Isaiah, however, wasn't convinced.
"It can't be a vampire," he insisted. "No vampire would be so reckless as to drink or drain blood in broad daylight, especially if there was a chance of getting caught."
"Maybe he thought he was in a private area and someone found him accidentally."
"No, this is way too sloppy."
"Too sloppy for all vampires? Or just the ones responsible?"
"What do you mean?"
"You know what I mean. You know so much about these murders, you have to know who's responsible. Just tell me who it is."
"It doesn't matter. You'll die."
"Oh, so you do know who's responsible? Listen, if you don't tell Carson, I will. I'll leave the vampire part out of it, but I'll come up with something to tell him."
"Ms. Howell..."
"Kenzie. You can call me Kenzie. Enough of the formalities."
"Fine. Kenzie. You know too much already. Believe me, you should pack your bags and go home before it's too late. You don't stand a chance."
"How many are there?"
"Kenzie..."
"Isaiah."
It was the first time she'd spoken his name. It fit him – old-fashioned, suitable for an early twenty-first century vampire. It seemed to catch him off-guard that she actually spoke his name aloud.
"Three," he said under his breath.
"And who are they?"
"The ones responsible for my being like this."
"They're the ones that turned you into a vampire?"
"Basically."
"Why did they do that?"
"It's a long story, and we don't have time for it right now."
"Fine, then tell me this – Valerie told me that to become a vampire, you have to be bitten by one and then drink its blood. Is that true?"
"Yes"
"Then why did you drink the blood if you didn't want this life?"
"When it's forced down your throat, you don't have much of a choice."
"Uh...brutal. Okay, um...how did you hear what Carson said on the phone?"
"Vampires have acute senses. Our sense of smell, sight, and hearing are all enhanced. That's one myth that's accurate."
Kenzie wanted to know more, but the police station soon loomed ahead of them. She parked in a vacant stall and headed inside. Isaiah, not wanting to cause suspicion, opted for waiting outside and keeping his eyes and ears open for any threats.
Once inside, Kenzie went straight toward Carson's office. He greeted her briefly before leading her to the same interrogation room she'd been in only hours before. It seemed like ten years ago.
Sitting on the other side of the table was a very melancholy young man who looked to be only slightly older than herself. He didn't have any signs of blood on his face, but she felt slightly uneasy just the same.
"All right," Carson said. "State your name for the record."
The young man cleared his throat and croaked, "Tre' Dunbar."
"Do you know why you're here?"
"Yes, sir. I was found taking blood from a corpse."
"Okay, this is Ms. Kenzie Howell. She's a detective from Riverview and she's here investigating all these murders."
The two nodded their heads to each other as a form of greeting. Kenzie and Carson then sat down across from Tre' and Kenzie began the inquisition.
"So, Tre'," she said, "tell us. Why were you draining blood from a corpse?"
"You won't believe me."
"Try me."
"Well, see, I have this rare medical condition. It's called porphyria. It sounds crazy, but a lot of people call it..."
"The vampire disease."
"You know about it?"
"Sure, but only through TV shows. But I've heard of it."
"Well, then you know that my body needs a lot of blood for me to live. And of course if I stay in the sun for too long, I get these ghastly things all over my skin that look like cysts. I literally have to drink blood to survive. It's nasty, believe me, but I don't have a choice unless I want to die. It helps keep me looking normal too; without blood, my body would be all creepy, full of those cysts and cuts. I'd be a freak."
"Aren't there medical treatments?"
"Sure, but they're expensive. I don't have that kind of money. So...I get the blood how I can."
"By killing people and draining their blood."
"It's not that. The people I kill are all criminals. Like that crime syndicate guy. Everyone wanted him dead, so I just did it for them. Then I was able to slice his throat and get the blood out from his jugular vein. I put it in a little container and kept it in my fridge until I needed it. Then I hid the body so hopefully no one would find out. That's how I've done it for a long time now. I guess I didn't bury that one good enough though, since someone found it."
Killing people who were criminals? Where had Kenzie heard that before? Oh right, from the vampire that was waiting outside.
Thousands of grotesque images passed through Kenzie's head as Tre' described his life routines. She tried to refrain from scrunching her nose up at these disturbing facts, and Carson's face had gone pale.
"Well," he said at last, "we'll have to confirm your statement with medical records. Even then, however, you're still murdering people, criminals or not. That's a crime, so you're under arrest regardless of your motive."
"Let me ask you something else," Kenzie cut in. "Why were you draining blood on a body now, in broad daylight?"
"I realized I ran out of blood and I was desperate. I thought the area was more private, but I guess not."
Kenzie nodded and exited the room. She slumped against the wall outside and heaved a shudder. This might not only be her most dangerous case yet, but also the most disgusting.
Finally, when the spinning in her head subsided, Kenzie headed back to the main doors. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her that she hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. It was now nearly seven in the evening. When she was working extra hard, time seemed to stand still or fly by.
Unfortunately, food was the least of Kenzie's concerns. Because as soon as she exited the building, she heard Isaiah's sharp warning as he bellowed, "Look out!"
Before she had a chance to react, two strong hands grasped her in an iron hold and she felt herself being carried away, a firm hand over her mouth. The last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was the only vampire she knew that had a pure soul, running frantically to save her.
No comments:
Post a Comment