The Trade Off | The Lost Boys

Chapter 5

Updated 05/18/19.

Chapter 5

Downstairs, the peace was broken.

"I'm not happy, Mark." Max jeered, wringing his hands together. "You can't change fate."

"Fate? That's one sick joke, Max. You won't get away with this." Mark was scared, but his voice was firm. With a disappointed scowl Max left the room with a wave, leaving him in the company of three livid members of the undead.

"Now don't tell me you've gone soft. You know how long he's been waiting for this." David stepped up, pushing Mark against the wall. "What did you think was going to happen? He'd just let her go?"

"It's not about Olive." Mark seethed, grabbing for his pocket. "Why would I tell her and break her heart? Why would I tell her she was bound to a monster? It's never been about her."

"What the fuck do you mean? Of course it's about her." David articulated, his scowl deepening.

"She's never going to want this. She'll never want him." Mark spat.

"Then why the hell did you come all this way?" David retorted, pushing at Mark's jacket. He was pinned to the wall, fiddling with the jacket pocket. Paul jumped forward in an instant noticing his action. He pulled out a vial from Mark's pocket and in the process grabbed at his sleeve with an appalling amount of force. There was a crack, a groan, and then silence. He drew back, taking a closer look at the vial. Hissing, Paul shattered the vial under his boot.

Holy water.

"It's a trap." Paul griped. "Who did you tell?" Mark shook his head, a triumphant look on his face. He was biding his time.

"Eat shit."

********************

Dwayne had stolen away after Olive, waiting for her to fall asleep. The bedroom was quiet, save the ceiling fan and the slight snore from Olive herself. She had fallen into a trance, a deep sleep brought on by unnatural forces, and Dwayne approached quietly. He perched himself in the desk chair, the world moving slowly.

He was bewitched, taking in her smile, the curvature of her lips, the way she scrunched up her nose at Paul's terrible story at dinner. He couldn't help but watch her. She was...she was far from what he had expected. Dwayne didn't know what to expect, only knowing about her from Mark's calls to Max over the years and a number of pictures when she was a kid. She was perfect.

Of course she was. Why wouldn't she be?

The commotion downstairs fell on deaf ears as Dwayne grew closer, the rhythmic sounds of her slow and steady pulse was more than he was expecting. He was a fool to let Max keep her away. Dwayne was so close, he was losing his cool. His eyes darkened, a low grumble finding its way up into his chest. A fleeting touch was all he could afford, brushing away the hair from her cheek and pulling his hand back, his eyes closing for a brief moment. The peace was broken, and he could hear a venomous howl from down the stairs. Something was wrong.

********************

It was a terrible scream that woke Olive.

She jolted up, grabbing fistfuls the sheets to steady herself. What was that noise?

As quickly as it came, the warm presence was gone. It felt so real, so tender, and the smell was still encompassing her. She was unbelievably disoriented, and her body began to shake against her better judgement. Get a hold of yourself, Ollie thought.