[Anthology] The Paranormal 13- now With a Bonus 14th Novel!

by Dima Zales

  “You are miserable?” I frowned as I stared into his blue eyes.

  “Well…not at the moment.” He looked back at me. “The pain of becoming...what I am...was beyond anything you could ever imagine, for so many different reasons. My chance at living a normal life was taken away from me that night,” he muttered in anguish. “But, at the same time, had it not been for that, I would have been dead centuries ago. Although watching the world grow and expand has been a gift, the rest of what you have to endure isn't worth it.

  “I lost my family, not only to the fire, but to becoming what I am. My friends, I couldn't see them ever again. Everything was taken away from me that night. Everyone I knew and loved eventually aged, withered away and died, while I was cursed to walk this Earth alone for eternity–watching it all unfold from a distance.”

  I wondered if vampires were able to cry as I stared at him, but no tears came. The need to comfort him overcame me, but I didn't know how. “I'm so sorry, Salem...” I whispered, trying to ignore the growing curiosity to ask even more questions.

  “Don't be.” He smiled and placed his cold hand against my cheek. “If none of that had happened, I would never have met you.”

  I laughed. “Don't forget you're talking to the offspring of a vampire hunter.”

  Salem just smiled. I admired his expression for far too long; I lowered my gaze and blushed. “Can I ask one more question?”

  “Anything.”

  “What happened to this Raziel guy?”

  “He still exists somewhere, as far as I know. For the first five years of my ‘new life’, as he called it, he treated me as a slave. Although he referred to me as his ‘apprentice’, I felt like nothing more than a servant. He taught me the ways of being a vampire, but it sickened me. I refused to indulge in human blood, knowing I had once been one–my family were humans, my friends. I would never have done that to them, why would I even consider doing that to anyone, even a stranger?” He flinched at the idea. “He would have me bring him...food...every night.” The pained look on his face was almost unbearable.

  “People?” I gasped, knowing the answer.

  He grimaced. “I wouldn't have felt quite as miserable had it been criminals or terminally ill beings...but these were innocent people.”

  “How could you put up with that for so long?”

  “I had no other options, or so I thought,” he grumbled. “You weren't the only one who fell for the lore of vampires. Raziel tried to convince me the stories were all true, that if I went out in the daytime I would combust.” His eyes darkened. “One specific night, he made me do something intolerable. I couldn't bear to exist after that...He requested I bring him ‘young blood’, as he called it. In other words, the blood of a child – Raziel said it was the tastiest, most invigorating blood imaginable. I had no choice but to obey him, at least that's what I thought at the time.

  “She couldn't have been much older than Hannah had been. I snuck through her nursery window, plucked her from her crib and presented her to Raziel. I immediately regretted what I had done. The next morning, I decided to end myself. It came down to either spending eternity doing his bidding or risking my existence by stepping out into the sunlight. I braced myself for death as I stepped out into the morning light, anticipating the inevitable —but it never came.” I noticed how he never referred to it as his 'life'. “I stood out in the sun for at least fifteen minutes, and nothing happened.” He stopped abruptly and changed the subject. “You should try calling Janet again, before it gets too late.”

  I blinked, deep in thought as I tried to imagine what he had been through. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to not only never talk to my best friends again, but to watch them grow old and die while I remained young. “Yeah, you're right...”

  I grabbed the cordless phone, sat cross-legged on the sofa and dialed the familiar number. I only waited through two rings this time before her familiar voice answered.

  “Hey, Mom,” I said into the receiver. Would I ever be able to stop calling her that? “I just wanted to make sure you were all right.”

  “I'm getting there.” She sounded better, happier, than our last conversation at the least. “How was your birthday?”

  “It wasn't as bad as I thought it’d be.” I laughed. “Karen threw me a surprise party, which went okay. Jason got me a laptop!”

  “That's great, sweetie.” I heard the muffled voice in the background. “I have to go; my dinner is getting cold. Go enjoy the rest of your night.”

  “Okay, keep in touch. Okay?”

  “I will. Don't worry too much.”

  “I'll try. Bye, Mom.” It might be impossible to call her anything but that.

  “Bye, sweetie.”

  Salem delicately took the phone from my grasp and sat it on the coffee table. “You have more questions,” he said knowingly.

  “Just a couple,” I replied shyly. “What happened to the burns?”

  “Becoming a vampire could be seen as a type of cleansing, I suppose. Any illness, wound, scar, or deformity you might have had as a human is healed upon turning.”

  “Then, in a sense, isn't it better to become a vampire?”

  “No!” he shouted, causing me to look away in slight regret for asking. “Nothing is worth this sort of existence.”

  “Okay,” I croaked. “One more thing...” I braced myself for anger, but instead received a smile.

  “Ask away,” he said gingerly.

  “It's more of a fact than a question.” I twiddled my thumbs nervously. “Your eyes–they change color when you're summoning things or whatever...”

  He blinked. “You noticed that?”

  “Yes...”

  “I am impressed.” He smirked. “You must be very observant.”

  “Not usually,” I confessed. “What else can you tell me about vampires? I want to know everything.” I was surprised by my own question, but I had grown genuinely interested in the topic.

  “While some of what you have heard or read or seen are definite myths, there are some attributes we definitely do obtain—such as speed. We can run quicker than any human, and drinking the blood of humans makes us exceptionally strong.” He looked disgusted for a moment. “Powerful vampires can possess the ability to share visions and memories with others by the mere touch of their hand. I spent many years experimenting with what I could and could not do after I left Raziel. It truly was amazing to me that daylight did not kill me, and I wondered what else was and was not true.

  “I knew that sleeping was no longer necessary, but I attempted to sleep, nevertheless—simply because Raziel claimed it was impossible, and I was stubborn enough to put it to the test. Unfortunately, he was correct. I cannot even imagine what dreaming is like anymore.” He sighed and looked at me. “That's enough vampire talk for now though, I believe.”

  “Surely there is more that you can tell me.” I was practically begging. Perhaps it was the vampire hunter in me that hungered for more information, or maybe I was just a curious girl.

  “Well, there is one thing,” he said with an expression of discomfort. “But I would really prefer not to discuss it right now.”

  My eyebrows arched upward. “Now you have to tell me.”

  “I am afraid that it might upset you, Alexis.”

  Swallowing hard, I tried to keep my face straight. “Why would it upset me?”

  “Because I used this particular ability on you.”

  “What…what are you talking about, Salem?”

  “Vampires are able to persuade mortals into doing essentially anything, without even a single motion.”

  My eyes were firmly locked on him, my mouth agape and an involuntary shudder rippled down my spine. “That’s how you convinced me to agree to stay at your place?”

  “That’s how I convinced you to come to my house,” he confirmed. “The effect was beginning to wear off towards the end of the evening, hence your outburst in the morning.”

  It was difficult to restrain myse
lf from feeling angry. I felt completely violated, yet at the same time there was a part of me that was thankful that I’d gone with him and learned what I had. Now I understood why I kept having conflicted feelings about it, and the sudden calmness I’d felt after wanting to panic and leave. “Promise me you’ll never use it on me again.”

  “I promise,” he vowed.

  The room fell silent for a moment, and then Salem glanced up at the clock. It was nearing 10pm. “Do you need to go somewhere?” I asked, trying to avoid thinking about this new-found knowledge.

  “No,” he replied. “I was just noticing your birthday is coming to an end.”

  “I don't mind.” I laughed. “Not this year.”

  “There was one last gift I wanted to give you, but I wasn't sure how you would react.” He looked uneasy.

  “What is it?” I asked anxiously.

  “It would be easier for me to show you, than to tell you.”

  I eyed him suspiciously. “Are you going to summon something out of thin air again or something?”

  “No, not exactly.” He chuckled. “Alexis, I know it is hard for you to fathom right now, but you do mean a lot to me.”

  “Yeah, you keep saying that. Are you ever going to explain what you’re talking about?”

  “In due time.” He smiled lightly. “Close your eyes.”

  I hesitated a moment before letting my eyelids fall shut. My heart was thumping wildly in my chest as I waited intently for whatever was coming. Maybe he had lied about not being enticed by human blood and was about to bite into my throat; oddly, part of me didn’t care. My eyes almost flew open as I felt Salem's cool breath against the side of my face. Tenderly, he brushed his cold lips against my cheek.

  “Happy birthday, Alexis,” he whispered into my ear.

  I was speechless, breathless...breathless. “Salem...” I became more focused. “You can breathe?”

  “Not quite as literally as you can,” he replied, obviously stunned by my unexpected response to his action.

  “Oh.” My expression was blank momentarily, and then I grinned at him. “I was wrong earlier when I thought to myself nothing could compare to the laptop Jason gave me.”

  His lips twisted into a magnificent smile before he stood up. I was uncertain what he was doing at first, until he pried me off of the sofa and effortlessly cradled me in his arms as he made his way up the stairs. I grasped his arms tightly, afraid with every step that he would drop me. Somewhere deep inside I also still feared for my blood. What if he couldn’t control his hunger around me? Then again… he’d been living this way for over a hundred years. Why would he suddenly hunger for my blood when human blood had never interested him in the past?

  We approached my bedroom door, which was wide open and inviting. He laid me gracefully across my soft mattress and pulled the covers up over me. I nearly objected before he put a cold finger to my lips.

  “It's late, and you have had a long, tiresome day,” he whispered. “Get some sleep.”

  “But I haven’t even gotten to enjoy my presents yet!” I playfully whined.

  “Not even the last one?” he asked with an innocent grin.

  “Well, when you put it that way...I enjoyed one of my gifts.” I yawned. I was more tired than I had realized.

  “Goodnight,” he whispered sweetly and I drifted away into a deep slumber, thinking how maybe it wasn’t so preposterous to imagine Salem and me as a couple.

  9

  My dreams were filled with horrific images. A raven hovered over a burning house. Shrill screams of an infant filled my mind. Salem, covered head to toe in flames, wobbling helplessly out of the smoldering building. A dark, cloaked figure whisking him up from the gray cobblestone alleyway. I heard him screaming, saw him writhing in agony.

  “Alex!” Salem's voice yelled my name as the figure pressed his lips against the base of his neck. The world started to quiver and shake, and I heard him call my name again.

  My eyes flew open. Salem was shaking me, yelling my name. “You were screaming in your sleep...are you okay?” he asked as he saw my eyes were open.

  “I-I think so.” I clung onto his cold, thin body. “It was horrible.” I sobbed into his shoulder.

  “It was only a dream,” he said reassuringly.

  “It was a nightmare, about you...” I muttered. “The burning house, Hannah, Raziel...and then I heard your voice calling for me.”

  “That part wasn't a dream,” he replied.

  “There was a bird, too.” I remembered suddenly. “It was flying over the burning building…a raven.”

  Salem flinched. “Raziel claimed that some hunters could transform into ravens.”

  “Are...are Waldron's the only vampire hunters?”

  “Surely not, the world is a vast place, but the Waldron's are the only ones I have ever directly encountered.” He stared at me inquisitively. “Maybe you should speak to Paul again. Ask him if he knows anything about that ability.”

  “How would he know?”

  “He knows a lot about vampire and hunter history alike. However, don't tell him I sent you...he can't know that I am with you. In fact, it's best that no one knows.”

  I begrudgingly agreed to see Paul that morning after breakfast. I looked through the phone book Janet kept in the drawer of the end table beside the sofa then tossed it aside when I had an idea. I ran back to my room, plugged up my laptop, connected to the first password-less Wi-Fi I could find and searched online for ‘Paul's Auto Shop, Willowshire, Colorado’. Fortunately, it popped up right away.

  I had the cordless phone with me ready for when I found the digits. I dialed the number, and Kate answered saying that Paul took the day off. She did, however, give me his home number to call. He may have played the role of my uncle, but we didn’t meet up that often—which was probably part of his intent of keeping his distance to ensure my safety over the years—and I definitely didn’t have his phone number stored anywhere. Janet might have, but I didn’t know where, so this had been my only resort. I nervously input the number and waited for his answer.

  “Hello?” It was definitely Paul's voice.

  It took me a moment, but finally, I choked out a greeting. “Hey, Paul...”

  “Alexis!” His joy of hearing my voice was clear. “Is everything okay?”

  I glanced at Salem. “Yeah. Everything is fine. I just wanted to see you again...and to say I’m sorry for the way I reacted yesterday. I’ve done some thinking, and I want to talk about…things…again.”

  “Vampires, you mean?”

  I cringed at the word. “Yeah, those.”

  “Okay. Do you want me to drop by your place?”

  “No!” I spoke too harshly; hopefully I hadn't arisen any suspicion about Salem being here. “I'll come to you. I’ve been cooped up in this place by myself for way too long.”

  “You know, you are more than welcome to stay with me if you ever need to or want to.” He sounded a little too eager.

  “Thanks, I'll think about it. Where can I meet you at?” I scrawled the address down hastily and hung up. Salem watched me from the edge of my bed, anticipating what Paul and I discussed.

  “I'm driving over there after breakfast, do you want anything?” I about slapped myself on the forehead. “Never mind...”

  Salem laughed. “I'll find something to sate my hunger while you are away.”

  I wasn't sure how to respond, still uncomfortable at the idea of how he fed himself. I shuddered at the thought and clambered down the stairs. I grabbed two slices of bread, popped them in the toaster and waited impatiently, and hungrily, while they cooked. Moments later, the bread jumped out of the appliance. I smeared some jam across both slices before sitting down at the dining table and eating them quickly. Salem sat across from me, watching intently. It made me feel self-conscious.

  “I'll be back before too long, hopefully,” I said after I finished eating, grabbed my car keys and ran outside.

  I followed the directions Paul had given me. T
hey led me into a quaint trailer park nestled between a park and an elementary school. I imagined it got quite noisy around here. I scanned through the lot, looking for trailer 16. I found it toward the very end. The trailer looked okay from the outside, if not a little unkempt—peach paneled walls, four worn steps leading up to a tiny porch. The door was flimsy; I was almost afraid that knocking on it would cause it to fall over, but I rapped my fist against it anyway.

  Paul opened the door slowly, and then pulled it open completely. “Welcome to my humble abode,” he said sarcastically.

  “It's not so bad,” I said. The entrance was cramped; to the immediate left was the living room, which could scarcely hold more than a ragged brown love seat, a TV stand and a small box TV. To the right was a square dining table pressed up into the corner with only two chairs. The kitchen contained two counters, a small fridge and a microwave. Every surface seemed covered in random, indistinguishable things. I felt bad for him as I scanned the place.

  “Do you want to sit down?” he asked, distracting me.

  “Oh, sure,” I agreed and sat on the love seat. It was surprisingly comfortable, despite the fact that I sank into the cushion.

  “How are you?” he said, making an attempt at small talk.

  “I'm all right...how have you been?”

  “Not bad.” He smiled. “Always tired from work, but I do enjoy it.”

  “Work as in as a mechanic, or...other work?” I didn't look at him as I spoke.

  “Mechanic. I haven't had much 'other work' in a few months.”

  “That's good.” I sighed, feeling uncomfortable. “I wanted to ask you something...”

  “What is it?” He sat down beside me, offering me a warm soda he grabbed from a cabinet in the kitchen before he’d joined me.

  I popped the can open, flashing him a smile in thanks before I took a sip. It was even warmer than expected, but I drank it anyway. “I had a weird dream last night, and I was wondering if you could help me figure it out.” I wracked my brain trying to figure out how I was supposed to ask Paul about this without mentioning Salem.