by Morgan Rice
“Do you know what, Blake?” she hissed. “You don’t get a choice.”
Blake frowned, looking deeply confused.
“And what the hell is that supposed to mean?” he said.
Vivian exposed her fangs, relishing the terrified, confused expression that appeared on Blake’s face.
“It means you’re going to love me, for eternity, whether you want to or not.”
And with that, Vivian leaned forward, grabbed him by the shoulders, and sank her fangs into his neck. The last thing she heard, before he went limp, were his pathetic cries, trying to apologize—and way too late.
*
Vivian knew from experience it would take Blake a while to turn. In the meantime, she had to destroy her competition. She had to eliminate Scarlet. If Blake awoke with the same insatiable desires she’d woken with, Scarlet would surely be his target. But if she could destroy her nemesis once and for all, Blake would be hers forever.
Vivian left Blake prone on the bed, tucking him up in his covers so that if his parents should think to check on him it would just look as though he were sleeping. She kissed his deathly pale lips and stroked his hair. Then she leapt from the window and soared into the sky, heading in the direction of Scarlet’s house.
The streets below her appeared normal. There was no sign yet of Kyle’s vampire army. But Vivian knew chaos would soon ensue, and the thought excited her.
She landed a block away from Scarlet’s house and walked the rest of the way. When she reached Scarlet’s house, she found it in darkness. She jumped into the air and peered into each of the bedroom windows, but there was no one there.
Frustrated, she landed again, and was just about to leave when she heard the click of the front door latch opening. She froze.
“Hey!” a male voice called out. “Are you one of Scarlet’s friends?”
Vivian raised an eyebrow and smiled to herself. Then she made her face neutral again and turned. There was a man standing on the porch, his face knotted with anguish. The door now stood ajar, revealing that the house beyond was in total blackness. A husky appeared on the step beside him and Vivian felt her stomach growl with hunger. Blake had made a great meal, but the husky would be a wonderful dessert.
“Yes,” she said to the man, forcing herself to focus. “I’m Becca. Who are you?”
“I’m Scarlet’s uncle, Sam,” the man replied. He patted the husky’s head. “This is Ruth.”
“I know,” Vivian lied. “Hey Ruth, girl.”
Ruth growled. Vivian narrowed her eyes.
“We have a complicated relationship,” she said to Sam in an attempt to explain away the dog’s hostile behavior.
Scarlet’s uncle didn’t seem to pick up on Ruth’s warning. He was too distracted by peering anxiously out into the night. Looking for evil, without realizing it was standing right in front of him. He opened the door wide.
“Come in, Becca,” he said to Vivian, beckoning to her. “It’s not safe out tonight.”
He seemed jittery, completely on edge. Vivian strode up to the door and waltzed confidently over the threshold. If he only knew: you should never invite a vampire inside.
“You weren’t at the high school today, were you?” Sam asked as he led her into a kitchen at the back of the house.
Vivian noted that a small tealight was lit. There was a gun propped up against the back door, a stool, and a mug of half-drunk coffee. Someone was on lookout duty, she realized.
“No,” she said. “I heard there was a shooting. That’s why I’m here. To see if Scarlet’s okay.”
The man began to worry his hands, rubbing them together.
“I wish I had something to tell you,” he said. “But I don’t. I was hoping Scarlet would be with you. That’s what her mom said, that if she was anywhere, it would be with Maria, Becca, or Jasmine.”
Vivian kept her face neutral but beneath her calm veneer she was inwardly grinning. Had Scarlet’s fool of an uncle just given away her whereabouts? Had he just signed her death warrant?
Vivian shrugged. “She’s not with me. I guess that means she’s with one of the other two.”
“Do you have their numbers?” Sam asked.
Vivian had to think quickly.
“Um…yeah, but they’re on my cell. Which is in my locker at school. So I can’t get it.”
Sam looked distracted but nodded. He was so wound up that he couldn’t even see through Vivian’s lies.
“Kids today,” he said with a tsk. “So reliant on technology. When I was younger, we knew our best friends’ numbers by heart.”
Vivian pulled her face into a faux smile.
“Tell me about it,” she agreed. “We’re the worst.”
From beside Sam, Ruth the husky began to growl again. Vivian shot her a death stare and the dog shrunk back.
“Don’t worry about her,” Sam said. “She’s on edge.”
He went to pat Ruth but she moved out of the way of his affection. She began to bark, her teeth bared and her gaze fixed on Vivian.
“I don’t know what’s gotten into her,” Sam said, taking her by the collar and pulling her back.
But Ruth was strong, and she’d clearly sensed that Vivian was not to be trusted. She strained against her collar, making Sam struggle to keep her still.
“I’ll go,” Vivian said. “Me and, um, Rose, don’t see eye to eye.”
Sam frowned.
“Rose? Don’t you mean…”
He paused, and Vivian noted in a split second the changes in his facial expression that alerted her to the fact that she’d been outed. Sam froze, his suspicious gaze locked on Vivian.
Ruth began barking feverishly.
There was a second where everything seemed to stand still, then, all at once, Vivian moved, quick as a flash, leaping into the air to keep the distance between her and the snapping jaws of the canine. She kicked off the kitchen wall and slammed her foot into the side of Sam’s head. He fell, unconscious, in a heap on the floor.
Ruth, now loose, charged.
Vivian landed on the kitchen table with such a force it cracked beneath her. She leapt, soaring over the dog’s head, and catapulted through the corridor. She burst out into the street, splintering the door as she went. The dog chased after her and then stood in the street, yapping, watching as she zoomed up into the sky.
The howling dog grew smaller and smaller as Vivian soared higher into the air. As she did, she felt a sense of triumph. She knew where to find Scarlet. She would be with Becca, Jasmine, or Maria. She smiled to herself. Before the night was over, Scarlet Paine would be dead.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Sam felt something rough, warm, and wet against his cheek. He groaned. There was a splitting pain in his head. His eyes fluttered open and he realized he was staring up at Ruth. She barked, making him wince.
He pulled himself to sitting.
“Okay, girl,” he said to the husky, who was licking his face all over. “I’m awake.”
He pushed her down and looked around. He was alarmed to find himself in Caitlin’s dark kitchen, on the floor.
Memories came back to him in fragments…. There had been a girl, worried about Scarlet. But what had happened next? He couldn’t quite remember. He must have fallen or blacked out or something.
The pain in Sam’s head was unbearable. He finally got to his feet and poured himself a glass of water. Ruth fussed round his legs, almost tripping him over.
“Will you give it a rest?” he said to the dog.
He patted her thick fur and took a deep sip from the glass. Then his memory flooded back to him, so quickly and with such clarity he dropped the glass. It smashed in the sink, sending glittering shards into the air.
“She was a vampire,” Sam said aloud, grabbing the side of the sink to steady himself.
But if the girl was a vampire, that meant it was spreading. Scarlet had turned a man and either he had continued and turned another, or Scarlet had continued. The thought was too much for Sam to bea
r.
He staggered back, his head swimming, and grabbed the phone from the wall. He punched in Polly’s number and slumped his back against the wall as he listened to the ring on the other end.
Finally, she answered.
“Polly,” he said, hurriedly. “Something’s happened. Something awful.”
“What?” Polly said on the other end, a tone of concern in her voice. “Is it Scarlet? Did she come home?”
Sam tightened his grip on the receiver. He felt too ashamed to speak but knew he had to. Scarlet was in danger because of him and he had to make it right.
“There was a girl,” he said, quietly, calmly. “She came to the house looking for Scarlet. She said her name was Becca. I thought she was her friend.”
“Okay…” Polly said disconcertedly, as though she knew there was a “but” coming.
Sam sighed heavily. He couldn’t put it off any longer.
“She was a vampire,” he said in one large exhalation.
He listened to the sound of Polly gasping on the other end of the line. She started speaking quickly, the words pouring out of her in a great gush.
“Are you okay? What happened? Did she hurt you? Did she get inside the house?”
Sam squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his forehead against the cold kitchen wall. He had to come clean. Polly needed to know he’d put Scarlet’s life in danger.
“I’m not hurt,” he said, trying to reassure his wife. “She kicked me in the head and knocked me out but she didn’t bite me or anything like that.”
He touched his neck as though to check for himself whether that were true. He was relieved to discover no puncture wounds.
“Good,” Polly said. “Is the house secure? Have you made sure she can’t get back in?”
“She’s looking for Scarlet,” Sam said, interrupting his wife’s barrage of questions. “And I think I accidentally might have given her a clue as to where she is.”
Polly’s stream of words stopped suddenly. There was a long pause, during which Sam felt his self-esteem plummet.
“What did you say?” Polly said sternly.
Sam sighed, trying to collect his thoughts.
“I thought she was one of Scarlet’s friends. She said her name was Becca. She didn’t… look like a vampire.” His voice grew more timid as he realized how stupid it sounded when he said it aloud.
“Of course she didn’t look like a vampire!” Polly cried. “I can’t believe this.”
Sam could practically hear her pacing on the other end of the phone. He could imagine her in their living room pulling her hair out because her dimwitted husband had failed in the one thing he was tasked to do—protect Scarlet.
When she spoke again, it was with a forced calmness.
“I’ll go to the high school,” she said. “Pretend I’m a worried parent and see if I can get phone numbers or addresses for Scarlet’s friends.”
“No,” Sam said instantly. “It’s too dangerous. There are at least two vampires on the prowl now and my bet is it won’t be long until there are more.”
“What do you suggest?” Polly replied curtly.
In Sam’s mental image of her, she had her hands squarely on her hips.
“I’ll go,” he said. “I got us into this mess, I should be the one to get us out.”
“No way,” Polly argued. “You have to stay there in case Scarlet comes home. And what if the police see you—you’re still a wanted man, you know, after you and Caleb ran around with your guns out!”
Sam tried to interrupt, but Polly wasn’t letting him. She just raised her voice to be heard over him.
“And,” she bellowed, “you’ve just been knocked out by a vampire! How far do you think you’ll be able to get with a concussion?”
“I don’t have a concussion,” Sam protested.
“How would you even know?” snapped Polly.
Sam could hear her angry breathing down the phone. He felt terrible for having made her so annoyed, but moreover, he felt terrible for having put Scarlet in danger.
When Polly spoke again, she was considerably calmer.
“Will you please just stay safe and keep your eyes open for Scarlet like you’re meant to?” she said. “And let me handle getting those girls’ addresses. Okay?”
Sam shook his head but he agreed with a sigh and hung up the phone. His conversation with Polly had made his head pound even harder, so he went off in search of aspirin. Ruth trotted up the stairs after him.
Sam found what he needed in the bathroom cabinet and swallowed two pills with water. In his reflection in the mirror he noted a large red welt on the side of his face. It was the perfect imprint of a shoe.
“That’s going to be a lovely bruise,” he said, wincing as he prodded the red flesh.
He stared into the reflection of his tired eyes. The events of the last few days had exhausted him. All he wanted was for Scarlet to be safe, for his sister to have her daughter back, and for everything to go back to normal. But there was no chance of that. Scarlet was a vampire and Caitlin was off on some crusade to save her soul. Vampires were prowling the streets. He was a wanted man. Nothing would ever be simple again.
Sam trudged back downstairs and took up his position by the back door with his rifle. Ruth sat on guard beside him, gazing out across the dark, dewy lawn.
Sam tried to focus, but his mind was frantic with worry. His sister and brother-in-law were out there searching for Scarlet, and his wife was heading toward danger. Was he really going to just sit here waiting?
With a sudden surge of resolve, Sam stood. Ruth tipped her eyes up to him, her eyebrows drawing together in a quizzical expression.
“You can keep an eye on the place, can’t you?” Sam said to the dog.
She barked.
Sam grabbed the notebook by the phone and scrawled Scarlet a message, pleading with her that if she came home to stay put. Then he grabbed his car keys and rushed to the door.
Ruth was hot on his heels, barking her annoyance.
“I know,” he said as he stopped at the open front door. “But I can’t let Polly be alone out there!”
Ruth barked again.
Sam sighed. The door had been damaged by the vampire girl but he was able to shut it securely, keeping Ruth inside. He felt a sting of guilt as he raced toward his car, hopped in, and revved the engine.
He drove as fast as he dared to the high school. He still felt woozy from the kick to his head and didn’t want to put himself into any more danger by driving recklessly, but at the same time he wanted to get to Polly as quickly as possible.
All at once, a group of people appeared in the road ahead. Sam slammed on the brakes and his car skidded to a halt.
In the headlights, Sam made out the back of a varsity jacket, worn by a dark-haired boy who was facing away. There were others kids with him. High schoolers, Sam thought. They were standing in a group in the middle of the road, as though without a care in the world.
Sam blasted his horn.
“Get out the way!” he cried.
The boy in the varsity jacket turned slowly, as though he’d hardly even noticed his life was a split second away from ending. When Sam locked eyes with him he shuddered.
The boy was a vampire. There was no doubting it. From the paleness of his skin to the evil glint in his eye and his penetrating stare.
It’s spreading, Sam realized, feeling coldness wash over him.
He slammed the car into reverse, accelerating so fast the wheels screeched. He swerved round the group who watched him go with dead-eyed stares and menacing smiles, and raced down the road. He didn’t care about his dizziness anymore—all he cared about was getting away as quickly as possible.
He raced round a corner, his gaze constantly flicking to the rearview mirror as though expecting a group of vampire high schoolers to appear behind him. Then all at once he heard the wail of police sirens and saw flashing blue lights.
“Oh no,” he said aloud.
He was so clos
e to the high school it was painful. He couldn’t stop now.
He slammed down on the gas and accelerated down the road. But the police weren’t letting him get away. They sped up beside him.
Just as the high school came into view, the police car swerved and blocked Sam’s path. He was left with no choice but to slam on the brakes. The car screeched to a halt, flinging Sam forward against his seat belt, then throwing him back again with a thud.
Rubbing his whiplashed neck, Sam saw a police officer leap out of the squad car ahead and raise his gun.
“Get out the car!” he shouted, approaching as though Sam were a dangerous criminal. “Hands on your head where I can see them!”
Sam groaned aloud. He was in pain and beyond frustrated. He opened the car door and stumbled out, pulling his hands into a truce position.
“You guys have no idea what’s going on,” Sam protested as the police officer raced over and bent Sam forward over the hood of the car.
The police officer began frisking him, searching for a weapon. Satisfied he didn’t have one, he allowed Sam to stand and turn around.
“Do you know why I pulled you over, sir?” the police officer said in a harsh, military-sounding voice.
“Dangerous driving?” Sam offered.
“Correct. Five points,” the police officer said with a sarcastic smile. “So what were you doing speeding up like that? Never been pulled over by a cop before?”
Sam shook his head in exasperation.
“I have somewhere I need to be. Now.”
“Lemme guess, the wife’s in labor? Your pop’s in the hospital? Whatever excuse you’ve got, I’ve heard it before.”
“You don’t understand,” Sam began, but he shut up when the police officer glared at him.
“Do you think this is funny, sir?” the police officer snapped.
Sam shook his head.
“No,” he said. “If anything it’s tragic. You’re wasting your time on me when there’s a whole gang of kids just round the corner who are about to wreak havoc.”
The police officer’s frown grew stronger.
“You have information on a crime that’s about to be committed? Because if you do I could have you arrested for aiding and abetting.”