“- maybe we just need more than a syringe’s worth.” He interrupted me. “If we draw your blood over time…”
“Henry…” I said, looking around frantically for help. “It won’t work. My blood is different…once it’s out of my body, it immediately starts coagulating. It dries up. I -”
“-you smell so good,” he whispered to me, picking up his knife and cup from the table with one hand. “Maybe I’ll just take a little at a time. I’ll stop once the cure kicks in.”
“And what if I die?”
He stopped as he considered my words.
“I don’t want you to die, Alex, but you have no idea what it’s like. I can’t live like this.”
“YOU’RE NOT LIVING AT ALL!” a voice boomed throughout the restaurant. I could hear several pairs of feet sprinting out the exits, slamming open doors and dropping frying pans and unused glass plates onto the tile.
“Who said that?” Henry asked, looking around. I opened my eyes, and saw my savior immediately.
He had no legs, but he was definitely in the possession of a gun.
“Get your beggar hands off of her,” Elliot said through clenched teeth as he steadied the pistol. Henry glanced down and finally noticed the source of the voice lying on the floor like a sniper.
“Elliot, what are you doing here?”
“Shut your mouth and let her go, or I put a bullet through your skull.”
“That’s a bit graphic,” Henry said, tightening his grip on my hair. “And foolish. I’m already dead.”
“True, but if I hit you in the brain, your body, and more importantly, your mouth, will stop moving.”
“I wasn’t going to hurt her.”
“Why are we still conversing? Let her go.”
Henry released me and I crawled in a hurry over to Elliot. He nodded and took his attention back to Henry as I climbed to my feet.
“Thank you, El,” I whispered to him. “What made you come here?”
“As soon as I sent you on your way, I realized my folly. I promptly crawled here for back-up.”
“So glad Angelo’s wasn’t far.”
“Says you,” Elliot laughed. “I think I lost some muscle back there.”
“You know there’s a cure?” Henry blurted out. Based on the raise of Elliot’s brow, I could tell the subject piqued his interest. No matter what they thought of each other, Henry suddenly had my savior’s undivided attention.
“It’s in her,” Henry said, pointing at me. “Her blood.”
“So basically there is no cure,” Elliot said immediately. Henry was taken aback.
“I just told you –“
“- yes, that there’s no cure. If it is part of Alexandra’s blood, and the only way we can access it is to cause her bodily harm, then the cure is null and void. I’m surprised you would even consider the alternative…hmph. And you call yourself a man.”
Henry stared at him as his face softened. Even I could tell that the danger was over. Elliot’s words had gotten through.
“I let my hunger get the better of me…” Henry replied as he wiped his mouth with his ragged shirt sleeve.
“Of course you did,” Elliot replied. “You obviously have an eating disorder. Bulimia, I think it’s called. Now where are my legs?”
“I don’t have them.”
Elliot fired the gun off and the bullet whizzed through Henry’s tufts of hair.
“Whoa, you almost took my head off!” he yelled, taking a step backwards.
“I was trying to,” Elliot said slowly. “I missed because my center of gravity is off. But don’t worry. I’m compensating.”
“Wait! Wait!” Henry said, throwing up his hands. “I’m serious. I gave them to a boy named Noah. He was willing to give me a hundred bucks for them. How was I going to pay for the date without money?”
“Nitwit! I would have given you ten times the amount!”
“Noah?” I asked, finally gaining my voice. “What did he look like?”
“Couldn’t get a good look. He kind of just came out of the shadows. Tall. Long, dark hair. Suave, seductive voice.”
“Oh, God,” I whispered as Elliot turned his head slightly to look up at me. Henry raised an eyebrow that promptly fell off.
“What is it?” he asked, reaching down to retrieve it.
“Anyone but Noah,” I muttered. Was my whole past going to haunt me in one night? I could see that Elliot and Henry were both waiting for an answer. And considering I was in the presence of two zombies that I had shaky history with, I decided to err on the side of caution and give them the truth.
“Um,” I said carefully, unsure of how they would react. “Noah’s kind of my ex-boyfriend too.”
“Okay,” Elliot replied. “What is he, a biker? A hooligan? Is that why you sound afraid?”
“You never mentioned him,” Henry said. I shook my head.
“No, it was before we met. He was…kind of the first person I messed up.”
“Great! Another zombie!” Henry shouted out and plopped down onto a bench. He glanced over at the unconscious waitress with hungry eyes. “How many of us are out there?”
“Just the two of you. Noah’s something else entirely.”
“Oh yeah, and what’s that? What makes him so dangerous that he would make a zombie pale in comparison?”
“Well…he’s a vampire.”
Henry’s eyes widened and Elliot’s jaw dropped.
Literally.
TRACK 3 – All About the Blood (Noah Remix)
“Okay, so how did you like it this time?” Margaret said as I shot up in my seat.
“HUH? WHAT?!” I yelled out as a barrage of shushes came my way. I wiped the drool from my face and sat up to attention as a girl in front of me, wearing a tasteless shirt with purposely cut holes in it, glared back. They were everywhere in the mall. The infamous “You can’t break my heart because I don’t have one. I’m a Zombie” T-shirts that were false on so many levels. First of all, zombies sure can have their hearts torn apart by love. I know. Because I did it to one. And second, in spite of popular perception, zombies in fact, do have a heart. It’s just not beating and sometimes makes a strange gurgling noise.
Anyways, the shirts annoyed me, and this girl happened to be wearing one, which only made her squeaky teenie bopper voice all the more screechy for some reason. I don’t know. Maybe I was just mad that Margaret talked me into seeing that horrible movie for a second time, swearing on her life and everything she loved (whatever that meant) that the movie was phenomenally better upon a second viewing. Or in other words, I would be able to tolerate it this time.
Well, she was wrong. It sucked worse than a vampire’s kiss. Seriously. It’s like kissing someone with braces. You have to be careful how you move or you’ll get a split lip or worse and…
Why was I thinking of vampires?
“Stupid grown-ups,” the girl in front of me muttered as she turned back to the screen. I leaned in to her ear for a whisper, trying not to let my hatred lace each word.
“I’m still in high school.”
“Which makes you old,” she said in disgust, swiveling her head back at me.
“Aren’t you in high school too?”
“I dropped out if you must know.”
“Oh, that makes everything better…well, you have a lot of horrible days coming in your life so I’ll just let you enjoy the movie.”
“Thank you,” she muttered, then I could have sworn she called me a whore under her breath. I leaned forward again.
“She ends up with Frank in the end,” I whispered and she started screaming in rage. People in the theater began shushing her and I sat back quite satisfied. Margaret couldn’t believe what she just saw.
“Are you done?” she whispered angrily. “I am not getting kicked out of this theater. Frank hasn’t even offered his heart to her yet.”
“Ugh, that means we’re barely half-way through.”
“What’s wrong with you?”
“I’
m sick of this movie.”
“Well, your back pack smells like death and I’m not complaining about that. Nope. Not at all. I just sit here in silence, trying to breathe through my mouth, NOT eating my popcorn which I bought for five dollars, and my soda which cost only a buck less and it’s probably flat right now, but I have no appetite because your back pack smells and you’re my friend and –“
“Whoa, Margaret. Calm down. I’m sorry that it’s bothering you. I can definitely wait for you in the lobby if you want. I don’t mind.”
“But then you’ll miss the movie.”
“I’ve already seen it. Remember?”
“Well, that’s true…and I can eat my popcorn if you do.”
“Say no more,” I said happily as I stood up, put on my “back pack” and left the theater. I could hear the clapping as soon as I walked out the exit.
“She’s rude,” my backpack said as I sighed and stopped walking. Thankfully I had gone out the exit that led to the outside of the mall. Of course, Margaret would be mad with me for not waiting for her in the lobby but it was a risk I was willing to take. I just couldn’t look at one more zombie t-shirt, especially since I was kind of wearing my own zombie accessory.
On my back was Elliot, my little zombie friend. Legless and in dire need of transportation, I offered to lug him around in a makeshift harness of straps and rope, sporting him off as my own custom backpack. With the influx of zombie clothing, toys and movies, he wouldn’t be too out of place. And funny enough, I actually got a couple offers from teenage girls pleading with me to part with him. I laughed as I thought of Henry. Maybe if he ever needed cash, I’d pass along the info. I could rent him out like a pimp.
“What do you see in her?” Elliot spat from behind me. I sneered in disgust and continued walking, if only to not see what composed his saliva these days.
“She reminds me of an older time,” I sighed. “One where being boring and normal was cool and people were aspiring to reach the American dream and not googling on the internet how they can become a zombie or a werewolf or a vampire.”
“It’s easy to become a zombie,” he said. I rolled my eyes. I already knew what he was going to say. “They just have to get to know you.”
“I think I’m falling more in love with you every day.”
“Well, that makes one of us.”
“Oh, shut up. I hear you in your sleep. You can’t stop thinking about me.”
“I don’t sleep.”
“Uh. Yes you do. You go brain dead, no pun intended. Your eyes kind of go blank and you just stand there…or lay there in your case.”
“If I do sleep, I certainly don’t dream about you. At least not in the way you think. I’m probably envisioning your legs on a platter.”
“So you think my legs are sexy?”
“You’re gross.”
“And you’re a zombie, which transcends gross. I win.”
“When are we getting my legs back?” he groaned, slapping a hand to his meaty forehead.
“Soon. Noah is coming over my house tonight. I had Henry go find him and set up a meeting. Idiot ran around town calling out for him. Very discreet.” I rolled my eyes.
“Does Noah know why he’s a vampire? What you did to him?”
“Um, that would be a no,” I said, finding my car. Elliot remained silent as I threw him off my shoulders and onto the front passenger seat. I got in and started the car, trying to think of a way to lighten the mood.
“You know…you’re quite light without your legs. Maybe that’s where all your weight is.”
“I’m not sure if you’re joking or just trying to make conversation. Either way, you’re doing a horrible job.”
“Why do I continue to lug you around?”
“Because for some odd reason, you love me.”
I cringed at the words, but I was still unable to come up with a satisfying rebuttal. Did I really love Elliot? The rich jerk that never gave me a second glance until after he became a zombie and no one thought he was handsome anymore? That Elliot? What did I see in him that kept me answering his beck and call like some handmaid? Sure, he had saved my life recently, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t just fulfill my debt to him with professionalism. I didn’t have to have long, deep conversations with him under the cover of night. I didn’t have to bring him with me wherever I went. I certainly didn’t have to entertain his accusation that I had feelings for him. And yet, I continued to do all those things, letting my emotions guide me like a blind driver on a winding road in the mountains.
“I’ll take that as a yes,” Elliot stated smugly as I refused to look his way. I started the car and begin pulling out of the parking lot.
“So if you are in love with me,” Elliot mused. “I take it you won’t go running into the arms of that leech. Correct?”
“And if I do?” I asked. “I mean, he is very handsome.”
“Then you have lost a friend.”
“A little jealous, aren’t we?”
“Of course not…why would…okay, listen Alexandria. I fear for your safety. I realize how easily you fall for the handsome men. But here’s the difference between us. I’m still missing my legs while he has a healthy pair, and…um…”
“Elliot, seriously? A healthy pair? C’mon, you only stammer when you’re nervous. Just come right out and say it. It won’t make you any less of a man in my eyes.”
“Alexandria, I’m just afraid that he’ll learn what you did, and then he’ll swoop in and murder you. I’ll be defenseless to stop him.”
“You love that word…swoop.”
“Alexandria, this is serious!”
“Elliot, I have to tell him the truth. It’s the right thing to do.”
“But I will be powerless to stop him if he attempts to take your life.”
“I have Henry coming over too. He can protect me.”
“Henry?” he said in disgust. “HENRY? Zombie Henry?”
“Uh, yeah. How many Henrys do you know?”
“The one that tried to eat you…that Henry.”
“Yes, one and the same. But he came to his senses.”
“After I nearly shot him in the head! Saving your life, I might add!”
“He wasn’t himself, El.”
“Neither am I! I’m a freakin Zombie!”
“Yeah, I know but Henry just wanted the cure. When he found out it was in my blood, he just overreacted.”
“Overreacted? Is that what trying to eat you is called? So what is succeeding? A gross misunderstanding?”
“I think you need to lie down,” I said, trying to stifle a nervous giggle.
“And what happens when Noah discovers the same thing? That the cure rests within you? Your blood will surely become more tempting. He’ll hardly be able to contain himself.”
“Is that how you feel when you’re around me?”
“Not at all,” Elliot said assuredly. “I don’t eat commoners, remember?”
“Right,” I chuckled as we pulled into my home. Ah, home. Where I was born and all my troubles began. My curse. The men. The transformations. The nightmares that haunt me to this very day. Nothing I did turned out right, and yet I could never stop doing it. Not if I wanted to live…and time was so short. I had less than two years to go before I would have to face my ultimate decision and there were so many songs left to sing. So many lives to potentially destroy…
What kind of a monster was I?
“I’ve always loved this house,” Elliot mused from the window. “Wanted to own it especially.”
“Well, you certainly visit enough,” I said. It was a classic Victorian complete with all the foreboding and ominous vibes of any vintage horror film. Dead leaves littering the withered grass in the middle of summer. Iron cast gates shaped like spider-webs year around and windows that looked like square eyes from a distance. A chimney that sometimes gave off smoke without a fire and a porch complete with a creaking swing and jack o lanterns that appeared out of nowhere without warning. I trie
d as a child to find out who was leaving them, but over time I just rested on the more logical notion that the house was haunted.
I went over to the passenger seat and put Elliot into his harness, throwing him onto my back once it was complete. Facing outward, he was able to get a good view of the street as I examined my home and all of its unwelcoming tapestry.
No wonder I couldn’t get any new friends. The only reason Margaret stuck around was because she thought I was as old-fashioned as the house was. She believed that I was a kindred spirit. Whatever that meant. I was sure she was catching onto me these days though. I’ve been getting only five texts a day now as opposed to the regular twenty.
“Your car needs a wash,” Elliot commented. I shrugged my shoulders.
“My car needs a new life.”
“It’s as gone as I am,” he said sadly.
“Well, you know how much I like dead things.”
I could sense Elliot smiling from behind and I decided to go inside. The door was unlocked but that wasn’t cause for alarm. It was always open because the town was too afraid to actually come in, let alone steal from it. Still, I shouldn’t have been taking any chances. The last thing I needed was some five year old discovering the stash downstairs and somehow creating a brand new Halloween where the monsters were all real.
The foyer (yes, a foyer) was dirty and stained, old and dank, with a red staircase planted firmly in the center. I was never much of a housekeeper, but this was one area where Elliot never complained. The air was perfect for a zombie. Nice and moist, preserving his skin with remarkable potency. He never felt better than in my home and because of it, I wondered if he’d actually want his legs back. He could probably guilt me into finding him a permanent space.
And it was a nice place to live, considering. Besides the death look, it was quite spacious, and the furniture wasn’t outdated. Leather recliners, polished tables and silk drapes. It was such a perverted dichotomy, but it was home.
I was just about to go upstairs to my room and change into some clothes a little less appealing when I heard a noise come from the basement. I could feel Elliot try to crane his neck to look at me.
My Immortal Playlist (The Siren Collection #1) Page 3