Chapter 7

The Desperate Endeavour

When Alondras' aunt got to the airport and didn't find her niece, Auntie Breea called Jason. "Jason, she's not here, Alondra isn't here." Auntie Breea was in hysterics, and pretty soon so was Jason. "What? I'll tell her mother." When Jason hung up the phone he started to cry. Tears and all.

Jason drove over to Alondras' house, and knocked on the door. Helen greeted Jason, saw his devastated face, and invited him in. Jason decided to begin the conversation then. "Mrs. Smith, you're going to hate me, but your daughter was never going to see her grandmother. She was going to see your sister, Breea. " Alondras' mother sank into a chair, her face furious. "I'm sorry to say, but I helped her. I gave her the grandmother idea and bought her plane ticket."

"Why does your face look like that?" Mrs. Smith inquired, trying hard to keep her voice straight. "Because, Alondra called me as soon as she landed, then she called her aunt right after. When Breea arrived, Alondra was nowhere to be found. I feel that something bad has happened." Mrs. Smiths' face went from fury, to sorrow, and was finally stuck at fear. "But, you're vampire right? Can't you get her back?" Jason thought for a second, then said "Mrs. Smith, I love your daughter, more than anything. I will try with all my mite to get her back."

That evening Jason jumped on a red-eye flight to London. Jason was able to find the seat Alondra sat in because of her scent, and her bags were still there. He sat down to try and figure out what Alondra might have seen. He saw a window, bigger than life, right in front of him.

Jason walked up to the window, and what he saw made him gasp out loud. Sphynx footprints. So Jason followed the huge tracks, thinking of what he would do to Casadino when he got there.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Smith called Breea for the first time in years just to yell at her. "Breea!" She yelled, "How could you do this! Because of you my baby girl is missing! How do you explain yourself?" Mrs. Smith started off mad, but by now she was crying. "Helen," Breea said in a soothing but panicked voice, "I had no idea this would happen. She called me as soon as she landed, and I left immediately to pick her up. She was gone when I got there, but her bags were still in the waiting area. I called Jason right away, and he came and told you because I thought you wouldn't speak to me."

Helen was appalled that Breea could act so calm! "Breea, aren't you worried about her at all? You're not acting like it! She is off somewhere, cold, lonely, and helpless, and you're just sitting in your house, safe and sound." Breea was shocked that her sister would imply that she doesn't care about her niece. "That child means the world to me Helen! I have faith in Jason. You should too!" Helen was quiet for a while, "Do you know?" she asked quietly. "Yes," Breea answered.

"Oh you're right Breea, I should give him a chance. I'm sorry I went so long without calling. I was so jealous of you as a child, that's all."

"Why were you jealous of me? You were the youngest, the prettiest, the most popular, and the head of the cheer team, you got all the guys, and you got your way with mom and dad."

"I resented you because you were older, smarter, and you never got bad grades."

So the sisters made up, and acted like sisters again. Both were desperately hoping Jason could find Alondra in time.

Jason arrived at a junk-yard-looking place, and saw a pile of garbage stacked up. The closer he got to the pile, the stranger Alondras' scent got. So he started moving some of the garbage off the pile, and saw the top to a hidden room, the kind only a sphynx or a vampire could open, and he knew Alondra was in there. Jason lifted the top; Alondra was lying on the floor. From the look of her pale face and chapped lips, she hadn't had food or water for a while. Jason lifted Alondra, and jumped out of the little hidden room.

"Okay Breea, it's been a day. Can we please call the cops now?" Helen was very upset. She wanted her daughter back. "No Helen, we can't!" Breea had told her sister this at least a thousand times. "Helen, he is a vampire. If we call the cops, they'll want to know about the boyfriend. They'll eventually find out what he is. They will run tests, and experiments. I mean, honestly think about what he's already been through with his family, and now with Alondra. Do you really think he could handle much more?" Helen thought about that. "You're right, as usual. I guess all there is to do now is worry and wait."

Jason got about a mile away from the junkyard, when he was intercepted by Frenchus, one of Casadinos' henchmen. "Stop, Jason Hendrix. You cannot pass until you answer this riddle. If you get the correct answer you can go, and Casadino will deal with you. But if you get it wrong…." Frenchus smiled devilishly.

"Okay then, let's hear it."

"The man who makes it doesn't want it,

The man who buys it doesn't need it,

And the man who uses it doesn't know it. What is it?"

Jason had to think about that. This was one he'd never heard before. 'The man who makes it doesn't want it, so it can't be a car, the man who buys it doesn't need it, that didn't make sense. If you don't need it why would you buy it? The man who uses it doesn't know it. How could you not know you're using something? Unless….unless you're dead!' Jason thought all of this to himself. Then he said, "It's a coffin!" Frenchus' smile fell to a frown. One good thing about a sphynx is they keep their word, so Frenchus let Jason pass.

Jason was more afraid of facing Casadino than anything else. He was afraid he would get the riddle wrong and Casadino would take his and Alondras' soul. Casadino would know that it would hurt Jason more if he had to watch Alondras' soul be lost forever.

Jason raced as fast as he could back towards the airport, stopping only once at a small convenience store on the way to give Alondra some water, which he applied to her lips with his fingers.

As they were approaching their destination, Alondra stirred and finally woke. She was overjoyed to see that her true love had rescued her. She started to say something, but Jason told her to keep her mouth shut. Her voice was still raspy from the time without water.