"Why is my brother here?" Kael turned his head away from Gabrielle, towards Edge,

"God only knows, if there is a god that is. He's in the kitchen. Edge nodded and made his way to where his brother sat, sitting down beside him at the curtained windows. Christian's eyes were still fixed on Gabrielle.

"I shouldn't have done it, Edge." He said, sadness in his voice. "Any of it."

"She forgave you…" Edge pointed out to which Christian shook his head.

"But what about myself? I can't live with this…this guilt, knowing that I've driven her…" He shook his head again. "I hate myself for it…but I can't let her go. That’s impossible."

"What about…what's her name?" Christian laughed softly at the thought.

"Aspen. What about her?"

"Why are you with her?"

"Because…she says she knows me, she talks about these dreams she's had of me making her a vampire. God, Edge, she came here to find me. It's all she ever talks about. It makes me want to blow her brains out, and - " He stopped, sighing heavily.

"What?"

"It's just…every time we’re doing anything…intimate, all I can see is Gabrielle. Even when I wake up with her in my arms, I picture Gabrielle." He put his head in his hands. "It's not fair to Aspen. I'm not living up to her vision of me…its not right, but even if I leave for a second, she gets paranoid about losing me, like I'm going to leave her forever…"

"Like Gabrielle used to do before she went to sleep…" Edge smiled warmly, remembering their first night together. Christian smiled for a second remembering this behaviour as well.

"Why aren’t you with her, Edge?"

"I am…in the day, while she's sleeping…Then I'm with her."

"You used to be so close…"

"Kael has her now. He's in love."

"How do you know that?" Christian demanded, anger and jealousy rising within. Edge gestured over to Kael, who still sat beside Gabrielle, watching over her, her hand in his.

"That answer your question?" Christian shrugged, frowning.

"But how can she love him? He's so…brash and crude and…" Edge just shook his head.

"I don't know but she does…You can tell. And we’ve got to respect that." He finished as Kael came walking into the kitchen.

"She says she's hungry." He explained, looking into the cupboards.

"Food or blood?" Edge asked, as Kael rolled his eyes.

"Food, quite obviously. If it was blood, do you think I'd be here and looking for that cereal she likes so much?" He pulled out a brightly coloured box of Trix. "And don't think I haven't forgotten our little confrontation earlier, Edge. It'll be settled once she's better," Edge stood up abruptly, painfully remembering the heat on his skin, but not letting it deter him from his path, which led straight to Kael.

Aspen lay in wait in the study, but heard Kael's shouts, as well as Edge's and Christians coming from the kitchen…which meant Gabrielle was alone in the living room. Running her hand over the knife she grabbed a hold of from the wall of the study, she left quickly and almost in an instant, stood over Gabrielle. She groggily looked up and didn't recognise Aspen. All Gabrielle saw was the twisted grin on her face and a flash of metal before the searing pain in her throat became unbearable. Aspen had stabbed right through her neck.