surprise guest

caleb never determined the nature of the concern shown by paige and katrina at his apartment, but over the next couple of days he felt a change in their behavior. he wasn't able to put his finger on it exactly, but they seemed more attentive to his location in and around the house. thinking he was being paranoid, he tested the idea one afternoon by waiting until both vampires were in different areas of the house. he went into the basement where the wine and spare blood supplies were kept, shutting the door to the kitchen behind him. there he remained, quietly reading a book while perched on the edge of the workbench tabletop. after approximately twenty minutes, he heard the door at the top of the stairs tentatively open.

"hey, kiddo?" paige inquired.

"yeah?" he replied nonchalantly.

she paused. "everything okay down there?"

"uh, sure," he said. "you need me for something?"

another pause. "nah, just a whim, that's all."

the door closed, leaving him sitting once more in silence. he considered the brief exchange, knowing he'd been correct. it's not paranoia if people are actually looking for you, he resolved.

he set his book aside and folded his arms before him while thinking about his new revelation. he'd had enough of feeling paranoid about possible threats in his life. clearly, katrina and paige still harbored some concerns for his safety, even following chimalma's death.

he had hoped that with chimalma dead they could go back to the life that he and katrina had been living. instead, he still peered around corners for potential assailants. a life lived in fear is no way to live at all. he considered perhaps alton was correct. until he conquered his fear he wouldn't be able to be a better mate to katrina. perhaps he wouldn't be able to appreciate life truly, either.

leaving his book on the tabletop, he walked purposefully up the stairs to the kitchen. he proceeded resolutely to the front entry area, calmly opened the coat closet, and slipped his leather jacket on. then he unlocked the front door.

fortunately, katrina had ceased programmatically locking the doors, confident both she and paige could address anyone who might attempt a forced entry. she no longer considered that someone might try to exit the house unannounced. he smiled as he opened the front door to reveal a western sky with the afternoon sunshine streaming in. a double beeping noise from the house alarm indicated the door had been opened.

it's time for me to do what alton told me before leaving: confront my fears firsthand.

while chatting in the sublevel room, katrina's and paige's gazes abruptly met at the sound of the double beep. katrina's eyes then shot to the security system monitor next to her to see caleb exiting through the front door.

"caleb!" she shouted as both vampires ran to the stairs in a blur rivaling the ability of a human eye to track.

katrina beat paige to the doorway and into the hallway of the main level, though paige was close at her heels.

"caleb!" katrina shouted again as she ran.

they both raced towards where the sunlight was bathing the entry, heedless of the impending pain. but the front door closed in front of them, protecting them from harm.

paige's eyes were wide as katrina sped to the front door, slamming the flat of her hands against the solid wood and yelling, "get back here, caleb!"

when katrina turned around, her eyes were blazing green with anger.

as caleb casually walked down the steps to the driveway, he heard a slamming sound against the front door and glanced back with a wide-eyed expression.

katrina shouted, "get back here, caleb!"

he shivered, realizing that he had better continue facing the current fear, because there was already another one destined for him.

the late winter afternoon sun blazed towards the western end of the clear blue sky. he realized the sun would be setting soon, and he needed to proceed before then. when darkness fell, he had a whole new problem to confront. and while he might live through the current endeavor, he sardonically considered that he might not survive the next one.

caleb breathed the cool air in deeply through his nose, appreciating the fresh, crisp scent of winter, and turned his face to the sunlight as he stood in the yard.

his cell phone came to life, and he glanced down to see katrina calling him. he hesitated and considered answering it, but decided an argument over the phone while standing in the front yard wasn't how he wanted to focus his attentions.

however, he realized he was only postponing the inevitable. after setting his phone's ring option to vibrate, he walked towards the side of the house in the direction of the public park area. he'd confront his fear on a park bench.

"caleb taylor! get back inside the house, right now!" katrina admonished loudly over the small speaker near the front door.

there was a notably lengthy pause, and a much calmer version of her voice played over the speaker. "i promise i won't be upset, my love. i just want you to come back inside, please."

paige must have said something about her negotiation skills needing some work, he considered.

it gave him no pleasure to put her through this, but he knew that if he didn't confront his fears he would always be dependent on others for his protection or peace of mind. not that he didn't appreciate such protection: he merely needed to have confidence that he could stand on his own two feet. besides, it wasn't as if there would be any danger. it had been nearly a week since katrina's return, and no alarming events or indicators had presented themselves.

caleb's cell phone buzzed three more times, each time leaving a voicemail indicator, as he walked through the park to the bench where katrina had revealed her secret to him months prior. it feels like forever since that night.

his phone buzzed in a manner indicating he had received two new text messages, and he glanced at each message. the first one was from paige. "she's mad. she's really mad. come back now, kiddo."

he winced, realizing that when paige was concerned it was a bad sign. the second text was from katrina. "getting dark soon. i'm coming for you." he felt a shiver from the top of his neck all the way down to his lower back.

"oh crap," he muttered and sent a reply to katrina's message. he typed, "kat, love you always. c." then he slipped his phone into his jacket pocket.

sitting on the park bench, he stretched both his arms along the back of the bench while leaning back to appreciate the western sky as the sun began its descent. perhaps it'll be my last sunset, after all. it's hard to take anything for granted these days.

new feelings replaced the anxious ones of a few minutes ago: freedom and satisfaction. he had done it: faced the fear of leaving the house unprotected and confronted the unknown. such a small victory, though he almost wished someone would jump out of the bushes to attack him just to prove him wrong. perhaps then, if he survived, katrina wouldn't kill him later. ha! that'd be hilarious, he mused, kill me for leaving her protection! the irony of the unlikely event almost made him laugh out loud.

the sun continued its descent, and he patiently awaited his fate. he was perplexed in a strange way as the late sun washed across his face in the cool breeze. i wonder why i haven't done this sooner. it was all very liberating to him. best of all, i was right. no danger is waiting to snatch my life and snuff it out. well, at least not today, anyway.

he chuckled and leaned back into the bench as he appreciated the remaining quiet moments and daylight.

when the sun was nearly ready to drop beyond the western horizon, he felt the chill increase with the winter breeze. he zipped up his coat up and rubbed his hands together.

he turned his head in the direction of the estate and saw a large area shielded by dense trees from the nearly completed sunset. katrina stood like a statue in her blue jeans, black boots, and black leather jacket. her eyes glowed bright green with what he anticipated was likely anger. her red hair was down, and it moved fluidly around her head in the breeze like a living creature all its own. his eyes continued to take in her visage, both terrible and beautiful at the same time. she appeared both lovely and lethal, the perfect vision of a vampire: an angry vampire.

she silently regarded him, her brilliant green eyes piercing through him like lasers. he smiled, appreciating her feral beauty, and turned back towards the pink glow on the western horizon with his arms once again stretched across the back of the park bench. he lifted his face up slightly, as if presenting himself for sacrifice.

he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye and glanced over to see paige in jeans and a red leather jacket standing in the distance just inside the forest's tree line. she regarded him curiously, and though her blue eyes weren't illuminated, her expression was one of both concern and mild disapproval.

he returned his gaze to the western sky as darkness fell on the surrounding area. his sunset was over. no sunlight remained to stave off the inevitable disagreement. but calmness fell over him, and he muttered, "alton was right, after all. i've looked fear in the face once, and now i'm ready to face it again."

hearing a sharp intake of breath to his left, his eyes darted to see katrina standing not ten feet from him. he blinked only once, and she suddenly towered directly before him. he noted paige's abrupt appearance to his right, as well. he gazed up into katrina's eyes calmly and noted an astonished look on her face.

"facing what fear?" she asked in a cold, level tone.

he deliberately paused and then calmly replied, "right now, you."

she silently glared at him while paige frowned in the background. "what?" she prompted in a steely voice. afraid of me?

he smiled, looked directly into her eyes, and explained, "i'm staring fear and death in the face. now i can truly begin to love you without fear."

katrina was dumbfounded, while paige's mouth gaped open slightly.

"i'm ready to die now, but i want you to know i love you and always will, no matter what," he said softly with his arms stretched across the back of the bench.

"alton," katrina seethed between clenched teeth. what crap is he filling caleb's head with now? a chat is in order, she vowed.

the glow in her eyes dissipated slowly in the passing silent moments, and she sat down on the bench to his left. paige closed her mouth and sat down at caleb's right with a relieved expression. both vampires stared at him, although paige leaned away further in order to observe katrina's expression.

"i love you, too," katrina whispered with resignation. paige casually leaned back against the bench.

caleb used each arm to encircle katrina and paige around the shoulders and pulled them towards him. both vampires conceded and shifted slightly to press against him.

"the two most important women in my world," he muttered. he turned his head to the right to kiss paige lightly on the cheek, and then turned to katrina to place a warm, soft kiss upon her cool lips.

she stared back with a penetrating gaze and initiated a longer kiss of her own. "nobody's suffering retribution tonight, i suppose," she stated with a resigned sigh.

paige grinned, turned her head to caleb to kiss him with a peck on the cheek, and whispered, "dodged a bullet, kiddo."

"what he dodged was an angry, deliberate fang bite," katrina whispered.

caleb smiled in silent satisfaction at he sat with his arms around his two favorite vampires while a nearby park lamp suddenly snapped to life, casting a glow upon them.

on the walk back to the estate, caleb held katrina's hand and appreciated how forgiving she had been regarding his need for a leap of faith. he gazed up at her with a cheerful smile, but she merely glared back at him and maintained a stern expression. however, as she held his hand, she lifted it to her lips and firmly kissed his skin. he gratefully accepted that, not wanting to press his luck.

at the house, paige announced that she needed to get out for a while. since she was a social creature, caleb imagined that her recent sequestering at the estate was as difficult for her as it had been on him. she changed into a trendy red dress and her new strappy, red high-heeled shoes, warning everyone not to stay up for her, and departed in alton's rental car.

"clubbing," he ventured absently, watching out the sitting room window as the car drove away.

"you had to guess?" katrina asked with surprise. "i'll be in the sublevel room chatting with alton," she added darkly.

"your lair," he amended with a smirk.

katrina stopped, glanced over her shoulder at him with a rather unhappy expression, and grumbled, "i sometimes wish that term hadn't caught on with you."

he tried to erase a smirk as she stalked out of the room. he almost felt sorry for alton as he considered her dark mood - almost, that is. while the stately vampire's advice had been helpful, it had annoyed katrina considerably in the end. his mind pondered other advice that alton had offered and realized he would need to start a workout regimen to prepare his body for phase two. however, it was apparent he still had a lot of work left to do in phase one. he shrugged and went to the kitchen for something to eat. he had scarcely opened the refrigerator when the doorbell rang, and he went to answer it.

katrina absently surfed the internet while holding the cordless phone in her other hand talking to alton. she quickly recounted caleb's unplanned adventure that evening in a very displeased tone of voice.

"so, just what other advice have you been giving to my mate?" she demanded.

there was a pause at the other end before alton calmly answered, "i merely provided him with some supportive advice that might aid him in his continued understanding of the vampire culture. frankly, i feel the guidance was integral to his development as a successful mate for you."

"he's already a successful mate, alton," she muttered irritably. "and did you tell him he needs to confront his fears more assertively?"

"well, yes," he replied. "it's a liberating journey that will only help him develop into a well-rounded, independent person," he reassured her.

she stopped clicking her mouse in the internet browser. "you're implying he's codependent?" she snapped.

"well, i know that's probably somewhat appealing to you as an alpha female, but -"

"bullshit, alton," she interrupted. "so, you're a lay-psychologist now?"

she heard the doorbell ring and frowned at the security system screen to her left. kind of late for a visitor, she mused.

her eyes widened with horror, and she screamed, "caleb!" the phone hadn't even hit the floor before she sped like a blur to the top of the stairs.

"katrina? what's wrong?" alton demanded after the handset dropped to the floor.

curious, caleb opened the front door and thought he heard katrina yell his name. however, his attention was captured by the terrifying visage before him. a distorted vision of what used to be alondra vargas/chimalma stood before him wearing all-black clothing. her right ear was missing, and there were deep scars lining the right side of her face. the hair on the entire right side of her head was missing, save for some strands here and there, and her blistered scalp was a gaunt shade of white. her hazel eyes blazed brightly, and she wore an evil grimace, accentuated by pronounced fangs.

"hello, caleb," the harsh sounding voice rasped. "miss me?"

his eyes noted a small crossbow in her mangled-looking right hand, and it was leveled at his chest. he started to yell out, but felt his body being pushed aside as if hit by a truck. his body landed onto the carpeted floor of the adjacent sitting room, nearly a full fifteen feet from where he had just been standing.

the crossbow in chimalma's hand fired, and the bolt caught katrina directly in the chest with a dull thud. she gasped, but managed to remain standing as chimalma forced her way into the entryway. the angry, disfigured vampire punched katrina in the jaw with her free hand while firing the crossbow again, the arrow bolt catching her a few inches above the first impact point.

pain surged through katrina's body as she yelled, "run, caleb!" she grabbed chimalma by the neck with one hand and threw her further into the house towards the kitchen.

their two bodies became immediately entangled in a flurry of blows and clawing exchanges. both combatants howled in bitter hatred as they smashed against furniture, fixtures, and walls.

caleb gathered his wits long enough to realize the battle had moved further into the house. he jumped to his feet as intense fear and adrenaline surged through his mind and body. making a run for the front door to flee, he made it as far as stepping onto the front porch before halting like a statue. "no!" he yelled in frustration.

he wasn't running for safety this time. his lover, his mate, needed help, and he wasn't about to abandon her. but his mind raced frantically as he tried to think of something he could use as a weapon. and this time, a crowbar from the basement isn't going to cut it! he gathered his resolve and raced back into the entry area towards the hallway and nearly ran into the wall as he tried to stop. loud snarling noises and a series of subsequent crashing sounds came from the interior.

his mind flashed with an epiphany, and he raced down the hallway towards the study. he flipped on the light switch, and his eyes fell onto the sword in the glass case that had belonged to katrina's husband. he lifted the casing off and cast it onto the floor. snatching the sword from its wooden holders, he nearly dropped the heavier-than-expected weight, which shifted in his novice right hand.

wasting no time, he raced down the hallway as fast as he could.

the two vampires continued their struggle in the formal dining room. the large table was smashed and the china cabinet reduced to rubble as they fought. katrina's wounds were bleeding more freely as she wrestled with the centuries-old aztec vampire. despite her disfigurement, chimalma seemed to have the upper hand in the battle, and katrina felt her strength ebbing.

katrina managed to knock the crossbow from chimalma's grip, but the elder vampire's left hand snatched a short-bladed, curvy dagger from her waistband sheath and held it overhead as she readied to strike down at katrina's chest. chimalma's right hand choked katrina's neck in a deathlike grip, while she grappled with the arm holding the dagger.

"if you're going to blow somebody up, do it right!" chimalma spat venomously.

caleb appeared out of the hallway holding the sword over his head with both hands, running towards chimalma's unprotected back, hoping to strike her down. katrina's eyes widened for only an instant, but it was enough for the disfigured vampire to notice. chimalma's head glanced back over her shoulder, and she jerked her left hand away from katrina's grip, throwing the curvy-bladed dagger at caleb as he charged.

the knife flew through the air and imbedded into his upper left chest quadrant with a force that caused him to fall backwards from the impact. intense pain cascaded through his chest and shoulder, and the sword was propelled forward across the floor from his hands as he released his grip on the hilt.

the blade skittered across the tiled floor towards katrina, and she managed to grab the hilt as it started to slide past her. she whipped the blade upwards and plunged the tip of the sword into alondra's heart, causing the vampire to gasp sharply. chimalma grabbed at one of the arrow bolts stuck in katrina's chest with her free right hand and pressed it into her further, causing katrina to scream in pain.

but katrina still managed to grab the hilt of the imbedded sword with her right hand and deftly snapped the end of the blade off, leaving the tip stuck in the other vampire's heart.

"bitch!" alondra cursed.

with one fluid sweep of katrina's right arm, the remainder of the blade swooshed upwards and to the left, neatly separating the vampire's head from her shoulders. as caleb looked up from the floor with horror, alondra's head rolled across the floor, spraying a mist of blood along its path. the body slumped to the tiled floor with a squishy thud. chimalma's head came to a stop against the far wall, an expression of shock still evident. a second later, the broken sword clattered to the floor as katrina collapsed to her knees in exhaustion.

despite the blade imbedded in caleb's chest, he managed to crawl to katrina's side as she rolled into his arms, weakly staring up at him.

"what can i do?" he urged in a panicked voice.

she felt her energy ebbing as the blood continued to seep from her two wounds, though the most critical was the arrow sticking from the area around her heart. she was exhausted from the effort of her last actions, and katrina realized that death was finally coming for her. but instead of feeling fear, she felt an odd peace fall over her. glancing into caleb's shocked face, she felt genuine remorse. "nothing, my love," she whispered. "you can do nothing."

she felt his body shaking with fear as he held her.

"you're healing?" he inquired shakily, but hopefully.

"not fast enough," she moaned.

"no!" he demanded. "you can't die! you can't leave me!"

"everyone dies," she whispered.

pain surged through caleb's chest, and he felt like he was going into shock. "not you," he shook his head as tears welled in his eyes. "not now!"

"i'm so sorry, my love," she whispered as a tear rolled down her cheek. she could feel the emotional pain emanating from him, which greatly surpassed the pain coursing through her own body.

"don't do this," he pleaded as an idea dawned on him. he grasped each of the two arrows in his right hand and managed to pull them from her body. the blood flowed freely, but he used each of his hands to cover a wound mark and pressed onto each location to help stem the bleeding. then, despite the blade still sticking from his upper chest, he forced his neck onto katrina's mouth, demanding, "take my blood. it'll help you heal."

she was so weak by that point, but she could feel the pulse in his soft neck against her lips. the survival instinct within her immediately wanted to bite into his throat, and her fangs protruded in her mouth. a fresh pain shot through her body, and she gasped.

"hurry!" he urged as he pressed his neck onto her parted lips.

but she managed to turn her face from him and insisted in ragged breaths, "no. it's not enough. just live your life. do it for me...for us."

he sobbed openly and gently settled her body onto the floor. fate was so cruel to him and seemingly always had been. his loved ones were either abusive or taken from him too soon in life. he finally found the one person who made him complete, who made him feel alive for maybe the first time in his life. and he didn't want to live if she weren't there to live alongside him.

noticing the bleeding from her body was ebbing, he ran the back of one bloody hand across katrina's cheek as she closed her eyes. feeling bewildered, he searched wildly in his mind for solutions. he saw the bloody, broken sword lying on the floor next to them, and an idea was born of desperation.

ignoring the intense pain from his own nearly unbearable wound, caleb firmly grasped the sword in both hands and pressed the edged portion of the remaining blade to his neck. then, before he lost his nerve, he ran the blade across his throat with a painful thrust. pain seared through his neck, and he dropped the blade with a clatter. blood readily seeped from the hastily created gash.

"i love you," he muttered before placing his neck over her mouth.

the blood flowed onto her lips. a small spark surged through her body as she felt herself drifting into a dreamlike haze. her eyes shot open, and something feral awakened. a rich, sweet taste was in her mouth as her lips clamped onto skin, and her arms instinctively wrapped around the figure above her like a vice.

katrina heard a gasp from the figure, and her mind quickly returned to a conscious state. she realized with horror that caleb was in her arms as her mouth drank furiously from him. she tried to stop, but the urge in her was too great. her body was in command, not her rational mind. the red-haired vampire hadn't experienced thirst that strongly before, and it actually terrified her. she felt part-animal, part-higher being all at the same instant. a rush of satisfaction and longing swept through her body, yet her mind was repulsed by it. time seemed to stop as all that existed was her insatiable thirst and his labored heartbeat and breathing.

at some point she felt stronger as her sense of conscious control also began to return. she forced her tongue onto the skin of caleb's neck, pressing it there to prevent his continued bleeding. terror rolled through her as she was uncertain if she had already taken too much blood from him. she sensed only a faint heartbeat from him, and his breathing was shallow.

she gathered saliva in her mouth and held it around his neck wound. time seemed to stand still again as she impatiently waited for his wound to close. her lips parted, and she gently licked at his wound area. she wasn't sure if she should remove the dagger from his body, fearing something might tear, and she didn't know if she had the strength to heal him.

more time passed as she lay on the floor, holding his body against hers. his breathing continued to be shallow, and she worried for his survival. she wouldn't forgive herself if somehow her hunger became the death of him. her mind raced, wondering how he could have been so insane to do what he did. but then she also felt intense love for him, for his sacrifice. however, it would mean nothing if he died from his efforts.

this isn't supposed to be how it ends. she was supposed to have left him safe so he could continue his life. he deserved a normal life, one with a normal wife who could bear him children. a life where he could grow old with his partner and watch their children grow and develop. a life without me.

she wasn't certain what time it was, but she knew that something needed to happen for him soon. she closed her eyes, holding his body close to hers. some strength in her body was just beginning to return, and she felt her wounds slowly repairing themselves throughout her decimated system.

once again, angel caleb came to my rescue.

the taste of his sweet, life-rejuvenating blood still lingered in her mouth as she whispered to him, "i love you. i'll love you forever."

the rental car screeched to a halt in front of the estate, and paige barreled through the front door with a cell phone in her hand. she tore her high-heeled shoes from her feet and cast them aside as she looked around frantically. she had driven like a demon possessed once the call from alton arrived, and she stayed on the phone with him as he described what he'd been able to hear after katrina dropped the phone.

"holy crap!" she exclaimed as she made her way into the living room, viewing the carnage before her.

her eyes took in the horrific scene in the dining room, and she rushed to where katrina still held caleb close to her body.

"red," paige urged as katrina's weak, tired eyes looked back at her with anguish.

"he's dying," was all she managed to whisper.

"paige! what's happening?!" alton demanded over the cell phone.

"katrina's injured, but recovering," paige said hurriedly. "but caleb's hurt badly. there's a dagger in his upper shoulder area."

"massive blood loss," katrina nearly shrieked.

paige's face flashed with horror as she realized what had happened. "katrina drank too much from him. he's dying," she muttered desperately.

"get to the blood supply. start an intravenous drip immediately!" alton commanded. "do it now!"

paige gathered him into her arms, stripping katrina's weak hands from around him, and ran with him to the sublevel room where she laid him gently on the king-sized bed. she raced back upstairs to the refrigerator in the kitchen and quickly sorted through the various blood types remaining on the shelves.

"type a positive," katrina's strangled voice called from the dining room.

paige picked two bags of blood and frantically tried to think of where to get the other supplies she needed. "katrina! i need tubes and needles!" she yelled frantically.

"basement shelf...medical bag," she rasped.

paige sped into the basement wine cellar, recalling the last time she had descended these same stairs trying to save caleb's life. she spotted a black leather medical bag and brought it with her back upstairs. she raced back to the sublevel room where he was lying.

af-->>

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