Warm Food Cold Body

by S. Y. Robins

  “What is wrong with you, Sina? Did you just shove a bottle of garlic under my nose?” Gia shrieked before settling back under her cover and going to sleep.

  “Oh, dear. That was just freaky.” Sina said as she shut the door, not sure whether the result was conclusive or not. Shaking off the fine particles of garlic she’d spilled all over herself as she jumped away from Gia she tried to think of what she’d just learned with her experiment.

  There had been more hissing but that was followed by an actual moment of lucidity from Gia. Hm, not conclusive that single test. Going back to the film she un-paused it and went back to watching, waiting for ideas. Inspiration came as the mirror scene occurred and Sina once more paused the film to run to her bathroom to grab a mirror.

  Once again Sina crept into the room, quietly pulling the duvet back from Gia’s head. Gia immediately let out a moan of protest and pulled the cover back over her head. Sina glared at her friend and pulled the duvet down a second time. Gia opened her eyes, glaring directly at Sina with eyes that seemed to glow in their sockets, hissed once more and Sina gave up as she ran from the room.

  She wasn’t certain, it may have only been a trick of the light, but Sina was certain she’d seen fangs protruding from the top of Gia’s gums as she’d hissed at Sina this time. Totally freaked out now Sina ran straight to her room, leaving the telly on, and locked the door. Then she stuck the chair from her vanity set under the handle, just in case. Yeah, this was serious.

  Sina moved to the vanity, pulling out several eyeliner pencils and a hair tie and formed a cross that she placed on her bedside table. She’d planned on having a shower tonight after a long day in the city but put that plan on hold. Something was going on here and there was only one person she could think of that might actually be of some help.

  Taking her phone out of her trouser pocket she flipped to her messenger screen and quickly sent out a text.

  “I think I have a vampire as a roommate. Help!” The text said. Sina thought it might be a bit over the top but knew the lady that was on the receiving end of it would take her seriously.

  Oona was a witch. A real life twitchy nose kind of witch and if there were real life twitchy nose witches then there had to be real life vampires as well too, didn’t there?

  Oona had been Sina’s friend for over ten years now and the women had taken each other into confidence on many occasions. If there was anyone that would take Sina seriously it was Oona.

  Oona’s response was quick and to the point. “Sorry, love, busy just now but will be able to come by tomorrow. Sprinkle some garlic around your bed, you’ll be fine for tonight.”

  Sina looked down at the message in disbelief. This was Oona’s response? Her last resort and only hope blew her off for the night? Well then!

  Sina climbed out of bed and looked down at the small amount of garlic left in the bottle. She sprinkled it around her bed and found there was still some left so she sprinkled more around the window and her doorframe. That ought to keep her safe for the night. No, she didn’t feel absolutely silly, not one iota. Well, perhaps just a little but what else was she to do?

  Staring at the door after changing into her nightclothes she wondered what else she could do for the rest of the night. Glancing over at her television screen she decided to continue the film she’d been watching earlier. It was probably just as good as any research she could do online. Yes, it was only a film, but still, it wasn’t like vampires had their own website outing the best way to deal with them and cause their demise now was it?

  Sina fell asleep with the film on which didn’t help her dreams at all. She fought her way through cobwebs, spooky sounds, and monsters all night, searching for Gia. Her concern for her friend was apparent throughout her dreams and by morning she wasn’t in the mood to play around anymore. It had been easy in the night to convince herself that Gia was being groomed by a vampire but in the cold light of day she knew something was desperately wrong with her friend and it had to be sorted quickly.

  Catching Gia sat in the kitchen floor inhaling a bloody steak, diluted dead blood running down her chin, made that pretty obvious.

  “I really can’t discuss Ms. Eller’s personal information with you Ms. Wheeler but as you’re the only responsible person here at the moment, and Ms. Eller’s parents are deceased and you are her roommate so this time I’ll bend the rules a little. She’s very much anaemic; in fact, we’re going to give her a transfusion tonight and try to figure out what is wrong with her. When we send her home we should have a better prognosis. I’d suggest you go home and get some sleep tonight, then come back tomorrow when we know more.” Gia’s doctor, a male with a rather beautiful smile, said to Sina.

  “Why is she losing blood then? How did you manage to untangle her scarf, she’d hiss at me every time I tried!” Okay, she thought to herself, so my questions are off the wall, sue me.

  “I suspect she’s been doing something to herself. There are two puncture wounds in her neck. She was so weak by the time you brought her in that we were able to get the scarf off to see the wounds. They aren’t very deep but her blood isn’t clotting well now and even a scratch could prove problematic. I’m sure we’ll be able to answer all of your questions tomorrow and Ms. Eller will likely feel much better. Please, go home and get some sleep, your friend is in good hands.” The doctor reassured her.

  Instead of feeling reassured, however, Sina felt even more panicked. Gia had puncture wounds in her neck? But that’s where vampires always bite their victims according to films and books! And why wasn’t her blood clotting properly?

  Sina moved out of the room and out of the hospital in a complete daze. The drive home from the city back to her little village in Derbyshire went by in a blur. She stopped at the pub first, to have a relaxing drink on her own, and then went home. She hoovered up all the bits of garlic that had spread throughout the house and cleaned up the mess in the kitchen.

  Getting Gia to let loose of that piece of steak had taken some doing and Sina had suffered through more hissing and a bit of scratching but the result was that Gia was now in hospital being properly cared for. That had to be a good thing, right?

  Now, eating a Chinese takeaway full of garlic and spices, Sina felt incredibly silly and childish, especially when she thought about that text she’d sent to Oona. What must the poor woman think of her? Sina didn’t have to wait long to wonder as Oona soon showed up with a bagful of what looked like braids of garlic, crucifixes, and stakes. Stakes? Really?

  Sina looked at her friend doubtfully and invited her in. Now what?

  2

  “First, we have to spread garlic throughout the house. This will keep the vampire from coming in and attacking Gia while she is asleep. Then we have to make sure there are crucifixes on the walls and the windows and let’s see…” Oona wandered through Sina’s house, making mental notes of things she needed to do to protect Gia.

  “Oona.” Sina called to her friend as she followed along behind the muttering woman.

  “Oona!” Sina repeated in a louder voice.

  The other woman turned to Sina with a questioning look. “Yes, my love?”

  “It’s not a vampire. The doctor said Gia just has anaemia. That’s all. No vampires.”

  “Well I don’t care what that doctor has to say three bodies have been found out in the wood this week, all drained of blood, with no physical trauma. That spells vampire to me. And now poor Gia. He’s choosing a mate and has obviously chosen Gia for the task. We have to keep her safe.” Oona said, going back to her wandering around and muttering.

  “You’re not serious?” Sina asked. She watched stunned as Oona started shooting her right index finger out, making little “pew” sounds with each shot.

  “There, those protection spells should help as well. Vampires hate witches. In fact, making Gia a witch may have to be our last resort.”

  Sina’s eyes boggled at Oona’s words. Make Gia a witch?

  “Have you lost your mind?” Sina all
but shouted.

  “No, my dear.” Oona said, turning back to Sina with a most serious look. “I’m merely trying to protect your friend but you don’t want to face reality. Because of that my work has to be doubled but if you’d like to carry on denying what’s actually happening that’s fine, I’ll do this all myself. Gia must be protected.”

  Sina looked closely at Oona and realized the woman was serious and appeared to be just a little bit afraid. Oona was never afraid, of anything. She’d seen the woman stare down raving barking snarling dogs before without even a blink of an eye. If this situation with Gia caused Oona fear then perhaps she hadn’t been so silly after all.

  They worked throughout the evening and by midnight the house was as secure as it was going to be. It smelled like a garlic farm on steroids and looked as though Sina had suddenly turned into a religious fanatic but hopefully it would keep Gia safe.

  Oona left with a promise to return in the morning to accompany Sina to the hospital to retrieve Gia. Sina sat in the now quiet house and her fear started to get the best of her. Each scrape of a tree limb against the window was a werewolf trying to get in to eat her, each crack or thump was a horde of vampires attacking her domain.

  Forcing herself up off of the sofa Sina went in for her long-delayed shower and freaked herself out when she saw her own murky reflection in the fogged up mirror. Sina was certain she was going to jump out of her own skin, even with Oona’s assurances that she was totally safe now, before the sun rose.

  She loaded a comedy film on her laptop and settled in with the headphones on, hoping that would calm her brain down some. She was reconsidering her decision not to have a dog when she finally fell asleep. Sina didn’t hear anymore scratching at the windows or thumps because of the headphones and the films that just loaded one after the other. If she had left the headphones off, however, she might have heard the roar of anger that came from outside Gia’s bedroom window and she might have noticed as a creature walking in a murky fog came to her own window and noted the lack of protection at that window.

  “Gia is much improved and is even coherent today. We still have no conclusive results but we’ve treated her anaemia and hopefully it will prove to be just a fluke. We’ve set up an appointment with her GP for next week so make sure she gets to that. Other than that Gia should be fine. You can take her home when she has finished dressing.” The doctor said before leaving the ward Gia was on.

  The doctor had also informed them earlier that Gia had no memory of the last few weeks, had no idea what had caused the anaemia, and no recollection of sitting in the floor noshing on raw meat. That was probably a good thing, Sina considered. Gia smiled brightly as she came out from behind a curtain, if still a little weakly, and started chattering away.

  “Oh, I can’t wait to get out of here, the food is horrible! I so need an Indian takeaway! Can we stop on the way home? Oh, and I need to go by the bank as well, I have no cash. Oh, it’s so glorious and bright out today!” Gia exclaimed merrily as they all walked out of the hospital doors.

  Oona and Sina looked at each other in confusion as Gia went on about the beautiful weather. It was dismal, grey, and foggy out. It wasn’t bright at all. Perhaps Gia was still feeling the effects of her brush with a vampire, Sina mused, quirking an eyebrow at Oona in question. Oona just shrugged and gave her a befuddled look.

  Eventually Oona and Sina were able to coax Gia home and were just resting after Gia’s manic run through town for an ATM, the takeaway shop, and a stop at the grocery store for some dark ale, hoping to eat, when Gia started sniffing.

  “What is that reek? Did you set off some kind of garlic bomb while I was gone Sina? What is that?” Gia wandered through the house, sniffing at all of the windows before backing away. Sina almost expected Gia to hiss at the windows she was so very displeased.

  “What happened here? Why is there garlic everywhere? I’m getting the hoover out, this just won’t do.” Gia said, heading for the utility closet.

  “No!” Both Oona and Sina exclaimed, running to stop Gia.

  “The doctor said we have to leave this up to get you better. It’s only for a few days, and then we can take it all away, alright?” Sina came up with a reason quickly. “It will keep out any bugs that might bite you.”

  “Well, surely there’s something that smells better than this? Ugh! I can even smell it in my hair now!” Gia cried out.

  Sina couldn’t smell the garlic at all but maybe her nose wasn’t as sensitive as Gia’s was? Moving her friend back to the sofa Sina contemplated taking some of the garlic down but then remembered Gia sitting in the kitchen floor chowing down on that meat. Well, sucking the blood out of it while gnawing at it. Sina pushed the memory away with a shiver and hardened her resolve. It was only until the vampire moved on, lost interest, whatever vampires do. Gia would survive. Literally if Sina had anything to do with it. If that meant they both reeked of garlic, so be it.

  Oona soon left again, having another meeting later that evening to prepare for, and Sina was left alone with the hyperactive Gia. Gia couldn’t sit still, acting like a drug addict high on their latest hit and all but climbing the walls. Sina was exhausted by the time midnight struck and Gia suddenly dropped.

  One minute she was bouncing in her chair, the next she was asleep. Sina sighed, covering her friend with a blanket, walking around checking the locks, and crawled into her own bed, too exhausted to spend the night fretting. In what seemed like a blink Sina was awake again, staring at the light on her ceiling.

  “Where did the night go? I just came to bed!” She protested, getting up to check on Gia.

  Gia was back in her own bedroom, apparently moving there in the middle of the night. The scarf was back around her neck and she was a bit pale but she was there, sleeping peacefully. Poor mite likely wore herself out with that performance last night, Sina thought.

  She went out to her office, getting some work done for the day. She worked from home, freelancing as a graphic artist and Gia, unlucky Gia, had an inheritance that she lived on that would last her five or six lifetimes. The money didn’t replace her parents but it did allow her to live a free lifestyle, even if it tended to take Gia to some rather dark places sometimes.

  Sina prepared a lunch but Gia still wasn’t awake. The doctor had told them that Gia would take time to recover so she wasn’t too concerned. When the sun went down and Gia still hadn’t woke up her concern grew but Gia roused herself enough to reassure Sina that she was just tired.

  “It’s like having a hangover that takes a few days to recover from, that’s all. I’ll be fine, Sina, go to bed.” Gia said, brushing a hand against Sina’s arm. “Go on, get some rest, you’ve been taking such good care of me. Take care of yourself for once duckie.”

  Sina left the room quietly, getting out her ever-present bottle of garlic to shake a new path across the bottom of Gia’s door. Straightening up she decided to attach one of the sticky backed crucifixes against Gia’s door. Sina ate her dinner in solitude, staring out of the window at the fog that seemed to be lingering in the area. Sometimes she wanted to move away to somewhere warm and where the sun was always burning so fog couldn’t form.

  Going to bed Sina was once against too exhausted to put a film on, falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Unlike the previous night, the dark hours dragged by and Sina’s mind was full of nightmarish creatures chasing her through the fog. She woke with a start just before one of the creatures caught her, a cry escaping her throat.

  Hearing a thumping noise coming from Gia’s room Sina followed a trail of fog. Hmmm, she thought to herself, perhaps I’m still dreaming. Sleepwalking, maybe? I didn’t leave that window open and the fog shouldn’t be flowing through the house like this.

  Sina was fuzzy, wiping the sleep out of her eyes, as her feet trudged to Gia’s room. Why does it feel like I’m walking through sludge, she wondered, starting to feel a panic. Pulling her feet along heavily Sina finally made it to Gia’s room and pushed the door open.r />
  A scream left Sina’s throat as a naked man popped out of Gia’s bed, roared at Sina, and dove through Gia’s window. Sina rushed over to the her friend, her head swivelling to the window for a moment as the fog seemed to be hovered out of the open window, escaping quickly. Flicking on a bedside lamp Sina looked down to see Gia’s neck bloody and bleeding still.

  Okay. That was it, Sina thought. Vampires are real, now how do I stop this bleeding? Pressing the ever-present scarf to Gia’s neck she reached for Gia’s phone, dialling emergency services. The ambulance arrived quickly, the police soon after, and Gia was carried off to hospital on her own as Sina had to remain to answer their questions.

  “No, I don’t know who it was.” But she did, a vampire.

  “No I didn’t get a good look at him.” But she had, dark hair, pale translucent skin, glowing ice blue eyes, inch long, piercing fangs, and a handsome but immensely evil face.

  “No, I don’t know where he went.” Sina really didn’t have any idea about that.

  “No, I couldn’t tell you why he attacked Gia.” Because she’s beautiful? Sina thought maybe Gia’s darkness had drawn the evil creature.

  “Oh, the garlic was to keep away bugs. No, I don’t believe in vampires.” Sina scoffed at the question from the female constable. “Oh, there’s been killings in the area? Do you think it’s the same person?”

  Sina was being untruthful but had no idea what else to do. Sure, the constable may have asked about vampires but Sina knew better than to mention what she’d actually seen. She didn’t want to be taken off for being a nutter. Somebody had to protect Gia, even if she wasn’t doing a very good job of it.

  Going back into her bedroom after all of the police left, Sina closed, locked, and garliced up her window. Feeling like a failure she went in and nailed up a board one of her neighbours had brought her over Gia’s window. That might keep the vampire out for now, anyway. But Sina wanted a more permanent solution.