Valerie waited beneath the desk, trembling, until Kevian and Kira had left the office. Even then, she remained in her hiding place trying to process the conversation she had overheard. There had been no laughter or joking; it had been a somber, serious conversation. This wasn’t a joke; it was real. Valerie’s mind told her the notion of aliens from outer space was too incredible to be real, but her rapidly-beating heart and sweaty palms argued otherwise. She replayed their exchange in her head. She didn’t comprehend everything she had heard but she understood enough to realize they were talking about ending life on Earth, and in particular, Courtney’s demise, as Kevian had put it.
The frightened girl peered from behind the desk. She saw no one nearby; most of the people were gathered around eating cake in the conference room. Valerie saw no sign of Courtney and assumed she had already left to prepare for her date with Nicholas. She rose, her heart racing, and dashed from Kevian’s office. She made her way to the elevator, impatiently watching the floors tick off until the doors opened into the lobby. She fled from the building onto the street and began running. She turned the corner and crouched, placing her hands on her knees while trying to regain her breath.
Valerie’s mind was swirling. There were aliens on Earth and everyone on the planet was imperiled. She was terrified. She didn’t know whom to tell, or more importantly, who would believe her. She barely believed it herself.
Her first thought was to warn her best friend Courtney that she must stay away from the Neptune Corporation and especially from Kevian. The man she had heaped praise on for months was an alien monster. Courtney had to be warned; she had to be convinced. Not only for her sake, but for everyone’s. This was too big for the police, even in the unlikely event they would believe her story. But Courtney’s father ran the military base, and if she could convince Courtney then Courtney could persuade her father to respond to the threat.
Valerie reached into her purse for her phone and dialed Courtney. Her heart sank as the call went to voicemail. “Court, it’s Val. Call me back as soon as you get this.”She’s probably on her way to Nicholas’ house for their date later, she thought. She clicked her phone off and replaced it into her purse. Her hand brushed against the folded, crisp hundred-dollar bill and the tiny electronic bug. Valerie pulled out the $100 Veronica Fontaine had given her and stared at it for a second. She glanced up at the busy street and hailed the first passing cab to take her to Nicholas’ mansion on the edge of town.
The taxicab turned off onto a deserted road that Valerie recognized, having accompanied Courtney down it several times to meet Nicholas. Yet, she had never been inside the imposing mansion at the end of the lane. The taxi pulled into the circular driveway. Valerie handed the driver the hundred-dollar bill from her purse and waited for her change. She could never afford to ride in taxis so she wasn’t sure how much to tip him. She took one of the bills he had given her and handed it back. Valerie got out of the cab and watched it disappear down the lonely backroad.
She turned to face the oversized wooden double doors. She knocked on one but no one answered. She waited in the hot sun, and knocked again. Of course no one is answering, she thought. This place is a freaking mansion; who’s going to hear my tiny knocking? They could be anywhere inside. On an impulse, she turned the door handle. The large wooden door creaked open. Valerie poked her head inside and called out. “Hello? Is anyone home?” No one answered. The summer heat was becoming unbearable. It would be a long, hot walk back to town unless she wanted to use up the last of her money on another taxi. And she still hadn’t warned Courtney, who was probably inside with Nicholas.
She stepped into the candlelit foyer. It was much cooler inside, and while there was no air-conditioning, ceiling fans circulated the air creating a refreshing draft. Slowly, Valerie advanced through the house, which appeared deserted. She had no way of knowing its residents were still asleep upstairs in their coffins. She set her purse down on an ornate pedestal table and rummaged through it looking for her phone. As she pulled it out, the bug tumbled from her purse onto the table, unnoticed. Valerie tried to call Courtney again but found she had no cell phone reception inside the mansion. “Damn!”
Valerie considered the possibility that no one was home. She thought about going back outside to find a hotspot where she could text Courtney. If she had missed them, she might have to walk all the way home and wait for Courtney to return from her date with Nicholas. It was likely they would stay out late celebrating her birthday. Valerie didn’t know how she would wait that long; she needed to speak to Courtney now, not merely to warn her, but to keep from going insane.
Valerie turned to leave. Then, she heard scraping noises coming from the basement. Maybe someone is home, after all, she thought. They wouldn’t have heard my knocking in the basement. She headed toward the rustling sounds and saw the spiraling marble staircase leading to the basement. Valerie switched on her phone’s flashlight app to add to the light coming from the candles in the wall sconces and illuminate her way as she stepped into the surrounding darkness.
“H-Hello?” She ventured once she had reached the bottom of the stairs. The basement was pitch black compared to the semi-darkness of the staircase. No one could possibly be down here, Valerie thought. She wondered if the rustling noise she had heard had been rats scurrying across the basement. She found the thought frightening yet ironic that she would fear rats more than aliens. She took a few more steps into the darkness, shining her light in front of her. She spun around waving the light about, searching for the marble staircase in the darkness.
Valerie jumped when she felt a cold, clammy hand placed on her shoulder. “What have we here?” she heard a woman’s voice intone.
“Who’s there?” Valerie cried. She pivoted and attempted to shine the light behind her but her phone slipped from her hand and landed face down in the darkness.
“I am Francesca,” the voice replied from the blackness. “You are in my home. You appear to have lost your way, as the wolf said to the sheep.”
Valerie dropped to her knees and ran her hands along the basement floor searching for her phone. She felt it and grasped it. The flashlight app was no longer turned on, but the screen provided a little illumination. She turned back and saw the Elder vampire poised above her, baring her fangs. Valerie screamed as they sank into her neck and Francesca sucked the life blood from her body.