In the meantime, they had fettered the second attacker with a chain. He was lying on the floor. I swayed as I struggled to get to my feet. “So vampires are real? Holy shit, people!” I looked around the room, helpless and frightened. Michael approached me with deliberately slow steps. I shrank back, overwhelmed by it all. He lifted his hands in a gesture of peace, taking one measured step after another until he stood before me. Then he opened his arms and put them around me to comfort me. That was when I realized I was shaking and my face hurt terribly.
The men were talking. I heard Daniel say: “Brother, when I saw you yesterday, you were still the master of yourself, but just now you were under a spell. What happened and how did you break it?”
“I have no idea how it came about. How did I break the spell? I think it was her who did that,” he said, pointing at me.
Well, great. I was in trouble. By now, Phillipe, Alessandro, and Stefan had entered the room as well. Everyone was staring at me, dumbfounded. “How did you do that?” Stefan demanded to know.
Michael’s gaze was concerned and unhappy, not suspicious and curious like those of the others. The pain in my cheek brought tears to my eyes and made speaking hell. “I don’t know.”
“What did you do to break the spell?” This time Daniel had asked.
“I’m not even sure I broke anything. I was scared Sarah would die, so I tried to drag him away from her.” I lowered my eyes shyly. “But it didn’t do much good.” I hadn’t told them anything surprising there.
Sarah! I had all but forgotten about her for a minute. “Please call the paramedics for her!” I pleaded, panicking. Why hadn’t I helped her first? What kind of friend was I?
Daniel glared at me and pointed at the man in chains before me. “First you will help my friend, or your friend will die!” He was serious, no doubt.
That day, my entire world view was shattered. Vampires and magic existed, and people expected me to render a spell harmless. If I hadn’t been before, I was beside myself with fear now. I couldn’t move. My fingers felt numb, my mind paralyzed. The only thing that hadn’t frozen was my tears. Michael stepped between me and the vampire.
“Thanks a lot, Daniel. Not helpful at all. If she’s stiff with fear, she won’t be of use at all,” the stranger Daniel had called ‘brother’ said snidely. His wounds had already healed completely. He put a sympathetic hand on my shoulder.
I had witnessed him almost killing my friend only minutes before. Did he really think he could calm me down now? I shrank back, as far as that was possible in Michael’s embrace.
Michael sized him up and growled a warning: “She’s mine.”
The vampire was unfazed. “Do what you did with me, and I’ll see to it that your friend will get the help she needs,” he promised in a gentle voice. I nodded and staggered over to the other man, who had been struggling against his chains the whole time. When I knelt beside him, he managed to free one hand and grab my arm with inhuman force. I heard the crunch before I felt the pain. I screamed loudly. Daniel’s brother freed my wrist from the bound man’s grip. Overwhelmed by the pain, I stumbled backwards. I needed a moment to catch my breath. Before anyone could tell me to, I returned to the man on the floor, who was now held down by Daniel. The pain made me angry, but not with the man who lay before me, I was mad at those who controlled him. They were responsible for Sarah’s injuries, too. I braced my uninjured arm against his shoulder, looked him confidently in the eye, and pictured myself smashing the magic that surrounded him to pieces.
He blinked and looked at me. “What …?”
My bruised cheek and my broken arm throbbed with unbearable pain, and then a black veil came down over my eyes.
4 CONFUSION
I awoke in a bed that smelled of lavender, feeling disoriented. Orange drapes filtered the daylight streaming in, which revealed the contours of the room. My lower arm was in a cast, my face throbbed, and I was wearing men’s pajamas in blue. Looking for something familiar, I turned my head and saw Michael, asleep by my side. It took me a few more moments to remember everything, to process last night’s events. Panic washed over me again, and I found that I wanted no part in this. I rose and crept towards the door as noiselessly as I could. When I reached for the door knob, Michael was suddenly standing next to me, a suspicious glint in his eye. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“I wanted to look for Sarah.”
“And run away with her?” He’d hit the nail on the head, for that had been my immediate plan. I looked into his beautiful blue eyes, feeling sheepish.
“Melanie, Sarah’s going to call you next week. She already left.”
“What? What time is it? Why didn’t she wait for me?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “I think that’s for her to tell you.”
I pointed at the pajamas I was wearing. I knew I hadn’t put them on myself. He grinned like a kid that’s been caught doing something naughty, and then he handed me some folded clothes. “Your things were torn and bloodied by last night’s unpleasantness. These will look good on you.” I appraised a transparent silk blouse and a skirt.
“Thank you. Then I will go home now. Of course I won’t say a word about what happened, and I’ll try to forget the evening.”
He crossed his arms and gave me an indifferent look. “Nobody would believe you.”
I knew full well that that was true. “Right. So if we both know that, where’s the problem?” I asked and stuck my chin out, because he was blocking my exit.
He searched my eyes with mock expectation. “Don’t you want to see me again?”
“Oh,” I said, lowering my head, bewildered. “Your company seems a little too dangerous for my taste. No offense, but I think I’m going to leave now.” I took a step to the left without looking at him, but he didn’t let me pass. He laughed. I looked up and into his face. It was as if he’d sought to appear harmless up to now, because for the first time he looked really frightening. I flinched and stepped back instinctively. If I hadn’t fully grasped how much trouble I was in, I realized it in that moment. I struggled to control my voice, but it trembled with fear. “I’m in deeper shit than I think?” He nodded. I was sick of pussyfooting around. “If you want to kill me, get it over with already.” I knew I couldn’t stop him if that was his goal, but I still had my pride. I grabbed a chair with my good hand and got ready to fight.
He shook his head and took the makeshift weapon from me with no effort. “Delicious. You’re like a kitten facing off a grown tiger. It’s cute, but what are you going to do? Bite me?”
That was the last straw, my patience snapped and my temper took over. I walked past him. When I reached for the door knob again, he stood before me in a flash, wrapped his arms around me and fixed my arms behind my back. I started screaming, I kicked with all my might, I writhed and struggled, but all to no avail. I accomplished nothing. He held me without visible effort, and when I calmed down again, he kissed me. “You’re delightful,” he murmured into my ear. I pulled away from him, breathless and frustrated. “Would you finally tell me what you want from me, or are you planning on toying with me the whole day?”
He gave me a lascivious smile. “Very tempting.” Then he continued in a more sober voice: “Had I wanted to see you dead, you’d be dead already. I wouldn’t have gone through the trouble of tending to your wounds.” Admittedly that made sense.
“You accomplished something unusual yesterday. Unusual even in our world.” What was he talking about now? I looked at him confused and clueless. “Are you talking about the vampires? I think it was nothing but good luck. Coincidence.” He studied me closely, followed my every move, as if he was trying to solve a riddle, discover the secret. I had several questions that clamored to be answered. “Daniel and the attackers are vampires. You, Alessandro, Phillipe, and your friends from the club are not vampires, but you aren’t human either?” He nodded and continued to study me, so I went on: “What are you, and who put a spell on those vampires? Why does this per
son want to kill you, and why don’t you simply let me go home, forget about all of this, and get back to my boring, normal life?”
He brooded for a long while before answering. “Your gift is rare. But since the supernatural world now knows what you are capable of, there is no going back. Anyone who gets word about you will try to possess you, and believe me, you’re best off if it’s me.”
“If you intend to keep me imprisoned here, you should know that I’m a very stubborn person, and that I’ll do anything not to help you.”
He seemed perplexed by that. “Where does all this prejudice stem from? I propose the following deal: We will allow you to continue to live your normal life, but in return you’ll come and help us whenever we need you. So far, only the vampires and me and my friends know your identity, and as long as that stays the case, you should be safe.”
‘We will allow you’? Could he be any more haughty and entitled? I had a wild guess: “So Sarah told you everything she knows about me, huh?”
“Of course she did. She had no choice. She told us how you’ve always had a sixth sense for danger, and that many people think you’re strange because of your reactions.”
“If you and Daniel’s people are the only ones who know who I am, I’m not a threat to the rest of your supernatural world. I was happy in my regular world without any magic and witchcraft. Couldn’t you simply leave me alone?” I gave him a hopeful look.
“I don’t think so,” he replied, his expression firm and his eyebrows raised. I threw up my arms in resignation and then flinched with the resulting pain.
“Once your injuries have healed, would you do me the honor and go out with me again?” Michael asked, his voice all gentlemanly now.
That threw me for a loop, and I flipped. I screamed at him: “You just threatened me, decided that you will assume control over my life, ignored my question regarding your nature, and now you’re asking me to go out with you?”
He regarded me with amusement. “You’re exhausted and overstrained. We’ll talk again after you’ve had a few days to rest.” One look into his face told me that this was the end of our conversation.
For the third time this morning, I reached for the door knob, but that elicited a smirk from him. “You’ll draw everybody’s looks if you leave the house in pajamas.” He laughed and left the room.
I got dressed, went downstairs and crossed the parlor and entrance hall. He was leaning against the frame of the front door. With a nonchalant move, he held out a business card he was holding between index and middle finger. “If you run into trouble or anything strange happens, my number is right here.”
“I never ran into any trouble before I met you and your friends,” I replied in frustration, while I pocketed the card.
I did not look left or right as I crossed the front garden and headed for the street. Half an hour later, I was back at my place, where I flopped down on my bed and lay motionless for a few moments. When I tried to wipe the exhaustion from my face, I flinched with fresh pain. I got up and went over to the mirror. Oh, holy shit! The entire left side of my face was discolored, shimmering in shades of green and blue. How was I supposed to explain that?
I took a shower and put on some fresh clothes, which was a real challenge with my cast. The blouse and skirt Michael had given me went into the washing machine, and since I hadn’t eaten anything in twenty-four hours, I opened the fridge and reheated the leftover pasta from the day before. I spent Sunday doing some homework and resting. I tried to call Sarah in the evening, but she didn’t answer her phone. That was not unusual for her.
I got up at seven the following morning, just like I always did. After a failed attempt to cover up my bruises, I headed for the university. Andreas was already waiting in our study corner. I wasn’t thinking about my injuries when I entered the building. And now Andreas was staring at me in shock; his mouth fell open. He balled his hands into fists and his face reddened with anger, before he hastened to meet me. “Who did this to you? I’ll kill the bastard!”
I’d forgotten to come up with a story to explain the state I was in. “Don’t get all upset. I ran into a doorway,” I lied spontaneously.
“What’s the doorway’s name? That bruise on your face looks like the imprint of the back of a hand. Oh shit, Melanie! He broke your arm, too?”
Denying it made no sense. “Please don’t ask, Andreas, I don’t want to talk about it!”
“I didn’t know you had a boyfriend. But if he did this to you, you need to report him to the police and please, break up with this guy!”
“It wasn’t my boyfriend; I don’t have one. I’m sure I told you about Sarah before. She and I were out Friday night, and someone injured her on her neck. I attacked him from behind to help her. He backhanded me and I fell to the floor. His pal broke my arm in the fray.” That wasn’t even a lie. Andreas studied me without saying anything, so I continued: “A few guys then came to our help. Now tell me about your weekend.” Maybe he would let me change the subject now.
“To be honest, I expected you to be more creative if you don’t want to talk about something. I shouldn’t let it go like this, but okay, if you say so. We had an emergency at my father’s company Friday night between three and four, so I was busy and exhausted for the rest of the weekend.” I got his drift and helped him out: “So you didn’t have enough time to finish your homework? If we stop discussing my misfortunes now, I’m sure we can fix that.” We didn’t have a lot of time, so we simply changed my answers a little. Nobody would notice.
On the way home I took a circuitous route to buy some groceries. Across from the store a magnificent building caught my eye. I didn’t understand why I’d never noticed this building before. It was a beautiful mansion with a well-maintained garden. The last time I’d consciously taken in my surroundings here, I was sure there had been an uninhabited, worn-down house on this property. Sometimes you wonder at how blindly you go through life most of the time.
Back in my apartment I waited for Sarah’s call, but it didn’t come. Late in the evening I finally picked up the phone and dialed her number. She answered after the first beep, and said that she’d been just about to call me. Then she launched into gushing how amazing the evening had been. In the course of our conversation I realized that I had forgotten to ask Michael what memories they’d left or given her. Hence I kept declaring in a variety of ways that I’d been very drunk and could hardly remember anything. She reiterated how sorry she was that I’d fallen down the stairs at the end of the night, and she cursed the ferret that had bitten her neck. She wrapped it up by saying: “We definitely need to do that again,” and then the awkward phone call was over.
Two days later my bruises had healed and faded. I’d always had better than average wound healing, but the speed of this recovery was uncanny. My arm felt healed again, too, and I was sure that the cast was no longer necessary. It was also an annoying obstacle. I suspected Michael or one of the others had magically sped up my healing process.
The next morning I went to the hospital to get my arm checked. I lied to the ER doctor that my arm felt strangely numb, so he quickly ordered an X-ray. Then he scolded me for waiting so long to have my cast removed. According to him, the condition of my bones and tissue indicated that the fracture had happened weeks ago. The numb feeling would quickly go away once the cast was off, he told me. He continued to rant that irresponsible patients like me could really make his life a lot easier by simply following our original doctors’ orders. If I’d shown up at the appointed time, he wouldn’t have to waste his precious time on me now, when the ER was overflowing with actual emergencies.
Back at my place my gaze snagged on the clothes Michael had given me. They were a constant reminder of what had happened. I decided I would return them that day and be rid of the sight. It wasn’t about seeing Michael again, but about drawing a line under the weird, disconcerting weekend. At least that was what I kept telling myself. It’s never easy to fool yourself like that. I thought about him
constantly, so it was hard work pretending that I didn’t have ulterior motives here.
When I stood before the mansion again, I looked for the mailbox. I had planned to simply leave the blouse and skirt in there, because I had no call entering the house again, or bothering its inhabitants. A good plan, if only there had been a mailbox anywhere. What now? Was it a good idea to ring the bell? It would be childish to turn around and leave again, and in case someone was watching me, it would also be embarrassing. Well, no mailbox and no doorbell either. I gathered my resolve and slowly opened the door. “Hello, anybody home? I just wanted to return the clothes.”
Peris Night: Terakon (Secret Language) Page 4
