Double Trouble

Since finding out that Jason and Justin Evermore were stalking their eldest nephew, Eli did what he could to prevent anything from happening. Though the Evermore twins had kept their distance thus far, Eli knew it was only a matter of time until they came after their niece and nephews. Knowing he had to prevent it, Eli only ever let his cousin out of his sight when they were within the confines of the coffee shop; the only place, according to his aunt and uncle, that the younger two Evermore brothers refused to step foot in. Eli used this to his advantage; knowing their weakness allowed Eli to plan accordingly and it was working quite nicely.

Eli strolled leisurely down the street leading to his cousins’ elementary school. So far, the day was turning out to be a beautiful one. The air was crisp with a light wind blowing; and the temperature was in the upper sixties. It almost seemed as if it was a day where nothing could go wrong. He arrived at the school and was pounced on by his youngest cousin, as usual. Dawn always was the first out the door, followed close behind by Keith and Reuben. A quick talk later and the quartet headed off to the coffee shop. “Hey, Reuben,” Eli inquired, “your stalkers? Have they been following you around lately?”

Reuben shrugged. “Not all that much. Two days after I told you about it, those red-heads finally caught on that I was aware of their presence. I haven’t seen them recently. They might still be around though; just because I haven’t seen them doesn’t mean they aren’t still there.”

“Wisely put,” Eli agreed.

The quartet continued walking for a few more minutes before coming to a detour. Eli quickly looked ahead and cursed. “Shit!” He turned to his cousins. “Well, it looks like we’re taking the long way home,” he announced before turning onto Fifth Avenue and continuing the trek home.

For another few minutes, things were rather peaceful. Eli only wished it could last. But, there was no way this was possible, for Dawn began tugging on his sleeve. “Eli, I see red hair.”

“Where?” Eli asked, recalling only two red-heads in existence, both of whom were bad news. “Dawn, where do you see the red-heads your brother was talking about earlier?” If Eli could pinpoint an exact location, that would be great. He could then proceed to give that location to his aunt and uncle, thus ensuring that Jason and Justin could no longer come after the Meadowbrook kids. Then again, Jason and Justin were vampires and would probably be gone by the time Aunt Savannah and Uncle Toby got there. Oh well; at least it’s sure to stop Uncle Toby’s brothers from coming after them. Each time those boys attack, our defenses to ensure the kids’ protection will go up. We won’t allow Jason and Justin to get their hands on them. Whatever they’re planning won’t work.

Dawn pointed. “There. Hey! Where’d they go?”

Crap! Eli thought. They’re impossibly fast. There’s no way I can rely on Dawn to figure out where her uncles are. “Tell me, Dawn; has Aunt Savannah been teaching you anything lately?”

His cousin nodded with enthusiasm. “Yeah! Mommy tells me my name has a power. Want to see?” she asked brightly, hoping that Eli might allow her to display her newfound power.

“Maybe at home?” he suggested. Though his cousin was excited to show off what she could do—both for her brothers and Eli—Dawn didn’t realize that she might be inadvertently showing that same ability off to the people it could be used against: her uncles. That was not a risk Eli was willing to take; he needed to get his cousins home before Jason and Justin had the chance to come after them. “Come on; I need to get you three home.”

“Too bad that won’t happen,” a voice chuckled.

It was Keith who first reacted. “Who are-?”

A second voice responded; Eli couldn’t be sure which brother it was, for Jason and Justin sounded a lot alike. “Two people your parents never wanted you to meet,” he explained, pulling Keith and Reuben toward him and his brother. “Now, you three will be coming with us. We have a bone to pick with your parents and nothing will stop us from deal with it.”

“I will,” Eli stepped up.

“You?” the first one laughed.

“Yes, me!” Eli retorted. “I’m their babysitter, their cousin, and the only person Aunt Savannah would trust to watch over her children. She has you two to thank for that one.”

The first one chuckled. “You know, Justin; we should go pay a little visit to Savannah. After all, it was because of her that we’re now doing this to her children,” he said.

The second one—which Eli now knew to be Justin—nodded in agreement. “I still say we do this. It would a far more crushing blow her to learn that her children were kidnapped,” Justin said, a tight grip held on Keith. “Now, let’s get the final one and be off.”

At that moment, Eli whispered something to his youngest cousin. There was a chance, one that he would not squander. “Dawn, no matter what, don’t say your name; avoid it at all costs.”

“Why?” Dawn asked.

“Just do this for me,” Eli replied.

Dawn was pulled out of his grip. “Tell your aunt we say hi.”

As his cousins disappeared along with the uncles they never knew existed, Eli fell to his knees in despair. “How could that have happened? I knew what would have happened. I knew and I should have stopped it” His fist slammed to the ground, causing scratches to appear on his fists. “I have to go tell her. She needs to know of what has come to pass because I wasn’t watching them closely enough.” Eli picked himself up and ran to TDM Café to alert his aunt as to the crime that just took place; they needed to know what happened.