World So Cold

I was just passing through the small town. It was a quick detour on my route to Miami. I was coming from New York City. I liked big cities. It was easier to go unnoticed. Crime happened every day. Nobody notices a few murders here and there. And they surely didn’t expect me.

The town I was driving through, with my black Lamborghini, was Fell’s Church, Virginia. What pulled me there was the Power I felt coming from it. It was amazing how many lei lines it held. Many of them crossed over each other many times. You could sense the Power for miles and it had made me curious.

As I was driving I saw a bird’s shadow pass over the road in front of me. It was a huge bird judging by the size of the shadow. Looking up at the sky I saw its owner. It was a huge crow. It seemed to be the blackest of night, its feathers glinting in the rays of the sun. I could imagine the sound its wings would make as they flapped through the air.

It flew in the same direction I was going. But instead of continuing along the road it headed into the dark forest that surrounded the town. It was an old forest, the trees ancient looking. It was fall, almost the start of the school year for kids, and the leaves were of many colors. It was a beautiful sight.

I continued down the road pushing the crow to the back of my mind. It was insignificant to me even if it was a beautiful bird. Ironically, it was also often used as a bad omen, a symbol of death. And I just happened to come into town.

I came to a part of the road that looked a bit deserted and decided this would be a good place. I pulled my car over to the side of the road and shut off the engine. It seemed like nobody came down this way. You could feel the stillness in the air and the silence was deafening.

I couldn’t see or hear anything. Not even a stray little animal. They usually had natural avoidance of us much like humans. The only reason people didn’t turn and run every time they saw us was because we were good looking and hard to resist. It was pretty much impossible when we targeted them. There was no getting away.

I got out of the car and shut the door before leaning against it. I stayed there waiting for someone to drive by. It grew dark quickly. The trees on either side of the road blocked a lot of the light. Soon I sensed someone approaching. Listening closely I could hear the sound of their engine as they grew closer. I waited until they were insight before getting off the car and stepping more into the road.

As they came around the bend the headlights of the car passed over me and I raised my hand above my head, a signal that I needed help. At first I thought the car was going to pass and ignore me. They slowed down beside me and came to a stop. With the engine still running, they rolled down the window and I leaned down to look into the vehicle.

I was looking into a young man’s face. He looked to be about low-twenties. He had sandy brown hair and brown eyes. His face was dusted with freckles and there looked to be innocence about his face. As if he hadn’t yet discovered the evils of this world. Boy was he in for a treat. “Need any help?” he asked when I failed to speak. He seemed nervous and at the same time confused as to why he was nervous.

“Yes, there seems to be a problem with my car,” I said. I was completely polite and tried to portray the picture of innocence. It seemed to work because the guy visibly relaxed and nodded.

“Would you like me to take a look at it?” he asked. I could tell he was trying to look like he knew what he was doing. His hands fidgeted on the steering wheel.

“That would be wonderful,” I said flashing him a smile. He seemed stunned for a second before he quickly recovered and tried to look unaffected. He nodded again and I stepped away from the car. I stood watching him as he parked his car in front of mine. As the engine died, the silence consumed us once again. He stepped out and shut the car door hesitantly.

“What seems to be the problem?” he asked moving towards my car. He glanced at me before opening the hood. He looked to me before doing anything. His eyes traveled over me before snapping back to meet my blue eyes.

“I’m not really sure. I’m not too good with cars.” I walked over beside him, closing the distance between us. I watched his Adam’s apple bob up and down as he swallowed.

“Well, let’s take a look,” he said and bent his head over the engine.

I couldn’t help but stare at his throat as he did. I could see the smooth skin, the hairs slightly raised from the cold. I could smell his scent, the slight odor of sweat coating his body. He was still nervous. I could hear his heart beating faster than a normal human’s. It wasn’t frantic. Yet.

My fangs began to extend as I imagined piercing the soft flesh. Instinctively I moved closer when he pulled back and stood up. As quick as I could I calmed the bloodlust and withdrew my fangs. He stared at me confused for a moment and I feared that he had seen me, seen the real me. But then I could see him shake off the thoughts in his mind, physically with a shake of his head. A beautiful girl like her could never have that face. It must be the night playing tricks.

“I can’t see anything wrong with it,” he lied. I could sense it.

“What am I going to do?” I cried in fake distress. I turned around and put my head in my hands. On my lips was a small smile.

“I can look again,” he said. “Maybe I missed something.” His voice came as a muffle as he bent over the engine again. I turned around to watch him.

Again the smooth lines of his throat were visible in the night. I could hear the blood moving through his veins and thought just how easy it would be to just sink my fangs into his throat and the satisfaction it would bring. I traced my eyes over the spot where his jugular would be and felt my fangs poke at my bottom lip.

“Why don’t you try and start the car?” he asked with his head still under the hood. “I think I figured it out.”

“Okay,” I said moving gracefully into my car. Turning the key it quickly came to life. I got out of the car and withdrew my fangs again as the guy put down the hood. “Thank you very much,” I said moving over to him. “I don’t know what else I would have done if you hadn’t come along.”

“No problem,” he said with a smile on his face. It remained there as I continued to walk towards him. But once I got within inches of him the smile on his lips faded quickly. It always did once we came within a certain range of humans. The instinct to run from predators was still there even if they didn’t know it.

“No really thank you,” I said. I then quickly pinned him to my hood being careful not to dent it. I held him onto the hood with one hand on his chest. The other slipped under his shirt feeling the soft flesh beneath. I pressed my body closer to his, practically eliminating the space between us.

“What are you doing?” he asked nervously. I ignored him and leaned in towards his neck. Inhaling deeply the sweet smell of blood flooded my senses. I could feel the burning in my throat for the blood he carried.

“You see,” I said inhaling his scent again, “I’ve been on the road awhile and have just gotten so hungry.” I kissed his throat softly and felt the blood rush to the surface. I kept my lips there relishing the feeling of the blood running through his veins

“Listen, I have to be getting home,” he said. He tried to move but I easily kept him down. His eyes widened and a sort of panic seemed to go through him.

“It’s okay,” I said gently and he stopped struggling. He was tense, as if he sensed what was coming. “There’s just one more thing I need from you,” I said into his throat. I heard him swallow.

“What’s that?” he asked, his voice higher than normal, almost a squeak.

“I need you,” I told him, my voice a purr.

“I-I-I,” he stuttered.

“Shhh,” I said. This time I quieted him with a kiss to his lips. He had a moment of hesitation before eagerly kissing me back. I pulled away quickly though. I felt his warm breath on my face as I was only few inches from him. Luckily it was dark enough now that he couldn’t see me. He couldn’t see the blackness of my eyes or the fangs extending from my lips.

I pressed my body harder against his. I moved my lips to his throat again and could barely contain the urge to bite him. So I didn’t fight it. I quickly and easily punctured his skin. He gave a cry of pain before he relaxed. I felt the blood rush into my mouth from his jugular and quickly began to drink as much as I could.

The guy held me to him, relishing the feeling. He surprisingly wasn’t fighting me. I could feel the pleasure coming off of him in waves as I drank the blood from his neck. Slowly his grip loosened. Eventually his arms went completely slack and hit the hood. I growled hoping he hadn’t dented anything.

Eventually the blood stopped coming and I withdrew my fangs from the boy satisfied. His eyes were closed and his face peaceful. His skin was white as a sheet though. I let go of him and he slid off my hood onto the ground. I licked the stray traces of blood from my mouth making sure none remained.

Sighing I bent over and easily picked up the boy. I arranged him into his car where he slumped against the steering wheel. I then put a few dents into car and broke the windshield. The glass pieces flew into the boys face and made cuts along his skin.

I then went behind the car and pushed it into the deep ditch that was on the side of the road. I jumped down into the ditch with the car. The boy was now at an awkward angle in his seat. I bent down beneath the car where I quickly and easily punctured the gas tank. Gas slowly started to drip from the car onto the dry forest floor.

I went back to my car where I got a box of matches. Walking back over to where the car was in the ditch I stood staring at it for a moment. One more victim to add to my long list. I then lit the match and watched the flame dance in the wind. With an expert toss the match landed beneath the car near the gasoline. Quickly it caught fire. I watched as slowly the entire car was engulfed in flames.

Moving back to my car I got in and pulled away from the ditch. As I started gaining speed down the road I watched in the mirror as the car exploded sending showers of sparks around into the forest. I felt the slight shock wave travel around the area. I laughed with the ease of the kill. The flames disappeared from view as I went around a turn.