CHAPTER SIX

Nick was very surprised.  How did this woman, who he had never seen before in his life, know about his problem?  How on earth did she know about Janet?  "How did you..?"

"Come with me."  Said the woman.  She got up and grabbed Nick by the wrist and dragged him behind the staircase.  

Nick tried to speak again.  "Ok, now hold on one sec..."

"I can't hold on if we've got a monster of the night lose!"  The woman said in a frustrated tone.  "If you want help, fine. If not, too bad because no monster stays in Vambatville very long, when I'm around."  She was breathing hard and she had a determined look in her eyes.  

Nick was amused and at the same time a little freaked out.  How did this woman know about Janet?  Was the question that echoed in his mind.  But before he could open his mouth again, Janet came from around the corner.  She looked pale but had an artificial happy look on her face.  The woman turned away.

"Hi Nick," Janet said happily.  "What are you doing over here?"

Nick forced a smile, and said the first thing that came to his head.  "This nice lady is giving me a tour of this...house."

Janet's eyes opened wide.  "Oh and who might this lady be?" She turned around to face the woman.  "Tell me darling, what is your name..."

"Janet," A.J yelled from across the bar, "sweetie please come quickly, the bartender is doing this awesome trick!"  

Janet sighed impatiently.  "Coming honey."  She turned around to face the woman again.  "I'll talk with you and Nick later, maybe I can have a tour too."

"Maybe, just maybe."  The woman said quietly.  

Janet fake-smiled again and turned around to go back to A.J who was watching with pure entertainment the bartender spin two clean plates on his fingers.  One on each.  

The woman once again grabbed Nick by the wrists and led him upstairs.  When they reached the top, she went left and they came to the end of a hallway.  There were no doors.
  
"Maybe you took and wrong turn?"  Nick offered, but the woman raised her hand to silence him.  She took her hand and waved it in front of the wall.  Nick jumped back in surprise. There before them on what used to be an empty wall was a wooden door.  The woman opened it and stepped over the threshold.  Nick didn't know if it was maybe a trap and stayed behind with his feet firmly planted on the ground.  This was getting WAY too freaky for him.  He couldn't say a word.  What if this lady was a vampire too?  What if Janet and her were in it together and she was just taking Nick down to a table where they would strap him to a table and bite him?  As these thoughts went through Nick's head, the woman looked back at him.

"I won't hurt you.  This is important to you because you are the one who caused all of this commotion."  

Nick looked at her bewildered.  "What?" he asked, "Why me?"

The woman smiled at the funny expression on his face.  "If you come with me I'll show you."

Nick hesitated, but reluctantly went forward.  The moment he went through the door, it disappeared.  

"Come on," said the woman, "I don't bite."  

Nick forced a laugh and at the same time swallowed hard.  "Oh, by the way," she turned around, "my name is Michelle Silverstone.  I may have told you before but I don't think you quite heard me."  

Nick smiled and held out a hand.  Michelle shook it.  "Uh, hi, my name is Nick..."
 
"Carter?" She said.

Nick gasped.  "How did you know my name?" he said, feeling very scared.  

Michelle smiled.  "I just so happen to be a fan."  

Nick stared at her.  He suddenly felt very stupid.  "Oh."

Michelle laughed.

For some reason Nick liked the way she laughed.  It sounded very pleasing to him.  Like a beautiful piece of music that was written from the heart.  Like a...

"Nick, come on.  We've got lots to do."  

Nick snapped out of his trance.  "Ok, lets go where ever we're going."

"Janet, Stacey lunch is ready!"  

Two girls, about the age of 8, run towards the house.  A woman is standing out side of the door, watching them come. The two girls are racing.  One of them has brown hair, which is not pulled back.  She is shorter than the other girl and is wearing the same dress as the other girl, but in red.  There is no mud at all on her.  The other is tall for her age.  She has long blond hair and it is pulled with a barrette to keep it from falling into her face.  She is wearing a light-blue dress with flower prints on it.  The dress has mud stains all over it and her hands are also coated with it.  But despite the mud, the thing that sticks out the most from her are her eyes.  They are a piercing blue.  So pale that one look at her would send chills up your spine.  The blonde easily out strips the other girl and is waiting at the door hardly out of breath.
  
"That's not fair, Stacey you always win!"

The blonde, Stacey, grins.  

The woman who was waiting for them looks at Stacey and gasps at the sight of her.  "Stacey Silverstone, what have you gotten yourself into this time?"  

Stacey grins yet again.  "We was playin' Hopscotch, ma'am and when Janet threw her turn, some big animal came and snatched up the bean bag and took off!  I ran after it and caught it.  I got the bag, but that lil' critter bit me on the arm!"  

The woman looks at Stacey's arm and there is a small scratch on it.  "Well, let's get you cleaned up, and don't go of chasing any more critters now, ya hear?  I don't want y'all getting sick like old man Wrinkle."  

Stacey rolls her eyes and smiles at her best friend. Janet is the best friend ever, she thinks, we'll always be friends too, forever and ever..."

 

Janet was sitting next to A.J who was talking to Joey.  She was very bored.  She hadn't had anything to drink in over twelve years since that prom she went too.  Good thing that John was there.  Janet smiled at the thought of her old boyfriend.  But her face darkened as she thought of how he died.  The image was coming back, clear as day...

"Good work Janet, I think that we got twelve girls and fifteen guys."  

Janet grins.  She hadn't had this much joy of drinking in a long time.  But then again, she thinks, it's a joy with John everywhere we go.

John casts a hand over the crazed scene.  It's as if hell had broken lose.  There are girls screaming and everywhere there is a dead body.  In the corner a young teenager is kicking her boyfriend, telling him to get up.  He won't.  He is covered in blood and there are two tiny pricks in his neck.  In the center of the room, there is a pile of four girls.  They are all dead. The hand that John casts freezes the scene.
  
"When they wake up, they'll think that a murder came through here."  

Janet smiles at her boyfriend as they exit.  They walk no more that three blocks, when something jumps down in front of them. It is man in a long black coat.  John smiles and starts forward.  "Do you want more to drink?"  

Janet smiles and nods.  

John advances on the man, but to his horror, a moonbeam casts a streak over the man's coat.  There is a patch on his coat.  A red circle with a black stake going through it.  More men drop down next to the man.  John backs up and when he gets next to Janet he whispers the most memorable words. "Get out of here."  

Janet looks at him as if he's crazy.  "No," she says, "I want to stay with you, to help you."  

John shakes his head.  "Promise me, promise that you will escape and get out unharmed. Promise."  

Janet looks down.  Her heart is broken.  She can't cry.  Vampires don't cry.  She looks up.  Her eyes are red with promise.  "I promise."  

John smiles.  

The men are advancing on the two Vampires.  

John and Janet run.  They run as fast as they can.  They come to an alley way and John pulls something from around his neck.  It is a ring on a golden chain.  The ring has writing on it.  The writing is in Transylvanian.  An old language that has been dead for thousands of years, for people anyway. Vampires keep it alive within themselves.  John gives the chain and ring to Janet.

"The ultimate power," he tells her, "is within that ring.  You can use it.  Read the writing in the ancient language.  Now go."  

The men come from around the corner.  Janet shrinks.  She is the size of a rat.  She scuttles over into an over turned trash can.  

The men advance on John.  One of them steps forward.  He is a tall man with blond hair sticking out of his hat.  When he took off his glasses and hat John gasps.  "Robert."  

Robert smiles he takes a wooden stake from his coat.  He raises it over his head and brings it down.  

Janet turns her small head.  She hears John scream, then silence.  She turns back to see that John has disappeared. Robert and his men are talking.

"Well, we got him.  After fifteen years of chasing we got him."

"What about the other one that was with him?"

"We'll find her, but another time.  Jane is probably worried.  I told her I'd be home three hours ago."  Robert smiles.  "My son is quite the performer.  Jane caught him today singing in front of some flowers as an audience!  She's going to enroll him in some auditions hopefully soon."  The men laugh and one of them asks Robert a question.

"What's his name?"

"Nickolas Gene, but we call him Nick for short."

"Are you going to tell him about the SVSS?"  

Robert looks at his friend in a weird way.  "Are you kidding?  My boy's got talent!  He's probably going to be a famous singer someday.  The SVSS?  Nah, When I retire and my memory is taken away, I'm going to help him fulfill his dream."
The men walk away, talking of Nicholas Gene.  

Janet emerges from the trash can and takes full form.  She stares after Robert, thinking of his son.  "I will get revenge.  I will avenge you, John.  But Robert will retire soon, so I'll start with his son."  She strains to remember his name.
"Nick..."


As Janet remembers that awful night she fingers at her necklace.  It is the same one that John gave her twelve years ago.  As A.J is still talking with Joey, Janet watches him, amused at his expressions.  I will start tonight with it all and I will use... She turns her head around the room and her eyes land on Kevin.  Kevin, you really shouldn't have used force to get me here.  I'll use you because of your bad audited problem back at the bus.  With that she turns back to A.J and Joey and pretends to be interested in their conversation.