The Road Less Taken

I woke up alone on the ground. Darren wasn’t in the room with me, as far as I could tell. My watch said 7:21. I groggily sat up and rubbed my eyes with the heels of my hands and yawned. It was already dark inside, which meant nothing to me. I didn’t feel safe by myself. Standing up, I climbed the stairs to the house and began to search for Darren. It was already dark outside. I found him in the kitchen cooking something.

“Finally awake, I see.” He said softly when I had entered the doorway.

“Yeah…” I nodded, even though his back was to me. “What are you making?” I joined him at the stove, where a pot of clam chowder was cooking.

“Hungry?” He smiled as he looked over at me. “You look like you could use some nourishment.”

I walked over to the kitchen table and gingerly sat down- still only half awake.

He soon sat a bowl of soup down onto the table in front of me and joined me at the table with his own serving.

“How do you feel?” He asked me.

“Okay, I guess.” I mumbled, taking a bite of my food. It was warm, creamy and delicious. I hummed in delight, gulping down another spoonful. “Overwhelmed.”

He nodded. “I expected that. It’s okay, though. You’ll adjust. I know how scary it is at first.”

I hummed in response. I wasn’t sure if it had positive or negative connotations, but it was a response nonetheless.

“Diego will be home soon.”

I looked from my bowl and up at him. “Is everyone still looking for me?”

“Yes.”

I turned in my seat to see Diego walking through the door to the kitchen.

“But they’ll give up soon.”

“How will I explain this to everyone tomorrow?” I asked him.

Diego shrugged. “You’re a smart girl. I’m sure you’ll think of something.”

I frowned and finished my dinner. Darren held out his hand, and I gave him my bowl.

“I’m going to my office.” Diego told the both of us. “Don’t wait for me.” He vanished up the stairs.

Darren led me into the living room and we both sat down on the couch- he pulled me into his arms and I closed my eyes. We sat there with each other in silence for awhile until he abruptly stood up. I gave him a puzzled look.

“They’re coming here.” He said in a deathly low tone.

I panicked. “What do we do?” I rose to my feet as well.

“There’s nothing we can do.” He admitted in defeat. “It’s too late.”

There was a knock on the door. As Darren went to answer it, I found that I could hear my thundering heart again.

Vlad walked in. “There you are.” He sighed in relief. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

As soon as I saw him I began to calm down. I was able to walk towards him, and I even found my voice. “Why?”

“Nobody knew where you were. I was worried.” He smiled warmly at me, and I felt my heart surge.

“That’s enough, Vladimir.” Darren’s voice, harsh and deep, snapped me back to reality. “I am ordering you to leave my house.”

Vlad chuckled darkly and turned to face Darren. “I will leave…But Jill is to come with me when I do.”

“Woah, hold on…I don’t want to go.” I protested, looking to and from the guys standing in front of me. “I really didn’t want to get mixed up in any of this.”

“Let her decide.”

“You only say that because she is siding with you.” Vladimir accused.

I felt guilty.

Darren reached out and took my hands. “You only feel like this because of the bond.” He reminded me. I knew he was right.

I took a step back and looked down. “Go home, Vlad.” I instructed. When neither of them spoke, I looked up. Vlad was staring intently back at me.

“I cannot do that.”

I closed my eyes and saw an image of Vlad poised above Darren, grabbing his throat and squeezing and tearing and-

I opened my eyes. “Then I’ll go with you.”

Darren furrowed his brow- glaring at me. I knew he didn’t- wouldn’t- understand, but I had to trust my gut instinct.

Vlad grinned and held out his hand. I took it and he led me out the door.

“Bye Darren.” I said silently. “I love you.”

Vlad closed the door behind me and led me back towards my own home.

“Forgive me. I did not mean to act so rudely in there.” He said softly. “I was concerned about your safety.”

“I was perfectly safe. I don’t think that Darren would’ve let anybody hurt me.” I protested.

“I believe that. I was more worried about what he would do to you.”

I couldn’t argue with that. He did get pretty touchy feely with me in that basement.

“Vlad…Why did you bite me?”

He stopped walking and looked at me. “I can’t lie to you.”

“I know.”

He hesitated. “Because your father told me to.”

I knew it already, but what I really wanted was to hear him say it. “So you don’t feel anything for me?”

“Jill…I feel for you in a way that I cannot feel for anybody else.”

“Because of the bond.” I interrupted.

He said nothing- I was right.

“Vlad, why did you bite Darren?”

Still he said nothing. I returned his silence. Standing there with him didn’t feel right.

I knew where I needed to be.

“I’m sorry.” I whispered, breaking into a run, heading back towards Darren’s house.

“Jill!” I heard Vlad come after me, but I ran for my life, winding in and out of the forest.

The forest belongs to the wolves. His voice rang in my ears, and I found the inspiration to run faster. I finally reached his front door and opened it.

“Darren!” I screamed. He instantly appeared before me, worry present in his eyes. “I ran away from Vlad.” I said, panting.

He rubbed my back, trying to calm me.

“He was following me. I thought I lost him but he knows where I am.” I explained.

No sooner did those words leave my mouth than Vlad burst through the front door- his eyes bloodshot and his hands clenched into fists.

“I see how things are going to be.” He said, slowly walking towards us.

“Vlad, please-“ Tears were rolling down my face now, preventing me from seeing things clearly.

Darren moved to stand between Vlad and I. “We’ll end this here and now.”

Too quickly for my eyes to see, Vlad had his hands wrapped around Darren’s throat. My vision grew fuzzy, and blurred as that same anxious feeling began to well up in my stomach. I closed my eyes, my tears were dried. My vision was fine- the anxious feeling was gone, and Vlad was lying on the floor.

“Darren, what’d you do?” I asked softly.

He was holding his throat. I could see the marks that Vlad’s fingers had left. “I didn’t do anything.”

The stench of blood pierced my senses, and I kept my eyes on Darren, who was apparently trying to restrain himself. He moved closer to me and took my hands. They were bright red- stained with blood.

“Me?” I asked meekly. He nodded. “How?”

“I don’t know.”

We stood there for awhile before Diego came down the stairs. He froze when he saw the three of us.

“Jill…” He said softly. “Do you realize what you’ve done?”

I shook my head. Diego said nothing, turned and entered the kitchen. Darren followed him…I was too afraid to move. They both returned- Darren with my duffel bag and his own in his hands and Diego with keys and a small cooler.

“Go.” He instructed, handing Darren a set of keys as Darren handed me my bag. “You know what to do.”

Darren nodded, taking my hand and dragging me out of the house.

“Where are we going?” I asked him.

He said nothing while leading me towards the garage and opening it to reveal a big green pickup truck.

“Get in.”

I hastily obeyed, throwing my bag in the back as he climbed in on the passenger’s side, jamming the key into the ignition. He tore out of there at in the least seventy miles an hour, struggling with his seatbelt. He was going south- away from Cascade Town.

I chose to speak to him again as soon as he merged onto the freeway.

“Darren, where are we going?”

“Mexico.” He answered nonchalantly. “Diego’s parents live in Michoacán.”

I understood. We were on the run. I looked out of the window and into the darkness of the night. The clock on the dashboard read 11:39.

“They won’t be able to find us.” Darren said. “We should be okay- you’ll be alright.”

But that wasn’t what I was thinking about. “How did I…” Kill Vlad? I couldn’t say it.

He sighed. “I don’t know. I had begun to black out and didn’t see what happened.”

That scared me. My father’s experiment…I was sure that it was more powerful than he’d ever imagined.

He put his hand on my knee and rubbed the cap with his thumb. “We’ll work this out. Everything’ll be alright.”

I looked over at him. He grinned- I could see his teeth flash in the moonlight.

“I love you.” I said quietly.

I saw him lean in towards me. My first thoughts raced to him keeping his eyes on the road, but then I dismissed it.

“I love you.” He whispered back, gently kissing my neck.”

I smiled wide as he returned his focus to the road. It was exciting: this whole new experience that I had once found overwhelming. I was headed to new places- off to meet new people and leave the leeches and my father’s experiments behind me.

The best part of it was, I wasn’t traveling by plane.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference.
-Robert Frost
April 29, 2008- May 29, 2008
San Jose, California