Page 39 of My Road Trip with a Vampire: Season One
I sit in silence. I can’t find words to explain it.
“Beatrice doesn’t talk about it,” Dennis says, spotting my difficulty.
Faith hums, the sound curling up in a wisp of smoke.
“Interesting. I am curious though, how did it all start?”
“Faith, she doesn’t like to—”
“I asked the girl, Dennis,” she says, her words clipping him off. “I’m not asking about her process, only what happened to her.”
I toss my hair back. If he did all that research to find me, then I’m sure he knows all the details of what happened. It was a pretty big deal in my hometown. It even made the local news.
“Nothing glamorous. My best friend and I were in a car accident. I hit my head pretty hard and almost died. My heart stopped beating, but I’m still here.”
“And your friend?”
My heart plummets. This is the part I can’t outrun no matter how much ground I cover.
“She died.” I look at my fingernails. Pretty much everyone back home acted like everything was normal when I got out of the hospital. I think they were afraid they’d make me sad if they asked too many questions. It's weird to keep moving on like it never happened. Maybe that’s why I keep talking. “There was a moment when we were in-between. I can’t describe it, but we were both there, and in an instant, she was gone. I wandered around, thinking I’d be stuck there forever.” I flop back in the chair and trace the wood carvings on the armrests. “I guess that’s why I started doing what I do.”
Dennis stares back, the flames of the candelabra casting shadows over his features. I can’t tell what he’s thinking. Probably that I’m talking too much and that he's ready for blood.
Faith taps her cigarette over a golden ashtray. Her mouth is tight.
“What was it like there? The in-between.”
I think about it, the dark expanse, the rippling sheet of gray that seemed to swallow the rest of the world whole. Voices swirl up in my head, and hands claw around the fabric of the veil, reaching for me when I open my mouth.
“I can’t talk about it.”
She nods.
“I see. You have a soft heart if you believe that everyone deserves the peace of the afterlife.”
“Well, wandering aimlessly for eternity seems harsh, doesn’t it?”
“Not for some people,” Dennis says.
“A man of conviction,” Faith says. “I see you haven’t changed a bit, Dennis. Well then, should we get started?”
The pressure at my temple twinges again, reminding me that I need to rest or risk getting a killer migraine.
“Actually, I think Beatrice needs to lie down before she starts exploring paranormal activity,” Dennis says, his eyes boring into me.
Faith laughs.
“Dennis, why don’t you just come out and say you’re ready to eat? Beatrice, I’ll show you to your wing. Pick a room and feel free to explore when you’re ready. You have free roam of the place.”
She clutches her skirts as she guides me up the winding staircase. I hunch my shoulders up, feeling like the eyes on the portraits are following me. I pick one of the first rooms that's furnished with a bed and not some stretcher-looking cot with handcuffs on it. A whole wing to myself doesn’t seem like such a luxury anymore, but I’m thankful there will be plenty of space between me and whatever activities Faith and Dennis are getting up to.
Jealousy sparks through me when I think of Dennis handling all of those buttons on Faith’s dress and sinking his teeth into her neck. I kick the feeling back. Faith seems pretty nice for a former cultist with a taste for vampires. Plus, she’s got to be in her mid-fifties. Good for her if she’s having a great time.
I close my eyes, and the world blots out. I dream of burnt rubber, broken windshields, and hands reaching through the glass. I wake up to the pipes rattling. It’s an eerie sound, but it is an old house. Creepy noises are to be expected.
I feel too unsettled to go back to sleep, but I’m not ready to go searching for Dennis and Faith just yet. I want to make sure they’re good and done with their business before I approach them.
I traipse to the adjoined bathroom, finding a delightful clawed tub there. It seems like a good opportunity to clear my head and kill some time, so I run some hot water and sink in up to my collarbones.
