Chapter Twenty: Family Breaking:

November 15th, 2010.

At the Tsuzuki apartment, Daiyu got on her phone.

“Mom, dad,” she whispered. “I’m here in Japan. I found my niece.” The ice on the other line made her hear sink.

“What do you mean you don’t care?” she asked. “She’s your grandchild!”

“She means nothing to us!” her father shouted.

“But…” Daiyu said.

“Come home!” he shouted.

“Don’t you care about your granddaughter?”

“No!”

“But why?”

“Your sister dishonored our family! We are to kill the humans we mate with! She fell in love with that man instead.”

“When has love ever been wrong?”

“When blood is at stake!”

Daiyu gritted her teeth. “Blood, blood, blood! Why does it matter?!”

“Because that’s what we are! Now get back home!”

“Not without my niece!”

“She is nothing you!”

“That’s not true! How could you say that about your granddaughter?”

“She is not my granddaughter!”

Daiyu stared at the phone after her dad hung up. No… Her eyes welled with tears. How could he be so cold? This was his only grandchild. His only grandchild. Daiyu sank to her knees, crying.

“Why, daddy, why?” she whimpered. “Can’t you forgive sis?” Daiyu buried her face in her hands.

In the hallway, Anna heard the whole conversation. She couldn’t understand Chinese, but could tell the phone call upset their guest. She walked into the living room.

“Hey, are you okay?” she asked. Daiyu lifted her head, glaring.

“What’s it to you?” she asked. Anna sat down next to her.

“You’re crying,” she said. The Chinese demon turned her head.

“No, I’m not!” she lied. Anna handed her a tissue. Daiyu stared at her, blankly. She took the tissue, blinking.

“Thanks…” she mumbled. Daiyu wiped her eyes and nose.

“You can take your time if you need to,” Anna said. The younger girl frowned.

“Why do you care?’ she asked.

“You just looked upset,” Anna said. Daiyu rolled her eyes. It didn’t make sense. These people…

“Kirika-chan’s cute,” Anna said. Daiyu gave her a funny look.

“Huh?” she asked.

“The baby,” she said.

“Oh…” Daiyu nodded. “Yeah, I guess.” She clenched her phone. The words just fell out of her mouth.

“My father won’t accept her,” Daiyu said. Anna’s eyes grew big.

“Are you serious?” she asked. The younger girl nodded.

“Well… why?” Anna asked.

“She’s a half-breed.”

“What?” The woman remembered the case file on Kirika-chan’s parents. “Because she’s half-human?”

“Yes.” Daiyu wiped away her tears.

“But why?”

“He wants our family to be pure-blooded. If we mate with humans, we kill and eat them afterwards. My sister…” Her lips trembled. “She fell in love with that man and became pregnant. My sis wanted to marry him. She ran away to Japan with him. Well… You know what happened next.”

“Yeah.”

Daiyu flopped back on the floor. “I want to take my niece home. I had hoped her grandparents would take her. I’m still in school and can’t raise a child.”

Anna pressed her lips together. She could kind of see how the girl’s parents. Still, it felt selfish of them to not even want to see their own granddaughter. Anna drew her knees to her chest. What should I do?

Tsuzuki’s enthusiasm wouldn’t be the only problem circling Kirika-chan. The Mother rested her chin on Anna’s shoulder.

“Why bother?” she asked. “It’s not your problem.” Yeah, but Anna still couldn’t turn away.