Welcome to the Neighborhood #1

  Chapter 9

  Before Andrew could grab hold of him, Billiam charged the monsters like he’d been shot out of a cannon. Jumping into the air, Billiam went for Brad’s throat, but the vampire caught the little pug by the neck and snatched him out of midair. Andrew gasped.

  “Hey, put him down. He’s just a little dog, he is just trying to protect me. I’m the one you want, just let him go.” Brad chuckled just as you would expect a vampire to chuckle, creepy as hell.

  “Silly Andy, you are in no position to bargain. We are going to kill you and tear the flesh from your body whether I snap this little doggy’s neck or not. But we had a bigger canine in mind for tonight, so I won’t waste my time.” Then Brad threw Billiam across the room. His little pugly body slammed into the wall with a yelp and he landed hard on the floor in a crumple and stayed still. Andrew felt his eyes fill with tears as he clenched his teeth in anger.

  “You murdering bastard! I’m going to-” Ted cut Andrew off. He noticed the vampire had a dented forehead from his run-in with the old man’s car. Good, he thought.

  “You aren’t going to do anything. We warned you to stay out of it. We told you Garrett needed to be taken care of…that he was dangerous. If you had minded your own business we would have killed the mutt and you’d never have known we were vampires. Now, you have forced us to silence you. Oh, and I noticed you looking at the dent in my forehead. Don’t worry, it will heal up…all I need is blood. And I’m about to fill up on yours.” Andrew had to face facts, he was toast. Toast buttered and spread with his own blood and guts for these vampires. Might as well go out in style.

  “Go ahead jerkoff. I’m glad I’ve eaten like shit my whole life. All that fast food should have plugged up my arteries real nice. You’re gonna need a straw to suck up my thick blood, shake style bitch. Now do it already! Come on, do it and go chase after Garrett. I hope he tears you all to shreds.” All three snickered at that and shook their heads. Brad spoke first.

  “Garrett won’t do anything but die when we catch up to him, but there will be time for that later. We can’t just kill you and run off. Tsk, tsk, tsk Andy, use that big head of yours. We are going to have to stick around and wait for your little wifey to come home. Of course, we will have to have some fun with her first.” Greg thought this was hilarious as he slapped Brad on the back and doubled over cackling. Ted spoke through his own evil giggles.

  “Yeah, like they say Andrew, once you go vampire…well, you don’t do anything because you get torn to shreds and eaten right after.” Andrew growled with rage and got to his feet. The thought of his sweet Ellen being raped and murdered by these monsters was too much. He screamed at the top of his lungs and charged at the three chuckling vampires. Maybe he didn’t stand a chance, but he was going to do everything he could to wipe those fangy smiles off their faces.

  When he got within striking distance he threw a punch at Greg, but the vampire just swatted his arm aside…and the force of it snapped Andrew’s arm in half. Howling in pain, he clutched his arm. Ted grabbed Andrew by the throat and lifted the big man off his feet.

  Gasping for breath, Andrew pawed frantically at the flexed arm of his captor. As things began to fade, he took one last shot. Gathering as much spit into his mouth as he could, he spit into Ted’s face. Shutting his eyes and hissing, Ted wiped his forearm across his eyes then threw Andrew across the room. His whole body slammed into the wall, denting and cracking the plaster wall…and a few ribs. Hitting the ground hard, Andrew let out a groan as he nursed his broken bones.

  He had to keep trying. No matter how bad he hurt, he had to stop the trio from hurting Ellen, or die trying. Struggling to his feet, he staggered and swayed forward a couple steps but Greg was on top of him, picking him up and throwing him over his shoulders across to the other side of the room. He landed awkwardly on his broken arm, slamming into the ground and sliding hard into the wall below the room’s large picture window. Grimacing through intense pain, Andrew tried to stand again, but physically couldn’t. Propping himself up with his good arm, he spat out blood before addressing his soon to be murderers.

  “Is that all you got, assholes?” As they looked down smiling at his beaten form, and the chunks of blood he’d spat out, Andrew swore he saw them lick their lips.

  “Nah, meat, that’s just the beginning. We warned you, now you’re going to pay. For what it’s worth, we are really sorry. For a human, no strike that…for cattle, you’re a good guy, a good friend. Hopefully, you will taste just as good. If not, we have Ellen’s sweet little blood-sack to look forward to afterwards to get rid of the bad taste. So long Andy.” Andrew collapsed to the ground, unable to do anything but wait for the three approaching vampires to devour him. Just as the fangs from their open mouths pierced his flesh, the window above him exploded inward, glass raining down everywhere.

  A dark blur passed over top of Andrew, knocking all three vampires off of him and onto the ground. Andrew wished he could scramble away and get far from them, but he could hardly keep his eyes open, or breathe for that matter, let alone move. The dark figure landed in a crouch and stood up, well over seven feet tall. It was a werewolf, it was Garrett. The wolf made eye contact with Andrew for a second before diving onto Ted and biting into the dent in his head. The vampire hissed and let out an ear piercing scream as Garrett tore half his head off, spitting it out onto the floor. Then he raked a huge claw into what remained, ripping the rest off and leaving a bloody stump where the head used to be.

  Greg dove into Garrett’s back tackling him off Ted’s still corpse. Landing on his stomach, Garrett tried to get up, but Brad joined Greg on top of the struggling wolf and they tore into him. Bitting and gouging, the two vampires savagely attacked Andrew’s friend. As he listened to Garrett’s wails of pain, Andrew knew he had to help him.

  Garrett had been in the clear, safe and sound and far away from the vampires that had tried to kill him. But he’d come back to try and save Andrew. Now Garrett was in danger of dying again, slowly being overwhelmed by the two remaining vampires. The night had started with Andrew wanting to help save Garrett, and this could be his last chance to do that.

  Sucking air, Andrew growled as he forced himself to his feet through the nauseating pain. He tried to take a step forward, but the weakness, pain, and dizzying feeling he experienced caused him to fall into a wooden end table. The table broke and splintered beneath his weight as he hit the ground, sending wood shards everywhere. Picking up one of the larger, jagged pieces of wood, Andrew stabbed it onto the ground and used it to prop himself all the way up to his feet. He was about to toss the wood aside when the monster movies came to mind.

  What was the most effective way to kill a vampire in the movies? A wooden stake through the heart. Andrew hefted the makeshift stake in his hand, holding it like a spear. Then he hobbled over to the exposed backs of the two vampires trying to finish off Garrett and plunged the pointed end through the back of Greg, right into the region he believed the freak’s black heart would be.

  Greg instantly shot straight up, arching his back and screaming before exploding and spraying bloody gore all over Andrew and everything in the room. Guess the movies had it right, Andrew thought. Although, he had to admit he preferred the more subtle disintegrating-into-ash response that the movies always portrayed.

  Brad turned away from Garrett and hissed at Andrew. That was all the distraction the werewolf needed. Rolling onto his back, Garrett kicked at Brad with two huge feet and sent the vampire sailing into the plaster wall. Before Brad could completely get to his feet, Garrett was on him, picking him up off the ground with a huge clawed hand wrapped around his neck. Growling at his enemy, the werewolf leaned in close to Brad’s face. Turning to me, Brad scowled.

  “You and your little pet here should enjoy your victory today. But you won’t get to for long. Even after you kill me, it won’t be over. Others will come, they know about this
mutt and they will know about you…thanks to the text I sent on our way over to your house. My superiors in the vampire council know we came here to silence you, and when they find out we were killed and you and your werewolf are still alive…they will tear you, him, and Ellen to pieces. And if you think what we did was bad, just wait until they-” Before he could finish his schpeel, Garrett punched a huge fist into the stunned vampire’s chest. When the werewolf ripped his fist back out, he held Brad’s heart. As Brad’s lifeless body fell to the floor, Garrett tossed the dead vampire’s heart into his wolf mouth and ate it.

  Andrew wasn’t sure what to do now. Was Garrett completely in control? He had built a heavy duty steel cage in his basement to contain himself…Garrett wouldn’t have done that if he wasn’t worried about hurting someone when he wolfed out. What happened now? No way Andrew could stop the wolf Garrett from killing him if that’s what the wolf wanted to do. As he wondered what would happen next, Garrett finished his meal and snapped his head and attention towards Andrew. Growling, the beast began to walk towards Andrew, slightly hunched and claws at ready…ready for what Andrew didn’t want to know.

  Inches away, it stopped. Too tired to move or fight, Andrew stood stone still as the wolf leaned in until their faces were nearly touching. Out of the corner of his eye, Andrew saw the huge right hand of Garrett raise up, claws spread and prepared for the kill. Here we go, Andrew thought. As the hand came rushing down towards him, Andrew made eye contact with Garrett…and he swore he saw his friend somewhere in there look back.

  The beast’s growl turned into a whine as it backed away, hugging itself and falling to the floor. As the wolfman began to shake and yelp, Andrew watched in awe as the hair grew shorter and shorter, as did the beast itself. Slowly, the monster that was lying there morphed and changed until a naked man was left in its place, shivering and curled into a ball. Garrett, it was really him. Andrew tried to crouch by his side, but collapsed out of exhaustion. Lying next to his friend, Andrew gingerly lifted his good arm and softly patted Garrett on the back.

  “Thanks for coming back buddy…sorry I had to see you naked.” Garrett looked at him and the corner of his mouth curled up as he smiled.

  “You know you liked it you sick freak.” That got Andrew to smile, and both men laughed. Only for a few seconds though, as they both realized laughter caused their wounds too much pain. Wincing, Garrett continued.

  “I’m sorry all this happened Andrew. If I would have known all this would go down when I moved here…I would have stayed away.”

  “It’s okay bro, you couldn’t have known.”

  “Well, I sensed vampires in the neighborhood, but I’d hoped they would ignore me. There are some decent ones out there…or at least I hear there are. I haven’t met a bloodsucker that didn’t earn their reputation myself. He’s right too. More will come, you and Ellen are in danger. As is your unborn child.” Andrew didn’t try to hide his confusion.

  “But I told you Garrett, Ellen isn’t pregnant.”

  “She is buddy, I promise you. My senses are all heightened, especially when a full moon is close. I could smell the baby, even though it is the size of a peanut…it’s there. Let her tell you when she’s ready, and act surprised for pete’s sake. Don’t let her know you know…I just wanted you to know how careful you need to be. I will do all I can to protect you all. It isn’t just the vampires that are coming we need to worry about either.” Andrew didn’t like what Garrett was insinuating.

  “What does that mean?”

  “I can sense other…supernatural beings in this neighborhood. Why do you think no one came outside to check what was going on when I escaped, or when the vampires killed that old man? Or why no one has called the police yet. This neighborhood is full of monsters…that’s why I thought I would be safe here…that I could blend in.” Andrew couldn’t believe it…that couldn’t be true. How could his neighborhood be full of horror movie monsters? The look of shock on his face must have been obvious. Garrett chuckled.

  “You look pretty shell-shocked buddy, I will let that all sink in. This neighborhood isn’t what you thought it was, huh? Guess I should be the one telling you Welcome to the Neighborhood.” What was he going to do? Andrew needed to keep Ellen and their unborn child safe, but now he didn’t know from who…or what for that matter. The thought of Ellen suddenly knocked him back into reality. She was going to be home from work in a couple hours and he was seriously injured. As was Garrett, not to mention naked, and there were two gory corpses in the room...three if you count the splatter left by Greg when he exploded. How was he going to explain this?

  “Crap Garrett, Ellen is going to be home soon and things aren’t exactly normal here. What are we going to do?”

  “Well, you can’t really hide your injuries…and neither of us are up to disposing of the corpses. So, you are just going to have to roll with it.”

  “Me, what about you man. You are in this with me, right?”

  “Yeah, but the moon is still up…I don’t know how much longer I can hold off the wolf.” Crapolla, Andrew thought. He’d hoped that was over for the night.

  “Damn, you are going to change back. What is that like…do you have any control?”

  “Not completely. It is kind of like being drunk or high I suppose. I can see everything that happens, and I know what I want to do or not do…but my body doesn’t always respond to my thoughts. It’s kind of like I am just along for the ride.”

  “But you stopped the wolf from killing me, and you forced the change back to yourself. And you came back for me.”

  “Well, the wolf wanted to come back and kill the vampires as much as I wanted to come back and save you, so that wasn’t hard. If I really focus and concentrate, sometimes I can force the wolf to change back to me…but it doesn’t last long, and it takes a lot out of me. Once I change back that will be it for the night. I need to get up and get away to somewhere safe where I can’t hurt anyone when I turn. My cage I built is trashed thanks to the vampires, so I need to get out to the woods.”

  “But you’re hurt, you won’t make it.”

  “I will be okay, my wounds are healing thanks to the full moon and the wolf’s DNA pumping through my blood right now. You just need to call 911 and say that you were hanging out with your two friends when something came crashing through the window and attacked you all. Be vague, don’t try to hide the shock and emotional stress you are really dealing with and you should be okay. The police won’t be satisfied with your lack of real answers, but your injuries are serious enough to get you off the hook. I will meet up with you tomorrow evening. I am usually so exhausted after a change that I need to sleep for most of the day.” Garrett blew out a breath and got to his feet, wincing and grimacing with each movement. Looking down at Andrew, he nodded. “Okay buddy, hang in there and do like I told you. Oh, and one more thing. Your dog isn’t your average dog.” Billiam. Andrew remembered the poor little guy and looked over where his crumpled form had been, but he wasn’t there. Where was Billiam, he wondered.

  “Where is he? What do you mean he isn’t an average dog?” Garrett started to answer but doubled over, letting out a growl of pain.

  “I will talk to you about it tomorrow, I have to go…now.” He didn’t wait for a response from Andrew, taking off at a full speed run in his birthday suit through the broken door.

  Okay, first he needed to get to the phone, call 911, and then he would find Billiam’s body. He wanted to make sure his little friend got a proper burial. Grunting and gasping, Andrew attempted to get to his feet but everything just hurt too much. The sound of tiny nails clicking on the floor and the jangling of dog collar tags caught his attention.

  Looking in the direction the noise came from, Andrew was shocked to see Billiam standing in front of him. The little guy looked fine, like nothing had happened to him at all. And he was holding the phone in his tiny mouth. Dropping it on the ground, Bill
iam nudged it towards Andrew with his head. What the hell?

  “How are you okay buddy? I mean, I’m pumped don’t get me wrong, but…you should be dead Billiam.” A dog his size would have broken every bone in his little body from the force of hitting the wall as hard as he did. What Garrett had said about the neighborhood stuck out in his mind. About all the supernatural beings in this area. Andrew had bought Billiam from someone a couple blocks over when their pug had had babies. What was it about this damn town!?

  That could wait, Andrew thought as he dialed 911. After one ring, the operator picked up.

  “911, what is your emergency?” Andrew did as Garrett had instructed him, telling the story he’d suggested. As he waited for the ambulance and police, Andrew’s eyes grew more and more tired. Out of exhaustion and pain, he passed out.