Vampire Bytes - The Fool's Embrace (excerpt)

Chapter 3 - A Rude Awakening

  Darkness surrounded me, with just a sliver of dim light seeping through a narrow gap to my right. I couldn’t remember much from what had happened earlier, but I quickly realized I wasn’t in a coffin. Oh, no—considering the foul smell of garbage so powerful I was gagging, a coffin would have been a nice place to be.

  Great, I just woke up in a dumpster. A dumpster. Really?

  Ok great, you figured it out. Now get your ass moving, Kevin. We need to find a safe place, and there is still a lot I need to explain.

  Meet Io, my “damsel in distress.” When I woke up, I was stuck with her voice in my head, and she had been talking for what felt like hours.

  I’m starting to think I should have just left you to die outside. You’d be a nice smelling corpse right about now.

  “I am a corpse, aren’t I?” I mumbled, but received no reply.

  She did have a point, though. She had saved me from someone. Was it just one or more? I shook my head unable to remember much.

  I gradually pushed the lid, letting in more light. I blinked a few times as my eyes adjusted. The faint light that reached the dark recesses of the alley made me pause.

  With one final push, I opened the trash container completely. Relieved that it didn’t bounce off the wall and crack my head, I grabbed the rim of the dumpster and heaved myself over the edge. The impact from the short drop to pavement sent a sharp wave of pain through my abdomen. Stunned, I lost balance and collapsed.

  I went from sleeping in a dumpster, to lying face down in a pool of water, blood and God knows what else. Great work Kevin. I rolled over and propped myself up to examine my injuries.

  I looked through the shredded remains of my shirt at a dark crimson stain of dried blood clinging to the fabric and flaking off my skin in the area where the pain originated. I felt the skin with my fingers, but there seemed to be no wound. What the hell happened to me?

  You were trying to be a hero. That’s what.

I sat up and took in my surroundings. There was blood everywhere, not just on my shirt but on the walls and in the puddles, too. I had watched enough CSI to be seriously worried. A million ways this could come back to bite me flashed through my head. Then the questions came.

  How could I cover my tracks? Is it my blood or theirs? Does it matter? I could already feel the handcuffs tightening around my wrists.

  Jeez, you’re not on TV. Get up already.

  Wow, she was an impatient bitch. I stood up and staggered into the nearby wall, my legs still unable to obey orders. My head was pounding, and I couldn’t shake away the fuzziness that muddled my memories and blurred my vision. Using the grimy brick facade for support, I finally found my balance and wiped away blood-crusted tears. After a few more seconds, my sight improved. Despite the darkness and the late hour, I could actually see quite well.

  There are some benefits to our condition. I swear Io laughed at me when she said it.

  So I had night vision. Sweet. It would have been thrilling, except the only thing to see was an alley littered with beer cans, cigarette butts, and more blood than a slaughterhouse. Evidently, the spot was a favorite among the smokers from the Pink Mojito. I smiled, suddenly proud of myself for remembering the name of the place. At this point small victories were enough.

  Still holding the wall, I moved towards the end of the alley. A hum of music pulsed through the dance club wall. I raised my head, looking towards the main road, the partially visible street lamp almost blinding me. I squinted and averted my hypersensitive eyes. A few steps later the voice in my head returned.