Night Realm

by Darren G. Burton

  It struck just as he was about to climb in behind the wheel.

  Paul was grabbed from behind in a grip so powerful he could barely twitch a muscle. What felt like two needles jabbed into his neck. There was a disgusting sucking, slurping sound and he literally felt the life being drained from his body with each passing second. His vision faded and his eyes closed. Then he passed out.

  Twenty Four

  Detective Marks sat by himself at a restaurant in Broadbeach. He’d gone home earlier to find a note from his wife saying she’d gone to Brisbane for a while to spend time with her parents. Reading between the lines she obviously needed time away from him.

  How long was a while? he wondered.

  He looked out over the street. Things were pretty quiet this late on a Monday night and he’d only managed to order a meal just in time before the kitchen closed. He was one of only four people remaining in the restaurant.

  His steak arrived. It looked like a tender and juicy cut. On the side there was a small jug filled with mushroom sauce and he drowned the meat with it, finishing off by pouring the remainder over the vegetables. He wasn’t even sure if he was hungry, but he knew he had to eat something. Seeing Linda’s note had left a gaping hole in the pit of his stomach. As much as he knew their relationship sucked right now, and had done for quite a while, that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. True, he was a hardened Homicide Detective, but even Homicide Detectives were vulnerable in their personal lives.

  Marks sliced off some steak and put it in his mouth. The moment he chewed the succulent meat he realized he was famished. He got stuck into the meat and vegetables and very soon his plate was empty, bar the used cutlery and a toothpick. He took the last swallow of water from his glass and sat back feeling comfortably full.

  His mind went back to the murder cases. So far there had been no more possible sightings of their suspect. It was like the guy had vanished off the face of the earth. Tonight his picture had been splashed across the six o’clock news nationwide. Hopefully that would yield some results.

  Vampires. What the fuck was Jenkins on about? Sure, the doc hadn’t said categorically that they were dealing with some mythical undead creature of the night, but what had all that meant? What was this disease?

  He considered calling Doctor Marlon Becker in Melbourne for further information and insight on the matter, but he wasn’t quite ready to travel down that road of possibility just yet. He’d put a rush on all test results from this morning’s autopsy, and anything the SOCOs had found at the Toby Matthews’ crime scene. Hopefully he’d hear the results of those sometime tomorrow.

  Marks sat there for a few more minutes, absently massaging his chin. He then rose from his seat, paid the bill and walked back to his car, thoughts of Linda and their failed marriage at the forefront of his mind.

  * * *

  Michael stuffed Paul’s limp body into the passenger seat. He then got in behind the wheel and started the car. As he drove down the road he marveled at how well the old beast of a vehicle handled, and it had more power than it looked like it should possess.

  Paul and Kelly were still alive, and he’d left them that way deliberately. He’d only sucked some of their blood and hadn’t drained them to the point of death. Michael had never planned to kill them. He wanted to reproduce more of his own kind and start his own coven. In time the disease his fangs had injected into them would transform the British backpackers into immortal beings just like himself. Very soon he would have two willing playmates to go on the hunt with.

  He couldn’t wait.

  * * *

  “Is that why you don’t eat or drink anything?” Chelsea asked Travis. They were still down by the water’s edge, sitting on the hard sand and just listening to the gentle roll of the swells. “Because you’re a vampire?”

  “We don’t need to eat or drink.” He paused. “Except for blood. We can eat food and drink water and stuff. Our bodies just pass it through. But we don’t need it to sustain ourselves.”

  “You breathe air obviously.”

  “We need oxygen in our blood just like you do. We don’t sleep. Once again we can, but we don’t need to.”

  “Can you go out in daylight?”

  He shook his head. “No. Daylight would kill me. Which sucks, because I used to enjoy going out in the sun. Now I live in a night realm of endless darkness.”

  She lit a smoke. “What do you do when it’s daytime then?” She puffed on it and exhaled a cloud of smoke while awaiting his reply.

  He turned to her with a wry smile. “Hide out. The house we live in has blacked out areas where no light can get in, so we’re quite safe. At night we can open up those areas and enjoy a bit of view. What you can see in the dark, anyway. My vision’s pretty good, way better than it was when I was human.”

  “And when was that?” Chelsea wanted to know.

  “Quite a while ago now. I’ll tell you all about that some other time; about how I came to be what I am today.” When she sat there in silence for a bit, he added, “Feel free to keep asking me other questions, though.”

  “Can you...?” Chelsea hesitated. “Can you be intimate with a girl like humans can?”

  That brought a smile to Travis’ face. “You mean am I able to have sex? The answer is yes.”

  “With a human? Or does she have to be a vampire too?”

  He sighed and pondered that one. “I’ve never done it since I’ve been a vampire. I could have sex with a human, but I’m just not sure how dangerous that would be. There would be no problem doing it with another vampire.”

  “You live forever, don’t you? Or is that just a myth?”

  “We can potentially live forever, but we can be killed.”

  “How?”

  “I don’t really want to get into that just now, Chelsea.”

  “I wasn’t planning on killing you,” she said with a nervous giggle.

  He looked into her eyes and smiled that charming smile. “I know. We can talk about that another time too.”

  “I’m just really curious about it all. I’ve never met anyone like you before. I can’t help asking lots of questions.”

  “It’s okay,” Travis assured her. “I don’t mind. As I’ve done so far, if I don’t want to answer something yet, I’ll let you know.”

  “Can I become like you?” Chelsea immediately posed another question to him.

  “Do you mean, is it possible?” She nodded. “Yeah, it’s quite easy, really. You just have to be bitten by one of us, but not killed. Then you will turn into this.” He pointed to himself.

  “Does it hurt?”

  “Yes.”

  “How long does it take to be transformed?”

  “It depends on the person. It could take a day, or it could take a week.”

  “Will you bite me and change me?”

  “No.”

  “Why not? I might want you to.” She grinned in the darkness. “I’d love to be immortal and have all these amazing powers like you and your brother have. Hopefully I’d be able to fly.”

  “Being a vampire isn’t all wonderful, Chelsea. It has its drawbacks, like not being able to go out in daylight for one. Constantly fighting the urge to murder humans just to stay alive for another. If I could go back to being human I’d do so in a split second.”

  “But if you had a lifelong companion, whom you loved by your side, we could live for all eternity in pure happiness. Truly together forever.”

  He shrugged, then nodded. “Maybe. But it’s not something I’m willing to do for you right now. You need to give it some very serious thought first.”

  She said, “I will.” Chelsea drew on her smoke and flicked the butt onto the beach, where sparks exploded and danced across the sand. “So, you’ve never killed anyone?”

  “No. But like I said earlier, it’s not guaranteed that I won’t. As much as I’m able to stay alive on animal blood, a vampire’s natural craving is for human blood.”

  “But you could get it from the blood ba
nk, couldn’t you? You don’t necessarily have to kill for it.”

  “The blood bank doesn’t just hand out plasma bags. And it’s not like you can just rock up and buy a few. The only way would be to steal it. Easier just to feed on animals. It’s not good to draw attention to ourselves.”

  “Your brother, what was his name again?”

  “Michael.”

  “Yeah, Michael obviously doesn’t care.”

  “But he should. Michael’s out of control. He’s on a power trip. I’m actually a little scared of him these days. There’s no telling what he’ll do. He’s unpredictable. And that’s dangerous for all of us.”

  “Can I see your fangs?” Chelsea asked hopefully. “I’m sure they look really cool.”

  Travis shook his head while Chelsea lit up another cigarette. “That’s not a good idea.” He paused. “Think of it this way. When a human being gets sexually aroused, they’re usually on the verge of doing something sexual. Right?”

  Chelsea nodded. “I guess.”

  “Well, it’s kinda the same when I feed. The fangs come out when I’m on the verge of feeding and am really, really hungry. If I was to get myself into that state here with you now, then there’s a real danger I won’t be able to stop myself from feeding on you.”

  “I think I understand. But maybe I can see them when you’re about to feed on an animal?”

  “We could do that.”

  “When?”

  “I don’t know?”

  “Well, are you hungry now?”

  He thought about it. “A little.”

  “Then let’s go,” Chelsea urged.

  “You’re serious, aren’t you?” Travis stood up and held his hand out to her. She took it and he pulled her to her feet. She brushed the sand from his butt and he returned the favour. Hand in hand they walked up from the beach and Travis led the way to where his car was parked.

  “That’s so beautiful!” Chelsea said as she admired the black BMW convertible. “How’s a nineteen year old vampire afford one of these?”

  “Luck. I come from a wealthy family originally. Even some of us vampires like money and what it can buy.” He opened the door for her. “Hop in.”

  Chelsea did and Travis climbed in behind the wheel. He fired it up and sped down the road. Chelsea was loving the feel of the wind in her hair and the freedom of no roof. This was all so surreal, she thought. The night of the party and tonight. Her sudden relationship with Travis, all the vampire talk, coming to grips with it all. She was loving life right now and Travis had become the full focus of her attention.

  “Where exactly are you taking me?” she asked him.

  “To my hunting ground.”

  They headed north-west, onto the M1 for a bit, then cut through Oxenford and went further west until they reached the semi-rural area of Guanaba.

  “Is this where you live?” Chelsea asked.

  “Around here, yes, but I won’t take you to my place tonight.” He glanced over at her and grinned. “We’re going hunting.”

  “This is exciting.”

  Chelsea undid her seatbelt and stood up, where she clung to the top of the windscreen and let the full force of the warm night air blast her face and upper body.

  While she was recklessly doing that, Travis slowed down and eased gently around bends and corners. He turned off onto a dirt road that cut a path through forest on either side. A group of bats feeding on berries by the side of the road flew off in all directions as the car drove by. It left behind a trail of dust in its wake. Travis eased on the brakes and brought the BMW to a stop in a clearing, then cut the motor and got out. Rather than open the door, Chelsea leaped over it and onto the ground.

  “What will you try and catch?” she asked him as she came up by his side and slipped an arm around his waist.

  “A kangaroo, hopefully,” he told her and held her close to his cold body.

  “You’re going to kill a poor kangaroo?”

  “It’s better than killing a person.”

  “That depends on who it is,” Chelsea grumbled, and for some reason her brother immediately came to mind. She quickly dismissed that thought. What a horrible thing to think.

  Travis shot her a look that she couldn’t read in the darkness. “Let’s find us a kangaroo,” he said. “We have to move really quietly, though. I’ll guide the way because I can see better than you at night.”

  He let go of her then and she followed closely in his footsteps, trying to tread as silently as she could on the uneven ground. It was hard to do when there were twigs and dry leaves scattered all over the place. Every so often Travis would stop walking and pause to listen. Each time Chelsea heard nothing, but Travis seemed to be homing in on some distant sound that her mortal ears were unable to detect. After a while she could hear what he was hearing. It was the distinct hopping sound of a kangaroo. It would only bound for a few paces at a time and then stop.

  “We’re getting close,” Travis whispered so quietly his voice was barely audible.

  He moved in a crouch now and Chelsea emulated his example. Her heeled shoes were not the best for travelling through this sort of terrain and in the crouch position, it was even harder to keep her footing. She was worried she would twist an ankle. Travis suddenly stopped right in front of her and Chelsea slammed into his back.

  “Ouch,” she said as her nose was squashed.

  “Be very quiet,” he warned, holding up a hand.

  He then pointed off to the left. In the darkness Chelsea could just make out the familiar shape of a small kangaroo. Or was it a wallaby? She never could tell the difference. It appeared to be feeding on leaves or something from a small bush. Travis turned towards her and opened his mouth. The sight of those two razor-sharp fangs startled her and she fell back onto her arse.

  Travis was off and Chelsea immediately heard a scuffle. She got to her feet and moved toward Travis as he wrestled the struggling roo under control. When he saw her out of the corner of his eye, Travis bared his fangs and plunged them into the neck of the hapless animal. It was all over within seconds, the young vampire having completely drained the kangaroo’s blood supply. It went limp and flopped to the ground like a stuffed animal when Travis let it go.

  Chelsea wasn’t sure what to make of what she’d just witnessed. A big part of it totally freaked her out, but another, deeper part of her had actually enjoyed watching Travis suck the blood from that animal. She smiled in the darkness and Travis smiled back at her, his fangs still protruding from the upper jaw and his chin dripping with warm blood.

  “That’s what I do,” he said and wiped his face clean. “I generally leave the carcasses behind for other animals to feed on.”

  Arm in arm they walked back to the car. Travis drove her home then, leaving with the promise of seeing her again tomorrow night. All night long Chelsea’s sleep was disturbed by weird dreams, some quite pleasant and some nothing short of terrifying.

  Twenty Five

  Ryan awoke early the next morning. The money was in his account so he booked a midday flight to Melbourne. He also arranged an overnight stay in an inner-city hotel, with the option of an extension if he required one.

  He had breakfast of sausages and eggs and even made some for his sister, just in case. After packing a small suitcase, Ryan woke Chelsea up and told her he was going away for a day or two. She was in a strange sort of a mood and he struggled to figure it out. In the end he gave up trying and went downstairs to wait for the taxi.

  The taxi was late, but he’d allowed plenty of time to get to the airport before the flight. Congestion was high heading south on the M1 due to constant road upgrades. The construction had been going on for years. Surely one day it would be finished.

  The plane was on time and roughly two and half hours later he was landing at Tullamarine Airport in Melbourne. Once he had his suitcase, he located a taxi outside the terminal building and gave the Indian driver the address of his hotel in the city. It took a while to get there as traffic was heavy
and the airport was located a fair distance away from the heart of the city. The taxi double parked outside the Concord Hotel in Lonsdale Street and Ryan quickly paid the driver and got out.

  The sky was overcast and threatened drizzle. It had been some years since he was in Victoria’s capital and he couldn’t say he was glad to be back. Melbourne wasn’t really his kind of place. Great for boutique shopping, cultural events and dining out, but just the shades of grey that made up the city depressed him. Everyone looked like they were in a mad hurry to get somewhere. There was stress on the faces of people who passed him in the street and it just had a vibe that he didn’t like. He much preferred the relaxed atmosphere and sunshine of the Gold Coast. It was more him.

  Each to their own, he thought and entered the hotel lobby.

  Once he’d checked in a porter took his bag from him and showed him to his room. The elevator stopped on the fourth floor and his room ended up being located down the far end of a hallway carpeted in plush red pile. The door was opened via a plastic access card. Ryan’s bag was placed inside, he was handed the card, then the porter left him to it.

  More red carpet of a slightly different design covered the floor of his small, but comfortable room. There was a double bed decked out in red and white with black trim, a desk with internet access and phone, two bedside tables with touch lamps, and a tiny bathroom with mini spa bath, shower cubicle and mandatory toilet. The view out the window overlooked the building next door, which pretty much blocked the view of everything else bar the grey sky. There was air conditioning and heating, as well as a fan and television. Tourist paraphernalia was neatly spread out in a fan pattern on the desk, beside which were some telephone books. Next to that was a kettle, mugs and a basket of coffee, tea and sugar. The small bar fridge under one end of the desk held some little containers of long-life milk and a few local beers and designer water.

  Ryan made himself a coffee, then sat down at the desk and took out his pages of information that he had on Dr Becker. He skimmed through them, picked up the phone and dialed the Research Institute’s main phone number. He decided to just try the direct approach first.