Lincoln jumped to his feet as he heard Rhea's cries. Him and Sam had been waiting in the living room of his house. Lincoln had refused to stay home, but he could not leave Sam unprotected, either. Lincoln burst through the master bedroom door. Father was standing guard outside of the bathroom door. He was wearing a black t-shirt with basketball shorts. "What happened?" Lincoln demanded, panicked. If Rhea had to kill the child, he needed to be with her to comfort her. Feral or not, that was child was a part of Rhea's family.
"Calm down, Linc," Father said softly. "Lillian spoke."
"What? It worked?"
"That's what it sounds like, yes."
"That's what it is," James said as he opened the bathroom door. "The child is coherent, no longer feverish, and her eyes have returned to normal."
"Fetch her parents and Victoria, please, James," Father said. James nodded and vanished with his speed. Father turned and entered the bathroom. Lincoln stopped at the doorway of the bathroom and looked inside.
Rhea had the child sitting on her lap, her beautiful face slick with tears. The chains that had confined Lillian were strewn on the ground next to Rhea. Lillian was trying desperately to wipe the tears off Rhea's face, which only made Rhea cry more as she laughed. "Auntie Ray, stop crying! I'm okay!" Lillian exclaimed.
"I know, honey. I'm just so happy. You really scared me."
"I'm sorry, Master," Lillian said as Father knelt beside her. "I disobeyed your order and got sick. I shouldn't have gone to the farm."
"Darling, that is in the past. I'm just glad that you came back to us," Father said as he touched Lillian's cheek.
Lillian's tired eyes brightened as she smiled at Father. Lincoln breathed a sigh of relief. We can fight this, he thought. As much as he had wanted to hope that it would work, he had braced himself for the worst outcome. He felt his heart swell as his mate hugged the child again, a smile and tears permanently etched on her face. "Hey, boy!" Lincoln called. "Come in here!" He heard rushed footsteps as Sam hurried over to him. The poor human's eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep, but they cleared when his eyes settled on the scene in the bathroom. "You helped do this," Lincoln said softly. "We can't thank you enough."
"May I?" Sam asked as he nodded toward the bathroom, asking to enter it. Lincoln smiled and nodded.
Lillian looked at Sam curiously as he knelt beside Rhea. Father pushed himself to his feet and joined Lincoln in the doorway. "You're human," Lillian said to Sam.
"I am," Sam smiled. "I just wanted to make sure that you were okay."
"He's my friend, Lilly. He helped me save you," Rhea said.
"Really?" Her eyes widened as she looked at Sam. "Thank you, sir."
Sam laughed. "My name is Sam."
"I like it," Lillian chirped. She reached out and hugged Sam. Lincoln noticed that Rhea still had a grip around the child's waist. He was not sure if her grip was protection for Sam, or if she just could not bring herself to let go of her yet.
Diana and Levi appeared in the bathroom suddenly. "Mommy! Daddy!" Lillian sprang out of Rhea's grasp and embraced her parents. Instantly, both parents began crying. Father motioned silently for Sam and Rhea to give the parents some privacy. Sam and Rhea exited the bathroom and followed Father and Lincoln into the living room. Lincoln nodded as he saw James and Mother waiting for them. Father sat on the couch and motioned for Sam to sit on the opposite couch. Mother joined Father, and Rhea sat beside Sam. Lincoln stood with James beside the couches.
"We cannot thank you enough, Sam," Father said. "We all thought that we would have to kill a child. You and Rhea solved this beautifully."
"She solved it, she just needed me for some missing pieces," Sam smiled.
"More than that, my son has told me how you have offered to keep helping our people. Even with the knowledge that we wouldn't turn you," Father said.
"Well, yeah," Sam shrugged. "It doesn't matter to me if you're vampires, werewolves, or a mix of the two," he nodded to Lincoln. "You're still people trying to survive. If I can help with that, then I will."
Father smiled. "I see part of why Rhea did not want to turn you. Humanity has few good men left." Father took Mother's hand and squeezed it gently as he sighed.
"My son has also made a case for us to proceed with turning you," Father continued.
"Really?" Sam asked in surprise as his eyes shifted to Lincoln.
"You're a good man, Sam," Lincoln nodded. "We may have started off on the wrong foot, but I can't deny that you are a good man. Good men are hard to find nowadays. You could have exposed Rhea or ran for the hills, but you did not. You kept her secret and even kissed her—"
"Dude, I've apologized—"
"That's not my point," Lincoln interrupted. "Knowing what she is, you did not fear her. You cared for her deeply and helped her when she asked. You helped our people even with the knowledge that any of us could kill you in an instant."
"But I didn't help in the hopes of getting turned," Sam said. "I helped because it needed to be done, and Rhea just happened."
Mother looked up at Lincoln curiously, and he simply nodded. Both of them were listening to Sam's heartbeat to determine if he as lying, and he was not. He was being sincere. Mother squeezed Father's hand gently as he ran his free hand through his hair. "The last human that was turned into a vampire slaughtered five of my people before my wife put him down when he tried to kill me," Father spoke. "Ever since then, turning a human has been forbidden. I could not risk that type of threat again, you understand."
"Of course," Sam nodded.
"But you appear different," Father continued. "So, for you, I will allow an exception. Rhea can turn you, if you still wish it. The second that you pose a threat to any of my people, you had better hope that she kills you before my son or I do."
Sam looked at Rhea in surprise. "What do you think?"
Rhea offered Sam a small smile. "I trust you. My trust in you is the only way that all of this has been possible. I want to preserve your humanity rather than you turn you, but this is your decision to make, not mine."
"What about you?" Sam asked as he glanced at Lincoln.
"As long as you don't try to harm my people or take my mate from me, I have no objections. You've proven yourself well," Lincoln said.
"I have no intention of doing either. Wait, mate?"
Rhea laughed. "Something that is hard to explain, but very easy to understand when you're one of us."
"What about my home?" Sam asked.
"During the first few months, we would need you here to monitor you and train you how to control your newfound hunger. We cannot release a newly turned vampire amongst the humans. After you've proven that you can control it, we would consider allowing you to regain residency among them."
"That makes sense," Sam nodded. "I would need to collect my things to relocate here."
"Lincoln and Rhea could escort you," Father said. "But you will not be without one of them while you gather your belongings in case your bloodlust is triggered while you are there."
"You're sure that my turning is okay?" Sam questioned.
"Absolutely," Lincoln answered.
Sam smiled and looked at Rhea. "Looks like I'm yours, sunshine." Rhea smiled and her eyes flashed red as her fangs descended. Her fangs penetrated her wrist and tore it open, blood flowing steadily. She gripped Sam's face with her other hand and pressed her wrist to his lips. Lincoln watched the surprise and slight horror flicker through the human's eyes, but his lips latched on to Rhea's wrist and he began to drink.
After a moment, Sam released Rhea's wrist. His own pair of fangs rested against his lips as his red eyes blinked through his green ones. His eyes flitted rapidly around the room, as if seeing everything for the first time. I guess he is, though, Lincoln thought. His human senses have been replaced with Nanta ones. It's like being re-born. "I'm thirsty," Sam said hoarsely.
"James," Father ordered. James vanished and reappeared with a wine bottle full of blood. Sam took it immediately and chugged the liquid down. He drank enough of Rhea's blood for the transition, but the transition itself required so much energy and strain on the body that he needed to re-fuel. Lincoln had heard stories of the immense pain that humans endured through the turn. If Sam was in any pain, he was not showing it.
"Thank you," Sam exhaled as he finished the bottle.
"How are you?" Rhea asked worriedly, her wrist fully healed.
"Strong, alert, a little fuzzy," Sam murmured.
"You will stay here tonight with myself and James. The first night of the turn is crucial. Tori, you will stay at Nate's house again" Father added.
"Of course," Mother nodded.
"After a night's rest and adjustment, you may go with Rhea and Lincoln to retrieve your belongings. We will make room for you in one of the homes here," Father continued. "I will take first watch."
"I'll escort you to Nathan's, Mistress Luna," James said.
Mother nodded and kissed Father before standing. Rhea also rose to her feet and smiled at Sam. "Get some rest."
"You, too, Ray," Sam said. He stretched out on the couch very slowly. He reminded Lincoln of a drunk human that feared that the room would spin if he moved too fast. Lincoln nodded to Father, then followed behind Rhea as they exited the house after Mother and James. He slipped his arms around Rhea's waist from behind, and he felt her tension seep out of her body. "It's over," he whispered.