Silver Banned: Book 2 of the Saddleworth Vampire Series

by Angela Blythe

  Freddie sat on a wall outside the kebab shop. He looked exhausted already. He would wait with the Friarmere group, whilst they were waiting for Nigel. He would then go to Jennifer’s with them.

  Our Doris, Jennifer and Brenda kissed each other. Everyone else hugged. The two women set off for the shop. Nigel came out after about fifteen minutes.

  ‘Are you sure you don't want us to wait with you, Freddie?’ asked Wee Renee.

  ‘No, I'll be fine here. They will be back soon, you need to use the daylight. Don’t be daft.’

  They did as he asked, looking behind them after a couple of minutes they saw the two women returning, with their groceries. All was well there.

  ‘I hope he’s ok,’ Terry said. ‘I didn’t want to say it, but his hand is pretty badly mangled. He needs the hospital really.’

  ‘He has antibiotics and Brenda. He will be fine,’ Pat said.

  ‘Yes, he’s a fighter. Always has been. We’ll see Freddie again and he’ll be well,’ Our Doris said.

  Terry wanted to call at the dental surgery to pick up more drugs. The rest of the group waited outside. It seemed weird now that several of them had stopped there a couple of nights ago. They started chatting whilst they waited.

  ‘What did you think of the kebab the other night? Did you all enjoy it?’ Nigel enquired, smiling. Pat opened her mouth to speak and Wee Renee nudged her quickly.

  ‘Aye, they were beautiful, Nigel,’ Wee Renee said. ‘Lovely, tender meat. Very tasty. They were a credit to you!’ Pat looked at Our Doris and she winked. It was probably for the best, not to upset Nigel as their lives may depend on him at some point. Terry soon returned with a full backpack, which he lashed to Our Doris's sledge. Finally, they started their walk up the bank.

  Freddie, Brenda and Jennifer watched the others go, waving sadly.

  ‘God speed,’ Brenda said. When the adventurers were out of sight, they began to make their way to Jennifer’s. Freddie had to stop every couple of minutes to rest. This group, at least, had plenty of time before nightfall.

  ‘Who did you see in the village, while we were at the shop?’ Brenda asked him.

  ‘No one. It’s like the Marie Celeste here, Bren,’ he replied.

  After what seemed like an eternity, they arrived at their destination. An examination of the meat left the previous day showed that only a few chunks were missing. They topped it up then Jennifer used the keypad to let them in. Freddie had only been here about three times in the last five years but was always impressed at the size of Jennifer's home. There was a wall all the way around her house. He could not imagine a safer place to be in. Jennifer settled them into a bedroom. Brenda insisted that he lie down for a while. Freddie said he didn't want to lie on the bed. He really felt like he didn’t want to be on his own up there, with his thoughts and worries about the others. He would just like to sit down for a while on the sofa, and pull himself together. Brenda went to put the kettle on whilst Jennifer went to have a look at the clip from last night’s CCTV. There were no sightings last night of them at all. They knew where they had been for most of the night.

  ‘You'll be okay here for a bit won't you?’ Jennifer asked. ‘I just need to get my head down for a while. I had no sleep last night.’

  Brenda said they were fine. She asked if Jennifer could quickly show them how to use the TV. She did this, and Freddie began happily watching a Cary Grant film.

  Jennifer lay on her bed. She looked at the ceiling. She thought about Beverly. That she would never see her again. About the desperation of their plight.

  She took one of her sleeping tablets with a tumbler of white rum, which was her favourite. She picked up a picture of Beverly from the side of her bed, holding it to her heart. She needed rest. Her brain needed to switch off, just for a while. She needed to sort herself out, so that she could be useful. See Beverly again. Help the others.

  35 – Masculine

  The party of six plus Haggis sat off towards hell, their fate and Friarmere. Wee Renee and Pat were quizzing Nigel about his business in the kebab shop. Where he got all his meats from, and what were the best sellers. They found him very interesting and entertaining. He had picked up some of his skewers from the shop, which he had found quite useful previously and also some very lethal looking knives. Wee Renee told him and the others about the texture of the vampires that were in Friarmere. How they were softer than a human. She tried to paint them a picture; by saying when you poked then it was like pushing something through a hard skin of a rice pudding, with nothing underneath. Pat told them that inside was a green powder like substance. They very quickly went mouldy.

  In fact they were waiting to go mouldy. Wee Renee asked both Terry and Nigel for their opinions. How quick firstly, would a dead human turn green in a refrigerated environment and secondly, how quickly would meat go green. She asked them about changing composition and whether this was just generally degradation of flesh or actually an aspect of the vampires.

  ‘I think it is an aspect of the vampires. I did notice that the scalpel was cutting them easier in Our Doris's house. I wondered if my scalpel was unusually sharp, but now I realise that they were softer,’ Terry said.

  ‘Raw meat is still definitely firm. It’s all about the vampires,’ Nigel said.

  ‘If they had not been softer, I doubt I would have been able to do what I did with the sword. Thinking about it too…. the wolf was certainly harder work than the vampires to cut through. I suppose it was because they were living flesh,’ Our Doris said.

  ‘Do you think that the Friarmere vampires and the Melden vampires were the same or slightly different textured?’ Terry asked. Wee Renee thought for a moment and so did Pat. They agreed that definitely the Melden vampires had the hardest texture but agreed with Our Doris that it was not as hard a texture as living humans.

  ‘Another thing I noticed, is they had a lot more red blood in them and less greeny-black. Don’t get me wrong – it was in there. But the Friarmere vampires had no blood whatsoever. There was no doubt, when we dragged the Melden lot in the snow round to the other house, that there was certainly some red blood in them, as well as the black. The snow was stained red and black,’ Pat said.

  ‘Aye it was!’ Wee Renee agreed. ‘Maybe the Friarmere vampire is more, I don’t know, completely dead. Perhaps there is part wolf in the Melden one, which retains the solid texture of the being, at least partly.’

  Pat also told them that the vampires, whilst they looked quite ill and white, could sometimes pass as human.

  ‘Apart from the stink.’ Pat said.

  ‘What of?’ Nigel asked.

  ‘Mould. Soil. A bit kind of shitty.’

  ‘I’ll try not to get downwind from one,’ he said.

  ‘I had to play horn next to one!’ She said offended.

  ‘Yes,’ Wee Renee continued. ‘You could not spot them as easily as what we have all encountered in Melden. They were changed. Some had dog ears!’

  ‘And of course, they had the obvious?’ Nigel added.

  ‘What was so obvious about them?’ Terry asked.

  ‘The eyes.’ No one said anything, but all were thinking.

  ‘Oh my word, yes!’ Wee Renee said. She felt so stupid about not seeing it herself. ‘They were reflective, like a badger or something. I saw it really plain on CCTV. Of course, I never thought that we don’t have them.’ They all took this in.

  ‘So be careful,’ Wee Renee continued. ‘There is a definite look about the ones that have been changed by Anne’s blood. I never heard a vampire growl, although they made some weird noises. They did not have a stance like an animal either.’

  Kathy asked if they didn't mind talking about something else for a bit as it was getting her down and making her very worried for her sister. Wee Renee suggested that they sing Christmas Carols as the others had enjoyed it on the way over. Pat was the only one that had come over the first time and she was happy to do this again.

  ‘I shall start at the beginning of the Carol
book. Everyone is to do harmonies. Only Nigel and Our Doris are exempt as they aren’t bandsmen.’

  ‘Wait. I play guitar,’ Nigel said.

  ‘Our Doris is the only one exempt now.’ This was the way they charged up the bank on their way out of Melden. Haggis, occasionally barking at the raucousness of it all, in his little tartan coat.

  They sang all morning, following the footprints of the others that had gone the previous day. It made them feel like they were all together, in a small way. At one point they could see that they had stopped and there were a few footprints against the drystone wall. They imagined that this was where they had stopped for lunch. Pat decided that they would stop and have a break too. Our Doris put out a thick pad, which Haggis got on straight away. She wanted him to have a rest from the snow. Our Doris said dog’s paws weren’t meant to be on snow continuously and he would end up ill and unless anyone knew better, there were no vets to treat him. For his own part, Haggis was happy for a sit down too. She made a fuss of him, hand-feeding him some dog treats.

  As Nigel had rushed out, he had not been as prepared as the rest of the group. They shared their food with him, there was an enormous amount anyway. He was really pleased to have a packed lunch and a cup of hot coffee. Our Doris told him that she had a flask of soup that they would share later. But for the moment even their warm coffee with sugar was a help.

  ‘We are making good time,’ Terry said. He looked out into snowy moors. His mind drifted off. He was miles away in thought. He hoped Sally was alright and wondered what the others had encountered as they would have been in Friarmere a few hours now.

  ‘I’m worried about Sally,’ Terry blurted out. Then he completely changed the subject. ‘The others will be shocked that we had to battle Anne and her many creatures right inside Our Doris's house.’

  ‘I don't think they would be shocked at all,’ Pat said. ‘They have seen Anne, she’s one crazy bitch.’

  ‘No,’ Terry said, shaking his head, he was adamant. ‘I don't think they would have gone if they thought that was going to happen.’

  ‘I don't think that they were thinking about anything only rescuing those kids. Obviously some people felt they had to do it. It is no use thinking about what they were thinking, or what we were thinking, because this mess is down to Norman and Anne exclusively,’ Pat commented.

  ‘It’s bloody terrible isn’t it, when you just can't be in your own home, minding your own business without having this shit!’ Our Doris said. ‘My husband would have been going berserk now, after this home invasion. His home was his castle.’

  ‘Let's set off again,’ Wee Renee said.

  ‘Wait a sec,’ Our Doris said, fishing in one of her bags. She produced a full bottle of whisky. ‘Let's all have a swig of this.’ They started passing it round.

  ‘You know, strictly we shouldn’t be having this along with antibiotics,’ Terry said, giving her a stern look.

  ‘Get it down your neck,’ Pat said. He took the bottle off her and had a swig. They got themselves back together and continued their journey. Pat thought that the mood had gone down-bank after Terry had been thinking about Sally. She thought about Our Doris telling them what her husband would think if he was still alive and this made her think of tale to tell them.

  ‘Would anyone like to hear something about my husband?’ Everyone muttered their consent. It was as good a subject as anything else.

  ‘I don't miss much about him. He was a miserable selfish sod. But I do miss how he used to wake me up every morning. Every morning without fail! He was comical really.’

  ‘How did he used to wake you up, Pat?’ Kathy asked.

  ‘He used to wake me up by banging something on my head and passing me a lit Capstan Full Strength every morning,’ Pat said. Wee Renee laughed.

  ‘Oh yes, you told me about that. It’s a wonder you haven’t got a dented forehead,’ Wee Renee said.

  ‘I miss it. I really do. He had an anchor tattoo. Very masculine. And a lovely bushy moustache.’

  ‘Am I right in thinking that he used to bang your forehead with his er…’ Our Doris asked.

  ‘Yes!’

  ‘It sounds like a film I saw in the seventies. X-rated.’

  ‘That’s probably where he got the idea, Our Doris.’

  ‘Was he like Errol Flynn. I loved him,’ Our Doris asked, a dreamy look on her face.

  ‘No. Think Burt Reynolds with bad skin and you are on the right path.’

  Kathy had a big soppy smile on her face, although she had only heard part of the story.

  ‘That was a lovely story, Pat. What a romantic husband you had. What was his name?’ Kathy asked. They walked for about two minutes, Pat furrowing her brow. Wee Renee looked amusingly at her. Pat burst out in huge guffaws.

  ‘Do you know Kathy, I can’t bloody remember.’

  ‘She must be having a senior moment,’ Wee Renee chimed in. ‘He was named Dennis, and it is funny that you remember what he woke you up with, but not his name.’

  Nigel found this amusing. Even Terry had a wry smile on his face.

  Sue tried to rush all the children as quickly as she could, away from the school. She knew they did not have an enormous amount of time before it went dark. When she was talking to Norman, she knew she had to find them some kind of sanctuary. And that word exactly had given her an idea.

  She wondered if there was anyone in the church. She hoped if they could get in there, that none of the undead could get to them. Obviously there would still be Michael Thompson, but they hopefully could deal with that one person.

  There were a few churches in the village, but there was one in particular, St. Dominic’s, that had grounds all the way around it. There was a graveyard on four sides of the church. Even though this was not nice to go through at night, she thought that this must all be consecrated ground. That would be like having a castle with a moat against the creatures. She realised that this was one of the farthest points of Friarmere and these children were scared and small, but this was their last chance of a safe place. She, and some of the others would just have to carry some along, if they couldn’t make it. She hoped that Liz and Andy could get to them before it was dark too. They rushed through the village, which was silent. There looked to have been struggles in various houses. Some houses had been burnt out inside. They could not imagine the horrors that had taken place in the last few days. Whilst they were, in some respects, living in safety at Our Doris’s house in Melden.

  Adam realised that The Master had lied to him. He had made a deal and The Master was not keeping up his end of it. Adam had been assured that he could have Bob straight away. Now he had let them escape. Who knew if he could ever get Bob in a situation where he could turn him again.

  Adam didn't like being on his own. The Master would pay for this. He would be a long time holding this grudge.

  Keith and Stuart had taken Carl and Gary to a classroom on the left of the hall. They roughly grabbed them both by the arms, throwing them inside the room.

  ‘I hope you aren’t going to leave us here with no food or water,’ Carl shouted.

  ‘We will bring something later. Just be thankful you are still alive. That could change quite easily.’ The vampires locked the door behind them.

  They looked around the classroom. The blackout curtains were shut. Carl walked up to them and flung each one open, revealing a dying light outside. Now that they had a bit of light, Gary looked around for anything that they could use as a weapon. He thought there must be scissors for cutting paper, as there were plenty of cut flowers and shapes on the wall that the children had made.

  He tried to open the teachers desk, finding it locked. That was probably where the scissors were. Carl discovered round one corner, that there were two little toilets. A boys and a girls. Strangely enough, he was quite desperate to use this. He hadn’t eaten much, but had been drinking.

  ‘I’m just using the loo, Gary,’ he said.

  Carl shut the door in the cubicle. It was no
w quite dark in there. He undid his trousers, and began to sit down. His bottom didn't hit anything. He went further and further down, surprised at just how low these tiny toilets were. When he finally reached it, he stretched his legs out, closing his eyes. He thought about the fact that him and Kate had wanted children at one point. Now that would never happen. Why was that too much to ask for? Now he just wanted to see her again whatever she was like. He needed some form of closure.

  Gary was still looking around the classroom, opening up the children's trays that contained their work. Each one had their little name on it. Gary wondered how many of them were still alive. If they would ever use these trays again.

  The chairs and tables were made of plastic. No chance of them being hacked up for stakes. He checked out the windows. They were very strong double glazed, from what he could see. They even had the words, safety glass stuck on them. So, probably not much chance of breaking out quickly, without the vampires hearing them and rushing in. It was a pity he didn’t have Pat’s lump hammer.

  Gary’s eyes frantically searched the classroom, from top to bottom. There must be something. There is always a way out. He wasn’t going to give up.

  The group from Melden had finally reached the peak of the hill. They began walking along the flat ridge, looking forward so much to being able to stop soon. They knew the worst part of this journey was over. Just flat walking, and down-bank tomorrow. Melden was far behind them now.

  ‘You stupid woman!’ Wee Renee shouted suddenly.

  ‘Who?’ Pat asked.

  ‘Me. I haven’t been using my secret weapon. I forgot!’ They stopped for a brief moment whilst she rooted around in her bag. She got out some of the pieces of raw poisoned meat and scattered them about. ‘When or if they come looking for us in Melden and can’t find us, they will know where we have gone. If they get this far, we can hopefully stop them in their tracks.’ Every so often she scattered a few pieces of the meat behind them.