The Scottsville Vampire Invasion

Chapter 25

Chapter 25 

The Kmart sits right off the main highway that runs all the way from Maryland into New York State. At one point, the store was where most residents got their clothes and furniture. Just about every time I went there, I would run into someone that I knew. When I was in high school or visiting from college late at night, a bunch of us would grab a case of beer, go to its huge parking lot and play a wicked game of whiffle ball. 

With the growth of bigger and better discount stores, it got run out of business. It just sits there slowly falling apart with zigzagging cracks full of weeds running through the asphalt.  

I fly up the highway ramp, slide down the other side and pull into the parking lot. Bear and Josh have their cruisers lined up next to each other so they can talk from their driver seats. I pull up in front of them, get out of my car and stand between them. 

"What's the plan Clark?" Josh asks. 

"I was hoping you had one," I say. 

"Did you look up fighting vampires in the police training handbook?" Bear asks me. 

"Mine must be missing a few pages. We got our crosses and the stakes we've made. We'll just pop our heads in there. If it's too dangerous we'll pull out. We can always use the crosses for cover if we retreat." The three of us get our vampire fighting gear and head across the parking lot towards the Kmart. I stop, hand my stake to Bear, go back to my car and grab my shotgun. I throw a few slugs into it and go back to Bear and Josh. "Just in case this other stuff lets us down. I don't know anything that can take one of these in the chest," I say. 

We get right up to the entrance. I take a deep breath and pull on the front door. It's locked. I cock my gun and aim it. Just as I'm about to pull the trigger and blow the door off its frame, I hear from a distance, "Hi ho goddamn Silver!" There's a figure running towards us. I can barely make out who the person is until they are about ten yards away. 

"Fellas, you going to go in there and kick some vampire ass?" 

"Victor, you have good timing," I say. 

"I told you I would be around when you needed me." 

"We sure as hell need you now," Josh says. 

We form a circle. "How did you know to come here?" I ask. 

"I heard you call out on the radio. That pain in the ass reporter isn't the only one that is listening on your conversations," Victor says. 

"We sure are glad you're here. We didn't know what we were going to do in there," I say. 

"You might as well go into that store with a sling shot as with that gun you got there." 

"I wanted to make sure we had some backup." 

"Your back up is here," he says as he pushes past us and goes up to the front doors. He tries to pry the old electronic doors apart, but they won't move. He steps back, picks up his staff and, with the handle, bashes it into the doors until he smashes a hole in one of them. He sticks his head in it, pulls it out and turns to us. "We got a jackpot here. It smells like death in there. That's good." 

He reaches his hand into the opening and jimmies the lock open. Before he goes in, he yells, "Come on, you evil, undead mother fuckers. I'm coming for your asses!" and darts into the building. The three of us stand in shock. We're amazed someone would just run in like that. Victor's head pokes back out of the doorway. "Are you candy asses coming or not?"