Fallen Blood Page 12

  "You're, you're sparkling." She said, backing up a step and putting her hand over her mouth. "But I thought real Vampires didn't do that, except in the books."

  Brian crossed his arms over his chest and just smiled, until he saw another woman with two teen girls in tow gaping and pointing in his direction.

  "Oh, crap." He said, before turning off the illusion. “We need to go now.”

  "But why? We have so much to talk about." She said, as he grabbed her arm and began to walk as quickly as he could in Bobby's direction, trying to hide his face from the three woman who were now just standing in the parking lot, holding up their cell phones in his direction.

  "What took you two so long?" Bobby asked as they walked up.

  "Brian, wait!"

  "We need to go, Bobby." Brian said, as he reached up to the cab and started to pull himself up to the door.

  "What do you think I've been saying for a good part of an hour now?" Bobby said.

  "Brian, wait...as in stop.!" Heather backed up from the truck.

  Brian looked to where the three girls were now standing with a few more people. He could see they were showing their cell phones to the people who were with them and pointing in his direction. He wasn't sure what they could be showing them, as he was sure he turned the illusion off before they could have possibly taken anything to show to people. Or at least he hoped so.

  "Heather, can't it wait? We really need to go."

  "I'm not sure how I feel about traveling with a vampire." She said, sheepishly.

  "A what?" Bobby stopped what he was doing, and stared at the girl as if she'd gone crazy.

  "A vampire." She stood up straighter as she answered the old trucker.

  "Girl, I don't know what they teach these days in those new-fangled schools these days, but there ain't no such things as vampires, and even if there were, they don't go walking around in the daytime."

  "Bobby, I saw him sparkle in the sunlight."

  "What's that prove?" Bobby scoffed at her.

  Brian couldn't believe they were having this conversation, especially not now, as the slowly building group of people were starting to advance on their position.

  "Heather I'm sorry, and I'd love to explain everything to you, but we've seriously attracted way too much attention, and unless we want those agents showing up, we need to go."

  Heather turned and looked at the growing crowd behind them where Brian pointed, and gasped. "What do they want?"

  "I think they saw my little sparkle display. We need to go before more agents show up, like now."

  Bobby whipped his head over and looked at Brian. "You saying you did sparkle?"

  This was getting nowhere fast. and things were getting out of control. He looked into Bobby's eyes, "Now, Bobby, we need to go."

  The old trucker nodded, and started to push him aside as he too now climbed up to the cab. "Well, what the hell are we standing around her for?"

  Brian reached out his hand to Heather, beckoning her to come. "Heather, trust me. I won't let any harm come to you."

  She paused and looked at him. He could see right into her eyes even from this distance, and he wondered if he could suggest her from here. The temptation was there, but he decided at that moment, the choice was hers.

  Heather looked at him, searching his face for what seemed like forever, before jumping onto the rig and pulling herself into the cab, then climbing over both men and taking the seat next to the window.

  "I thought for a second you weren't coming." Brian said to her, as the truck pulled away from the crowd of people.

  "I almost didn't."

  "Then why did you?"

  "I don't know." She paused there, silent a few moments, before turning toward the window. Brian watched her as she looked out it, motionless. He wondered what she was thinking about, and whether he had blown his only chance with her.

  "Looks like rain again." Bobby announced, just as rain came pouring down on the windshield. The sound of it crashing down on the top of the cab filled where they were all sitting. Water streamed down the window that Heather was staring out, and Brian couldn't help but wonder if he could still fix things.

  Chapter 13

  The rain beat down on the truck's windshield for close to an hour, before it finally started to let up. Heather hadn't said a thing during that whole time. The silence was maddening, or at least it was until Bobby broke it up with some of his country music, which he sang at a much louder volume than the CD. Brian would have liked to say that he preferred the silence to Bobby's singing, except it really wasn't true. At least during all the caterwauling, Brian was so distracted he forgot that Heather was still staring out into the passing terrain and avoiding him. It worked as a very good distraction, at least until he had to ask Bobby to stop, as he forgot why he was putting up with it.

  Why won't she talk to me? Say something at least. It was driving him crazy with all the silence. He hadn't done anything wrong as far as he could see, so he couldn't figure out why she was giving him the silent treatment. Did she want him to say something? Was she mad? Round and round it went in his head. Over and over he turned it, never once coming up with something new. Well, he did make her dance, but she insisted that it was her idea, so she couldn't be mad about that.

  "Well, I think nature is calling." Bobby broke Brian's thoughts. "Too much coffee. What about you two kids?"

  "I'm fine," Brian answered To his surprise Heather turned and answered.

  "I could use some food Bobby."

  "Well, dagnabbit,"

  Brian wondered if he really used those as cuss words when he was by himself.

  "I got a run that has to be a good seventy-five miles away to deliver still today."

  "Please, Bobby." She said in a sweet little voice. "I haven't eaten all day."

  "Well, I guess." Bobby smiled at her, which produced a smile from her as well.

  Great, Brian thought. He gets smiles and I get ignored.

  "Next time, you two need to eat something instead of fooling around when it's breakfast time." The trucker said, trying to sound gruff.

  “Is there a place anywhere around here to eat?” Brian asked.

  "There's a small town coming up in about five miles. Is McDonald's alright with you two?"

  Heather quickly nodded her head. Not that Brian cared where they stopped. One place was pretty much like another when you didn't eat much of real food. He wondered if he should make an effort to calm her by eating something, but then he realized that could sabotage everything he already went through convincing her he was a vampire.

  Several minutes later, the three of them found themselves sitting in a booth. Bobby drinking another cup of coffee, and eating some sort of a cinnamon roll. Heather had two egg McMuffins an orange juice and a large soda. He wondered how she ate so much and kept her shape. He really liked her shape, though, and he smiled at her without thinking about it. To his surprise she smiled back at him. Apparently he was forgiven for whatever wrong he had done to her. Which was fine by him, he really wasn't holding up well with the silent treatment.

  "Well, aren't you going to eat anything?" Bobby asked for what must have been for the tenth time, looking at Brian.

  "He doesn't need to eat." Heather cut in before Brian could answer again. "At least not all the time."

  "Well, what in blazes does that mean?"

  "It means I'm fasting." Brian answered Bobby.

  "You religious?" Bobby asked, lifting up one eyebrow and scrutinizing him with a Popeye look.

  "It depends." Brian wasn't expecting to be questioned. He did believe in a higher being, well...sort of. He figured there had to be someone that was watching out for people. After all, if he could be a vampire, couldn't there be a God? Still, what he thought would be an easy excuse to dodge the trucker's question had the potential to become a conversation he would rather avoid. "Sometimes I like to fast."

  "Hmm..." Bobby finished off the last of his coffee, then looked into the empty cup, surprised.
"These darned things are too dang small. excuse me I'm getting a refill." He got up and headed off.

  "That was fast thinking." Heather said as she started on her second sandwich.

  "Not really. I thought he was going to start asking about what I believed." Brian laughed and was pleasantly surprised to find her laughing with him.

  "So, what are we going to do, Heather?"

  She stopped eating for a second. "Do? What do you mean?"

  "About us? Where are we going? What are we doing?"

  She shrugged her shoulders. "Why are you asking me? I figured you had some plan."

  He could see how she'd think that. He had been there to save the day time and again. He was the one who grabbed Bobby, and jumped in the truck with both of them. In a way, he was the one making all the decisions. Still, he would like to get a little input on how they should proceed.

  "This is pretty much all I had planned. Getting you to safety was my first priority."

  "Then what?" she looked at him expectantly.

  "Well..." he scratched his head. "I'm not sure any more."

  "That's not much of a plan." She took a big drink from her soda. She didn't use a straw or a lid, she just drank out of it a like it was any old cup. Bobby took that moment to show back up with another cinnamon roll.

  "Didn't you already have one of those?" Brian asked.

  "Yes I did, but since our Little Miss Sunshine was still eating I figured why not.” A bit of an edge crept into his voice as he continued. “I'm not bothering your fast am I?"

  "No, no, I'm good."

  "Well I'm happy for that."

  Brian watched as the two of them stuffed their mouths. He had to admit, he was starting to feel like he really was fasting. All this exertion seemed to be draining him faster than normal, not to mention half the time he had to push himself while it was still daytime, that always tired him faster. The last time, he had gone way too long, and he wasn't about to make that mistake a second time. Long before he started having headaches, he was going back home for a refill. He couldn't risk being caught up to and being too weak to stop the agents. He highly doubted the next time things would go so easily. At least they wouldn't if he were the one in charge of them. By now they had to realize how many men they had lost attempting to get Heather. Surely they would have something up their sleeve this time.

  "Chuck?" Heather whispered as she put down her mostly eaten McMuffin.

  "What did you say?" Brian asked, then turned around and looked behind him.

  "It's Chuck. Wait here." Heather stood up and went running for the door.

  "Who did she say?" Bobby asked as he popped the last of the roll into his mouth.

  "She said Chuck."

  "Who the hell's that?" The trucker asked, and turned around and watched her run outside and suddenly stop. Brian wasn't sure what she was doing, but as he watched, she held out her hand and leaned forward, pretending to hug someone who wasn't there. Her mouth was moving as if she were talking to someone.

  "What in tarnation does that girl think she's doing?" Bobby stood up and took more of an interest in what she was doing.

  "I'd say she was talking to someone." Brian began, "but I don't see no one there."

  "No shit, dumb ass, ya think I can't see that for myself? The darned girl's lost her mind. Too much fast food can do that to you. I heard on the radio one time."

  "Yeah?" Brian stood up and started to head for the door. "What station?"

  "I don't know! Some talk show that was on late one night when I was long hauling."

  Brian nodded as if he understood what he was saying. "I'm going to go check on her."

  "Well, you better hurry, looks like she's about to leave with her imaginary friend."

  Brian realized he was right, she was acting like she was walking arm in arm and starting to head away from the McDonald's. Running out the door, but taking extra care not to run faster than normal, Brian shouted and waved for her to stop. The girl of his dreams paused and turned in his direction, then turned back as if she were arguing with someone. The pause was all the time he needed to catch up to her.

  "Heather, what are you doing?"

  "What does it look like, Brian? I'm leaving with my boyfriend." She pointed to the nonexistent person hanging on her left arm.

  "Heather," Brian stepped up to her then waved his hand quickly, making sure no one was really standing where she indicated. "You see? There's no one there."

  She looked at him stupidly. "Brian why did you just slap him? Can't you see he's hurt?"

  "Hurt?" Brian laughed for a second. "There's no one here, Heather, you're hallucinating." How she could be this far gone into a full-blown hallucination was beyond him, but if she wasn't, then she had him fooled.

  "Brian, Chuck's standing right here." She pointed at the missing person again.

  "No, Heather. He's not. Something is playing with your mind."

  "What in Sam hill is going on here?" Bobby said announcing his arrival.

  "Bobby you see Chuck, don't you?" she looked at Bobby almost pleadingly.

  "I'm sorry darling, I don't. I only see you and Brian here."

  She turned and stared at the nonexistent person. "But he's right here, how can you not see him?"

  Brian took that chance to step right where the supposed Chuck was and grab Heather by the shoulders. "Look at me." He had to shake her to get her attention. "Heather, look."

  Her eyes turned to his. "Heather, could I be standing where he is if he were here?"

  "I don't understand!" she started to cry, tears welling up in her eyes. "He says he's hurt and he needs me." She put her hand over her mouth and gasped. "Oh my God, he's bleeding! Why didn't I see that before...?"

  "Because it's not real, Heather! Stop!" Brian tried to block her view of the invisible Chuck. "Look at me, Heather. Someone's doing this to you."

  "Brian, he's dying." Her legs collapsed under her, and Brian found himself the only thing holding her up.

  "Heather..."

  "Make it stop!" She placed her hands over her ears and started to sob. The entire scene was playing out way too fast to react. Brian had no idea what was going on with her. No one was there, as far as he could see, and no one had taken the time to suggest her.

  "Heather, look at me. Look at me, and I'll make it stop."

  "He's screaming Brian, they're hurting him!”

  "Look at me." He shook her again and her face snapped back toward him. For a second they locked eyes again, only this time he had her. "Chuck is not here. You do not see or hear him. It was a hallucination. Do you understand?"

  Heather stopped thrashing and looked away. She wiped her eyes as she stood up under her own strength. Then looked around at the parking lot.

  "Brian."

  "Are you okay?” Brian asked, his voice almost cracking from the panic that was starting to rise in him.