Dark Experiments

by Lana Campbell

  She heard a noise and turned on the bench toward the door she and Terry had exited. A young girl who appeared barely eighteen brought her a food tray and sat it on the wooden table in front of her. She had light brown hair and wore blue scrubs like the ones provided to her by Charla. The skin on her arms and face bore a grayish tint, same as her own. She was rail thin and unhealthy looking. If the girl felt anything like she did, Tiffany pitied her.

  No words were exchanged. Their eyes met briefly before she walked off, but it was like seeing into her soul, what was left of it anyway. She was a half breed and prisoner like herself with eyes that were neither human or vampire. A slight sparkly ring surrounded brown irises so big, so sad, it was soul wrenching. Tiffany suspected her own eyes looked similar.

  The girl’s subservient demeanor told Tiffany she’d been warned against talking to her. However, scrawny little snake boy standing behind her probably hadn’t. Charla controlled him, that was obvious from their earlier bickering, but she could easily imagine him getting angry enough to go maverick if the mood struck. Hatred and anger seemed to seep from his very pores.

  Once the girl went back inside, she turned and looked at him, sizing him up. If he weighed as much as she, Tiffany would be surprised. His dark blonde hair was short, but neatly styled and he was clean shaven. He wore jeans and a nice blue button up shirt. On the streets of New Orleans he’d be just another guy, but because she’d heard his foul mouth and west coast street dialect, he reminded her of a cleaned up meth head. His eyes were a bit sunk back into his head and he’d once had acne which had left visible pox marks. She wouldn’t have pegged him as Charla’s brother. Evil she may be, but she was pretty.

  “Yo, bitch. Whatcha looking at?”

  Humph. There would be no buddying up to this one like she’d attempted to do with Charla. No, the only way to get this skinny assed shit to talk would be to piss him off. Luckily that was her forte with people she didn’t like. “Terry is it?”

  “Yeah, whatcha want?”

  “How about some salt and pepper for my eggs here?” She pointed at her tray.

  He gaped at her and scowled. “Where the hell do you think you are? Denny’s? Eat your damned eggs before I pick them up and shove them down your throat, stupid bitch.” He snorted, uncrossed his arms, then crossed them back, shaking his head.

  Man, even as a human she could have whipped his gnarly ass. “Okay, fine. No salt or pepper. How about some coffee? The juice here’s a real nice touch, but you know how it is. Gotta have that morning cup of joe.”

  He looked at her as if she were nuts, then snorted again. “You’re damned lucky Charla likes you. If it were up to me I’d starve your ass to death.” He stalked off toward the door, saying as he went, “This thing is so stupid, turning vampires into humans. A bullet is a whole lot cheaper and a hell of a lot less work.”

  Tiffany smiled as he opened the door and went inside. Now she had him pegged dead to rights. He was not on board with Charla’s whole vampiratarian, let’s turn the evil wretches into humans for the sake of mankind and all that rah rah she’d been spewing earlier. He wasn’t just irritated and hating vampires, the guy probably got wrangled into this mess because of Katie and presently was madder than a hornet at Charla.

  Ooh, good information to have. She’d pick at that sore a little more when he returned, but right now she needed to look around for a landmark, anything that could lead Christian to her. She rushed over to the left side of the cage and began slowly walking the perimeter, scanning the darkness for anything that stood out as different. When she arrived at the right side of the cage next to the door she spotted a dark colored driver’s side panel of what looked like a Jeep. She’d missed it before because of the way it had been parked in front of the building and the shadowy surroundings of brush and forest.

  Hearing footsteps beyond the metal door, Tiffany high tailed it back to the picnic table and took a bite of scrambled eggs just as Terry re-entered the courtyard area.

  He strode over to the table and slammed down a ceramic mug. Hot coffee sloshed onto his hand and he cursed. “You’re gonna be nothing but trouble, aren’t you?”

  Tiffany affected her most innocent expression. “Me? No. I just need my morning coffee like any civilized person. What’s wrong with that?”

  Terry might be a hideous excuse for a human being, but he wasn’t dumb. The look in his eyes said he had her number as well.

  “Look, let’s just be honest here. You’re only doing all this for Katie. You aren’t a cheerleader for Charla’s cause, right?”

  “What I’m here for is none of your business,” he snarled.

  “But it’s obvious you hate vampires. I guess that’s reason enough.”

  “You’re damned right I hate vampires.”

  “Katie’s a vampire, though.” She spoke the words softly hoping to pick at that sore spot without riling him into a fit of anger.

  He snorted again and started breathing heavy, fists pumping at his side like he was getting ready to haul off and hit her. Or shoot her. “Look, bitch, you don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. She was kidnapped and tortured like an animal, had sick vicious things done to her like the things serial killers do to young girls. Only worse because the bastard made her like him.”

  “I don’t know what to say. That’s so awful.”

  “There’s nothing to say, but I’ll tell you one thing if there was a race of serial killers out wandering the streets, who wouldn’t want to smoke every last one of them?”

  “You have a valid point, Terry. I agree with you one hundred percent.”

  “Shit. Like I believe that. You are a vampire.”

  “Not for much longer it looks like. I can assure you neither I or any vampire I know personally has ever attacked a human. But I have a point here. Look, I too had a run in with a feral vampire once long ago. She tried to kill both my mom and sister. If not for their spouses and Dr. La Mond they would have died.”

  “They’d have been better off.”

  “That’s not true. My mom is hands down the godliest Christian woman I’ve ever met. So, I’m thinking God wanted her and my sister around and wasn’t too picky about their earthly vessels. She’s done much good for many people her entire life. Both as a human and a vampire. As far as the feral vampire, yeah, she needed to die. I took a recurve and planted an arrow straight through her heart.”

  “No way. You’re shitting me? You killed a feral like that?” He looked amazed and impressed, exactly what she was shooting for.

  She lifted her arm, palm out. “Hand to God. I did. So, see I can understand where you’re coming from with the vampire hate on. I despised every one of them in the beginning. I wished all of them would die and burn in hell for what that one did to my mom and sister. Time passed and I realized if my mom, who is a saint if there ever was one, could be a good person with fangs, so could others of their species.”

  He stared at her with perplexity, his mouth agape and Tiffany knew in that instant he’d received her point. She suspected the wheels turning in his head were probably smoking with contradicting thoughts. He didn’t hate Katie. He loved her. Tiffany hoped she could make him see most vampires weren’t foul, evil minions of hell.

  “Think about this, what you said a minute ago about serial killers. They’re sick and twisted people, but they don’t represent the human species. They’re the exception not the rule. You know what I’m saying?”

  “Yeah.” His shoulders slumped a bit and he crossed his arms again, staring at the ground. “You don’t seem like one of the bad ones. There’s a couple others around here Charla treated with that serum I don’t particularly hate.”

  “Well, I assure you I know dozens who are salt of the earth people who’d never hurt a fly.”

  His gaze shot up and met hers. “What’s your point in all this? If you’re trying to make me like vampires, that’s not going to happen.”

  Maybe not. Tiffany knew for sure he loved Katie, and probably f
elt sorry for the ones Charla held hostage. He’d already said he wasn’t a fan of turning vampires human. If she could just find a way to make him think for himself, she might actually gain an ally here—something she’d thought impossible. Tiffany wasn’t kidding herself though. It would take some convincing to get him to see what his hatred was costing him.

  “Look, I’m not trying to tell you what to do or feel, but if you aren’t on board with Charla’s cause why are you letting her call all the shots? I’m pretty sure you’re not here for her cause. You’re here for Katie. She can’t help what happened to her. We both get that. You seem like a savvy guy. So you know as well as I not all humans are good or all vampires bad. Right?”

  “I suppose. And Katie didn’t deserve any of this.”

  “And deep down, her pain aside, whatever bad things she’s done as a vampire she’s a good person at heart, right?” Tiffany didn’t necessarily believe those words. Once upon a time Katie probably had been a good person, but she was feral now, which meant her mind was fractured. Enough so she’d killed at least six people that she knew of.

  “Yeah. A brother couldn’t ask for a better sister.”

  “I’m sure that’s true.” Once anyway. “Look, what I’m really trying to say here has nothing to do with vampires. This is about what you’re feeling, the stuff in your soul.” She patted her chest for emphasis. “What’s in yours, Terry? Peace and happiness? Or rage and hatred? I know you’re pissed as hell over what happened to Katie. I’ve been in a spot like that before. Actually, until recently I’d been full of bitterness for a very long time. I do know this though, true peace comes from one place and one place only. God. So really everybody has to eventually ask themselves are grudges, anger and hatred worth the price? Those feelings get you nowhere but miserable.”

  He snorted. Seemed he loved to do that. “You sure are a preachy little thing. I bet you’re sitting in the front row of church every time the doors open.”

  Tiffany gauged his mood and was almost certain his rage-o-meter had gone from a ten to a two or three. Progress. She couldn’t blow it, but she knew if she pushed him to do what she really wanted, to let her drive out of here in that SUV, he’d bull up on her so fast, her head would be spinning like a bobblehead doll.

  “No, I’m not much of a church person, but I do believe everything I just said. Thing is, I don’t get it right very often. I’m mad a lot. I cuss like a sailor. Stupid people irritate the hell out of me and I let them know about it.”

  He burst out laughing. “Me too on all that. You’re funny.”

  She shrugged. “Sometimes. Mostly I’m sarcastic, which makes it really hard for people to get close to me. But I guess what I’m realizing now talking to you is that it’s okay to be me. God understands my failures, my bad side, but he puts up with me anyway. That there brings to me anyway, a big chunk of peace.”

  “My mom used to talk like you all the time before she died. She was a saint too and put up with far more than most mothers would. I gave her a lot of grief as a kid. Gang banging, drugs, that sort of thing.”

  “I’m sorry for your loss.”

  He shrugged and spit on the ground, his expression pensive, contemplative.

  She’d pegged him right as a reformed drug addict. What she hadn’t counted on at all was him actually opening up to her. Or that he’d had Christian upbringing. Neither had she considered bringing God into the conversation. It just happened, but she knew it was the right course. She’d got him thinking about the decisions he was making as a participant in Charla’s grand scheme. He knew right from wrong and she could tell by the misty look in his eyes, he realized some things about himself that he didn’t much like.

  An awkwardness hung between them, but this sudden turn of events gave Tiffany hope. If he could see what Charla had done to her and these other poor vampires in the same light as what that feral had done to Katie, maybe he’d finally stand up to the bitch and get on board with their own collective cause—freedom.

  Terry’s whole countenance was somehow different, lighter, thoughtful. Maybe deep down he really wasn’t such a bad guy after all. Just a really angry one.

  Tiffany had no pity for Charla or Katie, but Terry was another matter. He’d done awful things, yes, but he hadn’t cultivated any of this. His central cause was noble. However, his actions on both sisters’ behalf had been spineless and cruel. That fact was impossible to forget.

  “I guess I’d better be getting back to my room.” She turned, picked up her cup of coffee and took a sip.

  He appeared surprised. “Aren’t you going to eat? I don’t mind if you want to stay out here a little longer.”

  She shook her head. The little outing had made her nauseous and food no longer sounded good. “I just need the coffee. Truth is I’m really tired. Odd I know after sleeping for three days. It’s probably the stuff, you know.” And dawn was minutes away. Tiffany had no sunglasses and didn’t know if her turning was at a point her eyes could endure sunlight again. The conversation with Terry had zapped her energy. All she wanted to do was lay down.

  “Yeah. The sedatives. They’ll wear off. Come on.” He gestured for her to proceed him. Once back in her cubicle, Tiffany finished off her coffee then crawled into bed expecting him to replace the restraints. He looked her over with a suspicious gleam in his eye and said, “You going anywhere?”

  “Where would I go?” She pulled the covers up to her chin and crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Good answer. You stay here and I mean that. You go to wandering around this place you might find some things you don’t want to find.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like Katie.”

  Tiffany didn’t quite know how to interpret that. “Charla said Katie’s turning was almost complete, that she’s like me I guess, stripped of strength and abilities.”

  Terry gave her a sideways look. “Not quite. Her lust for human blood hasn’t diminished. She’s used to the others, but you being new and if Charla’s right, nearly human, well it just wouldn’t be a good idea to encounter her without me or Charla around.”

  “Okay. No argument there.”

  “Good. Charla will be back in a while to check on you and you’d better be right here. If I find out all that stuff out there was an act, especially bringing moms into the mix…well I’d just better not.” With that he strode out, closing the curtain behind him.

  “That was strange,” she muttered, wondering why he’d given her the reprieve on the restraints.

  Her gut told her to heed Terry’s warning. Even if she had the strength to escape, Tiffany knew the place was locked down like a prison. That young girl was not here by will. Nor had that cage been built for aesthetic pleasure. Add to that a feral vampire wandering about somewhere in the building. Plus for some reason she didn’t want to lose Terry’s trust. It would feel as if the stuff she’d mentioned regarding his anger and resentment had been manipulation. She’d meant every word of it.

  Huh. Was all that out there just about getting Terry to see how wrong he was about his hatred for vampires? Or was it really about her hatred for the blood suckers in her own life who had drained her dry of trust? She knew the answer before the question finished forming in her mind.

  The experience gave pause for thought. Maybe she could work on forgiving her father. She thought back to what Chelsie said to her that day at the Olive Garden, about forgiveness being for the person hurt not the person who had done the hurting. She’d known it was true at the time. Forgiveness wouldn’t come overnight, but Tiffany would give it a shot. Maybe it was time to let go and let God as her mom loved to say.

  She snuggled under the covers, worn out from her little excursion. The coffee had kicked in just enough to take the edge off slumber. Staying awake was paramount so Christian could contact her. At least she had a little information to give him regarding her location. Maybe more if she could keep Terry allied. He might give up information which could lead Christian to her. Wishful thinking perhaps,
but he might do it willingly if she could get him to realize Charla played him like a master puppeteer.

  Voices coming down the hall slid the brakes on her hopeful thoughts. It was Charla and Terry and the two were arguing again. She couldn’t hear everything being said, but when Charla said her name, Tiffany knew she was about to get thrown into the mix.

  Charla yanked back the curtain and brother and sister walked inside. Charla took one look at her and swung around.

  “You idiot! You forgot to put her back in restraints! Can’t you do anything right? Sometimes I wonder if all those drugs didn’t permanently destroy every last brain cell you have. You’re absolutely useless. Everything I ask you to do you screw up. I have important work to do here and no one seems to care except Katie.”

  “That’s because they don’t, you stupid bitch!” Terry exploded. “Not me, not them vampire chicks, none of us want to be here working on your stupid cause. The only reason I’m here is for Katie. The only reason I’ve gone along with any of this crazy bullshit you’ve been doing is to help Katie. And it’s not working. She looks like shit. She may be turning human, but she’s getting no better mentally.”

  “That’s not true! I don’t know how you can say that. She’s gained amazing ground. Look how much she does around here to help out now when in the beginning, she was virtually catatonic.”

  Terry’s jaw slipped. “God, you’re crazier than her if you can say that. She killed six people in cold blood the other day. That serum hasn’t tamed her vampire speed and agility one iota or her insanity. She went on a rampage, moving with demonic speed that my eyes couldn’t even follow. Those people were dead in seconds and there was nothing I could have done to stop her. If she’s doing so great why did she snuff those people like some homicidal maniac?”

  Charla hauled off and slapped him hard across the cheek. “Don’t call her that! You put her in that position by letting her have access to the gun cabinet, you imbecile. What did you expect to happen? She was scared and obviously having a PTSD episode.”