C.O.T.V.H. (Book 1): Creation (27 page)

"Not by choice."  Jake said, pulling the covers off him and sitting on the edge of the bed. "Honestly.  I'm not exactly sure how I got there.  One minute I was running, the next I was flying through the air."

Nathan walked over and stirred the food cooking on the stove.  "You like bacon and eggs?" he said, pulling the two pans off the stove and setting it on a small wooden table.

"Yeah, that sounds great."  Jake said, rubbing his hand through his messy hair.

"Well, have a seat.  Let’s dig in."

With Nathan’s help, Jake managed to hobble across the room where he sat down. Nathan put half the pan's contents on a plate and set it in front of him with a napkin and fork, then poured a glass of orange juice out of a large glass pitcher. The two ate in silence for a few minutes.  
What are the odds that a man named Nathan Bishop just happened to rescue me from a full on vampire assault?
He thought to himself.
Nathaniel . . . Nathan . . . hmm, odd coincidence. But it couldn’t be the same guy. The only way he could have lived this long was if he was a vampire. But if he were a vampire, he would be frying in the sunlight. This is too weird.
"So how long have you lived here?"  Jake asked scraping some of the eggs onto his fork.

"A long time."  Nathan said, biting into a piece of crispy bacon.

"Do you live here alone?  Way out here in the woods?"

"Yeah pretty much.  I have friends over every couple of weeks or so but mostly it's just me."

"You're not lonely living out here?"

"Me?  Nah.  You get used to it.  I mean, it's not like I'm a million miles from civilization.  I go into town about once every couple of weeks to pick up supplies, get a drink with some friends.  It's really not that bad."

Jake had to ask him.  No matter how crazy he thought it might sound. "What happened with the vampires?"

"They're dead.” He said then sipped from his orange juice.  “Well, most of them are anyway.  The big one called Macro and one of his friends got away but the rest are dead."

"Macro, huh? So I’m guessing you've dealt with them before?"

"I was about to ask you the same question.” Nathan said, pushing his empty plate forward and leaning back in his chair.  “It's a rare thing for a kid your age to know about vampires."

"My family hunts them.” Jake nodded. “That’s what I’m going to be when I’m old enough.

“
Is that right?” Nathan asked.

“
Yep. So . . . I’m guessing you’re a hunter too?"

"Of sorts I suppose.  I don't exactly go looking for trouble, but when they cross into our territory I usually meet them head on."

"Your territory?"

"Uh huh. They cross the Old Miss and we kick their asses back across it.  Doesn't happen often, but when they do we make sure they never do it again."

"How many are in your group?"

"A few." he said, with a chuckle.

"So tell me about your family.  You said they hunt vampires?  How long have they been doing that?"

"For a few years."  Jake said, sarcastically.

"Fair enough. I've got my secrets; it's only fair you do too."

"I'm glad you understand."   Jake said, taking another sip of his orange juice. He hadn’t had food this good in over a month.

"So what do you want to do now?  Should I take you back to Riker's?"

"God no!"  Jake said, a lot louder than he had meant.

"That bad huh?"

"You have no idea.  He basically kidnapped me and was about to sell me to those bloodsuckers.  I need to call my Grandpa Cort. I tried last night but there was no answer. I hope everything is okay.  Do you have a phone?"

"No I’m afraid not.  But I can drive you into Hometown if you'd like. It’s the nearest town.  You can call whoever you want to come pick you up from there."

"That sounds great. Thanks!  Oh and by the way, thanks for the breakfast and for . . . saving my life."

"You’re welcome,” he said, with a warm smile. “It's not every day I get to entertain a future vampire hunter.  Well let's get you dressed and ready to go, then I'll take you into town.  By the way, who put you in those clothes?  Who are you supposed to be?  Richie Rich?"

Jake laughed looking down at the now very dirty sweater vest and tie he still had on.  "It's a long story."

"Well, I think I might have something here that will fit you.  It might be a little big but it beats wearing those dirty rags. I have a shower out back if you’d like to clean up. We can wrap a plastic bag around the arm."

“
Do I need to go to a hospital?”

“
Yeah, but there’s no immediate danger. It wasn’t a bad break and I set it so you should be okay for now. Just try and stay off your feet for a day or two.”

Jake winced as he tried to stand. The room started spinning.

“
Easy now kid, you bumped your head pretty good. Here take these.” He said, laying two aspirin on the table in front of him. “You can take a couple, now that you’ve got some food in you."

An hour later Jake was dressed in an overly large pair of jeans bunched up with a belt and a flannel shirt that was two sizes too big. They climbed into Nathan’s jeep and headed for town.  Thirty minutes later, Nathan pulled into a small friendly looking town with small shops on both sides of the main street.  Stopping at a small repair shop on the outskirts, Jake carefully climbed out and used a pay phone to call his grandpa collect.  It rang several times before he finally answered.

"Hello?" Cort said, sounding extremely grumpy.

Jake was elated to hear his voice. "Grandpa!  It's me Jake!"

"Jake!” he said, concern filling his voice.  “Son, are you okay? Where are you?"

"I’m a little banged up but nothing too serious.  I've got a bump on the head and a broken arm but otherwise I'm okay."

"What! What happened? Did Riker hurt you; by God I’ll kill that son of a bitch!”

“
I’m okay really, I’m just . . . I
really
want to come home.” Jake said, his voice almost pleading.

“
Where are you?  Riker's lawyers said, you were going to Santa Fe but we haven't been able to get any news out of them since. It’s like they just dropped off the map!"

"I'm in a little town called Hometown, Georgia."

"Georgia?  Why that slimy lying bastard.  All right son, you just sit tight.  I'm getting a map out right now and I will be there within twenty-four hours.  You sit tight you hear me?"

"Yes sir.” Jake said, unable to control the emotion in his voice. He’d never been so happy to hear someone’s voice.  “I'll see about getting a room at this motel not far from here and I'll see you soon."

"A motel?  Boy, no one's going to let an eleven-year-old check into a motel?  What exactly happened? Where's Riker?"

"I don’t think we need to worry about him or his lawyers anymore. He . . . well, let’s just say he made a deal with the wrong people. It's a long story Grandpa.  I'll tell you when you get here.  For now let’s just say I've got a friend that's helping me out."

"Alright kid.  You take care of yourself you hear?  What's the name of the place you'll be staying?"

"It's called,” Jake said, looking across the street. “the Tear Drop Inn."

"Okay son.  I'll be there soon.  I love you boy."

"I love you too Grandpa. Wait! Grandpa, is Dad okay? Is he back yet."

His Grandpa sighed loudly on the other end of the phone. “As far as I know he’s okay. Listen we’ll talk about it later okay? I promise.” With that said, they hung up. Jake walked back over to Nathan's Jeep. He was leaning against it smoking a cigarette. 

"So how’d it go?" He asked dropping the cigarette to the ground and crushing it under his boot.

"I got a hold of my grandpa.  Listen, you've already helped me out so much I hate to ask this but I need one more favor."

"Ask away."

"Can you get me a room at the motel across the street? I can pay you back once my grandpa gets here."

"I’ll tell you what; I've got a good friend that owns that place.  And he owes me a few.  I'll get you the nicest room they have, no charge."

“
Are you sure? I know my grandpa would be more than happy to pay.”

“
Hell no. I wouldn’t hear of it. What kind of a Christian would I be if I did something like that? No, my buddy Joe will set you up with anything you need. Just call the front desk if you need anything. Anything at all.”

Jake couldn’t argue with that. Twenty minutes later, he had a key in hand and was walking toward room number six. "Thanks Nathan.  I really can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me."

"No problem at all, Jake.  You just take care of yourself okay?"

"I will and you do the same."  Jake said, extending his hand.

Nathan shook it and smiled.  "Oh one more thing.  If you or any of your hunter friends ever need a safe place to stay, you're always welcome here.  Think of this place as a safe haven.  Bloodsuckers don't come here.  After last night they will especially think twice before crossing our borders again."

"Thank you Nathan.  I'll tell the others."

"When you see your old man again don't be so hard on him.  It's not easy losing the woman you love."

Jake stared at him amazed.  He hadn’t told him any of that. "How did you . . .?” He asked, shaking his head.

"Take care Jake Bishop," he said, climbing into his jeep and giving him a wave.

He knows my name!  Who the heck is this guy?

Chapter 15

Jake

July 19, 1995 10:52pm

Jake told Cort almost everything that had happened to him while he was imprisoned in Riker’s mansion/prison. Everything but about the time he had spent talking to Tiberius. Somehow he just felt as though he would be betraying his trust if he did. In the end, it had been the Maker's words that had saved Jake’s life. If he hadn’t stopped Macro on those steps and bought him those precious few seconds of time, Jake never would have made it to the woods.

Jake couldn’t help but wonder what had become of Tiberius. A piece on the news said The Riker Mansion had burned to the ground, but that Riker and his butler had somehow survived. The fire was being blamed on a gas leak. So the question remained, had Tiberius escaped? Or had he burned alive? Deep down Jake had the feeling that his vampire friend was still alive and that they would one day meet again. A bigger mystery still was what to make of Nathan Bishop. Who was he? How did he know so much?

While Jake kept Tiberius a secret, he told Cort everything about Nathan. He was as perplexed as Jake was. As far as he knew, they didn’t have any family in that part of the country. Regardless though, he’d spoken to Billy Williams about it and Billy had made contact with him. It was a refuge the hunters desperately needed. Billy had even talked to Cort of retiring there in the next few years.

Strangely, they had never heard another peep from Riker or his lawyers. Cort, with the help of Ben Morris, managed to get full custody of Jake. Riker didn’t even bother fighting it. He gave up without as much as a word. Jake marveled at how easy it was for him to refer to his grandfather as Riker. He didn’t consider the man as family in any sense of the word. In Jake’s mind, he was just a bitter old man too afraid to die.

It wasn’t until mid July that John finally returned home. He had been waging a war on the vampires and it wasn’t going very well. Almost all of his former friends and allies had lost contact with him. Only Wesley Turner and his group of outlaw bikers remained at his side.

Jake was lying awake in bed late one night, when the familiar sound of his dad’s truck came pulling into the drive. The front door opened and Jake heard his dad and grandpa’s voices carry through the house. Jake crept soundlessly down the hall. Squatting down on the carpet, he peeked around the corner and watched them in the kitchen.

John laid a large green duffel on the floor then sat down at the table. Jake had never seen him look so bad. His once nicely trimmed beard was a rugged, dirty mess. His clothes were dirty and ripped in several places and he looked as though he had lost at least thirty pounds. He looked to be utterly exhausted. Worst of all was a long wicked looking scar running from his eye, down his cheek almost connecting with his mouth.

Cort was clearly furious. “A year! A goddamn year without so much as a word to your son! By God John, I didn’t raise you like that.”

“
Give me a break, Pop.” John groaned. “It’s been a
really
long day.”

“
Long day? Long day! You selfish little . . . It’s been a long
year
for us! Did you know your son was kidnapped a few months back? Did you even care?”

“
What! What are you talking about? Is he okay?”

“
He’s fine, no thanks to you! Your father in law decided he deserved full custody a little more than we did. So him and his lawyers took Jake to Georgia and nearly got me killed in the process! I had to spend three weeks in jail! Three weeks, John!”