Vengeance (Thorn's Needles)

by P. A Ross

“That’s my boyfriend you leave him alone,” a chubby blonde girl snapped.

  Her dyed blonde hair was scraped back tight over her head into a pony tail, and her face was plastered in make up. Her dress too tight for her size and the fat pushing out at the seams of the dress, she looked horrible and scary in a different way than I was now used to.

  “He is a grown boy, I am sure he can make his own choices,” Thorn replied, with no sign of emotion.

  “I wasn’t doing anything, Michelle I promise,” the man pleaded with her.

  Thorn let go of his arm, and he walked over to Michelle. She slapped back handed across his face. Her gold sovereign rings cut his mouth leaving his face red and his body shaking.

  “Get out of here now you prick and go home,” she screamed into his face.

  He recoiled back holding his bruised jaw, and he looked at Thorn apologetically.

  “Sorry,” he said, and received another smack on the back of his head as he walked away making him stumble forward. He walked off back to the nightclub and saw me laughing to myself.

  Behind him the girls had surrounded Thorn.

  “Going to teach you a lesson, little Miss Perfect. After I am finished no bloke will want you,” Michelle said face sneering and her friend slapping the broken wood into her own hand.

  I was looked forward to watching this, but the scolded boyfriend approached and he looked angrily at me.

  “What you laughing at?” he said.

  “Nothing.”

  “Bullshit,” he said, face red from the slap and wanting to regain some pride.

  He pushed my back into the wall. I pushed myself off it and shoved back making him stagger backwards. He charged in and swung a fist. My instincts took over, and I ducked, and rugby tackled him to the floor and rolled off back onto my feet. I was scared and reacting from instinct. I tried to let my anger pour through me by thinking about the mugging, but I didn’t have time and he was on his feet and punched at me again. I put my hands over my head and absorbed a couple of blows and then fired one back into his chin making him step back. I followed up with a couple more, which he stepped back from and then he caught my squared on the chin with a punch, and I dropped to the floor. He stood over me ready to follow up, when Thorn appeared in front of him and launched him off his feet into the alley way wall.

  Back down the alley the three girls were rolling on the floor in pain, covering their clothes in grime and rain. Thorn had cut open the man’s arm and was crouched over him like a predator feeding on their kill. This was a normal night when hunting with Thorn, as I often got embroiled into the fights. I got the impression it was part of my training plan.

  CHAPTER 13

  It had been six weeks since joining forces with Thorn, and my day and night lives were becoming acutely distinct. The days were filled with plans of what could happen if I left and the new life I could lead. Maybe Scarlett and I could forgive each other. I could work for the government and let them test me in return for safety. I revisited those old daydreams of living with Scarlett and the normal things we would do, as a normal couple. I wished I could be back on that sofa snuggled up watching a film together. In the mean time, during the day, I continued to collected more money and stored it in the bag in the freezer. I practised the route home and investigate getting a UV lamp. During the rest of the day, I continued with my training, building my skills and muscles.

  The night was all about time with Thorn training, fighting, feeding, dancing and passion. I would be scared as the night came and then sad to see it go as enjoyed being with Thorn and the excitement it brought. In the day time, I would be happy to be myself, with my own thoughts and desires. Not having to fill my thoughts so Thorn couldn’t read my feelings. However, recently I had to do this less and less, as at night thoughts of escape and Scarlett never returned. At night I only thought about Thorn and revenge on Barry. It was if I had become two different people, Day Jonathan, and Night Jonathan. Day wanted it to all end and find away back home and to Scarlett. Night wanted it to never end. Night enjoyed the violence, sex and training, and looked forward to the final revenge on Barry, and expanding out into the rest of the vampire world.

  That day had special significance, as I knew it was the day for the Kidnapping trial in Leeds against the three O’Keefe brothers. I should have been there giving evidence against them, and if convicted it would have probably stopped Giles’s mum case for dangerous driving. I hoped they would still get a conviction even though my evidence was critical having been the only eye witness to all the events on that day, and the events of the previous 10 years of bullying as well. The killing of the gang and rescuing Thorn had meant I couldn’t attend. I decided I would check the internet later for any news.

  It was night, and I was Night Jonathan, and we were sat outside a nightclub back across London in the area I went to college, looking and waiting for Barry as we knew this place was a favourite hang out. It was an alternative nightclub playing pretty much anything except pop music, and the clientele were a raw cross section of people and music types from the surrounding areas. The nightclub was called, ”Excite”, and green fluorescent curled and flowing letters glowed out in the dark, above two worn blue doors with the paint peeling off. I sat in the passenger’s seat of Thorn’s black BMW, tinted windows, leather seats, aircon, and all the top of the range trimmings. The car was sat across the other side of the road, in the shadows about 20 meters away. There were cars parks all around us on this side of the street, and the other side was empty. I had been sat watching the door for over an hour and was starting to get bored. I wanted to go inside and search for him, but Thorn advised not to, as people were looking for us namely ‘Hunters’. I asked Thorn about the ‘Hunters’ days after her escape and their attempt to stop us. Thorn explained they were the ones who had captured her in the first place, they were an organisation hunting down and killing vampires normally, but things had changed recently as they now seemed involved with government. If we were looking for Barry, they were probably watching him in the hope we would return.

  I shuffled in my seat and felt the cold metal of my gun in my hand, a Browning 9 mm Hi-Power semi-automatic pistol. Thorn’s training had recently gone beyond hand to hand. Thorn had been training me in Thai-boxing as it was the closest to the vampire martial art style of fighting. Thai-boxing is known as the science of the 8 limbs, and the vampire style was similar adding in the razor sharp claws and fangs of a vampire. It was a direct style of fighting with the purpose of taking the opposition down, nothing fancy, just a clean direct kill. We moved on to fighting with small blades, to mimic the claws of vampire, so I would be prepared for whenever I made the changes through the needles. The plan was to move on to swords, and she had a couple Japanese Katana swords for us to practice with, once I had mastered the small blades. Only yesterday we moved on to guns. Thorn didn’t like guns as vampires fought better up close using their superior speed and strength. In a gun fight the battlefield was levelled out between humans and vampires, but I wasn’t a vampire yet and a gun would allow me to protect her and myself. In the basement of her house, a weapon rack was hidden behind one of the walls with the picture of the werewolf and vampire fighting. A button under the bed slid the wall back revealing a rack of swords, knives, throwing stars, machine guns and pistols. It was from this rack she had chosen the browning pistol for me and loaded it up, and then we drove to a deserted warehouse to practice using tin cans on an upturned box. It felt like an old western shooting tin cans, but it did the trick. I learnt quickly with Thorn’s guidance, and her psychic abilities pushing in the right images and feelings into my head. The Hunters had machine guns and knifes, and I needed to know how to fire back in order to defend myself and protect Thorn, especially during the daylight hours.

  The music played from the car stereo gently in the background to break up the monotony of waiting and watching. Thorn shuffled in her seat and her tight denim jeans rubbed against the leather of the seats. She stretched her feet in her r
ed leather knee high boots and adjusted her short black leather jacket with red strips down the arms, which she wore a black vest underneath. I was getting bored and restless in the car. Thorn was more patient and focused her senses at the nightclub and her surroundings. I guessed that patience and focus came with age, yet I didn’t know how old Thorn was, but on a couple of occasion she mentioned events from history and I had tried to work it out. She mentioned the hundred year war, which made her at least seven hundred years old, but I think she went back even further. She was extremely careful not to give away too much about her history.

  I tried to break the silence and relax us for a second.

  “Thorn, what do you call an asthmatic vampire?” I asked.

  “I don’t know,” she responded seriously.

  “Vlad the inhaler,” I answered giving a slight laugh to indicate it was a joke.

  Thorn looked over, and her forehead frowned.

  “No more jokes,” she said.

  We went back to sitting in silence waiting for something to happen.

  People came and went from the nightclub, but no one I recognised. People pushed open the two blue doors and stumbled out into the dark night, with the florescent sign offering some light around the entrance, and tainting those coming and going in its glow. Groups of people walked into the night club dressed up in gothic clothes and a few girls in night club small skirts and tops. Two girls walked out from the blue night club doors and were accompanied by the music breaking into the quiet night outside. Their hair was dark, one short bobbed, and the other long and wavy, and they were both dressed in a rock chick style. The short haired girl with jeans, black boots and white t-shirt showing under and red leather jacket. Her face was heavily made up with black eyeliner and a pirate skull nose stud and ears pierced with 3 crucifixes in each ear. It took a moment to break out the features from the clothes she wore, but it was unmistakably Mary. I thought she obviously found a new friend, as that wasn’t Scarlett as the hair colour was the wrong. The woman with the long dark wavy hair stumbled slightly as she lost control of her feet encased heavy purple platform boots, her hair sweeping around concealing her face, and her friend grabbed her by her black leather jacket and pulled her up straight. They both giggled and staggered off. Above her boots fish net stockings led to a denim skirt and on her top under the jacket was a low cut red shirt. She swished her out of her face showing heavy makeup, creating black patches around her eyes and black full lips. Her ears decorated with ascending gold hoops and a gold chain around her pale neck. She looked vaguely familiar. They were giggling as they staggered slightly down the street when a rough looking guy wearing dirty denim, burst out looking worst for wear. He was quite tall and sported a grubby goatee beard. He staggered about a bit looking up and down the streets when he saw the two girls walking off.

  “Scarlett come back,” he shouted.

  She turned around, and her long wavy hair swished in the half light of the cold winter’s air. I recognised the way the hair moved, and I knew it was definitely Scarlett. However, this wasn’t my Scarlett as I remembered her, she had changed beyond recognition into something else, or someone else I thought. I didn’t even think about what to do next, as soon as I recognised her I was out the car, slamming the door and walking over to her.

  “Have another drink come on, you owe me,” the rough guy shouted.

  “Get lost,” Scarlett shouted and turned back around to start walking off, when she saw me marching across the road to her. I was dressed for comfort that night in jeans, black hooded top and trainers. My hair had been trimmed right back into a stylish short cut, which was now gelled back and spiked up in places. She took a moment to recognise me, same for her I guessed, out of context situation and a different look. My determined walk over had made her pay attention and focus, and finally the penny dropped.

  “Jon,” she said, arms flung out.

  I ran the last bit into her arms and hugged her tight. I didn’t know why I did this after everything that had happened it was just an instinct, as I was happy to see her after everything I had been through. I thought maybe because she was slightly drunk that she was happy to see me as well. As I was hugging her, I heard fast footsteps approaching from behind, and I realised what I enormous mistake I was making. I let go and stood back to look at Scarlett properly and took in her new look.

  “You changed,” I said admiring in the black make up, piercings and newly dyed hair.

  Scarlett looked at me eyebrows raised.

  “Look who’s talking,” she responded eyeing me up and down, then looking at my side as I felt Thorn’s hand grab my hand squashing it under her firm grasp. I grimaced trying not to let the pain show.

  I dreaded what might happen next, and I looked around at Thorn and offered an apologetic smile. She was angry but holding her vampire features back.

  “What happened to you?” Scarlett asked, looking suspiciously at Thorn.

  “You know stuff happens, you have to deal with it,” I answered regretting getting out of the car.

  “It all true then, what the news has been saying about you and her,” Scarlett said pointedly looking at Thorn.

  I realised she was referring to the news of the gang murders, the drug dealers Thorn killed on her first night and few other minor incidents. I didn’t know how to answer the question and luckily I didn’t have to, as the drunken tall, rough looking guy had continued stumbling towards us. He grabbed Scarlett’s arm and wretched it backwards.

  “She is with me kid, now get lost,” he said pulling on her arm.

  Before I had time to react Thorn stepped across and kicked him in the groin. There was nothing like a man attacking a woman to incense Thorn, and she was already boiling with anger. He dropped to the floor and onto one knee, and looked back up as Thorn followed up with a right hook bang on the jaw. His head snapped around fast, and he skidded down the pavement from the force of the blow, leaving a trail of blood coming from his face as it acted as a brake on the rough pavement.

  Thorn turned around facing Scarlett and me, looking straight past us into the dark.

  “Hunters,” she shouted and pushed us all to the floor as shots rang over our heads.

  “Go in to the club and find a way out the back, I will meet you there,” Thorn shouted as the shots continued.

  I pulled out my gun and fired randomly into the dark, and it seemed to be enough to allow Thorn to run for cover behind the row of cars. I grabbed Scarlett and Mary, and pushed them back towards the front door as the bullets smashed into the brick work about us spattering us with dust. I fired again and again in the vain hope I was helping, as two men in black suits were running towards us pistols firing. Scarlett and Mary bundled through the front door crashing to the floor, and I was not far behind when a pain ripped through my lower leg as a bullet dissected the flesh of my right calf muscle. I lost my balance crashing through the door, and into Scarlett and Mary creating a heap on the floor.

  The bouncers approached, and I turned the gun up and around to them quickly.

  “Back off, I just want the exit” I shouted, and they raised their hands and moved backwards.

  Scarlett and Mary help me to my feet, and I hobbled as quickly as I possible into the club keeping the gun pointed at the bouncers and forcing them to stay in the entrance hall. The circular dance floor in the middle was filled with people jumping up and around, and head banging to some thrash metal band. We pushed past the other revellers around the sides of the dance floor, and those queuing at the bar shouting for drinks. A few people looked around and then saw the gun in my hand and backed off sharply in panic. The music was loud, and the red, blue and green lights flashed into my eyes, and the pain in my leg was intense. I pushed through the pain using my anger and fear to drive myself forward, just as Thorn had taught me. Mary knew the club well and directed us through the throng of people to the back fire door and out onto a small fire stair well used by the revellers for smoking on. The people out side moved quickly out of the
way in panic upon seeing the gun and the blood on my legs, and walked back inside.

  The top of the stairs had a small landing area connected to the back door of the night club, and the stairs went down one flight into a small car park at the back where the staff parked. There was a gate on the back of the car park stopping non-paying guests from sneaking in the back way. I felt cold, and the smell of cigarettes still permutated the air. I coughed on the cigarette smoke as we walked out onto the stair well.

  “You two need a moment. I will keep an eye out,” Mary said and walked back inside.

  I leaned against the wall taking the weight off my shot leg, and as the blood poured out I hoped Thorn wouldn’t take too long. I thought I should probably get some first aid training as well.

  “What the hell is going on with you?” Scarlett asked, looking at my gun.

  “I can’t explain, it isn’t safe to know,” I answered, trying to focus through the pain.

  “People came to question me after the incident in the park. They told me tell you, if I ever saw you again, its not too late they will understand. They will look after you. You can have your life back. It’s the woman they want and a formula,” Scarlett said.

  I was surprised at her statement, as she seemed to know everything.

  “So you know what happened in the park.”

  “No, I just know those boys are dead, but those people asking questions suggested you were involved. I didn’t understand the rest about a formula and a woman at the time. I guess that was her earlier.”

  “That will be those people who just shot me.”

  “You shot at them as well. Give it a chance we could be together again. There is a way out,” she said pleading with me.

  I looked at her, and I wanted to believe it was true, but the images of her and Barry were still burnt into my memory.

  “It’s a bit late for that, remember,” I said.

  “I can explain everything just come back, trust me.”