One month.
One month of early morning training lessons with arrogant and annoying vampires; of snarky remarks and insults thrown Axel's way every other second; of Miles curled into his side in bed while Sydney giggles at a late night text from Blaire; of meals around fireplaces and counselling sessions and finally, after what felt like years on the run, familiarity.
Axel has missed having a routine, waking up every morning and actually knowing what the day might entail instead of relying entirely on luck. Here, at the camp, he doesn't have to worry about what will happen next, or when their money will run out, or how they'll be getting their next drink. But worrying about impending war and death was arguably worse.
He's managed to convince Miles to stay out of it, but not Sydney. She made it her mission to come to every one of Axel's training sessions with the other vampires from Fraser's clan, and even though he really didn't want Sydney fighting in the war, Axel found her presence relieving. He had someone to talk to during breaks. Someone who wouldn't insult him.
"Ugh, you stink."
Too harshly anyway.
"Honestly Axel, I thought being a vampire enhanced your senses. Surely you would be able to smell yourself." Sydney says as Axel trudges through the cabin door.
"Well what do you expect after returning from back to back training sessions."
"Yeah I heard that Fraser upped the amount of classes you had to teach." Sydney adds sympathetically, watching as Axel collapses on the bed across from hers.
"She gave me two new groups."
"She's probably still pissed off at you for trying to ditch her. Which was stupid by the way."
"Yeah, yeah, I get it now. You were right."
"Aren't I always?" Sydney smiles, and Axel can't help but do the same.
"Where's Miles?" He finally asks, pushing himself into a sitting position rather than sprawled across the bed.
"In the shower."
"Shower, huh?"
"And that's my cue to leave."
•••••••
It's late in the afternoon when Axel gets the message, an impromptu meeting discussing new information on the war. Axel doesn't feel like he should be in attendance, and according to the disapproving looks on the other clan members' faces (looks which have become far too familiar to Axel), everyone else seems to think so too. Everyone except Fraser of course, who motions for Axel to take the empty seat next to her, which seems to be reserved for him by the name on the piece of card.
Axel really is grateful to have Fraser keeping an eye on him, but he can't help but feel like she's putting an even larger target on his back from all the attention she's been giving him. And it seems, from the particularly deathly glare that Kane is throwing Axel's way, that perhaps Fraser's plan to keep him out of harms way is backfiring.
Fraser stands, clearing her throat, and gaining the attention of the eleven others gathered around the long wooden table.
"I have called you all here today to give you the latest news on the war. This may be unknown to most of you, but as of last week a group of our members have been spying on the opposing clan. They, too, have been suspecting war and have been preparing their members for it. It appears this war will be happening sooner than we thought. But that is not what troubles me most."
Anxious glances are shared all across the table until they ultimately land on Fraser once again.
She takes a deep breath.
"Lawson is alive."
And then, uproar.
"What?!"
"How could this be?!"
"Alive?!"
"That can't be real?!"
"But didn't Axel kill her?!"
The flurry of questions immediately come to a halt as a rumble of laughter echos through the room. Kane's shoulders shake at the effort of it.
"You mean to tell me that all this time we've been taught by a fraud!" He laughs again, wiping nonexistent tears from his eyes to add to his theatrics. "I mean, I told you so, but hearing it from Fraser makes it ten times better."
"Kane." Fraser warns, her patience running thin. "Why don't we let Axel explain." She then turns her attention to Axel, waiting rather impatiently for him to begin talking. He gulps.
"I-um, I lied."
"No shit."
"Kane!" Fraser yells, effectively shutting the blond up. Axel then continues.
"I didn't kill Lawson, Miles did. Or I guess didn't. As you know, to kill a vampire it takes a lot of accuracy and power, which Miles obviously didn't have, so I can understand why his attack didn't kill her. He struck her in the throat when she was trying to kill me, but he was too weak and tired and clearly off centre. Had he hit Lawson right in the middle of her throat, she would have been dead. I'm certain of it." Says Axel confidently. And at that moment, a graphic clip of a rogue being killed by that very method jumps into the forefront of his mind. His 14 year old self watching the video again and again until Elias was sure he had it ingrained in his memory. "But there was too much blood for me to see that he had missed."
"So why didn't you check?" Kane asks in an accusatory tone.
"Because my boyfriend collapsed and wasn't healing properly. So forgive me for having other priorities." Axel snaps back.
"If anything" Fraser interrupts "this is more of a reason as to why we need your lessons. So mistakes like that aren't made.
"Initially we thought that without a leader, the opposition would be easier to defeat. But with a vengeful Lawson at their side, we can bet our asses that this will be a lot tougher than we thought."
A silence settles as the group await Fraser's next words. She takes her thumb out of her mouth, having bitten her nail nervously in thought, and turns to Axel abruptly.
"How much longer do you think we have until we're ready?" Fraser asks, and Axel looks at her stunned.
She's asking him the questions.
"How much time do you think we have?" He flips the question back to her.
"A month? Possibly less."
Axel sighs and is surprised at the faces staring back at him. No hostile looks this time, everyone too on edge.
"Then we'll make it work."