Nightwalker

By S. T. Sanchez

Fans of Blood of Eden and The Originals will Love Nightwalker. 

Praise for Sunwalker, Book 1. "Entertaining and fun..." Carole

• Language: English
• Publisher: The Pampered Cat Press
• Release date: May 23, 2018
• ISBN: 9780999001646

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

LISTS

...Happy Birthday, dear Lilly. Happy Birthday to you. As the singing stopped, Lilly leaned forward and blew the candles out on her cardboard box.

Dylan leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the top of her forehead. So what did you wish for? he asked.

Lilly smiled. It wasn’t long ago she had thought her father dead, only to find that he had been held captive her whole life. When he had first been released, he was painfully thin, he stuttered, and he could barely stand to look at her.

Now he had put on a little weight and the bruising had all faded, although she never thought he’d look like his identical twin Adam ever again. He had been through too much; some scars never heal. He was even affectionate with her, although he still kept a wide berth from most of the other vampires. It was progress.

Elaine, Lilly’s mother, smacked him playfully on his backside. She can't tell you that. Then it won't come true.

Hmm, Dylan harrumphed as he took a seat at the kitchen table.

Tread scratched his head. I still don't get the box, he said, staring at the cardboard cake with candles sticking out of it. What's the point?

Well, Elaine began, when Lilly was growing up, there was never any point in making a cake. Lilly could never eat one, and a whole cake for me was a little much. But I still wanted her to get a wish. She walked up behind her daughter and rubbed her back affectionately. So I came up with the box. I paint it and make it pretty. That way Lilly still gets her wish, and...

Lilly lifted the box up on cue as Elaine gestured toward it, revealing her present.

I never have to wrap a gift, Elaine proclaimed. Two birds, one stone.

Well, I imagine we may have to change this tradition now that there are more of us. Dylan stretched his neck, eyeing the room, and pointed to the other humans. I believe there are more than enough of us now to share the cake. He nodded to his brother.

I'd like to try cake, Ethan, Lilly’s best friend’s boyfriend agreed. It looks so good in those stories I read to Luke. Maybe a chocolate one.

Adam, Lilly’s uncle and Dylan’s twin, opened his eyes wide. You've never had cake before? he asked in disbelief, shaking his head at the thought of living with such depravity.

Ethan was born here in the compound. He was a slave from the day he was born. Cake was never a priority before—they were lucky Steel fed them anything, that psycho, Lex, Lilly’s best friend, explained as she joined Ethan who was sitting on the small, gray loveseat.

All right, enough about cake, Elaine chimed in. Time for presents."

Lilly moved the box off the table and set it on the ground. I love it! she said, picking up a silver chain. A small piece of tire tread had been cut into the shape of a heart and attached to the necklace. She had been so distracted by the fact that Ethan had never tried cake that she hadn’t even glanced down at the gift until now.

Your father helped me put the piece of tread onto the necklace. Her mother smiled proudly as she reached over and held Dylan's hand tenderly.

He smiled back, then stood and walked to the fridge, pulling out a glass jar of water.

I still can't believe it took us three months to find time to celebrate. Lex smiled, wrapped in Ethan's arms.

Luke, Ethan’s little brother, was sitting in the corner, building a tower out of colored blocks. He had stacked them so high the tower was swaying back and forth, threatening to tumble over at any moment.

Tread got to his feet and fastened the necklace around her neck. It's fine. It was worth the wait, Lilly said as she toyed with the chain.

There was a crashing sound in the kitchen. Lilly turned to see her father bent over, picking up the pieces to the water jug that had broken.

He looked up, clearly embarrassed. Slipped right out of my fingers. He laughed self-consciously. Elaine walked over and began helping him.

That's why you could never be a doctor, Adam teased as his brother’s face turned red. You need steady hands. He stood up and reached into his back pocket. Well, I guess it's my turn, he announced, pulling out a small, square piece of paper.

Lilly reached forward and took it, eyeing it curiously. She flipped it over and noticed it was a picture of her and Tread. The picture was taken from a distance and they appeared to be in the middle of a conversation, unaware the photo was being taken.

How did you get this? she enquired quizzically.

Tread leaned forward and examined the photo.

I found an old Polaroid camera when we were going through all the junk Steel kept in his quarters. I'll take a better one for you, but I wanted it to be a surprise and that's not always easy to do when you have a vampire for a niece. He smiled.

Lilly stood and hugged her uncle. Thank you, she said, kissing him on the cheek. It's perfect.

Of course it is, Tread agreed, cocking an eyebrow up. I’m in it. He winked.

Lilly rolled her eyes. Sometimes I forget why I put up with you, she teased, shoving him away playfully.

I'm next, Lex said, jumping to her feet. She reached behind the couch she had been sitting on with Ethan and picked up a coffee pot. Ta-da!

Um...thanks, Lilly said, taking the coffee pot skeptically.

It's a reminder. Of the first place you two met, Lex explained. Remember? At The Broken Coffee Pot.

Oh. Thanks! Lilly said with more enthusiasm this time around. Now I'll never forget how the love of my life almost ate my best friend.

Wait, what? He tried to eat you? Ethan asked in bewilderment.

Lex stuck her tongue out at Lilly and then glanced up at the clock. We’d better get going. We have a council meeting in about fifteen minutes. She hopped up, ignoring Ethan's question.

Lilly laughed. "You better get going. I can get there in a minute flat," she pronounced proudly.

Tread cocked an eyebrow up. A minute flat? Somebody's getting faster.

Lex sighed. Fine, I guess the slow human will walk by herself.

Lilly beat her to the door. You know I'm kidding. I'd rather walk with you than run by myself....well, most of the time. She laughed. Her heart thumped a little faster. Lilly still couldn’t imagine what it would be like not to feel it beating in her chest anymore. She had nine months left. On her nineteenth birthday, she would be frozen in time. Her heart would stop beating and she would no longer age or change in any way. It was still hard to imagine.

Lex kissed Ethan goodbye, then headed over and kissed Luke on the cheek. See you in a little while, buddy, she said as she ruffled his hair with her hand.

Bye bye, Lex. Luke waved. Wuv you.

Love you too, sweetie. She blew him a kiss before walking outside.

Lilly smiled as they started walking—she could hear Ethan asking Tread to explain how Tread had almost killed Ethan’s girlfriend.

It was still early; the sun was just beginning to peek through the clouds as they began walking to the Town Hall. There had been a lot of new construction over the past three months.

Almost everything in the city had been cleared out and knocked down. The council, made up of three humans and three vampires, wanted a fresh start and a new look, nothing that reminded them of Steel's regime.

Although many of the humans had left, after Lilly had killed the psycho dictator referred to as Lord Steel, some had decided to stay and give this radical idea of living side by side with vampires a try. To some, just the choice to stay or go was enough to begin to build trust. Giving the humans their freedom had made most of the people warm up to Lilly, if not all other vampires. There was still a long road ahead, but a new city would hopefully help make the painful memories fade a little faster.

Before Lilly had infiltrated the community, pretending to be human, all of the people lived in tight quarters at the school, everyone shoved into rooms like cattle. No one had their own space, a place to have some privacy or a semblance of normalcy.

That had been one of the first items the council had voted to change. Humans and vampires alike would have equal living quarters.

Streets had been built and buildings erected. Apartments were being constructed similar to those in Lilly’s hometown, Harbor Cove, but varied in size. There were still too many humans living at the school, but as apartments were finished, they were being relocated.

Furnishing the apartments had been difficult at first, but then became somewhat fun. Innovation is the mother of invention, or so Lilly had heard. Furniture, if found, wasn't always in one piece, so a lot of creativity had been put into play. Most of the tables in the new apartments had been made out of old pallets. In fact, pallets had also been used to make desks and other furniture items. Extra slats had been added to fill in the gaps, and then they were painted. Crates had been stacked and nailed together to form shelving. Lilly was surprised at how much could be done with a few basic materials. The vampires that had lived here previously hadn’t left them much in the way of furniture. There had been a few odds and ends, but since the vampire-human ratio was so off balance, it didn’t come close to covering their needs.

It was amazing the things that could be accomplished with a workforce like the town had. The humans worked during the day. Many of them handled more of the intricate skilled work, such as the electrical and plumbing systems of the buildings. The vampires provided most of the muscle. Although they were only able to work outdoors at night, it was nonetheless amazing to Lilly how much work they could get done. She had grown up not being able to use her speed and was still not used to how much could be accomplished. If cement didn't have to cure, they might have been done with the entire city already. In the daytime, the vampires helped build furniture. They also helped hang drywall, lay flooring and paint the inside of the buildings.

There were still areas that were untouched and needed to be cleared out, but the council hadn't yet decided on what to do with those lands. At least the heart of the city was coming along. It looked like a real human city, even slightly nicer as there were still rundown buildings in places like Harbor Cove.

So what's on the agenda for today? Lilly asked.

So how are things with you and Tread? Lex questioned, changing the subject. He seems to be doing better. Has he healed completely? Man, that dragon steel is some nasty stuff. I still remember when Lord Steel stabbed him with it. Lex shivered, I thought he was a goner. Good thing vampires are so resilient.

Tread had been severely injured three months ago during his face-off with Lord Steel. It was supposed to be a fair fight, but a vampire goon had tossed a weapon edged with dragon steel to their leader. Dragon steel, a rare metal and the only material that can pierce vampire flesh, was used to stab Tread, wounding him gravely.

It had been twelve weeks and although his wound appeared healed it still bothered him occasionally. Lilly had suggested that the humans on the council find a hiding spot for the weapon. It was comforting to know that it was hidden away safe and sound, hopefully never to be used again.

Lilly scoffed. I'm not that easy to derail. What gives? What don't you want to tell me?

Let's wait for the meeting.

Lilly eyed her suspiciously, but let it go.

They walked the rest of the way in silence. Lilly wondered what was going on. It had to be pretty big. Why else would Lex have given her the cold shoulder?

Town Hall was a big, pink, two-story building. The people wanted more color in the town, so the council had voted to color-code the buildings. Government offices pink, housing units brown, medical centers red, and the trading post and the grocery store green.

The trading post was the best idea yet. Ellen, whom Lilly had met while on work detail a few months ago, had come up with it. It wasn't a typical trading post. Items like clothing and shoes could be taken when needed without having to reciprocate, but specialty items had to be swapped. Televisions and blu-ray players were at the top of the list of things the citizens desired; while medicine, seeds, and building supplies were at the top of the city’s want list. A list was posted of items the community desperately needed. If someone in their community found an item on the list, that person could pick any item in the store.

Some people, humans and vampires alike, spent all their free time combing through abandoned houses, searching for items to trade. The vampires had the advantage with their speed. However, most of the time none of them bothered with the trading post, unless a particularly rare item was found, normally having to do with entertainment. Books, DVDs, and CDs were always hot commodities. Any sort of entertainment that was new to the community would send the whole town into a frenzy. Especially the vampires. Never sleeping left them plenty of downtime. If a new media item was found they would suddenly tear through the buildings; fighting each other to find something on the need list, so that they could trade for the novel or movie. The humans typically traded for more domestic necessities: a blender, a washing machine, or a toaster—entertainment was not a priority.

Lilly and Lex waved to Annie, the first vampire who had befriended Tread when he first arrived and who had sided with them even before the big showdown between Tread and Steel.

Annie was walking in through the vampire entrance. Tents rarely needed to be used now. When Lord Steel was leader, humans had to carry big tents around that enclosed vampires during the daytime. Most vampires were nightwalkers and couldn’t be out in the sunlight or else they would incinerate. The council had approved the construction of several new pathways that connected most of the major buildings, with more being built, so vampires could have access day or night to all the facilities like the humans, without the constant need to depend on someone else.

Lilly thought back on the past three months and smiled. They had accomplished a lot. There was only one thing that kept haunting her. The bloody letters. Lilly could still picture them in her mind.

I'm coming for you

Those words had been painted in human blood on the outside wall that surrounded the compound.

The council had discussed it at length when it had first happened. Most people agreed that it was probably one of the vampires who had left just messing with them.

Three months ago when Lilly had killed Lord Steel, she had given the vampires the option to stay or leave. Those who chose to stay would need to abide by the new rules set forth by a free community. Several decided to leave. A few were angry; they had liked the plush lifestyle they had become accustomed to. The council thought the most likely culprit of the blood-painted message was one of those vampires who were unhappy with the changes that had been made.

Tread thought maybe it was a message from someone loyal to Steel, some ally that didn’t dwell with him during his reign. Regardless, everyone else had brushed it aside and forgotten about it since nothing else had happened.

But Lilly couldn't shake the feeling that it was meant for her and had nothing to do with the events that transpired with Steel. And that someone, or something, was still out there plotting against them.

She and Lex walked inside and headed to a room on the right, their footsteps echoing off the new tile floors. The tiles weren't very pretty. They were a dull brown color, and they now provided the floors for all the new buildings. After all, it's not like they could walk into a store and order anything they wanted. Building materials had to be scavenged like anything else.

The council had made up a team of scavengers. It was a blessing, really, to find so much undamaged flooring in one building, regardless of the color.

Lilly took a spot at the table to the right of the chair Lex had taken and waited for the meeting to begin. The council had elected a King-Arthur-style table, in hopes that it would provide a feeling of equality between the council members. Steel had ruled like a monarch and Lilly hoped to avoid any resemblance to the former governmental structure of the city. The table sat in the middle of the room. The walls were clean, freshly painted green, but bare.

Each month, a different member of the council conducted the meeting, ensuring fairness. This month was Justin's turn. Lilly had been shocked when Justin, one of the humans, had decided to stay in the community. He had been one of the most vocal opponents of the vampires and hadn’t seemed open-minded in the slightest at first.

When all six of the council members were present, Justin stood. Let's get started, he announced, getting right down to business. Ellen, what new items of business do we have on the agenda for today?

Ellen, one of the human members, had been tasked with keeping records for the council. Lilly had been assigned on work detail with Ellen when she was pretending to be human. Ellen had been organized and took charge, making her the perfect choice to keep things straight and in line. Now in her role as record keeper, Ellen also held weekly office hours. From four to five p.m. daily she opened her door for complaints, suggestions, and general feedback from the city.

Lilly felt bad for her. The council had thought the idea wonderful when it was first presented—the perfect way to keep in touch with its citizens and hear their real concerns and ideas. But more often than not it seemed like it was an endless hour of whining that continued from day to day. Why did he get his apartment first? I wanted a pink sweater and got a green one. She got the last serving of mashed potatoes last night at dinner, and so forth.

Ellen glanced down at her notes. We have several items to discuss today. First is the town name. Everyone wants a new name, kind of like a fresh start. But how do we choose? she asked.

Mark, one of the vampire council members, leaned back in his chair. What if we let people make suggestions, and then vote on it?

Sounds good to me, Lex answered.

Justin glanced around the table and everyone nodded. Alright, it appears that everyone is in agreement, so let’s move on to item number two. He looked to Ellen.

We are still conducting interviews and trying to find the right jobs for everyone. We should be finished up by the end of the week, but we’re coming up short finding volunteers to work in the clinic. Ellen glanced up from her notes and added slowly, No one wants to work there.

Why not? Lilly asked. I've seen a few people with some potential. Erin did a great job setting that kid Tommy's arm last week when he fell off the horse.

There was silence for a moment and then Annie spoke up.

It's my fault. No one wants to be assigned to medical because I work there.

That's ridic— Lilly began, but stopped after seeing the looks on the others’ faces. When were the humans going to stop seeing vampires as monsters?

Ethan and I will try to talk with them, Lex volunteered. We'll get some people into medical, she said, smiling reassuringly at Annie.

Mark yawned, showing his boredom. Are we done?

Justin glared at him. Anything else?

Yes, Lilly said, speaking up. Ethan has requested that we start work on a couple of barns. He thinks the animals are overcrowded. And he wants to have several acres cleared off and fenced for grass to grow, to let the animals graze.

Justin took a swig from his water bottle. I say we turn that over to our construction team, and they can add that to their list. Everyone okay with that?

Whatever. Mark shrugged.

Lilly and Annie nodded.

Yeah, Lex agreed.

Ellen scribbled a note down on her pad. We have one last item. It has been suggested that we set a limit on... Ellen paused, glimpsing down at her notes, on the number of... She coughed, clearing her throat. On how many vampires are allowed in the city, she finally spit out as quickly as possible.

What? Mark said, standing up.

Annie seemed stunned as well, but kept her composure.

We want this city to be open to everyone, Lilly explained. That's the whole point. We're not setting limits, she said adamantly.

Lil, I think you guys need to hear us out on this, her best friend added.

Lilly turned, shocked that it had been Lex who addressed her.

Come on. I think you can all agree that when it comes to vampires, I am one of the most supportive humans. Lex smiled in an over-exaggerated grin as she attempted to lighten the mood.

Mark huffed, but sat back down.

But we have a few concerns, she continued, pointedly ignoring Mark. It's hard for people to understand the need for getting a needle stuck in their arm every so often, and even harder for them to willingly do it. But we've done it. I don't think it's any of our favorite things to do, but we do it, Lex said, producing her arm as evidence. The thing is, we've seen more vampires come to the city, but I haven't seen any more humans come.

That's not our fault, Lilly interrupted. Ryan is out there trying to convince people.

Lex put her hands in a stopping motion, signaling peace. We aren't trying to place blame on anyone, but the more vampires that are here, the higher the need for blood and the more often we have to give it. We just want some added guidelines in place so that we don't have a higher demand than supply.

Come on, it's just a little needle prick. What's the big deal? Mark griped.

And you wonder why everyone loves you so much, Annie said sarcastically. What they are saying makes sense. We need to figure out a cap. I'll work out some numbers with Adam.

Okay, Lilly assented. "By the way, I want