A Sanguinary Rose (Complete)

On Monday my locker had the word ‘slut’ scrawled in big red letters across its metal surface. It was hard to miss.

My heart thumped against my ribs and my eyes stung as tears welled in. Students glanced, pointed, and stared at it. It was as though a spotlight shone over it and they were waiting for someone to step in. If I walked past it, no one would know it was mine. Or would they? If I waited, I could take whatever I needed once the hallways emptied.

Intimidating Melanie didn’t seem to have worked. If anything, she doubled down her abuse. Word about my ‘escapades’ at the party buzzed all around school: how I had locked myself in the bathroom with different guys and how I had made the master bedroom my playground. I wanted to swallow my tongue, then choke Melanie’s windpipe if that didn’t kill me, and then die again. As if to drive it all home, one of her stooges had hung a banner above the school notice board in the commons that read ‘Scarlett is a Harlot.’ Who knows how long it hung there before a teacher removed it.

I couldn’t be gladder I wouldn’t need anything from my locker in my first cryptology lesson.

When I arrived, I froze at the door. Not that I couldn’t recognize the twenty faces in the classroom. Quite the opposite, I recognized almost everybody, and it hit me hard what kind of lie I had been living in.

To think people I had bonded with, talked to about my secrets, invited over to my house, had never been human all along, and it never occurred to me to question it. I was talking mainly about Tiffany, who pretended not to see me after a curious but regretted glance.

I could hear the whispers—more of Melanie’s lies, ‘a vampire,’ or ‘I feel sorry for her.’

“Hey, Scarlett,” Anja called, waving her arms, which drew even more attention. “I saved you a seat.”

I sank on my chair next to her. “Hey. Why... are you purring... now of all times?”

“It’s exciting we finally get to be classmates, isn’t it? Does it make you uncomfortable?”

“No, not at all. It’s just I’m not used to, you know, a girl purring. Still not used to it...”

“Ms. Rosenbaum,” Mr. Royce called out my name from his desk. “Mind introducing yourself to the class?”

I mind. I stood up, blushing at Oliver-levels, avoiding looking at anyone for too long. I felt exposed, naked, open like a book with pictures depicting the most embarrassing snapshots of my life. People might point and say ‘Scarlett is a Harlot.’ “Well, I-I’m Scarlett. Nice meeting you.” Glancing around me, I spotted Eli with that odious smirk on his face, sitting at the far corner in the back of the class. Alan sat closer to the front. Our gazes met for less than a second. There was a dangerous glint to his eye. I sat back down before Mr. Royce gave me permission.

“On your feet, please. I’m about to put you in an uncomfortable position, and for that I must apologize beforehand. It’s all for the sake of time and a quick introduction to the class so we can get moving,” he said, before turning to the rest of the students. “Can somebody name what she is?”

A harlot. They’ll all say so.

Nobody said anything. But people’s hands were raised: Anja, Oliver, Eli, Alan and a few others I didn’t know by name. Tiffany hadn’t raised hers and still refused to meet my eyes.

The teacher gestured at Anja. “Ms. Lynn, mind telling me how you identified her as a vampire?”

“I... well, she told me. Or Oliver told me, I don’t remember.” She giggled.

Mr. Royce rubbed his temples. “Mr. Roth?”

He was now referring to Eli. The rascal balanced the chair on its two hind legs. He gave me a sly look. “I can sense the demon within her.”

Demon. Perhaps that was a better word for what I had within.

“Mr. Grayson?”

“I can feel it, too, sir,” Alan said, not bothering another look. “Although she’s also making it fairly obvious.”

“Vampires in general cannot help but be conspicuous outside their comfort zone. Now, Mr. Armstrong?”

“I...” Oliver began, but he looked down, flushed. “Me too, I can feel it...” He saw it happen, when I was sired. I didn’t think he’d tell that to everyone.

“Did anybody identify her by observation and deduction?” A few raised their hands. “Yes, Ms. Wilson?”

The blond, lanky girl gave me half a smile. “The sunglasses gave it away for me.”

“Besides the awfully obvious giveaway, how would you be able to tell?” Mr. Royce said, raising his eyebrows. “Say, you meet at night. What signs would you look for?”

“A whiff of her scent would be more than enough.”

Mr. Royce let out a sigh of exasperation. “You can do that, but not everybody can. The signs you look for are sunken eyes, extreme paleness, slit pupils sometimes. Their personalities can be warped, to where he or she might behave like a completely different person when on the feed. Behavioral cues such as unbroken wariness, alertness, constantly roving through crowds on their lonesome.” That sure sounded like what I was doing yesterday at the party. The teacher turned to me. “Well, as you can see, this is the kind of sport we play here sometimes. Cryptoanthropology consists on being able to recognize the many beings that live outside human perception. This is naturally easy for some, but much harder for others. In turn, other beings are much harder to identify. Practice and hone your senses, and you’ll be doing it in no time.” He placed a hand on his chest. “I am a warlock. I will be honored to teach you.” He gave me an awkward smile. “Aaand you may sit now. Sorry about that. I won’t ask you to do it again.”

That day the lesson went about how to stall werewolves from transforming. A few audible murmurs mocked the notion by how nonviable it was. One of the athletes quipped. “Before you go turning into a killing machine, let me just pull out my bouquet of wolfsbane I keep in my underpants. It’s been getting itchy down there.” Between laughs his friend added: “For real, don’t they put that stuff in guns nowadays?”

During class, Anja stopped her assignment and said: “Hey, check this out.”

Her ears grew pointy and furry above her head. Cat-like would be comparable, but their shape suggested lynx. “I like them better this way,” she said, giggling.

Oliver reached out and scratched her behind the ears. She tilted her head in his direction. To my dismay, she purred softly.

“So are you guys dating or not really? I can’t put my finger on it.”

They both recoiled from each other, equally red, the purrs gone at once.

Oliver stuttered. “No, not really. I mean, no. Never. We have never dated. I mean, we’re good friends.”

***

Cryptology was a much needed change of pace. My first two periods became my favorite part of the day by far. Not only that, but I got to enjoy ninety minutes away from Melanie and her underlings. I even forgot about the ‘slut’ marking on my locker... until class was over.

Speaking of the devil (that just took on a literal meaning, didn’t it?), there they were biding their time. For third period I’d need my history book, a monstrous-sized thing. I spotted them by my locker, all set in their gossip mode while chewing gum, and my blood boiled. The way they glanced at me said it all—here I was at last, the main star of their vile reality show.

The closer I got, the heavier my steps dragged, the harder my heartbeat. I didn’t have it in me to face her in front of all these people. It’s what she’d want, besides. I was a coward. Where had the courage, confidence and nonchalance I’d displayed over the weekend gone? That’s the demon within, not me. My eyes glued to the word ‘slut’ and didn’t dare look at the culprit.

The mere thought that everyone now present associated me with that word made me mess up my lock combination. A tear blurred my vision.

Melanie’s gum popped, and she chewed. “Hey, Scar-ho. How’s your day?”

One of her blonde friends laughed out loud.

“Oh, don’t feel bad. Here’s some to help you fight the stress.”

Her finger jabbed into my scalp and I felt my insides tearing in two. Her cronies burst into outraged laughter. The chewed gum, a gooey glob of gray paste showered in Melanie’s slobbers, lodged and rooted under layers of my smooth and carefully combed tufts of hair. I cringed on the spot, jolting shudders running down my limbs and spine, wishing I’d fit in the locker and forever vanish to a faraway wonderland.

I stood transfixed on the spot, history book in hand, until their laughter died away. My shoulders shook and my arms trembled because I’d made my decision. Enough was enough.

After seventh period, Mr. Royce offered me cow’s blood.

“No, thanks. I don’t want any.”

The teacher arched his eyebrows. “Are you certain? Won’t you starve later in the day?”

“Don’t worry. I can take another twenty-four hours.”

He shrugged, closing the mini fridge. “I won’t insist then. If it becomes urgent, you know how to reach me.”

“Is there a cure?” The question had been laying low in my mind since day one.

Mr. Royce adjusted the collar of his sports jacket. “I’m going to beat around the bush a little bit. Have you heard the legend of the Holy Grail? The empire of Atlantis? Perhaps the kingdom of Shambhala? The pot of gold at the end of a rainbow? If some form of cure to vampirism exists, it falls within the esoteric and the obscure. Personally, I doubt such substance or ritual exists. People say the ORPHEUS’ Bureaus store all kinds of information in their deeper vaults, and if a concrete answer exists, that’s where I’d look. There’s nothing else I can say without straying into legend or misinformation territory.”

“I see.”

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah, it’s nothing. Thanks.” I rose from the chair and stepped out of the office.

“Well, if you change your mind, let me know. You have my number, right?”

“Right, don’t sweat it. See you tomorrow.”

I was starving.

Anja had become my savior during break after she scissored the chewed gum out of my scalp in the restrooms. You could notice the damage to my hair, a small bald spot covered up by her finesse at hair-styling, but only if you paid close attention.

Lure Melanie. It was the one thought in my head, like a swarm of angry hornets flying over their trodden hive.

It was working. The hunger racking at my stomach, making my mouth water—I passed the steering wheel and took the passenger’s seat. The vampire was now driving. And perhaps Melanie could tell, too, because she stiffened when she saw me approaching, stopping her laughter mid-conversation with her friends.

“Hey, grazing the fields must make you thirsty.” I dashed a cup of water to her face. She ducked, but her reflexes were cumbersome at best. She yelled and spat. The sycophants surrounding her stepped back, showering me with insults.

“How dare you? How dare you, stupid bitch?” Melanie strode toward me, wanting to give chase, but all too aware of people watching. Someone further away yelled ‘catfight.’ “Wait until tomorrow. Just you wait.”

“Toilet water. Can you tell?”

Melanie bristled. She wiped her face. Her pace quickened, leaving her friends behind.

I walked backward, smiling at her. “What else do you want? You gonna beat me up now?” It was a lure, and she took the bait, out the school’s back door to the yard.

I pulled the hoodie over my head as the heat flared, despite the clouds clogging the sky. Droplets rapped on my head and shoulders. A mud puddle sloshed as I stepped over it. I turned, pushed the door to the storage shed and closed it behind me. The hood would get in my way, so I took it off.

Football helmets and shoulder pads lined up the shelves. Lacrosse sticks and tennis rackets hung from racks. An assortment of nets held footballs, basketballs, and soccer balls together.

The door screeched open behind me. But I didn’t turn to see, or else she might have noticed the vampire in me.

“You’re fucking done,” Melanie said. She grasped tufts of my hair and yanked. The pain, stinging and prickling, set me off. The vampire came loose. I spun, seizing her arm, and twisted it behind her back as though it were a toy’s. The girl whimpered, struggling, much like a deer yelping and wriggling to free itself from a fallen log crushing its leg. “Ow, let go of me!”

There it was again, the scent of lavender when I pushed the raven hair out of the way.

“You should’ve taken the hint.”

I bit down.

***

Once when I was little, our class went on a school trip to seek out Easter eggs. The one with the most collected would win a chocolate bar. I really wanted it, so when I realized I was down a few from the first place, I snuck up on the boy leading the race and swiped a couple of eggs. He must have realized it a little too late because he bawled as our teacher gave me the chocolate bar.

It was bittersweet. I was satisfied while eating it, but then a gnawing guilt settled in my stomach. That’s how I felt as Melanie’s lifeblood seeped out of her throat and her lifeless body slid from my grip, only thousandfold. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. My mind roiled in turmoil. An acidic sensation burned the back of my gullet. I looked down through a screen of tears at my bloody shaking hands and stumbled out of the shed with blurry vision.

I ran from the school grounds. Made my way out of there and as far as I could as if the cops were hot on my heels. And kept on running until I couldn’t go further. The thought of stopping terrified me. Before I knew it, night had fallen, and strong autumn winds bit my skin.

My dazed meandering took me into a park with groves of medium-sized trees. I found support against the bark of a maple, rough and gritty against my hands. A murder of crows watched me from neighboring pine trees, their eyes beady under the waning moonlight, their cackles decrying my crime. My entrails turned and twisted, and vomit surged from my mouth to pool on the tree’s roots. If I thought of the consequences to come, I’d go insane, so I pushed any related thoughts away.

Anja had texted me. “Was looking for ya.” If only I had gone with her instead.

Twigs snapped. Wind howled through the branches and crows took flight cawing in the night. There stood a man watching me between the trees, and my heart jumped to my throat. Even before I recognized him, I was already panicking. A root caught my foot, and I went down scrambling backward and away from him.

A set of three piercings glistened over his eyebrow. It’s him. He who sired me.

“Who are you? What do you want?”

“Tobias. You remember, don’t you? The dread twisting your guts tell you so, doesn’t it?”

“Leave me alone.”

“Don’t even try it. I will outrun you,” Tobias said as I regained my footing. The vampire wore simple blacks, sports pants and a sleeveless sweatshirt with a hoodie. It wouldn’t be hard for him to blend in. “It’s a bother you had to block all our numbers. There are only so many phones we can use.”

“Back off. Stay away from me.”

“Or you’ll do what?” He moved in a blur. A split second later he stood by my side, leaning over my neck, sniffing. “You’ve fed on somebody, haven’t you? Our girl’s growing up fast.”

I moved to shove him, but his hand snatched mine in midair.

“There’s still so much you could learn. If only you’d come with me. We can help you become faster, stronger...”

“Why would I do that? What do you want from me?”

“We’ve been watching you, Scarlett. We know your day-to-day schedule. We know about your friends, about your big-boned brother, your mom who is an attorney, and your dad, the forensic one. One way or another, you’ll join our family. You wouldn’t wanna involve any of them, would you?” Tobias let go of my arm. “Especially now that you’ve fed, you’d be wise to make friends.”

I took the chance to shove him and make a run for it. Although Tobias didn’t move. Only said, “I see how it is.”

***

Waking up didn’t feel like I’d woken up. Upon opening my eyes and shutting up the alarm clock, I entered the nightmare. The crushing blow of guilt surged at once and gnawed at my stomach. The thought of a body decomposing in the school’s shed made me run to the toilet to expel said stomach out my rasping throat.

Best-case scenario, Melanie would come back to life as a vampire and taunt me for eternity. In the worst case, her corpse would still be rotting in that shed and the cops would come knocking down my door any day now. It was astonishing I had even been able to sleep at all.

After debating between skipping school or showing up, I concluded skipping school might inculpate me more. So I swallowed my bitter fears and showed up.

As I went into my first period and every eye fell upon me, the inevitable question leapt to the forefront of my mind and threatened to paralyze me before the jury, inculpating me even more. By sheer willpower I overcame it and sank into my chair next to Anja’s empty desk, my hands trembling. Who in here might know what I did yesterday?

But those turned out to be the least of my concerns that day. Anja still hadn’t shown up nor would she. About ten minutes into the class I received a text from her number. An giant’s fist flattened my entrails when I read its content:

“Anja will be our guest for tonight. I warned you, sweetheart. If you want to see her again, you must come to the abandoned lumber mill beyond the Devil’s Trail. Alone at night. Otherwise, she dies.”

Sick couldn’t come close to covering how I felt. I had to go lock myself up in a restroom stall for an hour to collect my bearings, to cry my eyes out, to throw up what remained of my stomach; anything I could do to find my composure because I wasn’t even fit to seek help yet. My reflection in the mirror looked calm, but far from it, the helplessness took its toll. I couldn’t stop the trembling of my hands.

Time passed. Morning dragged on. Girls came in and out, and washed their hands while glancing at me. As I reread the text, I found anger replacing fear, and resolve replacing helplessness. In the mirror, my bronze locks turned a bright scarlet.

I walked up to Alan’s desk before the end of second period and shoved my phone displaying the text over the book he was reading. I had no idea how he could help me, but he had demanded to know about Tobias.

“He’s the one who sired me. They’ve kidnapped Anja.”

“Excuse me, but why are you showing me this?” Alan said, raising his eyebrows.

“Don’t make me beg.”

That made him pause. “Are you... going?”

“It’s me they want. They’ll let her go.”

“Even if this farce turns out to be true, you’re an idiot if you think they’ll let her go.”

“I have to go, regardless. They’ll kill her otherwise.”

To my dismay, Alan nodded and went back to his reading. My fists clenched and my nails dug in my skin as I turned my back to him. Although he closed the book after a few seconds and sat staring off into the distance.

After class, I pleaded with Mr. Royce to talk to him. I beckoned to Oliver, and he shrugged. So I flailed my arm harder, and taking the hint, we followed the teacher to his office.

Mr. Royce closed the door and cut to the chase. “What’s the matter? What happened?”

A lump tied up my throat. I took out my phone and showed them the text with a shaky hand.

Oliver snatched it from my loose grip. “Anja,” he mumbled, staring at the screen. “What sick joke is this?”

Mr. Royce snatched it from Oliver and held it up with one hand while opening his laptop. “The old lumber mill was closed off and boarded up over a decade ago. Rumors had gone around that it might be a vampire den, so ORPHEUS sent a cadre of warlocks to raid it. Our best course of action would be to report this abduction to them.”

“B-but you read what Tobias said. They’ll kill her as soon as someone else shows up.”

“You’re nowhere near suited for this,” Mr. Royce said, shaking his head. “It’s a bad, bad idea. Besides, if they don’t kill her, they will feed on her, possibly have her sired.” The teacher reached over to the fridge and took out a bag of blood. “Drink. It’ll clear your head.”

I held up my hand, stopping him. “I can do more without it. So I’m going. I’m not letting Anja down.”

Oliver gulped. “I-I’m going, too.”

“Are you out of your mind?” Mr. Royce said. “You’re only kids. Leave it to professionals.”

“If I don’t show up, she’s dead. If we have it your way, she’s dead. What would you have me do then?”

“Don’t get killed as well.”

“I’m going with or without you and there’s nothing you can do stop me.”

“Goddammit.” The teacher massaged the bridge of his nose. After a long pause, he said: “I’m coming with you. Else you’re dead.”

***

The Devil’s Trail was an oft-avoided track on Hallowed Road leading into deeper woods, where trees grew dense and closer to each other, and wild weeds grew thicker and more hostile. Even during daylight, these parts of the woods always cast a dark shadow over the forest floor. I had heard rumors before of people venturing in and coming back disturbed from the chatter of critters and whisperings of spirits. The only whispering I heard was from the chilly wind, blowing through the old, creaking branches of towering maples and pine trees.

Despite the shroud of darkness, I could move nimbly through brush and bramble. Oliver and Mr. Royce, however, couldn’t make out their hands before their faces. So streams of light swam here and there as they pointed lanterns to light their way.

“I see it up ahead,” I said as the building’s outline drew up against the trees. “Turn off the lights. Remember, second floor, I call Oliver. First floor, I call you.”

“My salary doesn’t cover this,” Mr. Royce said under his breath, though by then I’d left them behind.

The old lumber mill stood crumbling in the middle of a glade, with toppled trees and rotted logs strewn before it. Boarded-up windows, peeling paint, cracked planks, and rusted doors, the facade showed its age and decay. I stepped over mossy trunks and slid through tall grass to bang on the double doors.

A hooded man opened the door by an inch and peered between the gap. “He’s waiting for you upstairs.”

The doors closing on their hinges sent screeching echoes through the building. Mold clung to the walls, sawdust and splinters littered the floor, and lamps hanging by a chord threatened to flicker out any moment. Motes of dust clogged the air. A shoddy workmanship had nailed planks to the window frames, blocking out most of the sunlight and any opportunity for outsiders to spy inside, but perfect to keep an eye out on uninvited guests.

Hands tucked in his pockets, the vampire led me up the stairs to the waiting room outside the foreman’s office. He pushed the wooden door and closed it behind me.

In the waiting room were three vampires lounging on stools. Tobias lit a new cigarette, another listened to a football match on an old radio, while the third, a woman, fidgeted with a smartphone. The two strangers wore raggedy denim and worn-out hoodies. One sported a Seahawks cap, and the woman carried sunglasses.

“We could’ve gone about it the easy way,” Tobias said, rising from the stool, the cigarette’s spark lighting up his features.

“I’m here now. Let Anja go. She’s got nothing to do with this.”

“Anja’s doing well. Better than ever, in fact. She’ll be waiting for you right over there.” Tobias stuck his thumb out over his shoulder toward the foreman’s office. He clapped his hands together. “Enough small talk. Time to meet your new family. Ezra’s on watch duty tonight. This is Woody,” he said, pointing at the man with the Seahawks cap.

He turned down the volume on his radio. “Howdy.”

“And this beauty here is Elena. She’s the one in charge of stalking the boys,” he said, gesturing at the girl who looked to be between seventeen and eighteen years old.

The piercing through her nose triggered me a flashback. “Elena? Elena Castellano? Weren’t you friends with Rick?” Despite feeling like a total nerve-wreck, I knew I had to show confidence.

“Yeah, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? Haven’t seen him in over, what, a year now? How’s he doing, by the by?” she said, smiling, as though reminiscing.

“He said you moved out of the country. That you never returned his messages.”

“Right. That’s the official story, yes.”

Tobias snapped his fingers. “So here’s what you gotta do. It’s quite a simple task. You will feed on your friend, and she will join us, too.” As soon as he turned his back and headed toward the office, I slid my phone from my pocket, tapped on Oliver’s number, and tucked it in as Tobias unlocked the door.

Inside, a lone wooden chair stood in the middle, with coils of hempen rope crumpled around it. A creaking lantern hung over it, dimly lighting the room. I scrunched up my eyes. Clothing, a sand-colored sweater and dark-blue jeans, also piled around the chair.

Silence fell for a few seconds.

“What the hell?” Tobias said, poking his head inside the office. He whirled on the spot, grabbed Woody by the collar of his hoodie and smashed him against the wall, denting it inward. He puffed smoke in his underling’s face. “Turn that shit off.”

“She was there. I checked!” Woody said, not daring to look his boss in the eyes.

“She is still in there. The room, it reeks of her scent,” Elena said, nose raised in the air.

“Another deviant, is that right?” Tobias said, shoving Woody aside. He flicked the cigarette butt into a corner. “Come on, just give me an excuse.” His fingers twitched, heading for the office. “One good reason for a bit of blood...”

The building shook and dust knocked loose from the ceiling. A resounding blast came from the first floor and then hurried creaking footsteps. The vampire on watch duty came stumbling into the lounge. “Intruders, coming up.”

Mr. Royce, carrying a gold pocket watch, charged inside, with an anxious Oliver at his heels. He raised the watch and aimed it at the group of vampires. “Back off, all of you.” It would’ve looked oddly hilarious, under other circumstances.

“Anja! Where’s Anja?” Oliver yelled, peering to all sides.

Tobias snarled. “Kill the warlock first.”

I had never been in a fight before involving actual punches to the face. When Woody and Elena moved to kill, my body failed to react, and they knocked me to the floor as they rushed Oliver and the teacher.

Mr. Royce held his watch aloft and uttered a word in a strange, guttural language. A shock wave sprang from it, strong enough to knock the attackers off their feet.

They were nimble, so they got back up without a bother.

Another incantation, and Elena became spellbound to a stasis daze which slowed her movements down to infinitesimal levels, a fierce snarl warping her face.

Woody pounced on Mr. Royce, sending the watch skidding across the room and under a table. His hands were at his throat, clutching.

“Oliver...” the teacher choked out. “Wait for it...” The alien words he uttered next rewound time for a few seconds, as Mr. Royce reappeared back on his feet with the watch on his hands and Woody sprinting toward him from across the room. “Now.”

Oliver grimaced, and from red-glowing fingertips a spray of flame licked and leapt, catching the vampire on fire at once.

The sight of a flailing, burning man, and the sounds, goodness, the sounds of agony I didn’t know a man was capable of making, and the stench of burning clothes, skin, and hair crawling in my nostrils—so revolting it twisted at my insides. But it was the cat—no, the lynx—that made me snap out of it and spur into action.

As Woody shrieked and billowing smoke clogged the ceiling, Anja finally showed herself. A lynx, golden-furred and small, bolted out of the foreman’s office.

By then I was already on the move, sprinting toward her, as was Tobias. The world rolled before my eyes as Ezra tackled me to the ground and knocked the wind out of my lungs. He hoisted me up with a suffocating headlock while Tobias did the same with a squirming lynx, hooking an arm around her neck. The lynx yowled in frenzy and thrashed about and clawed at his attacker. But Tobias choked her windpipe.

“Just you keep at it and I’ll fuck you up.”

Anja stopped resisting then, her eyes wide with fright, her mouth gasping for shallow breaths.

Woody’s body had already shrunk into a pile of smoldering ash and its fetid stink overwhelmed my senses.

“Not. One. Word. Old man,” Tobias said, clutching Anja, whose eyes were dilated with fear. “I really wouldn’t, or the kitty goes snap. What have you done to my friend? Why’s she not moving?” Tobias said, glancing between Elena and Mr. Royce.

Mr. Royce stuttered. “S-she’s frozen, that’s all. I can—”

“No, you won’t. I hear your cursed words coming out of your mouth, and the cat dies. Your watch, down on the floor now!” Mr. Royce lowered the watch, wheezing and shaking. The spells seemed to have taken a toll on his stamina. For the first time I saw true helplessness in the teacher’s eyes, and it crushed my spirit.

“You will burn,” Oliver said, shaking with rage. The ferocity in his voice sent chills through my bones.

“If you destroy our family, we’ll make more. Cut our head, and two more will spring.”

“Let her go, please,” Mr. Royce said, taking a step forward, his arms up in the air.

Tobias bared his fangs. “There are only two outcomes tonight. She either becomes one of us, or she dies.”

“I’ll take her place,” Oliver said, shaking from head to toe. “Just let her go.”

The vampire roared with laughter. “Kid, I’m over a hundred years old. Do you think I’m stupid?” He snarled between his teeth.

There was a flash of light, momentarily blinding me, and a thunderous crack as a figure blasted through the boarded-up windows to land in our midst. White-feathered wings stretched behind his back. A glowing aura of light seemed to radiate from his flesh and white blond hair. Alan only had eyes for Tobias.

The angel stood next to Elena, who was still in stasis, and reached out to touch her arm. Light emanated from her flesh, and for a moment she shone like a star in the middle of the night, until she imploded, skin disintegrating like paper on a bonfire and bones becoming clouds of dust. My heart caught in my throat. He’d threatened me before with those same hands.

Ezra let go off me and shoved me away, whimpering, looking for the exit.

“I swear I will ki—” Tobias yelled. Anja cried out. A blast of light originating from Alan left all of us vampires blind. I let out an involuntary hiss as I barred the sun-like radiance with my arms.

When I reopened my eyes, dark spots blotted my vision. Anja had run across the room to Oliver and Mr. Royce and they were both on their knees shielding her while Alan stood up to her captors, wielding a long white spear by its hard-light shaft. Wings outstretched, the angel dwarfed the vampires in mettle. As he advanced on them, they slunk back, their faces scrunched up from his blinding aura.

Alan took aim and hurled the spear like a javelin. The point caught in the middle of Ezra’s chest as he scrambled for an exit and keeled over, dissolving to dust before he even touched the floor. By the time the angel materialized another spear and turned to Tobias, my sire had already thrown himself out the windows, crashing into the sawmills below in a hail of shards like pointed teeth, and fled to the darkness of the forest.

Still with black spots swimming in my eyes, I stumbled to my feet and made my way to Anja. She had returned to her human form. Grime and tears streaked her face, but she was otherwise fine, wheezing and purring. She wore Mr. Royce’s coat over her shoulders, as she was naked underneath, huddled between Oliver and the teacher.

“I’m so sorry.” I locked my arms around her shoulders and choked on my tears. “This wouldn’t have happened if—” If you didn’t care about me.

Anja was still processing the fact we were here for her and took a moment to express her earnest gratitude. “I couldn’t believe you all came for me... risked your lives for me. Thank you so much.” She smiled at me. “There’s nothing to forgive.”

Once we were safe back on Hallowed Road, we stopped on the sidewalk under the waning moon.

I looked to Mr. Royce for guidance. “How... how do we go on with our lives... after everything that’s happened?”

The teacher sighed. “Life goes on. You three must learn to defend yourselves. I knew Oliver had my back with his flames, but you, Scarlett, and I’m not putting blame or anything, you became immobilized.”

“I know. I’m sorr—”

“Don’t apologize, learn from it. That vampire who fled, he’s with more of them for sure. None of you is safe while they’re still out there.” He turned to Alan. “Mr. Grayson, I have a proposal for you. A paid gig, if you will.”

Alan faced him, confused.

“You said you wanted to ‘ascend in the ranks.’ And here you have the perfect opportunity to prove yourself.”

“Oh, no...”

“You’ll be Anja’s guardian angel. A perfect first employment for a young man like you.”