Vampire's Key - Chapter One
Vampire’s Key
Chapter One
Fearful of an imminent explosion, Lilly gritted her teeth and gripped her handbag tightly. Slow, deep breaths failed to calm her pounding heart. She glanced nervously at the driver. His bitter face was stained red by the brake lights of the car in front. Lilly felt like she was crumbling inside. Her stomach muscles tightened, almost cramping. A protective reflex that knew what was to come and that she had, as best she could, to withdraw into a fetal position. They hadn’t moved for ten minutes, but then, what did Carl expect on a Friday night?
“For fuck sake, we’re going to be late,” he said, staring at the long line of traffic.
Lilly looked through the windscreen. Reflected lights blurred over the road. Splashes of amber and green appeared chaotically amidst a sea of red.
“They’re not even fucking moving.” Carl sighed. “Fuck.”
Lilly went to reply, checked herself and glanced out of her side window instead. A large puddle had formed across pavement and road, blurring the line between the two. At its edge a rain-soaked woman struggled to turn her front door key. Lilly watched her curse, shake her head and try again. The tatty, old door would have gone unnoticed had she not been there. A door to another world,Lilly thought. What kind of world do you live in,she wondered? Alone and struggling?Lilly could sympathise. Or are you about to be greeted by a prince charming or a beautiful princess?Beside the lady, a homeless girl sat wrapped in a dirty sleeping bag, her legs pulled up beneath her body. A grey hood obscured her face. Heavy droplets from a broken gutter pounded the clear plastic sheet under which she sat.
“God damn. Will you get a fucking move on?” Carl growled.
Lilly glanced across at her boyfriend. He clenched the steering wheel tightly. Every few seconds his grip increased, exorcising the blood from his twisted fingers until they turned white. Will he say anything,she wondered?Should I?She took a deep breath, followed by a hesitant, staggered exhalation. She swallowed, bit her top lip tightly and whispered, “I’m sorry Carl. I just wanted to look—”
The punch smashed her head sideways against the window. Lilly felt like she was floating, as though she’d been thrown outside of her body. The feeling quickly dissipated, replaced by a glaze of grey that coated the world. Lilly blinked and cupped her ear. Her head throbbed and she stared at the dashboard, dazed and uncertain. Had he really just hit me? Again?Heavy rain thumped against the glass, seemingly tapping out an SOS on her behalf. Lilly closed her eyes, tears still thankfully absent.
“I told you to shut the fuck up,” Carl growled. “Maybe next time you’ll fucking listen to me. I told you we’d be late. It’s your fault if we lose our table.” His face tightened further and he turned and lifted his hand to strike her again. “Selfish bitch.”
“You bastard,” she exclaimed, already cringing.
Carl’s face warped monstrously. He leaned forward, grabbed the collar of her coat and sneered, “Do you want more?”
Lilly gritted her teeth. “I’ve had enough,” she murmured, grabbing the door release.
“Don’t you fucking dare!” Carl snarled. His free hand grabbed her wrist, preventing Lilly from moving. “If you leave this car I will break your fucking legs.” Carl released her and sat back in the driver’s seat. His gaze was lost on the stagnant traffic, his face illuminated by its hellish red.
Trembling, Lilly’s hand dropped away from the handle and returned to her handbag. She clutched it tightly, squeezing the leather strap, pretending it was his throat. I just wanted to look nice,she thought, I just wanted to have a nice evening out. Her words were left unsaid, replaced by another sharp slap.
The ringing in her ears underscored Carl’s speech. “You do what I fucking tell you to. Is that clear?”
“Carl, no!” Lilly pleaded. Her heart punched violently as she repeated the rehearsed lines. “I will not do this anymore.”
Carl spun around and grabbed her throat. His words were calm and concise. “You will do what I tell you to. Or, I swear I will fucking break you.”
Lilly’s hands grabbed at Carl’s wrists, trying to pull him free. His grip remained in place. Her stomach churned. Carl shook his head and released her. “You aren’t fucking worth it, you bitch,” he muttered, returning to the steering wheel.
Gasping for air, Lilly clutched her throat. She stared out at the homeless girl. The young woman looked up, her hood falling back far enough to reveal a soft face, pink-cheeked despite the wintry rain. Her gaze bore into Lilly, delving into her soul. A solitary thought accompanied her penetrating look: is this really my life? Change it,came the answer from her own heart.
Lilly jumped as Carl’s raised voice broke the spell. “Are you even fucking listening to me? I told you to get the fucking satnav up.” A sharp slap to the forehead accompanied the verbal onslaught.
Lilly closed her eyes and shook her head. “I can’t do this anymore.”
“What?”
“I told you, I can’t fucking do this anymore,” she said. Tears dammed in her eyes, threatening to betray her.
“Do you want another?” His fist was clenched again. His face demonised by hate.
Trembling, Lilly pressed the controls, pulling up the road map.
“Find me another fucking route.”
Shaking fingers mistyped their destination. A question entered Lilly’s mind: Where do you want to go, Lilly?Deleting the text, she typed again, then pressed for directions. She sat back and hugged herself tightly, trying to ignore the throbbing headache that threatened a migraine.
The traffic still wasn’t moving. Carl leaned over and turned on the radio. The melancholic reflection of a popular song cut through Lilly and she looked out the window again, her throbbing head resting against the cold glass. Trails of rain slid down the window, doubling for repressed tears. The woman at the door had finally disappeared, leaving the homeless girl to wait out the winter’s night alone. Her hood was tilted downwards again, its light colour darkened by the rain. We are coming, a lone voice whispered at the back of Lilly’s mind. Lilly frowned.
“Finally,” Carl said, depressing the accelerator. The car lurched forward, passing shops and pedestrians as the traffic began to move. “I’m starving.”
Lilly closed her eyes. You bastard,she thought. I’m done. I’ve got to get away from you.
Vampire’s Key
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