Winter Thirst

by Ilia Bera

  Kane didn’t do anything. He didn’t know what to do. He simply stood motionlessly as the psychotic twins walked away, laughing at the young boy crying over his brother’s limp corpse.

  The prison staff pulled Tanner away from his brother and took him to an unused wing of the facility.

  Kane suddenly felt torn. Even though he didn’t know the young dark-skinned boy, he didn’t want to abandon him.

  After Kane pried the fence open, he decided to stay and wait for Tanner to be brought back to his cell. Prison staff were holding him in isolation while he grieved over Jacob.

  When Tanner was finally brought back to his cell, he looked like a feral cat. Every little sound made him jump and his eyes were glued open wide. He was timid, and scared. The other kids in the facility could smell the fear from a mile away, and were excited to exploit the young boy to improve their twisted social status.

  There was no question that Tanner would be killed if Kane didn’t do something quickly. Even the prison guards were hesitant to leave Tanner alone.

  The Riley twins, who were now serving three life sentences, instead of two, were especially excited to make their mark on the young boy.

  Peter Riley slipped into Tanner’s cell one evening.

  He started by grabbing Tanner’s mouth with his hand, muffling his screams. Then, with his free hand, he tried to grab onto Tanner’s arm with the intention to break it. Tanner was feisty—squirming and thrashing, making it difficult for the older sociopathic child to get a hold on him.

  Unfortunately, Tanner was no match for the older child, who was nearly twice his size. But luckily for Tanner, Kane had been keeping a close eye on the young child since he’d returned to the cell.

  Using a rock that he’d brought in from outside, Kane entered the cell and struck the twin on the top of the head with all of his force, knocking him unconscious in a single blow. The strike cracked Peter’s skull. The old medical supervisor couldn’t stop the child’s bleeding, so, for once, they sent someone to the hospital for immediate medical attention.

  Kane told Tanner about his escape plan, and Tanner agreed to leave with him.

  But then, Kane’s morality crept back up on him. Another new group of kids arrived at the facility—and some of them were as young and “fresh-faced” as he was. Kane knew he couldn’t help all of them, even if he stayed.

  But he had an idea—something that would make life in juvy a little bit easier for everyone.

  During recess, Kane used his little key to break into the medical room. He used his shirtsleeve to open the door, so there wouldn’t be any fingerprints. Carefully, he put on a pair of rubber gloves and took the portable defibrillator unit, which he snuck back to his cell, and hid it under his pillow.

  When everyone was asleep, Tanner carefully picked the lock to his cell, the lock to Kane’s cell, and then the lock to the sleeping Kyle’s cell.

  Kane, wearing his rubber gloves, fired up the defibrillator and set it to its highest setting. He stared down at the sociopathic young murderer while he waited for the defibrillator to warm up. He knew that what he was about to do was murder—but he didn’t care. The demented Kyle needed to be removed from the face of the earth.

  Using the defibrillator, Kane killed Kyle while he slept. Kane carefully returned the defibrillator unit to the medical office and disposed of his gloves in his cell toilet. Tanner locked Kane back in his cell before returning to his own cell.

  The official cause of death was “heart attack”. The murder was perfectly executed.

  A few nights later, Kane and Tanner made their escape. Tanner picked their cell locks, and the two boys snuck through Kane’s fence hole and made their way to the desolate impound lot where the ‘69 Mustang was being held.

  TWENTY-THREE

  cold blood

  It was becoming increasingly more obvious to Kane that Andrew was the killer behind all of the vampiric murders—his seemingly nocturnal lifestyle and his enrolment in the night class both supported the theory. Not to mention the death of the young British boy, Thomas just a few nights prior, after Andrew had gotten into a fight with him.

  As much as Kane didn’t want to believe it, he had little choice. As much as Kane didn’t want to kill Andrew, he knew it had to be done.

  But he wasn’t going to make the move until he was absolutely sure.

  He continued to follow Andrew down the cold, windy streets from a safe distance. It was late. There were no shops open, and no one in Snowbrooke was still awake. What reason could he possibly have for braving the cold at that hour?

  Andrew turned around a corner. Kane waited a minute before slowly creeping around the corner himself. He’d found himself in a familiar area of town—the street where he had found himself that very morning...

  Brittany’s street.

  A cold feeling crossed Kane’s body. Kane pulled his car over quietly, and idled while he watched Andrew.

  Andrew, with his hood up and his hands stuffed into his pockets, turned up Brittany’s driveway and walked up to her door. He was carrying a lot of nervous tension in his body. His shoulders were raised and stiff, and he seemed to be struggling to stand still. He knocked on Brittany’s door and waited.

  The thick snow made it difficult to see Andrew from the safe distance Kane watched from. A strong gust of wind picked up the freshest layer of snow and created a white wall between Kane and his suspect. As it died down, Kane saw Andrew suspiciously looking around and walking around the side of the house towards the back door.

  Kane had to act. Over the years, he’d gotten a lot of blood on his hands, and he carried a lot of guilt. But he knew that if Brittany died because of Kane’s reluctance, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself.

  Kane stepped out of his car and made his way around to his trunk. He quickly stuffed a couple of wooden stakes into his coat, and he picked up his crossbow-rifle. He closed the trunk and began to walk over to Brittany’s house.

  As Andrew vanished around the back of the house, Kane began to run. The difference between Brittany living and dying could be mere seconds. As he ran, he pulled back the cocking mechanism of his handmade weapon, loading a sharp wooden stake into the open-faced barrel.

  He cut across the deep snow on Brittany’s front lawn. The sharp icy breeze stung his exposed face as it whistled through the dark silent town.

  Kane turned around the corner of Brittany’s house, into her back yard. Her window paned back door was open and Andrew was nowhere to be seen. A swift sense of dread fluttered through Kane’s trembling heart. He didn’t stop—He continued to run towards the door.

  Then suddenly, Andrew stepped out. He was looking down at his hand, in which was Brittany’s glowing red sunstone—a stone that Kane was all too familiar with, having seen them on many vampires before Andrew.

  Andrew looked up at Kane, whose gun was drawn and readied.

  “Kane?” Andrew said after a silent moment of shock.

  Kane fired—sending the sharp wooden stake directly into Andrew’s heart. Andrew gasped sharply as all of the muscles in his body tensed up.

  Slowly, he looked down at the centre of his chest. The long stake had entered in through his chest plate, travelled directly through his heart and had just penetrated his back. After a moment of stillness, blood began to pump out from the centre of Andrew’s chest, directly from Andrew’s heart.

  Andrew fell to his knees. “W—Why?” he asked as he placed his hands on his chest. He looked down at his hands, which were covered in his own blood. “Why—Why did you do that?”

  The cool breeze blew Brittany’s back door, making it squeak. As the window paned door came to a stop, Kane could see his own reflection in it—and Andrew’s.

  Andrew wasn’t a vampire. He had a reflection.

  Kane’s heart suddenly stopped as he realized what he’d done. He’d killed an innocent man—he’d killed his friend.

  Andrew fell over into the cold snow, blood still gushing out of his body.

 
Kane quickly rushed over and fell down to his knees. “Andrew—I—I thought you…” he started.

  Andrew could barely keep his dying eyes opened. He looked up at Kane.

  “Why?” Andrew asked again.

  “I’m sorry,” Kane said. Tears were beginning to well up in Kane’s eyes. “I thought—I thought you were something else.” Kane tried to move Andrew’s jacket away to inspect the damage—clinging on to the imaginary hope that Andrew’s life was still salvageable.

  Andrew stared up at Kane for another short moment. “I love her,” Andrew said.

  “You—You what?” Kane asked in his state of shock.

  “I love her. Please tell her that I love her.”

  “Who?”

  “Brittany.”

  “You do?” Kane asked.

  “Please don’t hurt her,” Andrew said.

  “Andrew—I’m sorry. Please—you need to know that I’m sorry.” Kane lifted Andrew’s bloody body up off of the cold snow and held his in his arms. His skin had turned completely white and the vibrancy in his eyes suddenly washed away, becoming lifeless.

  Andrew was dead.

  “Andrew—please,” Kane said, shaking Andrew. “Don’t die. It was a mistake. Please!” Kane cried.

  A nearby dog began to bark, eliciting another neighbourhood dog to begin barking.

  “Andrew—c’mon buddy. You’re stronger than this. Wake up, man. Wake up for fuck sakes—Wake up!” Kane shouted.

  The upstairs light in the house next-door suddenly turned on. Kane stood up swiftly. All the neighbourhood dogs were barking, and lights were beginning to turn on.

  Kane was covered in Andrew’s blood.

  Reality blew over Kane’s shocked body in the form of a frigid breeze. He needed to leave before he got himself arrested.

  Quickly, he began to trudge through the deep snow, back to his car. He picked up his crossbow-rifle. There was nothing he could do about the trail of bloody footprints he was leaving behind, his fingerprints that were all over Andrew, or the stake in his heart.

  Kane had committed cold-blooded murder.

  He quickly jumped into his car and fired up his engine. The police walkie on his passenger seat was going off. “…Multiple reports of an armed attack. All units report to the scene immediately.”

  Kane’s hands were shaking as he turned the wheel of his car. Andrew’s blood was trickling down his steering wheel as the sounds of oncoming sirens became louder and louder.

  Kane’s trembling foot pounded down on the gas pedal—desperate to get out of town. He couldn’t go back to prison—not after everything he’d been through.

  His old Mustang swerved dangerously on the icy streets as he made his way onto one of the small highways that headed north, out of town.

  TWENTY-FOUR

  unjust revenge

  The snowy town of Snowbrooke had become dark and silent. Only the high-pitched wind was audible over the stark night silence.

  Patiently, Brittany was still waiting for that perfect moment to strike.

  Aside from the faint glowing street lights, Wade’s living room window was the only source of light on that starless winter night.

  Wade paced back and forth in his pyjamas, waiting for Michael to return with his daughter.

  Laura was fast asleep, completely oblivious to Wade’s parental nerves, and the possibility that her daughter may be in danger.

  Wade walked over to his jacket, which hung next to the door. In his coat’s pocket, he retrieved a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He quickly put the jacket on his body, opened the back door gently and stepped outside. He walked all the way down to the alley before lighting his cigarette, to keep his bad habit a secret from his sleeping wife.

  Brittany watched closely and quietly, her eyes a dark red colour and her sharp fangs ready to bite. She looked around the neighbourhood from her spot in the tree. There wasn’t a soul nearby.

  She gently slipped down from the tree and flipped up her hood. Quietly, she began to walk towards the oblivious, smoking Wade Fenner.

  “Does your wife know that you do that?” Brittany asked as she stopped a few feet away from Wade.

  Startled, Wade swiftly spun around. He placed his hand on the centre of his chest. “Jesus—What are you doing here?”

  “I was in the neighbourhood.”

  “It’s nearly two in the morning.”

  “So?”

  “So—It’s thirty below. You should be at home in bed. Your family is probably worried sick.”

  Brittany laughed. “Is that why you’re up? Worried sick about your kid?”

  Wade looked at Brittany for a moment suspiciously. “Are you spying on my family?” he asked.

  “Can you please tell me why do you think I’m such an idiot?”

  “Brittany—This isn’t the time or the place for that conversation. We can talk about it tomorrow at class,” Wade said.

  “So you agree that you think I’m an idiot?”

  “No—You’re far from an idiot. Although, right now, you’re being an idiot.”

  “I’m not an idiot.”

  “Brittany—please. Let’s have this conversation another day.”

  “I’m not.”

  “Okay, you’re not. I need to get back inside—and you should go home,” Wade said as he turned back towards his house.

  Suddenly, Brittany grabbed Wade tightly by the neck. She squeezed so hard; her nails pierced Wade’s skin, drawing blood.

  In Brittany’s eyes, the red blood glowed brightly.

  “What are you doing?” Wade yelled in his deep, booming voice.

  “Let’s face it, Mr. Fenner. Your life ended with your precious hockey career.”

  “Let go of me!” Wade said.

  Then, without warning, Brittany leaned forward swiftly and stuck her fangs into Wade’s neck. She began to suck his sweet, fatty blood.

  Wade tried to scream but his body was quickly consumed by shock. His eyes became wide and his mouth dropped open. Quickly, as the blood was draining from his veins, his skin was becoming white.

  He gasped and gurgled as his muscles went numb and his body went limp. Brittany slowly lowered the dying teacher to the ground as she continued to suck his blood.

  “W—Why?” Wade asked as he drifted out of consciousness.

  Brittany’s petty revenge was strangely satisfying. She wasn’t just sucking the blood of Wade Fenner, but also the blood of every person who had ever assumed she was an idiot. In a way, it was an amazing moment.

  But the moment was short lived.

  As if on cue, Wade’s newborn baby, Lily began to cry. After a moment, the light to Lily’s bedroom turned on, and Laura walked in to comfort the crying child.

  Brittany looked up at the window. She didn’t know that Wade had a newborn baby. She had assumed that Wade only had Michael.

  Reality stung as it sunk in quickly. Brittany had just killed a father and a husband.

  “Wade?” Laura called out as she began to realize her husband wasn’t home. “Wade, honey?” she called again.

  Lily continued to emotionally cry, as if she knew that her father was no more.

  Brittany’s fangs receded back into her gums, and the red flushed quickly out of her eyes. She had to leave before she was caught. She stood up swiftly and looked around.

  With Lily in her arms, Laura was exploring the house, looking for her husband. Her eyes were wide and she was carrying a lot of tension, knowing something was amiss.

  Brittany’s eyes began to well up with tears as she looked back down at the deceased teacher, and the blood stained snow.

  Brittany was a murderer, a villain, and a monster.

  She began to run—her vision blurred by her cloudy tears.

  She ran home faster than she’d ever run in her life. Once she was home, she pulled out her cellphone. She noticed an unheard message.

  “One unheard message,” her phone said.

  “Uh—Hey, Brittany. This is Andrew from class. What
’s up? Hope you’re doing all right. I hope that I’m not waking you up, or anything. I was just wondering if maybe—if maybe you wanted to meet up sometime. You can—I don’t know—vent some more, and I’ll listen nonjudgmentally. Or, you know, we could maybe grab a drink or something. But—uh—not like a date. Just as friends.

  “No—Like a date. I’d like to go out on a date with you. So, um—call me back and let me know. I really like you, Brittany.”

  Brittany’s mind was being overloaded. She couldn’t process everything that was happening. She liked Andrew—she really liked Andrew, but she was totally ignorant to the fact that he was interested in her.

  She’d never even considered the idea of dating him.

  But in that moment, more than anything, she needed a shoulder to cry on. She needed someone who could listen to her “non-judgementally”.

  She dialled Andrew’s number and waited for a response. After a few rings, Andrew’s phone went to voicemail. But Brittany was desperate. She called again—and again and again.

  But she was completely unaware that Andrew was dead.

  “Pick up!” she cried in frustration.

  After she’d lost count of her attempts to get a hold of Andrew, she dropped her phone onto the ground and began to cry. She put her face into her hands and sunk down to the ground.

  “What did I do?” she asked herself.

  She looked back down at her silent little phone. Then, she had another idea.

  She picked up the phone and dialled another number. She waited.

  “Hello?” a familiar voice said.

  “Kane? It’s Brittany.”

  “Hey. Right now isn’t a great time.”

  “I—I need to talk to someone,” Brittany said into her phone.

  “Why? What’s wrong?” Kane asked.

  “I just can’t be alone right now. Can you please meet me?”

  “I—I don’t know if I can, Brittany.”

  “Please—I need someone to just be with me right now.”

  Kane sighed.

  “Meet me at the café across from the library, okay? It’s open twenty-four hours.”

  “Brittany—I don’t know…”