School for Vampires

by Quinn Conlan

  “Carter, Jason and I really need to go above ground.” He turns back to face us. At least he knows we’re not small fries.

  “Why?” he asks.

  “We have our reasons,” I say, hoping that does the trick.

  “Why?” he asks, more insistently. I think for a moment. I can’t pause for too long, in case Jason takes things down a different route.

  “Because…” Oh god, my mind has gone blank. Carter stares at me, waiting for something worthy of his time and effort. I can see he’s already losing interest. I can’t tell him the truth. I can’t give some lame reason that doesn’t explain why Jason and I need to go up together. I can’t think! Suddenly, Jason takes the reigns. And whips the horse into a frenzy.

  “Because Blake and I are together, and no one knows about it, and we just want some alone time.” Wow. Ok. He just said that.

  It certainly gets Carter’s attention. The moment he looks down at us, I realize I have to play along. I bury my own shock and try my best to roll with it. Carter stares at us, taking in the information. Evidently, he likes what he hears. He smiles. It’s a slightly wicked smile. He’s back.

  “Where’s the hot date?” he asks.

  “There’s an old factory across the road from the cemetery. I used to hang out there with my mates. I wanna take Blake there for a couple of hours.” I guess Jason won’t be letting go of those reigns anytime soon. However, I feel I need to contribute something, to help sell the lie.

  “But Carter, you have to swear you won’t tell anyone,” I say.

  “You mean like Garret?” he asks. He’s now officially enjoying this.

  “Exactly,” I say. “Not a word.” I try to look sincere. Jason adds a nice touch by putting his hand on my lower back. I get the distinct feeling I’ve just helped create my own private nightmare.

  “When?” asks Carter.

  “Saturday night,” I say. We need to act fast if we’re to have any hope of solving Kate’s murder. Saturday works well because we can slip out during social time. Plus, Dorms are still in a state of disarray after the events of last week. It’s perfect timing for a sneaky trip up top. Carter chews on it for a moment.

  “Love don’t come free,” he says. Straight away I realize the next snag in front of us. Pills. We’re going to need 20 between us! I’ve got 2 stashed away, but it’ll take days to get the rest.

  “How many?” asks Jason.

  “Make it an even 20,” says Carter. How generous.

  “Done,” says Jason. I look at him. He’s not bluffing. “We’ll bring them with us tomorrow night.” Carter looks momentarily surprised. But he too can tell Jason’s not bluffing.

  “Well alright then,” he says. “Let me spell out the terms.” Oh god, here come the terms. “We meet during Saturday social. Mill about. Try to look like you’re enjoying yourself. Watch me from afar. If it’s the right time, I’ll signal with my eyes. You’ll see me slip into the train tunnel. One at a time, follow me. Wear black.” Clearly, he’s done this before. Jason goes to ask something, but is cut off by Carter. “Nope, just listen. I’ll lead you to the manhole nearest your destination. Leave all that to me. When you go up top, I’ll wait below the manhole for exactly two hours. Not a minute more. That be enough time for you secret love birds to snuggle?” He’s enjoying this. I’m not. But we need him, so I force myself to play along. “Oh,” he goes on, “and if you get into trouble up there, you’re on your own. I’m not a rescue service. Just be back within two hours and I’ll get you safely home. Deal?” Jason and I look at each other. We both know it’s our only chance of going any further.

  “Deal,” we say.

  “Well then, tomorrow night it is,” says Carter. With these words, he returns to his distant daydream. Jason and I walk away, excited, terrified and everything in between.

  As we make our way back down the oval, Jason turns to me. “Blake, I’m sorry. I panicked. I…”

  “Jason, it’s fine. We needed something he’d buy, and it worked.” Jason seems relieved I’m not mad. I feel like telling him it’s only pretend, and it’s only for one night. But with all that’s gone on, and how wounded he’s been these past few weeks, I decide it’s best to leave it. We agree to meet up on Saturday night before social, to prepare. As I head over to my usual hang out, I realize that Garret has again been staring. It can’t look good. He looks confused. And hurt. He approaches.

  “What’s going on Blake?” he asks. I don’t have the faintest idea how to play this. I try the innocent act.

  “With what?” Instantly, I know it was the wrong act to play.

  “Oh come on. I’m not a complete fool Blake.” I feel awful that he’s upset, but the truth is, I don’t want Garret involved. We’re taking a huge risk. God only knows what we’ll discover at that address. I can’t bear the thought of something happening to Garret. But at the same time, lying to him is torture. I’m somewhere between a rock and a hard place. He looks at me, waiting to hear the truth. I stare at him, and I decide that I just can’t do it. For his own good.

  “It’s nothing Garret, seriously. Jason dated Kate and she was one of my closest friends, and we’re just helping each other with our grief.” I guess this is actually kinda true.

  “I get that,” says Garret. “But what were you doing talking to Carter?” Good question. Here goes.

  “I found out that Carter was in love with Kate. And he’s devastated. I mean, just look at him, he’s sitting in an umpire’s chair staring into space.” Garret looks over. I just want him to believe the story and go back to the safety of football. He suddenly looks a little sheepish.

  “Ok, well, I guess I’m sorry. For being a little paranoid.” I go in and hug him. I’m happy he’s off the scent, but gutted that I’ve just lied to him. He kisses me. It feels good to be back in his arms. “Hey, so, Saturday night social? We can hang out like old times,” he says. He looks into my eyes and I know there’s no way I can fob him off.

  “Absolutely,” I say, with a smile. He kisses me again before returning to the field. It’s a speed bump, but I’ll just have to improvise on the night.

  *

  It comes around quick. The first task is to meet up with Jason in the man cave. When I enter, I see that he’s alone. He must have already told his sidekicks to stay away. The air is refreshingly clear of special smoke. He’s made an effort.

  I take out Kate’s jewelry bag and show him the contents. He picks up a blood dart. “How’s your aim?” I ask him.

  “Good. I almost hit the dummy on Backers Day.” We smile. Sounds like he’s on par with me.

  “Well, it’s better than nothing,” I say.

  “Now it’s my turn to show off,” says Jason. He unfurls his hand. I see 20 sparkling Glints.

  “How did you get them so fast?!” He smiles mischievously. I think for a moment. “You son of a gun. The smashed up Dispensary.” He nods. “It’s scary how your mind works,” I say.

  “You have no idea,” he replies.

  “Ok, so we’ve got the cost of admission, we’ve got the address, we’ve got weapons, we’ve got the key that opens god knows what…”

  “Looks like we’re set,” he says. We pack everything up and it’s time to go. I stare at Jason. There’s potentially a whole world of trouble coming our way. I know I can’t turn back now. I need to find out the truth. I just want to make sure Jason knows what he’s getting himself into. He reads my face well. “Please. I’ve been running with street thugs since I was 12.” We hug. I’m not sure what I’m feeling right now, everything’s so mixed in together. But I like that we hug.

  Jason waits behind for a couple of minutes and I try to casually sashay into the Commons. It’s busy. I guess people are keen to move on. I immediately spot Garret and go to him. I glance around briefly for Carter but don’t see him.

  My plan is, when we get the secret nod from Carter, I’m going to tell Garret I’m tired and heading to bed. Then, I’ll crouch down and sneak through the crowd towards the train tunn
el. It’s horrible and deceptive of me. But necessary.

  The first of possibly many snags comes in the form of Garret’s chosen topic of conversation. The Ball. Specifically, the train ride home, and the three little words he whispered in my ear. It’s the last thing I need tonight, but I can’t exactly casually change the topic.

  “You did hear me, right? I mean, I know the train’s pretty noisy, but you did hear what I said?” he asks.

  “Yes, I heard you. And it means the world to me Garret.” I try to sound sincere, but half my attention is on the crowd. I see Jason walk in and go chat with his mates. I keep looking for Carter. I’m suddenly nervous that I won’t spot him.

  “Blake? Are you even listening to me?”

  “Yes, of course. I’m sorry. I’m just…I’ve just got a lot going on right now.”

  “And I get that. But I kinda think you need to let me know how you feel about what I said. I mean, don’t you think that’s pretty reasonable?” He’s such a good guy. Tonight, this crazy, Mission Impossible-style night, I don’t deserve him. I look around again for Carter’s face. I finally spot him. He gives me the nod. My heart drops. It’s on. What terrific timing. I turn back to Garret. I so badly want to have this chat with him, and tell him how I feel. But I’ve invested so much in tonight, and other people are counting on me now. I have to go.

  “Garret, I’m really sorry, but I just can’t do this right now.”

  “Why not Blake? What could possibly be more important?”

  “I…I can’t answer that, I just…”

  “It’s Jason isn’t it? Just be honest with me Blake? I’ve stuck my neck out for you.” Poor choice of metaphor.

  “I promise you Garret, it’s not Jason. And I promise, we will chat about this tomorrow. For as long as it takes. But right now, I have to go.” I look across and see Carter clambering into the train tunnel. I’m up next. Garret looks deeply hurt. I kiss him and tell him I’m sorry. Then I flee.

  I’m no CIA agent, but I’d like to think I do a pretty mean job of making my way to the train tunnel unseen. I crouch forward and pretend I’m looking for a bracelet I dropped, and scurry through the crowd. When I make it to the tunnel entrance, I look up and realize that I’m staring straight at Jason.

  “What are you doing here Jason?! One at a time, remember?”

  “I know, and I was going in second!”

  “No, I was second.” At which point, we realize we never actually worked out the order. Give us a break, we’re new to this. We realize we can’t stand there bickering, so we both step into the tunnel, and hope that no one sees us.

  We take a few tentative steps into the filth. It’s immediately close to pitch black. I put my hands out in front of me and try to follow the rhythm of the sleepers. About five meters in, I see a light. It’s moving. Jason and I stand still and grip each other. The light approaches, accompanied by the sound of footsteps. I’m praying it’s Carter, but down here, anything is possible. I slide my hand into my jeans pocket, and feel the fully loaded blood dart. Suddenly, Carter’s face appears, lit from below by a hand-shielded candle. “Ooh boogie boogie” he says. Jason and I breathe a sigh of relief. Although I must say, the sight of Carter’s underlit face down in the dank tunnel is easily one of the scariest things I’ve seen. He immediately holds out his hand. I think he’s having a rare moment of chivalry and I go to take it. He retracts sharply and clicks his fingers. Jason realizes he’s fishing for his fee. 20 magic little pills are deposited in his cunning hands. “Follow me, lovebirds,” he says.

  He takes us down the track for about 20 meters. Then, we step off to the right and I see a narrow tunnel. There’s no way you could make this out when you’re shooting past on a train. I suddenly wonder how many other sub-tunnels there are down here? We head down it and sadly, it’s no less filthy than the one we’ve just come from. We turn left, into another tunnel. Then right. I start to see where Carter’s fee goes. The guy knows this rabbit warren like the back of his hand.

  Finally, we stop. There’s a ladder on the wall. Carter points up. We arch our heads and see a manhole. This is it. I expect Carter to go up first, but he just stands there and waits. “Ladies first,” he says. I start the climb. Jason follows close behind. I stop and look down. I see Carter start to join us on the ascent. He holds close to the candle. Suddenly, I see a hand reach out from the darkness and grab him on the shoulder. Carter screams like a five year old and falls back. We’re not alone! Jason jumps back down in a heartbeat and I follow suit. There’s trouble and we haven’t even cleared the manhole yet!

  Trouble comes in the form of Garret. He must have seen us slip into the tunnel and gone in after us. Jason helps Carter to his feet.

  “Garret!?” Carter says, “oh god, you scared me. I thought you were one of the tunnel freaks.”

  “Garret, what are you doing here?” I ask. I really didn’t want him involved in our slightly daft, high stakes escapade.

  “I’m coming with you,” he says, in a ‘don’t bother arguing with me’ tone. I suddenly think of Carter. He’s in the dark about our real mission, and he needs to stay that way. I do a bit of fast thinking.

  “Ah, yeh, of course. As we’d arranged,” I say. “Sorry Carter, I forgot to tell you there’d be one more.” I glance at Jason, hoping he’s cottoned on. He looks annoyed to see Garret, but he doesn’t say anything. I glance at Garret. He too stays silent. All three of us glance at Carter. The ball’s in his court. He looks at each of us, and a very wicked grin overtakes him.

  “You saucy dogs. I had no idea Juniors could be so naughty. An above ground threesome. I dig it.” Thank the lord for Carter’s dirty mind.

  I can tell that Jason is still not keen on the company. I try to shoot him a look to chill out, but he hasn’t taken his eyes off Garret. “So Garret, I guess Carter just needs your 10 pills. You do have them don’t you?” Jason asks.

  “Oh. Right. Ah, I guess I kinda don’t,” says Garret with disappointment. I feel a rush of relief. Garret can’t come. Which means he can’t be hurt, should the chips fall that way. But again, I see that wicked grin creep over Carter’s face.

  “Oh, I would never deprive the world of a threesome. I won’t have that on my conscience. This one’s on the house buddy boy.” Garret smiles. Looks like he’s in harms way after all.

  The three of us clamber through the manhole and stand on the waiting street. We look down at Carter. “Now remember the terms. Two hours, not a minute more. I’d say don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, but that only leaves Scrabble and mocktails. Be naughty.” He puts two pills on the end of his tongue, smiles and closes the manhole.

  Well. This isn’t awkward. Standing on the street with my boyfriend and my fake secret boyfriend, who has real feelings for me, trying to solve a murder. Sure, I’ll run with it.

  Jason and Garret aren’t running with anything. “What are you doing here quarterback?”

  “What am I doing here? Being with my girlfriend, you uncredited Rebel Without a Cause extra.”

  “This has nothing to do with you. So why don’t you tumble back down the manhole and mind your own business.”

  “How about instead, I take that stupid leather jacket and shove it down your throat so far you’ll think you’re a cow.” They start pushing each other. It doesn’t take long for the fangs to come out. They drop on instinct, and I’m amazed to see how ferocious these two can get. They start to circle each other. I stand in the middle between them and try to save them from all out war.

  “Guys! Please! You cannot be doing this. Not up here. Just stop and think for a moment. We are above ground! We have no idea whose turf we’re on. We’re brand new vampires in a city filled with the real deal. And we don’t have much time!” My words do the trick. The boys return to their senses and the fangs retract. I decide not to push things and ask them to hug it out.

  “You’re right Blake,” says Jason. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t have much time for what, you guys? What exactly are you
doing up here?” asks Garret. It’s time he knew the full story. We tell him about Kate. About the teachers looking so afraid. We tell him about the key and the address. I tell him I’ve seen the tunnel dwellers up close, and they aren’t murderers. They are as afraid of something as the rest of us. I tell him about Kate acting so strange on Backers Day, almost like she knew something bad was going to happen. I tell him I didn’t want him involved for his own protection. Finally, I tell him I’m tired of being down in the filth and mud without answers to questions I’m allowed to ask. And I’m tired of the fear.

  Garret takes a while to process it all, but when he does, he seems to finally understand. I’m relieved. There’s an uneasy sort of truce between he and Jason, but it will do for now. I take out a blood dart and hand it to Garret. “And since you’re the only one who can actually throw one of these, how bout you lead?” I say, hoping a little humor will help move things along. Garret smiles.

  We take a look around. We’re standing on a night street in a rough part of town. It’s a weird feeling being above ground for the first time in months. The cemetery is on one side of the street, and a row of old factories are on the other. It’s strange to see the top half of our bedrooms. For a moment, I’m gripped by the desire to find my gravestone. Just to know who’s coffin I call home. But there’s no time.

  We walk towards the factories. I start to take out the piece of paper with the address on it, but Jason stops me. He points to the right factory. We cautiously approach. It seems to give new meaning to the phrase ‘run down.’ It’s a miracle it’s still standing. It’s also safe to say Kate’s key isn’t for the front door. There is no front door.

  We step in through a cavity where a door or window may have once been. Broken glass crunches under foot. A little light from the street shines through, and I can see we’re in a large, open space with a high ceiling. There is debris and graffiti everywhere. It smells. Not like the train tunnel, but it’s not exactly pleasant.