“Sheriff! Psst!” he stammered. “Look – look over here!”
Zeddman rushed to his deputy and peered into the refrigerator. Inside they discovered blood. Gallons and gallons of blood. And pints of blood – in packets bearing the insignia of the mobile blood bank.
“Grab one!” Zeddman said as he grabbed a gallon carton of blood. Coleman reached in and snatched a small pint of blood. “Just what I thought,” said Zeddman before turning to his deputy. “Now let’s get out of here!”
They rushed through the door the Sheriff had just broken, closed it behind them, and ran back around the house, through the yard, and back to the iron gates without looking behind them.
“Davey Pocket in a Crockett! I mean Crockett in a Pocket!” Coleman shouted as he pulled himself over the iron gates, following after Zeddman.
“Guns out!” Zeddman demanded of his deputy as they ran through the woods. They took no regard for cracking branches or bristling brambles. They simply ran from one end of the woods to the other, guns in hand.
As expected, they made it out much quicker during their exit as opposed to their entrance into the woods. On the other side, there was Zeddman’s cruiser just where they left it, blue lights blazing.
The sheriff rushed into his driver seat while Coleman stumbled his way into the passenger side – with the gallon and pint of blood still in each of their hands. Zeddman floored the pedal and off they went, like a bat out of hell, driving back into town.
“We did it, Sheriff! We did it!”
“I’m afraid that was only the beginning, Deputy.”
“You mean we gotta go back, Sheriff?”
“Of course we do, Coleman! But here’s our proof. They stole the blood from the blood bank. See that pint in your hand.”
Zeddman grabbed the gallon of blood from his lap and tossed it to Coleman as he drove.
“This here is a lot of blood, Sheriff.”
“This blood, I’m guessing, came from the cows,” Zeddman nodded with both hands on the wheel. He turned off his blue lights as they continued down the street. They were in the clear.
“We got these sons of bitches dead to right, Sheriff!”
“Not quite. You and I know what they did. But we can’t officially use this as a means to an end. We just stole this blood from that manor back there, Coleman. It’ll be thrown out if I present it to a judge for means of gaining a search warrant.”
“But,” Coleman threw his hands out in front of him, slapping the dashboard. “Here’s an idea. Yer listening, Sheriff? Say we claim that an anonymous caller tipped us off. That there’s this big pink mansion filled with blood of dead cows and empty bloodmobiles.”
“Ah, that would be enough to get us a search warrant.”
“Yes, sir. That would do it right there. Then we bring the force with us next time.”
“Tomorrow,” Zeddman said swiftly. “I’ll get the warrant signed tomorrow. We’ll bring the whole Sheriff’s Department with us. We’ll go in guns blazing. And send those vampires straight to hell. That’s what we’ll do.”
Zeddman’s cellphone began ringing. He pulled it out of his pocket and answered. He could see Coleman nosily listening in.
“Oh, hello Mel. How are you?… Yeah… Things are great… I’m just patrolling the streets… the usual sheriff’s work… Tonight… Are you sure?… Of course… I’d be up for a date tonight… Yes, the restaurant should be open… I’m a little busy but… No, I’d never decline a date with you, Mel… See you then.”
Sheriff Zeddman shut off his phone and placed it back into his pocket as he drove past the school, toward the Sheriff’s Office.
“I don’t mean to listen in, but it sounds like you got yourself a date,” Coleman smirked.
“You’re damn right! I couldn’t tell Mel no. But that doesn’t mean anything changes, you hear me. The plan is still the same. Tomorrow we’re gonna toast those vampires for good.”
Chapter 11
Mason arrived home, did his homework, and headed downstairs when his mom called him to eat. Dinner consisted of meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Although his mom prepared dinner, she didn’t eat any herself after proclaiming she was headed out for a date with Sheriff Zeddman. So Mel fixed only two plates, one for Mason and one for Hailey.
The dinner table felt awkward with Mason eyeing Hailey non-stop. He’d stab his fork down onto the plate and come up with nothing, still staring at her instead of look at his own food.
“You are such a weird little boy,” Hailey said as she rolled her eyes.
“Mhm… sure, I’m the weird one,” Mason said, placing a fork with little food into his mouth.
“You keep missing your food, dummy,” Hailey laughed.
“Don’t call me a dummy, dummy. Just know I’ll always be watching,” Mason scoffed.
“Watching what? Me? Why on earth would you be watching me?” Hailey said, raising an eyebrow.
“Oh, no reason. Or maybe because I’m not the weird one,” Mason said, pointing his fork in her direction.
“Okay, I’m done here,” Hailey said as she ate a few more bites of food very quickly, took her plate to the trash, scraped the leftover contents into the can, and washed the plate before placed it upon a rack. “I can’t take anymore of you, Mason. You’re too much of a weirdo.”
Hailey headed to her room. Finally Mason was left alone to eat his food, without staring someone down in the process.
Half an hour later, shortly after six, Mason left by bike to the trailer park lot where Alex lived. He knocked on the door, was greeted by Alex’s mom, and took off with Alex down the street.
“So just where is this arcade?” Mason asked him as they rode their bikes side by side at down the slow minimal streets of Corpus.
“Past the town square, like two shopping centers down. It’s a twenty-minute bike ride from my place,” Alex told him.
So they continue their bike ride, through the town square. It consisted of an old clock tower, and several antique-type stores – the type of places that Mason had no interest in exploring. Soon they passed the only video game store in the town, followed by a grocery store. After that they made it to just the right shopping center. They passed a few clothing stores and Mason could see in the distance – a giant glowing sign. It was a rocket with a lightning bolt in the middle. It read ‘Lightscape Arcade’.
“Wow,” Mason said. “Why hadn’t I noticed that sign before?”
“They just put it back up. Isn’t it a thing of beauty?” Alex said in awe as they rode closer to the building. It was big. It was blue. It was the most incredible looking thing in all of Corpus. For a teenage boy it was the Taj Mahal, all right.
Mason noticed the parking lot for the Lightscape Arcade was much more occupied than any other. But that was to be expected. The reopening of a popular arcade would obviously attract a larger set of customers than any old clothing store or grocery mill.
Near the side of the arcade was a row of bike racks. Mason and Alex both placed their bikes in a rack spot, and chained them up. Alex had a small compartment on his bike near the back wheel, which contained his plastic covered chain. Mason’s chain was always wrapped around the center bar of his bike, which he’d then unwrap and re-wrap around the bike and the rack.
They locked their bikes and headed in. Inside the arcade was, simply put, glorious. It was like a dimly lit Day-Glo fever dream. Emblem lightning rocket ships glowed all across the floors. Kids and teens made their way through the enormous arcade playing game after gaming, shuffling between simulations and games that offered prizes. There were arcade style shooting games abound – some with titles such as Wicked in the West, Space Specter Shoot ’Em, and Dead By Dawn: Zombie Slayer.
Other games were based on popular movies such as Terminator, Jurassic Park, and Star Wars.
“See the Spider-Man game,” Alex pointed. “That’s where the Rambo game used to be.”
“Damn, that’s crazy. I’ll try to play without losing my arm,” Mason told hi
m.
“Look!” Alex said. Near the Terminator shooting game were Ben, Sebastian, and Matthew. Mason and Alex rushed over to catch up with them.
“Hey guys!” Alex said. “What are you doing?” he asked as if it weren’t readily apparent.
“We’re saving the world from judgment day,” Matthew said as the three boys pushed and pulled the forearms of their blue plastic shotguns.
“Go get a gun and join in!” Sebastian told them. “Up to five can play this.”
“Perfect!” Mason and Alex proclaimed in unison. They rushed toward the customer counter. It was run by a bunch of teenagers. The kind who were in between high school and college.
“We need two Terminator shotguns!” Mason told an employee wearing a glowing vest and a Lightscape hat. “That’ll be $6,” the employee said as they swiped through their smartphone, not even looking up at the boys.
Mason and Alex each dug into their pockets and pulled out $3 in change, tossing it onto the counter. The lazy teen employee dipped under the counter, came back up with two plastic green shotguns, and tossed them to Mason and Alex.
“Thanks!” Mason said as he dashed off with Alex. They returned to their friends and immediately joined in the game. They stood in front of the enormous screen, firing off their shotguns in the direction of the radical graphics depicting judgment day.
They played the game for at least an hour before moving on to another one. Mason joined Ben and Matthew at another shooting game called Wicked in the West. This one was entirely different. It was played in a large area of the arcade and contained no screens. Instead they stood behind a fence and shot plastic guns at animatronic cowboys who’d appear and disappear behind various areas of a Western-themed bar on the other side of the fence.
“This is my favorite game ever!” Mason exclaimed as he shot a cowboy.
“Eat my ten-gallon hat!” Ben yelled, shooting at an animatronic outlaw after it popped out of a barrel.
“You’re a natural shooter, Mace,” Matthew told him. “Few more rounds of I’m out.”
“What do you mean you’re out? You’re leaving?” Mason asked him.
“Hell no,” Matthew answered. “I’m just going to do something besides the shooting games. The racing simulators are worth a try.”
“So, do we all agree to come here every night or what?” Ben said gleefully as he shot another uncanny valley animatronic.
“Well, this starts to add up,” Matthew told him dourly as they continued playing. “It can get expensive if you come every day. Plus, they’re not open on Mondays. And we still got club meetings. But otherwise, yeah.”
They continued playing for a little while longer. The game lasted another fifteen minutes. Then they were off to something else. Alex joined Sebastian on a motorcycle game and Mason was ready to join in as well. That was – until he saw something that caught his attention.
While Sebastian and Alex were on the motorcycle simulators in front of another enormous screen, Sebastian turned around and spotted two tall teenage boys. They were pale skinned and dressed entirely in black – leather jackets and ripped jeans.
Mason couldn’t make out what they were saying over the noise of the crowd. Because it was the grand re-opening, he figured the arcade was probably more full than it would be on a normal night.
He stared at the boys in black. They looked so – off. So odd.
Then it hit him. The pale skin, the punk rock attire – perhaps they were vampires. Just like the one he witnessed fly out of Hailey’s window.
More vampires, I assume. Here to scope out young prey I bet.
Mason quietly walked away from the motorcycle simulator near his friends and dipped behind a large screen as the vampires walked past him. Unbeknownst to him, the one with the blond hair was Alobard and the one with the mohawk was Gabriel.
“Let’s see what you suckers are up to,” Mason whispered to himself.
He stayed far enough behind them to not alert them of his presence while attempting to stay close enough to make out what they were saying.
“What a wonderful little surprise, Gabriel. Don’t you agree?” the blond one said to the other.
“Perhaps we got into the wrong business, brother Alobard,” the mohawked one replied.
So that’s their names. Gabriel and Alobard, Mason thought to himself. Definitely sounds like vampire names to me. Even though there’s a Gabriel in my science class. No, nevermind that.
“Were you as disappointed as I was by the Surrender?” Gabriel asked.
“Disappointed? Gabriel, I couldn’t be disappointed by the Surrender even if I wanted to. Was there not fresh blood to be had?” Alobard chuckled.
That’s it! They just mentioned blood! I knew it. They’re vampires, the bastards. Mason was just as shocked as he was elated as he continued following them.
“That is true, Alobard. But the results were… less than fruitful,” Gabriel said.
“Dear brother, think of it like this – you may not have found someone to join you for the next century,” Alobard said, “but the Surrender is just as much about appreciating the moment. Not every Surrender will result in a marriage.”
Consort… Surrender… just what are they talking about? Mason furrowed his brows then ducked behind a ride simulator as Gabriel turned around.
“Who said anything about marriage?” Gabriel laughed. “Imagine that. An eternity of commitment.”
“There’s no harm in the occasional human analogy,” Alobard told him. “Human companionship certainly has it’s uses. As for an eternity of commitment, pass. Why buy the cow when the blood is free.”
“That’s one way to put it,” Gabriel laughed, his eyes shimmering gold as they walked through the arcade.
“What are humans but our prototype? They are the equivalent of, if I may use another human analogy, embryos. Only from a human can one of us be created,” Alobard said.
More vampire talk! And the way they talk about us. Sounds like they think of us like meat. Well, at least the one named Gabriel. The blond one is just as unusual though. Neither can be trusted, Mason thought to himself as he continued following them from afar.
The vampires stopped, watching a set of teenagers play a shooting game.
“That looks pretty fun,” Gabriel to a teenage girl. “You’re really good at that.”
“Thanks,” the girl smiled, turning her head from the screen to look at the vampire. “That’s a really cool jacket.”
“Thanks. I’m Gabe,” he said to her.
“Cool, Gabe. I’m Alicia.”
“And this is my friend, Al,” Gabriel said. Alobard nodded to the girl and spoke to the boy next to her.
“You make it look so easy,” Alobard told the boy.
“It’s my favorite,” the boy said. “You’re Al, right? You wonna play?”
“Sure,” Alobard said. The boy handed him the controller and told Alobard his name was Jake. “Alicia’s my sister,” he told Alobard.
“How nice,” Alobard said as he shot two zombies on the game. “Two for the price of one. How about that.”
Mason continued watching them as they played with their new acquaintances. Playing games with teenagers, eh? Playing isn’t the right word. Unless that’s what you call it when a cat toys with a mouse. Seducing more like. They’ll never get me. I’d never fall for that. No way. No how.
“Hey Mason!” Matthew called. “What’re you doing over there!?”
Mason ducked, turned around, and spotted Matthew flagging him down. “Shhhh!” Mason whispered.
“Why are you acting so strange? We’ve been looking all over for you,” Matthew told him.
Mason quickly looked back toward the zombie game and noticed the vampires were still focused on their new acquaintances.
“Hey Mason!” a voice called out. Mason turned back around, away from the vampires, and saw Sebastian rush toward him waving. “Come on,” Sebastian said, “we got one more game to play!”
It was then that Sebas
tian looked over Mason’s shoulders and spotted two of the vampires he recognized from Vampyr Manor. Sebastian quickly looked away, acting as if nothing were different or out of the ordinary.
“But, but,” Mason stammered, as Sebastian and Matthew pulled him away.
From the corner of his eye, Mason watched as the two teenagers walked away with the vampires. Gabriel’s arm around the girl. Alobard’s arm across the boy’s shoulder. They escorted the teens away and out of sight.
There was nothing Mason could do. Not even if he wanted to. He was no match for a vampire, no less two of them. But maybe he could have shouted something. Maybe he could have created a distraction. But he did nothing – too paralyzed by the discussion and seduction he’d just witnessed as his friends dragged him away.
“Something’s gotta be done,” Mason mumbled. “They’ve gotta be stopped.” Then his friends pulled him over to one more arcade game.
“We promise you’re going to love this one,” Matthew said to Mason.
Sebastian nudged him and Mason looked up. The arcade game was titled Vampire Killer.
***
It was still Wednesday. It was dawn. Sheriff Zeddman was in civilian clothing for the first time since the football game – not counting when he wore nighttime pajamas to bed. He was even in his own civilian car, the one he owned. He rarely ever drove it. Once a week if he was lucky. At least he never had to worry about putting much mileage on it. Nor did he have to change the oil as often as a car that was driven seven days a week, like most were.
Vampires be gone! Sheriff Zeddman tossed all his worries to the back of his mind. He’d put on a dress shirt and blazer, the same outfit he wore to church on the occasional Sundays when he was off from work.
He’d sprayed whatever brand of cologne his secretary got him last Christmas – the bottle still being ubiquitously full and rarely used. Then he stopped at the closest grocery store and picked up a dozen roses, the kind that were stored in a cooler and didn’t come in a vase. The roses were bright red but had yet to blossom. Still, he figured Mel would appreciate them.
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