The Guest & The Change

chapter 4





Night had fallen as Sebastian waited for someone, anyone, to step out of that house. He didn’t know why, but something stopped him from entering town - something compelled him to wait on the edge.

He felt eager for life as he waited for one of the warm bodies to leave. He was eager to feel again, to think. Eager for blood.

The moment his desire for life was at its peak, the front door opened and light radiated out into the night. A man stepped out, on his own. Sebastian wasted no time - he concentrated hard and swooped in. His energy took the form of a bat, yet a bat that could not feel, not be stopped by anything. He swooped straight into the man’s heart, and let his energy go - filling him with his essence.

Sebastian felt it had worked instantly as he didn’t drift out of the body. He stayed there - his essence combining with the man - taking over his body and his mind.

He stayed stock still, waiting for the changes to be complete, waiting until he had control of every cell, muscle and neuron.

A slow smile spread across his face - the process was complete.

Sebastian reached out and touched the wooden veranda. He felt it. He ran his hand along it, feeling the roughness of the wood; its raw, unpolished simplicity.

He could think more clearly now, form coherent thoughts and logic in his mind. Anger at Daniel flared within him. Daniel had done this to him; taken his power and his body. He probably thought he had destroyed him - that he was gone for good. The anger tore at him inside and made him long desperately for more power. Power from human blood. Power to destroy Daniel.

He wrenched open the front door, and stepped forward - but he still could not go inside. Sebastian looked at the house, wondering who else lived here, for he felt more warm bodies within.

‘Hello?’ He called out tentatively.

A large motherly figure bustled through the door.

‘What are you doing out there? Come back in.’

Sebastian smiled, that was what he needed, and he stepped over the threshold.

***

Sarah stood - adrenaline from their lovemaking coursing through her. Daniel watched her as she picked up a blanket and wrapped it around her body. It felt rough in comparison to Daniel’s soft skin.

She went into her kitchen, uncorked a bottle of wine and took two glasses out of the cupboard. She poured the wine, watching as it flowed smoothly in, filling the glasses with the dark red liquid. She took a sip and felt the alcohol hit her brain. She felt intoxicated already, drugged up on Daniel and his blood. The alcohol calmed her.

Sarah stared out of the window, into the darkness, wondering at the turn her life had taken. It was time to focus on reality - she needed to talk to Daniel, to find out more about what had happened, what was going to happen next.

She tucked the blanket under her arm, so it wouldn’t fall down, and picked up the two glasses, carefully carrying them back into the living room. Daniel was standing, already dressed. He stepped forward and took a glass from her.

‘Cheers,’ he said, and clinked her glass, meeting her eyes somberly. ‘I know you want to talk.’

She raised her eyebrows at him, what - could he read her mind when they weren’t touching now, or was it merely her facial expressions?

She sat back on the sofa, taking another sip of wine. It washed away the remaining taste of blood, and she felt it ground her.

‘I do. We haven’t had a chance yet,’ she said playfully - pushing him gently. Well maybe they had had plenty of chances, she thought, but they had been busy with other things. ‘What happened with Sebastian? How did you manage to kill him?’

‘It’s quite complex,’ he said teasing her.

‘I’m sure I can follow…’

‘OK,’ he said, looking amused. ‘After Sebastian took you from me, after I had killed Jo - I went crazy. I didn’t know what to do; I just knew I had to get you back.’

Sarah watched him talk, sensed the angst he had felt, and still couldn’t quite grasp how much he cared for her, couldn’t believe it.

‘I would not normally do what I did. Usually I only take blood from animals - the strength it provides is enough to survive. But I needed to be stronger if I was going to rescue you.’ He broke off and stroked her hair away from her face. It made Sarah feel warm, yet sad.

‘I fed off humans - I didn’t kill anyone,’ he quickly added. ‘But I needed human blood as it’s much more vibrant. It’s full of life and power. I drank from many people, hoping a plan would come to me, and it did - I remembered a witch I knew, who taught me a little magic.’

Sarah opened her eyes wide, astounded at yet more supernatural elements being revealed in her life, ‘Carry on.’

Daniel laughed at her eagerness, ‘The witch, Heather, had made me aware of some websites that contained magical knowledge. I raced home to investigate this idea; to see if there was some way I could tackle Sebastian and get him out of our lives for good - to save you, as I had no idea how else to do it. Sebastian was much stronger than I could ever have made myself. I found a spell that involved taking his power - it was a mummification spell. To do it I needed even more power and had to drink more blood. I went back into town to do this, and I had just had enough when Sebastian found me. He had planned to finish me off, no doubt so I wouldn’t get in his way again. So I wouldn’t try and rescue you. When he attacked me he touched my throat. I think he was going to snap my neck. I concentrated very hard, as the website had told me to do, and sucked the power out of him with my mind. The expression on his face become more and more worried as his power started to rush into me. It felt incredible as he was so strong. It literally flooded into me - if it hadn’t been for the magic maintaining the link I would have grasped my hands away. Then when it was done I staked him. He turned to dust and I put it in a bag in my jacket - I plan to distribute it widely so there’s no chance he can return.’

‘So that explains the bulge in your jacket,’ Sarah said cheekily. ‘I had wondered.’

Sarah fell silent. She thought about what he had said.

‘How do you feel now - with him gone?’ She asked.

‘I feel very relieved, because I can do this…’

Daniel leant in and kissed Sarah softly. Her heart fluttered as she felt his cool lips on hers.

‘…without worrying about Sebastian anymore,’ he finished. ‘Plus, if I hadn’t killed him, I may never have been able to rescue you.’

‘Is there any chance he could return?’

‘I don’t think so, but to be honest I’m not sure. I don’t know enough about magic, or old vampires. If he had been a new vampire - like Jo - that would definitely have been the end of him. I’ve been wondering whether I should try and track down Heather to see if she knows any more about it,’ he paused, ‘I think it would be a wise thing to do.’

Sarah’s heart sank. It was as she expected - he was going to leave.

‘When do you think you will go?’

He must have seen her crestfallen look; he reached for her chin and held it up so her eyes met his.

‘I will come back,’ he said. He gave her a dazzling grin.

‘I should probably leave tomorrow though. It would be best to find out as much as possible as quickly as I can, and I’m not sure how long it will take to find her. While I’m gone you should stay in as much as possible. And don’t even consider going out at night.’

‘I won’t,’ she smiled weakly at him. She couldn’t muster enthusiasm for his plan, or for staying in indefinitely. Her kids would go mad, running around - shouting and fighting, if they stayed in too long.

‘Can I stay with you tonight?’ he asked.

Sarah looked at him hard, he was smoldering at her, making it impossible to resist him.

She laughed. ‘Of course you can,’ and she kissed him.

How was this man so delicious? She felt nervous at the idea of sharing a bed. It was so much more planned than their previous encounters, which were based on circumstance and lust. It felt like a new level of intimacy.

She stood and took his hand, leading him up the stairs, to her room. She quickly ducked out to check on her kids. They were both fast asleep, so she turned out all the lights, popped to the bathroom, quickly cleaned her teeth and returned to her room.

Daniel was sitting on the edge of her bed. The bed that, until not very long ago at all, she had shared with Jo. It felt like months ago, yet it was only a few days.

Again he saw the sadness in her expression.

‘Do you want me to sleep somewhere else?’ he asked.

‘No. I want to be as close to you as possible, before you leave.’

She let the blanket around her drop to the floor and climbed under the sheets.

She didn’t know where the confidence came from, but felt like she had nothing to lose. She couldn’t help but suspect she wasn’t going to see him again, not for a long time.

Sarah watched as he undressed in the darkness, admiring the silhouette of his form. Her heart sped up as he climbed under the covers too. He slid over until she felt his cool body pressing against hers. She wasn’t sure what she expected, but he just reached out and held her, his head resting against hers. His powerful arms wrapped around her.

Tingles swooped over her body and her heart raced, yet all she did was hold him back. Taking him in - basking in his presence.

‘Goodnight Sarah,’ he said, looking into her eyes. She felt him projecting his influence, and became very sleepy.

‘Goodnight Daniel,’ she whispered, as she closed her eyes and fell asleep in his arms.

***

Sebastian walked across the hall and snapped the woman’s neck. He supported her weight; before she could fall to the floor and alert the rest of the household. Instinct took over and he sank his teeth into her neck. He was no-longer a vampire, he was something else altogether - a dark spirit in possession of a fresh body. He no longer had fangs, so it took extra pressure to pierce through her skin and draw blood.

It was exquisite. A completely different sensation from when he had been a vampire. It was all about the power, not the taste. He felt it rush into the human body, making the bond between himself and the man that much stronger. It increased his feeling of control exponentially, making him far stronger than any human could be.

When he had extracted all her blood he gently laid her on the ground and penetrated deeper into the house. He was looking for his next victim.

He saw a middle aged man, sitting in the dark, alone. The television was on and flickering colors were lighting his face. Sebastian approached him.

The man was not instantly alerted to danger, as Sebastian was in the body of his son, yet when he glanced up and saw the blood on his face, the dark flash in his eyes. Sebastian saw his relaxed manner switch to terror.

He smiled at the man, mocking him. Sebastian raised his finger to his lips and sucked off some of the women’s blood. The man moved quickly and pushed him back.

At the same time he shouted: ‘Angela - RUN.’ He started to run himself.

Sebastian laughed - he took pleasure in the chase.

He ran after him. He wasn’t as fast as he had been when he was a vampire, but was still faster than the overweight man before him. Sebastian grabbed him from behind, before he had even left the room. He held his hand firmly over the man’s mouth to muffle his screams.

Sebastian bit hard, feeling the blood and power rush into him afresh. The man squirmed in his arms, trying to break free. His heart stopped as his blood left his body. Sebastian let him fall.

He heard someone running - Angela he presumed - down the stairs, towards the back door.

Sebastian wiped the blood from his face and raced towards her, adamant that she would not escape.

He saw a girl running ahead and sped up, grabbing her by the shoulders. She was the last in the house so now he was in no hurry. He didn’t have to worry about neighbors overhearing as they lived alone on the edge of town.

She looked around, and seeing her brother’s face - covered in blood - she tried to scream, but no sound came out. He turned her body around to face him. She was young, a teenager, and beautiful. Straight brown hair fell to her shoulders, and blue eyes looked petrified as he studied her. Leering at her.

She was wearing pink flannel pajamas, which didn’t hide her slender form and small breasts.

With one hand he held her shoulder firmly, so she couldn’t escape, and with his other hand he stroked her silky hair. He pulled it back and exposed her neck. Sebastian let his teeth nip at it, but then his mouth travelled to her face and he kissed her hard.

She struggled against him, trying to keep her mouth shut at all costs.

This aroused him and he pushed her back. She hit her head against a table and yelped in pain and fear.

Sebastian sprang, landing on top of her and ripping off her pajama bottoms.

She was fighting inconsequentially. Pushing at him, tears staining her face. He watched her fear increase as he slowly undid his belt, button and zip.

He pushed his erection into her, taking out his anger on this young girl. As he pounded against her he bit hard at her neck. Blood rushed out of her, swelling his body with power. Her heart stopped as he climaxed into her.

He withdrew and pushed her used body aside.

Sebastian straightened up, feeling dark power coursing through him. He kicked the girl out of his way, and headed up the stairs.

He would clean himself up and think. He needed to come up with a plan before he could tackle the problem of Daniel.