At first, I thought it was my eyes playing tricks on me, but the veins crawling underneath the vampire's skin confirmed my doubts. His flesh began regaining colour as the blood vessels disappeared down his body, enabling movement.
"Ethan?" I spun around in a panic, fighting the nerves that gnawed away at me. He had left me. Without a weapon, I had a slim chance of survival.
How can he leave me alone?
The vampire had moved. All that remained was the mould of his body against the soft grass. My legs wobbled with uncontrollable fear as I clambered my mouth shut, afraid of mumbling in fright. It was like a blind man searching in the dead of night, unable to rely on sight alone.
Time was enduring as he lingered, waiting to pounce. It took a second before he swooped in for the kill, plummeting his jagged fangs into my neck.
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Screaming, I woke up.
As I sat up, I took in the familiar surroundings. The beige throw dangled off the settee, exposing the graze on my alabaster skin. The edges were sore and rough against my fingertips.
Fiona rushed in, turning on the floor lamp in the corner of the room. "Erika, what's wrong?" It was clear to say that she had been exercising. The neon pink headband was a big clue, and the towel wrapped around her shoulders was the second.
"Nightmare." The area on my neck stung as his fangs delved into my flesh, radiating a dull ache. I shook the memory, confirming it was a dream from the lack of a bite mark.
Witnessing a vampire chomping on my neck is just as scary as Freddy Krueger visiting my dreams, if not worse. It's only a dream, but isn't that what all of Freddie's victims say?
Fiona removed the towel from around her neck, showing visible sweat marks under her armpits. "Ethan told me what happened. Do you want to talk about it?"
I was surprised at how calm she appeared. If my son had told me that he had killed a vampire, I wouldn't believe him. Vampires shouldn't be real. They were simply a myth that traumatised villagers, influencing them to hang garlic on their doors. "No, but thank you."
Reaching for the glass of water on the woven placemat, I took a sip.
"I'm going to hop in the shower, but if there is anything you need, don't hesitate to ask Ethan." She loosened the tie in her hair, revealing the tresses around her shoulders. She hovered a little, rocking back and forth on the sole of her foot before she turned away.
"Can I have some paper and a pen, please?" I called out, remembering minor details from earlier.
"Of course." She disappeared into the hall and came back a moment later with a few sheets of paper and a black biro. "If you need more, the paper is in the cupboard in the hall."
I whispered my thanks and waited until she energetically jogged up the stairs before I started sketching the symbol I saw on the vampire's wrist. The tip of the pen moved effortlessly in my grasp as I drew from memory. The two upside-down triangles represented something in the circle, but what it meant was still a mystery.
