Chapter 24

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            Juli woke up and groaned. Monday morning. That meant a whole new slew of classes that she had to go to. Why was it that she signed up for such an early class on Monday mornings? Oh, yeah . . . it would build character, she had told herself. Something she got from her father . . . or was that Calvin & Hobbes?

            She pulled herself out of bed and started getting ready. She noticed her phone had the voice mail indicator on the screen. She grabbed the phone and dialed in as she walked to the apartment bathroom. Ed had left her drunk dials in the past. Usually they were nothing special, but on rare occasions they were things of legend. She wondered what this message would bring.

            Holding the phone to her ear with her shoulder, she started brushing her teeth. As the voice mail from Ed played, she slowed her brushing . . . then stopped all together. A deathly chill ran down her spine. Oh, God; oh, God; oh, God . . . she cried out internally. The toothbrush fell limply from her paralyzed hand, clattering loudly in the sink.

            “Juli?” Becca asked, as she was about to get into the shower, covered only a towel.

            Juli just stood there, shocked at the message she'd heard. She knew it had come from Ed's phone, but the vampire she'd met, the vampire who'd killed her, had been the one talking. They had Ed. They were going to kill him, or worse, if she didn't do what they said. Wha do I do, wha do I do, wha do I do?

            Becca took a hold of Juli's shoulder and shook her gently. “Juli?” she whispered. “You okay?”

            At the touch, Juli jerked back into reality. She realized she had a mouth full of toothpaste, and nearly choked on it before spitting it out, right on top of her toothbrush. “Gah!” she exclaimed as she grabbed the brush and started rinsing it off.

            Becca tried once more, “Juli? Seriously, what's wrong?”

            “Oh,” Juli replied, finally responding to outside stimuli. “Uh, it's nothing. Just . . . uh, . . . uhm, well. Got a bad voice mail just now. Not good news from . . . well, gotta go now. Bye!” She rushed out quickly, leaving a slightly confounded redhead in her wake.

            Juli ran back to her room and finished throwing some clothes on, just trying to make sure she wasn't running out into public indecently. She shoved her feet into shoes without socks and then bolted out the door.

            Running across campus to the Commons felt like it took forever. She didn't want to take any more time than necessary, but it was difficult navigating the crowded footpaths with the sun glaring in her eyes.

            As she rounded the corner at the Commons Fountain, she saw who she had to assume was the vampires she was supposed to meet. A group of three tall men in navy pea coats were standing next to the statue, as if awaiting orders from it rather than waiting for her. Their heads fully covered in stocking caps, sunglasses, and scarves. Juli suddenly realized that they didn't look out of place all bundled up as they were. She on the other hand, wearing shorts, tank top, and sock-less shoes . . . was getting a bit cold.

            “Crap,” she muttered to herself. “Ed, you owe me.”

            Walking up to the three pea coats, she folded her arms and rubbed them, trying to keep warm. She stood in front of them, and cocked an eyebrow. “Where's Ed? I need to know he's safe.”

            A voice came from the center head. “All in due time. All in due time. Until then, you are to come with us.”

            “I'm not going anywhere with you. You're going to release Ed now or I'm going to use my newly acquired talents. The talents I know you want from me . . . I'll use them to take you out.”

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