go in. She thought that perhaps Benji was asleep inside and she desperately wanted to talk to him.
She slowly turned the handle, and opened the door ever so slightly. As she peered in, she saw one reindeer, two fox and a handful of rabbits turned upside down, hanging from the ceiling. As she scanned their bodies, she saw their necks cut open and pools of blood under each animal. Scared and utterly disgusted by the sight and smell, Rachel quickly closed the door, standing with her back towards it, panicked and gasping for air.
As she continued down the hall, each consecutive door that she passed was also closed shut; she didn’t dare open the doors for fear of what or who might be inside. She didn’t want to take any more chances.
She neared the end of the hallway and came to a large opening that led to a wide spiral staircase. She peered down over the banister to see what was below, but couldn’t tell in the darkness what lay before her. She slowly crept down the steps, one foot after the other down the never-ending staircase. Her feet felt like ice pops as they grew colder and colder from the stone floor. At the end of the staircase, she saw a large floor to ceiling mirror. She walked up to it, anticipating her reflection, but saw nothing.
Trying to defog the mirror with warm breath and the sleeve of her flannel shirt, she ran her arm in circles over the mirror. It was dusty, and her sleeve left a big, clear circular area in the mirror. She peered into it again, but all she could see were the clothes on her body—her face, limbs, body and appendages disappeared as she gazed back at herself. She couldn’t figure out what was going on. She touched her face, hair and neck, which all felt normal to her. She did a quick scan of her body, looking down at her feet, legs and then rolling back her sleeves to see her arms and hands. Then, she lifted up her shirt and peered down at her stomach. It was there—she saw it. It was a hole, the size of a bullet and she suddenly remembered the guns, the sound of the policemen firing openly and then being shot. She remembered the excruciating pain, lying helpless and weak on the ground.
Her eyes swelled up as a tear streamed down her cheek. She sank to the ground, gripping her stomach, and the wound that changed her life. She let out a scream, “Benji!”
Nobody answered. Silence filled the dark walls as she sat there, alone and scared, her body aching as she began having flashbacks of that night.
Suddenly, she heard loud footsteps coming down the hall, and the grumbling of a man’s voice echoed as he cleared his throat. The footsteps got louder and louder as they came closer to the staircase. Rachel sat there, in horror, waiting for her fate, as the man suddenly came into view.
Out of the shadows, appeared a short, heavy-set bald man, dressed in a black smoking robe. He smelled of dead animals as he stood there sucking the tips of each finger.
Rachel couldn’t imagine what was going to happen to her. She sat there, on the ground looking up, waiting for him to say something.
“You, dear, have started a great war,” the man said.
Rachel looked up at him, speechless.
Clearing her throat, she mumbled, “Who are you and where is Benji?”
“You have no idea the trouble you have caused. Never mind who I am, what matters is who you are, and the fact that you may never see Benji again.”
“I don’t understand,” Rachel murmured. “I have to see him.”
“Well, the Great War has begun and he is off to fight. You never know what could happen now.”
Rachel sank to the ground crying as the man stomped away out of the dark foyer. Realizing this might be the only person who could help her, Rachel yelled out, “Wait! Sir, wait! Who are you? Can you help me?”
He turned and smiled.
“Follow me.”
Chapter Two
Rachel quickly followed the hunched back, short man into a dark library, smelling of old books. The man stopped and the two of them stood there in silence, staring at each other. She watched as the man reached deep into the breast pocket of his smoking robe and pulled out a pack of matches. He walked slowly around the room, lighting the black candles on ever surface. She felt more scared than ever, as she sucked in the dusty, smoky air.
The man turned back to her and motioned to a chair in the corner of the room, “Sit,” he said.
She slowly walked across the wide-plank wood floors that creaked beneath her every step. As she grew closer to the chair she gazed at the various spines of the books that faced her. Vampire, The Lost Century, Fangs, The Chosen Vampires. The titles glared at her and she suddenly grew numb with fear as she sat down in the stiff chair, which looked to her to be made out of animal bones.
As she tried to settle into the chair and get somewhat comfortable she watched as the man started to walk towards her. The silence was unbearable for her and she suddenly felt the need to speak, to say anything to calm her nerves.
“I’m sorry, sir, but could you tell me who you are?”
She waited as he took a few steps closer and pulled up a chair facing hers.
“Yes, dear, my name is Uncle Drew and I am one of your kind. Well, I guess technically I should say, you are one of my kind now.”
Rachel thought for a moment before responding. She didn’t know exactly what he was talking about, but the bullet mark and the vivid dream came flashing back into her mind. She suddenly remembered Benji leaning down towards her neck as her world went dark.
She cleared her throat. “What do you mean by that?”
“Please, call me Uncle Drew,” he insisted. He stopped and looked at her.
“Uncle Drew, I’m lost here, I don’t know how I got here or where I am. Can you please help me?”
She sank down in her chair feeling hopeless.
“Rachel, dear. You are a vampire now. Don’t you remember?”
Rachel began to hang on his ever word.
“Tell me more,” she said in anticipation.
“Don’t you remember the Greslins? The bullet wound? You were about to die and you asked to be turned.” He waited a few moments and then said, “Is this ringing a bell?”
Rachel’s mind began to race with images of Violet, policemen, Hunter, and flying in the sky with Benji. She felt a chill travel down her spine as she rubbed her arms with her hands.
“I have some recollection, but who are the Greslins?” Rachel asked shyly.
“Oh, child, the Greslin Coven is our worst enemy. There have been many wars with them over the course of history, but none as bad as what I feel is about to come.”
Scared, Rachel asked, “What do you mean?”
“You have caused this war, I’m afraid to say, and now, our beloved Benji is caught in the middle of this, fighting for his life to save yours and the rest of our Vladiccus Coven.”
“Vladiccus? I’m not sure exactly who you are talking about.”
Drew’s voice became stern as he said, “Listen up, you are now part of the Vladiccus Coven. That’s what I am, that’s what Benji is and the rest of us around here.
He stopped and looked at Rachel square in the eye. “You have a lot to learn, and to be honest, I just don’t have the time right now.”
Feeling a mix of emotions, she sat there, quiet, and then said, “But, but, when is Benji coming back? I need to know.”
She watched as Uncle Drew got up from his chair and began to walk towards the door.
“Please!” she cried. “Please don’t go.”
He turned around and faced Rachel. “Fine, but I need to make this quick.” He grabbed an old dusty notepad off