Out of My Grave

by Stephanie O'Hanlon

  I hid in one of the shadows as she sat up in her bed, obviously a light sleeper and hearing the commotion down in the streets as well as my entering her room. She looked directly at me, covered in darkness.

  “Who’s there?” she asked, frightened.

  I bolted forward, sitting beside her on the bed and covering her mouth so she couldn’t scream.

  She gasped as soon as my face was in enough light, through my hand she screamed, “Annalee!”

  I nodded my head. “Please! Do not say a word! I have nowhere else to hide. You have to help me.”

  She instantly began to cry, fear pulsing off of her. Thankfully, I was full from my escapade with Sean and the fear was not appealing to me.

  “Please!” I pleaded. “I am not going to hurt you. Deirdre, please! You were my only friend while I was alive. Please grant me that favor now as well.”

  She seemed to quiet, hearing my voice seeming to reassure her. She nodded slowly and I let my hand away, her eyes filling with tears.

  “I thought you were dead,” she sobbed.

  My eyes came to hers. “I am. Do you remember when I used to tell you about Vincent, that he was different?”

  She nodded, remembering. I was so careful in speaking to her. I did not want her to become aware of Vincent’s actual state.

  “Well, he has made me as he is. It was not the only option, but I jumped too quickly…and this was the result. I am sorry for the deceit, but I thought it was the only way I could be with Vincent. And no one seemed to understand how much I love him.”

  Her eyes widened as tears streaked down her face. “Enough to die for him.”

  I nodded. “Yes.”

  She looked down to the linens and to my hands. Then her eyes snapped up to the front of my gown and up my face. “What is that? Is that blood?” Her voice began to rise slightly.

  “Yes. You are not the only from my past I paid visit to tonight.”

  Her eyes widened as she covered her mouth. “Who?”

  “Guess.” I smiled.

  “Oh, no. Sean? You…you killed him?” she stuttered.

  I was about to answer when I remembered how long I had latched onto him, how long that drum was silent while I tried to get every last drop out of him. “Yes. He is finally in his place.” I sighed. “One life for another.”

  “You killed him.” More tears made their way down her cheeks.

  I nodded to her, keeping eye contact. “That is what I do now. I need blood to live and the only way to get blood is to kill. Well, I did not really need to kill Sean, I just enjoyed the task.” I leaned back, letting my hand support me.

  “But…you took someone’s life Annalee, you…you are a murderer.” She seemed to curl up into the corner of the bed, trying to hide herself away from me.

  “Being labeled a murderer is something for the living. I am just…living as I need to.” My voice dropped. I didn’t like being called a murderer.

  “You just couldn’t wait, could you, Annalee?”

  I turned quickly as I heard Vincent’s soft, silky, angered voice coming from the shadows. He stepped out, walking towards me, his violet suit looking black in the little amount of light.

  “That impatience again! If only you had moved predictably and whined until you got what you wanted, I would have accompanied you and we would have done this correctly!” His voice was low, but anger was straining it.

  I looked up to him, standing and walking to him. I kept silent, I knew I was to be scolded, might as well have been from him at that moment.

  “You missed your dress appointment. Do you know how much of an idiot I looked when I couldn’t find my own wife?”

  My eyes went to his coyly. “I am sorry. I thought you had put your foot down on the subject, so I left to do it myself. I wish you were there with me.”

  I could already see his anger melting off his face. I smiled lightly. I wondered if he had practiced what he was going to say, practiced being angry with me as not to falter while he was scolding me. I could see even if he did practice, it was all for naught. He loved me far too much.

  His emerald eyes bounced off of the room, coming to Deirdre, pointing to her. “Of all places to come to…”

  I looked over to Deirdre. “She will not say anything. Will you, Deirdre? You will not tell anyone about us.”

  She continued to cry, burying her head in her arms.

  Vincent put his hand out and grabbed my own, pulling me into him. “Even if she did, they would not believe her. She would spend the rest of her life in a madhouse.” He looked down to me, seeing the blood on my face, stroking my chin. “I suppose you had fun.”

  I smiled as I leaned up and pressed my lips against his. “It would have been much better if you were there.”

  He laughed lightly. “Well, we cannot change that now. I take it you were seen, hence the hiding place.”

  We both turned, hearing a ruckus in the downstairs.

  “Someone is coming,” he said, his voice lowered. “We have to leave.”

  Deirdre stood up from her bed. “It will be my parents to check on me.” She seemed to gather some courage, perhaps the shock wearing off a bit. “Go. Go to your old estate. I will come with word when things have settled down and you will be able to barter for passage back to Whittley.”

  She pushed us back up against the window. Vincent looked down to the street, which was quite suddenly bare.

  “You will—” I started.

  “I will not say a word, I promise,” she said as she quickly wiped her tears away.

  Vincent scooped me up in his arms, jumping out the window, landing softly on the ground and making our way back towards his old estate.

  * * * *

  We entered through the window to the parlor, walking out into the barren hallway, which felt so amazingly familiar. I instantly felt at home. I loved the estate, perhaps because of the memories it held.

  We walked into the dining room, the room where Vincent and I sat while I was still human. He walked over to the fireplace and started a fire, which in only a few moments was large and warm, brightening the room softly. Seeing him standing by the fireplace, his arm resting on the mantle, his brocade violet waistcoat shimmering, sent a shiver throughout me. It was the same sight that used to make my heart speed up. It still made my heart speed up, didn’t it?

  I smiled lightly, though I felt sad at the same time. Everything changed so quickly around me that I felt I had lost everything.

  I walked up behind Vincent, wrapping my arms around him and letting my head rest against his back, my cheek warmed by his body absorbing the heat from the fire. He placed his hand over my own.

  “You are not happy,” he said, his voice low.

  I kept my cheek up against him. “Perhaps.”

  “Killing him has not changed anything,” he said.

  I nodded. “I miss how things were.”

  He turned and wrapped his arms around me, holding me close and warming the rest of my body. He kissed my hair and let his head rest on my own.

  “He is dead,” he said.

  I nodded. “Yes.”

  “Did you let go at the appropriate time?”

  I thought back, trying to remember through my blood lust, which made my memory very foggy.

  I remembered his heart was already quite slow because of how much I had drained him. I kept running over what I could in my head, but I just…didn’t know.

  “Annalee, darling?”

  I looked up to him. “I cannot…remember. I took so much…I cannot remember.” My eyes darted around the room confused, trying to remember how long I was latched onto him, how long his heart was stopped.

  He had his hands on my shoulders. “Please tell me you let go when the heart stopped.”

  My eyes came to his, the fire bouncing all around him and making them sparkle. “I cannot remember.”

  “Annalee, it didn’t happen all that long ago, a few hours. You cannot remember?”

  I shook my head.
r />   “You have to remember,” he said, stepping away from me, looking me in the eye.

  I started getting frustrated. “I cannot! I cannot remember, Vincent, honestly. I would not say I did not remember if I did.”

  He nodded. “All right.” He held me close, stroking my back.

  I bit my lip, my head on his chest. “When you said before, about it becoming inhuman…what did you mean by that? What would happen?”

  “He would rise again.”

  I looked up to him. “Rise again?”

  “Yes, as I said, all the blood is gone. The corpse rises seeking out its own blood. In the case of Mister Pertrew, he would walk and talk, but he would be fuelled by a need for seeking out the blood he lost.”

  I shuddered. “Oh.”

  He pulled away from me, walking over to the corner of the room. “Come over here, sit and try to sleep. Once we sort ourselves out we will have a carriage back to Whittley.”

  I did as he asked, sitting in his arms, my cloak on us like a coverlet. But, I couldn’t sleep. I was too concerned with remembering how long I was latched on for. How long did I continue to drink? How long was needed to make Sean the walking dead?

  * * * *

  I started to roam the house, the sun streaking through the windows, warm and bright. I couldn’t help reminiscing, all those wonderful memories making their way through, but saddening me at the same time.

  I almost couldn’t believe I was longing to be human again. I didn’t regret what I had done, though I still wanted to be human once more, for just an hour, perhaps a day.

  I stood by the window in the parlor, the sun streaking in on me, warming my skin. I stood at the window the entire day, every so often Vincent would check on me, ask if I was all right. I smiled reassuringly before I went back to my thoughts.

  “What is on that beautiful mind of yours?” he asked, walking into the room. He leaned back against the door frame, crossing his arms.

  I turned to him, smiling lightly. “I was thinking about the first time we made love.”

  “Ah,” he said, smiling. “I suppose this old house does bring back memories.”

  I nodded. “Human memories…they keep coming back to me. Do you know what is strange? My adjustment, all that pain. It is so hard to remember it all.”

  He nodded, stepping forward. “It will be a little foggy for a while. Human memories always bombard us while we continue to adjust. All that pain was just the first wave of adjustment, your body dying, getting used to the need and use of blood. Now you have all the emotional parts to worry about, which sadly take longer than a week to sort through.”

  “How long did it take you to adjust fully?” I asked, folding my hands before me.

  He walked up to me, leaning into me, keeping his voice low. “I do not think I have fully adjusted.”

  I took a deep breath, thinking about it. I then walked into his arms, holding him tightly.

  “Oh,” he said, pulling away from me. He took a letter out of his waistcoat pocket. “This came from Miss O’Neil. She wants us to meet her on her estate, by the stables. It is quite urgent, so grab your cloak.”

  We quickly made our way off of the old estate and to Deirdre’s parent’s estate. She was waiting for us by the stables, fear pulsing off of her, her heart beating rapidly.

  “What is going on?” I asked her.

  She looked to Vincent, then to me. “You said you visited upon Sean last night.”

  I nodded. “I did, what of it?”

  “He is still alive!” She glanced around quickly.

  “Who is?” I asked.

  “Sean! He is not dead!”

  Vincent looked to me. “Christ.” He angrily turned away, his back to us.

  I stepped towards Deirdre, who was slightly startled, stepping back. “What do you mean? That is not possible! I killed him.”

  “I saw him in town. He was walking about, completely fine.”

  I felt my heart drop.

  “God damn it, Annalee!” Vincent’s voice was filled with rage, he turned to me and grabbed my hand, pulling on it harshly, dragging me away from Deirdre.

  “Where are we going?” I tried to pull my hand out of his grip.

  He kept his eyes forward, pulling on me. “Back to Whittley.”

  “What about Sean?” I pulled as hard as I could, tearing my hand away from him.

  He stopped and turned to me.

  “Annalee, you do not seem to understand the gravity of the situation. What is in town right now, is not Sean Pertrew and it has no plans to just go about normal life. We need to get you out of here.”

  I crossed my arms and planted my feet on the ground. “We cannot. He could hurt someone!”

  Deirdre ran up behind us, her horse following. “What is going on?”

  Vincent angrily ran his fingers through his hair. “What is in town is not human and it certainly is not vampire either. It is something much more dangerous and we need to leave now! I will not lose you again!” He put out his hand for me to take it.

  “You never lost me before!” I snubbed his hand.

  “Annalee, God damn it. What is in town is a walking corpse. It does not eat, it does not sleep and it is just as strong as we are! It is bad enough it will be coming after the one that made it, but Sean Pertrew had malice against you! It will be like fuel for the creature and it will not stop until it has killed and devoured your flesh!” His voice boomed against the stable behind us, bouncing off and making his last statement echo in my ears painfully.

  I felt a shudder of fear run through me. “Devour my flesh?”

  “It is seeking out its blood! Where is that blood? It is in you! It will not stop until it finds you. This is exactly why you let go! You never drink every drop!”

  Tears rose in my eyes, little drops falling down my cheeks. “I didn’t know…I just…I didn’t know. Oh God, Vincent, I didn’t know!”

  He walked up to me, taking my hands. “I am not going to let anything happen to you. I will not lose you as I thought I did before.”

  Deirdre stepped forward. “Is he a danger to anyone else?”

  Vincent held me tightly, looking to her confused. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, will it try to hurt anyone else?” she asked, her countenance painted with fear.

  “Why?” Vincent asked.

  “A few days ago Dale mentioned he was meeting with Sean, something to do with Annalee. If this thing still thinks like Sean, he would still attend the meeting.”

  I looked to Vincent. “Dale!”

  “Where is he meeting him?” Vincent asked.

  “I don’t know,” Deirdre said. “I would assume at Sean’s, since Dale’s father is ill.”

  “Oh my God,” I said, tears building in my eyes.

  Vincent turned to me. “It is all right, we will go back to Mister Pertrew’s and get Mister MacMurphy out of there. We need to move swiftly.”

  “Wait,” Deirdre said. “What about me?”

  I gave a worried look to Vincent, who nodded, knowing we needed to keep Deirdre safe. What if Sean, or whatever it was, decided to go after her? He quickly told her how to get the copse, the little bit of forest Vincent and I knew we could run away to.

  He turned to me, grabbing my hand. “If Mister Pertrew is there, we cannot risk your life to save Mister MacMurphy.”

  “But Dale—”

  “—will be an unfortunate casualty. I will not put you in danger, Annalee. You are just going to have to trust me.”

  My gaze met his, reluctantly nodding.

  “All right, we do not have time to lose.”

  We needed to keep to the shadows, taking back streets to finally get to the Pertrew manor. We stood on the street, now barren of people.

  Vincent listened very carefully, turning to me. “There is nothing, no one. Not even a heartbeat.”

  I felt my heart freeze. “No heartbeat?”

  “Maybe they are not here yet,” he said. “You stay here—”

 
; “No!”

  “All right, all right,” Vincent said, calming me. “Stay behind me.”

  I nodded as I followed him, approaching the door, which was slightly ajar.

  “This does not bode well,” he said under his breath.

  I swallowed hard as I followed him in, my hand in his. We walked into the foyer, which was empty. The whole house was eerily quiet.

  I grabbed Vincent’s arm, stopping us. “Do you smell that?”

  He nodded. “Blood.”

  My eyes welled up with tears, from fear. My body shook with it.

  “This way,” Vincent said, pointing towards the dining room.

  We walked slowly, carefully to the dining room, the door again slightly ajar. Vincent pushed it open, walking into the room first. “Oh God,” he said, quickly turning and shielding me from whatever lay beyond.

  I peered over his shoulder, seeing a pool of blood by the dining room table. My gaze moved up to the table, seeing a skinless body lying in a pool of blood that dripped off of the table onto the floor.

  I covered my mouth, hiding my face into Vincent’s chest. “Oh my God…” I sobbed, unable to control the torrent of tears that escaped me.

  “Jesus Christ,” Vincent said, holding me tight.

  “Is it…is it Dale?” I managed between a sob.

  Vincent nodded. “He was flayed alive.”

  “Oh my God,” I said again, squeezing my eyes closed tight. “Why? What did Dale do to deserve this?”

  “It was looking for blood,” Vincent said, his voice stilted. “Dale was close to you.”

  “What about everyone else that was close to me?” I looked up to him. “What about…my father…oh my God, Vincent! My father could be next.”

  He shook his head, his hands coming to my face, holding it gently. “We need to get back to Whittley. We need to get away from here!”

  I began to sob harder. “No! No, Vincent…please. We have to stop him.”

  He looked into my eyes, taking a breath before he reluctantly nodded. “We need to get there as fast as possible. It could already be there.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Blood is the Life