"That sounds swell," she bubbled.
"Sweet Lenora," Mother began one morning several weeks later. "Dear girl, it has come to my attention that you might have eyes for this Swain boy..."
Lenora nearly fainted when she heard her mother say that. It was true, but how could she know? She felt a wild mixture of guilt, fear, and anger in the pit of her stomach. After all, they hadn"t done anything. Well, except for hold hands twice...
Josef! It must be Josef, she thought. Mother must have him spying on me.
She tried to articulate an answer for her mother and was surprised at the unemotional tone she mustered, "Mother, we go to school together...we"ve done nothing untoward."
"Yes, I"m sure that"s true, Lenora. You wouldn"t lie to your mother, dear heart, but I felt I should warn you about these things..."
"Oh, of course, yes, Mother," Lenora said. She halfway listened while her mother spoke about a lady"s character, their station in society, and blah, blah, blah...
"Of course, you are almost seventeen. So, I have decided to let you meet a young man whose position is worthy of your hand. I"ve arranged for him to escort you to the Fall Fair this Sat.u.r.day."
"Oh," Lenora said, shocked by this turn of events. A blind date arranged by her mother? She hoped her feelings weren"t apparent. What about poor Charlie? "Why, who would that be, mother?"
"Jakob Schmidt," Mother replied promptly.
"Why, Mother, I"ve never seen Jakob Schmidt. He doesn"t even go to school..." She had heard about the Schmidt family-everyone had. They were known publicly for their wealth...and discussed in whispers for how reclusive they were.
"That"s because his parents want the best for him, dear. He has private tutors-all from the best universities: Yale, Harvard, Princeton."
"That sounds just fine, Mother," Lenora replied hastily. She didn"t want to arouse any more suspicion in her mother about Charlie. She just hoped that Charlie would understand her predicament.
But Charlie didn"t understand.
He pretended that he did. When Lenora told him that she was going out with Jakob Schmidt to the fair only to appease her mother, he mustered the spirit to keep his head up as he said, "Of course, Lenora...whatever you think is best." She was impressed by his equanimity, evidence of his fine upbringing, but his eyes couldn"t conceal the pain. Lenora bit her lip, looked away, and pretended she didn"t see it.
They had continued to meet at school the rest of the week, but their conversations felt artificial and forced. They lacked the flame that had been burning so brightly before.
Now it was already Sat.u.r.day and Jakob was going to arrive any moment to escort her to the fair. She had thought he would arrive earlier-the sun was already sinking below the horizon-but he had not, which was just as well, since it meant less time she had to spend with him.
It was fully dark before there was the expected knock at the door. Josef magically appeared to allow Jakob entry and she got her first look at this boy n.o.body had ever seen.
He was a living cliche: tall, dark-haired, and handsome. Icy blue eyes gazed out at her from beneath a head of well-manicured hair. His clothes were impeccable, which was no surprise considering her mother"s tastes.
The eyes were the real problem. They were simultaneously riveting and unnerving. She found it hard to look away, as if some malevolent force, or power, compelled her to look into their smoky depths. They stared at each other for what seemed an eternity. Finally, she forced herself to look away by reminding herself about Charlie.
"Lenora, it"s a pleasure." He took her hand and kissed it. His lips were cold.
"Charmed," she replied, trying to be demure. Inside, however, she was already dreading the coming night.
On the surface, Jakob was a gentleman, his manners flawless. When they parked his car, he jumped out and dashed to her side to open the door. He offered his arm as they walked. He led her around puddles. He listened politely if she had something to say.
However, it seemed like a performance, a bad performance, mechanical and poorly rehea.r.s.ed.
Underneath the polished exterior, there was something very dark. It almost felt familiar in a way. The smile on Jakob"s face couldn"t hide the steely, cold glint in his eyes. There was something not right about Jakob Schmidt...
And she couldn"t stop thinking about Charlie.
"So...you don"t go to school."
"No. My parents are very fastidious about every aspect of my education."
"Carlisle High School isn"t good enough?"
"It"s good enough for some pursuits. My parents just have a...different...plan for me."
"What might that be?" She knew that she was pushing the boundaries of acceptable conversation-working and careers were a man"s world-but she couldn"t help herself.
"Running my father"s company. It has...international...requirements."
Lenora almost snorted at that, but she told herself to be good. After all, Mother could make life difficult if she offended her acquaintances. She decided to make an honest effort to be pleasant.
Lenora and Jakob played a few games, danced a little bit, and had some of the food offered at the various booths. If she were with Charlie, it would have been fun. With Jakob, it was drudgery and she was counting down the minutes until she could leave.
Charlie watched Lenora and Jakob from the grove of trees that lay adjacent to the fairgrounds. He wished he could hear what they were saying, but it was too far away, and he didn"t want to risk being seen.
So, as they moved in between the booths and activities, Charlie followed them with his eyes. What he saw left him both relieved and rea.s.sured-Lenora was obviously not having a good time. The casual observer wouldn"t notice it, but Charlie had really come to know Lenora"s little nonverbal cues.
Charlie remained in the shadows, away from the people and crowds, so as not to draw attention. He was very cautious; however, there was one scary moment when he thought he might have been seen.
Jakob and Lenora had just started dancing. Charlie saw Jakob"s hand move down Lenora"s back-far down her back-during the slow number, and he was immediately outraged. "I"ll kill him," he murmured under his breath.
As soon as the words came out, he saw Jakob lift his head and look in his direction. Charlie hugged the tree to his left closely, deep in shadow, and felt certain that Jakob couldn"t see him. It was much too dark and much too far.
Jakob smiled broadly in Charlie"s direction and the hair on Charlie"s neck stood up. He watched Jakob lower his face to Lenora"s neck as they danced.
It was agony to watch and do nothing. The hours pa.s.sed slowly.
"I think it"s probably time for us to leave," Jakob announced.
Lenora tried not to appear as excited as she felt. "Oh, yes, I suppose it is getting late. Mother gets worried..."
"Of course she does," Jakob replied.
They started walking toward Jakob"s car. Lenora felt as if a weight were lifting off her chest. She would soon be free from this prison without bars!
When they reached Jakob"s car, they went to the pa.s.senger side and he opened the door for Lenora. Just as she was about to get in, he pushed it shut and smiled at her.
"I"ve changed my mind. I don"t think I"m taking you home yet."
"What?" Lenora asked. She had never been spoken to this way.
"You heard me, you uppity girl. Who do you think you are? Who do you think you"re talking to?" He grabbed her upper arm and smiled when Lenora grimaced in pain and fear. Then he shoved her backwards into the door of the car.
Lenora began to walk away, but Jakob grabbed her again. She struggled and he slapped her, hard, across the face.
"Stay where you are."
Charlie had been relieved when Jakob and Lenora walked to Jakob"s car. He a.s.sumed the night would end quickly and that he and Lenora could continue on as they were before.
When he saw Jakob hit Lenora, Charlie was instantly filled with white-hot anger, and he thought he might explode. There was a baseball-sized stone at his feet and he picked it up and started off at a trot across the field-turned-parking lot.
Lenora screamed, "Help!"
Jakob backhanded Lenora this time and she was flung immediately to the ground with the force. Her nose and lip were bleeding. When Jakob saw the blood, he dropped to one knee in front of her. She cowered and shrank back but the car tire was blocking all retreat. Jakob reached out his hand and extended his pointer finger. He scooped up some of her blood with his fingertip and slowly stuck his finger into his mouth, just like a child stealing icing from a birthday cake.
He grinned at her, greedily eyeballing the remaining blood on her face, and opened his mouth revealing a sinister set of teeth. Two teeth were sharper and longer than the others. Mother didn"t allow Lenora to see movies, but she had heard snippets of conversation from the kids at school about a movie named Dracula. She knew right away that Jakob was like Bela Lugosi-a vampire.
Then she looked up and saw that Charlie was standing right behind Jakob.
Jakob saw Lenora"s eyes focus above him. In this heightened state-of-being, all of his senses were sharper. He could see the reflection of Charlie in Lenora"s eyes. He could hear Charlie"s heart beating, pushing the blood through his body. Jakob whipped his head quickly around, baring his teeth, hissing loudly like a black panther in the jungle, "Hehhh!"
"Good night, a.s.shole," Charlie said. He had time to register the abnormally long teeth and pale skin as he brought the stone down on Jakob"s head. Jakob dropped to the ground.
"Let"s get out of here." He grabbed her hand and hauled her to her feet. She was shaken, but then again, so was he. "We have to move quickly."
They ran to the other end of the field and jumped into his car. She had wondered what it would be like, to drive alone with Charlie to somewhere dark, but this was not what she had imagined.
Charlie started his car and stomped on the gas pedal. As they pa.s.sed by Jakob"s car, he noticed that Jakob"s body was no longer on the ground.
"Charlie, watch out!" Lenora screamed. Jakob was standing in the middle of the exit in front of them. Charlie swerved, but couldn"t react fast enough. The right front fender landed a direct hit to Jakob"s body and there was a fluttering of clothes and body as he vanished off to the right of the vehicle.
Charlie"s old Buick kicked up a spray of gravel when he hit the main road. He pushed it as fast as it would go-all the way to Lenora"s house.
"Oh, Mother! You won"t believe what happened! Jakob Schmidt tried to attack me! Luckily, Charlie was there to help, or who knows what that...that...animal would have done!"
Charlie and Lenora stood in the doorway of Mother"s chamber, flushed, out of breath from the events of the preceding minutes. They had raced to her house, making it in miraculous time.
Lenora"s mother looked at them from her normal spot beneath her blankets. "Did anyone see you with Charlie?"
"Well, no..." Lenora replied, confused.
There was suddenly a movement so quick that it was almost indiscernible. Lenora"s mother was no longer in bed. She was now standing directly behind Charlie.
It happened with such speed, and was so completely foreign to Lenora, that the only reaction she mustered was a widening of the eyes as she lifted a hand to her mouth involuntarily.
Lenora"s mother reached out with a long, pale hand and grasped Charlie"s neck. Lenora watched as her mother"s fingers sank into Charlie"s flesh, squeezing with an animal-like ferocity. Charlie"s eyes immediately became large, white-and-brown, full moons of surprise. The surprise rapidly turned into pain a moment later.
With a strength and fury that didn"t seem possible, Lenora watched helplessly-in shock really-as her mother took Charlie by his neck and flung him sideways into the mantle. His head connected solidly with a sickening, meaty thud, and blood sprayed across the off-white marble with violent force.
The heavy, iron clock that rested there didn"t so much as tremble with the force. Ironically, it began chiming, signaling Charlie"s end as it had signaled the end of so many morning conversations with Mother.
Bong...Bong...Bong...
Charlie"s body dropped limply to the floor and tears sprang into Lenora"s eyes as she stumbled backward away from her mother.
Bong...Bong...Bong...
"Fool!" her mother hissed at her. "Do you see what you"ve done?"
Bong...Bong...Bong...
A low moan escaped from between Lenora"s trembling lips. Her mother was standing in front of her, teeth revealed. It was impossible not to notice her mother"s incisors. They were long...sharp...extending beyond her other teeth.
Bong...Bong...Bong.
The silence that followed the clock striking twelve o"clock was short-lived. Josef burst through the doorway behind Lenora and bellowed, "Master!"
"Leave this room!" Lenora"s mother commanded. Josef retreated without a word. Lenora watched as her mother thrust an outstretched hand at the doorway; the door closed with a loud bang!
"Sweet Lenora, I wanted you to make the right decision on your own about this. Now, I"m afraid there"s no choice in the matter." She walked briskly over to where Charlie lay prostrate on the floor, knelt down at his side, and pulled the collar back from his neck. She gave Lenora a piercing look and slowly lowered her face to within an inch of Charlie"s carotid artery without taking her eyes from Lenora"s. She opened her mouth slowly-exposing those wicked fangs again-and then in one slow, exquisite movement, she pushed her fangs into Charlie"s neck.
Lenora"s mother stopped watching her and turned her attention fully to engorging herself on Charlie"s blood. Lenora found it repulsive...yet spellbinding. She was horrified-but drawn into it-all at the same time.
Her mother finished feeding and sat back on her haunches. Her pale face was streaked with blood. She looked at Lenora; Lenora looked back. Her mother held out an open hand.
She went forward, dutiful as always, and stood by her mother"s side. She wasn"t surprised when Jakob appeared at her other side even though she hadn"t heard any door, hadn"t heard any footsteps.
Her mother watched her patiently, expectantly, for a moment.
Lenora looked down at her mother"s hand, still extended to her. Mother was offering her the choice.
She reached out and took her mother"s hand, decision made. She would join her mother in the world of darkness. She would eat and drink from the body...
She turned to Jakob, who stared at her in a vulgar way, openly greedy for her. She tilted her head to the right, exposing her neck to him. A small cry escaped her throat when his teeth entered the soft flesh...then she knew black ecstasy.
The following week, Charlie and Lenora were the talk of Carlisle High School. The girls whispered and gossiped. The teachers shushed them-it wasn"t proper to whisper about people-then went on their breaks and whispered to each other.
Did you hear the Swain family just up and left without warning?
Yes, I heard a lawyer is here arranging for the sale of their home.
I would, too, if my son went missing like that...
Did you hear that there was another missing person over in Dillsburg?
Why, that makes for three this month then...not counting the others last year...
I hear that Lenora won"t be coming back to school. You know, I think she was sweet on that Charlie Swain kid. That"s too bad for her...
She was always so sweet...Sweet Lenora.