Rylie Cruz 2 - How to Date a Vampire (16 page)

“I live next to a voodoo shop. I think some
of the knowledge rubs off.” I rolled my eyes. “I’ve heard a lot of
things, that’s all. You spend all this time around vampires,
psychics, witches, and other creatures I probably don’t even know
about and you’re still afraid to go in there. You’re a friggin’
werewolf, so you just march yourself right in to that shop this
very minute. Don’t make me do the chicken dance again.” She
scrunched her eyebrows together, then smirked. Jennifer stuck her
hands under her armpits to form wings. She was ready to humiliate
me again.

“Oh no you don’t. Do not, I repeat, do not
start that silly chicken dance again.”

She began flapping her arms.

“All right, fine. We’ll go in there again,
but only because she did help a little with the last mess. But will
you please stop the stupid dance?”

She removed her hands from her armpits and
grinned.

“I’m not doing any weird spells this time
either. It would be bad luck for me.”

“You are so full of it.”

“Whatever you say. I’m still not doing
it.”

“Once again, I thought you’d see it my way.”
She grabbed my arm yet again and yanked me back down the
sidewalk.

I let her think she was forcing me to go. It
made her feel good. I smiled inside, thankful for such a good
friend.

When we reached the shop, I paused. Jennifer
coughed from beside me.

“Don't push.” I waggled my finger in her
direction.

After a few more footsteps, I had yet again
confronted my voodoo phobia. Jennifer and I stood in front of the
slightly shabby-looking building. I think the neglected look was
used to set a mysterious vibe for tourists. The dark side of the
city surrounded me every day, but I’d never dabbled with voodoo
until recently when the priestess had insisted I use an amulet.
Maybe it worked, or maybe it was the power of suggestion, but it
had seemed to help. To be honest, I didn’t know a thing about
voodoo, only what I’d heard on television or read in a book.

Old, battered shutters flanked the shop
entrance, and chipped paint flaked from the walls. The room was
filled to capacity with voodoo dolls, books, beads, candles, and
masks. Knickknacks covered the walls, and some items even hung from
the ceiling.

I paused before stepping into the doorway,
then, swallowing through the tightness in my throat, finally pushed
ahead. Jennifer opened the door and pulled me through, forcing me
to step across the threshold. The hardwood floors creaked under my
feet. Here I was back again. After last time, I didn’t think I’d
have any reason to return to the shop so soon. The place seemed to
be calling me to it somehow. I never had wanted to come in before.
At first, I didn't spot the priestess, then I noticed her at the
back of one of the aisles.

“What could she possibly want with me?” I
asked.

“Maybe she wants to chitchat. You know, girl
talk. Go on in.”

“Very funny.”

Out of the corner of my eye, the priestess,
as if by magic, appeared at the end of the aisle. She moved with an
air of confidence, each step showcasing her poise and grace. Her
beautiful face was wrinkle-free, yet I had no idea of her age.

“Follow me to the back.” She moved toward
the back of the store without uttering another word. It was almost
as if she had been expecting us.

Moving toward the back of the store brought
back my terror-filled thoughts of my first visit. I hadn’t wanted
to follow her anywhere back then.

“It’s still really hot in here.”

“Well, we are in New Orleans, it’s not like
we live in Anchorage.”

“It’s stuffy and I always feel as if I might
hyperventilate.” I pulled at the collar of my shirt. “I can’t
breathe,” I whispered to Jennifer as she walked beside me. My
stomach churned and sweat beaded on my forehead.

“I thought we’ve been over this before.
Nothing happened last time, and it won’t happen this time. Maybe
she has something new for your curse.” Jennifer winked, looped her
arm through mine, and guided me to the back of the store.

The priestess motioned for us to move
faster. We hurried down the aisle and through the bead-hung
doorway. She gestured for me to come closer. I swallowed hard and
stepped further into the space. Jennifer stood behind me in the
crowded room. A tiny lamp set on a small desk in the corner,
letting off a faint glow in the corner of the room. The faintly lit
space brought to mind many macabre images.

“You have information for me?” My voice
wavered, terrified of what her answer might be.

I still didn’t know who this enigmatic
female was, but somehow I did feel more comfortable around her now,
as if when I stepped into the small space all my worries seemed
less reasonable. Kind of less like she was luring us to our
untimely deaths. That was always a plus.

“Are you wearing the amulet I gave you?” She
spoke with a heavy accent, my guess was French.

I nodded. “Yes.”

“She wasn't. I had to force her.” Jennifer
smirked when I looked back at her.

I'd get the rat for that.

“I'm happy that you've decided to wear it
now. It won't help you if you don't wear it.”

Did she just bring me here to scold me?

“You have a problem with the young man?”

“Jack?” A nervous grin curved my mouth.

How did she know these things? Did she have
a wiretap in my house?

“Yes. He is a living vampire now,” she said
without so much as a blink of the eye. She remained poised and
calm. I wanted to freak out. Of course, I knew Jack’s fate before
she mentioned it, but when someone else said it, it didn't make it
any easier to deal with. So what would I do now? How would Jack
cope with what had happened to him?

“What does that mean?” I asked through my
nerves. I was afraid to hear her answer, but I had to know. No
matter how bad the outcome.

“He can be in great danger unless you get
him help.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

How to Date a Vampire, Rule #22:

“
Bloodsucker” is not a pet name.

Well, I had figured that much. The vampires
following him around were one indication.

“What do you mean he is in danger? Can you
tell me more?”

“I'm afraid I cannot. I don't see anything
more than that. He is a living vampire now. Trapped between the two
worlds. This is not good for him. You need to get him help.”

Yeah, she’d said that once. “But how do I do
that?”

“Go to the source. Find the one who turned
him. I don't know any more than that.”

Well, a lot of good she was. I mean I knew
this wasn't good for Jack. I could have told her that before I set
foot in this shop.

“Here, take this.” She handed me another
bag. “Add this to your amulet. It will help keep you safe while you
find the vampire. You'll need it.”

Oh, that was encouraging. I looked at
Jennifer. Her eyes were wide. Even she looked as if she was
uncomfortable in the space.

I took the bag. “Thank you.”

“Do as you did before. Good luck,” she said.
Her face was expressionless. No smile. Nothing. Her mouth was set
in a grim line. I swallowed hard. This was making me more anxious
by the minute. I turned and walked out through the beads again. I
hurried my steps, stopping at the counter to pay.

She waved me off. “No charge. Just make sure
to use it.
There’s a little shop three doors
down. You need to go there and talk to the man who works there. He
knows about the vampires and he can help you.”

Another stranger. What kind of information
could he possibly have for us? I guess it was worth a shot, though.
What did I have to lose at this point?

“His name is Marcus Barker.”

“How does he know about the vampires?” I
asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t ask those questions.
I just know that he has a lot of information about them. You do
need information, do you not?”

I nodded. “Yes, I do.” I took the bag.
“Thank you again.” She nodded.

This was serious. Maybe more than I could
ever imagine. The priestess nodded, and without hesitation,
Jennifer and I stepped out onto the sidewalk. I didn't look back,
but I knew she watched us. I felt her eyes on my back.

My mind swirled with thoughts about what
she’d said and my recent run-ins with the vampires. I believed she
had a way of knowing things. When I had first met her, she’d known
about my werewolf status, and there was no way she could have known
without a psychic gift. Her words left me scratching my head. She
had offered advice about Jack and I was thankful for that.

When Jennifer and I made our way outside,
instead of turning to the right to go home like I wanted, I turned
to the left. Despite my skepticism, we’d go see the man and find
out what he had to say, but I hoped he hurried, because I felt like
my time was running out.

We stepped inside the shop. The space was
filled with different collectibles and jewelry, nothing spooky, and
nothing that looked vampirish. So who was this man? Where was he? I
didn’t spot anyone. Not one appeared to be working there and no one
was shopping, either.

“Maybe we came to the wrong place,” Jennifer
said, as she looked around. “I’m pretty sure this was the place she
was talking about.” I stepped toward the back of the store. When I
made my way halfway down the aisle, a man’s voice said,
“Hello.”

I peered around the store, but still didn’t
see anyone. This was beginning to get a little weird, but had I
really expected anything different? Everything was weird in my
life.

Before I responded, a man popped up from the
aisle beside us. Had he been hiding there? How strange. Jennifer
jumped back, clutching her chest. I wouldn’t have blamed her he
she’d run away.

“Um, the voodoo priestess send us.” I looked
around to see if anyone listened. Of course there were still no
other people in the store but us. Better safe than sorry, though.
It felt weird talking about vampires to a stranger, but the
priestess acted as if he knew what he was talking about. I’d trust
her word.

“Yes, she called and said you’d be coming.”
He moved around to the other side of the aisle and stood in front
of us.

The man was about my height, five-two. He
had gray hair and wore a black shirt and black pants. Black shoes
and a black belt. Black, black, and more black. If not for the dark
clothing, he’d look exactly like a smaller version of Santa Claus
on summer break.

I continued, “Anyway, she said you have
information about the vampires.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Well, anything you can share with us, I
guess. My name’s Rylie Cruz, and this is my friend, Jennifer
Matthews.” I gestured toward Jennifer and she gave a half-hearted
smile. “She got a book from the library.”

He smiled, looking as if he was holding back
a chuckle. What was wrong with a book from the library? It seemed
like a very informative book. The library was the place to go for
information. Even if it was supernatural information. What new
information could he possibly have for us that the book didn’t
have?

“The vampires are very complex.” He spoke in
a soft even tone, as if he savored every word. “I’ve been studying
them for years and I still don’t know much about them. The
information is guarded, naturally. I do know that they have
different abilities. They’re unlike the vampires you see portrayed
in movies and books. Sure, things like sunlight, reflections, etc.
That’s all true, but it’s not true for all of them.”

Ha. That was in the book. “We already know
that information, it was in the book.”

Why did I feel as if I was gloating? Oh,
maybe because I was. Not very nice of me.

“Is there anything else you can tell us?
Something we don’t already know?” Jennifer asked.

If this was all the man had, I really needed
to get out of there and start my search for Jack. I appreciated all
the help the priestess gave, but so far he had nothing new for
us.

“Jennifer is right. We’re looking for
information about my boyfriend.”

“He was bitten by a vampire,” Jennifer
blurted out.

I jabbed her in the side with my elbow. So
much for keeping it a secret. We didn’t know this man. Of course, I
thought I could trust the priestess, and since she knew him, he was
probably okay, but you never know. The priestess had kept my
werewolf secret so that was a check mark in her favor.

“Actually, we think he was turned into a
half-vampire or whatever the correct word for it is. Not fully
turned.”

“The living dead.” He shook his head. “Yes,
that is even more fascinating. There is some reason why the
vampires don’t fully turn some humans. I just haven’t found the key
to it yet. I love research, in case you didn’t guess.”

You don’t say.

“That is fascinating, but I need to find the
answer so I can help me boyfriend.” I said.

“Good luck to you. It hasn’t been easy for
me, I’ve been studying for years.”

“Thank you for the help, anyway. We really
must be going.”

“Anytime. And do let me know how it goes
with your boyfriend. Maybe I can meet your him sometime.”

This guy was a little too obsessed with the
vampires. Why did he have such a fascination?

“Sure, maybe I’ll bring him in sometime.”
That was if I ever found him. And besides it wasn’t as if he was
some kind of novelty for this guy to play with.

“If you’re interested I have another book
that you might find useful.”

“How is it different from the book we got
from the library?” Jennifer asked.

“Well, the book you read omits a lot of
information, as if vampires don’t really exist, but are more of a
myth. It gives information under the assumption that the reader is
reading purely for entertainment purposes. We know that is not the
case for you.”