It's Dark Over There

Eight

Nonna was on the couch, watching television, in Seth's living room. His jaw could have hit the floor when he saw her there. "Aren't we meeting for lunch?" he stuttered. How long had she been there? How did she get in? He glanced around at the open windows and the sunlight streaming in, His pulse skyrocketed. Where was Gia?

"I thought I might surprise you, with a small gift," she answered. To her left was a small burlap bag tied at the top. She gestured at it, doing it again more insistently when he didn't immediately walk over. "Tesoro, you're acting very strange. Are you alright?" Her eyes scanned his rumpled shirt and the flower still dangling from his fingers.

"I'm fine, I was just helping a friend with their front yard. It's a mess," he said, still trying to find where Gia may have disappeared to. He couldn't smell charred flesh. He assumed she was safe but the smell would have made it easier to figure out where she was. The bedroom door was only open a crack but sunlight was streaming in from there as well.

"Oh? Who?" Nonna stood to fix the couch cushions she had displaced.

When her back was turned, Seth looked under the couch. Empty except for a stray sock. "Martha Nichol's niece is house sitting for her."

"I didn't know Martha had a niece," Nonna said.

"Uh huh," Seth muttered. "Nonna, did you open all the windows?"

"I did. It was darker than a grave in here," she answered. Plates and glasses clinked together softly as she moves them into the cabinets.

Seth took the opportunity to run into the bedroom and do a quick scan. Empty and full of sunlight. "Gia?" he whispered. The bathroom was empty too. He wandered back out and finally opened the bag she'd brought. Inside were no less than twenty samples of loose leaf tea.

"I think it's about time to expand our menu, maybe we could even hire one more person," Nonna said excitedly. She began pointing out the individual teas, which were her favorite, which were horrible. "You'll try them and tell me what you think."

"You're sure about this?" Seth grinned and tightened the drawstring on the bag. "I didn't expect so much change from you."

"You will just change things after I die anyway, I want to be the one deciding the changes," she said.

"Nonna!" Seth groaned when she started laughing. "I will try them later. Let me shower so we can go to lunch." He grabbed the bag and headed for the closest while Nonna chattered away behind him. When he tugged at the door, it didn't budge. The doorknob rattled slightly under his hand. Seth glanced back at Nonna and leaned against the door. "Gia?" he whispered.

Two soft taps sounded on the door.

"Tesoro, what are you doing? Put the tea away, I'm hungry."

"Actually, the closet is a mess. I'll put this away when I get back," he explained.

Nonna shook her head and pointed at the door. "No, we will clean before we go. It's not like you to have a mess." The wrinkles around her eyes deepened as she narrowed her eyes. "What are you hiding?"

The doorknob shook under his hand and he pressed his back to it. "Nothing."

"Seth, do you think I don't know when you're lying?" She pointed at the closest again. "We're not moving until you open it."

The air in the room thinned to almost nothing. Seth shut his eyes and forced himself to take a deep breath. It rattled and caught in his throat but the second came more easily. "I need you to close the curtains first. Please," he added when she didn't move.

As soon as the room was dark, Seth muttered an apology to Gia and pulled the closet door open. There was resistance at first. Finally, he got it open and stepped between the two women.

"You are hiding girls in your closet now?" Nonna shrieked. "How long has she been here? Was she here last night?" Her hand flew to her heart.

"Nonna, it's not like that, please. She just needed a safe place to stay," Seth told her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to startle you so I hid. Then you started opening the curtains and I got stuck," Gia said softly.

"Gianna has a sensitivity to sunlight," Seth explained.

Nonna looked her up and down again and her face softened. She held her hand out to her. "Gianna, such a good name."

Seth remembered seconds too late that his grandmother still wore her wedding ring. It had been nearly a decade since her husband died but she still polished it every week and kept it on a chain around her neck when she baked. The silver made contact with Gia's hand at the same time Seth called out a warning.

Skin sizzled. Gia hissed and threw herself further back into the closet. The thin circle of red in her eyes grew until all of the white was gone. Her lips curled up in a snarl, showing off a set of fangs.

"Vampiro," Nonna whispered. She stumbled back and fell to the floor. She let Seth help her up, but backed away again when Gia moved towards them.

"Nonna, she isn't going to hurt us." Seth freed one of his hands from Nonna's death grip to hold a hand up to Gia. "Give us a minute."

"I'm so sorry," she mumbled, backing into the closet but keeping the door open.

"Not going to hurt us? She is a monster! You just let her stay here?" Nonna sputtered. "You had someone like this here, and you didn't tell me? After all the time you tried to tell me these things weren't real you decide to keep one in your closet."

"She isn't like some of the others," he said.

"Others?" Nonna pulled her hand away and stepped back. "How many things do you have hiding in here?"

"It's just her, Nonna, she needed help. Please, just let me explain." Seth moved towards the couch, trying to beckon her to follow.

"You have been lying to me, keeping dangerous things in your home," she accused. Her eyes swept over his clothes again. "Helping Martha's niece, another lie." She scoffed and grabbed her bag. The contents rattled as she jerked it onto her shoulder.

"Don't go, let me explain. I promise it will all make sense," Seth begged.

"Your father would be so disappointed."

The worry on his face dissolved into hurt. Anger was quick to follow. "Who do you think I learned about this from? How do you think he died?" Seth snapped.

"Seth, calm down," Gia said.

"Stay out of this. It's your fault I'm in this mess," he snapped back. His breath caught when he heard the door open and shut.

Nonna had slipped away in the small moment of distraction. Her footsteps were moving quickly away, giving Seth only a second to grab his coat and run after her. He caught a glimpse of her back as she turned the corner but lost track of her in the crowd of people running around on lunch break.