by Shayla Hyde
"Oh, my goodness, are you okay, ma'am?" Iris offered her a hand.
The jogger took her offer and pulled herself off the ground, "I'm okay. It was just a branch, I didn't see it."
"Are you sure you're alright, ma'am? You're bleeding," Iris pointed to the thick dark liquid oozing down the woman's leg.
I gasped. I watched Jake's facial expression. I waited. I braced myself. His dark eyes quickly flashed over to an all-too-familiar crimson.
"I'm alright. Again, thank you so much." The jogger said to Iris before turning away and continuing her run.
Jake stepped ahead of Iris. He had his back to her, and his hungry eyes sharply pinned on the jogging woman.
"Iris, you need to get out of here." Jake growled.
"Excuse me?"
"You need to leave now." He exclaimed.
Finally, through my peripheral vision, I saw Kaden dart out of the tunnel toward Jake. I jumped to my feet and shot out of my hiding place as quickly as my legs would allow. Jake heard the rustling and turned to face us. His fangs were bared, and his eyes glowed dangerously. Iris screamed at the terrifying sight of his face. Jake suddenly shot forward at the speed of light and grabbed the jogger, tearing his teeth into her throat. The woman shrieked ear- piercingly, but it didn't stop or slow him down. Kaden quickly tackled Jake from behind and threw him against the pavement with a harsh thud. He seized Jake's arms and detained them behind his back. "Don't try to resist," Kaden snarled, "I'm much older and much stronger than you. It would be a waste of energy."
Iris watched the situation unfold in terror. I finally reached her side and took her forearm in my grasp.
"Iris!" I shouted, "we have to get out of here."
"The woman," Iris whimpered. "He hurt her. We have to get a paramedic."
"Kaden will take care of her, I promise. We have to go, come on," I shouted, dragging her to her truck.
I helped her into the truck before hopping in the driver’s seat myself.
I quickly cranked up and threw the pickup in reverse. I glanced at Kaden once more before tearing out of the parking lot. Jake was
snarling and trying to break free of Kaden’s strong grasp but was getting nowhere with it. Kaden kept his eyes on us until we were out of his sight.
Iris silently stared out the windshield in a state of shock. She started to sob softly whenever we reached the highway.
"Eve," she whispered, tears falling from her widened eyes. "What just happened?"
I glanced over at her and sighed guiltily, "There are things that you don't know. Things I swore I wouldn't tell, but when we get to my house, Iris, I am going to tell you everything."
She fell silent again. She stared ahead with her mouth agape and tears dripping onto her shirt.
"Vampires?" Iris gulped.
I nodded slowly.
"So, let me get this straight. Kaden and his family are vampires. Blondey-Bitch turned my ex-boyfriend into one, and then your birthmark supposedly killed him, but didn't kill him?"
I nodded again, "I know exactly how it all sounds, but yes." Iris blinked hard, taking a long sip of water. "How in the world did you keep this to yourself?"
"I wanted to tell you so bad, but I promised Kaden I wouldn't," I frowned. "Aren't you mad at me?"
"No, I'm not mad at you, Eve. You just saved my life," she asserted. She rested her head in her trembling hand and sighed heavily. "At the party, you were trying to protect me, and I wouldn't listen to you. I'm sorry. I’m such an idiot."
"Don't be sorry," I shook my head, dropping on the couch next to her.
"You didn't know. I should have told you."
"So, the door slamming and locking at Kaden's house. Was that your mark?"
"I think so," I admitted, "but it's supposed to work against vampires. I don't know how I could have done that."
"That's badass," she smiled, "and technically, you were working against a vampire. You were trying to keep me from going to see one." "I guess you're right," I nodded., "It's a little far-fetched, don't you think?"
"Maybe your mark is just more powerful than you credit it to be," she suggested, chugging the remaining drops of her water.
I stared at her, internally wondering if she could be right.
"Can I get something a little stronger than water?" Iris asked, holding up her cup.
I grinned, "My dad's liquor cabinet is above the sink to the right. Go crazy."
"Thanks," she uttered, rising from the couch and heading toward the kitchen.
Knock, knock.
"Eve. Can I come in?" Kaden's voice echoed through the front door.
"Um, yes," I invited him. "Come in."
The door squeaked open, and he stepped inside. His grey t-shirt was ripped to shreds and splattered with blood.
"Are you okay?" I inquired, tensing up.
He nodded, "Yes, are you?"
"We are good. Where's Jake?" I nervously wondered.
"My house. He’s not going anywhere. I'm going to try to teach him my way of living," he told me. "I just wanted to come by and make sure you two were alright.” I forced a grin.
Iris stepped back into the living room just then with a bottle of whiskey in one hand and a two-liter of Coca-Cola in the other. "And now I can see that you are," Kaden grinned, dropping his gaze. "What about the woman? Is she okay?" Iris asked, joining me on the couch again.
"Yes, she will be fine," he assured her.
Iris nodded and stared at the floor with a cheerless expression on her face.
Kaden cleared his throat, "hey, Iris?"
She silently met eyes with him again.
"I just want you to know that Jake had no intentions of hurting you or anyone else tonight. Just as he told you, he wanted to get some things off his chest before leaving town," Kaden explained. "The scent of blood set him off because he's new. He hasn’t learned self-control yet and couldn't stop himself tonight, but I am going to work with him. I am going to help him. Please, don't hate him for this. When he came to and realized what he'd done, he was inconsolable."
Iris stayed quiet, but I noticed her eyes were slowly filling with tears again.
“There’s something else,” Kaden admitted. Iris lifted her gaze to him once more.
“If you want to forget about this whole ordeal, all you have to do is give me the say-so,” he said softly. “I can make you forget.” I felt my eyes widen.
“No, I don’t want to forget,” Iris quickly declined. “Don’t worry, Kaden. Your secret is safe with me. Just please promise me you’ll take care of Jake.”
"Of course.” Kaden respectfully nodded to us both, backtracking toward the front door. “Good night, ladies," he whispered. He slipped out the door just as quickly as he'd come in.
CHAPTER TWELVE:
Four cloaked figures stood over me. I was sprawled out and paralyzed on the crisp forest floor. There was an orange light bouncing off the dark trees around me indicating there was a fire somewhere nearby. I was unable to move as one of the figures stepped forward, leaving the other three behind. Whatever it was outstretched a long, bony hand and grabbed me by my hair. I couldn't feel the pain that should've been there. I was numb.
The figure balanced me on my feet, and whispered to me in a deep, raspy tone, "Do you see what you have done, Evelyn?"
I glanced down at the forest floor, seeing only autumn leaves at first. Then, I saw the burning corpses. Just ahead of us were the lifeless bodies of my friends and my father. They were piled on top of one another, all their bodies set ablaze. Iris was at the top of the pile, then Kaden, then my father. Their gruesome facial expressions and departed eyes were all fixated on me.
I gasped, quickly breaking my gaze from the grisly sight. I stared up at the cloaked figure and began to sob uncontrollably. That's when I heard a soft snicker come from beneath the cloak. My mourning quickly converted to rage. I fearlessly snatched the mask from the stranger's face, revealing an unfamiliar, eerie man.
He had an exaggerated smile on
his sunken, colorless face and his eyes were wine red. His silvery hair was shoulder-length. He leered at me and caressed my cheekbone softly, making me flinch away. "Why?" I whimpered, glimpsing at the remains of the people I care about most.
"Don’t take it personally. We are only doing what we must do. We vampires are a dying breed. It's our job as the Primevals to eliminate any threats," he whispered to me softly, his bony fingers caressing my neck, "and you, my darling, are a threat." He turned his head to the side, his enormous smile somehow growing even larger. "Oh, how you look just like your mother."
I stared at him, perplexed. My mark started to burn vigorously. Through the corner of my eye, I saw a golden beam radiating from my neck region. The rays of light expeditiously diverged toward the man and the other three cloaked figures. Before it could strike any of them, the man quickly gripped my head in his robust hands and jerked upward.
My head was detached from my shoulders with an intense tear. I helplessly stared at the man for a moment before he hurled my head into the fire with the others' bodies. Through the flames, I watched as the four figures marched away. They were carrying my body with them. I screeched with everything in me, but they never turned back.
"Eve! Eve, wake up!" Iris screamed.
I jerked awake and rubbed my sleepy eyes with clenched fists. When
I pried them open, I saw Iris’s disturbed facial expression. She was lying on the bed next to me. I was relieved to see that she wasn't actually on fire and I hadn’t actually been decapitated.
She tilted her head to the side and peered at me. "Bad dream?" I nodded, "you could say that." I propped myself up on my elbows and deeply exhaled.
Iris sat up with me, still studying me. "Well, after last night, that’s expected. That’s why I stayed awake.”
I faced away from her, rolling onto my side, "That’s no good. You need to rest.” I threw my legs over the edge of my bed. "What time is it, anyway?"
"Midday," she rolled her eyes. “It’s been a lonely morning.” I stood up, stretching my arms over my head, "Well, why didn't you wake me up sooner?"
"You looked so peaceful and happy," she smiled, "up until a couple minutes ago."
I walked to my closet and tugged the door open. I scanned through my clothes for something comfortable to change into. "So, how are you?" I asked. "Are you feeling okay today?"
"Yeah, I'm good," she said with a sigh, "I mean, as good as I can be. I have a busting headache, and I puked for most of the night and morning. Now that the hangover is fading, I’m just trying to take everything in. I’m still not exactly sure what I saw or what to believe or think about any of this. I'm just going with the motions, you know?"
"Yeah," I raised my eyebrows, "I actually do."
"Not even gonna lie, though, I could use an Advil or something," she chuckled weakly.
I grabbed an oversized t-shirt and a pair of dark blue skinny jeans from my closet, quickly and awkwardly dressing myself. "I'll grab you a couple," I told her, sucking in to button my jeans.
"I got it," she waved me away, standing from the bed and stomping up the hallway. "I think I know where the medicine cabinet is." I perched on the foot of my bed with a sigh. My nightmare had left me feeling uneasy. My cell phone chimed suddenly, startling me.
It was flashing with a new text message from “Dad”. I snagged it from my nightstand and clicked on the text.
It read,
Just letting you know I'll be home in a couple of hours. See you soon!
Amidst all the chaos, I'd managed to completely forget he was coming back so soon. I smirked, feeling the tiniest twinge of normalcy. I rested my cell phone face down on my mattress as I heard footsteps approaching from the hallway.
"So, what adventure or mythical creature awaits us today?" Iris questioned me from the doorway. She popped two tiny pills into her mouth and washed them down with a bottle of water.
"Um, my dad will be home in a couple of hours," I told her. "Not
much of an adventure, and I don’t think he’s a mythical creature, but you can stay over for dinner and meet him if you want."
"Sweet, I get to meet Mr. Stanton," Iris grinned. "Wait, what if he notices his whiskey is gone?"
"You drank the whole bottle?" I stared at her in awe.
"Don't be so judgmental," she gaped at me. "You told me to go crazy.
It was only, like, half-full."
I shook my head, a smile cracking on my lips. "Maybe he won't notice," I shrugged convincingly.
"If he does, you'd better take the blame," Iris chortled, "I need him to like me."
Iris and I cleaned up the house a bit before my dad got home. I tossed random popcorn kernels along with Dad's drained whiskey bottle in the trash while Iris swept the kitchen floor.
"How do you think Jake is doing? You know, with Kaden training him and all?" Iris asked me suddenly, a glum expression on her face. She stopped sweeping, resting her chin on the broom handle.
I hesitated for a moment as I tried to conjure up a positive response,
"I'm sure he’s fine. Jake is in good hands."
She considered what I said and slowly nodded. She started to sweep the floor again.
"Dad will be here any minute," I told her, tying the trash bag, "I'm gonna take out the trash. Remember, be careful with what you say in front of him."
She nodded in agreement without making eye contact. I hurriedly slipped out the front door and lumbered the garbage bag toward the street to our bin. I reluctantly glanced across the street at the Clark house. The two-story home was shrouded in such a dark and sorrowful aura that it made chills trickle down my spine. Dead leaves covered the driveway where Bradley’s metallic mustang should have been, and his parent’s black Crown Vic was still nowhere to be seen. They must have left town, I thought to myself with a frown.
I chucked the bag over my shoulder. It landed in the bin with a thud, and I slammed the lid shut. Just as I started strolling back up my driveway, I heard a loud diesel engine roaring up the street and smirked softly. I knew exactly who it was without even glancing back. I stopped by the front door and waited.
Sure enough, my dad's semi-truck came into view a moment later. He peeled down the street and curved into our drive at the very last minute.
He waved wildly from the driver's seat as he parked next to Iris's truck.
I waved back with a grin.
He hopped to the ground, beelining toward me with a goofy grin on his face, “Hey, stranger!”
"Hey," I smiled, embracing him tightly. "How'd it go?"
"Good," he gave me a quick bear-hug, "I'm sure we have a lot to catch up on, eh?"
You have no idea, I thought to myself with a grimace.
The front door squeaked open behind us, and Iris stepped outside.
"You must be Iris," Dad said, offering her a hand.
She smiled, giving his hand a firm shake, "That would be me. Nice to meet you, sir."
"Call me Frank," he nonchalantly said. "Would you like to stay for dinner, Iris? How do you feel about tacos?"
Later that evening, I silently sat at the kitchen table and stared at the black oblivion beyond the glass window. Anxious thoughts dwelled in my head for seemingly no reason. I subconsciously wondered if maybe someone or something was watching me from the other side. I sighed a long, shaky breath and averted my eyes from the darkness.
"What's wrong? Am I taking too long with the tacos?"
I grinned over my shoulder at my dad, who was slaving over the stove for the sole purpose of my taco addiction.
“Nah,” I chuckled, "I'm glad I'm finally eating something that isn't frozen pizza or microwavable."
I faced away from him again and felt the smile on my face slowly dwindle. I didn’t know why, but I couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.
"You okay? You don't look so good," Iris inquired, pulling a chair across from me and plopping down in it.
"Yeah, about that," Dad butted in, "I'm not going to ask y
ou what happened to my bourbon."
Iris’s eyes widened in horror. I tightly closed my eyes, fighting to hold in my laughter.
"I don't know what you're talking about," I grinned innocently. Suddenly, a stabbing pain pulsed in my neck area. I whimpered softly, pressing my palm against it. Iris gaped at my birthmark, her eyes widening even more.
"What is it? You okay, Kid?" Dad questioned me, dropping his spatula in the skillet and coming to my aid.
"I'm good," I claimed. "Just a crick in my neck or something." Something told me not to drop my hand. Dad peered down at me for a moment before nodding and returning to the stove.
When his back was to us again, I glanced at Iris and silently mouthed,
"What's wrong?"
She uneasily nodded toward my mark and quietly whispered, "It was glowing."
For the rest of dinner, I awkwardly held one palm over my mark in case it started acting up again.
That night, after Iris went home, I sat awake in the living room for hours. My dad had abruptly gone to bed after dinner, so I tried not to be too rowdy while eating my junk food and watching television. Two movies in, my eyes started to feel heavy. I decided that it was bedtime and forced myself off the couch.
On my way to my bedroom, an unexpected noise coming from my father's room startled me. It sounded like sobbing. His bedroom door was already cracked open a couple of inches, so I softly and sneakily pushed it open a few more. I just wanted to make sure he was alright. From where I was standing, I could see him sitting on the edge of his bed.
He was facing away from me and his body trembled as he sobbed quietly to himself. Though his room was dimly lit by a single lamp, I could see that he was holding a photograph. I squinted, my eyes adjusting to the dark room and realized it was a photo of my mother that I'd never seen before. It was taken at the beach, and she was a young adult in the picture. She was smiling radiantly and beautifully at the camera. She stood with her toes in the sand and the sun shining brightly on her warm skin. She was wearing a ginormous sunhat on her head and an over-sized rock band t-shirt over her swimsuit bottoms. My dad clutched the photo tightly as he cried. I frowned and started to turn away to give him some space when something about the photo abruptly caught my eye. I noticed something about my mother that I'd never seen before in any of her other pictures. On the left side of her neck, located just above her collarbone was a birthmark. A birthmark exactly like mine.
