Chapter 14: Demons and Zompires
Suggested track: Faster- Within Temptation
The gentle dialogue from the cartons on the television provided background noise for Anne Marie and Valentina as they amused themselves with drawing pictures on Valentina's sketchpad. In a chair beside the bed, Valentine sat and watched as his daughters bonded. The two sisters liked each other very much, as evidenced by the way they spoke and laughed together. Everything was beautiful, everything was perfect. But, then a clicking sound was heard, as if someone was trying to turn the handle.
Thinking it was the nurse, Valentine arose and answered the door. Much to his horror, it was not the nurse, but Carlotta Pennywise.
She looked awful, even more so than usual. Her eyes looked so bloodshot that they might as well have just been bleeding, her hands were quivering, and she was breathing heavily. Her eyes narrowed, and she gritted her yellow teeth.
"Where is she?" Carlotta hissed while leaning into Valentine's face, her cigarette scented breath making him gag. "Where is Anne Marie?"
Valentine gasped. His heart throbbed and his chest began to tighten. He tried to gulp down air to avoid a heart attack. "I…I…I..." was all he could get out.
Vampira was there almost instantly, gently pushing Valentine out of the way and facing Carlotta. "What business do you have with her?" Vampira asked coolly, crossing her arms and glaring defiantly.
Carlotta shoved Vampira in the chest with a snarl, storming past her and planting herself right in front of the bed. Anne Marie backed away, her eyes growing wide and her mouth falling open.
"You ran away again, didn't you!?" Carlotta snarled, getting right in Anne Marie's face. When Anne began to cringe and cry, Carlotta snatched up her wrist. "Didn't you!?"
It was at that moment that Valentine's fear of having a heart attack vanished and was replaced with the everlasting determination to protect his child. Filled with rage, he grabbed Carlotta by the hair and threw her to the ground, then proceeding to smash her nose with the heel of his boot. Surprisingly, Carlotta recovered quickly from this and sprang up from the floor, her clawed fingernails swiping towards the vampire. Fortunately for Valentine, she missed and only tore part of his jacket.
Valentine stumbled backwards, falling down against the wall. Carlotta loomed over him, and her appearance began to change. She seemed to grow; she got taller and taller until her head nearly touched the ceiling. Her skin became paler until it was the color of a spider's underbelly, and black cracks that looked like the flaws on a porcelain doll spread up her body. Her teeth became sharper than needles and her eyes blackened into deep, soulless holes. She hissed, leaning in closer to Valentine.
"HEY!" A voice screamed, and it caught Carlotta's attention. It was Vampira, her high heeled feet rooted to the floor as she stared boldly into the creature's face. "GET AWAY FROM MY SON!"
Vampira reached into her purse, pulling out a little bottle and pointing it in Carlotta's face. With a quick push of her finger, Vampira successfully pepper sprayed Carlotta in the face, making her roar and rub at her eyes. Valentine took the moment to leap away from the wall, going straight for his children. He snatched them into his arms, holding the trembling little masses close as he shielded them with his body, turning back only to see Carlotta knock his mother to the ground and stand over her, teeth inches away from Vampira's face.
"MOM!" Valentine cried out, holding his children closer and fearing the worst.
Vampira, however, grinned in Carlotta's face, her eyes narrowing into dark slits. "Do your wickedest."
And then there was color. Color everywhere. Brightness and sound, bursts of colors and patterns swirling. And then, everything went black.
There was light again, and Valentine's eyes cracked open slowly to find himself lying on the cold, hospital floor. He sat up slowly, his body quivering as he looked all around. The room was dark, now, and the walls and floors were stained with blood. His heart began to pound again, and he looked around frantically.
"Girls!?" he struggled to his feet, looking around. "Valentina!? Anne Marie!?" fear flowed through his veins as he searched frantically for his children. Finally, a whimper coming from the coat closet caught his attention, and he threw the door open. Valentina and Anne Marie were inside, huddled up and crying softly. Valentine scooped them up right away, pressing them close and kissing them over and over while calling them all manner of sweet names. After several minutes, they all settled somewhat, and Valentine cautiously crept into the hallway while still carrying his girls, looking around. Everything was eerily silent, and there was no sign of Vampira or Carlotta.
"Over here!" a voice yelled, and Valentine darted back in the room. He set his daughters down, still keeping them close as he glanced into the hallway. A bunch of police officers were running through the halls, opening the doors to each room and investigating. It wasn't long before they noticed Valentine, and right away they swarmed him and his children.
"Are you all right!?" they asked, checking all three over. Valentine swallowed nervously, nodding.
"I-I'm fine," he told them, his voice shaking. "But I can't find my mother!"
"Was she up here with you?"
"Yes."
The officers took Valentine and the girls down to the hospital lobby, and they explained what they could: several calls took place regarding an unidentified creature terrorizing the patients and staff of the hospital, and the creature fought a long battle with the police before finally succumbing to gunshot wounds.
"What happened then?" Valentine inquired as they arrived at the lobby.
The officer gestured toward a crowd of people who were gathered around a body. "This happened. I dunno, I can't explain it."
Valentine moved a little closer, seeing that it was the body of Carlotta, in the human form he'd first seen her in. She appeared to be dead, but as Valentine got closer, her eyes cracked open. She mouthed something to him, and he leaned closer to her.
"What?" he asked, his voice irritable and filled with loathing. "What do you want?"
A smile slowly spread across her face, and she croaked, "Y…you…your friends…will die," Carlotta swallowed, and her body heaved in a desperate breath. "Z…zompires…I sent…them…E-East Manor…you friends are there…" she grinned at him almost triumphantly, but she broke into a coughing fit. Blood dripped down her chin, and she smirked. "They're dead meat." She hacked more blood, and she collapsed.
Valentine stared in confusion, thinking over what he'd just heard. "East Manor?" he wondered aloud, standing up and walking away. "Where is East Manor?"
"Down in the rich part of town," a voice spoke up. "You know, where all the stuck up guys live?"
Valentine turned to where the voice was coming from, seeing a girl standing behind him hooked to an IV stand. Blood dripped down her leg, but it didn't seem to bother her.
"Is your leg okay?" Valentine asked, going to help her.
"I'm fine," the girl assured, waving him off. "Just upset. They postponed my surgery for this."
Valentine patted her shoulder. "I'm sorry to hear that, Alexandra," they exchanged a smile, and Valentine turned away. "Now, I have to go. I need to find my mother and get to East Manor."
As he walked away, Alexandra called after him, "Good luck, Valentine!" when he was farther away, she murmured under her breath, "You're so Goddamn cute."
Back at East Manor, Invisibilly was pouring Ramona a drink the fridge when Melody shuffled in, looking worried.
"Anything wrong?" Invisi asked, quirking an eyebrow.
"There's some suspicious characters out of the front lawn," she explained, wringing her hands. "And...uh...they look like a mix of zombies and vampires."
Invisibilly let this sink in, and he whipped around immediately.
"EVERYONE! UPSTAIRS, NOW!"
Ooh, another scary cliffhanger!
This is NEARLY finished, folks! There's about two or three chapters left (If everything works out)!
So, thoughts? Did it scare you? Where's Vampira? How good of a chance do you think our friends at East Manor have of escaping zompires? Give me your thoughts and predictions!
Until next chapter, fellow monsters!