by Dani Hoots
“Don’t you dare think you can kill me that easy,” I bent down and picked up the red-bud. It burned in my hand, the smell of burning skin filled my nostrils but it was worth it. I rammed it through Joshua’s chest. Blood splattered out of his mouth as I let him fall to the ground.
Then I did the only thing I could do. I ran.
I don’t know what possessed me to do it, but I had to go by and make sure Joshua was telling me the truth. As I came up to Hanover Street, people crowded around, looking at the damage that was done. Glass was shattered, blood draining into the gutters. I shoved past everyone, even the cops who tried to pull me back and that’s when I saw him. My one love, with a piece of the red-bud stabbed through his heart.
Tears falling from my eyes, I ran to his body, repeating the word ‘no’ over and over again. I didn’t think it to be true, I didn’t think it to be possible. We were ready to live an eternity together, we were ready to be happy. I bent down and collapsed next to him. My heart ached as if it had been sad and I truly wished I had been. Life was over and from then on I lived like a shadow, never existing and never truly gone.
There is no happiness in this life, I have come to find. I have been on the run for almost a hundred years, some members of the Wolf clan still searching for me, and other people who have noticed something suspicious as they watch me go about my day. I still visit Boston more often than not, security getting stricter as the years go by to leave the country. It was hard to use my old passport, no one believing me to be the age I was, so I had to live in the shadows, waiting for something smart and strong enough to kill me. One day, I hope to find my match so I can stop suffering and pray that there is a heaven where my love is waiting for me. Did creatures like me get salvation, I had no idea.
But there is always hope, right?
Beauty. Of all the things that people nowadays got right, at least in Western cultures, it was those monsters’ beauty. With their long blonde hair, emerald green eyes, skin as pale as the moonlight, the Baobhan Sith were not something you wanted to come across during the lonely nights that were a natural part of traveling through the Highlands. Their faces had to have been chiseled by the gods themselves, if there is a god that is. After seeing what I have seen in my lifetime, I tended to think that there isn’t one.
No human could ever compare to the Scottish vampires that I had met that night in 1746. Their allure and beauty had even surpassed that of the love of my life, Alice, and she was my one true love. She alone is what makes this story a hard one to tell.
In the cold dark nights, I swear that I can feel her arm wrapped around me still. It isn’t until I open my eyes that I realize it was all just a dream, that time had passed and she was no longer with me. Time always seemed to go by, I damn wished that it would stop for an instant and take me along with it.
I’ve watched as centuries go by, observing countless other men’s lives disrupted by those demons of beauty. They hunt and kill each and every one of them as if it were just part of some disgusting game to pass the time. To partake in such acts just to survive, it’s barbaric, yet... I cannot stop myself. And that is what makes this living hell so much harder to deal with.
In recent years, or at least in this last century, stories of the creatures of the night, of vampires and the like, have made their way to the theaters and on each and every bookcase. I spit at these fantasies, of these so called vampires that have a heart, that have feelings for the living. They have no such thing, I promise you. They would never die for a person, never stop to think of how their actions affect others, and never drastically change for the love of a mortal. Those are all what they are made out to be: fiction. The real story is that these monsters only care for one thing, and one thing only.
Themselves.
Or at least that is what the Baobhan Sith care about, only themselves. I can’t speak for the rest of vampire kind, presuming that other species exist. I believed that they did and that I wasn’t the only unlucky soul that had to endure this life as long as time itself. I just hoped, for their sake, that they didn’t have to live a life as unhappy as mine.
It all started back in April, 1746. We, the British Army, had just defeated the Jacobites in the Battle of Culloden and were ordered to lodge near Glen Coe in the Highlands on the way back to England. Never had I seen a battle so bloody, the Jacobites losing most of their men. It was a slaughter, a slaughter that I would remember until the end of time. I wasn’t as lucky as the others,who had died in battle and did not have to live with the tormented nightmares of someone that has seen far too much death throughout the centuries. No, they were the lucky ones.
I was Captain back then of a small group of men, who obeyed every word I would say. I tried to keep all of them safe during the battle, but some suffered the fate that all fear in war: death. My heart dreaded that moment when I would have to report their deaths to their families back in London and elsewhere in England. It was all a part of the pattern of war, and I had to put with that sore fact.
Due to some misunderstanding between me and my colonel, pretty much he told me to go to the wrong town, my men and I were the last to leave Culloden, a small village east of Inverness. Our next stop was the King’s Inn, a mandatory stop that the Commanders had given us to let our men rest. I had agreed to this stop, knowing that my men needed to take a break from all the traveling we’ve been doing for weeks on end.
Nevertheless, I shouldn’t have stopped.
It was stormy that night as we made our way through the Highlands of Scotland, towards the King’s Inn. There wasn’t anywhere else out there to stay, really, so our choices were limited to that one little inn. Desolate didn’t begin to describe this lifeless place, since only farmers or hunters seemed to be the predominant type of inhabitants in this area for miles and miles. I never understood why someone would want to live in such a place like this, unless they were trying to punish themselves for some horrible sin that they had committed in their past. It was the only way I could understand someone staying out in this place.
The wind was whipping through the valley, howling almost like a shrieking banshee. I had never heard anything so sinister in my entire life. It was no wonder men created banshees in the first place to represent their fear of this type of weather, although it wouldn’t have surprised me if they were real.
Rain came from every direction imaginable, soaking through both my red regiment coat and plain shirt underneath. My light ginger hair clung to my scalp and forehead. I wiped away the excess water from my eyes. I could barely see the road in front of us, and as the water poured harder and harder, I feared we wouldn’t find the Inn in this storm.
All I could smell was both the freezing rain and mud that had seemed to cover everything that we possessed. I had lived in England all my life until this war and never had I seen a storm so vicious as this. It was as if nature itself was fighting against us that night, wanting to take our lives or make us suffer even more than what we have suffered already. All the odds seemed stacked against us in those Highlands.
My poor horse was as cold and miserable as I was, while my men and I made our way down the military route. Her brown hair was wet and matted, adding to the horrid smell that the rain brought all around. She was a brave horse, enduring these past few weeks without any clear complaint, and I was very lucky to have her at my side. Even after how brave she was throughout the battles we’ve fought in, I could still feel her flinch as the wind howled once more.
I patted her on the side. “Easy, girl. It’s just the wind. Nothing to be afraid of.”
I could feel that her body was still tense, but she didn’t become startled as the wind howled once more. In the far distance, I could hear the sound of thunder rolling in. The storm was worsening.
“Captain Williams,” George, my cadet, moved closer in order for me to hear him. His thin, short hair seemed to be gathering rain drops more so than the men who had long hair. His coat was as soaked as each and every one of us, and he held his hand up
as if he could block the rain that was coming from each and every direction. “This storm seems to be getting stronger. Shall we stop and take cover?”
I glanced around. There were no trees within sight, I had no idea just where he thought we were going to take cover. There were reasons why he was a cadet and I was a captain, and it wasn’t just because he was a physically unfit lad due to all the biscuits he consumed during meals. “Don’t you worry, we are almost to the inn. We will be out of this in no time. Keep the thoughts of a warm fire and the biscuits that will be waiting for us.”
George mumbled something about biscuits and went back to his spot in line. I watched as the sky began to darken even more, like a witch had cast a spell in these parts. Lightning crashed, and thunder echoed through the highlands. It wasn’t my first storm in the Highlands, and it certainly wasn’t the last, but something about it stood apart from the others. It was stronger, and more sinister, than more generic storms, if that was even possible.
Crash.
My horse raised its front hooves as the lightning hit the grass right in front of us. Miraculously I didn’t fall off as she spooked me as well. I pulled on the reigns, trying to keep my balance and not be bucked off. All I needed then was to be covered in mud and even more bruises than I obtained during our last battle. “Calm down, girl. It is all right.”
The horse was still jittery, not wanting to move forward, but at least she had stopped bucking. I didn’t need another creature being afraid of the darkness, I already had all my men to worry about. I made a clicking noise, trying to let her know who the master was, although most of the time she let me know she was in charge. She was just like my Alice.
As I calmed down my horse, I glanced forward to find a figure in the distance. Rain and fog made it hard to distinguish much, but I could see her as clear as day. A woman, at least it appeared to be a woman. She wore all white and the aura that surrounded her seemed lovelier than any woman I had ever met, even Alice. I watched her in awe but also in confusion, wondering what she was doing out in a storm like this, and how she could seem so perfectly still with everything that was going on.
Another flash of lightning hit the hillside nearby, destroying my ability to see for a moment. White spots filled my vision, making me blink until they were gone. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness once more, I found no trace of the woman. I glanced all around, but she was nowhere to be found.
Strange, I swore I had seen someone.
I dismissed the entire thing as being a figment of my imagination. It wasn’t like someone would be out in this mess, especially not a woman. I had heard of sailors doing the same thing at sea, imagining mermaids and the like. I probably was just turning into an old sea dog. It was about time I retired from this life, it wasn’t one I ever wanted anyway.
I felt as if I couldn’t move any longer, my body frozen by the chill of the stormy wind, but I pushed on nonetheless with the rest of my shivering men. I couldn’t let my men see me in a state of vulnerability, not when they needed to know it would be alright. I just hoped that the inn was near. The innkeepers knew we were coming, and if it weren’t for this supernatural storm, we would have arrived already. Maybe, they would come searching for us.
One of our carts broke, the wheel getting stuck in all the mud. Ralph, one of my cadets and the most hardworking man of my brigade, was the first one to leap off of his horse to assist with the broken wheel. His brown hair and clothes were soaked but that didn’t stop him as he started moving the material from the wrecked cart to the other carts. I watched as other men joined him, knowing that I didn’t need to assist any of them. They had it all under control.
Andrew and Percy also stayed on their horses, Percy too proud of a man and Andrew just too selfish to care. I would be happy when those two were out of my hair. At least with Andrew, he will still a rebellious youngster due to troubles he had as a child. I knew his parents and they weren’t the nicest of folk. As for Percy, well, he just couldn’t climb off his high tower to think of others. I thought about talking to him about it, but in reality as long as we got to London, I didn’t really care anymore. A new captain could deal with him.
Rounding the last bend, I could see a flickering light in the distance. It was a candle coming from the King’s Inn. I thanked the Lord we didn’t have to travel any longer in this God-forsaken storm. I saw the relief on my men’s face and they saw the same on mine. They hooted and hollered as we made the last stretch of the journey. None of us didn’t want to push any farther than we had to, not after making it through that last war.
As fast as we could, we hurried to the inn, the owners seeing us in the distance and helping us put away our things. Thankfully, they had some stables to retire our horses in and get them out of the rain. We quickly put the horses away and gathered our bags and things. Everything was soaked, but luckily the inn keepers, Duncan and Fiona McGregory, already had a fire waiting for us. Each of us huddled up close to it, trying to get rid of the feeling of being chilled to the bone. After everyone had time to warm up, we took turns laying our things out to dry.
There were nine of us, all huddled in the room, trying to stay warm. The room wasn’t that big, nor did it have much to it, but we made it work. The McGregorys had retired for the evening, leaving us with some food and water and some dry wood to keep the fire going.
Looking around, I saw the disappointment in my men’s eyes. They wished to be home, away from this treacherous place. Everyone was quiet, wallowing in their own misery. As a captain, it was my responsibility to get them to forget their worries.
“What are you all looking forward to when we reach London?” I proposed a question to get them thinking of events awaiting them in the near future.
Each one of them glanced at each other, uneasy with the question. It was like I asked them to put down their horse.
“Come on men,” I stood up. “What in London makes you smile? What will be there waiting for you?”
George was the first to talk. “Better food?”
I raised an eyebrow at him. Of course he always thought with his stomach. “I’m sorry George, but English food isn’t that grand.”
He leaned back, as if mad I had shot his answer down. “Better than Scottish food.”
Rolling my eyes, “Anyone else?”
“Having a real doctor’s office,” Jonathan, our medic, sighed. “Where I can actually work on the sick instead of the injured.” He ruffled his hand through his greying hair and beard.
I clapped my hands together. “Good, good, come on men, we all have someone waiting at home for us.”
Ralph shook his head, flinging water in every direction like a wet dog. Andrew was the first to hit him.
“Watch what you are doing,” Andrew said as he smacked Ralph on the side of the head.
“Enough,” I said before Ralph could say anything to make Andrew any more angry. “Ralph, why don’t you tell us what you are looking forward to.”
He shrugged. “Not all that much at home, except my mother. She will be happy I guess, needing me to work the dairy with her.”
“Mommy’s little boy,” Percy commented. Ralph stood up, as if to fight him or something stupid like that.
I held out my hand. “No, sit. Percy, you lost your turn for sharing.”
He shrugged, probably not caring either way.
“I’m looking forward to getting home to my wife. We had a little girl just before I left, I can’t wait to go home and see her,” Michael smiled warmly. He was a man I could always count on in seeing the good side of things, always keeping a positive attitude about everything.
“That is great, Michael, congratulations,” I patted his back. The other men congratulated him as well. “Thomas, you have anything you are looking forward to?”
Thomas was an older man, at least in his fifties, the oldest in our group. He had lost his wife a few years earlier and joined the military to get away from the memory of home. He shook his head. “Just looking to be shipped out aga
in.”
“What about you,” Kenneth asked, his curly red hair and freckles making him still look like he was a young boy. “What’s waiting for you at home?”
“Don’t you know?” George smacked me on the back. “This lad has a lass waiting for him to come home.”
All of my men whistled and made suggestive comments. At least they seemed to be cheering up, even though it was at my expense. I motioned for them to settle down. “I do have a girl waiting for me at home. Her name is Alice.”
“And what are you going to do with dear Alice when you get home?” Ralph smiled as he took a sip of some whiskey.
“I... am going to make her my wife,” I stammered.
Each of the men congratulated me on the news. I hadn’t made it known that I had planned to marry before we went into battle, fearing that I would curse myself and be killed in battle. I figured now there wasn’t anything bad that could happen. I would be with my wife until the day I died. The thought of her made my blood began to heat up and I felt warmer. As long as my cheeks weren’t turning red, or then I would suffer the embarrassment of being teased by my fellow men. I couldn’t help it, I just loved her that much.
“We plan to open a pub back home,” I went on, wanting to tell everyone of our plans, even if they didn’t care. “And I am going to retire from the Royal Army so I can be with her. Once our pub is up and running, you all are invited for a free round of drinks.”
George held up his drink. “I can drink to that! To Henry and his bride-to-be Alice! Let them love each other for the rest of their lives!”
The men cheered and for once in a long while, I felt happy, as if I could finally enjoy a moment of peace. Each of the other men told their stories, each of which involved a woman of some sort or a good pub and drink, not the crap we had been sipping on for the past few weeks. After a good while, we settled back down into silence.
I stared into the flames, thinking about the lady I had seen out there in the storm.