Broken Dreams

by Rissa Blakeley

  “If you kill her, I will take you out, as well.” I put on my big girl panties that morning, and I was wearing them with pride. They may have been all lacey and sexy, but they made my inner “don’t fuck with me” persona come out, ready to dominate the situation.

  Sophie looked at me with watery eyes. I think she was assuming that was the last moments of her life. Jacob laughed again.

  “I don’t give a fuck if you kill me! Don’t you see? I have nothing! My wife is dead!”

  “Jacob, I’m so sorry about your wife. Can you tell me her name?” Henry asked.

  “Mandy…” His voice fizzled out.

  “I am so sorry I gave your Mandy a true death, but let’s all just calm down here.”

  “True death?”

  “Yes. True death.” Holy shit. Déjà-motherfucking-vu.

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” I was hoping he wasn’t going to say anything about that vampire show. Henry would have gone nuts if he did.

  “I can explain it, but let’s all calm down and work this out like adults.” Then he glanced at me. “Elaina, put down your gun.”

  “No! Are you fucking kidding me? He has Sophie in a headlock with her gun shoved into her head!”

  “I can see that, Captain Obvious. Just trust me, and do as you are told.” There he went again, barking orders, but I knew he was serious. His jaw was clenched. I lowered my Sig, and Henry put his in the back of his pants. “See, we lowered our weapons. Now lower yours.” I could see Jacob wasn’t going to budge anytime soon.

  “He’s not complying, Henry.” I was fulfilling my new role as Captain Obvious as pleasantly as I could. Henry was stressed, but I could see that he was determined to get Sophie out of this.

  “How about a deal?” Jaw meet floor, floor this is my motherfucking jaw. I looked over at Henry in shock.

  “Henry! No!”

  “Shut it, Elaina!”

  “What kind of deal are you talking about?” Jacob seemed to be very interested. I was worried. Actually, more like scared out of my fucking mind.

  “Since I was the one who killed your wife, then why don’t you take me and let Sophie go?”

  “No, Henry! Are you out of your damn mind?” I was pissed. I also had an overwhelming fear that was on the verge of taking control of me.

  He didn’t look at me, but he snapped at me like a pit bull. “I said shut it, Elaina!”

  “So, you want to trade for the Barbie here?” Jacob jammed the gun into her temple again. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I was about to lose my future husband over a blood-slurping, arm-gnawing undead. Okay, maybe that was a little insensitive. I was about to lose my future husband over what was some serious horrific bullshit!

  “Yes. It was me, not her. So take me. Look, I’m putting my pack down and completely disarming myself.” He dropped his pack, and took the Sig out of the back of his pants. He held his hands up. “Okay? I’m going to head over now.” He took a step toward the counter.

  Jacob was focused on Henry, never looking in my direction. I was scared that I was about to watch Henry die. He turned and looked at me.

  “It’s okay, love.” I was shaking with fear. I couldn’t watch him walk to his death. I couldn’t watch him die. I would be nothing without him. My eyes filled with tears. “You’ll be fine without me.” What? No, I wouldn’t! Was he out of his fucking mind?

  He looked down at my Sig quickly, then back to my eyes again, nodding ever so slightly. Then it hit me. He wanted me to shoot Jacob. Duh, Elaina! How can you be so stupid?

  Everything went in slow motion. Henry was approaching the counter one step at a time. Jacob released his grip on Sophie. She jumped out of the way, and then Henry yelled, “Twelve o’clock!”

  Before he finished calling out our routine, I didn’t even need to aim. I raised my Sig and pulled the trigger in one swift move. It was almost natural and it scared the hell out of me. Jacob dropped behind the counter. Sophie ran out, and grabbed Henry’s pack.

  “Come on, Elaina! Let’s go!” I stood there in stunned silence with my Sig still pointed at where Jacob had been standing. I had just killed a human. I was a murderer. Holy fuck, I was going to go to jail! And to Hell! Yes, don’t forget Hell because that’s where murderers go. The devil and I would be total best fucking friends forever.

  Sophie was tugging on my arm and broke me out of my rabbit hole self-pity party. Then I heard Jacob moaning in agony. I felt some relief that he was still alive. I wasn’t a murderer so maybe I wouldn’t be going to hell. Maybe.

  “Get her out of here!” Henry shouted to Sophie.

  “Come on!” Sophie growled. She yanked me so hard, I nearly tumbled over. She was successful in dragging me outside of the cafe.

  “No! Stop! What about Henry? Jacob still has a...” Another gunshot rang out from inside. “Oh, my god! Henry!” I tried to break free from Sophie, but she was so much stronger than me. Plus, her dagger fingernails had pretty much paralyzed me with pain. “Let me go, you fucking psychotic bitch! Let me go!” I screamed until I was hoarse.

  “Elaina, it’s okay! Calm down.”

  “But Henry…” I dropped to my knees again. It was becoming my signature move. I needed to change it up some, especially when there was pavement involved.

  My heart was in my throat, pounding with such fierceness that it felt like it was trying to escape from my chest. Tears poured down my face. I didn’t want to exist anymore, not without my Henry. I was nothing without him. The blackness started to consume me.

  “Elaina, listen to me. It’s okay.” She knelt down beside me and took my face in her hands, trying to comfort me like she saw Henry do time and time again. “Really. It’s okay.”

  “No, no, no…” I choked out through my tears.

  “Honey, listen to me. Please.” I didn’t want to hear her shit. My heart was shattering into millions of pieces all over the dirty, gore-splattered sidewalk.

  “Elaina!” Henry came running out the door.

  “Oh, my god!” I jumped up, and ran to him. He embraced me so tight that he lifted me up and swung me around. I wrapped my legs around his waist so he couldn’t put me down. “I thought you were dead!” I was having a hard time speaking through my tears.

  “I know, love. But I’m not. I’m here. It would take a lot more than that to get rid of me.” He kissed my forehead. I looked him over. He had blood speckled all over his face and drips of blood on the front of his shirt. I dropped my legs, and he released me from his embrace.

  “What happened?” I wiped some of the blood off his lips and chin. He reached up and wiped my forehead. He had an odd look on his face. It was a relaxed, “been smoking too much weed” look.

  “Ah…you know. Splatter.” His eyes were weirder than normal, and I had just realized that his voice was slow and lax. He was nonchalant, but I suppose he had to be with his history. “Come on. Let’s go back to the flat. The sun is setting.”

  He avoided my question like a pro. Then he tossed Sophie the gun that Jacob had taken from her.

  “But what happened?”

  “He’s true dead.” Henry took my hand and looked at Sophie. “You alright, Sophie?”

  “Yes. I’m just bloody brilliant. And yourself?”

  “Fucking dandy.” Henry picked up his pace, and I tried to keep up with his long, quick strides.

  ***

  We made it back to the apartment safely, only having to stop once more so Sophie could take out another undead. When Nick let us in, I walked past him and dropped my pack on the table, as I headed to the bathroom. I felt so dirty and needed to wash up. Plus, I needed a moment to think about what had happened. Claire was in there, spot cleaning some clothes in the sink.

  “Hey, doll. You doing alright?”

  “Yeah, I think so.” I was still a bit stunned, but I was worried that there was something going on that I didn’t know about. Henry did say he would talk to me later about more of all the mental bullshit that was surrounding us. I was goi
ng to take him up on that offer after I talked with Claire. “Claire?” She looked up while she was scrubbing a bloodstain on her shirt.

  “Yeah, doll?”

  “Do you think there’s more to this than what Henry is telling us?” I tried to speak in a hushed tone. I was ashamed that I was doubting Henry again. She grabbed the matches, lit the candles, and reached around me to close the door. She took me by the arms, moved me to the side of the tub, and we sat down together. I had a feeling the conversation was going to be juicy.

  “Well, something is odd. I mean, this whole thing is insane to begin with. A short time ago, this city was beautiful and life was normal. Henry was normal, or so we thought. I don’t know how this all unfolded, but things are very odd and…well, not normal. Do you find it odd that they have the same eyes?” Claire was whispering at a feverish pace.

  I could tell by her verbal diarrhea that she had been thinking about all of it before. I approached her. She must have been waiting for me to ask so she didn’t feel guilty about implying anything.

  “Yeah. It’s kind of odd.” I was picking at a small hole in my jeans that must have happened when I dropped to my knees on the sidewalk.

  “When our team went out, Henry was in full military mode. The way he acted…it was just weird.” Claire paused, then she said, “I don’t know. I didn’t want to say anything to you about my feelings. I didn’t want to upset you.”

  “Right. I don’t know, Claire. I’m not sure what to think. It’s crazy. We were clearing the shoe store, and he said Sophie would be fine outside on her own. I didn’t have a good feeling about it. Then after we called it cleared, we headed out and Sophie was MIA.” Claire’s eyes bugged out.

  “But she’s here.”

  “Yeah. I convinced Henry to move forward with our search, telling him that she had to be around somewhere. He looked panicky.”

  “Where was she?”

  “I’m getting to that. We moved to that café next door to the shoe store.”

  “Gemelli’s? Mmm... I would love a slice of their red velvet right about now.”

  “Yeah. That does sound good.” Let the salivating begin. “Anyway, I was thinking about our history at Gemelli’s when we walked to the storefront. Henry was calling for Sophie, and we decided to go into the café. She was held at gunpoint by that guy, Jacob, from downstairs.”

  “That creepy guy?”

  “Yeah, I guess. I never saw him until the café. So he was holding her at gunpoint. He said Henry killed his wife, and he worked out an exchange. Henry for Sophie.” Claire’s eyes bugged out of her head again. “As soon as he let go of Sophie, I shot him.” I said it so fast, hoping that if it wasn’t intelligible, it wouldn’t be true. I put my head in my hands.

  “Oh no.” Apparently, Claire was at a loss for words. She wrapped her arm around me and held me tight.

  “I thought I killed him.”

  “He’s still alive?”

  “No. This is where it gets weird. Sophie ran over to me and started dragging me out of the café. I was screaming for Henry, and he was yelling at Sophie to get me out of there. We got outside, and I heard a gunshot. I freaked out and thought that Jacob shot Henry because I heard him moaning before Sophie dragged me out of there. She was trying to convince me that Henry was fine.”

  “Obviously, he is fine. He’s here now.”

  “Yeah, he came running out of the café, and he had blood all over him…even on his lips and chin.”

  “Maybe it was just close range?”

  “I don’t know. I just thought it was weird how he screamed at her to rush me out.”

  “Maybe he just wanted to protect you, and he didn’t want you to see him finish off Jacob.” She didn’t sound convinced.

  “I just got a weird feeling, that’s all. Plus, he had this…‘high’ look when he came back out of the café.” There was a knock on the door. “Occupied,” I said.

  “I need to come in,” Nate whined from the hallway. I sighed. I got up and opened the door. Claire finished spreading out her clothes. He pushed us out and slammed the door.

  “Geez,” I said. He had such an attitude. He was ungrateful, and it pissed me off. He should’ve been kissing our asses for saving his life. But, then again, I should’ve been kissing his ass. If it wasn’t for him finding my mother’s phone, Nick could have been an undead, as well. That was the only reason why I hadn’t beat the little bastard down yet.

  I headed to Henry’s bedroom, and Claire went to hers and Sophie’s. When I walked in the door, Henry and Sophie were chatting, in heated whispers, by the window. They didn’t see me or hear me come in. “You have to be more careful. You had blood on your lips and chin.”

  “I know. I’m sorry. I will be more careful.”

  “She’s very skeptical. She will figure it out, and then the jig will be up.”

  “I know.”

  “Skeptical about what?” I said in a rather obnoxious tone. They both jumped.

  I stood at the doorway with my hand on my hip. I noticed his “smoked too much weed” look had disappeared. I decided to let that slide for the moment. I think I portrayed the attitude pose exceptionally well. I fucking owned it. Neither one of them was saying anything. They looked at each other a few times.

  “Okay. Let’s get real here for a moment. It is obvious that you two are hiding something. I would say that something would have to be spectacular. Let’s be good people and share, shall we?” They looked at each other with great concern. I walked over to them. “I suspect something is going on here, and you two need to start with…hmmm...the truth?” Henry looked nervous, and Sophie didn’t break her stare.

  “I’m just trying to protect you.” Henry attempted to put his cold, clammy hand on my arm, and I stepped back toward the door.

  “Protect me from what?” My turn to play dumb. He threw his arms up in the air.

  “This! This whole fucked up situation!” Sophie said in a rather loud voice. Plus, she was still staring at me, which was creeping me out.

  “Hmm...” I over-exaggerated, tapping my finger on my lips. “Let’s start again. Why do you two have the same color eyes?” There was a pause. I was feeling impatient, waiting for a truthful response from at least one of them.

  “It’s common where we come from.” Sophie slipped into program mode. It was like she was just repeating information that was drilled into her head.

  “Okay. Well, since we all are being so honest here, then I think it’s time we change things up a bit.” I paused. “Claire!” My tone was obnoxious again because I was good at that.

  “Coming.” I still kept my eyes on the two of them as Claire entered the room. “What’s going on?” She crept into the room with caution when she saw me staring Henry and Sophie down.

  “Claire, I believe these two are lying to us.”

  “Elaina…please, love.” Henry reached for me. I stepped back again. “Don’t do this.” He looked devastated. I was, too, goddamn it!

  “Then, tell me what the fuck is going on. Now!” Henry looked over at Sophie. He frowned at her, and she shook her head.

  “There is so much,” Henry scrubbed his face with his hands. Then he looked at me again, desperation in his eyes. “It would be all too overwhelming.”

  I looked over at Claire and rolled my eyes. “Really? How could it possibly be any more overwhelming than what has already happened?”

  “You have to trust me.”

  “How can I?! I know you are hiding something, damn it! I deserve to know!” Yes, I felt like I was entitled to an answer. I almost married the man so I felt that I deserved some sort of explanation. Henry looked back at Sophie. He seemed to be looking for permission. Sophie shook her head again.

  “Elaina, now is not the time.”

  “Now is as good as any, Henry.” My patience was hanging by a thread, and even that was fraying.

  “Look…it’s getting late,” Claire began. “Maybe we should all get some rest. Maybe in the morning, we will have c
learer heads.” I whipped around and glared at her. I wanted to choke the practicality right the fuck out of her.

  “We need to know what the fuck is going on here. I need to know!”

  “I agree, but being this aggressive isn’t going to help. Let’s all just cool off and get some rest.” I laughed. I admit that my laugh had a bit of a mental tone to it. It was quite fitting for the situation.

  “Fine. Claire, you’re sleeping in here with me, and Henry can sleep in the guest room with his twin.” I stormed out the door and headed to Henry’s new bedroom.

  I grabbed up some of Claire’s stuff and headed back to the door, only to be stopped in my tracks by Henry. He closed the door and stood in front of it.

  “Get the fuck out of my way, asshole,” I growled.

  “Elaina, please, don’t do this.”

  “Do what? Try to get some truth out of you two? There’s something up, and I deserve to know!”

  “You do, and you will know. You just have to trust me. I have your best interests at heart.”

  “It’s in your best interest to tell me the goddamned truth! Now, get the fuck out of my way!” I roared.

  “Not until you say you trust me.”

  “Okay, fine. I trust you.” I rolled my eyes. “Now move.”

  “You don’t actually feel that way. I need your trust.”

  “Why?”

  “Because!” He slammed his fist into the molding around the doorframe. His frustration was boiling over, much like mine. He took a deep breath. “If I don’t have your trust, then this whole group is going to become divided. We need to stick together for better survival.” Yes, he was making sense, but I wasn’t going to show him I felt that.

  “Oh, please. Maybe that would be the best thing. You and your girl, Sophie, can go out there and do whatever it is that you do. The rest of us can hole up somewhere.” I shrugged.

  “Please. You have got to trust me. I love you more than anything.” I felt bad that I was being so bitchy, but I couldn’t take it anymore. I dropped everything in my arms and broke down. He tried to grab me and pull me close.

  “Don’t,” I said, failing miserably at choking back my tears. He reached for me again.