Thank you Hollywood Angel, Anon, MadHatter2708, and Horror Goddess for your reviews of the last chapter!
Pete was the first to wake. He rubbed his eyes and looked over at the clock reading five in the afternoon. Pete stretched and called out Marco's name. The vampire gave no response. Pete noticed the blankets missing from the bed and went in search for his friend. He called Marco's name a second time before entering the bathroom. Pete stepped back into the room and heard a muffled snoring sound coming from inside the closet.
Pete opened the closet door. The light from the bathroom illuminated Marco's slumbering face. The blankets covered him up to his shoulders. The blonde curls were sprawled about over the blanket. Pete smiled. Marco slept the same way Pete's younger brother did. Eight-year old Kerry had hair like Marco's, only about five inches shorter. His bright blue eyes had the power to manipulate anyone he came across. Pete chuckled as he thought of just how hypnotic Kerry could be, very similar to a vampire. Pete felt a lump in his throat. He now wished that a vampire arrived at the accident and gave the child the cure to his mortality.
Pete closed the door and walked back to the bathroom. He figured he would walk over to the nearest fast food restaurant to tide him over until sunset.
In three hours the sun said its farewell to the city. Pete glanced up from the television and smiled. Before he could get off the bed to wake Marco the closet door opened from the inside. Marco stepped out and gave a large yawn. He threw the linens on the bed then plopped down on it.
"How'd you do that?" Pete asked.
"Do what?" Marco asked.
Pete pointed to the window. "You knew exactly when the sun went down."
Marco smiled. "I don't know. David explained it to me once. He said when you become a vampire your skin can automatically sense when the sun sets. Weird, huh?"
Pete nodded.
Marco glanced over at the white, yellow, and red cardboard takeout boxes and cup on the table.
"Hey! Are those chicken nuggets?" Marco asked.
Pete remembered having saved a few in case he became hungry later. "Yeah," Pete replied. "I went to McDonald's across the street."
"Cool!" Marco exclaimed. "Can I have some?"
"You can eat human food?" Pete asked handing the box to his friend.
Marco nodded with a full mouth. He swallowed and put the box on the nightstand. "Yeah, I can eat whatever I want just so long as I make sure to feed." Marco attacked a second nugget. "It won't give me strength or nothing, but it won't kill me."
Marco took a third nugget then handed the box back to Pete. Pete peered inside the cardboard and pulled out the remaining two.
"Too bad there's no ketchup," Marco said after swallowing. He then took another bite.
"Is that slang for blood?" Pete asked.
Marco spit out the food before he choked. He fell to the floor in laughter.
"Marco, man, you okay?" Pete asked kneeling down beside him.
Marco took a deep breath and let out a few more chuckles before turning to face the mortal. Marco's face was a bit pink.
"I'm sorry," Pete said. "I won't say anything funny again when you're eating." He gave Marco what was left of his cola. Pete sat down in the chair by the round table. Marco sipped up the remaining soda until the straw sucked only air. Pete put his hand under his chin. "That's weird. I didn't know vampires could choke."
Marco shrugged. "We can. It won't kill us the way it will you guys. You see, we can go a lot longer without air than humans. I'm talking like hours. The older vampires can go longer. I mean most of them sleep in coffins, so they have limited air." Marco paused so he could finish eating the nugget. "It's just much more comfortable to breathe. But yeah we can still choke. Human or vampire, choking's not a fun experience."
"I know that," Pete replied. "I almost drowned when I was six."
"Really?" Marco asked. "Me too."
Pete's mouth fell open. "Wow, what a coincidence." He took a handful of leftover fries and handed the rest to Marco. "What happened? I mean how did you almost drown?"
Marco accepted the offer. He bit off half the fried potato. "I was at the lake with my cousins. My aunt warned us not to go out too far without an adult. We saw my aunt arguing with my uncle, they always argued." Pete laughed. Marco giggled then continued the story. "My oldest cousin said it was a perfect time to go out in the deepest area. I wasn't a very good swimmer, but I didn't want them to call me names like wimp, or loser, or shrimp, or other names they called me all the time."
Pete bit his lip. He used to joke around with Kerry and call him those names. He never meant any harm, but when Kerry's life was stolen he wished he had never said those horrible words.
Marco ate another fry before speaking. "I went out and the water was way over my head. They got far ahead of me and I couldn't swim. I panicked and went under. By the time my cousins discovered I wasn't with them I already passed out." Marco looked down at the floor. Never before had he shared that information with anyone and here he was revealing one of his most vulnerable moments with a man he had known for less than a week, a mortal man at that. Marco tried to smile. "I woke up in the hospital. My parents and aunt and uncle were not happy with me. They were really not happy with my cousins. I wasn't allowed to go swimming with them until years later." Marco laughed then said, "Of course I always held it over my cousin's head. Whenever I wanted something I would say, 'Remember the time you almost let me drown?'" Marco swallowed a wad of saliva. "Maybe it was wrong, but hey, I was a stupid kid."
Marco stopped talking and took a deep breath. It nearly pained him to tears to think about his family. The day he left home he promised himself he would never go crawling back to them. David came along and made certain he never could.
"Do you ever miss it, you know being human?" Pete asked.
Marco shook his head. "Nah, nope. It's in the past. I'm something better now."
"But you can still be destroyed, right?"
Marco sighed then nodded. "That's the thing. Every creature has its weaknesses. For you it's not drinking water, eating, breathing, or falling down too hard. Vampires can die too, but I don't know all the ways. I know for sure if we don't feed we'll become weak and die. Kind of like if you don't eat food."
Marco stopped and realized just how barbaric their feeding was. He wondered if perhaps there was a friendlier way to get their nourishment. Maybe if he chose to eat from animals or rob a blood bank. Marco leaned against the bed wondering to himself if he could drink from an animal with ample amount of blood, such as a cow or horse, how come they went after humans. The only reason Marco could come up with was the need to feel some kind of superiority over humans.
Marco shook off that thought and returned his attention to Pete. "What else? We can't be in the sunlight. It kills us. Dead, that's it."
"Really, what happens?" Pete asked. "I've always wondered. Do you turn to ash or stone? What?"
Marco shrugged. "I can't really tell you. I've never seen it happen. David has, he says it makes us burn. But he didn't go into details." Marco paused and gave a dark laugh. "It must've been pretty horrible." He looked Pete directly in the eyes. "Usually David's more than happy to give the grim, gruesome details, but even this disturbed him." Marco looked away. "That's all David told me. Day one he and Max—I guess you'd call him our father." Marco suddenly stopped and gave Pete a half smile. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone about Max. Oops." Marco laughed. "But it's not like you're going to tell anyone."
Pete laughed and continued to listen.
Marco pulled his knees up against his chest then placed his arms around his knees. "They told me those rules right away. I guess those are the most threatening things to vampires." Marco shrugged. "I'm not sure if we can die by being staked." Marco raised his hands above his head. "I personally don't want to ever find out firsthand." Marco blew air out of his nostrils and watched the dangling bangs rise up and fall. "I'm pretty sure holy water is dangerous too. Well, we avoid all those things at any rate." Marco leaned forward. "So when you become a vampire I think it's best you do too."
Pete nodded. He was still unsure if he wanted to become part of the undead. Hearing Marco talk about all the advantages of being a child of the night sounded like fun, but it also came with the heavy price of being forced to kill.
"In all honesty I don't think David knew as much as he wanted us to believe," Marco commented.
Pete sighed. "Do you miss David?"
Marco scoffed. "Trust me, he's the reason I left in the first place."
Marco stood up and leapt across the room. He glanced out the window and watched the cars drive down below. Marco felt tempted to fly out the window to show Pete just how cool being a vampire truly was. The young creature decided against the rash behavior. Max had warned him how dangerous it was to reveal his identity to the mortals. No doubt he would be furious if he found out Marco let two leave with their lives. Marco laughed. He thought if Hugh ever went back on his word he had no problem slitting the slimeball's throat.
Marco sat down in the window sill. If there was anyone he missed it was Paul. Marco bit his lip, feeling a bit guilty for leaving his best friend like that. He looked over at Pete who munched away on the fries in his fist. Marco smiled, in his heart he knew Pete, even if he did turn, would never match the friendship he had with Paul.
David and Dwayne stood on the pier awaiting Paul's arrival. Dwayne glanced over the edge watching the evening tide lap up the sand. He smiled as he wondered exactly how long it would take one of their decaying victims to wash up on shore. Marco once suggested they tie rocks or bricks to the corpses to avoid that very thing. David ignored his suggestion on the grounds that never once had a news report covered a found body.
The Santa Carla beaches prided themselves on not having a shark attack in over one-hundred years. Dwayne figured the fresh meat they sometimes delivered at feeding time gave the marine carnivores what they needed to survive.
David leaned against the railing thinking over how he took his time destroying Kate the night before. She trusted him, following him to the secluded area in the woods. Kate removed her arm from David's the moment she realized where she stood. She began to bawl when the memory of what happened to her dear friend Debra came back to her. David stepped forward.
"You're crying, Kate," he said in a condescending tone.
Kate looked up with a tearstained cheek. "David, I'm scared, let's get out of here."
"What's wrong?" David asked. "I thought you wanted to be alone with me."
"I do," Kate replied with a sob. "But not here." Three more tears fell from her eyes. "This is the spot where Debra and Wesley were murdered. I remember that bent tree." She pointed to the pine in which the trunk bent in a right angle to the left then another right angle leading straight up. The trees towered above the two, blocking out the lunar illumination. She turned back to face David. "I hate this place." She put her hand over her mouth and inhaled with a high-pitched sob. "I feel if I got here just a little bit sooner I might've saved her."
David put his arm around Kate.
"There was nothing you could do," David said.
Kate wiped her eyes. "That's what Jenny told me. But what if there was?" More tears took the place of the ones that recently occupied the space. "Maybe the killer would've killed me instead."
David smiled. "You know you could find out."
Kate looked at David. "You think you know who did it?"
David smirked. "I might."
Kate grasped David's jacket. "Please, tell me. I want my revenge." David grabbed hold of Kate's hands and began to squeeze until they became blue. "David!" Kate exclaimed. "David, what are you doing?"
"You want to know?" David laughed. "Why don't you ask Deb yourself?"
Kate's eyes widened. David laughed then transformed in front of her. Kate let out a deafening scream. David dug his fangs into her ear and slit all the way down to her collarbone. The blood poured out like a river rushing through a fallen dam.
The wound did not kill her right away. It was as David hoped. He whispered in her working ear how Marco took his sweet revenge on Debra and her pathetic boyfriend that night. He told her how if Debra had remained faithful to Marco she might possibly still be alive. Kate could do nothing but lay there in David's arms and feel her life being literally sucked away.
David was brought back into reality by a swift move from Dwayne. David glanced up to see Dwayne waving at an approaching figure. Paul walked up in the distance, his large, blonde hair bouncing with every step he took. The grubby vampire waved at his dark-haired friend and quickened his pace.
David smiled at the one straight ahead. He turned his face to look at Dwayne, who wore no expression on his face. David wondered what Dwayne did to his victim. He asked the night before, receiving only a creepy smile as a response. David knew Dwayne was not one to reveal his tactics when hunting alone, nor the story behind them. The quiet one wanted his friends to come up with their own story of what happened.
Paul stopped just short of the other two.
"Did you deal with her?" David asked.
Paul nodded. The night before he did not have the heart to dispose of Jenny. Paul purposely waited with her until an hour before sunrise out of hope that David would not interfere. When David found out Paul allowed the mortal to live he became furious and ordered Paul to deal with her before he proposed the new mission to the group.
Paul felt nauseas on his way to meet up with Jenny. He dialed her phone number and asked her to meet him in front of the meatpacking factory gates at eight. David asked if Paul needed any assistance in his little task. Paul shook his head and kindly asked David to mind his own business. David agreed and warned Paul that if he did not destroy her he would have no choice but to step in.
Paul made his way to the factory. He stopped just short of the address and watched Jenny puff away on her cigarette. Paul bit his finger. Jenny had such a lovely voice, he hated to imagine how horrible she would sound in twenty years when the tobacco changed her vocal chords for the worst. Jenny wore skin tight jeans and a pink tank top with a leather jacket over top. Her normal curls were waved above her head and a line of pearls decorated her neck.
Paul cleared his throat to announce his coming. He stopped in front of her and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"I'm glad to see you again, Paul," Jenny said. "Last night you didn't look too good."
"I've been worried about Marco," Paul confessed.
"I'm so sorry he left," Jenny said. "I hope he's okay."
"We heard from him, on the phone," Paul revealed. "It's just, you know, when you have a best friend you just want to know he's okay. The phone only does so much."
Jenny nodded. "I know. When I was a little girl my best friend Connie moved away." Jenny crushed the cigarette butt with the sole of her boot. "A few days later she called me up. In time the phone calls stopped and I haven't heard for her in ten years." Jenny crossed her arms. "Sometimes I wonder what would happen if I just looked her up in the phonebook."
Paul gave her a half smile.
"But enough with the past," Jenny said. She turned to Paul and gave him her sweetest smile. "I just want to live for tonight right now." She shivered and rubbed her hands on her arms. "Paul, this is such a strange spot to meet. I heard this place is haunted." She laughed. "I know how it must sound, hearing me talk about hauntings and such strange stuff." She gently stroked Paul's face. "You must think I'm some kind of nutjob."
Paul laughed. "You'd be surprised at the kind of creatures that live in Santa Carla."
Jenny laughed in return. "I've heard all the stories. There's so many reports of people going missing and more found dead days later." Jenny shuddered. "I don't like hearing those stories. I want to feel that I'm safe." She looked Paul in the eyes. "Maybe you're what will keep me safe."
Paul sighed, "You don't understand, Jenny." He scratched his head. "I'm not the kind of man you should turn to when you're feeling scared."
Jenny grasped Paul's arms. "I know you act like you don't care. But I've noticed just how good of a guy you are, Paul. I've seen your concern for your friend. The way you stood up for him. How sweet you are to me." She leaned on his chest. "I've fallen in love with you, Paul."
Paul felt his throat go dry. He swallowed and took a deep breath before pushing the mortal away from him.
"Paul, what are you—?"
Paul grabbed Jenny's shoulders. "Jen, I want you to listen to me, okay," Paul said. He held his breath upon seeing the alarm in the woman's eyes. "Please don't say things like that."
"But it's true," Jenny confessed. "There were so many times I've been with guys, and they've only used me for sex. There was no emotion. I always ended up hurt in the end." She took hold of Paul's fingers. "You're the only one who I've felt this close to."
"Please don't say you love me, Jenny," Paul begged.
Jenny put her finger on Paul's lips. "I can't hide my feelings, Paul." Her eyes began to swell with moisture. "I hope this isn't scaring you away. I know how guys fear commitment." She inhaled. "I just want you to know how I feel about you." She paused for a few seconds. "I just hoped that you felt the same way."
"Stop! Just stop!" Paul shouted with his hands over his ears.
Jenny looked up at Paul with tears about to flow. "Paul, I don't underst—"
"Jenny, I'm not someone—you need to understand," Paul said. He paced around her debating on what he should do. David was one to always follow through on his threats. He looked into Jenny's eyes. He could not bear to watch Jenny fall victim to David's brutality. He extended his claws vowing to make it as quick as possible.
"Paul, I do love you," Jenny said as a tear slid down her face.
Paul's fingernails returned to their human form. Never during a rave, a massacre, or a ride over the jagged rocks did he ever feel his heart racing at that speed. He took hold of her hand and led her away from the factory gates.
"You need to get out of here now!" Paul commanded.
"Out of where? What?" Jenny squealed.
"You need to pack your things and get out of Santa Carla," Paul ordered. "Get out of California if you can."
"Paul, I know this is a surprise for you, but you're overreacting," Jenny stated.
Paul shook his head. "You don't get it, do you, Jenny?" The girl shook her head. Paul groaned. "Look, this is for your own safety. Gah, I don't know how to explain this to you." He spun around and stepped close to her. "Remember how you said you were very worried about Santa Carla? You said it wasn't safe." Jenny nodded. "Well there's a reason for that. This city is the murder capital of the world."
"But Paul," Jenny interrupted.
Paul silenced her with a raise of her hand. "Please don't," he said with sad eyes. "I know this is hard to believe. And believe me I wouldn't tell you this if I didn't care for you. I'm going to get into so much trouble for telling you this. But I have to, it's the only way to make you understand."
Jenny trembled. She began to wonder if she really wanted to hear what Paul planned to say.
Paul took a deep breath. He only hoped the price of revealing the information would not include his life. "Look, Jenny," Paul said. "I'm not some crazy person. Okay." Jenny nodded with a sob. Paul continued, "You know all those posters of missing people?" Jenny nodded a second time. "There's a reason, Jenny." He took a deep breath and Jenny took a step back. "We did it." Jenny's eyes widened. "Me, David, Dwayne, and recently Marco."
"I—I don't understand," Jenny stammered.
Paul clenched his fists. "We're not human, Jenny." Paul felt his heart sting. "We're terrible monsters. We're not even supposed to care for human life." He paused then said in a soft voice, "David sent me out here tonight to kill you."
Jenny gasped. "What? Why?"
Paul silenced her again. "He said we were getting too close. And it wouldn't've been a problem had—" Paul trailed off.
"Had what?" Jenny asked short of breath.
Paul looked her in the eyes. "Had Marco not killed Debra."
Jenny gasped. She fell to her knees in tears.
She looked up at Paul. "Marco? The little guy—your friend?" Paul nodded. She shook her head. "Why? Why did he kill her?" She jumped up. "David wanted him to?"
Paul shook his head. "No, he didn't want it." Paul paused, "But when it happened he made it clear you all had to go."
"Why?" Jenny asked, her voice cracking. "We never would've suspected him."
Paul bit his lip. "We just had to." Paul closed his eyes. "But I don't want you to get hurt."
"Wait? All of us?" Jenny exclaimed. Her tongue found trouble forming the words. "What about Kate and Felicia?"
Paul sighed. "David and Dwayne already took care of them."
Jenny wept. "You are monsters."
"But you need to leave," Paul said grabbing Jenny's arm. "I can't kill you, I don't want to. I never wanted to." He released her due to her wiggling. "I'll lie to David. He'll never find out. But you can never show your face here in Santa Carla again."
"I'll go to the police," Jenny said with a deep breath.
"They can't help you," Paul said with a nervous laugh. "David'll have 'em all killed in no time." Paul ran his hand through his greasy hair. "I can't even count how many cops David's murdered."
"How is he able to—is he in the mob?" Jenny asked.
Paul shook his head. "Worse. We don't just pick random prey. We go after the ones who don't serve in purpose in society, or the ones who ticked us off." Jenny's eyes widened. "We have to eat too, Jenny. It's survival."
Jenny shook her head. "I don't understand. What are you talking about?"
"If David ever finds out I let you go he'll kill both of us," Paul confessed. He took hold of Jenny's hand. "But I do l-lo-care for you." He swallowed. "I don't want you to die. Not at his hands." He placed his other hand on top of the one he currently held. "If I let you go, you have to swear to me that you'll never tell anyone about us."
"But what are you?" Jenny asked.
Paul sighed. "I don't want to show you. You'll never think of me the same way again."
"I already don't," Jenny said. "But I do love you." She put her other hand on top of Paul's.
"Then don't hate me," Paul begged. He smelt the blood rising in her veins. He released her hands and put his index finger in his mouth. He bit down hard on the flesh until the cravings stopped. "You have to go," he called to Jenny. "The hunger's getting worse. You need to go."
Jenny stepped closer to Paul and put her hand on his shoulder.
Paul looked at her. His eyes and fangs fully transformed. Jenny became pale and her hands shook. She found her throat too weak to scream. Her legs trembled and she fell on her ankle. She grasped at the injury, hissing from the throbbing pain jolting through her nerves.
Paul stood up and made his way over to the shaking woman. Jenny reached for a metal spike lying just a few feet from her. Paul kicked the spike away. He grabbed her by the arm and yanked it out of socket. Jenny screamed.
"Paul, let me go!" she pleaded. "I won't tell anyone, I swear."
"I don't believe you," Paul said with a laugh. "Jenny, I wanted to spare you, I really did." Jenny's heart pounded. "You said you loved me, but you tried to kill me." He pointed to the weapon she attempted to use on him. "If that's love, then I really love you." Paul forced his fangs into Jenny's neck. She writhed and twisted, breaking her neck in the process. Paul finished his meal then tossed the body in the ocean on his way back to the guys.
David looked at Paul's glazed eyes. He snapped his fingers in Paul's face, waking him from his daydream.
"Everything alright?" David asked.
Paul nodded. It seemed as though David was right about Jenny all along. Paul laughed at himself for believing he actually had fallen for her on the previous night. He licked the crusted blood on his lips, thankful that he had not given into what he felt his heart desired. He wondered if Jenny would have rallied the citizens of Santa Carla, leading them into their cave with stakes.
"What's going on tonight?" Paul asked.
David sighed and stepped forward. "Well, Paul. Dwayne and I talked over what you asked last night. I slept on it." He smiled and forced his palm down on Paul's shoulder. "We agreed." Paul's mouth curved into a smile. "Tonight we ride."
"Thanks, man," Paul said clapping hands with David.
David smiled. He snapped his fingers and the other two took off to the sky with him. They landed behind the building where they parked their bikes. The two drunken hobos who lurked behind the building pointed and gasped at what they saw. David looked over at Dwayne who shrugged in response.
"Paul?" David asked.
"Go ahead, I already ate," Paul replied.
Dwayne and David devoured the men who were too drunk to even scream. Paul looked up at the stars shining brightly in the heavens. He hoped Marco had not traveled too far away. He realized they had no clue where Marco could even be. California was a large state, not to mention he may have traveled east or even further north.
The two eldest vampires tossed the bodies into the very fire they created in hopes of keeping warm. The bloodstained boys approached Paul.
"Let's just hope he hasn't gone too far ahead," David said.
"How do you know where he is?" Paul asked.
"I don't," David confessed. He climbed on his bike. "But I have a hunch." The other two had their attention on their leader. "Remember he told Max he was in Rosaria, but he was leaving." The other two nodded. David smirked, "Well, I think he's taking the highway. And I think he's going the opposite direction of Santa Carla."
Dwayne nodded. "Makes sense."
"What makes you think he's not going to Nevada? Or Washington D.C.?" Paul asked.
"Don't know," David said as he started the engine. "But I think Marco is heading north through the state. If we move fast we'll catch him."
David sped out of the back parking lot and onto the main road. Dwayne and Paul followed after him.
Paul sped up until he was right beside David.
"David!" Paul called. The leader looked over at him. "If Marco's way ahead of us, we might never find him."
"He's right!" Dwayne shouted. "There's so much space out in California. He could be anywhere."
"I know," David responded. "Which is why we need to track him. And travel during the day as well."
"You're nuts!" cried Paul. "We'll burn to death. And there's no way we can track him."
David smirked. "I know we can't. But Douglas can."
Dwayne smacked his lips and rolled his eyes.
"I know," David replied with a groan. "But he's our best chance of finding Marco."