by C. J. Pinard
Silas grabbed Eve’s hand and followed them outside.
Once they reached the dark shadows of the backside of the pub, Sebastian pushed Mary against the building and began to kiss her. He brushed her blonde hair aside and exposed her neck.
Silas watched, then did the same to Eve.
When Sebastian bit down into Mary’s neck, she let out a scream but Sebastian covered her mouth until she stopped struggling. She fell slack in his arms and he had to use his strength to hold her up.
Silas’s eyes got big and when he looked at Eve, her face was a mask of terror and she was about to scream, but he quickly bent over and bit into her neck just as his brother had done to the other girl. Eve screamed but then also stopped struggling after a few seconds. Silas couldn’t believe the rush he got from this act. He didn’t quite understand why this did not repulse him, and reveled in how natural it felt to do this. As he let Eve’s sweet blood wash over his tongue and down his throat, he thought about how drastic his life had changed in the past three days and his mind began to wander. He thought about his family and what he was going to do to survive.
Suddenly, he felt pain in the back of his head as a hand jerked him off of Eve by his hair. Sebastian slapped him hard across the face.
“She’s dead, you imbecile!”
Silas looked down at the limp and pale girl in his arms. Her eyes were open and staring blankly at nothing and she was very still. Silas dropped her in surprise and looked over at Mary. She was sitting up against the wall of the pub, but appeared to be sleeping.
“She dead, too?” Silas asked, pointing at the girl.
“No, she’s asleep but she will live. Now let’s get the hell out of here.”
The two mounted their horses in record time and sped off into the night back to the farm.
Aiden had allowed the brothers to have their own room in the farmhouse rather than sleeping in the barn like animals. They had proved themselves rather useful around the farm, awaking at sunset every evening and doing whatever farm tasks were asked of them. Like good little children, they were allowed to go out and play after their chores were done.
A few weeks after the last incident, the two rode toward town on their borrowed horses, and decided to hitch the horses to some trees on the outskirts of the town. They took it on foot into town, deciding they would eat out in the wild today. As they took the road into town, Silas stopped in his tracks.
“Do you smell that?” he asked.
Sebastian also stopped, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply. “Oh yes, brother, I do,” he whispered, a wicked gleam in his eye.
The two looked at each other and grinned.
They followed the scent until they came upon a young girl sitting on the side of the dusty road. She was sitting on the dirt, a large satchel resting next to her. She was picking glass out of her bloodied feet.
“Do ya need some help, miss?” Silas asked, licking his lips.
The red-haired woman looked up and immediately stiffened at Silas’s disturbing smile. “Uh, no thanks. Just got some glass in my sandal. Darn fools drinking beer all the way out here.”
Sebastian sat down next to her and sniffed her subtly. She looked at him and her eyebrows furrowed together. “What do you want?”
“Just seeing if you needed any help,” Silas said, the creepy smile still plastered on his face.”
“Well I don’t,” she replied, scowling at him. She put her shoe back on then stood up and grabbed her satchel.
Sebastian got real close to her again. “What’s your name?”
She hesitated for a minute and said, “Emma.” Then she began to walk off.
“Where you goin’, Emma? Such a lovely name for a beautiful red-haired lass,” Silas said.
Suddenly the two were in front of her, their fangs protruding, eyes black as coal.
Emma gasped and threw her hand up and a slight shimmer appeared in the night air. The two vampyres looked at the shimmer, confused. Emma ran quickly into the shimmer and it disappeared in front of their eyes.
“Hey, where did she go?” Silas asked.
Sebastian scratched his head. “I don’t know. How did she do that?”
“Maybe she was a ghost?”
“Let’s go tell Aiden.”
The brothers found their horses and rode back quickly to the farm. Bursting through the front door, they found Aiden and Elaine at the pine dining table, drinking tea and talking.
“What be the problem, boys?” Aiden asked at the look of alarm on their faces.
“Aiden, we met this beautiful girl on the road into town. She was bleeding from her foot and her blood smelt more delicious than anything we could ever imagine.”
Aiden cocked his head to the side. “So? Did you eat?”
Sebastian answered. “That’s just it. We trapped her so she couldn’t move and she literally disappeared into thin air.”
Aiden laughed. “Oh, surely ye jest, you sods!”
Elaine was now laughing along with her husband.
“We are not! She raised her arm and a strange transparent gleam appeared in the air and she stepped into it and was gone!”
“Get the hell out of here, jokers!” Aiden said, waving them away.
As time went on, the brothers would broaden their hunting ground. They found they could run at incredible speeds, covering much ground in little time. They would venture into the surrounding towns of West Park and even Hebburn, returning before sunrise. During their adventures, they ran into the redhead, Emma, at least five times, and all five times, she managed to evade the dangerous vampyres, each time disappearing through her magical doorway, leaving them dumbfounded, but more determined than ever to get her.
∞∞∞
The Island of Nymph – Present Day
Malina stood in front of the cell with her arms crossed over her purple tunic. “What can I do for you, Seth?”
“Your majesty,” he said, bowing his head.
She rolled her eyes. “I repeat, what do you want?”
“I would like to know when we are being sentenced, so we can get an idea of when we’ll be getting out of here.”
She let out of a huff, then narrowed her eyes at him. “I don’t know. Your hearing hasn’t been scheduled yet, but a word of advice; you and Malachi should make yourselves at home. I don’t think you’ll be leaving here any time soon.”
Seth looked at the ground. Malina couldn’t believe how terrible he looked. He was normally a grungy person anyway, but he just looked… awful. He was thinner than normal, if that was even possible, and he didn’t look like he had shaved in weeks.
Malina turned to Bill. “What do you feed these inmates?”
“One of our Immortals is a great cook. They eat what we eat. But if they don’t like it, we don’t offer them anything else.”
Malina turned her attention back to Seth. “Are you eating?”
He looked up at her, bags under his bloodshot eyes. “Yes, but we don’t just survive on human food. We are hunters. We need to shift and hunt to catch our own food. We drink blood, too. It is our nature; we need it.”
“Well unfortunately for you, you won’t be getting any of that here, so the people food you get will have to do,” she finished, trying not to laugh at her little dog joke.
“May I ask something else?” Seth asked.
“Of course.”
“Can we get visits? I miss Sheena. Does she even know we’re here? Has she asked to come visit us?”
Malina’s brow furrowed and she shifted on her feet. She now had a decision to make whose truth was most likely going to push Seth over the edge. And an inmate getting pushed over the edge was dangerous for everyone. She decided to not tell him about Sheena’s untimely demise just yet.
“I don’t know if she’s inquired about visiting, Jonathan hasn’t said anything. But that fact aside, you are not allowed visits anyway.”
“If I write her a letter, will you or one of the cops here mail it for me?”
Malina bit the side of her lip. “Yes, you can give it to Bill.”
Seth scurried to the back of his cell and pulled out half a dozen letters folded up. “I already did. Can you see she gets them?” he asked, shoving them through the bars with pleading eyes. Malina could tell he was fighting back tears. The incarceration was beginning to break him.
Serves him right for kidnapping Serina, she thought.
She took the letters and put them into her bag, smiling stiffly. “Yes.”
Bill escorted her out of the tiny jail and back out into the sun. “Thank you for seeing him. Hopefully he will stay quiet,” Bill said.
Malina got a pained expression on her face. “You’re welcome, but I doubt it.”
She waved her hand and disappeared through her shimmering doorway.
Once Malina and Bill had left the jail, Seth went to the bars and yelled for Malachi in the next cell over. They could hear each other but not see anything but the occasional arm one would reach out.
“What?” Malachi said.
“Do you think she will give Sheena my letters?” Seth asked.
Even though Seth couldn’t see it, Malachi shrugged. “I don’t know, man. If I was her, I probably wouldn’t. She seemed pretty pissed off.”
Seth slunk down to the floor of the cell with his back to the bars and sighed. “I can’t believe we’re yet again stuck on a damn island in a frickin’ jail cell.”
Malachi let out a humorless laugh. “Yeah, but this time, we don’t have no city view, sounds, or smells floating across the water to keep our dreams alive.”
∞∞∞
Portland, Oregon
Brandon and Bryan looked over to the spiral staircase where Pascal and Angel were climbing up to the VIP lounge that overlooked the entire dance floor of Night Crawlers. The other newborn vampires were already up in the loft, waiting for them, but Brandon and Bryan weren’t done feeding. Amy was in Brandon’s arms, swooning from his bite, and Tanya was being laid into a chair into the corner of the dark club. Brandon helped Amy over to the chair and deposited her next to her twin sister, both of them barely fitting in the chair, looking like a couple of wasted drunk girls. The boys turned and crossed the dance floor, making their way up the staircase.
The thumping music pounded their ears, the string of red lights glowing extra bright after their feeding. Everything seemed heightened and more colorful and loud at the moment.
“Hey, Pascal,” said Bryan, taking a seat next to Mike the Meathead. “Mike, what’s up, big guy?”
Mike looked at Bryan and lifted his chin slightly in regard.
“Hi, Angel,” Bryan tried again.
She just looked away and stared out on the dance floor. She was balanced on the armrest of Pascal’s massive chair, her black leather outfit pulsing under the strobe light.
“Bryan, my main man. Are you and the rest of the kids enjoying yourselves tonight?” Pascal asked.
Bryan inwardly cringed at the ‘kid’ comment but kept his face neutral. “Yep. Is there anything you need?”
“No, not at the moment. Just enjoy yourself. I see you and Brandon found a couple of girls to keep you company,” Pascal said with a grin, indicating the two passed out girls in the corner of the club.
Bryan laughed. “Yep, Brandon’s friends. Stupid girls.”
Pascal also laughed. “All girls are stupid.” He looked at Angel.
She narrowed her eyes at him but said nothing, looking back out to the dance floor, shaking her head.
Pascal nudged her off the arm of the chair and went downstairs to the bar. Mike trailed behind him. He walked up to the bar with a wad of cash and said, “Hey, Jack. Everclear 151, straight-up.”
A young blonde girl sitting alone on a barstool next to him looked at him and smiled. “My dad was in that band, you know.” She ran her index finger around the circular rim of her glass as she spoke.
Pascal slowly turned his head toward the girl and looked at her curiously. “What the bloody hell are you talking about?”
She smiled at him. “Everclear. He founded that band here in Portland when I was just a baby.”
Pascal shook his head while Mike covered his grinning mouth with his hand.
“I was just ordering a drink, love. Never heard’a your father’s band as far as I can say,” Pascal answered.
“You can’t be serious. Everyone knows about Everclear! They were so popular in the Nineties.”
“And everyone knows Everclear is an alcohol that will get you pissed faster than anything else around here.” He fixed her with an annoying stare.
“Pissed? I’m not pissed. I’m in a good mood, actually. Why did you think I was mad?”
“Oh, God help me,” Pascal mumbled. “Pissed… drunk… never mind, love. Just enjoy your drink.”
Mike didn’t even try to hide his laughter now.
She stood up and looked around. She was wearing a very short skirt and had very long, tanned legs. She licked her lips and looped her arms around Pascal’s neck. He stiffened at this action, then relaxed when she began to run her fingers through his hair. He was glad he had not worn a ponytail tonight.
“You’re so cute and I love your accent. And hey, it’s okay if you don’t know who Everclear is. They’re hella old anyway. Most people our age don’t remember the Nineties, right?” she purred.
Mike was holding his stomach from laughing now. Pascal shot him a look.
She lifted her face and kissed him. Pascal shrugged and kissed her back for quite a long time, using plenty of tongue while his hands wandered everywhere. He pulled his face away, his gums aching where his fangs wanted to descend. He turned toward the bar and grabbed the shot glass and downed the Everclear with a shudder.
“Another,” he ordered to Jack.
“Right away, boss,” Jack replied, refilling the shot glass.
Pascal again shot back the liquid as it burned its way down his cold throat. He then dragged the young blonde to a dark corner of the bar and began kissing her neck. He licked it roughly then bit in and drank. She let out a short squeal followed by a moan, then went limp. After a few seconds, he licked the punctures and looked into her eyes.
“That was a fun make-out session, but I have to go now.”
Angel was standing on the balcony, her fingers digging into the wrought iron edge. She was furious, watching Pascal with the strange blonde.
Brandon walked up and hip-checked her. “What’s up, hottie?”
Angel simply pointed down to Pascal.
“Wow, what a dick. Does he do that often?” he asked, his hands in his pockets.
She turned and looked at him. A playful and flirty amusement was dancing in his green eyes, but she was too furious to analyze it. “This is not the first time, no,” she answered. “And watch what you say, people around here like to talk.” She said the last part a bit louder than she needed to, glancing at Bryan who was standing close by.
Brandon totally ignored the warning and said, “Why don’t you leave his ass then? You can do so much better than that old Brit.”
She let out a humorless laugh. “Yeah, and where should I go? Shall I go get a job dancing in a club, or perhaps waiting tables somewhere?”
Brandon pulled his hands out of his pockets and gently spun her around to face him. He put his hands on her shoulders and looked into her blue eyes. “Angel, its 2013, you do not need to be dependent on a man. We have forever. Don’t you want to work, make your own money? What do you like to do?”
She paused for a minute, looking at this cute boy, wondering if she should even bother telling him her darkest secrets, but there was something disarming about him. “Well, to be honest… I just want to be… human again.” She ended on a whisper and dropped her gaze. She looked back to the dance floor, strobe light bouncing rhythmically off her perfect face.
Brandon opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again. How does one even respond to that?
Pascal walked up the staircase and said, “My, my, what do we hav
e here?”
“Oh shut up, you bastard. What in the hell was that?” Angel said, then immediately regretted it, knowing she was gonna pay for confronting him in front of his minions.
He narrowed his eyes at her. “I was feeding, nothing more. Besides, she came on to me; was droning on about her father’s stupid rock band. I was just shutting her up and having a meal at the same time. What’s that term? Killing two birds with one stone?” An ugly grin turned up on his lips.
She said nothing, just kept her arms crossed over her large chest.
“We will talk about this later, Angel. In fact, why don’t you go down and help yourself to one of the sweet boys downstairs?” he said, motioning to the dance floor with a wide sweep of his arm.
She put her chin out. “I think I will.” And with that, she made her way to the spiral staircase, carefully taking each step in her stilettos.
∞∞∞
After they were seated and the server had taken their drink orders, Thomas and Malina were holding hands across the table.
“So, you were about to tell me what you did today,” Thomas said, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles.
She smiled at him. “Yes, that’s what we need to talk about.” She removed her hand from his and reached into her purple handbag. She pulled out a bunch of folded up papers and plopped them on the table.
Thomas frowned and pointed at the papers. “What are those?”
“I was at the island today. Go ahead, pick one up and read it.”
Thomas looked at her, then down at the letters. He pushed the sleeves of his long-sleeved polo shirt up to his elbows and grabbed one and opened it and read it aloud:
Dear Sheena,
I miss you so much. You don’t know what hell it’s been being here. We are stuck in a cell all day long, and if we shift, we get in trouble. The food is horrible and I can feel myself wasting away. The guards are rude and short and won’t even stop to talk to us. But the worst part is being away from you. I feel as if I have a giant hole in my heart. It physically hurts. I know you can’t come visit, since you probably don’t even know where I am… hell, I don’t even know where I am. All I know is it’s warm all the time and the sun is almost always out – one bright spot, I guess. I miss you. I hope you get this letter. Please write me back or beg the fairy to let you come visit.