Pretty When She Dies

Cradling Cian against her, she moved with her head down, keeping the skirt of the dress over their heads and faces. It was in the second room down a narrow hall that she saw their salvation. It was a closet full of darkness. Avoiding the holes in the floor, she managed to maneuver through the room despite Cian's dead weight and shoved him into the closet. He fell into it and crumpled into a heap. She hastily followed him in and fell to the floor in exhaustion. Her hand found the doorknob and drew the door closed.



The fear that The Summoner would send dead servants after them rose inside of her and she looked for a lock. There was none. To her dismay she saw there were cracks in the door that were wide enough to peer through or for the sun to pour through once it hit the West walls. She quickly struggled out of the dress and pulled her t-shirt down over her belly. She had only pretended to change out of her old clothes into the dress. She was glad for it. Sitting down on the floor, she adjusted Cian's body close to her and covered them both with the heavy satin. Then, she raised her hand and closed it over the knob.



One thing she was certain of was that when she slept, her hand would lock into place. Cian had told her about the vampire's ability to protect themselves in sleep. Even holding a coffin shut from within was something their subconscious could instruct their body to do as they slumbered.



Tightening her hand, she willed it to stay firm and locked around the knob. She had to keep it closed at all costs. Sinking against Cian, she could feel sleep coming fast. She was weak and had no choice.



Her head fell onto his shoulder.



She slept.



***



Sergio's massive truck barreled down the county road just as the sun began to make its appearance on the horizon. Innocente sat in the front passenger seat clutching her rosary and a statue of the Virgin Mary. Behind them sat Samantha and Jeff in the roomy backseat. Samantha had nodded off for an hour earlier and her head was snuggled onto Jeff's lap. He had found himself stroking her blond hair gently as he tried to mentally prepare himself for what was to come. He found the act very soothing.



They had swung by his place the night before and he had grabbed a lot of his father's hunting gear. It was packed into a big bag in the bed of the truck along with a lot of stuff Amaliya's grandmother had brought from her home. They looked like religious zealots with all the crosses and religious icons tucked in the back. He had switched out his prosthetic leg to a sturdier one and had left the more cosmetic one at home. There was a good chance he was going to have to run.



“We're almost there,” Sergio said from the front seat as another sign flashed by.



“They'll be falling asleep very soon,” Jeff answered. “Which is good. The last thing we need is an awake vampire.”



***



The Summoner had almost pursued Amaliya into the gray dawn, but had resisted that urge. He was more susceptible to sunlight than any other vampire he had ever encountered. Ironically, he was now able to be awake during the daylight hours, but was unable to venture forth. Some vampires, he had known over the centuries, were able to survive in sunlight if they were heavily covered. Unfortunately, the sun seemed to pierce straight through his clothing. Perhaps it had something to do with his necromancy. He was not certain.



The day before, he had been carried out of Heather's apartment in a large chest and to the van his minions had secured. He had remained shrouded in darkness until the sun had descended and his powers were fully returned to him. Then he had summoned Amaliya's victims, hacked them apart, and shaped them into new, deadly creatures. It had all been so entertaining to watch, but now he was trapped in the motel and he was seething.



He stood back and watched Amaliya flee as her undead servants fumbled around him, unsure of what to do once her presence left them. Lifting one hand, he drew them securely back under his power. He had felt her power drain out of them the moment she had disappeared from their view. Pulling the dead close around him, he whispered his instructions to them and then they shuffled off to obey.



Turning, he tucked his hands behind him, he stepped over Roberto's dissolving body and walked slowly down the long hallway of the decrepit hotel. Roberto had prepared a haven for them in one of the inner rooms that had no windows. Two of his largest servants walked behind him. Opening the door into his temporary haven he gazed over the makeshift arrangements. Two cots from WalMart were made up for him and Roberto and several camping chairs were set up for the guards.



With a slight shrug, The Summoner walked over to one of the chairs and sat down. He was a patient man. He would wait out the sun, then he would venture back into the night with his servants and destroy Cian and reclaim Amaliya. He would not be foolish again. Her spirit was strong and he would have to break it quickly or he would never be able to use her effectively.



Closing his glowing eyes, he concentrated on his dead minions and sent the fresher ones into the day to do his bidding.



* * *



Sergio wondered for the hundredth time how he had been dragged into this madness. He also wondered how he could actually be having some sort of warped fun. It was rather exciting being a vampire hunter. When he drove the big truck into the ghost town that was the supposed lair of The Summoner, he felt a shiver of anticipation flow over him.



“Yuck,” his grandmother said in a somber tone as she looked around at all the burned-out buildings.



Swinging his head back and forth, he looked over the abandoned town as the truck crept along. He was just thinking it looked rather ominous when his grandmother shouted, “Sergio! Stop!”



He slammed on the brakes and everyone jerked forward. Samantha fell hard into the back of his chair, woke up, and started swearing.



“What, Grandmama?” He looked around frantically, his heart thundering in his ears.



The little old lady threw open the door and tumbled out of the truck. Sergio shifted into PARK, swung his door open, leaped out and ran after her.



“Sergio! Innocente, no! The sun isn't completely up!”



Sergio heard Jeff jumping down behind them, but he continued to run after his amazingly fast grandmother. He had several crosses around his neck. His revolver and a crucifix were tucked into his back pocket. He wondered if it was enough to fend off The Summoner.



His grandmother reached a discarded cowboy hat lying on the road and snatched it up.



“It's Amaliya's!” She held it out triumphantly.



Sergio heaved to a stop and leaned over, his hands resting on his knees. He seriously needed to work out. His lungs hurt from his short run and he gulped down air.



Jeff caught up to them, followed closely by Samantha. He snatched the hat away and looked at it. “Are you sure?”



“Yes! Yes! I'm sure!” Innocente was breathing a little heavily, but she reached out to grab the hat back, her expression feisty and determined.



“It reeks like-like-” Samantha made a face.



Sergio could smell it, too. “Something dead.”



Innocente drew her hand back and sniffed her fingers. “It's not her. It's something else. She's not dead.”



Jeff tossed the hat into the nearby bushes that bordered an abandoned motel. Sergio could tell the young man was thinking over the situation quickly. Sergio looked over at the gas station to their right, then slowly toward the motel. He became aware that all four of them were now standing in the middle of the street, the truck idling nearby, staring at the abandoned motel. Probably not their smartest move.



“Shit,” he muttered, and suffered his grandmother's automatic smack on his arm.



“In there,” Jeff decided.



“Yeah,” Samantha agreed.



Innocente drew near Sergio anxiously and he slung his arm down around her trembling shoulders. He cuddled her into his side and tried hard not to show his own fear. He was sure he was not imagining it. Even though the sun was showing over the trees now, the motel seemed abnormally dark and foreboding.



“I really, really, really don't want to go in there,” Samantha said after a beat.



“You and me both,” Jeff answered grimly.



“The dead are in there,” Innocente said sadly. “I can hear them in my head.”



Jeff looked toward her curiously.



“She's a medium,” Sergio answered the unspoken question. “She has always seen ghosts and heard the voices of the dead.”



Lifting his eyebrows high, Jeff said, “Oh.”



“That's creepy,” Samantha decided.



“You have no idea, mijita,” Innocente said sadly.



Jeff began to walk along the front of the motel toward the rural road that cut through the town. Sergio followed and touched Samantha's shoulder as he passed her. She gave him a faint smile.



“There's a Lexus down the road,” Jeff said, and started toward it.



“Stay here,” he said to Samantha and his grandmother.



He hurried to catch up with Jeff before they could protest him bossing them. Despite the vampire hunter's funky looking mechanical leg, he was fast on his feet. Sergio struggled to keep up.



A navy Lexus RX was pulled over into the trees near the hotel and Jeff motioned for Sergio to be cautious. Keeping an eye out for any trouble, they both crept up to the vehicle and peered inside.