Thick As Blood [Closed]

[Lucyfer]

It seemed the vampiress was willing to play along with the optimistic thoughts. “His name is Gael,” Celeste answered. “Mom used to joke that he earned that name because of his cry when he was a baby,” something about it being like a shrieking gale of wind. Celeste didn’t believe that, though. “He’s studying philosophy at the university, using the ROTC to pay for it. He’s….”


What was he going to do when he learned she went missing? How long would it take for Janelle to realize it? Celeste could imagine him doing countless stupid things, because he believed in heroic nonsense. The good overcame the bad.


Life meant hope.


“He’s good. He’ll argue the definition with you for hours, but he is.” And her own joy of thinking of him faltered.


She asked, to shift the subject a bit, “Did you have any siblings?”


‘Did Alexis?’ A stray thought, but she wondered if Alexis even remembered what it was to be human, if they had anything, at all, in common.

 

[Luxii]

Listening to Celeste talk about her brother made Nicole strangely emotional. She could feel a lump forming in her throat but she swallowed it down. Bad things didn't deserve to happen to good people.


She had to rock back down onto the heels of her feet, her shoulders strained at the additional pressure but Nicole needed to give her toes a break from supporting her full weight.


It was surprising that Celeste wanted to know about Nicole's personal life, but she decided to indulge her. It would provide a distraction from the pain in her arms.


"I have a sister, a younger sister. We were very close until I went away to university." She hadn't thought about her sister in a long time - she was probably a very old woman by now. "And, you know, right before I-- came here, we had a terrible fight over something stupid. The last thing she ever said to me was 'I hate you'."


Thinking about that moment made the lump in Nicole's throat return. Luckily Mya reappeared with the orange juice and dried fruit. It was all displayed on a tray which she set down in front of Celeste.


"I'm going to get a damp washcloth for you, dear," she said to Celeste, then she disappeared into the bathroom off to the side.


"You'll want to eat and drink all of that," Nicole said. "You might not feel like it but it will help you feel much better."

 

[Lucyfer]

Nicole had a sister. No name was given, but Celeste could imagine why as the story was told. “I’m sure she didn’t mean it,” Celeste said softly, though of course, she couldn’t know the circumstances. She wondered how it must be for Nicole’s sister, if she was still alive, to have a missing relative.


She wondered how her brother would ever handle it, when the years ticked on. ‘No. No!’ Her mind insisted on denying that reality, at least. Ah, optimism.


“I’ve told my brother that before. I never meant it, I was just angry.” They had always reconciled. At least she knew, they had parted on good terms, if she never saw him again. Not with any mushy ‘I love yous’, but as if there would be a tomorrow. As if there would be many days, since she put off seeing him to do homework. ‘And got dragged off to a bar anyway.’


Never again.


Food was brought out before much else could be said on the topic of siblings, “Thank you,” Celeste told the woman, before taking immediately to the orange juice, draining half the cup in seconds. She set it down as it began to sting her wounded lip and gave it a betrayed look, just as Nicole told her to be sure she ate it all. “I will,” she sighed. “I enjoy living.” And this was necessary to continue doing that, until she found a way out.


She didn’t go back to the orange juice immediately, though, but began to pick at the dried fruit and eat it. Not the tastiest things, nor, did she imagine, the most filling. Perhaps filling food would come later. Right now, this was for iron and blood, and she would heed Nicole’s advice and eat it all.

 

[Luxii]

Celeste had almost finished off the tray by the time Mya came back. With her she had the damp washcloth and a new shirt.


"Come on, dear, let's get you into bed."


She helped support the girl when she needed it, helping her into the bed next to Nicole. Using the washcloth, she gently dabbed around the wounds and wiped a little more vigorously at the blood trails until Celeste was clean, for the most part. She left the clean shirt on the bed for Celeste to change into if she wished. Then she crossed the room to the bed nearest the fireplace and settled in for the night.


Nicole waited until Mya's breathing deepened with sleep before she spoke.


"I spoke to Gael earlier," she whispered. "He was here, looking for you. That's why I'm down here; Alexis saw us talking."

 

[Lucyfer]

Celeste wanted to protest the bed, but didn’t. She would feel too guilty if she argued, but she eyed the chains and d-rings suspiciously. Fortunately, Mya abided by what Nicole had said earlier. She was not bound up this time, and the wounds were cleaned. Celeste sat through the process in silence, eyes drifting now and then to the cloth to note how red it was.


When she was left with the shirt, she did take it, and she slipped it on over the other—modesty possible, for the moment. She didn’t put her hands through the sleeves, but instead took the tanktop off while the shirt covered her, and then slipped it down her hips. When it was off, she put her arms through the sleeves of the new shirt. She set the tank top aside, folded up.


‘Move. Find an escape.’


It was what she should be doing, but a glance towards the older woman told her to wait. At least until she was certain the other one wasn’t awake.


It was just going to be difficult staying awake as well, without disturbing Mya.


When she thought it might be safe, Nicole spoke. Mya did not react, but Celeste did.


First, there was joy on her expression. She moved to sit on the edge of the bed, looking right at Nicole. “He—” but then the rest of the story was added. The joy faltered. “Does Alexis know who it was? When is Gael coming back?” Both questions were important. If Alexis knew who it was, Gael was probably as good as dead.


If he didn’t know…then if Gael wasn’t coming back too soon, Celeste had time to think of something. ‘Just escape!’ It couldn’t be so easy. ‘There’s a fireplace, lore says vampires hate fire. Burn the place.’ She was actually surprised with her own vicious thought and shook her head, though didn’t explain it. ‘Ow.’ Right. Throat. Sudden movements like that were bad.

 

[Luxii]

It was interesting to see all the different expressions that flicked over Celeste's face: joy, concern, worry, and then with a look towards the fireplace, something more malevolent than all the others. Perhaps she should have waited to divulge that information until later, but now the cat was out of the bag, so to speak.


"Well I wouldn't be trussed up down here if I had told him, now would I?"


It had been so worth it to see how enraged Alexis was when she wouldn't speak about her encounter with the human boy.


"Anyway, he's coming back tonight. At sunset. His number is in my phone, back right pocket, if you want to talk to him."


This was such a stupid idea. Helping these humans was probably going to get her killed or worse. Still, something inside her needed to help them, as if it would somehow atone for her past.


She rocked back up onto her toes. The slack in the chains provided some relief to her joints even if it was for just a few moments. At least Marcus hadn't dislocated them like last time.

 

[Lucyfer]

Celeste almost laughed. She wanted to, but couldn’t find it in her to let such a sound escape at the happy news that Alexis had no idea who had been here. There was an offer to talk to him, and Celeste moved right to her feet.


It was easier this time, but not by much. The food and drink hadn’t had time to truly be absorbed by her body and turned into necessary blood and nutrients. Her hand found the wall for balance, and she let it stay near it as she walked to where Nikki was. “I will bring you down, if you want,” Celeste made the offer clear, before she glanced down at the woman’s pockets and located the slight bulge that indicated the presence of a phone.


She reached into the pocket and drew the phone out with one hand, the other still pressed on the wall for balance. Gael’s number was in there, easy to locate. She dialed.


His answer was sleepy. “Hello, Dorothy.” She liked his friends, if only for that nickname. She could hear his startled response over the phone.


The questions then flowed as expected, "I'm well enough," it wasn't a lie. It would be enough to let Gael know the situation wasn't good. "I'm alive," that might be better. "I'm at that mansion we thought was haunted."


He cursed over the line. "Wait. It's not that simple. I really can't leave until tonight." She didn't want to leave Nicole, but she imagined the woman couldn't leave during the day. "I'll explain more later. Just...promise me you won't do anything stupid until you hear from me. I'm calling from Nikki's phone. She got into trouble thanks to you."


He seemed to understand. "Okay," she couldn't talk him out of that. She wouldn't be talked out of it. "I'll see you soon. Get some sleep. Bye."


~***~


The sound of the phone ringing broke through his sleep. He looked at it. ‘Shoot, I forgot to call Landry.’ It was the first thought as he reached for the phone. He answered it without checking the name.


“Hey, sorry I forgot—”


A voice he wasn’t expecting interrupted him. That was his sister. He bolted to his feet, standing so fast it made his head rush and he had to quickly steady himself against the arm of the couch, “Where are you? Are you okay?” Were the first questions out of his mouth.


"Damn it." Her words weren't good. Sure, she sounded all right, but by saying she was just 'alive', he knew. "Hold on, I'll be right there, I'll--" She cut him off.


He listened, and his body slowly relaxed back down into the couch. When she mentioned Nikki and night, he wanted to hope that somehow, despite Nikki's situation, the plan would still happen. "Okay," he said, trying to be calm. "Okay, I'll try to wait, but if I don't hear from you by midnight, I make no promises."


At least she understood that much. "I'll try. Good night," and with that, he hung up the phone, though he didn't want to. He took in a deep breath to collect himself once more, and laid back down on the couch, but sleep did not come easy.

 

[Luxii]

Nicole hoped that Gael wouldn't come charging up to the mansion before they had agreed upon. Vampires and the sun did not go together very well, he would have to wait until nightfall if the plan was going to work. Luckily, Celeste seemed to subdue him enough for now.


"We're going to need to time this right."


Everyone here functioned in a very predictable way, usually. This time of the year the sun set around 7pm, but most of the mansion's occupants didn't awake until at least 9pm. This gave them a decent window of time to make it out of there, hopefully all in one piece.


"After you wake up, I'll have you get me down - you're in no condition right now to mess with these heavy chains."


It was probably mid-morning by now. Celeste would definitely be able to get in some good sleep, and she would need it if this was going to work. There would be no rest for Nicole, but she would use the time to run different escape scenarios until she found one that would work best.

 

[Lucyfer]

Just as Celeste wanted to ask what the plan might be, Nicole started to discuss it. Not in detail, but enough to let Celeste know she was thinking. As such, Celeste slipped the phone back into the woman’s pocket, and nodded her understanding, though she gave the chains a look. Her mind told her she could handle it, but she still consented to what Nicole said.


She took a seat on the bed. “If I sleep too long, try to yell at me, or something,” noise might not be the best way, but it wasn’t as if Nicole could shake her away, given her own position. “I’ll follow your lead for getting out of here,” she’d do what was necessary.


Celeste laid down, covered herself, and tried to find a comfortable position and stick with it. Eventually she gave up on that and just stayed on her left side, eyes shut, and waited for sleep to take her. It might have been an hour before sleep actually did steal her away. She dreamt. Celeste knew that when she woke, but she couldn’t remember what she dreamt of. It all seemed as chaotic as that entire day had been.


Everything ached when she woke. She flinched when she rolled onto her back, and the tender skin touched the bed. The top of her head throbbed, not like a headache. The memories of her hair being pulled were fresh, and she’d left the damn braid in. She sat up and undid that mindlessly to relieve the pressure. It did little. She shook it out, and that was when she saw Nicole, and remembered earlier discussions.


“Oh!” Ow. She pressed her bottom lip against her top lip to feel the wound, let her tongue run over it to taste the copper of her own blood—no floral-ness to her. Just metal. “Need so much aspirin whene get out of here,” she muttered as her feet found the floor and she stood, stretched, then walked over to Nicole and examined how the chains were done up.

 

[Luxii]

Nicole didn't even realize she had slept until she felt Celeste fiddling with her bonds. The motion startled her, and she jerked up and away, straining at her chains. As she realized where she was and who was before her, she relaxed. Sleep muddled her vision, and she would have rubbed her eyes to clear them but the chains prohibited that sort of movement.


There was a distinct tang in the air that made Nicole's mouth water. She blinked a few times to uncloud her vision. The cut on Celeste's mouth had broken back open, blood welling up slightly in the crevices of her lip. Nicole held her breath and averted her gaze. Luckily for Celeste that Nicole had fed yesterday, but still the aroma was mouth-watering.


"There's a pin in each of the cuffs," she explained. "If you release that, everything should fall apart."


The pin was just out of reach of Nicole's fingers. She knew that from many previous experiences with this sort of confinement. But it was simple enough to open for someone else.


While waiting to be released, Nicole looked to Mya's bed. It was empty. The woman must already be starting on her chores for the day. That was just as well. Nicole didn't want to have her implicated in what was about to happen.

 

[Lucyfer]

Celeste nodded at the mention of pins, and she lifted her hands up to feel for them, since she couldn’t see so well from this low height. Soon enough, she found both, and released them, letting Nicole down from the wretched things.


Celeste stepped back to give her space. “What time is it?” She inquired. There weren’t windows in the room to be able to tell, and she knew already there was no clock. The time rested in Nicole’s cellphone.


The time would let them know how long they had to get out, and what preparations could be taken. Celeste wasn’t sure if it would be more difficult than just ‘walk out and run to the truck’. Somehow, that sounded much too simple. ‘The hard part comes after escaping.’ Her mind noted. Of course it did. Even she wasn’t foolish enough to think they’d be left alone.


This was really going to make getting that paper turned in on time difficult, let alone continuing school in general. She didn’t want to be on the run for the rest of her life.

 

[Luxii]

Nicole eased her stiff arms down after Celeste freed her. Her shoulders groaned in protest at the movement, but it felt good to finally be unchained. Now came the hard part: the escape.


Truth be told, Nicole was nervous about it. She had never attempted anything like this before, being perfectly complacent in accepting of her fate here. Never had she thought about leaving; it was terrifying to think about. Of course, Alexis was a bastard but here Nicole was among her own kind, it was safe, they understood.


But the opposite of bravery is not cowardice, it is conformity.





Tonight I will break all of my chains.





A quick glance at her phone gave her the time. "It's a little after 7:00pm."


The sun would be setting soon. Nicole was banking on the fact that none of the other coven members rose before 9pm; it would be a messy escape if that were not the case.


She shot off a quick text to Gael:


Meet us at the gate in 15 minutes. Bring the truck all the way up.





"Do you know if Gael keeps blankets in his truck?" They would be a good resource if the sun hadn't fully set, that way Nicole could protect herself from burning. "And... do you think he would mind if I hitched a ride with you guys? You'll need protection from.... everyone. I can help."

 

[Lucyfer]

It wasn’t late enough. That was the first thought to cross Celeste’s mind. It wouldn’t be fully dark quite yet. Despite that, she saw Nikki lift the phone and begin to type a text message. She knew it would be about this situation, and she had a feeling it would be about leaving soon.


“He usually does, actually,” her brother liked to have a small kit around for winter. A blanket was a necessity. “I don’t think he’d mind, but….” Celeste considered asking how long this could possibly last, how long they’d need protection, and if there was a place they could go, but she knew she wouldn’t like the answers. “Never mind, we can talk about what comes after this, after,” not before the ride out. Celeste didn’t need that stress. “I don’t suppose you would be willing to take this collar off?”


It might not be hooked up to anything, but she didn’t want to continue wearing it. She didn’t want Gael to see her wearing it, either.


~***~


Gael was awake when he heard the phone go off, still in Janelle’s apartment, and growing increasingly antsy as it got darker outside. He all but lunged for the phone when he heard it, to Janelle’s judging look.


He read it, and shot back an immediately response.


Consider it done.


He then shoved the phone in his pocket and turned to Janelle. “I’ll be back soon,” he told her, “Would you have tea ready?”


“You’ll be back with Celeste?” Janelle asked, voicing rising with hope, “Let me come, I can—”


Gael shook his head immediately, “No, stay here. But yes, should be back with Celeste, and maybe another…or more than another.” He was still fairly certain that the woman he met at the gate needed help. He wasn’t sure if there would be others. He only had a truck, though…that could be a problem. There wasn’t really enough seating for more than three—maybe four if they weren’t too big.


Janelle frowned, but then smiled with the hope she got from seeing the desperation on Gael’s face. He truly believed it, so she would, too. “Ok. Ok. Call me when you’re on the way back, or—or something.”


Gael nodded, and with that, he was out the door.