Monster

by Yolanda Olson

  “I will,” I promised. I gave him a hug on my way out and waved at the immortal vision of love that still sat on the couch. I’m sure if Romeo and Juliet had been vampires, this would’ve been them.

  As I went through the abandoned part of the building, it suddenly dawned on me that I had forgotten all about Paige during that time I spent with my favorite friends. Things always seemed to be better around them, now that I thought about it.

  I pushed open the door to the alley and stepped out into the brisk darkness. As I walked past the homeless again, I noticed a figure sitting on the fire escape stairs looking at me sullenly.

  “Max?” I asked squinting into the darkness.

  “Hello Finn,” he said again.

  “I thought you left,” I said walking over to him.

  Shrugging he kept his eyes on the ground. I leaned against the staircase and smiled at him. Slowly he turned his face to me again and smiled back.

  “Do you want me to walk you back to your place?” he asked.

  “Sure, that’s fine. But just so you know I’ve got a human I need to pick up first.

  That won’t make you uncomfortable will it?”

  “No. I don’t deal with those,” he said getting up.

  I knew what he was talking about when he said he didn’t ‘deal’ with humans and since he was the only vamp I’d ever come across with violet eyes, I was dying to know what he did ‘deal’ with. But I wasn’t so sure I should ask.

  We walked together through the streets in silence at first, weaving our way through the people out in the streets. As we turned down my street, I started to look around to see if maybe Paige had gone home or if she was still in the downtown area. Nearing the front of my house, the scent of her was faint, so I knew she hadn’t been back yet.

  I proceeded down the street, but stopped when I realized it was only my footsteps that I heard.

  Turning around I saw that he had rested a hand on the iron face that surrounded my home. He was looking at the home with a slight smile on his face.

  “You okay?” I asked coming back to him.

  Looking down at me, he nodded and with one more glance at the house walked past me down the street.

  “Are you coming?” he called from the street corner.

  I pulled on the gate to make sure it was still closed. Curiously I walked down the street and caught up with him. I looked up at him when I was standing next to him. He was glancing up and down the street, refusing to meet my eyes.

  “So where is this human?” he asked.

  “She should be in the downtown area. It’s where she was heading when I last saw her.”

  He nodded and took a right towards the sounds and lights of the downtown scene. I had to practically run to keep up with him, which was becoming kind of a hassle since I had on flip-flops.

  “Care to slow down?” I called to him.

  But he didn’t. Of course he didn’t. Why would he? It’s not like I should have any kind of trouble keeping up with him right? Reaching down I took off my shoes and broke into a run behind him. I felt the grit of the street against my bare feet and it made me feel disgusting. Luckily nothing that was on those streets could harm me so I pushed the feeling of disgust out of my head and kept running.

  In the distance I saw him turn another corner and duck into a lounge. Sighing I put my shoes back on and took a deep breath. Smoothing my hair back out of my face, I refastened my clip then I squared out my shoulders and walked purposefully down the street toward the lounge he had walked into. As I approached the door I noticed two college guys staring at me. Their height and stature gave away that they were obviously in some kind of sports. Football, I gathered. Definitely in fraternities.

  The closer I got the more I noticed that they were staring at me. Two doors away from the lounge where Max had slid into and they were nudging each other and grinning.

  One door away and the taller of the two with the brown wavy hair leaned back against the wall and looked at me with a gross smile. Rolling my eyes I approached the lounge and walked around him to get to the door.

  “Hey there,” he said as I passed him.

  Completely ignoring him I reached for the door handle when his friend grabbed my wrist.

  “Don’t you have any manners? My friend here just said hi,” he said tightening his grip.

  I had to compose myself. I was in public with humans who didn’t know what I was and if I wanted too, I could make a feast out of both of these frat losers.

  “Let go of my wrist,” I said wrenching myself out of his grip. “Don’t ever touch me. Ever.”

  He put his hands up in mock surrender and laughed. His friend though didn’t seem to think that I should’ve ignored him because he grabbed me by the arm and swung me in his direction.

  “I said hello,” he said pulling me close to him.

  I started to pull away from him but his grip was so tight that I knew if I pulled to hard, that my bone would break. Sometimes I wish that instead of being immortal, I were invincible. But I know that feeding properly would easily solve this.

  “Let. Me. Go.” I said in a seething tone.

  He just laughed and dragged me down the street to a dirty alley a block away.

  His friend was there and they shared a glance that told me that I was in deep trouble.

  “You’re pretty,” Frat Boy # 2 said.

  “I wonder how she looks when she’s free,” Frat Boy #1 said. The way he put emphasis on free made me sick to my stomach.

  “Don’t come near me,” I said stepping backward down the alley.

  “Why not,” asked Frat Boy #1, “You need to learn some manners and I think we’re just the guys that can teach it to you.”

  I kept walking backward, keeping a close eye on both of them, until I felt my back press up against a gate. Great. Just great. I was trapped in a scuzzy alley with two disgusting people that wanted to physically harm and emotionally scar me.

  Shame though, that any attempt to scar me mentally would be a waste. I didn’t feel emotions the way I used too. The physical was going to suck though. That would show and it would show quick and easily. Ken was probably going to have to redo my tats again.

  For a moment as I watched them close in on me, I considered fighting back.

  They’d make a grand meal but I wasn’t the type of monster to gorge myself just because there was food there. I wasn’t dressed for a fight either. Oh well. This was going to hurt but at least I didn’t have to see it coming.

  Closing my eyes, I steeled myself against the pain that was going to befall me when I heard Frat Boy #1 suddenly start begging.

  “No..please...no!!!”

  His pleas obviously fell on deaf ears because the next sound was the sound of sinew tearing and bones breaking.

  I cracked an eye open and smiled.

  Frat Boy #2 was frantically looking for a way to get out of the alley as a figure emerged from the shadows and descended on him. His agonized screams were drowned out again by the sound of tearing flesh and snapping bones.

  The figure that saved me was still hunched over Frat Boy #2, but turned slightly. The moonlight illuminated my savior’s face and I took a step closer to see who it was.

  “Max, how did you ...”

  “Your heartbeat became erratic. I felt it. I’m sorry. I should’ve waited for you,” he said gathering up what was left of the fraternity and tossing them into the dumpster in the alley.

  “Don’t apologize after saving me from a brutality I wouldn’t have been able to walk away from. Thank you for saving me.”

  “No biggie,” he said wavering on his feet a little.

  “Are you okay?” I asked hurrying over to steady him.

  Putting a hand to his mouth I watched as he wretched. Then his words came back to me, I don’t deal with those. I realized why he was suddenly so ill. He tore them apart with his teeth, which meant he tasted their blood and he doesn’t feed off of humans so the taste was probably more like bile than anyt
hing else to him.

  “Come on,” I said wrapping an arm around his waist and leading him back to the gate.

  Falling to his knees he wretched again. I put my hands on his shoulders and he dropped further down on the ground to his hands. His body began reacting even more violently to the bitterness that seemed to be coursing through his veins. He wretched one more time then began to vomit violently.

  I felt so horrible for him. A poison he wasn’t accustomed to was rushing through him trying to dominate him.

  And it was my entire fault because I wouldn’t fight back for myself.

  I watched helplessly as he continued to vomit harder and harder. Taking my over-shirt, I proceeded to wipe the sweat off of the back of his neck. He looked up at me with a sad, sickly smile and I just threw my arms around him.

  “I’m sorry Max, this is my fault. I should’ve fought back. I hate what’s happening to you because of me.”

  He rested his head on my shoulder. I ran my hand over the top of his head.

  Pulling away from me he looked up at me and nodded. I guess that was his way of letting me know that he was okay now.

  I used my shirt to clean the sweat of his face and the vomit from his lips. Then I tossed it into the dumpster. My gift to the dearly departed. I went back over to him and helped him start to get to his feet when from behind us I heard something that turned my body to ice.

  “Touching.”

  Whipping around I saw that Skiles was now seated on the dumpster watching us.

  “Oh God what do you want,” I asked stepping in front of Max protectively.

  He jumped down cleanly and lifted the lid on the dumpster. Peeking inside I saw him grin and look back at us.

  “Not used to humans are you,” he said to Max, letting the lid slam down.

  I felt him tense up behind me and I heard a low snarl escape him. Even though he wasn’t strong enough to fight he was definitely going to give it his best.

  “Skiles, just say what you have to say and leave,” I said crossing my arms over my chest.

  Grinning he looked me up and down then over my shoulder to Max, “Doesn’t she look like an angel? All dressed in white, beautiful smooth skin. I can’t help but think I did an amazing job picking this one.”

  “You’re a thief, nothing more,” Max said in a seething low tone.

  “No, I’m an artist,” Skiles replied circling around us slowly. “I saw potential, I seized the opportunity, and I just didn’t feel the need to finish this project at the time. Now that I’ve had time to think about it, I’m more than willing and able to take the time to finish molding my masterpiece. Has she told you she’s almost down to 29 days now,” he asked stopping when he reached the front of us again.

  Max looked down at me, “29 days for what, Finn?”

  “To decide if I go back to him or let him take my little sister,” I said staring daggers at Skiles. “But tonight I don’t feel the need to answer him. I’ll let him sweat it out a little while longer. Come on, let’s get what I came for and leave.”

  “You’re looking for the human Paige aren’t you,” Skiles said as we walked past him. The slight smugness in his voice made me uneasy.

  “What did you do to her?”

  “Nothing. Yet. It’s up to you to decide if this is going to be her unlucky night.

  Personally I’d sooner kill her than change her, but I’ll let this be on your head. See if you can sleep at night,” he finished with a malicious grin.

  So that’s what his plan was. He was going to torture me every night for 30 straight nights until I gave him my decision.

  What a piece of work this one was. But I decided to sustain the torture and make him wait until the last possible second.

  I was so far lost in my thoughts that I hadn’t notice that him and Max were in each other’s faces ready to square off until I heard Skiles laughing.

  “You’re too weak to fight me,” he was saying, “I’d tear you into pieces and not even care.”

  “Then let’s do it,” Max had screamed at him, shoving him so hard he flew back against the gate.

  Skiles bounced off the gate and began to rush at Max who was tensed and ready to fight for the death when I heard a familiar voice stop them both in their tracks.

  “What are the chances that there’s a party and we weren’t invited?”

  I felt faint with relief when I saw Ken emerge from the shadows flanked by Drake and Shane. Ken wore a playful grin while Drake and Shane wore determined expressions.

  Ken walked over to me and draped an arm over my shoulder. Drake and Shane advanced until they were flanking Max.

  “Who’s the skel?” he asked me.

  “Remember that mark you covered up for me a few years ago,” I asked him.

  He looked down at me the smile slowly starting to fade. “He gave it to me.”

  In the blink of an eye Kendrick had gone from being at my side to being nose to nose with Skiles. He was so angry I could feel the heat coming from his body even though there were three people in between us.

  Ski could see he was in danger though because he jumped back and landed on the wall. Even though his back was to the wall he was holding himself there with his hands and feet, body bent toward us.

  He looked almost like a spider only working in reverse. It was creepy but it made me wonder if I could do the same thing. I’d have to try it some time.

  Seeing the question lingering on my face, he started to laugh.

  “You have 29 days Finnegan. And now you’ll have two lives to consider for your own. Kendall and Paige.”

  I watched in stunned silence as he crawled backwards up the brick wall and over the roof. As soon as he was out of sight, I dropped to my knees still staring at the empty roof.

  Ken reached down and picked me up off the ground by my arm. I had to focus on Ken’s eyes to bring me back to reality. Looking over at Max I saw that he was slumped between Drake and Shane who each were holding him up and half walking, half carrying him down the alley.

  When he looked up we locked eyes, and he turned his face away.

  “Sorry,” he mumbled in his somber tone again as they helped him out of the alley.

  His refusal to look at me and his deadpan tone told me that I just lost rights to his friendly demeanor. I felt sad but I also felt that I would have no problem getting it back again.

  “Are you alright,” Ken asked me finally letting go of my arm.

  “Yeah. Sorry. Listen I’m alright, I’m going to go home now and hope I don’t screw up anything else on my way there,” I said starting down the alley.

  “Nah, I don’t think so,” he said scratching his head. “You’re gonna stay at my place tonight, where I can watch you and make sure nothing happens to you.”

  “I’m fine Ken,” I said as we started down the street, “I just want to go home and lay down.”

  “Okay,” he said walking around to the passenger side door of a sleek black Dodge Viper and held the door open.

  “What?” I peeked in.

  “Get in the damn car,” he said laughing.

  Sticking my tongue out at him I walked over and settled into the leather seats and waited while he closed the door and climbed in through the driver’s side.

  I strapped on my seat belt when he started the car. He revved the engine a couple of times grinning at me, but I totally killed his buzz when I leaned over and strapped his seat belt onto him.

  “Oh come on, it’s not like a car accident would kill me, you know.”

  “Yeah well, I don’t feel like piecing you back together in the event that it happens. It would be the world’s grossest and hardest jigsaw puzzle.”

  Laughing he pulled out of the space he was parked in. The car shot down the street. This was one of those rides, where if I were human, I probably would’ve been screaming for him to slow down.

  Instead I relaxed in the chair and watched the city fly by in colors. We were silent for most of the ride; it was a bit annoying really
. Almost as if he read my thoughts, he leaned over and turned the car stereo on. Fast rock music pounded through the speakers as we continued to race down the streets.

  I quietly sang along to the music and listened as he tapped his fingers in time to the beat on the steering wheel. It was such a pretty song and it seemed to fit my life.

  Another ten minutes passed when he finally pulled up a long cobblestone driveway and pulled the car into a humongous garage. As the automatic doors started to hum as they closed behind us, I saw the first rays of dawn approaching.

  For a moment I contemplated going out and standing under the sweet pinkish yellow sky that would soon be ruled by the sun, willing the rays to strike me down like the abomination that I was.

  Standing on my tiptoes I peeked out through the tinted garage door window and watched the sun rise swiftly.

  I felt a tear roll down my cheek thinking about how easy it would be to just end this charade once and for all.

  “Pretty isn’t it?”

  I jumped and quickly wiped the tears from my face. I forgot that I wasn’t alone.

  “Yes. It is.”

  “You’re not the only one to think that way,” he said quietly. “Don’t let it consume you though or you will wind up walking out there one day. Not that the sun would do anything to you anyway.”

  “What?”

  “The sun? It doesn’t affect you the way it would affect say, a vampire. Being in the sun only partially burns you it won’t kill you though. I’ll tell you a secret. It can’t kill me either. Or Drake, or Shane, or Max.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense,” I said staring at him.

  “Sure it does. Come inside and I’ll explain it to you. I’ll tell you something else I’ll bet you’re dying to know.”

  I followed him as he led the way into the house flipping switches as we went.

  The rooms became illuminated with colorful lights and soothing music. “What’s that,” I asked glancing around at all the artwork and antique furniture.

  “I’ll tell you why Max’s eyes are violet.”

  “Isn’t that something he should tell me,” I asked as we stopped in his living room area.