The Vampires' Last Lover (Dying of the Dark Vampires Book 1) (48 page)

“‘So, what’ve you been up to today, Jackie?’ Jeremy asked. ‘Grandpa told me you were trying to catch some strange looking lizard out in the backyard. What about it, little brother?’

“Ah, the moment I’d anxiously awaited had arrived! A very rare thing to capture center stage with my loquacious big brother around. I cleared my throat as I straightened, and checked one last time to make sure both he and Grandpa were truly interested. I began telling them about my backyard adventure.

“Grandpa listened, polite, occasionally rubbing his chin as if pondering how much of my narration was the actual truth and how much an exaggeration of the facts involved. Jeremy, on the other hand, couldn’t hide his complete disbelief in my story.

“Pretty obvious to both me and Grandpa that he thought most of what came out of my mouth was a load of fabricated bullshit. He finally looked away, turning his attention instead to the new décor in our recently remodeled kitchen. He seemed genuinely interested in the new cabinets, ceramic tile, and appliances, as well as the ancient crown moldings Grandpa had just finished restoring to their original sheen. All the while, the pompous smirk broadened until he let out a sarcastic chuckle. When he could contain himself no longer, he gave in to a roaring fit of laughter.

“I immediately stopped talking, the wound from his blatant disrespect bringing an abrupt end to my story.

“Grandpa seemed greatly pained by my most recent hurt, and even more annoyed by my older brother’s rudeness.

“‘I’d like to know what you find so damned funny, Jeremy?’ he demanded. ‘You can be one insensitive horse’s ass, you know?
Well?
What’s up with that crap, son?’

“Jeremy continued to laugh until his face turned beet red. With our icy stares, he managed to regain his composure and told us what he’d found so amusing.

“‘So, Jackie, you’re telling us that you saw a lizard that looked like a miniature dragon?’ he said. ‘Ple-e-e-ase!’

“He slapped his hand open-faced on the kitchen table, rattling the plates and dishes. Again, he laughed uncontrollably until he struggled to breathe and tears formed.

“‘Are you sure it wasn’t Barney or Puff the Magic Dragon out there in the backyard?’ he taunted. ‘Maybe it was one of the Palmer kids’ stuffed-animals being pulled on a string or something. O-o-o-oh!’

“He held his hands out in front of himself in mock fright, while ignoring my indignant pleas and Grandpa’s growing anger.

“‘I’m telling you the truth, Jeremy! It was the coolest thing I’ve ever seen around here!’ I cried. ‘I wish you’d seen it yourself, because then you’d quit being such an asshole about it.’

“Both Jeremy and Grandpa eyed me sharply, for until that night I’d never cursed in their presence.

“‘The truth?’ Jeremy mocked, and stood, walking over to his cigarettes and ashtray. ‘You’re telling me the truth, Jackie?? Let me state here and now what likely is the truth!’ He tapped out a smoke and lit it before going on, signaling to Grandpa he was done with dinner.

“‘Here’s what I think happened,’ he continued. ‘I don’t think there was any ’dragon-lizard’ at any point or anywhere in the backyard, Jackie. I think this little story’s just a lame cover-up of yours. Just an excuse for getting caught jacking off by that sphere out back. Hell, Grandpa says he found you holding something just below your waist while you stood in the rain. I’d bet a hundred dollars against a stale doughnut that the thing in your hands was just your pre-pube tool!’

“Grandpa was about to severely upbraid Jeremy again. But, I stood up to my brother before Grandpa had a chance.

“‘I’m not the one with the sticky-paged porn magazines stashed under his bed!’ I said, daring him with a look to come shut me up.

“‘Fuck you, you little dweeb!’ Jeremy shouted. He started to come after me, and likely would’ve punched my lights out if it hadn’t been for Grandpa’s grip. As it was, he nearly knocked the remaining spaghetti and meatballs to the floor in the attempt.

“‘Boys!’ Grandpa shouted. ‘I’ve had about enough. Both of you sit down. Now!’

“He eyed us both evenly, but soon focused his attention on Jeremy alone. The weight of his icy stare forced my brother into his seat at the kitchen table. He motioned for me to sit down.

“A tense and uncomfortable silence settled upon the kitchen. I fidgeted nervously while looking down at the half-eaten meal, waiting for the horrible silence to end. Unwilling to look up, I could feel the searing heat of Jeremy’s stare, as if he were trying to melt me into a molten puddle where I sat. My story, which I’d hoped would impress my grandfather and especially my brother, failed miserably.

“‘What
were
you doing, standing out there in the rain, Jack?’ Grandpa finally asked.

“I looked up cautiously, peering at them. The perturbed and angry stares from a moment ago changed into more pliable and open looks of guarded curiosity. I took this as the perfect opportunity to play my ace in the hole and reveal my hand. I stood and carefully removed the golden object from my pocket.

“‘Like I said, I wasn’t playing with my privates out there,’ I told them, and glanced coolly toward Jeremy. ‘I was looking at this thing.’

“I cleared a spot amid the dishes of cold spaghetti and rapidly congealing tomato sauce, and set the object within the open space.

“They slowly stood and leaned toward it, a look of shocked fascination on Jeremy’s face and one of surprised horror on Grandpa’s. The object glowed softly, surrounded by the remains of our foregone dinner. Its brightness seemed to increase as they leaned closer to get a better look.”

“Do you recall how the object glowed? Whether the light emanated from within the thing, or was it more like a halo surrounding it?” Peter asked, reaching for another journal and paging to the middle. “It wasn’t like a haze of some sort, was it?”

“No, it wasn’t a haze. Actually, it reminded me of a glowworm I once saw on the Discovery Channel, the ones that light up the caves down in New Zealand. The light came from within the object.”

“I see,” said Peter, clicking his pen open to jot another note. “So what happened next?”

“Well, Jeremy reached for the object, his hand wavering as if expecting it to disappear. It did. Just as he reached for it, Grandpa snatched it off the table. He brought it close to his face as if to confirm, and then reconfirm, the reality of what he held. Jeremy stood dumbfounded, I’m sure scarcely believing the old man’s reflexes were that quick.

“I felt vindicated to some degree, though Grandpa’s behavior made me nervous. He kept turning the thing over and over, muttering under his breath. Before long, the crimson color returned to his face, deepening steadily until the veins in his neck throbbed.

“Jeremy and I prepared ourselves for the rising anger we saw simmering to a boil, though he rarely got upset unless my brother purposely pushed him into a rage. Something different about his demeanor, it took us a minute to identify what it was.

“He started pacing aimlessly across the kitchen floor, muttering to himself as he wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. He seemed momentarily to have forgotten our presence. That’s when we recognized what we’d never seen before. Primal fear. He was really frightened.

“‘Oh, my God. M-my God! Oh-h, m-my God!’ he stammered, gingerly passing the object from hand to hand as if trying to avoid contamination.

“‘What’s wrong, Grandpa?’

“Jeremy moved closer as he tried to take the glowing object.

“‘That’s close enough, Jeremy!’ he warned. ‘You have no idea what you’re dealing with, son.’ He tightened his grip on the thing, which glowed brighter.

“‘Come on, Grandpa!’ Jeremy pleaded, a slight adolescent whine creeping into his tough guy persona. ‘I just want to look at it, that’s all.’

“‘I’m sorry, son, but whatever look you’ve gotten will have to suffice,’ said Grandpa. ‘This thing’s an abomination, and I’ll be damned for sure if I allow it to remain in our house another minute!’

“The veins on the side of his neck looked like they’d explode. He turned toward the kitchen door and ran. Just before opening the door, he turned to me.

“‘Where exactly did you find this thing, Jack?’ he asked. ‘If you’ve got it in your mind to tell me anything but the truth, don’t do it. I need to know the specific spot.’

“‘It was lying in the dirt, just in front of the sphere,’ I replied.

“He strongly discouraged us from going near the sphere, but it was far too late to lie about it. After all, he’d found me standing next to it, clutching the mysterious object in the rain.

“A dark cloud of sadness settled on him. For a moment, he stood near the back door. He started to say something, but the rage suddenly returned to his face. He threw open the kitchen door and stormed onto the back porch. The screened door slammed behind him, the sharp crack of wood on wood piercing the air. Before either Jeremy or I could react, we heard his heavy footsteps going down the porch steps and into the backyard. Alarmed, we ran in pursuit, the old screened door slamming again, twice this time, to announce our intentions.

“‘Stay right where you are, boys!!’ he yelled back.

“He’d already reached the trunk of the majestic oak and was about to disappear from our view. He motioned angrily for us to go back inside, but he continued on to the sphere without waiting to see if we obeyed.

“Jeremy and I ignored his orders and followed, but pursued him from a safe distance. Moving quietly as possible, we closed the gap. We came around the base of the oak in time to see him stoop down in the mud before the sphere.

“He stood, then turned toward the house. The fading sunset formed a weird silhouette I’ll never forget, with the sphere and the glowing object before it. He started to come toward us, but stopped. In one fluid movement, he went back and scooped the object out of the mud, hurling the damned thing over the stone wall toward the woods. We heard him shout something like ‘Stay the hell away from here!’

“Neither Jeremy nor I wished to face any more of his wrath, so before he turned around again we bolted to the porch. We didn’t stop running until safely inside.

“The kitchen’s stifling heat had cooled considerably during our short absence. Jeremy moved to the window above the sink and peered through it in order to gauge Grandpa’s progress. I stood on the tip of my toes to look over his shoulder just as Grandpa climbed the last step. He opened the screened door, swinging with another loud ‘snap’ against the doorframe. Tears streamed down his face.

“‘What’s wrong?’

“Alarmed, I tried to broach the subject as tenderly as possible. Shocked and saddened, I could tell by the appalled look on Jeremy’s face he was just as surprised. I couldn’t recall a time when I’d seen anything like this, though I imagine he privately shed tears from time to time.

“Grandpa shook his head and continued weeping. He closed the storm door for the first time that day, turning the latch and deadbolt. He glanced through the door’s window to the backyard, and seemed apprehensive, as if expecting something to happen. I wondered if he’d seen the lizard, or one like it, previously.

“Motionless next to my brother, we watched him peer out the storm door window again, wiping his face and eyes with his sleeve. After several agonizing minutes, he finally backed away from the door and looked at us.

“‘Jeremy, go get the Winchester from the living room,’ he instructed. ‘I’ll get the shotgun from my bedroom. We’ll need to bring them out here in the kitchen.’

“‘What in the hell for, Grandpa?’ Jeremy asked.

“He eyed us tenderly, shaking his head.

“‘Well?’ my brother persisted. ‘Grandpa, you’re starting to freak me out with this shit!’

“‘Go upstairs, Jack, and close all the windows. Oh, and turn on the upstairs AC on your way back here.’ Grandpa’s voice was full of worry as he continued to ignore my brother. “I’ll take care of the AC down here.”

“‘Yes, sir.’

“I alternated glances between the two before turning to leave the kitchen. Jeremy reached out and grabbed my arm, preventing me from leaving.

“‘What the
hell’s
going on here, Grandpa?’ he demanded. ‘Why do we have to close the windows, and what the fuck do you need a shotgun and rifle for, anyway?’

“Grandpa tried to answer Jeremy, but he seemed at a loss for words. The uncomfortable feeling in the air thickened.

“He walked to the sink, closing the kitchen window and securely latching it. He walked to the storm door and peered through the window once more, carefully scanning the porch and backyard for a second time.

“‘It’s the ‘Season’, boys,’ he finally said.

“Jeremy and I looked at each other for clarification as neither of us knew what he meant.

“‘The ‘Season’?’ Jeremy asked.

“‘Yeah, Grandpa,’ I chimed in. ‘What kind of Season do you mean?’

“‘Just go close all the windows first and make sure the doors are locked upstairs, Jack. Jeremy, you and I’ll check everything down here on the main level. Once we’ve got the place completely secured, I’ll tell you both a little about the ‘Season’. Oh, and Jeremy, remember the Winchester. Make sure it’s loaded.’

“He motioned for us all to move out of the kitchen.

“‘We’ll all meet back here when we’re done. Jack, don’t forget about the upstairs AC, now.’

“‘I won’t, Grandpa,’ I assured him.

“‘Jeremy, be sure to check the windows on the north and west sides of the main floor,’ he reminded my brother. ‘I’ll check the windows everywhere else down here after I get the AC on.’

“‘Got it, Grandpa,’ said Jeremy.

“The three of us left the kitchen, with Jeremy shrugging after I gave him a look that asked if he had any idea why we were doing this. Bewildered by our grandfather’s peculiar behavior and strange request, at least the air conditioner would soon cool the old house.

“I ran upstairs and hurried to finish my task. Meanwhile, Jeremy started in the dining room and worked his way to the living room, where he grabbed the Winchester and ammunition from the gun case.

“Grandpa waited at the kitchen table with his shotgun by the time Jeremy joined him. He told my brother to set the rifle next to the back door after confirming the weapon was loaded. They heard me running down the hall toward them right after the second air conditioner kicked on.