LIGHT THE NIGHT: By Lori Titus
Wednesday, November 17th, 2010Marradith stood on the rooftop.
From her vantage point , she could see Daria running on the street below.
Daria moved so fast that she was like a streak of movement, dust floating past in the moonlight. Marradith felt the air moving.
With it, the scent of the Wolf that pursued Daria.
The Wolf was not far behind.
Marradith moved across rooftop, keeping to the shadows.
She had to be careful. If she didn’t time it just right, the Wolf could have her friend for dinner.
She waited, until she was directly above him.
The energy flowed through her body, so strong that she stumbled backwards.
She knew that she’d hit her target when she heard him scream.
***
The Wolf saw the vampire.
Was she hunting for human prey? Her movements were casual. Maybe she’d already fed, and was looking for a place to sleep.
Did she know that this was not the place for her kind?
He watched as she lit a cigarette. Without smoking it, she tossed it to the ground.
Ah, he thought. She feels me now.
She started to run, her movements so fast that her heels made no sound against the pavement. He took off in pursuit, just because he could.
As the air rushed through his ears, the walls and concrete blurring around him, he felt almost as free as a Wolf in a forest. Primal, fearless, faster than anything.
Perhaps slightly slower than his current prey, the little vampire.
He’d seen a flash of her face. Chocolate milk brown, flawless skin, long hair.
Her eyes were what fascinated him, dark and rimmed with eyeliner, her delicate lashes curving around them like a doll’s.
He was almost on top of her when he felt the presence of something else.
The Wolf looked up.
He saw the flash of electricity before it hit him. He was rooted to the spot, like a candle lit up by flame.
Everything went black.
***
Voices.
Two females.
“If you weren’t a fucking girl, I’d love you right now. That was fun!”
A little laugh. “Really?”
“Okay, correction. If you weren’t Justin’s girl, I’d love you.”
“Whatever. What now?”
“I guess when he cools off we move him. By the way, any idea how long it will be?”
“Not long, I guess. You have to remember I am new to doing this on - well, people.”
“Okay. So this is what we do…”
The voices seem to move farther from him, and even with his sensitive hearing, he cannot make out their words anymore. He feels like a log floating on water. He slips deeper into darkness.
***
When he wakes, he’s on a mattress.
He’s not alone in the room. He can smell the females.
The vampire is sitting not far from him, in a chair. Her legs are crossed, and she is playing with her nails, looking bored.
The other female - he thought of her as the Thing - stood in the darkness, watching him with curiosity.
“He’s awake, Daria,” she said.
“Yeah. Can you talk, dude?” the vampire snarled.
They both waited for an answer. The Thing walked slowly back and forth, only feet from the mattress. He thought about jumping up and snapping her neck. But in his human form now, and injured, his body feels weak.
He was sure that the Thing was the one who dealt him the jolt of electricity.
“What did you do to me?” he finally managed.
The Thing’s face moved. A little smile. He could feel her eyes searching him.
“That doesn’t have to happen again, if you’re willing to help us out.”
“Help you with what?”
“We want to know why there are so many Wolves in the city for one thing,” Daria said.
“And we want to know who has our collegue.”
“Who is that?”
“His name is Rafael Castillo.”
He put his head back, and he laughed. A hysterical belly laugh that shook his body and made him hurt more than he did before.
“I knew something like this was going to happen.”
“You know, this can be made more unpleasant for you, quickly,” the Thing said.
“No. I can help you.”
“You know where he is?”
“I know where he might be. I know where he was this morning, but I can’t promise that he’s still there.”
“That’s mighty convenient,” Daria said. “Marradith. What do you think?’
So the Thing has a name, he thought angrily.
Marradith shrugged. “I believe him,” she said. “What’s your name.”
“Alejandro . And if you’re Sojourner, you should respect me. My Father was Pablo Vega. He was one of you.”
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©2010 Lori Titus
Marradith Ryder and her co-horts are taking off for the holiday season. The series will return with all new episodes beginning February 9, 2011. Starting next week, check back here every Wednesday for a new, eleven episode series called The Daughters of Warring.
