Zone Zero: Redemption (Book 2 of 3)

Chapter 29

"Alex finally turned you. How did you take the transition?"

I shift my weight from foot to foot and look down at the sound of her words. She doesnt know what happened to me. I thought that Cail would have been sure to tell anyone who would listen about what he did to us.

At my silence, i hear Amelia mouth an o sound and the mood shift slightly. I can tell that her and Alex must be sharing a moment about me so i dont bother to look toward them.

"What happened here Amelia?" Alex asks trying to be as gentle as possible and steer the conversation away from my transition into a vampire.

Amelia lets out a chuckle before responding.

"Your brother paid me a visit. He was asking for you. When i didnt have the answers he wanted, he completely trashed the place and did a number on me."

Just as i suspected. Cail used Amelia to get to Alex and i. But the question of what answers she gave still linger.

"What did he want to know?" I ask as barely a whisper.

Her gaze falls to me and softens a great deal.

"He wanted to know where you were mostly. Where you could be hiding and if there was any form of leverage he could obtain to coax you out."

Not once did Amelia mention Alex or use a term for both of us and i don't disregard that. Cail isnt after Alex anymore. Just me. But why only me?

"What did you tell him?" Alex asks before i get a chance to.

"Nothing. Which is what i knew. I haven't known where you are for months. I didn't even know about Keavy's escape until Cail told me. I think it only angered him more to know that i had no idea about any of it. He thought you would come running to me." Amelia lets out a few shaky and laboured breaths before refocusing on Alex. "To be honest, so did i. Why didnt you seek out my help Alex? I would have protected you with my life."

Alex lets out a small sigh and rubs Amelia's shoulder sweetly.

"I know you would have which is why i didnt want to put you in danger. I figured that if you knew nothing then Cail couldn't hurt you, but i guess i was wrong there." Alex gestures towards Amelia's battered frame with his last sentence as Etu flinches.

Amelia on the other hand waves her arm around sluggishly, shooing away Alex's words.

"This is just a few scratches. Give me a week of rest and plenty of blood and I'll be back to myself in no time."

Alex gives a curt nod before standing and taking my arm to lead me into the kitchen. Etu remains behind gently stroking Amelia's blood soaked face.

When we are far enough away from the two Alex turns to me and i already know what his next words will be.

"It wont be as simple as that and she knows it. She is just being strong for Etu."

"So what do we do?" I fold my arms in front of my chest while i wait for his answer.

"She will need a lot of blood. At least 20 or so blood bags but it would be easier and quicker if we had a human instead but we dont have that luxury. And we will need to reset some of her bones."

My mouth opens at his last words and i stand in shock and disbelief at what i actually heard. He cant be serious, surely.

Alex takes my silence and confused demeanor and begins again.

"Her natural healing abilities have started to take place but some of her bones were not in the right place when it happened so now she is disfigured. We will need to rebreak said bones and set them straight so she can heal properly. Otherwise she will be in pain for the rest of her life."

I give off a small nod and try to move on from what we will have to do. The next question is the blood. We will need a lot of it so where do we get it?

"What about the blood? We only have about 4 or 5 bags left. That's no where near enough."

Alex nods intently at my words and runs a hand through his shaggy hair. He was thinking the same thing i guess.

"I have some blood in the car out the back. But i dont think it will be enough. But i know someone who can get me more." Etu's voice sounds from behind us making me jump from the shock of it. I didnt even hear him come this way.

"Call your contact and get some delivered here as soon as possible. But for now, grab what you have. Ill get some towels."

Both Etu and Alex exit the kitchen just as Alex finishes, leaving me alone still clutching my arms to my body.

How could Cail do something so horrible to Amelia? Especially when she didnt know anything. What kind of maniacal monster is he?

I slowly make my way back into where Amelia is resting and breathing in ragged breaths. She looks asleep but still in a world of pain. Who knows how long she has been hiding in here waiting for someone to find her.

I move closer to her and take my place kneeling beside her. If she needs anything i want to be right beside her to lend a helping hand.

"It was Cail, wasn't it?" Her tortured voice whispers softly.

My focus shoots to her as i try to understand the meaning behind her words.

She slowly opens her eyes and lets her gaze soften and finds mine.

"Cail turned you, didn't he?"

I am speechless at her figuring it out so quickly but then again, if she has known Alex for some time then it is certain she has known Cail as well. She must know what he is like and what he is capable of. The wounds on her body scream that.

I decide to simply nod my response and she accepts it willingly.

"Not by choice either?" She asks again.

I nod once more to convey my answer.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that Evie. Its awful to wake up a vampire when you never asked for it."

I smile half heartedly at her kind words and fight back a tear that wants to be seen. I have been fighting the urge to break down over becoming a vampire for weeks now.

I never wanted this curse and i would never have asked for it but in the end i had to tell myself to just accept it. I have to play the cards that i was dealt and move on. But it doesn't dull the ache to know that i will forever be the very thing that i grew up despising.

"If it makes you feel any better, i never had a choice either." Amelia's soft words catch me off guard. It is not something i expected her to say.

"You never chose to be a vampire?" I ask for clarification.

She shakes her head gently and reaches for my hand to hold.

"My maker turned me after finding me dying from pneumonia. I was all but gone but he didnt want to see me die so he turned me without my consent. I struggled for years to understand why he did what he did but still have no real answers."

I watch in silence as she retells a sad tale from her past willingly but don't miss when a tear escapes her.

"The truth was that i was ready to die. I had already lost my entire family and was alone. I gave myself over to the Lord and was waiting on the angels to take me, so you can imagine my surprise when i woke up as a starving vampire with a lust for blood."

"How did you finally come to terms with it all?" I ask barely a whisper.

"It wasn't easy but Alex helped me. Showed me all the things that were worth living for and stuck by my side through the hard times. And when i was ready to go at life alone, he let me go." She begins to stroke my hand and pulls it closer to her before continuing on. "He will help you through it as well. Don't be afraid to ask him for help because he is the most loyal person i know. And i can tell that he will be loyal to you until his last day on this earth."