Vampire Takeover Read online

  She gathered up her things before standing in front of the beaten body. “Burn in Hell with the vampires.” I heard her say before she kicked the dead man right in the junk. “I’m ready.” She told me.

  Along with my things, I retrieved the pistol Jim had used on the brainwashed human. I offered it to Darcy a short distance into our journey. “Here.”

  “I’m not taking that. It was his.”

  “Yes, you are. We’re not going to let him hamper our chances at survival. What if I need help and you can save me with it?”

  She groaned, but my words had convinced her and she accepted the weapon. Now, we were better prepared to face our adversaries. If the refuge was real, I was determined that we would find it.

  Our traveling pace was fast. I wanted to cross as much distance as possible to stay ahead of Jim’s gang. For all I knew, he had been lying about his friends. It would have been another stupid mistake to not perceive them as a real threat, though. About halfway through the day, Darcy started lagging behind severely. We were near a town. I could see a few houses in the distance. It was a dangerous place to hang around.

  “I know you feel bad, but we need to get away from here.” I handed my water bottle to her, but she only had a small sip.

  “I’m sorry. So tired, Preston.” She told me and I frowned. I thought she was going to faint.

  “Get on.” I lowered myself in front of her and she reluctantly climbed onto my back. The houses in the distance would have to suffice. She needed real rest and the high outdoor humidity wasn’t helping our situation.

  She softly gave the back of my neck a kiss before resting her head against me. “I always get sick around this time of the year. Allergies and stuff.”

  “We both need rest, Darcy. I’m tired, too.” Carrying her on my back was hard even though she wasn’t very heavy. I buckled down and found strength from somewhere. Plenty of daylight was left when we reached the first house. It was part of a small subdivision. Abandoned bicycles and a basketball lingered in disuse in the front yard. A tire swing hung from a large tree.

  “Wake up, baby.” I said softly. When Darcy moaned a little and lifted her head, I let her down to walk.

  “We can’t stay here, Preston. If the vampires have people in a nowhere town like we were at before, then I’m sure they have them here.”

  I shrugged. “I know, but we’re both going to collapse if we don’t get some real rest. Let’s try to stay here a few days. We will be careful.”

  She coughed a few times, then after sighing in frustration, nodded. “We don’t have much choice, do we?”

  “Not really.” I tried the front door. It was locked so I went around to the back. This time even the screen door was locked. “Huh. You’d think the vampires or their minions would have broken in and searched these homes.”

  “Something’s definitely weird.” Darcy said, holding her hands up on either side of her face as she peered through a window. “Everything looks untouched in there.”

  The doors were a no go, so I tried the kitchen window. It was too small for me to fit through, but it opened. “Come here, Darcy.”

  With a boost from my hands, she was able to barely squeeze through. I heard the crash of a few dishes breaking on the floor. “Oops.” She called out softly. I moved to the backdoor which she quickly unlocked and I slipped inside with all of our supplies.

  “Awesome.” I told her and she smiled.

  “That was harder than it should have been.” She bent over to catch her breath. When she stood up straight again, sweat dotted her brow.

  After one last glance outside, I shut and locked the door once more. I also remembered to close the window. “Let’s find a place for you to lie down.” I placed my hand on her lower back and guided her toward the stairs. Of course, I went first to make sure it was safe. I’d already messed up enough.

  The house reminded me of my own home before my family had fled east to the Smoky Mountains. Even the upstairs layout was similar. A master bedroom, a girl’s bedroom, and a boy’s room were all there. It was overwhelmingly nostalgic and depressing. Everything seemed safe enough, so I led Darcy to the master bedroom. It had the biggest bed.

  “I’ll lie down, but I want to see if there’s anything in that bathroom to clean up with.” She pointed toward the master bath and I nodded.

  “Leave the door open. I don’t want you to be too far out of reach.” When I said it, I hadn’t thought of the implications. Not until she stared at me with a sly smirk. “Just to keep you safe.” I added. “We’re in a strange place.”

  She laughed a little and shook her head. “See if you can find something for me to wear that’s better than the filth I have on.”

  “Sure.” I said and went to the closet. It was hard to tell if any items were missing since there were so many articles of clothing in the closet. I found some jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt that looked like they would fit. Then, I worked my way to the dresser. Without thinking, I glanced toward the bathroom. I could see Darcy standing there nude as she cleaned up. She had a cloth in hand and what looked like a bottle of hand sanitizer on the counter. For once, it was me with the red face and not her when she looked toward me. Ashamed, I left the clothing on the dresser and walked into the hallway.

  “God, I’m stupid. Stupid, stupid.” I told myself, over and over. A couple of times I smacked myself in the forehead. All we had been through and I had stood there gaping like a peeping tom. I don’t even know how I could be having such impure thoughts when I was so exhausted.

  My face was buried in my hands and I was sitting on the carpet in the hallway when Darcy called out to me. I may have dosed off. I’m not sure. I stood slowly and leaned to the side to look into the room. She was wearing the clothing I had found and turning down the bed cover.

  “I…uh….” The right words to apologize were lost to me, so I ran my hand through my hair and walked into the bathroom. Most of my clothing would have to do because the man who had lived there was much larger, but I could at least clean up. I had been right about the hand sanitizer. There was also a bottle of dry dog shampoo on the counter that I used on my hair. Every time I saw my reflection in the mirror it seemed like I was a different person. This time, I was a murderer. The first time had been self-defense, but Jim…that had been a conscious choice to take a life.

  Surprisingly, Darcy was still awake when I exited the bathroom. I still felt like an idiot so I told her, “I’ll go sleep in one of the other rooms so I don’t bother you.”

  “Was it that bad of a vision?” She asked.

  “What? No way. I just didn’t mean to gawk at you like that without your permission.” I said.

  She patted the bed. “You’ve slept next to me for months. Don’t start acting stupid because I caught you checking out my boobs.”

  In defeat, I bowed my head. I was lost on how to behave and what exactly women wanted. At least she wasn’t mad at me. I did as I was told and slid into the bed, spooning up against her. That was probably a bad position to be in considering the involuntary response it caused. I rolled over onto my back and frowned up at the stationary ceiling fan. Darcy turned over and threw her arm across my chest. She was right. After months by her side, I doubted I could sleep alone. Together we drifted off, too tired to worry about the dangers of the world any longer that day.

  The sun was coming up when I awoke the next morning. For the first time in a long while, I had fallen asleep while it was still daylight and slept until late morning. It scared me at first, but I was still alive and Darcy was sleeping safely. Plus, I was refreshed. I left the bedroom and headed downstairs to the kitchen to see if I could find anything for breakfast.

  Food had never been an issue when I was younger. Breakfast was plentiful even if sometimes it was only a bowl of cereal. I had plenty of money for lunch at school though occasionally I would skip it just to save for a pointless item I wanted. Dinner was prepared by my mother every evening without fail. We always ate as a family. Not all nig
hts were we at the dining table, but we were together nonetheless in front of the television to watch our favorite shows.

  I thought about all the meals I had taken for granted as I searched the cabinets and scavenged up a breakfast of peanut butter and saltine crackers. Neither was probably as fresh as they could have been, but they were almost a delicacy and a treasure greater than gold to me. When I had finished, I headed upstairs.

  “Darcy.” I whispered.

  Confused, she opened her eyes. Sleeping in different places every night could be disorienting. “Preston.” She said and sat up slowly rubbing her eyes.

  “You look better. How do you feel?” I asked, handing her a plate of food.

  “Better.” She accepted the dish and grinned at me. “Breakfast in bed. Unexpected, but you get brownie points.”

  I laughed. “Good. I need all I can get.”

  “For real.” She teased.

  “Listen.” I sat down on the edge of the bed and began eating my own breakfast. “Something is odd about this town. I’m going to explore a little bit. I want you to stay here and go through food and other items we can take with us.”

  This statement was met with a frown. “I don’t think we should separate. Look what happened last time.”

  “I know, but I think it’s pretty safe here if it’s gone untouched for a couple of years.”

  “What if you see more of those thralls?”

  I patted her leg. “I will be careful. It’s just going to be a quick look around. We’re staying at least one more night to rest up.”

  She still didn’t look happy about me leaving and I doubted anything I said would change that. “Do you think it’s weird we haven’t seen any of the people the vampires control? During the day, I mean.” She said.

  “Yeah. Maybe when a person is bitten by a vampire they can’t go out in the sunlight or something. It does something to them. Their eyes glow red and all.”

  “I bet they’re like cats. You know how you see a cat at night and their eyes are like reflective green.” Darcy said.

  I blinked a few times. Both of her observations made sense. “You’re even hotter because you’re smart.”

  “Don’t butter me up so I won’t be mad you’re exploring without me.” She said, but was unable to hide her smile.

  “I would never.”

  “If it’s safe, maybe we should just stay here. Like you said, the area has gone untouched.”

  It did seem like a nice place so I nodded. “Maybe. At least for a while.”

  Darcy hopped off the bed when she finished her food, grabbed her bottle of water, and headed into the bathroom. I watched her curiously as she opened a new pack of toothbrushes and brushed her teeth. She rinsed with water from the bottle and practically skipped back to me.

  “What?” I asked when she grinned goofily at me. Her attitude was as different as night and day just from a night’s rest.

  Instead of answering, she kissed me. I mean…really kissed me. She was fresh, minty, and tasted so good. Her weight pressing against me urged me to fall back. All my plans for the day began to fade as we made out. How could I care about anything else but that moment?

  “This new place is even better than the barn.” She said as she broke the kiss and straddled me. Then, something I was completely unprepared for happened. She gave me a wink and lifted her shirt off.

  I placed my hands on her hips, honestly intending to stop the situation before it went too far. I swear. Instead, I lifted her off and then pinned her to the mattress with my lips. Up until that point I had done so well. Been self-controlled. Mature. The shelter and the illusion of safety were chipping away at my resolve.

  “We need to stop.” I told her without actually moving away.

  “Why? We love each other.”

  “I know, but it’s too risky. I’m older than you and we don’t have protection.”

  She rolled her eyes. “You’re only a year and half older than me. My grandma was like sixteen and my grandpa in his twenties when they married.”

  “Wow. Those were different times, though.” I said, my fingertips still lightly running across her abdomen.

  “Preston. These are different times. I doubt you would have been so cautious if they weren’t.” To my surprise, she rolled over and pulled out the nightstand drawer. My arguments were being deflected left and right. When she tossed me the box of condoms she had found, I knew I was defeated.

  “Are you sure about this?” I asked one last time.

  “One or both of us could be dead by tomorrow. I don’t want to regret not…doing it. I do not want my first time to be with someone I didn’t choose.” Apparently, she had no doubts. When she looked me in the eyes, I gave in.

  At first, I was angry and embarrassed at my sexual performance. By afternoon, though, Darcy and I had found a wonderful rhythm. We always did, no matter what we were doing so long as we were together. When we finally finished, I was worried about her so I held her tightly in my embrace.

  “Are you okay?” She asked.

  I laughed. “Yes.” Her habit of asking me that at strange moments cracked me up. “You?”

  “I’m awesome.”

  “You definitely are.” I kissed the top of her head. “Exploring the town can wait until tomorrow. I just want to enjoy this day.”

  “I already have.” She snickered so I assaulted her with tickles that had her laughing and squealing.

  I grinned before finally stopping. “What can I say? I’m good at everything I do.” I joked.

  We spent most of the day in bed, only going downstairs to hunt for food. It was carefree and perfect. I found myself wishing and imagining the house was ours and the world outside was the same as it had been when I was a kid. All good things end, unfortunately, and our mood dampened when night began to fall.

  Realizing how careless we had been, we started hiding evidence we were staying in the house. Darcy swept up the broken dishes while I carried our bags upstairs and hid them in the bedroom closet. It was enough that if someone looked in the window, nothing would appear out of the ordinary. The last thing I did before heading to bed was grab a few books from the shelf. Reading was our favorite hobby, not that there were many activities to choose from.

  Unwittingly, one of the books I picked up was about vampires. It was a romanticized account of the beasts so I through it aside. No one had expected how real and deadly they actually were. How could they have? They weren’t supposed to exist.

  “How about I start this one?” I asked and held up the cover for Darcy to see when I entered the bedroom.

  She yawned, stretched, and snuggled against the large pillow. “Is that a book about football?”

  “No. Kinda…but it’s more than that. It’s inspirational.” I explained.

  Darcy shrugged. “You’ve read me enough girly books, only fair you get to read something you want.”

  “You’ll like it.”

  I read until it was too dark to continue. Darcy had fallen asleep on her belly. Instead of joining her, I was drawn to the desk in front of the window. The blinds and curtains were enough to keep me hidden. I scolded myself as I stared outside. It had been the best day, but I still felt like I had taken advantage and put my girlfriend at risk by not restraining my urges.

  The scolding I was giving myself halted when I saw them. It was as if I had expected it. One vampire slave drove the car, while the other would get out and check the doors on the houses to make sure they were still locked. I didn’t breathe from the moment they stopped at the house we were hiding in until the thralls had moved on to the next. Nowhere was safe. I covered my face with my hands and sobbed silently. There was no hope and probably no refuge. The vampires had people everywhere.

  Quietly, I returned to bed and held onto Darcy like it could be the last time. She mumbled a few incomprehensible words in her sleep.

  “Shh.” I said and she returned to breathing easily.

  Something had happened in the town. If we were going t
o stay, I had to figure out what it was and just how much danger we were in by staying there.

  “What’s wrong?” Darcy asked when she woke up and saw me sitting on the side of the bed.

  I tried to wipe the worry from my face and smiled softly when I turned to her. “There were a couple of those people checking houses last night.”

  “They’re not people. The vampires made sure of that.” She said, shaking her head. “So they didn’t try to come in?”

  “No.” I stood up, grabbed the shotgun, and made sure it was ready to fire. “I’m going out. See what all you can find that’s useful if we have to leave.”

  Darcy shoved off the comforter and crawled across the bed before resting on her knees in front of me. “Please be careful, Pres.”

  “I will.” I touched her cheek briefly before giving her kiss goodbye. “Don’t leave the house, okay?”

  Her hesitation worried me, but she agreed. “Okay.”

  Every step I made was calm and calculated. I surveyed my surroundings for hiding places like playhouses and truck beds. It was like walking along an empty set piece for a television show. The only signs of life were the baby birds chirping and the squirrels chasing each other across the streets.

  There were no signs of what had happened to everyone or why they left all their belongings behind before fleeing. I began checking mailboxes. For a second, I hesitated. My neighbor had told me it was a federal crime to open someone else’s mailbox when I was a kid and had put a fake spider in his. I laughed at my stupidity. Laws no longer applied. Unopened bills and letter filled most of the boxes. Eventually, I did find a clue. A flyer had been left inside one. Years of moisture and sitting had left the paper yellowed and my touch made it crackle. The ink was smeared. What I could see read:

  Meeting at noon in the park. Those who are not in attendance will be considered in league with the night terrorists. Lock all doors and bring nothing with you.