“Holy shit, Becca,” Lucas mumbled in amusement, “I had no idea you could write such good stuff. It’s good that I have you as my friend. You can do my assignments.”
Becca narrowed her eyes at Lucas. “I am not doing your assignments.”
“Why would she do yours?” Alexander asked. “Are you possibly trying to harm her by being her friend? Your presence seems a little toxic if you ask me.” His eyes challenged Lucas.
Lucas chuckled. “At least my presence doesn’t feel like I am here to snatch some special power Becca has.”
Alexander’s jaw tightened. “If the power does more damage than benefit, it’s better to snatch it away.”
Becca furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Powers? You two should stop talking in weird code language and actually tell me what you mean.”
“Nothing,” the two of them mumbled at once and fixed their gaze on the teacher.
###
Becca and Lucas finished attending their last class and it was time for lunch. As they gossiped and headed towards the cafeteria, things were more unusual than before. Everyone was murmuring something to others and had a worried look.
“What did we miss?” Becca asked Lucas.
He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. Let’s ask someone.” Lucas stopped Antonio and asked, “What happened?”
Antonio wiped the sweat from his forehead and answered with rapid breaths, “Alisha Andy, a senior year student, went missing. She went to hideout on the grassy spot behind her dorm, skipping classes, and hasn’t been seen since. People are worried because of it and searching for her on the entire campus. Do you think a ghost took her away?”
Lucas rolled his eyes hearing the question.
“How can a ghost come at noon?” Becca pointed out.
“Oh, right.” With that, Antonio walked away.
“Maybe she is somewhere laying low, and people are worrying for no reason,” she said, while Lucas was lost in deep thought. She placed her hand over his shoulder. “What are you thinking?”
He responded, “What if a creature took her away, Becca?”
“You mean, a mythological creature?” she breathed out, her eyes widening in horror.
In the meantime, Alexander received a call on his phone from Pristine when he was sitting under the stone pine tree. He picked it up.
“Did you find where the potion might be?” asked Alexander.
Pristine replied over the phone, “Alex, the potion is not kept at a place which only Becca knows.”
“Then?” he questioned. “Where is the potion?”
She said, “The potion is with Becca, Alex. She carries it with her. It was useless to go through her belongings.”
“Shit. It means I was right,” he mumbled.
“About what?” she asked, getting confused at Alexander’s response.
“I found her research book on mythological creatures. It was a sign that she knew about the potion and now that you have mentioned she carries the potion with her, I am a hundred percent sure now,” Alexander explained to Pristine. “I can directly ask her about the vampire potion by hypnotizing her and she will spill the beans. Then I can return back to the vampire world.”
“Seems like we have solved the problem. Best of luck. See you soon, Alex.” With that, she hung up.
A smile formed over Alexander’s lips. Everything was set now. Even Vanessa couldn’t stop him from asking Becca about the potion since he got proof that she knows it all.
Alexander rushed to find Becca. He saw her making her way to the washroom and grabbed her hand, pulling her to the supply closet which was near the washroom.
“What are yo—” Becca was cut off with Alexander placing his index finger over her lips.
“Hush. It’s me, Becca. Alexander.” He cupped her soft cheeks, his cold fingers nuzzling her warm cheeks.
A shiver ran down through her spine. She started to feel her heartbeat quickening. “What happened, Alexander?”
Alexander loved hearing his full name from Becca’s mouth. It gave him a nice feeling. His green eyes pierced through her grey ones, as he said, “Look at my eyes, Becca.”
She looked deeply into his eyes, immediately falling under his hypnosis.
“Becca Hertford, where is the potion?”
“Which potion?” she questioned back.
“The vampire potion,” he said clearly. “Do you know where the vampire potion is?”
She breathed out, “I don’t know.”
If the hypnosis didn’t work on Becca, Alexander would be confused whether she was lying or not. But since her eye color turned black due to his hypnosis, he was sure that she wasn’t lying at all.
“Well, then,” he spoke up, “Do you know anything about the vampire potion?”
Suddenly, the bell rang, letting the students know that lunchtime was over.
Becca snapped out of the enthrallment as her eye color changed back to gray and pushed Alexander’s hand away, noticing their closeness. “What are you talking about? Did you get drunk during lunch?” she snapped at him. “What the hell is the vampire potion?” She looked at Alexander as if he had grown two heads.
“Fuck. The magic ended,” Alexander mumbled to himself. He had to alter Becca’s memory now since she heard about the vampire potion. Alexander realized that she had no idea about the potion and his theory was wrong. He had put her life in danger too as she knew about the existence of the phrase ‘vampire potion’.
He looked at Becca, chanting something in his mind, and said, “We were just talking.” He started altering her memory and got closer to her ear. Then he started whispering in her ear, “You pulled me in this supply closet and continued talking about how happy you were because Mr. Risorito liked the poem,” he repeated it thrice as she stayed silent, just listening to him.
Once the enchantment was completed, Alexander moved away from Becca, heaving a sigh in relief. Now she will remember what I said and believe it to be the reality, he assured himself.
Becca, who was still looking at Alexander, asked him with an expressionless look, “Are you crazy, Alexander? Why are you lying when I clearly remember you pulling me in here and being close to me?”
Alexander was dumbstruck.
Chapter 11: Quest For Vampire
“Answer me,” Becca demanded while Alexander stayed quiet. He couldn’t believe his special power of altering reality, failed right in front of his eyes. “Were you possibly trying to touch me in an inappropriate way, Alex?”
His eyes grew wider as he replied immediately, “No, not at all. Why would I even try to do that?”
“Maybe cause… you are attracted to me?” she questioned him.
Even though Alexander wanted to deny the accusation at that instant, however, somewhere in his mind, he knew that he was attracted to her. There was something connecting them and thus, he didn’t want to deny the question she asked. So he said, “I was checking whether it works or not. You know, Ms. Vandiza, my professor of another class, said that vampires can manipulate people and all. I found it interesting so I tried to manipulate you.”
She had a blank look covering her face before letting out a chuckle, “These things are for vampires, Alex—this manipulation and all. Why were you trying it on me? Not as if you are a vampire or anything.”
“You have no idea,” he mumbled under his breath.
“What did you say?” Before Alexander could open his mouth, Becca said, “Nevermind. I want to ask though. What is this vampire potion?”
He clicked his tongue and responded smoothly, “Something I created in my mind at the last moment as I had to ask something before trying to manipulate you.”
Becca thought for a while and soon got an idea for her new novel. She could make a vampire-romance novel, using something named the vampire potion as a title. It sounded interesting to her. Without realizing it, a big grin evolved on her face.
Alexander snapped his fingers in front of her, bringing her out of the imagination. �
�Where are you lost, Becca?”
She said with a smile, “Thank you so much, Alex. Because of you, I got the idea for my next novel.”
“Novel?” he asked, arching an eyebrow in confusion.
Becca leaned towards him and whispered in his ear after standing on her toes to reach his height as much as possible, “Whatever I am going to tell you, please keep this a secret.”
“Okay,” he mumbled, his breath hitching. How can I breathe when my heart is dead? he thought to himself, wanting to stay away from Becca.
“I am a writer. I love writing novels, especially paranormal and fantasy ones. My first novel is a Lycan-romance which I finished writing recently.” Her eyes lit up at the mention of her novel. “I was looking for a new novel idea, and you just gave me one.”
“Which is…?” he inquired.
She responded, “Vampires. I can write a vampire-romance.”
“Vampires?” Alexander let out a humorless chuckle. “How can you write a vampire romance when the vampires even don’t have a functioning heart?”
Becca pouted, giving a thought to what Alexander said. He did have a point.
“I will research it then, just like I did with the Lycans,” she mumbled, making a question arise in his mind.
He asked, “Research? Do you write every piece of information you get, in like a notebook or something?” He remembered the notebook he got last night while going through Becca’s stuff.
She nodded her head. “Yes. I search about the mythological creatures in Google and note it in my notebook whatever I find interesting.”
Alexander had an urge to go to the vampire world and sleep in his coffin forever after hearing that. He misunderstood Becca. He thought that she knew about the vampire potion and all, but her research was just for a novel she was writing.
“Ale—” Becca was interrupted with students screaming and wailing nearby. She shared a look with Alexander before rushing out of the closet.
Students were gathered near the dorm room on the ground floor, which was a two minute walk from the supply closet.
Becca and Alexander walked to that place, and Becca pushed a person slightly to see what had happened.
Her hand went over to her mouth as a gasp escaped her lips. The sight in front of her horrified her to the marrow of her bones.
A female student was hung on the fan with a rope tied around her neck. She had killed herself.
“What happened?” Alexander asked Antonio, who was standing next to him.
“It’s Alisha Andy, the girl who went missing,” Antonio replied with a trembling voice. “I can’t believe she killed herself.”
Becca was looking at the deceased student intently.
A few people pulled her down from the fan and a guard removed the rope from Alisha’s neck.
Becca spotted two small circles on Alisha’s neck. It seemed like someone had bitten her and sucked all her blood out.
When she didn’t say anything, Alexander followed Becca’s gaze over the mark. He was surprised after noticing Becca’s observation skill. How could she spot the small mark over Alisha’s neck?
Vanessa, who was standing there with Sebastian, glared at her brother. She said in her mind, it was you.
That is not a question, rather a statement so I have nothing to say, Ness, he responded to her.
Vanessa sighed and made all the students go back to their classes along with the teachers.
While heading to the classroom, Alexander noticed that Becca was quiet. So he decided to start a conversation. “Do you have any classes right now, Becca?”
She answered curtly, “I do.”
“Then why are you heading towards the library?” he asked curiously as she took another turn towards the left.
“Because I have some research to do,” she said and turned to him after pausing on her footsteps. “Alex, there is something weird about that girl’s death. I know you might think I am crazy but I saw a mark on Alisha’s neck.”
“What are you implying?” he asked innocently.
“Maybe Alisha didn’t kill herself. She was murdered by someone, or most probably by a mythological creature,” she breathed out, a worried look covering her face.
Alexander chuckled and pushed a few strands of hair behind Becca’s ear, saying, “You are crazy, Becca Hertford.”
“But I really think something else happened. It wasn’t a suicide, but the murderer made it look like one.”
He shook his head. “The bite you saw could also be a love bite. Maybe her lover left her after they made out and she killed herself. We cannot say anything with full confidence until the forensic report comes back.”
“But the authorities will never let us know the truth,” she pointed out.
Alexander twitched his lips. “That would be a sign that her death is none of our business, Ms. Hertford. So…” He entwined his hand with hers and said, “You should go to your class instead of the library.” With that, he walked with her until they reached the classroom of Becca’s next class.
Then, Alexander decided to go to the library and take out all the books carrying the information on the vampires so that Becca couldn’t find those.
In the meantime, as there was a death in the college, everyone was traumatized at the sight they saw. Therefore, Vanessa suggested going on a trip to the powers that be. She and Sebastian even offered to volunteer for managing the trip for the freshman in the English Language and Literature department. Other departments were handled by the other students.
“Where do you suggest we take the students to?” Sebastian asked Vanessa.
She replied, “Let’s go to a jungle for camping.”
“Will the dean agree?” he questioned.
She smirked. “Announce about the camping trip to the freshman in the English Language and Literature department. I will convince the dean.” She could easily convince the dean because she was all the teachers’ favorite and also a Sophomore class representative.
Sebastian nodded his head and made an official announcement by going into every class.
Becca, who was researching about the vampires, found the situation quite intriguing. She was sure that she saw the mark and through Google, she understood that it was the vampire mark. She believed somewhere in her heart that the vampires existed and now, she was sure of it. After hearing the announcement of the camping trip, she got excited because someone from the college was not a human, and going in a jungle for a trip was the perfect opportunity for Becca to find out the truth.
Chapter 12: A Vampire Mark
“Becca,” Lucas started speaking, holding a pen near his mouth, ready to chew it whenever bored with the classes. He had attended school with humans because the Lycans were normalized by living with human beings.
Becca, who was bored in the poetry class and missing Alexander because he didn’t attend the class, hummed noncommittally in response, letting Lucas know that she was listening to him.
“A question got into my mind.” he asked, “Why do you call Alex by his full name Alexander sometimes and the other times just Alex?”
She twitched her lips. “That is because…” she trailed off, trying to find an answer to the question she herself didn’t know. Then she answered, “I don’t know. It depends on my mood?”
“Mood?” Lucas arched an eyebrow.
“It’s like, I do call him Alex like others, but sometimes I feel like calling him Alexander. I like his full name, honestly speaking. So, depending on my mood, I just call his name.” She glanced at Lucas. “Why didn’t he come today, though? Do you know anything?”
He shook his head in denial. “Even I have the same question,” he mumbled, wondering about Alisha who got killed. Of course, he saw the vampire mark, and he knew it was against the rules of the vampires to hunt humans after a war among all kinds of mythological creatures took place 500 years ago. Why did he kill a human when it was against the peace treaty? he thought.
“Students, this is to inform you that a
nother student has been reported missing since last night,” a teacher announced and his voice was heard all over the speakers on the campus. “Reena Weevils, a Sophomore in the Fine Arts department is missing. If you find any information, kindly reach me out in room 104. Thank you.”
“Did you hear that, Lucas?” Becca said to him. “Another student is missing. Will she be found after she killed herself?”
“No idea,” he responded curtly, mentally wondering what Alexander was doing.
###
“Fucking asshole,” Vanessa grumbled and rushed to the Bellmor jungle. Steam was coming out of her ears when she spotted her brother leaning against a tree, closing his eyes in peace. She jumped high with the tight jeans she was wearing and extended a leg to kick him.
Sensing it, Alexander quickly opened his eyes and dodged the kick, making Vanessa hit the tree instead.
“Ouch,” she groaned.
Usually getting hit wouldn’t harm Vanessa, but the trees of the Bellmor jungle were different and it was under a spell. Therefore, she got hurt after colliding into the branch of the tree.
Alexander raised his eyebrows. “Is becoming crazy a side-effect from living with Becca?” he commented.
She narrowed her eyes. “Can you stop killing people, Alex?”
He put his hands in his pocket, asking innocently, “When have I?”
She rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. I know you. These missing students have something to do with you. I noticed the mark on Alisha and now, another student is missing.”
“You know nothing, Ness,” he answered calmly.
“I can’t understand,” Vanessa let out in frustration. “If you are unable to control yourself, just disappear to the vampire world. Stop killing these innocent people. You will break the treaty, Alexander Insworthe, and I will suggest you return before the world peace is ruined.”
Alexander arched an eyebrow in amusement. “Thanks for the suggestion. I shall keep it in mind. And believe me, I want to return to the vampire world so fucking much that I feel like ripping all these humans to shreds, but I have a promise to fulfill.” He walked towards Vanessa and patted her head. “Return to the dorm before the other vampires here catch a fight with you.” With that, he disappeared into the thin air.
The Vampire Potion (Vampire World Book 1) Page 6
