We were flying.
I wanted to see him again. I had to see him again. There was no doubt in my mind. This wasn’t something I could give up. If the boy didn’t come back to me, I was going to find him, and I didn’t care how long it took.
Sometime in the late afternoon, the bodies at the warehouse were discovered. Apparently, it was pretty gruesome, because there were even more police in front of our house than earlier. Still, they couldn’t do much. My father and his team made short work of all their requests.
“I don’t know who saved my daughter,” Dad said. “I wish I did know. I’d give them a reward. They did the job none of you idiots managed to do. If it wasn’t for them, my daughter would have never made it back to me.”
The police and all their investigative friends weren’t going to win against my father. They knew it. Everyone in the room knew it. Sure, they’d try and drag things out for a few months, but it was pretty much over.”
There were crime scene photos of the warehouse. I wasn’t allowed to see them. They were that bad. My rescuers had been exceptionally cruel to my captors.
I spend almost an hour in the shower.
Afterward, I cuddled up with my little brother, Tyler, and his mess of blonde curls. He wasn’t exactly happy about it, but I cuddled him regardless. My father came in after the police had left. He sat with us for a bit, gave me a kiss on the head, and then he was gone. He seemed nervous.
It was about a half an hour before sunset, and I was all alone in the house with my little brother. Dad leaving wasn’t a great shock. He was a workaholic, and damn proud of it. My little brother and I understood. We lived exceptionally well because of my father’s drive. I wasn’t going to complain. I could handle things without him.
After sunset, I found myself looking out the windows. Hoping that the dark-haired boy with luminous skin was out there waiting for me, but I didn’t see him.
I went swimming after Tyler went to bed.
I floated on my back in the middle of the pool, looking up at the stars, and wondering if I’d ever see the vampire boy again. Where did my father find him? How could I find him? Did he want to be found?
Derry
I woke up in an abandoned part of the subway surrounded by four purring cats that were just waiting for me to open my eyes. I immediately started laughing as they pushed against me in a competition for attention.
I was hungry. I was very hungry. My summer girl had done that to me. After spending a few minutes with her, I could feed on an entire high school before I was satisfied. There were some homeless people in the subway not far away from me, but I wasn’t interested in them.
I spent some time with the cats, how could I not. Afterward, when I had made my way out of the subway tunnels, I found Ciaran and Lorcan waiting for me.
“I’m worried,” Lorcan said.
“You let that girl see you,” Ciaran said.
The girl. I didn’t want to share her with my brothers just yet. The girl had touched something in me that I wasn’t entirely comfortable with.
“The girl won’t be a problem,” I said. “I’ll keep an eye on her just to make sure, but I’m not worried about her.”
“How can you be sure she’s not a threat?” Ciaran asked.
“She asked me to come back to her,” I answered honestly.
“That doesn’t sound like much of a threat to me,” Lorcan mused.
“Once she’s away from you,’ Ciaran said. “Her viewpoint could easily change. I’m not sure letting her live is a good idea.”
“If I kill her, how are we going to get the house we were promised?” I asked.
“That’s a very good point,” Lorcan added.
“You just want the house,” Ciaran laughed.
“That’s also a very good point,” Lorcan laughed.
My brothers were hilarious, but I really needed to feed. I was probably looking a little rough around the edges, and I found myself wanting to maintain the most perfect and youthful image I could manage, but first, we needed the keys.
The expensive man wasn’t hard to find. We had his scent. There was nowhere he could hide in the city that we wouldn’t be able to find him. We watched him through the window of his sky rise office. He was moving slowly and carefully due to his damaged back.
“You cut him deeply,” I said.
“I did,” Ciaran admitted.
Lorcan laughed.
I had my summer girl’s little teddy bear in my hands. Her scent was all over it. The little bear smelled of sunshine, tanning oil, and youth. I wanted to keep it, but instead, the three of us went into the underground parking lot.
We found a single bodyguard hanging out with the limousine driver. Ciaran handled the bodyguard, and I made sure that the limousine driver looked into my eyes.
Once I had his attention, I worked my magic and gave him my commands. The spellbound limousine driver took the little bear, entered the elevator, and punched in the proper floor.
Lorcan began breaking much of the lighting. The parking garage was much too bright for our tastes, and we appreciated the shadows.
Finally, the expensive man entered the parking garage alone and took a position under one of the few remaining lights. I found that amusing but completely unintelligent. Lorcan quickly moved behind him, and I positioned myself so that he could tell he wasn’t alone in the parking garage, but he still couldn’t see me very well.
“I want to thank you,” the expensive man said. “You brought my daughter back to me. I wish there was more I could do for you.”
“Give us what you promised,” I whispered.
“Absolutely,” the expensive man said as he pulled an envelope out of his breast pocket. “This is the key and the address. If you want, my driver can take you there.”
“No,” I said.
“I could probably find more work for you.”
“No,” I said.
“Well,” the expensive man said. “Perhaps we could talk for a moment. I have some ideas.”
Very quickly, I moved out of the shadows. In the blink of an eye, I was standing right in front of the man. I watched as he took in the sight of me under the stark light, and then I watched as the horror began to settle inside of him.
“Never bother us again,” I said.
Lorcan killed a few more lights, and under cover of darkness, we retreated from the parking garage out into the cool night air. Ciaran was waiting for us in a nearby park. The bodyguard he had captured was just beginning to wake up, and he didn’t seem very happy about his situation.
“What the hell happened?” The big man asked.
Ciaran perched on a park bench in full view of the man.
“Did you not hear me?” The big man asked.
Ciaran only stared at him.
“Fucking kids,” the big man growled as he turned his back on my brother and tried to walk out of the park.
It was a mistake on his part. He should never have turned his back on a potential enemy. At once, Ciaran jumped from the park bench and attached himself to the man’s leg.
“Get the hell off of me,” the big man shouted.
Ciaran only gripped a bit tighter.
The man tried to push him away, and when that didn’t work, he tried shoving my brother away.
“If you don’t let go of my leg, I’m going to hit you!” The big man warned.
Ciaran started climbing up his leg. The big man panicked a bit and started smacking Ciaran on top of his head. The assault didn’t bother my brother in the slightest. Lorcan and I smiled as he made his way onto the big man’s back.
“You motherfucker!” The big man shouted. “I’m going to kill you.”
We watched as the two of them thrashed around. The big man was doing everything within his power to throw my brother off of his back, but nothing seemed to be working.
“What do you want?” The big man asked.
Ciaran wrapped his arms around the big man’s neck and pulled his head to one side.
“Get off of me!” The big man shouted. “Get off of me, or I’ll kill you!”
The big man was sweating profusely, and his struggles were becoming weaker and weaker. When Ciaran bit into his throat, however, the big man found his second wind. He struggled mightily. He even managed to slam his back, and therefore Ciaran into a tree.
My brother would not release his captive.
Lorcan and I could hear Ciaran moaning louder and louder as the big man fought against him. It seemed like an eternity before the two of them tumbled into the grass. A full five minutes later, Ciaran stood back up and joined us with a smile on his face.
“We really are the worst type of monsters,” Lorcan laughed.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“That silly man only wanted help with his daughter,” Lorcan said. “Instead, Ciaran slices up his back and feeds on his bodyguard.”
“He’ll never ask for help from us again,” I said. “So what?”
“It’s good to keep them afraid,” Ciaran said. “Fear keeps them from doing something stupid.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Lorcan said with a little laugh. “We got what we wanted. Now let’s go explore the house.”
Selma
Weeks had gone by, and I had not yet seen my dark-haired boy with the pale skin. I thought we’d had a connection. Apparently, I was wrong. I missed the boy as if I’d known him all my life. I missed the thrill of him, the adventure that his existence could bring into my world.
I spent time with my friends.
Betty and Jake had both been worried sick about me, and it was good to have the normalcy that they provided.
“So, you never saw your rescuers?” Betty asked.
“No,” I answered. “Everything just went dark, and when I woke up, I was outside my house.”
“They must have drugged you somehow,” Jake offered. “Have you tested yourself to see if you have anything in your system?"
“Hell, no,” I answered. “I don’t want my Dad knowing about all the weed I smoke.”
Everyone laughed at that, and that was good. It’s much easier to change the subject when people are laughing and not taking things too seriously.
A few evenings later, and I finally noticed that Dad had a pretty severe injury on his back. I suggested going to the emergency room the moment I saw the wound which looked infected, but Dad wouldn’t even entertain that idea.
“Who did that to you?” I asked.
“Don’t you worry about it,” Dad said. “I’ll handle this on my own. It doesn’t concern you, and to tell the truth, it looks much worse than it feels.”
“Was it the boy?” I asked.
“I told you to forget about that boy,” Dad said. “You’ll never see him again, and believe me when I tell you that that’s for the best, and another thing. Stay away from the Riverside properties. I know you like to take your friends there every now and then, but no more. Those homes are off-limits now.”
“Why?” I asked.
“I’ve given them away,” Dad answered. “And that’s all you need to know. I’m not kidding about this. That boy is dangerous, and I don’t fully understand much of that evening. I meddled with things that were dangerous because I was worried about you. I’d do it again in a heartbeat, but what I did was incredibly dangerous.”
“I understand,” I said, “but he saved me.”
“That doesn’t mean he’s a good person,” Dad said. “Saving you only means that he wanted something from me. Don’t expect him to be a good person if you ever meet him again. Actually, if you ever do see him again, you make sure you run like hell. Go somewhere with a bunch of people. Let them know somebody is after you.”
Dad was nervous, and that was uncommon. His nervousness made me nervous. I wasn’t used to seeing him like that, and therefore I readily agreed to stay far away from Riverside.
The very next morning, I drove over to Riverside. I knew exactly where one of the properties was located. The other two that I knew about would need some research, but I could at least check one of them off the list.
The place in question was a nice two-story house on a cul-de-sac in a nice suburban neighborhood. I saw children on bicycles riding by as I parked in the empty driveway. A few cats were hanging around the front yard.
I knocked on the door.
No answer.
No problem, I had a key.
I used to take my ex to this house every now and then. It was a nice place to escape to when things got too stressful in life. It was also a great place for romantic encounters.
I expected the house to be empty except for the standard furnishings. Instead, the moment I opened the door, I was greeted by a musty smell that was most unusual. There was dirt on the floor, and numerous video game packages scattered in front of a large television.
The refrigerator was empty, and the showers and toilets hadn’t been used in a long while. There was a chill in the air, and for some reason that I couldn’t explain, I was afraid to venture upstairs.
I didn’t feel safe.
I left immediately, knowing that I’d found the right location. I didn’t yet know what I was planning on doing, but I was elated to have lucked out so quickly.
Derry
I wasn’t interested in video games, at least not as much as Lorcan and Ciaran. I was looking for something more enjoyable to do with my time, and I’d already spent too many hours glued to the front of a television screen.
I went looking for Bret.
I didn’t bother with stalking the hospital once more. That certainly didn’t work out for me last time. Already people were talking about a throat-slashing serial killer in Glendale, and my brothers and I decided that it’d be best to lay low for a bit.
We began feeding on the runaways and homeless.
Blood is blood; all it needs to be is warm, wet, and human when you get right down to it. Blood will satiate the hunger. Blood makes everything better, but it’s always a bit more exciting to feed off of people who will be missed.
I materialized at the end of Bret’s street.
There were no vampire hunters, only a single policeman sleeping in an unmarked car. I wasn’t going to bother with the policeman since we were keeping a low profile, and I doubted that the lazy bastard was even going to wake up.
I made my way closer to Bret’s home.
I planned on just walking by. I only wanted to know how many people were in the house. That was all. If Bret was there, I wasn’t going to stop. Just a quick look and I’d be on my way.
Bret was home, and so were his parents.
Bret was sleeping in his room once again. My excitement rose tremendously. I thought for sure that we’d lost Bret. Humans made no sense. Why return to the same house where we’d already gained entrance?
I began to wonder.
Did the vampire hunters tell Bret’s parent’s how to rescind our invitation? The very idea made me angry. Vampire hunters were too meddlesome. If they ruined my access to Bret, I’d need to go and visit them once again.
Bret was having a nightmare. I could hear him tossing and turning as I walked by the house. The thought of his restless evening made me smile. I wasn’t finished with Bret. I wasn’t finished with his family, and now they were all back inside their home, just waiting for me.
I left.
After wandering around the city for a few hours, I found a young runaway to feed on in a derelict apartment building. She filled a need, but she wasn’t exciting. I wanted a challenge. I wanted Bret and his entire family. Hell, I even wanted the sleeping policeman in front of his house.
The runaway was enough.
I flew back to Riverside as fast as possible, hoping that either Lorcan or Ciaran had something fun to do. More likely than not, they were still parked in front of the television in the middle of a new game.
I landed in the backyard and was immediately approached by a striped tabby cat that had recently picked me out as her new best friend. I scooped her up i
n my arms and pushed my face into her clean-smelling fur. The cat purred loudly for me as I entered the house with her.
Ciaran and Lorcan were not playing video games. They were waiting for me, and neither of them looked happy. I understood why the moment I entered the house. I could smell my summer girl everywhere.
Ciaran and Lorcan were angry. No, that’s not accurate. Both of my brothers were furious. This house was their new sanctuary, and they were far from pleased to have an intruder.
“What are we going to do about this?” Ciaran asked.
“I’ll handle it,” I said.
“You were supposed to be on top of this situation,” Ciaran said. “Have you been keeping an eye on this girl or not?”
“I haven’t been,” I answered. “I got distracted, but don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of everything.”
“You need to end her,” Ciaran said. “We can’t allow a human to trespass knowingly on our territory.”
“I’m not going to hurt that girl, and neither will the two of you,” I said. “If any of us harm a hair on her head, we’ll lose this house. Her father knows exactly where we are. This is the first place he’ll send people.”
Neither Ciaran nor Lorcan looked particularly happy about that bit of news. Eventually, we were going to lose this house whether we wanted to or not, the humans always came, but before that happened, we’d hold it for as long as possible.
“I’ll handle the girl,” I said. “She doesn’t mean us harm. She’s just curious.”
Selma
Dad was beginning to worry me. The wound on his back refused to heal, and I couldn’t help but wonder what or who injured him. Where was the boy with the pale skin? I couldn’t stop thinking about him. Would he know that I visited? Should I have left him a note?
I looked at the clock, saw that it was after midnight, and took a quick swim in the pool after I smoked some weed. The water was cool and refreshing, but I couldn’t seem to appreciate anything. My thoughts were a million miles away.
I was a human girl that touched the supernatural and couldn’t once again hold it within my grasp. If the pale boy wanted to see me again, he would have done so. At this point, I was probably becoming his stalker.
The Forgotten: A Vampire Story Page 7
