When the Day was Done
I woke to the sound of my heart pumping slowly.
I felt my lungs take a couple of ragged breaths. My eyelids, sticky with blood and crust, were swollen shut.
I was laying on my side, my hands bound behind me. I felt the cold dirt floor scratch roughly against my cheek.
I laughed briefly, coughed, and laughed again.
I was alive!
I heard him move. He grabbed my long hair, pulling me up towards him.
“You laugh?”
I didn’t respond, moving my fingers behind me one by one. Only a few seemed broken.
I heard him breathing hard as he studied me. I waited, patiently.
He snorted and threw me down in disgust. My head bounced against something fleshy and rotting.
I gave quick thanks I couldn’t see.
I heard him, again. He paced in front of me. Then around me.
“You should see yourself.”
He stopped. I turned my head to his sounds.
He said again, louder. “You should see yourself.”
“You are pathetic.”
“You are weak.”
I shook my head, gave a short, raspy laugh.
He growled.
His footsteps came closer.
I tried shakily to stand. I was able to kneel with one leg, hunching over as my broken ribs slicing into my lungs.
“When you look at me…”
I coughed again, and felt something wet and thick slide loose.
I paused, feeling him loom over me. I smiled softly. “When you look at me you are blind.“
He hissed.
I felt a sharp blow against my head. I fell, hard.
Weakly, I managed to sit up again. I turned and spit out blood and pieces of my own flesh.
Soon.
I heard him gather his tools.
I shivered. Very very soon.
I felt something sharp glide against the contours of my face. Thick rivers of blood trailed down my cheeks.
“You have lasted longer then all my other playthings, “ he whispered. He ran his finger along the slit in my cheek. “I am so glad I found you.”
I laughed.
I laughed and laughed and laughed as I felt the sun set.
My body trembled joyously, fleshly wounds healing quickly.
I slid easily from my bindings and stood.
I turned to him, face sharpened to deathly beauty, glistening fangs protruding from my opened mouth.
He stood, frozen. An innocent looking thing, downy cheeks and cherub face. He held a cross and a wooden stake in a rigid hand. His clothes were stained with layers of gore.
I willed him to come closer and embraced him, holding his head tenderly against me.
My tongue slipped out and greedily licked the blood from his face.
I took his hand in mine. “Watch,” I whispered into his ear.
I opened his mind, showing him some of the things I had done to his kind. All the fun I would do to him.
So much time, now that the day was done.
I broke his wrists, gently.
He screamed out wildly against my bosom, fighting against me, shaking with fear and pain and rage and the promise of so much more pain.
I laughed delightedly, and held him closer, patting his soft golden hair.
He trembled.
I blew out the lights and grinned in the darkness.
I nuzzled his ear, my fangs trailing his cheek.
“Now, you see me.”