Children of Van Helsing

Chapter Fifty-one - Thunderstorm

Jessica

Aunt Jennifer was the first one I had told I loved girls instead of boys. Not to my sisters, not to my closest friends, but her. She was the mother figure I had needed back then, when I was confused and afraid, but so sure of what I felt. She had accepted it without blinking twice.

"Aren't you mad?" I had asked her.

She had smiled and put her arms around me. "Jessica dear, why would I be mad? You're still you, no matter who you love."

But I had still cried - maybe of relief. She had laughed.

"Now dry your tears, love, and get up. You shouldn't feel sad - you have been very brave, braver than most people I know."

This had struck me as odd. Most people she knew were notorious, strong hunters, who risked their lives to secure the lives of others. So I had asked her why, while desperately trying to wipe my nose with my shirt.

"Because being honest is one of the most difficult things on earth." She had put her hand on my heart. "Your honesty is a gift, your bravery a virtue. Don't ever change that, my dear, and you can never go wrong."

She had helped me when I had told my sisters - who had taken it up as expected. No drama, no tears, they had just accepted it and had asked what was for dinner.

She was the one who had helped me through so many difficulties. And now...

I hadn't even noticed what was happening until I heard Regina scream. In fact, I hadn't even noticed she was there in the first place. Chopping off some vampire's head, I turned around and looked at what was going on.

I saw her fall.

The sound when she hit the floor - an awful sound, a sound which would haunt me forever - seemed louder than the loudest drum. I wanted to run towards her, see if I could do anything, though I clearly saw the blood gushing from the open wound in her neck, when there was a sudden black flash.

Regina.

She was still screaming. I was probably screaming too. But I saw her, her anger, her fury, her frustration, and suddenly, it happened.

The spirit dust, now visible for everybody, whirled around her like the atmosphere around the earth, going faster and faster, until I couldn't see her anymore. She was lifted off the ground - the spirit dust caused a strong wind, and everybody was looking at what was happening. The fighting had stopped for a minute.

"What is happening?"

Ian had suddenly appeared next to me, covered in blood, pale as a dead man, with quite some bite marks and scratches on his body. He was panting.

"No idea!" I yelled back.

"Jennifer..." He started.

I interrupted him. "I know."

He bowed his head in a respectful way, and I grabbed his hand, because suddenly I didn't want to feel alone (even though I was surrounded by a large group of murderous vampires, but that didn't count).

The spirit dust slowly stopped moving, and I saw a faint shape behind it, in which I recognised my sister. Susanna was on the other side, staring at her with an inelegantly opened mouth.

"What the hell?" I yelled before I knew it.

Her skin her turned pitch black entirely. She seemed naked, but the spirit dust had created some kind of impenetrable armour around her. Her hair was blowing in the wind the moving spirit dust created, her eyes were glowing white, like an angel, and all the emotion had disappeared from her face. It was just a blank slate. She looked like a vengeful goddess when she raised her arms up in the air and opened her mouth, with now pitch black lips.