A Witch to Live

by Glenn Bullion

  “Let's just talk inside.”

  They left the car and entered the apartment building. Kristin's hand shook as she lifted her key to the front door.

  “The door's cracked open. The jamb's all busted up.”

  Kevin took a deep breath. “It's okay. I think I know who's waiting for us.”

  He was surprised when Kristin opened the door and they saw not only Victoria, but Rachel as well. They both sat at the dining room table, Rachel with a soda in front of her. Oscar was curled up on the couch. He greeted Kevin with one open eye and a yawn before drifting back to sleep.

  “Kevin!” Rachel said. “Where have you been?”

  She nearly tackled him around the waist. He held her in his arms, only for a moment, before she kissed him as hard as she could. She looked Kristin up and down, at her ruined clothes.

  “What the hell happened to you guys? I've been trying to get a hold of you, through the necklace.”

  “Yeah, well, I lost my rock. It's been a weird day.”

  “Same with us.”

  “Who is this?” Kristin asked, gesturing to Victoria.

  Victoria rose from the table and politely extended her hand to Kristin.

  “I'm Victoria, a friend of Rachel and Kevin's.”

  “Are you a witch, too?”

  “No,” Rachel interrupted. “She's a vampire. Some people kidnapped us, but Victoria went all vampire on them.”

  Kevin and Kristin spoke at the same time. “What?”

  “I can't deal with this,” Kristin said. “I just can't deal with this right now.”

  She stormed down the hall and closed the bedroom door behind her. Kevin went to follow her, but Rachel held him by the arm.

  “Let me talk to her,” she said.

  He hesitated. “Okay. I would probably say something stupid right now.”

  She gave him a tight hug and kissed him once again.

  “I'm so glad you're okay. I was worried.”

  Rachel walked down the hall. Kevin took the moment to appreciate and admire her as she knocked on the bedroom door and stepped inside. He didn't know why she was so worried, but dreaded the answer he knew was coming.

  “Rachel's one tough young lady,” Victoria said. “So is Kristin. They'll both be fine.”

  “I hope so.”

  “It sounds like we've all had an interesting day.”

  He took a deep breath and sat across from her.

  “I guess we'd better fill each other in.”

  Kevin and Victoria recounted the day's events. He almost felt sick when she told him about their escapade at the warehouse.

  “Rachel could have been hurt,” he said, his face twisting with emotion. “They tried to attack my girlfriend. They shot my sister. Victoria...I want to kill all of them.”

  “I understand, believe me. I've run from quite a few crossbows and flaming torches myself. But Kevin, whatever anger you're feeling, you've got to get a grip on it. When I get mad, people get hurt. I'm just a lowly vampire. When you lose control, and act out of anger, let's just say the numbers are a little higher.”

  “How am I supposed to keep calm? Am I supposed to pretend today never happened? Just go on right back to school?”

  “Relax. When Kristin calms down, we'll head back to my house. Let me handle things.”

  He rested his head in his hands as he stared down at the table.

  “I was so out of control,” he said. “For a while, I wasn't even thinking about Kristin. I just wanted to hurt them.”

  “But you did think about Kristin, and you took care of her. I'm proud of you.”

  “Thanks,” he said, finally managing a small smile. “Rachel and Kristin shouldn't even be involved in this.”

  “I know. Your enemies won't have a problem using your loved ones against you.”

  “Enemies. I have enemies. Wow.”

  “I hope it's something you don't have to get used to.”

  Rachel and Kristin emerged from the bedroom ten minutes later. Rachel gave Kevin a subdued smile and sat next to him. She held his arm and rested her head on his shoulder. Kristin had changed into a clean pair of jeans and a tee shirt. She stood in the hallway and took a deep breath, staring at everyone at the table.

  “Kris? You okay?”

  “I will be. So, is anyone thirsty? I could use some Jack Daniels. You said your name was Victoria? I'm guessing you don't drink.”

  “Oh, I drink, but not Jack Daniels. Thank you, though.”

  “I was kidding. We don't have Jack Daniels here. Kevin, Rachel? Want something to drink?”

  “I'm good, thanks.”

  Kristin popped the top on a soda and took a deep drink.

  “Oh, Kevin?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Thank you for taking care of my shoulder today. I would hug you, but we have company over. And you know I don't hug you when we have company.”

  “No problem, Kris.”

  “Actually,” Victoria said, rising to her feet. “I was hoping we could all make one more stop before the night is over.”

  “I had a feeling we weren't done yet,” Kristin said with a sigh. “Is it at least a close drive?”

  *****

  Kevin, Rachel, and Kristin followed Victoria through town. Kevin and Rachel sat in the back and held hands. Kristin seemed to be in a better mood, but still didn't talk much.

  They pulled into the familiar driveway and parked behind Victoria. Kristin gave the vampire an envious look as they climbed out of the car.

  “Nice house. Nice car. Having money must be nice.”

  Victoria turned on the light as they entered the house. She crossed the living room to the hall and opened the basement door. Kristin was still standing by the couch, looking around.

  “Nice TV.”

  Victoria laughed. “I don't think I've turned that one on a single time.”

  They followed Victoria down the basement stairs, and Kevin gave the new carpet a glance.

  “The carpet looks good.”

  “Well, it was either replace it, or leave it looking like a bloody murder scene.”

  “What happened?” Kristin asked. “Did you have a fight down here or something?”

  “That's one way to say it,” Victoria said, and gave Kevin a smile.

  Kristin admired the well-furnished basement and noticed the lack of windows.

  “If you're gonna have a coffin, I guess you might as well have one in style.”

  Victoria flashed her a look, obviously unhappy with Kristin calling her basement a coffin.

  “Make yourselves at home,” she said. “Have a seat on the couch and relax. But please, be quiet unless I say otherwise.”

  Kevin and Rachel looked at each other in confusion.

  “What are you gonna do?”

  Victoria sighed, and with all that Kevin and she had been through, he thought he saw concern flash across her pretty face.

  “I have to make a call.”

  Victoria sat at her computer desk and launched Skype. She brushed her hair behind her shoulders as she waited for an answer.

  Bradley answered the phone wearing only a robe. It was five hours ahead in the United Kingdom, and he looked like he was ready for a good day's sleep.

  “Victoria? This is a surprise. How have you been? What can I do for you?”

  “You can call off David Santos.”

  Bradley and Victoria stared at each other for a few moments before he cleared his throat.

  “Straight to the point. I didn't ever dream you would let a witch live, but after our last talk, I started to wonder. I hired Santos, not thinking he'd need to do anything besides gather information. So imagine my surprise when he tells me there are two witches not even two hours apart, and you didn't kill either one of them.”

  “He's a good kid. We don't need to kill him.”

  “Are you listening to yourself? I don't care if he's a saint, much less a good kid. He has to be put down. You know this better than anyone. Weren't you in Paris in
1940?”

  Victoria pushed the memories of World War II aside. She heard Kevin shift uncomfortably on the couch.

  “Bradley, Kevin is-”

  “Kevin? You know his name?”

  “Not only do I know his name, but he's my friend. Tonight, I killed some of Santos' crew to protect his girlfriend.”

  She could almost see the rage behind Bradley's eyes.

  “What's happened to you, Victoria?”

  “Nothing at all. Look, I think the good this witch can do outweighs the bad. He's done some pretty amazing things.”

  She decided not to go into details about the werewolf.

  “Are you willing to bet your life on that? Because that's what you're doing, you realize.”

  Victoria looked to the couch.

  “Come over here, guys.”

  The three of them awkwardly stood in front of her laptop as she introduced them.

  “This is Kristin, Kevin's sister. This is Rachel, his girlfriend. And this is Kevin. I wanted you to meet them, to see them.”

  “And you thought this would pull at my tender heart?”

  “I know you've got one in there somewhere.”

  Bradley let out a tiny smile, and Victoria finally felt maybe she was getting somewhere.

  “I'd like to talk to Kevin alone.”

  Kevin watched as Victoria led Rachel and Kristin up the basement stairs. Victoria gave him a nod of encouragement, while Rachel blew him a kiss.

  He gave Bradley a wave and a smile.

  “Hello, sir.”

  “Sit down.”

  Kevin was a little embarrassed at how quickly he followed the vampire's instruction. Bradley said nothing for nearly a minute. He simply stared at Kevin, making him even more uncomfortable.

  “You have one of my oldest, dearest friends, who I trust with my life, standing by your side. She's accomplished things even you, with your magic, could never hope to do. I hope you appreciate how much of an honor that is.”

  “I do. Victoria's awesome.”

  “Awesome, indeed. I want you to know none of this is personal. I'm not one of your Bond villains, scheming because I hate you, and neither is Santos. We've always felt witches were dangerous, and if you knew the things I do, and seen the things I have, you would understand my position.”

  “I've never seen any James Bond movies.”

  “Shame on you. Good entertainment.”

  “Sir, all I can say is, I'm not gonna do anything evil.”

  “That's not all there is to it. You're telling me you don't enjoy the power you have? It doesn't excite you?”

  “Some of it is cool,” he admitted. “But people shooting at me in the middle of the street? Going after my girlfriend and sister? Not so cool.”

  “You're honest. And intriguing. A witch raised away from the umbrella of magic.”

  Bradley went quiet again. Kevin nearly felt sick. The vampire's eyes burnt a hole right through him, and all he could do was fidget in his chair.

  “If you make me regret this,” Bradley finally said. “The consequences will be more than you can imagine.”

  “I understand.”

  “I'll contact Santos, pay him to leave the job. He won't be happy, but you'd be surprised at how soothing money can be. You have Victoria to thank for this. Do not let her, or me, down.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Go fetch her, please. I'd like a word.”

  Kevin nearly ran up the basement stairs and threw the door open. Rachel paced in the dining room, while Kristin sat on the couch. Victoria leaned against the wall with a smile on her face, no doubt having heard everything they said. He gestured to the basement.

  “Yeah, yeah. I'm going.”

  Rachel clasped her hands together near her face and stood in front of him as Victoria went back to the basement.

  “Well? What's going on?”

  “The people who attacked all of us today, he's going to call them off. I think we'll be okay.”

  Rachel embraced Kevin. He closed his eyes, realizing he could finally focus once again on his life instead of witchcraft. He planned on doing a lot of focusing on Rachel.

  “Who is he? He sounded British or something.”

  “One of Victoria's friends, I guess,” he said with a shrug. “Whoever he is, I'm gonna stay on his good side.”

  The three of them sat on the couch and watched TV until Victoria reemerged from the basement. They all turned to look at her as she shut the door.

  “Is everything alright?” Kevin asked.

  She flashed a smile and a thumbs-up. Kevin turned the TV off before they joined her in the dining room.

  “He made it clear to me that I owe about twenty favors, but the witch-hunt is over. There are a few clauses.”

  “Like what?”

  “You're in my care. I'm responsible for you.”

  Kristin took a step forward. “No, I am. You're not his family.”

  “I'm not gonna start cooking him dinner,” Victoria said, rolling her eyes. “But if I'm relaxing back in Baltimore, and strange things start happening out this way, I'm gonna be the first person called.”

  “Victoria, I told him, and I'll tell you, too. I won't do anything crazy or weird.” He squeezed Rachel's hand. “I just want to go to Homecoming and be left alone.”

  “I believe you. And I haven't said that to too many witches.”

  Kevin smiled. “What are the other clauses?”

  “Eventually, he wants to meet you.”

  “Should I be scared?”

  “You should be honored. Bradley is a politician, but he's a good man.”

  They were quiet for a moment. Kevin watched Victoria's shoulders slump, like she was drained and finally relaxed. Kristin put a hand on her brother's shoulder.

  “Can we go home now?”

  Victoria laughed, and for a moment, Kevin thought her fangs were out.

  “That isn't a bad idea. That sun comes up faster than you think.”

  Chapter 26

  Kevin paced in the dining room as Oscar watched him from the table. Kevin stopped for a moment, petted his cat on the head, and continued to wear out the carpet. He walked down the hall and stepped into the bathroom to stare at the mirror one more time.

  His white dress shirt fit nicely. The khakis were just a tad long, but Kristin's simple sewing skills helped solve that problem. His hair was passable. He wanted to think he looked good, but overconfidence had no doubt killed many guys' moves with women before.

  Kristin sat on the couch with her legs tucked under her, watching a movie. She shook her head at him as he paced once again.

  “Would you calm down over there? It ain't like you to worry, and you're starting to freak me out.”

  “Do I look okay?”

  “You look great. Now stand still.”

  “She's running late.”

  “Rachel's a woman. She'll always be late. And this is Homecoming. I'm sure she wants to look extra good for you.”

  “Maybe she changed her mind. Maybe she's not coming.”

  “Did something that stupid really come out of your mouth? Didn't I just catch you guys half naked on the couch for the thousandth time last night?”

  “Maybe one day you'll signal before you come in, like I've been asking.”

  “And miss the fun? The embarrassment? The red faces? No way.”

  “I think I'm gonna be sick.”

  “Then drink some of your magic water.”

  “That's not gonna help this time.”

  “Kevin, I'm serious. Sit down, or I'll hit you with a chair.”

  He finally did so, stroking Oscar's fur with one hand and rubbing his face with the other.

  “I'm actually going to Homecoming with Rachel.”

  “Yes, you are. Are you two gonna have sex tonight?”

  “Kris!”

  “Hey now, just wondering. Every time I catch you two I wonder, 'What if I waited five more minutes?'”

  Kevin felt his face turning red.
“I think Prom is when the sex is supposed to happen.”

  “You're waiting for Prom?”

  Kevin said nothing, and Kristin laughed at his silence.

  “My little brother is all grown up.”

  “Shut up, Kristin,” he said, and had a sudden desire to change the subject. “I wish I had a car. It feels weird, Rachel having to drive us.”

  “You can borrow the car if you want.”

  “And show up in that thing? Please.”

  “Why don't you ask that vampire chick if you could borrow that Porsche of hers?”

  He smiled at the thought. He kept in touch with Victoria over the past week, mostly by phone. She was preparing to leave Walton, probably in the next day or so. He didn't want to admit it, but he would miss her.

  “I'm not gonna ask to borrow Victoria's car. That's just tacky.” He looked down at the floor. “I wish Mom and Dad were here.”

  Kristin rose from the couch, pausing to look at their parents' picture. She sat next to her brother in the dining room and wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

  “So do I. They'd be proud of you.”

  A knock came at the door. Kevin felt Kristin tense up for a moment. Bradley was true to his word. No one had attacked Kevin or his family and friends. But Kristin was still jumpy, and he couldn't blame her.

  Kevin took one final deep breath at the door, but it wasn't who he expected.

  “Victoria?”

  “Hey,” the vampire said, flashing a bright smile. “You didn't think I'd miss your big night, did you?”

  *****

  Rachel stopped on the shoulder of the road for the third time. She fussed over her hair and double checked her makeup. Not having any experience with makeup at all, she had to get her mother to help her.

  The dress that Victoria bought for her was stunning. White, strapless, it fit her frame and showed off Rachel's assets beautifully. She frowned during her first stop, as she noticed the dress rode up her legs more than she would have liked. She had to remind herself it stopped right at her knees when she stood up, like it was supposed to. She would have to be careful sitting down the entire night.

  Convinced she wasn't hideous, at least for the next five minutes, she pulled her Mustang into traffic once again. She was nervous, and knew she shouldn't be, but couldn't help it. It was Homecoming. It was a dance. There would be people talking, dancing, drinking, getting their pictures taken. That was it. It wasn't rocket science or brain surgery. It certainly wasn't werewolves and vampires.