Night Runner (22 page)

“Forget it!” said Suki.

She backed up and started to close the door. Charlie stopped it with his hand.

“That's no good,” he said.

Suki put her hand against his shoulder. “Not tonight, Charlie. Not tonight.”

Then she closed the door.

T
here was nothing we could do but go back to the bird sanctuary. We waited there until just after midnight, then we headed back to the girls' place.

“Persistence is the key,” said Charlie. He cut the engine and we drifted in, this time to the beach.

“I don't know about this,” I said. “I have no idea what to say.”

“Knowing what to say is a lot less important than making sure we go to the right window.”

We snuck around the side of the house. Charlie pointed to a screened window on the second floor of the cottage. “That's the one, I think.”

“You
think
? You're not sure?”

“Do I look like I designed the place? Here.” He put his hand on my shoulder to get me to bend down, then he stood on my back and
tapped the screen several times. Then several more. I heard a creak and a voice. It was Suki.

“Charlie!” She made his name sound like a swear word. “God, you're impossible!”

The screen slid open. I couldn't tell what Charlie was doing. It felt like Suki was trying to push him over. I heard a sound like kissing, so I started to back up. I wasn't here for this.

“Hey, hey!” he whispered.

I stopped.

“Wake your sister,” he said to Suki.

“She's awake already.”

“Well, come out then.”

Charlie didn't wait for an answer. He just jumped down.

A half minute later Suki swung a leg out of the window and then lowered herself down so that we could catch her.

“You'd better have a good explanation for all of this,” she said. She spoke to Charlie, but I think her words were really for me. She didn't look very angry, which was encouraging. Charlie grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the front of the cottage.

I stared up at the window. “Luna,” I whispered. My heart was beating so hard, I think it was louder than my voice.

“I'm right here,” she said quietly, circling around from the back of the cottage.

I turned. She glanced at me and glanced away. Her mouth was a flat line and her eyes were red-rimmed and watery. Neither of us spoke for a while.

“I heard you had a tough night,” I said.

She nodded. “We shouldn't talk here.”

We passed Charlie and Suki on the way down to the lake. I avoided looking at either of them. I thought Luna was going to sit down when we reached the end of the dock, but she turned and faced me instead.

“Is it true?” she asked. “Did you really do all of those things?”

I took a deep breath.
Here goes.

“I ran away from the ward. I had to. I couldn't stay there another day. A friend helped me. We stole a car. Well, he stole it, and I was sort of along for the ride. I don't know how to drive.”

I paused to make sure she was with me.

“They said you assaulted some police officers.”

This was a tricky one, because I
had
assaulted a police officer, but not on purpose. I explained as best I could. I started with the three officers who'd pinned me in the parking lot of the Nicholls Ward. It was difficult, because I didn't want to mention any of the vampire business, so I couldn't say why I had to resist arrest. Fortunately, I had Mr. Entwistle to blame, since he'd really done all of the assaulting and I'd just watched. Then I told her about the fourth officer. The one I'd punched after he and his partner hit me with their van.

“It hurt so much,” I said. “There was pain everywhere. When he touched me, I lashed out without thinking. Then I took off.”

“You mean you got hit by a car and just ran away?”

“A van.”

“Car, van, what's the difference?”

“I don't know,” I said. “I've never been hit by a car.”

That made her laugh. She was starting to come back.

“Why don't you just explain this to the police? It's not like they're going to toss you in jail.”

I wasn't worried about jail. I was worried about Everett Johansson and Baron Vrolok, neither of whom I'd mentioned.

“I can't,” I said.

Luna looked down at her feet, then out over the lake. The moon was bright, but hidden behind a thin layer of cloud that shone silvery-white along the horizon. We didn't speak for a moment, but we glanced nervously at each other and then out over the water. Then Luna noticed my hand.

“Oh my God! What happened?”

“I had a bit of an accident leaving Charlie's. The sun wasn't down all the way.”

“The sun did that?”

“Yeah.”

“You should put it in cold water.”

I started to crouch down so I could dip my hand in the lake. She grabbed my other elbow with both hands.

“No. The lake water's got bacteria and stuff in it. You might get an infection. I'll get some ice water from the kitchen.”

“Won't your parents hear?”

She laughed. “They might. But as far as I know, it's not illegal for me to get ice from my own freezer.”

A few minutes later I was sitting on the dock with my hand in a pail of ice water. It was numb, which was an improvement. Luna sat beside me, looking at the lights of the far shore as they shimmered on the surface of the water.

“Here, let me check that,” she said.

I pulled my hand out.

“It's a lot better than I thought. It looked black before. Must have been the light.”

My hand was now an angry red. The blisters were gone and the cracks were all sealed over. I was healing, albeit a lot more slowly than if I'd fed. I put my hand back in the pail and looked up at the sky. With the clouds, it wasn't the best night for stargazing, but it was perfect for watching the bats hunt. I saw one do a half barrel-roll that ended with a dive and a mouthful of moth. I had to smile. It was impressive.

“What's so funny?” Luna asked.

“The bats.” I followed the same one as he continued to stalk insects through the air. “They're unbelievable. That one in particular.” I pointed. “He's an ace compared to the others.”

Luna was looking in the same place I was, but she had no idea
what I was talking about. The cloud-covered moon was like a giant night-light, but still she couldn't see them.

“I don't believe it,” Luna said. I couldn't tell if she was impressed or irritated.

“How can you not believe in bats?”

She started laughing. “You obviously see much better in the dark than I do.”

“Well, if you stayed up every night like me . . .”

She nodded. “I've heard that blind people hear and smell and taste better because their brains just adjust somehow. I guess it's the same kind of thing.”

“Hmmm.”

Her head flopped onto my shoulder.

“Did you get a bug bite?” she asked. “If you rub it, it just gets worse.”

I stopped scratching my neck. I hadn't fed since I'd killed the deer. That was the night of the bonfire, almost two full days ago. I guess because I'd drunk so deeply, my hunger had stayed away for much longer than normal, but it was returning with the same impatience it always had. I took a piece of ice from the pail, wiped it across my forehead, then popped it into my mouth.

“Do you know what time it is?” she whispered.

I looked at the sky and then at the neighbours' cottage, where the twins lived.

“Almost one.”

“And you know this how?”

“The kitchen clock.”

Luna glanced over at the neighbouring cottage. “Zachary, they don't even have the lights on.”

“I told you I see well in the dark.”

“Apparently.” She let out a deep sigh.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yes. No. I don't know.”

She stood up and offered me her hand. I took it, not because I needed to, but just so I could hold it. I'd never held a person's hand before, well, other than my father's. Then I stood so that we were facing each other. She was close enough that I could feel her breath on my neck.

“It just bothers me that you can't have a normal life,” she said. She moved a bit closer.

“I'm not a normal person,” I said.

“I got that much.”

She was looking straight at me. I didn't know what to say.

“I have to go soon,” she added. She was standing so close, I don't think even the wind could have snuck between us. I would have backed up a step, but then I would have fallen off the edge of the dock.

“You've never had a girlfriend, have you.”

I shook my head. I started to say “No,” but it got stuck on the way out.

I don't know how she managed it, but her hand was suddenly on my good arm. The way my legs were feeling I'm surprised it didn't knock me over. My heart started pounding so hard it was practically bruising my stomach. I felt dizzy. I could smell the blood coursing under the skin of her neck. It was right in front of me. I could hear her heart racing. She was still staring right at me. Her emerald eyes were beautiful. Soft and warm. Almost luminous. My hand rose to the side of her face and I heard her take in a quiet breath.
I could do this thing and I wouldn't have to be alone ever again.

Luna closed her eyes and tilted her head back. I felt my teeth slide down through my gums and my mouth opened just a sliver. She was so close . . .

What was I thinking? I was a vampire. Cursed to endure a slow descent into madness. I shouldn't have been near her. I shouldn't have been near anybody.

“I can't do this,” I said, pressing my lips closed.

Luna's eyes opened. I couldn't tell if she was confused or upset. She looked down, and then looked away, and then looked at me again. She started to back away, but I pulled her close and put my arms around her. I had to. I lifted my chin so that her head was cradled against my neck. Then I closed my eyes and just soaked up the feel of her. Warm skin. Soft hair. Her hands on the small of my back. It was the closest I had ever been to another person. It was wonderful.

“I wish I could explain,” I said. “But I can't. I'm sorry.”

I had a full minute of bliss. Of being alone with another person. It was the exact opposite of what I had experienced on the hunt. I didn't hear or see or smell anything around me. There was only Luna. Everything else had vanished.

And then the air went frigid and a deep chill ran through me. Everything suddenly felt wrong, the way it had in Mr. Entwistle's library, and the night before on the dock. There was no wind this time, not even a ripple on the water, but an icy cold made me shudder inside. I let go of Luna and sniffed at the air. I didn't smell anything unusual. I didn't hear or see anything unusual. Then I noticed the bats were all gone again, and a fog was beginning to rise from the water near the shore.

“We've got to get out of here,” I said. I looked past Luna to see if I could spot anything in the shadows near the cottage.

“What is it? What's wrong?” she asked.

“I don't know. But you'd better get inside. And lock the door.”

“You're making me nervous.”

I pushed her gently towards the front steps. Then I heard a noise coming from behind the cottage. It was raspy. Like the sound of someone choking. Or being strangled. That was where Charlie and Suki had gone!

“Oh my God,” I whispered.

A part of me that didn't think took over. I bared my fangs and
bolted. I don't imagine you've ever seen a creature move so fast.

Just behind the cottage I found Charlie and Suki. They were lying on the ground. Their faces were glued together at the mouth. They were fine. Suki shrieked when she saw me.

“Get her inside,” I said. “Hurry.”

Charlie wasn't too happy about the interruption. “What's gotten into you?”

Then he saw my fangs.

“Get her inside and lock the door,” I said. “Lock all of them.”

“What is it?”

“Evil,” I said. “I can feel it. It must be Vrolok. It isn't safe for you to be out here. You need to get inside.”

A light came on in the cottage.

“And call the police,” I added.

Suki ran for the door.

“Are you sure about the cops?” Charlie asked.

“Yes. Yes. Call them.” I waved for him to go. “Just get moving.”

I watched while Charlie followed Suki up the back steps. Then I thought I detected the faint beating of leathery wings. When I listened for it again, I heard another sound. This one made my teeth hurt. It was a scream, long and shrill. I followed it to the other side of the cottage.

It was Luna. She was standing on the porch facing the neighbours' place. And she was covered, head to toe, in blood.

M
aybe you know this already: the human body contains about five and a half litres of blood. That might not sound like a lot, and I suppose it isn't. In a bathtub, it wouldn't look too impressive. But when it's all over the place, five and half litres of blood will blow your eyelids clean off. That much paint could cover half a football field. You can picture this, I'm sure. Half a football field painted red. Now change the image a bit. Imagine you're looking over a rocky clearing with a sandy shore on one side and a forest on the other. The bark of the pine and oak trees is covered. Blood is dripping from the leaves and needles. It's soaked into the moss and soil. It's pooling in tiny cracks in the rock. It's all over the porch steps.

And it was all over Luna.

I didn't know what to do. There was so much blood, you couldn't tell where it had come from. At least it hadn't come from Luna. She would have been empty. It must have come from somewhere else.