River of Red

XVI

The day was great. The sun was high, and it lit up the sky in swirling blues, purples and yellows.
It was morning.
Morning was my favorite time of day, believe it or not. I loved the way the birds chirped and chittered at each other, the way the fresh morning air smelt in my lungs.
Today, there was a foul feeling in the air along with the sweet summer smells.
Sirens blotted out those beautiful sounds.
It struck me as odd there would be that much racket that early in the morning.
I wanted to know the cause of all the ruckus. The sirens had been going for about an hour. I was too scared to see what it was, but I pushed those fears away.
With Gravel beside me, I started down the road.
Last night I hadn't slept. I sat on the bench all night, watching the town fall under the moon, becoming inhabited. There was no night life of the town, it became a lonely barren desert.
I neared the source of the sirens, four cops, two ambulances and one fire truck had situated themselves at the scene.
It was all sectioned off with police tape.
My body was curious, but struck with an overwhelming sense of foreboding. People had gathered around the scene, probably trying to find out what happened just as I had.
A big, burly man talked in low tones to the women next to him.
Letting my curiosity free, I tapped on his shoulder, "Do you know what's going on?"
He spun around, surprised to find a stranger touching his shoulder.
His mouth opened, "Um," he paused, thought, "I think it was an animal attack."
He turned back to the girl, forgetting my existence.
I was slightly surprised. Animal attack? What did he mean animal attack? Did someone die?
People around me murmured softly to the people around them. I caught a snip of two girls conversation, curiosity flooded me again. so I ducked behind a nearby trash can to listen without seeming conspicuous.
The blonde girl cried, "I can't believe it got Cassie!"
Tears streamed down both the girls faces.
They hugged each other, "I never thought the animal would get to her."
A few moments of sniffling.
"I know, but she was always tough, I bet she hurt it, whatever it is."
That confused me, one person said animal, the next said they didn't know.
What was going on?
Then I saw the black bag on the ground. It was a body bag. The profile was small, and had womanly curves visible throughout the bag.
A girl.
Maybe even my age.
Murdered.
I stepped away, horrified as I saw a glimpse into the bag. Her throat was ripped out.
Only one thing could do something like that.
Vampires.
____________

That night I slept in the woods. I knew it wasn't safe, but hey, I was practically unkillable. The woods seemed with life, raccoons rummaging, squirrels snickering, deer roaming just out of eyesight.
I couldn't see anything, but I sure smelt them.
It was strange, I had developed heightened senses, and I just realized it from being surrounded by the wilderness I so very much missed.
The smells of the air overpowered my fears, I felt completely at home here in the woods. Whether I liked it or not, I still had the hard backbone my mother had ingrained in me. I was used to sleeping outside In horrible circumstances, and this definitely qualified.
Gravel stayed by me, probably expecting food, but I didn't shoo him, but he would be disappointed when he found out I had none to offer.
I was hungry too.
I had no money, no food, no water. It had been 19 hours since I left Nolan's house, and his memory still pained me. I hadn't felt hungry yet, but it was still early.
There was a branch crack in the distance.
I focused my senses, trying to pick up whatever  It was that broke the branch. An eerie thought sprang in my mind.
The sounds of nature were gone.
Something was nearby, large enough to scare the squirrels and raccoons from their happy day. No birds chirped, and the wind seemed to be holding its breath.
The trees stood still in anticipation, I tensed, waiting for the thing to reveal itself. The moon slipped into the woods in hazy blankets, but I could see clearly despite the low amount of light.
"Hello."
The voice was cool, ice over a frozen lake. It was smooth, velvety, deep, cocky. I couldn't find the source, it came from above, but I didn't know where from above. The dark shadows hid him.
Gravel whimpered at my feet
I picked him up from the ground and held the poor baby to my chest, trying to squash his fear.
Then something brushed my shoulder.
I spun around, expecting a person, but found nothing was there. I slowly turned back to the way I had been facing, eyes dancing in the moon.
A man stood four feet in front of me.
He was muscular, but in a lean way. He reminded me of a stealthy panther ready to pounce. His hair was black, even blacker than Nolan's. It was as if every hair, every cell, was infused with darkness. His hair was perfect, in a really good way, not too long but not too short. The perfect length to run your fingers through.
His skin was pale, as pale as Nolan's, but his was only nearly flawless, he had a thin scar on his cheek, tracing from his high cheekbone to the edge of his mouth. His eyes were black, the pupil matching the iris in its flat black texture. They were framed with thick, dark long eyelashes that any girl would kill for. His lips were a deep, rosy pink. But the brightness brought a splash of wonderful color to his face.
A small part of my brain noted how he had wonderful hands. It was a habit, since me and Hanna would always judge a man by his hands.
His hotness gave Nolan a run for his money.
Big time.
He frowned, and tilted his head sideways.
"What are you doing in my territory?"
When he said that I got a glimpse at his teeth: perfectly straight and more brilliant white than I thought teeth could be.
I was at a loss for words. One, I had no clue what he was talking about, and two, his beauty took my breath away. He continued to frown.
Danger seeped out of his pores, washing over my body like a tidal wave. I gasped, wanting to run away, but those dark eyes kept me rooted in place.
I almost trembled, but held my body rigid under this vampires gaze.
"I don't know what your talking about."
I clenched my fists to keep them from shaking, hating that he could make me feel afraid like this.
I was Katrina a totally mature 16 year old. Nothing was going to hurt me, I hoped.
I steeled my spine, deciding to have a staring contest with the man. His frown dissipated, and amusement surfaced in his eyes.
I was confused, "What?"
He shook his head, "Nothing, only that I'm having a conversation with a child."
My lips curled into a sneer. I was 16, maybe not that old, but definitely not a child.
I dug my nails into my palm to keep myself from attacking his face.
"I'm not a child." I spat.
He sniffed the air, momentarily distracted.
He moved faster than I could see, and took my hand in his. He studied my palm, fresh blood oozed from half moon shapes. I had dug my nails into my skin and hadn't even noticed.
I tried to pull my hand away, but he held it in his firm grip, splaying my sweaty fingers open. Before I could yell at him, he licked the blood off my palm.
Gross.
His eyebrows drew together as he stared in amazement at my hand.
"What is this?" He hissed.
He threw my hand down. His face was near my own, only 4 inches away. My throat closed up.
"I-I don't know." I replied honestly. I knew I want a vampire, but with all my abilities I knew I wasn't completely human. He huffed, and backed away from me.
Once he stepped away, the fear wrapped around me again.
So I ran.
Probably not my best decision.
I felt cold hands wrap around my neck, heard a pop, and I fell into a peaceful blackness.