Shawn Salvatore

Chapter 13.

Emily's P.O.V

Sat in my car surrounded by the darkness of the school parking lot I listen to every word Shawn speaks from the passenger seat. His words are filled with such sadness that my heart aches for him. He's been through a lot in six months before I knew him. It makes me feel guilty knowing I was more concerned about what he was hiding than the reasons for why he was hiding everything away in the first place. I should have thought about my past family problems and how I would hate for people to know everything that's happened between my parents. I should have known Shawn might be feeling the same way about his family situation.

Shawn looks out into the pitch blackness of the dense trees surrounding the parking lot but I can tell by the intensity of his stare that he's seeing flashes from his past than the actual outside. He's deep into explaining how he didn't want to live without his family. He's explaining how he thinks he's weak for trying to kill himself but he's wrong. The pain he must have been feeling was understandable and Shawn thought the only way to stop it at the time was to finish his own life as well. That's not always the best solution to go about depression though but saying I understand his pain would be a total lie because I've never seen death before. I couldn't even imagine what losing your closest family members must feel like. If I were in his boots I couldn't say for sure what I would do but knowing my family is gone forever I don't think I could bear life without them.

"I'm sorry Shawn," I whisper into the air when silence surrounds us once more.

"What are you sorry for?" He asks, turning to face me. His brown, tear filled, eyes shine in the moonlight beaming down on us from the sky above.

"I'm sorry for even asking about your family tonight, if I had known how much pain-"

"Stop," Shawn interrupts. "I would have told you anyway Emily it being now doesn't change that."

"I'm sorry you've had to go through so much... "

Shawn leans forward to take my hands in his and this time I don't pull away. I let him take my cold shaking hands in his surprisingly warm ones. "I need to explain something to you Emily, about why I asked you to meet me here tonight." Shawn starts. Stopping anymore talk of his family for the time being. "Something is happening in this town and it's bad."

"What do you mean?" I ask, not minding the change of subject but suddenly frightened for my town.

"We only realised what was happening on the night of Jase's party and that's where I've been the last week. At home with my family trying to figure out who's doing it."

"I don't understand Shawn, doing what?"

Shawn lets go of my hands once more this time leaving my hands aching for more of his warmth. He seems to slouch in his seat as he stares out of the window into nothingness once more. Quietly as if it pains him to say the words out loud he says; "Someone in this town is turning school students into vampires."

"What?" I hiss feeling as though my whole body weighs heavy in my seat. How is that possible? Surely I would have known if someone was turning my class mates into monsters? Surely I would have known...

"We don't know who it is or of the reasoning behind it but we've counted four have been turned so far." He continues.

"Why do you need me?"

"Being a vampire has many flaws but one of them is not knowing who else is one of us. Although we're sensitive to light it won't harm us unless we're weak, even though we call our hearts dead they still beat in our chests, we don't walk around with fangs and we're not super pale. We look exactly like a human in every possible way so finding out who another vampire is, is difficult. We're trying to find the leader who's turning these kids into vampires but it's turning out to be a lot harder than we first thought."