by Shayla Hyde
I took a deep breath, taking it in, "Oh. Okay."
"Is this too much for one sitting? Should we put this conversation on hold for a bit?" He asked, concern in his eyes.
"I'm handling it," I defended myself.
"Yes, quite well." He complimented me, "Better than most would." "Maybe it's because I know my birthmark will kill you if you try anything funny," I barked back.
His eyes widened with amusement, “Fair enough.”
"Wait, so how did you find me in the woods?" I asked, folding my arms over my chest, "Have you been stalking me?"
"I heard your screams." He explained. "You were very close to my house."
I nodded, staring down at the floor, "And why, of all the homes in
Portland, did Jake decide to knock on the front door of mine?"
"Fate," he shrugged "Who knows. Maybe your house was the closest."
I thought of Iris.
"What am I supposed to tell Iris?" I said bitterly, "Jake was her ex-boyfriend. She still loves him."
"Nothing," he responded quickly, "You can't tell her anything, do you understand?"
I nodded, "But I feel terrible. I killed someone tonight." "That adrenaline rush must be wearing off," he commented.
I glared at him.
"Eve, do not blame yourself for his death. You didn't kill Jake. My sister killed Jake. She drank too much blood and didn't heal him afterward. He bled to death. That thing your mark killed? That wasn't Jake anymore," he placed his hand on my shoulder. "You probably spared lots of lives tonight, maybe even Iris's. He would've gone on a murdering spree without another vampire coaching him on morality." I stayed quiet, still feeling a guilty pit in my gut.
"You said she drank too much blood without healing him," I said,
"How exactly do you heal someone?"
"By drinking a few drops of our blood," he explained. "It heals you instantly, but Elizabeth was careless. She claims she tried to heal him, but I doubt she did. Anyway, if you die with vampire blood in your system, you come back as one."
I nodded quietly, trying to make sense of what he was telling me. "Come on, let's get you home. It's late. We can talk some more about it on the way," Kaden said, heading toward the bedroom door.
"Who is out there?" I asked, remembering Elizabeth’s and the male's voices from before.
"Elizabeth and Sebastian, my siblings," he responded, a smile forming on his lips, "but don't worry. They won't bite."
He motioned for me to follow him and I hesitantly left my corner of the bedroom.
CHAPTER EIGHT:
Kaden led me down a long, dark hallway and into a dimly lit dining room. I could see two silhouettes sitting at a dining room table, hidden behind tall candlesticks.
"Ah, would you look at that?" a male's disembodied voice erupted from the darkness. "It's Buffy the Vampire Slayer."
I saw one silhouette strike the other in the arm.
"Shut up, Sebastian," a female's voice whispered back sharply. "Seriously, Elizabeth?" Kaden approached the table while I stood back. "You told him?"
The silhouette of a man rose from the table and stepped toward Kaden.
"And what's so wrong with that if she did?" The man, Sebastian, interrogated gratingly.
"You tend to cause harm to things you feel threatened by," Kaden snapped back.
" Do you really think I'd hurt her?" Sebastian chuckled. "Come on,
Brother."
"You've already tried to once." Kaden growled.
I raised an eyebrow and pursed my lips together. There was only one man I could think of that had tried to cause me harm since arriving in Portland.
"Hang on," Sebastian chuckled, taking a few strides in my direction, "I do know you."
He darted over to me in a flash. With his face only inches from mine, I was able to make out his features. I flinched slightly when I realized I was correct about Sebastian's identity. He was the man in the black hoodie that terrorized me in the mall the day I met Kaden. "I was looking for a snack in the food court and found one," he smiled menacingly, "but it got away." He turned his attention back to
Kaden, "Thanks to you."
"I guess you'd better be thankful for that," Kaden growled, "because if I hadn't made you leave her alone, you would be a pile of ashes right now."
Sebastian cackled, returning to the table. He lifted a glass full of a dark substance to his lips and took a large sip.
"So, what are you going to do with her?" Sebastian questioned Kaden, resting on top of the table.
"I'm going to take her home," Kaden retorted, "What else?" "Aren't you going to make her forget?" Sebastian inquired.
"Can't," Kaden responded, "that doesn't work on her."
Suddenly, the female silhouette resting at the table, Elizabeth, rose to her feet. "Can I try?" she asked, taking a step in our direction. The girl approached me despite my not giving her an answer. Her heels slowly clicked against the wooden floor as she immerged from the shadows. I instantly recognized her as well. Elizabeth was Blondey from school. I should have known. She was the last person I'd seen with Bradley and Jake.
It was difficult for me to process how she was so tiny and petite yet was capable of overpowering and decapitating a six-foot-tall burly quarterback. The closer she got to me, the queasier I felt.
"You're wasting your time," Kaden complained. "It won't work." She reached her chilly hands out and planted them on each side of my face, staring intently into my eyes. "None of this is real. You are having a nightmare," Elizabeth said softly, "but you will wake up in your own bed soo-"
Out of the corner of my eye, I could faintly see a yellow illumination.
It was only there for a moment before evaporating into thin air. Elizabeth suddenly shrieked and jerked her hands from my face. I stared at her, addled, while she inspected her hands.
"Well? What the hell happened, Elizabeth?" Sebastian interrogated, sprinting over to us.
"Her mark. It lit up," Elizabeth paused briefly, her eyes full of bewilderment, "and it burned my hands."
"It did?" I asked, quickly shielding it with my hand.
Elizabeth nodded slowly, "It hurt like hell, but that was kind of...
cool."
"I told you it wouldn't work," Kaden grumbled, grabbing my forearm. Sebastian and Elizabeth ogled me like I was some sort of aberration of nature while Kaden pulled me away from them. He led me outside through a sliding glass door and slammed it shut behind us. My eyes traveled up the timber walls of his home. The cabin was a two-story with multiple windows and a patio on the second level. The moon peeked at me radiantly from the rooftop. The cottage was surrounded by dense woodland. The rich scent of pine filled my nostrils.
"Sorry about that," he huffed, releasing my arm.
"Don't be," I muttered softly.
"I wish I could make you forget," he uttered, averting his eyes to the trees.
"But what if I don't want to forget?" I responded quickly, capturing his attention.
"Why wouldn't you?" Kaden asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Because now I know to be on the lookout," I whispered, "and the fact that vampires are real, and I have some sort of magical mark? It's kind of amazing."
He stayed silent, his face twisting into a grimace. "What is it?" I asked, catching his eyes.
He shook his head, “Nothing.”
I stepped closer to him, leaning against the wooden house alongside him. "Can I ask you another question?" I quietly said. "Sure," he gruffly responded, staring forward and the dark wilderness.
"How did you become one?" I muttered, “A, uh, a vampire.” He glanced down at me, “In 1898. I was, um, I was drafted to a war I didn’t want to be in. Yellow Fever took my human life. Sebastian died alongside me of Typhoid and infected battle wounds. Elizabeth, a stranger to us both, disguised herself as an American nurse. She mixed a few drops of her immortal blood with our water for weeks as an attempt to heal us, but apparently our sicknesses were two of the many that vampire blood
cannot heal. Sebastian and I perished on the same night, both dying with immortal blood in our systems. We both came back as… this.”
I gawked at him, "Wait, so... They're not actually related to you?"
"No, but we will always consider ourselves a family," he said,
"despite how mad they drive me."
I nodded and swallowed hard, "I guess that makes sense."
"Come on, let's get you home," he said, heading toward the forest.
"What?" I said, "don't you have a car we could take?"
"I can get you there a lot quicker than my car can," he said cockily. "Do you even know where I live, though?" I questioned him, still standing in place, “I guess you do since you’ve been stalking me, huh?”
"I can smell your path from earlier," he explained. "We will follow it."
I reluctantly joined him in stomping toward the woods. Without any notice, I was swept off my feet by Kaden and thrown on his muscular back. I tightly wrapped my legs around his toned torso and my arms around his wide shoulders, clinging to him for dear life as he darted through the forest at a breakneck speed. As we zoomed through the trees, I was stunned but had an exhilarating feeling that I couldn't hold back. It was like I was a kid on a joy ride at an amusement park. I couldn't stop myself from smiling the whole way.
A short while later, we reached my neighborhood. We stood in the tree line behind Bradley's house, facing the street. I stared across the street at my dark, vacant house and anxiously bit my lip.
"What is it?" he asked, following my gaze.
"I guess I'm just a little nervous about being here alone," I admitted,
"After everything."
"Alone? Where are your parents?" he ran his fingers through his wind-blown hair.
"My dad is a truck driver, and he's on the road," I explained.
"And your mom?" he asked, his eyes squinted.
His question tugged a tender spot in my heart. He studied my face,
and a look of realization came over his. I didn’t have to explain it to him. He just knew.
"Oh," he whispered huskily, "I'm sorry, Eve."
"It's okay," I said just above a whisper. I cleared my throat and quickly changed the subject. "Could you walk me to my house and make sure there's no one inside? I'll be fine after that," I asked. He nodded in agreement, and I quietly led him across the street to my house. I noticed on the way that there was still no one home at
Bradley’s. I frowned, upping my pace to my house. To my dismay, the front door was standing wide open from the night's earlier events. I nervously walked inside, scanning the living room for any unwanted guests.
Kaden paused in the doorway.
"Are you coming?" I stared at him, confused.
"Yes," he reassured me, "but first, I'm gonna need you to invite me in."
"That's a thing?" I asked, my eyes widening.
"Unfortunately," he told me, resting a muscular arm on my door frame.
"Well, in that case..." I cleared my throat, "Would you like to come inside?"
He grinned softly, stepping through the invisible force field that was holding him back, “I’d be honored.” He walked ahead of me and did a quick run-through of the whole house. While he was checking all the rooms, my eyes fell on the bloody towel and gauze lying on the hardwood floor. I quickly snatched them up and rushed to dispose of them.
"You're all clear," he shouted from the hallway when he finished his inspection. He joined me in the living room.
"Thanks..." I paused. "Could I, um, ask you some more questions?" "How about this? Tomorrow, I will come back over, and you can ask me anything you want," he offered, glancing down at my neck.
I nodded in agreement, "Okay, yeah. Tomorrow works."
My lips twitched, and I dropped my eyes. I saw my cell phone lying on the couch and felt my heart drop.
"Oh, my God!" I shouted, sprinting down the hallway.
"Is... everything okay?" he asked, puzzled. He watched me grab my charger from the floor between my room and my dad’s. "No, I forgot my dad was supposed to be calling me back," I explained, quickly rushing by him. I jumped on the couch and hooked my charger to my phone.
"Oh," he chuckled softly, "Okay." "What?" I scowled at him.
"You were so calm about everything else that happened tonight. You
handled it all so well, but you realized you forgot to call your dad…” Kaden trailed off, a toothy smile on his face.
I glared at him, impatiently waiting for my phone to restart.
“Well, I guess I better get back before my siblings go on a murdering spree. You’ll be okay tonight?” Kaden raised his eyebrows. I bit my lip, “Yeah, I’ll be fine. Thanks.”
“Okay,” he nodded, stepping toward the front door.
“So, um, I’ll see you tomorrow?” I questioned him, making him
pause.
He glanced over his shoulder at me. “See you tomorrow,” he confirmed, his voice raspy.
I followed Kaden to the front door and quietly watched him stride across the street toward the woodland. I didn’t understand how any of this could be possible or why I wasn’t scared out of my wits. Something in my gut told me there was nothing to be afraid of. My comfort could’ve been coming from the weapon on my throat or simply the disbelief that I was in any danger with Kaden.
I kept my eyes on him until he disappeared into the shadows.
CHAPTER NINE:
Knock, knock, knock.
I lurched forward on my mattress, soaked in sweat and feeling nauseous.
"Eve, you home?" Iris's muffled voice called through the door.
"One sec!" I shouted back, tossing my blanket off.
I had forgotten Iris was going to be coming over. My heart pounded.
How was I supposed to play this off?
I dangled my legs over the edge of the bed and compelled myself to stand. My head spun and pounded with each step I took toward the living room. I stumbled to the front door and briefly struggled with the lock before unfastening it. I cracked the door open, the sunlight burning my eyes, and greeted Iris.
She was standing in the doorway with a soft smile on her face and an over-packed bag hanging on her shoulder. She was wearing a black tank top matched with some dark blue jean shorts.
"Good morning, beautiful," she chuckled, "you realize it's like 1 P.M, right?"
"Really?" I asked through squinted eyes, glancing back at my clock,
"huh."
"Are we still on? For me staying a few days?" she questioned unconfidently, poking her bottom lip out.
"Yes, of course, we are," I smiled weakly. "Get in here, woman." I tugged the door open the rest of the way and motioned her inside. Her face brightened as she stepped through the door. "Nice place," she complimented, looking around. “I’m surprised I actually convinced my parents to let me stay.”
"I’m glad you were able to,” I grinned. “And thanks. I know it’s still sort of empty in here. I’ve been procrastinating instead of unpacking our decor and stuff.”
She chuckled, taking a few steps closer to the couch. My nausea increased.
"So," I quickly started up a conversation. "Have you heard anything new about Bradley?"
The smile slowly faded from her lips.
She hesitantly bobbed her head, "Actually... yes."
Her reaction made me nervous. "What is it?" I anxiously questioned her, trying to act nonchalant.
"It was Bradley. He was murdered..." she explained. "My dad was actually one of the officers at the scene yesterday."
I stared at her attentively, the anticipation making my forehead sweat. "They found him on the football field. He was laying in the end zone, and he was..." she paused, swallowing hard, "decapitated. He was cradling his head in his arms like a football."
I dropped my head, my heart pounding against my chest. "That's awful," I muttered sorely. Knowing exactly what happened to him, I couldn’t help but feel like I was partially responsible for his death. "And get this, so
meone destroyed all the cameras that point on the field except for one. It was hidden out of sight beside the home-side bleachers. My dad is going to watch surveillance today and see if they caught anything." She said optimistically.
I felt the color drain from my face.
She studied me over, "Are you okay, Eve?"
I nodded a few quick times, "Of course."
"You seem a little... off. Did something happen last night?"
I felt a guilty lump rise in my throat, and I quickly shook my head,
"No."
Iris studied me for a bit longer and opened her mouth to respond, but she was suddenly interrupted by a sharp knock on the door.
"This is Andy from Auto Transport," a man's deep voice called out, "I have a delivery for the Stanton's."
I slowly staggered toward the door.
"Eve, are you sure you're alright?" Iris interrogated, noticing my dizziness.
"I'm fine," I told her, lugging the door open.
There was an older guy at the door with a scruffy black beard and dark skin. He was wearing a company uniform and had a warm, charming smile on his oval face. In his hand was a pair of car keys. "We're the Stanton's," I said, peeking around him and happily seeing my dad's black Nissan parked in the driveway.
"Awesome, can I get your ID, ma'am?"
"Yes," I held up my index finger, "I'll have to go find it."
"That's alright," he shook his head, "Take your time."
I hobbled away to the kitchen where I assumed I'd left my wallet. I didn't see it at first, but after moving around some of the clutter on the counter, I spotted the purple leather. I tried to hurry back to the front door with it, but I was suddenly hit by an even stronger spell of dizziness. I stopped in my tracks and grabbed onto the kitchen wall for support.
Iris was carrying on a friendly conversation with Andy from Auto Transport, so I took a moment to regain my composure before stepping back into the living room. Andy smiled that same cordial smile when I returned. I displayed my license for him.
"Evelyn Stanton," he muttered. "Alright honey, I just need you to sign this slip, and you're good to go."
