by Ross, P. A.
“UV grenade. Shoot them,” she shouted.
Thorn ran around the corner and I started firing the machine gun. The bullets fired aimlessly but it slowed them down forcing them to take cover behind walls and pillars, which formed the entrance shelter at the front of the building. The grenade landed next to me, and UV light sparked out in a huge sphere lighting up the entire area. I looked around for Thorn but she had already escaped from the UV. I shot at the light trying to hide our position and protect Thorn from the harmful UV but I missed. I suddenly received images from Thorn; gun into shoulder, look down barrel through target point, brace for impact and fire in bursts. The light exploded as the bullets impacted and we returned to the safety of darkness. Bullets from the Hunters rained over my head, and I fired back following the instructions from Thorn. I stood and fired in bursts. Behind them, a dark shape dropped from the roof and ran behind sweeping the first one off his feet and sending the Hunter flying through the air. The other one turned from seeing his partner flying overhead but was too late as Thorn clotheslined him in a blur of legs and arms. The last Hunter catapulted backwards, slammed into the side of the building and bounced outwards leaving a splattering of blood marking the impact. The first guard landed across the barbed wire electric fence. His body shook as the electricity found a circuit through his body causing smoke to rise from his flesh. The spasming muscles in his finger pulled the trigger; bullets fired off in wild bursts across the campus and the other guards dived for cover from their unknown assailant.
I turned back, as she lifted me up and swung me onto her shoulders without stopping. We darted off around the corner away from the remaining guards that were closing in on our position and around the back of the building. There was no escape as we ran along by the high fence. We were trapped. Suddenly, she arched back towards the building and ran up the wall to the first floor. When the momentum caught up with us, she crouched and rocketed up and outwards over the fence, arching over and back flipping into an empty field next-door. She landed perfectly and ran into her stride instantly.
Thorn ran off into the darkness with me still on her shoulders. She ran quicker carrying me than I could have run alongside her. After about ten minutes, police and fire engine sirens broke through the quiet night, and the noise of a helicopter buzzed in the distance. Thorn ran down a dark alley on the first housing estate we came to and dropped me to the ground.
“They will be coming for us,” she stated, looking up into the sky towards the sound of the helicopter. “Probably made up some random crime in order to use the police to capture us,” she continued.
“What do we do?” I asked.
“What time is it?”
I had lost track of time altogether and looked down at my watch.
“It’s 10pm,” I answered.
“We need to hide out for a bit ‘til tomorrow night, I doubt we can make it all the way to my house before daylight with the police hunting us down. Plus, I am tired; they keep me near starvation point as a way of keeping me subdued. That’s why I took some of your blood,” she said.
She closed her eyes, stood motionless for a few seconds and stretched out with her vampire senses to detect the surroundings.
“They have dogs tracking us. We need to shake them off and find somewhere to hide. Can you swim?” she asked.
“Yes.”
She darted off through the alleyway and I followed her.
We snaked through alleys and streets, all the time the helicopter drew nearer, and the police sirens wailed, with the odd flash of blue lights cutting through the night.
We eventually made it to a canal, and Thorn stood waiting for me at the edge.
“We swim for a bit to lose the scent and cool our bodies down,” she said.
I looked puzzled.
“I burn a little hotter than normal people; they could detect me,” she added.
She jumped in and swam effortlessly down the canal and out the other side.
I jumped in. The cold water shocked me to a stand still for a few seconds and I front crawled in a panic down the canal towards Thorn. The water dragged me down in my leather coat and the water shot up my nose down into the back of my mouth. I coughed and spluttered forcing my arms and legs onwards, keeping Thorn in sight as my motivation. I made it. She grabbed my hand and lifted me straight out of the water and onto my feet. I stood shivering, wondering if I could carry on as my body started shutting down.
“You will be fine,” she said, hugging me as she leant towards my ear.
“We will find somewhere warm and get you out of those wet clothes,” she said in a mischievous tone.
She let go, grabbed my hand, and started running and pulling me along behind her. It warmed me up a little, and water squished out of my clothes and shoes as I ran slapping the ground with my wet feet. We ran across a cricket pitch and towards more houses avoiding the nearby town centre because of the CCTV cameras.
We ran for another ten minutes but I started to lag behind with the cold taking its toll and my body exhausted from the vampire transformation. We ran across a golf course and Thorn stopped next to a bunker, as I staggered forwards to keep up.
“Rest for a second,” she said, and closed her eyes reaching out with her senses once again.
The helicopter sounded close and the police cars dashed about nearby roads. She opened her eyes and looked into the sky in the direction of the helicopter, and then around.
“They will be here soon. Strip,” she said.
She flung her clothes off to the floor, and I followed on, fingers shaking and numb struggling to coordinate the movements needed to unzip my jacket and pull my jeans down. Thorn was quickly naked and rushed over to pull off the last of my clothes.
“Any excuse to get me to undress you,” she joked.
She grabbed my clothes, shoved them on the floor, and lay down on top of them face up.
“Come on, get on top,” she said.
She opened her legs and I lay on top of her as the helicopter flew over top.
She rubbed her hands down my back.
“Our bodies together and our coldness with cover my additional heat signature. I doubt they will think it is us. Let’s hope they think it’s just two young lovers.”
The helicopter hovered for a while, and I guessed they enjoyed the sight. The trees and bushes down the side of the golf course rippled under the wave of air being blasted down onto us. The sand swirled about in the bunker covering us in a light dusting, and I shut my eyes as it blew across my face. Her body started warming up, and I readily absorbed the heat across my chest and pelvis. The wave of air forced the cold water off my body, and flapped Thorn’s hair and mine about and dried it off. The spotlight came on, and Thorn grabbed my head and covered her face into my chest pretending to hide as a person caught in the act would. I held still hoping to copy her pretend embarrassment of being watched. The helicopter hovered, eventually the blasted air ceased, and the sound of the buzzing blades disappeared.
She pushed me off and flung my clothes at me. She grabbed her clothes, wrung them dry and I copied. I watched her as I wrung my clothes out, her naked body in the moonlight, her wet hair swept over her head as she pulled the vest top back on over her head. I still found it hard to comprehend the truth that she was a vampire, and I was her rescuer and lover. I fought with the wet clothes in the dark trying to get them back on properly but the skin-to-skin contact with Thorn had warmed me up, and I had enough feeling to force them on. With our clothes back on, Thorn picked me up again, and ran across the golf course into another housing estate. She stopped still and closed her eyes again.
“The house on the corner is empty. We can get in from the back of the golf course,” she said.
We ran around to a high fence at the back. Thorn scaled over it quickly and broke into the house. I waited while she checked it over and shivered in the cold while looking around for anyone watching. She dropped back over the fence and scooped me up. She ran up the fence and over the oth
er side straight into the house and dumped me onto a sofa.
“We should be safe here,” she said.
“How do you know?” I asked.
“No one has been in this house for a few days; I can sense it. There are no cars outside and the calendar on the fridge says they are returning from holiday next Saturday.”
“Oh.”
“We both need to rest; tomorrow night I will get us both some food and new clothes. We will go to my house the night after that. The search will have gone cold and we can scout out the surroundings properly. No need to rush, we have time to get back safely.”
“Let’s get you out of those wet clothes properly this time,” she said and pulled me off the sofa and up the stairs. She turned on a hot shower and we both stripped off and climbed in together.
The hot water relieved the cold, and as I stood in the shower Thorn massaged shower gel over my body and washed it slowly off. Pleasure and warmth flowed across my body and thoughts turned away from running and fear, to the fun I might have with Thorn. I repaid the favour, and I enjoyed every moment running my hands across her perfect body. Enjoying her turn she closed her eyes and leaned against the shower wall as I washed her clean. Her normal high heat flooded back to her body and the heat seeped into my hands as I went.
We dried off and found some clothes to wear while ours dried out. Thorn opened the loft hatch and pulled down a ladder.
“We sleep up here, out of sight and sound from any potential visitors and safe from the sunlight,” she said.
We grabbed a couple of single mattresses and some blankets, dragged them through the hatch and set up a bed for the next couple of days.
CHAPTER 11
I fell to sleep easily with the activities of the night before having taken their toll and Thorn held me in her arms for most of the day while she slept. I couldn’t decide if she did this to prevent me from escaping, or for the enjoyment of my company. Either way, I slept happily next to her and felt safe with her by my side, while her heat kept me warm and comfortable all day. As soon as the night started to fall, Thorn woke up and sat crouched next to the hatch in the loft. I woke up just in time to see her go out.
“I will return,” she said before disappearing off through the hole in the floor.
I scouted around the house and found some food. I found a torch and a book, and went to read in the loft but couldn’t. I just lay in the semi-darkness wondering what would happen next, realising what I had just done. I had killed five people and helped a vampire escape her prison, and now I was on the run with her. Now alone, I thought about what had happened, and I realised what a monumental mess I had landed myself in. I had my revenge, except Barry but at what cost? Eventually she would kill me, and if she didn’t kill me straight away, she would turn me into a vampire instead. At the time of breaking her out of prison, it seemed an excellent idea but the influence of the vampire formula had clouded my judgement. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be a vampire. I enjoyed the rush and the revenge on the gang but a life as a vampire would be something different. It would be an eternity with Thorn killing people for food. I needed to think of a way out. I could leave right now and run away into the dark I thought but I knew she would probably find me. I knew UV could stop her from following me, so daylight would provide the best opportunity. For the moment, I just waited for her return, hoping she wouldn’t come back, and I would be free.
An hour before sunlight Thorn returned with money, food and new clothes stuffed in a big sports bag. The hatch door opened up. It startled me as I would have expected to hear some noise of her re-entering the house first. Her head popped through the hole, and she displayed a satisfied grin.
“Food and clothes for you,” and she threw a bag containing a burger and chips, and then threw another plastic bag containing new clothes to replace my blood-covered ones.
“I am having a shower. You eat and then your turn,” she said and disappeared back through the hatch.
I tore open the bag and devoured the food. On her return, I tried not to think about escaping knowing she could read my mind. Instead, I thought about anything else like re-enacting scenes from Star Wars movies in my mind, so she couldn’t detect my real thoughts and emotions. When Thorn came back from her shower we swapped over, and I showered, changed and re-joined her in the loft. The whole time I showered and changed I worried about what she would do next.
“Come here darling,” she said, as I re-entered into the loft.
Thorn lay down on the mattress and beckoned me over with her hands. I walked slowly over and lay down next to her, face-to-face. We stared into each other’s eyes. My wet hair dropped across my face shielding me from her gaze. She lightly brushed it away with one hand and then placed her hand softly on my cheek.
“My saviour,” she said, and gave me a sweet smile.
She moved towards me, kissed me gently on the lips and smiled again.
“We sleep now; I am tried. It’s been a busy day and I am not used to being out,” she said. “Tomorrow will be better, my darling, as we go to my house,” she added.
Thorn closed her eyes, and she drifted off to sleep. As soon as I entered her presence again, I felt comforted and reassured. I knew I was safe, and she would protect and help me. I relaxed and drifted off asleep with her arms wrapped around me. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe life with Thorn would be okay.
The next night we stole a car and drove across London to her house, parking a few streets over and walking the last part to distance us from the vehicle. I had been in too much of a daze and too star stuck in her presence to ask her anything meaningful since the prison break but a number of questions had started to cross my mind. On the walk to her house, I plucked up the courage to try to get some answers.
“What are we going to do next?” I asked.
Thorn looked around and grabbed my hand as we walked.
“We finish your training; I promised to make you a man,” she answered.
“What does that mean?” I asked, unsure after the events in the prison cell.
“I need to train you to look after yourself. There are many skills you will need. Just the superior power isn’t enough,” she answered.
I didn’t understand what these skills would be and just carried on walking. She sensed my uncertainty.
“No need to turn you into a vampire as we have these ten needles, and you are young, best to spend eternity at a good physical age. Teenage vampires are very boring, all that angst and hormones for eternity, urrg,” she said pulling a face and then laughing.
“In the meantime, you can act as my daytime protector. You must learn to fight and the ways of the underworld ready for your final everlasting change.”
“Okay,” I said trying desperately to take it all in.
“Many vampires when changed don’t last the year, as they don’t know the rules and how to control their powers. I can teach you all of this, and with each needle you can practice and grow.”
“Okay, so what about other vampires; are we going to meet some soon?” I asked.
“In good time, be patient, first we have unfinished business with Barry. He has seen something and recorded something of great danger to us. He must be dealt with.”
The idea of going after Barry again filled me with fear and then satisfaction, as I knew with Thorn and the needles I could beat him easily. I could finally have my revenge.
We made it to the house; Thorn disappeared out the back garden and came back with a key. For some reason, I expected a gothic mansion with wrought iron gates, an overgrown garden and bats flapping around in the air but this isn’t a film. The house was situated in a normal housing estate, a normal detached three-bedroom house, single garage, a tidy front lawn and path. She opened up and we walked inside.
“Not what you were expecting?”
“No,” I answered looking around the hallway.
“I do own a gothic mansion with iron gates. We can visit it one day but the garden is very tidy. Not sure if there are any
bats,” she said jokingly.
I smiled and realised I needed to be more aware of my thoughts around a psychic vampire.
“You can live in the upstairs if you like. Three bedrooms upstairs to choose from,” she said as we toured the rest house.
The house was clean and tidy and furnished in a modern fashion, very airy with bright colours on the walls. In the front room, leather sofas were positioned opposite a large plasma TV. A small kitchen connected to the back garden. It looked like a showroom but it was a house of a vampire.
“I have people who work for me and keep it clean. They make it looked lived in and pay the bills from the money I send on in case I ever disappear. It looks like the location of my house has remained safe. I can’t sense any issues,” Thorn said as she reopened her eyes.
“I only come up here at night. Like I said, you can live up here, or live with me in my apartment,” she said and entered in a number into a combination lock on the door under the stairs.
The door opened, and Thorn descended the bare wooden stairs into the basement; I followed. The lights came on to reveal a large bedroom with a huge king-sized bed in the middle of the oak flooring, and a plasma TV screen on the wall opposite. The small kitchen area contained a fridge, microwave and a small hob.
“Shower room in the corner,” she said pointing over to the far corner of the room.
“In the other corner is my wardrobe,” pointing to the other corner next to a large mirror, and archway leading to racks of clothes.
“I doubt there is anything in there that would suit you. Unless you have another secret life you wish to tell me about,” she said smirking.
I looked at her too bewildered to get the joke.
“Uh, no,” I said.
I walked over to the huge bed with a big red velvety blanket over the top of it and a studded black leather headboard at the back. I ran my hand across the velvety blanket feeling its soft fabric against my fingertips, wondering what future the room held for me. The walls and ceiling shone a passionate red from the illuminating spotlights pointed at the red painted walls. I stood by the bed looking around the walls at the paintings of vampires, monsters and humans in different poses of loving and fighting. In one, it seemed to be both.
