Prologue
“You’re sure it’s ok that Jess stays are your house?” I ask my dad for the fourth or fifth time. I want to make sure that he really is ok with it. Jess is coming for a visit now that everything seems to be settling down and we don’t want her to have to sleep on our couch. Chase and I love the little apartment but it's not exactly guest friendly. And to be honest, neither is Chase. So my dad offered up his place since it’s a real house with spare bedrooms and everything.
Registration is well underway, but no one’s started to moving into the designated Supernatural areas. Mostly because those areas haven’t actually been zoned out yet. Supernaturals aren't the only ones being displaced due to this shitstorm, humans who live in what will become the Supernatural Housing Developments are being forced to relocate as well. Quite frankly, it’s bullshit.
“Ask me one more time,” he says with warning in his tone and my mouth snaps shut.
“Ok, well we’re on our way to the airport to get her now and we’ll probably spend the evening hanging out at your place if that’s cool.”
“I’ll stay out of the way while your friends are over.” He pauses to laugh. “I’m feeling very parental right now, how about you?”
“Feeling very daughterly,” I play along with laughter in my voice.
“Only a few years late,” he ads with the hint of sadness in his voice that he gets every time he remembers all that he has missed out on in my life.
“Hey, I’m nineteen. This is still perfectly normal behavior for my age group. We’re making up for lost time. And tonight I’m telling you to bud out so you don’t embarrass me in front of my friends,” I tease.
“You are so much like her,” he says so quietly, that I’m sure he’s speaking to himself instead of me. He does that sometimes. Or he’ll get this funny look on his face and just stare at me oddly. When he does that I know he’s remembering my mother.
“I’ll talk to you soon, ok?”
“I’ll get my embarrassing stories ready,” he teases.
I turn to Chase after ending the call. He looks at me from the corner of his eye and smiles.
“You’ve got pouty face,” he says.
“He’s lonely.”
“Not your business, love,” he says trying to hide a smile.
This is something the two of us will simple never agree on. So I change the conversation while we wait in traffic to get to the airport where Jess should be landing in about ten minutes. Damn DC traffic.
When we arrive Jess is sitting on a bench waiting. Chase honks the horn grabbing her attention and she stands up excitedly. I swing the passenger door open as he pulls up to the curb and jump out of the car before it’s come to a complete stop. I practically leap to Jess who meets me half way.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” I say hugging her tightly.
“Ah,” she squeals. “Me too. I have so much to tell you.”
I help grab her bags and toss them in the trunk.
“Hey Chasey Poo,” Jess says as she climbs into the backseat. Chase gives her the bored, irritated look that was once enough to scared my best friend- and me- into submission. Now she just laughs. “I missed you too.” She leans forward and ruffles his hair.
“I’ll kill her,” Chase says to me only half joking.
“Leave him alone,” I tell her feeling a bit like an adult getting between two bickering children.
“Fine,” she complains dramatically. “Well, things back home are ok. Definitely boring compared to life on the run and living in DC.”
“Actually things here have been pretty tame.” I laugh. “Just boring meetings and father daughter bonding,” I tell her and laugh when she glances suggestively between Chase and me. Yes, there's that too, but we don't need to go into detail about that. At least not while Chase is within hearing distance.
“Well good, because I am not up for any excitement level higher than one would expect from a visit to the air and space museum.”
“Done,” Chase says.
“Yep, we’re chillin at dad’s house tonight. Chase’ll bug off and we can have a girls night. Then tomorrow, we sight see.”
“You two can get out,” Chase says pulling in front of my dad’s house. “I’ll go park and be in in a moment.”
Jess and I get out of the car and I walk her into the house. It's become somewhat of a second home to me with how much time I spend here, though I always feel a little odd just walking right in without knocking. Maybe one day it will feel more like home. I hope so anyway. Maybe it's less about it not being the house I grew up in and more about the fact that it's hella nice.
“Wow, just how rich is your dad?”
“Being the sole inheritor of one of the most powerful vampire families pays well,” I say.
Jess laughs. “Yeah it does. Tell the man to hook you up. Get you out of that crap apartment.”
“Hey,” I protest. “We like our crap apartment, thank you very much.”
We're laughing when something soundd from upstairs. I stop first, confused. I didn’t think my dad was going be home, but maybe he just hasn’t gotten out yet. Jess sobers when she realizes I’ve stopped laughing and give me a curious look.
“Everything ok?”
Another loud bang.
“Someone home," she asks sounding hesitant.
“I didn’t think so, but he must be. I’ll go get him, you two can meet before he heads out.”
“A,” Jess stops me at the stairs. “I think this is part in horror movies where the dumb girl dies.”
“You’re being paranoid,” I tell her and start to walk up the stairs.
I walk up the stairs doing my best not to laugh at Jess. She has reason to be paranoid in this city considering everything that happened last time she was here. She'll realize soon enough though that there are no more monsters, unless you count the politicians, or you know... us. I get to the top of the stairs when the front door flies open. I turn back when the door slams against the wall. Hard. That is going to piss my dad off. Chase stand in the door way in a panic.
“Chase, what’s—“ I don’t finish my sentence before something hits me in the face. Losing my balance, I fall backwards down the stairs. When I land at the bottom, it hurts to move and I’m pretty sure I have a concussion. I must have been knocked out for a brief time because my eyes open to chaos.
Men are everywhere. I can’t see straight, but unless I’m seeing double there is what amounts to an army in this home. More than a dozen men in black uniforms with weapons are attacking and Chase and Jess are doing their best to hold them back, but they’re severely outmanned. I stand to help them, still feeling a little off but ok to fight.
“I thought this was supposed to be boring,” Jess shouts when she sees me standing up. She makes a move to kick one of the men but she grabs her foot and throws her off balance. She lands on the floor with a thud. “This is not boring.”
“Next time, I’ll fly to you,” I yell back as I throw a punch at the man who knocked Jess down.
“A little less chatting girls,” Chase yells. He’s taking the brunt of the force at the moment. At least five guys. “You ok, Love?”
How sweet that he checks on me.
“Bumps and bruises. I’ll be fin—Ow,” I yelp at the stabbing in my shoulder and turn around to see what the fuck hit me. A man holds a gun, pointed at me but I don’t feel like I’ve been shot. Not that I technically know what that feels like, but there’s not enough pain. The man starts to turn fuzzy, unclear. And the world starts to spin.
No. It’s me. I’m moving. Falling. My legs give out and I stumble to the ground. I hit the ground, barely able to catch myself. Jess glances back, eyes wide and then wearing a vicious expression sets the men attacking her one fire.
“Chase,” the word comes out a whisper, but he hears. I know because he looks right at me. And I watch as one of the attackers takes advantage of his momentary lapse in focus and lands a solid punch. Chase’s eyes stay on mine for a moment longer and I see the fear in them but I also see the love.
It is the last thing I see before I can’t force my eyes to stay open any longer.