burger down on a paper plate.
“Judy…I am so sorry,” he said apologetically. “I…”
Waving a hand in the air, she stopped him. “I may be only fifteen…But I do understand some things.” She smiled buoyantly.
“You’re not mad then…for my being an hour…” he glanced at his watch, “or so late? Not like you,” he granted, getting himself a paper plate off the counter and sitting down. He took his fork and stuck it in one of the burger patties that were on a small plate in the center of the table and placed the patty on top a toasted bun.
Cutting her eyes over to him and grinning like a Cheshire, she said, “Not this time. I kind of expected you to be late. No matter what you say, I know you like Amber.”
He went to protest but she shushed him again.
“And that’s all right! I like her too! She’d make a great sister-in-law.”
“Wait!” he said, holding up a palm. “I’m not marrying her…yet!”
She cackled, took a drink of her milk and said, “Yet…He says…But you have thought about it?”
He rolled his eyes and finished building his hamburger. “Okay…I admit… I do like her a lot! But let’s not jump to the ringing of wedding bells before I’ve had a chance to really get to know her.”
“But you are admitting that you’re ready to settle down?” she chuckled musically.
He bobbed his head. “With the right woman…Face it…It is kind of lonesome here, even with your wonderful company. And I get tired of driving into Seattle just to look for female companionship…So many of the available women I know and run into… are more focused on having fun than getting married.”
“I knew it…I knew it!” She jumped up then and stuck her head through the door and announced to Sally, “Paul’s got a thing for Amber!”
Sally called back, “I’m not surprised.”
“I hope no one else is in the store,” Paul said.
Judy glanced at him amusedly and then back into the store. “No one’s here…Right?”
“No one,” Sally confirmed.
“Good!” Paul breathed with relief. “Now…Will you sit down with me and finish your burger?”
Judy didn’t answer, just looked at him, grinning so big he thought her face was going to split, and sat down.
He just shook his head and focused on eating his supper, doing his best to avoid her laughing eyes.
Dorian grabbed his pills out of the medicine cabinet. Nine left. After this daily dose, he’d have eight. “Crap…” he uttered, taking out the pill and downing it swiftly.
As much as he hated to leave at this moment in time, he felt that maybe he should get them refilled now, instead of waiting.
If Klaus was considering attacking Amber or any of her friends, Dorian thought the other vampire would wait a few days until everyone felt safe again. Hopefully, enough time for him to take his trip and get back before any real trouble began.
Maybe he was just being paranoid, but he couldn’t rid himself of the notion that Klaus was up to something, possibly looking for a reason to go back on his word. Knowing a vampire like Klaus, which many were notorious for, it took little to provoke them into forgetting their promises. Still, he had not known him that long. He hoped he could trust him.
He was reasonably sure that Amber did not believe vampires were a reality, and she didn’t really know him, so it would probably scare her off – she’d think him nuts – if he tried to warn her personally, not to invite any strangers in. He did have an idea, though she’d probably think it a silly joke. But he hoped she’d, at least, take some heed to it. He’d leave an old book he had on vampires at her front door. Hopefully, she’d read some of it. And as an added measure, he wrote on the inside cover for her not to let any strangers in just in case she didn’t read that far into the book. He knew it would probably be a wasted effort, but he had to try. He was also good at disguising his signature, had had many years to practice.
He’d taken the extra precaution of taking a dry cloth and wiping the book off from back to front with gloved hands, not wanting to leave any traces of fingerprints. And not just to remove his own, for the book had passed through many hands during his three hundred years. He didn’t want any of his – if they were around in the reasonable vicinity – friends being paid unsuspected visits by the police. That was just in case, though.
Pill taken, he glanced outside. It was good dark now. He’d laid the book on the bar. He slipped into his brown leather jacket, zipped it up about half way and inserted the book inside his jacket, going out his back door and heading for her cabin.
Amber’s lights were still on, though it was around eleven. He moved more silently than any snake as he surmounted her front porch, turning into nothing more than a fine mist as he peered into the window of the door. If one were watching from nearby, they would see the book appear mysteriously at the foot of her door. He moved back and caused the screen to bang loudly several times and slam open against the porch wall.
When Amber guardedly opened the door and looked outside, she saw the screen was laid wide open. She stepped out to retrieve the screen and tripped on the book, catching herself with one hand on the wall. “What the –?” With a confused frown, she bent over and picked up the old book.”Where in hell…” She didn’t finish her sentence.
Instead, suddenly realizing the strangeness of it all, quickly glanced around. Seeing a mist hanging in the corner of her porch, she shivered hard and quickly took the book inside, hooking the screen and locking the door.
Inside, Amber stared down at the crimson, leather-bound book. Looked expensive but very old, possibly antique. Embossed in letters of gold was the title “Vampires”. “What the—?” She slowly opened the book and read Dorian’s handwritten note. Don’t invite any strangers in! She had watched her quota of vampire movies, and was not unfamiliar to that warning. But that was all fiction! Or so, she thought. She reached down and picked up the remote off her love seat and switched the television off. She sat down and began thumbing through the book. There were some very detailed and gory depictions of vampires and their victims. “Who on earth would leave me such a book?” She glanced around her living room as though halfway expecting to see someone standing there. For now, she had the creepy feeling that she was being watched.
Her black teapot clock on the kitchen wall above the table said it was just a little after eleven.
“Too late to phone Paul,” she said to herself. “I’m sure he’s asleep by now.” She laid the book aside and stood. Now she wished she had a beer. If she ever needed one, she felt now was the time. But she knew she’d have to settle for a couple of Tylenol PMs instead. She had been about to head for bed anyway when the screen had flung open. Now, she had no doubts that she’d need some kind of sleep aid. She took the pills and went to bed.
Dorian was satisfied that she had, at least, read his warning. He knew she would be dwelling on the book’s mysterious sudden appearance. He hoped that that fact, in itself, would make her more conscientious and alert to her surroundings for awhile. He figured that was the best he could do for now without scaring the bejesus out of her. He slipped off the porch and headed through the woods. Not to his cabin, but due north to Canada, with the Kolyma region of Russia – arctic northeast Siberia – being his desired destination.
As his mist passed just over the trees, he keened all his vampire senses on the whereabouts of any signs of Klaus or any other vampires. And he was somewhat relieved to find the towheaded vampire feeding on some old homeless man that had made himself a shelter of cardboard boxes in the woods, about thirty miles north of Amber’s cabin. Maybe Klaus was going to keep his hunting away from his territory for the time being. But Dorian wasn’t going to count on it.
Klaus peered up as Dorian’s mist passed over. A wry grin framed his bloody lips as he recognized his own kind passing over; although, he could not tell Dorian’s identity in mist form. He quickly forgot about the temporary distraction and returned to dr
aining the rest of the old man’s blood.
Once past Klaus, Dorian returned to his physical form, as he loved running fast as the wind through the trees. He would return to mist when he passed through populated areas, so as not to be seen.
Amber awoke from a solid and uneventful sleep. No dreams of Dorian. It was cloudy outside and it was cool in her cabin. She tossed some kindling in the hearth, lit it and waited until it was going good and laid a couple of logs on and went off to her kitchen to make coffee. While waiting for the coffee, she went to the living room and saw that the vampire book was still there. She took it to the table and laid it down. Her coffee was about finished, so she took a mug from her cupboard, filled it with the hot brew, spooned in two teaspoons of sugar, poured in coffee creamer and sat down to enjoy her coffee and look through the book some more, now that she was more alert.
The pictures were still just as vivid and alarming as when she’d glanced through them the night before. She snapped the book shut and glanced at the clock. It was just a little past eight. Paul would have his store open now, so she wouldn’t call him. Since it looked as though she wouldn’t be getting any painting done outside today, she decided she’d take the book with her and drive in and show it to Paul.
She hoped, though she figured he probably wouldn’t know, that he would have some idea as