The Wardens Boxed Set

by Heather D Glidewell

  When I got inside my mother was making a pot of tea, her usual solution for stressful situations. I washed my hands in the kitchen sink and took a seat at the table.

  “Explain,” I muttered, rubbing my face with my hands.

  I still didn’t believe it. I had pinched myself repeatedly on my way into the house. Sadly I was not dreaming.

  “I could give you a history lesson on vampires, but you’ve read about them, I’m sure. I’ll tell you this, though: there are different types. There are ones that live off human blood and others that can live, mostly, off human emotions. When I say mostly, let me explain.” She turned to face me, her way of letting me know that she was saying was the truth. “Such vampires find human emotions to be quite intoxicating. It’s like a drug to them, makes them feel high. They still need blood to survive, but at the same time they only need a trace of it because they are feeding primarily off emotions. They are drawn most strongly to anger and loss. However, if they can get their hands on love it goes from being a pleasant high to a frenzy. The victim usually doesn’t understand that they are being emotionally drained until one day they just don’t wake up.” She paused to take a sip from her drink. “Your blood is your weapon against them. One bite won’t kill them, but if they try to drain you, your body will retaliate by sending fire into their veins. As you know, fire is not exactly a friend of the vampire. This one, it would appear, was pretty hungry. Just one drop of your blood killed her, though it wasn’t enough to turn her to ash.” She raised an eyebrow as if she wasn’t sure she believed it herself.

  I groaned and threw my head back. “Mom, this can’t be happening.”

  “You’ll figure it out,” she assured me as she finished her tea.

  “What else exists that isn’t supposed to exist?” I asked as she looked into the bottom of her cup.

  She frowned. “Everything in your imagination can exist. As time goes by, you will meet some of these beings and learn their stories, but for now”—she reached out and patted my hand—“for now you just get some sleep and we can discuss it later.” She stood up and gave me a warm smile before leaving the room.

  I needed to think hard about what she had said. If vampires really existed, I began to wonder if my dreams about them were based on reality. For the first time I found myself wanting a friend, someone other than my mother, that I could talk to about all these things. Life had been so much simpler in El Paso. The most I had had to worry about there was people getting in my way. There were no supernatural creatures in El Paso, not to mention boys with their own cooling systems…

  I went back outside to the scene of the attack. There had to be a reason the vampire had come into our yard. I heard a branch break to my right and my head shot around. I could have sworn I saw something moving, but when I got to the location there was nothing there. I looked around a moment longer, then, unsatisfied with finding nothing that gave me any new insight, I went back inside.

  I was unable to go back to sleep after my mother’s little talk. I understood what she meant when she said that I had been raised on stories of Heaven and Hell. I should not be surprised that there were other weird creatures out there, no matter how vile they may be. It was a lot to take in. The thought that vampires really existed made my head spin. Then there were my surreal dreams to consider. Could I be harboring some internal vampire radar? That still didn’t explain why my blood seemed so convinced Wesley was one.

  I sat cross-legged in my pajamas on my bed and rested my head in my hands. All I wanted was to work out what I had done to stop the vampire attacking me. I remembered how my instincts had taken control, but had no clear memory of what followed. It was bad enough that something inside me was channeling spirits, allowing them to use me as a vessel to speak. Now I was being attacked by vampires. As if my life needed to be even more messed up!

  Maybe the whole incident was a sign that my internal battle had reached a new stage. Perhaps the darker side of me wanted to emerge and make its mark on the world. That prompted me to wonder if the me I’d grown accustomed to wasn’t the me I would be as I got older…

  So many thoughts were running through my head I barely registered that I had picked up my phone and was in the process of texting Wesley. By the time I realized what I was doing I had already hit the send button.

  Me: I’m no good for you. I will only drag you down when you need someone to lift you up.

  I groaned. Could I be any sappier? Then I looked at the time: 5 a.m. I crossed my fingers and prayed Wesley wouldn’t see the message. I should have known better. Almost at once my phone buzzed impatiently back at me.

  Wesley: Let me be the judge of what is good for me and what isn’t.

  Did this boy ever sleep? But it was too late to end the conversation right there.

  Me: How can you love someone like me?

  I was tearing myself apart. Talking to Wesley again was turning me upside down. I had two options: I could go my whole life without him and wonder what it would have been like with him, or I could suck up my pride and open the door to let him in. I had never been in love, but if this is what love felt like, it was ripping through me like I was being stabbed repeatedly with an icepick. I looked down to see his reply.

  Wesley: How can I not, Dawn?

  I started bawling, my chest heaving in and out, it was hurting so bad. I felt like a shell around my heart was being broken, yet I felt more real and more alive than I had ever done. I had taken so many things from Wesley in such a short time, and yet he still held onto me like I was a lifeline.

  Me: How can you be so sure?

  If he admitted he was unsure after all, then I would know that what I was feeling was probably nothing more than heartburn.

  Wesley: When I saw you I knew.

  I melted into a big glob of black and white goop on my maroon bedspread. This was love, then. The thought of being without Wesley made my body tremble with a fear I didn’t understand. My head swam and my heart felt like it was about to explode. I reached for the phone again.

  Me: But how do you know?

  The icy tingling in my fingertips was irritating so, for the pure Hell of it, I willed it to escape. The ice burned with an intense freezing sensation that made me gasp in discomfort. I closed my hands and let a few profanities fly as I tried to stop the burning in my fingertips.

  Let me explain that a bit. When my fingertips burned, it meant I was about to release a red flame, similar to what my father showed me. When they felt icy it was a white flame with a soothing blue glow that appeared. I could only assume it was connected to my mother, but I had never seen her use it, so I wasn’t completely sure it was.

  Wesley: Are you going to ask me any questions where I don’t have to prove myself?

  That annoyed me. So what if I was asking too many questions? Maybe I just needed to figure out if I felt the same for him as he felt for me. I had managed to come to one conclusion, however: if I was in love, I didn’t want to know what it felt like to have a broken heart. My phone started buzzing again.

  Wesley: I’m on my way. I have to see you.

  I half smiled as I lay down, curled myself into a ball, and let the tears fall. I didn’t know what was happening to me. All I knew was that I felt like I would fall apart. I had been so sure of myself before coming to Midvale. Why was this town twisting me into something different? I couldn’t understand why my life was changing like this. I knew what I was.

  I realized gradually that there were a lot of things I didn’t understand. It seemed that ever since we had moved to Midvale a great deal had happened to me. Was it just something that happened when you turned eighteen, or did this town have some form of force that caused the light to go dark?

  ***

  After I had cried till the tears would not come anymore, I fell asleep. I awoke to the feeling of my bed dipping as someone crawled in next to me. I rolled over and into familiar arms. I could feel Wesley’s heartbeat and smell his fresh scent. His
lips kissed the top of my head and, finally, I felt at ease. Closing my eyes, I drifted back to sleep in the arms of my blue-eyed boy.

  ***

  It was cold and the sky was dark, though I could still make out deep shades of blue behind the moving clouds. I was walking along the shore, my toes sinking into soft sand. The wind pulled my hair away from my neck and made it flutter behind me.

  I walked on the beach for hours with the water lapping at my feet. Up ahead of me I saw Wesley standing, waiting. However, with each step I took it seemed like he was getting further and further away. I began to run, but that only seemed to put him even further away. No matter what I did, I could not reach him.

  Then I heard laughter and a flash of red. I screamed as I watched Wesley crumble and I ran faster than I had ever run before, but still I could not reach him. The laughing continued in my head, and I knew that something was toying with me.

  Wesley was still there when I woke up later that morning. He looked so innocent and so peaceful in his sleep that I didn’t want to disturb him. I got quietly out of bed and went to the kitchen. I noticed that my mother’s bedroom door was open and sensed that she wasn’t home. I looked outside and saw that her car was gone.

  Where did she go?

  Then I saw that she had left a note on the fridge.

  Gone to the store and a few other places. Will be home later. Tell Wesley next time to just come in and not wake me up. The door is unlocked for a reason. Mom.

  “She was up when I got here,” said a voice behind me. “Said she would have to run a few places in the morning and to make sure you were okay. So, what was all this about an animal attack last night? And what were you doing out in the front yard at two in the morning?” His arms cloaked me and he kissed the top of my head.

  I was surprised I had not woken up when Wesley came into my room. Why didn’t I hear him? I can hear everything. I looked up at him, trying to figure out how he was getting around my super-sensitive spidey senses.

  “Yeah. How did you know?”

  “Your mom told me when I got here.”

  “Oh.”

  “Is that why you finally decided to text me?” His eyes were shining.

  What had my mother told him when he showed up last night? What story had she made up that an ordinary mortal could accept? She was probably tired and might have told him any old thing. There probably hadn’t been time for her to concoct a decent story so she must have gone with the first thing that came to mind.

  “That was probably the main reason,” I said cautiously.

  I could detect no tingling or prickling in my fingertips. In fact, I felt unusually at peace in my skin.

  “The other reason is...” I swallowed. I would say it. I would let it roll off my lips. Finally I would take the plunge. “The other reason is...” My heart was thumping and my palms were getting sweaty. “I love you, Wesley. I cannot imagine my life without you.” There. I had said it. I would have patted myself on the back if I wasn’t wrapped up so snugly in his arms.

  “I know.” I could sense him smiling. “I love you, too, Dawn Weathers.”

  That sent chills up my spine. I had never said those three little words before, let alone had them reciprocated, not even from boys who said I was the type of girl they could spend forever with. The emotions surging through me were confusing, but I felt so excited. I was starting a new life, and I was fortunate enough to have this amazing boy by my side. My heart pained me for a second before settling in rhythm with his.

  Chapter Eleven: Friends And Family

  When my mother enrolled me in school she had to choose a sixth period elective to count towards my graduation credits. Some of the classes I had taken as electives in El Paso transferred over into other spots. I couldn’t do a half day because I had a seventh period writing class that wasn’t offered earlier in the day. So, without asking, she had enrolled me in choir. Let me say there is nothing wrong with choir. I absolutely love to sing. My issue was with the other students in the class. It was hard enough just trying to be in the same room with twenty of them. Now I was stuck in a large square box with over eighty.

  We had a sub on this particular day, so we were pretty much having a study hall period. I was sitting with my back against the wall, my ear buds secured in my ears, listening to Three Days Grace, when a boy came over and sat beside me. He motioned for me to turn down my music. Startled, I paused the song, took the buds out of my ears, and looked at him. The only person that had taken the time to talk to me to date was Wesley. So what could this boy possibly want?

  “Dawn, right?” He held out his hand.

  I stared at him for a moment before reaching out and taking it firmly in mine.

  He smiled brightly at me. I was suddenly confused. Why was this boy being so nice? Other kids in the classroom had stopped what they were doing and were suddenly staring at the two of us. Nobody had taken the time before to just say hi. Now one of them wanted to have a conversation. The few discussions I had been involved in until now had been centered on school work, and had been with my partners for that class. I waited for the pig’s blood to pour down on me from above so everyone could point and laugh. To me it was the only logical reason this boy was talking to me.

  “Yeah, that’s me,” I said, still a bit muddled as to what exactly was happening.

  “I’m Adam,” he said, ignoring my unease. “I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you earlier. You know, like when you first got here. I’m usually really good about introducing myself.”

  “It’s okay. I’m sure I made it pretty hard for anyone to approach me. People haven’t been very nice to me since I got here.” I began to soften toward him. He didn’t feel like a threat, and he sure didn’t look like one.

  He was around six foot three and maybe one hundred and sixty-five pounds, with brown hair and light brown eyes. I liked his smile, even with the braces on his teeth. In fact, he was definitely cute, some might even say hot, as well as incredibly friendly. What I mean is, I felt instantly at ease with him.

  “I know you are with that Wesley guy.” He didn’t sound too thrilled to say my boyfriend’s name, but he was making the effort to be pleasant nonetheless. “You really look like you could use a friend, sitting over here all by yourself.”

  I laughed. “Yeah, a friend would be nice.”

  “So why did you move here of all places? Not many outsiders come to Midvale.” He crossed his ankles and smiled at me.

  “My stepfather passed away about six months ago and my mom had a really hard time dealing with it.” I couldn’t believe I was telling him this. “She started to go downhill and the pastor at our church told her this would be a good place to start over. So we packed up and came here.” I gave him the abridged version. I was sure he didn’t want to hear all the other details involved in our move.

  “Your mom must be the new counselor at my church, then. I haven’t seen you around there, though.” He glanced at the others in the class before redirecting his attention to me.

  “I’m not a very religious person anymore, to be honest,” I said softly.

  He shrugged. “We all have our moments when we question our faith. Some come out of it quicker than others, I suppose. I’m sorry to hear about your stepfather. What happened?” He fumbled with the hem of his shirt.

  “He was in the army. He was shot overseas.” That was all I wanted to share about that story. I didn’t think it a good idea to tell him how my mother knew her husband was dead before the military even showed up on our doorstep. I glanced at the clock and saw we only had five minutes left of class.

  “May I see your phone?” he said, pointing at it in my hand. I nodded and passed it to him. He looked at the screen and nodded. “Three Days Grace, huh? Pretty cool. Great taste in music, if I might say so.”

  He closed my music files and opened the phone book. “I’m going to give you my number. If you need anything, such as a tutor, duet buddy, or mechanic on that run-down piec
e of shit car you have parked in the parking lot, you can call.” He grinned.

  My car wasn’t exactly how he described it but it could use some work.

  “Anyway, call or text me.” He opened my text messages, created a new one, and texted himself. He smiled again and checked his phone in his pocket. “Now I have yours. I promise to call you at all hours of the day and night to ask for relationship advice.”

  He was joking. Right?

  “Thanks,” I mumbled as he handed my phone back.

  I couldn’t help feeling a little puzzled. I was grateful someone had taken a moment to actually talk to me, however. I mean, I knew most of the other students found my personality off-putting, and I was also sure that my different appearance didn’t help much either.

  “No problem,” Adam said. He gave me another warm smile as he stood up. “I’m serious, though. Call me or text me any time.”

  He went off to collect his bag from the other side of the room just as the bell rang. When he gave me a goodbye wave I waved back and flashed him a sincere smile, teeth and all. I prayed deep down inside it didn’t come across as creepy as it felt.

  I slung my bag over my shoulder and walked into the hallway where my very handsome and wonderful boyfriend was waiting for me. Adam passed by and the two of them shared a silent nod.

  “What was that all about?” Wesley asked, taking my hand.

  “What was what?” I asked.

  He looked at me and rolled his eyes. If there was one thing Wesley hated it was being answered with another question. “Did you make a friend?”

  I punched him playfully on the shoulder. “Maybe.”

  He squeezed my hand. “Good. Adam is a nice guy, very friendly, but not overly friendly. I think I can trust you with him.” He said it jokingly and I could tell he wasn’t bothered about it as we walked to our seventh period.