Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 100953 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 505(@200wpm)___ 404(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100953 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 505(@200wpm)___ 404(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
The only thing I have in my life is hunting vampires. I’m not proud that I’ve killed another creature, but my father believed that they are an evil plague on this world, just like his father before him believed. I’m supposed to carry on this tradition, but I have my own convictions. Those that I have killed I knew were bad and they had what was coming. I don’t regret what I’ve done, but I’ve never had a restful night of sleep.
Over the years I’ve become cold and distant, which is why I’ve never been able to form a relationship with anyone. Maybe that’s the difference between my father and me? He loved what he did and he was able to have a family. When my mother died, I was all he had left. I can’t help but wonder if she had lived, would I have been given a choice to find my own way?
When I get to the city I park my truck downtown and pull out my phone. I check over the coded messages that were sent to me from my slayer informant and see what information they have for me. He says that there have been rumors of a coven living nearby and recently there was a string of murders close to the area. I listened to the news on the way in and it seems like it could be a vampire, but it could also easily be a psycho human on a killing spree.
I took out two vampires close to here a few weeks ago. They were picking off random humans and torturing them for sport. I killed both of them without a hint of guilt, but the murders in the city didn’t stop.
When I get out of the truck I’m knocked back against it as a couple of kids in costumes run by. It puzzles me for a second until I remember the date. I never got to celebrate Halloween as a kid. My father thought it was a foolish holiday and only romanticized the monsters around us. He was a cold man who didn’t believe in coddling children, but he was kind to me.
I pull my leather coat closed and zip it up as the cold night air begins to blow. One thing that I adapted well to is living in the night. I have to be awake when vampires are, and that means sleeping when the sun comes up.
My boots are heavy on the pavement as I tuck my hands into my jacket pockets. My jeans are dark as well so it’s easier for me to blend in. The jacket also helps hide the long blade I have strapped to my back. There’s another at my ankle and one at my waist. I don’t like guns and I prefer to be as silent as possible when killing vampires.
The plan tonight is to scout the area and some of the houses. One of the bodies was found last month near the woods at the park, so I’ll go there first. I want to look with my own eyes at the place and not just at crime scene photos. I hacked into the city’s system and pulled as much information as I could from there, but the cops have nothing so far, so it wasn’t exactly helpful.
There are crowds of people walking around and downtown is alive with excitement. I see a family crossing the street and each of the parents carry sleeping kids as they grip tight onto their buckets of candy. Something in seeing them makes me turn my eyes away quickly. It’s almost as if my brain doesn’t want to see what I can’t have so I don’t allow myself to linger on it. The thought of loving a woman and having a child with her is something I don’t dwell on, and there’s no time for it tonight.
The edge of the park is dense with trees and the place where the body was discovered is no different. There’s a small path off to the side that leads away from the park and away from town, but I don’t follow it. Instead I remain at the edge of the trees and watch the park, looking for anything suspicious. In the distance I see a dark-haired woman sitting on a bench. She’s facing away from me, but her wavy hair is over one shoulder and her pale neck is shining in the moonlight. She’s watching the children near her as they run and play in their Halloween costumes. I should be doing the same, but my eyes stay on her. Before I realize it, I’ve taken a step in her direction. I’m still at the edge of the woods and I’m surprised I moved without conscious thought.
I watch her without blinking and with complete focus as she sits there quietly. After a moment she reaches up and it looks like she’s wiping away a tear. Suddenly I’m taking another step towards her and I’m wondering what’s wrong. I want to call out to her and ask her if she’s okay. I want to go over and sit down beside her and give her comfort. I’ve never had this ridiculous pull to someone before and I don’t understand where this urge is coming from.