The Allies of Old, Book Two Renewal: Chapter Seven "I Want In"

Book Cover created in acrylic by the extremely talented @therealpaul

If you have not read the first book of the series, "Reborn", it is advisable you do so before reading "Renewal" or you will be lost. This link will provide you with a series summary as well as all sixty-eight chapters of Reborn

Chapter Seven

Anna sat on the couch in her living room listening to Jenna rehash her homecoming with her family, shaking her head in sympathetic dismay.

“…so I told them Jess met a guy in France and decided to stay. I don’t know why I chose that particular lie. Most people would find that believable, but my parents have no idea that Jess is so boy crazy. She’s their “esperanza” blessed hope. My dad totally blew his stack. But is he angry at her? No, it’s my fault. My fault for hanging out with a demon possessed woman and getting my sister involved. Of course I vehemently defended Harri, but all that accomplished was to escalate the argument into a yelling match in which he insinuated I had also become possessed. Ha! Like it’s a freakin’ virus that you can catch! I tried to tell him demon possession was a conscious choice, but he was having none of that.” Jenna snorted in frustration.

“To make a long story short my mom sat and cried saying “the devil has taken my girls away from me,” and my father told me not to come back without my sister, and that we had better both be ready to get on our knees before the Lord, in his church I might add, before we can be forgiven. By him or God!” She blew a lock of hair out of her face.

“As I was leaving I turned and told him he didn’t know what love was, that he’d totally twisted the Gospel and Jesus would be ashamed of him. I didn’t wait to see his reaction. I kind of wish I did. I should have stood my ground a little better, but the truth is he didn’t hear anything I said beyond defending Harri and telling him about Jess.”

Anna shook her head sadly. “I’m sorry Jenna that really sucks. I don’t understand them.”

“Yeah, I’ve lived with them my whole life and I don’t either. Not a bit. I mean call yourself a Christian and then turn your back on your children? Especially if you think they’re in trouble that would seem like the time to prove yourself as a follower of Christ, wouldn’t it?”

Anna sighed. “Unfortunately it seems people make up their own rules for Christianity. I’ve read the New Testament and I swear I don’t get anything out of it I’ve heard preached over a pulpit. Or at least not much. Love your neighbors, leave judgment to God, live life with joy and pray for peace, love some more… that’s what I’ve always thought Jesus was saying, but it seems like most so-called Christians do just the opposite. Makes no sense.”

“Exactly! Oh yeah I forgot, I also shouted “My God is obviously not the same as yours” at one point which was pretty much when my mom started in on the devil has my girls thing. Yeah, that’s what I was saying, that the devil is my God.” she snorted in disgust. “That’s just insane. They call Harri crazy, riiigght.”

Anna chuckled. “So after all that do you feel any better?”

Jenna stared at her for a moment than sat back. “You know what? I do. There was no resolution but at least I tried. And at least I don’t have to worry that they’re worrying about us anymore. I realized I was feeling really guilty about everything, and now? No more guilt. Yup, I do feel lighter, especially after telling you about it. I think at some point I’m going to write them a nice long letter, when I’m no longer completely irritated with them, and who knows, maybe they’ll come around. But if they don’t? Not my problem.”

“Well that’s good, I’m glad you did it then…” Anna looked towards the front windows suddenly alert.

“What is it?” Jenna said following her gaze.

She sat back and smiled faintly. “Austin’s coming.”

“You can feel him?” she asked in surprise.

Anna laughed. “No, I heard his car go over the wooden bridge.”

“How do you know it’s his?”

“Trust me, I know the sound of that SUV.”

About a minute later a vehicle pulled slowly up the loose stone driveway and Anna smiled a little more.

“It would be so awesome to have that kind of hearing,” Jenna said shaking her head.

Anna went out to the back porch and watched him walk across the patio looking uncomfortable. She opened the door and smiled at him, her eyes already beginning to burn with fresh tears.

“I’m really glad you came,” she said quietly and he nodded smiling softly. She took his hand and gently tugged him inside.

Jenna was standing in the kitchen and a look passed between her and Austin. He nodded once, almost in deference.

He looked down at Anna his pale blue eyes swimming with emotion and put his other hand on top of their linked ones. “I’m sorry about my reaction at the bar. I didn’t mean to hurt you I just wasn’t prepared to see you.”

“No, don’t apologize, I completely understand. Especially in light of my behavior with Leo of all people.” She made a face.

“Yeah,” he frowned, “what was up with that?”

She looked down. “I don’t know.”

She found that although she wanted to tell him everything that had happened to her since she’d seen him, she didn’t want to discuss Jared. She didn’t know how he would take it for one thing and for another…it would just be strange.

“Listen, I‘d really like for us to try and be friends,” he put a hand on her cheek forcing her to look back up at him. “I might still have other feelings but after you left the bar I realized how badly I’ve missed talking to you.”

“I’ve missed you too,” as was usual with him her eyes misted.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and breathed in his scent, a mixture of soap and Sport deodorant. The familiarity of it made her want to cry even more, especially when his arms went around her and hugged her tightly. She drew back reluctantly and looked up into his eyes which were a little brighter than usual.
“I love you, you know,” she said earnestly.

“Yeah. I know.” His eyes clouded for a moment and he led her through the entrance of the living room and over to the couch.

The two girls sat down on either side of him and once they were settled he leaned back so he could look at them both. “I want you guys to fill me in. I wanna know everything.”

Anna and Jenna exchanged a look. “That could take a while.”

“Yeah, well I’ve got time.”

They decided to alternate between the two of them for the story-telling and Anna began it with the adventures she’d had with the McClaron brothers. She described the strange happenings in the world of demons, the awful experience she suffered after taking one out, and of course the rescue of Holly which was where Jenna jumped in to explain about Harriet and the male line of Faerians.

When it came time to tell him how she had ended up with the male vampires in London, Anna skipped the part about going into heat. Instead she just told him that Jack McClaron knew some hunters overseas who knew some vamps who came to Colorado to meet her and convince her that the safest place for her was with them.

“Yeah,” Jenna jumped in, “and then Jess, Harriet and I went to France to see Dominique…” she explained who that was and told him how they had gone from there to London and stayed with Anna.

At which point Anna gave Jenna a hard look hoping she would understand its meaning. Jenna paused and nodded briefly then continued.

“We spent a week with her and then the day we returned to France Jess and I were abducted by a vampire and taken to an evil bitch vampiress,” Jenna stopped at this point to gauge his reaction.

Austin’s eyes had widened and he realized she was waiting for a response. “Like the ones who turned Anna?”

“Yeah, pretty much.” She opened her mouth to say more and found she couldn’t. Her throat constricted with emotion. She hadn’t allowed herself to give in to emotional distress because of the dream she’d had…but the not knowing where her sister was or who she was with was taking its toll.

Anna continued for her in a small voice. “Jess is….she…we don’t know exactly where she is, only that she’s alive.”

Austin’s brows shot up. “They still have her?” his voice went up an octave.

“We don’t know who has her, not the ones that took her in the first place since they’re dead, but Oh God I’m not saying this right.” Anna gathered her thoughts and tried again, this time giving him all the details from when the girls were taken up to the point where the males had come home with the news that Paulo was dead. She explained that there was a good chance Tyros had her and then told him about Jenna’s dream.

Austin sat back, his eyes a bit glazed. “Holy shit. Holy shit you guys, I’m sorry. I’m a selfish prick.”

“What? Why?”

He shook his head. “I’ve actually envied the two of you for the past several months. My life just seemed so fucking boring once you were gone. I hated the fact that I knew all about these kinds of things but couldn’t see them or talk to anyone about them. I’d find myself imagining what it would be like to worry about demon wars instead of drawing buildings. My future just seemed so damn predictable and ordinary. Fuck, it still does. But I actually resented you and meanwhile you’re both suffering.”

Jenna smiled weakly at him. “I understand that completely. When Anna first left with the McClaron’s I felt the exact same way. And the truth is, as crazy as everything is…I’m not sorry about any of it, besides Jess of course. But even her, I know she’s going to be okay.”

Austin looked down at his hands. “She’s a vampire now, that’s insane. Hard to picture.”

“For us too!” Anna agreed.

He looked at Anna wistfully. “You know sometimes I find myself wishing it wasn’t forbidden for vampires to turn humans.”

“Austin…

“I know, believe me I know. But I want in. At least as a Faerian, kicking demon ass…that’s so much more appealing than creating….what?” He stopped at her expression.

Anna knew she looked startled and she glanced at Jenna to see if she was on the same page.

Jenna narrowed her eyes and then her mouth dropped open. “Oh my God, do you think it’s him?”

“I don’t know! But it’s definitely worth a try!”

“What the hell are you two talking about?”

Anna grinned foolishly and hopped up. “Be back in a sec.”

She raced up to her room and pulled the medallion out of her bag. Austin, she thought, as she stared at the stones, let it be him. She closed her hand around the cross and bounded back down the stairs. He was standing in the middle of the room and she almost ran into him.

He grabbed her arms, “What’s going on?”

“Okay, I’m not positive about this and I don’t want you to get your hopes up.”

His eyebrows flew up, “Don’t leave me in suspense!”

She opened up her hand and held the heavy chain out to him.

His brows furrowed. “A necklace?”

“Do you remember what I told you about the Mistress Goddess lady?”

His eyes widened in realization and he stared down at the cross with wonder on his face. “This is one of them?”

She explained how Harriet had given it to her and everything she’d said about it.

“And you think it’s meant for me?”

He looked so hopeful she found herself having second thoughts about her approach. What if she was wrong? He would be crushed. “I…I don’t know. I hope so, I mean you want that life so much and…

“You guys, there’s an obvious way to find out,” Jenna butted in.

They both turned to her.

“Helllloo, we just have to find some evil shadows, if he sees them, then we’ll know.”

“Right, of course! But, where do we look? I didn’t see any in the Tavern, did you?”

“Actually the Tavern’s gotta be closed anyway, it’s 2:30 in the morning.”

“Rochester.” Austin said. “They have bars that close down at four and if we hurry we can get there in 45 minutes.”

“Worth a try.”

“I’m game.”

Anna handed Austin the necklace and he draped it around his neck letting it fall inside his shirt. “Would I feel something?”

“I don’t know.”

“Doesn’t matter, let’s go.”

Fifty minutes later they stood outside a club called The Black Stallion with a mixture of anxiety and excitement.

“It will truly suck if there isn’t any in there,” Jenna commented.

“Yeah, but we can always try the all night diners, or just walk around downtown, we’re bound to run into one sometime,” Anna stated.

Austin was silent. He looked up towards the heavens, his expression imploring.

“Are you praying?” Jenna asked him.

“Yeah, I believe I am.”

“Well, ready?”

He took a deep breath fingering the necklace beneath his shirt and nodded.

Generously created for me by @son-of-satire