The Lycan Chronicles

by Schroeder, Brent

  After a short moment, Wendy had calmed down, but was still visibly on edge. “I think Jason Cross just tried to kidnap me,” she finally said. “He showed up at the Richard’s house, acting very strange. He asked me to get out of the car to help him with something, but when I wouldn’t, he became furious. He had some rope he was trying to hide behind his back and then he started beating on my windows, when I wouldn’t get out.”

  “I’m glad you came here first,” JD said, relieved. “Something strange is happening with the Vampires. I want you to stay here with Sarah, for the rest of the night, until we can figure out what the hell is going on.”

  Sarah had just returned from the cellblock and noticed, thankfully, that Wendy was at the station.

  “Is Donovan at the football game tonight?” asked JD.

  “Yeah, he’s riding with the football team and fan club,” Sarah answered.

  “When do you expect them back? I know the game will still be on tonight… nothing stops these damn games.”

  “Probably around midnight,” Sarah figured, looking at the clock. “If we win, there’s an after-game party and it will be one hell of a celebration. But, if they lose, which I seriously doubt, I guess everyone will just go home.”

  JD looked, seeing that the time read 10pm. “Then we’ll meet them at the high school, before they get back. Let’s go… we don’t have much time. I need to know what Donovan’s up to,” JD said, before giving instructions. “Tony, you and Brad go check on the Richards and then find Jason Cross and find out what his ass has been doing with Donovan. Scare him up, but don’t hurt him too bad.”

  “You got it, boss… not too bad, unless he resists,” Brad said, with a wink. “Man, I sure hope he resists.”

  “Right,” JD called back. “If he’s still human, I want him alive.”

  Jason ran upstairs to his room, noticing right away that his bedroom window was wide open; the snow had already blown in and was leaving a small drift in the middle of his floor. He cursed under his breath and ran over to close it. Once it was locked, he whipped around, discovering that Tony was standing in the middle of his room, with his arms crossed, looking quite unpleased.

  “Well, well… look who’s here. I do believe, it’s that little shit who just tried to kidnap the sheriff’s wife. I always knew you were a scumbag,” Tony said, stepping closer. “You’re lucky Wendy didn’t kick your ass. Hell, you’re lucky to still be alive.”

  As Tony stepped closer, Jason could hear a low growling that rumbled through the entire home, shaking the floor he was standing on. He leaned to the side, taking a look behind Tony, to see what it was he was hearing. His heart sank, when he saw a towering Lycan flashing a set of gleaming white fangs, that were dripping saliva in small puddles in the corner of his room: Brad.

  “We have some questions for you, Jason,” Tony started. “Don’t even think about lying to me, or Brad here will smell it. He’s already pissed off, as you can see. He couldn’t stop his transformation and I don’t think I’ll be able to hold him back much longer.”

  Brad growled viciously, causing Jason’s framed Spider Man comic to rattle off the wall and shatter on the desk below it. Jason was frozen in fear and his face was drained of all color.

  “In case you couldn’t understand him, Jason, Brad says he might take off one of your arms, just for kicks,” Tony said and then laughed. “Are you a lefty or righty?”

  Jason didn’t say a word.

  “Oh, don’t worry, bud, I’ll make sure to tie a tourniquet around the stump. We wouldn’t want you bleeding out and dying, before we finish our conversation.”

  Jason was in a complete state of shock, remaining motionless… then he puked all over the front of his shirt and down his pants. Tony stepped out of the way and waited until Jason was finished, before he started the interrogation. “So, Jason, what were you doing at the Richard’s house, which is on the other side of town?”

  “Please! It wasn’t my idea!”

  “What are you doing for Donovan? You’d better speak up now!”

  “I just do what he tells me, that’s all! He’s the mayor!” Jason yelled, his voice trembling. “He’ll kill me, if I don’t do what he says! Plus, he has leverage on me… he still has my probation papers from when I hacked the White House! He’s keeping the Feds from charging me on a violation and I don’t want to end up in Guantanamo Bay for the rest of my life… or have my throat ripped out either!

  Brad growled again and the drool kept oozing from his mouth; the mess on the carpet was getting worse by the second.

  “Blah, blah, blah… ENOUGH!” Tony shouted in Jason’s face. “I will repeat myself, for the first and last time! What are you doing for Donovan? Better make it quick, Brad’s in a foul mood! And now, you’re starting to piss me off!”

  “Donovan had me write a computer program to translate some gross, old-ass book he’s got… it’s got to be thousands of years old! He said it was some Vampire history book,” Jason continued to sing, “it’s got all kinds of creepy recipes and shit like that!”

  “Recipes? For what, blood pudding? Dog corpse surprise? Shit sandwiches, without the bread?”

  “No!” Jason answered back, not finding Tony very funny. “There was one in there for something called the Sunlife, that he was really interested in,” kept blurting out. “He’s got Skinny Limpkins cooking it up for him in his lab. Donovan said, that once it was finished, he could walk under the sunlight.”

  “What the fuck?” Tony said, shocked at what he’d just heard. “Has he made it yet?”

  “No, not yet,” Jason said, a bit calmer now. “But, dammit, that book was the sickest shit I’ve ever read! It’s twisted unbelievable!”

  He finally broke down and started crying, holding his hands over his face. “God, I hate this fucking town!”

  Brad transformed back into a human and Tony handed him his clothes. Jason looked up, as Tony spoke to him.

  “You’re lucky,” Tony said. “We’re not going to kill you and we not even going to kick your ass… so, tonight you can count your lucky stars. And, I can tell you’re still human--if you weren’t, you’d be dead right now. You’re so lucky, JD ordered us not to kill you. Why, I don’t know.”

  “You try saying ‘no’ to Donovan,” Jason said through his tears. “You saw what he did to Basil and he liked him!”

  “We’re going to do more than say no to him, when we catch him,” Tony threatened.

  “We should head to Skinny’s and see what’s up with that scumbag… see how far he is with this Sunlife crap,” Brad said, stepping into his shoes.

  “Let’s go,” Tony said, opening the bedroom window. “What should we do with this loser?”

  “I say, take him with,” Brad answered. “We can’t leave him here… the little weasel will call ahead and warn Donovan.”

  Tony nodded his agreement and jumped out the window.

  “Does anyone ever use the stairs?” Jason mumbled, before Brad scooped him up and threw him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, following Tony out the window.

  ___________________________________________________

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Skinny Limpkins sat in his old, flea-ridden chair, laughing his ass off, watching the Three Stooges and sipping on a bottle of blood. He had another batch of yohimbe cooking and the smell of the extract was hanging thickly in the air. He jumped when there was a loud knock at the door and when he opened it, Brad and Tony were standing there. Without a single exchange of words, Brad punched Skinny square in his face, knocking him to the ground and shattering his bottle of blood into a million pieces.

  “What the fuck? What the hell was that for? I’ll get Donovan over here and tell him you guys are bothering me!”

  “The place is clear,” Brad said, “he’s alone.”

  “Damn!” Tony called out, pinching his nose. “Skinny, you need to shower more often. You fucking stink!”

  Brad began bustling with laughter.

  �
��Brad, pull the clip out of that AK-47,” Tony said, turning back to Skinny. “It better not have silver bullets, my man, that’s all I’m saying.”

  “What the hell did I do, anyways? I haven’t left my place in over a month!”

  “Shut up!” Brad’s voice boomed.

  With a click, Brad popped the clip out of the AK-47and he looked inside. “Well, well, well, looks like we’ve struck silver! Your days are over, Skinny, as of right the fuck now!”

  “Not yet,” Tony stopped him. “Skinny, you’re going to tell us everything. For every lie you tell, you’ll lose a limb. And, I think we’ll start with that little pecker of yours first. Now tell us, what are you cooking up for Donovan?”

  Skinny was beginning to shake with fear. His mouth opened up, but nothing was coming out, as Tony stood waiting for an answer.

  “Well? I don’t hear anything,” Tony said, after a moment of silence. “Get his attention… I don’t think he’s listening. Rip his dick off, Brad.”

  “It’s something called the Sunlife,” Skinny finally babbled.

  “Yes, we know that already, shithead,” Tony replied. “It’s supposed to let you bloodsuckers walk around in the daylight. What’s in that shit you’re cooking up?”

  Skinny hesitated… he knew he had no choice, but to spill the beans. “It takes the skin of any male under the age of thirteen and the blood of an eighteen-year-old virgin,” he said, sounding defeated. “It also requires yohimbe and all kinds of other strange ingredients that I could tell you about, but you wouldn’t understand what they were.”

  “So, Jacob Richards,” Tony said, getting heated. “I should kill you right now, you scrawny little fuck! I knew you Vampires couldn’t be trusted!”

  “Donovan… its Donovan!” Skinny cried. “He’s losing it! He broke the Blood Law, he did it! And, he’s forcing me to do what he says… it’s not my fault!”

  “You’re a waste of eternal life, Skinny, you know that?” Brad let him know. “Outside! NOW!”

  The three of them stepped out into the snowy night and Tony grabbed Skinny by the neck, lifting him high in the air. “Check this out, fucker!”

  The lab suddenly blew up with several loud explosions and the flash could be seen from miles away. The sound carried throughout the woods and it shook the town like a small earthquake, rattling the buildings and breaking some windows.

  “Look at the pretty lights!” Tony sang, with a smile. He threw Skinny into the back of the jeep, next to Jason and they drove off, leaving Skinny’s place to burn to the ground.

  The police jeep skidded to a halt outside of the Wolf Creek Police Station and Tony and Brad hopped out, opening up the back doors to grab Skinny and Jason.

  Everyone inside the station jumped, when they heard the beating on the locked station doors, looking on, scared, as JD drew his 44 Magnum.

  “Open up! It’s Brad and Tony, with a couple bags of shit!” JD unlocked the door, took a step back, instantly recognizing that part of the baggage his deputies had brought to the station, happened to be a Vampire. “Well, shit… looks like you get to be the first blood-sucker to enjoy the confines of my station, Skinny… enter, I guess.”

  Skinny Limpkins and Jason Cross were both dragged into the police station, each wearing a set of handcuffs and looking a bit roughed-up. Jason had his head hung low, but Wendy paid no mind, walking right over and slapping him across the face with such force, that JD thought his head was going to come right off.

  “Mrs. Davidson, I’m so sorry!” Jason screamed. “I was under orders! I’m sorry!”

  “You are NOT forgiven!” she shouted back. “What the hell is wrong with you? You used to be such a nice boy, when you were younger,” she scolded, shaking her head. “It’s probably those violent video games you’ve been playing.”

  “Give the kid a break,” Tony said to her. “He’s already been through a lot tonight. And, I do believe he needs a clean pair of underwear.”

  “We’ve got a lot to tell you, JD,” Brad began. “But, let’s secure the prisoners, first.”

  “Put those two in the back cell and then meet me in my office. We got an hour till Donovan and the football team gets back into town.”

  Brad lifted Skinny and Jason by their shirts and moved them down the hallway towards the last cell on the block, throwing them in and slamming the cast-iron door shut with a loud ‘slam.’

  “Nightie night, shit fucks!” Brad called, as he walked away.

  “Wait!” Jason shouted. “I’m human and he’s a Vampire! You can’t leave me in here with him! You have to protect me from him and Donovan!”

  “Believe me,” replied Brad uncaringly. “He won’t touch you. Will you, Skinny?”

  Skinny violently shook his head from side to side, knowing how much shit he was already in. At any second, JD could just kill him and there would be nothing he could do about it. JD was the law and he had the final word on who lived and died in Wolf Creek; same as Donovan. Skinny hoped that his ability to extract the yohimbe would keep him alive and still of value.

  “Get some beauty sleep, Jason,” Brad said, before walking away. “By the way, limp dick, if you stay in that corner and hide underneath the bed, the sunlight won’t hit you… I think.”

  ___________________________________________________

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The Wolf Creek Wolves have won the championship game and they were heading back to the football field to celebrate. Everyone on the buses was psyched and they were passing bottles of alcohol and cans of beer, back and forth across the isles; the coach was letting it slide, keeping an eye out to make sure no one got too stupid.

  Donovan was riding on one of the two buses and he moved to congratulate each player in turn. “Hey, Nick, you played great tonight,” the mayor said to the player. “Getting two touchdowns was more than just a good job. I’m proud of you, son.”

  As Donovan spoke, Nick glanced across the aisle and underneath the dimmed overhead lights, he noticed that his teammate, Steve, was slouched down in his seat. Donovan had just been sitting with him, but now… Steve’s head was hanging down to his chest.

  Brittney Jones, dressed in her cute cheerleading outfit, was watching Nick in adoration, as Donovan spoke with him.

  “Thank you, sir,” Nick replied the him. “Hey, what’s wrong with Steve?”

  “I wouldn’t worry about him,” said Donovan with a laugh. “I think he’s had a few too many shots before the rally. We should just let him sleep, till we get back.”

  “Are you sure?” Nick asked concernedly. “He doesn’t look so good.”

  “He’s fine,” Donovan insisted, as he began putting his arm around to give Nick a pat on the back. But, instead of giving him a pat, he grabbed Nick and pulled him tight, sprouting his fangs and biting into his neck. Nick’s body fell, lifeless, in his seat, leaning up against the window, as Donovan proceeded to slit his own wrist, dripping the blood into the boy’s open mouth.

  Across the aisle, Brittney watched in horror and she quickly turned away, sliding down in her seat, hoping that Donovan didn’t see her. She kept her focus on the heavy snowfall outside of her window, but as struggled to keep her eyes locked, she began noticing movement in the glass’s reflection; in the seat behind her, Steve’s eyes had opened up and he was looking around in a daze.

  “Hey, you’re awake,” Donovan called over to him. “How do you feel, Steve?”

  “I… I feel… amazing! What did you do to me?”

  “Don’t worry about it, son,” Donovan said. “Just do everything I tell you and it will all be fine. Welcome to the family.”

  Donovan slid out of his seat and continued moving up the aisle, while Brittney kept her eyes on the reflection in the window, seeing that Steve’s eyes looked like black, hollowed pits. Taking a quick peek over the back of her seat, she noticed that, in person, Steve’s eyes looked completely normal under the faded overhead lighting. A lump filled in her throat, as she slid back down, not sure what she shou
ld do.

  “Hi, Robert,” Donovan said, scooting in next to him. “Hey man, that was a great game tonight.”

  “Thank you, sir!” Robert beamed.

  When he was sure no one was looking, Donovan quickly grabbed him and bit him in the neck. As he finished his work, Donovan continued, moving on to the next seat… while he had some assistance on the other bus, turning even more of Wolf Creek’s young people into Vampires.

  At the police station, Sarah sat at her desk, with her feet propped up, knitting a stocking cap for her unborn child, while Wendy sat next to her, drinking coffee out of a travel mug.

  The phone rang and Sarah picked it up. “Wolf Creek Police Station.”

  “Hi, I’m a cheerleader and I was riding on one of the buses coming home from the game… I need to talk to the sheriff, it’s urgent!”

  “Oh no, what’s wrong?” Sarah asked, her feet no longer up on the desk. “Did one of the buses crash?”

  “No, listen… go tell him that Mayor Donovan has turned the entire football team into Vampires,” the young cheerleader said. “I thought that was against the law, or something. I mean, honestly, I had to come back early from cheerleading practice just to donate and he can do this?”

  “Brittney, where are you right now? Are you still on the bus with them?”

  “No, I knew something was wrong, so I hid under my seat,” she replied. “When we stopped for gas, I went to the bathroom and climbed out the window…. I hid, until the buses left. I’m at the Texaco, off exit 249. Can someone come out here and pick me up? My parents are driving back in their own car, but my mom’s cellphone must be out of minutes again.”

  Wendy was listening in and she put her hand on Sarah’s arm, taking the phone away from her. “This is Sheriff’s Davidson’s wife, Wendy. I’ll come pick you up myself, alright? Just stay in the light and hang tight, okay? And, do not get in a car with anyone else,” she said, looking at her watch. “I’ll be right there, in about twenty five minutes.”

  “Okay,” Brittney said. “Thank you, Mrs. Davidson… but, please hurry… it’s freezing out!”