ReVamped Page 8

  “What’s the matter?”

  “Nothing!”

  “Do you want to come in? You’re getting wet.” His own clothes—a collared white dress shirt and black jeans—were becoming soaked with rainwater.

  “No!”

  To my surprise, he simply shrugged and lowered himself down on the wet ground beside me. We sat side-by-side, my knees tucked tightly into my chest, his long legs sprawled out in front of him. The rain was slowly letting up, but it was already too late for us both. My hair lay matted against my face and back, covering my mud-spattered clothes. Sebastian’s shirt was completely drenched, clinging tightly to his chest.

  After a few minutes of listening to the raindrops, he finally broke the silence between us. “Dawn, what’s wrong?” he asked gently.

  “Nothing.”

  “Are you in trouble?”

  “No.”

  “Is it the training?”

  “No.”

  “Is it that Ethan guy? Did he do something?”

  “No.” What did he know about Ethan anyway?

  “Well, what is it?”

  “Why should I tell you?” I challenged.

  He raised his arms in defense. “Hey, you’re the one who came here, remember?”

  Why had I come to Sebastian’s house?

  “It’s not like you care anyway!” I said, burying my face in my knees.

  “Perhaps I don’t,” he retorted, shrugging.

  “Then don’t ask!”

  Suddenly, Sebastian’s expression softened. “Hey, my pants are all grimy because of you,” he teased, smiling. “It’s the least you can do.”

  I looked up at him, bewildered. Was the always-somber Sebastian actually making a joke? For the first time since I had met him, his gray eyes twinkled brightly, free of their usual hardness. He looked at me expectantly.

  “I—” I began, then fell silent again.

  I wanted to tell him that my worst fear of failing my father’s mission was slowly becoming realized. I wanted to share my frustration toward the four vampire trainees who sometimes acted excited about their positions as town guardians, while at other times seemed to personally resent me for it. I wanted to talk about the turmoil my almost-kiss with Ethan caused in my already conflicted mind. And, in this moment of weakness, I also wanted to get on my knees and plead with him to join our dismal, little group.

  Instead, I took a deep breath and calmly asked, “Why don’t you want to join us?”

  Sebastian gazed at me intently, but didn’t speak.

  I narrowed my eyes, bringing my face closer to his. “Why?”

  For a moment, we locked eyes, neither one of us daring to breathe. The storm had ceased, but the air around us crackled with a surge of charged energy.

  “Why?” I repeated again, this time more urgently.

  Sebastian looked away, his jaw tensing. He seemed to be struggling to find the right words for what he had to say.

  Before he managed to form them, the shrill sound of my phone rang through the air. I jumped, startled by the loud buzz. I hadn’t had much use for the phone since arriving in Angel Creek, and the familiar tone suddenly sounded so alien.

  “I have to take this,” I said, moving away. He looked relieved at the interruption.

  The voice on the other line belonged to Ethan. “Dawn, it’s Hannah,” he shouted over the sound of Hannah’s loud sobs. “She’s in trouble. Can you meet us at the cottage?”

  “Yes, of course,” I said, hanging up.

  I turned back to Sebastian. “It’s Ethan,” I explained.

  “Right.” Did I detect a flash of anger in his eyes?

  “Our friend Hannah is in some kind of trouble. Do you want to come along?” I asked hopefully.

  For a brief moment I thought he was about to say “yes”, but then he clenched his fists and stood up. “I’d like to Dawn, but I can’t. I just…can’t.” Any moment of tenderness we may have shared earlier had been long forgotten.

  “Of course not,” I retorted bitterly.

  I left without saying goodbye. As I sped off through the forest, I could feel his eyes on my back, watching me intently.

  Back at the cottage, I was greeted by Hannah’s mess of bright red curls. She was standing on the porch, her bright blue eyes puffy and red. Ethan and the four vampires gathered around her, attempting to comfort the sobbing girl. Despite her distressed state, Hannah took one look at me and gasped.

  “Wow!” Her jaw dropped as she took me in. “What happened to you?”

  “Whoa, Dawn! Did you take a mud bath or something?” Brooke wrinkled her nose.

  “I’m fine,” I assured them, trying to divert their attention back to the problem at hand. “What’s the matter?”

  “Hannah was assaulted by a werewolf,” Ethan explained, as Hannah’s round eyes pooled with tears.

  “It was horrible!” she sniffled, burying her head in Ethan’s shoulder.

  “A werewolf? Are you sure?” I asked, perplexed.

  Never, in the history of the werekind, had there been a recorded attack on a human. Yes, films and books were written about the dangerous, frightening wares, but in the real world, werewolves were serene creatures. In fact, they could be credited for the start of the hippie movement back in the early sixties. “Peace and Love to All” was the ware motto.

  Exasperated, Hannah blew her nose into a tissue. “Yes, he was definitely a werewolf!”

  “I didn’t even know those things existed!” Seth exclaimed.

  “What did he look like?” Brooke asked. “Was he at least hot or was he, like, all wolfed out and hairy?”

  “He looked like a normal human being.” Hannah began, deep in thought. “There definitely wasn’t anything hairy about him. Now that I think about it, he was actually really cute—dark complexion, green eyes, short hair, pretty muscular. Not as good-looking as you, Ethan, of course.” Hannah turned to Ethan with a smile.

  “What did he do?” I quickly cut in before the conversation had a chance to veer completely off topic. “Did he hurt you?”

  “Yes!” she cried, tearing up again. “He—he kidnapped Daisy!”

  “Oh, no!” Sophie gasped. “Is Daisy your little sister?”

  “No. Daisy is my baby! My poor, little baby!” Hannah was hysterical. “Oh, little Daisy!”

  I looked at Ethan for clarification. He shrugged.

  “So Daisy would be?” I gently asked.

  “My puppy, of course! My baby Daisy is an adorable little maltipugchipoo!”

  “So, uhh, what did this werewolf want with Daisy?”

  “I have no idea! She’s never done anything to harm anyone. This werewolf jerk came to the diner when I was on my morning shift and gave me this note.” Hannah handed me a crumpled up piece of paper.

  “If you ever want to see Daisy again, bring your vampire friends to the werewolf camp in Millwood at 6:00 p.m. tonight,” I read out loud, fighting my way through numerous spelling mistakes and accommodating for the grammatical errors. “It’s signed Leif the Werewolf and is followed by a couple of post-scripts—PS: Daisy is your dog. PPS: Tonight, as in, the night of today.”

  “Lief sure sounds like a bright guy,” Ethan said sarcastically. “I didn’t get a good glimpse of him when he was in the diner, but I drove Hannah home to check on Daisy and she really is gone.”

  “He probably slipped in through Daisy’s doggy-door. She must’ve been so frightened!” Hannah cried.

  Hunter turned to me. “So what do we do now?”

  “Well, technically, you four are the official guardians of Angel Creek. I suppose that role also extends to the town’s furry creatures,” I mused aloud. ”Now, we head to Millwood and help Hannah get Daisy back.”

  How tough could this mission really be? I thought. I was still in disbelief that a werewolf could be so malicious.

  “Prepare for a fight, Werewolf Leif!” Seth shouted, jumping up and down excitedly.

  “Not so fast!” I put out my hand to stop him. �
�We’re going to try to resolve this situation peacefully. I’m certain that this is all some big misunderstanding, and I’m really hoping to get us all there and back in one piece.”

  “You’re no fun, Dawn!” Seth whined. “I want to show off my new super punch!”

  “You mean the one you mastered in your video game?” Brooke teased.

  “Please, like you’re any better, Miss I-Don’t-Wanna-Break-A-Nail?” Seth retorted.

  Sensing that a fight was about to break out, I quickly ushered everyone into the cottage to gather supplies for our trip.

  The distance to Millwood would have taken a strong vampire only an hour or so to run, but because we had two humans and some not-so-strong vampires in the group, we decided to pile into our cars for the two hour ride instead. I loaded Ethan’s pickup with weapons I hoped we would not need, and we set out on a race against the clock. It was already mid-afternoon and we had no time to spare if we were to make Leif’s deadline. I sped away in my convertible with Hannah, Sophie and Seth, while Ethan followed closely behind with Brooke and Hunter in his truck.

  We reached our destination shortly before 6:00 p.m., barely giving us enough time to find the werewolf camp. The village of Millwood was small, only boasting a population of three hundred, but, unlike the town of Angel Creek, it spread over a wide area of land.

  “Where is this werewolf camp?” Hannah asked anxiously, as we drove through the town.

  “We should check the forest first,” I proposed. Werewolves, unlike vampires, lived in concealment from humans; often being teased for their inadequacy as supernatural beings.

  It wasn’t long before I caught a distinct scent of wet, greasy fur emerging from the Millwood forest. I parked the car near a hiking trail, as Ethan pulled in beside me.

  “We’ll have to walk the rest of the way in,” I explained to the group, grabbing the large weapons bag out of Ethan’s pick-up. Just in case Lief caused any trouble.

  “Be alert,” I instructed. “The camp will be well-hidden.”

  We followed the scent through a winding maze of trees. After hacking through thick underbrush, we neared a clearing with a colorful sign welcoming us to Camp Utopia and wishing us a peaceful stay. Men, women and children of all ages milled around a campfire, some singing and dancing, others doing yoga—all laughing merrily.

  A tall woman in a long, tie-dye dress approached us. She swayed from side to side as she walked, almost as if she was experiencing some sort of a trance. A colorful flower wreath rested upon her bright pink dreadlocks.

  “Namaste, sisters and brothers,” she whispered, bowing her head.

  Brooke rolled her eyes, mouthing a silent “Wow!”

  “Namaste,” I replied, wishing that she would stay still.

  “I am Rayne, head of the Millwood Werewolf Tribe,” she spun around with her hands up in the air, motioning at the people around us. “You can also call me Sunshine, if you’d like, for that is my middle name. Or, you can call me Rayne Sunshine. Or, if you’d like, you—”

  “Okay, weather woman, we get it,” Hannah cut in impatiently. “We’re here on a very important matter. We’re looking for a puppy named Daisy. Do you know where she is?”

  “Hmm…” Rayne mused. “I’m afraid we don’t have any ware pups named Daisy here. We have a few kids named Rose, one Magnolia and a Turnip, but no Daisy.”

  “You don’t get it!” Hannah was now yelling. “I’m not looking for a kid. I’m trying to find my dog, Daisy. She’s not a werewolf. She’s a mix between a Maltese, Pug, Chihuahua and Poodle dog breeds. Someone named Leif stole her from my house in Angel Creek and threatened that something bad would happen to her if I didn’t come here tonight!”

  Rayne’s tranquil face suddenly contorted into an angry frown. “What did that boy do this time?” she huffed, storming off toward one of the camp cabins.

  From where we were standing, we could hear her yelling at someone inside. After a moment, she reappeared, dragging behind her a young man who matched Hannah’s description of Leif. In his arms was a scrawny, odd-looking creature. It was dressed in a pink sweater and while the bright pink collar around its neck had the name Daisy inscribed on it, the tiny being barely resembled a dog.

  “Ohmigod, Hannah! The werewolves turned your poor dog into a monster!” Brooke exclaimed at the sight of the trembling ball of fur.

  Hannah shot Brooke a confused look as she rushed toward Leif. She grabbed Daisy away from him, nuzzling her face against Daisy’s wet nose. “Oh, my baby! My poor little Daisy. Thank goodness you’re okay!”

  The dog’s pink tongue hung out of its mouth, wagging from side to side. It seemed unable to properly fit into its small snout.

  “That’s ‘okay’?” Brooke whispered to me.

  “Leif, why did you kidnap Daisy?” I asked curiously. Leif didn’t strike me as someone malicious. Not very smart, sure, but not cruel.

  “Yes, why in the name of the Earth, the Sun and the Sky would you do something like this?” Rayne asked, giving him a hard smack on the back of his head.

  So much for their peaceful philosophies.

  “It wasn’t my fault, Mom! This creepy foreign guy cornered me when I was out hunting for berries yesterday. This vampire dude, who called himself Viktor with a ‘k’, told me that I was chosen for a very special mission. All I had to do was go to Angel Creek, steal this little dog and tell this girl to bring her vampire friends here at 6:00 p.m. tonight.” Leif explained, pointing at Hannah and Daisy.

  “Why?” Ethan asked.

  “I don’t know. Viktor said it was a matter of life and death! He gave me the instructions and the address and I followed them exactly,” he grinned proudly. “It was easy to spot you because of your bright red hair.”

  Hannah shot him a cold glare.

  “Look, I’m sorry I took your dog. I thought I was saving her life. Or your life. Or maybe even mine,” Lief stammered nervously. The poor guy really wasn’t very bright. “I took good care of her, I promise. I think she really likes me. Look!” He extended his hand to Daisy and she began to lick it. The poor dog didn’t seem too clever either.

  “What would this vampire have wanted with my dog?” Hannah asked nervously.

  “Or with us?” Sophie added.

  “I don’t know,” I responded truthfully. Suddenly, a terrifying thought crossed my mind. “We have to get out of here!” I yelled. “It’s a trap!”

  It was too late. A large army of about two dozen vampires emerged from deep in the forest, surrounding us from all sides. Without any time to contemplate a defense strategy, I kicked open the weapons bag, throwing swords, guns and even stakes at the crew members.

  The werewolf pack, sensing trouble, shifted from their human bodies into their ware forms. At barely ten inches in height, they had big, round eyes with glossy snouts and tiny saw-like teeth. Ranging in shades of white, gray and black, they bore more of a resemblance to adorable fairytale animals, than to terrifying mythological creatures.

  “Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding!” Hannah exclaimed, looking at the newly transformed pack of cuddly creatures trembling around us.

  “Stay back!” I shouted, shielding Hannah with my body as the vampires began to attack. Seth and Sophie cowered behind a large oak tree, unsure of what to do.

  I spent most of my time fighting four or five vampires at once in an attempt to protect the threesome. Ethan, on the other hand, fought alongside Brooke and Hunter. I was happy to see that at least two of the trainees were able to hold their ground in a fight.

  As I combated one particularly powerful vampire, I was suddenly overpowered by a strong human scent. It belonged to neither Hannah nor Ethan. Rather, the smell emanated from the attackers on either side of me. The brief second of confusion caught me off guard, giving the large vampire a chance to deliver an immobilizing kick to my stomach.

  I staggered, momentarily losing my balance and allowing my attacker a chance to descend on me. His companions grabbed my arms, pinning me firmly to the gr
ound. They were undoubtedly human, but extremely powerful—as strong as Ethan had been the day he saved me from the arrow.

  One of the attackers held a large syringe in his hand, filled to the brim with a bright red substance. The moment he stabbed the needle it onto my arm, I knew exactly what the elixir inside it was—vampire blood. The blood of one vampire was poison to another. I knew with certainty that I would soon be rendered completely powerless.

  “Take her,” the massive vampire ordered the humans. “This is the one the boss wants!”

  “Just get them all!” another vampire yelled, grabbing hold of Hannah’s waist.

  Hannah’s shrill scream resonated in my ears as I fought the dizzy spell that suddenly overcame me. I wrestled the humans with all my might, briefly succeeding in pulling one of my arms from their forceful grips. I commanded myself to fight the poison, struggling to regain my strength. Finally, I managed to pull myself to my feet, just as one of the humans stabbed yet another dose of the blood into my body. I collapsed again, fighting against the darkness that was rapidly descending on me.

  Just as the three assailants began to drag me into the forest, I caught a glimpse of the familiar dark shadow that had been following me since the day I arrived in Angel Creek. It emerged from the forest, rushing toward me at the speed of light. With one powerful blow, the figure threw both humans and their vampire commander off of me. The stranger scooped me off the ground into his arms, and for the first time ever, I saw him as an ally instead of a foe.

  Through my faintness I could foggily make out Sebastian’s silver eyes and the sound of his voice calling my name. “Dawn! Stay with me!” he yelled as Ethan rushed to our side.

  “Protect the others,” I murmured, struggling to stay awake.

  Sebastian looked over at Ethan. “Quick, give her your blood,” he ordered.

  “What?” Ethan asked, looking from Sebastian to me.

  “Now!” Sebastian yelled, as I shook my head “no”.

  “Uhh, yes,” Ethan stammered. “Yes, of course.”

  From the corner of my eye, I saw flashes of the battle. Sophie and Seth had teamed up against a wiry female vampire, while Hannah cowered behind them, clutching Daisy in her arms. The little dog barked furiously as two muscular humans came to the female vampire’s aid. Seth and Sophie dropped their weapons and began running for their lives, while Hannah stood in place, paralyzed with fear.