She started to nod but noticed he still looked unnaturally pale, like he had in the bathtub. “Okay.” She stood up, and held her paper sack of goodies out to him. “Don't you want something?”
“No, not right now.” He waved the offer away and then gave her a small, tight smile. “Thank you, anyway.”
“You should probably eat something...” she trailed off and bit her lip, not sure why she cared. She supposed it must be because she needed him until she could get moved and get things rearranged with her life. If Jorick was right, then she couldn’t count on her mother and Sarah until this was over. She couldn’t put them in danger from the vampires.
“I’m fine,” he assured her quietly. “I’ll eat later, all right?”
She nodded wordlessly and felt embarrassed for her concern. He turned silently and she followed him back across the parking lot, her mind repeating the question it had asked so often: maybe she should just call the police? But she knew it was really useless; they’d just lock her up for being crazy!
When they reached the motel, Jorick unlocked the door and hurriedly stuffed her into the room. He promised he'd be back soon and took off, leaving her alone.
She flopped onto the bed and flipped through the TV channels. She ran the gamut of the basic cable’s offerings without finding anything to hold her interest. In desperation, she settled on the local news. She was just ready to change the channel again, when a report came on about an abandoned farmhouse that had burned to the ground. Authorities weren’t certain yet what had happened, but there were human remains among the wreckage and they suspected that they’d been having a party when calamity struck.
Katelina’s mouth dropped open like a cartoon character. It was Jorick's house – or the house he'd been in. The blonde anchorwoman, shiny nailed hands folded on the desk in front of her, said that they were still trying to contact the owner and ID the bodies at this time. So far they had no idea who anyone inside had been. A stripped, abandoned car had been found nearby and the police were using the VIN numbers to find the owner, but so far the name had not been released to the media.
Katelina felt dizzy and strange. Seeing the skeletal remains of the house on television and listening to the reporter’s neatly clipped voice made the whole thing real. It made it an event. It made it an inescapable truth that she didn't want to face.
A terrible voice in her head told her that the “stripped and abandoned car” was her car; her happy, shiny red car that she’d paid on for three years. She groaned silently, thinking about how much it was going to cost to repair the damage.
Despite her shock, she found one thing amusing: she could imagine the look on the coroner’s face when they brought him a bag full of skulls with pointy teeth. How long would it take them to figure that out?
The news gave way to a sitcom, but the segment left her feeing unsettled. She found herself glancing at the door and wishing that Jorick would hurry up.
Another sitcom followed, just as ridiculous as the first. Katelina made it halfway through the second one before she gave up on it. She pressed the button on the remote and, in the second of silence as the television flipped from one channel to another, she heard a noise outside the door.
“At last,” she muttered, grateful for company. She switched off the TV and started towards the door when it suddenly burst open.
The pale man who came striding into the room - teeth bared and hair cropped short - was obviously not Jorick. His shining fangs made the word “vampire” scream through her brain. There, before her, was a nasty reminder of last night and the truth the news had echoed.
“Where is he?” His eyes made quick, jerky movements as he surveyed the room.
“Wha– who?” she stuttered as another man came in the door behind him. His eyes were dark and a snarling smirk was pasted on his cruel, pointy face.
The shorthaired vampire drew closer to her. “You know who I mean; that conceited ass, Jorick.”
Panic surged in her and she stammered, “I – I don't know where he is.”
“Sure you don’t. Perhaps some persuasion will jog your memory?” He took a step towards her. His long pale fingers stretched through the empty space between them, reaching for her.
She jerked away and tried to run for the door, but the second vampire blocked her path.
Katelina realized that she wasn't going to make it outside; not with the pair of them in the way. Her heart pounded through her body. Her hands were slick and her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. She didn't know what she was going to do!
Her eyes shot around the room wildly and landed on the bathroom door. She realized it was the only hope she had. Maybe, if she could wedge herself against the door, she could keep them out long enough for Jorick to return – if he was going to return. Faced with these two, she seriously doubted he would.
She tried not to look in the direction she was planning to move. She said a quick prayer and threw herself on the bed and rolled across it. Her feet had barely hit the carpet before she was scrambling around the corner, flinging herself into the tiled bathroom and slamming the door behind her.
She heard the sound of laughter and began to wonder if the bathroom had really been such a good idea. Her fingers scrabbled for a lock, but couldn’t find one, so she pressed her back against the door. She braced one foot on the pipes under the sink and the other foot on the baseboard. Deep down she knew she couldn’t hold it for very long, but her instincts refused to surrender and let her die. Especially in a situation she couldn’t even understand.
Knuckles rapped against the door, followed by laughter. The first vampire’s voice was sing –song, as though this were only a game to him, “Open the door, little girl, and we might let you live,”
“Go away!” Katelina shouted, trying to sound brave and casual. The one who was calm always won, she told herself and tried to ignore the staccato beats of her heart throbbing in her ears.
They laughed again, throaty and harsh. “Did you hear that? She wants us to go away.” The voice changed from amused to menacing. “Open the door or we'll come in anyway! It's your choice.”
She pressed with all her might against the door, her legs taut with the effort. She wanted to cry and scream and demand that God to explain to her what she’d done to deserve this, but that felt weak too. So she just shouted to the vampires, “I told you I don't know where he is!”
“And I told you that we’ll extract the information from you!” The volume dropped as he spoke to his companion, “Forget it, we’ll drag her out.”
The doorknob turned against her side and made soft clicking noises. They pushed on the door. She pressed back. Beads of perspiration popped up all over her as she strained, using every ounce of strength she had. Where in the hell was Jorick?
The door began to crack with a loud, splintering sound. The vampires put more and more pressure on it and the sound grew. Katelina’s feet began to slide dangerously. She locked her knees against it, but she knew there was no way to stop them. They were both stronger than she was and, if they hadn’t enjoyed playing with her would already be inside her tiled sanctuary. She pressed with the last of her strength; palms slipping with the lubricant of her sweat and screamed out, “Jorick!”; calling for the only one who might save her.
With a loud crack the door splintered apart. A chunk of wood and pressboard fell in on her, leaking needle sized splinters. A hand reached through the gaping hole and groped for her.
Katelina threw herself from the searching fingers and into the chipped bathtub, her last bastion of hope. Her eyes wildly danced around for some kind of defense, but found nothing. She recalled a horror story she’d once read and, like the heroin had, she grabbed the showerhead from its cradle and wrapped the hose around her wrist. She turned the hot water on full blast and aimed the steaming stream into the drain. Drops of hot water splashed on her jeans and shoes, but she ignored it and readied herself to soak them down even as the door came crashing open.
“Jorick!”
; The vampires tried to squeeze into the tiny room in unison. The shorthaired vampire hissed at his companion and shoved his way through. He stood just inside the threshold, on top of the ruined door fragments. “Where is he?” He demanded again and moved towards her.
She trembled as she turned the shower head on him. Hot water splattered him and bounced off to run down the walls. Thick steam billowed in transparent white clouds.
The vampire swore and jerked back, caught by surprise. Then, shaking his soaked arms, he chuckled ominously and gave her a stare that had her death written in it. “What the fuck? You think hot water can hurt me? This isn’t the Wizard of Oz, girly!”
He started towards her and she aimed the jet of water at his face and screamed for Jorick again.
As if he’d finally been summoned, Jorick appeared. He threw the lurking companion against the wet tiled wall with a sickening crunch. The limp body slid to the floor where it lay like a broken doll in a pool of steaming water.
The remaining vampire spun around, abandoning Katelina and her feeble defenses to deal with Jorick. “There you are, you son of a bitch!”
Relief swept through Katelina and she wanted to shout with joy. She’d never been happier to see anyone in her whole life. Somehow she suddenly knew it would be all right. Jorick would deal with this and then it would be all over, like a terrible nightmare.
Jorick’s eyes snapped up from the body on the floor. He gave it a final kick before he grabbed the short haired vampire by the shoulders and hissed, “Claudius sent you?”
“Of course, why else would I bother with you?” He half twisted away and slammed his fist into Jorick’s stomach. “Where is she?”
Jorick stumbled back a step, more from shock than pain. “As if I know.” He regained his posture and closed the gap between them. His dark hair fell across his face and made him look almost as sinister as his inhuman attacker.
“Don’t play stupid. We know you’re involved in it – you and your friends.” He grabbed Jorick and threw him through the door and against the bedroom wall, with a loud thud. He snickered as he stepped quickly through the ruined doorframe and out onto the bedroom carpet.
Jorick was on his feet in a movement so fast that she almost didn't see it. “Says who?” He charged the vampire, throwing him back into the bathroom. His body struck the floor and nearly collided with the tub where Katelina stood, gripping the shower head and trembling.
Jorick bounded into the room, easily clearing the broken body in front of the door. The remaining opponent stood, but before he had reached his full height Jorick grabbed him and slammed him into the wall opposite the sink. “You’re a pathetic slave.”
“I'm not the one fighting for sloppy seconds,” the vampire spat as he tried to free himself.
Those were the last words he spoke. Jorick spun and threw him head first into the mirror, showering the room with shining glass shards and blood.
Katelina dropped the shower head. Water sprayed up the wall as she shielded herself from the broken glass.
Slowly, she lowered her arms. Every detail flashed before her eyes in crystal clarity: the water dripping down the wall, the shimmering pieces of glass scattered around like giant raindrops, the steam curling into the humid, heavy air. An inch of water covered the floor, and dark splashes of blood were slowly mixing with it, turning it into a pale crimson pool.
The short haired vampire hung off the sink. His head was inside the porcelain bowl and his body trailed limply down to the floor. From the angle of his neck and back, she could tell that his spine was broken. Blood ran from the gouges in his head and collected in the sink to pool around his still snarling face. Strange, gurgling noises came from him, but it was only a matter of time until he died – wasn’t it?
Jorick stood between her and the crumpled bodies of the vampires. He wiped a streak of splattered blood from his face, then gently took hold of her shoulder and gave her a tiny shake. She roused slightly, her mouth open and her eyes blinking rapidly as her mind fought to push away the onslaught of information it was processing.
A car horn sounded outside. The harsh noise jerked her back to reality. Her mouth began to work furiously and she thoughtlessly repeated “Oh God. Oh God. Oh God.” over and over again.
“Our ride's here,” Jorick said softly, giving her another light shake to stop the flow of useless words. He jerked his thumb towards the broken vampires. “I suggest we go before their friends show up.”
Katelina nodded and allowed him to lead her out of the ruined bathroom. The glass crunched beneath her feet like snow from a terrifying fairytale and she had to bite back a wave of fear and disgust as she climbed over the crumpled bodies.
Jorick led her through the bedroom, and she glanced back at the trail of wet, bloody footprints she was leaving across the ugly carpet. They were like the symbols on some macabre board game that led to hell; a hell she’d only barely escaped.
**********
Chapter Seven
The car waiting outside for them was large and blue: a vehicle from an era when people were more interested in size than gas mileage.
Katelina found herself quickly bundled into the backseat. Jorick slipped back into the motel room to return with the ugly orange bedspread. He wrapped it tightly around her and her soaked clothes, nodding and murmuring encouraging, but meaningless, phrases to soothe her and wipe away the horror that shone in her eyes. Her head bobbed in time to his words and she agreed to the nonsense he was saying. She wanted to believe that it was all okay. And then a strange, calm feeling descended on her and she let herself go with it, floating away on the tide of safety it offered.
She relaxed back into the seat and Jorick said softly, “I’ll be right back,” before he disappeared into the motel room again.
With Jorick gone, she suddenly became aware of the driver’s presence in the front seat. He had broad shoulders and long, tawny hair that hung in a ponytail down his back. He didn’t bother to turn his head towards her, only adjusted the rear view mirror to observe her. She stared into it and saw a pair of strange, golden colored eyes looking back. The amber orbs reminded her instantly of a cat, but she didn’t have long to contemplate them before he flipped the mirror back to the normal position, his curiosity satisfied.
Katelina wondered if she should say something, but she couldn’t think of any words that seemed suitable. She wasn't sure what had just happened or why, and didn’t know who the driver was or how Jorick knew him, let alone if they could trust him. But hell, could she even trust Jorick? She barely knew him. Just because he’d saved her didn’t mean that they were any closer, and yet she had a sense of uneasy safety just being near him. She couldn’t explain it, even to herself, but there was something comforting about him.
The calm feeling began to fade. Her eyes turned towards the gaping motel room door, and she wondered what was taking Jorick so long. Images flashed through her mind of the dead or dying vampires leaping to their feet and striking him down.
Despite her fears, he emerged only a moment later, bearing a bloody blanket whose lumpy appearance and scarlet stains declared its grim contents.
“The keys?” Jorick asked, as he paused by the driver's side window and shifted the gory parcel in his arms. His eyes shifted around the dark parking lot in search of onlookers, not nervous, only aware.
With a disbelieving shake of his head, the driver climbed out of the large car and unlocked the trunk. Katelina cringed as she heard them stuff the bundle inside. She didn’t want to think about the cargo that was separated from her by only a blanket and a seat. A vision of the hideous things reaching up and touching her made her whole body shudder.
The men returned and Jorick slid into the front passenger seat. He glanced over his shoulder to offer Katelina a tight but reassuring smile.
She wanted to ask him what was going on but figured it was pointless. If she still cared she could ask later, when they were away from the horrible place; away from the pink motel and the ugly carpet and
hideous orange drapes and bloody footprints.
The driver asked Jorick, “Are we ready?”
Jorick nodded and dropped back into the seat. He closed his eyes wearily as the car shuddered into gear and they pulled out of the parking lot.
“I take it they found you?” The driver glanced sideways for a moment and Katelina could see his perfect profile. His strange eyes and golden brown hair made him look like a lion. It wasn't just his appearance, though. There was something very feline about him, the feeling of controlled power lurking beneath a peaceful exterior, like a cat coiled and ready to spring on its prey.
“Yes.” The street lights flashed past them and splashed dark, twisted shadows across Jorick’s weary face. “They found us.”
The car fell silent except for the sound of the motor and the wheels on the pavement. They soon left the small town of Dunwick behind them. As it shrunk in the darkness, Katelina began to relax. Her fingers twitched and she wished she’d at least grabbed the cigarettes. She knew smoking wouldn’t really make things better. How many times had Sarah lectured her about that, after all? But somehow things would seem saner. She wanted a cigarette and her own bed and her telephone. She wanted to curl up under the covers and call Sarah and tell her about this horrible nightmare she’d had, and then she wanted to call her mother and make arrangements for Grave Day like usual. She just wanted reality.
But, her reality wasn’t pretty. She’d just been attacked by two vampires and the two packs of cigarettes she’d bought had been abandoned in the motel room with the food; her last twenty dollars gone for nothing, after all.
She leaned her face against the cool glass and stared out into the night flying past them. The trees were illuminated and ghostly in the harsh brightness of the headlights. The rhythm of the tires on the pavement droned in her ears. She closed her eyes and tried to relax to the vibrations of the car. She hadn’t been awake for very long, but she was already as exhausted as Jorick looked. Her muscles were taut, and her left shoulder ached again.
Amaranthine Special Edition Vol I Page 6