Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Vampire Summer ❯ The Truth Comes Out ( Chapter 12 )

 

 

Johnny kept my notebooks. Now that Crystal was back, we settled into our old routine. Johnny showed up at dusk, sometimes earlier, and stayed until dawn. He and Crystal would watch television or play games until her bedtime. Often they drew me into their games, as if we were a real family. It was more than Sam had ever done.

 

Johnny hadn't taken my blood since Crystal came back, either. I wasn't sure if he was trying to be nice, or if he was getting his nourishment elsewhere. I checked Crystal daily for telltale signs that Johnny had drunk her blood again, but there were none.

 

Crystal had fallen asleep on the couch curled up next to Johnny, and he held my notebook on his lap so he could flip through the pages without disturbing her. I watched the expressions flash across his face as he read: interested, thoughtful, confused. At one point he laughed out loud.

 

“What's so funny?” I asked. After all my worrying about what he would do to me if he found out about my research, I was beginning to get annoyed that he took it so lightly.

 

“I've been there,” he said, pointing to the name of the town I had scribbled down in my notes. “Though not to the cemetery that I recall.” He glanced at me quizzically. “What is your fascination with cemeteries?”

 

“Excuse me?” I couldn't believe he just said that.

 

Johnny sat straighter, pulling a blanket over Crystal before he answered me. His tone was still light, amused. “You're looking for me in cemeteries?”

 

“I found you in a cemetery,” I countered. “More than once.”

 

Johnny laughed. “Touche!” he said. Then, “Why Rhode Island?”

 

I reddened. He obviously hadn't read my first journal with all my notes from the little library very closely. “I—uh—that's where the vampires supposedly came from,” I said, mumbling the last few words. “So I thought—when you said you went out of state after you visited Aunt Beth—that probably you went to Rhode Island to talk to the other vampires.”

 

Johnny wasn't amused anymore. His face hardened and he tossed the notebook to the side. “That's why you went to Rhode Island?”

 

Mercurial. Johnny could change his demeanor in the blink of an eye.

 

“No, I just wanted to get away,” I told him. We hadn't really talked about Aunt Beth since that night I came back from her funeral and accused Johnny of killing her. He never said he did, and he never said he didn't. “I was upset about Aunt Beth. I thought if I could find signs of other vampires. . . .” My voice trailed off.

 

Johnny carefully stood up and gathered Crystal in his arms so he could put her to bed. That was a bad sign. He didn't want Crystal to know what he was about to do. “You shouldn't believe everything you read,” he said softly as he walked back over to the couch. I shrank back from him, but it did no good. At least he was quick, and I didn't feel anything before the darkness overwhelmed me. I heard him faintly as I spun out of consciousness. “Vampire,” he corrected me. “I am the only one.”

 

Crystal served me breakfast in bed the next morning. The telephone rang, and I jumped. It was Betty. I had completely forgotten about our discovery at Aunt Beth's funeral. “Can you come down to the Town Hall today?” she asked. She sounded excited.

 

I sighed. I was woozy and hungry, and I didn't feel like getting dressed, but how could I disappoint her? She was doing this for me. “What time?” I asked. It would have to be soon, before Johnny came home. I cringed at the direction my thoughts had taken. Since when did I consider the cottage Johnny's home?

 

We arranged to meet at noon, which gave me less than an hour to wash, dress and eat. Crystal climbed into the back seat, leaving the front open for Johnny, even though it was broad daylight. He was becoming a fixture in our lives. Betty met me at the entrance to the Town Hall, and the ladies flocked to Crystal, happy to see her again. Crystal, of course, ate it all up. I followed Betty downstairs to the archives.

 

“I found the birth records for Philip and Walter Summerfield,” Betty told me, as she led me over to the table where she had sorted out several piles of documents. “Did you have a chance to contact your family to find out what they know?”

 

I shook my head. The truth was, I had forgotten in the aftermath of Johnny's return. “Not yet,” I said. My grandparents were dead, and I doubted that my father ever knew. If he did, he never talked about it. “I'll see them this weekend,” I said. My family was coming down for the annual Fourth of July weekend. It was a tradition I'd grown up on, and even though they had given me my space this summer at the lake, I couldn't deny them this one weekend. I hadn't figured out yet how I was going to break the news to Johnny.

 

“Look here,” Betty said, showing me the birth certificates. “Their father was George Summerfield. Then look here. George Summerfield was born in 1885. His mother was Cecelia Cooper.” The note of excitement had crept back into Betty's voice, as if it would mean something to me when she said `Cecelia Cooper.'

 

“So?” I asked, and watched her face fall momentarily. It perked right back up, though, as she explained who the Coopers were. The Coopers were descended from Sarah Smythe, the youngest daughter of Robert Smythe who was Elizabeth's brother. It looked like Crystal and I got our blood from the female line.

 

“And Cara's great-grandfather was Robert Summerfield, George's brother! So you are definitely related to Cara's side of the family. Cara is doubly connected to the Smythe's through her grandmother, Amelia who married a Lovall, then again through her father, who is another Smythe cousin.”

 

“A Lovall?” I asked, not getting the significance.

 

“The Lovalls are descended from Daniel Smythe's son Robert, through Robert's youngest daughter Sarah, who married a Lovall in 1765.”

 

“How did you find out all this?” I asked, astounded.

 

“Well, partly it was from digging through these records,” Betty said, “but then I went back to Aunt Beth's house and matched up what I had found with her genealogy charts. She was quite thorough, and once I knew what to look for, it was easy.” Betty frowned. “The genealogy charts ended in the mid 1800's, so there was no mention of the Summerfields on them at all. Luckily, I was able to find the actual birth records for your grandfather and his brother.”

 

Johnny must have taken the charts so that I wouldn't find my own family name on them. He might act like he thought all my research was a big joke, but at some level he must be worried about it, if he went to such lengths to hide that information from me. He didn't know about Betty and the Town Hall, however. I hoped to keep it that way.

 

“It's a good thing Cara remembered the name from her mother's letters, or we might never have known,” I said. “I'll confirm what I can with my family this weekend. They're going to be surprised to find out we have relatives from around here. We all love the lake,” I explained.

 

Betty's eyes warmed. “The lake is special to us, too,” she said. “It was a hard decision for the town to let outsiders buy lots and build here in the last fifty or so years. But in the long run, it's worked out well for Lockwood. The influx of new blood has helped Lockwood to grow, and it's mostly for the summers, anyway. We have the lake to ourselves in the winter.” She chuckled, and I chuckled with her although her words chilled me. New blood, indeed.

 

“So how am I related to you?” I asked her.

 

“I'm descended from Daniel Smythe,” Betty said. “Actually, I'm more closely related to Cara's branch of the family than to yours, but we're all related in some way or another, as I'm sure you'll find out. You should think about moving here permanently.”

 

I shuddered. Vampire central? I didn't think so.

 

Crystal and I made it home before dark, and Crystal kept Johnny entertained in the backyard catching fireflies while I made us a quick supper. They had quite a collection in a little glass jar by the time supper was ready. I made them let the bugs go before they came in.

 

“I have to warn you about something,” I said to Johnny as we sat at the table. He always sat with us while we ate.

 

His eyes darkened as he looked up. “What?”

 

“My parents, my brother and his wife and their kids are coming up on Saturday for the Fourth of July weekend. They're planning on staying overnight. We're having a big family picnic. You're invited, if you want to come to dinner, but you can't stay. Only my family is coming this time. Sam's family won't be coming this year.” I kept talking, so I could get it all out at once before Johnny could object. “I really couldn't say no,” I went on. “This is a family cottage. It's theirs as much as it is mine. Usually we all take turns coming out here for a week or two in the summer. Only this year, because of me and Sam, everybody let me have the place to myself.”

 

Crystal bounced up and down in her chair. “Yay!” she cried. “I can't wait!”

 

Johnny turned to look at Crystal. “You like it when your family comes to visit?” he asked her.

 

“Yeah, it's fun! We get to go on walks, and do fun stuff, and play outside until real late!”

 

I saw the emotions flow over Johnny's face. Surprise, this time, was foremost. “You'd rather play outside in the dark than watch television?” he asked.

 

Crystal glanced at me, knowing what my answer would be, before she turned back to Johnny. “It's fun to play outside at night,” she said. “Scary.”

 

Johnny smiled, glancing at me also in time to gauge my disapproving frown. He reached across and tickled Crystal. “What's so scary about it?”

 

“It's dark!” Crystal replied, with shining eyes.

 

“How about if we play outside in the dark, Mommy too, since you like it so much?”

 

“I don't think that's such a good idea,” I said, thinking about bedtimes and routines, but mostly about mosquitos.

 

“Sure it is!” Johnny replied with a big grin that showed just the tips of his sharp teeth. “I think it's fun to play in the dark, too!” He grabbed Crystal's hand, and grabbed the jar from the kitchen counter on their way back outside. “Come on, Mommy too!”

 

I didn't like it when he called me Mommy. I wasn't that old, damn it! I slammed the dishes as I carried them over to the sink and gave them a perfunctory washing. Then I slathered the smelly mosquito repellant all over my arms and legs, and especially on my neck. With any luck, it would act as a vampire repellant, too. Then I went out to have `fun' in the dark.

 

We walked down to the beach, and Johnny chased Crystal up the dirt road. There was no light except the light of the moon and my dim flashlight. I kept it pointed at the road by my feet so I wouldn't trip and kill myself in the dark. He caught her and swung her high into the air, listening to her squeals with a delighted laugh of his own. His movements were a far cry from the ones he used to attack me. Those were so fast I never saw him coming.

 

There were other people on the beach, teenagers mostly, lighting off firecrackers in anticipation of the holiday. Johnny fit right in with them, but they shot uneasy glances at me, the authority figure. “Let's keep walking,” I suggested. Crystal was disappointed, but Johnny took the flashlight from me and pointed it under his chin and made scary faces until Crystal laughed. I couldn't help it—I laughed, too. He looked ridiculous, the real monster pretending to be a human pretending to be a monster.

 

We continued on around the lake, and I had to admit, it was kind of exhilarating walking in the dark. My flashlight eventually gave out, so we each took a hold of one of Johnny's arms and continued our night stroll. When we got close to the place where I had encountered the dogs, I unconsciously clung tighter to Johnny. I heard barking, but I couldn't see the dogs.

 

“It's all right,” Johnny said tolerantly. “I'll protect you.”

 

Crystal giggled. She wasn't at all tired. She was enjoying our nighttime excursion immensely.

 

At the end of the dirt road, we had the choice of either turning left down the main paved road back towards the cottage, or right, up the road towards the cemetery. “Let's go to the cemetery,” Johnny said. “Your mother likes cemeteries.”

 

I gave Johnny a dirty look, and trudged up the road ahead of the two of them. Johnny swept Crystal up and put her on his shoulders. In a flash, he was beside me again. In the cemetery, without the ever-present trees to block the moon, we could actually see a little bit tonight. We could still hear booms from firecrackers in the distance.

 

“Now what?” I asked Johnny. He set Crystal down, and she went off to visit Emily Crew's grave. I could barely make her out, but Johnny was with us. What was there to worry about?

 

“I'd like to meet your family,” Johnny said. “I'll come for dinner Saturday. I won't stay.”

 

I felt his forehead, and he flinched away from me. “Are you okay?” I asked. “No death threats? No temper tantrums?”

 

“I do want something,” he said. “Leave it alone, this vampire search. There are no other vampires. Only me.”

 

“I don't understand. Where did you come from, then? Why did you tell me? You could have just taken my blood and not told me you were a vampire. Why?”

 

He turned his head towards where my daughter knelt, `talking' to her friend Emily. “Crystal,” he said quietly, and suddenly it all made sense. Johnny was alone. He was the only vampire, and he was lonely. He wanted to make Crystal a vampire like him because she had the right blood, and he was willing to wait until she was old enough before he did it. And he told me what he truly was because I was Crystal's mother, and she needed me. And he needed my help to do this.

 

Suddenly Johnny grabbed my arms in a painful grip. “Leave it alone,” he said again.

 

I stared up at him. He needed me, as much if not more than Crystal did. He had tried before to make a companion for himself, and he had failed every time. “You're afraid you can't do it, aren't you?” I whispered. “Make her like you.”

 

Johnny's eyes were bleak, and he didn't answer me.