Uprising

Chapter 13

I'd manage to get to Cordelia's house in the woods just before sunrise, which had been a big relief to me as I'd hated driving to Cordelia's during sunlight hours as the roads were always busy as one road was the main road to the next city where most people with high-end jobs worked.

I reached across for my phone before I turned the engine of the car off and sent Eric a text telling him I'd made it to Cordelia's house and I hoped he hadn't got into a fight with Jake over everything that had happened. I put the phone into my pocket and then unlocked the doors and finally turned the engine off. As I took my key out of the engine, I looked up to see Cordelia wearing a white dress with a long black cardigan over the top and her hair pinned up high, waiting for me at the door. At the sight of her, I could feel everything I'd been feeling beginning to strip away, leaving my emotions raw and painful.

I got out of the car and then locked it again and ran to Cordelia, who opened her arms to me. I threw my arms around her and hugged her tightly as I took in the familiar scent of roses from her. I closed my eyes as I felt safe. Safe had been something I'd not felt much of in the last few weeks.

"I hadn't been expecting you until much later, sweetheart. What is the matter?" She asked in her soft tone, which always seemed to calm my soul.

"Everything." I whispered back as I tried my best to keep myself together.

"It is never everything." Cordelia laughed as she rubbed my back for a moment and then pulled away. "Tea is on already; let's go and see if we can fix everything, shall we?" She took my hand in hers and led me inside the house. I didn't even stop to turn around and shut the door, as it seemed to shut on its own, which made me laugh a little as we walked down the all-too-familiar hallway that led to the kitchen.

What I loved the most about going home to Cordelia was that nothing ever changed. Cordelia always waited for me at the doorway with her arms open to give me a hug, tea was always ready; Dominic was always around somewhere; and he was always happy to see me when he finally showed his face around the house. But most of all, nothing ever changed in my room. My room was always my room, with my pictures on the walls of me with my friends, both humans and those different like me; my desk was always sat against the wall under one of the windows; my bed was still under the window; and my windowsill was still my seat for watching the night sky. Everything was always as I left it and most of the time when I'd visit, I'd usually find Cordelia's familiar laid on my bed, which always made me doubt if Hex, the black and white cat, was actually Cordelia's or mine.

"Come and sit down." Cordelia's voice pulled me out of my thoughts as I went and sat in one of the old wooden chairs in her kitchen. As I looked over to the fire, I saw an old metal kettle pot boiling over a fire. I couldn't help but smile to myself at how I'd missed home. I'd missed the simple life of just living, doing my best, surviving, and learning.

"Let's try and unwrap everything, shall we, and figure out how we can fix it all?" Cordelia had sat next to me and took my hand in hers as I could feel tears begin to well up in me. "How is everything with Daniel?" I heard the stiffness in her voice as she asked that. "I mean, I don't really care, but I do care for you so I feel like..."

"We broke up." I didn't bother to look up at her, as I had a feeling she'd have a smug look on her face or some type of I told you so look.

"Oh sweetheart... I mean, I was expecting it, but just not yet." She squeezed my hand lightly, which made me look up at her. I saw real worry cross her face. "What happened?"

I shook my head a little at her, not really wanting to go through it all again. "It doesn't matter; we won't be back together again. I don't think we can work through this." I let out a sigh and went to get up to do the tea but Cordelia kept hold of my hand.

"I know you don't want to hear it, but it's a blessing. He never appreciated you and Eric wanted to kill him and surely that's a sign that it wasn't meant to be."

"You keep telling me this since I got with him. I get it; you've never liked him in the slightest." I stood up but Cordelia flicked her fingers and the chair knocked me back into it. She then turned her attention to the kettle and flicked her fingers again as it lifted from the fire. I looked back at Cordelia again.

"Sweetheart, it's never been that in the slightest... it's more... he's never been right for you. He never knew the real you; he's..."

"Just a human, yeah, I know... a human who thinks I'm a freak because I tried to get him to see me for who I really was." I told her simply.

"Isabelle, what did you do?" Concern filled her voice as she pulled her hand away from mine as two cups of tea floated to the table.

"I told him and showed him who I was. I was fed up with hiding it; besides, he had to know because of me turning eighteen and every possibility that the coven would come looking for me." I shrugged at her casually. I knew I was in for a huge lecture about what I'd done, but it was too late now; what was done was done in my view.

"Isabelle..." She sighed and leaned back in her chair, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration with me. I knew the lecture was going to come in three... two... one...

"What made you do that?" She seemed to ask, throwing me completely off by her comment.

"Xander and I had a chat and then I decided enough was enough..." I shrugged again as I left my sentence not fully finished, as I had no clue how to really finish what had made me do it.

"I shall be having words with that vampire." She muttered to herself.

"Leave him out of it, ok? He just listened to me and he gave me advice about what I was thinking anyway." I wrapped my hands around the cup and then took a small sip as I felt a weight in my lap. "Hey Hex, keeping busy?" I didn't even need to look down to see who it was. "Anyway, where's Dominic?" I asked. "If your awake normally, he's awake too."

"He's busy. He left just before you got here to deal with some things for me." Cordelia picked up her own cup, went to take a drink and then lowered it. "What am I going to do with you, Isabelle?"

"Lecture me?" I suggested.

"I want to, trust me, but I also understand why you did it too. Just like your mother." She let out a small sigh and then took a sip of the tea. "You look exhausted. Why don't you drink your tea and we will continue our conversation later to try and fix everything?"

"Why do you have someone coming?" I asked, hoping I wasn't in the way of her running her job and house the way she always did.

"I do, but not till much later." Cordelia put the cup down and smiled at me lightly. "You won't be in the way at all. I promise."

"If your sure." I told her quietly. "I'll finish my tea and then go for a nap." I nodded to her. "Could you ring college and tell them I'm sick and I won't be in?"

"Sure, I will, baby." Cordelia got up and headed into the living room, taking her tea with her as I unwrapped one hand from around my cup and began to stroke Hex in hopes it distracted my head from everything.

As much as I loved being home, I also hated it because Cordelia had a way of making me deal with my own thoughts and problems and I knew the biggest problem that hung over my head was this Order of Blood and who they were and what they wanted from me. I need sleep and then I can deal with this head-on in a more calming manner than I'd be dealing with it right now. I let out a slow sigh and then rushed to finish up the last of my tea.

When I was done, I looked down at my lap to see Hex's head pop up from under the table. "Let's go and have a nap, Hex." I muttered and then stroked his head one last time as he meowed at me and then jumped down. I pulled my chair back and then got up, walked up the all-too-familiar stairs and headed to my room to find everything exactly as it always was when I came home.

I flopped on my bed. I wiggled up on the bed and then snuggled down as I could feel Hex curl up next to me. I wanted to say to Hex to have a sweet nap, but the words never came out as sleep swept me up and dragged me under. I just had to silently hope that it was a restful sleep and not a disturbed and broken sleep like what I'd had most nights.