Page 13 of Love Bites
I looked to the trees once more. The sun hung low in the sky now, casting the hill in an orange glow. In the distance, a bird sang a song. It probably wasn't a nightingale, but in my head, it totally was. It was almost time for vampires to rise from their coffins, if that was actually how they slept.
I turned back to the fence and with one decisive move, slashed the squiggly T as well as the weird rune below it that almost looked like an X.
"Sorry, Dad," I murmured, looking at my handy work. Then I took a step back and slid the knife into my pocket where it rested next to my stake. Maybe I wasn't scared, but I wasn't stupid either. "Anyone around?" I called.
The only response I got came in the form of the wind making a few of the dead leaves by my feet dance.
I waited another ten minutes, just to be sure.
The birds sang their last song of the day and a squirrel dashed up a tree, but other than that?
Absolutely nothing happened.
* * *
When I trotted back inside, I spotted my little brother sitting in the living room with a friend of his, both of them hunched over some sort of tabletop game that seemed to use a lot of miniatures. Not an unfamiliar scene. Luke and Damian had been inseparable since elementary school and I was pretty sure that sometimes, they were in a competition to out-nerd one another. What I wasn't sure of was which of them gained the most victories.
"Are you going back to your place?" Luke asked, looking up from the army of miniature orcs lined up on his side of the table.
"Not yet." I ruffled my hand through his hair as I walked past. "I'm going upstairs to take a nap."
"A nap?" Luke's eyes flickered to the clock on the mantle of the fireplace. "You want me to get you when dinner's ready?"
"Nah, I really need some sleep," I lied. The truth was that I didn't want to be disturbed while I watched the backyard from my window like a crazy person.
"Okay." Luke focused back on his game and I left him and his friend to it.
Upstairs in my room, I rolled my desk chair over to the window and took position, feeling a little bit like a sniper waiting for his target to show up. Only I'd neglected to bring any sort of infrared or other nighttime vision devices. The sun was setting now and soon there would be nothing but faint moonlight to illuminate the backyard. I wouldn't be able to see shit.
So much for my masterplan.
I let out a small sigh.
What was I doing here? I probably stood as much of a chance at catching this vampire as I did catching Santa Clause when I was five. At least this time, I hadn't tried laying a trail of cookies.
On the downside, that also meant I had no cookies to console myself with when this plan eventually resulted in failure.
I really should have taken some cookies from the pantry.
Still thinking about cookies, I watched the sun disappear beyond the horizon. I kept my eyes trained on the backyard, determined not to miss any signs of change or movement, but still, nothing was happening.
This was pointless.
* * *
I jerked awake in the middle of the night when a hand touched my shoulder. Confused, I whirled around accompanied by the creaking of my desk chair as it protested the sudden movement. I must have fallen asleep in it.
My room was dark and I wondered what time it was—and who the hell had woken me. I'd told Luke not to get me for dinner, and Remy wouldn’t have just barged in. It had to be the vampire.
My eyes found him standing mere feet away from me.
"No need to be so scared," he said.
"I'm not scared. You surprised me."
"How can I surprise you when I'm simply taking you up on your invitation?"
My invitation? My eyes darted to the window and the nearly pitch black yard. "I never invited you into the house."
