We Meet Again

"What the fuck!?" Silas is pissed—scratch that, he feels like fucking murdering someone right now. The only thing that feels worse than his anger is the fear that makes his skin crawl. "I've only been gone for a few hours!!"

Bill doesn't say anything. The man hasn't even looked at him throughout the argument, and this only makes Silas more pissed. "I begged you not to do this! I was against this fucking abortion, and yet you went behind my back to do it! Now you have no fucking idea where she is?!"

"I am sorry, I should have protected her better," Bill says. The regret and shame are evident in his voice. He hadn't meant to let his guard down. One moment, he was by Kerry's side, and they were about to begin the procedure. The next moment, his vision went blurry, and he had no idea what the fuck happened. When everything cleared up, Kerry was gone. It happened so fast that Bill found it hard to believe.

He had searched for her, of course. He had hoped that perhaps she had left on her own, even if the thought was very unlikely. He had surveyed the entire area in his car, but in the end, he had to return home without her. The more people who knew, the better. They needed to find Kerry fast before anything happened. There was something that told him his son might have hidden parts of the story from them. Unless Kerry's pregnancy had given her the ability to teleport or speed walk away, someone else was involved in this.

"But I think there is more to the story than you're letting on."

"I told you all you needed to know! The rest was none of your fucking business!"

"There's something then. Do you not understand that if you had come clean from the very beginning, I would have known what I was facing?! You failed to mention that there was someone else involved in this!"

"Kerry asked you to be here, not me! If it was my choice, I would have looked after her myself!"

"Of course, because you are so damn understanding! You've been watching her suffer for weeks, and you didn't even think to tell her the truth! You would have rather she died during that damn pregnancy than let her get an abortion. Sometimes I wonder if you are my son! It's hard to think I raised such an inconsiderate, self-loving asshole for a son!!"

"Say whatever the fuck you want! You think I give a fuck about what you think?! You had one job to do, and you couldn't do that right!"

"That is enough!!" Sera snapped. She had been silent all this while, trying her best to keep her emotions at bay. But the more she listened to her husband and stepson argue, the more frustrated and angry she got. "This isn't the time for this! My daughter is still missing, and I have no idea whether she is fine or not!"

"Sweetheart, I am so sorry," Bill edged closer to her and gave her a sympathetic look. "That was very inconsiderate of us," he said.

Silas scowled as he took his seat. He ignored his father trying to comfort his wife. He thought about what his father had said. Had he really been ignorant and selfish for wanting her to deliver the baby? It was their child, and he had been confident that Kerry would want the baby as much as he did. He was even willing to do whatever it took to keep her safe. He thought he had it all planned out, but now it seemed that he had been foolish all this time. Perhaps he had read it all wrong; maybe Kerry didn't want the baby after all. She had hinted at it, and he had watched her go through so much pain, yet he had ignored it.

In a way, this had been his fault. Kerry wouldn't have had to depend on his father to keep her safe if only he had been a better boyfriend to her. And now Asher had her—the fucking vampire lord who had lived for centuries, and Silas still had no idea what he wanted. Asher was a mystery in his own right.

It was said that he had ruled nearly the entire vampire population during the 5th century. Some even speculated that he had been the one to nurture the Forbidden Tree. But it didn't make any sense. Asher was someone who believed that vampires were superior and deserved to be at the very top, so why would he choose to create something that could easily be a vampire's biggest weakness? Until Kerry told him the truth, Silas hadn't even believed that Asher Van Gogh was real, nor had he believed in the Forbidden Tree. But Kerry wouldn't lie, and he had seen enough evidence for himself to believe it.

'What does he want with her?'

Out of all the millions of humans out there, why Kerry? Was it because she was a half-blood? If that was the case, shouldn't he have been after Kerry's father instead? The man was physically stronger, and his blood was pure. This whole thing was damn confusing. Silas was worried about his girlfriend, but he knew Asher wouldn't hurt her. If the vampire had wanted her, he would have killed her a long time ago. He had several opportunities to do so. But just because Kerry's life wasn't in danger didn't mean that he wouldn't do anything in his power to get her back. She was pregnant with his child and was constantly in pain; she needed to be cared for, and Silas was afraid that the longer she was held captive, the more her health would be at risk.

There was a knock on the door. It was so faint that even Silas hadn't noticed it at first. He turned to see his dad still comforting his stepmother. He must have heard it as well but chose to ignore it. Silas snorted and got up to check who the unwanted visitor was. It was strange that he couldn't pick up the person's scent. It made him cautious. He was almost expecting Asher to be standing there when he opened the door, but instead, he was greeted with the sight of someone unexpected.

"You..."

The man's brown eyes studied him briefly. "You may call me Seth," he said. "It's good to finally meet you."

"I... same..." I took his hand and shook it. It was still hard to believe that Kerry's dad was standing right in front of me. The resemblance between them was so obvious. No wonder I couldn't pick out his scent. A damn angel was standing in front of me, and I didn't know what to make of him. Silas had never felt this small before. It wasn't because this man was probably able to overpower him easily, but because this was the first time he was meeting his father-in-law. And it happened just when he didn't know where the hell the man's daughter was. "Why are you here?" Silas was hoping he didn't know what had happened...

"I know what happened." Well, shit. There goes that. "And I believe you won't be able to find her until you understand some things."

"Do you know who took her?"

"Not on a personal level, but I've heard of him." Seth smiled, though it wasn't one of joy. It looked like he was recalling some unbelievable memories from his past. "May I come in?"

Silas hesitated at this point. Of course, he wouldn't have minded letting the man inside, but he thought of his stepmother, who had been abandoned by the man in the past. He wasn't sure if it was a good idea to let them meet. But then again, this was about Kerry's safety, and if Seth had a way to bring her back, then he was sure Sera could look past her past heartbreak and listen. Silas stepped aside and pulled the door wide open. "Of course."

Seth walked inside, and Silas led him to the kitchen. For some reason, Silas seemed more anxious about the meeting than the angel himself. When they finally walked into the kitchen, both his father and stepmother were still occupied with each other. They were kissing. Silas thought to himself that this situation felt more awkward than when Sera had walked in on him and Kerry having sex. He had an urge to look back at Seth to see what the man's reaction was, but he didn't want to seem nosy. Silas cleared his throat loudly. The sound was enough to draw the attention of the couple. He saw the moment Sera's eyes trailed from him to the man standing behind him.

"Oh my God!" she exclaimed, rising swiftly to her feet and causing her chair to crash to the ground behind her. "Seth?"

"Hello, Sera."