Rafe was on the bed when I awoke and I turned over to find a smile on his face. "Hi," I said.
"Hey." He leaned over to give me a quick kiss of the mouth. "Sleep well?"
"Like the dead," I replied dryly. "What did you do today?"
"Hung out with Frasier," he said lying beside me. "He's pretty amazing. Hey, I heard the group that Christina was with in Austria is coming here."
"Really? I wonder if Jason is with them."
"I don't know. I heard there was at least one woman and the rest were men."
"Wow, that would be great if he came for her."
"Yeah." He was studying me intently, desire quite apparent in those green eyes. I leaned forward and kissed him and his hand cupped the back of my neck to deepen it. He rolled over on top of me and began to kiss a trail across my face to my ear lobe. One thing led to another and later, when we were done, Rafe suggested I get dressed because Christina would be looking for me before going off with Micky.
I was just getting into the shower when Rafe stuck his head in the door to the bedroom. "I'm going to go get something to eat with Frasier," he said.
"Okay." I went to the door and planted a quick kiss to his lips. "Come back to me," I told him passionately.
"Brenda," he began with a laugh, "I'm just going across that hall."
"I know." I shook my head quickly and kissed him again before he shut the door. I showered quickly and was just pulling on my robe when the bathroom went black. Blindly, I made my way to the bedroom and found it too had lost its lighting. I groped for the gun I had put in the nightstand the previous morning and prepared to exit when I heard gunfire coming from the front of the chantry. It sounded heated, but I was more concerned about Christina and Rafe.
I barely made it to the door of my suite when the lights came back on. I continued out into the hall and across to the door to my sister's suite. The door opened as I neared and Frasier stuck his head out. He looked very distressed about something, which struck me as funny because Christina had led me to believe he was a seasoned fighter. "Is everyone okay in there?" I asked.
"Something very weird is going on," he said between clenched teeth. He was looking up and down the hall as if he expected a specter of some kind to appear at any moment. I also noticed he held a very large handgun in his left hand that looked as if it had been modified in some way.
"What are you talking about?" I was beginning to feel alarmed. Where were Christina and Rafe?
"Come in here." He reached out with his right hand and grabbed my upper arm to pull me into the room. I heard to door close behind me, but I only felt relief to see Rafe standing across the room. He was dressed different, which confused me further, and he was visibly upset.
"Did you change your clothes after I got into the shower?" I asked as I started to cross the room to him.
"Brenda, where the hell are we? What's going on?" I stopped dead in my tracks. I didn't know what was going on, Rafe was speaking with a Spanish accent. Was he playing a trick or something?
"What do you mean, what's going on?" I glanced at Frasier, but his expression had turned from alarm to almost anguish. "We're at the chantry."
"The what?" I took a few more steps closer to him. He looked even more confused than before and I now noticed his mustache and goatee were gone.
""Did you shave too?" I was only about six feet from him now.
"What are you talking about? Where the hell are we?"
"Rafe." A tone of desperation entered my voice. What was going on around here?
"We heard a noise outside," Frasier said from behind me. I turned to listen to his explanation. "And the three of us went to check it out. There was this car down there and the guys down front were firing at the car. I went in to get my gun and when I came back, Christina was gone and Rafe was like this."
I didn't understand what was happening. I had a firm hold on my emotions but I knew at any moment my control could snap. "Where is Christina?" I asked very slowly.
"You tell me," Frasier sounded lost. I knew the blood bond between him and Christina was complete and I understood his reaction. I turned back to Rafe and closed the remaining few feet that separated us. When I stood in front of him I touched his face and studied his eyes, looking for answers that I hoped were there.
He jumped when my fingers came into contact with his skin. "Jesus you're cold. What did you do, go outside?"
That was all I needed to know. I dropped my hand and took a step back. I could feel my face and heart harden as I continued to take him in. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" My tone was the harshest I had ever heard it. I was beginning to feel violated again, like when we found the cameras and listening devices at my house.
"Brenda, you know me." His hands flashed in front of him in rapid tension. "You've known me for years. I live right next door to you."
"I have not known you for years, I've known you for two weeks."
"Hello. I live in the same duplex as you do."
"I don't live in a duplex."
"I don't know what drugs you're taking, Brenda, but we live on the same street in Nashville. You live on one side of the duplex and I live on the other. We've lived there for three years and I've known you for four."
"You're not in Nashville," I turned to the other man in the room. "Frasier, go get Elvira or Micky, I don't care which, whoever you find first."
"Okay. Do you have any idea where Christina is?"
"No, but I'm going to find out."
"Okay," he holstered his weapon and left the room. The tight control I was keeping on my emotions failed me and I felt tears well up in my eyes and my shoulders begin to shake. My hands went immediately to my face to cover the blood tracks I knew would soon streak my face. I had no control over the situation and I didn't know what to do or what the hell happened to Christina or Rafe, but I knew I would get them back. At the core of this, I felt Michael.
"Brenda, what is the matter? You know me." His tone was pleading. He sounded like he felt concerned for my well-being but I couldn't help but feel put off by his mere presence. I felt him come up beside me and as he tried to place a reassuring hand on my shoulder, I backed away and dropped the hand that covered my tear stained face. I raised the gun in my hand.
"Who put you up to this?" I asked coldly.
I backed up even as he was making his way forward. "What the fuck happened to you?" he asked vehemently.
"Nothing. What have you done with my Rafe?"
"Jesus, you're a vampire and nothing happened to you?"
"Yeah. That's regardless-"
"It was the Spaniard wasn't it? I told you to stay away from him."
Who in the hell was The Spaniard? And what did he have to do with me being a vampire? Maybe he was talking about Antonio, he was Spanish, but I had never heard of anyone call him The Spaniard. "Who are you talking about?" I was so confused my head was spinning.
"This is so weird. I was in my living room, listening to the radio and then I'm on this balcony with a gunfight going on below me. Will you tell me what the hell is going on?"
"You were suppose to be - no, no -" I stumbled. Then I stopped to regroup my thoughts. "Rafe was supposed to get something to eat with Frasier. Christina -"
"Was that the guy that was in here? Christina? What the hell would she be doing here?" So he did know something about the people that should have been here. I had to keep my cool so I could get the information out of him that I needed.
"She's my sister," I said, studying his reaction.
"It was The Spaniard, wasn't it? When did this happen? I just saw you two nights ago."
"I just saw you five minutes ago." Here came the ultimate test. "Did the same people get a hold of him that got Michael?"
"Where's Michael?" His tone was too even to be my Rafe. He sounded concerned about the other man's well being, not what Rafe usually felt about Michael.
"I have no idea. I suppose you know him, too."
"Yeah," he replied, incredulously. Then came the bomb. "He lives next door with you."
That knowledge was more than I could handle right now. I was absolutely stunned. Michael and I together? And the knowledge coming from Rafe? What kind of game was this guy playing? I needed time to regroup my thoughts. I went to the closed door that led to the hallway and opened it, looking for the familiar face of Elvira or Micky coming to help me keep my sanity.
What I got was an entire group of people heading toward me. Micky, Bruce, Frasier, and Jason Kline, along with a woman and two men I didn't know came up to the door I clung to like a lifeline. I only really saw Micky and Bruce for the moment. Normally, the knowledge of Jason being here would have brought relief to me for Christina's sake, but now she was missing and so was my lover. I had no other eyes right now.
Upon seeing blood on my face, Bruce came immediately to my side, concern printed plainly on his face. Micky looked troubled as well and asked, "Brenda, what's wrong?"
"Micky, get in here. Something is really wrong." I opened the door wide enough to let him and Frasier in and they entered. I closed the door soundly behind them, not taking the time to respond to Bruce or take in the newcomers in the hall. I turned and found that the man who looked like my ghoul had retreated to the corner of the room where a table and four chairs stood close to a window.
No sooner had I closed the door then it opened again. "We need a minute," I said blindly and promptly slammed it shut again. Whoever it was that wanted in was persistent and the door opened yet again. "We need a minute," I hissed through clenched teeth and slammed the door again, even harder this time.
"That guy is hell bent," I heard Micky say behind me as I slammed the door shut a second time. "What's going on?"
My self-control was almost nil at that point. I waved the Glock that I still had in my left hand and said almost hysterically; "Do you see anything different about him? That is not Rafe. Christina is gone."
"What do you mean?" Micky was stunned. "Where did she go?"
"I don't know." Tears started in my eyes again. "You need to talk to him because he thinks he knows me."
"I do know you, Brenda," the man across the room said.
"It's not right, Micky," I said shaky.
"I live in Nashville," Rafe started his story again. "And Brenda and Michael live next door..." If I had to hear the whole thing a second time I was going to scream.
"You're not in Nashville," I repeated.
"Where am I?" His tone signified that he was beginning to believe something that couldn't be real.
I was finally beginning to get a hold of myself. "You're in Salem, Massachusetts. Look out that window, do you see anything that looks like Nashville?" I knew he would be able to hear the ocean from that window and that alone would be a telltale sign. His face slackened.
"Jesus, what happened?" His reaction seemed conducive to someone who didn't know what was going on around him. Unfortunately, my wits weren't about me, or I would have thought to check his aura. Micky could tell I was upset so he came to my side and sat me on a couch that dominated one wall of the room, across from where this Rafe looked out the window.
"Just chill," he told me, calmly. "Let me talk to him. We'll figure this out." Micky then turned to Frasier and asked him what happened. Frasier reviewed the events again for Micky, giving him quick and concise descriptions.
"Sounds like Akari did some kind of ritual that may have switched the two of them," Micky said when Frasier had finished. To himself he asked, "Where's Christina?" Then to Rafe he asked, "Do you know Christina Strong?"
"Christina is dead," Rafe said simply.

New Arrivals

I felt as if someone slammed me in the chest. Christina was dead? How? Who? I looked to Frasier and saw that he was as shocked as I was. The door to the room flew open and Jason entered, his eyes were glowing red like an animal's in a headlight beam at night. He quickly took a look around the room and immediately shrieked back from something, falling to the floor and covering his face with his trench coat.
The beautiful Hispanic woman I saw earlier popped her head in from the hall and I got to my feet. That must be Nina Rodriguez, I thought to myself, thinking of the Tremere Clan member Christina had told me about. I was about to greet the woman, but she quickly moved back into the hallway. A second later, a man dressed like a priest entered the room and left as fast as Nina had. He must be Cormac's nephew, Stephen, I thought, trying to understand the strange behavior of these newcomers.
My head was swimming with the knowledge that Christina and Rafe were missing and the strange behavior of these two people wasn't helping my frame of mind. The last man who came into the room headed straight to the opposite wall. He stopped in front of me and introduced himself quickly. "You must be Christina's sister. I am Cormac," he said and shook my hand, then continued to the wall and removed a large mirror that hung there and put it on the floor, reflection side to the wall.
"Do you not like the mirror?" Micky asked ironically, having watched the scene from where he still stood close to our other world visitor.
"My nephew has a deformity," Cormac explained. "It would be best left unseen." Christina was right, this man used few words to get his point across. Micky simply nodded as if he understood what Cormac was talking about, even though I didn't, and returned his attention to Rafe. The priest, Stephen, entered the room again and went to stand quietly next to his uncle.
Rafe looked tense at the arrival of the newcomers and Frasier was about to bounce out of his skin with worry over his new mistress. He was pacing back and forth in much the same way I had seen Christina pace many times before. I was back in control of my senses and I knew there were questions to be answered.
"Okay," I said approaching Rafe again. "Let's sit down and talk about this. There has to be a rational explanation." I indicated the table that Rafe still stood next to and he sat, gratefully. "Frasier," I said turning my attention to him, "I understand how you're feeling. I feel the same way."
"No, you don't," he said, but sat on the trunk at the end of Christina's bed and fidgeted with a string that hung from his pant leg.
Rafe seemed to be taking in everything. "What is this a freaking convention?"
"What are you talking about?" I asked taking a chair across from him. Micky moved to stand behind me.
He pointed around the room as he spoke. "Vampire, vampire, vampire, - and that's a werewolf," he said when he reached Stephen.
"Glad to see you have the same abilities," I said with a slight smile, filing the information of what the priest was way in my mind then turning my attention to Micky accusingly.
"I knew he was coming," he told my before I could say anything. "Sorry, I forgot to tell you."
"Where's Elvira?" I asked.
"I'll go find her," Bruce offered and left the room post haste. I was vaguely aware of Cormac moving about the room while Jason was still cowering in his trench coat. When Cormac reached the bedside table, I noticed that he picked something up and held it for a while, then placed it in the table's drawer. After that, Jason rose nonchalantly and shook his coat lapels to resettle the garment on his shoulders.
"Tell us everything that happened before you ended up here," I said, giving Rafe my full attention.
"What, from when I was born or what?" His voice had a cocky edge I hadn't ever heard out of my Rafe.
Jason came forward and said menacingly through clenched teeth, "Tell her what she wants to know."
"Hey, I'm trying to get a starting point. What a month ago? Two weeks? Five minutes?"
"Five minutes."
"I was in my living room listening to music with my headphones. Then I was on a balcony. This guy, Frasier came out and asked me where Christina was."
"Did you feel anything funny?" I asked. "Did you see anything?"
"The Rafe that's suppose to be here," he replied, uncomfortably, "you and him are&Mac183;" he trailed off hesitantly.
"Yes." My voice was low and full of emotion. I knew I had to keep as much of my feelings hidden as possible. Excess emotions only tended to make high stress situation worse and I knew that wouldn't help to find Rafe and Christina.
"Hmm." He looked away for a moment and when he returned his eyes to mine he asked, "Is Sam alive?" By his tone I could tell that something had to have happened to Samantha in his world and that it wasn't good.
"Yes. Why wouldn't she be?"
He ignored my question and asked another of his own. "And he's not gay?" I could only think that he referred to my Rafe.
"He's kind of both," I said lowly, not really wanting to discuss this in front of anyone. Rafe's sexual tendencies were his own even though I was talking to his double.
He seemed to take everything in stride. "So, why is Jason on the other side?" He nodded to the man my sister loved more than anyone else.
"Who said we were good or bad?" I asked astonished. How much did he know about my kind in his world, I wondered.
"You've told me that quite often." He sounded familiar still, like the Rafe I knew and loved, but he lacked the quality in his tone when you talked about someone you loved.
"And so has he," Rafe nodded his head toward Jason. It was beginning to bother me that he kept referring to me as the Brenda he knew but I pushed the nagging aside, knowing the need for knowledge was more important than my agitation.
"Do you know him?" I asked.
"Yeah," he said with a tug of irony. "He taught you to hunt. He was your friend but he is dead now." His face was sober now.
"I hunted long ago," Jason said lowly and to himself. He was close to my side, intent as I was on the circumstances Rafe was laying out before us. I had no knowledge of him ever hunting, but at least his past linked with our alternate selves somewhat, unlike mine.
My head was swimming with unasked questions. Who killed Christina? What circumstances led to the other me to become a hunter? How did I meet Jason? No matter how badly I wanted answers to my questions I knew I would have to wait, if I even got a chance to ask them. Hopefully, Elvira knew of some ritual that would put everything right again because I knew that I couldn't handle losing Rafe so soon after finding him, not to mention what losing Christina would mean.
"Do you hunt as well?" I asked Rafe.
"Oh, no. I just live next door. You're the one with a license."
"For what?"
"To kill vampires," he said matter-of-factly.
"What is the government in on this?" Jason asked disbelievingly.
Rafe blinked and looked at Jason as if he should know the answer. "Yes, for several years now."
I glanced to Micky, not sure whether to believe what I was hearing. "What happened to the Masquerade?" I asked. Micky simply shrugged his shoulders, as confused as I was.
"Why don't we all go to the library or something?" Jason suggested. "That way maybe we can come up with a way to put everything right." I regarded him for a moment, relieved at the concern I found in his features. I knew then that he loved or at least had strong feelings for Christina just by the way he held himself. He was tense all over, ready to snap or jump at the slightest provocation. I prayed we got her back for his sake.
"Good idea," I said, standing. "Let's wait for Elvira and then go downstairs."
I glanced to the doorway just in time to see the Prince of Salem arrive. She really is a regal woman, tall and stately. Stephen, the Lupine priest stood in the doorway, unaware that someone had come up behind him. "Excuse me," she said coolly. Stephen jumped a little and moved to the side, muttering a low apology. She entered the room, Bruce a step behind, then and studied the newcomers for a moment. "When did you arrive?" she asked no one in particular.
"Just a few minutes ago," Nina replied.
"Somebody want to explain?" Her attention now rested on Micky and myself.
"My Prince," I started, "through means by which we have no idea, it seems as if there has been some sort of shifting going on here. This person is not the Rafael Brown we know."
"Shifting, huh?" Her tone was even as she took in the room and all those in it.
"Yes. And Christina is gone as well."
"She went where?"
"I think she must have shifted, too. Rafe said that in his world she is dead. So if there's no one for her to switch with that would explain why there isn't a version of her here." It was the only thing that made sense.
"Who killed Christina?" Cormac asked as he approached the table. When he got close, Rafe stiffened and made to rise. Cormac must have understood his apprehension and stopped.
Rafe didn't verbally answer the question, but looked at me evenly. It took only a few seconds for the realization to dawn on me. Of course, it all made sense now. In the other world I was a hunter and it would stand to reason that if Christina was dead it was me who killed her. It was a hard fact for me to face. Christina and I may not have the closest relationship but I knew I would give my life for her, just like I would for Elvira or Micky or Rafe. They are my family and I would do anything to insure the safety of any of them. "Can we do this?" I asked Elvira. "Can we bring them back?"
"There is nothing in the library but I have heard of it. I can see where Akari would use it."
"Where can we find the ritual?"
"We'd have to find Akari," she said simply.
"Give me five minutes to change," I said as I nodded to her and left quickly, going across the hall to the room I had shared with Rafe. I pulled on the first pair of pants and shirt I could find. My hair was almost dry now and I pulled it back in a high ponytail on the top of my head. I saw Rafe's jacket still hung on the back of a chair in the room and I slipped it on, needing the slight comfort it afforded. I didn't see his guns and holsters anywhere so I assumed that he had them on his person.
I opened my door in just under the five minutes I allotted myself and found Nina coming down the hall. She was coming from the direction of the stairs, so I thought she must have went to the main floor for something.
"I was sent to get the others," she said. "There's been a delivery." My heart sank. Please no more roses, I thought to myself.
"For who?" I asked.
"I'm not sure." She seemed like a really nice person and I hoped that I would get the opportunity to get to know her after this whole mess was settled.
We reentered Christina's room to find Jason on the floor where he appeared to be meditating. Stephen and Cormac were standing by a bedside table. I saw Stephen pick up a frame that held a picture of Jason and in a blink of an eye they both disappeared.
I was shocked. And just as I was about to say something, they reappeared and Stephen returned the frame to the table.
"Micky, what in the hell's going on in here?" I asked none too nicely. "Some kind of guru meeting?" I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I couldn't believe they would come into a Chantry they hadn't been to before and just begin to rearrange things and disappear like they'd been born here. This was utter insanity.
"There is something hanging around Jason that he can kind of see and now Cormac can, too," Micky explained. "Use Auspex."
At this point I was too upset to try. Then I remembered that this Rafe shared the ability to tell supernatural creatures so I went to his alternate's side and dropped to my haunches next to him. "What do you see?" I asked.
"It's a ghost," he said simply as he squinted as if to get a better look. "It's Christina and she's really pissed."
"What is she doing?"
"Running from him," he said, indicating Cormac. I looked up as he asked Nina to step into the hallway and opened the drawer to pull out Christina's cross. Again I was amazed at the liberties this man thought he could take with other people's things, especially Christina's things. Then they disappeared again.
All of a sudden I saw Jason fall onto his back as if he had been pushed. I went to his side and asked if he was all right.
"Yeah," he said with a cough as I helped him to his feet. He was visibly shaken and I pulled him to a chair for him to sit as Cormac and Stephen appeared again. Cormac was off balance and fell to one knee, catching himself with the hand that still held Christina's cross.
"What in the hell is going on?" I demanded.
"Yes, please share," Micky added.
Cormac rose slowly and settled his jacket on his shoulders. Frasier seemed to realize that someone was touching his mistress' possessions and he jumped to his feet.
"What the hell are you doing with her stuff?" he demanded harshly.
"That was not our Christina," Cormac replied calmly.
"Yeah, well that's my Christina's stuff and I don't think you need to have your fingers on it." Frasier looked like he was about to be pushed over the edge and I could tell that Jason hadn't liked Frasier's possessiveness over my sister. In fact, when I looked at him his eyes were glowing red again and there were claws extending from each of his fingers.
Frasier saw this as well and pulled his gun from its holster and held it at his side.
"Okay," I said raising my hands to stop an attack before it happened, "There's some sort of delivery downstairs. Can we get out of this room please?"
"Yeah, let's go downstairs," Micky suggested and gestured for Rafe to move forward. "He seems to connect with you best," he said and I took the hint that I would be responsible for him.
"Do we want to let him be out and about?"
"As long as someone is with him," he said pointedly. "I don't think he should leave the house."
I nodded my head in agreement as I noticed Jason's claws retracting as he stood, glaring at Frasier who had holstered his weapon. We made our way downstairs then and found a large framed mirror standing in the hall. Written in French on the mirror in blood was a message geared toward Bruce and signed R.C. It said for him to be at the park at midnight or that the girl, and I took it to be Bruce's mortal descendant Rachel Black, would suffer if he didn't. Elvira and Bruce were in the hall waiting and he was talking to someone on his cell phone.
They told us that they didn't know whom the mirror was from but that a woman driving a U-Haul truck delivered it. From the description Jax gave us it sounded like Michael's new girl.
"Sounds like Vivian," I said to Elvira, feeling a little better about the situation. At least now I had something to do. Giving Cormac, Nina, Brother Stephen and Jason the information on what had been happening was like an eye in the storm.
"That means Michael," she replied.
"Michael?" Jason asked.
"Yes," I said turning to him. "You remember Michael." They had both been involved in the chain of events that led to Elvira's takeover of Salem.
"Yeah," he half-laughed. "Smart ass. What's he got to do with anything?"
"Well, for some time now he's been involved with a Sabbat pack that's causing trouble in town. I don't know how long he's been with them."
"Are you talking about Michael Moorecock?" the alternate Rafe asked. "Don't tell me he's a vamp, too?"
"Yes," I replied.
"For a while now," Jason interjected. I noticed Cormac approaching the mirror and saw him lay his hand on its frame. His eyes closed and from his stance I figured he was attempting to do a Spirit's Touch on it to see what he could learn.
"Oh, this is too weird," I heard Rafe say but I was now interested in what information Cormac was getting via his touch on the mirror. When he was finished he described the pictures he'd received from his viewings. The most important being that it was Roger Campbell that had written on the mirror and that Michael and his two ghouls, Vivian and Birkoff that put it into the van that brought it here. The evidence of Michael's involvement with the pack was growing by leaps and bounds every day and what little hope I had of helping him was dwindling past the point of me being able to do anything for him.
To bring the newcomers up to date, Elvira quickly reviewed the events that had taken place over the last week. Including the fact that Roger was a Lasombra and that Vivian had lived in Salem and was at one time a member of the Black Rose Coven.
I was anxious to get to the park and we all agreed to get there early, hoping to set a trap. Micky and Sarah were staying behind, he was waiting for some information to come in from one of his contacts but they said they would come by the park around the time of the meeting. Rafe was also staying behind with Elvira in hopes of giving her information that could help in bringing back Christina and the other Rafe.
We left the house within twenty minutes, taking one of the Chantry's limousines. On the way, I told them what I knew about the pack. "There's one Lasombra for sure," I said referring to Roger as I looked around the group of people I didn't know except from what Christina had told me. The only person present I knew I could trust was Bruce and that made me feel better. Everything would be all right; it had to. "There's a Tremere with them as well as Michael Moorecock, he's Venture. There's at least a couple others but I don't know their clans." I didn't tell them that Akari was Elvira's childe. It wasn't important to them; they didn't need to know.
"There is a shapeshifter with them as well," Cormac added. I looked at him in surprise but he didn't offer an explanation and I didn't ask. If there were indeed a shapeshifter among them the evidence of it would eventually come out.
I quickly explained about the house where the pack had been staying, leaving out the details about Michael slashing the mother's throat. I just couldn't form the words to make him look like an even bigger monster. I still held out hope that there was some valid reason for his presence with the pack.
We arrived at the park without incident and pulled into a parking area. "Has anyone been here?" Nina asked, out one of the tinted windows. It was late and there wasn't anyone in sight.
"I know the park, and so does Bruce," I replied as we all got out of the vehicle and got flashlights from the trunk. We found an area in the park that was perfect for an ambush and split up. Jason and Frasier climbed into a couple of trees to act as lookouts, while Cormac and Nina stayed together under a dark clump of trees. Bruce and I stayed together as well and went across the open area to take position under another group of trees. I don't know where Brother Stephen went. He disappeared almost as soon as we exited the limousine and I had to admit that I was a little glad. I haven't spent much time with Lupines and he made me a bit nervous. What the hell was Cormac thinking when he brought him along anyway?
"They're here," Bruce whispered in my ear about twenty minutes later and indicated an odd shadow that was heading our way. "You might want to signal them." I flashed the light quickly in Cormac and Nina's direction then, just as we had set up and pulled my gun. Bruce stepped out from behind the tall oak where we had been waiting and the shadow dispersed enough to reveal Roger Campbell.
"Good evening, my childe," Roger said in French to Bruce who had continued forward and now stood a few feet from the other Lasombra. "It's good to see you got my message."
"Yes, I got it. You need to brush up on your French, though. Your pronunciation is a little off." As far as I could tell the other man's French was perfect but Bruce's knowledge of the language was far older than mine since he was a few hundred years older. I was sure to some extent he was being serious.
"You have been too long from you clan," Roger continued, unabashed. "I invite you to rejoin us. Your skills are needed."
"I have been too long from my clan?" Bruce asked, maintaining the rouse that he was Tremere.
"We know you are one of us." Roger was beginning to sound annoyed.
"When I was created there were no clans," Bruce scoffed. "My clan is Tremere."
"I know you are one of us," Roger said with that sly smile I was beginning to hate. "We have been watching you closely since you came up from the ground. Keeping an eye on you and waiting for the perfect opportunity for you to rejoin us."
"I can't rejoin anything I never belonged to," Bruce said evenly and simply. "It wasn't by choice that I was created. I won't be involved with those who forced this upon me."
"I was not your sire," Roger insisted. "That is not how we all do things."
"Correct my if I'm wrong," Bruce began, sounding like he was getting upset now, "but I understand that you think of people as food and nothing else."
"And what are they if they're not?"
"I have lived for 1100 years and I have resisted the temptation of human blood." That was the one thing Bruce couldn't bring himself to do. Feed from humans. I've always thought something horrible happened before his torpor that left him with that affliction.
"So you think," Roger scoffed. "Where do you suppose your blood comes from every evening? Do you think they keep cows in the back just for you?"
Bruce was silent for a moment before he replied, "Even if it is human blood it was given freely, by donation. It wasn't forcibly taken."
I couldn't take any more belittling from this jerk. Stepping out from behind the tree I asked in an even voice as I started to raise my gun, "What have you done?" I knew there would only be a short time before his shadows confined my hand again and I prayed that Bruce or one of the others could stop him in some way.
Roger laughed as he raised his arms. "Ah, that's why I wanted you to bring your friends, Bruce. Most of them are Tremere and we can use them as well." He looked over to where Cormac and Nina were and gestured them forward but they didn't come out.
I now had Roger in my sights and I felt the familiar pull of shadows attempting to encircle my hand once again but I jerked away from them and seemed to succeed. From the corner of my eye, I saw Cormac raise his gun to shoot as well. I thought I saw Nina throw something that appeared to be a card that was grabbed by a shadowy tentacle that rose from the ground.
I pulled the trigger of my Glock just as a shadow enshrouded Roger and it was then that things went into overdrive. Bruce moved forward to attack the other Lasombra and the shadow moved away very fast. We all chased him but were blinded by a flash of white light. I felt what seemed to be a person, maybe Bruce because he was right behind me, being thrown into my back. Everything went dark.
I saw visions of myself and Michael walking hand-in-hand in a sunny meadow. He smiled down at me as I reached up to remove his sunglasses and we kissed tenderly. Then I was lying on a bed in a hospital room. Michael was there with me and I was in incredible pain but I couldn't remember ever feeling so happy.
Then I realized that I was standing on the other side of a white picket fence that surrounded a duplex. Antonio was there, talking to Michael who was standing just inside the door. I won't let The Spaniard hurt my family I thought to myself. I will kill him first. Then I fell to the ground and lost consciousness.

Role Reversal

I awoke with a heavy weight on my back. My head was fuzzy, trying to understand the visions that had just run through it. What did it all mean? I knew they weren't my memories because Michael was a vampire went we met. We never had the opportunity to walk through a sunny meadow.
"Bruce?" I asked thickly, remembering what had happened before I ended up here.
"Are you okay?" Bruce whispered from above me. It was his weight I felt and for some reason, that thought gave my some comfort.
"Yes. Are you okay?" I asked in an equally low voice.
"A little dizzy, but other than that, okay."
"Where are we?" I opened my eyes and saw the white fence in front of me.
"On the ground," he said dryly.
"Very funny," I mumbled as I elbowed him and he got up with a grunt. I rolled over and took the hand he offered and got to my feet. I could hear angry voices and turned to see who they were and where they came from.
The duplex was the same one that I'd seen in my vision and Antonio and Michael were both there as well. I absently brushed my shirt and pants free of any dirt and slowly moved to enter the yard, vaguely aware that Bruce was still with me. We had walked into an argument.
"&Mac183;not here. Even if she were you must know you wouldn't be welcome." I knew without a doubt that was Michael's voice. What on earth was going on around here?
"I demand to see her. She has much to answer for, Moorecock. Much to answer for." I'd only seen Antonio this agitated a few times before and then never with a friend.
"She had a warrant for you childe, Spaniard," Michael continued from the doorway. "The kill was legal. You have no right to come here." Come here? What was going on? What about Antonio's childe? Was it Christina that he was so upset about?
"I have every right. That bastard killed her husband. She was within our laws to take his life in return." I recognized the passion in his voice and knew what ever it was he was talking about meant a great deal to him. "The warrant against her would never have been issued if your wife hadn't pushed it. I demand satisfaction," he finished with a sneer.
Michael's voice got very deep as he said, "Demand your satisfaction from the courts, Spaniard. You'll get nothing here." I knew he meant business and hoped we hadn't walked into a fight we couldn't stop.
I saw that Antonio was a vampire but for some reason Michael looked human to me and I started to get scared. That had to mean that the alternate Rafe had been right when he said Michael was a werewolf. What did that mean in his relationship with the Brenda from this world? And what about Antonio? He couldn't in anyway be like my sire. This couldn't be the same kind of man who took me under his wing and embraced me because he knew how much I loved Michael. I started to get the feeling that I wasn't anywhere near Kansas anymore.
I glanced to Bruce and saw that he was angry and going for his gun. "This is not the time," I said putting my hand on his arm. "We do not know what's going on here. It's Antonio and Michael, but we don't know what they are. Hold back, alright?" He nodded reluctantly and released his hold on the gun, removing his hand from his jacket.
"That's Antonio?" Bruce asked in a normal voice that didn't draw the attention of either of the men on the porch. We were at the bottom of the stairs now and I stopped there taking in the two of them.
"I see you, Antonio Miguel Santiago Moreno," I finally said from where I stood.
He straightened tensely and turned around on the porch, startled to hear me behind him and I think a little shocked to hear me say his name. He didn't look like the Antonio I knew. His hair was extremely short by his standards, not even touching the collar of his shirt and his attire was very modern. Suddenly I left the powerful rush come over me. It seemed to emanate from Antonio but I had no knowledge of a discipline with that effect as this one he was using. It was as if he was trying to influence me in some way but it wasn't working.
"Somebody's pissy," Bruce said, bringing attention to himself.
"Bruce?" Antonio asked astonished as if he recognized him. "I thought you were dead." He now moved to the edge of the porch for a better look at my companion.
In response, Bruce put his first two fingers to the inside of his wrist as if he was feeling for a pulse and simply said, "I am."
"I heard the master of Salem cut your head off." He seemed truly impressed to see Bruce standing before him. "What are you doing here? Rachel will be so glad to see you." He then remembered who Bruce was with and asked, "What are you doing with her?" He was glaring at me again.
"When was this?" Bruce asked, ignoring Antonio's question. He was adjusting his neck and the collar of his shirt in discomfort as if thinking about losing his head. You didn't mention beheading in front of Kindred and not expect some sort of awkwardness. Leave it to Bruce to find humor in the situation.
I looked to the door and saw Michael there, looking as handsome as he did the day he left Salem two years ago. He was standing just inside the screen door so it was hard to get a good look at him. My heart lurched anyway.
"Two years ago," Antonio was saying, not understanding Bruce's apparent loss of memory. "Just after you came up from the ground. Why would you hide for two years? Rachel has been missing you horribly. I had to make her move here so that bitch wouldn't kill her. And what are you doing with her?" he asked again menacingly and pointing a finger at me this time.
"He is my adopted childe," I said calmly, waiting for Antonio to realize exactly what I was.
"Brenda?" Michael called from inside the house. "Why don't you come in here, away from the nice vampires?" Confusion was evident in his voice and my heart went out to him, he didn't know what was going on.
I heard Bruce start to laugh and elbowed him into silenced.
"Brenda, come on." Michael was gesturing for me to come inside now.
"Michael, everything is fine," I said as evenly.
"Everything is not fine," he insisted. "Your gun's not out and you're not in here."
"Michael, you need to trust me."
"Well Bruce, you can help me out here," Antonio said with a sneer, effectively getting my attention again. "I have vengeance to seek." He was looking at me in a way that made me feel not liked.
"Antonio, look again," was all I said.
"How do you know that name?" he raged. "I have told only one person that name in 300 years. Did you torture her before you killed her?"
"I would not hurt her," Bruce said in a friendly manner. "Use your Auspex, Antonio." I heard a baby crying from inside the house as Antonio gave me a hard look. He was studying me.
Michael glanced over his shoulder then said to me, "I'll go get her. Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'll be fine," I replied reassuringly. I watched him disappear into the house, realizing that part of the visions made sense now. I must have been seeing parts of her life, the Brenda from this world. The pain in the hospital must have been childbirth. They have at least one child, I thought to myself in despair. They are happy, in love and have a family. And he thinks I'm her. What am I going to do? I felt more than a little panicked.
Where was Rafe? I realized I hadn't really thought of him ever since our little flip into the Twilight Zone. Was he next door? I knew that's where the other Rafe lived and I wanted to go to the door and knock but my current situation was way too tense. I focused on Antonio again.
"Mio Dios," he was saying. "You're a vampire."
"In my world I am, and it is you I have to thank for it." My tone was even but he still looked taken aback.
"Christina is missing," Bruce continued. "Do you know where she is?"
Antonio's face contorted in pain as he returned his attention to Bruce. "She's not missing," he spat. "She's dead and this bitch killed her." There went the finger in my direction again.
"Antonio," I began, "something is going on here. We are not from this world." How was I supposed to explain this to him? He was already extremely upset and probably thought I was playing games with him.
We all must have heard the door open at the same time because our three heads turned in unison. Christina and Rafe stood just outside the doorway of the other apartment.
"Christina!" Antonio exclaimed as he went to her side and wrapped his arms around her in a fierce hug.
"Antonio wait," I said. "That's not your Christina."
"Not today I'm not," she said easily as she pushed away from him. "I know I haven't seen you in a while but&Mac246;" she trailed off, seeming to remember that he wasn't the sire she knew and had been avoiding for a couple years.
Rafe had worked his way around the group of people to reach my side. I was so relieved to see him as he pulled me into his arms and hugged me tightly. "Are you all right?" I asked.
"I'm fine," he said, still holding me close. "Just very confused about what's going on." I pulled back to look at him, just to make sure he was real. "There are things going on here I don't think you realize."
"What? That this Brenda's a hunter?"
"Yeah," he said amazed. "How'd you know?"
"You kind of told me," I said with a smile.
"Oh, let me guess&Mac246; he's there?" After I nodded he asked, "Is he a creep?"
"No, he's a nice guy, but he's not you." I hugged him to me again and he kissed my temple lightly.
"Look," I heard Christina say from behind me and I turned. "I know you think I'm you're childe but I'm not. And I know you look like my Antonio but you're the Spaniard and we gotta figure this out." It was a good thing she didn't need to breathe. She was rattling along like a village idiot. "This isn't the Brenda you know, it's the Brenda I know and she's your childe and you don't know Bruce in our world. There's a Michael here that's married to you," she finished in a flourish as she turned her attention to me. I could tell she was nervous and upset, that's why she was ranting.
"I know," Rafe and I said at the same time then looked at each other. Remembering how touchy of a subject Michael was, I put my hand to his face and he covered it with his own.
"He needs to know what's going on so he doesn't come into this situation and flip out," I said.
"I know," he replied in a low voice. "There's a matter about giving something to Antonio or he's going to kill you." He pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to me.
"Well then, let's do that." I looked at the envelope and recognized Christina's handwriting on it. It was addressed to the Spaniard. I went to where he was still talking to my Christina and held out the envelope. "The Christina you knew apparently left this for you."
He snatched it from my hand, "Where did you get this?"
"It was by the door. I have no idea how it got there," Rafe told him. "There's a journal in there as well that says if you don't get this you'll kill Brenda and I don't want you to kill her so there it is."
"Chris, Michael is over there," I said taking her hand and she gently squeezed it in return. "I have to go talk to him. He's gotta know what's going on here." My voice was shaky and I dreaded the upcoming confrontation but I knew I had to do it. Christina nodded quietly and I could tell she was depressed and upset. I wished I had the time to talk to her now but dealing with Michael was more important.
I went to the door of the home Brenda and Michael shared and looked inside. It was a living room filled with warm comfortable furniture that was decorated in a style I myself would have chosen. The TV was on but no one was in the room. In one corner there was a playpen with older children's toys neatly piled next to it. I opened the screen and was surprised to find that I couldn't enter when I tried. It was like an invisible shield of some kind was keeping me from entering.
"Michael?" I called into the house, my hand resting on the barrier.
"Yeah, Bren. Are you okay?" His voice was coming from the second floor.
"Kind of." How could I tell him I couldn't enter? This was stupid. "Um, can you come here?"
"Why don't you come here?" he replied.
"I can't."
"Brenda, you know you can come in the house. Come on." And with those words my hand fell into the room as if by magic. I remembered hearing of vampires needing to be invited into a home but that was only in stories. I had never known of an actual Kindred impeded in such a way. With a final glance over my shoulder at Rafe I walked inside.
"Where are you?" I asked stepping into the room and letting the screen close behind me.
"I'm upstairs in Anna's room." Was that one of their children? I suddenly found myself wondering what they looked like. Did they have a boy that looked like Michael, with blond hair and clear blue eyes? Or did they have a girl with dark hair like mine? My emotions were such a whirl as I headed for the stairs that led to the second floor. What would he do when he found out that I wasn't his wife or worse yet, that I was one of the beings she hunted?
I worried that I would have to defend myself against him and I dreaded that I might have to hurt him. I wondered if my abilities were the same now that I found myself in a different place so I quickly lowered my fangs as I reached the bottom of the stairs just to make sure I still could and retracted them again. It would be stupid to meet Michael with that kind of calling card. I would be dead for sure.
There were picture frames on the wall that led up the stairs and I studied them as I slowly climbed up. They were the typical pictures of a growing family. Wedding day photos, professional poses of a couple and two children, and single pictures of two adorable little girls in various stages of development. The oldest was Anna and the baby was Brenna I learned from this Brenda's neat script that was so familiar to me. She had made collages of the girls their names in a colorful script.
The weird thing about the whole thing was that the mother was me, but not me. They all looked so happy I thought I was going to cry. It wasn't that I wanted to be the wife and mother in those pictures. It's just that the point was driven home once again that I could never be a wife and mother.
"Brenda?" Michael called, bringing me out of my thoughts. "Are you coming up? Come on, Anna wants to see you." I was stunned. I couldn't do this.
"Mommy." I heard a small child call out.
"Michael?" I was barely maintaining my composure.
"Yeah. Did you get rid of the Spaniard?"
"Um. We need to talk." There was no way in hell I was going up there.
"Did you kill the vamp on the stairs?" His tone said he was getting fed up with my hesitation.
"Could you come here please?" I heard movement and a few seconds later he appeared at the top of the stairs with a little girl that looked no more than three years old in his arms.
"Mommy," she cried and held out her little arms in my direction. I felt as if someone was ripping my heart out.
Michael must have seen my discomfort because he asked, "Brenda, what's wrong?" When I didn't respond he put Anna down and lowered himself down beside her. "Honey, why don't you go lay down. Mommy will be up later." She nodded with a finger in her mouth, something my father told me I always did, and walked out of sight. Not however, before blowing me a kiss and waving her little hand in my direction.
Michael rose and started down the stairs and I turned and did the same. When we were in the living room I quickly crossed to the other side to put as much space as possible between us.
"What's wrong, Brenda?" Michael asked following me. "Come on and give me a kiss. What did the Spaniard do to shake you that bad?"
"N-nothing," I stammered taking another step away from him.
Something caught his attention from the porch and he glanced out the front door. "He's still out there," he stated.
"Michael, please sit down. I know you're confused." He reached for my hand but I pulled away and he looked at me questioningly. "Michael, I have to talk to you," I indicated the couch. "Please sit down, there are some things I need to explain."
"Okay. I don't understand, but-" I followed him to the couch and he sat on the edge of it. There was a coffee table in front of the couch and I took a seat in front of Michael.
He moved to take my hand again and I dodged him. "Wait before you do that," I stammered and he laid his hands on my thighs instead. "There is something going on."
"Obviously," he chuckled slightly, then his expression turned serious. "Were you outside a long time? You're cold." He was looking down to where his hands lay and he started moving them up and down my thighs. Stop this, I warned myself. This is NOT a good idea.
"I-I'm going to be cold," I croaked out.
"I could warm you up," he replied slyly looking into my eyes with a come hither glance. My gaze went to the door and I was relieved that Rafe wasn't standing there. He probably would have rushed in with guns blazing.
"H-how can I say this," I said half out loud and half to myself. "Michael, I am not the Brenda you think I am."
"What," he laughed, "did you go and do something weird?"
"No. This is going to seem hard to believe&Mac246;"
"This whole thing is weird, honey. You're not leaving me are you?" His tone turned serious all of a sudden.
"No. Oh, my God. I am not from this world. Something has happened and I have switched places with your wife."
"I know it's almost Halloween, Bren, but come on. Is this some kind of trick?" His grip tightened slightly on my legs but he caught himself and relaxed his fingers again.
"This is no joke. I am dead serious." Our eyes were locked and I saw that something was going on in the depths of his clear blue ones. They were changing, becoming more animalistic in appearance. I also began to feel some kind of power wash over me again. Something like I felt earlier coming from Antonio but this time it came from Michael. Then I remembered what the other Rafe had told me.

Revealing the Truth

"Michael, are you Lupine?" I asked in partial disbelief.
He quickly removed his hands from my thighs then and gripped the couch cushion instead. He looked as if someone had slapped him across the face. "Brenda, you know I am. Don't play games with me," he almost growled.
"Michael believe me I wouldn't do that to you." I was really starting to get nervous. I didn't know much about werewolves to begin with and now I found myself in a place where I had to wonder about my abilities. It was too much to have to question what little knowledge of other things I had.
"What did you do with my wife?" he asked. He was beginning to believe what I was trying to tell him.
"She's probably in my world with my friends." At least I hoped Micky and Sarah had arrived at the park to find our counterparts. I found myself wondering what happened to the others who were in the park with us.
"Your vamp friends?" Michael asked gruffly.
"Nothing will happen to her," I assured him.
"How do we get her back?" He still looked dangerous but he was managing to keep a tight reign on his emotions.
"That's what we need to figure out."
"How did you get here?"
"In my world, we are fighting this group of not so nice vampires."
"That would be all of them," he retorted pointedly.
"No. Look, do you have the ability to tell if I'm lying to you or not?" I wasn't going to get anywhere if he couldn't trust me enough to believe what I was telling him.
"Try and find out. You've never been able to lie to me." He actually sounded smug, the jerk.
"Then you'll believe me when I tell you. There is a group called the Sabbat. Are you familiar with them?"
"It's a witches c-" he started.
"No," I quickly dismissed his assumption. "In our society they are a group, maybe like the vampires here. I don't know for sure, I've only met Antonio."
"Who?"
"Antonio. You know, the man who wishes to kill you wife."
"The Spaniard? His name in Antonio?" I didn't understand the big secrecy over Antonio's name. It's not like it was Eugene or anything.
"Yes," I replied.
"How did you get here and why isn't Christina dead?" I heard the cushion under his clenched fingers begin to tear. I had to admit his control was really admirable.
"I'll tell you everything if you'll just give me some time. I believe they have done some kind of black ritual that has switched us. For what reason, I don't know. Maybe they thought we were a threat to their plan to take over the city and they'll be able to achieve their end easier without us there." Then I thought about the bugs and cameras that were found in my house and how angry the Michael from my world must have been to see me with another man. He could be pretty possessive when he wanted to. "On the other hand, maybe they're just having some fun and experimenting for the future."
"How do we fix it?" he asked.
"I don't know." And it really pissed me off. I felt so helpless and I didn't like the feeling.
"Well, maybe we better find someone who does." He sounded angry because I didn't have all the answers and I couldn't blame him.
"That's my hope."
"Who's that?" he asked finally noticing my adopted childe who sat next to Antonio on the porch.
"That's my friend, Bruce Blackwell."
"And I bet he's a vamp too." After I nodded he continued under his breath, "I'm surrounded by vamps. Let me guess, you could come in because I told you to."
"I guess," I replied hesitantly. I still didn't understand what was up with me not being able to come in. "On my life, Michael, nothing will happen."
"I will not allow anything to happen to my children."
"Neither will I. They area an extension and you and her."
"Well let's go outside and discuss this if you can keep the Spaniard under control."
"I will do whatever I have to." We both stood at the same time, ending up nose-to-nose and close enough to touch our lips together. For an instant I think the both of us almost forgot who the other was and just kissed because it was so easy. Even though I hadn't been with my Michael for over two years I still felt the familiarity of being with him just by the close contact with the man in front of me.
The moment lasted that long however. Just a moment. I'm not sure but I thought the both of us moved closer and almost kissed then remembered ourselves and pulled awkwardly away. We went out to the porch were Bruce and Antonio were still seated on the steps, Antonio was still reading the contents of the envelope Rafe had brought out of the adjoining house. Rafe and Christina stood leaning against the house staying out of the way.
"Do you know any mages or anyone with magical abilities?" I asked Michael as the screen door once again shut.
"No one Brenda hasn't killed," he replied. "She doesn't make friends in the supernatural community. E-except Lupines," he added guiltily.
"Great," I muttered.
Antonio finished reading then and carefully folded the papers and replaced them in the envelope. When Bruce asked him if he was all right Antonio looked to the sky and nodded his head quietly, blood tears were apparent in his eyes but he wasn't letting them fall. The two men continued to talk in low voices as Michael and I joined Christina and Rafe.
I noticed a hole about the size of a fist in the side of the house, just below Christina's shoulder, and I thought that something more had happened to upset her. She tended to hit things when she got angry. When I looked at her pointedly she ignored me and I didn't press her about it. There would be time later.
Rafe looked relieved that Michael and I hadn't come out of the house arm in arm and I had to admit there was a small part of me that wanted just that. He moved to stand beside me but I discreetly held out a hand for him to wait. I didn't want Michael to see that the two of us were involved.
I wasn't discreet enough however because Michael looked from Rafe to me and asked, "Let me guess, Rafe went too?" I nodded slowly and he replied, "So this Rafe is from your world?"
"Yes."
"And you guys are lovers aren't you?" he asked with disgust and it pissed me off.
"Only because you left me," I defended myself in a low voice. This guy was not going to put me on the spot for any of my decisions.
"Wasn't me," he said simply. "I never would have left my Brenda."
"But he did."
I didn't stop Rafe this time when he moved to come to my side. Michael eyed him up and down in an almost jealous way.
"In this world she ended up with yours. Her sire sent it to her," I heard Antonio say from behind me and I turned to see that Buffy Summers and Rachel Black were striding up the front walk.
"Her what?" Bruce asked. Rachel's attention was brought to him and shock filled her features. Buffy looked from the sword Bruce was holding to the one sticking out from behind her right shoulder.
"Are you Bruce?" she asked in disbelief.
"Last time I checked," he replied. Rachel finally came to her senses and began to slowly approach the porch, clutching her chest.
Buffy looked to me and asked, "Brenda, what's going on?"
"This is Lord Bruce Blackwell," was all I said. I didn't know weather these newcomers would be friend or foe and I wasn't about to give away anything more.
"I thought you were dead," Rachel said when she reached the bottom of the stairs. "I saw her kill you." She had eyes only for Bruce and I wondered what kind of relationship the two of them had had in this place.
"She did." Bruce stood and pulled her up the stairs and into his arms.
"Bruce, is she alright?" I asked.
"Yeah, she's fine. Not exactly what I'm used to." He was looking down at her awkwardly, like she was a toad or something.
"What are you talking about?"
"Let me guess," Michael said incredulously from next to me, "in your world she's not a vampire?"
"No," I replied as I really looked at her for the first time and realized he was right. "She is here though."
Rachel pulled back in Bruce's embrace and stared at him. "What are you talking about? You're the one who made me."
Bruce was visibly shaken and it took him a moment to reply. "No, I-I don't think so."
"What about the Slayer?" I asked indicating Buffy with my head. I had also noticed that she too was of the Kindred variety.
"Me? I'm not the Slayer, you are. I gave up that job. Well, I had no choice. What was I suppose to do, slay myself?"
"That would have been interesting," Bruce chuckled.
Buffy turned her attention to Antonio, "Is this you revenge?"
"Wasn't me," he replied with his hands in the air.
"Yeah, it was." Bruce was still chuckling as he tucked Rachel under one arm.
"Bruce," I warned. "I think that's irrelevant right now. Chris are you okay?"
"Yeah."
"What happened to your hand?"
"The wall hit it," she mused with a slight smile.
"Don't you hate it when that happens?" Bruce interjected with irony.
"Yeah. Kind of stings."
I smiled at her and turned to Antonio. "We need your help, Antonio."
"Antonio?" Buffy asked, her nose wrinkled. "Is that your name?"
The look he gave me said, can't you keep you mouth shut. Bruce leaned toward me and said lowly, "I think we should call him the Spaniard."
"I don't understand what's going on," Antonio said shaking his head. "Where were you before you came to this world?"
"A-aren't we in Salem?" I asked. The thought hadn't even crossed my mind before. It was crazy enough dealing with the fact that we were no longer in our time but to think that we weren't in Salem either was particularly disturbing.
"Salem, Washington?" Antonio asked in disbelief.
"No, Salem, Massachusetts," I replied.
He shook his head, a piteous look on his face. "Try Nashville, Tennessee," was all he said. Nashville? How could this be? The more information I got about this place the more confused I became.
"We need to find a Tremere," I said under my breath as I thought about what our next move should be.
"A what?" Buffy asked. I couldn't remember just how much Kindred knowledge she had but since she was now a vampire herself I expected that she would.
"A Tremere," I repeated. "You." I pointed to Antonio.
He just stared blankly at me however. "I don't know what that is," was all he said.
"Spooky boo," Bruce interjected.
"You know Thaumaturgy? Blood Magic?"
"That I can do," he said with a slight grin.
"We need to find somebody with the ability to switch us back," I said. "Do you know anyone?"
"I believe it was a Lasombra that had something to do with it," Bruce offered.
"Yes, I think it was some dark ritual they performed."
"You guys are obviously not from around here," Antonio said. "You said you were from Salem. Who do you know there?"
"Elvira Van Dorn is the Prince and her childe, Micky George."
Antonio shook his head sadly. "He's her ghoul, here. Well he used to be before she lost him in a card game."
"Is Elvira still alive in the world?" I asked Antonio.
"Yeah. But I don't think you want to call her. What about Faith?"
I nodded. "She's a Tremere from Nashville."
"Now she's in Salem but she probably won't talk to me. She's a little upset with me."
"Why? What did you do?" Bruce asked.
"There can be only one Master vampire in town at a time," he explained. It was decided that Rachel would try to contact Faith. After finding out that Bruce's cell phone didn't work here Rafe went into his counterparts apartment to get a cordless.
Bruce seemed to notice Michael who was standing on the fringe of the group and cautiously approached him. "This has got to be hard on you," he said friendly.
"What, being surrounded by vamps? Or how about finding out that my wife isn't my wife? Or that in another world she's my friend's lover? And that she's a vamp?"
"If it's any comfort to you at all, in the other world you're a vampire, too." I didn't mean to hurt him in any way but he was acting like he was the only one displaced in this whole situation.
"Oh, really? Was that before or after the werewolf bit me on campus?"
"You weren't born Lupine?" I asked.
"No. How do you get to be Lupine in your world?"
"You're born," Bruce and I replied together.
"Not here. You have to be bit."
"I'm sorry," I muttered.
"Lotta changes," Bruce said as he turned and went to speak to Buffy. I smile a little smile. Bruce had said that when he first came up from Rachel's yard. Obviously there were many things, everything to be exact that were different from the time in which he had lived. He took things in stride and began to use that phrase when he tried to understand a new situation. I hadn't heard him say that in a while.
"I saw the photographs on the stairway."
"The kids?"
"Yes. They're beautiful."
"They look a lot like you."
"You're a lucky individual. I hope you understand and realize what you have with her."
"I thank God every day."
"I'm glad one of you does." Distracted
"I'm not in the other world?"
"Not lately."
"Which would explain why you're sleeping with Rafael. He's not a vamp?"
"No, he's not." Rafe came out with the phone then and handed it Rachel then started across the porch to me. "I understand you have reservations about me and that's fine but-" I knew I had no right to ask what I was about to but I couldn't stop myself. "Is there anyway I could just look at the girls?"
"You know I can kill you," he said in a low voice.
"I'll give you the gun."
"I don't need a gun. If you swear you won't harm them."
"I swear it with my life."
"Alright."
"I'll be right back," I said to Rafe and kissed his cheek. He looked apprehensive again but didn't say anything as Michael and I crossed the porch. Once inside the house, I carefully took out each of my guns and placed them on the coffee table.
Michael led the way upstairs. The bedrooms were all on the left and he went into the first of them. The nursery was done in pink with an adorable bunny border along the top of the walls. The room was spacious but filled with a crib, toddler bed and two tall dressers. More toys spilled from an ancient but sturdy toy box that I recognized as my own from childhood. Anna was sitting up in her bed with a stuffed Ernie on her lap.
"Mommy! Daddy!" she cried when she saw us. Michael crossed the room and put his first finger to his lips in a gesture designed to keep the little girl quiet. He sat on the bed and laid his large hand on her head. "How ya doing, honey?" he asked.
"I'm waiting for my kiss so I can do to sleep," she informed him matter-of-factly. I could tell that this child had a memory as long as an elephant. She got to her knees and threw her chubby arms around Michael's neck I a fierce hug of joy. He hugged her in return and I knew his was upset and trying to hide it from the little girl.
I glanced in the crib from where I had stopped in the doorway and saw that the baby, Brenna, who was about a year old, was fast asleep. She looked purely angelic and I knew she would be as beautiful as Anna was.
Michael and Anna exchanged more hugs and kisses before she broke away and turned to me with her arms outstretched again. I looked to Michael for help. I knew there was no way in hell he was going to let me touch them and he would have to defuse the situation.
"Mommy isn't feeling good tonight, honey," he explained as he laid her down on the bed and pulled the covers over her. "She doesn't want to make you sick, too, so you're going to have to blow her kisses."
"Okay," she laughed in that child like innocence as she sat up and blew me a kiss. My heart ached again as I watched her. "Aren't you going to catch it, Mommy," she asked sadly.
"Oh, right," I replied as I caught the imaginary kiss and blew one to her in return.
"I hope you feel better, Mommy," Anna said with a yawn then added, "Make Daddy kiss it and make it all better."
"Thank you, sweetie," I croaked. I knew I was near to tears and didn't want to scare the little girl so I quickly ducked out into the hallway while Michael finished the tucking in ritual.
"Thank you," I said lowly after he joined me in the hall.
"Did you love me in that world?" he asked quietly.
"I still do."
"Then what happened?"
"You left me. I met you when I lived in Las Vegas. You are a very smart and charming man. I helped you I you business ventures and we developed a relationship. About six months later I found out that you were a vampire. You made me your ghoul and we were happy."
"Ghoul? I put my mark on you?"
"You fed me blood periodically and I stopped aging. I was still human so I could be out during the day."
"So I made you my human servant."
"Kind of, yes. I helped you. We had a relationship. We loved each other."
"So what happened?" he asked.
"I wanted to become like you. To be your equal and you didn't want to give it to me. I understood that, but&Mac246;"
"Don't blame me."
"Sorry. So when someone else offered, I thought it would be perfect. I thought we could have whatever kind of normal life we could have in terms of Kindred."
"What?"
"Vampires. So I went and got embraced and when I came back you had changed. I don't think you liked not having a hold over me anymore. You told me I needed time to adjust to my new life." I was trembling slightly. I had never really talked about everything that happened with him to anyone. Micky had the basic facts but I didn't think he really wanted the whole story, especially now that I had found out about Michael and Sarah. "You left me," I finished in a small voice.
Michael was surprisingly silent. I was sure he would have taken the opportunity to give a few jibes about the stupidity of allowing yourself to get embraced. We reached the top of the stairs and started down.
"I'm sorry," I said, trying to sound normal. "I didn't mean to unload on you."
"Sounds like I'm a real asshole. I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault."
"You're right. I would have never acted like that. Well, I guess I did. Let's go downstairs and see if we can't get back what's suppose to be."

Saying Good-bye to What Can Never Be

"Yeah, so I can get out of your hair," I replied to Michael. We were back in the living room and I was collecting my weapons. Just as I turned to glance out the screen door I saw Christina reach back with her fist and for no apparent reason at all hit the wall of the house. If memory served my right, there had been a hole in the wall already and it just happened to be right where her hand would have landed. Is she trying to disfigure herself or what, I thought as I went to the door and called out, "Chris? What are you doing?"
"I had an itch," she mumbled like a petulant child as her flexed her fingers.
"That wall didn't do anything to you," I retorted before turning back to Michael. He was only a few feet from me, the closest he'd willingly put himself since finding out what I was. "Can you uninvite me in?" I asked.
"Uninvite?" He thought for a moment and when he couldn't find an answer called out, "Hey, Spaniard. Anyway to uninvite?"
The Spaniard smiled wickedly. "No. Once we're in, we're in."
Rachel had finished her conversation by then and had returned the phone to Rafe. She informed us that the only person the Elvira of this world knew of who could perform that kind of ritual was Angelus. I'd never heard of anyone by that name so I asked, "So how do we go about getting there?"
"It's a couple hours by plane," Antonio intoned.
Rachel was afraid for Bruce to go to Salem and voiced her opinion. She didn't want to give Elvira the opportunity to kill him again and asked him to stay.
"Do not worry, love," Bruce soothed her and it was decided that she would accompany us to act as a guide of sorts. Rachel was happy to give us what information she had about the Salem of this world and I was a little surprised and concerned when she mentioned Akari's name. Rachel also informed us that Beth was still alive in this place and that she and Akari had Elvira wrapped around their little fingers.
And to tell the truth, that thought pissed me off. "I guess I'm gonna have to go to work," I growled lowly to Rafe. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I left this world without restoring Elvira to the leader I knew she could be. She has done so much for me that I thought I could give back a little even if it wasn't the woman I knew. "Are there any tools of Brenda's trade around?" I asked Michael, getting ideas.
"Yeah. I have her executioners bag." He gestured with his thumb back into the house.
"Can I borrow a few things?" I figured a few finely sharpened stakes couldn't hurt the effort.
"Are you planning on bringing them back?" he asked indignantly as he eyed me warily. "Why don't you take the whole thing?"
I understood how he felt. We'd said our peace and I was sure that he didn't want to or plan to see me again after I walked off his front porch. "I don't want to take her entire supply."
"Don't worry. She has another in her car." He was grinning in that cocky way that had captured me heart to start off with. I mentally chastised myself for thinking of such things as I realized that I wasn't really experienced with stakes.
"Well, I guess I have phosphorus rounds. That should be enough."
"What?" Michael asked astonished. My comment had drawn the attention of the rest of the group who had all turned to face me.
"Does phosphorus do anything to you?" Bruce asked of Buffy.
"What?" she asked, echoing Michael.
"You know, Dragon's Breath," he pressed.
"There aren't any dragons in America," she said matter-of-factly her mouth twisting wryly. "They're in China."
Obviously they didn't have the phosphorous rounds in this world or they called them something else. Bruce went about finding out in another way. "What would happen if I held a lighter to you?"
"I would burn," she replied simply as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Phosphorus is fire?"
Bruce pulled one of his guns from a shoulder holster and unloaded a round. He took it between his thumb and first fingers much like I had done with Rafe and held it up. "Phosphorus," was all he said.
"Dragon's Breath," I confirmed. "Fire. It's extremely flammable."
"Really?" She was absolutely amazed. "Where do you get these?" Buffy took a step closer to Bruce and moved her hand as if to take the round from him. She changed her mind at the last moment, however, and crossed her arms once again as if she were slightly afraid to touch it.
"Elvira," he replied simply in answer to her question.
"Can we go please?" I asked. Time was wasting and we had to get to Salem if we ever had a chance of getting home.
"By all means," Antonio headed for the sidewalk then stopped and turned to Michael. "Tell you wife she is safe from me for now. She has my childe to thank for that."
"That's fine but if you come back here again she'll kill you," Michael promised. He wasn't affected by Antonio's threat any more than the Michael I knew would have been.
"I won't be back unless she gives me cause to." The group started down the walk together.
I grabbed Rafe's hand as he turned toward the stairs. "Go ahead," I said to him in a low voice. "Make sure Christina is okay." I knew he wasn't happy about it but he did it reluctantly, offering Christina his arm as they arrived at the steps at the same time. Bruce had in turn offered his arm to Rachel and they all made a small parade of vampires down to the white picket fence. There was one more thing I wanted to do before we left.
I turned to Michael for one last time and said, "I want you to know I will do whatever it takes to set this right." It was my turn now to cross my arms over my chest.
"I hope so, I don't normally trust vampires." His eyes locked with mine and in those blue depths I saw the concern for the woman he loved and my heart went out to the both of them. God, I hope we can make things right, I thought to myself.
"I hope you can find it in you conscience to trust me." It was important to me that he could. What if we couldn't perform the ritual that would switch us back and we were stuck here?
"I just want my wife back." His tone was so matter of fact that I pushed my own concerns over our failure to the back of my mind.
"I will do whatever I need to," I promised.
"Fair enough."
I held out my hand and to my surprise he took it. "Thank you for showing me what could have been."
"I'm not sure I can say the same. I don't think I want to know what could have been with there." His statement crushed my insides but I didn't let him see it. I went half way down the walk and turned for one last look at Michael. He was as harsh as ever. Rafe was waiting when I headed back and I went to him and put my arm around his waist and rested my head on his shoulder as he hugged me to him.
It had been decided that the Spaniard was going to lend us his jet for the trip to Salem and had offered to see us to the airport. I thought it was because he wanted to spend as much time with Christina as possible even though he knew it wasn't his dead childe. He and Buffy wouldn't be accompanying us to Salem but wished us well. I saw that Antonio and Christina were having a conversation of some kind off to the side just before we got into the cars to go to the airport and he handed her the envelope Rafe had given him at the house. Within minutes we were on our way.

(c) Helen Griffus