A Vampire Tale

Chapter 17

Brenda

Mr. Gutierrez calmed the rest of the class down as the police took away the body. Joshua was such a great guy. He never did drugs, picked on others, or break any promises. It's hard to believe anyone would kill him. Maybe it does have something to do with Ann-Marie. Taylor would have never gotten involved if it was a regular person. Not to mention, she was the only one who left the classroom before the murder, and didn't return until after. She had to be acting when she came in. She's a vampire, so she can't die even if it was a regular murder.

With the news hitting the school, everyone was being sent home. Girls cried for Joshua as they walked the halls. I even heard a few guys say that they seen Taylor with the body. Some of Joshua's friends overheard the statement and followed me around.

"Hey Brenda!" one of them called out. I recognized them as Michael, Collin, and Alex. I was surrounded between those three and the lockers behind me. "Your always with that jerk, Taylor, so you must know where he is," Alex said angrily.

I shook my head no, "sorry, I don't know." Collin watched me as if he didn't believe me and punched the locker behind me.

"Don't try to protect him! We know he's the one who killed Joshua!" I started to shiver in fear of what would happen next.

"He didn't kill anyone! He wouldn't kill anyone!" I told them.

"Tell us where he is! Stop protecting him!" Michael shouted furiously.

Before I could tell them my answer, Alex hit me against the lockers hard, causing me to see stars. "I swear, I don't know where he is!" I shouted out while holding back tears.

Just then, Taylor came walking with the new girl, Hailey, arm in arm. As if he just noticed what was going on, he stopped where he was. "Leave her alone. I know your only attacking her because your mad at me," Taylor told them. They turned their attention to him then surrounded him in a triangle.

The remaining students in the hallways gathered around with their cell phones, recording the showdown. "Looks like you have no choice but to fight," Hailey said to Taylor as she walked over to me.

He shook his head no, "I don't want to fight unexperianced, untrained, opponents. Besides, the last thing I want to do is get a law suit on my case after beating these guys." Alex rushed in to punch Taylor in the face. Taylor stopped him and flung him over his shoulder. You could hear the wind escape his lungs when Alex hit the floor. Michael and Collin attacked him together but were easily tossed to the ground like rag dolls.

"You will pay for what you did!" Collin shouted out as he got back up. He charged for Taylor again, this hitting him on his stomach. Taylor kneeled over and was soon knocked to the ground.

"Taylor!" I shouted out to him. Hailey held me back as they started kicking Taylor's chest. "Stop it! Your hurting him!" I shouted out to them.

"Don't you see what he's doing? Taylor's letting them win," Hailey whispered in my ear.

"But why? He could beat those guys if he wanted too," I asked her.

"He's not allowed to hurt a human. It would go against the Association's policy." I watched as Taylor guarded his ribcage with his arms unsuccessfully. Mr Gutteriez ran over to stop the fight and helped Taylor to his feet. I couldn't help but notice how bad they really beat him. Taylor's lip was split, left eye was black, and his nose was gushing blood. That was only on his face. His arms were covered in bruises and I'm pretty sure his stomach was too.

"Taylor, are you alright?" Mr Guterriez asked him. Taylor turned to the side and spat blood out before turning back to him.

"I'll be fine" Taylor turned to the three guys. "Do you feel better now after that? Taking your anger out on me, did that accomplish anything?"

Neither Collin, Michael, or Alex answered. They just walked away.

I ran over to Taylor and threw myself around him. "Your hurt badly," I told him as he stood still as a statue.

"I'm fine. I didn't get any serious injuries," he said as if it were nothing. "Parker, think you can handle this mess with the principal?" Mr. Guteriez nodded then turned to me.

"Take him home and make sure he rests." I immediately took Taylor's hand and led him outside the school.

"Why didn't you fight back?" I asked him as we walked.

He stayed silent.

"Was it her who killed Joshua?" I asked.

More silence.

I sighed, giving up on making him talk. We walked into his home, realizing his parents weren't home, and went into his room. "Taylor, can you tell me where your first aid kit is?" I asked him as he sat down on his bed.

"First door on the left is a closet. It should be on the second shelf." I walked over to the closet and found the kit exactly where he said it would be. I walked back into his room, Taylor sitting in the same spot he was in when I left.

"Take off your shirt. I need to see how bad your hurt," I told him.

He took off his black t-shirt and tossed it into the laundry basket. "I can't fight back, if you still want to know. If a vampire attacks a human in any sort of way, they will be exterminated by the Hunters Association" Taylor said as I began to clean his wounds.

"Will they really do that to you?" I asked him.

He nodded, "every hunter who has been transformed into the creature they are hunting, kills themselves. I was supposed to die after I became this, but I couldn't do it. My gun jammed." I looked deep into his dark eyes, getting lost in a world only he knows. There, I could see him, his true self. I remember what his father told me. That day his innocence of a child was stolen, was the same day his parents were killed. In his eyes were no longer a child, but a merciless man.

"Everyone's wrong about you. Your hurting deep inside your heart, so you keep people away to prevent yourself from getting attached to someone who you could loose. Your afraid," I told him.

He watched me carefully then nodded. "Your right. I'm afraid that my loved ones get hurt. I had people who died for me before. I will not have that happen again."

I hugged him before saying, "are you hungry?"

He shook his head no.

"It will make you feel better. Besides, you lost some blood of your own, shouldn't you have some?"