by Kim Turrisi
The Zetas use the tridents to ward off the first line of vamps, who all crumble to the ground. Those weapons leave gnarly wounds.
Danny’s squad attacks two vamps with flat irons and broomsticks, both surprisingly effective weapons. I’m wielding a mop that packs a mean punch when swung like a baseball bat.
“Behind you, Hollis!” I hear Perry yell. I whip around just as a vampire is about to bite my neck. I drop him with my killer mop.
Two of the Zetas start hurling the herring at the vamps. Those suckers sting when they hit you in the face. I hear the vampires yelp as they drop to the ground. Danny finishes them off with a flat iron to the temple.
Good thing Perry whittled all those stakes — she’s firing them off like a pro. Kirsch’s karate is coming in handy as he takes on anyone in his path with kicks and chops.
Sticking together, we’ve got them backed up against a wall. Then there’s a rumbling so loud that I can’t hear myself think. I plug my ears with my fingers.
“Oh my God, check this out!” Danny shouts. An incandescent light emanating from the bottom of the pit shines bright and starts to rise.
“It’s like the sun is coming up underground, it’s so bright,” I remark. An earsplitting hum of thousands of voices beckons us to walk toward them. We are all so attracted to the light that it takes us over, and like zombies we start walking right for the edge. I mean, we are heading for the pit. The drop has to be over two thousand feet. Jagged rocks all around it.
When I’m about two feet from the edge, a giant pantherlike cat grabs me by the neck and yanks me back like a rag doll. Shocked, I watch it shrink, then shift.
It’s Carmilla. Brandishing a sword. The sword. As she swings it, we watch it swallow the light bit by bit with each stroke. I tear up and reach for her.
The dean screeches from behind, “I will destroy all of you!” Before I can inch out of the way, she shifts into a swarm of shadows like crows, scratching and clawing at us. The piercing cries are deafening.
“Carmilla!” I plead.
Perry and Danny swing brooms at the dean, taking a few swipes of her claws that draw blood. But she’s fast and skilled. A vamp clips Kirsch with a bat, breaking his arm. Kirsch squeals. That had to hurt.
I see Betty and the other girls emerge from the wings of a cavern. They jump into the fray, swinging their fists wildly like warriors until the dean shifts back into a woman again. She comes right at me. As she’s about to turn me into roadkill, Carmilla hollers and throws herself between us. “Run, Hollis!”
Her mother slices at her, narrowly missing. I run as instructed, turning to see Carmilla deck her mother with the sword hilt and tumble into the pit.
It’s too late. The light is everywhere. People are climbing into the lip of the chasm, trying to fling themselves in. So many figures in the light. I see a girl. She looks like the girl from my dream. She reaches for Carmilla. It must be Ell.
In that split second, Carm turns back to me. “You know, I really hate this heroic vampire bullshit.” I watch her leap down, driving the sword right into the heart of the light. The light snaps and twitches like it’s alive. All the ghosts throw back their heads, screaming, before tumbling into the darkness together.
I kneel down near the spot where I just watched Carmilla die while the waterworks pour down my face. My shirt is soaked.
It was an epic battle to the death.
“It was always you. My hero,” I whisper into vast nothingness.
* * *
•
I stumble back to the dorm with my crew after the battle, blood-soaked clothes and all. I take out our first-aid kit and start getting cleaned up. The peroxide stings like hell. I pass out bandages.
Kirsch, pouting, has his arm in a sling. “Why did she have to break my Frisbee arm? Women are so mean.”
I pat his good arm. “You’ll be fine soon. At least you can still pick up a taco with your left hand.” That makes him happy.
Danny and Perry are bedraggled and covered in red as well. I pass them some towels and antiseptic wipes. LaFontaine dotes on Perry, nursing her wounds.
Betty sits on the edge of her bed wrapped in an emergency blanket. “I can’t wait to transfer to Princeton. I bet this doesn’t happen there.”
“This doesn’t happen anywhere but here,” LaFontaine states with some authority. “I can’t believe we won.”
I burst into tears. “But Carmilla died.”
• NINETEEN •
We’re all traumatized but I’m fairly certain that I’m the only one missing every single thing about my vampire ex-girlfriend who died saving all of us from her vindictive mother. I try to choke back the tears but the sobs keep coming. Danny rubs my back.
“Let’s get you tucked in.” She guides me to my bed. She’s given up on hating me. War does that to you.
Danny takes my place at command central to update the Silas students. All I can do is watch and listen from my bed in the fetal position. Perry joins her, back to her starched self.
“Hi, students. Laura wanted us to update you about the big win we had yesterday. She’s a bit under the weather, recovering from the battle,” Danny opens.
Perry continues, “Here’s how it went down. LaFontaine led us to the Lustig Theater Building, where the dean and her vampire army were holed up with the missing Silas students, preparing to feed them to the light. We tracked them through a maze below the building.”
LaFontaine chimes in. “I still can’t believe you used me as a human homing beacon.”
“Desperate times,” Perry says.
LaFontaine corrects her. “Oh no. That was badass hard core. We do not apologize for that. Ever.”
Perry turns to hug LaFontaine. “I missed you, weirdo.”
“Control freak.”
Back together looks really good on them. Danny coughs. “And …”
Perry continues her explanation after veering off track momentarily. “I’ll spare you the misstep when we got caught up in the broom closet. It happens. Once the Summer Society and the Zetas busted us out, the confrontation began. They were all there — the dean, the vampires, Kirsch and the other victims — at the lip of this enormous chasm filled with a glistening light.”
I see LaFontaine shudder. Perry throws her arm around her friend, whose head drops on her shoulder.
I get up and go over to the camera. “All of the humans started walking right for the edge because what could you do but give yourself to the light? In a split second, I was yanked backward by a pantherlike animal. When I was a safe distance away, the beast shrank and shifted, and there stood Carmilla. With a sword. The only thing that could destroy the light and save us all.” Sadness creeps in once more. “And she leapt forward, driving the sword right into the heart of the light. We watched it flicker, then die out, taking all the vampire ghosts and darkness with it. It cost Carmilla her life. She wasn’t guilty of what we accused her of. We were all wrong. I was wrong.” Danny puts her arm around me.
LaFontaine moves into focus to finish the story while the nonstop tears flow down my cheeks. “Once the light was extinguished, I guess the brain parasites died. That’s when everyone woke up more or less.”
“I was at a wine and cheese,” Natalie says. “That’s it. Holding a glass of rosé.”
“I was on a campus tour. I didn’t even want to go to Silas!” Betty yells. Perry moves the webcam on her. “But we were still trapped in a cavern in complete darkness with a crapload of flesh-eating vampires. Okay, it wasn’t totally black since the walls had glowing puffballs on the them, thanks to the Alchemy Club. Turns out they’re good for something.”
I crawl back into bed.
“It was like having a bar fight in black light,” Kirsch adds. “Totally rad, until a vampire broke my arm. That’s when Summer Psycho saved my bacon.”
“That part was accidental,” Dann
y notes.
Kirsch pulls her close. “Even so, when you save a Zeta’s life, you become an honorary Zeta. For life. We’re legit a family. You even get a cool trident.” He’s so proud it’s endearing.
Danny plants her forehead in the palm of her hand. “All the vampires surrendered. Carmilla’s mom, the dean, did not.”
“She was clinging with her claws to the cliff face about fifty feet down,” Perry says with a laugh.
Danny chuckles. “Yeah, she was screaming at us that she would be back and we would all pay for what we’d done.”
Kirsch gets his puppy on, jumping around. “That’s when hottie Hollis pushed a rock that was hanging out on the edge. Bam, right on the dean, squashing her like a bug.”
LaFontaine peps up. “Even better than that? Now that the evil dean is gone, the new administration is going to have to heed my long list of health and safety concerns. I win!”
Perry touches LaFontaine’s arm and gestures toward me. I don’t miss that. “Sorry, Laura,” she says.
I say words that aren’t true in response. “It’s okay.”
Perry tries to comfort me. “You did it. You saved Betty. You saved almost everybody.”
“Almost” rings loudly in my ears and heart.
I roll over, curl up and cry an ocean of tears.
• TWENTY •
The last few days have been a blur. I’ve just been replaying Carmilla’s last words to me over and over on a loop. When I close my eyes, I see her fall into the abyss to her death, her mother’s threats still reverberating. All to save me.
I finally force myself to take a shower, but even the shower makes me think of Carmilla. Her hair is still in the drain. I really miss her. I haven’t had a single cookie since she died. I mean, I’m happy Betty is back but I miss all of Carmilla’s crazy. I refuse to throw out the last container of “soy milk” no matter how many times Perry tells me I need to do it.
What I need is for Carmilla to be here. With me.
Betty is slowly but surely packing up Carmilla’s things to make room for her own stuff once more. It feels so final. Even though Betty wants to go to Princeton, she’s hanging here until the transfer comes through.
Betty cleans up her bed, tossing Carmilla’s belongings into one small box. She heads into the bathroom with her cleaning supplies. Between Betty and Perry, they could open up a maid service.
“I need all the bleach. Carmilla was a pig.” I’m trying not to go off on her but Betty is being slightly inconsiderate. I mean, granted she has no idea what Carm means … meant to me, but she did play a huge part in saving her, so maybe she could ease up on the harsh commentary.
“She rescued your ass, so show some respect. It’s only hair.”
LaFontaine peeks in. “Do you want to grab some breakfast?” They’ve been super attentive since everything with Carm went down. Everyone has. Even though her feelings were hurt, Danny let me slide with a passing grade and she’s been making excuses to check up on me ever since.
“I’m not really hungry.”
“You have to eat, even if it’s just toast,” LaFontaine reminds me sweetly, sauntering by Betty, who’s muttering to her cereal. Betty grabs the milk and freaks out when she sees the blood in the soy milk container.
“Blood? Why is there blood in the milk container? I have to get out of here.” She hightails it out the door before I can explain.
A rumble comes from outside.
“I’m starting to get used to the aftershocks,” LaFontaine says. “Is that bad?”
“So I can’t help noticing that you and J. P. have been attached at the hip in the library since the upheaval. I was glad he turned up.”
LaFontaine cringes. “Perry is having a tough time with that. And I know you’re having a hard time with Carmilla being gone, regardless of her past.”
My eyes mist over. “I know she was a terrible roommate and did some pretty awful things, and that one big gesture doesn’t erase all that she did. But she was my terrible roommate, and she made the stupid gesture for me. No, it wasn’t stupid, it was romantic.”
I can’t stop the sobbing. LaFontaine hands me some tissues. A knock at the door forces me to catch my breath. We finally got everyone to agree to knock before barging in. Well, kind of. Perry flings the door open all agitated.
“Hollis. I have news. Sit down, I can’t have you lose it on me. It’s big.”
“Oh God. I can’t handle any more,” I blurt out, wiping away my tears.
She throws both hands up. “Listen to me. Kirsch and his Zeta bros were throwing cherry bombs into the pit under the Lustig.”
“More fireworks? I care less than less.” I’m dog-tired of all of this.
“They stumbled on something you might be interested in.”
I doubt it, but I feign interest in the spirit of being a decent friend. Before she can finish her story, Danny bursts in carrying Carmilla. She’s battered and covered in dust. Shocked doesn’t begin to cover how I feel.
I rush to her side. “Are you alive?”
She doesn’t answer. Her head flops onto Danny’s shoulder.
Danny responds, catching her breath. “We found her in the pit. She wasn’t moving, but I think she’s breathing. Vampires don’t really die, do they?” Danny asks.
She’s translucent. “She needs blood!” I scream, grabbing the container from the fridge. I tip it to her lips. “Please be alive, you goofy vampire. Don’t be dead. I have so much more to tell you. We have so much more to do.”
Carmilla drains the entire container and starts to pink up. I see her chest heave. She’s breathing. “Well, that was a kick,” she chokes out. I wrap her in a bear hug and squeeze her, not wanting to ever let go. Perry clears her throat. Crap, I forgot my room was packed with people.
Again.
I shy away. “Hey.”
She props herself on her elbow. “Hey, yourself.”
Danny clears her throat. “I’m gonna head out.” A symphony of “me, toos” joins in. I want to scream “Thank God” but I refrain, turning my attention to Carmilla once the door closes.
“Are you hurt? I didn’t mean to hug you so hard.”
She smirks. “Oh, I liked that part.”
“I thought you were dead. We all did and now that you’re not, I’m so happy. I mean, I know you’re going through a lot with your mother and your girlfriend.”
She slips her arm around my waist, guiding me toward her, barely touching her lips to mine. She moves back ever so slightly and looks into my eyes. “She’s not my girlfriend. That was literally a lifetime ago. You are mine now.”
Melting.
She takes my bottom lip between her teeth very lightly, then kisses me in what might be the sweetest, longest kiss of my life. I come up momentarily for air. “I know you didn’t do that just for me but it was so badass.” She kisses me again. And again.
“Of course I did it for you, cupcake.”
• TWENTY-ONE •
Kissing makes you work up an appetite.
“This is the first time since the battle that I’ve seen you eat anything other than the blood you chug,” I tease Carm. She bares her teeth at me, chomping down on a slice of extra-cheese pizza.
“You might have heard that vampires like to sink their teeth into just about anything.”
I point at my neck where she left her mark. “I have.” Finishing my fourth slice, I get up to turn the webcam on.
Carm tugs on the tail of my shirt. “Seriously, today? I can’t have one day without that thing?”
“You don’t want to record this for posterity?”
“Posterity has a way of biting you in the ass. Pardon the pun. Not really.” She plants a light kiss on my cheek, massages my shoulders. I feel her breath on my neck.
“Don’t even think about it.”
Carmilla
laughs.
“Come sit next to me.”
She pulls up a chair.
I chide her. “You know everyone wants to know how you survived.” I move closer, get some sexy in my voice. “I’ll make it worth your while.”
She rolls her eyes but agrees. “It turns out —”
Before she can even start her tale, LaFontaine bursts in, in full-blown panic mode. So much for the new rule of knocking. Perry trails them.
“I seriously hate this place,” Carmilla says.
“Where is it? I need the book. Now. The big Sumerian book? Where. Is. It? Why is no one paying attention to me?” Zero to one-eighty is LaFontaine’s specialty.
“I think Betty was using it as a tray to eat dinner in bed last night. Check under the covers.”
LaFontaine throws back the sheets and snatches it up, riffling through the pages. “Ugh, I can’t read Sumerian. Help me, vampire queen.”
I implore Carm with my eyes. She takes the book from LaFontaine, who is borderline hysterical. “Where’s the part about the Lophilformes? Where is that page? We need that page.”
“Slow down,” Carmilla says.
“Tell me to do whatever you want, just find the page.” LaFontaine paces back and forth.
“LaFontaine, what’s going on?” I ask. “Take a breath.”
“J. P. and I were in the library researching the aftershocks. I was confused about the light. Like why would something that feeds on mental energy force people to throw themselves into the pit of death. J. P. agrees. It doesn’t make sense.” Then, after a dramatic pause, “Unless …”
Carm groans loudly.
“… there’s something else down there.”
Just no.
Silence envelops the room. Carm has her finger on the edge of the page about this light. She hesitantly holds it out to LaFontaine. Slowly, excruciatingly painfully … LaFontaine reaches down and flips the page.
Carmilla groans. “This only says something about the light being the lure. And underneath it …”