CHAPTER THIRTEEN
I got about five hours of sleep, which was enough. I had just finished with my shower and was about to call for the pizza when I remembered I had forgotten to ask Casey what kind she liked, duh on my part. So, I settled for sitting back and waiting for them to show up.
Mark and Courtney were early. They insisted I feed again before Casey got there.
“I just fed a little over five hours ago. I don’t need to feed again.”
“Shawn, you look like death warmed over. You need to get some more color in your face before she gets here. Do you want to scare her?” Mark sat down next to me and waited for me to feed.
“I’m a vampire. I’m supposed to look like death warmed over.” I joked, knowing it wouldn’t work.
“You have never looked this bad, Shawn. So you either drink now or when she gets here. She’s a vamp. She’ll know you need to feed.” Sighing, I gave up and drank.
I felt a lot better when Casey got there. She was wearing black slacks that perfectly outlined her figure. Her light purple blouse brought shine to her already amazing eyes. I felt normal for once and I called to order the pizza, one meat lovers and one pepperoni lovers.
After much debate on what movie to watch, we decided to watch the current vampire movie. Ironic, I know. But Courtney and Casey both have a thing for the leading vampire. I’ll never figure that one out. Oh well, must be a female thing.
While we waited for the pizza we sat in the living room chatting about how Mark, Courtney and I met and everything we had done together. Casey’s favorite story was when Mark and I helped to win our senior high football state championship. We were the star players, Mark being the receiver and me the quarterback.
“No one thought Mark had caught the ball but when he got up he was holding it. You couldn’t see him for all the others piling on top of him. Shawn was the next to be on the bottom of the pile.” Courtney had laughed the whole time she was telling the story. Mark and I just sat back and listened.
The pizza arrived and we settled back to enjoy the food and movie. Mark and I had a beer and Courtney and Casey had Mountain Dew. I was surprised when Casey rested her head on my shoulder, pleased, but still surprised.
The night ended too soon. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to my friends. It had been a long couple of days and I was enjoying the company and relaxation. But, because of the time, I walked out with Mark, Courtney and Casey and followed Casey to her car to say goodnight. My head was still spinning from our kiss as I turned out my lights for the night.
Lying in bed I couldn’t sleep. Something was bothering me and Sadie was restless. She was next to my legs whining and nudging me. That’s when I heard it, an ear splitting scream coming from Mark and Courtney’s. Jumping out of bed, I pulled on a pair of jeans and shoes, grabbed my gun and badge and hoped I wasn’t too late.
With Sadie right behind me, I ran through the woods between our homes. I got there just as a man, followed by Mark, ran out of the back door. Pushing myself as fast as I could go, I flew past Mark and tackled the man. We rolled on the ground for several feet before we came to a stop with him on top of me. Right before I heard the growl from Sadie I looked right into the pale blue eyes of the man who had attacked me three years ago. In a flash of teeth and fur the man was off me and on the ground under Sadie. I got up from the ground and tossed my cell to Mark. He opened the phone and dialed 911 as I headed over to get Sadie off of the creep.
I pointed my gun at him while standing far enough away he couldn’t move without me having time to react. Sadie was next to me with hair standing on end. All it would take was one word and she’d tear him apart. “I know you were the one who attacked me three years ago. Now, who are you and what do you want?” By this point Mark had finished with the call and had run back into the house. I was scared to death about what had happened to Courtney but I had to watch this guy.
“You’re the reason my father is in prison. I wanted you dead. I was beyond pissed when I was told you were back at work. She was, too.”
“She? You’re referring to Beth aren’t you?” I tighten my grip on the gun and brace myself for an attack.
“Yes, my sister. She took our mother’s name. And don’t worry. You won’t be able to find her, but your demise will come.”
I stood there shocked for a second. That’s all he needed. He jumped up and charged me. I didn’t have time to react the way I wanted to. He knocked the gun from my hand and attacked so fast I hardly had time to move. Sadie tried her best to help but he kept me between the two of them. I gave her the command to back off and rolled to get him where I could reach my gun. But before I could reach it, the sounds of the fight were broken by the ringing of a gun having been fired. At first I couldn’t understand what had happened. He had somehow gotten above me and was staring at me with a blank look on his face. Then he fell lifeless on top of me.
“Boss, are you okay?” With all that had happened and since it had happened so fast, I wasn’t able to focus on the person pulling the dead man off of me. In jeans and a t-shirt, I could see he had his badge on his belt and gun tucked into the side waist of his pants. It was then I was able to finally realize who it was that had saved me. I just couldn’t figure out why he was there.
“Yeah, Adams, I’m fine now. Thanks for the help but what are you doing here?” I sat up and tried to catch my breath. I could see Mark and Courtney coming out to see what was going on.
“The Dominant Vampires heard about what was going on and I was told to keep an eye on you. They wouldn’t get involved because neither Beth nor her brother are vampires but, they wanted you watched after. I was assigned to the job and was glad to take it.” Now, I was more shocked then before I had Mark and Courtney by my side to help me cope with the news.
“Wait, are you saying you’re a vampire too?”
“Yes. Sorry about not telling you but I was ordered to keep quiet about it.” It was then I heard the sirens from the police cars coming down our road. I also noticed Courtney was holding a wash cloth against her forehead.
“Adams, we’ll talk about this later. I’m so confused right now I don’t know left from right.”
I walked up to Courtney as the night shift officers ran around to the back of the house. “What did he do to you?”
“It’s over with Shawn. I’m okay. Let’s just hope Beth can be found soon. And thank you for getting here so fast.” She was leaning against Mark for support and was looking like she wasn’t able to focus on anything.
“Mark, one of you needs to tell me what happened. I heard her scream and got over here to find you chasing him. He’s the reason I am what I am. He tried to kill me. He and Beth have been involved in five murders, he attacks her and Beth is still out there. What the hell happened?”
Mark led Courtney over to their patio chairs and helped her sit down. I followed behind with Sadie by my side. She was making a point to always be in a place where she could touch me.
“He must have been here when we got home. I was already in bed when I heard her scream from the kitchen. She was on the ground when I got there and I chased after him. I didn’t even know if she was alive. She was trying to sit up when I got back inside. I tried to make her stay still but she insisted we make sure you were okay.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. He was going to make Courtney his next victim because of me. I felt like I was going to be sick. Looking over, I noticed the strap to Courtney’s nightgown had been ripped. He had planned on raping her too.
I couldn’t hold it anymore. I took off to the side of the house and fell to my knees. It felt like I had been there for hours and I hadn’t even noticed that Sadie and Adams had followed me until I had sat back on my legs and Sadie nudged me.
“Boss, she’s going to be okay. The medics are looking at her now.” Adams helped me up and walked me back over to my friends.
I sat down next to Mark and watched as he held her while she answered the ongoing questions from Officer Jones at the same time
as allowing the medics to bandage her forehead. I was once again on the verge of tears. This had to stop. Who was Beth going to attack next? And because Courtney wasn’t alone when it happened to her, did that mean the rest of my family was in danger? What about Casey and Julie?
“Maybe it would have been better if I had just died three years ago instead of changing into a vampire.” I didn’t think I had said that out loud but the following silence told me otherwise. So did the hand that slapped the shit out of me.
“How dare you say that Shawn! I can get over this but there is no way in hell I can get over losing you.” Courtney was outraged by my slip of the tongue. I hadn’t meant to say it out loud.
“Courtney, you were damn near raped and killed because of me. Let’s not forget the five women who have already lost their lives. Who else is going to have to pay for something I did?” I got up to walk away but was stopped by a set of arms being thrown around me. I turned around and Courtney fell into my arms. Her sobs were more than I could handle. I held her tight and cried with her.
“Shawn, Courtney and I had already thought about what could happen to us when Davis called yesterday. You were telling your parents you’re a vampire. He also told us about you being the target for these murders. We figured out on our own that whoever was in your yard the other night was the one doing the murders. I was foolish for letting her out of my sight. So stop blaming yourself. Neither of us would do anything different if we had it all to do again and knew the whole story to start with.” With Courtney still crying in my arms I hear sounds of worry coming from behind me.
Turning around I see that Adams, Jones, Smith, Clark and Blackman were all staring at me with worried looks. “Anderson, you and I may not always get along but I wouldn’t want to work at this department if you and Sheriff Anderson weren’t there.”
If I could be in any more shocked then I already was, then that would do it. I just couldn’t believe of the five standing there, it was Blackman that expressed his concern for me. And what I heard next about took my knees out from under me.
“You have no idea how many times I have tried to be more like you. You have the respect of everyone there and you have no problems what-so-ever with getting someone to do what you need them to do. I was jealous when you got promoted because I’ve been there longer and I wanted the job. I’ve learned you were the one that earned and deserved it. But to hear you say you wish you had died when he attacked you is just baffling to me. You’ve done so much to help this county and you have a loyalty from your friends anyone would want.”
“Blackman, I really don’t know what to say. I never expected to hear anything like that from you.” Courtney had stopped crying at and had moved back into Mark’s arms. I walked over to Blackman and shook his hand. I had a feeling things would be different from now on.
“Boss, one of us needs to call the Sheriff and let him know what happened. He had informed us when we caught Beth we were to start looking for the man that attacked you. Guess that’s been taken care of.” Smith had stepped forward to suggest this.
“No need to call him. The three of us are going to grab some things and head over there for the rest of the night.” Turning to Mark and Courtney, I informed them, “You two will stay there until Beth is caught. I’m not risking her attacking you again. Grab what you need and Nacho and we’ll head over to my place so I can get some things.” The responding officers said good-bye and went to do their paper work on the incident. Blackman hung back to let me know he was going to send an extra patrol around my parent’s home tonight. And every night until Beth is caught.
After Mark and Courtney found everything they needed and loaded it and Nacho in the car, we headed for my place. It didn’t take long for me to be ready. Sadie and I jumped into my car and with Mark and Courtney behind me we left for my parent’s house. Being woken up at three in the morning by your youngest son calling to let you know he was on the way was not a pleasant idea. Mom answered on the fourth ring.
“Shawn, what is wrong?” The sleepiness she had in her voice had been jolted out when she heard we were on our way.
“I’d rather tell you when we get there, Mom. It’s been a night from hell.”
Ten minutes later, we pulled into my parent’s drive and found Mom and Dad standing there waiting for us. That was not what I wanted to see. Not with Beth still out there.
I got out of the car and opened the back door to let Sadie out. Mark was headed over to Courtney’s side to help her out of their car. Courtney had Nacho tucked in her arms as she got out.
I turn around and came face to face with Dad. “Shawn, what’s going on?” There was fear in his voice. That’s something I’ve only heard once before. That was when they saw me after I was attacked and before I had finished changing into a vampire.
I grabbed my bag and when my friends had joined me we headed to the house. “Let’s get inside first please.”
My parents lived in a two story house. It was the one they had raised my brother, sister and me in. Just inside the door is a foyer with stairs going up to the four bedrooms and two full bathrooms. To the right of the foyer is the door leading to the two car garage that stored Mom’s Ford Focus and Dad’s Ford F150. To the left is the living room. One couch sat on the opposite side of the window with a view of the front yard. There was a walkway behind the couch that led to the room where Dad had his office. Across from that was the second couch that sat in front of the window. Between those, near the door and facing the other wall with the entertainment center sat two recliners. This was Mom and Dad’s favorite places to sit when there are guests and family over. Behind the recliners was a walkway to the kitchen and dining area. There was a sliding glass door that led to the patio in the back yard which is what the dining room table sat in front of.
We headed into the living room and all sit down. Sadie sat on the floor at my feet with her head on my knee. Mark and Courtney, along with Nacho, sat down next to me on the couch facing the front yard. Mom and Dad sat in the two recliners.
“Tonight the man involved in the murders tried to rape and murder Courtney. As it turns out, he’s also the one that tried to kill me three years ago. He’s also Beth’s brother. They are after me because I had their father locked up. Mark had chased him out into the back yard by the time I got there. He was getting ready to do me in when Adams showed up and shot him.” I said all this while looking down. I couldn’t look them in the face. When I looked up, they were both in shock.
“What was Adams doing there?” I’m not sure that’s what Dad really wanted to ask but I answered him anyway.
“Adams was sent by the Dominant Vampires to watch after me. He was following their orders. Had it not been for him, I’m not sure I would have come out of it alive. And Sadie couldn’t get to him. He kept me between her and him.”
“So where is Beth?” For the first time since we got there Mom spoke.
“I don’t know. She’s still out there plotting to kill me. I don’t even know if she knows her brother is dead.” I leaned back on the couch and yawned. I was tired but I also knew I wouldn’t sleep. “Blackman said he was going to set up extra patrols around here tonight. The four of you should get some sleep. There’s nothing more we can do right now.”
“What about you Shawn? You need some rest, too.” Courtney never ceases to amaze me. Here she is with a head injury having almost been raped and murdered and all she can think of is me.
“I’ll be fine. I’ll make sure you and Mark get settled and then I’ll come down here and chill on the couch.”
“I don’t want you up the rest of the night worrying about this son. You need to sleep.” I could see Dad was about to put his foot down on this one so I spoke up to stop him.
“I won’t promise anything but I’ll try. A lot has happened because of me and I almost lost one of my best friends tonight.”
“Shawn, do I need to slap you again?” I could hear the anger in Courtney’s voice.
“Right now
Courtney, I’m numb and I won’t feel it.” I slump down onto the couch waiting for them to agree to go to bed.
“Why on Earth did you slap him?” Oh great. Now Mom will hear what I said and she’ll go off on me. Goodie.
Courtney hesitated for a second but the look my mom was giving her made her tell all. “After the events that happened tonight he made the comment that maybe it would have been better if he had just died instead of letting the vampire change him.”
“Shawn William Anderson, if I ever hear about you saying something like that again, I will slap you myself!” The booming voice of my dad rang out in the house, making me sink farther into the couch. He was not the one I expected to go off on me. On top of that, he has never spoken to me that way before. I was kind of afraid of him at that moment.
I looked over and saw Mom crying. I never could bear to see her cry. I got up and knelt down in front of her. “Mom, I love you. But you have to understand where I am coming from. I never wanted anyone to get hurt. I took an oath to protect and do no harm and I meant every word of it. Now, five women are dead and Courtney almost made number six. I’m scared. Who’s next? When will we find her? I didn’t want to die then and still don’t. But I’m the cause of all of this and I can’t help how I feel.”
“Shawn, I don’t know who their father is but HE is the cause of all of this. If he hadn’t broken the law, he wouldn’t have been caught by you and you wouldn’t have put him in jail. YOU didn’t do this. HE did.” Like always, my mother had a gentle touch and knew how to make me feel better. I rose up and put my arms around her neck. The hug she gave me in return was of pure motherly love.
I stood up and walked back over to my place on the couch. Without saying another word, Mom and Dad left the room and headed for bed.
I took Mark and Courtney up to the room they would be calling theirs until this was over. As I walked inside I reminded them they needed to call their boss and let him know they wouldn’t be there and explain what was going on. Mark started to protest but Courtney stopped him.
“Honey, Shawn is going through a lot right now and the last thing we need to do is give him more to worry about. I think it’s a good idea for us to stay here and out of work until she’s caught.” Mark looked like he was about to cry.
“Shawn, I’m sorry. I guess I wasn’t thinking. You’re both right. We’ll stay here until its safe.”
We said goodnight and I headed back downstairs. I checked every lock in the house I could get to without disturbing my parents and two best friends and sat down on the couch. Sadie curled up next to me, then laid her head on my leg.
“What have I gotten us into girl?” I patted her head knowing she wouldn’t answer me and with my head leaning back and feet propped up on the coffee table I did what I didn’t think I would be able to do…Sleep.