Chapter 2- Night of Rune

It's rude to stare. It's rude to stand there slack-jawed, gawking at attractive people. However it's also rude to waltz in missing an arm and proclaim that you are a vampire. At least I think so. He seemed satisfied with my reaction though because he looked amused; that just made me more embarrassed. Clans of what now? Vampire lord? "Seriously?!" I blurted. He laughed softly, "aren't you going to introduce yourself?". I blushed, that was also rude. "Oh,um, yeah, I'm Eva, no fancy title or anything". This earned me an honest laugh. "Do you, uh", I glanced at where his arm is supposed to be, "need some help?" He grimaced, also looking at his lack of arms. "Ah, yes, it would be of great kindness, if you would help me to find a place out of the sun".

Well, I was officially stupid. Vampire. Should not be in the sun, especially while wounded. I was busy scolding myself internally when I was thrown askew by the sudden weight. Fabian had collapsed and was now breathing heavily, desperately clutching at his arm. I did what I could to hold him up, and considering his size, I did a decent job of it. "I'm", he panted, "I'm terribly sorry, I-" I cut him off "Hey, it's no problem, really, come on, let's get you out of the sun." He didn't say anything but he smiled weakly. I had to think, which was hard to do with about 90 kg of vampire weighing on you. I didn't have a shed, that would have been useful. Then it struck me. It was a ridiculous idea, but I couldn't think of anything else.

"A community garden?" he looked around. "Um, yeah" even I had admitted it was a strange idea, but it would have to do. I took him to the storage building and helped him get settled. He looked awkward and I was wondering why but then he spoke. "Um, I hate to be a bother and I feel terribly shamed asking this of you but, I um, I kind of need my arm". I didn't quite understand at first. Then realisation. "Oh" was all I could think. He looked away and suddenly his powerful, seductive façade faded away and he looked much like any awkward teenager. It made me much more comfortable. "Sure, I'll go look for it, I'll be back later" he turned surprised. Just as I left he opened his mouth to say something but I was already gone.

The sun had gone down by the time I had stepped out. I had told my mum I was going for a walk. Really I was going to hunt down a vampire lord's arm. The thought should've felt stranger to me, yet it didn't. I guess it was that awkward look he wore. I made my way to the park trying my best not to overthink it. Come to think about it this was going to be difficult. If I were an arm where would I be? I came up blank. I guess I would have to try to track it back to the .......blood. Where was it? Every last bit of the blood was gone except for a faint, lingering smell. Great. That was just perfect. How the hell was I gonna find it now?

Picking through the bush at night looking for vampire lord's arm was not admittedly high on my list of things to do. I mean, it was exciting, so in that sense it was exactly what I wanted to be doing. At least until I felt a weird prickling feeling at the back of my neck. Like cold, cold eyes fixed there. I whipped around and made direct, terrifying, eye-contact. Again. Except this time, swirling violet eyes bored seemingly into my soul. "Um, hi." Not gonna lie, I'm very proud of my vocabulary in crisis situations. The newcomer stepped into the pale moonlight. His skin seemed to glow white, which contrasted interestingly with his entirely black attire, and Raven black hair. He stepped forward, silently somehow, and I couldn't move.

Why, for the second time today had I been caught like a deer in the headlights by some hot, mysterious weirdo? He cocked his head to side curiously, reminding me of my dog. I smiled at this thought. Until my smile broke when I realised what he had in his hand. Now, as far as severed arms go, I can tell you that this one was probably belonging to an attractive vampire lord who was currently laying low in a community garden shed. I swallowed. I wasn't stupid. If this guy had Fabian's arm, then either Fabian had sent him, or this is the one who removed it, and frankly, I wasn't liking my chances tonight. "Um, do you uh, need that?" I say bluntly, gesturing at the dangling arm. He quickly glanced down then his eyes went straight back up to me as if debating wether or not he wanted to add my arm to his collection. Then, before I knew what was going on, he threw the arm at my feet and by the time I looked back up at him he was gone.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***