Chapter 10- Erika
“Can you hand me the gauze, Edi?” Colleen asked as she doctored my arm. Erika had leaped at me, teeth barred. Stefan had knocked her out of the way, a second too late. She reached past him and clawed the holy hell out of my poor arm. Apparently, she thought that Stefan was in love with her because he turned her. How stupid. So, she hated me because I was “stealing” Stefan away from her. Oh well, he loved me and there was nothing she could do about it.
    The feeling of Colleen tugging a needle through my arm pulled me from my reverie. For the first time, I noticed the five vampires in the room with me. Colleen was sewing my arm. Leo standing behind her with his hand on her shoulder. Edi, Colleen and Carmen’s mother, was handing Colleen everything she needed to fix my arm. Stefan, holding my good hand. Carmen was standing alone in the back of the room. As I was trying to decipher the look on Carmen’s face, Jacob walked into the room, his body shaking with silent laughter.
“What’s wrong Wendi? Not up for a little competition?” he said between chuckles. It wasn’t even two seconds after he made the comment that he flew through a window. He just flew out a window like a rag doll! There was glass everywhere and the noise of it’s shattering had made me jump and Colleen almost poked me with the needle. Stefan was across the room, doubled over with laughter. I had absolutely no clue what had just happened. I noticed Edi looking at Stefan with a chiding look on her face. Then I pieced it together. Stefan didn’t want me to know his gift because he thought it would scare me. Jacob made a rude comment Stefan didn’t like. He flew through a window. Stefan was cracking up. Stefan’s gift! I didn’t know what to call it but he could throw huge vampires out of windows without touching them at all. I don’t care who you are, that’s pretty awesome.
    Stefan realized that I had put it together and he looked scared. I started laughing. Hysterically. Stefan rushed over to me with inhuman speed. “Wendi! What’s wrong? I’m so sorry I shouldn’t have shown you that. I won’t do it again and I will never hurt you.” He pleaded with me for some unknown reason.
    “That was wicked awesome! Stefan I’m not scared, that is really cool!” Six vampires stared at me in disbelief. One by one, their beautiful faces spread into blinding smiles. Then they all started laughing.
    “Really?” Stefan asked between chuckles. I just nodded. Edi finished the stitches and wrapped a bandage around my mangled arm. “Thanks.” I said quietly. I still wasn’t quite comfortable around Stefan’s family.
    “Wendi, we won’t hurt you. Its ok.” Edi said softly as if she had had her feeling hurt. I had forgotten that both Edi and Carmen could read minds.
    “I know that Edi. It is just a little weird. Being in a room with six people who, before two nights ago, I never knew existed.” I struggled to find a way to effectively explain this. I wasn’t too sure if anyone was fooled or not. Colleen came up from behind me and put her hand on my shoulder so gently that I didn’t even jump.
    “Wendi here has been through a lot today and I am ashamed to say that she is going to have to go through more today.” she looked down at me with an apologetic smile on her perfectly plump lips. I raised my eyebrows, questioning. Of course, one of the mind readers had to butt in, not that I minded that much. Colleen had a smug smile on her face as she noticed my irritated reaction with her unusual talent. Carmen cleared her throat and began to explain what was going on inside everybody else’s heads.
    “Wendi, you’re going to have to face Erika again.” she raised her hand to shush me when I opened my mouth to complain. She addressed every question in my head. I had to face her to show her that Stefan loved me and not her. She had to realize that she had not won, had not scared me off. She needed to know that she should move on because there was nothing here for her. I nodded slowly, realizing what I was expected to do . I squared my shoulders and set my jaw. I could do this. I wanted to cry. I couldn’t. I automatically felt stronger, like I had a new reserve of strength from which to draw. I walked out into the long hallway in Stefan’s home.
     I never really got to look at their house, with Erika trying to kill me I had been preoccupied the last time I passed through this house. The walls were a deep maroonish red color. The doors were all white or glass. The floors were a cherry wood. The elegant staircase was the same cherry wood with a cream white carpet running down the center of the stairs. It curved gracefully into a large, high ceiling living room with white carpet and a black sofa. In front of the sofa was a cherry wood coffee table. The walls were also red. The lower floor of the house was open so I could see the kitchen from where I stopped at the bottom of the staircase. It was very modern looking with black appliances and white marble countertops and wooden floors. There was a long mahogany dining table with eight chairs evenly spaced around it. The back wall of the house was covered in beautiful paintings and photographs. The paintings looked like Monet and Picasso. Some of the photographs were definitely Laoen.
    “Very good, Wendi. I see you know your art.” Carmen said almost sardonically. That mind reading thing was going to get very annoying very quickly. As was Carmen herself.
    “Be nice Carmen.” Edi chided as she floated down the staircase. She wore a cashmere sweater and black slacks with cream stilettos. I felt very out of place with my bloody, torn pajamas. Of course, as I thought about this fact, Edi whisked over to me and towed me back to the second floor. As she led me down the long hallway, I noticed that I still held tightly to Colleen’s silky hand. She gripped mine tighter when I loosened my hand. I wondered where Stefan had gone and immediately felt alone. Not for long. Colleen felt my pain and as soon as it had come on, it was gone leaving a warm, safe feeling behind it.
    “Stefan went to find Erika.” Edi told me as she spit Erika’s name. I smiled slightly at the fact that Edi didn’t like Erika either. She also smiled as she heard my thoughts. She led me into a dimly lit room that had similar décor. Black sofa in the corner, cherry floors with cream rugs, maroon walls with Picasso, Monet, and Laoen. A huge bed with millions of pillows and a velvet comforter. She let go of my hand and walked to a white door that opened into a closet. She opened the door and darted inside. Edi reappeared with a handful of clothes faster than the door could swing shut. She held up a dark purple blouse that looked very expensive and a pair of black jeans. She placed them in my hands and darted back out of the room.
    I put the clothes on in a daze. Surprisingly, they fit perfectly. When I was done, Colleen dragged me back into the living room where Stefan waited. He walked straight to me and wrapped his muscular arms around my waist, with Colleen’s hand still in mine. He stepped back and took my other hand gently, as it was the injured one. “Are you ready?” he asked quietly. Of course, I could never be more ready, with Colleen’s amazing gift keeping me from becoming hysterically nervous. I just nodded.
    We walked out onto the huge front porch, with swinging benches on either ends and honeysuckle growing all over the railing that wrapped around the full porch. I turned to the left end of the porch and saw Erika sitting on the bench with Edi, Jacob, Leo, and another person, I assumed vampire, standing in front of her with at least one hand somewhere on her body. They looked like they were restraining her. As she caught sight of me, she let out a wild hiss. The vampire who’s name I didn’t know, turned on her and growled. Edi answered the unspoken question in my head. “This is Hayden, my husband and Colleen’s and Carmen’s father.” she said.
    “What is she doing here?!” Erika screamed.
    “Erika, she belongs here. Unlike you.” Colleen retorted with a snarl. Erika clawed at the hands restraining her. Hayden growled again and they all tightened their grips on her. She squirmed under their hands and squealed at me. Her bronze hair quivered as she hissed and her vampire’s eyes darted nervously around. Her small figure writhed violently. I cowered behind Stefan and he stepped in front of me in a clearly protective posture.
    I could tell when Colleen did her magic because Erika relaxed immediately. “Stefan” she breathed. This annoyed me, very much.
    “Erika” he replied tersely. That soothed my irritation slightly; only slightly. She smiled when he said her name and then scowled when she met my irritated gaze. Stefan tightened his grip on my hand and I knew what he was about to do.
    “Erika, I need you to understand something for me, please. Listen to me carefully.” Stefan spoke each word slowly. “When I changed you into a vampire, it was not because I love you. It was not because I love you, do you understand?”
    “What?! What are you talking about? You aren’t making any sense!” she shrieked. Her face plainly showed denial. She shook her head back and forth, her whole body convulsing. She looked up at me with a look that could only be described as pure hatred. “You!! It’s all your fault! I hate you! I hate you!” she cried. She was pointing at me and hissing when suddenly her arm snapped down into her lap like someone had slapped it. A confused look came onto her face and a smug look onto Stefan’s.
    “Erika. It is not Wendi’s fault. I have always loved her, never you! You were merely a tool. You were convenient. I needed a tester and you were the first person I ran into. I’m so sorry I ruined your life like this but I do not love you and I refuse to tolerate your temper.” It was cruel, but it was what was needed. I watched her face fall and crumple into a mask of suffering and yet I felt no pity for her. Her eyes locked onto my arm.
    “I did that for nothing.” she whispered, still staring at the arm that suddenly felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. Stefan nodded. She dropped her head into her hands, shooting me a look of apologetic agony. I still felt no pity but I did feel remorse for hating her before. She stayed that way for a moment, and then she was fighting the restraining hands again. Everyone began to hiss and growl and snarl while they pushed her farther into the bench. Everybody, except Carmen and Edi.
    “Let her go” they said in unison. Without question, the vampires released Erika. She flew off the porch and darted off into the woods that were in everybody’s backyard in this town.
    “She won’t be back for a long time, if ever.” Carmen said solemnly. Everybody nodded and began to file back into the grand house.


Sorry it took so long. I need an actual title for this story. Any suggestions???? Love you all. Heidi