“Do you see her?”  I ask, glancing over at Micah to gauge his reaction. His eyes are squinted, peering through his hand that’s attempting to block the mid-day sun.


    “It’s hard to see from all the way over here, honestly.” He huffs, finally giving up on trying to see the girl I found weeks ago. The breeze picks up only for a moment as if to prove my point, wafting her distinct scent in our direction. Micah’s head perks up, eyebrows lifted with interest now that he’s finally gotten a whiff of her.


    “Whoa-” He breathes.


    I feel the corner of my mouth turn up with satisfaction. Exactly. I had to feed on seven damn squirrels before I could even get close enough to the house to feel like she was safe from me.


    “And you’re wanting to bring that home? She’ll be drained dead in a week. Have you lost your mind?” Micah scoffs, just low enough to not grab her attention.


    “She looks and smells just like her.” I reiterate, knowing I’m dodging his concerns.


    “She’s not her little brother.” He reminds me. “And bringing her home is a death sentence for her.”


    I sigh, rising to my feet. I don’t want to be reminded of this. The memory of Rue is almost too painful to think about but this girl, she brings back some of the more fond memories that I have of her. I can control myself now, I’m older. More experienced. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    The unknown girl rocks lightly on the porch in the distance, sipping her coffee and sketching inside of a little book that lays open between her crossed legs. Her feet are perched against the railing of the porch, giving her a nice table to be able to draw against her lap.


    “I can control it. We all can.” I know we can.


    Micah chuckles to himself, wanting to say something but keeping it to himself. The breeze picks up again and I watch his muscles tighten underneath his black T-shirt. They twitch just enough to catch my attention, alerting me that he’s holding back the urge to rush down there and kill her. But he doesn''t.


    “That blood type…” He mumbles to himself, almost in a daze. “How the hell do you keep finding it?”


    It’s so rare it''s hard to believe I’ve come across it twice. When I approached her that night, I almost lost control. Ready to barge in and kill her husband before sinking my teeth into her and draining every last drop from her body. My stomach physically aches to be filled with her, but I behaved. Knowing she will be mine soon enough. Whether she likes it or not.


    “So what, you bring her home. Lock her up and drain her every few weeks to feed us through the winter?”


    “At first,” I confirm, never taking my eyes off of the prize. “We can convince dad to keep her by offering to sell some of it and then Eventually she can live alongside us.”


    “You really think she will stick around willingly? Like a human pet? You really are delusional.” Micah teases, rising to his feet but also keeping his eyes on the mouthwatering piece seated on the porch.


    “She won''t have a choice.”