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One would think that they’d lost every sense they ever had the moment that they stepped into the town of Chlorine. The numbness of it made the rest of Oklahoma seem like a far-off paradise in comparison (which is intriguing, as the state itself is not one that many would describe as a “paradise”). Hayley knew that feeling of dull disdain better than anyone in that excuse of a town.
Unlike the pool cleaner of the same name, Chlorine did not have a smell associated with a fresh summer day. If you were to walk by the one and only main road, your nostrils would be flooded with the suffocating smell of gasoline and spilled oil. The further away from that road, the more everything held a scent of dust and rotten wood.
The sky was gray for half the year, and it was either freezing cold or so humid it was hard to breathe. When the sun did decide to show in the summer, it was always too hot. Asphalt became painful to walk on, and light rays beamed down upon and burned those unfortunate enough to not have sunscreen. Despite the feeling of too-much-ness, Chlorine was like the dull knife at the back of the drawer. It still worked, but it was used just enough to make it an inconvenient hassle. Aside from the weather and smell, the town altogether was too quiet, too dim. The cars were cold molasses on the road, the grass too dim to call it any shade of green. The buzz of overhead shopping mart lights was more intense than any light they were supposed to emit. Most people seemed to talk in a whisper, like they were scared that someone would hear them. Her whole life, Hayley couldn’t help but feel like describing the place that she—unfortunatley—called home as dull. Everything that one could make out from the numbness of Chlorine still sat idle in a sense of dullness. Dull. Plain. Bland. Empty. Void.
Chlorine—the name itself being one of its most interesting qualities, Hayley thought—was unsatisfactory at best, and a trap of which had no escape at worst.
There had always been an itch in the back of Hayley’s brain to run away. To find somewhere, anywhere. Not like a broke highschooler could get very far, though. Most days, she just sat in her room, flip phone high in the air in a desperate attempt to get just one bar of signal. When that didn’t work, she found other ways to entertain herself. Often, she would stand in front of the bathroom mirror, hair dye or scissors in hand, ready to experiment with her hair for the fourth time in a month. It had been a deep orange for a while now, complementing her pale complexion, and was dramatically more shaggy than pin straight hair should be. School, hair, video games. Everyday, always the same.
The rarest occasion, though, was always her favorite. A couple of blocks away, just enough distance to burn her legs whenever she went, was a humble house, much like the rest that filled Chlorine. Inside lived one of the only interesting people in town, Hayley’s best friend (only friend, really, but she didn’t like to think about that), Ray. Raymond, really, but he thought that name was ridiculous, so he had dubbed himself Ray for most of his life. Every week or so, Hayley was able to sneak away for a few hours, not that her parents noticed anyway, to Ray’s house. Most of the time, Hayley just watched as he played some random zombie shooter game, or flipped through a comic book as he rambled on about the lore of it all. They both shared a common interest in video games and comic books, though Ray was the one who always owned the newest addition or console game. Come to think of it, Hayley wasn't even sure how he was able to get any of it at all. For all she knows, he managed to build it all himself, being the nerd that he is.
One Christmas, he gave her his old Nintendo DS. It had a crack through the screen, which is probably why he was getting rid of it, but it played alright. Currently, it was lit up, giving the dark of Ray’s room a blue glow.
“Did you say you’ve beaten this level, what, like three times over?” Hayley was perplexed, getting her eighth ‘GAME OVER’ of the night.
“Oh, yeah,” Ray responded, fiddling with some trinket in the corner of his room, “I had to go to the library to look up how to beat it though. It’s a beast. Try to distract it by hitting the tentacles first, that’s what everyone seems to go for.”
It was eight p.m., cold and dark, and a school night, at that. But fall break was approaching tomorrow, so the stress of homework or studying was far away from the pair of friends. Ray turned on a small lamp, presumably because it was so dark now that no light could even be seen through the window. Hayley’s lit up face was no longer the only light source in the room, everything now given a warm wash of dim light from the lamp.
For the ninth time, the screen of the handheld console went dark, with big red letters in the center, spelling out her defeat. She sighed, getting up from her slouched position on the floor, heading for Ray’s bubble. Cracking his fingers, he looked up at her from his distraction, continuing their previous mumbled conversation.
“What’s up, did you get it?” His voice cracked a little every time he spoke, giving him a quality that made him seem much younger than he looked. Ray had always been taller than most people, Hayley especially. He had a good foot on her when they were little, and that still hadn’t changed. He had brown curls that came down to the middle of his neck, and a build that would make an 80s bully nervous and walk directly away from him. Despite his stature, Hayley assumed that he must have been the nerdiest person at their high school. The juxtaposition of it all was enough to make someone laugh, even in Chlorine.
“No, I was actually planning on leaving,” Hayley replied, and Ray’s face drooped in what she presumed to be sadness, “It’s late, Ray, I need to get home.” Hayley could see what he was tinkering with now as she spoke. It was a small piece of metal, in the shape of a crucifix. She didn’t take Ray to be the religious type, so even this small charm was out of place. She shrugged it off as some merchandise for a game, or maybe a band—Hayley couldn’t even begin to name all of the discographies that Ray had memorized—, as she continued, “But, hey, one more day and then it’s fall break, so, that’s nice,” Ray pumped his fists in the air as she spoke to show enthusiasm, “Maybe I’ll come over tomorrow, or something, try to beat that level.” She sat the gifted DS down on his dresser, continuing, “I’ll just leave it here, so I have a reason to come back.” She pursed her lips together in an attempt to look bored with Ray. He smiled, rolling his eyes.
“Oh, you know you love me.” The fake arrogance in Ray’s voice was strong.
“Do not.” She crossed her arms now, imitation of annoyance spreading through her entirety.
“Yeah right,” He got up as he continued, “Hey, do you wanna borrow my bike? Now that I’m thinking about it, it is pretty dark out there.”
She thought about this offer for a moment, but ultimately replied, “Nah, it’s okay. Not like my house is very far.”
“Okay. Be safe. I’ll see you tomorrow at school?”
“Don’t count on it, Raymond.”
—
Every school day was roughly the same dragging routine for Hayley: Get up, do whatever it is that people do in the morning, go to school, come home, drone away for two hours, eat, shower, go to bed. Rinse and repeat.
But today was exciting for everyone in school. The first break off was going to be today, as soon as that last dreaded bell rang. When it finally came, she swore she saw underclassmen sprinting home, jittery and excited to do whatever they had planned. It surprised her, though, to see Ray in a mood that was similar to everyone running. He had a big smile on his face, as he approached Hayley outside the front doors of the school. She sighed.
“What have you discovered this time, Ray.” Her tone was flat but her face was concerned. Usually when Ray had a face like that, it meant that he was up to no good, and that Hayley was involved.
“Not what I’ve discovered Hayley, no. But rather, something that has been ignored by everyone in this town.”
That piqued her interest. She couldn’t imagine anything in Chlorine that would have Ray as excited as he was now. She quirked an eyebrow.
“Go on.”
“Okay, so, remember those stories that everyone told in elementary school?” He started walking in the direction of his house, so Hayley followed.
“Oh. Yeah, I do actually.”
If there was anything else interesting about Chlorine besides its name, it would be the things about it that weren’t even real. Stories, myths, legends, and rumors had always been spread by the kids of Chlorine, mostly hearing a paranoid truth from their parents and twisting it into a fantastical story of sorts.
“Good. Well I was just thinking about them all recently, and how no one really ever sought after them, or tried to disprove them.” He was starting to talk with his hands now, something that he often did when he was deep in conversation.
“I don’t like where this is going.”
“Just hear me out. Okay, remember the one about the vampire?”
Vampire?
Hayley racked her memory, searching for a hint of the words described. She remembered a memory with Ray at the playground, they couldn’t have been older than five. A kid, maybe a couple years older than them, came up to them as they were probably eating the grass or something, and began to talk about his favorite monsters. Kids do that sometimes; they see a new show or movie and decide to talk about it for the next week straight.
He brought up the commonly known legends and tales of monsters: Bigfoot, lochness monster, and the likes.
“But did you know that there’s a vampire that lives right here in Chlorine?”
Hayley and Ray had laughed at that, but wanted to listen to his story, because well, they were five, and who didn’t want to hear a cool monster tale?
“They say that there’s a church outside town that a vampire lives in. He used to be the priest there, but then he did something terrible. The church was abandoned. The priest went missing, and no one could find him. After years, people forgot about him, didn’t care anymore. But people say that if you look close enough through the rough of the trees, you’ll see a figure, feeding off the souls of those unfortunate enough to cross his threshold!”
The kid jumped towards them at the end of his story, earning screams from the both of them.
In the present, Hayley recalled that the story didn’t even really make much sense. How did he become a vampire? Why was the church abandoned? There were other versions of the story that she had heard later on, but they all seemed to have plot holes like any old tale would.
However, all of the stories were based on some truth. There really was an old church outside of town, abandoned in favor of the many churches that resided inside Chlorine, closer to all of the residents. Hayley had never heard of anyone going to the church since it was abandoned. They all probably believed the story as much as they didn’t want to. She felt like she believed it a little, too. Maybe she just wanted something to believe in.
“Yeah, I remember that one.” They were now approaching Ray’s house, cutting short the conversation that had barely started.
“Hmm,” Ray seemed discontent with the fact that his rambling was interrupted, “Meet me at my place at nine p.m., we’ll talk more then.” With that, he walked into the front entrance of his home, disappearing along with the mystery of his unknown plan.
—
Hayley’s house was much like Ray’s home, in the way that it was boring and looked identical to all other living spaces in Chlorine: old, worn-down, and could use a new paint job. The inside was similarly ugly, but not for the appearance of the house itself, but rather who lived inside of it. She had two parents, a mom and a dad, and a little brother, whom she outnumbered by a decade. She had always envied him. Her parents seemed to envy him too, even before he was born. They had always wanted a little boy, and Hayley, to them, just seemed to be an inhibitor in the reaction that was their family tree.
Nobody gave her any mind when she walked in. Her parents were probably distracted by their son, or cooking, or maybe they weren’t distracted at all, and just didn’t feel like saying hello. That was usually the case.
Her room was the best part of coming home; it was a space adorned with posters, lamps, and various shelves with trinkets that her parents wouldn’t recognize. It was a safe space, yet drew her in like a moth to a flame. She didn’t feel like going anywhere most of the time, thus her safe space becoming her only space.
It felt like this too often. Too often did she sit around all day waiting for something to happen. Too often did she wait for the interesting things to come to her, as if anything cool would just show up at your doorstep in Chlorine. Too often, life felt as if it had nothing to offer, as if it just stared at her in wait.
After seventeen long years, she was sick of waiting for the adventure to come to her.
—
When nine p.m. finally rolled around, Hayley had already been walking to Ray’s house for five minutes. She wasn’t sure why, but something about the way that Ray was going about the story of Chlorine’s vampire made her feel like something was going to happen. Maybe that wasn’t the case; maybe Ray was just giving some background so that he could introduce her to a new game franchise, or something. But still, her gut gave way to a feeling of weariness as she approached his home.
As if he had been waiting just inside the door for her, Ray opened it and appeared just as Hayley raised her arm to knock. She remembered in stories how vampires needed to be invited in to be able to enter a home or inhabited place. She wondered if Ray was thinking the same thing.
Ray’s room looked practically identical to the way it had the previous day: messy bed, various game disks and cartridges placed randomly about, and plenty of posters and figures of their respective franchises. However, there were some new additions since she had last been here: Two satchels lay on the floor, old and leather. A cardboard box labeled ‘SUPPLIES’ lay next to the bags, along with a couple of water bottles and some snacks. The window was open, letting the air and light of the outside in. His room smelled strongly of rose incense, making Hayley sneeze upon entry. He had obviously been up to something the past few hours.
“So…I’d assume this had to do with the vampire story?” Hayley bent over to inspect the satchels on the ground, picking one up as she spoke, “What exactly are you planning?”
“Well,” Ray replied, “you always wanted to get away, right? What if we went on an adventure, if only for a couple days. Would you be up to that?”
Hayley remembered the many times she had discussed in detail how she would get out of Chlorine. How badly she needed to leave. She had always thought that if she didn’t get out soon, she never would. Chlorine was unsatisfactory at best, and a trap of which had no escape at worst. Ray thought the same. She wondered how no one else saw how everyone in this town was trapped, and how they all didn’t seem to mind. It was as if they were a herd of sheep in a field of their own unconsciousness. She knew that if she didn’t take up Ray’s offer, she would never take up anything again. Her town would become a nest of worms that fed on her livelihood, on her entire being. She would die in Chlorine if she didn’t act now.
“You know my answer already, Ray.”
“Yes?”
“Abosolutley.”
—
The plan was as simple as any drawn out plan could be: it wasn’t. Fall break was two days long, not counting Saturday and Sunday. It was Wednesday night, which didn’t give much allowance for waiting around for days to make the plan work. Ray had seemingly already gotten plenty of supplies, which cut down on planning significantly. In the middle of explaining, though, Ray had said something that stopped Hayley in her train of thought.
“Did you just say vampire hunting? Ray, you cannot be serious. I thought we were just going to the old church.”
“Well, if there is a vampire, which I know there will be, shouldn’t we get rid of it?”
When he put it that way, she supposed it made sense. She would go on the journey regardless of what would happen, anyway.
“Okay, anyway,” Ray continued, “I have almost everything we need, but I need you to go get some of the things that are missing.” He had a notebook and pen in hand, which seemed to be the list of things that anyone would need when they went on an ordeal to kill a vampire. He paused, looking up from his writing, “Your parents won’t mind you being gone, will they? You could just say that you’re staying at my place, or something.” Hayley thought back to all of the times she had stayed late at school to work on a project, or gone out late to take a walk. Every time she arrived back at the house, she almost hoped that there would be someone there waiting to get on to her, to ask her where she had been. Ten times out of ten, though, no one had shown up. She would just silently enter the house that was called a home by everyone but her, and go on with her life, alone. She answered Ray, quietly, “No, I don’t think they’ll mind. They usually don’t.”
—
When Ray finished devising his plan, the outside was quiet, the only thing heard being the crickets in the dead grass. He had instructed Hayley to find the remaining items on the list, that being a mirror and two water guns. He had originally also asked for the string of beads that connects to a rosary, but neither of them owned that, Ray only had the crucifix that attached to the bottom of one. It was the same crucifix that he had been messing with the previous night, she remembered as he showed it to her, the weight of it making her hand drop in unexpectancy. For how small the thing was, it certainly had some quality to it. It was definitely handmade, and Hayley could only wonder where it came from.
After the rosary bead conflict was discarded in favor of time, Hayley was sent home to hopefully find what they needed. When she arrived, her parents were sitting in the living room, probably watching propaganda on the news or some old reality television show. Her little brother was in the kitchen getting water. It was perfect, she thought. Nobody would notice her sifting through the house and then leaving. Ray had said to meet him back at his house when she was done, preferably at midnight, and they would start whatever the next leg of the plan was after preparation.
She started in the bathroom in the search of a mirror. For a split second, she considered shattering the mirror on the wall, but that was reckless, and she was more sensible than that. So, she decided that the drawers were her best bet. After the third drawer, and almost giving up, she saw a twinkle of metal in the back corner, dressed with shadows. A handheld mirror lay untouched in this drawer, and Hayley was surprised that she hadn’t found it and taken it earlier; it was very beautiful. She assumed that it had to have been her mother’s, but for all she knew it could’ve been there from the previous owners of the house decades ago. It was about as big as her hand, with a nice handle laden with lovely swirls and lines that must have taken hours to carve. She assumed it was made out of real silver, with the quality of it. Her reflection was blurry in the middle of it, the surface scratched and worn down. It would make do, she thought.
The next thing to get was two water guns. The idea sounded silly to Hayley, but Ray was dead set on putting holy water in water guns for protection. Where did he get the holy water? He must have been planning this trip for months, the little schemer.
The only room that could possibly have water guns was her little brother’s room. She avoided it as often as she could. She hated that she felt this way about him, but it was hard not to with the way she was treated, or rather, not treated. There was a bin full of various toys. She knew that there had to be some water guns somewhere in here, it was inevitable with the variety that the box held. Her entire forearms disappeared as they worked their way through the box, without eyes to see where they were going. Finally, she reached the bottom, where the bigger and less used toys sat. She thought she felt a toy dinosaur, maybe some cars, and then her hands scraped smooth plastic that was unmistakable. She grabbed what she was feeling in each hand, and pulled them up. Two water guns, one red one blue, sat in each hand, waiting for a summer that they would hopefully be used for.
Hayley carried them, along with the delicate mirror, into her room. She had one hour of time to think. Ray’s plan was carefully constructed when she had heard it, so she could only hope that everything went well. The hardest part would be leaving unnoticed, she thought. One hour, to slip away. No big deal.
She took a shower first. If this whole vampire thing was going to be real, she wanted to be clean to discover it. She put on a fresh set of clothes; a tank top and some shorts seemed like they’d be the most comfortable, but she added a zip up jacket because of the cold bite of the autumn air. She only had one good pair of sneakers, and the word ‘good’ was pushing it, but they would have to do. The mirror was delicate, and Hayley didn’t want to risk breaking it, so she found some thin rope—probably from some old school project—and strapped it to a newly added belt. She racked her brain for anything else that could be helpful. First aid kit? She wasn’t even sure if her family owned one of them.
The bathroom cabinet was dusty and smelled of cherry cough syrup. Hayley’s hands dug through the various expired stomach medicine and empty pill bottles. And there it was: a small, clear box, with a couple bandaids, some bandage wrap, and an ointment packet. It was a miracle that this even existed within the boundaries of the house. Putting aside the fact that she had never seen this kit in her life, she hooked it to the other side of her belt with a string that was attached to one edge of it.
Hayley was about to leave the bathroom, when she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. Jacket, tank top, shorts, shoes, medical kit, and mirror. At seventeen years old, Hayley was going to be on a hunt for a vampire within the next few hours. This was definitely a good idea.
—
At eleven thirty-nine p.m., Hayley knocked on Ray’s window. She was instructed not to go to the front, just in case anyone saw her. She thought this was a dramatic precaution, as Ray’s parents were away on business, but she followed the instructions anyway.
Getting out of her own house had been easy enough. Mom was in bed, sound asleep after drifting off to a movie with her son, and her dad was on the couch in the living room, snoring soundly when the newspaper became too boring. The front door always creaked when it was open, and she had never thought about fixing it until the night it became important. Nobody noticed, though, and she slipped away, crossing the threshold of what was holding her back to a future of which had an unknown fate.
Ray opened the window quickly, allowing Hayley access to his room. He, similarly to Hayley, had changed and accessorized with tools. She assumed he was equipped mostly with items from the supplies box from earlier. He was wearing a regular t-shirt and jeans, along with a beat up pair of shoes. Along his midsection was a strap that held a wooden stake across his back. There was a holster strapped to his leg, empty, presumably for the water gun. He also wore a belt, and tucked into it was a single rose and the crucifix missing its rosary beads.
“So, you get what we needed?”
“Yeah, wasn’t too hard.” She gestured vaguely at her newest items, and Ray nodded.
“Sweet. Okay, let's get geared up. I’m basically done, but you’ll need the rest of the supplies, too.”
Ray started off by handing her the satchel—of which Ray was putting on one of similar size and shape—she had seen earlier. It was a nicer leather; she could feel the smoothness of it as she put it on. Inside of it were two water bottles, a flashlight, and some snacks. He also handed her a ten dollar bill. She wasn’t sure how far it would get them, or if they’d even need it, but twenty dollars between the both of them could come in handy, who knows. She decided to put the first-aid kit in there as well, afraid of losing it if she kept it where it was. The mirror seemed snug, though, so it stayed on her belt. She looked up from her new bag to see Ray approaching with another item. A jug, full of what seemed to be water.
“Here, hand me the water guns,” he said, unscrewing the cap, “I figure holy water will be less of a hassle to transport if I don’t have to lug this thing around.”
She handed over the two water guns while she questioned, “Where do you even manage to find holy water, Ray?”
“Oh, this? Well I had that little vile ever since I was a kid,” He waved in the general direction of his room behind him, signaling Hayley’s eyes to a small glass vial with a cross engraved on it, “and I read online somewhere that holy water can’t be diluted if you add certain amounts of regular water to it,” he began filling the first water gun now, careful not as to not spill it, “so for the past few weeks I’ve just been adding water to it to get more. I’d say it worked pretty well, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, that’s actually pretty cool.” Hayley walked towards the small empty bottle that once held blessed water. It fit nicely in her palm, small enough to be lost, but big enough to feel important. She asked, “Hey, do you mind if I bring it with us? I think I still have room in my bag.”
“Sure, I don’t mind,” he said, filling it up quickly before moving on the second water gun, and handed the first to Hayley so she could equip herself with it, “I have a makeshift holster for you over on the bed for the gun, if you’d like.”
Sure enough, a holster made of what looked like scrap fabric and metal clips sat, waiting for her. It was pretty cool that Ray was able to make something like this. She hooked it onto her right thigh, and it fit well. She attached the water gun to the compartment made for it, and she felt quite complete.
Ray had a body-long mirror on his bedroom door, and Hayley couldn’t help but check out the completed gear she sported. With the new bag, water gun and holster, and Ray by her side, she felt ready. It was interesting to look at herself in a way that was different from the norm of her appearance. It felt as if her outward appearance had shifted what she felt within; a new light of hope shined within her, one that was stronger than before. She thought that maybe, this journey really would be her escape from Chlorine.
—
By one a.m., they were adequately ready for whatever the journey ahead of them held. Well, that’s what Hayley had thought, until Ray gasped in alarm when they were only about twenty feet away from the front door of his home. Hayley jumped in surprise.
“Don’t gasp like that Ray, it’s freaky out here!” She punched his arm.
“Ow, hey I’m sorry! It’s just that I forgot something that could be really important.”
“That’s fine, let’s just go back in and get it, okay?”
“Well, that’s the problem.” Ray’s voice got higher towards the end of the sentence, like Hayley might punch him again.
“What?” Hayley couldn’t even think what they had been missing. Ray even brought along a rose, of which Hayley wasn’t even aware that it was a weakness to vampires.
“We don’t have any garlic.” Ray closed his eyes and looked down, as if he was more disappointed in his lack of foresight than anything else. Garlic. Of course.
Hayley figured that twenty bucks would come in handy after all.
—
Most twenty-four hour convenience stores usually have a grace period where no customers feel the need to purchase anything. That period was often late into the night, or early in the morning. That was always the case for the small grocery store in Chlorine. Not today, though.
Hayley always felt bad for the employees who worked the graveyard shift. Once, she had stayed until midnight at her school to help with setting up prom. When she went outside for a break, the atmosphere was dark, desolate, and anything but welcoming. It must have been hell to do that everyday. So, she could only hope that the pair’s late night intrusion was somewhat of a break for the minimum wage working teenager at the cash register.
The bell atop the double glass doors rang as they walked in, signaling their arrival. Since Chlorine was so small, it only took around ten minutes to speed to the humble store from Ray’s house. It had a decent amount of produce available for sale, despite half of it being almost unsafe for human consumption. They made a beeline for the vegetables, trying to take into account the time crunch that they were in. Hidden between sacks of potatoes and bundles of cilantro laid a single net of garlic. Ray snatched it up immediately, not bothering to check prices. Capitalism didn’t matter in the face of a superstitious vampire hunting journey.
When Hayley and Ray made their way towards the register, the employee working looked about as happy as everyone else in Chlorine: sunken in eyes, tousled and unwashed hair, and a mouth that hadn’t opened or smiled in hours. Ray placed the garlic down on the conveyor belt, and the two, no, the three of them watched in silence as it crept up to the worker’s scanning device.
One would think they were a part of some sitcom if they were to walk into that lonely store right now. Ray, with a wooden stake on his back, rose in belt, and water gun to his leg. Hayley, with a similar water gun, a mirror, and the cadence only held by those in a shop too late at night. The employee, not having slept in hours, probably makes seven bucks an hour on a good day, probably dissociating through the night. And on top of all that, they were buying garlic. How cliche could this get?
“Ever heard of vampires?” Ray asks, a little too enthusiastic in his battle gear. It could get very cliche, Hayley decided, as they paid for their eight dollar garlic (inflation got to even the last bag of garlic in Chlorine, Hayley thought), and they left in a quiet hurry.
—
It was two a.m. now, the newly bought garlic strung to Ray’s belt, both of their flashlights buzzed and flickered into the darkness of the street ahead of them. Despite how all-knowing Hayley felt of Chlorine, she realized how little of it she truly had explored. They started to turn down streets that she didn’t recognize, and saw street cats she had never given a gentle scratch. It was even more unrecognizable with the darkness that enveloped them, the unseen leaves under their feet giving a startling crunch every few seconds. Ray seemed to know where the direction of the church they were heading for was, as he had confidence in his step, already sipping on some of his water. For a while as they walked, Hayley thought that the pair might actually be over-equipped. Two water bottles each? It didn’t feel like it had been very long, and yet they had gotten far into the unknown depths of Chlorine. Still, she appreciated the effort that Ray put into the foresight of needing food and water to keep them energized as she reached for a granola bar from her bag.
Hayley knew of the vastness of the forest surrounding Chlorine that awaited them. Any resident who looked outside their front porch could see the dark green of the trees poking out from behind every ridge and corner of the town. She was pretty sure that it stretched out ten miles wide in every direction, although that might have been a dramatization from her childhood.
As Hayley calculated in her head how long the journey had taken thus far, and how long it would continue to take, Ray updated her on the status of their location.
“Okay, it’s been, what, twenty minutes since the store? Well, in that case,” Ray not knowing the time made it occur to Hayley that they had not considered any form of watch to keep track of the time, an oversight that was honestly embarrassing as Ray droned on, “I’d say it’ll be another hour until we reach the edge of the forest. How are you holding up, Hayley?”
“I’m alright,” She rolled her tongue over her teeth as she thought quietly, then speaking her ideas outloud, “I was thinking about the rest of our money, actually. Isn’t there a little cafe near the forest? It’s the one that no one goes to, because it’s so close to that church.”
“Good thinking, man. I’m not sure when it opens, but coffee sounds nice. Maybe we can check it out.”
“Yeah, it could be cool.” Hayley kicked a rock, ending the conversation and continuing the grueling silence of the night.
One of the only good—or rather, not completely quiet or boring—memories that Hayley had of her parents involved coffee. She never liked it very much, always preferring an energy drink or straight up cold water when she was trying to stay up. One day, when she was only five, years before her brother would become the favorite, she got too curious about what her parents drank in the morning. It looked just like the hot chocolate they gave her when it was too cold out, only, it smelled darker, earthier. Her mother had abandoned her mug on the small kitchen island, giving Hayley access to it without consequence. She reached out for it, the mug still warm in her small hands. Tasting it, she wasn’t sure how her parents drank it every morning. It had been the nastiest thing that five year old Hayley had ever tasted, up there with cherry medicine. For years after, she had never dared to take another sip of it, remembering the bitter taste in her mouth. It was a memory that put a smile on Hayley’s lips in the present, making her wish she had brought chapstick on the journey, too. By the time she had finished reminiscing, the pair had somehow managed to wind up less than a mile away from the edge of dense forest. A glow in the distance of the only open sign for miles blinded Ray and Hayley’s vision. Ray looked to Hayley. Must be the cafe, he seemed to see with his eyes. They picked up the pace, hearts set on something fresh to enjoy for the night.
—
When the two approached the cafe, they could see it was unlike most things in Chlorine. It was not only open in the dead of night, but it was brighter, and there seemed to be a buzz of life on the inside. The sign along the front roof of the small building read as ‘DEIFIED CAFE’ and, underneath in smaller lettering, ‘Open 12 a.m. to 5 a.m.’ The hours were odd, Hayley thought, but there had been plenty of times when gas stations had been opened at odd hours, too. Heading inside, she was surprised that she had never come here before. It seemed like the type of place she would like, and it certainly stuck out of the grayness of Chlorine like a sore thumb. The inside was warm, a nice contrast to the cold of the black sky. Decor covered every wall; it was mostly religious paraphernalia, not a shock compared to the rest of the town. On the back wall behind the front counter was a large wooden cross, smooth and polished. An odd choice despite the rest of the symbolism. There was music playing from somewhere, probably a hidden speaker from a back room, and it was unlike anything that Hayley had heard. Ray moved his head a little to the rhythm as he also looked around, as if he just barely recognized the mysterious tune.
Only two people filled the shop, Hayley presumed that they must have been the owners. Everyone in Chlorine knew each other, even if they didn’t want to, but this pair was unfamiliar to Hayley and presumably Ray, too. They consisted of two men, both probably around the same age, maybe mid twenties. The one that looked a bit older had shaggy black hair, directly contrasting his pale skin. His eyes were lined with black eyeliner that was smudged and worn. His outfit was similarly monochromatic, black jeans and a plain black t-shirt. The other man was a bit taller than him, but younger in the face. He had lighter brown hair, straightened and hairsprayed down the length of his jawline. A black beanie covered most of his head, and his outfit was more visually styled than the other man; he had the same black jeans, but they were flared towards the bottom, and he had a jacket on with some band tee underneath. He had thin white glasses perched on the end of his nose, and it seemed like the two might have been related. It was something about their eyes, Hayley thought.
“Hey, welcome in.” The shorter man spoke, his voice raspier than expected. It had that fry to it that one could only get from cigarettes, or talking for hours on end.
“Hello.” Ray spoke for both of them, as Hayley was still caught up in the details of the shop. It was smaller than it looked from the outside, maybe being about the size of one of her classrooms at school. The cafe seemed to be themed around spiritual things; besides the strong scent of coffee, there was a hint of something else, maybe some candles being burned out of sight. Overall, it was a lovely place to rest for a while, and Hayley was glad that her brain could get a rest, too. It definitely needed some new found energy in the form of a warm drink.
“Can we get you anything? We have coffee, tea, and a smoothie special.” As the shorter man spoke, Hayley took a look at the menu items. As well as the religious aspects, the cafe seemed to have an overall gothic theme to it. The smoothie special that he referred to was called ‘Rose Blood,’ and all of the coffees started with ‘Our Lady of’ followed by a different word for each respective drink. The teas were all unique, one called ‘Red Death,’ another named ‘Mary’s Tears.’ Hayley found it interesting that the cafe was so focused on all these themes, considering the journey at hand.
“Sure,” Hayley spoke up for the first time, “I’ll get the Our Lady of Sorrows, please.” The drink was a unique blend of coffee infused with a drop of holy water, beet juice to give it a blood color, and dried lilies sprinkled on top. The taller and quieter man started working on the drink, while the other took Ray’s order.
“Could I get the Cadaver?”
“That’s a good one. Not many people order it.” The man at the counter said. Hayley wasn’t surprised. The drink Ray landed on was a black tea that had coconut milk poured on top, yet again with dried flowers; only this time, it was lavender, giving the drink a sickly pale purple color to match the strangeness of the name. While they waited on the drinks to be ready, the man who took their orders made small talk.
“So, what brings you here? Pretty late for some school kids.” He tapped his fingers on the counter to the tune of the muffled music.
“Well, we are on our way somewhere on foot,” Ray answered, “And we figured we could use some extra energy for the road.”
“Interesting. And your names are?”
“I’m Ray, and that’s Hayley.” Hayley offered a smile when he said her name, as if to say yes, that’s me.
“That’s cool. I’m Gerard,” He pointed behind himself to the man fiddling with various ingredients, “and that’s my brother Michael. Ray is a pretty solid name, you know.” So they were brothers. It must be weird working with your sibling, she thought. They must have been pretty close in order to tolerate working with each other.
“Aw, thanks man!” Hayley was sure that Ray would find his mother when they returned from their journey, and prove to her that Ray is much more fitting than Raymond.
“Yeah, of course. I think it means ‘protector,’ or something like that.”
As Hayley was about to ask what her name meant, Michael came up to hand them their respective drinks.
“Thank you,” She took the coffee in her hands, feeling the warmth of the liquid immediately, “how much do we owe you?”
“Oh, nothing,” Gerard said, “if you tell us the story of your journey.”
This pair really was odd, Hayley concluded. Everyone that she had ever talked to in Chlorine, save for Ray, always preferred for any reaction to be over with as soon as it could be. No unnecessary small talk, no unwanted banter, and that was how it had been for years. If you attended a Sunday morning church service, you’d quickly find out that everyone walked straight out the doors as soon as the priest said the last ‘amen.’ So for this man–Gerard–to want to know more? It felt like he was from somewhere else entirely. Somewhere that certainly wasn’t Chlorine, Oklahoma.
“Sure, we can do that.”
So, they started from the beginning. How it was fall break, the childhood stories, and the sense for adventure. By the end, all four of them were sitting down at the same table, cups that were once full now empty, and two strangers who now knew more about Hayley and Ray than anyone else they had ever known. But something about the glint in Gerard’s eyes, and the slightly distant and concerned mood of Michael, offset Hayley. The fact that no one else had walked in the small shop during this time, the religious imagery, the odd open hours, it all seemed oddly coincidental.
“How about you? Surely you’ve heard about the stories of Chlorine.” Hayley examined. If anything, the two across from Hayley and Ray looked a lot more like vampire hunters than they did. Gerard and Michael looked at each other, before Gerard responded, “Yeah, we have. And we know that they aren’t just stories. We think we might be able to help you guys out a little.”
—
Four a.m. The cafe closes at five, but the ‘OPEN’ sign had been turned off for the past two hours in favor of Hayley and Ray’s explanation and what would follow. For the past twenty minutes, Gerard had been in the back room, saying that he was gathering some stuff for them. Michael was cleaning the kitchen area with vigor, possibly stressed by the thought of two teenagers going out in the night to fight a vampire that he seemed to believe was real. After what felt like ages, and another complimentary, or perhaps an I feel bad that you have been waiting so long for my brother, drink from Michael, Gerard emerged from the small closet type room at the back of the building, holding several items.
“Okay, since you guys told us your story, I feel the need to do some explaining on our part,” He slammed a large leather-bound book down on the small booth table they sat at, causing a layer of dust to fly in the air, “You two are obviously aware of the story of the vampire, but no one ever really knew how it came to be. There were many different versions of the falling of the church, right?”
“Yes, definitely. That’s why I was always skeptical of it.” Hayley provided, as Gerard sat down to tell them more.
“Well, me and Michael know the origins. Or at least, what the origins seem to be, according to this book.” He swept the additional he brought off to the side, allowing the book to be opened.
Our great grandfather was a priest at that church outside of town in the 1910s,” Michael chimed in quietly, “this book is a collection of his time there, a journal of sorts.”
“Pretty big journal.” Ray added.
“Yeah, really. Anyway,” Gerard flipped to the very end of the book landing on a page that was filled with small cursive lettering, “these were his final entries in the book. The few pages left after are all blank. When I was little, I found this book tucked away in the attic of our house, and it has consumed me ever since. I’m pretty sure I’ve read the whole thing ten times over, but I’ve looked at this entry in particular hundreds of times.” Gerard flipped the book around, allowing Ray and Hayley to read the page.
—
Priest Helena
September 28th, 1911
Today marks the third Saturday that Father Francis attended confession. I can only wonder what a priest is doing at their own church’s confessional. He has been acting odd lately, I have made a point to tell the elders soon. I am no gossiper, and I do not intend to be. Lord forgive me if I come off that way. I just want the best for the people that worship with me, and Francis has no right to do harm unto others.
The first Saturday, I had led the confessional. The voice on the other side was familiar. They spoke of their ill thoughts, how the church was tiring. I prayed. The next morning, Francis did not once look me in the eye.
The next Saturday, I was assigned to bless the church. This happens once a year. I was pacing around the confession booth whispering prayers and sprinkling holy water, as is common in blessing the sanctuary. Rounding the front, I realized that Francis was in one of the booths. I am no eavesdropper, but I swear to the Lord of Heaven and Earth that Francis hissed as the holy water dropped into his respective booth. Forgive me Lord if this is false.
Those times I had pushed away his behavior. I prayed for him. But today, he sat in the confession booth for his final time. Lord, I will not write what he confessed. I feel that repeating it will cause a bad omen. Maybe even just mentioning this now is bad. Forgive me. I will speak to the elders tomorrow.
—
“So is there really no account of what Francis confessed?” In the present, Ray was confused. Hayley was in a similar state, eyebrows furrowed and rereading the entry.
“No, there isn’t. But there is another entry written on the same day after this one. Take a look.” Gerard urged them to look at the final pieces of writing inside the book.
—
Priest Helena
September 28th, 1911
Heaven help us, Lord. The church has been burned. Father Francis has gone missing. I write from a world that is cruel, a world that does not know you, Lord. Something has gone terribly wrong. Francis spoke of the evil that haunts him before he left hours ago. I tried to tell the elders of him, I tried. The flames were too hot for any recognition of words to seep through. Forgive me.
—
The entry ended there, the bottom of the page slightly browned, presumably from fire.
“That’s it?” Hayley said, confused.
“Yes, that’s it.” Michael shut the book for them, taking it back to where it was brought out, as Gerard spoke to them.
“I am sorry that there are no accounts of what happened to Francis. I can only hope that this gives you more knowledge on your journey.” He looked a bit saddened as he spoke, giving the pair in front of him a sense of a man who has spent his life figuring this out.
“Helena. Did he…?” Ray asked a seemingly incomplete question, but Gerard knew what he meant.
“He died in the fire. Along with the rest of the church.”
“That sucks.”
Silence, for a beat.
“Well. Thank you, anyway, despite the missing information. You can come along, if you’d like. We could use an extra set of hands.” Hayley replied. Ray looked slightly panicked with the knowledge that he had not brought extra supplies in anticipation of meeting anyone along their journey.
“No, that’s alright. I think my destiny lies here. But, I do have some things that you might find useful. Maybe I could still help in a different way.”
“It’s okay, you don’t have to do that. We’ll get out of your hair.” Ray was about to get up from his seat, but Gerard interrupted him.
“No, no, I don’t mind. This has been a huge part of me, I would love to make sure you guys feel safe. Well, as safe as you can get, you know?”
“Okay, then. Thanks,” Hayley was very appreciative of this duo. This all felt like a memory, a small bottle in the vast ocean that is her brain, “what do you have?”
“Well,” Gerard provided, shifting the small, previously discarded trinkets back over to the center of the table, “I figured you guys could pick something. Feels like that would work out better, anyway.”
There were five items that were laid out on the table for Hayley and Ray to choose from. One of them was a rose, another was a vile of holy water. They could check those off the list because of Ray’s thoughtful preparation. The last three were items that neither of the pair carried with them; The first was a pocket bible. Hayley didn’t think that she would be able to swiftly read a verse from it in the face of danger, so she paid it no mind. The second item consisted of three small, heavy nails that one might use to hand a photo on a wall. Despite their density, Hayley figured that they wouldn’t be very useful considering that there were other, better weapons that the two of them carried. She assumed that Ray felt the same, as she saw his head in the corner of her vision slightly shake in disapproval at the items they had looked at so far. The last item offered, though, sparked interest in the both of them.
Upon first glance, it seemed to be a gaudy necklace, large and bold. But, looking closely, Hayley and Ray could tell that it was rosary beads. Five in one row at the bottom, separated from the other fifty-four by a charm in the middle of the two sections. The beads appeared to be solid silver, and heavy at that. The strangest thing, though, was how similar of a match they were to the crucifix that hung from Ray’s belt.
“Hayley, those are like, the exact beads to this thing!” Ray hurriedly took the crucifix from himself to show both Hayely and Gerard the similarities.
“Yeah, I noticed,” She picked up the beads, feeling the familiar cold of the metal that they were made of, “Gerard, where is this from?”
Gerard was in a similar state of wonder, and when Michael came back in the room, he ushered him over to look at the matching pair of objects.
“It was in a box of my great grandfather’s things. It must have been his, but it has always been missing the crucifix.” He took the cross from Ray’s hands, showing Michael.
“Interesting.” Michael’s face was still, but his eyes were locked onto the crucifix, mystified.
“Well, I’d say take this, then,” Gerard cupped Hayley’s hands around the rosary beads, smiling, “it’ll be more useful to you than it ever has to us.”
“Are you sure?” Ray looked between the two brothers, anticipating them to change their minds.
“Positive.” Michael provided, smirking ever so slightly.
Hayley gave the beads over to Ray, and he attached them to the crucifix. It was a perfect match, even the two clasps lined up when joined back together.
—
Gerard and Michael stood in the doorway of the Deified Cafe at six a.m., waving their visitors goodbye. As the two pairs looked back to each other, the world seemed empty. No one had passed these four individuals in hours. Gerard and Michael were like looking in a reflection of Hayley and Ray, Hayley thought. They seemed to be alone in this town, together. With that conclusion, the two teenagers headed towards the forest in front of them with new found knowledge, not sure of what would come.
—
Trekking through any forest was usually all the same, as far as Hayley was concerned; tall oaks and pines shattered the image of any hint of light above them. If it were any later in the day, Hayley was convinced that it would be just as dark as it was now at the brink of dawn. Ray still used his flashlight, favoring it in fear of stepping over something dangerous.
Hayley had never been in the all encompassing forest of Chlorine before. She had once gone just to the edge of the sinister barrier, but was fearful of the dark air and no guarantee of a path to follow. Now, the pair was halfway in, and Hayley still felt the way that she did back then. If there was a path, she was sure they would follow it. Maybe not Ray, but definitely her. Every once in a while, she heard the chirp of a fearful bird, or the slither of something hidden by leaves, or the creak and sway of trees. The forest was lonely, despite all that lived inside of it.
“Hey, Hayley?”
“Yeah? You okay?” The sound of Ray and Hayley’s voices seemed to echo through the trees, despite how hushed they were.
“I’m fine, yeah. But I just realized,” He stepped on a stick, loudly crunching underneath him as he continued, “um, it’s daybreak.”
Despite how dark the forest made the sky look, it was definitely a bit lighter than it had been moments before. Surely, by the time they reached the church, the sun would be much higher in the sky.
“Well, that’s a good thing, right? The sun would give us an advantage if there really is a vampire in that church.” Hayley reasoned.
“True. We just won’t have the camouflage of the night sky, now.”
Hayley hadn’t thought of that. If someone were to be looking out at the field the church lay in, the pair would be clear as day. She could only hope that they could sneak in at the right moment.
—
The forest was thirty feet behind Ray and Hayley. It was frightening, but at least it wasn’t soaking wet as the river underneath them was. Hayley was glad she decided on shorts, but Ray was not so fortunate. He took off his jeans to save his future self the trouble of drying off, and they both now waded through the running water as best they could. It was cold, too cold for any human to comfortably be in for more than ten minutes. It was slow and uncomfortable, crossing the fifty foot threshold that was this small river. Hayley tried to see the best in it: At least it wasn’t a lake or an ocean, at least it wasn’t that big. But her teeth chattered, the morning air causing her breath to become visible in front of her. Ray yelped after almost slipping in the icy water. He spoke as he paddled through, “We need to get through this quickly. I might give up and freeze to death if not.” The bottom of both of their bags was soaked, hopefully not seeped through to the interior.
“Yeah, same,” Hayley shivered, “I can see the church from here, though. We aren’t far.”
Towards the end of the water, the ground got more rocky and unstable. Hayley had to crawl toward the grassy land on all fours to avoid falling like Ray almost had. By the time the two reached the riverbank, the sky was bright, with clouds covering all they could see. They sat in exhaust, catching breaths as Hayley gulped down the first of her water bottle. Ray struggled with his jeans, fitting them over his damp legs.
It was only about a mile away, the building that started all of this. Hayley could faintly make out the fine details of it as they sat for a break. There were holes in the walls where beautiful stained glass once lay. There was a long steeple in the middle of the church roof, and Hayley thought she saw it swaying gently in the wind. It was probably a trick of the distance, though, being so far away from it. After a short break, and making sure nothing was lost in the river current, Hayley and Ray got up, continuing the hike for the church.
—
“Hey, Hayley?” Ray’s shoes squeaked as he walked, a product of the unfortunate river wading.
“What’s up?”
“What do you think of those guys back there,” he pointed his thumb swiftly behind him to indicate what he meant, “Gerard and Michael?”
“They were interesting. Like nobody I’ve ever seen from Chlorine.”
“That’s what I was thinking,”
Silence, for a moment, then Ray started talking as if he was just reminded of something.
“Oh! Here,” Ray summoned the rosary from his pocket, handing it to Hayley, “I figure I have the wooden staker, so you can wear this. For protection.”
“Thanks, Ray,” She hung the string of beads and crucifix around her neck, the weight and cold immediate on her chest, “You sure you don’t want it?”
“Nah, I’m good. Not really my style, anyway.” They both laughed, forgetting momentarily about their destination up ahead.
“Hmm,” after a moment, an idea struck Hayley’s mind.
“What is it?” Ray was still smiling.
“Here,” she willed the small vial of holy water from her satchel, “do you know if this is safe to drink?”
“I mean, yeah,” Ray replied, “I’m pretty sure all holy water is just from a sink that was then blessed by a priest. I can’t guarantee that it won’t taste like stale dirt, though.”
“Well, in that case,” She held the bottle up, mimicking the action of taking a shot, “bottoms up!” With that, Hayley downed the blessed water, swallowing with disdain. “Your turn, Ray.”
“You just drank the whole thing!” Ray began to laugh once more.
“Hey, we brought the water guns for a reason, right?” She unhooked the water gun from the strap on her leg, giving it to Ray. “Go on, for protection.”
“Yeah yeah, for protection.” He smirked, and shot some of the holy water into his mouth. Naturally, it got all over his face, but he didn’t seem to mind. They were within just twenty feet of the church, legs slowing down from the walk.
“Alright, any further preparations?” Hayley patted Ray on the back, looking like a confident gesture, but was more so a cover up of her nervousness.
“No, I don’t think so.”
“Cool, let’s head over.
They started for the church in unison, grass crackling underneath like abandoned fall leaves.
—
The church was as interesting as any old building could get; shattered windows lined the walls, pillars stained gray from ash, mold crept up in crevices, and there was no sign of life. Nobody had ever even scribbled graffiti across it, scared of what they might find if they went within a 100 foot radius of it. As Hayley and Ray got closer, they could see why no one else had dared the feat. It had a looming presence of grief and sorrow to it. For a church, it was probably the most unholy thing Hayley had ever seen. It was an impressive and concerning triumph. Ray cleared his throat, warily, “Do you think it’s true? What Gerard and Michael said about this place, I mean.” He took the wooden stake off his back and threw it on the ground temporarily when he finished, seemingly trying to adjust his gear in favor of a more comfortable position.
Hayley had to think about this. They didn’t go on this journey for nothing, right? Surely that cafe wasn’t some sort of ruse that they both dreamt up. Gerard didn’t seem like the type to present false evidence to a couple of kids. With the way that the brothers talked with such urgency, it was certainly believable that there really was a vampire lurking in the depths of this once holy building. But it did raise questions. How could a vampire be living (Or, unliving? The terminology was something she was sure to ask Ray about) in a church, anyway? Yeah, it was no longer used, but surely there was some sort of thing protecting it from nearby vampires. That’s not even getting into whether monsters were real or not. Ray always said that he ‘knew’ for an undeniable fact that vampires were real. But, now, even Ray seemed to carry a bit of doubt within him. Maybe it was actually just worry of what was to come. Hayley responded in the only way she could without her voice shaking in fear.
“Well, only one way to find out.” Before either of them could change their minds, Ray picked up the stake, and their feet moved, steadily, heading for the sacred entrance.
Upon closer inspection, the front door to the church was wood, polish flaking off. If the story of the building being burned was true, it was interesting to see this part of it intact.
With a creak, it was opened by Hayley. Neither of them were sure what to expect of this place, but it certainly wasn’t this. The two crept carefully within the entrance, taking in their surroundings; it was quiet, save for wind whistling through the shattered windows. Some glass still remained in the gaps, intricate reds and yellows and greens, but no longer beautiful depictions of angels. Most of the glass that was still there was black from fire, and the walls around them were a gaunt black instead of the ornate white they once were. There were four rows of pews on either side of the building, mostly destroyed and stumps of what they should be. The floor was a concrete mess of dirt and ash, and the air smelled of mildew. Hayley and Ray stood in wait, maybe disappointed, maybe scared of what would happen if they moved. Ray clutched the wooden stake within his hands, and Hayley’s hand trembled over her water gun. It was quiet in the unholy holy place of previous worship. Ray sniffled, nose running from the wind that ran through the sanctuary.
There was a sudden gust of wind around the two teenagers. Hayley wanted to believe that it was from the open door behind them, hopefully just a draft, or something. But she knew better. The presence in the air shifted, something was different about the energy in that place. And then, suddenly,
“Don’t you think that it’s a bit rude to enter a home without permission?” A voice behind them, clear as a summer’s night sky, spoke in questioning. They both startled to turn towards the source, but there was nothing there. All that was seen was the abandoned field of the outside world, seeming impossibly far from them now in this church.
“Over here.” Somewhere else now, that same disembodied voice spoke mockingly. It came from a dark corner, one flooded with shadow and doubt. The pair turned around again, hearts pounding. They could make out a figure, now, a silhouette of what seemed to be a man. No features shone through, save for the glow of two eyes piercing through the darkness.
“You know,” The figure moved forward, revealing the front of his body, outlined in shadows, “it’s been too long since I’ve had a visitor, let alone two.” He smiled, eyes flicking between Ray and Hayley. Ray stood in a way that he looked ready for battle against this unknown entity.
Out of the shadows, now, the man walked towards the crucifix that hung in the middle of the back wall. Hayley could recognize his features now in the dim light of the church. He was pale, too pale for any human to be naturally. His hair was a stark contrast to his skin, black and short and spiky. His face itself was youthful; Older than Ray or Hayley, but definitely still young, maybe late twenties. There was a long-sleeve, black button up shirt on his torso, with matching slacks and shoes. His presence was dreadful, leaving no question of the fact that the two teenagers were not exactly safe here.
“Are you a vampire?” Ray’s eyebrows furrowed, his question spouted out into the open air to hopefully reach the man at the end of the worship hall.
“So forward, I like you,” The man stepped down, still far away, but too close for any semblance of comfort, “I’d be delighted to introduce myself to my guests. My name is Francis, and this is my church.”
—
Hayley thought back to the many journal entries of Father Helena. She remembered the details, the uncertainty surrounding Father Francis. The images that flooded her brain included Francis standing in front of the burning church, watching without help. She thought of legends of vampires, how they looked, acted, and preyed. The current setting felt like one out of an old story book, fiction, not real, just a pretense of danger.
“So you are, then?” Hayley questioned, “You’re Father Francis, you burned down this church a century ago.” Her words came steady, fear settling in the pit of her stomach rather than her voice.
Francis looked pained for a moment, before replying, “I am no Father. It pains me just residing here, let alone taking on that title.” He skimmed around a few pews, slowly, as he continued, “You don’t know me.”
“Maybe you’re right,” Ray provided, “But what we do know is that we don’t want a vampire preying on Chlorine.” He huffed as he concluded, nerves on high.
In one second, less than that, fast, too fast, Hayley blinked and Francis was no longer standing by the pews like he once was. She heard Ray cry out her name as she turned around, only to see Ray in a chokehold from Francis. His arm was like cement around Ray’s neck, as he clawed away, trying to get free. His legs kicked beneath him, to no avail.
“Ray!” Hayley moved towards the two of them, water gun drawn. However, Francis seemed to have predicted this move, as he pushed Hayley back with a gust of wind that came from his free hand. She fell with a thump, and the water gun became displaced somewhere, out of her reach.
“If you try to hurt me, he’s gone.” To really hone in on the fact that he was referring to Ray, he squeezed his arm even farther around his neck.
“Okay! Okay, just, please don’t hurt him.” She got up, careful not to make too many sudden movements.
“I promise.” Francis smiled widely, still holding Ray tight with one arm, the other hidden away. It was impressive how his hold was so strong for only one hand. Hayley remembered reading fables about vampires with superhuman strength, which explained how he knocked her off her feat without a single touch. His grip loosened just a little, though, because Ray was now taking in big gulps of air like he would never breathe again. Hayley thought back to the times when Hayley was little, when Ray was the only one by her side. Looking forward to him now, it felt like nothing else mattered. This was dangerous. The kind of danger that you’d hear about when warned about strangers. No longer were they on a fun journey full of surprises. Death was at their doorstep, and if Hayley wasn’t careful, it was sure to enter without any form of permission.
“I took this place to the ground, long ago, for what they did to me,” Francis let go of Ray, allowing him to thud on the ground in front of him. He stayed there, seeming to have been weakened by the hold, “No one believed me until it was too late. I believe that they hated me. So much for being holy.” He giggled at his own joke, the kind of giggle that was so human, so real. It sickened Hayley.
“You killed innocent people, for what? Why did this happen?” There was a grit to her voice, anger seeping through for a past she had no part of.
“They were long dead before I got to them. A priest turns into an unholy undead being, and suddenly everyone blames me for what happened. Forgive and forget, until the best priest in this forsaken church becomes something unrecognizable.” He began to pace away from them, caught up in his nonsensical speech. Hayley tried to follow along as he continued, “It’s like I was disposable. But who’s the one still here, huh?”
“Francis?”
“Yes.” More of a statement than a reply, Francis continued to pace.
Ray asked, “What about Father Helena?”
He stopped in his tracks, unwavering.
“What did you just say?” He turned around, cold eyes set on Ray’s alive ones.
“I said–” Before Ray could repeat himself, he was once again at the mercy of Francis, along with Hayley. The door of the church slammed shut, Ray’s body crashing into it from Francis’s power. Hayley was similarly thrown back yet again, hitting a pew with the back of her body. Her head pounded, and the wind was knocked out of her so hard she could barely breathe. Out of the corner of blurry eyes, the bright color of the previously lost water gun showed through her vision.
“I thought I burned that man and all he knew.” Francis was moving now, towards Ray, but with such smoothness that Hayley was sure he was floating just about the ground meant for prayers. Ray was in the air again, invisible hands grabbing him with strength he couldn’t fight.
“It was that book, wasn’t it? He was always a little snitch. I wonder how it made it out of here.” Before Ray could give any sort of choked out response, he was thrown to the other side of the sanctuary, landing square into the large cross that stood high. He fell down the length of it, landing on the floor with a pained groan. Hayley’s head still thumped. She vaguely wondered what had happened with Father Franics all those years ago, but she had bigger things to worry about. She stumbled up, using a darkened pew for support, as she ran in the general direction of where Ray laid. In the corner of her eye, Francis moved, fast, towards her.
“No, I don’t think so.” Hayley was stopped in her tracks. She couldn’t move even after desperately wiggling in place. She was stuck from a force that the only vampire in the room could handle. In a blink, so quick, quicker than before, Francis was standing over Ray, looking like a predator ready to pounce.
“It’s a shame you had to be so rude in my home. My guests usually last longer than that.” He gripped Ray by the neck, and it was all Hayley could do to tremble and watch, helpless. “Tell me, Ray,” and there was a look of confusion on Ray’s face that said he was sure he had never given his name, “where did you hear this information about Helena?”
Ray had wide eyes, panicked, but he was no snitch. He never was. “I don’t know.”
“Who told you.” More of a command than a question, his hand squeezed tight, barely allowing for a response.
Ray gasped out, “Nobody you filthy–” he took a shallow breath, “bloodsucker.”
It was clear that Francis had never heard a teenager insult him before, as that seemed to be the final nail in the coffin for him. He bent down over Ray, looking so tall and enhanced by shadow, and bit him.
Hayley screamed, and it seemed like Ray did, too, but he couldn’t get much sound out besides choked gurgling. There was blood streaming down Ray’s neck, and the cross behind him watched over, incapable of being more than a prop for this show of horror. There were tears in Hayley’s eyes, the same ones that watched helplessly as her only friend got his life force taken from him. Ray was dying. His eyes started to shut as Francis continued to drain him. Hayley’s cries were hushed, like she was listening for any sign of help that wouldn’t come.
There was a pause in the scene that could only be described as a sudden realization on Francis’s part. His hand slowly let go of Ray, letting him fall down, limp. He wiped his blood covered lips off with a trembling hand. “You tricked me.” That was all he could get out before he started to scream. It was the loudest thing that had ever touched the whispered church, and it made Hayley’s ears bleed. It was pained, bloodcurdling. He fell to the floor beside Ray, writing in agony. She remembered the holy water they drank earlier, and internally thanked herself. Within her realization, Francis must have been too distracted to hold her in the confines of his invisible grasp, and she was able to move once more. With the vampire being preoccupied, she made a beeline for the water gun; it was cracked on the side, but would still work just fine.
The old floorboards underneath her her feet creaked and crumbled as she sprinted toward the two bodies underneath the crucifix that were Ray and Francis. She wondered if god could see them now, in a church that was once his, now the home of such an unholy thing. It must have been a sore sight.
Hayley stood over Francis now, like he once did with Ray’s weak body. He tried to grab for her leg, but the blood he consumed stung his whole body, making any movement feel like fire in his veins. She raised the water gun.
“I hope purgatory treats you terribly.” Before he could react in any way, she began to douse the vampire in holy water. His pale skin began to turn red with blisters. He screamed more now, body smoking with the heat that came with the flood. Hayley’s ear began to ring, a consequence of the gruesome act. A thought struck her mind, and she glazed at an unconscious Ray. Quickly stooping down, she was unhooking the wooden stake from his back. “Sorry Ray, I know you wanted to use this.” She mumbled. Turning around to face Francis’s decaying body brought the same nausea as vomiting with a high fever. He was quieter now, but his skin continued to simmer and warp. He was unrecognizable now, save for the fangs that showed through an open mouth. She approached him.
The stake was cold and uneven, looking more like a piece of scrapped plywood rather than any sort of vampire murder weapon. Now that Hayley could really see it up close, she saw small engravings across the length of it. Intricate, despite how careless the wood was shaped. Beautiful, despite what they were carved on. Her sweaty palm gripped the stake tight, as she gazed into Francis, his crumpled body. She raised it, high above her head, with a trembling arm. It came down before she could even register what was done, maybe before she could change her mind. Father Francis was now gone, heart pierced, cold as he had always been. The sanctuary was so quiet, even the smallest prayer could have been heard. Hayley dropped to her knees, adrenaline gone.
Hayley, a vampire, Ray. That was what one would have seen on the floor of the church just on the cusp of Chlorine. Only one of them still had a semblance of life within them, however. Hayley moved over to a previously forgotten Ray, motionless on the ground. He was so pale, so fragile looking beneath her. His neck was bruised in the spot Francis had drained him. Tears began to swell in Hayley’s eyes.
“Ray, hey, c’mon.” She shook him a little. His body only followed the motion she created.
“Wake up, please.” Hayley could see her tears fall and stain his shirt along with the blood already there. She sniffled. Ray’s eyelids flickered ever so slightly. He seemed to cough, or maybe it was an attempt at breath, before he croaked out,
“You did it.” His voice was nothing like it once was, filled with blood and death and everything it should have never sounded like.
“Yeah, he’s gone, Ray. He’s gone.” She squeezed his arm, cold and unmoving.
Ray’s eyes were cracked, just enough to see a sliver of the world around him. They shifted to the lifeless body next to them.
“You sure did a number on him, Hayley.” His dried and crackled lips formed what was an attempt to be a small smile, but a smile nonetheless.
Hayley laughed. A weak, pained laugh.
“I wouldn't settle for anything less.” She chose to ignore the way Ray’s eyes welled up a bit, the way his body was so cold.
“Hayley?” Ray asked, a whisper, the kind Hayley would only hear when they were supposed to be quiet in class. He continued without waiting for a response.
“I’d be lying if I said you weren’t the best friend I could ask for. You even killed a vampire for me.”
“Well I could only hope you would’ve done the same.”
“You know I would.” Ray’s hand reached out at Hayley’s arm, weakly and pained. He squeezed it to the best of a dying man’s ability.
Hayley thought she heard movement beside her. A sort of shuffling. She turned her head to the vampire next to her, still unmoving, thankfully. Above the trio, a half broken stained-glass window housed a bright bird, uncommon for Chlorine. A small red cardinal perched on a slab of yellow glass peered at the scene curiously. It chirped, at least Hayley thought it did, and then disappeared into the outside world once more. Hayley decided to break the long silence that the bird provided.
“C’mon Ray, no more death speeches. Let’s get out of here.” But Ray’s hand no longer rested dully on her arm, his eyes no longer dragging themselves open.
“Ray.”
But his labored breathing couldn’t be heard.
“You can’t leave me like this, please.”
But he didn’t respond, and Hayley knew why.
—
The church was filled with the muffled sobs of a girl who lay next to the only person who knew her. Somewhere outside the forsaken building, the sun warmed up brown grass and dark pavement. Porch lights turned on. A single car drove down the road. A river roared indefinitely.
Chlorine was unsatisfactory at best, and a trap of which had no escape at worst.