The Vampire and the Goth Ch. 07

The Vampire and the Goth Ch. 7

I knew that Elizabeth was shaken and feeling very vulnerable after Michelle's outburst, but I didn't realize how fragile she was until we went back to her bedroom. I was lying in bed with Elizabeth's head on my chest as she began to cry with huge, heart-breaking sobs. I could feel her hot tears fall on my skin as I held her close. I kissed the top of her head and stroked her back. I tried to comfort her.

"Wszystko w porządku, pięknie. Jesteś ze mną bezpieczny."

She lifted her head and kissed me, then she lay down again.

"Is that Polish, Stosh?"

"Yes, it is."

"What does it mean?"

"I'm telling you that you're safe with me and I'm calling you beautiful."

Her crying had stopped, but her voice still had that shaken, vulnerable sound.

"It's lovely. Can I hear more?"

I wracked my brain trying to come up with something romantic to say.

"Uwielbiam budzić się w twoich ramionach, moje serce. That means 'I love waking in your arms, my heart,'"

I could feel her smile against my chest, so I continued.

"Sprawiasz, że jestem szczęśliwy, kochanie, ale twoje łzy sprawiają, że boli mnie serce. That means, 'You make me so happy, honey, but your tears make my heart ache.'"

Elizabeth kissed me again, and we lay there together, not speaking. Then she said, "I think werewolves killed our parents."

I caught my breath for a moment and looked down at her. "Why do you think that?"

"I talked to my dad a couple of days before the accident and he said Aunt Clara was coming for a visit. The police report said that the tires were shredded, and their bodies had extensive damage from wild animals. Also, they found a third ladies' shoe without any explanation. Aunt Clara didn't come to the funeral, and no one's heard from her. They only found two bodies, Stosh. Where's Clara?"

Elizabeth's voice was shaking like she was about to start crying again. I held her close and lightly stroked her hair, but I didn't say anything.

"Laura told me we couldn't have a viewing because they'd been outside for too long and their bodies were suffering from exposure. But they were found only about twelve hours after they died, Stosh."

"Well, twelve hours is a long time for a dead body to sit outside," I said.

"Not when it's cold. And how would the cold have cut out my father's throat and shredded my mother's breast?"

"Maybe animals-"

Elizabeth cut me off. "Animals would have done more. They removed my dad's larynx. The coroner's report said his larynx was removed with almost surgical precision..." She was crying again. I held her close and rubbed her back.

"Laura doesn't know that I saw the coroner's report. And animals would not have been so... selective!" she wailed. "They were out in the middle of the woods for hours."

That was a good point. "Laura said it was a bad car accident."

Elizabeth gave a cold laugh. "Yeah? So why wasn't the windshield broken? Why weren't the airbags triggered? I saw the car when I went home. The windshield wasn't even cracked."

I thought about it. "Okay, that sounds like a very strange accident."

"I always knew it was weird. But now I know about Aunt Clara and I realize just how awful they are to your people. What if that's what happened, Stosh? What if they were murdered because of my aunt?"

Elizabeth's reaction to Michelle's outburst suddenly made a lot more sense.

"What if that was the last thing my parents saw? They must have been so frightened!"

She began to cry again, while I held her close.

"I'm so sorry Stosh. I shouldn't lay all this on you. I'm not normally this dramatic."

I shushed her. "It's okay."

Elizabeth slowly stopped crying and fell asleep in my arms. I lay there next to her, thinking about Michelle's unhinged behavior. Elizabeth hadn't reacted like that when Dmitri's face had changed a few nights before, but that was quite different from how Michelle had acted. Given what had happened to her parents, it was no wonder she was so frightened.

I was furious with the she-wolf. Her actions were completely uncalled for, even when you consider how overemotional wolves can get. I resolved to tell Laura just how shitty her girlfriend had made Elizabeth feel.

And to be honest, the whole thing made me think of how my parents had died. As I listened to Elizabeth's breathing, I was wracked with pain and guilt. It was easier to think about what Michelle had done wrong.

A few hours later, at first light, I heard Laura moving around in the house. I smelled bacon, eggs, and fresh coffee. It was a wonderful smell and it made me think of my mother's kitchen. Immediately, I felt a strong wave of grief for her, even though she had died hundreds of years ago. Elizabeth began to stir, and I immediately put my sense of loss and regret to the back of my mind.

"Good morning, piękny," I said, as I kissed her forehead.

She smiled. "What does that mean?"

"I called you beautiful."

She yawned. "Thanks for the compliment." Then, a moment later, she said, "You're not leaving, are you?" Her face was shadowed by fear and her vulnerability tore at my heart.

"I'm just going to get some coffee."

"You can drink coffee?" she asked.

"Yeah, I can drink a little. You don't have to wake up now, go back to sleep."

Elizabeth gave me a small smile, then rolled back over.

Laura was sitting at the dining room table. She had deep circles under her eyes, and I could tell she hadn't had a good night.

"Morning," she said.

"Good morning. May I have some coffee?"

She stood up immediately. "Sure! Do you want anything in it?"

"No, black is fine."

Laura smiled as she poured a cup of coffee for me.

"I made some extra bacon in case you wanted to eat some."

I don't eat a lot of human food, but who can turn down fresh bacon?

"I'd love a couple of pieces, thanks."

Laura brought me coffee and bacon as I sat down. She didn't say anything, so I decided to break the ice.

"Did Michelle come back last night?"

Laura gave a pained smile. "No. And I haven't heard from her, either."

She stirred her coffee and pushed her eggs around on her plate.

"How's my sister?"

I sighed. "It was a rough night for her. Michelle really scared her."

"Yeah. She kind of scared me, too." Laura sighed into her coffee cup. Then she said, "Look, I know there's a lot of bad history between your people and her people. I don't know all of it, but I do know that we shouldn't judge you, personally, for whatever wrongs people like you may have done in the past."

I sipped my coffee and took a few bites of bacon while I considered my response.

"I appreciate the position you're in. Your sister means a great deal to me and I'm terribly upset about what happened last night. I've known a few wolves in my time, and I know how they can be emotional and likely to overreact, especially when it comes to their mates."

Laura spoke up. "Michelle and I aren't mates."

I raised an eyebrow to that. Laura said, "I know how that sounds, and I do love her, but I don't know if I can be in a permanent relationship with her."

I remained silent, as Laura dropped her eyes. "I love her, but I don't know if I'm 'in love' with her."

I remained silent for a moment. Then I said, "Does Michelle know that?"

Werewolves mate for life. If Michelle was committed and Laura wasn't, that could go a long way toward explaining her behavior the night before.

Laura sighed. "I don't know. I've told her, but... I don't think she wants to hear it." Laura took a deep breath. "Fuck. I don't know what made me say that just now. I don't really know you."

I smiled. "I'm a good listener."

Laura played with her eggs for a moment, then she said, "Why don't you tell me about yourself? I mean, the real you."

I looked at her for a moment, not saying anything.

"Like... are you really from Poland?"

"Yes, I am. I'm from a village called Łódź."

Laura raised her eyebrows. "That's a big city, now, isn't it?"

I laughed. "Yes, it is. I haven't been there in a long time."

"How long has it been?"

I thought about it for a moment. "It's been more than two hundred years."

She nodded. "You're old."

I smiled. "I am."

Laura smiled back at me. She continued to play with the food on her plate as I enjoyed my coffee. Then, suddenly, there was a knock on the sliding glass door.

A man was standing outside on the porch, naked, except for a backpack. He had long, shaggy hair that was so black it was almost blue. When we looked at him, he gave a half-smile and a slight wave.

Laura said, "Come on in, Ben, it's unlocked." Then she turned to me and said, "That's Michelle's brother, Ben."

Ben came in and put an arm around Laura's neck to hug her. He kissed her on her cheek and nodded at me. "Hello."

"Hello," I said.

Ben sat down at the table and proceeded to pull clothes out of his bag. He put them on in front of us.

"Lots of drama last night, huh?" he said, with a goofy grin.

Laura put her head in her hands and sighed deeply. "It was not a great way for Elizabeth to find out."

"She's still here." It was a statement, not a question.

"Yes, she is," Laura said.

Laura looked at me, and I said, "She's asleep. Last night was pretty stressful for her."

Ben nodded sympathetically. Then he locked eyes with me.

"You're that Polack that likes wolves, aren't you?"

Laura stiffened her back. "That's a nasty word."

I've been called worse, but the word seemed to bother Laura, so I didn't say anything.

Ben apologized. "Sorry. I mean, you're that gentleman from Poland that likes wolves, aren't you?"

"I have a friend who's a wolf, and I spent some time with a pack in Europe. Why do you ask?"

Ben didn't answer my question. Instead, he looked at Laura and said, "See, I knew Michelle was getting crazy for nothing! This dude is a good guy. He's not out to hurt anybody!" Ben came around the table and slapped me on the back and squeezed my shoulder.

Laura looked at us with her eyebrows raised and a bemused smile on her face.

Ben walked back around the table and sat down.

"Michelle came over last night and said that her girlfriend and her baby sister were being attacked by a vampire. I thought she was exaggerating because if that were really happening, she would never have left here in the first place. And no vampire would eat a human when they could eat a wolf. She was kind of pissed when I said it, so she told me to come to see for myself. And here I am," He paused for a moment, then took a deep breath. "Is there any bacon left?"

Laura looked exasperated, but she pushed a plate full of bacon at Ben. He smiled. "Thanks, Laura. Anyway, I can see that Michelle was WAY off base."

Laura said, "Is she okay?"

Ben shrugged. "I don't know. She didn't like what I had to say and said she was going to run up to our pack lands. You haven't heard from her?"

Laura pursed her lips and shook her head.

"Maybe she hasn't gotten there yet. It's a long run, and she left my place after midnight," Ben said.

I heard Elizabeth's door open, and I turned toward the sound and saw Elizabeth walking toward us. She was wearing a t-shirt and a pair of pajama pants and smiled when she saw me. She went into the kitchen and got some coffee, then sat down and kissed me.

"Good morning," Laura said. "Elizabeth, this is Michelle's brother, Ben."

Immediately, Elizabeth tensed up and grabbed my hand.

Ben smiled. "I want to apologize for the way my sister acted last night. I guess things got a little crazy." Elizabeth didn't say anything, so Ben continued. "I'm not going to wolf out on you, I promise. And I'm not going to give you any trouble with your boyfriend. I think we have a friend in common."

"Oh?" Elizabeth said cautiously.

"Yeah. Dmitri Volkov. You met him the other night, right?"

Elizabeth smiled. "Oh yes." Then she turned to me. "Dima, right?

I smiled. "The very same."

"Dmitri can be a little obnoxious at times, but he has good taste in people." Ben winked, and went back to eating the bacon werewolf style, all at once. But he left a few slices behind, which he offered to Elizabeth. She smiled and shook her head no. She still held my hand, but the tension was gone from her shoulders. She took a sip from her coffee and said, "What did Dima say about Stosh?"

Ben nodded. "Well, we've all heard how a vampire saved his family back in Russia. It's such a strange story that I don't know if anyone really believed him. But last night, when Michelle told me her girlfriend's little sister said her vampire boyfriend had a werewolf friend, I made the connection." He turned to me, "It is you, right? You said you lived with a pack for a while. I've never heard of a vampire doing anything like that!" Ben looked almost starstruck. I felt embarrassed.

"It really wasn't that big a deal. His family needed help and I needed help getting out of the area, so we worked together."

Ben laughed. "Stop humble bragging." He turned to Laura and said, "This man saved a family and he killed vampires to do it. He's a hero. And Michelle thought he was going to kill you!"

Laura took a deep breath. "He is quite a guy."

I blushed and looked down at the table. Their praise made me ashamed and a little angry, but I tried to remain calm.

After all, there was no way they could have known I killed my own family.

I woke up in a cave. A beautiful Gypsy woman, Vadoma, was there to greet me.

"Good morning," she said. "It's nice to have you back,"

I had gone to see the Gypsies with my brother. I couldn't remember much of what happened after that, but I did remember feeling very sick and thinking I was going to die. I had a strong feeling that this woman had somehow caused my illness but that she had also comforted me and helped me through it.

"I didn't go anywhere," I said. She smiled at me.

"You didn't go anywhere, but you've changed, Stanislav," As soon as she said this, she opened her mouth and a pair of large fangs dropped down from her upper jaw. Then, just as quickly, she retracted them.

"You're a vampire now, my love. You will never get old. You will never get sick. You will remain as beautiful as you are today,"

I could understand the words she was saying, but they didn't make any sense to me. Vampires don't exist. It's just a story to scare children and keep them close to home.

Vadoma smiled at me. "I assure you - we exist."

I absorbed this information as Vadoma dropped her fangs again.

I heard a man crying and begging for help. Vadoma crossed the cave and dragged the man over to me. I recognized him as Milos, a nasty, angry young man who lived in my village. He was crying and begging for mercy.

"Please don't hurt me anymore!" Milos sobbed.

"You pathetic little asshole. You were ready to kill my cousin who did nothing wrong, and now you expect mercy!"

Milos was always a violent, poor tempered man. I remembered that I had caught him beating up a young boy less than half his size. I suddenly realized that was why he was here now, ready to become my first meal. As I smelled the blood from the wounds Vadoma had inflicted on him, fangs dropped from my jaw.

Vadoma said, "We must feed, Stanislav. We must drink the life of another. But it's good if the person is as big a shithead as this one." With that, she shoved Milos at me.

"Stosh? Oh, thank God! You have to help me, please! For the love of Christ!"

Without thinking, I bared my fangs at Milos. He immediately dropped to his knees, sobbing incoherently, begging for his life. Vadoma picked him up, grabbed his hair and pulled his head back, exposing his neck. "Put your teeth here, Stanislav. Bite down and drink,"

I bit into Milos's neck and let his blood pump into my mouth. I was operating on instinct, not thinking or feeling anything. I was reduced to hunger and lust. I swallowed and I felt a hot tension in my belly as my cock stiffened and my balls tightened. Milos cried pathetically and I found it sexually exciting. Vadoma was staring at me and while I drank the last of Milos' life, she took off her clothes. After I dropped his dead body, Vadoma pushed me onto my back and straddled me.

My cock slid right into her tight, wet pussy and I fucked her as we laid next to the still cooling body of a freshly killed human being -- and it felt good. While I was balls deep in Vadoma's silky chamber all I noticed was how tight her cunt gripped me and how her breasts moved as her hips rose and fell on top of me. I didn't give a thought to the horrible way I'd killed my fellow villager as I sat up and captured one of Vadoma's rosy peaks with my mouth. I licked and suckled Vadoma's nipple without thinking of the visceral pleasure I'd felt while Milos's blood flowed into my mouth, and as she moaned and squeezed my cock, pulling it deeper inside her, I didn't think of the way he'd begged for mercy. I felt no remorse, and no humanity, only lust, and then, satisfaction as I scraped her nipples with my fangs and we both came together.

But once we'd finished, the weight of what I had done to Milos hit me. I was almost overwhelmed by disgust and self-loathing, both at the way I had bitten through his neck and the way I had fucked Vadoma next to his fresh corpse without even a second thought. I didn't say anything as I went down to the river to wash myself. When I got there, I soon found that while I could get the blood off my face, I still felt dirty. I walked farther into the river to get clean, and when I was waist-deep in the water, I realized I wanted to go home. No, I needed to go home. I needed to tell my father what I had done, and I needed my mother to hold me while I cried. I needed to see my brothers and sisters and be reminded that I was human, just as they were. I needed to be with my family.

I swam to the other side of the river without even thinking about it, and I ran home. Somehow, I was running much faster than I normally did, even without shoes or clothing. I was aware that branches and thorns were scratching my skin as I ran, but I didn't think about it. And even though the sun was setting, I had no problem finding my way through the forest.

By the time I got home, the sky was completely dark. All of the windows were brightly lit, and I knew my mother was preparing the evening meal. My heart swelled to picture my family in the kitchen waiting for me.

Suddenly, the door opened, and my sister came out, heading for the well. The minute she saw me she dropped her bucket.

"Mama! Mama, it's Stosh! He's back!"

Suddenly, I was surrounded by family, my mother, my brother Piotr, my sister, even the six-year old twins. As my father came running from the barn, everyone surrounded me, hugged me, and welcomed me home.

"Oh, you came home! We were so worried about you!"

"Hey, brother we missed you! The bedroom was so quiet without you snoring!"