A Girl in the Shadows

Chapter Two

I searched through every bush, every flowerbed, and every tree in the park. I paced up and down the shoreline of the river, both the dry one and the one that flowed past downtown. All I had were her shiny black heels, her purse, and minutes to find shelter from the rising sun. The university's rowing team was making their morning ride to the south. Early-rising students were starting their jogs over the drawbridge.

You should've gone into downtown. That's where she must've fled. Only fools spend hours searching an empty park.

"The last time I checked, pedestrians didn't take to fondly to girls in robes with blood all over themselves," I whispered to myself, licking dry blood off my wrist.

The sun was getting higher by the second. I wound up my arm and Molly's shoes landed in the river with a splash. I watched them float away, past the drawbridge. No evidence was the best evidence. I looked out over the city. As soon as the sun set, I'd venture into downtown. Molly couldn't have gotten far. That's what you think. She could be talking with the police right now. She knows your face. They'll come for you.

My fingers wrapped tighter around the strap of the purse as I walked towards the minarets of Proctor Hall. The intricate glass doors of the building were closed, but unlocked. There was no door impenetrable to a Factoris vampire. I discovered the trick just weeks after I was bitten, when I returned home to collect a few of my belongings before setting out on my permanent voyage. I knew that the front door was going to be bolted shut, but tried to open it anyway. It released instantly.

The door of my palace flew open; a massive old hotel that had been converted into classrooms and offices. A small section of it was adapted into a museum, holding the last treasures if its Victorian history. Only a single light was on in the large, open lobby. My sneakers dragged across the red patterned carpet and to one of the blue armchairs. The cool leather let out a low moan when I fell into it. I tried to force my tense body to relax, closing my eyes. Get up. You're running out of time.

"Classes don't begin for two more hours. Nice try," I said to no one.

Surges of angst rushed through my body. Perhaps checking out my stolen goods would help., but not here. Too much sunlight was coming in through the doors. I walked across the dark lobby to the stairs, passing the glass doors to the museum. Everything was dark. One flight, two flights. My filthy sneakers clattered on the black steps. I always felt exhausted after the third flight. Four flights. My floor. Down the dark hallway I went, reaching the brown door with the golden sign that read "Minaret Climb." That was a part of Proctor Hall that had been closed permanently. Of the five minarets in total, only two were built to climbed in. Ten years ago, only one became available.

The staff understood. They all found out after a while that I had taken residency in the same building where they worked. All of them made up stories that many students are gullible enough to believe. Countless people thought the building was haunted. Ghosts everywhere, roaming the halls at night. It was one of the most haunted in the country, they presumed. I cherished the beginning of each semester when the freshmen came "ghost hunting" after dark. They'd leave screaming after I got done with them. Slamming doors and pretending to cry like a tortured soul were my specialties. If only they realized there were no ghosts, only me.

This was my life now, far away from what it used to be. My memories of my time in the Shadows, my former vampire clan, were still present, but ever fading. It was best to block out what happened on that evening filled with dust and smoke ten years ago.

I opened the door that was always locked and started to climb the dark, narrow steps that led to the open, wooden interior. Of course, it was round and dome-like, as it appeared from on the outside. Not much light came in through the tiny windows, and a rotting ladder interrupted the middle of the floor. If climbed, it led to a hatch in the ceiling which opened to the outside. I'd spent quite a bit of time up there. The view was breathtaking. The whole city, the river—it was marvelous. Red and white lights as far as the eye can see.

It was a good height to jump from when things became to heavy to handle, but did nothing. The whole decapitation thing wasn't a turn on to me, or a myth. It's hard to kill a breed codenamed as the "superhuman" vampire.

Are you going to reminisce or are you going to sit down and open the purse?

In my minaret I had accumulated a bunch of little treasures, objects I stole from my victims and took from the dumpsters on the last day of the semester. Pens, pencils, torn notebooks, and many, many red plastic cups. I had a few pillows and pink patterned sheets spread on the dark wood. I changed them every semester after dumpster-diving for new ones. A folding chair was off in the "sketching corner," with a stack of notebooks next to it, full of my artwork of downtown, particularly the cylinder-shaped building.

I sat on the makeshift bed and opened Molly's little black purse. It seemed to have the contents of a regular college girl: eyeliner, a wallet, a cell phone. Molly also had one of those fancy smelling hand sanitizers that was a light green in color. I opened the cap and squirted a dot into my palm. The smell emanated when I started to rub it in.

"Oh, that is divine," I whispered. The island scent was far more pleasant than the musty odor of the old hotel.

I unzipped the red and white patterned wallet. For a student coming home after a long night, she had a surprising amount of cash: a ten, five, and three singles. Most of the time there was only a dollar or two. Molly must've gotten a good deal wherever she went. I bet just a few hours ago, she was having fun with her friends. I bet that makes you feel damn good about yourself, Tali. Damn good.

I tried to shake the thought from my head and stuffed the cash back into the wallet. It wasn't much use, but it always came in handy when the time called for it. Most nights I just needed to go to the bar with all the freshmen and have a drink. While alcohol tasted like cardboard compared to blood, it still got the job done of helping me escape for a few hours. It was also a great deal of fun to watch the students make drunken fools of themselves.

I rested my head on the pillow. Once again, my mind and body were battling themselves. Sleep was overtaking me, but there was a teenage girl going through a horrific transformation all by herself out there—something I'd done myself.

Hey, fool! What are you doing?

"If I don't rest, I'll have no stamina and absolutely no chance of finding her," I said.

Suit yourself.

I laid on my back, gazing at the planks of the domed ceiling and contemplating my plan of action in and out of sleep. If I left a little before sunset, I'd be able to search the campus as well. My mind relaxed, falling back to sleep yet again, only to be woken up by the siren of an ambulance. I could never rest after that.

My chest was tightening as I curled up into a ball on my chair in the sketching corner. Can you smell it? Can you still hear the screaming? I bet you remember the people waving sheets! That was your favorite part of the day, wasn't it? Or was it the part when the woman jumped out the window? Oh, I know—it was the part when you lost Dolly!

"Not listening," I said.

I focused on the ladder and hummed to myself. Closing my eyes would bring it all back. I waited, and once the panic diminished, I made the bed. The sun was getting lower in the sky. Most days were like this: restless. I slept so much better in between Ace and Kai.