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think you could get away with that?”
    “No, Mom,” he tried to explain. “It was Van. He…”
    “Liar! Don’t blame your cousin for your stupidity! If you were more like Van, we’d all be better off! You’re just trash! That’s all you’ve ever been, and that’s all you ever will be!”
    My lower lip began to tremble, and I felt my fists clench. I gritted my teeth together, trying to contain the strange mixture of fear and rage that suddenly began to overtake my body and my mind.
    The slight woman grabbed Kai by the hair and shoved him against the counter. She reached over and turned one of the knobs on the stove, and blue flames shot up from one of the eyes. Still holding him by the hair with her left hand, she grabbed Kai’s left hand with her right and shoved it toward the flames, and he screamed out in pain.
    I was horrified. I wanted to do something, but I couldn’t move. I’d been holding my breath for so long, I could feel myself getting lightheaded, and suddenly tears began to well up in my eyes.
    I couldn’t bear it. My entire body began to tremble violently. I saw brief flashes of a hazy, reddish fog before my eyes, and I shut my eyes tightly, trying to block out the scene in front of me. I could feel a surge of violence begin to wash over me, and I was afraid of what I might do. Despite my best efforts to remain undetected, a shuddering growl escaped my lips. I gasped, and covered my mouth, but it was too late. I’d been detected.
    The woman wheeled around to face me with fire in her eyes. For a moment, I was afraid she might strike me. I knew my instinct would kick in if she did, and I would hurt her. I didn’t want that. Fortunately, she just glared at me in shock for a moment and grabbed her car keys off the table, heading for the door.
    “Mom, no!” Kai shouted, chasing after her. “You can’t drive like this!”
    He tried to grab the keys from his mother’s hand, but she snatched them away.
    “Don’t tell me what to do, you miserable fuck-up! I wish you were dead!” she screamed.
    Kai watched helplessly as his mother barged out the door, got into her car, and sped away. For a moment, I was still frozen in place. Then I ran to him and grabbed his hand. Even in the dark, I could see it was badly burned.
    “Oh, Kai,” I whispered, horrified.
    “I’m fine,” he said, shaking his head. I could feel his hand trembling in mine.
    My eyes began to sting as tears filled them. I couldn’t stand this. I’d never in my life witnessed something so completely heartbreaking. Kai’s own mother had hurt him this way, and then he tried to keep her from driving drunk. He was protecting the woman who had just treated him like a worthless piece of trash. A moment earlier, I felt like I could rip her apart.
    Kai stood there, motionless. I couldn’t tell what he was feeling until he suddenly collapsed on the floor, sobbing. Instantly, I fell to the floor beside him. Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around him. He trembled violently as I held him, and he cried harder than I’d ever seen anyone cry before.
    I’d seen a lot of emotional movies, but nothing could have prepared me for this. The vampires I knew were rarely so emotional, so the sensation was foreign. My heart ached for him. I’d never felt such a deep emotion in my entire life. I almost felt human, or at least what I imagined it would be like.
    I tried to hold him as close to me as I could. I knelt there beside him, trying to pull him into my arms and shelter him. I wanted to comfort him. I wanted to take away what had just happened to him. I’d have given anything to be able to do so at that moment.
    I rested my head against his, and I noticed how intoxicating he smelled. His hair had an indescribable scent that was somewhere between fresh-baked bread and French fries. I don’t know how I could even notice after what I’d just witnessed, but it lingered with me. It wasn’t like anything I’d ever smelled before.
    He sat on the