Chapter One-Winter, 1981, December
I
The unearthly screams filled the cold, festive, night.
Shadows were on the ground near the Firestone Cemetery. As the residents of Vampiric Wake awoke from their dreams, the bodies of the dead rose up, and fed on the children's necks, as the windows were wide open, letting out the freezing weather that begun the horror that came suddenly to the town.
II
Bob Kramer shifted his gaze at the waitress at the Diner. He hadn't come outside of New York since President Ronald Reagan was in the White House; he smiled. 'I'll have a hamburger with the lot, and strong coffee, please. Some milk in it too'. He grinned at her.
'Haven't seen your kind before. The rednecks kind of hit on me'. Bob saw the name on her right breast: Karen. 'Some men are losers, have no girlfriends, and cheat on their wives; some are bastards. I haven't come to Vampiric Wake at all. It's off-the-road, isn't it. I'm Bob'.
'Karen'.
'Look, Karen. Do you know some hotels around here?', he asked her.
'Yes, The Old Wood Hotel. It's near the cemetery', Karen answered.
The cemetery.
He shivered at the news, and paid for his breakfast.
It was $8.99.
He gave Karen a $20.00 bill, and gave her a nice tip.
Then he ate in silence.
III
Cara Rea stood near the table.
'May I have a mug of coffee, and a blueberry muffin, please?', she asked the waitress. 'Sure, it shouldn't take long', she answered. Cara paid for the meal. Her blue eyes focused on the stranger. He was new to the Hotel; he wasn't with his wife. He is single, she thought. The idea that some men weren't married didn't bother her. 'Excuse me, but are you free to join me? I don't know this town. I'm Cara Rea'. Bob Kramer smiled.
'Bob Kramer', he said.
The waitress came over to table 2.
'I'll have a coffee, and banana bread, please. Same table with Cara'.
'Of course, Sir. It shouldn't take long', the waitress said. Bob paid for himself, and they enjoyed talking about why he went to Vampiric Wake.
IV
Sheriff Robert Kline stood near the dead body of the girl.
'She was bitten on the neck three times', Greg Payet said.
'The window was open. It was closed last night', Eve Payet, Greg's wife, stated.
'Then we are looking for a criminal', the Sheriff said.
'No, Sheriff. A vampire', Greg insisted.
He had a serious look on his face.
V
'I live not far from here', Cara said.
'So, you're here by yourself?', Bob asked her.
'I'm on assignment for a newspaper. There's reports of vampires in town, especially at the cemetery; reports of doors, and windows, re-opening when they're closed. In her purse was a faded copy of 'Salem's Lot', the 1975 horror gothic novel by Stephen King.
'Oh, I enjoy reading King's books. I do have a copy of 'The Haunting of Hill House', the 1959 haunted house novel by Shirley Jackson. But I am digressing. Do you believe vampires are here?'.
'Yes'.
'What evidence do you have?'.
'My brother, Edward, died a week ago. Someone bit him three times in the neck. I am afraid that he's one of them. Mom and Dad don't believe in it; I believe in it. That's why I am convinced something is wrong', Cara said.
'Let's talk about it at my room. Number 462', Bob smiled.
'I'd like that, Bob. For the evening. I need to sleep by 10:00 PM', Cara grinned. When the meal was finished, they walked towards the outside garden.
VI
'Mom', Clarissa said.
She looked at the prone figure in the darkness.
'Mom!', Clarissa demanded.
She screamed, as she saw her eyes.
They were red colored.
And her skin was deathly pale.
Clarissa screamed in horror, and fled the room.
VII
'You don't need me, Caleb', Vickie said.
'Look, there's something wrong about this town'.
'I know that', Vickie stated.
'Since 1971, there was rumors of vampires. Bradley Harris, the caretaker, was drunk one night, a Saturday, and he knew that something was in the graves; something horrible', Caleb said.
'Can we leave?', Vickie asked him.
'In the morning', Caleb answered.
'Tonight', Vickie said.
'Fine', Caleb said.
Then he knew that the nightmare was real indeed.
VIII
R. T. Hall stood near the wrought-iron gates of the cemetery. He smoked a cigarette; he saw the shadows hovering above the old graves. He was alone. The wind blew from the north-east, creating a wildness that was normal for the residents of Vampiric Wake. He wished he could see the darkness of the graves. Sometimes, in his mind, the dark caused him to tremble. It was after the death of his wife, Sally Hall, who was stricken by bone cancer. When she died, she was only twenty-three. Nothing was ever talked about again for six months. R. T. Hall looked at the mourners; they weren't mourning his wife. He knew other mourners were whispering about their loss; he didn't want to be insane.
He looked at one of the graves.
It was moving.
Someone had been buried, and had come back to life.
It wasn't like out of a zombie movie.
Vampires and the Undead weren't the same.
The shadows hovered above the mud.
'Yuck!', he yelled.
He looked at the mud for the last time.
Then the shadows loomed over him, and the sharp claws of the vampire raked across his throat, and blood spilled over the wound. His body fell into the mud, and the silence was loud.
*
IX
Room 462 was open.
'Please, come in Cara', Bob said.
'Thank you', she smiled.
As she walked towards the hallway, it was bright. She grinned. 'How beautiful', she said.
'It is, until the dead stalk the halls'.
'The dead like to walk after they're away from the cemetery'.
'Is it true?', Cara asked him.
'Yes. But that is, of course, if you like to read gothic books', Bob answered. She placed the copy of 'Salem's Lot' onto the telephone stand. The chandelier swung in the hall; it was in the middle. As they reached the Dining Room, there was a knock on the door.
'Let me get that', Bob said.
He saw an African-American porter.
'Drinks on the house, Sir'.
'Thank you, Alan. Here's a tip for the evening'.
'Thank you, Sir. If you need anything else-'.
'No. I have a lady friend for the night. Not all night, mind you'.
'Of course Sir. Good night'.
'Good night'.
And the door closed behind him.
X
'Mom's dead. She's dead...dead', Clarissa shivered.
'What happened?', Abbey Price asked her.
'It was...a vampire', Clarissa answered.
'A vampire'.
'Yes'.
She looked at the door.
In the hall, Clarissa's mother glided in the gloom.
She bared sharp fangs.
She wore a red nightgown.
'Come to me, Clarissa', she whispered.
'No!', she said.
She fled in terror.
And didn't look back. It was the last thing she saw before Abbey used the stake to kill the female vampire.
XI
Room 426 was open.
'I had a great time, Bob. Thank you for dinner', Cara said.
'No...'.
Their romantic evening ended when Sheriff Robert Kline appeared.
'What's going on, Sheriff?', Cara asked him.
'There's been several deaths in town', the Sheriff answered.
'Vampires', Bob said.
'Yes, Sir. Are you dating Cara?'.
'Yes. Well, I am at the Hotel for a week. I'm Bob Kramer'.
'Cara's my sister'.
'I see. Well, it's late. If you need me, I'll be investigating the Undead tomorrow. I need to go to the cemetery then. Good night'.
'Good night, Sheriff', Bob said.
'Good night', Cara smiled.
*
XII
The wrought-iron gate was open.
Blood spilled down the thorny bushes.
Dogs barked loudly, and the horror tainted the town.
*
XIII
The truck came towards Etcher's Wharf.
'Tod, come over here'.
'What's the matter?', Zoltan asked him.
'We're late', Tod answered.
'It's Scofield's fault'.
'He is not here'.
'Why not?'.
'Dead'.
'Dead'.
'Heart attack in '78'.
'And'.
'And he died from a loss of blood'.
'Loss of blood'.
'Vampires'.
'Vampires in town'.
'Yes'.
'Hell, you read Bram Stoker too many times'.
'Nothing like the horror classics'.
Everyone laughed at the joke.
XIV
'Jeff'.
'Yes, Mandy'.
'Mom won't wake up'.
'Is she ill?', Jeff asked her.
'I don't know', Mandy answered.
The sounds of screaming came from the room in the middle of the hallway. The eleven year old twins fled; shadows filled the house off Blander Road. They raced outside, and called 9-1-1, and asked help.
When it did, they were relieved.
*
XV
'What is the matter, Cara?', Bob Kramer asked her.
'Vampires are blood suckers, and are Undead for a reason. They don't stay dead; they stay buried', Cara answered.
'If they stay buried', Bob said.
They reached her apartment.
'It looks like we're dating', Cara said.
Bob smiled, and kissed her.
*
XVI
Clarissa looked at the shadowed hall.
She breathed, in and out.
For two hours, she slept in the arches. She didn't want to leave; she looked at her bedroom that became silent before the dead crawled towards her. In her mind, at her age, she didn't want to deal with problems. A man was near Fletcher Road. A lamp illuminated the girl's face.
'What's the matter? Are you lost?', he asked her.
'Mom is a vampire', she answered.
'Is that right? Well, you need to go to see Father Rose at the Catholic Church'. Clarissa cried, as she broke down into tears. Then the door opened. She looked at the Church's front doors, and it was ajar.
She went inside, and the darkness came to her.
XVII
The dark came.418Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu6l1xwm0Ee
Shadows filled the town of Vampiric Wake.418Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ81dp4gF5d3
By morning, the dead were in their coffins.418Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR4zTzSC5R3
And the swirling mists covered with graves, as the black bats flew across the large, wrought-iron gates.418Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCAQMwf3tfP
*418Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6ZaTmV3xD
To be continued...
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