The Last Human (Vampires Rule # 1) (4 page)

I placed my hands over my ears to block out the
screams and unnatural snarls and growls that were sounding closer
by the second. I curled up on the floor, sobs escaping my throat,
h
iding my face between my
arms.

I do not know how long I stayed like that, but there
came a point when everything went silent. I looked up as the trap
door was flung open and a face, hidden within the shadows, emerged.
The next moment, a body had jumped down into the hideout. I was
frozen
in place with fear and
dread.

The person had slowly walked towards me, his
movements cat like and sleek. He bent down and gently pried my
hands away from my ears. His emerald green eyes were soft and full
of pity. His next words I would go on to remember, probably until
my dying b
reath, were: “You’re
safe now.”

His name was Lexus.
And he adopted me as his son.

Years flew by. He was always there for me. He always
had time for me. He always played with me. He always had a smile
for me. We lived together in my father’s cottage. But when I was
ten
, I finally confronted him
about my past.

I always heard the screams of my mother in my dreams,
and I used to wake up shaking, trembling, and shouting her name out
in the middle of the night. The monsters had gotten her. I never
found out what happened to my father. I never asked Lexus. But as
the years went by, as
my
confidence and courage grew, I confronted him. I knew he was
different. I knew he had a different side to him. I knew the red
drinks he had weren’t cherry juice. I knew he was a Vampire, he had
said so much himself on several occasions. He called it a
mutation.

As I grew older, so did my curiosity. I had searched
the cottage during the days when Lexus
was nowhere to be found, apart from the few occasions
when he wore gloves and a hat when we went outside to explore. I
had found stacks of blood in large freezers in the basement, blood
in bottles, arranged in neat rows and with the animal source
clearly labeled across the glass.

My suspicions had built up when I made this
discovery. There was a nagging feeling in the back of my mind,
which I
suppressed as best I
could, which I ignored at every other opportunity. But it would
come back in lethal force; screaming at me, until one day I
convinced myself it was true.

I confronted him in his office. I was gripping a
large knife in one hand, the hilt wet with my sweat. He asked me
what was wrong,
eyeing the
knife curiously. It was then that it all came out. The night my
parents were murdered; the night the Vampires had come. The night
we never talked about. The night Lexus had turned up. I forced out
the question that with all my heart I hoped wasn’t true. Did he
kill my parents? I held my breath, and waited for his
answer.

Was he the monster that had butchered my parents? The
one who had adopted me and acted as a fa
ther figure? Was he the killer?

He stood up and slowly walked towards me. I held up
the knife further, warning him to keep his distance, but he put my
arm down gently, pointing the knife to the floor and breaking my
resolve with it. He took me by my shoulders and tilted my head up
so I was looking directly into his green eyes. “No,” he said. That
o
ne word flooded me with
relief.

I asked him
, who
did kill my parents?

He said it was other Vampire
s.

I asked him
,
what happened to my parents?

He said there were
murdered.

I asked him
, why
didn’t they come for me?

He said he killed
them.

I asked him why? Why didn’t he just join in? Why
didn’t he
just kill me and
drain me dry.

He moved his head, so it was inches away from my
face, and
whispered, “I’m not
a monster.”

I believed him. I
asked him were there any other Vampires around. He said yes. As the
pieces began to fit, I asked him, was it because I was human that
he kept me away from other Vampires? He said yes. But he said,
soon, I will meet them. And they will not hurt me. They will not
touch me. If they ever did, he would kill them. That week we moved
into the Manor, and into the city of Vampires.

I wake up to the
shrilling of my alarm clock. The small structure vibrates with the
noise, almost bouncing on the spot as the gears work their internal
wonders. The high pitched sound rings in my eardrums, making me
wince as a mis-match of sensory messages are sent to my brain. With
one heavy swipe of my arm, I knock the alarm clock off the desk,
sending it hurtling across the room.

I blink several times as sunlight peeps
through the blinds, a blend of orange
and yellow, creating patterns across the bedroom that bathe the
furniture in golden bronze.

I shrug off the covers and stagger out of bed. I
p
ick the clock up from the
floor and slam my fist against the top, ending the harsh sound. I
look at the time with a yawn; my eye lids feel heavy as the
lingering fuzziness of sleep slowly blows off.

I
wipe my hand
across my face, focusing on the numbers flashing back at me. It is
a short while before sunset. So there is a short time for me to go
outside and enjoy the last part of the day while the sun is still
up. I have a quick shower, a change of clothes, and head
downstairs.

I clamp down the spiral staircase; the ancient steps
underneath my feet groan as though waking up from a
long
, deep slumber, their
moans creaky and hollow. My socks pound on the green carpet layered
across each step, the material warm and soft.

An eerie silence cloaks the Manor as I walk through
the deserted hallways. The silence stretches in each direction like
an i
nvisible blanket, encasing
the Manor in a shroud of stillness. The Vampires are probably
asleep, aside from a few Guards and the Destroyer James, who are
probably prowling in the shadows of the Manor, alert and watchful
for disturbances.

I saunter into the kitchen and grab something to eat.
The maid normally leaves something in the freezer. Today she
h
as left coleslaw and
fish.

I sit at the kitchen table and glance up at the open
window. Sunlight streams in. And a b
reeze blows through the kitchen. The soft wind pats
against my face, and the cool air lingers on my skin.

I gulp down the remaining contents of milk, and
shovel the last spoonful of coleslaw into my mouth, before
making a beeline for the
exit.

The sun is hanging
low in the sky as I close the door behind me. A blaze of
golden orange and red brightens the horizon as the sunset draws
closer. White clouds march across the darkening blue atmosphere,
fuzzy shapes of white, puffy and creamy, disappearing as night
comes calling.

“
Where do you
wish to go?”

The voice startles me, and I look around wildly,
until my eyes fasten on him. “What do you want?” I snap, and the
irritation in my voice seeps through, like water escaping through a
hose. I instantly regret my words. You don’t use that kind of tone
with Artico Destroyers. But my escort doesn’t seem to mind, because
he smiles
an amused
smile.

Eli
s or is it
Maxwell - since I don’t know who is who - pushes himself off the
wall he was leaning on. “To escort you of course,” he says,
deciding not to reprimand me for my sudden outburst.

Nor
mally, my
Artico Guards escort me when I roam around during the daytime. At
this time of day, the streets and roads are deserted and I hardly
come across any Vampire, aside from a few of the older ones. But
they never bother me in the least.

I just shrug my shoulders and glance
up at the sun, a burning sphere of
molten lava, shining down at us in its last throngs. “You reckon
you can handle it?” I ask him with a smile that mirrors
his.

Most Vampires can’t tolerate daylight. Their skin
can’t handle the sun’s rays. But powerful and stronger Vampires can
walk under
the sun. According
to Lexus, it can sometimes cause discomfort.

A Vampire as old and powerful as Lexus can walk in
broad daylight without blinking an eye, though h
e always wears gloves and a hat to shade his
face and hands. Lesser Vampires, if they stay out too long, will
literally combust into flames, and then drivel into a pile of black
ashes.

To my surprise, Elis or Maxwell, looks up at the sun
with unblinking eyes. The sun’s rays bathe his face in bright
beams, showing the paleness and tautness of his skin. “I’ve faced
worse,” he says after a moment, but he slips on a pair of gloves
and wears a top h
at, shading
his face and hands.

“
If you say so,” I reply with a shrug, yet again
wondering how powerful he really is. He
was acting like the sun didn’t bother him in the
least.

I head out the
gates, opening them with a key, and walk across the lonely
street that leads to the crux of the city.

“
My name’s
Elis.”

I pause and glance back at him. “Okay,” I say. “You
can
call me Jake.”

Elis nods and glances up and down the street with his
blue eyes. “What have you got planned?” he says,
turnin
g his calm features back
on me.

I look around as
though I have everything planned, though I’m not sure what I’m
going to do. Normally I just walk around aimlessly, or explore
places, and just enjoy the scenery around me while it is bathed in
light. “Probably go to the park,” I say finally, and I start
trotting in that direction.

Elis stays several feet behind me and I glance at him
several times from the corner of my eyes. His
blonde hair, pinned back, is almost glowing
under the sun’s rays. He seems alert, and I catch subtle movements
of his head as he scans the area for threats, before slipping on
his shades.

We walk in silence for several long minutes as we
pass roads and buildings. Litter blows with the wind, and pigeons
dig through empty food cart
ons, scavenging for letovers.

I rub the back of my neck and replay Lexus’s words
from l
ast night. I caught up
with him again later in the night and asked him for more
information on the new threat he had alluded to, more out of
curiosity than anything else. But he had refused to tell me
anything, and said it was best if I didn’t think about
it.

I slide into step
next to Elis, deciding to try and garner some information from
him about this supposed new threat; if anyone would know, it would
be him.

“
So…how come you guys are no
w escorting me?” I say. Artico Destroyers are
the elite Guards. They are usually involved in undercover
assignments and are used sparingly since their numbers are so low.
There are only ten of them.

At first he doesn’t answer, but then he pauses and
cocks his head to one side as if contemplating my question. “Lexus
assigned us,” he say
s.

“
But what was the issue L
exus was referring to?” I prod.

“
You should ask Lexus
”- he stops in mid sentence and glances at the sky -
“we should head back. School starts in a short while.”

I check my watch. We still have some time. But after
what happened yesterday, with a Vampire losing it over the sight of
my blood, today I’m planning to get in early and avoid the mass
stares which will flow my way from the large crowd that hangs
around the school entrance. “Just a few minutes then we’ll go,” I
say. Elis acknowledges my
request with a bow of his head.

At the park, chestnut, oak, and various other trees
are scattered around in the untouched strip of land, larger ones
towering above the others, smaller ones within their midst,
hidden
under thick hanging
branches.

I crouch down next to a patch of roses, and gingerly
brush my finger against the smooth and delicate petals, their
fragrance sharp and sweet. Though the world is in ruins, life still
g
oes on in its different
forms.

I look up as a flock of crows fly overhead, their
wings beating under the setting sun.
Birds sing sweet melodies, hidden within branches of
towering trees, their beaks raised towards the sky. Sometimes it is
relaxing to just sit here and watch the life blossom around me,
watch time march towards its goal. I could stay here for ages and
let my life wither away while I admire the scenery, lost in its
beauty and peace, but such life is no life.

***

We walk up to the
school, deciding to leave the car behind since it would be time
consuming to track back. Maxwell meets us halfway, emerging from
the shadows of a building, and stalks silently beside me. No
‘Hello’, no ‘Good morning’, just all business. His tall muscled
frame attracts a few uneasy glances from early risers. Elis drops
back and takes the rear.