I decided to add a little more to this chapter. The reason I did it is because the new ending was going to be in the next chapter, but I think it works better as an ending for this one. It builds up the suspense a little better I think.

Chapter 4

Dead Man's Blood

Sean threw Clark through another wall, sending splinters of wood flying in multiple directions. Then he pounced on him and pinned him to the floor. "I don't know what you're made of Kent, but whatever it is, I want a taste!"

The vampire bared his fangs again, but Clark pushed him off, sending him flying all the way up to the ceiling. Sean's back hit the rotten material and put a hole through it, causing splinters and mold to rain down as he fell back to the floor and his intended prey rolled out of the way.

Both of them jumped up onto their feet and slowly circled the living room while they stared each other down. For a moment, nothing else happened, until Sean suddenly stopped walking for a second and then he lunged at Clark, ready to try biting him again. The entire world slowed down around them as Clark braced himself for impact, but even though he was much faster than his attacker, the charging vampire came at a full sprint. When they collided, both of them went through another unbroken wall, creating yet another gaping hole and causing the old house to groan and tremble all around them.

Sean tried to knock Clark off of his feet, but he managed to keep his footing and tapped the vampire in the gut with his fist hard enough to knock the wind out of him but held back enough to avoid killing him. Sean doubled over in pain after they returned to normal human speed and then Clark grabbed him and spun him around. He threw Sean towards the back of the house, sending him crashing through a boarded-up window by the backdoor Jenna had escaped through. After snapping the boards and taking out the shards of broken glass that remained in the window frame, Sean landed on the back porch and tumbled through a rotten, wooden railing, before he finally came to a stop on the weed-covered lawn.

"Damn it, Kent," Sean groaned as he grabbed the grass with his fingers and started to push himself up.

Clark approached the open window and watched as Sean slowly got back to his feet, only to get shot in the arm by a crossbow and fall back down.

"That's dead man's blood, you son of a bitch!" a voice yelled.

Clark backed up into the shadows when he saw the younger federal agent come running out of the woods in street clothes. He went over to Sean and pointed the crossbow down at his head.

Clark took another step back, causing the old floorboards to creak. The man with the crossbow immediately glanced up at the house, just as Clark sped out through the front door and disappeared into the trees.

Leaving his partner and the girl behind, John ran through the woods with his machete in one hand and his crossbow in the other. Up ahead, he could hear the absolute brawl that was going on in the old house. Things were getting smashed, but he had no idea who else was in there with Sean.

Continuing forward, he headed towards the back of the house and when he got to the tree line, he watched the vampire come crashing through the boarded-up window, right before he tumbled through the rotten porch railing. When Sean finally came to a stop on the weed-covered lawn, John dropped the machete and took aim with his crossbow.

The vampire mumbled something under his breath as he slowly got to his feet and John squeezed the trigger, shooting him in the arm and knocking him back down. "That's dead man's blood, you son of a bitch!"

As soon as Sean hit the ground, John ran over to him and aimed the crossbow down at his face. The vampire blinked his eyes a couple of times and groaned as the dead man's blood began to take effect. Then John heard a creaking sound in the house and looked up at the open window. For a split second, he thought he saw the silhouette of a person standing there, but they vanished before he could get a good look.

He aimed his crossbow at the house and carefully went up the back steps. "Whoever's in there, come on out!"

Only silence greeted him as he peeked through the open window. He could see that the interior walls were absolutely destroyed, causing him to worry about the possibility of the house collapsing and injuring him with flying debris.

"What the hell are you?" John asked as he slowly walked backwards, away from the window.

When he got to the steps, he turned and saw that Sean had yanked the bolt from his shoulder, but now he was so weak that his arm dropped back down on the dirt beside him, and the bolt slipped out of his hand.

"It's too late," John told him. "The dead man's blood is already flowing through your veins. It won't kill you, but it'll hurt like hell."

Sean winced as he stared up at the hunter. "Up yours, dude."

John went over to the tree line and retrieved his machete. Then he went back over to the vampire and showed it to him. "Now this will kill you. But I need some information before I finish you off."

Sean's face contorted in pain as the injuries he sustained during the fight interacted with the poison that was flowing through his veins. John pointed the crossbow back down at him and waited for his partner to get there with the truck.

After fleeing from the woods and returning home, Clark went straight into the house with his jacket in one hand and his backpack in the other. Martha was in the kitchen when he came in and she immediately noticed the tears that had formed in his flannel shirt and the t-shirt he was wearing underneath. "Clark, what happened?!"

Clark dropped his stuff on the floor and looked down at himself. "I got in a fight. Mom, I know why those agents are here."

Martha pulled a chair out from the dining room table. "Sit down, Clark. Tell me what happened."

He took a deep breath and did as he was told. Then Martha pulled out a chair for herself and joined him at the table. "Are you okay?"

"Mom, I'm fine," Clark assured her. "But on my way home, I followed Sean and his ex-girlfriend Jenna to an abandoned house. He would've killed her if I hadn't gotten there in time. He's not human anymore, Mom!"

"Did the meteor rocks do something to him?" she asked.

"I don't think the meteor rocks have anything to do with it this time," Clark replied. Then he described the entire event in as much detail as he could remember.

At the end, he added, "I also think those guys that I saw at the school are hunting them. I'm not even sure if they are actually feds."

Martha's jaw dropped after hearing everything. "Jenna is lucky you were there, but if those men are really here to hunt Sean and his friends, then I think it's best if you stay out of their way."

Clark shook his head as he started to argue with her. "But Mom, Pete and Chloe are in the middle of this too. And I can't let them kill Jodi without trying to help her."

"But Clark, those things are as strong as you are! You could get seriously hurt!" Martha reminded him, just as Jonathan returned from the field.

When he entered the kitchen and saw his wife and son, he immediately knew that something was wrong. "What happened, Clark?"

Clark filled him in on everything that occurred and then Jonathan put his hand over his mouth. After he slid it down over his chin, he shook his head. "Your mother's right, son. You need to stay out of this."

Then Clark got up off the chair. "But Dad, maybe I can help those guys. I'm strong enough that I-"

Jonathan gave him a stern look and interrupted him. "Clark, no! Even if you manage to stop those things, those men could decide that they want to hunt you too! If they figure out how to use the meteor rocks against you…"

"Dad, I know you're worried," Clark said. "But those guys could probably use the back up. I can show them that I'm not a threat and then they won't have any reason to come back. Please, let me do this."

Jonathan shook his head again. "No. It's too dangerous. Just sit this one out and let's hope those men never bother us again."

Giving up on trying to convince them, Clark finally agreed and went upstairs to get changed. Chloe was going to come over soon to help him pick out a birthday gift for Lana and he didn't want her to know that he had just been in a fight with a vampire.

Later that evening, when Chloe arrived at the Kent farm she found Clark in the loft of the barn, but this time he was nowhere near his telescope. Instead, he was sitting on the couch he had up there, working on an old film projector that he found somewhere on the property.

When she reached the top of the stairs, Clark glanced up and smiled at her. "Hey, Chloe."

She looked at the small table the projector was sitting on, and a grin crept over her face. "Where did you dig up that fossil?"

"The attic. It was my grandfather's and I'm trying to figure out how it works."

Chloe went over to the couch and sat down next to him so she could take a closer look at it. "So, what's the plan? It seems like you already came up with an idea."

Clark finished whatever minor adjustment he was making to it, before giving a reply. "Actually, I did. Lana told me about a time when she was three and went to a drive in with her parents. It's one of her earliest memories and I thought I could replicate that night for her."

"Interesting idea… But where are you going to set up the projector for this DIY drive in?"

Clark sighed. "That's where you come in, Chloe. I can probably put it on top of the truck and hang a big sheet somewhere, but I could use some suggestions for the location."

"Alright, let's get to it then," Chloe said.

Leaving the projector on the small table, Clark got up and led the way down the stairs. Even though he had a few ideas about where he could set everything up already, he still liked having Chloe around and didn't want her to feel left out.

The sun was just starting to go down when Clark and Jonathan added the finishing touches to the Kent drive in. They put the last few nails into the big white sheet that was going to be used for the screen, securing it nicely to the side of the barn.

Jonathan and Clark holstered their hammers and grabbed their ladders while Chloe looked up at their project with a smile. "Things are looking good so far, but I think it could use a little something extra."

Clark set his ladder down on the grass and went over to where she was standing so he could get a good look as well. He folded his arms over the front of his blue jacket and asked, "What else does it need?"

Chloe tapped a finger against her chin and squinted a little as she stopped to think. "Let's see… Maybe you could stack a few bales of hay under the sheet, to give it more of a homey atmosphere."

Clark retrieved his ladder and pretended to be disgusted. "I think you just like to watch me work."

This earned him another grin from Chloe. "Making you work is what I live for!"

Jonathan laughed at them as he carried his ladder back into the barn. Clark followed him inside and they hung them back up on their hooks.

"So, did you figure out how to use that old thing?" Jonathan asked when they went back outside.

"Maybe," was Clark's reply. "I think we should get it set up so I can try it out. It would be pretty embarrassing if I can't get it to work tomorrow night."

Then Chloe laughed. "Even if Lana can't watch Looney Tunes, she'll still have something to laugh at. Do you think she'll share the popcorn if I come to watch too?"

Jonathan chuckled and headed back towards the house. Clark tried to appear annoyed, but he could feel a smile forcing its way onto his face anyway. "Very funny, Chloe."

She laughed again, but then the flip phone in her coat pocket started ringing. When she pulled it out and answered it, the mood suddenly changed. "Pete, where are you? Pete, no! It's too dangerous!"

Clark's smile vanished and he held out his hand. "Let me talk to him." Chloe handed him the phone and he put it up to his ear. "Pete, what's going on?"

In the background, Clark could hear the motor running in Bill Ross's truck and it sounded like Pete was putting the gas pedal to the floor. "Clark! Jodi called me and she said she needs help! Those other guys tried to kill her dad and she doesn't know what to do! She really is a vampire man, but I've got to help her!"

"Pete, don't do this!" Clark cried. "This is probably a trap. Pete!"

His friend hung up on him and he handed the phone back to Chloe. "Pete's in trouble, I have to help him."

"What are you going to do?!" Chloe cried, as they hurried to catch up with Clark's father.

Jonathan was almost to the front porch of the house when he noticed them running towards the picket fence. From the looks on their faces, he could tell that something was wrong.

"Dad, Pete's on his way to Jodi's house!" Clark explained when they finally caught up with him. "I think he's about to put himself in danger and I can't let those things hurt him."

Jonathan nodded and glanced at Chloe. "Chloe, stay in the house with Martha. I'll take Clark and we'll follow Pete."

"No, I'm coming with you!" Chloe protested.

"No, it's too dangerous," Jonathan said. "Clark and I can handle this."

Chloe glanced at Clark for assistance, but when he didn't side with her, she gave up on the argument and went inside, while the guys made a run for the truck.

"Clark, you go on ahead and I'll catch up!"

When his father got to the vehicle and opened the door, Clark glanced up at the house with his x-ray vision to make sure Chloe wasn't near the windows. When he saw her at the dining room table with his mom, he turned and got ready to run.

"Clark!" Jonathan called out to him. "Stay away from those vampires! We're only going there to get Pete!"

Clark nodded. "I'll do my best!" Then he sped off down the driveway and Jonathan started the truck.