Girl, Bitten

by Graceley Knox

  “Go where exactly?” I plant my hands on my hips. “I don’t know you. You just did something to my friend, and you claim you have answers for me. How can I trust you?”

  He sighs and clasps his hands in front of him. “The man last night bit your neck, right?”

  I touch the bandage. “How did you know that?”

  “I’m the one that stole the tapes from the security desk.”

  “You were there last night? Why didn’t you stop him? Or help me?” The words leave my mouth in a rush and I inch away from him again.

  “I was on his trail last night, and when I saw the carnage, I knew that the human authorities would never understand. I took the tapes to protect my people.” He pauses. “Our people.”

  “Our people? Who the hell are you? CIA or something?”

  He laughs. “I’m not with the government. And yes, our people. You’re a part of this now.”

  “A part of what exactly?” I raise a brow, trying to hide my terror. My legs shake.

  “I can’t tell you unless you come with me.”

  “Go with you? Where? Why? Who are you exactly?” Questions spin around in my head like some superspeed merry-go-round and I lean against the bed, dizzy.

  “I’m not going to harm you, Sasha. I’d never do that. The choice is yours. Come with me and get answers, or stay here, confused and wondering.”

  The choice is mine. A lot of things haven’t been my choice in the past twenty-four hours. Getting attacked. My college being attacked. Ending up in the hospital cuffed to the bed. It’s not really a choice. I have to know what happened. Or I’ll drive myself mad speculating.

  “Okay. I’ll go with you. Just tell me where we’re going first.”

  “I was just going to give you a lift home for now. We can talk on the way there and then you can have some time to process.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Well the details of what I’m going to tell you are a bit more complicated, but yes, that’s it.”

  “Okay, lead the way.” I walk around the bed but keep my distance from him. Blind faith is for people who believe in religion. I believe in science and cold, hard facts. Things I can see, touch, and feel for myself.

  He leads me out of the hospital to a waiting town car. A man in dark sunglasses, a black suit, and black gloves opens the door for me, and Arsen ushers me into the car before him. If I had to bet money, I’d bet his bodyguard—slash—driver—slash— moose of a man is named Knuckles or something equally badass. Or Tiny. The big guys always have the strangest names. He shuts the door behind us and gets behind the wheel. I can’t see him through the dark glass dividing the front and back seats but I sense him.

  I turn my attention to Arsen. “Start talking.”

  “You and I have similar interests,” he says.

  “Interests? Like you dig DNA and science, too?” My words drip with sarcasm. Not the most appropriate answer, but it’s the only defense I’ve got at the moment. “I’m confused. You just got me out of hospital, but I’ve never met you. I’d probably remember that, and you said you’ve got answers for me.” I sigh and offer him a smile. “I don’t want to seem ungrateful, but I’ve had my fill of craziness for at least two lifetimes within the last twenty-four hours . . . so I’m a little thin on patience. I hope you understand.”

  “You are the one that doesn’t understand. This is urgent and I don’t have the time to ease you into this.”

  “Ease me into this? What’s this?” I wave a hand around. “Explain it to me. In detail. Please.”

  Arsen runs his hand through his thick hair before squaring his shoulders. “Vampire’s exist and a sick one attacked you last night.”

  I sit back hard in the leather seat. “You’re completely fucking insane. Did you know that?” I shake my head. Arsen may be sex on a stick, but he’s mental. Vampires are real? And a sick one attacked me last night. Yeah, because everyone knows that immortal vampires can catch a common cold.

  “I’m not insane. I’m telling you the truth.” Arsen leans forward, his thick forearms resting on his knees. “I would never lie to you.”

  I blink at him, trying to understand. Something niggles at my memory from last night, but it just won’t shake loose. “Let’s say for a second that I believe vampires are real. And that’s a big if . . . I thought they’re immortal and can’t get sick.”

  “We are immortal. And human illness has no effect on us.”

  I hold up a finger. “You just said ‘we’ and ‘us.’ Are you trying to tell me you’re a vampire? It’s broad daylight. How are you not bursting into flames or sparkling like a disco ball?”

  “I fucking hate those movies for that.” He grumbles the words under his breath and I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. “Sunlight doesn’t affect us. And yes, I am a vampire.”

  “Prove it. Let’s see you vamp out.”

  “I don’t want to scare you. Or overwhelm you.”

  I scoff. “Too late, buddy. You better show me some proof, and fast, or I’m going to jump out of this car at the next red light.”

  Arsen growls, and then before my eyes, opens his mouth wide, flashing pearly white fangs, inches from my face.

  “Holy shit.” Those can’t be real. It’s a trick. An illusion. I reach my hand up, eyeing him as I do, and press one finger to the elongated tooth. It’s firmly in there. And it hadn’t been there before. I would have seen it when he flashed his charming smile at me. “Those don’t appear to be fake.”

  Arsen flexes his jaw and the fangs retract. “That’s because they’re not fake. They’re real. Soon, you’ll have them as well.”

  “Me? I’ll have them?” I reach into my mouth, poking at my teeth. Still normal sized. A little crooked, but nothing extra sharp or pointy.

  “The man who attacked you last night bit your neck. And then he fed you some of his blood. I’ve got the tapes to prove it.”

  Ugh. So gross. “He fed me his blood? Why? Actually wait, just show me proof,” I demand.

  “I don’t have them here in the car. But I can certainly show you some other time. I’m not sure why he fed you his blood, but that’s how you ensure the change from human to vampire. First, we feed, then we take your blood intermingled with our vampire blood and give it back to you.” He waves a hand. “That’s not important right now. What’s important is that you’re going to change. And you’ll need some help adjusting.” He winces and scratches at the stubble on his jaw. “He was also one of the vampires affected by a virus.”

  “A virus that affects vampires? And the one who bit me had it?” Of course he did. “Am I going to be sick, too?” How do you even make a virus that harms immortal creatures? I keep that question for myself, to think on later, but clearly, someone’s got it out for the vamps in Portland.

  “I don’t know. We haven’t been able to find a cure for the virus as of yet.” The car stops and Arsen grabs my hand, his grip firm but gentle. “You can help us find a cure for this. Please. My sister is sick.”

  Sympathy warms my chest and I weigh the options in my mind. This is bat-shit insane. But if what he says is true, maybe I could study their blood. Find out about their genetics. It would be groundbreaking. History making, even. If I’m sick from the vampire who bit me, I’ll need the cure as well. But what about my future? My studies? How will this change affect me? “I need you to prove it to me. I don’t believe in things I can’t see.”

  Arsen nods and releases my hand. “I can prove it. I can give you access to all of the vampires who are sick in our coven.” He cuts me off before I can object and continues. “We’re not sure where it’s coming from, or how it spreads, but vampires are losing all control. There’s an uncontrollable bloodlust. More so than usual. Those who are infected become violent, erratic, and feral.” His Adam’s apple bobs in his throat before he heaves a heavy sigh. “Our doctors can’t figure it out. But they don’t have the training you do with all the new science stuff.”

  I laugh. Science stuff
. Yeah, that’s it. So simple. “What if I can’t find a cure? What happens to me then?”

  “Nothing, you’d still be a vampire and I would welcome you into our coven.”

  “Your coven? Is the guy who attacked me a member of your coven?”

  “No. He’s the head of the other coven in Portland. The Baetal. I’m the head of the Draugur coven.”

  I rub my head, trying to process all this information. Right. Of course. Two covens in town. Makes sense because nothing can ever be simple. “This is insane.”

  “Why? I’ve shown you proof.”

  Yeah, he had. “Science says that you shouldn’t exist. That vampires are just a myth made up to scare little children.”

  “Every myth is based on a kernel of truth, right?” The corner of his mouth upturns into a half smile and I sigh. He’s got me there.

  “I need some time to process this. Alone.”

  “I understand.” Arsen opens the door to the car, and I step out after him. We’re in front of my apartment building.

  “I’m not even going to ask how you know where I live.”

  “Driver’s license.” He shrugs.

  “Right.” I walk toward the steps leading up to the main door of my building, but Arsen grips my hand in his, a thick card sliding from his hand to mine.

  “Here’s my contact information. And my address. When you’re ready, let me know.” I look down at the card and he steps back. “I’ll see you soon.”

  I watch as he gets back into the waiting car and drives away. He’d said when I was ready to let him know.

  But what if I’m never ready to be a vampire? What then?

  Chapter 4

  Less than forty-eight hours after my attack, I’m back on campus, working up the courage to walk into the genetics lab. I reach for the door handle for the third time, my hand shaking so badly, I can’t grip the lobby door with any amount of strength to open it. Come on, Sasha, you can do this. They cleared the campus. They’d let you know if someone was still out there to get you. Logically I know this. Illogically, there’s a vampire involved, a sick one. My belief that the police can catch this guy is somewhere between zilch and never gonna happen.

  Someone bumps into my shoulder, jostling me out of my nightmarish thoughts, and looks back apologizing before he holds the door open for me. I don’t even look up at him, just mutter a thanks and step inside and to the right near the waiting area for the science building. I rock back on my heels, taking deep breaths to calm myself and not run out screaming. I won’t let the bastard win. I just won’t.

  I look around the cavernous room. Everything is in its usual place. The chairs that were knocked over at the security desk are currently filled by two other guards. The yellow tape that had been decorating the desk is no longer there. Glass doesn’t litter the floor, and neither do puddles of blood and broken bodies. It’s so clean, I can see my reflection off the surface of the check-in desk. There’s no evidence that multiple people lost their lives two nights ago. No evidence of any attack. Of my attack.

  Half of me is happy there’s no glaring reminder. I can’t get those images out of my mind, and a tangible reminder may only make what memories I have worse. The other half of me is enraged at the thought that something so tragic is erased easily. What about the other victims? There’s no memorial, no flowers or pictures anywhere. I’d expected more from my fellow students. But it’s as if their presence was nothing more than a blip on campus. It’s sad as hell.

  Someone scuffs the heels of their shoes as they walk and I look over, irrationally irritated that they can’t pick up their feet and walk like a normal adult. Can’t they have a little respect for what happened here? Or maybe they don’t know. They’re so involved in their own lives and their social media they probably have been too busy partying to hear about what happened. I close my eyes and blow out a deep breath. Maybe this isn’t such a good idea to come back. Maybe I should have waited a few more days. Until I can figure out what exactly is happening to me.

  But I can’t ignore the fact that I was bitten by a sick vampire and I’m going to turn into one. I need to see more proof . . . more than Arsen’s extended fangs and his neat little explanation of everything.

  I need to run tests. On myself. On my blood. It would be easier if I had some samples to compare it to, but it’s not like I have a database of newly turned vampires to tap into.

  “Hey, I know you just got bitten too. Can I snag a sample from you to run some tests?” Yeah, right. That’ll be the day.

  I sip my tea and focus on calming myself. I’m here because I need to be doing something other than pace my apartment and guess at “what ifs”and “could have beens” or “what could be.” I’ve got to figure out how this change affects me. I need to study it. If I’m going to help them cure some virus, I’ll need to know every detail, including how a human changes into a vampire and how it changes the genetic makeup.

  I grab my student ID out of my pocket and stride toward the lab area with purpose. I can do this. No matter what, I survived. And I’ll keep surviving. No matter what I may become.

  A few hours later, and more vials of my blood than is probably safe to withdraw on an empty stomach, I’ve got every test I can think of running. Full blood count. An INR test to measure how long it takes my blood to clot so I can measure it against a more human sample. Folate and C-reactive protein tests to make sure my red blood cells behave somewhat normally and to ensure there are no infections currently in my body. The list goes on and on.

  “What’re you working on, Sasha?” one of my classmates asks, grabbing a printout of a test result.

  “Nothing. Go away,” I grumble, annoyed that he’s in my space and looking at tests that are a little personal. I refocus my gaze on the microscope in front of me, watching as my blood reacts to certain stimuli.

  “This test result isn’t normal. Are you looking at someone who’s been given a vitamin cocktail? Or some new drug?” He pushes at my shoulder. “Let me take a look.”

  I move back and hiss at him, pushing him away from me, fury pumping through my veins.

  “Hey! What’s going on over here?” Jackson’s familiar voice brings me back to where I am . . . in the middle of the genetics lab on campus.

  “I’m so sorry.” I press a hand over my mouth, wide eyes meeting Jackson’s narrowed ones, scared at my own reaction to my classmate’s curiosity.

  “It’s okay, Sasha.” Jackson wraps his arm around my shoulder and addresses the kid who’s name I can’t even remember. “She was just attacked the other night. Leave her alone.”

  His cheeks turn pink. “Sorry, I forgot.” He scurries away and I watch him, afraid that if I remove my hand from my mouth, I’ll suddenly have fangs poking out for everyone to see.

  “You okay?” Jackson asks.

  I nod and poke at my teeth with my tongue. Nothing sharp pokes at them. I slowly drop my hand. “I think so. I just didn’t like that he was in my space, then he tried to push me out of the way.”

  “That normally doesn’t bother you, though.” Jackson leans back against the lab table, crossing his thick arms over his chest.

  “I know it doesn’t.” I shrug. “I guess I’m just a little on edge after what happened.”

  “How are you really feeling? I wasn’t sure you’d be back so soon after you disappeared from the hospital the other day.” His disapproving tone reminds me he deserves an explanation. But what can I tell him? Guess what? I was attacked by vampires. Hope you don’t mind your old buddy getting all fangy.

  “I’m okay, I guess. And you said I wasn’t under arrest, you have my statement. And a . . . um . . . friend came to pick me up.” I wouldn’t exactly classify Arsen as a friend, but I doubt the fine print really matters here.

  “A friend? Who?” He leans back against my work desk. “Why didn’t you check out and wait for me to get back? I could have taken you home and stayed with you. That’s what a protective detail is for, Sasha.”

  I make a face
at him. “You were there when he was. You went to go check on your partner, and when we wanted to leave, all the nurses were gone, probably fixing and checking stuff after the power outage. I tried to find you but couldn’t. I assumed you got called away on police business, so we just left.”

  Jackson narrows his eyes at me. “I didn’t meet your friend.”

  “Yes, you did. Arsen? Arsen Eskandar? He was right there, you shook his hand and everything.” I poke at his arm. “Are you sure I’m the one with the memory loss?”

  Jackson stands up, his body tensing. “You’re friends with Arsen Eskandar?”

  “Uh, kinda?” It comes out as more of a question than a statement but I’m not quite sure what to classify Arsen as. Other than sexy vampire.

  “Have you been with him this whole time?”

  “No. He brought me straight home and left me with his card.”

  “And how do you know him again?” Jackson asks.

  “It’s a bit of a long story . . .” I trail off, not sure why Jackson has such hate for Arsen. Maybe they know each other. “How do you know him?” I ask.

  Jackson raises a brow. “It’s a bit of a long story.”

  “Ha. Okay, smart-ass. Fine. Be that way.” I pull some papers with my test results together and put them in a plain manila folder. “What are you doing here anyway? It’s midday. Shouldn’t you be out arresting some wrongdoer?”

  “I’m off today. I wanted to get some lab time in and study for midterms.”

  Jackson rests his hand over mine on the folder and I meet his warm, brown gaze. “If you ever need help with anything, Sasha. I can help you.”

  “Help me? With what? Labs?” I chuckle. I’m head of the class, I would be the one to help someone else.

  “No, not labs. I mean like if anything is wrong. I can help you. I know people.”

  Well that’s not vague as hell. “Nothing’s wrong, Jackson. I’m fine. I know you’re a cop. Kinda hard to miss.” I swipe the slide from the microscope and clean it off. “I appreciate the offer, though.”

  Jackson opens his mouth like he wants to say something else but glances away. “Maybe you should take some time off from school.”