*It's the spooky season gang, and I'm still dealing with some health as well as family crisis back east. So, my writing efforts have been sorely impeded. However, I wanted to give you something for the season. And since I have been working on the 2nd Vampyre Blogs novel "The Vampyre Blogs - Family Ties", which is a direct sequel to "The Vampyre Blogs - Coming Home", a sneak peek into that 2nd installment seemed appropriate.
For those not familiar with this blog, this tale has appeared here once before (several years ago to be precise). But we thought it worth another appearance, since a lot of work has already been done on the new novel.
As for where this tale takes place in the timeline in relation to the first book, these events take place during Nathan's absence after he and his sister's 'ghost' sank into the grave at the end of TVB - Coming Home.
We hope you enjoy this tale... and let the Halloween festivities commence!
It’s been two weeks since Nathan went to ground and there’s still no sign of when he may return… and I’m worried. Not about whether or not he’s coming back, the Professor has assured both me and Marisa repeatedly that Nathan will come back to us, it’s just a question of when? Ever since that night at the cemetery when everything went down, I’ve had a growing feeling of unease.
I only really noticed it a couple of days after the battle, but looking back I’m certain it was already starting to gnaw at me the moment we all headed inside Nathan’s manor to tend to Marisa’s ankle. But I didn’t dwell on it at the time because my dad arrived with Penny, who had had a bad shock earlier having seen her former pimp Tony in town. She still doesn’t know the guy was already dead and acting as host to the ghoul slime that nearly killed me and Marisa, not that any of us plan to tell her anytime soon because that would mean possibly revealing Nathan’s secret.
Luckily the Professor, sorry I mean Otto (he prefers Marisa and me to call him that), was on hand to smooth things over. I always thought Nathan was a fast talker, but he pales in comparison to Otto. He explained to Penny that Nathan had been called away on business, leaving him in charge of overseeing further restoration of the manor in his absence. Naturally, Marisa, Richard and I all backed him up, not that we really needed to. Otto has a disarming way about him and can be so charming that Penny seemed quite happy to have him around.
Of course, there was still the question of what happened to Marisa’s ankle. I wound up taking the lead on that one. Nathan taught me long ago that half-truths are far more convincing and easier to remember than flat out lies. So I told her that Marisa slipped and fell while running up the driveway to the manor when she and I were racing each other to see Nathan. When we found out he wasn’t here, nor were Richard or Otto at that point, we called Dr. Jack who does house calls. Which is also true, he does make house calls quite a bit even in this day and age. Then again, we’re not a huge town so that makes things easy for him to give that personal touch. And he did a great job on Marisa’s ankle, she’s doing much better. At school today I could barely detect any sign of a limp as we walked to and from our classes. Some movements still give her a twinge, but nothing serious.
And right now, as I type these words, I’m feeling another twinge of anxiety. Probably because of the recurring dream I’ve been having for the past week. It always starts out with me was standing on one of the many hillsides that overlooks our little town of Pointer. The sun is just rising, and I can see the light spreading across the valley slowing approaching the town I’ve called home all my life. Soon the morning rays begin touching the trees, turning the yellow leaves that still cling to their branches, a brilliant gold, while at the same time making the grass seem more vibrant and welcoming.
The rooftops seem to spring to life and glisten with morning dew and everything just seems so beautiful and alive… then that uneasy feeling that’s been haunting me seems to awaken and grow with a terrifying vengeance.
I find my eyes are drawn to one of the dairy farms in the distance, where not too long ago a Tim Spratt was trampled to death when something spooked the family herd causing them to break out of the barn where they’d been kept. Officially, the word is that a mountain lion or bear broke in and killed two of the animals, but I heard my father telling Otto just last night that he believes there is more to the story. One of the deputies, who is part of Nathan’s “Extended Family” here in town was away at the time of the incident, but upon returning to work he learned the case was still quietly being investigated.
It turns out Kevin, that’s the deputy’s name, learned from his co-workers that tracks were found leading in and out of the barn. It looked more like several animals had been on the scene, including a deer, a bear and one or two others, that would not normally be found entering a barn. Furthermore, there had been a sickly smell that still seemed to linger in the area. Last I heard, the family is tearing down the barn and have moved the animals to another enclosure.
Upon hearing this, my mind raced back to the cemetery where Marisa and I came under attack from creatures the Ghoul Slime had made from the bodies of dead buried there. Each one had been a fusion of human and animal remains, which gave off a sickly unearthly smell. I began to wonder then if Tim Spratt had been one of the Ghoul Slime’s earliest victims, which might account for what happened next in my dream…
TO BE CONTINUED...
