Forbidden Blood

She was gone again, leaving me with my husband to be. I never missed Deanna when I knew she was coming back, but the uncertainty killed me sometimes. This isn’t the first time she’s left me, but I wasn't sure it wouldn’t be the last. She was like a shadow, here during the day, gone by night. I don’t know what I expected from a vampire, but it wasn’t this. George embraced me like I had just lost a relative.

“Are you alright?” He moved the hair out of my face, cradling it with his baby soft hands.

“I’m fine George. Fine.” I assured with a smile.

“She took you from me...that’ll never happen again.” George shut the door and held onto my hand as he took me into the living room.

“She didn’t take me, the Keepers attacked me openly.” I explained.

“Only because of her. I’ve been researching while you were gone, trying to find traces of your presence wherever I could so that I could find you.” George laid out papers on the table in front of the couch. I sat down as he did, almost in unison.

“The Keepers have a sample of your blood. They’ve been using it to track you continuously, infiltrate your dreams and try to control you.” George showed me an outline of my DNA. I noticed a strange piece of DNA in the coil.

“What is that?” I pointed to the obvious flaw.

“Crystal gene.” He answered.

“Why me?” I asked.

“Your mom was working with Deanna to get you. Once Deanna smelled this specific gene in your body, you were marked as a target for her. Your mother agreed to help drive you to Deanna by filling your mind with the world of the myths. After you witnessed the feeding of the man in your house, they had you captured in the bear trap they had set up themselves.” George explained.

“My mom was scared of her. They wouldn’t be working together.” I denied.

“Really? Why would Deanna, one of the strongest creatures in this world, take you in? She feeds on humans. That is their only purpose to her.” He replied. I let this toss around in my mind, hitting all the sides of my cranium.

“You’re right, but she's done with me George. She got exactly what she wanted and I gave it to her without even a second thought. This whole time, all she wanted was my blood. Why would she go through all of this and not just kill me?” I asked.

“Your blood would turn stale as soon as you died. Blood tainted with a Crystal Gene only keeps its flavor when it is thriving through the body. She put you through that and now its time she died.” George told me. My neck automatically twitched at the thought of her blood all over my hands.

“No, I won’t kill her.” I refused.

“You’re the only one she trusts to get close enough to finish her off. All you need to do is ram the Vampire’s Stone into her chest and stake her. It’ll be easy.”

“Deanna said she was done with me alright? I'd rather not even think about it anymore and live life without having to worry about whether or not I'll die in my sleep.” I slapped happiness onto my face. Though the bond between Deanna and I had grown significantly, I was glad I would never have to deal with her again.

“She won’t hear your thoughts if that's what you're worried about. I will block them from her mind. Jessica, I need you to do this for us, for our child.” He uttered. George knew I would do anything for him and for our child, anything.

“She is not coming back. Can we just forget all of this happened and move on? Please.” I kissed his cheek softly and held his hands tightly.

“Sure.” George answered. He scooped all the papers off of the table and tossed them into the trash. I watched him come back into the living room with a bright smile on his face.

“What do you want to do now?” He asked.

“Continue our lives as their meant to be.” George clenched onto my hand and placed his hand on my stomach.

It was one of those peaceful nights. Full moon, billions of stars shining in the night sky, air whistling through the open window in a melody that put my mind to rest. My arms hung over the edge of the balcony, freely embracing the air in between my fingers. I felt strange looking up at the moon, but I loved it. It was a feeling of freedom and power, as if the moon was my power source.

“Beautiful night.” George wrapped his arms around me. I inhaled his strong scent as he snuggled near my cheek.

“Yeah it is. I haven't seen a moon like this in awhile.” My mind clicked back to the night Deanna had transformed into a monster. I jumped as I pictured her claws coming for me.

“You okay?” George's voice snapped me back into reality. I took a deep breath and held onto his arms

“Yeah, I just got the chills.” I replied.

“Well okay then, let's go inside.” He tossed me over his shoulder and brought me into the house. I surrendered to his obvious strength and let him take me in front of the fireplace in our bedroom. The smooth loveseat provided perfect comfort and he plopped me onto it. Flames soon engulfed the firewood previously placed in the fireplace. George leaped beside me and laid across my lap.

“How's that?” He questioned. My pupils took hold of the flame, letting it burn in the middle of my eyes.

“Perfect.” I stroked his hair as we watched the fire crackle.

“I can't begin to describe how happy I am that you're back here with me Jessica. When you didn't come back, I didn't know what to think. With Deanna, for all I know you could've been dead and I...I just wouldn't be able to go on.” George explained.

“It won't happen again. I swear.”