A Vampire's Rotten Heart

Dave

    I lied in bed, holding Spud over myself, my wings concealed by piles of pillows. The scene looked cozy, but to me, it was infuriating. Lying in bed all day, not being able to speak to anyone other than Pete and Maywell, having to hold my breath when someone came to visit— Spud was the only thing keeping me sane. I kissed him on the forehead and set him down to romp around on my chest.

    There was a rap at the door.

    "Garrett! You've got a visitor!"

    Oh, goodie. I quickly got situated, making sure that the pillows covered my wings and that my feet weren't sticking out of the covers.

    The knob turned. The door opened. On the other side was Dave, unmasked, holding a pie in one hand and flowers in the other. I turned my head towards him. He looked younger than I expected him to be. He couldn't be much older than I was.

    "You're awake this time. That's nice."

    He set the pie down on my nightstand and replaced the dying flowers in my vase with his own, fresh ones.

    I yawned and faked a cough, then looked away from him.

    "Oh, come on. Don't give me that."

    He came a bit closer.

"God he's pale," he muttered to himself. His eyebrows knitted together and casted a shadow over his lids. He sounded genuinely concerned.

    "I apologize for calling you a wimp." He held out his hand for a shake. "Is that it?" He sighed. "That's alright."

He turned his head to the side, and we sat in awkward silence.

"Would you like to hear some stories about Pete?"

I broke my silence. "Do you two know each other well?"

"Pete never told you that we're friends?" Dave laughed. "Well that explains a hell of a lot! God, you're seeing me as a stranger now, aren't you?" He smirked and looked to the side.

"Pete's got a habit of doing that, doesn't he. Always conveniently leaving things out..." He shook his head with a smile.

"Did you know that he kept a dog from his wife for years?"

"I've heard."

"I knew about the dog, but not that he was keeping it from his wife!" He cracked up. "Sometimes, I don't think he even does it intentionally. It's gotta be compulsive."

"Yeah..."

"Oh, and I brought something for you, kid. Wait here."

He walked out of the room.

Did Dave know? He didn't seem like he did, but surely, by virtue of being a vampire hunter, he'd be able to tell, right? Was he just teasing me?

He came back into the room with a case.

"I figured you must be bored— having to stay in bed for days on end and all— so I brought you a little something to look at."

He opened up the case. Every muscle in my body stiffened. Inside was an assortment of crucifixes, guns, stakes... medallions engraved with portraits of Bhale and the Virgin... tinctures of holy water and other fluids... There were even chains, muzzles, and other restraints in case a client wanted to keep their victim alive.

This was it. He knew. He was teasing me. Playing with his food.

I panicked. I tried not to show it.

"Interesting, isn't it?" He pointed to the largest stake in the collection. "You see, it's actually very difficult to stake a vampire. They have ribs just like us, and, well, as you've probably seen with Pete, it takes more than a little jab to get through bone! You need a little extra force behind it. And that's what this is for."

He pulled out the crossbow from his belt.

"This is enough to get through the ribs of almost any vampire."

"Almost?"

"It won't work on anything too small or too large. Good luck staking a worm or a whale with one of these." He laughed.

    I turned my head away. "Look. I really appreciate it, but I've gotta rest."

    Dave looked distraught, then quickly composed himself.

    "Alright." He closed the case. "I get it." He stood up. "It was nice to see you awake this time." He closed the case and picked it up.

    "I'll bring something for the cat next time!" he said, closing the door behind him.

    I took a deep breath, and once I heard him leave the house, I shook off all the pillows. Spud hopped onto the bed. Finally some peace and quiet...