chapter nineteen

There was something about the way that the night fell, that night. How the moon had glistened in the sky while the clouds had tried to block it out. Yet, there was still some light that had managed to get through. One of the rarest glimpses of light that could be seen at night in Forks, Washington. But something about it had felt taunting. Almost like some cruel nudge at what was to come, it was a blood moon.

Rosalie Hale had proven herself to be not as bad as Este had originally thought. Their initial greeting still hung over her head making Este be a little harsher towards her. The vampire had come in after her and spent time trying to talk to the girl who remained silent, and cold. Yet, as the hours passed the blonde never seemed bothered by it. In fact, she seemed quite used to the actions. Making Este feel a tiny tinge of remorse for the blonde. Not understanding why she had stayed behind to talk, after all, it seemed that there were other members of the Clan more interested in doing just that.

Este remained sitting on her bed, her dark hair flipped to one side of her shoulder as she remained in the same sweatpants and t-shirt from the day. Her eyes glanced over the words of the books that she had borrowed from the library on mythology. Trying to find any little clue that could lead them to figuring out for sure what the monster was. And everything seemed to point straight back to the Vrykolakas.

Rosalie Hale remained sitting on the stool that was in the corner of the girl's room. Taking in the lack of decoration that her room held, almost as if it was clear she hadn't been in it for too long. Her room looked so bare for someone who had been staying there for as long as they supposedly had.

"Did you not want to decorate?" Rosalie asked, her arms crossed across her chest as her amber eyes scanned around, "Your room is pretty bare compared to you," She commented while her eyes fell back over onto the Devereaux girl, "There was a reason I acted the way I have towards you for the time that I did," that seemed to grab Este's attention, "Alice saw you coming, and I didn't want a human getting caught up in something that could get us all killed."

"Good thing I'm not fully human then, isn't it,"Her voice was monotone and she showed nothing through her expression as her eyes barely moved from the book in her hands, "I haven't been here enough to decorate, there has been far too much going on. I've been dealing with the Underworld and some stuff for the gods that has caused a bit of a stir," She commented as her eyes went back down to her book.

"You know you can choose, when all of this is done, what you do," Rosalie commented which caused Este to pause, "Being around us puts not only you but everyone in my family in danger if things go south. It'd be safer if you stayed away, but the decision is yours," Rosalie clearly had a set opinion and Este could be in the center of it.

"It's hard to stay away from the Supernatural when the supernatural won't stay away from you," Este commented as she looked over at Rosalie, "And by the way your family was talking, whether I distance myself or not they'll always be there in case something happens. I don't understand why, but I'm tied to two of you. That changes things, I'm assuming."

Rosalie pursed her lips together as she looked at Este, "Don't take what life you have for granted. Even after you chose, but it seems you have made your choice. Don't fetish the life we have, don't take any moment of your mortal life for granted," Rosalie gave her a look, "Because if you do then I think I'll knock you out before they can stop me."

Este let out a small laugh as she closed her book, "I don't think I can fetish your life, the only glorious thing about it is death isn't as close as it always is for me. I envy the people who have two normal parents, their lives are easier. Not having to constantly worry what's going to come around and kill you," She commented as she looked at Rosalie, "Besides, if I ever became a vampire I think it wouldn't last long. Something would strike me down," She joked trying to lighten the mood.

"You're very confusing, you know," Rosalie commented as she looked at Este with a certain curiosity, "You act so cold towards everyone but sometimes it slips, and you act like you have a heart. A big one at that," She commented, making Este scowl, "You just don't like anyone seeing that side of you. Not even your brother, but it seems like he misses that side of you."

"My brother misses a lot of things," Este remarked as she rose from her bed, placing the book on a table as she looked out the window to see movement in the woods, "As do I, but we both have very different ways of dealing with our emotions."

"And by that you mean that he does and you don't," Rosalie commented as she smirked, watching how Este whipped her head around and shot her a piercing glare, "I'm not going to sugarcoat it for you, just as you are not going to sugarcoat it for me."

"I don't sugarcoat anything," Este mumbled as she shrugged her shoulders, "I don't have enough of a filter, I say things and it just comes out. Almost like acid reflux and puking," she grinned as she caught Rosalie's look, "I think you can tell that."

"I can," Rosalie agreed as she rose from her seat, pausing as her eyebrows furrowed, "You need to stay here and keep a weapon close to you, I'll be right back," Este looked confused and did as told but Rosalie had disappeared before she could say anything else.

Este looked out the window, eyes narrowing at how fast the trees were moving. Should've told them no monster can step on the property, Este shrugged her shoulders as she dug her dagger back in her pocket before every light in the house began to glow brighter than they should. If he's here, he's trying to get rid of our shadows knowing it's an advantage. She debated on listening to Rosalie and staying in place, or going under the house and getting the others out.

"Come on out, Eurydice!" And for once, Este wasn't mad that someone was calling out her first name because the sound of his voice made her angrier, "Come on out!" He yelled as the girl moved behind her door, a dagger in each hand as she remained as silent as she could, waiting for him.

"Leave, Finn," Kaz was the one to speak, his voice causing Este a sense of relief after she feared her brother was stupid enough to go out there, "You don't want to do this. You don't want to hurt her and you know it. We won't let you."

Now is not the damn time for heroics, Kaz. Thanks though, She couldn't help but think before she slowly moved closer to her door, hand grabbing the knob as she closed her eyes tightly. Trying to come up with some sort of plan since it was clear that the other one was out the door. Speaking of the door, Este nearly let out a shriek as she moved back, the wood of her door split as she could see Kaz on the ground through the cracks.

"Kaz," Este muttered quietly as she pushed the broken door the rest of the way open as she glared at the boy in front of her, "You think you are going to make it out of here alive? You are wrong," She got Kaz back to his feet, "You are surrounded."

"And so are you," Finn remarked as a grin casted down onto his lips, "I've kept your friends outside occupied. It seems you tried to teach them, not very well from what I can tell," Finn moved forward, swinging his sword between Este and Kaz causing the two to jump apart, "There's nowhere to hide anymore, Este."

"No, there isn't," She agreed as she harshly slammed down her fist onto the boy's wrist, causing him to let out a scream as he dropped his sword, "Not that hiding was ever an option for me like it was for you, coward," She shot before looking at Kaz, "Where are Newt and Titus?" She needed to make sure he hadn't done anything to her brother before she even knew he was there.

"Ancestors," was his simple response, trying not to give too much away while keeping Este as informed as possible, shit. If we're being ambushed here there's no doubt what is happening to them, "Let's get this done."

"You won't hurt him," Este's anger flared as everything inside of her body tensed.

Kaz sped around, grabbing Finn up by his collar before he was slammed against the railing after being tased down by Finn. Este grabbed the taser from his hands as she watched Kaz go against the ground before trying to slam it against Finn, but he grabbed her wrists and pinned her against the railing of the stairs as the two thrashed around. Este couldn't use her abilities to get out of this one as much as she wouldn't use them.

"Get off of her!" Kaz stabbed his dagger into Finn's ankle causing him to cry out and give Este the upper hand as she shoved the taser right into his balls, watching as he fell into the floor as he began thrashing around.

    Este's chest was heaving and her hair was a mess in her face, but now was not the time to stop and think. They had to be fast.

"Come on," Este grabbed Kaz's arm as she looked at him, "Go downstairs, you know the room. Grab the book," She told him as she got jerked back, "Kaz get it and bring it here!" She yelled as she threw her head back into Finn's face before grabbing her dagger and swinging it at him, "Who's the dumb bitch now? Balls all shriveled up? Aw, mustering up the last bit of pride you have," She groaned as his sword clashed against her dagger.

"You have no idea," Finn scoffed as he swung around again, only to get blocked by Este, "This entire time I've slipped right under your nose, all of your noses! No one ever suspected little Finney who couldn't even see a dead body," He faked a pout before hitting the wall with the might of Este's strike, "But I've been the person you've been looking for this entire time. The only one left in his lineage..."

"A lineage that has left you powerless," She scoffed as she blocked him yet again, being pushed back into the bannister of the stairs yet again causing her to let out a huff, "Look at you... such a long descendant line that no godly blood runs through you," She laughed as her eyes darkened, "How pathetic is that?"

Finn charged at her again, causing her to spin the two around on the bannister as his sword became caught in the wood. Jeez, he's trying to make me want to sleep, she joked in her head as she slammed his head against the wood before he grabbed her hair causing her to groan as anger surged through her. Grabbing his hand and twisting it around, causing the bone to pop loudly before she bit him. Sorry, vamps.

"You stupid bitch!" Finn screamed as he held his wrist in pain while Este wiped her mouth, breathing heavily as he kept his eyes firmly on her.

"Come on, give it your best shot," She joked darkly before he charged at her again, the two roughly hitting against each other before meeting the edge of the stairs, "One of us is about to get fucking killed and I'm putting my money on it being you!" She slammed his head down into the corner of the bannister before shoving him backwards, holding onto the wood and keeping herself at the top even after he had tried to grab onto her, "Kaz! Hurry up!" She screamed.

Este watched as his body thudded and rolled down the stairs before hitting the floor. Despite the way his bones had been bent and the fall looking almost catastrophic, he forced himself off of the floor as he glared up at Este. How the fuck did he not die? She picked up her daggers and grabbed his sword from the bannister as she shook her head, this is one hell of a fight, if I do say so myself.

Finn began to walk up the stairs again as Este debated on her options, before she backed into Titus's room. Closing the door as she pressed her body harshly against it, wondering if that was enough to stall the time. Something about him was sinister, and he damn sure should've been dead by now and Este knew that. She could feel that.

Her chest heaved as she pushed her hair back, her hand tightly wrapped around the dagger as her eyes adjusted to the brightness of the room. She was on her own until Kaz got that book unless one of the vampires slipped away. She prayed to everything that Titus and Newt could hold their own for a few more minutes.

"Este!" Finn yelled in a sickly sing-song voice as he hit against the door, "Open the door, please. Este, come on. Open the door," He banged against the door again and began to shake the handle, trying to get the door open by force, "Now who's hiding, baby?"

"Don't call me that," Este snapped as she felt another sharp hit to the door, she swung around and stabbed the sword through the door, eyes widening as she watched blood drip down the wood as she backed away from it, "You're one sick son of a bitch, you know that?" She felt sick to her stomach.

Este didn't have time before the door swung back on her, the hilt of the sword hitting her dead in the face causing her to hit the ground as she held onto the area where it hit. Her sight began to go blurry as tears burned her vision from the impact. She felt for the dagger and groaned as both of Finn stomped down on her wrist, before he lowered down. Something popped and she just felt the burning pain from her hands as his weight burned down on her.

"You stupid son of a bitch," Este spit out.

"I know what I'm carving into you, you bitch," He kept his foot down on her wrist, and she tried to hit against him to get him off, but he didn't budge and she felt the blade dig into her skin causing her to bite down hard on her lip as she refused to scream, "I told you that I would get you. Your vampire friends are all being taken down by Vrykolakas, and so is the rest of your fucking family."

Like hell, she dug her finger into the stab wound causing him to let out a loud groan. He stumbled off of her, and she was quick to move even if her sight wasn't fully developed. The blood rushing down her arm didn't stop her, nor did the pain that surged through her. She found her dagger with ease and ran out of the room, there was no darkness for her to glide into her. As much as she hated her powers they were a reassurance. And the many times she considered dying, she didn't want it to be by someone else's hands.

She couldn't shadow travel out of this one. There was no way she could raise the dead - she was left to solely fight herself. No powers. Combat. Finn caught up to her a few moments later, causing her to swing around and land a harsh blow to his shoulder with her dagger. Her jaw locked as she pushed it further down as he groaned.

At that moment, Este blacked out. Finn let out a groan of pain as he went to grab it away from her, causing her to use the other dagger and shove it upwards. November 18, 2004, her breathing became shaky as she looked at the dagger dug under his jaw and through his mouth. She watched the moment the light dulled from his eyes. His eyes became lifeless as he looked down at her, blood covering her face as she ripped the dagger out, shoving his body down the stairs as she stood looking down at it as it fell.

Any emotion she had previously been feeling was void in that moment. She was nothing. She was just the girl of the Underworld, a place she sent people to. Everything felt like it was moving so much slower around her.

"Este! I found the book!" Kaz yelled as he emerged from the wall, his eyes widening as he looked at the dead body only a few feet from him and the girl standing at the top of the stairs, "He's dead so the Vrykolakas are no longer controlled by him, there is a way to send them back." He brought her back to a momentary reality, but she was still so void.

    Her underworld mindset slipped into her.

"How," Este asked as she watched as Kaz hit the lights, lowering them as she refused to move from her spot at the top of the stairs, "What do we have to do, Kaz?"

"Give them his heart," Kaz swallowed as he looked at the girl, "You have to give the Vrykolakas his heart and they'll go away. But it's risky because there is a chance that they could strike you instead of them and I don't think we should be playing autopsy right now. The worst they do is get rid of the vampires."

"And get rid of my brother and Titus," Her voice was cold as her expression remained lifeless while she descended the stairs, "If the Cullens can't get away from them,  there's no chance that the others can. So if I have to cut this mother fucker up to ensure my brother gets home safely," Este crouched down in front of the body, her eyes narrowing, "Getting rid of the vampires isn't my concern. The Vrykolakas are," She looked at the blood stained blade in her hands.

Kaz covered his mouth as his face went pale, looking away as Este dug the blade into his chest as she gagged, "Let's hope the Cullen's have enough control that they won't kill you. You absolute moron," His words were dead serious as he gagged, "I'm going to hurl, I'm going to hurl. If you give that to these then they're all gone. Even the ones away."

"Not if I do first," Este swallowed thickly as she closed her eyes before harshly hitting down on his ribs, before sticking her hand in the open wound of his chest cavity and pulling his heart out as she gagged furiously, "No, I'm seriously going to hurl."

    No matter how emotionless she could be in that moment, she was still mortal. And this was making her stomach churn awfully. And her hand being in so much pain was not helping.

    Este held her arm out as she continued to gag with the heart in her hands. Her blue eyes were so dull as they stared forward. She walked at a calm pace as she moved out the door, still gagging as she held the heart out as she felt all movement stop. Multiple pairs of dark eyes were on her as the Vrykolakas stalked closer to her. Their teeth sharp and broad as growls left their lips, their flesh rotten and silver. Riddled by the ages.

"Take it and leave," She ordered as she tried to swallow down the bile in her throat, one walked towards her and her entire body tensed before the entire vampire clan happened to be standing behind her, she dropped the heart on the ground and watched as the creatures launched at it before disappearing into the night. "Someone get a hold of my brother." Her only concern.

"I told you to stay in your room," Rosalie commented as everyone stayed dead silent as she turned around, "Is he dead?"

"That's a lot of blood," Alice commented as Jasper remained beyond tense at her side, Este backed away from them knowing that they couldn't be close to human blood.

"Don't go inside," Este was so disassociated in that moment, "You think I look bad? You should see the other guy," She tried to joke before she hunched over into one of the bushes, throwing up.

"ESTE!" Kaz yelled as he ran into the woods, at her side, "Titus called, they're coming back now. Everyone's fine. Cut up but other than that, good. They set the entire place on fire, the fire department should be there soon but what are we going to do?"

"You're bleeding," Alice was at Este's side, even if she didn't touch the girl she could see it. Her eyes filled with worry as she glanced over at Jasper who remained as still as stone.

"We've got to get that stitched up," Carlisle took the girl's arm as he looked at the wounds, "It's going to scar. From what I can tell even if you use your method of healing, this is far too deep for it to heal fully."

"We've got something to take care of first."