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Dominick returned to the last place he had seen his dead sister, the Mall. It was the best place to start, he figured. Other then driving around aimlessly, he didn't have a clue as to where to find her. If it was true. Was Emily back? Dominick could not wrap his mind around the thought. Yet, that is exactly what William's message had provoked in him, a hope that she was back again. Dead loved ones had returned. Dominick fervently hoped if she was alive, that it was his Emily of childhood, and not the vampire she had been turned into.
He walked the mall's corridors and shops, covering each and every corner and crevace, his eyes peeled. Every little girl gave him a start, his heart pounding against his ribcage and his breath leaving his body in a sudden rush. That was always followed by disappointment, however.
After a few hours he decided to sit down in the food court with a cup of strong coffee. He rubbed at his eyes and rested his elbows on the table, letting the comforting liquid warm his weary bones. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her. He froze, afraid to move or he might startle her.
She was watching him intently. He finally relaxed in his chair, gave her a small and encouraging smile, and sipped from his coffee. He never took his eyes off of her, watching her from over the rim of his paper cup.
It seemed like hours before he saw her take a tentative step his way. Then a look crossed her face as if she finally had made a decision, and walked the last few steps to stand in front of his table.
She pushed her chin out at him, resting her hands on her hips. "You know me." It wasn't a question, but a statement. Why else would he have chased after her like he had before?
Dominick simply nodded, putting his half empty coffee cup down on the table.
"Well? How? And who am I? And how did I end up here?"
She was exactly as he remembered her. Unafraid, inquisitive, and in control. He wanted to burst from his chair and wrap her into a feroucious hug. "I don't know how you got here. I'm as amazed and confused as you." He swallowed at the lump in his throat. "Your name is Emily, and I'm Dominick. You are...you are my little sister." He said that in a whisper, barely being heard over the din of the mall shoppers.
Emily stood silent for a moment, studying him. "Your kind of old to be my brother, aren't you?"
He snorted at that, his hands now playing with the napkins on the table. "Well, I...uh, I can't explain it, Emily. We were only a few years apart, and then you died, see? And now it's years later, and you are back." He had no wish to tell her about her vampiric unlife. Instead, he shrugged. "I was hoping you could tell me what has happened? Where have you been?"
She sighed and pulled out a chair to sit across from him. The chair was almost bigger then her, and Dominick struggled to help her, but the look on her face told him not to move. "Are you hungry?" She nodded, and he excused himself to grab her a bowl of soup. She gave him a grateful look before digging in. She talked in between bites, but she ate as if she were ravenous. "I don't know. I was just here. I don't remember anything. Not you. Not my name. Nothing." She set down the spoon and picked up the bowl to bring to her lips, drinking every last drop of the soup. She smiled as she set it down on the table. "Thanks, I was starving." She pushed the bowl away and rested her hands in her lap. "So, Dominick, now what?"
"Well, I was hoping you could come back with me, to Searchlight. It's a town where I live. There are...people there. They can help. Some of them are having the same thing happening to them. Maybe we can find out why you are here?"
Emily watched him as he talked. He seemed so sincere. He had fed her when she was hungry. She wasn't scared around him. Anywhere and anything was better then walking and walking in this place, with strangers ignoring her or shoving her out of their way. "There are others there like me?"
Dominick nodded. "Yes, so I've heard. There are also people there that study things like this. Magic and other things. They can help, I'm sure of it." He tried to give her an encouraging smile. He was so afraid she would bolt again. "There's no reason to be afraid. I promise."
A minute passed, perhaps two. Emily regarded him quietly, and neither took their eyes off of each other. She didn't know whether to believe him or not, but she was tired of being alone and scared. Slowly she stood up, and held her hand out to him. "Ok."
He took her smaller hand into his with his heart in his throat. Together, they would find answers.
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tired
worried