Winnie stepped out on the back porch and Andrew stopped running.
“It’s nice to see you don’t hate all of your new abilities.”
She giggled and he didn‘t reply. Andrew walked over and sat down next to Winnie but didn’t say a word.
“I’m sorry Andrew. I’ve made so many mistakes.”
“Winnie, no. I should have been there to take care of you, to look after you. I knew these…creatures existed and did nothing to keep you safe from them. I guess I thought if I left and hunted them elsewhere then they wouldn’t be here. I was stupid and I failed you.”
Winnie just stared at her brother. She had never seen this side of him. He was always so sure of himself and everything around him. He always took care of her and for him to say he hadn’t, made her angry.
“What do you mean you failed me. I don’t have a single memory of you where you weren’t taking care of me. I took it for granted and even hated that you kept such a close eye on me when we were younger.”
They both were silent for a while.
“Andrew? Can I ask you something?”
“Yeah.”
“How long have you known? You know, about vampires.”
“I guess I always kind of knew but it wasn’t until I turned eighteen I truly understood. I started hunting around the city but knew I had to leave someday. I didn’t want you guys to find out about me and everything and apart of me thought by leaving I was protecting you all.”
“And then I go and fall in love with the first vampire I meet. You must be so proud.”
“I am proud of you. Well maybe not for that but look at you. You have grown up to be a wonderful person. I can’t explain the pain I felt when I heard you died. I was sick to my stomach. I came home as fast as possible. Mom and Dad were, well are, a mess. I was so out of it, I was taking a walk and ran into two vampires…”
Winnie looked up and smiled.
“…and didn’t even realize it until we were face to face. Then to my shock to realize it was you. Rage filled me and I wanted nothing else but to kill the creature who stole you from us. To tell you the truth for a very brief moment my heart filled with relief to know you weren’t dead. I think that scared me more than anything. That after all I’ve seen and done I’d rather you be one of them than dead.”
“I know what you mean. When I saw you lying on the ground, dying right there in front of me, I knew I had to save you, even if it meant turning you into one of us. Reed was doubtful you would be happy about it but I knew deep down it was the right thing to do.”
“Reed was right to be doubtful. At first I was furious, with them and you, for doing this to me. You made me the one thing I’ve spent my life killing.”
Winnie looked down in disappointment but Andrew gently raised her chin back up to him.
“But like I said I’m happy to still be here, with you.”
She let herself truly smile at him for the first time.
“Now about this Reed… I want to know everything about him. I have to make sure he is worthy of dating my baby sister, human or not I still have to look out and protect you.”
They both smiled and laughed. Both of them feeling completely relaxed and at ease together. Winnie told him everything about Reed. She told him about how they met and how since that moment her life has never felt the same. When she was done Andrew just sat there silent, no comments.
“I know this has nothing to do with the topic but Winnie can I ask you something? I’ve been wanting to ask you this for awhile but just couldn’t bring myself to do it.”
“What?”
“Did you really…kill those people?”
Winnie wasn’t ready for that. She silently stared at the ground. Then slowly nodded yes.
“Yeah I knew that deep down. I guess I just didn’t want to admit it to myself. Can I ask you something else?”
“Yeah.”
“What was it like? Did you like it…”
“To tell you the truth I don’t really remember much of it. I guess I could describe it like being on auto-pilot. I didn’t really think about it, it just happened. I mean I remember it but at the same time I don’t remember reacting to it. Like watching it happening from an outward view. Does that make since…why?”
“I was just wondering.”
Winnie looked at her brother and tried to read his face.
“I guess because I’ve always been completely repulsed by just the thought and now I’m going to have to live the rest of my life like that I just wanted to know. I mean the thought still turns my stomach but I don’t know how else I could survive like this.”
“I completely understand what you mean. I am the same way. Well not completely. The thought and smell of the blood makes me crave it but the thought of hurting and killing another human terrifies me. I actually won’t hunt because of that.”
This caught Andrew’s attention. He looked up at Winnie with a new look of hope.
“What do you mean you don’t hunt? What do you do then?”
“Well first Marcus came up with this ‘cocktail’ made from animal blood. But it tasted awful and it doesn‘t have as strong of effect as human blood. So you have to drink it twice as often. So Reed came up with the idea of having my very own blood bank here in the house. That’s what Marcus gave all of you guys after the fight.”
“Wait what!?”
Winnie looked at his shocked face.
“You didn’t know? When you were unconscious we gave you a transfusion in other words. I was scared that I wasn’t able to turn you and you were still dying. Marcus said that it was a good idea and it sped up the process too.”
Andrew just sat there speechless. At first he was shocked and disgusted but when she said transfusion it changed his view of it. It didn’t seem so wrong when you think about it that way. His mind was still running with all this new information.
“Do you think someone could live on that ‘cocktail’ you mentioned. The one made from animal blood?”
YOU ARE READING
Reed & Winifred (Completed)
Vampire"So now I've answered your question. Are you going to answer mine?" When she said this he stopped smiling and fought to not look away. She was smiling at herself but when she saw his reaction she instantly wished she hadn't brought it back up. She g...
