OV: The Original Vampire (Book #1) (14 page)

“Exactly, what the hell? There is no hell. What we teach kids is unrealistic. They need to see the dark as well as the light.” V.N. said.

“So, you showed your son the dark by ending his light?” Vinnie asked.

“Essentially.” V.N. crossed his arms.

“So, you killed your son for no reason?” Josie asked.

“The gross injustice of purity is to not have it tarnished.”

Vinnie stepped in, “How did you become invisible in our family portraits?”

“There’s so many ways to manipulate molecules through Shapeshift, you know that Vinnie.” Van Norden said.

“I think you’re full of shit. You were probably fucking the photographer.” Josie said.

“So, pedestrian Josie. I rather chase a fly than speak with you.”

Vinnie closed his eyes for a second to alert his followers to come to the collective consciousness. He set his intentions on deducing Van
norden to a miniscule burden, and revealing Van Norden’s every lie as a blaring truth that anyone could see.

“Are you
okay.” Josie whispered. Vinnie shook his head. He then seemed to grow taller. His presence seemed to wrestle and dominate an energy shift within the room. Van Norden’s expression indicated that he felt this as well, as he pushed his seat back. He twirled his thumbs and looked away.

“The skeletons in the basement, you did that, not Bud!” Vinnie shouted, like a high-profile Hollywood lawyer.

“I did not.” Van Norden looked at the ground with his bottom lip hanging.

“Those people had full lives which you erased within your selfish contempt for people who are happy, is that not true?” Vinnie placed his palms on V.N.’s desk. “Answer me!” Vinnie shouted. His voice rang up into the rafters of the ceiling.

“No, Bud is evil, he did it.”

“Apparently you like evil. You killed your own son.”

“I mean, Bud was worthless, especially in Vanterkroft.”

“So, he was in your way in obtaining leadership?” Vinnie asked.

“You’re a hypocrite!” Josie interjected.

“I don’t know what the question is.” V.N. tapped his pipe.

The collective consciousness was working, because the room was getting hotter, but only Van Norden was sweating.

“The question is not a question, but a definite accusation. You killed all of them to get to Josie’s mom.” Vinnie yelled defiantly.

“Gross. That’s sick.” Josie covered her mouth.

Van
Norden dropped the formalities and tried shocking them, “She had great legs.”

“Oh my god.”
Josie kneeled over.

The room was getting hotter. Vinnie closed his eyes to check on how many of his friends were in the Gateway. He saw around fifty people, in a sea of heads moving in all directions, like a crowd awaiting a rock show. He knew he was covered.

Van Norden placed his cheek in his hand and crossed his legs. He seemed like a dried out shell.

“There’s no reason for you to be here.” V.N. yawned.

“You’re right. We’re leaving as soon as Bud is freed.” Vinnie said.

The sun shone through the windows like arc welding light. It stung their eyes, but V.N. was getting more of it than they were. His forehead was blistering, as little white pockets of water popped and dripped down his face. The room was stifling, as the air became noticeably light, like the air on top of a mountain. The sun beams began bleaching the furniture in the room, as V.N. fell on to the floor and crawled over to the wall vent to capture colder air coming from the basement. Josie and Vinnie walked over and stood over him. Josie had more sweat than Vinnie because her mind over body was less refined.

“It’s really a scorcher.” V.N. huffed.

“It’s a shame that you created all this chaos for Vinnie’s family, as well as mine.” Josie said, as she looked down at him. Vinnie rolled him over with his foot.

“What do you want from me?” Wheezed V.N. His tongue was white, his eyes filled with fear.

“We always want the truth Van
Norden.” Vinnie said. Van Norden’s face was covered in boils, and was red like a medium rare steak. The room was so hot that the ceiling was cracking.

“I’m not a liar.” Van
Norden’s voice was barely audible. His hair fell out in clumps as Vinnie pulled him up by his shirt. There was a smell of alcohol wafting up from his skin. He shook tremendously, as all the hydration left his body.

“Van
Norden!” Vinnie shook him. White dust-like particles left his mouth when he tried to speak, “Leave me alone.”

“You’re being executed by karma.” Josie said, as she took flowers from a vase in the dining room and dropped the petals on his face. Some petals landed in his mouth and he was unable to spit them out. Parts of his face and neck swelled to the point of cracking.

Van Norden’s deeds were being re-evaluated by the Universe. The Universe was only as big and unobtainable as we made it. The collective Universe, along with the help of Vinnie’s friends, changed the climate. The currents of the oceans swirled, and the temperature would keep climbing until it plateaued at 125 degrees in 2018.

“He’s dusted.” Josie tapped him with her foot.

“Van Norden is just one sick man, there’s many more, at least we can rest knowing Bud was almost innocent.”

“Almost innocent?”
Josie asked.

“Yeah, Bud was still abusive to you.”

“Oh yeah, but daughters forgive.”

“They also try to forget.” He said, as they walked out of the mansion. The wood steps were so dry now, they splintered under their feet, and the grass was scorched brown.

“Beautiful yard.” Josie said.

Their subconscious entered their vision as the scenery faded to black, the same black as seen with eyes closed.

“I wish I could play forever.” Josie twirled around in the blackness, “Adult issues are lame.”

“That’s why I’ve shown you the Gateway. It’s not all about saving trees.” Vinnie grabbed her hand and swung her around.

“Have you ever cried listening to a song?” She asked.

“Not until I was twenty. I just got to prison and heard Hank Williams Jr. That’s the first time lyrics meant more than lyrics, and I guess my ego was deflated enough for it to affect me.”

“Wow.”

“What about you?” He asked.

“I wanted to see Prince in Seattle when I was fifteen. He was a huge sex symbol to me, even though I had never had sex. I knew he oozed sex appeal. There were rumors going around that he was having sex on stage. My parents heard about it from other kid’s parents, so I couldn’t go. On the night of the concert, I listened to Purple Rain a hundred times and cried that many tears or more.”

“That’s a bummer. Wait. What’s that in the distance?”

“Looks like the shithole where my dad is.”

Vinnie and Josie began to walk on garbage, as the colors became vivid in the reality of their new subconscious vision.

“I guess we made it.” She kicked an empty can.

“I think you should go speak with him alone.” Vinnie said.

“But, I’ll be sad.”

“I’ll be looking over you from that hill over there.”

“There’s demons.”

“They can’t touch you.”

Josie turned and walked away from Vinnie. She walked a narrow path past trailers with little windows. All the windows had spider web cracks. She felt she was being watched. She looked up at one little window and saw a greenish face stuck to a pillow. It slowly stuck a bluish tongue out at her. At another trailer window, she could see a man helping another man shoot up. They twitched and turned their heads to see Josie staring. They spat blood in unison at the window.

She walked past but stopped. She cried and looked up at the sky. It was a lifeless grey. It was deeper than a color, almost like a vacuum which took all emotion away and left the spectator lifeless.

“I guess that’s why this is called purgatory. Dante would be proud.” She said out loud. There was one little bush that had giant leaves. It was ten feet from the trail and it grabbed Josie’s attention, not only because it was the only plant or tree in the whole place, but because there was a little bright sparkle near the middle of its stem.

She walked over to it and knelt down. She noticed that something moved inside a crystalline embryo. It grew like a soap bubble, as Josie stepped back. It grew and popped, as a cool mist hit Josie’s face. It was
Daira.

“Oh my god!”
Josie said, as they rushed together and embraced. Their bond was as strong as if they were never apart.

“My god, this place is strange.”
Daira said, as she held Josie’s hips and looked at her.

“I can’t stop smiling.” Josie had happy tears rolling down her face. “Can you just take me away?” Josie said, trying to hold back sobbing.

“ I will sure try. Where are we?” Daira asked.

Josie looked
around, there was death, destruction and bile in the air and everywhere else. She was beyond embarrassed. Josie stammered, “This is so hard for me.”

“What Honey, you can tell me.”
Daira held her closer.

“My dad’s here.”

“Your dad’s here?” Daira looked around, but she didn’t act surprised or disgusted.

“Yeah, unfortunately.”
Josie sobbed. Then she realized Daira wasn’t affected by the surroundings.

“You don’t hear that?” Josie asked, after a bellowing cry broke the silence and ended with a sound of vomiting.

“No Josie, what?”

“It’s Hell, can’t you see it? Come over here. Look at this.” She pointed to the blood splattered on the window. “See this?” Josie asked.

“Yeah, the dirty water?” Daira asked.

“No, it’s blood!”

“Stop it Josie, we’re not twelve anymore.”

“Come on.” Josie grabbed her hand, as they walked the narrow, rocky path. The sound of crying, laughing, and vomiting got louder.

“This is it.” Josie pointed to the fire pit with the shriveled and shaking people around it.

“Old winos around a fire?”
Daira asked.

“They’re not winos, they’re possessed and my dad is one of them.” Josie pulled
Daira closer.

“Dad, I’m back!” She yelled over the sound of puking. “I brought an old friend from grade school. Her name is
Daira.” Bud looked over the fire at josie and yelled back, “Plah. To. Ma. Ep!”

“Dear god, what happened to him, did he have a stroke?”
Asked Daira.

“No, the devil, or this guy named Van
Norden took away his ability to speak, because all these people here are too busy puking, crying or laughing to formulate words. It’s a type of Purgatory, daira.”

Daira
looked around, like she was standing in some back street alley of any city, “They’re just winos and your dad had some kind of stroke. I should know, I’m a Nurses Assistant.”

Josie became silent and looked back at her dad, “No
Daira, you’re wrong, watch this. When I say loving words he speaks clearly, when I use accusatory words he goes back to his, what you said, “stroke” language.”

Josie smiled as bright as possible, “You’re the best dad in the whole world!” Josie beamed at Bud.

“And, you’re the best daughter in the world!” He yelled back, then he puked.

“Now, watch this.” Josie whispered to
Daira. “But, you were a selfish, drunk bastard dad and it’s hard for me to forgive you.”

Bud gurgled through his vomit, “Blah.
Blah. Blah. Ha! Ha!”

“
what on Earth is going on here?” Asked Daira.

“That’s what I’m trying to tell you, but you don’t see it.” Josie pointed at the trailers, trash, and people lying around half dead.

“He needs proper care, Josie.”

“How do we do that, do you even know where we are? Do you see a pay phone anywhere?” Josie raised her voice.

“Your dad must know.” Daira walked slowly around the fire pit. She looked like a wife trying to tiptoe as to not wake her husband of thirty five years. She put her hands on her knees and leaned over, “Bud, we need to get you a doctor.” Bud’s eyes were bleeding a little from the tear ducts. “You’re very sick.”

“Me. Op. Sit!” bud looked at her legs.
Daira wore a yellow dress.

“Is there a doctor we can go to?”
Daira asked, as josie came to her side.

“
Mif. Um. Jop!” Bud smiled. His eyes went reptilian black, as Josie felt a cold distance set in between them.

“We need to get you. . .”
Daira began saying, as Bud grabbed her thigh with his jagged fingernails and tore into her soft skin.

“Bud!” Josie yelled. The other Bum-trolls laughed and puked, as Bud pulled
Daira’s legs out from under her. She fell into the muddy feces, as Bud quickly undid his rusty zipper and lied on top of her, trying to part her legs.

“Fuck you!
Wooh! Me!” Bud yelled, as drool dripped onto Daira’s chest.