Give Me Blood

Chapter 15: Ellipsis

Crowley takes off running at a pace which made my loose hair strands whip lashes against my cheeks. My fingers dig tightly into the back of his shirt for some form of anchor in case he suddenly decides to fling me off a cliff. No doubt I have given him plenty of reasons since I've arrived. Even if he did seem desperate enough to tolerate my fuck-ups so far.

Gazing blankly at the forest beneath me during my time on his shoulder my thoughts were everything but blank. Even though he looked fairly slim on the outside his shoulders were wide and packed. I trained my eyes to look no further than his calves, one glance was enough to satisfy my curiosity.

Every day I am reminded how dangerous vampires are. The perfect predators. With their perfect shoulders and perfect smile and perfect ass--I murder and bury that thought deep, deep down.

I replay what he had revealed to me about his powers. Mutations? Is that what you could call this? Whatever this was that should only be possible in children's fairy tales and Hollywood movies. I guess vampires were fairy tales too. Yet here we were.

The more I thought about it, the more I couldn't pinpoint a motive. Why would he be lying? What would he gain by making up something so ridiculous? Some part of me had to acknowledge the facts laid out in front me. Even if the facts were, in fact, wildly unbelievable.

It was true, what I told him. Rather than afraid my feelings ranged more on the spectrum of surprised and slightly intrigued. I want to know more about the extent of his powers. If there were more like him out there in case I end up encountering them in my future missions. Maybe that's why I didn't hesitate letting him carry me on his shoulder through a deserted forest.

Alone.

Maybe.

And maybe I'm just stupid.

And maybe they will never find my body buried under the thorny leaves that were branching on the solid overgrown floor. Maybe no human hand would be able to shovel me out of the packed earth he would bury me under while I screamed and I would never--

I felt the ground beneath my feet again.

After fifteen minutes of travel. This one more comfortable than with the last bloodsucking chauffeur. Crowley gently lifts me off his shoulder then smiles at something in the distance. I turn to look.

We were standing on the edge of a tall cliff (to my own irony) overlooking a town filled with toy-red tiled roofs followed by a vastness of autumn trees. Right below the cliff, and us, was a huge plot of gridded farmland leading straight toward the town. The grids were lined symmetrically with various types of crops I couldn't make out. Unlike the farms, the houses were built in consecutive circles surrounding a town center complete with a great roaring water fountain.

From this vantage point you can make out the shapes of people weaving their way through the different streets. More vampires than I imagined I would be seeing this soon after arriving. And way too close to the border.

"Welcome to Eastcliff. One of the first shelters I built. The path down is slippery so watch your steps." He begins descending the rocky cliff. I follow quietly focusing instead on my feet so I wouldn't enter a place full of bloodsuckers with a fresh injury. Or rather, another fresh injury.

We make it down safely and soon follow a paved road that leads into a farm. Closer now I can see that one side of the path grew tall stalks of corn, while the other side was filled with rows of rice grains on a bed of still, glistening water.

In the far distance a person in a brimmed sun hat notices us walking by and waves at Crowley. He raises his hand in acknowledgment and continues forward. Was he a vampire? I couldn't tell from here.