Jenny loves her grandma, but she absolutely adores her new grandpa.

Grandpa Ren is her grandma’s fourth husband, and he’s the best one by far.

Ren is a tall man with dark skin and snow-white hair. He has dark eyes and eyebrows, a deeply lined face and the most radiant smile she has ever seen. Unlike grandma and her mom, when Ren smiles his whole face participates. She loves the deep dimples that form in his cheeks, and his eyes seem to light up, becoming less dark. He has the most melodious voice, and when he speaks, he gives you his full attention. You can see that his whole being is present in the conversation. Jenny secretly watched the ‘Kill Bill’ movies on her phone, and grandpa Ren looks like the actor that played Bill.

Grandma is an impressive woman. She moves gracefully like someone much younger, like an elite athlete at the top of their physical conditioning. Her white hair gives her an elfin quality, and she looks like royalty from romance novels. She spends her days upstairs, and graces everyone with her presence before dinner. The whole Von Braun clan meets every day at six for drinks and appetizers. They dress to the nines, mingle and chat and try their best to impress grandma. When grandma is ready, they follow her into the dining room for a formal dinner.

Grandma is charming, a skilled conversationalist, and hauntingly beautiful. When she looks at you with those hazel eyes, and smiles at you, you will tell her everything she wants to know. Her charm and presence rob you of any and all defenses, and you will spill your life story and not realize it.

Jenny’s mother Joan is a carbon copy of grandma, but only in appearance. Joan is cold, almost clinical. When she looks at you it feels like she is considering which parts of you might taste the best. Her own family treats her with respect but avoids her as best they could without being obvious. Joan knows this and enjoys making them squirm under her dissecting gaze. Joan treats Jenny the same way, like an interesting thing, but not interesting enough to engage with. Joan is a first-class bitch, and she absolutely enjoys it.

Grandma sits at the end of the table, with Joan to her right, and Jenny to her left. The rest of the seats are unassigned, and grandma, Joan and Jenny enjoy the scuffles as the rest of the party jostles for seats close to grandma.

***

Jenny did not know her father. He was absent all her life. So was her mother. Jenny was raised by nannies. Because the staff at the Von Braun estate is rotated often, Jenny became used to people being there, and just when you learn to like them, or even love them, they are gone, replaced. Grandma believes rotating staff frequently removes the possibility of familiarity. And we all know what that breeds! This did not make Jenny jaded towards others, but instead instilled in her a deep appreciation for the company of others, knowing it will be temporary.

Jenny will turn sixteen next month. A big event is being planned with family members from all over the country attending. In this family turning sixteen is a big deal. They even have some medieval rituals that will be performed, marking her as an adult member of the Von Braun clan. Jenny does not know what this could be, grandma just tells her to wait and see.

Jenny is homeschooled by the finest, and she is a brilliant student.  School is out for summer, so she has lots of time on her hands. Jenny has no one to talk to. The staff keeps their distance, stays invisible mostly, grandma is always upstairs during the day, and Joan is in Europe hunting for a new husband. Her aunt and her three boys live in the city, and she sees them only at dinner. The boys are duller than butter knives, and less interesting than a pile of gravel. Jenny’s ever-present chaperone is also an expert at staying out of the way. Jenny believes this woman is nothing more than a spy for her mother.

Grandpa Ren is a godsend. Grandma brought him home a year ago after an extended stay in eastern Europe. He is interesting, well read, knowledgeable and funny. They play chess, tennis, talk and walk the vast estate, with her chaperone expertly invisible. He is very curious about the family history, the grounds and the house. Jenny lived here most of her life and gladly shared everything she knew. She showed him the secret passages that run between the public areas of the house, the remote access points to the cellar under the house, and the fence that washed away in the gully.  She can honestly say that she loves him, he is the most human person in this entire family.

People in black limousines come and go, always during the day, drive under the house to the parking garage, their occupants to be elevated to grandma’s quarters. The Von Brauns is filthy rich. The kind of rich that makes you powerful, and influential, and known to politicians and heads of state. Their business interests are vast, and grandma has the final say in everything. Jenny’s mom is second in charge and destined to take over the day after Jennie’s big birthday bash. Grandma will retire on Jenny’s birthday, and lots of the Von Brauns and their associates lament the fact that Joan will be the replacement.

Grandma’s retirement worries Jenny also. If grandma decides to leave, to see the world, or whatever, she will take Ren along. With Ren gone she will be alone again amongst all these awful people. This is not a fun thought.

Arrangements for the retirement and birthday party are in full swing when Jen’s mom returns, with a man as expected. Fuck if he looks like a younger version of Ren! Jenny wonders if her mother did this on purpose to goad her grandma, or do they just have the same taste in men?

***

The days leading up to the event are filled with various teams of people preparing the grounds. The lawns are mowed, hedges are trimmed, and flowerbeds refreshed. The weather promises to be fantastic, cool and dry for this time of year, so the event will be outdoors. A large wooden dance floor is installed complete with a low stage on the eastern lawn. There will be an orchestra. Since grandma leaves nothing to chance, tents are also erected in case cover is needed. All this activity is organized and coordinated from the top floor of the mansion, with directions and commands delivered to members of the clan, eager to impress grandma, via radio. Grandma has her eyes on everything, and everybody wants to please her.

Jenny is happy to see that Ren and her new daddy get along. They are often seen walking on the grounds. She cannot wait for this spectacle to be over so everything can return to normal.

***

The day of the event finally arrives. Because Jenny was born on this day, but at 10pm, the party will not start until sunset. This makes the day feel strange, it is finally here, but you must wait until it is almost over before the event starts! Last-minute things are attended to, the staff is again briefed on what is expected of them. The many guests start to arrive an hour before sunset in their shiny black limos, and the orchestra starts performing as soon as the first guests enter the venue, their cars being parked by valets.

A few days earlier a fresh batch of staff were rotated in. They are tall, dark skinned and athletic looking young men and women. These young people were serving drinks and appetizers from trays, completely invisible to the guests. They were at the event without really being there, not once recognized as a person, only seen as a vehicle to get a fresh drink or take away your empty glass.

Thirty minutes until ten grandma and Ren arrive. The orchestra stops and the gathered falls silent, then turn as one to look at the hostess of this event. The couple looks like royalty from France of old, grandma’s white hair hangs in loose curls, framing her beautiful face. Her cleavage embraces a huge emerald at the end of a heavy gold necklace. Jen marvels at her timeless beauty. Next to her Ren looks equally dashing in knee high boots, gilded pants and jacket. The hilts of two knives protrude from his boots, and a heavy sword hangs at his waist. Granma looks her guests over, Ren keeps his gaze on her, the two holding hands.

They walked in total quiet to the dance floor and mount the low platform next to the orchestra. All the guests huddled, jostling for the closest space.

Grandma turns and dazzles them with a smile. She welcomes her guests, then introduces Jenny and reminds everyone that this event is to celebrate her granddaughter’s coming of age. Grandma invites Jenny to join her. Once Jenny stands next to her, grandma puts her left arm on Jen’s shoulders and presents her to the crowd. Unexpectedly the guests smash their glasses on the ground, stamp their feet and cheer like loons. The quiet staff stand ready to swoop in and sweep up the broken glass.

Right at ten grandma reaches up and pulls a blade from her hair and cuts the wrist of her left arm. She drops the knife and pulls Jen’s head back violently with her right hand and utters some gibberish. The guests respond with their own unintelligible utterances, stomp their feet once more and turn their attention to the staff. Their incisors are clearly visible as they crouch and snarl at their intended prey.

Before grandma was able to force her bleeding wrist to Jen’s face and mouth, Ren beheads her with his sword. Jen’s mother was at the far end of the lawn, and she crouches down and runs towards Ren on all fours, snarling with spit flying from her gaping mouth. Her fingers and toes now ending in claws as she is transforming into a bat-like creature, her blazing eyes fixed on Ren, intent on destroying him. She might have had some love for her mother after all.

Ren does not flinch and calmly steps away from Jenny, raising his sword to defend himself. The bat creature leaps the last 10 steps, intending to crush down on Ren and rip him to shreds. Arrows tied to high tensile line slam into the beast’s sides while still in midair, and it is violently pulled down to fall at Ren’s feet. A steel net is cast over the creature, and shots rang out as the net is fastened to the wood floor with nail guns.

The transformed guests are met with formidable force, the newly hired staff draw swords and sever limbs and heads with reckless abandon. The fighting is fast and vicious. Ren steps up to Jen’s mother, looks at the shocked Jenny, and hands her the sword hilt first.

‘Jenny, only you can end this. My family will fight to the last breath, but these vampires are just too strong’. He looks up at the battle raging on the dance floor, then back at Jenny. ‘I came here for you. You really are my granddaughter. Your evil mother took the life of my son as soon as she knew you were conceived. I came to stop them from turning you into a monster, like them’.

Jenny only stares in disbelief. Her mother brings her back to the present, shouting at her with the most unsettling voice: ‘Don’t you do it you little bitch. Don’t even consider it. Your weak father was fucking trouble, and I enjoyed taking his life. Are you weak like him, or one of us? Let my loose, let me get this fucking watcher and his kin. Release me! Get yourself together you little cunt!’

Jen looks at Ren, who nods and lifts the sword closer to her. Jen becomes aware of the slaughter happening right next to her and realizes that she would have become a monster herself if Ren did not stop grandma. She takes the sword.

Her mother strains against the net screaming obscenities, and Jen drives the sword through her neck into her chest with all her might. Ren puts his hands over hers, and together they push the blade through until it embeds in the wood floor. Ren twists the blade, and with its point in the wood pushes it like a lever. The blade cuts through the beast and stops when caught by the net. The monster gurgles and dies, and all around them the vampires collapse. They cannot live when their queen is dead, and Jen’s mom became the new queen when Jen turned sixteen. Unfortunately, they do not turn conveniently into dust like in the movies. These monsters need to be burned.

Ren gently removes Jen’s hands from the sword, pulls her close, then leads her away from the carnage.

’Are you ok Jen?’ Ren asks, knowing that she is not, but he had to ask. This is the human thing to do.

‘Grandpa’, Jen says against his chest, ‘please take me away from here.  Take me home’.

***

For the next week the news headlines cover the fire that destroyed the Von Braun’s mansion with all the Von Brauns in it. It is a mystery why there were event tents on the eastern lawn, but everybody was in the house. The house was a total loss, it burned with an intensity that confounded the fireman that tried to put it out. Vampires burn very, very hot!

The real tragedy, according to the news reports, is that Julia Von Braun and both her daughter and granddaughter died in the inferno. The fire was so hot that very few human remains were recovered.

Julia’s kingdom was intended to go to her daughter, then her granddaughter and so on like it has been done for a very long time. This line of succession is now forever broken. The kingdom is still intact, and even more valuable than ever with the Von Braun fortune going back to the company.  It will have no problem surviving and thriving under new reign.

Eventually this also became old news.

The fight against vampires however, continues.