Vampires Rule

Bite Me

For the first time since Jack had joined the Jefferson Memorial student body, English class dragged by at snail speed. He sat in the back row, twirling his pencil and tapping his foot beneath the desk. He wanted to explode out of his seat and demand some answers. His eyes drifted over the other students. Until they were gone, he couldn't say a thing to Jersey Clifford about the wraiths.

Jersey was in rare form today. He led a fascinating discussion on their next assigned book, but Jack only heard half of it. Jersey was wearing the same outfit he'd worn on Jack's first day: black trousers and turtleneck with red sneakers. His eyes rested on Jack a few times during class. It was obvious he noticed Jack's distracted state. Maybe that was why he didn't call on Jack to answer any questions. Good thing, since Jack couldn't string a coherent thought together to save his life.

The bell rang, and the students scattered. Jersey dealt with the couple who wanted to speak with him after class. He rushed them on their way while Jack remained in his seat. Jersey closed the door and slowly revolved to face Jack, his expression wary.

"Something on your mind?" Jersey perched on the corner of his desk.

Jack took a deep breath and forged ahead, knowing Silver was going to freak out when he told her later what he'd said to the werewolf-slash-teacher. "You have wraiths. Why?"

An untrained eye wouldn't have noticed the change in Jersey's expression. His face froze, but Jack saw him swallow. He saw how Jersey tried hard to maintain a blank stare. There was a sliver of fear deep in his eyes. Then Jersey's mouth slightly lifted at the ends. "You've been to my house again?"

"I found your real home this time. A house beneath a house. Clever. That junky place you claim to live in was a disappointment. I was almost glad to see you have a mansion underneath it."

"It suits me, don't you think? Originally I'd wanted to build a castle, but I decided gray stone walls would be too ostentatious."

Jack got up, leaving his notebook and pencil on the desk. Instead of the detailed notes he usually took in class, the top of the page was covered in doodles. He moved closer to Jersey, even though his well-honed survival instinct told him to keep several desks between them.

"Let's talk about the wraiths," Jack said. "They used to be women. Now they writhe around in pain all day, and they're slaves at night. How do you justify what you did to them? Can you?"

Jersey had the audacity to laugh. If that wasn't bad enough, he spoke to Jack like he was talking to a five-year-old. "I am a werewolf, son. What did you expect to find in my home? Tea and cookies?" He pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. "Oh, Jack, you have to understand my position here. I have an important destiny to fulfill."

"You actually want to build an army and start a war. Don't you?"

"Look around you. The Earth is a mess. Humans are worse than animals. They run around grabbing greedily at everything they can get their hands on and crawling over each other to get ahead. They kill and maim without reason or thought, all the while believing they are at the top of the food-chain. It's time for someone to show them the light."

There was a touch of insanity in Jersey's eyes, and Jack wondered why he hadn't noticed it before. Jack said, "Humans aren't perfect. Some of them might be greedy and psychotic, but others are compassionate and loving and gentle and—"

Jersey made a rude noise, interrupting Jack's list.

Jack added, "I won't let you start a war."