Turning Point

by K M Smith

  Sarah nodded and broke eye contact, her arms wrapped around her middle. She should be shouting and crying and feeling anguished that her daughter may have been kidnapped, but right now, she was tired. And overwhelmed. And certain that this man in front of her—regardless of how forthcoming he was—would find Alice and bring her home. Call it mother’s intuition, or woman’s intuition, or simply fatigue-induced delirium. Regardless, she had faith that everything would be okay.

  “Sarah, do you have any idea where Andrew might be?”

  “Until an hour ago, I thought he was dead,” she said with her eyebrows arched, her eyelids heavy.

  Adam bowed his head, “I know, I’m sorry. Truly.”

  “I know you are.” She sighed, “He loved New York. He grew up upstate, but he loved Manhattan.” She rubbed her neck and stepped toward the door.

  Light ignited Adam’s gaze and the air in the room began to buzz. “I can look for them in New York. If he loved a place in life, there’s a strong chance that he would have returned there as a fledgling in order to find some normalcy in his early chaotic days.”

  Sarah gave Adam a small smile. She wanted to share his excitement, but her body and mind were on the verge of shutting down. But thinking about Andrew being in New York, alive or otherwise, stimulated a change within her. Her face lit up. “I should go with you. I know where he used to hang out. The places he loved. Places he’d avoid at all costs.” She grabbed Adam’s wrist as the wheels in her mind spun. On contact with Adam’s skin, a surge of energy whooshed through her, and she saw a brief flash of the Manhattan skyline with a large bright moon on a clear night, Adam’s hand in hers, contentment enveloping the two of them.

  Confused, Sarah yanked her hand away. “Adam, what was that? What did I just see?”

  Adam gave a wan smile and flitted his eyes toward the window and the rapidly lightening sky. “Nothing, don’t worry,” he said and looked Sarah in the eyes. He brushed his thumb along her cheek and pushed her hair back to rest behind her ear. His hand remained there, and his thumb lightly stroked her face. Sarah melted into his touch and kept her eyes locked on his.

  “Sarah, you need sleep. Go back to bed. You’ll feel better in the morning.”

  She nodded, she did need sleep, but she couldn’t shake the images that flashed through her mind. Too tired to do anything about it now, she yawned and stepped back.

  “Good night, Adam,” she said, her voice gravelly.

  “Good night, Sarah,” he said, then fled out her front door.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Alice

  Alice winced as a sliver of light bounced off the metal legs of a table. Disoriented, she turned her head to rub the sleep out of her eyes. As she brought her hand up, the cold metal edge of a handcuff dug into her wrist. Not good, she thought, and a rush of images from the previous night flooded her memory: strange vampire inside her head at the bar; same vampire attacking her; new vampire playing good cop to scary vamp’s bad cop; throwing up and blacking out.

  Breathing deeply, she took in a more detailed inventory of her situation: the room was dark, but there was a shaft of light coming from the other side: the bathroom in a cheap motel? Her left hand was handcuffed to a table leg, but her right hand was free. Wiggling her feet, she discovered they were free as well. Part of her wanted to sit up and properly survey her surroundings, but she needed to find the two goon vamps that had taken her before she made any sudden movements. Scary movies had taught her that a dark, quiet room was not always just a dark, quiet room—especially if you were handcuffed to a table, and especially if you were traveling unwillingly with two vampires.

  With her eyes finally adjusted to the low light, she looked around for Jake and Leo. Jake, she let the name play around in her mind. She smiled to herself in the dark, then realized her mind was wandering, and she had no business following it down that path. Rolling her eyes, she turned so she could clearly see under the beds. We must’ve really been pushing the sunrise, she thought, spying the two vamps at rest. I never would’ve thought of cheap motel beds as makeshift coffin lids.

  Shaking her head, she sat up, being careful not to knock anything or make too much noise with the handcuff on the table leg. Though limited in her movements, she had a decent vantage point from her side of the room.

  Now what? She couldn’t see a clock and she didn’t have a watch or her phone—Crap! She hadn’t been in contact with any of her friends since she left the bar last night. Lacy’s going to kill me! She had no idea what time it was or how long she’d been passed out, and the thought of trying to explain this to anyone, even her best friend, made her cringe.

  A smart girl would strategize. But instead, she stared at the two sleeping vampires. Jake rested under the bed closest to Alice. Good cop or…. she bit her lip and smiled but didn’t allow herself to finish that thought. Lowering her head, she bent over and examined him more carefully. His pale skin glowed in the shadows. Chunky pieces of dusty brown hair stood out at awkward angles, and the deep ‘v’ crease of his upper lip lured her in closer. Without thinking, she lifted her right hand and extended her finger to trace the outline of his lips.

  ‘Alice!’ Adam’s voice slammed into her head, causing her to gasp and jerk her hand away from Jake’s face.

  ‘Adam?’ she thought at him.

  ‘Alice, are you okay? Where are you? Who’s taken you?’

  ‘I’m fine.’ The response was automatic, but she realized Adam could get her out of this situation. That is, if she trusted him enough to do so. Keeping an eye on her surroundings, she focused on Adam to keep the connection open. She wasn’t too worried about Jake, but she didn’t trust Leo. ‘I’m with two vampires. I take it you didn’t send them?’

  ‘Alice, they’ll be rising soon. Do you know where you are?’

  ‘No, I don’t. I mean, we’re in a cheap motel, and I can only imagine we stopped here just before sunrise. I was passed out when we arrived.’

  ‘Try to keep this connection open, and I’ll find out.’

  ‘My hero,’ the thought was flat and emotionless as it left her mind. She didn’t know what to think. Why was Adam so interested in her well-being? Was he to be trusted? In the brief time since they met, he had taken her without her permission and stalked her and her friends on campus. What other atrocities had he committed? He had to feed, right? The list of reasons not to trust Adam made her queasy. Then again, he’d had several opportunities to hurt her, and at every turn he chose not to; that had to count for something in his favor.

  ‘Alice, I—’

  ‘That’s enough of that,’ Leo interrupted, and the connection with Adam shut down like a steel trap. The void left Alice’s mind buzzing. She attempted to put both her hands to her head, but only succeeded in lifting the right hand; her left hand jerked in the handcuff against the table leg, frustrating her even more.

  “Dammit, Leo!”

  Leo laughed. “Like I’m gonna let you two get sneaky and conniving!” He slid out from under the bed in one fluid movement, and in a blink was squatting next to Alice. He leaned his face in close to hers, balancing in an unnatural way. “I’m hungry,” he declared, his fangs dropping.

  Alice remained still and looked straight ahead. She willed her body not to flinch. This beast would not rattle her.

  “Leo,” Jake called from under his bed, “you can’t eat the pretty girl. We have orders.”

  “Hmmph,” Leo remarked, then stood up.

  ◆◆◆

  “Can somebody please turn on a light? I don’t have vampire vision,” Alice said from her spot on the floor. “And maybe we could lose the handcuffs?”

  “Don’t do it, Jake,” Leo barked.

  Jake got up and turned on the overhead light. Alice flinched and covered her eyes as the bright fluorescent light flooded her pupils. By the time she brought her free hand down, the handcuffs had been removed. “What…” Alice said and eyed Jake. He winked, and if she wasn’t mistaken, he blushed before looking at his
feet.

  “Jerk,” Leo said, and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door.

  Jake smirked then turned his focus to Alice. “He used to be in the mob, he doesn’t trust anyone,” he said, by way of an apology.

  “What about you?” Alice asked, rubbing her wrist.

  “What about me?”

  “Were you in the mob?” she glanced up at Jake and blinked. With the light on, she had a much better view of her captor. He is your captor, Alice. Last night she’d only caught shadowy glimpses that hid more than they revealed. He was tall, probably over six feet. His messy hair was cropped close, but not jar-head close, and his eyes were pale and blue. He had an athletic frame—maybe he played basketball in college—with a wide and wicked smile. She caught herself staring and looked away, hoping he hadn’t noticed.

  “Me?” he laughed lightly. “No. No, I was never in the mob.”

  “What did you do, then?” Alice paused, unsure what she wanted to say next. “Before?”

  “Before becoming a vampire?”

  Alice nodded then rose. She padded around the bed and floated her hand across the flattened bedspread to flatten it some more. She fluffed the pillows and stood them upright and sat on the bed with her back to the wall. She grabbed another pillow and placed it on her lap to rest her arms on.

  Jake walked to the metal table and scooted out one of the chairs. Perching himself between Alice and the door, his watchful position mirrored her own. “I was actually an investment banker,” he said as he sat down.

  Alice laughed. “A what?”

  “Hey, it was a great job. It was the eighties. I made a ton of money, got laid all the time—” he cleared his throat. “Ah, yeah, it was a great decade.”

  “Are you blushing? I didn’t think your kind could do that.”

  “Investment bankers?”

  Alice gave him a pointed look, then threw one of the pillows at him. Jake laughed and held up his arms to block the pillow from hitting his face. He caught it then sprang from his chair and in a blink, he was straddling Alice, pillow cocked, ready to retaliate.

  Alice gasped and pretended to cower under his weight. She scrunched up her eyes and covered her face.

  “Not so cocky now, are we?” Jake mocked.

  “Get off me!” Alice shrieked through her giggles. Stop flirting with him, Alice!

  “As you wish.” And in an instant, Jake was back in his seat, this time resting the pillow in his lap. He flashed her a cheeky grin.

  Leo emerged from the bathroom then. “For cryin’ out loud, Jake!” he grumbled. “You think Drew’s gonna be pissed at me? Wait’ll he finds out you been hittin’ on his daughter!”

  It was like all the air had been sucked out of the room.

  They all froze. Then, suddenly, realization came crashing in.

  “Fuck! Leo!” Jake shouted.

  “She was going to find out sooner or later!” Leo shouted back, but his voice was hesitant.

  Alice had jumped out of the bed at Leo’s initial remark. She stood frozen as the revelation bombarded her. “Drew.” Alice said. “Drew is short for Andrew. Andrew is my father’s name. Andrew is Drew? Drew is my father? This cannot be real,” she said, the words tumbling out of her mouth as quickly as they entered her mind.

  “Oh, it’s real, doll.” Leo said, brushing his hands against each other.

  Alice’s breath came short and shallow, and she stood unsteadily next to the bed. She balled her hands into fists and her voice shook. “How long until we see him?”

  “Alice—you should sit,” Jake said.

  “How long?” she demanded.

  “We’ll be there tonight,” Jake answered.

  Alice nodded, then took a step toward the door. “Let’s go,” she said.

  ◆◆◆

  They rode in silence. Alice retreated into her own thoughts, the tension in the car ratcheting up apace with the mile markers as they motored along the highway.

  “Guys,” Alice’s voice was small from the back seat. “I need food.”

  “Of course. Do you want McDonald’s or something?” Jake asked.

  Alice glared at the empty rearview-mirror and let her look speak for itself.

  “Oookay. No McDonald’s,” he said, then gestured toward the side of the road, “Leo, look out for food signs.”

  “Whatever.”

  “Dammit, Leo, just do this,” Jake said, and huffed out a breath.

  Leo put his hand up in surrender. “Okay, okay. Food signs.”

  Alice slumped in the back seat. The night before had been confusing. It presented a quandary. Hurtling down the highway at the hands of two unknown men – vampire men, at that – she was captive, but in a way, she was also free. Exchanging barbs with the gruff one, Leo, had filled her with a surprising energy. She hadn’t enjoyed herself, exactly, but through the fear and the anger, there was a sense of comfort, of freedom, with these two goons. But now, deflated and shrunken, she mentally rehashed the revelation Leo had unwittingly exposed.

  She had a father. He hadn’t been killed or kidnapped before she was born.

  He was a vampire.

  He never came back to her mother. He never came back to her.

  Who turned him? Why? What had he been doing the last twenty-two years? There were so many questions. She wasn’t sure she wanted answers.

  ‘Adam?’ Alice thought, pushing her thoughts outward and focusing on Adam.

  ‘I don’t think so, doll,’ Leo cut into her mind, extinguishing any chance of a connection. He half turned in the seat to make haughty eyes at her.

  ‘Dammit, Leo,’ Alice thought in his direction. ‘Why are you the one who always invades my thoughts?’

  ‘You mean why can’t you have a sneaky mental rendezvous with Jakey?’ Leo waggled his eyebrows and smirked at her.

  Alice rolled her eyes.

  ‘He can’t communicate with the fully-living like I can.’

  ‘Why not?’

  ‘Some of us can, some of us can’t,’ Leo shrugged.

  ‘I wish you couldn’t,’ Alice stared hard at Leo with her arms crossed over her chest.

  ‘I bet you do,’ he smirked, his eyes full of mischief.

  Leo turned back around to look out the window. “Mama Italy’s Home Cookin’ two miles ahead,” he said. “Will that do ya, doll?”

  “Fine,” Alice said, the word sharp as it pierced the air.

  “Did I miss something?” Jake asked as he looked from Leo and back to Alice in the mirror.

  ◆◆◆

  Alice stared out the window from a booth at Mama Italy’s, ignoring the plate of pasta in front of her.

  “Alice,” Jake began, “you need to eat.”

  “Yeah,” Leo interjected, “Mama’s gonna be pissed if you don’t!”

  “Seriously, Leo?” Jake snapped.

  “Okay, okay,” Leo said, holding up his hands. “But, for real, Drew’s gonna be pissed if we don’t get her to him soon.”

  “I know,” Jake said. “You’re right. We need to get there already. Alice, you’ve got to eat so we can go.” Jake paused, then said, “Maybe we should we take it with us?”

  Alice kept her head turned toward the window but turned her eyes toward Jake.

  “If you’re so concerned about Drew,” she elongated his name for emphasis, “why don’t you just knock me out again, so we can magic ourselves there faster!”

  “Great idea!” Leo smacked his hands together then placed his palms on the table ready to push himself up.

  Jake gave Leo a look, then said to Alice, “Look, I know you're pissed, but you're not pissed at me, so—”

  “I’m not pissed at you?” Alice turned to face Jake. “Hell, yes I’m pissed at you, and your mobster pal.” Alice tugged at her sleeves and placed her hands between her thighs. “I should be home nursing a hangover and preparing for spring break. Instead, I’m with you two, being treated like your little pet and on my way to meet a man—a vampire—whom I’m led to believe is my fathe
r—that I thought was dead!” Alice’s voice rose with each word she spoke, but she didn’t care. If people noticed—good. Maybe the distraction would provide cover for her to leave. The air around their table crackled and fizzed in the aftermath of her outburst, but Jake and Leo sat stock still.

  Alice let a sob escape. She covered her face and continued to sob.

  The waitress came over. “Honey, are these men botherin’ you?” she asked Alice.

  Jake spoke to the waitress before Alice could remove her hands from her face. “You know the girl is fine. She just wants to go—with us—but she’s waiting for you to bring a to-go box. You also feel bad for the girl, so her meal is on the house.”

  Alice’s jaw dropped as she heard the exchange.

  The waitress kept her eyes trained on Jake, “You know what? Let me grab you a to-go box, so you guys can get outta here. Dinner’s on the house,” she smiled, then left the table.

  Bouncing her foot under the table, Alice thought about her situation. If she got back into the car with those two, it was game over for her.

  Once the waitress returned with the box, Jake slid Alice’s food into it, closed it and stood. Leo followed suit, obviously eager to leave.

  “C’mon, Alice. We need to go,” Jake said, offering his hand to her. She looked up at him with red, swollen eyes but made no effort to move from the booth. “Please,” Jake prompted again.

  Alice remained still as her mind worked. A few seconds passed before she rolled her eyes and slid along the bench toward Jake. Leo had already started walking toward the door.

  Taking in her surroundings, she scanned the place for possible escape routes. Behind the register, at the end of the bar on the far side of the restaurant, she spotted a neon EXIT sign hanging above the hallway that led to the restrooms.

  Alice grabbed Jake’s hand as she stood, then said, “Thanks, Jake.” She flashed him a small smile and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Um, I need the restroom before we go,” she paused, nudging her head in the direction of the bathroom. “It’s been a while.” She moved past him toward the bathroom and ultimately her escape. Keep your cool, Alice.