head weekly and smiled.
"It's all going to be ok now isn't it."
She took a seat next to her sister, wearily handing her a cup of hot chocolate as Marie's face lit up.
"You did it," she exclaimed looking up at her sister with adoring eyes.
"Of course pretty," said Irene, tiredness creeping into her voice, "you know I'd never let you down."
"Oh? did she say anything?"
"They're going to keep mum asleep tonight, and try to wake her up tomorrow, and dad called he's on his way."
Marie shifted a little in her seat so that she was sat upright.
"Are you ok?" it was a whisper in Irene's ear, and the concern in Marie's voice tugged a little somewhere below her ribs.
A faint smile formed on her lips as she placed her hand over her sisters tiny fingers and gave them a reassuring squeeze.
"Yes I think I am," she said quietly before turning her head to look into innocent wide eyes, "And yes Marie, I think it really will be more than ok, I think things might get better here."
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More when I write it, feel free to review if you wanna :)