Surviving Paradise (Full Draft Version)

CHAPTER 31

"Will, get the girls out of here, now please"

CHAPTER 31

Closing her eyes, Allisa laid her head back against the seat.  The sensation of speed without being able to see beyond the blackened windows was much easier to deal with while pretending to be dozing in a normal car.  Just a normal car, in a normal town, like when she was a little girl traveling to or from one of her fathers speeches, asleep in the back seat beside her brother. 

          At first, Ashton had protested Allisa and Jane going along, but under the circumstances, he couldn't very well leave them alone either.  Agreeing that it was best that they stuck close to him, they all piled into Ashton's car and began the random drive.

          Much like earlier when Allisa and Will had not known what to look for when searching the garage, none of them knew where to go to look for Will.  Will had not mentioned any names before taking off, and until now, she had thought that best.  Now however, she wished she knew the name of just one person involved in M.O.V.E.  

          The idea was in her head to call Sayer, after all, he had heard the news of Ashton, news that had begun what was fast feeling like a nightmare, from someone.  Jane and Ashton seemed to think they would find answers from a guy, Russell, who Will had briefly cruised around with before Allisa had come into their lives.  Jane explained that the guy had been weird, and not Will's usual type of friend.

          “Wait here, I will go talk to him.”  Jane fumbled with her car door, and Allisa watched from the back seat as Ashton pulled her back.

          “No way.  YOU wait here.”

          “No WAY.  It's four in the morning, you are a  vampire.  You can't exactly go knocking on doors and expect a peaceful reception!”  Jane tried to tug away, but Ashton held fast.  “Besides, Russell was sweet on me.  He will talk to me, tell me stuff.”

          Allisa popped open her door and leaving the two of them arguing, inhaled a deep breath as she slammed it and eyed the walk to the duplex.  Great.  She didn't know if this Russell lived on the left or right side of the residence.  Resolutely, moving ahead regardless, she slowed when she heard the click of a car door behind her, and it was Jane that caught up to her. 

          Jane veered to the left, and rapped her knuckles on the door of 21A.  A minute passed, and she knocked again harder, getting almost immediate results the second time.  A curtain lifted, and fell.  They both jumped, then blinked when the porch light was switched on.  Slowly the gap of the door widened, and a tall guy in his early twenties came into view. 

          Spiky hair in serious disarray crowned his head, which he poked into a tee shirt as he greeted.  “Hey Jane.  Long time no see.”  Eyes still hooded with sleep swung from Jane to take in Allisa, then back to Jane.  “I've dreamed about this bootie call...”

          “Keep dreaming.”  Jane's quip was sarcastic, but she pulled a sweet smile.  “I'm looking for my brother.  You see him around tonight?”

          “Are you really dating that bloodsucking freak?”  Russell scowled beyond Jane, obviously familiar with a vampire car, and obviously familiar with Ashton.  “Figured you would have dumped him when he became one of them--”

          “My brother!”  Jane side stepped so that she was in his direct view, and instead of continuing the hostility, Russell sighed tiredly.  “Yeah, he was playing cards with the guys at The Hideaway.”

          “Where is he now?”

          “I left.  I don't know.”

          “Who was he with?”  Jane broke in at the same time Allisa demanded the whereabouts of The Hideaway. 

          It took them both a couple of minutes, but they extracted as much information as they could from him.  Ashton walked up and proceeded to do the vampire whammy thing on Russell so that he would not retain that they had questioned him, or the answers he had provided.  Allisa was grateful that Ashton had been wise enough to analyze the possibility and problems of  Russell making a phone call of warning to the rest of M.O.V.E.

          Allisa gave the night sky a quick glance as they all got into the car.  Soon it would be dawn, and Ashton would be at risk every time the car door opened.  The light on her phone was blinking, and anxiously, she grabbed it from the seat, lamenting herself for leaving it behind in the car.  A text from Wills number had come in while they spoke to Russell, and the message made this a meaningless stop.

          “It's an address!”  Allisa thrust the phone up between the front seats  to Jane.  No other content was on the screen.  Just four numbers and a street name.

          “This time I am going alone.  I mean it Jane.  You two stay put.”  Ashton reached across Jane extracting something from the glove box, and Allisa was relieved to see that it was the bottle of sunblock she had left with him.  Jane began to help him smear, and taking the cue, Allisa squeezed a palm full and worked her fingertips over his scalp.

          The goggle glasses were on a band, and he hung them around his neck, then jammed on an Astros cap.  Allisa reminded him to sunblock under his shirt at least, knowing he could not get under his jeans this time, but he waved her concern away declaring there was no time.  This booked no argument from her, since she knew the sun would begin coming up within the next half hour, and also, who knew what was happening to Will with every minute that passed.

          Nervously, they watched as he literally disappeared from their sight, moving lightening fast into the shadows.  Locking the doors, both knew it would be easier for him to not worry over protecting them if they tagged along.  Yet, it was still hard to do.

          To know the guy she loved was in all probability inside that metal building of the address typed into the GPS, or somewhere, being held against his will; to know that he might be hurt, and to sit out here waiting was agonizing.  Although they had passed the destination and parked a block away, it was unsettling to not  even see through the dark tint enough to know if anyone was approaching.  With sweaty hands, Allisa clutched the silver dagger she had grabbed from the kitchen drawer.  Even though they would not be dealing with vampires, the sharp blade was just as lethal to a human.

          The window tint began to lighten enough to know that dawn was on them, and Allisa whispered to Jane, “I can't wait anymore.  Something is wrong.  They should be out!”

          Jane agreed, and just as they had each gathered their protection and their courage to exit, the crack on the glass made them shriek. 

          “Out!  Now!”  The unrecognized voice commanded with another blow against the window.

          Allisa and Jane shared a look.  Thumbing a quick text, Allisa turned her phone to silent, and stuffed it between her clothing and skin. The dagger, she fit between the elastic band of her underwear, and her hip.

          Their only real choices were to try and drive this car blindly away, to remain inside it and wait to be evicted in whatever way this person decided, or to do as he said and get out.

___END CHAPTER 31___