Meeting Rebecca wasn’t nearly as dramatic as I thought it was going to be—besides Harding’s attack. I guess I can’t hate the messenger, even if her boss is dragging me by my radiant locks into a fight I don’t want anything to do with.

“You don’t have to read that to me,” Harding told me when he was sure she had left, “but you must know you won’t be going anywhere without me or Norman.”

“Yeah, I know, so we might as well get this over with now.” I unfolded the weird parchment from Sarah. The message was penned in red ink and every word had been carefully jotted with a twirly flourish. It would almost be pretty if it didn’t invoke a sense of dread starting with the very first line.

I read most of the letter to Harding. I omitted my name. I wasn’t sure if he already knew, and I had no idea how Sarah knew. This was bad. Really, really fucking bad. I didn’t use my dad’s last name, but anyone who connected us automatically assumed that was my name. In my normal everyday not-killing creatures who go bump in the night life, I use my mother’s maiden name. I always have, but no one has ever connected my separate lives. Just my luck it was a psychotic witch who put the two of them together.

“That’s not too bad considering,” Harding said breaking the run of panic in my head. “I really thought she would have sent in a suicide bomber so to speak. That letter could have put a curse on you the moment you touched it.”

“Now, you tell me that.” Like I needed to be worried about accepting random objects from strangers. Maybe it was time to start wearing gloves.

“Ah don’t look so surprised,” he laughed. God that sound was grating. He’s so full of himself. “Well, at least I can have Norman return quickly enough. No reason to keep him on the lamb. All the cards are on the table. We know where she is, and she knows where we are. It’s time to end this once and for all.”

“What’s your plan?” I asked not remotely expecting a real answer. He took over the spot where Rebecca had been sitting. Laying back and throwing his arm over the sofa.

“Do you really want to know?” he asked all jovility now gone.

“Yes, as it most likely involves me, and whatever I do against Sarah will be putting my father’s life in jeopardy.”

“Seems fair. I can’t tell you everything, but I will say this: you are the center of our plan. I don’t know why, but Sarah seems to have really fixated on you. I have informants trying to figure out why, and we only have five weeks to get as much information as possible to not only save you and your father, but also Norman and anyone else Sarah is determined to destroy because of their connections to him. You already may be too close.”

“What do you know?” I should have known Norman couldn’t keep what happened between us to himself.

“I see how he looks at you now. That wasn’t there when I sent you with him. I have to say I didn’t expect it either. He owes Barrett more than he knows.”

“You think my feelings were only because of the reaper?” I still wasn’t entirely sure of that answer myself. If Barrett’s spell hadn’t made me so vulnerable, would my connection with Norman have developed.

“I think he put you both in a situation to be open, which is not a place Norman ever let’s himself be in, and I’m guessing you’re of similar nature.” I didn’t respond because I didn’t know what I could say. Being around vampires 24/7 was starting to make me re-evaluate my life. Who would have thought?

~

That morning I returned to my room. It seemed pointless to try and maintain a night sleep schedule when everyone around me was up at night. I was starting to get used to the new routine at Norman’s, but today I just tossed and turned. I was in a mess way over my head, and I couldn’t see any way out. I could try and run, but that wouldn’t help Aaron. How the hell did he get caught anyway? I shouldn’t be surprised I guess since Sarah seemed to have centuries of experience doing just that. But why hasn’t she cursed him, and sent him on a murdering spree like Lucas. Why was she holding his capture as leverage against me? The only thing I did know was there was a lot I wasn’t being told.

When it was clear my mind was never going to be clear enough for sleep, I decided to find a movie to watch. While flipping through the channels, a local news headline caught my eye: “Cinema goers flee the scene from rabid group biting people.” What… the… fuck. The reporter was trying to interview one of the witnesses, but the woman wouldn’t stop screaming about all the blood.

“They came out of the dark, and just started biting folks!” She was frantic and trying to grab the microphone from the poor reporter, who was clearly thinking about her career choices. “Everyone started running, and that just made them get more excited. I swear I saw one fly at the guy sitting in front of me. Just lifted him right up and began biting down on his neck. It was like actual, real-life vampires.”

“Do you think the movie caused some sort of reaction in these watchers?” the reporter asked attempting to course correct this interview. Unfortunately for her another person ran up behind them yelling similar sentiments.

“They’re murdering everybody!” he yelled over the two women’s shoulders. Then he ran out of the camera’s view, assumedly getting far away from the theater.

“There is clearly a lot of hysteria happening at the Multiplex 12 Cinema here in Dooley. We have reports of multiple individuals attacking moviegoers causing this understandable panic we are now seeing from ticket holders, who appear to be in a state of shock. Maybe if we give it a minute, we can get someone a little more clear–”

I assume she was going to say clearheaded, but she never got the chance because the cinema was now up in flames and emitting loud explosions. The live footage was now being recorded from the ground due to the fast exit of the cameraman, who could be swearing just before running away from the scene. The reporter could still be heard yelling over some of the blasts. “Did you see that? Allen did you get it on camera? Did you? What was that?”

I was now fully sat in front of the television. What just happened? Before the camera pulled away, the roof of the movie theater exploded upwards and multiple people or things were flying out of it into the mid-morning sun. During the few seconds the camera managed to capture, these creatures appeared to ignite into flames when soon after hitting the daylight.

My mind was in overdrive. There were at least six figures that flew out of the cinema. If Sarah could compel that many vampires to massacre a morning movie and then commit suicide in mass, what were we going to do.

I continued to stare at the television for a few more minutes lost in complete despair with no hope in sight. The news channel had cut back to their inhouse team, who were also trying to make sense of what they’d just seen. So far, they were putting it down to some kind of marketing ploy of a new theater since the old one was clearly demolished.

After a few more moments of mindnumbing panic, I forced myself up off the floor. Forget waiting five weeks. We would all be dead if we continued to play by this witch’s games. I had to go now, or I might not ever see Aaron again.

~

If you have to sneak out of a vampire’s home, the best time to do it was during the day. At least this time, I had the option of leaving and knew where the exits were. A quick internet search showed Sarah’s compound was only 30 minutes away. That was immediately unsettling. We’d been sleeping so close to her, but I was sure Harding already knew that.

I managed to make it to the garage before my non-existing plan went belly up. I was searching through the car-key lock box when the doors began to roll up and a black Mercedes pulled into the garage. I didn’t need the vampire inside to get out because I recognized Norman’s car immediately. The tinted windows were specially designed to keep out lethal rays if he had to do any driving during the daytime. Most vampires despise being awake when the sun’s up, but they could if they had to.

The car pulled into an available spot close to where I was standing. The garage doors were still open, but I just realized that there was no light pouring into the room. We didn’t come in this way on my arrival, so I didn’t realize it was underground. I must have been walking on slanted floor because I didn’t take any stairs down here. Tricky. I could run, but there was no telling how long the tunnel was. I also had no idea where I would come out. It could be in the middle of Harding’s harem for all I know.

Norman must have been putting the image he’d driven into together, but calmly as ever, he exited the car and just looked at me.

“Going somewhere, Trembley?” he asked with a slight curl to his lips. “I’d offer to drive you, but I’m really knackered.”

“Norman,” I collectedly said while trying to form a convincing story for him to let me go. The keys were right there in his hand. I just needed to convince him to give them me.

Seeming to sense my train of thought, his eyes looked down at the set of keys and back up to me. “You know I’m not letting you go anywhere alone. Whatever has happened, we’ll deal with it, but rushing out without a plan—and I don’t think you have a plan or you wouldn’t look so panicked—won’t end well for any of us.”

I knew he was right. I had an address, but no real idea what I was going to do once I got there. Most likely, I would end up in a jail cell right next to Aaron. Norman could have restrained me by now. We had sparred multiple times back at his house. I thought I provided a challenge for him, but I was well aware that he outmatched me. He knew this, but he continued to lay back against his car, holding his keys out in his open palm.

“What are we doing, Trembley?” he finally asked with nothing but sincerity in his voice and those mesmerizing golden brown eyes that seemed to have no end. I knew if I asked him to take me to Sarah’s he wouldn’t hesitate, and in that moment, I knew what I was feeling was real. Reaper be damned. This wasn’t a spell. I was falling in love with a vampire.

“Let’s go to bed,” I said reaching for his empty hand.

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