by Atha, DL
Nodding my head slightly to indicate my agreement but not so much as to tip my hat, the words flowed freely. “I’m ready to see you for what you truly can be tonight. What I may become.”
Turning back around to not give away my significantly improved balance, I walked to the garage.
Just as I was about to punch in the code to open the overhead door, Asa grabbed a hold of my hand saying, “We are going on foot tonight. You need to see how I live.”
Smirking at him, I replied, “There’s no way I can keep up with you.” Of course I would make sure that I didn’t. Actually I felt like I could run a marathon.
“The night belongs to us and we have only one goal to accomplish. I will move slowly, just for you.” His voice held the touch of sarcasm.
Stepping together away from the light of the house out into the night, I glanced up at the night sky. It was dark but a hunter’s moon shone brightly overhead, obscuring the stars with its illumination. The dark sky was broken up by an occasional thick and heavy bunch of clouds.
Glad to get away from the lights of the house, I followed Asa as he walked off in the direction of the forests that cut across the back fields of my property. Even though the inner house lights were fairly minimal, the contrast between their brightness and the dark caused some degree of discomfort in my eyes. I wondered fleetingly if that would improve with time.
Coming up on the wooden fence separating the lawn from the pasture, Asa cleared it in one leap as easily as the deer lured in by the garden.
Longing to jump it as well, I climbed through it instead, opting to pretend to be human to camouflage my burgeoning strength and agility. Asa hadn’t stopped but continued on towards the woods surrounding my pastures. I followed several paces behind taking in the smells of the night. The sweet smells of the horses wafted across the slight breeze and I turned to look at them standing under an oak tree about a hundred feet away. I could see my favorite gelding watching us.
Normally he would have whinnied a greeting and started towards me in the hopes of finding some goodies in my hands, but tonight he watched me warily as I passed. He no longer recognized me. His sense of smell was probably as strong as mine and we would have to become reacquainted. At least, I hoped a horse could tolerate a vampire.
So many smells made up the night. Having never noticed them before, I marveled at their intensity and their numbers. Each tree smelled differently as did the different types of grasses starting to shoot up from the ground. I could smell the cows and the chickens, even the onions I had planted in the garden only a few short days ago. The hay in the barn had its own distinctive smell as well as several more flavors that I didn’t recognize as we got closer and closer to the woods.
Walking on through the pasture, my eyes fell on a subtle change in the outline of a small slope off to my left. I was sure it was man-made and I had never even noticed it before. I caught a waft of Asa’s scent, and then mine, coming from that direction. Is that where he had been each day? Was this his hiding place? If I survived tonight, I would have to remember to check it out better. It could come in handy in the future.
We were in the woods now and its darkness enveloped us even further. It felt good walking through the canopy. Almost like the trees provided some layer of protection. It was still cold out and an occasional snowflake fell slowly in front of my eyes. Reaching up, I caught one in my hand and stared at it intently. Interestingly, it didn’t melt right away as it normally would after landing on my bare skin.
Catching Asa’s eyes on me, I realized I had forgotten to put gloves on and quickly shoved my pale hands deep down in the pockets of my jacket, feigning cold. Not taking my eyes from his, I saw his cold smile.
“Just think, Annalice. You will never feel cold again after tonight.” Not sure of what he was hinting at, I smiled back slightly.
“I guess there’s perks to everything, Asa. I’ve never really liked being cold.” Watching another flake zigzag slowly down and land on my jacket, for the first time in my life I could see the different facets of the snowflake without the aid of a microscope.
Glorious in its complexity, I watched for a full minute before it finally melted, becoming only a tiny drop of water on the cool leather. Licking another off of my hand, I continued to follow Asa deeper into the woods, hoping I would survive to study more flakes another night.
We were on an old four-wheeler path now and it made for easy walking since it was kept pretty clear from the amount of use it got. Four-wheeling was quite popular in the area and on any given day if I had been walking in the woods, I would probably have come across a few people out riding. It was nearly eight o’clock in the evening so I didn’t think we would come across any riders this time of night. But hunters were another story.
The path was smooth and I didn’t even have to pretend it was an easy walk, which was good because I wasn’t completely sure of my acting skills. So far, he didn’t seem to have any suspicions and so far he was keeping his pace slow, true to his word. Without warning, he stopped in his position about twenty feet ahead of me and, lifting his head like a pointer dog, he took in a deep breath. He wasn’t paying attention to me and so I did the same.
I caught the smell easily enough. Humans, at least three different ones. One older and two younger gauging by the difference in the strengths of their smells. The scent wasn’t faint, but not overwhelmingly strong either. Guessing only since I had no experience at this, I estimated they were a couple of miles away. The wind was blowing slightly, carrying the scent towards us.
Testing the air again, anticipation rippled through my muscles and I was immediately disgusted at myself. The hunger and thirst that I had experienced back at the house had been pushed to the back of my thoughts for a little while. But in a split-second, a devastating thirst rose in me, tenfold stronger than I was prepared for. My mouth watered and shivers ran down my spine in response to my anticipation.
In that split-second, I was questioning my ability to retain some portion of my human self. Pushing the questions to the back of my consciousness, I reminded myself that I didn’t have any other alternative. Surely I would be less of a threat than the vampire in front of me. As he turned towards me, I dropped my head down a bit so he couldn’t tell I was testing the air like him.
“Three humans up ahead. One of them will likely suffice for tonight. I warn you now and one time only. Do not try to alert them in any way or they will all three die unnecessarily and you as well.” Turning back to the trail, he began to follow the delectable smell beckoning through the trees.
The scent was easy to follow and became stronger with each step into the woods. Closing my eyes, the aroma seemed strong enough that it should have been visible in the dark, like a ribbon intertwining through the thickly wooded forest that anyone could have seen.
No longer following the four-wheeler trail, we went as the crow flies, or as the vampire walked, I supposed. Winding through the trees and easily climbing over the occasional fallen log that blocked the most direct route to our prey; I let Asa help me over a few, being careful to keep my hands balled up in my jacket when he helped me so that he couldn’t detect the drop in my core temperature that must have occurred, given the snowflake hadn’t melted on my skin.
A few fallen trees we came across he didn’t deem worthy of his help and I grasped the trunks, pulling myself up and over like the clumsy human I was pretending to be. I felt a couple of my fingernails give away, ripping from my nail beds.
Expecting pain, I clenched my mouth shut to keep from yelling out. But none came. Looking down, I could see why. New nails had grown underneath my old nails. Soon they would have pushed my old nails off anyways. Grasping hold of the rest of my human nails, I pulled them all out as we continued to walk deeper into the woods. A couple of my fingers bled slightly as they were not quite ready to give way, but the flow stopped very quickly.
Testing my new nails in a passing tree, I found that I could scrape marks into the bark. Pulling my nail thro
ugh the nearest tree, I looked at it closely. Not even a crack or chip. I was definitely going to save money on manicures. Staring at my nails so intently, I hadn’t noticed Asa stop ahead of me. He hadn’t yet turned in my direction but was still facing in the direction of the humans.
With what appeared to be some difficulty in taking his mind off the scent, he pivoted to face me. “What is that sound you are making?”
Shrugging my shoulders at him, I gave him my best look of complete cluelessness and watched for his response. He kept turning slightly to face the scent while trying to keep his attention on me. How could I have been so stupid as to scrape my nails in the trees? Like I could possibly explain that away. Waiting anxiously, I was relieved when he turned back towards the scents.
“I have let myself get too hungry by staying too long with you each evening,” he noted, turning narrowed eyes on me before continuing up the path.
It was mid-February. Prime time for coon hunting in this part of the country. I was betting the men we were hunting were out here on a hunting trip themselves, it would never occur to them that they were about to become the prey.
We continued to move in the general direction of the men but Asa had stopped moving directly towards them. He seemed to be crisscrossing his trail some. I wasn’t sure why and I couldn’t ask him since that would give away my ability to track their scent as well. The night was still quite young so time wasn’t an issue. Maybe he was just dragging it out for my benefit.
If we hadn’t been on our way to kill someone, I would have enjoyed walking through the dark woods. The scents, the breeze, the darkness were all more comforting than I would have ever expected.
Having spent quite a bit of time on horseback here, I had never failed to notice its beauty, but I now saw it with a whole new set of eyes, quite literally. The snow continued to drift lightly not enough to even dust the ground. If I were completely human, I wouldn’t have been able to see the glaze the snowflakes created on the trees.
I could hear the crunch of every leaf and stick that my feet trampled on. It sounded deafening to me as I was still not used to the overwhelming sense of hearing I had developed.
Noticing new sounds in the general direction of the human smell, it was only a second before I recognized the baying of dogs. Probably coon dogs that had been let loose to run the game. The men would give the dogs time to catch the scent of their prey and would then follow their baying until they came to where the animal was cornered. Each of the humans would most likely have their own dog and they would split up when the hunt started.
Asa had stopped in front of me again, listening intently, turning his head in the direction of the hounds. Sure that he was formulating a plan by the look on his face, I felt for the men up ahead, knowing there was nothing I could do for them.
There were three, all men, I was now certain of their scents. One was quite young, one was middle-aged but very healthy, and the third was elderly but still smelled vibrant.
Probably a three-generation hunting party with wives, children, and grandchildren at home. Out for a good time, they never considered that these woods held any real threats. Would Asa stop at one like he had said, or would he go after all three?
We were getting very close to their base camp now. I could make out the flicker of their campfire through the densely packed pine trees. The camp had been made in a small clearing located in the midst of the largest of the pines. Judging from the size of the trees I could see up ahead, it was likely scheduled for clear-cutting soon, but for now it made a great camp area.
Stepping into the camp, Asa stopped to look around for a moment. Three small and weathered campers were arranged into a semi-circle pattern at the far edge of the small clearing. The fire ring sat in the middle, a neat circle of smoke-blackened rocks surrounded by several different types of old lawn chairs. A dented coffee pot, its bottom beginning to show signs of rust, sat on the corner of one rock.
Still warm coals glowed brightly against the dark of the night. Had I still been completely human they probably would have appeared more grayish in color, but with my new eyesight any light looked bright. A thin curl of smoke rose from the small fire that burned in the remains of the logs that had been heaped into the center of the ring. The smell of the smoke along with the occasional pop of the fire gave the camp a cozy feel and made this all the more awful.
Walking over to the camper nearest to us, Asa pulled the unlocked door open. Stepping inside with a single step, I heard him rummaging through the cabinets. A moment later he walked out with a small wad of cash and then followed suit with the next two campers.
“First lesson for you.” He looked at me as he spoke. “Do not forget to take what you can from your victims. Money will come in handy even for vampires from time to time. Humans also carry other items of value. Shoes, clothes, credit cards, identification. You never know what you will find. They carry the most unusual things.” He sounded like some sort of bizarre commentator you might hear describing the steals you could find at a yard sale rather than at a soon-to-be murder scene.
Shoving the small amount of money deep into his jeans pocket, he stopped in the middle of the camp and took in a deep breath. I did the same behind his back, letting the delicious scents of the three men fill my lungs.
He had obviously chosen the youngest of the three because he moved in the direction the youngest had gone. I couldn’t really blame him, the younger man smelled divine, like gourmet chocolate compared to the dollar-store variety. If I were drinking for sport, I would have chosen him too.
But I wasn’t drinking for sport. I was only here because I had to be. An agreement. In exchange for the information I needed. Asa was going to kill this young man and I would have to watch, unable to help him. He had also said that he didn’t have to kill and that many times, he didn’t. But a dread in the pit of my belly told me he would tonight. If for no other reason than to show me how cruel he really was. But I needed no proof, I had seen enough already.
We trailed slowly through the woods, following the scent of the man, letting his wonderful aroma pull us further into the younger pines that had begun a couple hundred feet west of the campsite. As a human, I could have followed him just by the howling of the hounds and now I could hear them as if they were standing right next to me. The dogs didn’t take a direct path, but followed the exact trail of the prey.
The human was trailing the dogs as quickly as he could. His trail was more as the crow flies and ours was even more direct than his. We would have overtaken him very quickly but Asa slowed his pace; I was sure it was to let the man get deeper into the woods before we intercepted him. But why? The other two humans certainly stood no chance where Asa was concerned.
“Why are you letting him get so far into the woods? Why the games?” I lashed out at him with my tongue as I continued to follow him.
Stopping, he turned to me, a smug look on his face. “Do you not enjoy the hunt? That is part of the sport, Annalice. Besides, I do not want the other two humans close by when his end is near. Trying to drink while batting off his would-be protectors would ruin my meal and I like to savor the taste.” He grinned at me, but I saw no humor in his joke.
“Will you kill all… all of them?” Studying his face closely, I was relieved to see that his mind wasn’t on me but on the prey ahead of us in the woods. Hunger was gnawing at him, I could sense it in his body language.
“I have not decided. I usually do not kill more than one at a time. As I said before, I try to avoid undue suspicion if I can. But sometimes I simply cannot help myself and I am quite hungry tonight. A mistake brought on by my obsession for you,” he added, his voice tinted lightly by anger. Was he blaming this on me?
“How often?” I asked point blank, not bothering to specify as I was sure he knew what I was asking.
“About once a month do I take the liberty to drain a human. I usually reserve that delicacy for the lucky days I find a drifter or someone foolish enough to be alone. The more I drink
at once, the less often I need it, but I am like most Americans, I often eat for the fun of it, not out of necessity.” He flashed me a mocking grin.
He turned back to the scent trail and we resumed our hunt, the thick underbrush that is so common in clear-cut forests pulling at my legs and clothes. Vines and bushes covered in thorns that reached to my thighs tore at us both as we walked through them, making our own path. Asa didn’t appear to notice the thickness of the thorns but I, playing my human role, moved slowly pretending to be slowed down.
Looking down as a thorn tore sharply into the skin on the back of my hand, I watched in amazement as first one drop beaded up on my pale white skin and dripped down my wrist, only to see the next drop bead up and coagulate in a second in front of my eyes. In the next few seconds, the puncture wound was no longer visible. I hardly felt any pain, my new skin being much thicker and more impervious to the sharp points of the thorns.
My clothes didn’t hold up so well and I noticed several small pieces of my t-shirt hanging on some of the taller bushes.
The vampire ahead of me, stopping to wait for me, pinned me with a look of contempt. “I am growing tired of your human speed. You are keeping me from my meal.” Reaching over as I caught up to him, he knocked me backwards and caught me in his waiting arm. Not fighting him, I let him scoop me up as he resumed the path towards his meal.
“I can barely make out the disgusting smell of your anemia over my own scent,” he noted, aiming his piercing eyes down at me.
Looking up at him as innocently as I could, I countered, “You have only yourself to blame, Asa. I would still smell delicious if you had just kept on walking when you passed my house.”
Smiling down at me, he acted as if we were talking about the weather tonight before replying, “You have such a sense of humor about all of this, Annalice. It would have been such a waste to pass you up. Not to worry. In a few hours, you will have a new smell. Whether of rot or of vampire, I have not yet decided. But either one will be better than this sickly anemic smell that clings to you now.”
