Naomi's Promise

The patter of rain echoed endlessly on the roof above them. Though a fire burned in the mantle, a chill radiated in from the windows, making the hair on the back of Jebidiah Kane's neck stand on end as he watched the downpour tirelessly bombarding his front lawn. It was gray... As gray as he felt.

It was two days before his daughter was due to leave Twinbrook and move, out of  his reach, to the city of Bridgeport. He was unhappy about the situation, but he had said little about it, until now. There was no point; no one cared about his opinion, anymore--and he didn't blame them.



However, the man wasn't about to wallow in self pity. Respectful of his daughter's wishes, he had watched her pack to leave with few words, and even fewer interruptions. If she wanted to say goodbye, she'd come to him; he wasn't going to force anything on her she didn't want. Amelia was old enough to make her own decisions, now.

But there are some things beyond that a father must do... Things he pondered as he watched water slide down the glass two inches from his nose.



"It isn't safe," Jebidiah finally spoke, his voice deep and resonating. "The city of Bridgeport isn't what Amelia expects it to be. She expects a city of dreams, of fairy tales... And while I don't deny that I would be cruel to shelter my daughter from the harshness of reality, you must understand why I'm worried. You must understand..." He paused, his brows furrowing in thought. "... that I cannot simply watch her go there, unprotected."

A sharp voice responded. "Of course I understand, Mr. Kane, but I'm still a bit lost on the... specifics, if you know what I mean."



"The specifics," he chuckled. A corner of his lip curled up, leaving a dimple in his left cheek; but his amusement was short lived. "I figured you of all people would know." When his associate didn't respond--possibly out of shame--he continued. "I am not a well liked man, Ms. Leman. Since my name first began to be murmured in the backstreets of Riverview so long ago, I've garnered a reputation... One that had unforseen consequences."

"Your... rivals. They'd come after Amelia? Really?"

"I can't be too sure, but this isn't a chance I can take. I've meddled in things that have put my entire family in danger... Things that have extended even into matters that involve the darkest districts of Bridgeport. And while I would love to recede from my ways and go back to the way things used to be, it's impossible, now. It's something Amelia could never understand, that now that I've let loose the dam..."



Finally, Naomi emerged from the shadows of the back of the room, her face riddled with confusion.

"But why me? How do you honestly expect me to do this, after everything that's happened between our families? And how... how can you trust me?"



"What happened between us is over, Naomi. I've forgiven you, and I know that you've forgiven me. You aren't heartless, nor are you petty. You know I only did what needed to be done."

"But--"

"And," Jebidiah cut her off. "There is no one I would rather trust my daughter to. I'm not blind, Naomi. I know how much you care for her."



There was a moment of awkwardness, where Naomi began to rub the back of her head. She still couldn't believe what she was hearing; she hadn't told anyone, yet. How could he know?

"But I still don't--"

"Naomi." Jebidiah's voice was demanding and unrelenting in it's forcefulness. "Do you love my daughter?"

She breathed deeply, and she turned her gaze downwards, away from him. "I do."

"Then there is no question."



"You... You haven't told anyone, have you?" Naomi asked, weakly. "I, I haven't--" This time, she cut herself off. It was too shameful for her to admit.

Jebidiah simply shook his head, though. "No. I have not."

"G-good... I'm, I'm not sure I'm ready. Yet."



"Naomi..." The weight of his thoughts began to force Jebidiah to crane his head downwards, where his gaze settled on a patch of wet grass through a clear portion of the window. "I love my girl. If anything were ever to happen to her..." His tough exterior went fragile, if only for but a moment. "She is everything, to me. I'm trusting you to never let her out of her sight... To never let her out of your reach."

"I... I understand."

"Do you really, Naomi?" His words were spoken with a hint of pain. "Do you really understand what I'm asking of you?"



Naomi's face fell. She understood... she understood far more than he gave her credit for; so when he began to speak, she had to close her eyes to try to hold back the tears.

"She can never know, Naomi. She can never know that you made this promise to me... Nor can she ever know your true feelings for her. If she found out... Both of them would jeopardize your friendship. And were you two to ever separa--"

"I understand, Mr. Kane," she choked, cutting him off. She had to swallow to fight back her emotions getting the better of her; it was the hardest thing she'd ever had to agree to... But she knew that it was right.



"Mr. Kane," Naomi began, but he quickly interjected.

"Jebidiah, Naomi. My name is Jebidiah."

"Um, Jebidiah... Sir... I understand what you're asking. Amelia... She means the world to me, too. If that's the sacrifice I have to make to make sure that I can always make sure she's safe... Then that's what I have to do. I swear, I'll do everything in my power to protect her." Her lungs heaved in--out--a heavy breath. "You have my word."



There was a brief pause in their conversation, where once again the pitter-patter of raindrops on the roof began to sing a harmony of their own. Naomi felt as if she'd never heard music any sadder; but it was a short-lived distraction from the matter at hand.

"Now... What can I do for you in return?"

The question came at a bit of a shock to her. "Nothing," Naomi insisted. "Amelia means just as much to me as to you. I don't need to be paid to do this."

Jebidiah scowled. "That's non-negotiable, and you know it." With a deep breath, he continued. "As much as I trust you, I cannot let there be any debt between us. You must understand why a man in my... business... cannot have debts."

Naomi nodded, but she still wasn't sure. Her gaze dropped to the floor, and then to the flames dancing in the fireplace. It took her a moment, but finally, she closed her eyes and responded. "My father. I want him released from prison."



Another pause followed, but with a curt nod of his head, Jebidiah agreed. "That can be arranged." He reached up his hand to rub his chin, feeling the coarse hairs of his beard growing into his shaven face. "It will take some time, but can be done. Your mother, however..."

"Just my father," Naomi spoke up quickly, shaking her head. "I have no delusions that my mother doesn't belong exactly where she is."

Jebidiah felt a smile gradually overtake his face; Naomi was definitely his kind of girl.



"So that's settled, then," Jebidiah exclaimed, finally turning to face the young woman across from him. "You both go to Bridgeport with my blessing. I'm relying on you quite a bit, Naomi. Keep my daughter safe."

"I'll try, Mr. K--er, Jebidiah--but... I don't believe I'm really qualified for this, you know? I'm honestly not sure you're really picking the right person for this. What if I mess up... make a mistake..."



"Naomi..." Jebidiah shook his head and smiled. "Fret not about things that have yet to happen. Above anyone else, I trust you to put my daughter's safety above everything. The mere fact that you worry this much tells me I'm not wrong to put her into your hands."

Naomi's head had begun to sag, though; so Jebidiah continued. "You are a brave, brave woman. Don't let yourself be dis-heartened by things that are out of your control. Just do as I ask--keep an eye on her, steer her away from harm, keep the darker truths hidden from her--and all will be well. You'll see."



Even with his words, Naomi couldn't fight back the tears; she was sacrificing everything she wanted for this... She wanted to hate Jebidiah, but she knew she couldn't. For once, she agreed implicitly that this was the right thing for both of them to do.

"Perhaps, someday, things will be different," Jebidiah offered, leaning even closer to her bowed head, even gently resting his own forehead against hers. "But for now, just know... I would be proud to call you family. I would be proud, to call you my daughter."

Naomi winced, still fighting to maintain her composure; it was not good to dwell on such dreams.

---

It was a consistent, subtle noise, that finally began to awake Amelia from her stupor.

Drip.
Drip.
Drip.

At first, her eyes opening wearily and slowly, she thought that it might be the noise of rain against a window; but as she took a breath in, she realized she couldn't be further than the truth.



The dripping continued, echoing around the small chamber like the constant ticking of a clock. At first she thought it was from somewhere nearby, but after her eyes completely adjusted to her surroundings, she realized it was coming from somewhere outside the room.

This room... This crumbling stone room.




When she realized that she was laying on rotted-smelling bale of hay, Amelia flung herself away from it, her hands reaching out for the rusty bars that enclosed her in the corner.

It suddenly hit her: she was utterly trapped.

"J... J-Jerod?" she called, but she realized shortly how raspy her voice was. He probably wouldn't have even heard her if he were in the same room.



She tried clearing her throat, but it still wasn't much use. "H... Hello? S.. S-somebody? Please?"

Nothing.

Amelia could feel herself beginning to tremble, from her hands all the way down to her feet. She tried desperately to not freak out, but this was hardly the time to remain composed. Her clothes were missing, her hair felt matted and untame, and her eyes were the only thing about her that didn't feel dry... this, clearly, wasn't good.



And yet, despite how scared she was, Amelia hung her head, ashamed. This was all her fault; if she'd just listened... If she hadn't been so blind... 'Hindsight is always 20/20, huh?' she mused to herself.

'Okay, now's not the time for jokes.' She sighed, leaning her weak body against the bars to her side.



That's when she realized how exhausted she was; she may've been sleeping for who knows how long, but that was precisely the point--how long had she been here? When was the last time she'd eaten?

She felt her stomach growl, and her lips cracked when she moved her tongue to lick them. When she saw the bowl at the corner of her cage, she instantly dropped and peered inside.



Water. Just water... And not even clean water, at that. Looking at the bowl that contained her only sustenence, disgust made her begin to quiver with revulsion even harder than before; but, with little other choice, she dipped down her hand to scoop out some water to drink.

It tasted just as poorly as it looked, but she dared not spit it out. This was all she had.



She took just enough to soothe her dry mouth before standing back up to survey her surroundings yet again.

No change. Still just as hopeless. It was now, finally, that she began to cry.

"Naomi..." The salt from her tears stung her bleeding lips as she croaked into her folded hands. "I'm s-so sorry."

---

Naomi's doubts were quelled when she finally saw it: the backend of the van. The backend of the van she'd seen drive away with Amelia's limp body within.



It was hard to imagine that something so simple had been used for something so vile; it made Naomi quiver with anger just to see it. And yet, she had to consider herself lucky that she was able to find it at all.

Though Naomi had 'moved out' for Amelia's benefit, she wasn't stupid; she wasn't so petty to let Mia suffer over a few harsh words.

Instead, she'd quietly stalked Amelia's whereabouts, and had been careful to attend this "party" (at least, outside), waiting patiently every moment that Amelia was inside the Plasma 501 Lounge--and she was lucky to catch sight of her body being moved.

She wasn't even sure if Amelia was still alive. But she wasn't going to give up, now.



Naomi began to sneak closer, trying to get a better look at the house where the black van was parked...



... and she found it very hard to believe that this--this little blue house--was where Amelia was being held. "Well, it's not like they'd make it look like a giant evil vampire mansion," she whispered to herself as she continued to tiptoe through the bushes. "That'd be way too obvious."

Naomi craned another look at the van, and she heaved a sigh of relief; it definitely was the same van.

She didn't have a car, so unfortunately she wasn't able to stalk the van very well; bikes aren't made to keep up with such speeds. Naomi did, however, catch the direction the van headed... The rest was just sheer, dumb luck.



As she drew closer, Naomi crouched onto her knees and peered up over the bushes. She could see that someone was standing outside, but she had to move a couple more branches out of the way to get a better look at who she was dealing with.




It was one of "them"; the vampires. She could've sworn that it was all a delusion in Amelia's head, but she didn't need any more proof than this that they actually existed.

And they definitely weren't lax about security. Even though she only saw one at the entrance, she could see movement in the windows; she saw a few patrolling around the deck, trying to get a bird's eye view of the area. She barely ducked into the bushes in time to avoid being seen.



When she was sure that they were gone, she crawled up off of her knees and crouched down behind the nearby tree... And, there, she finally began to realize how mortified she was.

"I can't do this... I c-can't..." Naomi didn't want to cry, but it was taking all the strength she had left not to break into sobs at the sight of such overwhelming odds."Oh Mia... What have you gotten yourself into."

She shook her head, but, there was nothing more she could do; she had to leave.



... But not before she made one final, most important phone call.

If she couldn't save Amelia, then there was only one person that could.