Vampires Rule

Mortal Again

The next time Jack woke it was morning, and his hand felt oddly warm. A nagging voice deep in the recesses of his mind slowly connected the dots. He had experienced this soothing heat before, but it had been so long ago he couldn't pinpoint the source. Whatever it was, it was bad.

Jack cracked his eyes a slit. His hand rested comfortably on the pillow beside his head. Light streamed through the open curtains and rested on his unprotected skin. His eyes widened as the truth dawned on him.

With a yelp he jerked his hand out of the light and dove under the covers. Sunlight and vampires did not mix. Any second now he would burst into flames. Where was he anyway? He searched his recent memories.

An amused voice spoke from the doorway.

"It's okay," Silver said. "You're fine. I opened the curtains this morning, but I watched your skin carefully for any signs of burning. Sunlight can't hurt you anymore."

He struggled to breathe through the suffocating covers and mumbled, "What are you talking about?"

"You're not a vampire."

"What?" Oh yeah, she'd lost her mind. Or maybe this was a trick to get him to commit suicide. She was the enemy after all, albeit a beautiful one.

She yanked the covers off the bed—and him—with one quick, sliding motion, like a magician revealing his final trick. Silver was fully dressed, hair combed and eyes sparkling. She flashed him a quick grin. "You don't need to hide from the sun. You are no more a vampire than I am. See?" She motioned to the window. "You aren't catching fire or exploding. Isn't that enough evidence for you?"

He crawled to the edge of the mattress in wonder and stared at the beauty known as dawn. Tears blurred his vision for a moment. Incredible. It had been too long since he'd seen golden sunlight. He'd forgotten how breathtaking a sunrise could be. Logic argued with his physical senses. He pushed his fingers beneath his upper lip, felt the gums. No telltale bumps beneath the skin. He jumped off the bed and grabbed Silver, pressing his face against her throat as he tried to smell her blood. Nothing.

She giggled.

After releasing her, he went to the window. Before he had the chance to change his mind, he thrust the glass pane up and stuck his hand outside. The most amazing warmth caressed his skin. A cool breeze wafted in, disturbing the hair on his forehead. His eyes closed as he savored the sensation. He ducked his head and leaned out the window. It didn't hurt. It didn't burn.

"I can't believe it." The words floated out with his pent-up breath. "I must be dreaming."

Hard knuckles rapped on the bedroom door. Jack jumped and hit his head on the window sill. Pain shot through his skull. No, this wasn't a dream. Definitely not. His hand went to the back of his head, and he absently checked for blood. Since he wasn't alone, he bit his tongue instead of cursing.

"Silver, are you up yet?" The deep, masculine voice penetrated the closed door.

She turned panicked eyes to Jack and whispered, "It's my dad. He can't find you here. He'll drive a stake through your heart."

"I'm not a vampire anymore."

"Trust me, that won't matter. In fact, it might make things worse." She looked at him like he was dumber than dirt. "You're a boy, and you're in my bedroom. He's going to kill you."

She had a point. Jack remembered a few confrontations with angry fathers during his last stint as a human teenaged boy. He turned in a tight circle, searched every corner of the room. Where could he hide? Both the closet and under the bed seemed a little too obvious.