by H. T. Night
“It is when you’re a vampire.” Lena stared at me with utter amazement. But I had better critical thinking skills than to believe that because people drank blood, it obviously led to actually becoming a vampire. People do stupid things for all sorts of reasons, even drink blood. To me, there was nothing magical about blood drinking. It was almost some kind of a sexual fetish.
I shook my head at her. No, this could not be! I would believe in vampires on the same day that I believed in fairies. Which would be never. One thing that I did believe in was mental illness and drug addiction; I thought this party was a sure sign of both.
I said, “Vampires? You have got to be kidding me.”
She wouldn’t look at me. “I don’t know why Yari brought you here. But now that you’re here, you need to start opening your eyes. This isn’t a Halloween party. These people—or things—are truly real.”
“The only thing that is real about them is that they are delusional. If they are truly drinking people’s blood against someone’s will, then they are also committing a serious crime.”
“It’s not a crime if no one is alive to press charges.”
“Are you saying they’re killing people upstairs? You’re telling me vampires—real vampires—are running wild in the city of Victorville?”
Lena just stared at me. Above, I heard more birds flapping. The beating rush of their wings was powerfully loud in the silent night. I felt as if I was being watched, but I didn’t know by whom. Mostly, I heard the dull thumping of my heart in my ears and my own harsh breathing.
This was crazy talk, of course. I mean, c’mon. How could anyone believe in something so crazy? Worse yet, if she was telling the truth—at least about the killings—then I was stranded here with a bunch of psychos.
“Lena,” I said, trying again, “just because some people have a fetish for”—and I couldn’t believe I was about to say this—“drinking blood, that doesn’t make someone something they’re not.”
“You think all those people in there just have a fetish?”
My mind was spinning. I was still feeling the effects of whatever it was in Yari’s flask. “Of course. What else could it be?”
“We shouldn’t be talking about this.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s not safe for either one of us.” Lena looked away, pausing. “Josiah, I have seen things.”
“What? The biting? Please! Just because someone can puncture flesh with filed-down teeth, doesn’t make them a vampire.”
“Do you seriously think all those people in there are playing games?”
“Of course they’re playing games. And someday they’re all going to have to grow up and get real jobs and let the fantasy go.”
Lena seemed pretty upset. I thought she was going to storm off, and maybe that would have been for the best. I felt sorry for anyone who believed this crap, and Lena obviously did. She seemed like a reasonable person. Everything pointed to her not being delusional, but then again, I hadn’t spent a lot of time with her, either.
“You really believe this, don’t you?” I said.
“It’s not a matter of believing. Believing is what a kid does in Santa Claus. This isn’t faith. Faith and believing are what you do with the unknown. This is extremely real.”
I knew I’d better drop it. She looked particularly vulnerable. I took her hand. “Let’s go for a ride,” I said.
“But where’s Yari?” Lena asked, her round eyes meeting mine. A spark of jealousy flickered in her pupils.
“I have no idea. We don’t need to worry about Yari.”
“She’s pretty possessive.”
“Well, she is nowhere near being my girlfriend, so I wouldn’t worry about her.” Any girl that drugs me and brings in two other women was certainly not the possessive type, and certainly not girlfriend material.
Lena stared at me and then looked down at our hands. I could tell she wanted to go with me, but something held her back. She pushed through it and finally said, “Okay, I would like that. Let’s get out of here for a bit.”
“Cool.”
Chapter Fourteen
Lena and I walked over to my truck. I opened the door for her, and she jumped into the passenger side. Lena smelled incredible, and she looked fantastic in her usual black attire.
I jumped into my side and keyed the ignition and reversed out of the house of horror’s driveway. I found my way back to the same road that I used to get here, and I just drove.
Just to lighten the mood, I said, “Even though it’s dark, I feel at peace out here.”
“Well, you are in excellent company. Everyone around these parts likes the dark; it’s what they’re all about.”
“Still on the vampire kick, eh?” But before she could answer, and we could get into another argument about the undead, I quickly added: “So, what are you about, Lena?”
“I like the dark. It makes me think of death.”
“You make it sound as if that’s a good thing.”
“Death, for some, is a good thing.”
I shuddered a little. Geez, dark girl. I said, “I have too much living to do to think much about death.”
We lapsed into silence after that rather lively exchange. If she continued to talk like that, then I was better off sitting in silence. Who likes to talk about death?
A few minutes later, I asked Lena, “So do you still live with your parents?”
“Unfortunately, I do. I have been hoping that Atticai and I could get a place.”
“Are you two pretty serious?”
“Yes and no.”
“What does that mean?”
“Emotionally, we are pretty serious. The physical aspect of us is a whole other story.”
“Physically? I’m confused.” I pulled the truck into a field and parked. “Explain yourself, young lady.”
“Young lady?” She laughed a little. “Okay, well, Atticai and I have never...” Her voice trailed off.
“Never what?” I asked eagerly.
“Never... had sex.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“Nope.”
“Not one time?”
“We haven’t even been to second base.” Lena looked at me with almost a sense of irony.
“Whoa,” I was shocked. By the way, these two acted together, I would have thought there wasn’t a place in San Bernardino they hadn’t done it.
She said, “It’s pretty crazy, isn’t it?”
“It’s insane.” I couldn’t hide my surprise. Lena was extremely hot, and any guy would jump at the chance. “Is it you? Or is him?” I asked.
“It’s all him. I mean... yes, I’m a virgin, but I was ready to have sex with him a year ago.”
“So, what’s the holdup?”
“He keeps telling me that he wants to preserve my innocence.”
“What a crock of shit.”
“Atticai cares about me, Josiah. He told me that things will change in a couple of weeks when it’s my birthday. I guess it freaks him out that I’m still in my teens.”
“How old is he?”
“He’s old. His physical body is about twenty-eight.”
“His physical body?” I sputtered. What the hell did that mean?
Lena gave me a knowing look, one that seemed to imply I should already know the answer.
I rolled my eyes. “Oh, yeah, I forgot. He’s Dracula.” How could someone who seems to be so honest with herself be so clueless?
“I guess it’s a good thing you still don’t believe. It’s probably the thing that’s saving your life.”
“Saving my life? What are you talking about?”
“Never mind. Anyway, so what about you? Do you still live with your parents?”
I was still wrapping my brain around the ‘It’s probably the only thing saving your life’ comment she made. I made a mental effort to switch gears and answer her question. “No, I don’t,” I said distractedly. “I live with my best friend.”
“Do your parents still live in Sa
n Bernardino?”
I was quiet.
“Did you hear me?” Lena asked.
“Yeah, I heard you,” I said.
“Well, where do your parents live?”
I stepped out of my truck and walked over to the front of my hood. Lena jumped out and stood next to me.
“The moon’s pretty bright tonight,” I said. “Even though it’s only a half moon.”
But she wasn’t looking at the moon. She was staring at me. “I’m sorry if talking about your parents upsets you, Josiah. God only knows that I have a crappy relationship with mine.”
We were silent. I kept looking up at the moon. She kept looking at me. Finally, I said, “They passed away, back when I was in high school.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“They died in a car accident, along with my sister.”
“Josiah, I’m so sorry.”
“You didn’t know, don’t worry about it.”
“No, I pressured you into telling me about it.”
“You didn’t pressure me.” I jumped up and sat on my hood. “I wanted to tell you about it. Really.”
“You did?”
“Yeah, I don’t talk about it much, if ever. I just felt as if you are someone I can...” I shrugged, “I can open up to, I guess.”
“I am, Josiah. I want you to know that.”
I hesitated and then decided to tell her. “It was our senior year. I was on my way home from the gym, and I received a call from Tommy. Tommy was engaged to my sister. He was following the three in his own car and saw the whole thing. He told me that they had been in a terrible car accident on the 91 Freeway, and all three were at the hospital. I remember just dropping my phone and flooring it to the hospital. They were dead before I’d arrived there. All three of them.”
Lena covered her face with her hands. “Oh my God, Josiah. I am so sorry. I can’t believe I didn’t hear about this in high school.”
“You didn’t hear about it because I didn’t tell anybody. I didn’t tell a single person in high school. To be honest, this is the first time I’ve ever talked about it.”
“But surely you and Tommy talked about it.”
I shook my head.
“You haven’t talked to anybody about it?”
I shook my head again.
“Never?”
“Never,” I said. “Not one time.”
“Wow, that’s pretty heavy. Why me? Why now?”
“I just felt safe enough to tell you.”
Lena reached over and held my hand. She had tears in her eyes.
“It’s okay, Lena. I’m all right. It was a while ago.”
Lena let go of my hand. She then stood up on the hood and sat next to me. She rested her head on my shoulder, and we sat there in silence for a little while. I appreciated the silence. I felt particularly comfortable around Lena. She had a gentle way that was being masked by a tough female exterior.
I sat back on the hood and laid on my back. “The sky is spectacular. The stars look phenomenal tonight.”
Lena leaned back and cuddled into me. It was nice. For the first time in my life, I felt secure. I felt a release come over my body and tears drip from my eyes. I didn’t make a sound. This moment was perfect. This woman was perfect. She was these things and... she wasn’t mine. The thought of Yari—Yari naked—swam into my mind.
God, had that actually happened tonight? What would that be called anyway, a ménage à quatre?
I didn’t know, but I did feel weird lying there with Lena and soaking in her tender touch when I had been with not just one, but three women just a few hours earlier.
Anyway, we eventually went back to the party, and when I pulled in, Atticai, Yari, and the guys seemed to be waiting for us.
I opened the door and jumped out of my truck, expecting the worst. Lena stepped out on the passenger side. Atticai walked right up to me, looming over me like Lurch from the Addams Family, only paler.
“Josiah, when did you get here?” Atticai asked.
“Huh?” I asked surprised. “I saw you earlier.”
“You did?” Atticai walked up to me and put his hand on my shoulder and stared into me. Yes, into me. It appeared he was trying to look deep into my soul. Then again, maybe he honestly could. Maybe vampires were telepathic. Or maybe I was just losing my mind. Anyway, he did this staring thing for a while, looking at me intently with zero expression on his face. Eventually, he nodded and smiled.
“We’re all good here,” Atticai said, to whom exactly, I’m not sure. “Hey, Josiah, do you mind taking Lena home? We’ll take Yari back.”
“Um, sure, no problem,” I said.
Yari walked up to me and gave me a long, seductive hug. “You had quite a night,” she said. “The girls and I had some fun with you and apparently you still needed a little dessert.” Yari glanced over at Lena, perhaps implying something had happened between us.
“Nothing happened, Yari,” Lena responded. “We just went for a drive. We weren’t going to wait around for you guys to finish whatever it was that you were doing.”
“Oh, you know what we were doing, Lena.” Yari smiled rather sadistically at Lena. Yari then turned to me and planted a long, passionate kiss on my mouth. I was stunned. I didn’t resist, and decided to go with it.
“And there it is! Territory marked!” Wyatt said, laughing.
Atticai smiled at me and simply said, “Be careful, Josiah.”
Atticai then kissed Lena lightly on top of her head, and I had to admit that I now looked at their whole relationship differently now that I knew they hadn’t slept together. There was, in fact, something majorly asexual about them.
I said goodbye to the rest of the pale-faced gang and Lena and I went back into my truck and drove out of there. She was asleep by the time we hit the freeway. I looked over at her quite a few times and just stared at her face. She seemed so peaceful, so innocent. She certainly didn’t belong in that world.
And what was that world? I didn’t know. And I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.
An hour later, I dropped her off. I slid out of the truck and walked her to her front door. “I enjoyed talking to you,” I said.
“Even if I am just dessert?”
“You’re more than dessert. You’re an eight-course meal.”
She laughed. “Oh, really?”
I hugged Lena tightly. After a few seconds, I loosened up to let her go, but Lena held me even tighter. So, I continued holding her. We stood out there and hugged for another five minutes. It wasn’t a sexual hug. As a matter of fact, it was the opposite. It was just two people who had found each other. Two people from completely different backgrounds who discovered they have a true connection. Finally, we released. As we did so, I kissed her forehead.
“Thank you, Josiah. Thank you for everything.”
Lena went inside her house, and I stood there and stared at the front door. What a night. I had sex with three women and fell in love with a fourth.
Chapter Fifteen
The next week was all about preparing for my fight with Tommy. I tried to keep my mind off Lena, but I had never genuinely felt these kinds of emotions before. I knew I couldn’t deal with them right now because it would only be a distraction. I needed to do what paid the bills.
On the Friday before the fight, we had our weighin in Anaheim. I easily made weight, as did Tommy. Tommy looked surprised to see how in-shape I appeared in such a short amount of time.
I cared about Tommy, and this was going to be the hardest part about the fight. If I beat him, Tommy would lose a chance at the title. If I lost, it would be an enormous setback for me, one that I might never come back from.
In the sport, you’re only given a couple of shots to prove yourself to the Commission. And if you get a chance to fight someone of Tommy’s caliber, well, that someone needed to take advantage of it. And that someone, of course, was me. I needed to knock out Tommy.
It was the night before the fight, and I was going to bed
earlier than usual. I went to my room and found Daphne sitting at my window. She turned her head slightly and looked at me with what appeared to be concern in her sharp eyes. Or maybe I just needed sleep, since I was seriously exhausted. I went over to the window, bent down, and stared at her. I looked deep into her hawk eyes, which I found oddly comforting. Daphne dipped her head in a seeming nod, as if to say: “You worked your butt off, buddy; now go take care of business.”
“Don’t worry about me, Daphne,” I said. “I’ll make both of us proud.”
And with that, Daphne flew off. I crawled into bed and was out cold in seconds.
***
The next day, I took things easy. I met up with my trainer, Mike, at 4:00 p.m. My fight was scheduled to go at 6:30. It was the third fight on the card.
In the locker room, Mike and I went over a few things.
“Just keep your head in the fight. If you do that, you’ll beat him.” Mike said to me, while he taped my knuckles.
We did our usual prefight routine, practice moves, going over pointers, stretching and loosening up, and before I knew it, it was time.
Mike and I walked out of the tunnel. I had to admit it was weird not having Tommy in my ring corner for support. Having him in my corner during previous fights had been the next best thing to having my dad, or an older brother. I walked out into the arena. Tommy was already in the ring. His eyes were locked on me. I refused to look at him. I didn’t have to do that to get psyched up. I would let him exhaust himself, mad-dogging me.
The announcer introduced both of us, and I headed to my corner. I looked into the crowd. There were about fifteen hundred people in the stands. I scanned the crowd to see if anyone I knew was out there. Sure enough, sticking out like a sore seven-foot thumb was Atticai. In fact, the whole gang was with him. Surprisingly, Yari and Lena were sitting next to each other. I made eye contact with Atticai. Atticai pointed to Tommy and drew his finger across his throat. Was he serious? I didn’t enter the ring to hurt anyone. At least not permanently.
I looked at Yari—and, man, she looked sexy as hell. I could see her red lipstick from the ring. Lena looked on with concern. Our eyes met, and she smiled. That was what I needed.
As I stood in the corner, Mike rubbed my shoulders and said in my ear, “This is it, Josiah. Tonight, Tommy is not your friend. Tonight, he is someone who wants to rip off your head. No mercy. Strike first and strike hard!”