Chapter Sixteen: Knockin' On Heaven's Door

When Donovan got back up to their room, Amelia was up waiting for him. Donovan sighed and climbed into bed with her. "She knew, didn't she?" Amelia asked as she looked at her husband. It looked like someone just dropped a thousand pounds on his chest.

"Yeah."

Amelia blew out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "I figured she did. You're having a hard time with this aren't you?"

"I just feel like I failed her. I'm her father, I'm suppose to protect her and keep her safe. I couldn't even keep a secret from her! How am I suppose to make sure nothing bad happens to her. We both know she isn't going to let this go and pretend she never found out."

She slide over and put her hand on his cheek so she could force him to look at her. "Listen to me. You are not a bad father. And if we are really honest with ourselves we knew this would happen...eventually. Emmalina is just a very curious girl, we wouldn't have been able to hide it for much longer."

"You're probably right but it doesn't make this any easier. When people find out the truth about them...they seem to end up dead." Donovan said, horrified at the thought of his daughter ending up like that.

"You don't think vampires are killing them because of it do you? They could just erase their minds!"

"No, I think these people end up looking for them and what they find are usually rogues. We all know how that ends."

"Emmalina wouldn't go looking for vampires. She's curious not stupid."

"Well I told her we would fill her in about all of this in the morning, I already told her a few things." Donovan pulls Amelia closer and they cuddle on the bed. "This isn't how it was suppose to happen for her. I wanted her to have a care free life. How could she ever have that now that she knows about all of this shit." He says as he rubs his hand on her shoulder.

"She'll be okay. Let's go to bed. I know you're exhausted. Plus you promised Mason you would take him camping tomorrow after school."

"I don't know if we should still go. Not with all of this."

"Donovan you have to. It would break his heart if you canceled."

"You're right. Well, I guess I can deal with one night."

"Okay." She tilts her head up and kisses him. "Goodnight, I love you."

"I love you too." They climb under the covers and fall asleep.



The next morning after everyone ate breakfast and Mason was off at school. The three of them sat down to discuss what Donovan had been dreading since she was born. "What else do you want to know?" Amelia said, breaking the silence that filled the room.

"Where did vampires come from?" She asked.

"Uhh, I don't know. Donovan?"

"I don't know either. Vampires aren't even sure about that one. There are so many stories and lore that they lost track of what really happened."

"What do vampires look like? I know about the glowing eyes but are there any other differences?"

"Well, they have very pale skin and fangs. But their fangs can be retracted. They usually only come out when they are fighting or angry, feeding or around blood and when they are uhh...intimate with another person." Amelia said trying to choose her words carefully for her young daughter's ears.

"Tell me more about The Night Hunters."

"No." Donovan said.

"Why?"

"Because I don't want you getting any ideas. You will never be joining."

"I don't want to join it! I just want to know a little more. How and why did you too join it in the first place?"

"Your Mother can tell you why she did. But I won't be."

"Why not?"

"Because, you don't need to hear about that."

Emmalina looked at her father. Whatever it was it must have been bad. I better not push it, I'm surprise they are sharing anything at all. I'll just find that out later. "Alright, fine." She turned to look at Amelia, waiting for a response.

"Romeo actually asked me to join. I impressed Bianca, who was the leader at the time and she wanted me on the team. Romeo must have agreed with her assessment and he's the one who told me everything and I've been on the team ever since."

"How do you turn into a vampire? Before you guys go all fool, I don't want to be one. I'm just curious."

"A vampire has to drain your blood to almost the point of your death. Then he or she will replace it with there blood. It's not an exact science and sometimes the human doesn't make it."

"Okay. Can I meet a vampire? I've seen them before but I never really got to know him."

"What vampire have you seen?" Donovan asks.

"The one that came to my birthday party. You guys remember?" Whew, that was close. I'm not sure if I want to tell them about the silver eyed man. He didn't seem evil to me but what do I know? I also thought he was human.

"Oh, okay. When you went to the club you didn't meet any other ones did you?" Donovan asked

"Nope." Emmalina said, with as much confidence as she could muster. "So can I meet one? Like one from your team?"

"We only have one at the moment and no way in hell will you ever meet him." Amelia said, agitated at the thought of Vlad meeting her daughter.

"Why not? If he is on your team then he must be one of the good guys right?"

Amelia scoffed. "Not now, not ever has he ever been a good guy. He's the most pompous, egotistical ass hole in the entire world."

"Uhh, he and your Mom don't get along so well. Though I think it's more of your Mom. I think Vlad just finds her amusing."

Amelia cut her eyes at Donovan. "Vlad?" Emmalina asks. "He must be those things if he named himself after Dracula."

Amelia and Donovan share a look that Emmalina catches. "You can't be serious? He is actually Dracula? Holy shhh..snap!"

"He doesn't like to be called that though." Donovan says.

"You know, I forgot about that." Amelia says with a smile. I know what I'll be calling that little prick for now on. Haha.



They hear the door open and Mason walks in. He runs to his room to start packing for the camping trip. "Dad!" he calls out. "Are you ready to go? We need to hurry before it gets dark!"

Donovan walks up to him, "Yes I'm ready but I'm not sure if we can go yet."

"But whhhhhyyyyyy?" Mason whines.

"Well because I forgot how to put up a tent." Donovan smiles at his soon.

"Ohhhh I do, I do!! I can do it. I learned how to do it in Boy Scouts!"

"Did you? Well that's great. You can help me put it up. How does that sound?"

"YEEEEEESSSSSS! Awesome!"

Donovan laughs as he watches his son rush back to his room to finish throwing things in a bag.



Donovan walks over to Amelia and gives her a kiss goodbye. "Can you take it from here, answering her questions?" He asks.

"Yeah, I think I can handle it. Did you pack your silver?"

"Yeah, I've got knives and a gun hidden in my bag. I'm also taking a Brams with us, just in case."

"Alright. Be safe, both of you. Call me if anything happens."

"I will." He kisses her again and grabs his bag and heads over to give Emmalina a hug and kiss bye.

"Dad, don't you think I'm a little old for this?"

"Nope, and you never will be." He ignores her protests and gives her a quick hug and kiss bye. "Alright, are you ready kiddo?"

"Yeah lets go!"

"Wait don't I get a hug and kiss goodbye?" Amelia asks Mason.

"Uhhh Mom. Do I have to?" Mason sulks closer to his mom.

"Yes you most certainly do!" She grabs him quickly and squeezes him tight and kisses him on the cheek. "Mwwwuuaah!" She says to emphasize her kiss.

He wipes off the kiss and scurries back to his Dad who is now standing by the door. They say one last goodbye and leave.



Amelia sits back down on the couch where Emmalina is waiting. "Before you ask anymore questions, I want to say something. Emmalina, we love you very much. I'm not sorry we lied to you, it was to try to protect you from this hidden world that you're Dad and I are apart of. Neither one of us wanted you to find out. I don't want you to get mixed up in this. Vampires are dangerous, ALL of them. But rogues are deadly. Do not ever go looking for vampires because you won't like what you find and it may very well end in your death. I couldn't handle that and you're father...well he would probably just give up completely. His been through a lot, we both have. I don't know how much more he could take."

"He's been through something horrible hasn't he?"

"Yes, more than you can imagine."

"And you won't tell me?"

"No, I can't. It's not my story to tell."

"I understand and I know how much you both hate this. I wasn't expecting to find out there were vampires when I went digging. But I'm glad I know. I know you don't think I'm strong enough to handle this but I am. I'll be fine and I'll be smart about all of this. You guys don't need to worry so much."

"We will always worry about you. When you get older, get married and have kids, we will still worry. That's what parents do."

"Mom, I do have one more question."

"Alright. Ask it."

"How can you tell a rogue from a normal vampire?"

"Rogues usually look unkempt and almost have a wild look in their eyes. They will most likely have blood on their face and attack when they see you. They are crazed beings."

"Why are they like that? Did someone turn insane humans?"

"No, some go crazy if their mates die. Or if so much time passes and they haven't found them the weaker ones go mad."

"Their mates?"

"I was told each vampire has his or her own mate. One person that was meant for them. It's some kind of almost magically bond for the vampire."

"How do they know who she or he is?"

"They won't be able to read or control their mind at all."

"Hmmm, this is getting a little more complicated."

"I never seen a vampire with a mate before so I can't really tell you much about that. Only that the bond can never be broken. If the mate dies, the vampire will end his life or go mad with pain and start killing people."

"I kind of feel sorry for them."

"But it still doesn't change the fact of what they will do to you."

"Oh no, I know that."

"Come on, lets take a break and cook dinner. What do you want?"

"Hmmm, can we order pizza instead?"

"Sure."



After Donovan and Mason set up the tent, they pull out their fishing rods. After baiting their hooks they each cast out into the ocean, patiently waiting for a tug on their line. Mason catches a very small anchovy while Donovan didn't catch anything.



After they're tired of fishing, Donovan grabs a football out of his bag and they practice throwing. Mason loves playing football and he's a natural at it.



After the sun goes down, Donovan builds a fire and they roast marshmallows over the open fire. "So are you excited about your birthday?" Donovan asks him son, almost forgetting about it because of all of the drama with his daughter.

"Yeah. I think when I go to the high school I'm trying out for the football team."

"I think that's a great idea." After they go through half a bag of marshmallows, they call it a night and head into the tent. Donovan stays awake the entire time, carefully listening to the sounds around them.

The next morning they pack everything up to make sure it's ready when they leave. Mason is sad that the camping trip ended so quickly but can't wait for his birthday party when he gets home. The night before Donovan called Amelia to make sure she remembered. She did and will have everything ready before they get home. They fish a little more with no luck and decide it's time to head home.



When they get home, Amelia already has the cake ready and people have started to arrive. Mason blows out his candles, leaving behind his childhood to welcome the wonder years.



Amelia knows Mason is going to be a little trouble maker. As right as she probably is, Mason has something else on his mind.


A girl from class named Dawn is there and starts to flirt with him. He has liked her for awhile and decides it's time to make his move.



He gives her some flowers and she seems to really love them. She flirts some more and Mason goes in for the kill.



He kisses her a little shyly at first but soon gains more confidence. Before Dawn even leaves the party, she's Mason's girlfriend. Now that's how it's done Gentlemen, that's how it's done. He thinks as he watches he girlfriend leave. Happy with himself, he goes to bed excited for high school and all the trouble he can get into.



A few days later Amelia is around town questioning witnesses to a crime when her cell phone rings. She takes it out of her purse to see who it is and answers the phone. "Bianca, girl where the hell have you been! You haven't been to work in two weeks."

"I've been...going through some stuff. Amelia listen I have some really bad news. Romeo passed away last night."

Amelia felt all the color drain from her face. "Wha....what?" she squeaked.

Bianca sniffed and said, "Yeah, the funeral is tomorrow night at Bridgeport Cemetery. Be there at 10pm. I'll talk to you later. Bye."

Amelia hung up and walked over to a bench. She sat down and just starred off into space. Not really looking at anything, not hearing anything. She sat there for hours until it finally sunk in. My friend is....gone. Oh my god. The last time I saw him I yelled at him. Amelia started sobbing, she didn't care if people saw her or not. She wasn't sure what she was going to do without her partner, without her friend.



They gathered around the casket the next night to saw their goodbyes. Romeo's wife, Marisol was beside herself with grief. "What about our son?" She sobbed, angry that her husband had left her. "How am I going to raise him by myself?" she told the coffin. Even Vlad seemed sad by the passing of Romeo. This is a good reminder of why I don't let humans get too close, they die to easily. He thought as he looked at the casket.



Donovan holds his wife close and tries to comfort her. He knows it will be hard for Amelia, especially at the station. Donovan is just glad that Romeo got to live to see old age. Considering what they do, Romeo is one of the lucky ones. "Donovan the last time I saw him, I yelled at him. I wish I could tell him how sorry I am." Amelia says with tears streaking her cheeks. "Baby, he knows. He knows you loved him, we all did. You just had a little disagreement, that's what friends do." She nods her head thankful that Donovan is trying to comfort her but she knows she will have to live with this guilt for the rest of her life.



After the funeral is over, Bianca takes Amelia over to the side. Amelia really looks at her and can't believe what she sees. "Oh my God, Bianca what have you done?!"

"Amelia please, calm down. I didn't want to have to tell you like this but you would have noticed eventually and I want to be the one to defend myself."

"Why would you do this!?"

"I was the eternal mate of a vampire. I love him, Amelia. I turned because if I didn't, I'd grow old and die too. When I died, he would die, or be hunted down by the team for going mad. I couldn't let that happen to him. So when he asked if I would join him, I said yes."

"Oh God Bianca you are crazy! After everything you've been through you choose to join them?"

"Amelia they aren't all bad. They were decent human beings when they were alive and they still are now. They just have a little something extra now that's all."

"Something extra? No, they have something missing. Humanity."

"Just because my humanity is gone doesn't mean I'm a killing machine!"

"Not now you're not. But what happens if your mate dies? See, when Donovan dies, I'll be sad, heart broken and I'll grieve but eventually after a few years it will get easier. When your mate dies, you will either go on a killing spree or off yourself. Bianca that's not normal!"

Bianca shakes her head. Impossible, these people are impossible!! Poor Sebastian. "Amelia, I'm sorry you feel that way. Can you accept what I've become or will this be the last time we see each other?"

Amelia sighed. I've already lost one friend today. Do I want to lose another? "I don't know. Can't I have some time to think about this? It's a lot right now, Bianca."

"Alright fine. Call me when you think you can handle it." Bianca looked up into the sky. "Dawn is approaching, I have to go." Bianca and Vlad left quickly, moving so fast Amelia almost couldn't see them.



After they got home from the funeral, Amelia wanted to be alone so she changed clothes and laid down on her bed. Romeo is dead. Bianca is dead. Well, she's still here but that doesn't change the fact that she's dead. If it wasn't for my family, I'd be all alone in the world. I'd have nobody. What am I going to do without Romeo? He was my friend, my partner. He helped me through so much. I hope he knows that. If it weren't for him I'd still be feeling sorry for myself when I was kidnapped. Amelia kept thinking about her friend that would no longer be there and cried herself to sleep.


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NOTES:


Sorry this is all over the place, a lot was going on in this chapter! I'm so sad about Romeo! I also need to mention that Donovan is already an adult. I didn't have a party for him because I didn't feel it was necessary. I'll be doing the same thing with Amelia because she will be aging up in a few days in my game. Please forgive my makeshift coffin. The only one I could find with an open casket and he already died! So I couldn't use it. The red and white striped blanket is supposed to be an American flag, they put them on coffins of dead soldiers and police officers, not sure if everyone knew what that was supposed to be. I'm trying to make this as realistic as possible, well....plus vampires. Lol. So you won't see ghosts, sparkles or the Grim Reaper in my story. I'm trying to make it as close to real life as I can. Hopefully everyone is okay with that. As for my challenge, everything has been completed except for their LW but that wasn't a requirement. Thank you reading and I hope you enjoyed. I can't wait to read everyone's comments!