Blood Relations Ch 07

Serena took the longest, hottest shower of her life. When she was done she got lost looking at her reflection, unsure of who the woman staring back at her was anymore. She pinched her eyes shut and saw Jacob, the insanity plastered on his face. Serena was responsible for his downfall. One kiss and he was done for. She had accused him of ruining her life the past few months, but now she knew it was actually the other way around.

All the blame fell on her shoulders. She should have figured out something was wrong with her before she let Adam kiss her or even Lance. That thought brought a pain to her chest. Even though his feelings for her were the result of a kiss hers for him were very real. She had to fix this, there was no way she could ruin two more lives.

A knock on the bathroom door broke away her thoughts.

"I don't want to rush you," Lance said. "But we should get out of here soon."

Serena grabbed onto the doorknob and readied herself to see the bloodbath of the cabin. Her breath caught in her chest when she glanced around the room and saw that everything was clean, spotless even. She was in the shower for thirty minutes at the most, and there was so much blood, not to mention the body. She looked up at Lance with confusion.

"Vampire speed," he said. "There's still the matter of the car. I plan on dumping it a little further away from here. Nobody thinks Jacob is missing so we can use it for a bit. There's about ten hours until the sun rises. Where would you like to go?"

"What do you mean?" Serena asked.

Lance walked forward and wrapped an arm around her side, pulling her against his chest. He lowered his head so his mouth was A-line with her ear.

"There's no reason for us to go back to Juliet," he said. "We have each other. We can go anywhere in the world."

Traveling the world with Lance sounded perfect. Serena wouldn't have to see Malcolm or Adam again. She could focus on the man she loved. But then the pang in her chest came. There was no way to tell if Lance's feelings were real, or the result of Serena's kiss. Besides, as angry as she was with Adam, he didn't deserve what was happening to him. Serena had to find a way to make this right and not run away from her problems.

"I want to go back." Serena pushed forward and walked out of Lance's arms, unable to face the hurt look she was certain he wore.

"That's a bad idea," Lance said. "You have my bite mark now. I can influence your decisions, please don't make me do that already."

Serena turned around to face him. She gave him a soft smile.

"If that were the case why don't you hypnotize me? Make me forget about my Grandfather, waiting to hear if I'm safe or not. Take away every memory of Adam, your friend who is hurting right now because of me. Why stop there? Erase my knowledge about what I am, how my kiss will turn a man insane."

"You know that's not true for us," Lance said. "I love you, and not because of some Siren's call."

"I know," Serena lied. "But you understand why I have to go back to Juliet. I need to work with James and Malcolm, I need to cure Adam before he ends up like Jacob."

"I don't like it," Lance said. "But I understand."

"Thank you," Serena said.

She walked towards the door, not wanting to spend one more minute in the small room. The warm breeze of summer evening calmed her as she climbed into the passenger's seat of the car. Lance came to the other side and turned the engine over. As they drove away Serena fought the urge to ask what he did with the body, because no matter how curious she was she knew she wouldn't like the answer.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The hum of the engine was enough to keep Serena distracted from the thoughts that swirled around her. When they pulled up to Malcolm's huge home Lance turned the car off and the sounds of the summer night weren't enough to quiet Serena's brain.

"What are you doing?" Serena asked.

"Coming in with you," Lance said. "I'm not leaving your side. Ever."

She plastered on the best smile that she could and turned to look at him.

"You need to get rid of the car," she reminded him. "I will be safe with Malcolm, and I'm sure you can speed back here once it's taken care of."

The tall man gave her a half smile and nodded his head. She leaned over and gave him a quick peck, but before she could pull back he brought his hand to the back of her neck and deepened their embrace, forcing his tongue in her mouth. She felt herself melt into him and returned his passion. After a moment she regained her senses and pulled away.

"I'll be quick," Lance said.

Serena nodded and gave his hand a kiss as he pulled it away from her. She jumped out of the car before she lost her nerve and demanded Lance take her anywhere but here.

The merriment and wonder she felt when she first saw the giant mansion was gone. Now the looming house held an air of sadness and gloom. Taking a breath Serena walked up to the door and pushed it open. She made her way to the front room and wasn't surprised to see Malcolm, James, Piper, and Thomas there.

"Serena, you're okay." Piper wrapped Serena in a death grip of a hug before she could respond.

"Where's the vampire?" Malcolm asked.

Piper let her go and she turned her attention towards Malcolm.

"He'll be here shortly." Serena glared at Malcolm. "I don't appreciate your tone. Especially since he is the one who came to rescue me."

"That was not my idea," Malcolm said. "I don't want to see my great granddaughter involved with his kind, or any supernatural for that matter."

"Well you should have thought about that before bringing me here," Serena snapped. "And I wouldn't exactly call myself human."

Malcolm looked shocked at her response. He opened his mouth but James spoke before he got the chance.

"Everyone settle down, tensions are a little high at the moment, let's not say something we will regret."

Serena let out a sigh. She was tired and Hawkins was right.

"How is Adam?"

Piper shook her head. Thomas walked over and put an arm around his mate's shoulder.

"Not good," Piper said. "I've never seen him like this. He keeps asking for you and threatening Lance. I don't understand what's happening to him."

"Serena is a siren," Hawkins said. "One kiss is enough to drive anyone crazy. We witnessed what the human who kissed her went through. I can only imagine that the effects are stronger with a supernatural."

"Vampires must be immune," Lance said.

He got rid of the car faster than Serena anticipated. As he walked into the room he placed his arm around Serena and she felt herself calm, wanting so bad to believe him.

"Yes," Hawkins said. "My main concern is finding a way to cure Adam of this delirium."

Serena appreciated Hawkins' lie. It was better than trying to argue with Lance, and at the moment Serena didn't care if their love was fake on his part. She selfishly wanted the comfort he brought.

"We already know of two cures," Thomas said. "Adam finds his mate or Serena's death."

In the flash of a second Thomas was pinned against the wall with Lance holding him up by the neck. Piper let out a scream and ran over. Serena's heart broke a little more. Lance's behavior at the mention of her demise only further suggested he wasn't immune to her kiss at all.

"Lance put him down," Serena yelled.

"Nobody here wants Serena to die." Hawkins kept his voice calm. "You have my word I won't let that be an option."

As quickly as he had moved Lance was back at her side. Piper rushed over to Thomas who was gasping for breath and helped him stand. Malcolm looked lost as he remained seated on the couch. Serena felt for him, but a small part of her thought he should shoulder some of the blame. If he had been honest about his relation to her, about what her great grandmother was, or about what sort of town Juliet was then maybe none of the would have happened.

"What are the options then?" Serena asked.

"Research," Hawkins said. "I want the five of you dedicated to searching for the answers. Piper and Thomas will search the actual books in the town's library. Serena you're probably the most familiar with the internet, Lance can help you as long as he is able. Malcolm you will try and find all the details about your Rose you can. See if anyone else who knew her was still alive, trace back her family line. Whatever possible for clues."

"No offense," Serena said. "But shouldn't more of us work the internet angle."

James gave a warm smile and immediately Serena felt bad about her comment.

"The Juliet library is different than most," Malcolm answered. "Very old books on very old subjects. It is a bit of a mess though. Hard to navigate the old volumes."

"What about my brother?" Piper asked.

"We work fast," Hawkins replied. "Keep him locked up in the meantime. The sooner we have an answer the better."

"Shouldn't someone search for his mate?" Serena asked. "That would cure him right?"

"Wolves don't work that way," Hawkins replied. "Outside of parading every female in the whole wide world in front of him and making them lock eyes there is no way to find her."

"And if we let him out to try and look for her Adam will focus on you," Piper said. "Based on his behavior he is likely to get violent."

Serena already had enough violence. Jacob was dead because of her.

"I'm leaving for Europe tomorrow," James said. "As far as anyone can tell Sirens originated overseas. I am going to speak with some other Alphas and see if I can't learn anything from the source. Malcolm you will be in charge."

"How long will you be gone?" Malcolm asked.

"Until I either have an answer or have run out of leads," Hawkins said. "Everything should continue to run smoothly while I'm gone. John is heading up the accounting firm and the rest of the pack is happy. I don't anticipate any major need for me. I recommend everyone get some sleep and start fresh in the morning."

Lance cleared his throat and James gave him a nod.

"Of course there is no reason this work cannot be completed in the nighttime if you wish to adjust your schedules. I'm sure Malcolm can find you some laptops."

"In all honesty I would rather work from this library than here," Serena said. "I don't see a point in staying in this house."

"That is a great idea," Malcolm said. "We should all work as a unit and keep each other informed. That's the best way to fix this."

Serena was surprised Malcolm agreed with her.

"In fact I insist all four of you stay here the duration of the research," Malcolm continued. "Lance you know where the vampire friendly rooms are in the basement. Piper and Thomas can settle in upstairs and Serena I have the perfect room for you."

"I'm staying with Lance," Serena interrupted.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Malcolm replied.

"I don't care," Serena said.

Malcolm nodded his head in defeat.

"Now that that's settled I am going to head home and pack," Hawkins said.

He shook Malcolm's hand before giving Piper a hug.

"Don't worry, we will save your brother," Hawkins said.

He nodded his head towards Lance and Serena before leaving. Once he walked out the forced calm that came with him did too.

"Thomas and I are going to bed," Piper said. "He thinks its best we start with fresh minds and I agree."

"Pick any room you like," Malcolm said. "Tomorrow you can bring some of your things over."

Piper came and gave Serena another hug. She couldn't believe the taller woman didn't hate her for what she'd done to her brother.

"I am so sorry this is happening to you," Piper said.

"I should be apologizing to you."

"No," Piper said. "I was a terrible friend to you and a terrible sister to Adam. I got involved in his little revenge scheme against Malcolm. My brother wanted to use you and I helped him. I deserve this. I should have demanded he leave you alone."

"Ladies, stop blaming yourselves," Malcolm said.

Serena was surprised she heard them, then remembered the wolf hearing.

"You could say this is all my fault for brining Serena here, or for not watching her mother close enough," Malcolm said. "Or for not treating Adam fairly."

Serena broke away from Piper and looked at Malcolm. Worry seemed to have aged him a hundred years. She walked towards him and then wrapped her arms around his waist, bringing him into a hug.

"I just wanted you to have a good, normal life."

Serena let out a laugh and pulled away.

"We're all trying the best we can," Serena said. "I think everyone should follow your advice and stop obsessing over who it to blame. Right now all that matters is fixing Adam. Then we can move forward. Even with all the lies and sneaking around I am grateful I have a family again."

Malcolm gave a small smile and nodded his head. Serena might not have known the older man very well, but she got the idea this was as big of an emotional breakthrough as he was ever going to have.

Piper and Thomas headed upstairs leaving the three of them alone.

"Are you sure you don't want to get some sleep?" Lance asked.

Serena shook her head.

"Lance why don't you go to the garage and pick out a car." Malcolm meant that more as an order and less of a request. "I'll find the key to the library and send Serena out with it."

To her surprise Lance didn't object. Once he was out the front door Malcolm looked at Serena with sadness. He reached in his pocket before pressing a key into her hand. She had a feeling he was trying to get her alone.

"I know this will be hard to hear," Malcolm started. "Especially since your feelings are genuine. But there is a good chance the vampire isn't immune to your charms. James believes he isn't going crazy like Adam because he is able to have you and be near you. But if we find a cure it will stop Lance's obsession."

"I know," Serena said. "And I know what I'm doing to him is wrong and selfish, but I can't help it. I do love him, even if his love isn't real."

"I will hate to see you heartbroken when this is all over."

"I'm surprised you didn't demand I leave him again and go off to Europe with Hawkins."

"I realize now that plan never would have worked," Malcolm said. "We need to address this head on. Running away won't fix anything. Besides, I might be a strong wolf, but I don't think anything is going to keep that vampire from being by your side."

The headlights flashed the window. Serena gave Malcolm another hug.

"When this is all over we will get to know each other," Serena said. "I wasn't lying about that."

"I look forward to that." Malcolm patted her back. "If you insist on keeping nocturnal hours spend them wisely. Get to the library and start searching for a cure."

Serena gave him a quick squeeze before letting go and jogging to the front door. The image of Jacob's dead eyes came to mind. Serena would be damned if she let the same fate befall Adam. Even if she couldn't shoulder the blame entirely it was her responsibility to focus on the future and a cure for the men she had impacted.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Serena's eyes clicked open. She wiggled out from under Lance's arm. Serena swore he feel asleep holding her as close as possible, knowing how difficult it was for her to move him when he was sleeping. There was no way she would waste any time in bed. Lance didn't share her luxury of choice.

She dressed quickly before sneaking out of their room, careful to turn off all the lights in the windowless space. That was the downside to sleeping with a vampire, she missed the nighttime air and waking up to the sun on her face, but not enough to bother sleeping in another room.

When Serena made it to the hallway she walked quickly to the stairs, ignoring the banging sound coming from the other side of the basement.

"SERENAAAA." Adam's voice came out muffled, but she knew she heard him correctly.

As the time passed it was getting easier to push the guilt down, but impossible not to realize how quickly Adam was deteriorating. They thought her presence wasn't helping, but proved that theory incorrect a few weeks ago when Serena tried to stay at Lance's apartment for the night. Adam increased his efforts at escaping his room and nearly killed himself in the process. All of their work would have been for nothing if the wolf didn't survive.

Once Serena made it upstairs she was blasted with sunlight. The sun didn't set until almost 8 pm, but was quick to rise about 5 am. Lance was required to sleep all day, but Serena was getting by with about six hours. A glance at the clock in the kitchen told her it was almost noon. She had slept in.

It didn't take her long to shower, change, and grab something to eat. Then she jumped in one of Malcolm's cars and headed to the Juliet library.

Like all small towns Juliet had its secrets, the only difference being Juliet's were much more gruesome than Serena wished to know. She felt a pit form in her stomach as she approached the small storefront. The librarian nodded her head to Serena as she walked past the small collection of fiction and headed towards the back. From there she traveled down the stairs into the almost crypt like room that was impossibly large for a basement.

The books were kept in no particular order and Serena had a feeling if 100 people worked down here for a year they would be unable to read all of them. After two weeks the group realized the internet was useless and these old tombs carried much better information.

Serena sighed as she sat down at the small table with the current stack of books she was trying to sort through. Piper and Thomas sat at their own tables, neither acknowledged her.

"Any luck so far today?" Serena asked.

"If there were don't you think we would have said something?" Thomas replied.

"Thomas," Piper hissed at him. "Remember what we talked about."

"Sorry," Serena said.

"It's not your fault," Thomas said. "I just didn't think I'd be spending most of my summer out of the sun."

"I wish I had paid more attention in high school Spanish," Serena changed the subject.

"I don't think four years in Spanish class would help with these," Piper said. "I grew up learning the old languages and I'm struggling. The only one who's decent is Malcolm."

"Where is he?" Serena asked.

Normally the three of them and sometimes Kay were down here already when Serena arrived.

"A pack issue came up," Piper said. "He'll be in later."

Serena went back to the latest book, one in English, and started flipping through the pages. She spent the last four weeks going over tales of vicious monsters, demons, and more evil creatures than she thought possible. So far not a single one had anything remotely close to her curse.

"Maybe we should revisit the book on Succubae," Thomas said.

"Serena's not evil," Piper replied, the annoyance was heavy on her voice.

"Maybe they only recorded the information on evil ones though," he snapped back.

"I've only came across two mentions of them," Serena said. "If we ignore the fact that they're naturally purple and can change colors to fool the human mind, that they have wings, that they eat human hearts, need to have sex and not just kiss a man, have been extinct for over 1000 years, and can't survive in the cold, all we've found is how to kill them. Not how to reverse their powers."

"I'm getting scared that's the answer," Thomas said.

"Death?" Serena was far past worrying about dying. "If it comes to that then I'm pretty sure any old human way will do me in. I don't think we have to worry too much about beheading or burning my body."

"Enough!" Piper yelled. "We're not killing anybody."

The echo of Piper's voice hung heavy in the air. For as much as Serena wanted an answer Piper wanted one more. It was her brother who was suffering. Serena picked back up the book she was working on and started flipping through the pages. Trying hard not to focus too much on the fact that death was becoming the most likely solution.