The Blood Red Rose

by Mark Stewart

  THE SUN started breaking into the new day. Being a shadow made it easy for Haleton to escape the police complex. He headed south to an overpass. Under the bridge, he materialized. Spying a pair of male joggers, he quickly estimated inside a minute they'd be close enough to ask directions. Before finding Mitch again or a new victim, Haleton needed to talk to Amber.

  The joggers rounded a bend and ran for the bridge. Haleton called out before they got too close.

  "Do either of you know where the nearest hospital is?"

  Both men looked annoyed at having to stop. One decided to keep jogging on the spot while the other gave cursory directions.

  "Down this road, turn left at the third corner and follow the road. It's the ten-storey building directly ahead."

  "How long will it take to walk there?" Haleton asked.

  "We could jog there in nine minutes. By the look of you, I'd say you'd call an ambulance at the halfway point. Tell me something, have you come from a fancy-dress party?"

  Haleton shook his head, made a flippant hand gesture then watched the men jog away laughing at the clothes he wore.

  Haleton's vampire blood almost got the better of him. He started to run after the men, but the sunlight saw him floating over the ground. He turned and headed towards the hospital.

  'To be able to dematerialize into a shadow did have its advantages,' he thought, making a beeline for the building. In less than a minute he arrived.

  Haleton stopped to survey the area. He spied a small truck coming through an open gate. "A local delivery, perfect," he whispered.

  Haleton clung to the back of the truck as it was driven towards the kitchen. The moment he jumped onto the loading dock he marched towards the semi-darkened corridor. Haleton materialized, pulled a small black disc from his pocket, pushing the button on the side which caused the overhead lights to blow. He shouldered the heavy plastic doors and marched towards the lift. He spied a row of long stemmed roses in buckets leaning against the wall. He swiped up a flower and placed it inside his coat.

  A bell at the other end of the corridor shrilled. The lift door started to open. Before stepping into the lift car, Haleton again clicked the button on his small disc. The interior light went out. He reached out, pressing the ground floor button. He gave the woman kitchen hand standing at the rear of the lift car a quick glance.

  She returned a nervous look.

  Haleton faced the door waiting for it to open. His thoughts drifted back to when he found the small black disc in the trash in the year 2109AD. The find was a God's send. Totally illegal, but, it had served him many times. Pushing the button on the disc sends an electronic pulse which blows the lights.

  The hospital's general inquiries area looked busier than a grand ballroom filled with dancers. People were sitting on chairs in rows talking above each other, trying their best to be heard. The receptionist behind the glass Administration window sat massaging her forehead in a feeble attempt to get rid of her headache. Haleton stepped out of the lift. Every overhead light made a popping sound when they blew, plunging the area into darkness.

  Screams filled the emergency department.

  Haleton stepped up to the small glass window. For a long time, he stared directly at the woman hoping she might look up.

  She never did.

  "My name is William," he answered eventually. "I need to find the young woman who came in by ambulance not too long ago. She's a brunette, about nineteen at a guess. Is there any chance you might be able to locate her?"

  "Sir, please sit down. When the lights come on, I'll help you."

  "Please, I need you to help me right now."

  "I can tell by the way you're glaring at me you won't leave until I help you?"

  "Exactly," said Haleton.

  "I need a name."

  "Yes of course you do. There's a problem; I don't know it." Haleton lied through his teeth hoping he sounded genuine in the misleading information. He didn't want the cops to arrive, throwing panic into the mix. He didn't care too much over the ruckus he had caused; he only cared how much time he'd waste.

  "Sir, please sit down. When you remember the girl's name come back, preferably when the lights come back on."

  "I don't want to be any trouble. Surely you could look up the new arrivals?"

  "Mister, don't give me any grief."

  "The moment you tell me the information I'll be out of here."

  "Look, Sir, I have had a bad shift. It's bedlam in here. Come back when you discover her name."

  "Her last name is Shine. Amanda Shine," Haleton lied.

  "Now you remember!"

  Haleton started to read the new arrival sheet upside down; grateful the names on the sheet were typed in alphabetical order.

  "According to this sheet, I don't have anyone by the name you mentioned. She might be at a different hospital."

  Haleton said genuinely. "Please, if you could check one more time I'd be most grateful."

  The woman sighed heavily and started to run her finger down the ten or so new patient names. By the time the woman spoke Haleton already found Amber's room number.

  "Nope, sorry," replied the woman, looking up.

  "Thanks for your time," whispered Haleton. He walked off down the corridor, stepped into the lift car and pressed the second-floor button.

  "Room twenty-two is behind you," said a woman who reeked of authority. She momentarily stopped searching in the dark for a torch in a drawer next to the computer at the nurse's station on the second floor to look up. "I'm sure the young lady will love a visitor even if your presence is only to reassure her. You're the first. Her room isn't affected by the unexplained blackout, yet. I do apologize for the lack of lighting. Nobody seems to know what's happening. My guess is it has to be a power surge."

  "No problem," said Haleton. He bid the woman a good day and strolled over to Amber's room.

  Inside the room, the overhead fluorescent tubes were still burning bright. Sunlight streamed in through the wall to ceiling window. Haleton pushed the button on the black disc. The light blew. He dematerialized into a shadow and slowly floated across the ceiling, viewing the sleeping woman in the bed. In the darkness of the heavy curtain hanging over the window he materialized and pulled the drawstring to block out the sun.

  The room plunged into semi-darkness. Haleton quietly walked to the foot of the bed. Focusing on Amber, he could feel love pangs starting to surge through his body. Frowning at the emotion, he stepped to the side of the bed to study Amber's face. Haleton could smell her sweet blood pumping through her veins by a strong, healthy heart. Already his mind slipped into fantasy thoughts of how the red liquid might taste. He needed to fight if he wanted to control the urge to taste her.

  Amber stirred, opening her eyes.

  Not wanting to alarm Amber, Haleton talked in a gentle voice.

  "Hi there young lady, it's about time you woke. Don't be nervous I'm a friend."

  "William, I saw you shot. If you're not a ghost how come you aren't dead?"

  "It takes a while to explain. Can I say at this time, he missed?"

  "I'm not sure I believe you or ever will."

  "I'll explain everything at a later date."

  "Why is it dark in here?"

  "The lights seem to have gone out," stated Haleton innocently.

  "I'd like to see the daylight. Can you please open the curtains?"

  "I have to insist they remain closed for now."

  "You're a strange man. There's something or a force pulling me to you. It's hard to explain. It's like I know I should be afraid to talk to you, yet at the same time, I feel I should accept you for a friend whom I can trust with my life."

  "Thank you for the compliment." Haleton looked at the door. "Someone is coming. I have to leave."

  "Do you have to go right now?"

  "Yes, it's important I do. I said before we'll catch up again, soon." He produced the long stem flower hidden inside his coat, placing it on the bed at Amber's fingertips.

&n
bsp; She picked it up, breathing its sweet perfumed aroma. "A red rose. It's the biggest flower I've ever seen. Thank you."

  Haleton reached for Amber's hand and kissed her knuckles. "The flower is a blood red rose."

  Noise outside the door saw Haleton at the window in a heartbeat. He didn't want to leave. The vampire urges were slowing. Love and compassion were again taking control. Both were his original traits he valued. He kept them guarded so he'd never forget who he is. He gave Amber a long seductive look before touching the brim of his hat. Amber responded by angling her eyebrows to a point.

  "Until we meet again," Haleton whispered.

  He opened the long heavy block out curtains. Sunlight filled the room. In a blink of an eye, he vanished.

  A nurse stepped into the room. "There's nothing to be alarmed about; the maintenance man is on site. He told me the lights would be on soon. How are you feeling Miss Cantala?"

  "I'm fine."

  "The doctor will be here shortly. If he says you can go, I'll arrange the discharge papers. Is there anyone I can call to pick you up?"

  "No, I'll be fine. Besides, I believe the man who has just left will be waiting for me when I walk outside."

  "I didn't see anyone."

  "He was standing at the curtains just before you entered the room."

  The nurse walked to the window. Using a quick swipe of her hand, she fully opened the heavy curtains. She looked outside at the warm sunlight before turning to face Amber. She gave her a doubtful look.

  "I must have dreamt the whole thing."

  "I'm positive you did," said the nurse. "If there isn't anything you require I'll go finish reassuring the other of the patients."

  "I'm sure I can manage," said Amber.

  The nurse nodded before walking out of the room.

  CHAPTER TEN