Wild Creatures

Chapter 40

Lan Zhan was shocked.

Firstly, he hadn't heard her come up to their door, and he thought that was a terrible lapse in his protection of Wei Ying and their family. Secondly, wasn't she supposed to be dead?

"What should we do?" Wei Ying asked him, looking as lost as Lan Zhan felt.

"What do you want to do? We don't have to let her in, if you don't want to talk to her. This is your home." Lan Zhan tells him.

"Our home." Wei Ying corrects him.

Lan Zhan goes over to where Wei Ying is standing by the door and takes a look for himself.

Sure enough, it's Mrs Lan. Beyond recognising her, the dim hall lighting doesn't let him see much else, and she looks very much like she did on Friday night.

"Why is she here? I mean, the last time we saw her," Wei Ying makes the speech mark sign around the last two words, "she was being carried out in a body bag, on a gurney. And the cops said it was her, right?"

Lan Zhan nods, but he can smell something. He sniffs again, and then he takes a big whiff of himself, nosing at his own shoulder.

"She's a vampire!" He says, suddenly.

It's as if all the pieces of a puzzle have come together in a spectacular and unexpected way.

"How do you know?" Wei Ying asked him, also sniffing at his shoulder. "You still smell the same, like sandalwood incense. It's nice." He smiled.

"I have an underlying scent. Call it what you will, but it's the way one predator recognises another. And," he adds firmly, "I know."

"Okay, okay...sure." Wei Ying now feels a little nervous.

He looks back through the peephole; she's still standing there patiently.

Waiting.

"Oh my God!" Wei Ying suddenly exclaims, and pulls Lan Zhan away from the door. "I bet she heard everything we said!" He looks horrified.

"Mn. It is entirely possible." Lan Zhan doesn't look fazed at all. "We are merely stating facts," he agrees without a trace of guilt.

"What if she's hungry?" Wei Ying asks, wringing his hands.

That catches Lan Zhan's attention, and he growls.

"I don't want to!" Wei Ying quickly clarifies. "I promise you, I'm not thinking of feeding her." He makes a face.

It doesn't make Lan Zhan feel any differently; his frown only deepens.

"If you want to talk to her, we can let her in. I will protect Wei Ying." Lan Zhan promised.

"Well, maybe we should. What if any of the neighbours see her?" He turns back to the door intending to open it, but Lan Zhan gets there before him.

"Wait over there." He points to the kitchen. "We do not know what we're dealing with."

Wei Ying nodded and moved away. Then, another idea occurs to him, and he goes and fetches a rolling pin out of the cutlery drawer. He saw Lan Zhan smirk, before he opened the door. Even then, he stood in the gap created, preventing Mrs Lan from entering straight away.

They talk in low voices and Wei Ying is desperate to know what they're saying; he shifts from foot to foot, restless and anxious, waiting for something to go awry.

"Alright, you may come in. But, keep your distance." Lan Zhan warns her, the threat crystal clear in his voice.

He stands aside to let her pass, and once that door is closed, he's suddenly standing right in front of Wei Ying, facing her with his back towards his beloved.