The Grateful Boys

by Françoise DuMaurier

  “But the blood,” Mason said grimly.

  “Jesus,” Matthew said.

  “Vampire, confirmed,” Mason said. “Told ya.”

  “That’s not really confirmation,” Ben said. “We’re still guessing. But I agree that it could be. Still, lots of other things could have killed a cow. Don’t wolves kill cows?”

  “And lions,” Alex added.

  “Dude,” Ben said, “I can guarantee you there are zero lions in Corpus, Georgia.”

  “Yeah, but most people would say the same about vampires, don’t you agree?” Alex raised an eyebrow.

  They went in circles, arguing for a good fifteen minutes about how to catch a lead when searching for a vampire. They barely knew where to begin. Well, to say barely would have been an understatement. They had absolutely no clue where to start.

  They weren’t exactly going to dust for fingerprints in Hailey’s room. Though they did search around her room for anything that might seem suspicious. Being sixteen years old, Matthew felt it was a full-on invasion to be searching through the drawers and closets of a teenage girl – the other boys, however, didn’t care in the slightest.

  When Hailey’s room turned up nothing out of the ordinary, they went back into old furnished living room and started back at square one.

  “Let’s say we do find a vampire,” Mason said. “Then what? Who here’s got stakes and silver bullets and whatever else.”

  “Silver bullets are for fighting werewolves,” Ben corrected him.

  “Vampires hate silver too. So wouldn’t a silver bullet do some serious damage to ’em?” Mason asked.

  “That makes sense,” Matthew sneezed. “I’m sure fire might slow ’em down too.”

  “What if they’re not trying to hurt us?” Sebastian suggested.

  “The hell they aren’t,” Mason asserted.

  “Here me out,” Sebastian said. “You claim one flew out of your sister’s window. Well your sister hasn’t been turned has she?”

  “No,” Mason admitted. “She touched a silver fork with no problem. And I didn’t see any bite marks on her neck. In fact, she was perfectly fine.”

  “Seb could be right,” Alex agreed. “Maybe they’re not out to hurt people. Those cows probably have more to worry about than we do if vampires are real. I mean, who would suck a human when you can get five times as much blood from a cow?”

  “Five times as much?” Ben asked. “Are you sure about that? Sounds like an awful lot, but I’m not expert.”

  “No, I’m not sure,” Alex laughed. “I’m just guessing dude.”

  “Guess,” Sebastian stepped forward. “I think I know where we need to look. Hear me out.”

  Sebastian mentioned having a dream about a place called Vampyr Manor. He mentioned the dream being so vivid he was sure it was real. This was his opportunity to inform his friends of the vampires’ location without directly associating himself with Gregory. For a while they were hesitant to take Sebastian’s dream to actually mean anything at all. After all, just because he’d seen it in a dream – no matter how vivid, was no proof of a correspondence with reality.

  Finally Matthew agreed that they should check out the area, which Sebastian said was a few miles past the school through a thicket of woods. If the area really included a giant pink manor, as Sebastian claimed it did in his dreams, then they would investigate further.

  “But if this turns up nothing, and there’s nothing behind the woods except more woods… then it will have been a big fat waste of time,” Ben said.

  “Did you just use the words big and fat in a sentence, Ben?” Alex laughed.

  “How about m fat fists make their way into your face?” Ben said sticking out a fist.

  “Y’know,” Matthew coughed, “usually it would be Seb who would make a joke like that. In fact, you haven’t been telling many crass personal attack jokes at all today, Seb. You must be as sick as me.”

  Sebastian shrugged. He thought that perhaps he should not have mentioned the manor – dream or no dream. God forbid how they would react if they told them that a vampire had taken him there in person. It took forever just to convince them that vampires might not be out to drain everyone to a skeleton.

  Then Sebastian thought, perhaps, of talking to Hailey. If she had an encounter with the one they call Percivell, then she was the only human in Corpus that would truly be able to relate to what was going on in his head.

  Twenty minutes later they found themselves biking through the forest past the school. The same wooded area where Sebastian had been saved. The same area where Hailey met Percy. They continued biking through the woods along a dirt stretch and through another wooded area. Ben’s legs were tired as hell and he damn well let ‘em know it.

  “This had better turn into something,” Ben said. “Hell, I barely know if I can make it back.”

  As soon as he finished his sentence, he noticed a pink manor in the distance, surrounded by iron gates. There it was, Vampyr Manor. Sebastian nodded when Mason asked him if it was the same building he saw in his dream.

  They approached the iron gates by bike. Quickly they realized they would need to leave their bikes behind and jump the fence in order to get to the other side. All but Sebastian marveled at sight of such a mansion seated right in Corpus, Georgia.

  “What if they have a security system?” Ben asked.

  “If they’re vampires they’ll be sleeping because it’s daylight out. Well, at least I think they should be,” Mason admitted.

  “And if there aren’t vampires in here and we’re breaking into the house of some old rich folk hiding out in a pink manor in the middle of nowhere?” Alex asked.

  “Then I guess we’re gonna be in a crap ton of trouble unless we can run fast enough,” Mason said as he dropped his bike.

  They individually helped each other over the fence. Being the tallest among them, Matthew helped give each of them a boost as they climbed, hopped, and fell over the fence.

  Next they crouched and ran. As if crouching were to somehow stop them from being seen as they dashed in plain sight across a manicured lawn when they should have been as school.

  They made it up to the front entrance of the manor. Mason stuck out his hand, grabbed the doorknob, and twisted it – only to learn it was locked. Should have known it wouldn’t be that easy.

  “How do we get in?” Ben asked.

  “Leave that to me,” Matthew answered in a whisper as he pulled a pocketknife from his back pocket.

  “Why the hell does everyone carry a pocketknife in this damn town?” Mason asked.

  “Y’know… protection, self-defense, hunting… and picking locks,” Matthew smirked as he jammed the blade between the door and the frame. He wiggled the blade up and down while turning the knob back and forth until it unlocked with a click.

  “Voilà!” Matthew exclaimed. He opened the door. It stopped after cracking only a few inches. They looked in and saw fleet of golden chain locks that kept the door from being fully opened.

  “Okay, this isn’t going to work,” Ben hawed.

  “What have they got to hide?” Mason scoffed.

  “Let’s check around back,” Alex said, taking the lead to run around the corner of the house as the others followed. Before they could made it around the back of the manor, Alex stopped as he spotted a white door on the side of the house. More importantly – a small doggie door at the bottom.

  “Well there’s our way in,” Alex said, pointing at the dog door.

  Matthew sized them up, looking at them one by one, his eyes immediately glossing over Ben and moving from Sebastian to Alex to Mason.

  “Mace, you’re the smallest,” Matthew told him. “All you gotta do is climb through the dog door and unlock it so the rest of us can get in. You game?”

  “Sure,” Mason said. Without hesitation he ran for the dog door and nearly leaped through it with a great dive. The door was small, however, and he found himself stuck midway.

  “Let’s push him!” Alex sai
d. The boys grabbed Mason by his legs and feet and heaved him through to the other side. “OW!” Mason yelled as he tumbled onto the other side. “Damn that hurt.”

  Now inside the manor, Mason realized he was standing in a great white marbled kitchen. He quickly turned around, unlocked the door, and let the other boys inside.

  “Shit, this kitchen’s bigger than like my whole house,” Alex exaggerated.

  “Looks like there’s a main hall here,” Mason said as he pointed through the area that led out of the kitchen.

  “Could be,” Matthew said quietly. “Or… we could check to see what this leads to.” He pointed to a door on the far side of the kitchen.

  “Okay, let’s check that door first. If nothing’s interesting down there then we’ll come back up and search the rest of the mansion. Remember, if there are vampires here, they’ll be sleeping. I don’t think they can harm us during the day.”

  “I’m assume this door here leads down to a pantry,” Ben said. “I never heard of a vampire sleeping in a pantry. They’re probably lying on some soil-lined coffins in their bedrooms. Y’know… if any of this is real, I mean.”

  “Still, might be worth checking out,” Alex nodded. “What do you think Sebastian? You been real quiet.”

  “Yeah, sure,” Sebastian said, almost nervously. “If you guys wonna check the pantry for anything suspicious, sure.”

  Matthew turned the doorknob of the pantry and opened it. It was pitch black inside.

  “Phone lights,” Matthew said. And the boys took out their phones, equipping each of them with the light feature. Slowly they entered the pantry, which led them down a cobblestone staircase. Ben nervously reached out to grab hold of something. But there was no rail to hold onto.

  Matthew was first, followed by Mason. Then Sebastian followed by Alex, with Ben last.

  “Guys, I’m beginning to think this ain’t no pantry,” Ben murmured as he shivered and turned around to look at the doorway from which they’d just arrived. Going back almost felt like the smartest move based on the looks upon their faces. But still they pressed on.

  Ben shivered – along with the others. The further they made it down the stairs, the colder it got. It was as damp as it was dark. They moved their flashlights around but could see only darkness ahead.

  “Ya think,” Mason whispered with a delayed reaction. “I don’t know what this is but it’s definitely not a pantry. Not a single can of beans in sight”

  Finally they reached the bottom of the stairs and stepped onto dark hardened soil. Matthew lifted his phone into the air, illuminating the ceiling above him.

  But the ceiling was no ceiling. “Guys,” Matthew said, tapping Mason on the shoulder. Mason saw Matthew looking up so he did the same.

  No, there was no textiled ceiling – there was only a cavernous enclave.

  “Jesus Christ, we’re in a cave!” Mason whispered. Immediately the other boys tilted their heads upward. They reached the same realization.

  “And look over there!” Ben exclaimed in a whisper. He pointed his phone light across from them at a row of boxes. Not just any boxes – elongated wooden boxes with tops.

  “Coffins!” Alex gasped.

  “Maybe we should get outta here,” Sebastian whispered. “I don’t think this is a good idea anymore. Let’s turn around.”

  “No!” Mason demanded. “We can’t turn back. Not now. If there’s vampires in these coffins they’ll be sleeping. I have to know. There’s no chance I’m turning back now.”

  “Be my guest,” Ben said. He gulped. His hands shook. “I’ll stay put by the stairs.” He walked closer to the staircase, refusing to go any further into the cave. “Whenever you guys are done, I’ll be waiting right here by the stairs.”

  Mason slowly approached the coffins with the others in tow. Matthew inquisitively looked around and noticed a waterfall in the distance. The cave was massive and the waterfall was flowing on the opposite side. But it wasn’t just that – it wasn’t like any waterfall they’d seen on television. They were viewing the back of the waterfall. And—

  “Guys, look at that,” Matthew told them. He shined his light in the distance toward the waterfall. They each noticed it when he pointed it out. The sparkling waterfall itself was flowing upside down, as if it were the work of magic.

  “This just gets stranger and stranger,” Alex said. “I swear I’ve never seen a waterfall… where the water went up.”

  “As weird as that is, I’m still more concerned about what’s in these coffins,” Mason said, approaching the wooden fixtures. He drew closer and closer to them, the other boys still behind him – with Matthew still paying more attention to the waterfall.

  “It’s gotta mean something,” Matthew whispered. “Waterfalls don’t just flow upside down. It straight up defies the laws of physics.”

  Mason was now arms-length within reach of the first coffin, along a row of several. The boys slowly walked around the coffin, surrounding it. Matthew stood next to Mason and pulled out his pocketknife. He raised it in the air and gestured for Mason to open the coffin.

  The top was heavy. Mason asked Sebastian and Alex to help him. The three of them pulled open the coffin. Matthew stood in a fighting stance, ready to stab anything that might emerge. The top of the coffin flew open and inside was – nothing.

  “Well that was anticlimactic,” Alex scoffed. Mason suggested they try another. They surrounded the next coffin in the same manner. Alex stood over it, ready to utilize his switchblade. The younger boys lifted the coffin top and again, it was entirely empty. Empty of people, that is – the only thing in the coffin was a pillow and a cushioned bottom.

  “Wait,” Mason said. He reached inside the coffin, grabbed the cushion that made up the bottom of the coffin, and saw what was underneath – soil. The coffin was lined at the very bottom with brown soil. Mason grabbed a handful of the dirt and smelled it. It smelled richly crisp. Flowery even. And fresh – of a woodsy fragrance.

  Alex grabbed Mason’s hand and pulled it toward his nose. “Bet this is what Transylvania smells like,” he said as he breathed in the scent of the soil.

  “Guys, these coffins are empty. There’s nothing here,” Ben said from near the stairs.

  Mason nodded. He dropped the dirt and wiped his hand against his jeans. “Just one more,” he said. “I have a good feeling about this next one.”

  “Don’t you mean a bad feeling?” Sebastian spoke for the first time in a while. “If there’s a vampire in one of these things, that’s gotta be a bad feeling. Not a good one.”

  “Yeah, sure. But I mean like a good feeling that my hunch is right. Not a good feeling that I want to be devoured by a vampire.”

  So they moved to a third coffin. They surrounded it, preparing themselves one last time. Matthew’s hand was steady with his blade. Mason, Alex, and Sebastian lifted it open. And they found – nothing.

  “Well this has been a waste,” Sebastian said. “I think it’s time to leave.”

  “There’s still more coffins,” Mason said.

  “Sorry, Mace,” Alex agreed with the others. “But Seb is right on with this one. There’s nothing down here. All these coffins are empty. All we got is a crazy waterfall and a few empty wooden boxes with dirt at the bottom.”

  “Yeah,” Matthew said. “Let’s just join scaredy-cat Ben and get outta here. Maybe there’s something in the rest of the house. ’Cause I agree. Any house that has a cave crypt with coffins at the bottom of it needs to be investigated just a little bit further.”

  “Okay then,” Mason said defeated. “Let’s get outta here.”

  “GUYS!” Alex shouted in a whisper. His phone light was raised upward. His head was tilted back. And his voice quaked with fear. “Look up,” he said frightfully, now trembling.

  Mason looked up, pointing his phone toward the top of the cave. His knees nearly buckled. Matthew’s eyes widened, his mouth fell agape. Sebastian stood motionless.

  Above them was a black-clad young vampire,
hanging upside down. His bare pale feet were stuck to the top of the cave. His shawl jacket and long hair hung upside down with the rest of him. His arms were crossed and his eyes were closed. Sebastian immediately recognized it was Gregory.

  “Guys…” Ben called out from near the staircase. “What are you guys looking at?”

  For a moment they remained motionless. Ben was so nervous he continued calling out. “Guys! I said what y’all looking at? What’s up there!?” Ben pointed his phone light toward the top of the cave’s center and spotted the same vampire.

  “AHH!” Ben screamed. The vampire above him flickered his eyes. He looked down at them.

  “RUN!” Mason yelled. The boys rushed toward the staircase. A screaming Ben was now halfway toward the top. They nearly tripped over one another, running faster than they’d ever known they could. Adrenaline pumping, palms sweating, they rushed up the entire staircase.

  Ben was out of the cave first, followed by Alex. Mason was after him, then Matthew. Lastly was Sebastian who slammed the pantry door shut, and was the least afraid among them.

  The five boys rushed out of the kitchen door and back into the graciousness of outdoor daylight.

  “Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!” Ben exclaimed over and over, resting his hands on his knees as he caught his breath.

  “Are we safe out here?” Alex asked, exhausted.

  “Gotta be safer out here than we were in there,” Mason answered, his own breath still heaving.

  “Let’s get off this property,” Matthew said, looking back at the kitchen door they’d shut close. And together they ran back toward the front of the manor and back toward the gated entrance. Matthew quickly and hurriedly helped each of them over the iron gates, himself climbing last.

  They hopped back onto their bikes and took off through the woods. They rode for miles without looking back, until they’d made it back into the normal part of town – the word itself now consisting of a new meaning.

  Among them, Sebastian was the only one not in a frenzied panic. He did think, however, of what Gregory would think about him taking his friends to a remote vampire sanctuary – the place where Gregory slept, no less. Would he be upset? Would he break off whatever friendship they were cultivating?