Revamped (19 page)

I looked up at her, deeply touched by the impact of her words. Still, I couldn’t help but feel unworthy of their consideration.
I
was a nobody after all. A clone.
I must have voiced the last thought out loud because both Brooke and Sophie looked at me in shock.

“You’re not a nobody, Dawn!” Brooke yelled. “Who cares how you came to be! Okay, so you got some of those gene thingies from another chick. Get over it. You’re not her. You make your own destiny.”

“Surprisingly, Brooke makes a lot of sense,” Sophie said. “Well, not about calling your DNA,
gene thingies
, but about all the other things. Just because you share Aurora’s DNA, doesn’t make you Aurora. You’re a hundred percent pure Dawn.”

“Plus, at least the chick was hot,” Brooke added in a very serious tone. “Imagine if you got some ugly gene thingies? Not everyone is that blessed,” she gushed.

I smiled, moved by their genuine efforts to console me. “Thank you.” I had to admit that their presence was starting to lift my spirits.

“That’s what friends are for. Now, we have to get started with the makeovers because we don’t have much time. I have a ton of things planned for us. Romantic comedies, boy talk—and look what I got us with my new fake ID!” Brooke said, pulling out a large bottle of
Blood Vodka
from her purse. She poured the clear liquid into an empty glass she found on the coffee table. Sophie groaned at the overwhelming smell of alcohol and I joined in the protest.

“Fine, no booze,” Brooke rolled her eyes, setting down the glass. “But you have to let me paint your nails and fill me in on all the dirty details about Ethan and Sebastian.” With that, she began to attack me with her make-up brush.

An hour later, as Brooke presented a clean, composed Dawn in my bedroom mirror, I had to admit that she had a divine talent. My long hair was polished and glossy, each soft wave resting perfectly in its place. My make-up, although too bright and heavy for my personal taste, complemented each of my features perfectly. Brooke had put me in one of her outfits, a pretty off-shoulder dress, in deep purple. She also forced a pair of striking, but frilly, gray and plum wedge sandals on my feet, completing the look with some silver jewelry and sparkly nail polish. I laughed out loud for the first time in the entire week when I realized that I was wearing sparkly nail polish.

I had never had real girlfriends, or engaged in makeovers and heart-to-heart talks, so my experience with Brooke and Sophie was both novel and poignant. Though I had refused to participate in the chatter when the subject turned to boys, the girls’ plan had worked well. They were able to, at least for a brief moment, make me forget about my melancholy.

As twelve o’clock neared, Brooke and Sophie got ready to leave.

“I have to work at the library until later this afternoon,” Sophie explained.

“And I have to go to cheer practice!” Brooke added. “It’s almost time for senior year again. We’re totally going to win nationals this year!”

Almost immediately after the two girls had left, Seth appeared at the front door.

Had they planned this
? I wondered, slightly amused.

Sweaty and frazzled, he was juggling a heavy video game console, four oddly-shaped controllers and an array of colorful video games in his arms. He raised one of his hands in greeting, forgetting about the disks. I caught the falling games in mid-air, chuckling at the gory shooting-game titles.

“I thought you may be interested in playing some of my games,” Seth said, looking so awkward that I couldn’t help but invite him in.

I poured him a glass of
Blood Cola
as he hooked up the game system to the television in the living room. Before I had a chance to take a seat beside him, another knock sounded against the heavy wooden door.

This time, it was Hunter, holding up a case of Blood Beer. Seeing my disapproving look, he quickly explained, “Don’t worry Dawn, it’s not for me. I’ve been completely clean for over a month now. Seth and the girls have been very strict about keeping me on the straight and narrow.” He shoved the bottles into my arms. “I brought this for you.”

I rolled my eyes. Did everyone assume alcohol was the solution to my problems?

Hunter looked great; sobriety really suited him. His once long, ratty hair was cut short and brushed tidily behind his ears. His clothes were clean and neatly pressed, though he continued to display his personality through vibrant band tees. He noticed me looking at the logo across his chest.

“
Blood Vultures
,” he said, pointing proudly at the shirt. “That was my band back in the day. We actually sounded pretty good.”

“Interesting name,” I smiled, moving aside to let him in.

Seth looked over at us from the couch. “Get your butts over here. I have this cool new game I’ve been dying to test out. You get to play musical instruments while killing zombies. I need back-up
stat
!"

“Awesome!” Hunter exclaimed, rushing into the living room. Within seconds he had a guitar in his hand and was moving rhythmically to the beat of the music.

I joined them on the couch taking on the role of the drummer. I wasn’t very musically inclined, but after a few rounds I loosened up and began to enjoy myself. The afternoon flew by and somehow, amidst chopping off zombie heads and creating new tunes, I started to feel better.

“Don’t worry Dawn, things will work out,” Seth said cheerfully during a breather between levels.

“I know. Zombies definitely don’t stand a chance against vampires armed with musical instruments,” I replied, laughing at the gory scene on the television.

“No, I’m not talking about that,” he corrected. “I mean things with you and your dad will work out. I’m sure of it.”

I pressed my lips together and looked away. I suddenly recalled why I had not wanted to see any of the team members in the first place. “Things are complicated,” I answered curtly.

“Yes, but aren’t they always?” Seth asked, not allowing me to worm my way out of the conversation. “I just became a vampire less than two months ago. Do you know how complicated
my
life is? My parents are extremely strict and very religious. They’re the only people on earth not happy about the whole vampire fad.”

“Have you come out of the coffin to them yet?” Hunter asked.

Seth shook his head. “No, not yet. I’m trying to put it off for as long as possible. I have no idea what they’ll do when they find out,” he said, then brightened. “At least they aren’t complaining about the fact that I’m not eating much lately. My mom has been after me to lose weight since forever and she thinks I’m currently on a special garlic diet. She’s been very supportive in that regard.”

“Well, we’re here for you buddy.” Hunter patted Seth across his back. The maneuver sent the large boy stumbling off the couch.

Watching the two vampires interact, I felt a strange sense of pride. Less than a month ago, the vampire recruits couldn’t follow simple directions, let alone function successfully as a team. Now, they were counseling and supporting each other—and even me—in important matters of the heart. It was surprisingly moving.

Just as we began another round of
Music Zombie Mania
, Ethan appeared at the door. I hadn’t seen him since the day of the big fight at
Dixie Pharmaceuticals
; the day I discovered the scientist responsible for manufacturing Vampiricol was his mother, Amelia. He looked exhausted, like he hadn’t slept in days. His face looked thinner, sunken in, and his left arm hung in a sling. I felt a sudden urge to run.

“Hi,” he said quietly.

“Hi,” I replied, equally softly.

We stood in the doorway, staring at one another for what seemed like an eternity. Seth, sensing the awkwardness in the air, quickly packed up his game system and slid past me, muttering something about having to go to an appointment.

“Come on, let’s go!” he called out to Hunter. “We’ll be late to that thing.”

“What thing?” Hunter asked, still firmly planted on the couch.

“That
thing
we have to go to!”

Hunter stared back blankly. “I didn’t hear about any
thing
!”

“
Ugh
! Just come. If you’re good, I may let you have a
Blood Beer
,” Seth promised.

“Alright, alright I’m coming!” Hunter rushed past me, nodding at Ethan as he left.

“Just kidding!” I could hear Seth say as they disappeared out of sight, leaving me alone with Ethan. My body tensed, my mind filling with questions that needed answers. Questions I didn’t dare ask. From my recent experience, answers only brought on more pain.

Ethan broke the uncomfortable silence first. “I understand if you don’t want to see me, but I’d really like to talk to you. I need to explain a few things,” he said.

His hazel eyes filled with anguish when I hesitated. “Please, Dawn,” he begged.

There was too much that I had to know; too much that I needed to hear. I nodded silently, leading him into the living room. I cleared off some of the mess left behind by my previous visitors, shifting make-up, hairbrushes and video games off of the leather couches and placing them on the coffee table. When it was all clear, I motioned for Ethan to sit down. I sank into the couch opposite of him, wrapping my arms tightly around myself.

“You look very nice,” he said.

I suddenly remembered that I was still wearing Brooke’s lavender dress. “Thank you,” I replied. “But I don’t believe you came here to talk about that. Just like I don’t think you took us to
Dixie Pharmaceuticals
to rescue Hannah.”

Ethan exhaled sharply, startled by the roughness of my words. “Please believe me when I tell you that rescuing Hannah was my genuine intention when I brought you to
Dixie Pharmaceuticals
.”

“So, introducing me to your mother and the crazy vampire who tried to kill me was just a bonus? Were you working against us this whole time?” I asked, fighting tears. “Against me?” I added, trying to ignore the sea of betrayal I was drowning in.

“No, of course not!” Ethan put his head in his hands and sighed again. “I can explain.”

“You have one minute to do so,” I warned. “And don’t leave out any details. I’m tired of people lying to me.”

Ethan looked up at me, a small flicker of hope flashing across his face. “Yes, of course. I’ll tell you everything,” he said, launching into his story. “Ever since I could remember, my mother had been a brilliant doctor. She was always working on the next new thing in the medical and pharmaceutical developments. She was even involved in cloning research back in the nineties, believe it or not! Of course, that never went anywhere, but she was one of the smartest women I knew,” Ethan said pensively.

I scanned his face, searching for any signs of dishonesty. His eyes were warm, earnest, and sincere. He had no idea that his mother had, in fact, succeed in cloning someone.
Me
.

“Anyway, my mother often left me and my father behind to travel around for work. My father, being an old-fashioned bigot, resented her for that, and when I was six years old, he had an affair with a young woman from Louisiana.” Ethan looked off into the distance, subconsciously clenching his fists at the mention of his father.

“The affair came as a shock to my mother, but she forgave him, blaming herself and her work for his indiscretion. She forced him to break up with his girlfriend, packed all of our stuff and moved us across the country to the most remote, mundane town she could find—Ashton. In a desperate attempt to appease my father and prevent him from cheating again, she quit her job, leaving her career behind to be a homemaker. My father, of course, had only ever used her career as an excuse for his behavior. Before long, he reverted to his old ways. He took up with yet another woman, then three or four more after that. After a couple of years, my mother finally came to her senses and kicked him out. She went back to work, and founded
Dixie Pharmaceuticals
. Her focus was on researching cures for rare diseases. She was once again full of life, filled with purpose.”

The way Ethan described his mother made me think that the woman who had threatened me with a gun just a week earlier was not one and the same.

Something must have gone horribly wrong for her to change so drastically, I realized.

“As time went on, things got harder,” Ethan continued. “My mother’s career was not the same as it had once been. Research was expensive and we had very little money. Regardless, we both worked hard. I put off going to college so I could work odd jobs around town and make money to fund her work. She relied on me and we became closer than ever. I was the man of the house, and there was nothing I wouldn’t do for her.”

“However, three years ago, when vampires came out into the public eye, my mom changed. Suddenly, she was moodier, busier, and more secretive. She made it very clear that she had a strong hatred for vampires. It was then that I learned that all of the women my father had cheated with were, in fact, vampires. Apparently, he had a fascination with ladies of the night.”

I shot him a stern glare, causing his face to flood with humiliation. “Oh, Dawn. I’m so sorry. My mom used to call them that. It just came out. I didn’t mean—”

“It’s fine. Go on,” I urged, more concerned with hearing the rest of his story than with discussing his mother’s distasteful sense of humor.

“She drilled into my head that vampires were evil. Selfish. Wrong. And I began to believe it.” He said, shifting around on the couch uncomfortably. “Her career goals moved away from helping sick humans and began to center around destroying vampires. She wanted to create a drug that would allow humans to possess the same powers as vampires—a drug that could make any regular human strong, fast, powerful, without the negative consequence of actually being dead.”

Again, I glared at him. “Negative consequence of being dead?”

“I’m sorry. I swear, I don’t actually think that way,” he apologized. “I’m just trying to keep the story as close to my mother’s delusional rationalizations as possible.”

I nodded for him to go on.

“My mother spent an entire year working on developing a prototype for this miracle potion.” Ethan said, placing air quotations around the word
miracle
. “She called it Vampiricol. Just as she was trying to figure out how to create a product out of the prototype, a vampire who had been following her previous work on cloning sought her out with a proposal. This guy, Viktor, offered to supply her with his following of vampire lab rats, if she agreed to cut him in on a percentage of all future Vampiricol sales. Despite her hatred for vampires, she was desperate for the blood and the money Viktor had promised, so decided to team up with the man. Hence,
BloodCorp
was born.”