Bonus Scene: Scars

The following is an alternate take on how Lucy discovers that Andre is hiding some scars, both physical and mental. Initially, There was a previous scene where the two of them followed a lead and found themselves in a night club run by vampires. They have just returned to Andre's flat, which is apparently a bit bigger in this version. They are both pretty shaken up.

Scars

Lucy set the kettle on the stove and turned to open the cupboard and jumped when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Her breath caught and she let out a sigh of relief, realizing it was her own reflection in the unshaded window. Unnerved at the feeling of vulnerability, she slipped out of the kitchen into the living room, where at least she knew the shades were drawn.  The silent room did nothing to stop the irrational wave of panic that was welling up in her. Her eyes darted back to the kitchen and the window. She knew she should simply shut the blinds, but anxiety overtook rational thought and she fled up the stair with speed she didn’t know she was capable of, slamming head first into something solid, warm and damp.  Lucy screamed, while her heart tried to beat out of her chest.

“Lucy! What’s wrong?”

Anxiety ebbed away, only to be replaced by the hot flush of embarrassment. Andre stood in the doorway, half dressed. Worry and the determination to fight whatever it was that threatened the apartment reflected in his eyes.

“Andre, I’m sorry, I…” Lucy stuttered, staring at the floor. “I scared myself. I was in the kit—” Her voice caught in her throat as her gaze shifted to Andre’s bare torso.

“My god!”

His entire right side, from the neck to waist was a mass of terrible scars.

“Andre, what did this to you?”

Andre crossed his arms reflexively over his chest.  In ten years only one other person had seen him without a long sleeved collared shirt. And that had been a mistake. He opened his mouth, but words failed him. Before he could gather his thoughts, a piercing whistle issued from the kettle and Lucy jumped again.

“I uh, was making coffee when I thought I saw the boogey man.”

An embarrassed chuckle escaped and her cheeks, already flush were positively rosy.

“I know I’m supposed to be some sort of fearless vampire killer, but would you mind coming downstairs with me while I try to keep my hands from shaking long enough to pour the water?”

Andre regarded her with a look that bordered on kind.

“Sure, but let me grab a shirt first.”

Lucy nodded. Andre shrugged into a long sleeved t shirt. Lucy noted that even the sleep shirt had a mock turtleneck collar.

By the time Andre had shut the blinds in the kitchen, Lucy’s heart had slowed to a healthy rhythm.

“Would you like a cup too?”

“I’d say I deserve one for saving you from the dreaded window monster.” A shadow of a smile played at the corner of his mouth. A rather attractive smile, Lucy noted. Attractive? Well, better than that stupid frown he usually wore. She placed the cup on the table and sat across from him.

“Look,” Lucy sighed, “I know might sound stupid, but being in that club wound me up. I’m a little jumpy. If you think this means I’m not up to the job, tell Evan. I’m not saying I want to quit, and I’m not having a pity party, but you and I both know how green I am and I’ll bet hard money that if you said the word, Evan will have Miles or Hugh or someone else here in a heartbeat. I don’t want my rookie mistakes to be the death of both of us.”

Andre didn’t say anything for a long time. She had a point. Andre knew all too well the dangers of making a rookie mistake and Lucy had seen the result of his just moments ago in the upstairs hallway. But nothing like that would happen to her. He had learned the hard way, she wouldn’t have to. Her blood would see to that even if her training failed.

“Andre?”

“Hm?”

Lucy’s eyes questioned his.

“Sorry, I drifted,” he muttered, buying himself a moment by taking a long pull from his coffee mug.

“No, I’m not calling Evan,” he said at last. “You’ve proven yourself more than capable for this mission. Look, what happened tonight freaked me out too. Our nerves are jangled, we had no way of knowing what we were stepping into and we were lucky to be able to step right back out of it without injury or giving ourselves away. We’re both capable and we need to trust each other.” Andre sighed. Trust. That was the rub. If Lucy was going to trust him, he would have to trust her as well, including letting her beyond the wall that he erected nearly a decade earlier. “The scars on my chest were the result of my own distrust, of myself, and my partner at the time.”