“Why didn’t you think to bring one?” she snapped.
“Hey, I’m here to carry the heavy stuff, you’re the one who does the thinking.” I said with a smirk of my own.
“Not helping Ray.” She said as she chewed on her lower lip. “Bugger it; just dump him in the middle of the brambles. No one will find him; we’re in the middle of nowhere.”
“You think?” I asked doubtfully, though the idea did appeal to me.
“Yeah, a few days out here in the middle of summer and he won’t be recognisable.”
“Fine by me” I said as I walked across to the thickest bramble patch and heaved the body into them as close to the middle as possible.
“Right then. Let’s go to the pub, you owe me a beer or three.” She said.
“Sure, lead on.” I agreed as I walked around the bramble patch trying my best to ensure that the body wasn’t visible.
I followed Beth as we walked back through the woods. She was chattering away about the merits of various pubs and I was nodding in the appropriate places. My mind was far away though. I couldn’t help wonder at my new state of being.
Supposedly I was a Vampire and I had certainly drunk deeply of the blood of one person already. I had no idea how long it would be before I needed to drink more blood, how much I would need or even if it had to be human.
Did I need to eat or drink? What about sleep. Was I immortal, undead or just dying slower than normal. Would I get any special abilities or would I just have the weaknesses? Could I be killed by a bullet or would it be a stake through the heart? So many questions and I realised that I very much wanted the answers.
My thoughts went back to my encounter with Sebastian such a short time ago and the card that he had given me. I resolved to call the number on it when I got back to the flat and find some answers to my many questions.
I got back into the car and Beth drove us back towards Leeds. A quick glance at the clock on the dashboard told me that it was after five in the afternoon so by the time we made it back, it would still be light out.
“I’m not going into a pub wearing this get up.” I said.
“It’ll be fine, I know the perfect place. It’s a bit of a dive, but it’s dark and dank inside so you will be comfortable” she laughed before going back to singing along with her music.
From the corner of my eye I could see her dancing around in her seat as she sang along and still drove the car perfectly well. She seemed unfazed by my new found Vampirism and just seemed to accept it as a part of me, much like anything else. It was one of the things I loved about her.
We had been friends for nearly two decades, ever since she had moved into the house next to mine when we were ten years old. She and I had hit it off immediately and were inseparable.
Most of the troubles I had encountered in my life were due to her. She had an ingrained sense of mischief and zero shame or conscience. Not that she was a bad person she knew right from wrong and most of the time she would do the right thing. She just didn’t see a reason not to do what she wanted sometimes.
“We’re here” She announced, shaking me from my reverie.
“Already? Where are we?” I asked as I looked about in an attempt to recognise where we were.
“You don’t worry your pretty little undead head about it” She said with a grin.
I pulled off the rubber gloves and climbed out of the car with a sinking feeling. That grin of hers indicated trouble, it always did. I groaned out loud when I saw the sign over the pub entrance. The Bull’s Head was notorious for the clientele. It was in the roughest part of Leeds and if the police didn’t visit to break up a brawl at least once a week, it was a miracle.
“Don’t be a wuss” Beth said as she strode for the door. The bouncer gave her a nod as she passed and it occurred to me that she had likely been here before.
The bouncer gave me a hard look as I passed. He was over six feet tall and bald; his remarkably large frame was wide enough that he had to move to the side to allow me into the building.
Inside the room was fairly dim, the only light that made it through the dirt covered windows was too weak to do much more than raise a slight tingle on my skin. Raucous music was playing overly loud which didn’t seem to bother the pub regulars who gathered around their tables or at the bar, with drinks in hand.
I noted several people glanced my way as I crossed the scuffed hardwood floor to join Beth at the bar.
“Nice glasses” the barman said as he placed two pints of lager on the bar in front of us. Beth sniggered.
“Yeah, thanks for that.” I said as I took a deep drink of the pint. It was cold and delicious and didn’t try to make its way back up.
“So you can still drink beer then.” Beth said.
“Seems that way” I agreed happily as I took a second gulp.
“Oh I needed that” She said as she wiped the back of her mouth with her hand. “What’s the plan now?”
“Now... I think a few more drinks and then when I get back to my flat I am going to call that prick Sebastian and get some answers about my condition.” I said.
“Sounds good. What about work?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well you work in an office don’t you? During the day, with big glass windows?”
“Ah...”
“Yeah, you better start looking for a night job mate.” She said.
“Just great. That is all I bloody well needed.” I said with more than a little feeling. I had finally been in a position at work to be up for a promotion and had been flirting with Katy in sales for a couple of weeks. I was going to ask her out.
“Never mind mate. I reckon if you give it a couple of days that Chinese you live above will probably be looking for a new delivery boy.”
“Don’t remind me.” I said with a quick look around to make sure we weren’t over heard. I had no real reason to think anyone would care but when people started asking about the missing teen, I wanted no questions that could possibly lead back to me.
“Right I’m off to see if I can get a game of pool” Beth said and left me standing beside the bar as she walked across to the pool table and the cluster of men gathered around it. I shook my head. She was a great pool player and a terrible hustler. I just hoped that she would have the sense to not try and hustle them.
I watched her play for a while as I finished my beer and then a second. By the end of the third pint Beth was back with a handful of notes.
“You win then?” I asked.
“Yep, those suckers didn’t know what hit em.” She said with a smirk.
“Yeah well maybe we shouldn’t hang around” I said with a nod towards the group of men who were looking more than a little angry.
Beth glanced over her shoulder at them and then back to me. “We should go out the back door” She said as she noted that the men were between us and the front entrance.
I followed her through the pub and out of the back door into the alleyway that ran behind the pub. A cracked wooden bench was set beside the large metal bins. It had long since lost any varnish and now it’s only decoration was left by birds. A couple of buckets of sand sat next to the bench, full of cigarette ends.
A high fence blocked one end of the alleyway with a sturdy padlock and a thick chain securing it, while a steel door set into the wall at the other end led into a hairdressers that was currently closed.
The sun was setting and the light had dimmed enough that I could take off the shades and still be able to see. I tugged on the padlock and tried to decide whether I could climb the fence or not.
“Now would be a good time for some Vampire super strength” Beth said quietly behind me.
“I don’t have any...” I began as I turned to her and saw the three burly men step out of the pubs door.
“We want our money back.” The leader said. He was a little over six feet tall with short cropped blond hair and arms the size of my thighs. If anything he was the smallest of the three men.
&nb
sp; “I won it fair and square” Beth said.
“Just give him the money back” I told her and she shook her head.
“No, I won it. It’s mine.”
“Tell your girlfriend to give us the money back or we’ll kick the shit out of you until she does.” The leader said to me, his tone menacing.
“Seriously Beth, give him the money.” I said with a higher pitch to my voice than I was comfortable with.
“No they can piss off. It’s mine.”
“Look maybe we can work...” I began as I turned back to the leader and then everything went black.
Chapter 4
Before I even opened my eyes I knew that it would hurt. My entire body hurt. I was distantly aware of the sounds of struggle but I found it hard to focus on anything besides the waves of pain that were washing over me.
My ribs ached every time I inhaled and I suspected that I may have a broken rib. I gasped in pain as I moved and amended that to several broken ribs.
“You alive?” Beth asked from somewhere above me and I opened my eyes carefully.
“I think so. What happened?” I asked.
She looked suspiciously unhurt and I was more than a little annoyed about that.
“Well they knocked you out, with one punch by the way, and then they kicked you for a little while.” Beth said.
“No one thought to hit you?”
“Nah, they might have done but they suddenly got busy.” She said with a snigger as she glanced over her shoulder.
I followed her gaze to see a tall man in a dark suit holding the leader of my assailants by the throat and almost a foot off of the ground. My attacker had his hands on the arm of Sebastian as his face slowly turned purple.
The other two attackers lay on the ground, unmoving and I hoped alive. I had no intention of getting rid of more bodies.
“If you wish to be of use to me you have not made a good impression” Sebastian said in his too smooth voice.
“I had no idea I was supposed to be making an impression of any kind.” I said as I tentatively sat up with one hand pressed against my side. It seemed to help with my breathing if I pressed against the sore spot, though it hurt like hell.
“You the Vampire from last night then?” Beth asked Sebastian who turned his gaze upon her for just a moment before speaking.
“Be silent and do not move until I leave.” He said, his smooth voice turning colder than ice in the middle of winter. I held back a shiver as Beth stood perfectly still and made no sound.
“What did you just do?” I asked.
“Compulsion. A simple trick that works on the weak minds of humans.” Sebastian answered me as he looked Beth up and down. “Is this your human?”
“She’s my friend yes.”
“Then you had better mark her or some Vampire may take her for a snack.” He said as he turned his gaze on me.
“I suppose I should say thanks for the help.”
“You could, though I do not care for your gratitude. You have disappointed me.”
“I have?” I asked with more than a little fear. I had the very real impression that this creature before me could crush me without even thinking.
“You have yes. Fighting with scum such as these and losing for a start, not to mention the evidence you left back at your residence.”
“What evidence?” I asked.
“You think that a quick wipe with a rag will clean away the blood from the boy you killed?” he asked with a faint smile that tugged at the corner of his mouth.
“How the hell should I know what would work? It’s the first time I’ve done that.” I said or perhaps whined. I was in a lot of pain and feeling more than a little badly done to.
“No matter. I have cleaned up that mess for you. No evidence remains. I trust you have disposed of the body adequately at least?” Sebastian asked.
“Yeah, it’s gone. No one will find it.” I assured him and fervently hoped that I wasn’t lying.
“Good. You have done one thing right at least.” He said thoughtfully. “I will expect you to call me on Monday. I will have a task for you.”
“A task?”
“Yes. You are of my line and so you belong to me. I shall have a number of tasks for you in the coming weeks.” Sebastian said with that trace of a smile that seemed to bother me.
“What if I don’t want to?” I asked.
“Then I shall take away from you the gift that I gave and you shall be no more than a rotting piece of meat.” Sebastian said coolly.
“Fine.” I said.
“Very well. Call me on Monday and do not expect me to help you out of any more of these little mistakes you make.” Sebastian said as he handed me another of his business cards before he turned to go.
“Wait.” I said. “I need to know some more about being... well a Vampire.”
“Ah, of course. How very remiss of me.” Sebastian said as he reached into his suit and pulled out a small book about the size of my hand. “This will give you the basics and we will speak more, later.”
He tossed the book to me and I let out a groan as I moved to catch it without thinking about the pain coursing through my body. By the time I had recovered he had gone.
“I like him.” Beth said with a wide smile.
“You heard all that?”
“Yeah, it was weird I couldn’t move or speak but I could see and hear. You need to learn that trick.” She said as she helped pull me to my feet.
“I guess so. I think you need to drive me home.” I told her.
“Sure, one minute” Beth said as she quickly walked across to the still forms of the three unconscious men and quickly went through their pockets. She grinned happily as she pulled the notes out and dropped the wallets beside them.
“Seriously?”
“Hey, you don’t have a job, you need the money. We’ll split it.” She said.
“Fair enough.” I said as we walked back into the pub.
No one gave a second glance to the bruised and beaten man who was helped through the pub by a young woman. I had no doubt that they had seen worse. The bouncer nodded to Beth as we walked out of the front entrance and across to the car.
She helped me into the passenger seat before climbing into the driver’s seat herself.
“Well that was fun.” She said as she started the engine. I refrained from commenting and she laughed as she set off.
The roads were still busy and it took nearly twenty minutes of sitting in an uncomfortable position and trying to breathe with the seatbelt digging into my broken ribs before we arrived back at my flat. Beth pulled up and parked on the double yellow lines a little way up the street and we both looked out of the windows at the flat.
“So your Vampire dad said he’d cleaned up your mess didn’t he?” Beth asked.
“Yes he did.”
“Well I suppose he did that.” She agreed as she watched the firemen struggle to put out the roaring flames that filled the shell of what had once been my flat.
“It seems a bit extreme” I muttered as I thought about all my worldly possessions that had been in the flat. “Ah hell, my phone was still in there.” I said.
“At least the police won’t find any incriminating evidence.” She pointed out.
“I suppose so.” I agreed. “I don’t suppose I could crash at your place for a few days can I?”
“Sure.” She answered with a grin as she restarted the engine and drove down the road, past the fire engine and the irate owner of the Chinese takeaway who was also my landlord.
Chapter 5
I awoke from my slumber slowly, cautiously. The events of the previous day were all I could seem to focus on, well that and the dull ache in my side. I opened my eyes slowly and blinked a few times to clear the sleep from them.
The couch I was lying on was old and battered, its upholstery frayed and torn in places. It also smelt kind of funky but had been a better option than the floor. I pulled myself up to a sitting position and looked around Beth�
�s flat.
She had left the curtains closed which was a bonus since the window was right in front of my resting place and being awoken by the sun burning my skin was not something I wanted to try. Heck, I had no real idea how badly burnt I could be by the sun but it was still not something to experiment with.
My side was sore and when I lifted my shirt, it was one giant bruise but after a few tentative touches, I was reasonably sure that my ribs were no longer broken. Score one for enhanced healing.
Beth’s flat, much like my own – before it was burnt down – had a combination living room/kitchen, though she did have a separate bedroom and bathroom. The few pieces of furniture had all been bought at second hand stores and were in need of replacing. The dark carpet beneath my bare feet was scratchy and unpleasant.
Though I had been to her flat many times over the years, I had yet to see her add anything personal to the place. There were no ornaments or pictures of family and friends, no special effort to make the place her own. I had never asked her why, though I had long suspected the reasoning behind it.
“Morning” Beth called as she walked out of the bathroom. She was wearing a fluffy blue robe and rubbing her hair with a towel. “Wow, you look like shit.”
“Thanks. Love you too.” I said around the scratchiness in the back of my throat.
“Fancy a cuppa?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’m actually quite thirsty.”
“Cool, you can make me one too.” She said with a smile as she disappeared into her bedroom.
Typical, I thought as I pushed myself awkwardly to my feet. I made my way slowly to the kitchen area and turned the kettle on before rooting through the cupboards for the tea bags. When the kettle had boiled, I finished making the tea before carrying my drink back to the couch and sitting down.
“I was reading your book last night” Beth said as she came out of her room, dressed in black jeans and a vest top.
“Anything interesting in it?”
“Yeah, if I ever need to kill you I know how now.” She laughed.
“Really? How?”
“You’ll have to read it to find out.” She said and laughed again, “It did say you should start getting your Vampy super strength over time. The more time you spend as a Vamp, the stronger you get. Just about the only special power you have now is your fast healing.”
Reborn by Blood Page 3
