Chapter 5
“Now, these ones right here is your standard-issue pistols, and over in this section is the rifles,” the man had bad teeth and spoke with a southern accent. I actually wasn’t too surprised he was a slack-jawed yokel. “These are yer slide-action rifles, and they gots the big barrels that fire two bullets at a time. The only problem with ‘em is ya gotta reload after each shot. But they come in a real perty wood finish on the handle.”
“These are nice, but I was thinking of something a little more.... automatic,” I pushed the book aside.
“Oh, you wants the big boys, huh!” the man began to reach under the counter, but stopped short. “Say, you ain’t a cop, is ya?” he whispered to me.
“No, I guarantee you I’m not with the police,” I whispered back with a smile.
Satisfied with that, he again reached under the counter and brought out a brochure. He put it on the table for me to read.
“I gots these guns in from my big brother. He’s gots connections in Washington. It’s called a M16A2 rifle. They use these boys in the military. I gots a couple o’ crates of ‘em in the back, but ya gotta keep quiet about it. My brother got ‘em for me illegally.”
“Well, alright. I’ll take five of these M16’s, extra magazines, and make sure they’re filled with silver bullets, 5.56 mm. Oh, and throw in that nice wood-finished 12-gauge, just for show.”
“Hey, are you a postal worker?” he narrowed his eyes at me.
***
I loaded the rifles in the trunk of Jasmine’s Porsche. She was letting me borrow it so that my Tundra wouldn’t get smashed up. She knew how much I loved that truck and Jasmine doubted she’d be able to find me another white truck in such good condition.
I started the car and sped off towards my house to get dressed. When I arrived back home, I got out of the car as quietly as I could. Just in case any of Luthar’s goons happened to be hiding somewhere nearby, I didn’t want them to hear me coming. I walked through my front door and froze, listening for any unusual sounds. The hairs on the back of my neck rose up, then relaxed. No one was here. Luthar was true to his word. He wouldn’t hurt me until I showed up at the warehouse.
I tied my hair up and covered it with a dark handkerchief. I slipped into my loosest pair of black jeans and tugged my heavy combat boots on. I slipped on a long-sleeved t-shirt. Last, I pulled on my dark trench-coat.
My four black cats and one silver tabby circled around me as I came out of my bedroom. They all meowed, eager for food. I walked to the kitchen and filled their bowls with Cat Chow.
I sat down on a barstool petting KiKi, the silver tabby, while she ate her meal.
“Well, Keeks, tonight your mommy is going to lose her soul, or die trying,” I said with a sigh.
The gray cat looked at me and meowed in protest.
“I know, positive thinking, but let’s face it. Luthar is a master vampire, and I’ve only been around for ten years. I was only 18 when he made me. That’s not what you would call very old.”
KiKi swatted a paw in the air and growled a low cat growl.
“Alright, I’ll give him a few punches for you,” I laughed. I gave her one last scritch on the head before getting up. I headed out the front door and got back in the Porsche. It was only ten in the morning, and I needed to pick up my “support team”.
***
I sped down the freeway towards the other side of town, where I pulled into James’s driveway and honked the horn. After a few minutes, James walked out, looking around. When he noticed me in the Porsche, he stopped short. I put on my biggest grin and stepped out of the car.
“So, what’s going on? Are you busy?” I asked him.
“Well actually, I have my girlfriend with me right now. Is this important?” he replied, glancing back at his house.
“Yeah. I need your help. It’s kind of complicated though; do you think I could explain it to you in the car?”
“What about Alissa?”
“Your girlfriend? Bring her along. We need all the help we can get!” I replied cheerfully.
James looked skeptical. “Well alright. Hold on a sec.” He bounded up the porch steps and went back inside. I got into the car and started up the engine. A few minutes later, he walked outside with Alissa in tow. She had a sour expression on her face and looked about ready to bite through the hand that dragged her along. They got into the car, James in front and Alissa in back. I sped off as soon as the door clicked shut.
I stopped by Erica’s house, and she and Gwen crammed into the back seat. I backed out of the driveway and shot back on the road, going about 60 mph despite the posted limit of 35.
Alissa leaned over the seat and said nervously, “Shouldn’t you slow down a bit?”
“I’ve got a lot of places to go today, and not much time to spare, so let me just cut to the chase,” I said, ignoring her question. “I need all four of you to help me fight this guy. He’s really raggin’ on me to give him something I owe. I only have today to teach you all how to use a rifle.”
“Ex-squeeze me, a rifle?” Alissa questioned.
“Yeah. You need to learn how to shoot someone 200 yards away, and hit him dead center, right in the heart. You know, marksmanship. If any one of you misses, you’re dead.”
“What is going on, Carrie?” Gwen demanded. She had a right, however. She and Erica knew about as much as James and Alissa did.
“Alright, I’ll tell you all the story, but I doubt any of you will believe it.” I took a deep breath, and began.
“This all took place in Salt Lake City, Utah, on August 22nd, 1990. I had turned eighteen just weeks before. I still look eighteen, too, despite the fact that I’m really twenty-eight. And I’ll explain why.
“Not long after my birthday, I had met a gorgeous man named Luthar. He was suave, sophisticated, totally upper-class. He treated me as if I were the most important thing in his life. I soon found out, however, that it was all just a ruse. On that hot, dry August night, when we were snuggling on the couch, he approached me with a very interesting question.
“ ‘I know you love me, but do you love me enough to pledge your soul to me?’ I thought he was talking about marriage, so I said yes. I told him I loved him enough to lay down my life for him. He laughed a giddy laugh, and said something that chilled my bones, and does, still, to this day.
“ ‘Good,’ he replied, in a rather feral tone. His eyes turned a frightening shade of red, and he opened his mouth to show a gleaming set of razor sharp canines. Before I knew what was happening, he gripped me roughly, and ripped at my throat, tearing the very flesh from my neck.”
At this point, the three girls in the car were edged forward, gripping the front seat with sweaty palms. Gwen asked in a shaky voice, “What happened?”
“Well, I died of course.”
Alissa gasped, but James just said, “That’s impossible. You’re sitting right here with us.”
“No, I’m dead, all right, just not like you think. Now, let me continue.
“After Luthar slashed my throat, he fed my dying body blood from his wrist. I was saved, but I became a vampire. If you look on my neck, there’s a faint scar from that night. That is the only scar on my body.
“Luthar is a master vampire. He’s been around hundreds and hundreds of years. Since he is so old, he needs another form of nourishment besides mortal blood. He needs to feed off of souls every fifty years or so. He wanted mine, since it was so rich. I begged him not to take it, so he promised to let me keep my soul, only if I promised to give it to him at a later time when he asked. I stayed with him as his lover for two or three years, but ran away from him one afternoon, while he was asleep. I came here to Reno. and stayed hidden; I didn’t want to lose my soul. I didn’t think he would find me, and he didn’t for years afterward. But a few days ago, he arrived in town. Luthar knows I’m here, and he wants my soul.”
I took a break from my story to gather up my thoughts. Erica broke the silence, asking, “Why was it so important for you to keep your soul? Would you die without it?”
“No. In fact, 90% of the vampires in this world don’t have their souls. They’ve all lost them in some way or another. The reason why I want my soul, why any vampire would want his soul, is because it virtually eliminates all a vampire’s weaknesses. Without it, I can’t walk in the sunlight, I have to sleep in a coffin, I’m even allergic to silver and garlic. Without it, I become a creature of the night, for that is the only time I can emerge from my coffin. Sunlight will burn my skin. Silver can kill me, much as it would a shapeshifter. Garlic to me would be like salt to a slug. I would shrivel at the touch of it.
“There is one downside, however, to having a soul. I will age, even though very slowly, and I won’t be able to heal as quickly, unless I am well nourished. But that is a small price to pay to be a normal person.”
“Are there other vampires in Reno?” James asked.
“Yeah. We live everywhere. In fact, my friend Jasmine, you’ve met her, she’s a vampire also.”
“Why isn’t she helping us too?” Gwen asked me.
“Well, Luthar kind of.... beat the shit out of her. She’s in the hospital.”
Gwen’s face went white, and she sunk back into her seat.
“I don’t believe it. You certainly must be lying. Vampires don’t exist,” Alissa retorted, rejoining the conversation.
“Perhaps you would like a demonstration?” I turned to her and raised an eyebrow. She sat back and nodded, arms folded in judgment. I pulled over to the side of the road and shut off the engine.
“There is one more thing about vampires,” I quickly transformed into a house cat and said in a throaty voice, “We can change into any animal form we wish.” I shifted back into human form, and started the car up once again. I accelerated back on the long stretch of highway. Erica and Gwen were trying to revive an unconscious Alissa.“I need guns. Lots of them, and I need silver bullets as well.” Those were the first words out of my mouth when I walked into the gun shop in Reno, 7 am Friday morning. The clerk raised an eyebrow, but walked into the back. He brought out a catalog full of pictures of the guns he had in stock.