I woke up alone in my bedroom. The sun had set and my room was filled with darkness. The little, red numbers on my clock told me it was ten pm. Something cold under the covers touched my leg. Feeling it up I realized someone had tucked the blessed bat into bed with me. I didn't remember when I feel asleep. I remembered being on the couch, watching a truly terrible 1960s sci-fi movie with everyone. I vaguely remember Sean carrying me to my room. The rest was a blank.
I struggled against the tiredness in my limbs. I missed my Sasha. There was a certain comfort I felt with her around. I had tomorrow off. I'd go to my parents' house and play with her. I'd score a free meal while I was at it.
Rolling myself over, I flicked on my bedside lamp. I didn't even have time to scream. A smooth hand pressed against my mouth. It was cold. Not the cold of a hand with insufficient gloves on a winter day. No, this was the cold of the living dead.
Inside my chest my heart beat so fast I thought I was going to have a heart attack. The vampire held me down while I lay there, completely frozen in fear.
He stood over my bed. He was of medium height, probably even shorter than I was. He had a mature face, but I wouldn't place him as old. Maybe in his mid to late-twenties when he turned, but his eyes and face showed wisdom. Centuries' old wisdom, like Angie carried. There was a Mediterranean look to him. He had flawless, olive colored skin, soft dark curls, a larger than average, hooked nose. He was well muscled. Even if he didn't have vampire strength he could crush me. He smiled. It never reached his eyes. His teeth weren't retracted. God, I hoped Bridget's repellent worked and his mouth turned to ash.
“Your neighbors let me in.” When entering from the street there was a short hallway. Straight ahead was the door to Chris and my place. Up the stairs led to our neighbors'. But we shared a common threshold. This vampire had been invited in. My home was no longer safe.
The hand released my mouth. All the air I didn't realize I had been holding in escaped in a choked breath. I pulled the covers up around me. With my left hand I held them in place. With my right I wrapped my fingers around the bat.
“Simon,” I said quietly.
“So Agacia has told you about me.” That name. “Or however she calls herself these days.” He sounded disgusted. “She seems to tell you a lot of things.”
“I know what you're looking for. I don't have it. Leave me alone.”
“No. Agacia would never let you hold it. Inferior beings can't know power such as that. But you have her file. You can find her.”
Angie said he would use the people she took blood from to find her. All for some stupid vampiric relic that probably was a fake. He singled me out because I was her case worker. Anyone at the BSB could access her address and phone number. Only I had her notaries with donors' names. This fucking bully.
I narrowed my eyes. “She seems to think you're very powerful, but you can't even find where she keeps her coffin. She'd hiding in the open for God's sake. You need to pick on the weak. Some demigod you are. You send Jessica after me! To do your dirty work!”
Simon grabbed my chin. I knew this move. He was going to try to spell me through the eyes like Jessica. “We're going to the BSB office now.” The words were like honey. Oozing over me, sweetening everything.
Not this time. “No.” I swung the bat out from under the covers.
He moved fast enough to grab it before I hit his face. He recoiled in fear the second his skin made contact. The stench of his burnt hand filled my nostrils. I gagged at the smell, but didn't stop myself from pressing the bat's tip into his neck.
He screamed. The sound could wake the dead. I hoped my stupid neighbors called the police. It was the least they could do after letting him into the hallway.
Simon yanked the bat out of my hand and threw it. It crashed into my dresser mirror. Shards of glass flew onto the floor and top of the dresser. He lunged at me, but the bat's effects made him slower. I was able to twist out of the way. I dropped to the floor. Purse.
Where the hell had I thrown my purse? I had to find the stake. Knowing me it was in the kitchen. Always as far away as possible to be of no use. I wrapped my hand around a bigger piece of glass. I felt a slow trickle of blood.
Simon grabbed my ankle. He pulled me toward him with such force I thought he'd rip my leg off. I did my best to aim the glass at him. Blood obscured my reflection in it, but I could see I’d gone white with fear. I drew the shard across his hand. He let me go, recoiling from the touch of my blood. A small bit of ash formed where my blood touched his hand. Bridget was the greatest witch I knew. I'd kiss her full on the mouth if I survived.
“Dunmore!” My eyes flicked to the window. Angie was outside. The window was open, the screen removed. That's how he got in. Once he had an invitation over the threshold he'd pried my window open. “Dunmore, let me in!” Angie cried from outside.
“Come in, dear God you are welcome to come into this house!” I screamed back as Simon hit me from behind.
He landed his punch between my shoulder blades. I went down like a sack of potatoes, gasping for air. Angie crawled in the window and launched herself at him. I felt her shadow pass over me. The sounds of wood cracking forced me to roll over onto my bed. My nightstand wobbled uncertainly as the vampires lifted themselves off it.
I found my bat again, picking it up, and getting to my feet. Angie circled Simon, her teeth bared. She kept low to the ground. Simon stood firmly on my bed. My presence was completely ignored. The two snarled and hissed like cats. Angie lunged again, hitting Simon in the knees. Again they landed on my nightstand. It cracked again and this time gave out under the pressure.
It clattered to the ground. Angie pinned Simon on top of the broken plywood. She brought down angry fists on to his face. He struggled under her. He wasn't a big man or anything, but Angie was a tiny woman. His vampire strength had to at least match hers. However, he was unable to get a hold of her hands. Finally he got his feet under her body and firmly kicked her upwards.
Angie tumbled over the bed and into me with such force I got knocked off balance. Angie must have been full of bricks. How can she weigh this much? I couldn't recover from the impact, but Angie sprung up quickly. The two fell back into fighting.
I grabbed my bat again. Time to clear out. My room was being trashed, but that didn't mean I needed to suffer any broken bones. I ran into the kitchen. I picked up my purse looking for my stake and phone. Someone banged on the door. My heart raced. What if my neighbors had given permission to the Kleins to come in? I raised the bat, terrified they'd break in any second.
I heard a man scream in Polish. Then a shrill woman responded. I didn't know anything beyond hello in Polish, but I knew an argument. Whatever. I didn't care. My idiot neighbors were trying to help me. I pulled the door open and the Wienceks tumbled in. He was dressed in pre-ripped jeans and black polo. She had on a little black dress with a visible garter belt underneath.
A gun was tucked into the waistband of Mr. Wiencek's jeans. “Are you alright?”
My hand was cut open, dripping blood on to the floor. My hair fell into my face in a tangled mess. I sweated through my clothes. I wasn't alright.
“Did you let in a vampire?” I didn't want to scream at them, but I felt a scream brewing inside.
“He said he was leaving you an invitation.” Mrs. Wiencek peeled something off my door. It was an envelope written in calligraphy. It had “Ms. Samantha Dunmore” written in beautiful gold lettering. “I watched him tape it to the door and I made sure he left.” She wrung her hands nervously.
“Well, he's in my bedroom. He crawled through the window after being given permission to enter.” I felt my eyes narrow at her. I covered my face.
“We called the police.” Mr. Wiencek drew his gun.
“He's in the bedroom fighting with another vampire. Don't go back there.” I grabbed his arm when he tried to get passed me.
We heard the sounds of a struggle from the back. I was glad C
hris worked on Saturday nights. I didn't want him in the same danger I was in. I pushed the Wienceks out into the little foyer and slammed the door behind us. We'd wait outside for the police.
I called Balicki and Hill. A minute or two passed before I heard the sirens. Moments after the sirens came into ear shot I could see the red and flashing lights.
Two squads pulled in front of the two-flat. Balicki and Hill were on their way. Like Hill promised they were patrolling the area. I couldn't help thinking they were doing a crappy job at it.
Two cops went in by the front door and two circled around back. Nothing happened for a few minutes. No shouts of “freeze, police!” or “hands up!” A knot formed in my stomach. Simon got away.
While the police searched the area Balicki and Hill pulled up in a black, Buick century. BSB issued.
The Wienceks were up immediately, telling them what had happened. I stayed seated on the front steps. Hill disengaged himself from the swirl of explanations from the Wienceks. “Care to explain what happened?”
I told him about Simon getting into my room. I highlighted the blessed bat, but neglected to mention the vampire repellent. I didn't know how legal it was for Bridget to be making something like that. I talked away Angie by saying a second vampire had appeared at the window itching for a fight with Simon.
“And you think this is the one who turned your other assailant?”
“He mentioned Jessica.” He hadn't. I had mentioned her, but he hadn't denied sending her. That counted as an admission, right?
Two of the cops came back around to confer with their BSB counterparts. “All the damage is in the back bedroom. The screen was ripped off, but the glass isn't broken. We're getting the window nailed down so no one can force the window open.” Like I was going to stay there.