The Poison in Your Blood

I get home quickly, hoping nothing spectacular has happened yet. It’s not that I don’t trust Austin. The problem is the monster he lives with, that controls him. He was already pretty concerned about Josh and now this comes up.

I walk in in a hurry and find Anna in the front room with Austin. Josh is nowhere to be seen. Anna has her hand on Austin’s wrist, but she let’s go as soon as she sees me. I take a breath and drop my keys and purse before going to where they are standing and looking them both over.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

“Nothing,” Anna says through her teeth. “Absolutely nothing.” She’s looking directly at Austin as she says this. Well that can’t be good.

I catch a look at him and I can see the burning embers in his eyes. “Anna, why don’t you let me handle it from here?” I say.

She frowns but nods. “I need to go be with Josh anyways,” she says and walks out of the room.

Austin takes a deep breath and I put my hand on his chest. His eyes cool to black but never back to green blue. I don’t like that. It’s uncomfortable when I feel like I’m not talking to him. He looks at me for a second.

“Calm down,” I say.

“You didn’t pick them up from the fucking hospital, Lana,” he snaps.

“I know, and I know what happened…”

“No, you don’t,” he says.

“Annalise texted me too,” I say defensively.

“Her text was only the basic idea. And I don’t know what the fuck is wrong with them. He told the people in the ER it was a fucking skateboarding accident rather than have them call the police.”

“His arm is broken?”

“Lana…” Austin says and sighs, clearly frustrated with my attempt to ignore Josh’s not telling the doctors the truth.

“Let me go talk to Josh,” I say. “Do. Not. Leave. This. House.”

I go in the direction that Anna went and find her on the couch with Josh. He looks uncomfortable and like he’d really rather I not come in and talk. But I’ve got to find out what’s going on before Austin freaks out.

“Hi, Lana,” he says and looks away. His left arm is bound in a black cast and he has some damage to his face. The whole thing is kind of sad to look at.

“Wanna tell me what happened?” I ask.

Anna gives me a disapproving look. It kind of pisses me off.

“Anna, can you do me a favor and get Piggy some food out of the garage?” I say firmly.

She narrows her eyes but does what I asked. That should keep her busy for a while. Especially because Piggy’s food is buried out there somewhere. I sit on the coffee table.

“I really need you to tell me what’s going on so I can help you,” I say to Josh.

“I can handle…”

“No, Josh, you can’t. You’re only 17, and you’ve got a broken arm,” I say. “Tell me what happened.”

“Really, I’ve got it under…”

“Here’s the thing. At this point it’s out of your control,” I say. I’m thinking about the ember’s burning in Austin’s eyes.

“Austin was pretty pissed when we told him,” he says. “I didn’t call the cops because of my mom. She wouldn’t want the cops involved.”

“The police should be involved, Josh,” I say.

“I called the police once, about a year ago. They came out but Scott had sobered up and both him and my mother told the cops I’d been in a fight at school and had called them out because I was mad that they grounded me. Made this big dramatic show about how I’d always been a liar and gone to dramatic lengths to ‘get back at them’. The police didn’t give a shit.”

Thought I find it appalling I’m not at all surprised that the police didn’t open an investigation. Cope around here have a way of being useless. That’s probably why my vampire boyfriend has been able to feed on a basically strict diet of rapists and murders for 2 years.

“Okay, so tell me what happened today?”

“It was my fault. I forgot my wallet at home, but Anna wanted to stop at the market to get some shit for dinner. So I took her to my place to get the wallet, my mom had taken some Valium and was passed out cold in her bedroom. Scott is usually at work at this time of day, but they sent him home early. Probably because he was drinking on the job. Anyway, I didn’t expect him to be there, so I took Anna into the house just so I could grab my wallet.”

“Okay,” I say.

“Scott was shitfaced. So fucking drunk it was disgusting. Nothing new, he’s like that most the time. It was my fault, I should have taken Anna and left right then. But I didn’t, I figured I’d just grab my wallet and we’d split. Scott started harassing her, saying nasty shit. I know her whole story with her dad…so I knew I had to get her out of there quick. Then Scott touched her hair and she screamed and…I hit him in the face,” he says and looks down. The pause lasts a second while I see the shame pass over his face. “I hit him right in the jaw. Then a big fight broke out and Anna started screaming…she was literally on the ground covering her head screaming. She said some weird shit about vampires murdering her dad. I’m not 100% on what it all was, since I was having my arm broken. Anyways, Anna called an ambulance after Scott left and now I’m here.”

“This is a good place for you,” I say and take a breath. I make a mental note to get Anna some therapy, since apparently watching Fred be murdered effected her more than she’s let on. “I think it would be good if you stayed her for a while.”

“I need to talk to my mom,” he says and takes a breath.

“I wouldn’t worry too much about your mom,” I say bitterly.

“I think she might have overdosed on the Valium or something. It was a little strange that she didn’t wake up at all with all the screaming,” he says. “Pisses me off, because I’d have loved her to be coherent when I told her to fucking die.” He attempts to cross his arms over his chest but has a bit of a hard time with the cast on his arm.

“Well, I’m going to talk about it with Austin, but maybe you can stay here until you can get in with your dad.”

“I don’t want to live with my dad,” he says. “He lives in Las Vegas. I go out and visit with him for about a week each summer and I spend Christmas with him every year. But he hasn’t got the space for me…and I don’t want to leave Anna,” he says.

Fuck my life. How do I keep ending up with teenagers?

“Besides, when he left my mom and the whole custody battle thing went down he signed over rights. Said at the time he wasn’t good to be a dad and he regrets it now but did the best he could in his situation.”

“Alright,” I say. “I’m going to talk to Austin. You’re seventeen right?”

“Yea,” he says.

“When will you be 18?”

“July,” he says.

“Okay,” I say.

“Lana, I can’t find any fucking cat food in the garage,” Anna snaps as she comes back into the living room.

“Oh…oh that’s right, I had it in my upstairs closet,” I say. “Hang tight Josh, I’m going to talk with Austin and we’ll figure something out.”

He gives me a nod and I get up off the coffee table. I give Anna a smile when she glares at me and I walk out of the room. I take a breath before going up the stairs, not really sure I want to talk to Austin while he’s in his mood. But pretty sure I need to talk to him.

He’s in our room sitting on the edge of the bed. He’s playing with his guitar and scribbling stuff down on a note pad. Quick fast stuff and then he turns back to the guitar. I sigh before kneeling on the ground in front of him. He gives me a black eyed look and sets the guitar down.

“So now you know the whole story?”

“Basically,” I say. “I’m glad you didn’t go out and kill anybody.”

“Yet,” he says.

“Austin,” I sigh.

“Lana…people like that have no business in this world,” he says. “And his fucking mother.”

“I know. It pisses me off too. But maybe we could just keep Josh here. He’ll be 18 in July he said.”

“How are we going to keep a 17 year old here if his mother isn’t in agreement?”

“He doesn’t seem to think she’ll care much,” I say.

“We’ll have to think about it,” he says. “I don’t know how I went from being a basically single guy to engaged, with a cat and two teenage kids.” He gives me a smile and I laugh a little bit even though his eyes still haven’t changed back.

“You’d better get rid of the black eye look before Josh catches notice.”

“You know…if he lives here, that’s going to be another human that finds out.”

“Not necessarily,” I say.

He gives me a look.

“Yea, okay you are probably right. But at least he won’t be being beaten up anymore.”

I hear some pounding on the door downstairs. I look over my shoulder and I wonder what the fuck and who is pounding on the door. I feel the air shift and when I turn my attention back to Austin I see he’s gone. Well, that’s nice. I get up and hurry down the stairs just in time to watch the door open. There is a man I’ve never seen before, tall and thick in the shoulders with veins popping out of his neck.

“Where is he?” he snaps.

“Who are you looking for?” Austin asks, totally calm.

I walk up next to him and he gives me a look. His eyes are back to blue and he looks perfectly natural.

“Where is the little fuck!? The hospital said he was brought to this address! Where the fuck is he?”

It’s upon further inspection that I see that he’s got a swollen mark on his jaw and a cut across the bridge of his nose. Probably from the fight.

“I’m sorry, there are no ‘little fucks’ here,” I say.

“I wasn’t talking to you, bitch,” he says.

“Maybe you should watch how you talk to my fiancé,” Austin says.

Scott gives me a glazy eyed look. This guy is clearly out of his fucking mind, and probably drunk to boot. “I came to pick up my good for nothing step son. His mother wants him at home.”

“I’m afraid that won’t be happening,” I say.

“You got no business keeping him,” Scott says.

“It would do you a lot of good to get the hell off my property,” Austin says then.

“Are you going to call the cops? Think that’s going to help you? You’re fucking trying to kidnap my kid.”

“I didn’t say a damn thing about the cops,” Austin snaps.

I put my hand on his shoulder.

Scott rolls his eyes and charges through the door into the house. “Fuck this, I’ll find the little shit myself. And keep your whore daughter out of my fucking house.” He storms to the living room and I hear Anna scream.

Shit shit shit.

My arm falls from where it was on Austin’s shoulder, because all of the sudden his shoulder isn’t there. I take a deep breath and say a prayer that he won’t kill Scott in the living room. Annalise is damaged enough.

“Come on, you’re coming home,” I hear Scott say.

“Fuck no I’m not going back to that fucking pit!” Josh answers.

“I ain’t asking,” Scott snaps.

I don’t hear Austin at all. I don’t know how I feel about this. I take a breath and I question going into the living room. Finally I decide I’m going to go in there. I move fast and I walk in to see Austin standing near the kids, watching the whole thing.

Scott barrels towards the kids and reaches a hand out to grab hold of Josh. Anna hits him with her backpack and he turns his attention to her. “Be careful little girl.”

“You lay a fucking finger on her and I swear you’ll regret it,” Austin growls.

“Fine, you won’t come with me on your own, I’ll make you come with me,” Scott says. “Ain’t doing you a bit of good to stay here…your useless mother’s gone.”

I feel my eyes widen with horror. He turns and storms out, shoving me hard enough to knock me over. I feel his foot come down hard on my wrist and I yelp a little bit.

“Stay where you belong, bitch. Unless you want a bullet, too.”

I feel my heart start beating in over drive and Anna comes to my side and lifts me up, tears are streaming out of her eyes but she doesn’t seem to really notice them. She dusts me off a little and checks out my wrist. I hear a car trunk slam outside and the sound of a shotgun.

“Annalise, go upstairs with Josh,” I say to her. “Right now.”

I see Austin out the corner of my eye and I know shits about to hit the fan. His body is tense and his head is down and I know the only reason he didn’t dart out was because of Josh.

“Wait,” Anna says.

Josh is already on his feet, already going towards the stairs, not waiting to see this whole thing play out. I can’t blame him; it’s been a long fucking day. He doesn’t stop for her.

“Anna, go,” I say. I see Austin move forward and she reaches out and catches him by the back of his shirt.

“Let me go,” he snaps his voice just above a growl. He turns to face her and the embers are burning again and his fangs are showing.

“Don’t do it on the street, the neighbors are watching,” she says. Then she tenses. “I want you to tear his fucking throat out and shove that god damned gun in the wound.”

I remind myself to get her a counselor. She lets go of him and he’s gone.

“Go upstairs right now!” I tell her and she goes, picking up Piggy on her way and hauling him with her. For a second she looks like a child in a black tutu carrying her cat up the stairs.

“I’ll fucking shoot you just as soon as I shot my god damned wife,” I hear Scott say at the front door. I poke my head through the arch between the living room and the front room. Austin is standing at the front door and Scott is standing outside.

“I don’t think you will,” Austin says and I see the look of terror wash over Scott’s face and then in a flash both of them are gone and the shotgun discharges into the door frame before falling to the ground. I hear one gargled scream and then it’s over. I can’t hear anything.

Ten minutes pass and I take a breath. “Kids!” I shout. “You can come on down! He’s gone!”

I hear a lot of shuffling going on upstairs and then Anna and Josh come down together. Anna is still carrying Piggy. She looks around for Austin and our eyes meet and she looks away.

“Damn, Lana, I’m sorry,” Josh says. “I put your address on the hospital papers because I didn’t want the bills showing up to my house. I never thought he’d show up here.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” I say in as optimistic voice as I can manage. I’m personally just thankful that I didn’t have to watch anybody die this time. “He left, and everybody is safe.”

“He killed my mom,” Josh says after a second. He falls back onto a chair set up in the front room and runs his good hand through his black hair. “I feel like I should cry…or something. But…I just…”

“It’s going to be alright,” I say.

The front door opens and Anna immediately wraps her arms around Josh to block his view of Austin coming in. I find it mildly concerning that I’ve become basically used to my fiancé walking into the house covered in blood. Josh forced Anna off of him and instinct kicks in and I rush to Austin and make a show out of making it look like his nose is bleeding rather than that he murdered somebody.

“Christ, there is even blood on your shirt,” I say. I’m surprisingly convincing, and he seems to go along with it pretty well.

“It was a pretty hard hit,” he says.

Anna looks at him and he gives her half a nod.

“Well, come on, we should get it cleaned up,” I say and take his hand. I cringe slightly at the sticky feeling. I hope to God the neighbors didn’t call the police. That will be a tough deal to explain.

As I pull Austin towards the stairs Josh stands up, looking very much like the 17 year old he is. He takes hold of Austin’s sleeve and we are both stopped. I look at him for a second, hoping he doesn’t ask any questions or look to closely at the mess.

“Hey, thanks,” he says.

“No problem, kid,” Austin says. He gives Josh a slap on the shoulder and continues up the stairs with me. I notice Anna put her arms around Josh again before we make it to the top of the stairs and head into our bedroom.

Once we are in the room Austin pulls his shirt off over his head and I nearly gag. He’s got a huge gash in his shoulder. It wouldn’t be so bad if it wasn’t leaking black stuff. I get a little closer to him and examine it.

“What the hell is that?” I ask.

“I had a personal experience with a tree branch,” he says. “It will be fine.” He sits on the edge of our bed and takes a deep breath. “I need you to help me, Lana.”

“Help you with what?” I ask.

“That guy…fuck I shouldn’t have even touched him. He was pumped so full of shit…I could smell it as soon as I opened the door. But I didn’t have time to wait on the police. I had to get rid of him before he fucking killed the three of you.”

It takes me a second to figure out what the hell he’s talking about. Then it occurs to me. Josh had told me his mom used Valium. It seems pretty likely to me that Scott was a user too, and all his junk was in his blood.

“What can I do to help you?” I ask, concerned now.

“Just don’t let it get any worse,” he says.

I go to him and take hold of his hands. “Let’s get in the shower and clean you up. I’ll be with you through everything.” I pull him up and pull my phone out of my pocket. I type a text to Annalise.

Make some coffee and go ahead and start on dinner

She sends back an okay and I drop the phone back into my pocket before pulling Austin into the bathroom. I get out of my own clothes and watch as he finishes undressing. I turn on the shower water and walk in with him. I don’t think I want to leave him alone until he comes down, that would be a sure way for him to end up out there looking for shit.

The water runs down over us and instantly it turns red as it runs over his body. He relaxes in the water and I run my hands over his skin. “I love you,” I say to him. He opens his eyes and I’m not worried about how black they are.

“Thank you,” he says. “For being able to stand here right now and be okay.”

“I love you,” I say again, more seriously this time. “I told you a million times I’ll always be here with you.”

“It takes a lot…to stand in the shower and wash somebody else’s blood of your fiancé,” he says.

“You’ve made me stronger,” I say and give him a little smile.

“I can’t thank you enough, Lana,” he says.

I stand on my toes and kiss him hard on his mouth. “You don’t need to thank me. I’d rather wash other people’s blood off of you for the rest of eternity than live a life without you in it.”