First, the door to the mausoleum burst open and two more vampires entered the scene. Those vampires then lunged toward Isaiah, and Kenzie's first thought was that his family had allies.
But the two vampires instead swooped toward his family in full attack mode. The male vampire gripped Dante's neck and the female vampire pushed Xander against the wall.
Kenzie tried to back away out of the cacophony, but Serrina saw her. She zipped toward her with her lightning fast speed, cutting off her means of escape.
"And where do you think you're going?" she demanded, her calm demeanor no longer evident.
"Uh...I'm just going to be going now."
"I think not."
"Leave her be!"
Isaiah then lunged forward, catching his mother off guard.
Kenzie was just as surprised as Serrina, because Isaiah then shoved his mother straight onto the ground, so hard that she swore she heard the pavement crack.
"As I said," Isaiah snarled through gritted teeth, "you should have consulted me before choosing a life for me. And I won't allow you to keep killing people."
Kenzie was nearly frozen in shock, until Isaiah hissed at her, "The stake!"
Did he seriously expect her to kill a vampire? Her? When did her life become a horror movie?
But Isaiah's grip was loosening as his mother struggled to break free, both of their faces contorted into impatience and irritation.
Kenzie couldn't wait any longer. She withdrew the stake from her waistband, surprised the vampires hadn't found and taken it from her, and plunged it into Serrina's heart as Isaiah held her down.
Serrina let out a blood-curdling scream as her eyes rolled back into her head. Her body then turned to dust right before Kenzie's eyes. The stake was still clutched tightly in her hand, but the jagged edge was no longer inside flesh. It was hovering above the ground where Serrina's body had been only moments before.
Looking up, Kenzie and Isaiah both saw that Isaiah's siblings were also gone.
"Thanks guys," Isaiah said as he stood up.
"No problem," the male vampire replied.
"You know you can count on us," the female added.
Kenzie got to her feet weakly and nearly lost her balance. Isaiah managed to catch her before she fell into the pile of ash that was formerly his mother.
"Are you all right?" he asked her. Kenzie nodded solemnly. She was staring at the other vampires that had inadvertently come to her rescue.
Isaiah followed her gaze and said apologetically, "Forgive me, I didn't have a chance to introduce you properly. These are my best friends, Dimitri and Cecelia. We work together."
"But how did they know where to find us?"
"I knew where my mother was hiding out, but I followed your scent just to be sure. But I also knew that I wouldn't stand a chance against her and my two brothers. So I asked my friends for assistance, but only when deemed necessary. With all the commotion, my former family didn't even detect their presence."
"And...are they...thirsty?"
"No, they're like me. They're the ones who make plasma juice and fruit and prefer to live on that. They won't hurt you."
"Isaiah, is that...?" Cecelia began.
"Yes," Isaiah answered. "This is Ms. Howell. She's the detective I told you about, the one I was so afraid would get in too deep and end up in trouble. It turns out that my predictions were spot-on."
"Look," Dimitri cut in, "we're happy to help you out, but your mom was right about one thing. She knows too much."
Kenzie's fear returned. Isaiah's friends were going to kill her now? Couldn't she catch a break?
"Dimitri," Isaiah said, "I realize that, but I had no choice. If she'd found out any other way, she might not even be alive."
"No offense, but why do you think you owe her?"
"Because she was doing everything in her mortal power to stop the murders happening in Bridgeport, when I should have been the one to stop it long ago. She was essentially cleaning up my mess, so of course I felt that I owed her. And I wasn't going to let my family keep killing innocent people. I trust her."
Kenzie stepped forward and asked in a barely audible tone, "Are you worried I'll tell someone about you guys?"
"That's our main concern," Cecelia affirmed.
"Well, I wouldn't do that. No one would believe me anyway. Don't you guys watch TV? The hero always keeps the, uh, monster's secret."
"How about a compromise?" Isaiah bargained.
"Like what?"
"You don't tell anyone about our existence, and we'll help you come up with a believable story to tell Chief Tobias."
Kenzie bit her lip. She'd forgotten about what she'd have to tell Carson. He was never going to believe what had actually transpired. He needed someone to be behind bars for the murders, but that option was literally dust in the wind.
Then she had a better idea.
"Tell you what," she amended, "You said you never wanted this life, right? And the only reason you didn't end yourself was because you felt you had to stop your family, and now that's taken care of. Well, I understand that, but you're getting a second chance at life. I won't tell anyone if you try to live life normally. Don't be so isolated. And if there's a cure for vampirism, don't jump at the chance to get it. Embrace this opportunity. Don't spend forever hating something you had no control over."
"Why is this so important to you?"
"You saved my life. I want to give a life back to you in some way."
Isaiah seemed to ponder this. He fixated his icy gaze on Kenzie, looking for any trace of betrayal. But when he saw none, he finally nodded and said, even if slightly reluctantly, "Agreed."
********************
The story they came up with for Carson was much easier than Kenzie expected. The verdict was that Isaiah, or the stranger who'd given Kenzie a warning outside the police station, had come to her rescue, true to his word that he'd wanted her to leave Bridgeport for her own safety, and killed the murderer in self defense. He'd fled before Kenzie could get his name, and when she took Carson back to the crime scene, there was no evidence of a body. This led her to conclude that her savior must have moved the "body" of the murderer to cover his tracks, so no one had any idea who he was or where he went. Carson had no choice but to write up the vague summarization in his report.
As Kenzie prepared to leave Bridgeport the next day, Isaiah reminded her again not to mention his existence to anyone. Kenzie would keep her word, and the two unlikely allies shook hands in front of the hotel in parting.
Isaiah didn't know where he would go, if anywhere. Bridgeport seemed to be the perfect place for him. His best friends were there, there wasn't a lot of sun, and the city had originally been owned by vampires. But maybe he was ready for a change. Only time would tell where his new life would lead him.
While driving back home to Riverview, Kenzie thought long and hard about what had happened. She wondered what fate Valerie would have. It was hard to believe that she and her seemingly crazy mother were right about the existence of vampires, even if they didn't have solid proof. She'd wanted to apologize to both of them, but neither wished to speak with her. She'd just have to let that water stay under the bridge.
As she turned off the main road of Bridgeport, Kenzie looked up at the sky. The sun was finally shining bright and fluffy clouds hovered in the blue canvas. She'd always been able to see shapes in the clouds. She smiled when she saw one that looked like a bat.
Much as she'd miss Bridgeport, Kenzie was looking forward to being back home again. It was unnerving to think there could be vampires hiding anywhere, but at least Isaiah had let her keep the stake he'd given her just in case She'd be happy to catch mortal criminals again for a while.
But whatever the case, Kenzie was determined to take it. And she'd always be there ready for anyone who needed her help.
THE END
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