After Ethel's death, Taylor's life went back to being a nightmare. The other people she lived with only tolerated her presence because she was with Ethel, so, after she was gone, there was nothing protecting Taylor.
They would steal the few things she owned and take away her food every time she had food there. Every single time. They all tortured her. For years.
1727
Taylor is twenty-two years old now and it has been ten years since Ethel died and she got all alone. Ten years of suffering and sadness.
She has nowhere else to go, but she's also tired of staying there and being tortured by the people around her. So, she puts her few blankets, clothes and other belongings into a bag, grabs it and starts walking away from the place that has been her house for the last eighteen years. House, yes, because it never felt like home. Even while Ethel was alive.
"Where are you going, beautiful?" Ackley asks as she's leaving.
Taylor ignores him and keeps walking, but Ackley hurries up the pace and holds her arm, making her stop.
"Are you deaf? I asked where you were going."
"I'm getting out of here."
"Oh, is this place not good enough for you, princess?" He tightens the grip around her arm.
"I just want to leave."
"Well, you see, I was paid to make sure you stay here."
"That was eighteen years ago. No one cares anymore."
"I do. I honor my deals."
"You got paid once, eighteen years ago, and you still care about that damn deal? I don't think that makes much sense. Unless you're still being paid now. Is that what's going on?"
"I see, you don't only have the looks, you also have a brain. And I'm sure you understand that I need you to stay here, because the longer you stay, the longer I get paid."
"I just want to get away from here, I don't want to find my family. Lindsay will never know that I'm not here anymore and you'll continue getting paid."
"You just want to get away from here? And where the hell will you go?" He pushes her against a wall near them. "You have nowhere else to go."
"Get away from me!" She tries to push him away, but Ackley is much stronger.
"I'm not going to let you get out of here. Ever."
Well, I have nothing to lose now, Taylor thinks. She moves her head forward, headbutting Ackley, which makes him move backwards and release Taylor's arm. With her free hand, Taylor pushes his head against the wall while he's still disoriented, leaving a bloodstain on it, and Ackley falls down unconscious.
Is he dead? Taylor doesn't really want to find out, so she just walks away, not feeling the slightest remorse in case she did kill him.
Taylor doesn't have a destination in mind, she just walks aimlessly. She finds herself getting downtown, where she never goes because it's a place for rich people.
There's a big park in the center of a plaza, full of trees, bushes and flowers. People are walking around in their fancy expensive clothes, smiling and laughing. Families, groups of friends, lovers. Everyone seems happy and Taylor feels more out of place than she ever felt. She's sure that if anyone noticed her presence, they would think she's out of place too. But she also knows that no one will notice her.
She keeps walking, looking at the people around her, but suddenly stops in her tracks. There's someone she recognizes. Or might recognize. No, she definitely recognizes her, she would never be able to forget that face, even if she was only four years old when she last saw her.
"Lindsay." She whispers, even without thinking.
Lindsay is entering a café, with a man around her age and four younger people, three girls and one boy. The older man also seems familiar, he's probably Taylor's father. They're right there. She said she didn't want to find them, but they're right there.
Taylor rushes after them and enters the café. The inside of the building is even more beautiful than the outside. There are mirrors and golden decorations lining the walls and there's a beautiful painting on the ceiling. Taylor can see herself in the various mirrors and she looks as out of place as she feels.
She looks around and sees her family again. She rushes towards them as she can feel everyone's eyes on her. Everyone must be wondering what a girl like her is doing in a place like that.
"Father!" She exclaims and holds his arm.
The man turns around and looks at her. He looks confused and afraid.
"Father, it's me."
"Get away from me, girl!" He removes his arm from her hand. "Get away."
"But it's me, Taylor. Your daughter."
"Didn't you hear him? Get away!" The youngest girl yells at her. She must be Bailey, the one who was only a baby when she was taken away from home and who shared a bedroom with her.
"Bailey?" Taylor asks and the girl looks scared.
"How do you know my name?"
"Because I'm your half-sister. I used to share a room with you."
"I've never seen you in my life."
"Because you were only a baby when Lindsay..."
"When Lindsay what?" Lindsay asks her angrily. "I have no idea who you are. I have never seen you in my life either."
"What? Father, you need to..."
"You're not my daughter." Her father says.
"I am, father. I am your daughter. Taylor."
"No, you're not. And why are you trying to say bad things about Lindsay? Lindsay would never hurt anyone, especially not one of my daughters. Get away from me and my family."
"Father, please." Taylor pleads with tears in her eyes.
"Get out!" Bailey yells again.
"What do you want from us, girl?" Lindsay asks Taylor. "Money? You're not going to get anything."
"I don't want money, I just..."
"Get out!" Taylor's father is the one yelling this time.
Taylor feels her arms being held and pulled behind her back. One of the men who works at the café holds her arms and pushes her away from her family.
"You shouldn't even have gotten inside here in the first place." He tells her as he pushes her out the door and onto the ground.
It's night time already and Taylor is still walking aimlessly. Through the years, she always wondered what would happen if she ever found her family again. She didn't think she would have the warmest of welcomes, but she didn't think that her father would react like that either. He didn't even want to listen to her, or to believe that she could be his daughter. And what does he even think that happened to his daughter?
There's barely any light coming from the moon, so the roads are very dark. And silent. There's an eerie silence as Taylor is walking, but she has nowhere else to go, so she just keeps going.
Suddenly, the roads are not silent anymore. Taylor can hear people talking and then someone screaming. It sounds like a man. She's aware that it's not a smart decision, but she walks towards the noise.
She turns around a corner and sees them. There are four men on the road. One of them is pushing another one against a wall, while the other two are standing around them. The man pushing the other one against the wall, tilts his head and puts it on the other man's neck. When he gets away, a few seconds later, there's blood dropping from the corners of his mouth and another man takes his place.
Taylor gasps when she sees the blood and the three men look at her. She's not sure what to do. If she tries to run, they will probably catch up to her. Before she can even finish this thought, one of the men is already in front of her.
"Spying on us, are you?" He asks her.
"I... No... I was just..."
"You were just at the wrong place at the wrong time." He gets beside her and touches her shoulder, encouraging Taylor to move forward. "Why don't you join us?"
They get closer to the others and the man leaning against the wall, falls on the floor unconscious. And pale, very pale.
The first man who drank the blood, approaches Taylor.
"Do you know what we are?"
Taylor has heard about blood suckers, vampires, but she never thought they were more than a myth. She doesn't react, not because she's not sure about what they are, but because the fear is paralyzing her.
"We're vampires, isn't it obvious?" The one who still has a hand touching her shoulder says, amused. "Have you heard of vampires?"
Taylor nods.
"Good, good. And haven't you heard that you should stay away from said vampires?"
She nods again.
"What's your name?"
"Taylor."
"And where were you headed, Taylor?"
"Nowhere. I was just walking, I have nowhere to go. So, don't worry, if you kill me, no one will miss me or look for me."
He laughs. "Well, that's tempting." He smells her, from the bottom part of her neck to her ear.
Taylor's feeling bold. "Or maybe you could turn me into a vampire just like you."
"Why? Do you want to do some killing too?"
"Yes, I would like to."
"Interesting." He smirks.
"That's enough." The man who asked if she knew what they were, and who seems to be the leader of the group, says. "Let's be done with her. We can't risk her telling people that there are vampires in town."
"I don't have anyone to tell." Taylor says.
"She doesn't have anyone to tell." The man close to her repeats. "And, if we turn her, she won't have any interest in telling people about vampires anyway."
"I'm not interested in being a babysitter." The leader tells him.
"I don't want you to babysit me." Taylor says. "I have no interest in joining your group. I just want to be strong and powerful. And to get revenge on the people who destroyed my life. Just turn me and leave. Walk away and you'll never have to see me again."
The man standing beside her, pushes her against the wall, next to the dead human and bites her neck.
"Hey! Stop that!" The leader exclaims, but he doesn't stop.
Taylor feels the sharp teeth sinking into her skin, but she's not sure whether she's being turned into a vampire or killed, just like the other human was. She starts feeling cold, starting in her neck and then spreading to the rest of her body. And, as the coldness spreads, she starts to feel paralyzed. Is that what happens when you die by the hands of a vampire or is that what happens when you get turned into a vampire? With that thought, she closes her eyes and loses consciousness.