Chapter 3 Wasted Time

Logan tried to rest, he really did, but he felt this over-whelming need to constantly check on his brother. Mick found him staring into the dark freezer and saw the worry on the young vampires face. Logan looked up at Mick when he took his place beside him and lifted questioning eyes to his sire.

“It gets easier, Logan. The worry, the need to actually see him rise before you're comfortable with it all.”

Logan nodded because Mick had answered his question without a single word being said by him. “I’ve always, still, after all these years,” he began, haltingly. “I’ve always felt this kinship with you, Mick, and I still do, but now I can’t get my brother out of my head. Does that make any sense?”

“Perfect sense, Logan. You’re my fledgling, true enough, but now you have your own. Since he’s already connected to you through blood I can’t even imagine how strong that bond between you will be. Pretty amazing, I suspect.”

Logan glanced down at his watch and sighed. “It’s been 4 hours now, Mick. Shouldn’t he be waking up soon?”

“I can’t answer that one, Logan. You woke up in only a couple of hours but it took Beth all night, maybe 12 hours or so? I think it depends on the individual. But I wouldn’t worry. Try to rest, Logan. Seriously. You’ll know when he wakes, I promise.”

“How?”

“I can’t explain it, you're just going to have to trust me on this one.”

Logan nodded and murmured, “Okay, I’ll try, Mick.”

Mick couldn’t help but grin as Logan walked out of the room, so tired he almost stumbled as he walked. Kind of like being a new dad, Mick guessed. He headed back out to the living room where Josef sat, legs crossed and sipping a tumbler of scotch, looking every inch the gentleman, despite the circumstances. He had to laugh, you could always count on Josef to be a sharp dressed man!



OOOOOOOOOOOO



Around ten o’clock Lani decided to leave and Beth walked her to the door to say good bye. “So you're going to Buzzwire tomorrow, right?”

“Yes, for a little bit anyway. Max and I are announcing that Rodney will be staying on as the new Content Editor and I’m really glad to hand that hat over to him. Truthfully, he’s much better at it than I am anyway. Now I can focus on the operations part of my job, which is supposed to be the whole job. He’ll keep the cubs on track with their stories quite well!”

“Good for you, or him, or everyone I guess. Call me and let me know how she’s doing?”

“I will. Talk to you tomorrow, Lani.” She watched as Lani punched the button for the elevator and it opened almost immediately. With a final wave she closed the door and locked it and decided to call Mick.

“Hey, how’s he doing?”

“Still out of it. Logan is close to being a basket case though, got my hands full with him.”

Beth laughed softly and said, “Is that how you were with me?”

“Not as much as I was with Logan. First time daddy you know,” he said with a chuckle. “How’s your mom?”

“Asleep, I think. She went up to bed an hour ago. At least I hope she’s asleep because Lani and I could see she was really tired.”

“You’d better get some sleep yourself, baby. Gotta get back into that work grind in the morning.”

“I know and I would have been so excited for it before. Now? Not so much!”

Mick was quiet for a moment and he finally said, “Hey, Logan’s up again and I think Clark might be stirring. Call you in a little while.”

“Okay, Mick.” This was good news and hopefully he’d call her mom soon because she’d for sure rest better if he did. She briefly crossed her fingers and then laughed at herself. She left a small lamp on downstairs, turned the fireplace off and headed up the stairs to wait for Mick to call her back. If she slept a little bit in between that would be okay. Yes, it would be okay she decided as she drifted off to sleep in their lonely freezer.



OOOOOOOOOOOO



The fog started to lift and he was aware of the chill that surrounded him. Rather than making him cold it felt good, really good. His eyes popped open and instead of seeing nothing in the dark room he could see out the glass of the freezer he was in.

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly and watched as tendrils of mist swirled in the frosty air. He’d turned and he was fine.

Dorothy! His mind screamed for his wife and then inexplicably Logan came into his mind and he felt a bit of a panic, wondering where his brother was. He felt as if he had to see him, to make sure he was okay.

What the hell?

Since when was he this worried about Logan? Not since they were teenagers he realized. He pushed on the lid of the freezer and heard a whoosh as it swept upwards. Just as he sat up Logan came rushing into the room, fear and worry showing on his face.

“Hey, uh, Clark, you’re up. You're okay! You're okay, brother!” Logan grabbed his brother and hugged him tightly, relief evident in his gestures.

“Did you expect otherwise?” Clark asked dryly. “That was the point of turning me, wasn’t it, so that I’d be okay?”

“Well, yes but still, it’s easy to worry.”

Clark looked up as Mick, closely followed by Josef entered the room and said, “Hey, it’s a party!” He suddenly realized he was hungry. Thirsty? Whatever. “I think I need to eat, or drink or whatever.”

“Yeah, we figured that. Why don’t you slip on your robe and you can have some fresh blood,” Logan said, pointing to a robe laying across a chair.

Clark spotted it and his eyebrows rose a fraction as he spotted the sunglasses that were laying with it. “Sunglasses? Really?”

“Trust me, you’re going to want them. There’s no light on in here, but there is out there,” Mick said, casting a glance over his shoulder, indicating the other room.

Clark slipped the robe on and grimaced at the feel of what was normally soft fabric. It felt like the roughest burlap now and he realized this was going to take some getting used to. He picked up the sunglasses as well and as soon as he stepped out into the hall he slipped them on because he understood what Mick had said, the pain from the lights was terrible.

At a counter in a small kitchen Mick poured a tall glass of blood and the scent of it made Clarks knees go week. He walked to it, fascinated by the beauty of the light reflecting off the deep, ruby color. As if in a trance he picked it up and drank it straight down and then licked the corners of his mouth, truly tasting it for the first time. He realized he had fangs when they gouged his lower lip.

“Son of a bitch!” he exclaimed. “How do I get them to go away?”

Mick poured another glass and said, “Drink. That will help.”

They watched as Clark downed the second glass and then felt for the fangs, which had receded back into his gums. “Damn, that’s amazing!”

“What, the fangs?” Logan asked.

“Yeah, the fangs, how good blood tastes. Nothing like when I was human. The fangs make it a bit inconvenient to drink with, though.”

Mick snickered for a moment and as they all looked at him he grinned. “Logan thought that they were straws! He wanted to know if he needed to drink with them!”

“Hey, you didn’t need to tell him that!” Logan choked out, embarrassment sweeping over him even if he couldn’t blush any more.

“Doesn’t matter, Logan. Now, I need to call my wife.”

“Yes, I’m sure she’s waiting. She packed your cell phone and charger. They’re in your room, in the bag by the chair.

“She packed my bag? How was she?”

“Okay, mostly. It was hard on her, but she’ll be much better when you call,” Mick urged.

“Heading that way now. By the way, where am I?”

“In the guest house behind my place,” Josef said. “Mi casa es su casa, or something like that.”

If Clark was shocked he didn’t show it but he said, “Thank you Josef. I appreciate it.”

“No problemo!”

“Hey, Clark? Wait a second. If you have a volume on your phone you're going to want to turn it all the way down. Seriously,” Logan said.

Wasted Time

Clark nodded and turned to go to his room where he found the phone in the bag. He closed the door before he gratefully took his robe off and sat down in the chair. He pushed the button that would connect him with his wife and didn’t have to wait long for her to answer the call.

“Clark? Oh, honey, are you okay?”

“Yes, Dorie, I’m better than okay.”

Dorothy drew in a sharp breath. “You haven’t called me that since…well, forever it seems. You’ve done it twice tonight.”

Clark wondered when the first time was because he couldn’t remember doing it. But it didn’t matter he decided. Tonight, he was feeling alive, as he had never been before, and he guessed, all in all that was true. He felt young, giddy even, and god, he wanted her!

He chuckled, a low and sexy sound that was somewhere between a growl and a purr. “I’m feeling young, and wonderful, honey. It’s amazing actually. Nothing hurts, or aches, I feel like I’m 18 again. And I want you, girl,” he said so softly she almost didn’t catch the words.

A shiver streaked through her and was then followed by heat. It seeped into her body, bringing it suddenly alive and a pang in the pit of her stomach made her mouth go dry with desire for him.

All those years when she had kept him at arm’s length, on the periphery of her life. What might it have been like if she’d not done that? Wasted time, so much wasted time. How she had wanted him, ached for him and missed him; somehow the words never managed to come to her though, not until her mom had died. Only then had she opened to him, truly let him in. She felt a moment of shame for it all and choked back a cry, but he heard it anyway.

Oh, my God, you can't believe it's happening again
Your baby's gone, and you're all alone
and it looks like the end.

You never thought you'd be alone this far down the line
And I know what's been on your mind
You're afraid it's all been wasted time

The autumn leaves have got you thinking about the first time that you fell
You didn't love the boy too much, no, no, you just loved the boy too well,

“Dorie, don’t cry baby. It’s all okay. Those years, I never stopped loving you.”

How did he know what she was thinking about? How did he always know? “I know that, Clark. I love you. Always.”

“And forever, Dorothy?

“Forever. I want to be with you forever.”

“That’s my girl. I’m gonna be back home soon, honey. Promise.”

“Yes. We need you. The babies and…and me.”

“Don’t cry, Dorie. Dammit, don’t cry.”

“O- okay.”

“You have my heart, girl. Don’t forget me.”

“Never,” she told him. “Goodbye.”

He heard the phone click off and knew she was gone. He needed out of here. He needed out of here NOW. The anger and frustration over took him then and he threw the phone across the room and watched as it shattered against the wall. He sprang to his feet and picked up the pieces, and suddenly felt as if his lifeline had been torn away from him.

“Fuck! Stupid fuck. Look what you’ve done.” He looked around the room in despair. Where the hell was Logan? Where was his brother?

It suddenly occurred to him that Logan had fed him his blood; that’s why he needed to see him. His baby brother was his sire. He knew it in his gut. He looked up then as Logan came into the room and squatted down next to him and laid his hand on Clark’s shoulder.

“It gets better, Clark. Really.” He picked up a few pieces of the phone and said, “I’ll have Mick get you a new one tomorrow. Why don’t you get some more rest?”

Clark nodded and silently did as he was told. Logan watched as Clark pulled the lid down and settled into the freezer. In a moment he was out and Logan pulled the door shut behind him.

Josef was getting ready to leave when he walked back into the living room. “I’m heading home to crawl into my bed with the love of my life who is carrying my child and who refuses to marry me.” Both Mick and Logan could see that, though he tried to make light of it, he was hurting.

“Give her some time, Josef. She’s a strong, determined woman and she feels like she has to prove that.”

“Just how the hell do you know that, Mick?” he said as he focused on Mick with an angry glare.

Mick grinned sheepishly and said, “Well, I watched her all those years, too, Josef. She was always with Beth, you know. I do sort of know her.”

“Yes, well…” Josef said, leaving without another word.

Mick watched as the door closed and took a seat on the couch again. “What’s in your hand?”

“Clark’s cell. I think he’s just feeling a bit over-whelmed right now.”

“Understandable. What about you?”

Logan sat down heavily in a high-backed chair across from the couch. “Tired, inept. I don’t know that I’m going to be good at this.”

“Sure you will. Logan, there’s no guidebook on how to be a sire. You just have to be there for him and try to teach him what he needs to know.”

“He’s angry and frustrated and I don’t think it’s because he was turned, Mick.”

Mick nodded, sure that Logan was right. “Logan, I’m sure that anger and frustration is all about not being with his wife. He’s worried about her and worried that he won’t be there when those babies are born. But that’s good in a way because he’ll work really hard to learn quickly. That goal will be the best impetus for him to follow your instructions.”

“But what if I don’t know what to teach him?”

Mick laughed. “Logan, you’ve been a vampire for 26 years now. I think you’ve learned a few things. Yes, you can do this.”

Logan chewed on his lower lip for a moment and nodded. “Yeah, you're right. I do know some things. Geez, I wish I had a popsicle!”

“Tomorrow, I’ll bring you some, promise. I’ll also take Dorothy to get a new phone for Clark, how does that sound?”

“Good. I need my laptop, too, and a few other things. If I call Audie, can you bring those too?”

“Sure, just let her know. Now, get some rest. I’m heading home to my wife!”

“Goodnight, Mick. And, thanks.”

“You got it, Logan. It’ll be okay.” He waved and headed down the path that would take him around the house to the parking area. Logan was going to be fine, Mick just knew it. He just hoped that he didn’t turn Clark into another computer geek!

He chuckled as he stepped into the garage. Josef had told him to take one of the cars home and he debated on which one. Josef would probably have his head if he took the Ferrari, and it was tempting. Instead he headed to the Porsche, it’d do just fine!



OOOOOOOOOOOO



Martin laid back in his bed at the Easy Rest Motel, a cheap place that rented by the day, or hour, mostly to prostitutes. Sometimes he’d hear them coming and going all night long which normally pissed him off, but tonight nothing was going to spoil his mood.

That stupid bastard was finally dead, after all these years. Clark Griffin was dead! He wanted to crow about it from the rooftops but instead he was forced to keep his mouth shut.

Still, it would be worth it. In a few days he’d go to see the stricken widow and offer his condolences, and help, if needed.

Yep, that’s what he’d do and she’d be grateful…if she knew what was good for her and that brat she was carrying.



To be continued…