Blood Slayer

  Blood Slayer

  Tim Miller

  Copyright © 2013 by Tim Miller

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof

  may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever

  without the express written permission of the publisher

  except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Printed in the United States of America

  Cover design by Covermecreative.com

  Edited by Lori King

  This book is dedicated to my Ashley, who will always be my favorite super hero

  Chapter 1

  The teacher droned on and on about angles, and theorems or something. Jessica had no idea why she was even in geometry. It’s not like she was going to college. Her mom seemed to think she was going to be some big scientist. Jessica thought her mom watched “Rain Man” too many times. She was the only one in her class with Asperger’s disorder.

  “Miss Byers? Is there a problem?” Mr. Gruber called out. Jessica hadn’t realized she was staring out the window.

  “What?” She asked.

  “Is there a problem?” He repeated.

  “Um, no, no problem here…”

  “Great, then you won’t mind explaining what I just talked about.” He said, with a smirk on his face. She hated Mr. Gruber. He didn’t seem to like her too much either. Most of her teachers were aware of her condition, which affected the way she focused, communicated and related to people. Most were pretty supportive, but Mr. Gruber was not. He was in his sixties and seemed to think it was some kind of made up disorder since he had never heard of it. Since there was no visible sign of illness, then she must be making it up.

  “When I was a kid, if someone acted like you, we got our butts whipped!” he once shouted at her. When she was little, she’d had her butt whipped plenty, and it did little good. For that kind of discipline to sink in, one has to understand what they are being disciplined for.

  “Um, I don’t remember,” Jessica said in answer to the teacher’s question.

  “Just as I thought; you’ll get a zero for today’s work as well since class participation is part of your grade.” He looked to the rest of the class. “I guess there is one like you in every grade.”

  The class laughed as Jessica looked around. She suspected they were all laughing at her, but had no idea what to say, so she just sat there. Something hit her in the back of the head. She looked down and saw a large paper wad on the floor next to her. Gunnar Reid was sitting behind her giving her the middle finger. She didn’t care for him either.

  When it came down to it, she had very few friends, and she didn’t relate well with most kids. Everyone thought she was weird, or rude. She didn’t try to be, it was just how she came across. Thankfully, the rest of the day was mostly uneventful. After school she went straight home to work on her homework. Her mom wasn’t home yet, which was a huge relief. That meant she could sneak in an hour or so watching TV.

  Her mom was real strict and always insisted Jessica stick by a specific routine; a routine that included very little TV watching or play time. It was always homework, chores, more homework, and then more chores. She hated doing both, but her mom would go nuts if she gave her any flak about it. She flipped through the channels and found one of her favorite shows. It was about unicorns. That was something else kids at school teased her about. She loved unicorns.

  She had unicorns on her notebooks, backpacks and even stickers on her locker. At age fifteen, most girls had grown out of such things. Jessica had not. Some thought it was part of the Asperger’s, keeping her interested in things most consider childish. After about an hour the phone rang.

  “Hello?” she said answering.

  “Hey kiddo it’s mom.”

  “Hey, mommy,” She said. “Where are you?”

  “I’m still at work. Someone called in, so I have to stay over for a few more hours. You doing your homework?”

  “Uh…yeah,”

  “Are you lying?” Her mom asked.

  “No! I’m doing it.”

  “Ok, it had better be done when I get home. There’s a TV dinner in the freezer you can make for yourself. And make sure you take the trash out.”

  “Ok mommy.”

  “I’ll be home as soon as I can. I love you.”

  “Love you too mommy.” She said and hung up. While she liked having some time to herself, she hated being home alone for too long. She always got scared, especially when it would get dark as it was starting to. Before she’d forget, she decided to go ahead and run the trash outside. She grabbed the bag from the garbage can and walked it to the end of the driveway.

  “Excuse me, miss?” A man said from nearby. “Do you have the time?”

  “Umm, I think it’s almost eight,” she said.

  “Great,” he said walking closer. He was much taller than her and wearing a dark hoodie. “Can I ask you something?”

  “My mom says I’m not supposed to talk to strangers.” She said backing up a few steps. He looked large and muscular. She was glad she’d been watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for so long that she figured she’s picked up a few moves from them.

  “Well my name is Lyle. Guess that makes me not a stranger now doesn’t it?”

  “I-I guess so?” She said, unsure of what to do next. Something didn’t feel right about this guy.

  “Ok then. Just come closer. It’s very important.”

  “Who are you?” She asked again.

  “I said I’m Lyle.” He approached her quickly, too quickly. He was standing inches from her and she hadn’t even seen him move. He grabbed her by the arms and smiled, exposing a mouth full of jagged, shark-like teeth. His eyes glowed yellow as she stared up at him. “Now be calm,” he said. “There is nothing to worry about. Just give yourself over to me.”

  Jessica looked at him, confused. Was he trying to hypnotize her?

  “Let me go!” she shouted. “Help!”

  His eyes glowed even brighter as he pulled her closer.

  “Don’t struggle,” he said. “Just be come, and come with me. It will all be fine.”

  She instead slammed her knee up into his groin. It didn’t seem to hurt him, but stunned him enough to break his grip. She turned and ran back toward the house. She was no match for his speed though. He grabbed her arm and spun her around, sending her tumbling to the ground. He stood over her, his eyes and teeth glowing in the darkness.

  “I tried to do this the easy way. But I guess I’m going to have to make it hurt,” he said as he took a step toward her. When he was within inches of her, an arrow tore through his chest from behind. He let out a scream as blood sprayed from the wound. His skin turned to gel as he appeared to melt before her eyes. His skin, blood and tissue oozing off his bones as his bones disintegrated and turned into dust.

  Jessica sat up, horrified. Some of Lyle’s blood was on her shirt and face. She looked around to see where the arrow came from. In the streetlights, she saw a man approaching holding a bow.

  “What is going on?” she said. “Who are you?”

  “I’m Adam. That guy was a vampire, he was about to kill you.”

  “What? A vampire?”

  “That’s right. I’d been tracking him for a few days. I saw him here with you, but had to wait to get a good shot. How were you able to fight him off?”

  “What? I didn’t! He threw me around like nothing.”

  “No, the trance. You can’t look a vampire in the eyes, they’ll hypnotize you, and then you’re powerless. He had no effect on you.”

  “I don’t know. I have no idea.”

  “Well, you’re not safe here. He’s dead, but his nest will be coming looking for him. Come with me,” he said holding out his hand. “Your life is about to c
hange.”

  Chapter 2

  “Wait a minute,” Jessica said. “You’re a stranger too.”

  “I just saved your life,” he said.

  “Yeah, I guess.”

  “Trust me. You’re not safe here. Just come with me. I’m not one of them and I won’t hurt you.”

  Jessica slowly took Adam’s hand as he helped her to her feet. He was almost a foot taller than her, though she was only five foot four herself. She thought he was cute, with his short, cropped brown hair and a few days’ worth of stubble.

  “Let’s get out of here,” he said. He began to run while holding her hand. She ran along with him doing her best to keep up. They ran for almost a block as she realized how bad of shape she was in. Her lungs began to burn as her breathing sped up. At the end of the block, was a black sports car. It sat so low to the ground Jessica thought she was going to fall into the street as she climbed in.

  “What kind of car is this?” She asked, not that she knew anything about cars. This one just looked like something she’d seen on TV.

  “It’s a Lotus Esprit,” he said. “Hang on.” Before she could fully buckle her seatbelt, she was thrust back into her seat as Adam punched the gas. They took off so fast, she was sure they were about to leave the ground. The car remained on the road though. She managed to click her seatbelt as they darted in and out of traffic. She also noticed their headlights weren’t on. All she could see in front of her was pitch black and some tail lights of the cars they whizzed past.

  “How can you see?” She asked.

  “The driver’s side has night vision heads up display?” He answered.

  “What?”

  “On my side, it’s got night vision like what the military uses. I can see at night. Also tells me how close other cars and obstacles are.”

  “Who are you?”

  “I told you, I’m Adam.”

  She sat quietly trying to piece this all together. None of it made sense to her.

  “Where are we going? I need to call my mom. She’ll be home soon.”

  “She’ll be fine,” he said.

  “But she’ll worry about me. And won’t those things get her?”

  “They don’t want her. They want you. So the closer you are to her, the more danger she is in.”

  Before she could answer, he turned the car toward a large building without slowing down. They headed down a long ramp and through a dark tunnel. The tunnel wove around for several minutes before they came to a stop.

  “Ok,” he said. “We’re here.” As he opened the door and stepped out, Jessica stepped out as well. Looking around, the lighting was a bluish tint. She could see most of the place was concrete, like it was some kind of huge basement.

  “Where are we?” She asked.

  “We’re home for now. Let’s go meet the others.”

  “Others?”

  She followed him through a door and into a hallway, also lit with the same blue lighting. She noticed Adam was wearing some kind of black body armor, but it was form fitting. His bow was slung across his back as they walked down the corridor. As they reached the end of the hall, he pushed through large wooden double doors and into what looked like a large arena. They were standing on a catwalk. Below were at least a dozen others dressed like Adam; many of them also had bows and arrows. They were shooting targets. Some of them had crossbows, and others were using Karate or something on each other.

  Jessica stood in awe of the whole place. It was like something she’d seen on Yu-Gi-Oh or Power Rangers. She wondered if Adam and the others had magic powers.

  “Welcome to the lair,” Adam said.

  “Lair?”

  “We are all vampire hunters. This is our base of operations.”

  “Really? My mom told me vampires weren’t real.”

  “You saw that thing that attacked you. Did he seem real to you?”

  “Well, yeah.”

  “There you go then.”

  Her heart sank as she took it all in. That vampire wasn’t nice or handsome at all like in the “Twilight” movies. He was mean and ugly and had scary teeth.

  “That vampire was different than Edward,” she said.

  “Edward? Who is Edward?”

  “The vampire from Twilight... he was handsome and friendly. He tried not to hurt anybody,” Jessica explained.

  “This isn’t Twilight sweetheart. And these vampires are about as far from friendly as you can get.”

  “So why am I here?”

  “There is something special about you. Something the vampires fear. So you just might be the one to stop them for good.”

  Chapter 3

  She followed Adam down the stairs toward the training area. The others stopped and looked at her. Most of them, including Adam only looked a few years older than her. There were both boys and girls in the group.

  “Is this some kind of club?” She asked.

  “I guess you can say that,” Adam replied.

  “Oh cool! Can I join?”

  The others looked at Adam as if to say “what did you drag in here?”

  “We’ll see. There’s a lot to learn. I hope you are up for it. Let’s meet everyone.”

  “Awesome!”

  “Hey guys, gather round a minute. This is Jessica. She was attacked tonight by a vampire.”

  “And she lived?” A tall girl said from the group.

  “Yes, she did. She was immune to his trance. He had no effect on her,” Adam explained. “So I brought her here so we can maybe learn some things about why. This will help us in our fight.”

  “Is she going to fight along with us?” One of the guys asked.

  “I don’t know yet. I’m going to help her get settled. Anna, can you come along?” The tall girl walked over to them. She had long, black hair pulled back into a pony tail. “I’m going to set her up with a room, was hoping you could help her get situated.”

  Anna shrugged her shoulders.

  “Sure,” she said. “I guess so.”

  They walked through into another corridor and down another flight of stairs. There were some rooms along the lower corridor. The area was all concrete and dimly lit. It reminded Jessica of the basement at her grandma’s old house. She never went down there because it was cold and dark, like this place.

  “I have to stay here?” Jessica asked.

  “It’s the safest place there is. They have no idea we are here. The weird lights you saw when you came in, those are ultraviolet lights. The same kind of light the sun gives off. If a vampire tries to come through there, he’ll catch on fire.” Adam said.

  “Wow, really?”

  “Yes…really. We have them down here too. They just aren’t as bright. Plus we have people keep watch 24/7. So trust me, you’re plenty safe.”

  “Do I get something cool? Like a crossbow or something?”

  “What is wrong with her?” Anna asked. “How old are you?”

  “I’m fifteen,” Jessica said, holding her chin up proudly.

  “Then why do you talk like you’re nine years old?” Anna asked. Adam shot her a glare as Jessica lowered her head slightly.

  “I have Asperger’s.” Jessica said.

  “What the heck is that?” Anna asked.

  “It’s a form of autism. I have a hard time paying attention to things, I talk weird and my mom says I’m too quick to trust people.”

  “You take medicine for it or something?” Anna asked.

  “No, not really. There isn’t really anything for me to take. During school I take stuff to help me pay attention. But that’s why people think I’m weird.”

  Anna looked questioningly at Adam.

  “You’re not weird at all Jessica. You might be the answer we’ve been looking for.”

  “Really? I’m really good at video games.” Jessica said.

  “I’m sure you are. Here is your room.” Adam said. “Anna will get you your bedding and some clean clothes. Just talk to her if you have any questions.”

  “Ok,
thank you Adam,” she said. She couldn’t help but smile as he walked away. Anna glared at her as she smiled.

  “What are you so happy about?” Anna asked.

  “I think he likes me.” Jessica said.

  “Who? Adam? He’s like twenty. Besides, every girl here has tried to go out with him. He doesn’t like anyone here. At least he hasn’t gone out with any girls here.”

  “Really? Well, maybe I’ll be the first.”

  Anna rolled her eyes. Let’s just get you settled. They stepped into the room, and Jessica was happy to see that it looked more comfortable on the inside than from the hallway. The walls were painted an off white. There was a small closet in the back, along with a small bathroom with a shower. There was a cot set up on the floor with a pillow on it.

  “I’ll go get you some bedding, I’ll be right back,” Anna said as she stepped out into the hallway. Jessica looked around the room. She wished there was at least a window instead of just four walls. She also wished she could have brought some of her things with her, like her iPhone, or her tablet. She mostly played games on them. Now she would go nuts without something to keep her mind occupied.

  Anna came back in with some sheets and a blanket and got the cot set up.

  “Ok, there you go,” Anna said.

  “Where did they come from?” Jessica asked.

  “What?”

  “The vampires…where did they come from?”

  “No one knows. They’ve been here for centuries. But have remained mostly underground until the past five or ten years. Most of us here, our families were killed by them, or were turned,” Anna said matter-of-factly.

  “Oh,” Jessica said. “So your family was killed?”

  “My mom died when I was a baby. My dad was turned two years ago. Adam took me in shortly after.”

  “Wow. My mom wasn’t killed. The vampire guy came after me. He was scary.”

  “Yeah,” Anna sighed. “They’re like that. They’ll kill you in seconds. Or turn you, just depends on what mood they’re in.”

  “Turn me? Like into one of them?”