Ring of Madness

by Royden Labrosse

  - I'm sorry, Jane. But I'm really sorry, Jane.

  - It happens. So what happened?

  - Jane... - Katya put air in her chest. - I just don't know how to tell it... What do you know about vampires? If it's not about mice, but about humans? Which are in horror movies, with fangs and wings and everything?

  About people? I thoughtfully scratched the tip of my nose. Someone to download information scratches the back of the head, and my nose helps me more. I guess it's because I have a Pinocchio, long and curious. About people... There's a lot of things! My brother had a period of horrorist fascination. It ended a long time ago, but what have I seen during that time! Vampires, werewolves, beetles, spiders, anacondas, aliens and mutants. If you forget someone, I'm sorry. As they say, the right thing to do is to emphasize the missing thing. That's it. I started dumping information.

  - Vampires. Okay, well, the first thing that comes to mind is "Dracula." of Bram Stoker. Talk?

  - I read," Katya refused.

  - We watched the movie together. Francis Ford Coppola is a great director after all.

  - I agree, too. That's it?

  - Sorry, we're going through a nerd right now," I snapped. - The fairy tales at school are over. Of course, I've read and watched a large and dark bunch of stuff about bloodsuckers, but if you paraphrase it all, you'll wipe your tongue to the bone! Who's ever been through a vampire! Six authors out of ten fantastic books. And they all have their own dissenting opinions. And about the bloodsuckers themselves, their abilities, and their place of residence. If it's necessary, I'm gonna give you a lot of crap. But what do you want all this for?

  Instead of a clear and intelligible answer, I received a sentence of eight unprinted words. In translation, it meant something like "don't - don't ask"!

  - Katya, ooh, ooh!

  Girlfriend shook her head as she came back to reality. And then, without saying a word, she wrapped the neck of her sweater so that her neck opened. I shrugged my shoulders.

  - So what?

  - Look at this! - The rink turned to my left side.

  My eyes are on my forehead. On my thin skin, right on the carotid artery, there were two red dots.

  - What's that?

  - Vampire bite.

  I don't know about you, but I had enough to go into a deep coma for eight seconds. Vampires? In the twenty-first century? A bite to the neck? Tusks and blood? Tell who else! I'm a fantasy, of course I love it, but I'm not gonna let anyone hang my noodles on my ears! Maybe something happened once, but it swam away! It's gone, that's it! After a moment of daze, phase two came in, data checks.

  - Katya, say it again, because I don't understand something in this life. What's on your neck?

  - Vampire bite.

  Repetition didn't make it any easier. I would have, but Katya was definitely on edge. Two words - and hysterical without any gloves. So I just nodded my head.

  - Okay. Vampire bite. Can I get a closer look? If it's in the light?

  - Yes, you can.

  - I'm careful. - What if it bites as evidence? Katya hasn't bitten before, but everybody starts, right? Yesterday he was Teddy bear Kuznetsov from the next apartment, and today he seriously declares that he - Napoleon Bonaparte and demands the government to erase the Elbe from the ground, say, she got him during exile to the liver and deeper! So, I went up to my friend and turned her neck to the fire. Well, what can I tell you? I'm a biologist, though a sophomore. And I know a few things. It was definitely a bite. Two fang marks. They're gentle. No cuts, no lacerations. Two punctures. Like a shoe splint. Alas, they were fangs, not a needle. Really, I couldn't tell whose fangs they were. It's a strange bite. I wonder whose it really was. I didn't ask that out loud, obviously. I imagine a friend would now respond to a humble request to shake the noodles off her ears and tell me what it really was like.

  - I agree. It's a bite. And how did it happen?

  I tried to speak slowly and calmly. Like with a sick animal. Words aren't as important there as a voice. It's an intonation. Warmth, serenity, the promise of protection and help. If you've mastered this number, you're already thirty percent psychiatrist. Because a sick person is no different than a sick pig. It's worse than that. The other seventy percent (knowledge, skills, abilities) will come later.

  - It was terrible," Katka said slowly. And again, she was silent. I wanted to shake her like a bear or a pear or somehow hurry up the download, but I had to keep silent and gently squeeze her hand. Never rush is the second principle when working with the same animals. I think we've been sitting like this for ages. The rink is in the chair, I am next to her on the carpet, squeezing her hand. Then Katya started talking. So slowly, as if every word was not born in her mouth, but rose to her lips from somewhere in her stomach.

  - That was last night. Yesterday was Saturday. You know, it's best to go out on Saturdays.

  I knew it. The other question is, I hated all those discos. I was too clumsy to dance, the music annoyed me, and the constant smells of tobacco and alcohol drove me crazy and mad. Not to mention all the smart guys trying to hit on me. And what makes them think they're so witty? That's why I was only invited to a party if I had to go to someone's hut. Sometimes at my place. But I used to spend my evenings with my family and another book. And what does Katya say? It wasn't about anyone. She was the star of the whole course. She was one of the very few girls in gymnastics, and not a kikimorah or a blatant fool. It's expensive. Katyushka was popular and enjoyed it a lot.

  - We went to "Wolf Fight." Do you know where that is?

  I nodded. Yes, you did. Purely theoretically. I was never attracted to the colorful neon. Although I liked their sign. There were two fighting wolves on the facade of the building - white and black. And whoever painted them was a master of his craft. Two wolves woven together in a deadly battle. As I walked by or passed by, I thought I could see the muscles walking under the colorful skins. Sometimes I even changed my route to pass by. It cost me two hours of lost time, but I really wanted to. Why the lost time? Because there was a Wolf Fight on the outskirts of town. There used to be some count's mansion there (yes, we had count's mansion too!). The man wanted to live in the countryside, away from the hustle and bustle. After the revolution, the count was made an antisocial and anti-socialist (what a clever word I learned!) element, the house was privatized in favor of the state and some committee was placed there. During the Great Patriotic War, when the fascists came to us, they liked this house very much, too. And they set up a headquarters there. That's where they were buried. A grenade is a good thing, especially if it's hand-made. It was torn so that only fragments of the walls were left. Then, after the war, the house was repaired, mutilated. And after the descent to earth Russian grace in the form of democracy and glasnost - I do not remember exactly what year it was, because it was then a small and stupid, but certainly not ninety-first, and later, so after that, the mansion was bought up by some cool man and started a restoration there. He had a casino, a bar, a dance hall, a strip club and something on the list. This rebuilding ended three years ago, and the wolves on the facade are relatively recent. Four to five months ago, six months' worth.

  - You've never been there, have you?

  I nodded again. You weren't. I don't want to. This club is probably no different than the others. A few tables. The dance floor. DJ booth. Maybe a couple of closed offices. It's not interesting. The only difference between these clubs is the registration and the drug dealers.

  - We were told it was the best club. Of course, we decided to go in and enjoy it.

  - What do you mean, go and evaluate? - I specified.

  Katya looked at me as if I had woken her up.

  - No, it's to come in and enjoy. There's an inscription above the entrance. It's on the inside. "Come in and enjoy."

  - And what exactly are they not specifying?

  - No.

  - That's too bad. It'd be more interesting to have a list. You know, pleasures to the left, pleasures to the right...


  - Stop your stupid jokes! - A friend snapped at me.

  - As you command.

  - Yes. The inscription was in different colors, gothic letters. It's very beautiful.

  I turned my shoulders. For my taste, it would be better to say, "Leave your innocence, whatever comes in here."

  - Okay. You're in. How many of you were there?

  - Eight people. Me, Natasha, Seryozha Klukvin, Seryozha Malin, Petya, Sasha, Volodya and Dima.

  - A complete gentleman's kit," I said. Mostly because of Natasha. I sure as hell didn't like her. Natasha was one of those girls who was very smart and proud of her intelligence, like the red banner of the social work team. She was ready to poke everyone's nose into her gold medal and her gymnastics. Which she tried to do to me one day. She was able to do it for exactly three minutes. It wasn't enough for the fourth. I looked at her with a touching look and answered her that even the most beautiful and the biggest medal pimple could not bring out. She hasn't hated me since then. And that's pretty much mutual. Especially since she really is a scarecrow in pimples. I always thought that Katya was holding it for contrast. Like in that anecdote. What makes a woman happy? Her beauty? Oh, no! No way! The ugliness of her friend! Against which she herself looks like a sex symbol of the faculty. I think Natasha understood that too, but she couldn't do anything. I'm sorry. No matter what she wore, no matter how she put on makeup, nothing looked good to her. Absolutely not. I thought the best thing for her was the burka. And I'd rather nail her to the skull.

  - We booked a table in advance, sat down, had a few drinks, danced a little... Everything was as usual. It wasn't a big deal.

  And why does that surprise me?

  - It really started somewhere after midnight. Another company came in. You know, not the new Russians, but definitely very rich. It wasn't by the clothes, it was more by the way they looked at everyone. With that kind of masterful squeal. Barstery... In their eyes. Like princes on their serfs. Or kings on serfs... There were five of them in all. Three men and two women. And all so... so strange!

  - Why are they weird? - I couldn't stand it.

  - Because of their manners, their clothes, their behavior, their conversations... I don't know how to explain it! I don't know how to explain it! I DON'T KNOW!

  - Okay, okay, I stroked a friend's hand. - Katya, look at me. It's okay. It's me, I'm with you, so there's nothing else to worry about. Okay? You just tell me everything, and I'll decide what to do with it next.

  Katya sobbed. Did I manage to calm her down? Except just a little. And do I believe in what I said? Yes, I do. I also believe in the Lord of God and Santa Claus. I was worried more and more about myself. What could have pissed my friend off like that couldn't have been an ordinary accident.

  - Katyusha? Are you okay?

  - Yeah, I think so.

  - Well, if you think about it, cross over and try to explain to me what else they've got you on besides arrogance? Well, it's no surprise to anyone in our time. You're a nosebleeder yourself sometimes, and I'm a sinner, too.

  Katya was thinking. I was watching her. After all, a friend has a mathematical thinking. When she begins to calculate, compare and fold - and you can no longer worry about her. Her brains will go straight back to normal!

  - Jane, I don't know. Their plastic was different, like they were holding themselves back. It's like they want to move faster and harder, and they're holding themselves back as hard as they can. And they were pale.

  - I, for one, couldn't get a tan either.

  - That's not it. Jane, you did get a little tan this summer after all. You're pretty swarthy, too. And this company was milky white. Actually, it was. Both men and women. Like in the nineteenth or eighteenth century, when the noble ladies' tan was considered a disgrace. White as paper.

  I shrugged my shoulders. Maybe they're allergic to direct sunlight. Somebody told me about this disease. Toys of heredity. Or are they just albinos?

  - I went dancing. First alone, then with Sasha. And then I was invited by one of those A's. He didn't have a woman, so he decided to dance with me. I liked him, so I followed him to the dance floor. We danced at least five dances. For some reason, they kept playing slow music. At the fourth dance, I let him kiss me. A real kiss. And I felt something wrong. But then I didn't know what it was. And after the fifth dance, he decided to leave, so I went with him. I mean, not like that! I followed him like he was tied down! He didn't tell me anything, he didn't ask for anything, he just looked - and I went!

  Katya's crying. I went to the kitchen to get some water. A couple of bottles of mineral water were always standing there. Okay, just in case there was a fireman. I opened one of them, swallowed it from my throat and thoughtfully rubbed my forehead. Do I believe what Katya's talking about? Yes, I do! Nothing like this has happened so far! The story is quite normal. Well, she danced. Well, she kissed. Well, we decided to leave together and we didn't agree with the rest of the band. So far, I don't see anything out of the ordinary. Even the fact that Katya claims to disagree. It all depends on the alcohol in the cocktails. In the evening she wanted to, in the morning she was horrified and decided that it didn't even happen at all. Standard. I gave my friend a glass of ice mineral.

  - Katya, where was everyone else while you were dancing and leaving? Same Natasha? Why didn't they stop you?

  - I don't know, - in Katin's eyes there was a child's astonishment. - It never even occurred to me to think about them.

  It looks a lot like Katya. I've spent my whole life thinking she's a creepy selfish woman. That's why my friendship with her was distant enough. We could go somewhere together, Katya could come to our house, I could come to her house, I could call her, and if we met on the street, we could have a very nice chat. I could help her, she was my friend, our parents were friends, we treated each other well and even shared secrets. But I tried never to get involved with her company. Katya is a pretty bossy nature and sooner or later she would start bending me under herself. Like, "Well, think about it, you don't like discos! Go so I can enjoy it! ». I didn't want that. Sooner or later I'd have to put Katya down hard, and since we both have very strong will, I'd have to break up the relationship clean. That's what I could have said about my other friends. That's why I hardly had any friends either. Only the same unnecessary relationship. You want to be friends, you want to spit.

  - Okay. We'll call them later and ask about their cases. What happened next?

  - We came to one of the rooms above the club. Then... then it was over!

  - You slept together? - I specified.

  - Yes! - A friend shouted out.

  And why doesn't that surprise me?

  - Okay. So you slept with him. And when did this trace come out? The bite?

  - He's the one who bit me.

  - Details," I commanded.

  Katya's squeezed. The voice became much lower and deeper. She seems to have experienced it all over again.

  - When we entered the room, he ordered me to take my clothes off. He just said, and I immediately started taking my clothes off. And he stood there and looked at me. I don't remember when he undressed himself, but we were already naked in bed. He stroked me first, then started kissing me, then the kissing started interspersed with light bites. It hurt me, but he just laughed. And there was nothing I could do. This - her hand touched the bite - happened the moment he entered me. He was inside me and he was drinking my blood at the same time. And the worst part was that I loved it! I could have spent so much eternity! I wanted him to do it again and again! I asked him, and he just laughed. And he looked at me with his blue eyes.

  - Which ones? - I interrupted it.

  There was a slight discrepancy. As long as I remember vampire folklore, in all the films their eyes became bloody red. Like an angry Spanish bull. Very unappetizing!

  - Blue," Katka repeated surprisingly. My question knocked her down from a tragic mood to a purely practical one. - You know, when he was drinking my blood, her eyes changed. I just remembered
it now. They became bright blue, no pupil and no proteins. Like two pieces of turquoise on my skin.

  - That's very nice. And then what happened?

  - And then somebody called his cell phone. This... this creature... he picked up the phone and said something, then he scolded and walked out of the room just like that with no clothes on.

  I had a snort. I imagined it was a spectacle. There's a totally naked guy scratching down the hall of the club. That's so cute! It's a nudist's dream!

  - And you stayed in the room?

  - It's not funny," Katka puffed up. - You know, I'd sit there like that. But they wouldn't let me. A man came into the room and gave me my clothes. And then he told me to get dressed and go home," and I obeyed. I walked most of the night. It was strange that no one had killed me!

  - Was it? You didn't take a cab?

  Considering where this club was located and where Katka lived! That doesn't sound like much of a friend. I'm the one who's a walking fan. From one end of town to the other, without even panting. But a walk from "Wolf Fight" is tiresome even for me. I'd have made it in two hours, so it's me! And a girlfriend would have dragged me for a week! I'm surprised she got here so fast! I would have waited for her by tonight.

  - Yes! I walked.

  I ate my lip. I was on my way home. Clearly following orders. She was told to go home, so she went. And if they told her to run, would she run? Flew faster than the wind? Would she? Or did she not? Damn it! Let's put it down for the vagueness! Isn't that the right thing to do, I'm sorry, to love a girl so much that her brains fail?!

  - Okay. What did you do at home?

  - I went straight to bed. Without even taking my clothes off.

  - And then. When did you wake up?

  - I'm gonna take a shower. Started flushing it all away... Well, you know! The traces are still... blood and...

  - I understand," I nodded. - You started to wash your tracks, and you remembered everything?

  - Yes! I got dressed and called you! Jane, what do I do now?! I'm gonna be a vampire?! What's going on?