Chapter Text
Downstairs in the sitting room, Laszlo held Nadja close as they comforted each other. As he ran his fingers through her long beautiful hair, Laszlo broke the still silence with a gentle sigh. “ As much as it pains me to say it, we need to speak to young Jenna.”
Squeezing his knee, Nadja couldn’t help the whine that left her lips at the thought. Lifting her head from Laszlo’s shoulder, Nadja breathed,” I know, love.” Reluctantly they both stood from the couch and headed for Jenna’s room.
Jenna had the next smallest room in the house, just a few doors down. The walk there was brief in reality, but the heaviness of the situation made it feel like eons. Once at the door, Laszlo gave a quick knock, as a sign of respect, before opening it. The door revealed a plum purple room with age spots sinking into the top corners of the room. A new wooden coffin sat flat on its back against the wall farthest from them.
Each taking a cautious step into the room, Nadja spoke first. “ Jenna, my sweet honey bun, we need to talk.”
The coffin lid creaked as it opened to reveal a sleepy college student, in bright pink pajamas. As she stepped out, Jenna rubbed her eyes, yawning she asked,” What’s up?” When met with silence, she looked between the two vampires. Suddenly feeling uneasy, Jenna noticed the sun was still up, and by the looks of it, it was just beginning to rise. “ What’s wrong?”
Clearing his throat, Laszlo wasn’t exactly sure how he wanted to handle this situation. The one thing he did know was this conversation shouldn’t take place here. Gesturing towards the door, Laszlo politely suggested,” Why don’t we talk elsewhere. Perhaps the sitting room.”
The walk to the next room was in eerie silence; as she walked, the smell of blood was fresh in the air. Typically, at least her new regular, Jenna wouldn’t have thought twice about the scent, but for some reason, it made her stomach twist into knots. Once seated, Jenna began to fidget, picking at her already short fingernails as she hesitantly asked, for the third time,” What’s going on? Did something terrible happen?”
Straining to look up, Nadja reached for Laszlo’s hand for reassurance as she softly spoke,” My sweet honey bun. We have terrible news; the vampiric council sentenced us, and Nandor to execution. Luckily-”
“I’m sorry, what,” Jenna shouted as she leaped from the couch,” Why?!”
Raising his free hand, Laszlo tried to keep his voice calm,” When the Baron died, the council called a meeting to decide our fate.” Before Jenna could speak, Laszlo continued,” We luckily escaped with the help of Gizmo and Colin Robinson. However, we’re far from out of the woods. The council will no doubt send assassins.”
Taken aback, Jenna dropped herself back onto the couch with a heavy thud. As she tried to process all this, the only thing she could focus on was how close she came to losing her new family. A sudden wave of anger rush over her; tears started to prick the corner of her eyes. “I’m a vampire, why wasn’t I called?”
Instantly by her side, Nadja tried to soothe her sweet bun, as she gently squeezed Jennas’ shoulder Nadja hummed,” You’re our little secret, darling, they don’t know about you.”
Sniffing a few tears slid down Jennas’ cheeks. This time Laszlo jumped out of his seat, taking a knee in front of her,” We did this to keep you safe.” Taking a handkerchief out of his pocket, Laszlo tried to wipe Jennas’ tears,” You’re our special girl, and if anything were to happen to you, it would break both our undead hearts.”
“He’s right, which brings us to why we woke you in the first place,” taking a deep breath Nadja continued,” As much as it pains us to ask, this household is no longer safe. We plan on defending our home, but to do so, we need all the help we can get.”
Nodding, Jenna didn’t hesitate,” Absolutely, how can I help?”
Smiling at her willingness, Nadja answered,” You and Guillermo are going to get a crash course in vampire defense.” Nadja’s smile faded as she thought about the battle to come.
Confused, Jenna looked between the two before inquiring,” Guillermo? Isn’t he human?”
Chuckling, under his breath, Laszlo commented,” Not for long.”