Hello everyone! Guess who?

It's me. The correct answer is me. Anyway! Christmas has just passed and with the New Year fast approaching, I've made it my goal to finish this thing before the year is out! So here ya go!

Chapter 10

"Are we really going to do this?" Bliss questioned, watching somewhat skeptically as Brii sharpened a stake. We had locked ourselves in a guest room in my basement so we could prepare unbothered. Today was the day.

"Yes." I was polishing the crucifix I wore around my neck. "You said it yourself, Bliss: we have no other choice."

"Besides, you and I don't have anything to worry about," said Jewel, giving Bliss an extremely hearty pat on the back. "You have wires instead of veins—no blood—and vampires abhor the smell of werewolves."

"It's not that I'm scared…it's just that this whole thing seems highly illogical."

I groaned. Stupid androids with their stupid obsession with logic…

"That's the last one!" Brii finished sharpening her stake and held it up to us like it was a prize-winning showdog or something. "We are fully in business, ladies!"

"Great!" I strode towards the door, walking abnormally fast in an attempt to hide my own fear. "Let's go while the sun's still—" I trailed off as a very faint scratching noise reached my ears. None of my friends was doing anything that would produce a sound like that. "Y-You hear that?" Everyone gave an affirming nod. This odd noise seemed to be coming from below us, and it was getting louder and more frantic by the second….then, just as suddenly as it had begun—it stopped.

The four of us shared quizzical expressions. Had I been imagining things? Had we all been imagining things? Bliss was the first to conclude that this must be the case, after several uneventful minutes passed. We all made for the door. That was when my carpet started to move. The floor could almost be said to be…jumping, as though something had crawled all the way underneath my house and was trying to get in through the floor! It couldn't be Jerry's vampires….could it? Thinking on how my various crosses protected every other conventional way to enter the house, I realized that was exactly what was happening.

All at once, the carpet tore! Dirt and splinters sprayed in the air. Through the newly-made hole came a claw—then another, then another—until an entire crooked hand was reaching toward us out of the ground! "HOLY! SHIT!" One need not imagine how the four of us were screaming by now. This event was, after all, absolutely scream-worthy.

"What is that?" Jewel screeched, her sky-blue eyes bugging out. I hustled my friends up the stairs to the landing, nearly tripping in my own panic.

"it's a fucked-up vampire hand, that's what it is!" I answered as we stumbled out the door, nearly on top of one another. "Jerry must've found out about our plan, and sent his minions under my house to get us!"

Bliss froze. "But…he keeps his minions inside most of the time. Therefore he couldn't have sent spies—so how could he have known about our plan?"

"Never mind that! What do we do now?" Brii interrupted with a shriek, bolting outside. I thought as we all followed her.

"Your car, Brii! We need to leave my parents here; it's me Jerry wants. Girls, get in and let's drive!" They did so and in minutes we were speeding away. It didn't take long, however, for someone to pop that inevitable question: "Where are we going?"

"A club," Brii suggested immediately.

I gave her the most scathing look I think I've ever given anyone. "Um, NO. That's, like, the worst place to hide from a vampire ever." Bliss was quick to throw in the idea of a mall before an argument could start. Everyone seemed to agree with that, so we floored it to the nearest mall. I could've sworn I saw a black pick-up truck pull into the parking lot as the four of us scurried through the mall's set of automatic doors…but it was probably just my own paranoia catching up to me….

We raced from one end of a Macy's to the other, past dozens of clothing and beauty stores, until at last we reached the mall's main square. It was only then, when I stopped to catch my breath, that I realized someone was missing. "Oh no…where is Brianna?"

Bliss jerked her head back at the way we'd come. "I think we lost her near that Christian store we passed a while ago…"

"I'll go after her," Jewel volunteered. "Since I'm a werewolf I have the best nose, so it should be easy to find her and then get back to you." I nodded in reluctant assent. She loped away, and just like that our group had become half of what it first was. Bliss and I began walking once more, aware that staying together was more important than anything else right now. We were able to go some distance without complication; our eyes were peeled for any sign of vampires but we saw none.

A few minutes after we'd passed the food court, however, I noticed something that stopped me cold. Huddled on a bench a couple feet away was a young boy—probably around twelve or thirteen years old. He was facing away from us, but from the way his shoulders were shaking I could tell he was crying. The poor kid was probably lost…

Signaling Bliss to stay back, I went up to him and gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder. "Hey, are you okay?" He turned to look at me. I jerked my hand back, unable to hold in a gasp of horror. It was Harlan! He snickered as he stood up, smiling wide enough to exhibit a pair of glistening fangs. "B-Bliss—" I reached for her, nearly tripping over my own feet in my haste to get away. "We have to run…"

"Sorry, do you have a minute?" Together Bliss and I whipped around. Behind us stood Fallon, sporting a grin identical to her brother's! Surely Bliss and I were finished now! Or maybe not—as I took another step back I felt a stake move in my pocket.

"Fallon, come on…you and I were always on good terms. Why don't you let us go?"

"Let you go?" She scoffed, incredulous. "You let him get to me, Camille. You let him turn me into this!"

"I'm sorry about that. There was nothing I could do," I murmured, not bothering to hold back the bitter regret that tainted my words. But now there was no turning back. I slipped my hand into my pocket, wrapping shaking fingers around the stake…

"You're so selfish, dragging you friends into this," Harlan snarled. "All you care about is yourself."

His words hit me right at the core, but I tried not to show it. 'Aim for the heart. Aim for the heart…' In perfect sync, the brother and sister lunged. I reacted on instinct—and plunged the stake deep into Harlan's chest! Blood spurted from the wound, coating my arm all the way up to the shoulder. Fallon screamed as Harlan burst into flames with an agonized howl! And then he was gone; there were only traces of ash left in his place. With a screech of indescribable fury, Fallon pounced upon Bliss. She was a whirlwind of teeth and claws against the stunned android. I rushed to help her, but she frantically shook her head.

"Go, Cam! I-I can handle this…"

I stood frozen, staring as Fallon dove again and again for my friend's throat. "But Bliss-"

"No! You're the one he wants. GO!"

I sprinted away, though not without casting several desperate glances back. The vampires were here! They'd found us in the biggest mall in town! How had we not escaped? It was clear now that I never should've involved my friends in any of this. But now I was alone—and I had nowhere to hide! At least, I didn't, until a pulsing neon Red Robin sign caught my eye. Perhaps the smell of food would disguise my own scent…

I dashed into the restaurant. I was immediately met with a waitress who looked to be several years my senior. "Table for one?" I thought for a second.

"Miss, what I really need is a HIDING SPOT for one. Can you give me that?" I explained that I was on the run from some very bad people (neglecting to mention that they were vampires), and begged to go hide in the broom closet. Or better yet, the dumpster…they'd never pick my scent out of all the rubbish there…

She was kind enough, though, to stick me in the back with the dish boys instead of in a dumpster. I lavished her with thanks and went straight to work. Things went swimmingly for several hours, and as time went on my anxiety over being caught began to fade. At around ten o'clock, the waitress (Emily, her nametag told my now less-frightened eyes) informed me that they were closing. One or two straggling patrons still remained in the restaurant. Seeing so few people around brought all my uneasiness back to the surface, but none of them looked to be vampiric. It seemed that I was going to make it out of this place alive…

Emily's voice drifted over to me as I scrubbed all the remnants of dishwashing from my clothes; she was offering assistance to a patron who apparently wasn't aware of their closing time. A man's voice—vaguely familiar, though from such a distance I couldn't be sure—politely declined her offer. "I'm aware of your hours, darling. I'm not hungry—not for food, at least. I'm looking for my girlfriend, actually. Have you seen her?"

Emily's response was to quiet for me to hear. However, I soon heard the man's voice again: "I have checked the jewelry store, actually. I've checked every store in this Goddamn mall! And I'm pretty damn sure she's here." He sounded pissed! I held my breath as he paused. It couldn't be… "Did she ask you to hide her? To say she wasn't here?"

This time I heard Emily, her voice high and stuttering. "Wh-What? What do you mean?"

He chuckled softly. "See, we're playing a sort of game. She's been hiding from me all day. I've been seeking. But it's been a long day…and I'm through with playing." I shivered as his voice darkened with notes of menace. For a moment, both he and Emily were silent…

Then she laughed brightly. "Oh, I get it! So this whole thing is a joke! I'll bring her right out, Mister!" It was him! My heart fluttered as I heard her footsteps, growing louder as they approached me. Was there no other way out of this place? I searched wildly for a window, a door, a dumbwaiter—anything! But the only entrance or exit to the dish-room was the one Emily had just walked through. "Hey, you didn't tell me this was all a game," She accused, tugging on the sleeve of my button-up. "Why would you want to hide from your boyfriend anyway? I mean he is HOT. You are one lucky girl!"

"It-It's not joke!" I exclaimed, pulling against her as hard as I could. But she was having none of it…and there was really nowhere else for me to go…."Please, Emily, I have to get out of here!" Emily's strength eventually won out over mine, and she pushed me into the main dining room with one last mighty shove.

And there was Jerry, in a black business shirt and dark grey jeans. Waiting for me… "Hey, Babe." He pulled me into his arms with a speed that could only be described as supernatural; I barely had time to catch my breath before I was wrapped in his arms. "I've been looking all over for you, you know." Then he leaned down and whispered just to me, "You should've known better than to run from me." He had me…I couldn't suppress a shiver.

Emily gave a delighted squeal from behind me. "Oh em gee, you guys are so cute!" Cute? A thirty-something man and a seventeen-year-old girl? I was about to protest, but once more Jerry was one step ahead of me. He yanked me roughly out the door before either Emily or I could say another word. 'No,' I thought as was burst out into the crisp night air. It couldn't end like this…could it? Jerry's followers were waiting as we exited the mall: Stone, Conner, Fallon's other brother Austin…and…Fallon herself? But she'd been fighting Bliss…and it did show. Fallon was limping slightly, bloody and bruised. But she was here! She sneered when she noticed me eyeing her.

"Oh, you can bet I took care of your robot friend, Cam. She won't be bothering anyone again."

"Bliss! What did you do to her?" I blurted, my voice breaking at the sound of her name. I fought against Jerry's grip—much harder than I'd fought anything before. What if Bliss was dead? What if they'd gotten Jewel and Brii too? The thought made my movement even more frantic. Unfortunately, it didn't make htem any stronger; they were only fueled by emotion after all. "Let me go!" I screamed at my foes until my throat hurt. "My friends were innocent; they did nothing to you! Let me go, or I swear to G—" I broke off as Jerry slammed me into the wall, fed up with my resistance. Or my existence. Or, more likely, both…

"God, I never thought you'd be such a pain." As if his first action wasn't enough, he backhanded me! The force of the blow nearly made me lose consciousness right there. "You had better be worth it."

"She is. I promise." Stone stepped up to Jerry's side, eyeing me with…well, I might've called it sympathy if it hadn't been in Stone's eyes. "She's just afraid. Afraid beyond reason, like I was before you turned me. Just show her what she's missing." Missing? What could I possibly be missing?

"Blood," Jerry purred as though he could hear exactly what I was thinking, "That's what you're missing. Would you like ot try it, Princess?"

Blood? Dear God! I shook my head weakly, pressing myself into the wall. Perhaps, if I just pressed hard enough, I could get away…such wishful thinking. What point was there in fighting anymore anyway? I watched in numb horror as Jerry pricked his own finger (his nails had grown into vicious claws again), and offered me his blood. On instinct I shied away. He just smiled softly, like he'd expected this, and smeared the crimson liquid over his lips. And then—he kissed me.