The Taste of Night (15 page)

HE BROUGHT THE STAKE DOWN HARD AND FAST
,
aimed at Livvy's heart.

She transformed into a bat, and the point sailed past her, barely grazing a wing. With a loud screech, she brought her wings up and sailed over Patrick's head. Then she stuck out her talons—and swooped down.

Hissing and shrieking, she scratched at his eyes.

He let out a cry of pain and stumbled back.

She scraped his cheeks with her talons. Blood streamed down his face.

With a groan, he swiped her hard with the back of his hand. His hand caught her in the belly, knocking her air out.

Stunned, Livvy toppled to the ground.

She gazed up in time to see Patrick raise a shoe to trample her. She scuttled out just as the heel slammed the ground.

Flapping her wings hard, she shot back into the air. He had dropped the stake and was bent, searching for it.

Livvy swooped to the ground behind him, transformed back into her own body, and grabbed up the stake as Patrick spun around.

“No—” he uttered as she slammed the stake with all her strength into his throat.

A sick cry burst from his open mouth as the stake poked through the skin, deep into his neck. His eyes bulged, and he grabbed for the stake with both hands.

But Livvy was too fast for him this time. She tugged the stake out, staring at the gaping hole in his neck. Then she slammed it into his body again, thrusting the point into his chest, into his heart.

He fell back, cracking his head on a tree trunk.

He didn't utter a sound. He stared up at Livvy as he collapsed onto his back. His legs folded, and his arms dropped limply to his sides, and didn't move.

A shaft of silver moonlight washed over the stake, tilted up in the air now as Patrick lay on his back, not moving. And then his skin started to melt and crumble away. Big chunks dissolving quickly, revealing the bones underneath.

Struggling to catch her breath, her chest heaving up and down, Livvy turned her back on him.

I don't want to see what happens to him.

I killed him.

I killed him because he killed my friends. And I killed him to save my sister.

Livvy felt upset now, confused. She didn't feel as if she'd scored any kind of victory.

What will happen next?

Her thoughts turned to Destiny.

Have I saved you tonight, Dee?

Or have I killed you too?

DR. WELLER STOOD TREMBLING IN THE ABANDONED
apartment building, listening to the screams of agony all around him.

Vampires were dying. His hunters were working fast, catching them while they slept in their open apartments, piercing their hearts with wooden stakes, and quickly moving to the next apartment.

Dr. Weller had trouble moving as quickly. He had killed one vampire in his bed, a young man with dried blood caked down his chin. He had thrust his pointed stake between the young man's ribs, watched him come awake, eyes bulging in disbelief. Listened to his scream of pain as he realized what had happened to him. Then watched him die.

He's not really a human, Dr. Weller told himself. He's a creature now, an evil creature in a human body. He preyed on living humans, innocent humans. He ruined lives. He deserves to die.

But now as the sun began to rise in the glassless windows of the unfinished building, Dr. Weller stood trembling in front of a low cot, unable to act, unable to move or think straight.

This is not a human, he told himself, staring at the sleeping girl in the long, black nightshirt. This is an evil creature now.

He gripped the stake tightly in his right hand. His left hand was raised to his feverish forehead.

This is an evil, inhuman creature now.

But she is my daughter
.

He gazed down at Livvy, gazed through the tears that blurred his eyes, that ran down his cheeks. This is my daughter, and I have no choice—I have to kill her.

I am the leader of the Hunters, and I have vowed to rid Dark Springs of these blood-sucking killers.

A vampire murdered my wife, their mother.

And now I'm about to lose another precious family member to the evil ones.

Dr. Weller raised his eyes and cursed the sky.

His stomach tightened. For the second time that night he felt he might retch.

How can I kill my own daughter?

Could I ever face Destiny again? Mikey?

Could I ever tell them the truth:
I killed your sister. I killed Livvy with my own hands
.

I…I can't, Dr. Weller thought. He staggered back from the cot, his eyes on his sleeping daughter. Her blond hair flowed over the pillow. Her fair skin caught the glow of the red morning sun from the window.

I can't do this. It's asking too much of any man.

I'm not a coward. I'm a brave man. Here I am in this apartment building, risking my life, attacking vampires where they live. No, I'm not a coward.

But…

He heard a high, shrill scream from down the hall. A girl's scream. Another vampire murdered by one of his hunters.

A high wail of pain floated down the hall. Another victim of the hunters.

Dr. Weller gripped the walkie-talkie attached to his belt. So far, no calls for help. The operation seemed to be going flawlessly.

He sighed, staring down at his daughter's sleeping face.

I'm the one who should call for help.

I should call for one of my hunters. I should leave the room, whisper good-bye to Livvy, and leave the room. And let my hunter do the job we came here to do.

Can I do that?

Livvy stirred. She let out a soft sigh.

She turned toward him, eyes still closed.

It isn't really Livvy anymore, he decided. His heart
began to thud in his chest. It isn't my daughter.

He took a deep breath. Raised the stake high.

Changed his mind.

I just want to kiss her good-bye.

Kiss her good-bye…before I kill her.

And as he leaned his tear-stained face down to kiss her cheek, Livvy's hands shot up—and grasped him tightly around the neck.

“LIVVY—NO!” he shouted. “LET GO!”

She opened her eyes. “Don't do anything, Dad!” she cried, holding onto his neck, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Don't, Dad! It isn't Livvy. It's me.”

He blinked. Stared hard at her. “Destiny—?”

She nodded. She kissed his cheek, then let go of his neck. “I'm sorry, Dad. I didn't want to scare you. But I had no choice. I—”

“Destiny?” he repeated. “Destiny?”

She nodded. “Yes, it's me. I traded places with Livvy. I had to save her life.”

LATER, DESTINY EXPLAINED TO HER FATHER. “LIVVY
and I planned it all last night. She risked her life by taking my place with a vampire named Patrick.”

“But why did you take her place in the apartment?” Dr. Weller asked.

“I had to,” Destiny replied. “Livvy risked her life for me. I had to risk my life for her. It was the only way to prove to her how much I want to save her.”

“You took a terrible risk,” Dr. Weller said. He poured milk into his coffee mug, then slid the milk carton across the table to Destiny.

“We couldn't really say it out loud. But we showed how much we cared by risking our lives for each other,” Destiny said. “Crazy, huh?” She poured milk into her mug and took a sip of coffee.

Dr. Weller stared at her across the kitchen table, thinking hard. He raised his hands from around his coffee mug. “Look at me. I'm still shaking. We've been home for half an hour, and I can't stop shaking.”

Destiny lowered her head. “I'm sorry, Dad.”

He grabbed her hand. “No. Don't say that. You did a very brave thing tonight.”

“So did Livvy,” Destiny replied.

Dr. Weller nodded. Behind his glasses, his eyes teared over. “Twins,” he murmured. “Twins stick together, right?”

Destiny took a long sip of coffee. “Yes. Being sisters meant a lot more to both of us than…than anything else.”

“And you hatched this plan last night?” he asked.

“Last night,” Destiny said. “Livvy flew into my window. She explained that she was furious at me. She told me about Ross. She—”

Destiny stopped. Her voice broke. She raised her eyes to her father. “Ross is dead, Dad. Killed by another vampire.”

“Oh, no,” Dr. Weller whispered. “No…”

Destiny nodded. “Yes, he's dead. I suppose we have to tell his family. Livvy thought I murdered him. That's why she was so angry.”

Dr. Weller shook his head. “Ross dead,” he murmured. “He was a good guy. And Livvy could be dead too. If only—”

“She may be okay, Dad. I'm sure I'll hear from her again.”

“Tell her to come home,” Dr. Weller said. “Tell her if she
comes home, I'll work even harder on finding a cure. I'll do everything I can.”

“I'll try, Dad. I'll try.” She squeezed his hand. “But don't get your hopes up.”

 

Destiny left out one part of the story. She didn't tell her father that she and Livvy planned to meet the next night in their room above the garage.

“Don't tell him,” Livvy had insisted. “I'll come see you, but I just can't see Dad. Not yet.”

Destiny had agreed. And now it was the next night. The night after the full moon and all the horror it brought.

Destiny paced back and forth in her room, clasping and unclasping her hands, feeling so tense she could barely think straight.

Did Livvy survive last night? Did she kill Patrick? Is she okay? Will she come? Will she keep her promise?

Dr. Weller was working late at his lab. Mikey was closed up in his room watching Nickelodeon.

A warm breeze ruffled the curtains in the open window. Destiny heard a car horn honking far down the block. White moonlight washed into the room and slanted across the carpet.

Hugging herself, Destiny stepped into the square of moonlight. Cold moonlight, she thought. Moonlight is always so silvery hard and cold.

The curtains fluttered again. A blackbird landed gently on the sill. It shook itself, raising its wings, then hopped
onto the bedroom floor.

Destiny jumped back. The bird tilted its head, gazing up at her with its shiny black bead of an eye.

“Livvy—?” Destiny whispered.

The blackbird transformed quickly, its body rising, arms poking out where the wings had been…a head…blond hair. All so quick and silent.

In seconds, Livvy stood across from Destiny. She brushed back her hair and glanced around the long, narrow room they had shared. “You…haven't changed a thing,” Livvy said. She picked up her stuffed leopard and pressed it against her cheek. “Everything is the same.”

Destiny stared at her sister. Livvy wore a tight white midriff blouse over a black miniskirt. Long, red plastic earrings dangled from her ears. She had a tiny rhinestone stud in the side of her nose.

A laugh escaped Destiny's throat. “You haven't changed, either,” she said. “I mean, you look exactly the same.”

Livvy frowned. “I've changed a lot, Dee. Don't think I'm the same old Livvy.” She tossed the leopard onto the bed.

“You…you're okay?” Destiny asked. “I mean, last night—”

“I killed him. I killed Patrick,” Livvy said. “See? I'm not the same. I've
killed
, Dee. Do you believe it? I've killed.”

Destiny let out a sob. “I'm just so glad you're okay.” She rushed to her sister. They hugged, hugged each other
tightly, pressing their cheeks against each other. Destiny's cheek was damp from her tears. Livvy didn't cry.

A voice from downstairs made them jump apart.

“Hey, who you talking to?” Mikey called up.

Livvy's eyes grew wide. She took a step toward the window. Destiny could see she was thinking of escape.

“No,” she whispered to Livvy. “Let Mikey see you. He needs to see you and talk to you. You can help him, Liv.”

Livvy looked doubtful, but she stayed.

“Come here, Mikey.” Destiny went down and guided Mikey up the steps. “Livvy is here. She came back because she wants to see you.”

As she and Mikey walked up the stairs, a feeling of panic swept over Destiny. Maybe this isn't such a good idea. Maybe Mikey will totally freak.

He stepped into the room. His eyes went from Destiny to Livvy. He froze.

“Mikey—” Destiny started.

Mikey took a few steps toward the two girls. He stared suspiciously at Livvy. He stopped a few feet away and studied her.

“Are you real?” he asked finally.

Livvy laughed. “Huh? Am I
what
?”

Mikey narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you real?” he repeated.

Livvy's expression softened. “Yes, Mikey, it's really me.”

She hurried to him and wrapped him in a hug. Mikey burst into tears and began to sob at the top of his lungs.

“It's okay. It's okay,” Livvy whispered, holding him. “It's okay, Mikey. Really. I love you. I still love you.”

Destiny bit her bottom lip to keep from crying too. Would this help the poor little guy? Would it help him to know that Livvy was still around, still his sister, still loved him? Or would it make him even more sad and crazy?

Livvy held him until he stopped crying. Then he backed away from her, rubbing his eyes.

He studied her again. “Can you really fly?”

“No,” she lied. “I'm just me. Really.”

“But don't you fly and bite people in the neck?”

“No. I don't do that. That's
sick
,” Livvy told him. “I…I just had to move out for a while. That's all.”

He thought about what she said. Destiny couldn't tell if he believed Livvy or not.

“Are you coming back? Will you take me swimming?” he asked.

“Someday soon maybe. Not today,” Livvy said.

They talked a while longer, with Livvy reassuring Mikey that she was normal and that someday she'd return. Livvy hugged Mikey again. Then Destiny took him to his room and put him to bed.

When she returned, Livvy stood staring out the window. “I have to go,” she said. She shuddered. “Seeing Mikey…that was really hard.”

“He seemed very happy,” Destiny said. “I think maybe you helped him.” She grabbed her sister's hand. “Don't go, Liv. I won't let you go again.”

“Don't be stupid, Dee. I can't come back here. I've gone too far into the dark world. I can't return—even if I wanted to.”

“Yes, you can,” Destiny insisted. “Dad will find a cure. You
can
come back.”

Livvy pushed Destiny's hand away. “Bye, Dee.”

Her body began to shrink, so fast Destiny could hardly see the transformation. The wings sprouted…the black feathers…the spindly legs hopping on the carpet.

Livvy, a blackbird once again, jumped into the pool of silvery moonlight on the windowsill.

“Don't go! Please don't go!” Destiny shouted. She made a grab for the bird.

But Livvy took off, raised her wings high, and soared into the moonlight. Then she swerved sharply, and vanished into the darkness of the night.

“Don't go. Don't go. Don't go,” Destiny whispered.

So close. I was so close to reaching Livvy, to convincing her to stay. So close…

She spun away from the window when she heard the doorbell downstairs.

She's back. She changed her mind. I
did
reach her!

Destiny raced down the stairs, taking them two at a time. She bolted through the kitchen, into the front hall.

The doorbell rang again.

“I'm coming. I'm coming, Liv.”

Breathlessly, she pulled open the front door.

And stared at Harrison.

“Dee? Are you okay?”

She nodded. Struggled to catch her breath. “I ran the whole way from upstairs,” she explained.

He squinted at her. “Where were you last night? You were supposed to meet me, remember? How come you didn't show?”

“Last night?” Destiny sighed. She pulled him into the house. “Harrison, that's a very long story…”