by L. M. Justus
We entered the apartment’s lobby and made our way to a stairwell because we didn’t trust the elevators. The power was still on, but who knew when it might stop working. The area was abandoned, and we began the climb to the top floor without seeing any signs of life. By the time we got to the ninth floor, the girls were dragging their feet and panting hard.
I peeked over the railing and looked up. “Only three or four more floors to go, I think.”
Sarah gave my hand a squeeze, and I squeezed back. Sophie glowered at me with half-lidded eyes. Jeez, what was her problem?
When we reached the top floor at last, Nathaniel pushed open the door with caution. The hallway was empty, so we filed behind him letting the stairwell door slam shut.
“I will return to barricade that later,” he said. Approaching the first apartment unit on our right, he kicked the door and it swung open.
Two revenants stood in the middle of the room. One was a middle-aged man and the other was a kid: a boy who was maybe eight or nine. They both inhaled and then turned, jaws snapping, fangs showing.
Nathaniel moved, grabbing them both and taking them into a bedroom off the main room. The door slammed closed. Wet ripping sounds and thuds carried across the apartment. Nathaniel re-emerged into the main area and closed the door behind him. “Do not go in there,” he said.
None of us said a word.
“I will go now, to ensure the rest of this floor is safe,” he added and zipped out into the hallway.
“Hey,” Sophie said, shaking her head as if to clear it from the horror of what had just happened. I realized she was talking to me.
I turned to look at her. “What?”
“I want you to turn me into a vampire,” she said.
I frowned. “Say what?”
“Those . . . things aren’t interested in eating you or Nathaniel because you’re vampires, right? So, I want you to make me into one too.”
“I wouldn’t wish being a vampire on my worst enemy,” I protested.
“Why not? What’s not to like? You’re faster than us, stronger than us, and the zombies leave you alone,” she argued.
“You have no idea what I’ve been through in the past month since this was forced on me,” I growled. “I lost my family, I’ve been shot, I had my ribs broken, I was strapped to a table while my blood was stolen, and my arm and leg were chewed off!” My fangs pricked the surface of my gums, threatening to pop out.
“I need some fresh air,” I muttered and spun around to stalk out of the room.
“Wait,” Sarah called after me. “You’re not going out there alone, are you?”
I glanced out the apartment window into the nighttime cityscape. Sighing, I said, “Fine. I’ll go out on the roof instead. There must be a stairwell access for it somewhere on this floor.” No one followed me when I left and I met Nathaniel in the hall on his way back. He looked at me with curiosity, but neither one of us said anything as I stormed past.
The rooftop stairwell was clearly marked and I made my way up and outside, gulping in the cool air. There was a light misty rain, and I wondered if the temperature would drop enough to start snowing. I’d never seen snow before in my life, except on TV.
I moved around the outside wall enclosing the stairwell, finding shelter under the overhang. I leaned back against the wall and closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I reached into the back pocket of my jeans and pulled out the crumpled family photo I’d saved from the wreckage of my home back in California. I unfolded it and looked at each member of my family in turn: my dad, my mom, and my sister Sam. A lump formed in my throat and I refolded the photo, shoving it back in my pocket.
The stairwell door creaked open, and Sarah popped her head out. “Hey there,” she said.
“Hey,” I said.
Sarah walked over and slipped her arms around my waist, nestling her head against my chest. “You okay?” she asked. “I mean, despite it looking like the world’s coming to an end.”
I tilted her head back and brushed her hair behind her ear. What would I do without Sarah? Things were bad, but they could be even worse. I could be in this mess alone.
I leaned down and crushed my lips to hers. She responded immediately, kissing me back almost savagely. Our hot breath mingled with the misty air and we drew together in a dance of passion and desperation. The cold didn’t stop us from tearing off each other’s clothes, and I didn’t even care that someone could come up here at any moment and interrupt us. I needed to drown myself in this instant and forget about everything and everyone, but Sarah.
Sarah and I stood huddled together at the roof’s edge, looking out at the darkness spreading around us. We’d gotten dressed and then decided to look at the array of city lights in the unusual silence. No cars honking, sirens wailing, or music drifting into the air from nightclubs. Huge sections of the city had started going dark, one by one, as the power failed. Eventually, we’d been plunged into a blackness broken only by the smog-covered moon and stars.
The stairwell door squeaked open. Nathaniel, Trudy, and Sophie all stepped out onto the roof. While I was caught up in the moment with Sarah before, I’d thought it wouldn’t matter if they discovered us, but looking back, I was relieved they hadn’t come up ten minutes earlier.
Trudy shone a flashlight towards me and Sarah and the group came to join us. There was a two-foot wall rimming the area, but we still kept a few feet back just in case.
“How’re you kids holding up?” Trudy asked.
“I’m okay,” I answered.
“I’m tired, but yeah, I’m okay,” Sarah said. “My throat feels kind of fuzzy though, you know, like when you’re about to come down with a cold.”
I turned to look at her in alarm. “What do you mean? You feel like you’re getting sick?”
“No, no. Don’t worry, Reed. I mean that I’m feeling run down. You know, like when you’re trying to fight off a bug.” She paused, as if she was waiting for me to agree.
“Yeah . . . no . . . not really,” I admitted. “I don’t get sick very often. Or, not at all actually. I’m not sure why. My friends used to tease me about it. I get hurt all the time, but I guess that’s not the same thing.”
Nathaniel raised his eyebrows. “You never get ill?” he asked.
“Nope. My buddy Jared spit in my drink once when he was sick as a dog, to see if I’d get sick too.”
“Nice friend,” Sophie said.
I glared at her. “We were twelve.”
“And did you? Get sick, that is,” Nathaniel said.
“No, but I’m not sure that would have worked anyway,” I answered.
“That is it. That was your special ability, as a human,” he continued. “That is why you are immune to the effects of the sun and to silver as a vampire.” His eyes sparkled while he considered his theory.
“I never thought of it as a super power or anything. It’s not like being able to read people’s minds,” I said, glancing at Sarah, who shrugged. “None of that matters now though, does it?”
A flash of light in the distance caught our attention and we all turned. Another flash came a few seconds later.
“What is that?” Sophie said.
Nathaniel squinted towards the horizon and watched the next flash. “I cannot be sure, but I believe it is some type of air raid. I think the humans may be bombing the city.”
“Why the hell would they do that?” I said.
“Perhaps to destroy the virus at its source,” Nathaniel suggested.
“But . . . New York is an international hub. The airlines fly all over the world from here,” I said. “The virus is probably everywhere by now.”
“I do not disagree with you,” he said. “Obviously, we cannot remain here, but the morning fast approaches and I will not be able to venture outside until nightfall. We should gather what supplies we can and I will have to find a source of blood sooner rather than later.”
Trudy nodded. “We’ll head out as soon as the sun sets.”
“Where are we going to go?” Sarah asked, her brow crinkling.
“How about that way?” Sophie said, pointing in the opposite direction of the flashes of light.
“For once, I think I agree with you,” I said.
The five of us stared at the intermittent flashes of light, like a bizarre set of fireworks. I looked between each member of our ragtag crew and drew Sarah in closer under my arm. I thought back on all the crazy things I’d seen and experienced over the last few weeks, with ultra-high points and horrible lows. I’d found the adventure I’d stupidly wished for, but there was no turning back now. Who knew what the future held for us, but we were survivors. Only time would tell if we’d continue to survive, but at least we weren’t alone. Of all the bad stuff that had happened, I’d been so lucky to find Sarah and Nathaniel.
And so, my journey into the world of darkness and vampires had come to an end.
Or you could say . . . it was just the beginning.
Stay tuned for Darkness Trilogy Book Two:
DARKNESS REIGNS
Coming in 2014
Acknowledgments
It takes a lot of people to put a book together, and the following people played a part in creating this one.
First and foremost, I have to thank my dear husband, Chris, for supporting me through the crazy ups and downs that are an inevitable part of the writing process. I have no idea how anyone can write a novel without plenty of support because this book definitely would not exist without his unwavering confidence in me and my writing.
Thank you Emily, Tyler and Jessica for putting up with me sneaking off to write all the time. Love you!
A huge thank you to the members of my awesome writer’s group: Caroline, Gayle, Jeff and Kelly. It was a humbling experience, joining the group, when I realized I still had a LOT to learn in terms of improving my writing. Somehow, you guys make criticizing each other’s work fun!
Thanks also to my amazing beta readers: Eric, Sandra, Meghan and Caitlin. You definitely found some major boo-boos everyone else missed, and made some important suggestions for improvement.
The kick-ass cover art was designed by Derek Murphy of Creativindie Covers. I probably owe at least half of my initial sales to him because people definitely judge books by their covers.
And last, but not least, thank you so much to my readers! If you enjoyed the book, the greatest gift you can give me is a great rating/review at Goodreads and Amazon, and tell everyone you know to go buy my books!
Visit my web site at http://www.lmjustus.com/
Find me on Twitter @lmjustus
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