by P. J. Burgy
Helena ran to the base of the steps in the foyer. “Hey Dad! We’re going out! Vampire hunting business!” When no reply came, she stared back at Lizzie. “Go on! We’ll meet you there.”
Unsteady on her feet, Lizzie nodded.
They’d urged Lizzie to sit in the living room and watch a movie to calm her nerves while they worked in the kitchen, melting silver with a torch on her counter and muttering about their plans. The stink of garlic permeated her home.
She sat crossed legged on the futon, head low and eyes trained on the cracked window. Outside, the sky was growing darker, and a few flurries began to fall.
Gary must have been walking his dogs out there, their incessant yipping starting full force. She closed her eyes, shoulders so tense that her arms ached. The three different silver necklaces Helena had made her wear felt cold against her skin.
Her phone read 4:15 PM. It wouldn’t be too much longer now. She picked up the wooden crucifix the Millers had given her and held it to her chest.
At 6 PM sharp, a rapping sounded at her door and Lizzie snapped out of her daze, the movie credits playing softly in her living room. The Millers had gone quiet, sorting through the arrows on the floor next to her, hiding behind the futon in the corner. Helena sat up, eyes wide. Teddy knelt and squared his shoulders.
He signaled to Lizzie then pointed at the door, nodding slowly. He mouthed ‘answer it.’
She inhaled deeply and stood, looking to the window first. The streetlights flickered. Her insides turned.
Walking to the door, she stopped herself from peering out at him through the peephole. She knew who it was. When she spoke, it was to the closed door. “Hello?”
“Lizzie.”
“Hello, Martin.”
“The door, Lizzie. Open it. Let’s talk.”
“We can talk like this.”
“I’d rather see you.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I know what you can do.”
He tapped his fingers on the door. “You think I’d make you let me in? Overtake your will?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, Lizzie. If we’re going to be together, you’ll need to learn to trust me. Open the door and let me in, and I’ll make everything better again.”
She chewed on the inside of her lip for a moment, thinking. He tapped again, humming loud enough to be heard. Her voice cracked a little as she spoke. “Explain to me, ah, why I should trust you, Martin. After everything you’ve done.”
“Explain? Oh, is it story time?”
“Yes. Tell me.”
“I’ve made my intentions abundantly clear, my love. You’re being purposefully obtuse at this point and it’s not a flattering look on you.”
“Ah… indulge me…”
“Stalling. You’re stalling,” he sang. “And you’re not alone, are you? Who’s in there with you, hmm? Some little friends?”
“No…”
“And now you’re lying to me. Why would you lie to me, Lizzie? Come now. Don’t make this harder on yourself. We can be happy again. You remember, don’t you? We were happy.”
“You killed my boyfriend, Martin.”
“I set you free.”
“What happened to the others? Your other artists? What did you do to them?”
“I’m through wasting time. If you won’t open the door and let me in, then you’ll come outside to play.”
“What?” Lizzie asked. She pressed her hand to the door. “What do you mean by that, Martin?” At the silence that followed, she inhaled sharply. “Martin?”
The living room window smashed inward, glass shattering and spraying across the room toward where Helena and Teddy crouched in the corner. They cried out in surprise. A heavy thing, round, light in color, rolled across the floor and stopped just short of the two siblings.
Lizzie stumbled into the living room, staring wide eyed at the floor and the round, whitish thing that lay there on her carpet, bright red stains appearing around it. The projectile had hair, wavy and disheveled, and a wrinkled face, the mouth hanging open with a pale tongue peeking out. Mrs. Hempstead’s face stared blindly at her.
Lizzie shrieked, staggering backward.
“One neighbor down!” Martin called. “Ah ah ah!”
Helena stood, crucifix clutched in her fist as Teddy vomited in the corner of the room, his back shuddering. “Oh shit!”
“Martin!” Lizzie screamed.
His voice from the window. “You’ve got to admit, that was pretty funny, wasn’t it? I’ve always wanted to say that, but never had the opportunity. What did you think? Be honest.”
Lizzie whirled around, almost toppling, to see him there, his face just outside where he’d punched a hole into her house. “You killed her, you killed…”
Martin grinned, showing off sharp teeth. His eyes were black, mirthless. “I did. And I’ll kill another one too. Come on out.”
“She wasn’t involved in this!” She wiped away hot tears with the back of her arm, mind reeling.
“You involved her.” He reached out, clawed fingers stopping just short of entering through the broken glass. A faint blue mist appeared, like a wall, and his hand retreated just as his talons began to smoke as though burning. “You killed her.”
Lizzie swallowed hard and held up the crucifix with a shaking hand. “Get back, Martin!”
He blinked once. “Really? Oh please. Lizzie, you’re making a fool out of yourself. You have as much faith in that little knickknack as you had in yourself before you met me.”
“I have faith!”
“No, you don’t.” He tilted his head to the side and might’ve rolled his black eyes by the tone he’d taken. “Now come outside.”
“No. Tell me why… why you…” She found in his gaze a deep and endless void, drawing her in, her thoughts scattering. ‘Go outside, Lizzie. Go on. You’re just going to get everyone killed if you don’t, you silly thing. Go on. It’s for the best.’
“Come on, Lizzie,” Martin said.
“Okay…” she whispered.
Helena rushed up, shoving Lizzie to the side to take her place, and bared her own metallic crucifix toward the broken window. “Back, fiend! Away with you, creature of the night!”
Martin’s eyes widened and a horrific yowl escaped his throat. He flew back as though he were a marionette and his puppeteer had yanked hard on his strings from above.
Her mind returning to her, Lizzie staggered to the side as Helena shook her and gave her a push from the window. She found herself leaning on the wall next to the front door.
“What did we say about eye contact! Stay hidden!” Helena cried, brows knit tightly.
“Well, that wasn’t very nice!” Martin yelled.
A sharp ‘KA-THUK’, a blur of motion, and Martin was shrieking outside in the dark. Teddy ran from the living room to where Helena and Lizzie hid behind the door, the crossbow in his hands and the quiver of arrows on his back.
“Did you strike his heart?” Helena asked.
Teddy shook his head, his face paler than Lizzie had ever seen it. His wavy hair had matted near his forehead, shining with sweat. “I missed my mark, but I got him.”
“Now that was just plain rude!” Martin hollered. “This shirt was two hundred dollars, you witless insect!”
“Come back to the window and we’ll depreciate the value of your fancy pants too!” Helena called back.
“What are we going to do? He’ll keep killing people until I come out!” Lizzie sobbed. She blubbered madly, eyes red and nose running. “He’ll kill them all, he’ll-”
Helena slapped her across the face. “Get it together! Dawn is forever away, so we need to go with the trap plan. Teddy, get the salt ready!”
“On it!”
“My house!” Lizzie wailed.
“There’s no other choice!” the girl shouted.
Her eyes welled with hot tears. “B-but!”
Helena turned from Lizzie, looking to her brother. “Is he still out there?”
>
His body tensed as he leaned a little, trying to get a better view of the window. “I don’t know.”
Somewhere not too far off, a percussive explosion thundered through the night. The lights went out, plunging them into darkness. The streetlights flicked off. Silence descended on the house, the heater powering down with an audible thrum.
“He took out the power grid,” Teddy hissed. He fumbled with something in the dark, shook it a few times, and flicked on a flashlight, nearly blinding them all.
“I should… should call my friend…” Lizzie gagged and choked. “W-warn her!”
“We’ve got to get him to come in. Through the front door. Put salt at the back door to keep him from following you out. Then, pour salt at the front door quick,” Teddy said. “Gotta be fast though. No room for error.”
“Could hide in the closet. Maybe Lizzie could get him upstairs and she could jump out the window into the backyard.” Helena pondered, head low, and rubbed at the fur trim of her hood.
“J-jump out the window?”
The girl nodded. “Just roll when you land.”
“R-roll?”
Teddy touched her shoulder. “I’ve done it.”
“And you didn’t get hurt?” Lizzie asked.
“I broke my ankle, but not my leg, so…”
Lizzie’s face scrunched. “Ah…”
“Maybe we can make a rope out of the bed sheets for you instead. How about that, Lizzie?” Helena asked.
She shook her head and grabbed for her phone in her pocket. “I’m going to warn Margo. I’m going to…” The cell phone had no bars. “Ah, oh, there’s… there’s no reception…”
A loud thud, muffled by snow, echoed from just outside. Slowly, Teddy and Helena made their way over to the window. Lizzie followed last, her heart pounding in her chest.
Teddy shined his flashlight out through the broken window.
It was hard to tell what it was exactly. Shadows played on the metal surface, reflecting dully. Sticking out of the thick snow, a large steel contraption protruded oddly with long dented cylinders laid into a grid composed of similar spokes. Sparks spit from parts of it, smoke trailing up in little whisps.
“That’s the top of the cell phone tower…” Teddy whispered.
“Look how far you’ve made me go!” Martin cried. “This could have been easy, but no, you want to make me work for it. Challenge accepted, my love! Like you my gift?”
“Okay, look, me’n you can work as fast as we can making you a rope. Teddy, pour salt across the threshold at the back door,” Helena said, staring at her brother. “Lizzie can invite him in from upstairs and then crawl down.”
He nodded. “And the front door?”
“One of us will have to be waiting in the closet to pour the salt,” she said.
Lizzie shuddered. “He’s too fast, isn’t he?”
Helena quieted her. “The garlic might slow him down once he’s in. It makes them sick.”
“What if he catches me?” Lizzie asked. “The cross didn’t work! What do I do?”
Helena reached into her coat and produced a water pistol. She handed it to Lizzie. “Holy water gun. Shoot him.”
“Shoot him?”
Teddy nodded. “Aim for the face. Works best if it gets on his skin. Don’t miss.”
“Will it… will it kill him?” Lizzie asked.
“Nah, but it’ll burn him real bad,” Teddy replied.
Her bottom lip trembled, the gun shaking in her hands as she practiced aiming it. “I don’t know…”
“Do you have any close-range weapons? Something that produces fire or heat?” Helena leaned toward her.
“L-like a flamethrower? What? No!”
“Damn…” her brother muttered.
“I have… I have…” Lizzie put the water pistol in her pocket and grabbed for her purse on the floor near the shoe rack. She pulled out the taser. “Ah, this…”
Helena clenched her fist and nodded quickly. “Electricity is another form of fire! It may work!”
“Is it?” Her brows lifted.
“I mean, on a show I like it is, and it’s rooted in natural forces and magic, which means it’s probably semi-accurate.” The girl shrugged and smiled reassuringly. “But just try not to miss with the holy water.”
Just then, the mad yipping of multiple small dogs tore through the night. A scream, long and shrill, followed, and the barking immediately ceased.
“I think he just killed Gary!” Lizzie cried.
A cool breeze blew in through the hole in the glass. “Oh Lizzie, I don’t want to hurt you. You’re so precious to me. I wish you’d come outside though. I want to talk to you, face to face.”
Lizzie pocketed the taser, sickened.
“Come on, let’s go upstairs and make that rope!” Helena hissed, grabbing her hand.
Martin tsk’d loudly, avoiding the window directly but speaking close enough to be heard. “I can’t look in, so I don’t know where you are. Don’t be in the living room, Lizzie. Move somewhere else, would you, if you are? Five.”
“What is he doing?” Lizzie asked.
“Four,” Martin said.
“Hurry up, let’s go,” Helena yanked her to her feet.
“Three!”
Teddy frowned. “He’s counting down…”
A thick, creaking whine emanated from outside and metal screamed, bending and straining – a deep groan. Glass cracked and broke. “Twooooo!”
“Oh, shit balls,” Helena muttered.
“One!”
The living room exploded inward as the front end of Lizzie’s little red Honda came crashing through the window and wall. A deafening roar blasted the three of them back, drywall bursting plumes of thick dust, and Lizzie hit the floor, covering her face from the debris.
“I hope you moved!” Martin cried.
Lizzie coughed, her balance thrown off. Her legs buckled as she pulled herself to her feet. “Martin!”
“You’re alive! Grand! The roof is next if you don’t come out!”
Helena grabbed Lizzie by her shirt. “Okay, plan B. We have to get to the church! Holy ground. We can wait there.”
“How… how are we going to do that? He’s out there!” Lizzie shook her head from side to side, pointing at the front end of her car not even ten feet away from them. “My car!”
“We’ll have to make a run for the truck. I can repel him back no problem.” Helena held her crucifix in the air. “He can’t get too close, but Teddy can fire off arrows if he comes within range. You’ve got the holy water, and so do I.” She pulled out another water pistol, now armed with both a cross and a little plastic gun.
“Ah… But the church is on the other side of town. We’ll never make it.” Lizzie gagged softly.
“Oh, we’ll make it,” Teddy muttered.
Helena pointed at the door. “We got sixty seconds to grab what we need before we run out that door, Lizzie. Get ready!”
Chapter 14
Teddy opened the front door and peered out first, his crossbow training up and around as Lizzie shined the flashlight out into the night to scan the porch. The snow glistened, the moon full in the clear, starry sky above them. They found the entire neighborhood illuminated before them, though the shadows ran deep where the light couldn’t reach.
Something dark hung in the air close by, a shape that moved slowly and then quickly, obscuring random areas of the starlight.
“Oh, tiny little hunters. How adorable,” Martin said, his tone flat. “Those are the Miller kids, right?”
“Come fly down here and make our acquaintance, bloodsucker!” Helena hollered at the sky, holding the crucifix upward.
Lizzie and the siblings walked in a tight triangle formation, circling with their backs touching as they traveled down the sidewalk toward the Chevy parked many yards away on the street.
Her hands shook violently, a water pistol clutched in her right hand with her finger on the trigger, and the flashlight in the other. Lizzie sc
anned the ground ahead of them, trying to keep her focus as she slipped on a small patch of ice.
Martin tsk’d at them from above, hovering unseen in the darkness despite the moonlight. “All this trouble over what? A tiny, insignificant spat. Come with me now and I won’t pop their little heads off, Lizzie.”
“Better idea,” Teddy said. “Why don’t you come down here and let me stake you through the heart? Everybody wins!”
“That doesn’t sound like a win to me,” Martin replied.
Teddy snorted. “It’d end your pathetic existence!”
“Martin, please just leave!” Lizzie cried at the sky. They’d made it to the street and had spun another full circle. She pointed the flashlight up and around, desperately seeking him out in the starry sky.
“Not without you, my love.”
She caught him in the spotlight for a moment. His long black coat hung to his thighs. He wore all black, in fact, looking like a dark smudge against the stars. A pale face shone in the light. His eyes were as black as his slicked back hair and his grin was toothy. She gasped and he disappeared, flitting away.
“Don’t try to look at him!” Helena barked. She spun on her heel, pistol up. “We’re almost there. Lizzie, you’ll have to unlock the door and get in first. The windows are sealed.”
“Sealed?” Lizzie nearly tripped again.
Twenty feet from the truck, they heard the first high pitched keening barks. Lizzie turned slowly, staring down the street past the parked Chevy, and shined her flashlight even though she could see the shapes moving their way with unnatural haste.
It was Gary, but it wasn’t. He moved in jerky, horrific bursts, limping on a knee bent the wrong direction. His head flopped to the left, banging against his shoulder as he shambled down the street. Shining blood covered his neck and chest. She didn’t want to get a closer look at his face; his gaping black mouth was more than enough to shock her into screaming.
And at his feet, three small dogs, eyes glowing red, barked and squealed, running on tiny legs with fangs bared.
Helena turned to look, her breath caught. “Evil wieners.”
Lizzie stiffened. “Oh shit, Gary!”
“Get to the truck!” Teddy pushed Lizzie and his sister, and the trio circled faster, moving toward the truck as quickly as the three dachshunds ran toward them.
