Blood Lust

Martin and Dee promised to protect me and the baby. I didn't understand their determination. What was so important about me and the baby?

When Lee came back, he wasn't surprised that the two had shown up.

It felt nice to have almost everyone back together. It gave me hope. There was a small chance that R had survived the ship wreck and it was just taking him a little longer than the others. I had hope that he would return to me.

Months had gone by. There was still no sign of R. I accepted the idea that I would have to have this baby without him. I didn't know what was more terrifying. Giving birth alone or what would come after I gave birth.

"Christi, this doesn't look right." Martin had been helping with the nursery. I had asked him to set up the crib and he was doing it upside down.

The protruding mass in front of me had gotten more and more in the way lately. I wobbled over to him and flipped the directions around, "Like this." I laughed.

We all agreed it would be good to have someone at home with me at all times. So everyone took turns working night shift at the pier. That kept us afloat. I offered to keep the house up during the day and do light shopping in the town.

The townspeople had grew on me. Mister Orion had become my first friend as I asked about working in the General Store once the baby had been born.

Winter had come, it was harsh as we were located right by the water. Thankfully we had a light fall to work on the house. Three strong vampires made all the difference.

"Uh, excuse me." An unfamiliar face had opened the door one night.

I cranked my neck to look over at the face. "You can't just walk into a person's home!" I shouted. Lee came down the stairs in lightening speed.

Lee and the unfamiliar face linked arms immediately. There was an exchange of words I didn't understand. Lots of hugging gave away that Lee had known the boy.

"Uh, Lee? You gonna introduce me to your friend?" I struggled to pull myself off the couch.

"Friend!?" Lee's face was bigger than I've ever seen. "Christi, this is my son. Yun!" He released the boy and showed him off proudly.

I had learned of Lee's past life. He was once a great Samurai who married for love. Together they had four children with Yun being the oldest. When Lee's youngest child had died mysteriously, his wife began to consult every doctor known to man. She even consulted with the not so good ones. When their second had died of the same cause, his wife became mad with finding the cure to keeping her children from dying. Their third child had died as a result of her poisoning the child. Her reasoning was that it would keep the child alive. Lee knew he had to do everything possible to keep Yun alive. Lee's wife had come back from a trip with what she thought was a magical potion. She slipped it into their tea and served it. Lee and Yun drank from the tea without knowing what his wife had done. The tea had made them violently sick. Lee's wife begged for Lee to forgive her. Lee's wife had actually given them vampire blood.

"Well it's nice to meet you." I tried to hug Yun without my stomach getting in the way. He hugged me back like family seeing each other for the holidays.

"Let's get you settled. You can stay in my room for the meantime." Lee brought him inside the house.

I had never thought to ask about how they had all become vampires. Let alone to ask if they had any family that might want to know where they were.

"How did you know where we were?" The question popped right of my mouth as soon as it popped in my head.

"Oh don't worry. I sent a letter to him." Lee answered.

The night I gave birth was a quiet one. Lee had started letting Yun stay at home with me so all three of them could work at the pier. All day I had felt cramping and I joked that this would be the day. As a household, everyone wrote down different names that they liked. Unfortunately, none of them made the cut. It was easy to say no when most of the names were words I couldn't pronounce.

As the night progressed and my stomach started to feel tighter and tighter, I knew it was going to happen. Yun had helped me prepare what we needed. I couldn't go to the hospital and risk the wrong people finding out. The living room was going to have to do.

Labor was progressing way too fast. I was terrified to do it with just Yun. He just didn't want to see it at all. When the urge to push had hit me I yelled out to Yun that it was time.

"I'm not ready!" He called out as he hid behind the couch. "I'm calling my dad."

Lee, Martin and Dee left to work to come and support me, "You really didn't have to." But I was grateful that they did.

"We told you. We are all here for you." Dee pushed up his sleeves and began laying blankets down on the floor.