Torment

"Christie!" David yelled impatiently, glowering at her from his position at the mouth of the cave. "Get a move on, we're ready to go!"

"I'm coming!" she shrieked -wincing as pain shot through her skull- tossing a book over her head and muffling a laugh as it collided with Paul's head.

She finally managed to pull her ballet flat free and slid it on before dancing over to Dwayne and taking his outstretched one with a submissive lowering of her head.

"Come." Dwayne tugged her after their brothers.

This was a typical routine for the group, Christie would delay them deliberately by pretending that she couldn't find what she was looking for, David would get mad and then she would 'find' what she was looking for and allow Dwayne to pull her out of the cave.

Paul, David and Marko climbed onto their bikes and watched as Dwayne got on his and helped Christie clamber on behind him. She locked her arms securely around his muscular body and rested her head on the back of his shoulder.

"Hold on," Dwayne called over the roar of the engines and felt her nod against his back.

The ride to the Boardwalk didn't take long and as soon as they had stopped, she jumped off the bike and started to sneak away when a cold voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Where do you think you're going?" David asked, eyeing her up as she turned to face him.

"To the concert," she answered, sticking her chin out defiantly.

"Be back here by midnight, or there'll be hell to pay." David lit a cigarette and blew a puff of smoke in her direction.

"I'll be back by then," she replied and kissed Dwayne's cheek -surprising not only herself, but the four vampires- before bidding the others goodbye and disappearing into the crowd.
________________________________________________________________________________

Christie made sure she was out of their line of sight before darting past the concert and heading in the direction of the cabin at the opposite side of the boardwalk.

"Annie?" she called as the door slid shut behind her.

"Christie!" her now fifteen year old sister cheered, lurching down the stairs and throwing herself at her sister.

"So, how does it feel to be fifteen?" she grinned as Annie released her and dragged her over to the couch.

"Awesome!" Annie said enthusiastically before growing somber.

"What is it, sweetie?" she carded her hand through her sister's hair as she huddled into her side.

"Mom and dad are worried about you," Annie told her, glancing up. "They know you're alive, but they want to know if you're coming home."

Christie had been going behind the boys backs and visiting her sister every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. She'd even visited her parents when the vampires were asleep one morning and assured them that she was okay and not to worry. She knew that if her new sort-of-family found out she was going behind their backs, that they would make her real family pay.

"I can't, you know that," she whispered, kissing Annie's hair. "I got you a present."

She pulled a roughly wrapped present from her pocket and held it out. Annie snatched it eagerly, temporarily forgetting about their previous conversation in favor of tearing the paper apart and opening the small box.

"It's beautiful," Annie gasped, running a finger over the ruby pendant.

"I stole some of Marko's money and bought it for you," she admitted with a sly grin.

"He won't punish you for stealing his money, will he?" Annie asked in concern.

"No, I'll just say it was Paul," Christie giggled and her sister soon joined in. "Come on, let's go to the boardwalk."

"W-won't they see you?"

"Not if we stay hidden," she gave her sister a sly look and jumped up, grabbing her arm and dragging her out the door.
________________________________________________________________________________

"You're late." David stated flatly, glaring at Christie as she stopped beside them.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, trying to subtly tuck the small parcels into her coat pocket.

"What have you got there?" he questioned, before gesturing for Marko and Dwayne to search her pockets when she didn't answer.

"A skull and bones patch, a black lighter, an animal tooth earring and a leather bracelet," Marko listed off each item.

"Why do you have these?" the leader asked, smirking as she fidgeted nervously.

"I got the patch for Marko's coat, the lighter for you because I know yours is nearly broken, I got the earring for Dwayne to go with his necklace..." she hesitated, glancing up to see their surprised looks. "I got the bracelet for Paul because he fixed the hole in my shirt."

"Very thoughtful," he commented, snatching the lighter from Marko and sticking it into his pocket.

"Thanks CC." Marko pulled her into a one armed hug as he tossed the earring to Dwayne and the bracelet to Paul.

"You're welcome," she replied quietly and climbed onto Dwayne's bike, securing her arms around him and burying her head in his shoulder.

"Let's go boys," David called and started his bike.

He drove off first and the others were quick to follow with loud cheers that caused people walking by to jump in surprise. She muffled a chuckle and shifted to get more comfortable.
________________________________________________________________________________

"I'll be back in a minute," Christie told them before grabbing a towel, a pair of shorts and a baggy sweatshirt and heading in the direction of the spring.

She hummed rather loudly as she jumped over rocks and wooden beams that had fallen from the ceiling. She'd found the spring after a few days of living with them. While they slept, she decided to follow her curiosity and it had led her through the long hallways and under a sunken archway.

As soon as she had finished washing, she dragged herself out of the water and dried off, pulling her shorts and sweatshirt on and tugging her wet locks into a high ponytail. She cast one more look around the spring before grabbing her towel and dirty clothes and making her way back towards the main part of the cave.

"Look at you girly," Paul grinned at her, a joint dangling from his fingers. "All freshened up."

"Yeah, well, some of us don't like looking and smelling like pigs," she retorted as she folded her belongings and set them in a neat corner.

"Ouch, consider me hurt," Paul chuckled and slung his arms around her waist, pulling her into his chest.

"That's my mission done for today," Christie answered calmly.

"Hand her over," Marko nudged Paul aside. "Ignore him sugar. He's had one too many joints tonight."

"I can tell..." she trailed off, sky blue eyes flickering up to meet Dwayne's dark brown ones.

She could barely focus on Marko or Paul or David as she held his gaze. The fire illuminated his features and the glint in his eyes was a silent promise, a promise that he would have words with her as soon as the others were gone. She immediately looked away, shivers rushing up and down her spine, out of fear or excitement, she didn't know.

"Come boys," David spoke up finally, breaking the silence that weighed down on Christie's shoulders, threatening to smother her if she wasn't careful. "Dwayne wants a words with dear Christina."

Christie wanted to shout out, to beg them not to leave her alone with the one who was the most unpredictable. Where Paul and Marko were the jokers and the more easy going of the group and David was the serious, calculating one, Dwayne was the silent, thoughtful peacemaker. People tended to underestimate him due to his silent nature but she knew the truth; he was as ruthless as the other ones. Quiet, dark and mysterious was only a facade, a game he liked to play before revealing the true monster within. And this time, Christie was on the receiving end of the silent storm.

"Night sister," Marko ruffled her hair before strolling after David.

"Goodnight sugar," Paul grinned reassuringly, hurrying out of sight to catch up with the other two blondes.

"Christie," Dwayne's smooth, hypnotic voice washed over her and she flinched involuntarily.

"Yes, Dwayne?"

"I know what you did tonight," he answered and it was enough to make her grow cold, turning to face him sharply. "I know what you've been doing since we took you."

"I-I had to," she croaked, fearing for the life of her family. "You have to understand, I only want to make sure they're safe. That they won't coming looking for me."

"I understand," he smirked slightly at her flabbergasted look. "Family is everything; if you don't have family, what do you have?"

"Exactly..." she hesitated, glancing between him and the tunnel where the others disappeared down. "Please don't tell David."

"I won't, if you promise not to see them any more." Dwayne walked closer, towering over her as he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "If I find out that you have, they'll be the ones to suffer."

"Wait!" Christie yelped, spinning around as he moved away. "W-we can compromise."

"Oh can we?" he asked sarcastically.

"If you let me keep seeing my sister, I will do whatever you want," she took an eager step closer. "But you can't tell David what I've been doing."

"Whatever I want?" he tilted his head to the side, eyes calculating. "I would say that's a fair compromise."

"Shake on it," she demanded. "I need to know you're not gonna back out."

Dwayne appeared in front of her suddenly and closed his hand around hers, tugging her closer to him. Her heart jumped at the lack of space between them and she knew he had heard it by the chuckle that followed.

"I know what I want from you, but when I come for it, you'll have to be willing," he told her seriously.

"I will, I promise."

Christie had no clue what he wanted from her, but she knew that if it meant she would still be able to visit her sister, she'd be more than willing to make the sacrifice.
_________________________________________________________________________