Still

Fated or Foe?

Looking back, things did seem odd during my childhood. I had always been very sheltered, but I chalked it up to them just being overprotective of their only child. I never met their friends when they came around, and I wasn’t allowed to have friends over. I never knew my grandparents and heard nothing about aunts, uncles, or cousins. My mother was never home for Halloween as she would leave the night before and return the day after. My father only ever worked the night shift at Stormdale General, where he was a hematologist. I tried to hide my smile. I apparently got his sense of humor. A vampire moonlighting as a blood doctor. It made sense, but I never would have imagined that this was reality.

“So what does this mean for me?” I wondered. My parents didn’t raise me as a vampire nor a witch, yet here I was in this mess.

“Right now, you’re the bait. While you are a little demon, you’re also our only hope of finding them.”

“What do you want with them? Even if what you’re saying is true, what makes you think I would betray my parents to help you?” I challenged. His cold eyes bore into mine. There was a terrifying calm in them.

“I’m not going to lie to you, little demon. I intend to rid the world of them and their kind once and for all. Van Helsing can’t save the world from these monsters on his own.” I laughed and he glared at me. Given everything he just told me, why would I doubt the famed monster slayer was a real person? For the first time since getting into the car, I felt fear for my life. This was reality. Were my nightmares from childhood actually premonitions? Is this why my parents always looked worried when I told them what I was dreaming of? There was always fire surrounding the image of a woman in black, screaming as she reached her hand out to me. Death always followed my father. He was always surrounded by dead people whose blood was on his face, clothes and hands. At the same time, it was because he seemed to be fighting for me. The skies were only ever red, almost like the world was bleeding. There was a mirror that I could never see myself in. I only ever saw a woman whose face was covered, but her eyes were like blue fire. That was all I could ever see of her. In retrospect, that woman might have been me.

My mind was reeling. Today was my 25th birthday. A day I should’ve stayed home for. Instead, I was just forced to leave work, sucker punched with things I thought were reserved for books and movies and blindsided by the possibility that my father might actually be alive.

I had no idea where these men were taking me nor what they were going to do to me once we got to our undisclosed location. Despite the seriousness of the situation, I wasn’t afraid anymore. I actually found this kind of thrilling. This unknown danger, this mystery surrounding my parents and even the lies I had been told all my life had me intrigued. We came to a stop, the men got out and stood there waiting for me to do the same. Part of me wanted to get out and run, but the smart side reminded me that I didn’t know where the hell I was. Even if I found help, no one would believe my story. So, I took a deep breath and stepped out of the luxury car. The air in my lungs left me in a rush. This place was massive and remarkably beautiful. It had to at least be a mansion, at most a castle. There was a sign attached to what looked like a 4-foot tall boulder with the name of this place on it. HELSING INVESTIGATIONS. They led me across the cobblestone path, up the steps and through the double doors into the building. The interior was nothing like the exterior. Inside, it looked like an upscale office and there was a bustle of activity around me. At least it was until someone pointed me out, and they all stopped and stared at me. They were either disgusted or intrigued by my presence. I wasn’t sure which. One woman with platinum blonde hair approached us with a folder clutched to her breasts.

“Mason. Gentlemen.” She started, nodding to them and ignored me completely. “We received a report from Intel of apparent vampire activity a couple miles away from here. A man went missing during a fishing trip four nights ago, and he was found this morning with multiple bite marks. He was drained of almost all of his blood.” I felt a shiver go through me at the thought. I was suddenly very thirsty. I swallowed hard. I recall many times when my father would talk to my mother about being thirsty. It usually resulted in them going to their room for a few minutes only to return with my father licking his lips with a grin and my mother looking thoroughly satisfied. Either my father was drinking her blood, they were having s*x or both. I didn’t know which one disturbed me more. I cleared my throat, which made Blondie and Mason look at me suspiciously.

“I was just thinking that maybe I could come with you.” I blurted out. So that was what instant regret felt like. I had to play this off as best as I could. They were expecting a deeply profound reason for my morbid curiosity. “You’re telling me I’m part of a world I thought was only real in fictional novels and movies. I might as well see what I’m dealing with.” Blondie cracked a smile and nodded to Mason. She seemed to like my answer.

“Very well, little demon. You’ll need to wear more sensible shoes for a trek into the woods, though.” he said, glancing down at my kitten heels. Well, excuse me for not walking with a pair of galoshes. I rolled my eyes.

“I’m aware of that, but as it happens, I don’t have sensible shoes since I didn’t expect to be accosted by a man who is still, annoyingly, calling me a demon. I thought I was going out with my boyfriend to celebrate my birthday after work. It’s up to you. Take me back to work and wipe my memory, so I can forget this whole mess, or get me those shoes. I wear size 8.” I was hoping for the former, minus the memory-wiping part, but I was expecting the latter. There was no way they were going to let me go. Blondie walked away and returned a few minutes later with a cute pair of rain boots.

“Now that you have the proper footwear, what say we leave?” I nodded with a tight smile. I was sure I wouldn’t like what was in store for me in those woods.