Blood and Nights Out - Part 5

We reach my house safely and after rapping on the door for at least half an hour my adopted elder sister Lisa opens up. She can see something is wrong immediately. After ushering us both in, she makes up three mugs of tea and plonks them into our shaking hands. We sit on the sofa and stare at each other in silence.
"Tell me," Lisa says simply. Alice drips tears into her drink, head bent. I blush and wriggle in my seat, unsure of what to say. This is all very awkward.
"Raven," Lisa shrills sharply after a minute. "What is that on your neck?"
I reach up to touch the two red bite tooth marks scarring my throat. They have healed already, although they are easy to see and very noticeable. I can tell this by looking at Lisa’s shocked expression.

"Um, well, it all started with our night out…" I begin unsteadily, and launch into the story. I don’t miss any details. I just pour out the awful events as if unable to stop. Lisa doesn’t try to interrupt. She sits rigid, listening intently. Her chocolate skin is paling with each word. When I glance down, I see her fingers are gripping the mug of tea so tightly her knuckles are white as the bone beneath the skin. Her eyes are huge.
"So you think this demon is still after you?" Lisa asks slowly once I’m finished.
"Yes. Don’t ask me why. I just reckon Snow can’t keep him in one place forever, and he’ll follow me like a shadow," I mumble, my flushed cheeks losing their color gradually. It helps that Lisa is avoiding the subject of the rape- for now.

"Well, I think while you’re off school the both of you should keep inside as much as possible, avoid going out at night, and stick with your little gang," Lisa advises, nodding continuously. Her grip on the mug is growing ever tighter. "I really can’t believe that Ricky’s been killed. His parents won’t be able to take it. They’ll probably hold off the funeral for weeks, so don’t worry too much about that for now."
She shakes her head now, looking dazed.
"Poor kid. I knew his brother Alan before he went to America," she sighs. "Now, try not to think about this night if you can help it, you’ll only get depression or something. Alice- what’s the matter with you?"

We both swivel in our seats to peer worriedly at the slim girl on the sofa. Her eyes are bloodshot and flooded with tears. The whole optimistic-girl aura about her has vanished. I’m not sure I like the change at all. I mean, I’m usually the miserable one. I don’t know if I’ll be able to handle both of us being pessimists.
"Alice, try and cheer up," I urge her gently, patting her shoulder. "Nothing particularly bad happened to you now did it?"
"He treated me like dirt," she rasps, barely loud enough to hear. "He just threw me down to the floor like I wasn’t human. He only thought about you."
"You should be glad about that," Lisa puts in.
"No I shouldn’t," Alice snaps. She leaps to her feet, suddenly furious. "Don’t you realize how worried I am about you, Raven? He might kill you! You might be drained of blood and there’s nothing we can do about it! How much do we know about this real life vampire, eh? NOTHING! Literally nothing."

"We don’t need to know about him," I argue. Actually, I’d rather not know about Diablo. I don’t want to become infatuated with him.
"If we avoid Diablo, we don’t need to know anything about vampires," Lisa says encouragingly. She sips her lukewarm tea, relaxing slightly.
"Don’t talk rubbish," snarls Alice. "We need to know if he can enter a house un-invited. We need to know if he can be killed. We need to know if Raven’s going to turn into a vampire too!"
"I’m not," I hiss. I jump up too, facing my friend in exasperation. "I am perfectly human, ok? Stop worrying. Just sit down and drink your damn tea."
"But Raven," Lisa cries. "Alice does have a point!"
"No she does not! Forget it! Leave me alone!" I scream, and run upstairs to my room, slamming the door. I don’t want to hear anymore about vampires. Not tonight.

It’s pitch black in my room, so I guess I must have been asleep for several hours. I don’t know what woke me. I lie, cold and alert, under my duvet. I can hear quiet, deliberate footsteps on the carpet. Somebody is in this room with me.
"Raven," a voice calls through the darkness. It’s Diablo. I see his pale figure saunter to my bedside. He is holding a tall glass of red liquid in one hand, and a chain in the other. I quickly sit up and press my back against the headboard, silently freaking out.
"Are you thirsty?" Diablo murmurs teasingly, bending over me. He lifts the tall glass to my lips. I feel my throat go dry. Oh god. I am parched, but I have no idea what this stuff is. It could be poison for all I know. So I turn away warily.

Diablo presses the rim of the glass against my mouth hard, trying to force me to drink. I bite down on my lips to stop them opening. I want a drink so much I could cry.
"Don’t fight it, you little witch," he smirks. The chain in his left hand slinks down my leg, it’s chilly coldness making me shudder. But despite that I feel tingly all over. There’s a weird sort of excitement building up inside me.
"Drink. It is my blood. You are not a vampire, but you yearn to taste it. Part your lips and I will tip it down your throat. It will not harm you."
I’m dying to do as he says, but I’m determined not to. My mouth stays firmly shut. Suddenly Diablo lashes the chain down on my hipbone and I scream in pain. While my mouth is open, Diablo pours the blood down my throat. I splutter, spit and choke, but it’s too late. The full measure has vanished inside me. It leaves a strange taste on my tongue, not bad, but actually quite nice. All the same I cower and scowl at the vampire, rubbing my sore hip.

"You bastard," I swear hatefully. "My sister will beat the crap out of you for that."
I hop off the bed and make a dash for the door, but Diablo picks me up by the waist, laughing harshly. When he throws me back on the bed, he binds my wrists with rope but keeps the chain at hand. He lowers his face to mine, looking evil but disturbingly sexy in the shadowy room.
"You won’t struggle anymore," he tells me, staring directly into my eyes. "My blood works as a drug, that slows your reactions and movements. I want you awake when I take you this time. And I promise you, you will feel more pleasure than you could ever imagine." I feel dizzy as he runs a hand over my chest, which is thankfully covered by my black nightdress, and also very rebellious.
"Get the hell out of my room, right now," I order. The chain whips across my legs. Pain flares like smoldering flames on my injured skin. Diablo laughs coldly as I whimper in pain. I wish Lisa was here, but she isn’t. I’m on my own. Again.

Diablo straddles me, sending shivers up my spine with every touch.
"Don’t be such a child. I said I would give you pleasure, now submit to it," he says mockingly. He pulls the nightdress over my head and stares greedily at me, his gaze flicking from place to place. A flash of rage shoots through my brain. I bring my bound fists in a double punch into his face, striking his mouth.
"Now you know how pain feels, you pervert," I spit in triumph. But his reaction is the exact opposite to what I expected. He doesn’t fly into a fury and tear me into bloody shreds. He smiles and slowly licks his lower lip, his eyes flashing with lust.

Damn it. That had the wrong effect entirely.