The Vampire from Hell

Chapter 16 - Mousetrap

Chapter 16 - Mousetrap

When a text message chimed on my phone, I jerked. Old habits die hard, and even without being victim to Father's torture anymore, I could still jump for no reason if something startled me. If I were on edge, as I currently was, it was much worst. 

"Hold on, Father. Let me take this." I proceeded to walk to the bleachers away from where he stood in the middle of the gym. 

"You okay? m" 

I stared at the text for a few moments. It was from Blick's phone, but it couldn't be him. Then I noticed the letter 'm' at the end. That had to be from Michael. 

"No," I typed and hit the Send button. 

"Your father is there? This is Michael by the way." 

I turned my back to my father and smiled at my phone. The image of his attempting to type out a message with those lovely, large fingers sent goosebumps along my arms. The saying was certainly true about a man's generous portion of manhood being complimentary to the size of his hands... I stopped my train of thought and quickly typed "Yes." 

"Okay. Hold tight." 

"Are you ready?" Father yelled at me from across the gym. 

I gripped the phone in my hand until my knuckles turned white. I threw up my other hand. "One minute," I snapped. 

The voice inside my head said, "See? Help is on the way!" 

Breathing in and out slowly, I tried to calm my nerves. My emotions were all over the place again and my anxieties wanted to have another go at me. I opted to stall Father as long as I could. 

Another text message chimed in. This one was from Lynn. I needed to hear a familiar voice and get some help with a research project, so I clicked her number, ignoring Father completely. 

She answered the phone laughing as she usually did. "Oh my god, that was a wonderful pic of Ash. Thank you!" 

"I thought you'd like that. It's still a favorite of mine too." I hoped my voice sounded carefree. 

"So what's up? You must have a search question if you're calling me, girl." 

"Ha, ha," I laughed. "You know me too well. Yes, I do actually." 

"Give it to me." 

"I have a couple of photos I want to send you. Can you find out more about the product? What places it's being shipped to? I just moved out of my dad's house and I don't have my computer set up with internet yet." 

"You moved out? Good for you! Your dad sounds like such a douche bag, no offense," Lynn said. There was a slight tinge of anger in her voice. 

"None taken. You're totally right. And thanks by the way for talking with me that night. I needed..." A surge of doubt hit me and I swallowed hard, unable to speak. I tried to compose myself, knowing Father was growing suspicious. I had broken down the other night and had called Lynn. After knowing that Father could be in the House of G, I needed to talk to someone other than Blick or Michael. Consequently, I had shared a few details about my personal life with her. The confession had done me a world of good, so I didn't second guess my actions. So what, I thought. I need to start trusting a few people, and who better to start with than someone I talk with almost every day! Lynn's father was an alcoholic, so she totally understood why I didn't enjoy putting up with his erratic behavior, and was debating moving out. That had been my story, and it wasn't too far from the truth. 

"Hey, that's what friends are for," she said in between slurping down her soda. "God knows, you've heard me whine about my boyfriend. How did I end up with a dad and boyfriend who both drink? I've got to figure out a way to get Steve to cut back on the sauce."