Baby, We Have Eternity

“It’s all my fault Patrick,” I managed to choke out frantically.

“What do you mean?” he asked slowly. I wiped my eyes and got it together for Pete’s sake.

“Pete’s in trouble,” I said quickly. “I don’t have time to explain. You have to help him,” I said.

“Hold on,” he said, quickly darting back inside and wasting no time in gathering Andy, Joe, Sisky, and Butcher. “Let’s go,” he said, and I led them to the fight.

They immediately joined the fight while I slipped away so William wouldn’t know I had tried to help.

I glanced around searching for Pete in the disorganized scatter of vampires, but there were too many to tell.

“Hanna, you have to get out of here,” Ryan told me, appearing out of nowhere and placing a hand on my arm. He looked around at the random vampires urgently. “This isn’t only the Dandies and Pete now.”

He was right; it appeared that other vampires groups I didn’t recognize had joined in the fight.

I backed away from the scene at Ryan’s urging, almost tripping over cracks in the sidewalk, when I felt a strong arm wrap around my waist and a hand clamp over my mouth. So much for my vampire grace.

I twisted wildly as I was dragged off into a dark alley.

What was going on?!

“Hanna, stop! It’s just me!” Brendon said, finally letting go.

“Brendon?” I asked, spinning around to make sure. He gave me a grim smile. I wrapped my arms around his middle, hugging him tightly in relief. He gripped me securely for a few seconds.

“We need to get out of here,” he said, after we pulled away.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“I have a place set up. We’re going to hideout for a while. Just trust me. Come with me,” he said, holding out his hand for me to grab, eyes pleading with me.

I briefly hesitated, weighing my options.

Surely I couldn’t stay; I had no idea of William’s plans after this, now that I had fulfilled his request he had no use for me anymore.

I gripped Brendon’s hand, allowing him to lead the way as we began to run, leaving both the fight and our old lives behind as we headed west.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

I sat at the edge of the squeaky mattress, playing with the frayed edges of the bedspread.

Brendon crossed the room in one fluid motion, heading for the windows.

“What’s it called, wherever we’re going?” I asked him. We had stopped at a motel, where we were going to spend the day indoors, sleeping in shifts just to be safe. He closed the curtains, securing them so that they wouldn’t flutter open in the slight breeze.

“Summerlin,” he replied, after a moment’s hesitation. “It’s near Las Vegas.”

“Summerlin,” I repeated. “It sounds pretty,” I said, from the edge of the bed.

“I used to live there, before…well, everything,” he informed me, as he drew the last curtain, leaving us in darkness as the sun barely became visible over the horizon.

“Oh,” I said, fiddling with my sleeve. He rarely talked about his life before the Dandies.

“But we don’t have to go there, if you think it’s stupid,” he added hastily.

“No, I want to,” I assured him. He gave me a half smile.

“You can sleep first,” he said, motioning to the bed.

“Okay,” I agreed hesitantly. I slid under the covers and Brendon settled himself in a nearby chair, staring at nothing in particular. I tossed and turned for awhile before giving up.

“Bren?” I asked. He turned his attention back to me. “I can’t sleep, I mean…will you-”

He nodded understandingly before getting under the covers with me, leaning against the headboard. I rested my head on his chest and he wrapped his arms around me comfortably.

It had been a long time since I had fallen asleep next to someone, and I had missed it.

It gave me a sense of security, and all my worries flew out the window with the breeze as I drifted off to sleep.

I knew I was safe as long as I was with him.

-x-x-END OF PART ONE-x-x-