Fresh Blood (Book 1)

12. Life Happened

"Cleaning day,” Dean grumbled as he stalked into the kitchen. Olivia had been up for some time, she hadn’t been able to sleep. She started having nightmares after everything that happened the night Dean first turned.

“Here you go,” Kaleb handed Dean some dust rags and pledge.

“You and Olivia can take the attic,” Virginia said. Dean’s face twisted in agony.

“The attic?” he whined.

“I could split you up,” she said.

“Nope. Let’s go,” Dean answered hastily. He grabbed Olivia by the arm and began hauling her toward the stairs.

“What’s so bad about the attic?” Olivia asked as they climbed the stairs up to it.

“I don’t like it. It’s always dusty, and there are so many boxes full of crap. Absolutely no organization whatsoever.”

“OCD,” Olivia coughed into her hand. He gave her a shove when they got to the top of the stairs and she giggled the entire way into the room. It wasn’t anything special, two by fours made up the walls. None of the walls were insulated. Dean was right, there was a film of dust on everything. Dean tossed her a rag and a can of pledge and set off in the opposite direction with his own. He began furiously spraying the pledge and working away at the dust. Olivia strolled toward the file boxes stacked against the far wall. They were all labeled with obscure names. ‘Photos’ caught her eyes. She pulled it from the top of the stack and sat on the floor.

“What’re you doing?” Dean asked as he paused in his dusting. She didn’t even bother looking up at him, she pulled the cover off the box and began rifling through the contents.

“Looking.”

“My dad wouldn’t like this,” Dean said as he stared nervously at the closed door.

“So lock the door scaredy cat.” Dean did as she instructed and kneeled next to her on the floor. Olivia pulled a small stack of photos from the box. She flipped through them. There were a few of Samuel and Kaleb in different military uniforms. Some looked like they were from world war one. Dean smiled as he looked over them with her. Olivia flipped to the next photo and paused. She stared hard at it, Dean leaned over her shoulder to get a better look.

“Is that my mom and your dad?” she asked Dean. He squinted.

“I think so.”

“They look so different.”

“What’s the date?” Olivia flipped it over.

“April 12th 2012,” she read. She flipped it back over and stared. Her mother had already been turned in this photo. Her mother had her head thrown back and laughter painted across her face. Kaleb sat just behind her, still in view of the camera, with the widest smile Olivia had ever seen him have. He was staring at her mother. They seemed genuinely happy in this photograph.

“They seem so free,” Dean whispered. Olivia nodded. She wondered if Kaleb would notice if it were missing.

“They seem so much happier. I’ve never seen my dad smile like that,” Dean told her.

“I’ve never seen my mom laugh like that either.” Olivia set the picture aside and began to dig through the box again. She pulled a DVD in a jewel case out.

“Go get your laptop,” she said to him.

“A DVD in a private box. Sure you want to watch this?” he asked as he set down the computer.

"You think it’s like a… sex tape or something?” she asked, her nose wrinkled in disgust.

“I don’t know,” Dean said as he shrugged. She pulled the DVD from the jewel case and handed it to him. She silently prayed it wasn’t a sex tape. She didn’t need that image burned into the backs of her eyelids. It took a few seconds for the DVD to actually boot in the system.

“Oh put me down!” her mother’s voice said from the speakers, it was younger, full of life and laughter. The visual followed seconds later. The operator of the camera turned it toward Kaleb, who was holding her mother in a marriage stance.

“Look at my bride, isn’t she ravishing?” Kaleb asked as he looked at the camera with a smirk.

“Very much so,” the camera operator’s voice said.

“Oh shut up Kacey!” Virginia squealed as Kaleb faked dropping her. He caught her at the last moment and she squeaked as he brought her back up.

“That’s my uncle Kacey,” Dean said.

“Now I shall take her to bed. Good day sir,” Kaleb said in the worst English accent Olivia had ever heard. He turned on his heel and whapped Virginia’s head into the doorway.

“Oh shit! Sorry! Sorry” Kaleb cried as he turned back around whacking her head again. Olivia and Dean both cringed at the noise her head made against the doorway.

“Put me down. Put me down,” Virginia managed to slur as she rubbed her head.

“Are you alright?” Kaleb asked as he kneeled at her side.

“I think you gave me a concussion sir,” she said to him. Seconds passed and she burst out in laughter. Laughter that sounded so genuine it made Olivia’s heart hurt. Her father had never made her mother laugh like that. Olivia paused the DVD and took in a few breaths.

“They were so happy,” she said to no one in particular. 

“What in the hell happened?” Dean asked.

“Life happened,” Kaleb’s voice came from the doorway. Dean jumped so hard the laptop tipped backwards.

"Dad!”

“Life happened. We were young, and stupid,” Kaleb said as he pushed the eject button on the laptop, “and happy. But things don’t always stay that way. I hope to God it does for you two.” He grabbed the disc and the case it came from. He placed it back in the box, put the lid back on and placed it back in its proper spot.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Olivia stopped herself. She did mean to snoop.

“I think Samuel may need some help outside loading the van with things that need to go to the dump,” Kaleb said as he stood facing the boxes. His hand rested on the box he had just put back. Dean moved without a word. Olivia pushed into a standing position, Kaleb half turned toward her. She saw, for the first time, vulnerability over his entire body. She tried, with much difficulty, to not start crying at how broken he looked. When had she started caring for him? She wasn’t sure, she wasn’t sure when she decided that this was her family. It just sort of happened.