by Kat Stiles
From the number of deaths in the news to the research I personally did on survival rates, with his COPD condition, the outlook wasn’t good. I mean, it might as well have been a death sentence.
Muffled sobs sounded through the phone. “How is he going to survive this?” My mother whispered.
Everything I could think of to do had been tried. Everything except one thing. A forbidden thing.
I closed my eyes, wondering how I could get just a sample of their blood. And when I opened my eyes again, I was back at the mansion.
James was standing right behind me, too close. “You came back,” he whispered in my ear.
“I need your blood. Ryan said it was forbidden, but I need it. Please.”
I felt my hair being touched, gently placed to one side. My control slipped away from me, gliding slowly into nothingness, like a cloud on a summer day. I couldn’t remember why I was there or what I just asked him.
“You’re mine, now,” he purred. “Don’t fight it.”
His cold lips kissed the bend of my neck, but it was exactly what I wanted, what I desired more than anything else in the world. In the ornate mirror on the far wall, I saw his fangs elongate, right before they plunged into my neck.
I screamed myself awake, scaring the shit out of my dog. I felt so cheap, so used, so stupid. It was the worst feeling, being controlled.
I glanced at my bed and noticed Amy stirring.
“What…” She glanced around. “Where am I?”
I joined her on the bed, sitting at the foot. “Ryan and I brought you back here.”
“Ryan?” She rubbed her forehead. “It feels like a hangover. But we didn’t drink that much, did we?”
I wondered how much blood they took from her. And which of those assholes fed off her.
“So, where to begin…” I smiled awkwardly. “Remember when you were talking about vampires?”
She nodded.
“Funny thing, it…it turns out you were right.”
Her eyes got big. “Oh my God, were you bitten?”
“Well no, but…”
She stared at me a few seconds more, until her face suddenly relaxed and her eyes grew large. “Oh hell no!”
With a start, she jumped out of bed, which only caused her to sway and nearly fall.
“Whoa, slow down there,” I said. “I don’t know how much blood you lost. You might feel a little woozy. Let me bring you something to eat.”
I brought a few different kinds of fruit and a glass of juice. As I re-entered the room, I discovered she’d stripped to only her bra and panties.
I couldn’t help but admire how perfectly toned she was, especially her legs. She must be taking kickboxing or something, I thought.
Amy frantically searched her body, looking in the full-length mirror on the wall. “Do you see anything on my back?”
I shook my head. “Look, I got you some food, you should—”
“So it’s just these two.” She pointed to her neck and upper thigh. Then she stopped. “Oh shit.”
I waited for her to continue, afraid to interrupt her freak out.
“Does this mean I’m one of them?” She started hyper-ventilating.
I placed the bowl of fruit and drink on the nightstand. “I’m so sorry this happened, but please try to calm down.”
“Calm down? I could be undead for all I know! And you want me to take it easy?”
“Ryan said they very rarely turn anyone.” I picked up her clothes and handed them back to her. “I’m sure you’re still human.”
The panic on her face didn’t dissipate. “That’s not very comforting.”
“Well, do you feel any different? Have any cravings for blood?”
She seemed to calm down enough to consider it. “No, I can’t say that I do.” She finally slipped on her shirt and pulled up her jeans. I was relieved. It was a little strange talking to her unclothed.
“Ryan also said there would have to be an exchange of blood to become a vampire. Do you remember what happened last night?”
“I was with James in the drawing room, we were waiting for you.” She slowly tapped her chin. “Someone else joined us after a while. He had a weird name—Gabe, Gale…”
“Galen?” I stumbled back, knocking over the lamp on my nightstand. How could I let this happen?
“Damn, I feel so sore…” she said, her hands near her groin area.
I felt sick to my stomach, thinking about what he could have done to her.
“You don’t think…” she said slowly. “I mean it feels the same kinda sore after…”
I gasped. “Oh my God.” Why did I ever agree to go to that stupid mansion?
“But how? I don’t remember a thing!” Amy crossed her arms over her chest, hugging her waist.
“I… I don’t think you were supposed to,” I said softly. “I think we both were supposed to still be there.” I reached out and touched her shoulder. “Maybe you should see a doctor.”
“Pfft. Why? So he can tell me I was violated?” She shrugged off my hand. “I can feel it, Liz.”
I felt a tear roll down my cheek. This was all my fault. I could only imagine what sick, twisted games Galen played with her. Games he intended to play with me. But then Ryan saved me. I choked back the tears and wiped my face. “Will you please eat a little food?”
“Look, I know this isn’t your fault, but I am pissed off.” She pushed up the sleeves of her shirt. “Who do these dickheads think they are, anyway?”
“Not to state the obvious, but vampires. They can control minds. And they’re also super strong. You couldn’t have fought back if you wanted to.”
“Well, we’ll just see about that,” she said, her eyes narrowed. “Nobody controls me.”
And then she stomped out of my bedroom. I was almost afraid to follow her, but I had to be sure she was okay to drive. I grabbed the bowl and stopped her before she left my apartment.
“I know you’re mad and I am too. Galen is a prick. But if you lost a lot of blood, it could be dangerous to drive.” I handed her a banana and apple. “Please eat something before you turn on your car.”
She nodded, taking the fruit.
“And please promise you won’t do anything dangerous, like going back to the mansion.”
“I’m not making any promises. That dude will pay for what he did to me.”
I agreed with her that Galen needed to pay, but I was genuinely concerned for her safety. “Consider this logically. You’re outnumbered. And they’ve got super powers. Plus a taste for your blood. If you go back there alone, you’re a goner.”
“Not if I burn that motherfucker down!”
I realized it was futile talking to her when she was all worked up like this. “Okay, just call me before you do anything. Maybe I can help.”
“Fine.”
I went to hug her, but she just turned and left. She said it wasn’t my fault, but I couldn’t help but feel deep down she was harboring resentment towards me. Maybe because I was okay, and she was bitten and God knows what else. I shivered, thinking about Galen. His dark eyes, snide remarks, and bad intentions. Would he still stalk me? Or was violating Amy enough to satiate his sick desires?
Chapter 10
With Amy gone, I was free to go back to work and make some progress with the bats. Test subjects C and D, the new bats I added to the cage, tested positive for the virus. That suggested a small incubation window, which was a discouraging find. This virus had the potential to spread quickly.
With my new hypothesis, I began working on a serum to determine whether the health factor of the subject made a difference. It took the rest of the day, but I eventually came up with something to test on one of the new subjects.
I scoured the news to see if the numbers were climbing drastically. It was a steady climb, nothing crazy, but in the same report they talked about hospitals being slammed with patients that have flu-like symptoms. Which of course meant there weren’t enough tests. There could be hundreds or eve
n thousands already infected.
I called my boss John to see if we were going to meet today. He sounded exhausted when he answered.
“John, has the president said anything to the general public about this? I didn’t see anything on the news.”
“Uh, yeah. He’s about to make a statement…”
The way he trailed off led me to believe it was going to be bad. Which was more like normal, for the president.
“You got my report, right?” I said. “You sent it off to him?”
“Yes and yes. Does that mean he read it? Hard no.”
“But the fact that this is a global pandemic… I mean, just based on how it’s spread in other countries, he should—”
“Turn on channel 5, he just came on.”
I ran to the break room and grabbed the remote for the TV on the wall. The special report banner scrolled across the screen, then it cut to the president at his podium in the press conference room.
“Many of you have probably seen the reports that the virus has reached our shores. It is true, we’ve had a few cases reported in several of our major cities, including New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, and Miami. But the numbers are still low. This… this just isn’t going to be an issue here like in other countries. Please don’t panic, there’s no cause for alarm.”
The reporters all started talking over one another, until the president picked one.
“The WHO has suggested social distancing and wearing masks could stop the spread of the virus. Are they going to be your guidelines as well?”
“Again, there’s no cause for panic. We don’t have enough cases for…for that kind of reaction.” He picked a different reporter.
“It’s also been suggested that a shutdown is the only thing that can halt this virus, do you—”
“We have a handful of cases. Of a flu-like virus.” He laughed. “Everybody just breathe! It’s going to be okay.”
“Really?” I said to John. “A viral pathogen that’s been proven to be transmitted through droplets in other countries… Does he believe the laws of science don’t apply to the US?”
“Wait for it,” John said. “It’s bound to get worse.”
President Lamp picked someone else.
“Mr. President, is it safe to travel to foreign countries? And are there any plans to stop incoming international flights?”
“Do you know how many people came down with the flu last year? Did we shut down the country for that?”
“It’s not the flu! I outlined the characteristics of this virus in the threat report!” My voice continued to increase in volume. “If we don’t do something quick, we’re going to have a lot of dead people, particularly the elderly.”
“We confirmed the meeting for tomorrow morning at 9,” John said. “Are you sure you want to attend? It’s just going to be more of the same.”
I took a deep breath and exhaled. “Honestly, at this point I would welcome collaboration. I only ask to stay on the project.”
“Tests not going well?”
I winced. It was a sore spot with me, but even a genius needs time to research a novel virus. “I’m making progress. It’s just, there are so many variables. Trying to pinpoint why one bat has mild symptoms and another dies has been difficult.”
“Keep working on it. Hell, he may want the whole lab to cover this.”
“Probably not a bad idea. I get the feeling this is going to be catastrophic.”
“Me too. God dammit, did someone mention bleach again? I gotta go.”
“See you tomorrow,” I said.
“Uh huh. Bye now.”
As I ended the call, I gazed out the window and noticed the sun was low in the sky. Though I wanted to stay, I knew it wouldn’t be safe. I gathered my stuff and headed home.
I was super vigilant on the way home, and even on the walk with Thundarr afterwards. I found myself wondering how to injure vampires. Not only for self-defense, but also to get the blood samples I needed. If I could just knock one of them out…
My cellphone rang and the caller id read, “Dad.”
I gulped. What if my dream has come true already? No, it’s too early, I reasoned. And besides, what am I going to, not take his call?
I answered the phone, “Dad, are you okay?”
“Sure, honey, I’m fine. How about you?”
I breathed a sigh of relief. Probably just a crazy vampire nightmare sequence, brought on by spending way too much time with vampires. Go figure.
“I’m fine. Just been working on this new project.”
“Making any headway?” He always sounded interested, even when I got all sciencey.
“Well…” I paused, not wanting to talk about it. So if figured I’d change the subject. “Oh you and Mom aren’t traveling any time soon, are you?”
“We don’t have any plans. You know I don’t do much these days, just watching golf and playing checkers with some of the old timers at the home.”
He’d mentioned volunteering at a local retirement home a few weeks back. I think my moving out left him feeling a little lonely. Not that my mother wasn’t around, but she had a bunch of activities to keep her occupied, and my father was always pretty simple. He remembered how sad the other retirees looked when he went to visit with his father. All they wanted was someone to talk with, take their minds off their physical imprisonment at the facility and their own constant discomfort. Mom and I both thought it was a great idea.
“How’s the condition?” I asked.
He groaned. “Oh, I’m fine. I can’t complain.”
As if to betray that answer, he had a coughing fit.
“Mm hmm.”
He laughed. “Of course I cough the moment I’m on the phone with you…”
“You’re taking it easy, right?”
“Funny, I thought I was the parent here.”
“I know how you are, fixing things and taking on new projects around the house.”
“And I know you too, baby,” he said. “You sound off.”
“I’m just a little tired, that’s all.
My Dad’s voice always got a little deeper when he was concerned about me or giving me advice. It was so cute. “I know you need to save the world and all, but please… Take care of yourself first, promise me.”
“Okay.”
Thundarr suddenly started barking like crazy. I looked outside and noticed the hazy pink near the skyline. The sun had just set.
“Dad, I have to go.”
“Is something wrong?”
I peered out the peephole of my front door and let out a sigh of relief.
“No, I just have a guest. You know how Thundarr gets.”
“Okay, baby. I love you.”
“Love you too, Dad.”
I opened the door and let Ryan in.
“Hi,” he said, as Thundarr jumped on him. He did his sleep trick with him again, and then lowered the big guy to the floor.
“He’s never going to get used to you, is he?” I asked.
“I don’t believe so. Animals consider us a threat.” A half-smile appeared on his face. “Makes it difficult to feed sometimes.”
For a moment, we just stood there. I so wanted to hug him, and from the way he looked at me, it seemed he wanted that too. Or, the more I thought about it, he could just want to feed on me.
It was a sobering thought. I cleared my throat and led him to my small couch, really only big enough for two people. “How did everything go with James?”
“I managed to avoid him. He was asleep the whole time I was there. How about your friend? Is she all right?” He looked toward my bedroom.
“She’s gone. And no, she’s not all right.”
“What’s wrong? Is she ill?” His eyebrows scrunched together. “From what I understand, the feeding process shouldn’t cause any permanent harm….”
“It’s not that,” I said, looking down. Even talking about it brought up feelings of guilt. “Galen fed from her, sure. But he raped her as well.”
/> “What?” He stood, his eyes ablaze. “You can’t be serious…”
“Amy is pissed. She talked about burning the mansion down. I’m afraid she’s going to go back there.”
“I can’t believe he would do that!” He started to pace. “I knew he was a jerk, but he’s gone too far this time.”
“How far did he go last time? I have a feeling Amy isn’t the first.”
“When James finds out about this…”
I snickered. “What makes you think he doesn’t know?”
“You don’t understand…” He sat back down, deflated. “When I was turned, it was like this. James took a new girl every night. His bloodlust was out of control.”
I took his hands in mine, and a grateful smile appeared on his face.
“I convinced James we had to do the right thing. We made a game of it, hunting in the woods. It was going fine until we discovered the gifted ones.”
“Gifted ones?”
“Do you remember what I said the other day, about how you smell different?”
I nodded.
He took a deep breath and exhaled. “It’s because you are different. You have an ability. We don’t know exactly what the abilities are when we come across a gifted, we can only find out…” he trailed off, looking at the floor.
“When you kill them?” I withdrew my hands, feeling a bit horrified.
“No! We don’t kill them. I mean, I never did… James kind of discovered it on accident. One of the gifteds had premonitions. He knew what we were. James panicked. He was afraid our family would become exposed. So he did kill that man, but it was more out of self-preservation than anything else.”
He continued, “That’s when James discovered, after he drank the man’s blood, that we can temporarily have the powers a gifted possesses. And when it’s integrated with our blood, the power becomes stronger.”
I remained silent, trying to wrap my head around what he said. I was just getting used to the reality that vampires exist. Now there are people with super powers? And I’m one of them?
“Wait, what?” I laughed uncomfortably. “You think I have some kind of super power?”
