The Scottsville Vampire Invasion

Chapter 14

Chapter 14 

One of the first buildings we pass is a large brick structure with a glass window that takes up almost the entire storefront. The place was once a real estate business. I walk up the sidewalk and look into the lobby. It's hard to see anything with the reflection of the sun against glass, but it's empty of people. There is a large room with four desks and a set of chairs in front of each. Pictures of houses hang on the walls. I scan the inside. Each desk still has stacks of papers on it. There are telephones, and the computers aren't on, but they still sit on the workplaces. The place wasn't cleaned up. Whoever left here did so in a hurry. 

I come back into the street, and we keep moving. Walking past the buildings, we see some of them are homes, but most of them are old businesses. A former diner with the silverware still on the tables along with the salt shakers, ketchup and syrup. This is a sad case. I use to come here with my Dad. He sold insurance, and when he had a meeting in a nearby town, sometimes he would take me along and let me join him on a trip. I'd go into the business where he was meeting and wait in the lobby. When he was done, he would take me to this diner for lunch.  

Just like the real estate office, it looks like the people closed it and left in a panic. They didn't sell off their materials or even clean the place out. I've seen companies go out of business, but the owners of the property come in, clean it out and resell whatever they can. This looks like a museum exhibit. Everything in place just like it was.  

Josh and Bear hang in the middle of street as I examine the diner. I join them. "This place is giving me the creeps," Bear says. 

"I know; it's strange how the businesses look like they just took up and left. Let's only go down to the end of the next block. If there's nothing going on down there, we can say that we came here and covered all of our bases. At least our consciences will be clear," I say as we trudge down to the next area. We're getting to the end of the business district and moving into the residential side of town. All of the businesses look the same, a deserted building with all of the property still there. If the owners came in and blew the dust off they could open for business. 

We step into the residential part of town. The houses are small, two story, red brick duplexes. We pass several homes and from the outside they all appear to be empty. Josh breaks off from us, walks up to one of the windows, cups his hands together and looks into one of the houses. 

"See anything?" Bear yells. 

"I don't see anyone, but the houses aren't abandoned. There is furniture in all of them. It's old and dirty, but it isn't empty," Josh says. He knocks on the window and peeks back into it. After a few seconds, he turns and walks back over to us. "This place seems deserted." 

We all stop and scan the area. "What did we think we were going to find? A bunch of vampires sitting inside their house with the game on drinking a beer?" Bear asks. 

I shrug. "I was hoping there would be a few stragglers and they could tell us what happened." Just as I say that, Josh's head spins around. "Did you see that?" he asks. 

"See what, Josh?" I ask. 

He points up at a house. "I saw someone sticking their head out."  

The three of us stare at the house for a few minutes. Finally, I yell, "Hey, if you're in there, come out." My voice bounces off the empty buildings. The echo disappears into the air.  

"Must be seeing things," I say. 

Bear and I turn to continue walking. 

"Hey, I see him again." Bear and I whip around and look, but the person is gone again.