by K. A. Poe
“Thanks,” I returned the expression as I dialed Janet's number. “Hey, mom-”
“How many times do I have to tell you that she is fine?” Mark growled.
“I-I just wanted to talk to her,” I said in shock, “just for a second.”
“Fine, but make it quick.”
“Alex?” I was relieved to hear Janet's voice. “How are you doing honey?”
“Where are you at, mom?”
“Just at a hospital here in Denver. It's not that important, really.”
“Yes, it is!” I thought carefully. “I wanted to send you some flowers, but I need the address.”
“Aww, that’s sweet of you,” I could tell she appreciated the idea. “Hang on, just a second,” I heard the muffled voices again, this time Mark's voice sounded angry and loud. She whispered the address to me and I could tell she was more than a little frightened.
“Thanks, mom...” I mumbled. “Are you sure you don't want me to bring you home or something?”
“No, it's okay...I'm fine where I am. Denver is my home now, sweetie.” I didn't believe that for a second. “I'll talk to you later.”
“Bye,” I said it too late, she had already hung up.
After relaying the conversation to Salem, I heaved my bag downstairs. We were both further convinced that something was just not right. It was nearing time for Paul to arrive to pick me up and I was growing more and more anxious as the minutes passed. Salem stayed with me, anxiously sitting on the couch beside me. He insisted he would hear the car pulling up long before they arrived.
“I wish you could go with me, Salem,” I said quietly as he played with my hair.
“As do I,” his voice was withdrawn, and I knew he was filled with worried thoughts still. “Please make sure to call as soon as you get to Denver. If Paul asks, tell him you are talking to Jason.”
“I will,” I promised.
“He will be here soon,” he muttered and sat up. “Be safe, my little raven.” He leaned in close and gently pressed his lips to mine before heading through the back door. I stared after him, wondering if this might be the last time I would see him.
Not two minutes later I heard the rumble of Paul's Jeep Wrangler pulling into the driveway. I stared out the back window, watching Salem vanish from sight. The knock on the front door startled me despite knowing it was about to happen and I ran to open it. Paul stood there with a grin on his face, and beside him was the pretty red-haired woman from the photograph on his desk.
“You must be Alex,” she said in a light, wispy voice. “Paul has told me so much about you.”
“Sorry I can't say the same for you,” I said with a frown.
“Keeping me a secret are you? Embarrassed of your little sis?” she smiled comically at Paul as she nudged him with her elbow, then looked back at me, “I can tell you everything you want to know on the trip.”
“Let's get in the car; we don't want to miss our flight,” Paul said, then took my bag and headed to the vehicle. “We’ve got a bit of a drive to even get to the airport.”
The airport was packed and it took Paul almost twenty minutes to direct us to the right side of the huge building. This was precisely why I wasn't looking forward to the trip (excluding the fact that we were possibly going to meet a hostile vampire) – airports are too busy, too crowded and too stressful. We made it through security without any issues, and made it to our terminal right on time to get in line and wait to be seated. Paul was fortunate enough to get three seats together. I wasn't sure if I felt good about that or not, but I was relieved to know I wouldn't be sitting beside some chatty stranger – plus I was interested to hear more about my aunt's life.
The seats on the plane were relatively comfortable. Aunt Kim took the window seat – apparently she had experience with sky diving and loved imagining herself soaring over the world – I took the middle and Paul was at the end. I was perfectly content until the large, rotund fellow in the seat ahead of me decided to recline his chair so far back that it crushed into my knees.
“Excuse me, sir?” Paul said politely to the man. “Could you please straighten your chair up a little, you are squishin’ my daughter.”
“Oh, yeah. Sure,” he grumbled in response, clearly not eager to re-situate.
With great relief, I stretched out my legs and relaxed as the seat was lifted. The flight attendants gave instructions on what to do if an accident happened while in flight, and then requested everyone put on their seat belts. I gripped onto the chair arms as the plane ascended and the flight attendant’s safety instructions played through my mind – I had not braced myself for any of this. This would be my first plane ride, and I had not been anticipating the push of force against my body as we rose into the air. Kim leaned over and patted my arm reassuringly. She appeared completely at ease, almost giddy.
“You’ll get used to it, trust me,” she smiled. “I can’t even count how many plane trips I’ve taken. I was nervous at first too, but now I love it.”
“What do you do for a living, anyway?” I asked as I nicely declined the peanuts the attendant offered. My palms had grown sweaty as I continued to anxiously grip the arms of the chair.
“Well, outside of...hunting...I'm a journalist,” she replied, glancing out the window, “As well as a bit of a thrill-seeker, I guess you’d say,” she turned toward me and grinned. “Maybe someday I will take you skydiving.”
I was certain she could see the horror in my expression. “Umm…I think that's something I’m going to have to say no to,” I laughed nervously.
“Your dad’s never been too keen on the idea, either,” she said, eying Paul. “It's amazing how he doesn't freak out about his side job, which is way more dangerous than parachuting out of a plane.”
I laughed, trying to hide my discomfort on the subject of vampire hunting. It amazed me how open she was about discussing the subject, especially on a full plane, but no one seemed to notice. Of course, she never openly used any words beyond 'hunting', so no one would know exactly what she was talking about. If anyone did hear her, they would probably just assume she was talking about hunting animals.
“I think I’m going to try to take a nap,” I said out of nowhere, despite not being tired. My mind was lost in thoughts of Salem, wondering what he was doing – probably worrying himself to death. I was also still conflicted on this sudden relationship that had been sprung on me. Sometimes the idea thrilled me and I could feel my heart flutter, other times it was almost enough to make me queasy. I told myself it was just the flight and shut my eyes. There was so much noise on the plane that it was impossible to sleep. I could hear children crying in the back. The man in front of me was talking to the lady beside him about an authentic Italian restaurant he had gone to during a business trip to Rome. Paul and Kim were chatting across me about their plans in muffled voices. I tried to mute them out the most, not wanting to think about what was going to happen when we reached Denver. The worst of it was probably the conversation going on between the two ladies in the seats opposite ours.
“I can hardly believe so many people are flying to Denver,” one of them said in a somewhat hushed tone. She had a very distinct Southern accent. “There’ve been so many murders here lately that you’d think no one would go. You’ve been seein’ the news too, hadn’t ya?”
“Well, Cynthia, we can’t be the only ones just passin’ through to Portland. You have to remember this ain’t a one-stop flight. Most these people are probably headin’ elsewhere and just connectin’ through Denver same as us,” her friend replied.
I tuned out their voices as best as I could and attempted to reflect on the other night at the creek to distract myself. I finally dozed off.
Paul shook me gently as we descended. Why, oh, why couldn't he have waited until after the matter? I was enjoying a pleasant dream that reflected memories of the night at the creek. But that wasn't what made me unhappy about being woken up; it was the lurching of the plane as it began falling toward the ground. I wa
s almost certain we were going to crash into the runway, but slowly the plane leveled itself. The wheels popped out and we were safely on land again. The only thing that caused me not to feel relieved was the fact that I was going to have to endure that again on the way home.
14. MARK
We rented a simple little copper-colored car that Kim picked out and paid for, then headed toward the address Janet had given me after Paul inserted the information into the GPS. We passed a hospital on the way, and I had an uneasy feeling we had been given wrong address. I gasped.
“Paul...” I mumbled as I stared at the address on the little yellow post it note. “I have a bad feeling.”
“What is it?” he asked as he peered back from the passenger side seat.
“I don't think Janet is in the hospital.”
“What makes you think that?”
“We just passed the hospital and that wasn’t the address.”
“Denver’s a big place, Alex. There’s bound to be a bunch of hospitals,” he replied calmly. “Let's just follow the directions from the GPS and see where it takes us. Okay?”
“Okay,” I said quietly, crumpling up the note in my hand. I felt around in my pocket for the cell phone Salem had given me. I browsed through the contacts and couldn't find one that said his name – probably just in case Paul got hold of it. I found Jason's number, Janet's, and Paul's amongst the list. My heart jumped when I saw the word ‘Bat’ and I laughed out loud.
“What's so funny?” Paul asked as he looked back at me again.
“Nothing...just a text from Jason,” I lied. “I'm going to give him a call really quick, to let him know we landed safely.”
“Is there somethin’ going on with you two?” he said with a grin.
“No!” I said. “We're just friends!”
“Sure, sure,” he laughed. “We'll be quiet so you can talk to your ‘friend’.”
“Thanks…” I grumbled and set the phone to call Salem's number.
“Hello?” My stomach fluttered at the sound of his voice.
“Hey S...Jason,” I quickly corrected myself. “I just wanted to let you know we made it to Denver.”
“Good. I was worried,” he sounded anxious. “Where are you now?”
“We're on our way to find Janet.”
“Stay at the hospital with her if you can,” he insisted.
“I'm beginning to wonder if she’s even at a hospital.”
“Why do you say that?” the anxiousness grew.
“I'll have to tell you later, Paul’s being snoopy,” I muttered. “Try not to worry too much.”
“You know that's impossible.”
“I know.”
“I miss you,” there were those flutters again.
“I-I miss you, too...” my voice trailed off when Paul glanced at me with an ‘Uh huh, I knew it’ look on his face. “I've got to go; we're almost at the place.”
I hung up the phone and tucked it back into my pocket. The GPS alerted Kim to turn left, that our destination would then be on the right in just three hundred feet. My eyes scanned the area for a hospital, but all I saw was a row of small houses. This had to be the wrong place.
“Where's the hospital?” I said as we cruised down the street.
“You may have been right, Alex,” Kim said as she stopped the car in front of one of the houses. “This is the address,” she pointed out what appeared to be an abandoned house at the very end of the road.
I recalled all of the horror movies I had seen revolving around haunted houses, and this house could have been pulled directly from one of those films. Just looking at it gave me chills. The two story building was covered in thick layers of ivy, wooden boards crossed over the two lower story windows. The windows above the awning were shattered and I could have sworn there was a dark figure standing behind the glass, staring out at us.
“Did you see that?” I whispered to my father. I glanced back up at the window and the figure was gone.
“I didn't see anythin’,” Paul replied. I saw him lean forward in his seat and rummage through his luggage. “I'll go out first, and then you two follow behind me.”
“Okay,” Kim and I replied in unison.
Paul handed something over the back of his seat. I shook my head when I realized what it was – a hand-crossbow identical to the one he gave me for my birthday. “Oh, no...I'm not taking that!” I protested. “How did you even manage to get that on a plane?!”
“It's just in case, Alex. Put it under your sweater,” he instructed and ignored my question. “You have yours, Kimmy?”
“Yep, got it,” she smiled.
I watched as Paul left the car and walked down the cracked sidewalk. He approached the door of the abandoned-looking house and knocked gently on the wooden door. No one responded. He turned toward us and beckoned us over. Kim and I climbed out of the car and marched along the concrete. I walked behind her, fumbling with the crossbow as I tucked it under my hoodie.
“I'm going to break down the door if no one answers this time,” Paul insisted and knocked again.
“That's illegal, dad.”
“See if I care,” he grumbled and slammed his thick shoulder into the rickety door. It crashed loudly against the floor.
Cobwebs clung to the ceiling. The atmosphere surrounding the house gave me the creeps, but I stepped over the threshold regardless and followed them inside. There wasn't a single piece of furniture throughout the entire downstairs. The floorboards creaked noisily beneath us with each wary step. Paul turned around and held up his hand, signaling for us to stop.
“There's someone here,” he whispered. I was about to ask how he knew, but then I heard a muffled voice from upstairs and something crashing into the upper floor. My dad approached the old staircase and began climbing up it. With each step, I could picture him falling through the rotting old wood. He made it up safely then we followed quickly behind. I was beyond unprepared for this. I could feel sweat trickling down the side of my face, and my heart felt like it was about to burst through my chest. If that wasn’t bad enough, the butterflies I had felt only minutes before had melted into bile in the pit of my stomach.
“You should have stayed away.” I shut my eyes tightly as I heard Mark's deep voice reach my ears. I couldn't tell just where it was coming from; it seemed to reverberate off the walls.
“Where’s Janet, you bastard?!” Paul shouted, holding his crossbow cautiously as he rounded the corner.
“Janet is not important,” Mark hissed. “I d0 sense that you forgot to bring something important with you, Alexis.”
I stopped behind Kim as she followed Paul into a room full of sheet-covered furniture. “I don't know what you’re talking about,” I replied in a croaky voice, trying my best not to lose the contents of my nervous stomach.
“I had truly hoped you would have brought Salem along with you, that way I could have killed two birds with one stone,” he snickered maliciously. “Or, in this case – a bird and a ‘bat’, right?”
I gulped as I felt Paul's eyes turn towards me. “Salem and I have nothing to do with each other,” I said bitterly, meeting my father and aunt in the room.
“Stupid kid!” Mark bellowed. “Don't think that I’m going to fall for your lies. Your father might be daft enough to believe you, but I am far wiser. I know about you and the boy.”
“How? And why would you care?” I asked and ignored the angry glance Paul was directing at me.
“He is a pathetic excuse for a vampire, don't you see? Feasting on animals!” he scoffed. “He thought he could change me, too. To be ‘strong’ like him, but I can tell you that there is no strength in hiding in the shadows drinking animal blood. The blood of humans…” he paused, making a deep and audible sniff with his nose. “…is just too enticing. Too delicious. Strengthening.”
“You’re a monster!” I yelled, the realization that Janet had been the temptation he was talking about finally sinking in.
“A monster? Now, now…what would
Salem think if you called us such names? He and I are no different, you know? I imagine it will be little time at all before he drains you of blood, too.”
“You are wrong about him. He’s different!” Why had he said ‘too’?
Paul was about to say something to me but Kim shook her head, “This isn't the time or place, Paul,” she said.
“Just tell us where Janet is. Please!” I pleaded.
“Hurting her was a mistake, I will admit that one. At first, anyway,” his voice had grown softer, “She had cut herself with a kitchen knife the morning before the...incident...and I tried to control myself. But once I smelled her blood, oh...it was hard to control my thirst for more! The hunger was far too powerful.”
“How many people have you hurt, Mark?” Paul spat as he spoke, turning out of the room and into the next which was roughly identical. There was only one room left, down the long hallway and at the very end.
“Oh, you know, just a few. Before Janet cut herself I would slip away now and then and get what I could. It was never quite enough to satisfy, though!” he laughed. “But all three of you should do the trick.”
“So, you admit that you killed all those innocent people...and you put Janet in the bear cage after you...” I gasped, the rest of the words were too difficult to speak.
The wretched laugh came again, sending shivers down my spine, “and I saved the best for last.”
I watched as my father inched closer to the door down the hall, steadily holding his weapon. Why had I agreed to come here? He and Kim were experienced hunters, whereas I was a coward with a shaking crossbow and feelings for a vampire. Feelings for a vampire that for all I knew could lead me to be in this same situation. What the hell was I thinking!
My thoughts of Salem vanished and I held my breath as Paul wrapped his hand firmly around the wobbly doorknob and pushed the door open. At first, I couldn't see anything, but once my eyes adjusted I saw two red dots floating around amidst the dark void. Red, glowing eyes. The eyes of a vampire that had just eaten.