Ice Cold

11: Questions

Chris

Carlos' smile grew wider and he walked closer to me, the wind gently whipping his cloak around his body. I stood still, praying that I wouldn't lose my human side now. He embraced me as he reached me and I closed my eyes, pleased to have finally seen him again.
     The last time I had seen him had been about two years ago, roughly a year after I was bitten. I still didn't know who it was that had made me this way, but I hated them for it. Carlos had helped me to control myself and make the most of my abilities. He was like my teacher. It was because of him that I had been able to continue with my musical career.
"So...how's my favourite son doing?" He asked with a chuckle. Of course we weren't biologically related but he had been a father figure to me.
"I'm good. Just been continuing with my music."
"Ah yes, I've heard." He said simply, before jumping back down to the ground. I followed after and we both landed lightly on our feet. "Say, could we maybe discuss things further at your house?" He asked suddenly and my eyes widened. I had five humans in that house and he might be peckish. Quickly, I thought up an excuse.
"Uh, I'm redecorating some of my rooms at the moment so I wouldn't really advise you to go in there. It will be finished in about a week though." Carlos didn't look convinced but he didn't question it; instead we started to walk through the woods together.
After a while of just talking and catching up, Carlos turned to me and smiled wryly.
"I've gotta go, Chris. But I'll see you around, alright?" I nodded and he sped off into the trees, faster than I could ever hope to go. I looked up at the sky to see that the moon was disappearing and the sun was beginning to rise. Relief washed over me as I felt myself become human again. Calmly, I walked the remainder of my journey back to my house and sighed, remembering that I had guests staying there. I removed my shirt as there was dirt all over it and tucked it under my arm.
As I walked up to the front door, I remembered that I had escaped out of the window last night and had basically locked myself out. Growling in annoyance, I momentarily turned into a vampire and jumped up to my bedroom window, opening it and sliding smoothly into the room, avoiding the broken glass. But before I knew it, I was inhaling the faint smell of blood; the same scent that I had smelt last night. My keen eyes landed on the source.
A spot of blood on the carpet.
I growled and forced myself to become human again so that I could put it out of my mind. Walking out of the room, I started to go downstairs when a sudden burst of laughter made me jump. Smiling, I recognised it as Scarlett's laugh and crept towards the sound, trying not to come off as a stalker. She laughed again and I peered around the doorframe to see all five of them sitting in my game room, watching some kind of comedy film. They all caught sight of me then and ran towards me, all talking at once. I peered over them at Scarlett who winked at me. But then I saw it.
Two scratches ran down where her neck joined her shoulder.

Scarlett

As soon as Chris saw me, his face lit up and I felt a little cocky. I was definitely his favourite and there was no way that he could deny it. Trying not to laugh at him, I winked and saw his smile grow even wider. But then that expression of complete fear and shock came over his face and I frowned, following his gaze.
The cuts.
I looked back at him curiously but the expression was completely gone from his face, almost as if it hadn't been there in the first place. Now I was really confused. He smiled at me with the same enthusiasm that he had before and I smiled back, but turned away quickly and tried to collect my thoughts.
The others went back to watching the film but I found myself walking from the room and grabbing Chris' arm along the way, dragging him with me. He yelped in surprise and I snorted, tightening my grip. Once we reached his room, I sat down on his bed and forced him to sit next to me. He looked at me and bit his lip sexily but I couldn't let myself become distracted. I was still planning to kill him.
"Where were you last night?" I asked him and I could tell that he had been caught off guard, judging by the slightly uneasy expression on his face.
"Uh...I needed to get some fresh air. I was feeling a little ill." He was obviously lying but I decided not to push it for now. I would get all that I needed from him eventually.
"But how did you get out?"
"I didn't. I hid in the wardrobe until I heard you leave my room and then went downstairs after you guys went back to your rooms." He had obviously been expecting that question but I still didn't completely believe him. There was something off about his whole demeanour today, even though he'd only appeared a couple of minutes ago. After years of probing people for answers and then killing them, I had learnt to read the most subtle body language and the smallest changes in people's facial expressions.
"I'm gonna go back to the game room now." I said softly, not making eye contact with him and slowly making my way from the room. As I reached the door, he spoke.
"How did you get those scratches?" His voice was almost a whisper and I looked back at him to see his dark eyes staring straight into mine, unflinching. With a sigh, I shrugged.
"I think I bumped into one of your cabinets." I said nonchalantly before walking back down the corridor towards the game room. In that split second before I had answered, I had actually contemplated telling him what had really happened. He seemed as if he would understand. But it wouldn't matter after this week if I told him or not.
He'd be dead in a few days.