Rose petals in the ashes

Chapter twelve:

~Rosemarie's point of view~

Bennett was gone when I woke up, I instantly missed him, had told me he'd be home earlier than he had yesterday but I wouldn't hold him to that. I never did. The only person a vampire could trust was the vampire they were made by or a vampire they made. Even then we rarely trust them. I got out of bed and dressed swiftly. Going downstairs I poured myself a cup of coffee and made myself toast. I was still barely awake after having them but it was an improvement to my state.

I hadn't the time to fool around today, I left Scarlett in charge and drove to my coven house, thankfully the new pack house was only an hour drive from the coven house. I made it there and opened the door, expecting the welcome I had recieved last time only this time the house was silent, the smell of copper was rich in the air and blood splattered the walls and floor. I covered my mouth, hiding my elongated fangs. I looked away as I saw the people I once considered as family dead here, there and everywhere I turned. I felt nausea roll over me, I thought the urge to throw up.

I heard a car pull up behind me but I was too busy wallowing to notice who had jumped out of the car and was approaching. I was clamped by large hands, the person holding me turned me round, shaking me from my reverie. I snapped out of it to see Dimitri's calculating brown eyes looking down into my own. His expression softened slightly. I threw my arms around him regardless of what had went on between us the other day when we'd argued. He kissed my forehead and stroked my hair that for once fell loose. He murmured sweet nothings to me: promising all to be good and right although I knew it wouldn't, it never would be. Not now, not ever.

I let tears drop from my eye lids, thankfully today I bore no make-up for my tears to smudge. My family... gone. "How come you aren't dead?" I asked. "I was in London for the weekend. I needed to get over you, not that it's done much good. You have a face that someone could see once and remember forever" I nodded my acknowledgement. He sighed and finally we released each other from the embrace we had held so tightly just moments ago. Our family was dead, but we had no time to mourn. If the cops showed up and we were just stood there things would not get any easier for us.

"I'll dispose of the bodies, you clean" he said, his face made him look like a man on a mission, not a grieving man. We'd have a funeral for them later, now we had to save our own necks and make sure they weren't found like this. For me cleaning blood was easy, it had become a habit after three thousand years of being a vampire, only now did I realise that it was kind of sad I took death lightly.

With the help of a mop and cleaning products I was done long before Dimitri returned.

We washed every visible part of our skin and left without looking back. We couldn't return here. "Come to the pack house" I offered, he smiled. "Thanks" I shrugged my shoulders and any protest he may have made disappeared. I got in my car, as did he and he followed me back to the pack house. We sat down in the kitchen and I poured us both a cup of coffee. Neither of us touched it for quite some time, we didn't say a word, to each other or anyone else. I think if we had it would've caused us to cry more and I was not the type to cry a lot. I was more a suffer in silence type of girl.

Bennett got home about ten past two, when he did that's when I cracked, the tears I'd held back so long came now as I ran to him, he immediately embraced me with his lovely arms and told me not to worry, that all would be right. He'd obviously heard, my only problem was who had told him. "Rose. Calm down." Dimitri came over. "She saw the bodies, she's freaking out" Bennett glared at him. "You don't think I know that?!" I whimpered. "Guys don't fight" I said, summoning all the courage I had left.

They both looked at me, exchanged a glare that told the other this wasn't finished yet and then took care of me. They got me to go upstairs and change whilst they made me a cup of coffee and went into the pack meeting room. I joined them and locked the door behind me. This was not a matter the children needed to hear. Not at all.