The Sound of a Siren's Call

45.) Bloodthirsty Vampires Prowl

Castor didn't bring up Ryan or the South Hellendun sirens, both of which I was grateful for. In fact, Castor didn't bring up much. He just curled up into Juniper while I got food and tried to eat away the cold eyes that were constantly staring at me.

I couldn't get rid of the visual. The day passed away, but I barely saw the setting sun. The vampire's fangs were more real than the falling darkness.

I didn't bother to go back to my hammock. Castor and Juniper provided a greater sense of security, even if neither of them would be much of a help if it came to the worst. I didn't know if Castor was a good fighter, but he wouldn't have a chance against the vampire. We'd have both stumbled to our deaths if left alone enough with the girl, her fangs not throwing us off.

Maybe Juniper wouldn't fall prey as easily, but maybe she would.

I didn't fall asleep, but I pretended.

Hours passed, and I laid with my eyes open. When Castor got up, he bumped me. I let him have a head start before I went after him. He had a guard with him, but whether they would protect him was still left to be determined.

I didn't recognize the slender girl breathing down his neck, or what species she was. Her skin shone green in the moonlight.

It didn't matter. I followed after Castor, trying to be as quiet as possible. We all stopped in a corner. It didn't seem like anyplace special, just where he'd decided to stop.

He reached into his shirt, pulling out what I realized was a dull, brass locket. It had started to rust, but he didn't seem to care about the redness. He pried it open and looked at it, pulling the chain away from his neck.

The green girl moved toward him and he pulled away. He was shaking his head and she backed away, disappointed.

The air shifted, and the girl's head snapped up.

She felt it too. Castor looked at her. A hand clamped over my mouth and I automatically jabbed my elbows back. The hand clamped down tighter, cold against my skin. I struggled, trying to slide out of the clammy grasp, but to no avail. I was stuck. I tried to scream, but no one moved. The shadows moved of their own accord and the girl and Castor jumped.

The air shimmered and soon figures were illuminated. Vampires surrounded us. Castor paled.

Plants sprang up, desperately clawing at the vampire's feet. The one that held me shuddered, and I took advantage of the distraction to elbow him again. He flinched and I was running.

I'd made a sound. The vines barely seemed to be doing anything. The fear crept up in me, and there was something in my head urging me to just stay still. They wouldn't see me.

The crew of the Red Revenge had warned the young girl in their midst about freezing when you felt like it. They'd warned her that fight or flight was very situational. I could feel them egging me on now.

I broke out of the shadows, and I stopped. My feet turned to cement, but it didn't matter. I didn't need feet for my plan.

I opened my mouth and a song poured out. The vampires all froze in their tracks. They seemed to be trying to shake out of it.

After a few seconds, one sprang at me, but I ducked. He went soaring over me into another vampire. I forced my feet to move and then I was running.

I grabbed Castor's hand, but any gap I had made rapidly closed. There was nothing for me to do.

This wasn't how I wanted to die. Ryan wasn't going to come to save me this time. I felt it in my bones.

The vampires started to converge on a spot ten feet ahead of us.

"An illusion. Be silent or you'll break it." The girl's hands moved with certainty.

I nodded and pulled Castor's hand away.

"What are you doing here?"

"I followed you. It isn't safe."

"It's not safe for you either."

"Safer for me than you."

The locket hung outside his shirt, but he didn't seem to notice. I only pointed it out when the girl told us we were relatively safe. We stood outside a squat building. She went in and forbade us from following her.

I watched as Castor looked down at the locket tucked it back in his shirt.

"It's nothing."

"Obviously not."

"It's nothing I'm going to tell you about."

I nodded. "That's all you needed to say."

He nodded but didn't say anything more.

Then he shifted uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry, that was rude. It's a L-O-C-K-E-T."

I smiled. "I gathered that."

He plowed on seemingly oblivious to me. "It has a painting of my mother and brother. She gave it to me for my birthday."

I looked at him. "Thanks for telling me."

"My father didn't know. After my mother died, I ran away, joined the N-A-V-Y. My brother's probably the only person alive who knows."

I stared at him.

"Why did you run away?"

"It's not important."

He looked toward the building, and the conversation was definitively over.

We stood uncomfortably. He'd clamped back up, as though my question had made him realize he'd shared more than he meant to.

I wanted to break up the awkwardness, but he didn't want to talk to me. I could see it spelled out on his face. I doubted I would be able to offer much comfort by talking about my own, probably still alive, mother.

It wasn't like I was carrying her around in a locket. It felt strange imagining a maternal force like that. The closest thing I had was my father, and he wasn't exactly the picture of gentleness. I looked up at the stars, and I imagined him looking up at the stars with me, trying to get me to identify constellations and tell him what the directions were based on the sky alone.

Now I found the star he'd insisted marked the North. I leaned against the building. Castor softened, but we still didn't say anything.

"Do you want to go home?"

He looked at me, his hands fiddling with each other for a good time before he answered. "Yes and no."

I nodded. "I kind of ran away too, but I miss it now. Even the things I hated."

He looked at me curiously. "Why did you run away?"

I shrugged. "My parents fought all the time. I thought I couldn't take it anymore."

He nodded, and his hands moved to sign, but then the door opened. Our conversation was cut short and we were being beckoned inside.