you.”
“Don’t thank me yet; I might change my mind.”
“I hope not,” she said.
After stepping inside the bedroom, Barry turned around. “You better be a good teacher.”
He watched Casey pull out a Japanese katana from her duffel bag. Using both hands, in one fluid motion she removed the sword from its saya. The light glistened off the blade.
“Me too.” Casey looked at him and smiled. “But I am a little nervous. After all, it’s my first time.”
Chapter 7
Barry woke up, rolled over, and looked at the alarm clock on the nightstand, which read one-thirty p.m. It felt good to get nine hours of sleep—and on a school night.
Making sure the bandage on his arm stayed dry, he showered and dressed, then opened the door and walked out into the living room. The couch, coffee table, and other furniture accessories had been pushed to one side. Casey had turned the area into a temporary dojo, where she practiced her katas with a four-foot Bo staff.
Barry had seen several styles of martial arts from watching those choreographed kung-fu movies, but this was different. Swift and deadly were her movements and strikes, but these were also precise and poetic. Casey’s concentration was intense. He wasn’t sure if she knew he had entered the room until she stopped and bowed.
“Hungry?” she asked.
“Famished.”
“Menu is by the phone and when you order, include a pot of hot coffee.”
“Vampires drink coffee?”
“On occasions we like to live it up a little.” She put the staff aside. “I’m going to take a shower.”
Barry went for the phone while Casey disappeared into the bedroom and closed the door. A few minutes later, an attendant arrived and rolled a cart into the room. Barry gave him two fifty-dollar bills and told him to keep the change.
“Thank you, Mr. McElroy,” said the grateful attendant as he departed the suite.
The seventeen-year-old looked at the cart and asked himself, “Did I just tell him to keep the change?” He’d never done that before. The suite and ordering room service were new to him; for the sake of his ego, he didn’t want to get used to this. The last time he had stayed at a hotel, his father’s unit had returned from Afghanistan on a C-130 cargo plane at Fort Bliss. The only available room service was the Denny’s down the road from the base.
Barry removed the lid from the tray. Steak, hash browns, scrambled eggs, and toast were sitting on the plate, ready to be devoured. He didn’t keep them waiting. Halfway through the meal, Casey entered the room wearing blue jeans and a lavender blouse. She put her brunette hair up in a ponytail.
“How’s it taste?”
“Delicious.” Then he remembered. “Oh no, I am so sorry,” he apologized.
“For what?”
“I forgot my manners. Did you want something to eat? I should’ve ordered for you.”
“That’s considerate, but I stepped out for a bite after you went to bed.”
“Oh.” Barry slowly lifted his head and looked at her as he realized whom he was talking to.
“Relax,” she laughed. “Nobody died last night. I found some jackrabbits.”
For a moment, Barry’s breakfast churned in his stomach. “You eat jackrabbits?”
“I don’t eat,” she informed him. “I drink.”
“Maybe you’d better give me the lowdown and fill me in about vampires.” The grim expression on her face made him wonder if he’d picked the right time to have this conversation. Then she spoke.
“Remember one thing: you tell no one.”
“I won’t.”
“This conversation doesn’t go outside this room. It’s not for a book or a movie.”
“I understand,” he acknowledged.
Casey poured herself a cup of coffee and took a sip. “Vampires 101. For centuries vampires have walked the earth. We exist among the myths and the urban legends. It’s how we’ve survived for so long.”
“Like werewolves?”
“Wouldn’t know. Never met one.” She took another sip, sat down on the floor, and crossed her legs. “Our immortality is not only a curse, but a responsibility. It’s a secret we must guard at all times. Should even one of us fail to maintain control it would expose . . .” She paused for a moment to consider a name, “the community.”
“How many humans have you told this to?”
“None,” she replied. “You’re the first.”
Casey looked up. Barry wondered if she was telling a story or making a confession.
“Secrecy is our greatest ally. We shun publicity and don’t seek out the limelight.”
“What about those pictures at your place? All those musicians?”
“That’s different.” She got up to pour herself another cup of coffee. “I’m talking about newspapers, magazines, and the Internet. We don’t do interviews or things like campaign for public office. It’s too risky.”
Barry finished his steak and washed it down with a swallow of orange juice.
Casey continued, “Vampires 102. I don’t burst into flames when exposed to sunlight and my skin doesn’t shine or sparkle like glass. I can tolerate the sun, but I dehydrate faster than humans. If I don’t get blood, I feel drained and become delirious.” She took another sip. “I can be photographed. My reflection can be seen in a mirror. Because of my condition, I have special abilities. I can run faster than the eye can see. My strength is immeasurable and I can fly. I can hear a heart beating a block away and my night vision is better than your average nocturnal animal. If I’m tracking prey, I won’t stop once I get the scent.”
“What about shape-shifting?”
“Sorry, only in the movies,” she answered.
“Religious objects?” he asked.
“They only affect the true vampires, the ones who have lost their souls. If you stick a crucifix in my face, you’ll only piss me off. Sort of like waiving a red flag, daring me to come at you. And I will come at you.”
Casey put her coffee cup on the tray. “Holy water doesn’t burn me, but it does irritate my skin, like poison ivy. Takes time, but I can regenerate.” She turned toward the sliding glass doors. “I sleep in a bed or a sleeping bag if I’m camping. I don’t have a coffin and I never will.”
“What about garlic?”
“Can’t stand it.”
“Because of your condition?”
“No,” she replied. “I simply can’t stand garlic. Didn’t like it on pizza when I was a kid and I don’t like it now. But it doesn’t ward off vampires.”
“Can vampires sense each other?”
“I don’t sense, but I can recognize another vampire from the lack of a beating heart. I’ll let you know if I see one. Remain with me and you’ll be safe. Stray away and someone might mistake you for a snack. So stay close at all times.”
“Then I guess I’m ready for Vampires 103.” Barry didn’t like the next question, but had to ask. “How do I destroy a vampire?”
Casey walked over to her gym bag, grabbed an eighteen-inch long wooden stake and tossed