1 - The darkest night will pass…

“You’re out of your mind, Trev.” Kemp’s whisper was so soft Trevor had to strain to hear it.

“Chickening out?” Trevor asked under his breath as he studied the four vampyres.

“Not in this life time.” Kemp turned to look for his brother, sensing him close by.

It had all started two weeks previously. Leif had come down from Seattle to surprise Kemp and help him celebrate his twenty-second birthday. He found his kid brother had more to celebrate than that. He’d finally landed a gig at one of the local clubs.

“I’m only a backup singer,” Kemp had admitted, once he got over his shock at seeing his brother and they’d settled down at the bar at Sinclair’s club to play catch-up.

“Hey don’t knock it, it’s a start.” Leif studied his brother surreptitiously, trying to gauge how well he’d recovered from Owen’s death. There was pain in his eyes where there used to be laughter. Pain Kemp tried to hide but Leif knew him too well. Uncertain whether he should or not, he asked, “How are you doing? And I want an honest answer.”

Kemp tensed up, turning away to take a long pull on his beer.

That in itself gave Leif pause. Kemp had always stayed away from alcohol, claiming he didn’t like the loss of control. But that had been two long years ago. His brother had been forced to grow up since then. Too much so, too fast. After waiting a moment, Leif tapped Kemp’s shoulder. “Talk to me.”

With a deep sigh Kemp spun around to look at him. “I miss the hell out of him even though we barely had any time together. And don’t tell me it’ll get better in time because I know that. But it’s slow coming Leif, real slow.”

Leif smiled. “Then I’ll refrain from lecturing you. I suspect you’ve had that coming out your ears. So, back to the big news, when do you start your gig?”

“On Friday. I don’t suppose you’ll still be in town for it, will you?”

“For this, damned straight I will. I’ll have to call my captain but I’ve got a few more days coming so it should all be good.”