Third Vampire Shadows (An Urban Paranormal Romance Novel)

by Zhu Hsia

  Hyeon Jin! He thought wildly. Where is that big-footed girl?! She wouldn’t dare leave me here! He looked around at the dark surroundings, thinking that she might be hiding or something. The coldness around him was starting to seep through his skin, making him shiver madly. That was another first—the cold had never bothered him, or any bloodsucker for that matter. They could withstand extremely high or low temperatures. Even with everything that was happening around him, he still managed to focus on the film and actually appreciate the story. It was somewhat close to his own story.

  Van Helsing lost the woman—the human—that he cared for. And what made it worse was... he was the cause of her death.

  •••

  A cold shiver ran through Hyeon Jin’s body and her hands shook as she rounded the corner to the street where the movie theater was located.

  She should've seen the signs but she had chosen to ignore them.

  She was just about to cross the street when she felt a chilly hand slithering around her waist. Before she could blink, she was in a dark alleyway that served as a dumpster to the nearby shops. Looking around frantically, she saw nobody. But she knew better than anyone that whomever had brought her here was no human. For a split second, a smile crossed her lips as she thought with relief that it must be Mun Oh trying to pull a prank on her.

  "Hey! Lee Mun Oh! Come out!" she called out, still looking around. There was no sign of movement. That's when she realized it was not him. The eerie feeling was NOT something that she associated with Mun Oh's presence. Taking careful steps towards the entrance of the alleyway, she clutched the paper bag with the shirt for Mun Oh close to her chest and braced herself. She could almost hear her heart drumming madly in her ears. Just three long strides... she thought desperately, I'm almost there...

  "Where are you going, human?" A chillingly familiar otherworldly voice called out.

  She froze, her heart almost jumping out of her chest. What the heck? She turned around to see the Cheshire cat smile of the bloodsucker Han Kyung.

  "What... what are you…? What do you want?" she stuttered.

  "So, we meet again," he said simply, and in a second, Hyeon Jin was back in the middle of the alleyway, face-to-face with him. "You wanna hear a story?" He took a step towards her and she backed away two steps. "I was kinda thirsty and I smelled a considerably good catch nearby... saw her about to cross the street... brought her here... only to find out it was YOU." He shook his head. "Tell me this isn’t my lucky day."

  "I'm not a good catch! You already knew that. I have... errm... a blood disease..." she tried to convince him.

  "So I've been told." Han Kyung said, nodding. "But I'm not a stupid bloodsucker. I know a good catch when I..." he paused to sniff in some of the air around her, "... smell one."

  Hyeon Jin shivered with terror and with no Mun Oh to get her out of this; she thought a little taekwondo would do the trick. Throwing the bag aside, she got herself in defensive position.

  "Oh yeah? Try me. If you can get past my taekwondo defenses then I'll let you bite me," she challenged him.

  Han Kyung laughed his horrible otherworldly laugh. "Ooohhh... I'm scared," he said, mocking her, and took another step toward her.

  In one swift move, she lashed out with her right foot and caught him right in the groin. He yelped and jumped around in pain, giving her the upper hand. She grabbed his left hand and, using her momentum, back threw him on the ground. There was a sick crunch as his back hit the cement. Now time for her favorite part—kicking a man when he's down... literally. She kicked hard everywhere, screaming profanities at him.

  Just when she thought he was knocked unconscious, she stopped for a second. That's when he took his chance and grabbed her feet with so much force that when she hit the ground, she bounced twice. Every muscle in her body vibrated with pain and she felt like she was paralyzed. Han Kyung got to his feet and glared down at her. Sighing heavily, he grabbed her by the sleeve of her sweater and hauled her up effortlessly. His face was an inch away from her neck when a sound interrupted the moment. It was the alarm of a cell phone. Hyeon Jin silently thanked whoever invented the cell phone, as her body shook with utmost fear and pain.

  Almost instantly, he released her and started to walk away as if nothing had happened. She fell on her butt with a loud thud, confused and dazed. Han Kyung raised an arm as if to wave goodbye. "My mission is done. I hope we never see each other again, human. For your own sake," he said without looking at her.

  The two of them were not aware of it, but they were in two different places at that time.

  While she was desperately trying to save her neck, literally, from Han Kyung, Mun Oh was having a battle of his own inside the cinema. Unable to move his legs and arms, he suddenly felt a presence of their kind nearby. Confused but totally alert, he didn't dare let his guard down. But it was hard to defend himself when he was inexplicably paralyzed. He didn't know what was happening but it was definitely not good.

  He should've seen the signs. Whenever he and Hyeon Jin got into a silly fight, something unpleasant almost always happened right after.

  As the Van Helsing movie ended, a chill swept over him and his body froze.

  "It's time..." A voice whispered in his right ear.

  He could still move his head, but there was no need for that. He already knew who it was. Or rather, what it was. Looking straight ahead, he felt another presence on his left side. This one actually had the audacity to sit beside him. His blood boiling in fury, he balled his fists and tried, with all his might, to move.

  "Are you feeling the effects?" The one seated on his left side whispered in a husky voice. "I suggest you do not fight it off; it'll only make it worse."

  "What do you want?" Mun Oh asked finally, gritting his teeth.

  The one on his right, who was probably seated at the row behind him, leaned in to whisper, "We came here for you. On your parents' orders. They said you are to come quietly and without making a scene. The preparations for your lethargy are almost ready."

  "It's not yet midnight," Mun Oh argued, still looking straight ahead.

  The one at the left side spoke with what sounded like a tone of sympathy. "There has been a misunderstanding about the schedule. It's a little after sunset now."

  Mun Oh turned his head to stare wide-eyed at the one on the left side. He was a man in his early thirties, who wore a military haircut and large spectacles. He recognized him as one of his father's trusted friends.

  "Come now, dear child," the one on the right said, lifting him to his feet. "Let's not make matters worse. You need to be home now." Mun Oh saw that he was also one of his father's friends—a heavy-set man with a chiseled jaw and thick mustache. His touch seemed to have taken off the paralyzing effect that he was feeling.

  "No... Hyeon Jin..." Mun Oh mumbled. "She doesn't know. I need to tell her!" He desperately tried to free himself from his grip as they made their way out of the movie theater. The lobby was empty and outside, the sun was near the horizon, ready to set soon. The colors in the sky were blending, giving off a mesmerizing glow all around.

  "Let's go," the man on his right said in a sad tone.

  "I'm not going without her!" Mun Oh screamed, causing the lady at the ticket booth to stare at him disapprovingly. He kept on thrashing against him, but in his weakened state, everything was futile. As they stepped out of the movie house, he searched the streets for any signs of Hyeon Jin, with one last attempt to escape from them. There were a lot of people passing by here and there; the opposite side of the street looked jam-packed as well.

  Hyeon Jin... where are you? Now he wished he could smell her so that he could find her quickly. He rounded on the mustached man. "Please... I need to see her." He was feeling more and more miserable by the minute.

  With a heavy sigh, the mustached man gave him a pat on the shoulder. "It is your parents' wish that you do not see her during your final moments... It is better that way." He shrugged. "Don't worry about her, she's being taken care of
by Han Kyung. She must not interfere with the ritual."

  "WHAT? You left her with Han Kyung? No!" His words did nothing to calm him down. If anything, it made him worry some more. "That bastard! If he touches so much as a hair on her head, I'm gonna tear him to pieces and—"

  "We don't have much time," the other man whispered. "Believe me, you're just gonna make it harder for her if you let her see you in this state," he said to Mun Oh.

  That shut him up. Although he couldn't bear not to see her before he submitted to the deep slumber that could change his life forever, he realized that it must be much more agonizing for her to see him like that. It could ruin her life as well and possibly traumatize her forever. He didn't want that to happen. He could not just lie there and sleep peacefully while she cried herself to sleep every night with nothing but thoughts of him.

  With one last glance up and down the street, he thought bitterly of their last time together inside the movie theater. They had been, as usual, fighting. How ironic, he thought with a bittersweet smile. The first time we were together we fought and argued, and now... the last time we were together, we still fought and argued.

  The bespectacled man tugged at his arm and jerked his head forward as he and the other man stared at him. He looked up at the skies; the clouds were formed into thin strips as the setting sun glowed orange.

  This is it... my last sunset, he thought, still scanning the surroundings for Hyeon Jin.

  "She's not coming. Let's go," The mustached man whispered for the last time. He tightened his grip on Mun Oh and in the blink of an eye, they were gone.

  Limping and groaning in pain with every step, Hyeon Jin slowly made her way back to the movie theater. She was silently cursing Han Kyung for possibly breaking a bone in her left arm and definitely spraining her ankle. She clutched her left arm, gently massaging it. The lobby was almost empty and there was a quelled feeling to it, as though some invisible force had just passed by. She quickly scanned the place in case Mun Oh was already outside, before continuing to the dark theater.

  As she stepped inside and made her way over to where Mun Oh was supposed to be seated, a sinking feeling overwhelmed her. The seat was empty. The whole row was empty. She looked around the cinema. No more than ten people were in there—most of them were couples, and none of them was Lee Mun Oh. The sinking feeling was somewhat connected to the dry lump in her throat, making her unable to utter a word. But she had to. Taking her place in the middle aisle, she yelled as loud as she could.

  "YAH! LEE MUN OH! Where are you?"

  Almost everyone turned to glare at her, some of them shushing her and one middle-aged man even cursed at her. But she didn't care; she needed to find him before... before it happened. Taking a deep breath, she tried again.

  "Mun Oh, you pest! If you don't come out right now, I swear I'm gonna tell all these people your bloody secret!"

  Someone threw a popcorn box at her. It missed her injured arm by inches. Tears were now welling up inside her eyes. The physical and emotional pain as well as the humiliation and fear were all ganging up on her. It was near sunset now and she needed to be with him when it happened. Plucking up enough courage, she screamed at the dark movie theater again.

  "MUN OH! This is NOT funny anymore! Show yourself!" The tears streamed endlessly down her face like a waterfall. "Come out, you stupid pest! I'll kick your butt back to Ouagadougou if I find out you’re pulling a prank on me!" She wiped away her tears and stomped out, ignoring the loud and angry curses aimed at her.

  Maybe he's looking for me outside! She thought desperately, sprinting outside and blocking out the pain that shot from her ankle. She searched every shop, stall, kiosk and building up and down the streets, her feet ready to give up any minute now. Why would he leave me here? I thought he wanted to be with me during his last minutes. She slumped down the sidewalk in front of the theater, burying her face in her hands. I swear... when he wakes up, I am gonna make sure that the next time he sleeps, he'll never wake up again! She thought.

  Her eyes stung with hot tears again, but she held them back, thinking someone who left her without even a goodbye was not worth crying her eyes out over. She grabbed the paper bag containing the hideous shirt and stared at it for a second. Just when she was about to dump it in a nearby trash can, a strong hand pulled it away.

  Holding back a shriek of surprise, she hastily covered her mouth, realizing too late that she had used her injured left arm. She yelped in pain and a few people turned to look. Flashing them an awkward smile, she stared at the guy before her holding out the paper bag that she was about to dispose seconds ago.

  "Giving up already? Tsk, tsk. And I actually thought you were different from your kind."

  "You... You! What're you— I thought you already left!" she stuttered, massaging her left arm.

  "Come with me." Han Kyung said, his tone grave.

  "No! You broke my arm and probably my back and you sprained my ankle and— I don't wanna come with you!" she screamed in his face.

  He narrowed his eyes at her. "Do you wanna see him or not?"

  She froze in mid-scream.

  "It will happen a little after sunset," he said.

  "What? It's... it's not midnight?" she asked.

  "No. Now, do you wanna come or not?" He held out the paper bag for her again, quite impatiently.

  She peered into the dark and unsmiling face of the bloodsucker before her. Although he seemed to be quite serious about it, experience told her that she should not trust this guy again. She had already gotten into too much trouble by trusting him. But logic also told her that his sudden help offer might be genuine, at least for now, given the circumstances.

  "How old are you?" Hyeon Jin asked out of the blue.

  The bloodsucker was taken aback. "What?"

  "Just answer it," she insisted.

  "I'm 18. Turning 19… next month," he replied awkwardly.

  She grabbed the paper bag and flashed him a smile. "You should act your age, you know. That way I wouldn't think you're just a grumpy young man whose life is so boring that you take pride in messing with other people's lives." She frowned at him. "Why are you helping me anyways?" she added in an undertone.

  The sun was now setting, sinking lower into the horizon, signaling the end of another long day and the start of a fateful night. Street lamps and signs from the shops and nearby buildings illuminated them. Han Kyung turned on his heel and shrugged.

  "Because I'm a grumpy young man who’s got nothing better to do but mess up other people's lives..." he said loudly, "... and sometimes, when I’m in a good mood, help them fix it up."

  In spite of everything she had experienced within the last hour, she gave a hearty laugh, her expressive and smoky eyes lighting up for a second. No words were exchanged between them after that. Hyeon Jin climbed onto his back with a little difficulty, thanks to her broken arm, and then they were off to wherever the Lee manor was located.

  As expected from a bloodsucker's amazingly eccentric way of traveling, they were already at their destination by the time the darkness filled the surroundings. The full moon was rising, surrounded by a million stars sparkling in the vast sky. It was quite a magnificent view and she felt sad that Mun Oh wouldn't get to see things like this for a very long while.

  "We're here. He should be in his room—second floor, third door on the right," Han Kyung said, walking her to the door. "Don't tell him I brought you here. I'll bite your head off," he threatened before walking away. "And don't bother thanking me..." he interrupted, as though reading her mind.” I did not do this for you... or for him."

  Grinning to herself, she rushed to him and gave him a quick one-arm hug from the back. "Thanks anyway…" she mumbled before running into the house and up the majestic marble staircase. Following Han Kyung's instructions, she turned right at the second floor landing and stopped in front of the third door.

  Holding her breath, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.

  There he was, lying on his b
ed as though it was his deathbed. He was wearing the most casual human clothes instead of his usual black tux. Dark colored jeans and a simple white shirt, but he looked more stunning than ever. She could tell there was an argument about the clothes he'd wear, for she immediately saw the tux and black pants lying on a heap in the floor beside the bed. Ji Hyun, Min Ah, Ji Sun and the five elders were huddled around the foot of the bed, blocking Mun Oh's view of Hyeon Jin, who was still at the door. Not wasting any more time, she limped toward the bed, ready to shove anyone who would get in her way.

  "Hyeon Jin! What're you doing here?" Ji Sun exclaimed. The others were quite surprised by her appearance as well.

  In one quick move, she slapped Mun Oh right across the face, his head bouncing off the pillow soundlessly. His reaction was unfathomable but one could tell that he was just as surprised as everyone else.

  "If you leave me like that again, I swear I'm gonna knock your stupid pest face off your head!" she threatened. He propped himself up on his elbows and gave her a wry smile.

  "You are not supposed to be here, human—" one of the elders said.

  "Shut the hell up! Would you give us a minute?!" she interrupted, glaring at everyone in the room.

  Everyone in the room stared at her in astonishment, except for Mun Oh, who suddenly snickered hoarsely.

  "Come on, we don't have all day; get moving!" she yelled yet again. The elders didn't go out quietly, and they whispered angrily among themselves. Hyeon Jin caught the words 'disrespectful human' and 'arrogant girl' quite a few times, but she chose to ignore it. Min Ah and Ji Hyun shook their heads and took one final solemn look at their son before leaving the room. Ji Sun went over to kiss Mun Oh on the cheek and then squeezed her stepdaughter on the left arm in a sympathizing manner. Unfortunately, that was her injured arm. She winced in pain but offered a forced smile nevertheless.