Paranormal After Dark: 20 Paranormal Tales of Demons, Shifters, Werewolves, Vampires, Fae, Witches, Magics, Ghosts and More

by Rebecca Hamilton

  “Are you okay?” he asked, reaching out to touch her arm.

  She didn’t jump or whirl to face him or leap away. She just glanced over, looked at her feet, and made a discreet attempt to clean the makeup out from under her eyes with the corner of her shawl. She was taller than him in her sky-high heels, but as she bent, he was able to see past her and caught a flash of something in the bushes across the street. Maybe spectacles. Maybe the muzzle of a gun. He tightened his grip on her arm, ready to shove her back inside, but the gleam disappeared. It looked as though Leland wasn’t ready to out himself, just yet.

  “Yeah,” she muttered. “I’m fine. ‘Cause, you know, no high school dance would be complete without somebody running out in tears.” She forced out half of a laugh, but her voice was too thick.

  “Do you need anything?” he asked. “Someone to walk you home? There’s b-been… stuff, you know?” It was a long shot. If he could somehow keep her near him, get into a home and behind a threshold, maybe he could wait it out until Leland gave up. Sebastian would come find him, and if he was still sticking to his story, that all of this was for Lenny’s sake, he couldn’t possibly hurt the person who had hidden his thrall.

  The girl shook her head, though. “My car’s out front. And my stuff’s still inside anyway. But thanks.”

  Lenny deflated a little. “Oh. ‘Kay.” That plan was shot, then. But maybe if he could keep her near him, anyway… “Just… whatever it is… you know it c-could be a whole l-lot worse.” He forced a smile, thinking of a very specific way in which it could be worse. She could be him, instead.

  “Yeah, I guess,” she allowed, though she did not seem able to imagine it. She sighed. Then she wrapped her arms around herself and shivered.

  Lenny panicked. If she was cold, she would go back inside, and he would be left alone to die, unless he could somehow blend in with the chaperones of a high school dance – unlikely. He hastily shrugged out of his jacket and offered it to her. The light breeze bit into him immediately, but she took the jacket, and she smiled, and she stayed outside.

  He kept her there as long as he was able, talking, saying anything that came into his head, anything to keep her there another moment longer, and it was all he could do not to cry when she finally handed his jacket back to him and went inside. But by that time, there was no flash in the bushes across the street, and his stamina had recovered somewhat, and he shuffled back to the motel, because his skin had frozen, and running was impossible.

  Sebastian did not ask where he had gone, or about the dead blood on his gloves or the cracks in his arms.

  Lenny stripped and sat in the hot shower until he began to soften and knit back together. The lack of bullet holes in his chest was a relief. The relief itself was a relief. At least he knew now that he still had some desire to live. He sent out a silent thanks to that girl, wherever she might be.

  * * *

  CHRISTMAS CAME AND went, and then New Year’s Day. Sebastian went back to his predictable schedule, leaving and staying away all day, and Lenny went back to staying out of it, except on the few occasions Sebastian dragged him along.

  It was on one of those occasions that he saw her again. Sebastian had gotten tired of silence and kicked Lenny out of the car, and Lenny shuffled into the nearest building so that he could at least wait somewhere warm. It was a movie theater, and the kids behind the counter tried to make him buy something or leave, but he didn’t move and didn’t speak, and they finally told him he could stay as long as he knew he would have to leave before they closed down for the night.

  He still did not move and did not speak, not until someone very close to his shoulder said “Hey!”

  He didn’t recognize her at first, without the black streaks down her face and the tediously ornamental hairdo. But he recognized her skinny arms and the freckles dusted across her nose and forehead. “Hi.” She waited, and he blinked. “You… you’re looking b-better.”

  She grinned at him and shifted her tub of popcorn to one hand so she could plant the other on her hip. “Yeah, well you’re looking sort of worse.”

  Worse than running for his life could not have been good, and he frowned. “I’ve been standing here a while.” Daring to complain felt dangerous. He could not remember the last time someone had shown an interest in his wellbeing, given him an opening to complain. It had probably been Mara. He counted in his head: six years, at least. It felt good.

  “Meeting someone?”

  “Yeah.”

  Her face fell a little, though he could not understand why.

  “What movie are you going to see?”

  “No movie. He’s just p-picking me up here. I don’t drive.” At least, he hoped Sebastian would be picking him up. Walking back would probably have been faster, but it would have been cold, and Sebastian might expect him to stay where he was put.

  She only smiled, though. “Never learned?”

  “No.”

  “Well, I’m Liz.” She put out a hand for him to shake, invaded his personal space, and invited him to come see what she was seeing.

  “I’m Hugo,” he started, but before he could muster a convincing objection, she had bought him a ticket, bought him a soda, forced him to carry her popcorn, and dragged him into the theater after her.

  He did not get to see the entire movie. Sebastian arrived at the bottom of the darkened stairs, and Lenny slipped away. “Maybe I’ll see you again,” he whispered as he ducked out of his seat. He wasn’t sure that she heard, though; the film’s score was very loud.

  “The hell are you smiling about?” Sebastian demanded in the car. “You into chick flicks now?” He snorted. “What am I saying? ‘Course you are.”

  Lenny stopped staying out of it. When Sebastian left, Lenny went with him. He wanted to see the girl again. Maybe it was just that it had been so long since he had spoken to anyone earnestly. Maybe she reminded him of one of his students from his past life. Maybe it was that she seemed so incredibly determined to be a friend, even though she had to know that he was a stranger in town. Maybe it was just that she wasn’t Sebastian. Being near her did not remind him of what he might become.

  It took a week, but the town was small, and he was bound to run into her eventually. The third time, it was at a small coffee shop on the square. He wasn’t even looking for her there, had just shuffled in with a handful of change he had been collecting off of sidewalks for a few months, seeking caffeine. He purchased a cup, paid for it, and turned around to find Liz once again well within his personal space. He jumped and dropped his cup, shuffling backward to preserve some distance between them.

  “Uh… hi? You’re kind of… Hey.”

  She seemed to realize the problem and smiled sheepishly. “Hey, again. How have you been?”

  In a flash, he had managed to convince himself that this was a mistake. He shouldn’t have come. It wasn’t worth it. If Sebastian found out about her, she could be in danger, and it would be his fault. Even if she wasn’t in danger, the chances were slim to none that she actually cared how he had been. It was social convention, the sort of thing one is obliged to say, and she would hurry the conversation along, politely excuse herself, and leave him alone again.

  “Good,” he grunted. “You?” She would complete the formula, reply Good, and walk past him, and everything would go back to normal. He shouldn’t have done this.

  But she beamed. “Oh, pretty good. Just getting some work done.” She twisted a lock of hair around one finger and tilted her head. “I’ve got an extra seat at my table…” There were approximately ten tables in the shop, and they were the only two patrons. “Or are you just waiting for your friend again?”

  He floundered. “No. Just k-killing some t-time. Got a…” Something that could get him out of this, something that would make clear that he couldn’t stay. “Got a job to do later. Gonna want some fuel.” He bent to pick up his cup, and offered her a strained smile. “Uh, c-can you… You’re right in front of the, uh…”

  Liz gla
nced back, saw that she was between him and the thermoses of coffee, and moved aside. “Yeah, sorry. You can sit with me if you want. I mean, unless you want to sit alone. ‘Cause that’s totally cool if you do. I just thought I’d ask.”

  The coffee hissed into his cup, and he grimaced. She wanted him to sit with her. She wanted him to, and he wanted to, and he knew he shouldn’t. He shrugged one shoulder. “Yeah. ‘Kay.”

  She sipped her giant, foamy, undoubtedly sugary drink and watched him closely until he became extremely uncomfortable. It was mitigated somewhat by the fact that, the longer she watched him, the more uncomfortable she looked, too.

  “Um… Sorry,” she said at last. “It’s driving me nuts. I can’t even start to tell how old you are. You look… I don’t even know.”

  “’Bout thirty, I g-guess.” He knew she would take that as a joke or as sarcasm. Most people did, but it was easier when people commented on his looks rather than his actual age. He did not like to lie. He thought she would laugh or be mildly offended. He did not, however, anticipate her deep blush. It was his turn, then, to watch in ever-more-awkward silence.

  She gulped at her coffee, leaned away from him, and refused to look him in the eye. “Sorry, did you say you’re from Delphi? I can’t remember.”

  He leaned back as well and drew a knee up to his chest. He had no idea where Delphi was, in fact had no idea what town he was in at that exact moment, but there were few enough small towns in driving distance that it seemed a fair gamble. “Don’t think I said, actually. But yeah, I’m in Delphi. How about you? Have you always lived in…” – he glanced around and found a coaster on the floor, miraculously emblazoned with the shop’s name, address, and phone number – “B-burns?”

  “Yep. Born and raised. So I’m really looking forward to going away for college.” She seemed to have relaxed a little, and dropped that casual rejection of home on him as though she expected him to understand. He did not. “So, what do you do?”

  “Whatever needs d-doing.” He paused and shook his head. That sounded a bit too mercenary for his taste. Also a little too accurate. “I t-tried physics. Couldn’t g-get a job in that, though.” Not recently, at any rate. The conversation was getting more personal than he had really anticipated. He wanted to talk about the weather, or about that dance she had been to, or about what, exactly, people thought had happened to that boy and poor Donna. He did not want to talk about himself; there was no use in talking about something that barely existed. He twitched up his sleeve and checked the watch he wore. It wasn’t his, and he had no idea where Sebastian had gotten it, but it did not feel like death, and so he had accepted the token of goodwill, even though it lost about five minutes each week. “He’s late. Big surprise.”

  “Your friend?”

  “Yeah. He gets distracted. Stuff comes up.” He noticed that his coffee cup was empty, and got up to refill it. Light, fluffy snow was falling outside, accumulating and melting on the windowsills. “He’ll c-come eventually.” Sooner than later, hopefully. The thought of Leland clenched Lenny’s gut in tired anger, but he could not imagine staring at the man all day, as he assumed Sebastian must be. It had to get boring after six years.

  Liz was not dissuaded, though. She bounced out of her seat and followed him back over to the carafes. “Ooh, if you’re new in town – you’re new in town, right? Or at least sort of? You should let me show you around. There’s not a whole lot to do. I could show you pretty much everything in like, a day. I’ll give you my cell number, okay?”

  She forced her number on him, scribbled onto a napkin, and he painstakingly scrawled out the number for the motel, more confused than anything. As he handed it over, he chickened out and tried to tell her that he was never around long enough to take a call, but he had forgotten that the front desk could take a message.

  It was getting dark by the time the black Mazda pulled up outside, and Lenny left with mingled reluctance and gratitude. Liz came on strong, much stronger than he was ready to take, quite yet, but talking had still been nice.

  “Is their coffee any good?” Sebastian asked lightly.

  “Kept me going.”

  “Heh, good. That’s good.”

  “You know, every t-time you dump me somewhere, there’s a real d-danger someone will get suspicious. Maybe try to g-get me arrested.”

  “And you’d probably let them, wouldn’t you? No, don’t answer that. You know I’d come get you. But if you don’t like it, you’re welcome to stay behind, or stop being such a butt once we’re in the car. I was almost thinking you wanted me to leave you places. Conducting your own investigation, are you?”

  “No. No, I’m just… Sorry. Never mind.”

  Sebastian rolled his eyes.

  Lenny felt at the napkin in his pocket and suddenly realized why a teenage girl would find his age awkward. He squeezed his eyes shut, and when he got back and found that there was already a message for him at the desk, he did not return her call. The messages accumulated, though, and when he finally caved and called, waiting until Sebastian was gone before he dug up the phone number, she suckered him into seeing a movie with her. It was then that he realized he had lost the ability to say no.

  Chapter 18

  LIZ LEFT MORE messages after the movie. Lenny resolved to distance himself from her, but he ended up calling anyway, entering a lengthy game of phone tag with someone he barely knew. He understood why the situation was difficult, why it could be construed as unacceptable, but he did not care. There was nothing untoward in it, and no one would ever find out anyway, especially Sebastian.

  Truly, he should have known better.

  “I think we should go out with a bang,” Sebastian commented absently. He was in an unusually vindictive mood and had a kept death grip on Lenny’s mind all evening, twitching him around like a marionette until he grew bored of that and settled both of them down in his room to watch television.

  “’Kay,” Lenny agreed. He couldn’t muster the will to ask what Sebastian was talking about.

  “Something that’ll be remembered. I was thinking about burning the town. I can get to every house in one night, I think. Not yet. I’d have to plan out the best route to take, first. But burning it all… yeah. Put this place on the map.”

  Lenny stiffened, but said nothing.

  “Shame it would take too long to barricade all the doors. Fifty percent fatality rate, at most. Still, that’s not bad. Can guarantee it’d make international news.”

  “Rhona’ll hate you,” Lenny whispered.

  Sebastian shrugged. “Rhona was going to hate me for killing her obnoxious brother, anyway. She’ll be better off without him weighing her down, though. I can always make her stop hating me if I ever see her again, anyway. Hmm. But I wonder if we could grab him first, take him out somewhere to make him watch.”

  He grinned. “I’m gonna go make a test run. Down every street, stop at every house for say, thirty seconds. Time me.”

  He shrugged into a jacket and ducked out the door.

  Lenny sat very still, fighting the horrible, disorienting pressure that was building in his skull. Sebastian wanted to go out with a bang. Sebastian wanted to leave a crater where Leland had been. The pressure felt like the start of a migraine, or cardiac arrest. His lips and fingertips were numb.

  He crawled laboriously out of his chair and into the cold, over to his room, seeking a phone number. There was only one possibility. He did not know Leland’s number, and if he went to Leland’s house, he would be killed on sight. Police would be of no use. They would not believe him, and proving his story would have repercussions far beyond the life of one small city in Colorado. Deep in the recesses of his mind, buried under years of running, he could feel Kim, but she would not come. She’d had years to come, and if those years had not brought her, neither would this.

  But there was also Liz, and he had to warn someone.

  He dialed with one shaking finger and held the receiver to his ear. It rang. It rang again, and then it sto
pped ringing, and for a moment, all Lenny could hear was static. He sucked in a breath.

  “Hello?”

  He let it out again, but his throat closed, and the fear flashed through him that he would be unable to speak.

  “Hello?”

  “I… Liz’beth? C-can…” It was hard to get the words out, but he did his best. “I need to t-talk to… P-please. I need someone to t-talk to.”

  He’d been there for her once, albeit accidentally, and he could hope she would reciprocate, at least hear him out. It was too much to ask her to fight a demon, but if she would just hear him out…

  “Hu-…” She cut off, and he wondered whether someone was listening in. “Sure. Sure, you can talk to me. What’s wrong?”

  He bit his lip. “C-can’t. Not on the phone. Uh…” If he tried to explain over the phone, he could offer no proof, and she would take it for a mean joke. She might be offended and hang up on him, and his only option would be gone. It had to be in person. “C-can you come to the coffee p-p-p-place? Just… ‘fore he c-comes b-b-ba-back. Please?”

  He heard her breath catch. “Sh-shshshshsh. It’s okay, honey.” The pet name made him flinch; she was not Kim. “I’ll be right there. Sit tight.”

  He knew that he had to hang up to leave the motel, and she probably had to hang up to drive, but panic had set in, and he desperately tried to keep her on the phone, to keep her voice close by. He stuttered wordlessly until he heard a click, and he set down the receiver.

  It was done. He was a traitor, and Sebastian was insane, and it was looking more and more likely that only one of them was going to make it out of all this.

  He sat a moment longer, gathering courage, before stepping outside. He would have to run; there was no way he could walk in any reasonable amount of time, and the sooner he got this over with, the better.