Star, Starland Vamp Series, Book 1 (28 page)

Bring it on.

I quickly shut the door, and at vamp speed, threw the cooler filled with human blood bags into the trunk beside the small arsenal, and was soon behind the wheel of the car. I looked over my shoulder into the back seat and Zac was still sleeping peacefully, no worse for wear. But I vowed to give him more of my blood once he woke, just to be safe and to aid in his healing process.

Safely behind the wheel of the car, I backed out the narrow driveway and drove down Main Street, headed toward Annie’s little cottage by the lake. Within minutes, I pulled cautiously into the driveway of her beautiful stone cottage. No movement. It was too quiet. I knew I had to check it out. I needed answers and I needed them now.

I looked around to make sure no human eyes were watching and ran around to the back of her house. In the back yard facing the huge expanse of lake was a quaint stone table with comfortable chairs, appearing to be part of the landscape. Annie probably spent hours out here watching the lake, reading, or doing her homework. That is, before I came to town.

Quickly, I ran past the lawn set and through the sliding glass doors. Immediately, I entered a great room that stretched across the house to the front door. Annie probably opened up the room after she bought it, tearing down the walls single-handedly, I’m sure. Instantly, I looked to the left and in the dining room glass was everywhere, laying haphazardly on the floor under an iron frame which was once a glass dining room table. Chairs were turned over and a lamp was on its side on the floor.

Annie!

Panic instantly filled the crevices of my body as I darted quickly out the front door, closing it tightly behind me. If they grabbed Annie, they must have brought a small army because she was as tough as they come. Instantly, my mind thought of all the times we fought together, more times than I could count and she never lost a fight.

Yes, they were strong indeed.

Immediately, my eyes scanned the back seat and Zac was still sleeping peacefully. I knew I didn’t dare leave him alone for even a second. If they were strong enough to grab Annie, they could kill Zac with ease. A shiver ran through my body at the thought, and for a split second, I wondered if I made the right decision not to turn Zac into a vamp. He probably needed to be a vamp for self defense, if not for anything else. It was then that I silently vowed to protect him at all costs, no matter what the price.

Instantly, I turned the key in the ignition of the Challenger and it roared to life, the hemi snarling loudly. I threw it into reverse and headed toward Zac’s house, thinking of his mother, hoping I wasn’t too late.

I stopped the car a few houses down from his two-story pale yellow Victorian, not wanting Zac to be in harm’s way should trouble arise. Like the old saying goes, the third time’s a charm. I slipped a few clips for the Glock into the pockets of my pants and checked to make sure my Ballistics knife was still secured to my right ankle. Then I popped the trunk and opened the black case resting on the top, grabbed a Greyman knife with a 9 ¾ inch blade and shoved it into my right boot. I also grabbed my black belt with the throwing stars for the belt buckle and strapped it around my waist. Sometimes toys come in handy.

The last thing I grabbed was a quilt from the side of the cases, then I gently closed the trunk. Then I opened the car door where Zac slept peacefully and covered him with it. The quilt would keep him warm and also not attract as much attention. If someone saw all the blood, they would call the police immediately. As soon as Zac was safe, I needed to clean him up and redress his wounds.

I gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead, as a smile lit his lips. I sighed, thinking of happier times, and hoped that more happy times were on the horizon.

But first thing’s first.

I gingerly closed the car door and walked slowly toward his house, so as not to attract the attention of the humans.

Once I neared the house, I pulled my 9 mm. Glock from the back of my pants and stealthed toward the back of the Victorian two-story. I peeked into the sliding glass doors of the kitchen, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary, so I quietly slid the door open and soundlessly stepped onto the beige stone tile floor. In full agent mode, I snuck around the corner, then froze when I heard voices coming from the other room.

“She’ll come,” a distinctly male voice said, eagerly pacing.

“I hope you’re right or else all this was in vain,” another male voice replied.

“But we can always collect on the million dollar price tag on the
kid’s
head,” the first male said.

“Leave my son out of this!” a female voice yelled frantically. It had to be his mother.

Suddenly, a loud thud hit against flesh as Zac’s mother gasped.

“How dare you!” his mother yelled through gritted teeth. “When my husband finds out about this …”

The second male, obviously vamp, laughed. “You mean your ex-husband,” he said, then added. “Besides, how do you know he still gives a damn?”

“Go to hell!” Zac’s mother spat at the vamp. I suddenly realized where Zac got his strength and courage.

“Shut up, bitch!” the first vamp yelled, when I stepped around the corner. The vamp had his hand drawn back and was ready to hit his mother again. She was strapped to a heavy wooden chair and her eyes were shooting daggers at the vamp.

“And what do we have here, boys?” I asked, as a slight curl lifted one corner of my mouth and my emerald eyes flared.

“That’s her!” Vamp 2 yelled. He was skinny and looked older than his years. He was dressed in old dirty clothes and could have passed for a homeless man. He nervously held a Beretta pistol on Zac’s mother, pointing it at her. Obviously, someone had given him the gun.

“Well, well, well,” Vamp 1 replied, looking at me, sneering, holding a shotgun on Zac’s mother. He wore a long coat, had a scruffy day-old beard, and suddenly looked very familiar. He was the guy from the Stop and Rob with the shotgun, but now he was a vamp. “Look who we have here,” he said to me.

“So, you’re still picking on poor defenseless women?” I casually asked, noticing that not much had changed since his transformation. “Since when did you become a vamp?”

“Since I saw you last.”

“Obviously,” I replied.

Zac’s mother listened quietly with wide eyes, probably wondering who would be the one to kill her.

Stop and Rob’s lips curled into a sneer. “You won’t be so lucky this time,” he replied, looking at me, suddenly finding his balls.

“Oh, you don’t think so?” I began casually. “Obviously making you a vamp didn’t make you any smarter.”

A medieval growl erupted from deep within his chest.

“Who turned you, anyway?” I asked, feigning nonchalance.

Skinny vamp shook nervously, watching the exchange between us. Zac’s mother had a lot more gets than he did.

“Never mind that!” Stop and Rob replied. I had obviously struck a nerve, reminding him of his transformation.

“I see you have another shotgun,” I replied casually, stepping closer, then leaned in for effect. “I love your other one. I haven’t had one for a while.”

“Step back!” he yelled waving his gun to the left. “And don’t try any of that funny stuff like changing, or else she dies!”

“What do you need weapons for, anyway?” I asked, ignoring his request. “She’s just a defenseless human, a woman at that.” Then I took another step closer. “You’ve must have learned a little respect for women since my last visit, after all.”

Then he suddenly grew some balls as a corner of his lip lifted into a sneer. “Oh, the weapons aren’t for her. They’re for you.”

Sudden rage filled my body as my eyes flared. “I should have hunted you down and killed you when I had the chance instead of letting you go.” I thought for a moment, then asked, “Who did you tell about me?”

Stop and Rob laughed. “I haven’t the faintest idea what you’re talking about.”

Suddenly, I glanced slightly at Zac’s mother, a middle aged woman, slender with a nice build, and very pretty despite her age. She was blonde and had the same color eyes as her son. Now I knew where Zac got his good looks.  I gave her a look of warning and she nodded slightly, so as not to be detected.

“I’m tired of this,” I said casually. Then shot a bullet into Stop and Rob’s forehead, and threw a throwing star into the chest of Skinny, sending him flying backwards. Stop and Rob would be down for a bit, so I walked over to Skinny and slit his throat with my Ballistics knife, dismantling his head, as blood spurted from the crevice in his body, then pulled my throwing star from his chest. Before Stop and Rob could recover, I straddled his chest, holding him firmly to the floor as Zac’s mother watched, still tied to the chair.

A moment later, Stop and Rob recovered. “Get it out! It hurts!” he yelled, talking about the bullet in his brain. He tried to reach up to dig it out himself, but I was kneeling on his arms, pinning them to the ground, holding my Glock firmly to his forehead. “Now that I have your attention, how did you become a vamp?”

“Someone bit me …”

I rolled my eyes. “I know someone bit you, moron,” I yelled into his face. “Who turned you? What happened after I let you go?”

His bright green eyes flared. “You didn’t let me go, I escaped.”

I laughed until tears sprang to my eyes. “Oh, that’s a good one,” I said, still laughing, dabbing at my eyes. “Now, who turned you?”

“You think I’m going to tell you?” Stop and Rob yelled into my face.

My eyes suddenly flared, as I cocked my Glock and pointed it directly between his eyes. “Oh, I think you will.” In a flash, I moved my gun to his leg and fired, momentarily shattering his leg, just inches from his balls, then pointed it at his forehead again as he screamed in agony.

Zac’s mother flinched, but said nothing.

“Now,” I said casually, pointing the gun between his eyes again. “Let’s begin again. Tell me who turned you or the next bullet goes into your manhood.”

“Alright, alright!” Stop and Rob yelled, finally relenting. Funny how men’s attitudes change when their manhood is threatened. “I don’t know his name, but he had white hair and an English accent.”

I thought for a moment, my eyes narrowing, then continued. “How did he find out about me?”

“I don’t know …”

I pointed my Glock between his legs, still holding him down. “One, …”

“I don’t know …”

“Two …”

“Okay, okay! Don’t shoot!” he yelled as I pulled the hammer back on the Glock. “I was running down the street yelling about what you did, how you changed into different people and no one believed me, when suddenly this man grabbed me and pulled me into his limo. He asked about you and I told him about you morphing into different people. Then he said he’d turn me into a vamp if I would help him find you.”

“Me?”
I asked, my eyebrows pulling together in confusion. “What do you mean, find me?”

“I don’t know,” he yelled, suddenly afraid for his manhood. “That’s all I know! Now let me go!”

“Not this time,” I said, then turned to face Zac’s mother, still strapped to the chair. “Don’t look.” She nodded as Stop and Rob screamed a series of “Don’t hurt me!” “Don’t kill me!” and the like. Zac’s mother closed her eyes as I slit the guy’s throat as his screams cut off abruptly with a gurgle and vamp blood spilled over the beige carpet.

“Are you okay?” I asked Zac’s mother, gathering the vamp bodies.

She nodded, taking a deep breath, then replied with relief, “Yeah, I think so.”

“I’m going to untie you and you have to get out immediately,” I instructed her, already untying her hands.

“Where’s Zac?” she asked, her eyes filled with concern for her son.

“He’s okay,” I replied, untying the last of her bonds. “But we’ll talk about it in a bit. Now get out and don’t look back. I’ll be out in a minute.” Then I thought for a moment and added, “You have homeowner’s insurance, right?”

“Yeah, why?” she asked, then sudden understanding filled her eyes.

“Gather only the important things, just what you can carry, and get out. You have one minute,” I instructed her, looking directly into her eyes.

In a flash, I ran into Zac’s bedroom and gathered a few things that I thought he might want, one of which was a picture of his mother and father together in happier times. I also grabbed a pillow and a bag, then shoved a few of his clothes into it. After Zac’s mother was safely outside, I lit the vamps, setting their bodies on fire and the house into flames in the process.

Zac’s mother watched it burn with tears in her eyes when I met her outside.

“Sorry, but it was necessary,” I said in a low voice, gently touching her arm. “We have to go.”

She nodded, then followed me with a bag slung over her shoulder as we hurried to the waiting Challenger. I quickly checked the back and Zac was still there, in a deep sleep, oblivious to the happenings around him.

Before I let Zac’s mother see him, I turned to her and said, “Now I need for you to be strong, okay?” Zac’s mother nodded with tears already brimming her eyes. She had been through a lot and I hated myself for having to inflict more upon her so soon. “Zac is okay, but it looks worse than it is. He’s going to be alright. Just keep that in mind when you see him.”