Annie Underestimated Excerpt
For a second time you wake up in a daze. You are on a couch in a crappy motel room. You don't remember waking up and wonder how you made it inside. You hear someone from the other room and sit up as Dean walks in. "Look who’s awake," he says. He stares at you for a few minutes preparing himself for the onslaught of questions like “Where am I” “Who are you” and “What were those things?” but none of them come. You try to stand but your legs give out. In an instant, Dean is there wrapping his arm around your waist pulling you back against his chest. “I need to shower” you say testily. He lets go of you as you stagger to the shower.
You turn the shower on, sit on the toilet cover, and immediately start sobbing softly. Finally, once hot steam fills the bathroom, you undress. You let the spray knead your muscles. You wash the dried blood from your hands, hair and fingernails. You grab a fresh towel and stare at your blood stained jeans and torn bustier. You gag at the thought of putting them on. A knock at the bathroom door startles you.
You open the door and see Sam’s face. His eyes are wide as he drops his gaze to the towel wrapped around your chest. He realizes what he is doing and drags his eyes back to your face.
"Hey ... ummm” *Ahem*" He clears his throat finally pulling himself together. “I got you some clothes. They should be around your size.” Memories of another place and time flood your brain. Deja vu when an 11-year-old girl washed off the blood encrusted around her nose and someone brought her clean clothes. You briefly study the stack of clothes Sam handed you. Skinny jeans, comfy thick socks, and an oversized Guns n’ Roses band shirt. You get dressed grateful for the thick socks. You tie off the oversized shirt, so it doesn’t look quite so enormous and run your fingers through your hair trying to detangle it. The hotel hair dryer sucks, but you dry as much of your hair as you can before tossing it into a high pony tail. You can already feel it dripping cold water on your shoulders. You walk out of the bathroom. Sam sits at the table hunched over his laptop as Dean lounges on one of the queen beds. You stare blankly at him eyeing him up and down. Your thought seeing them again would invoke the rage, but instead you feel empty. Drained. Sam stands and extends his arm to the chair opposite his "I think we should talk" he says. Sam clears his throat and says cautiously "So... Who are you?" "My name is Annie" you respond. "We know that. Why don’t you tell us what the HELL you were doing with a bunch of VAMPS" Dean shouts. Sam’s eyes flare telling him to cut it out and you close your eyes for a second wishing you were anywhere but here. You shiver as cold water drips down your back from your ponytail. Dean rolls his eyes as he tosses you his red and black flannel. You take your time putting it on, your sore muscles protesting, and then realize it’s time to tell them. You clear your throat and say “Those vamps you killed were my brothers." Flashback An-11-year old Annie is running through the forest. Sharp branches tear at her jeans and the blood from piercing thorns smear across her arms. Her shirt is ripped at the chest as she tries to hold it together with slick fingers. A purple bruise blossoms on her jaw and another on the side of her head. Dried blood is crusted around her nose and mouth.
Despite her injuries she pushes onward. “Don’t look back. Don’t look back” she repeats to herself. She stumbles and falls twisting her ankle. “Keep going. Keep going” she says as a figure emerges from behind her. “There you are” Uncle Dave says as he takes a step forward. He is a tall man, with thinning hair, mottled skin, repulsive food stains on his shirt and a lustful gleam in his eyes. She takes two steps back and yelps “Get back.” He chuckles softy and says “You know you are coming back with me you ungrateful girl.” She shakes your head frantically as his temper explodes. “You are coming back if I have to drag you myself” he rages grabbing her arm slick with blood. A muffled scream escapes her lips as she tries to twist free not caring if she dislocates her shoulder. Suddenly two men appear. “Well, well, what do we have here” one of them says. Jason and Fin take a step forward. Uncle Dave just stands there. “Taking back what's mine boys. Nothing to see here” he says his eyes squinting at the newcomers. “Is that so” Fin asks, while Jason eyes Annie's bruises and torn clothes. They extend their fangs and unhinge their jaws and it is a miracle Annie doesn't pass out. Fin sinks his teeth into Uncle Dave’s neck as Annie collapses and wets her pants in fear. Fin tears at Uncle Dave’s neck as thick wet sucking sounds fill the air. Fin turns to her and she realizes she is next. She smashes her fist into his stomach hoping to buy herself time. Fin grabs her forearm amused, and looks inquisitively at Jason. He stands pulling Annie up with him. “This one is ..different” he tells Jason. "What! What are you talking about let's just eat her" Jason shouts. "No" Fin responds firmly. “This one isn’t like the others,” he says again firmly ending the conversation. Years later Annie, Fin and Jason live in an abandoned house on the outskirts of town. Shortly after they saved her, Jason and Fin explain to Annie how they were turned and their lives before they became vamps. Their drunk dad killed their mom and when a vamp came after the boys he didn’t lift a finger to help. They have been hunting ever since.
Remnants of their humanity linger as feelings of guilt and disgust plague them with each kill. They tell her when they stumbled upon her in the forest, it reminded them so painfully of their past, they spared her. Deciding life had already dealt them more blows than most, they made a plan to only feed on those who deserve it. Jason and Fin took Annie in and eventually taught her how to fight so she would never feel helpless. Annie became the perfect lure. Rapists, convicts, and murders, all drawn to her adolescent body and striking beauty. She attracted men in droves; none of them caring that she was underage. Her brothers always fed. It was their one twisted way of making the world a better place and taking care of one another.
Annie Underestimated Link