THE CHOSEN

A vampire story.

    The vampire came strolling into the little 1840’s lumber town in the heart of the Pacific Northwest. It was just after 1PM in the afternoon, a hot summer afternoon. It was dry and dust devils appeared in the dusty dirt streets of the town and just as quickly disappeared. The vampire was dressed like a cowboy or cowhand with a wide brimmed cowboy hat low on his head and wearing a long leather duster. Hanging low on his hips was a holster containing pistols and the spurs on this boots jangled slightly. Long black hair flowed from beneath the cowboy hat and the town folks watching the stranger strolling down the center of dusty Main Street thought him a young Indian brave wearing the clothes of a cowboy.

    Now in this town that wasn’t so unusual. There were several cattle ranches in the area, mainly dairy ranches, and some of the owners would hire local Indians from time to time to work as cowhands and this town itself tolerated Indians from the local tribes. The Indians did no harm, actually kept more hostile Indians away so the town did likewise for the tribes regarding hostile whites. It was something each side did; both sides knew it but never talked to each other about it. Both sides knew this way worked and kept life peaceful for them both.

     So what the town folk thought was a young Indian brave strolling down Main Street in the early afternoon was nothing to be concerned about. He was just someone from one of the local tribes currently working for one of the ranches nearby. The town folk went on about their business knowing the local Indians would not let a dangerous red man in their midst.

    Once the stranger with long black hair reached the end of Main Street which didn’t go very far he paused, tilted his cowboy hat back and gazed about. Those who were watching the Indian in only a casual way were shocked to see how white his face was.

    Snow white, death white, too white to be normal. And his eyes. His eyes looked like they had slits instead of round pupils. Two gentlemen on horseback were approaching the stranger intending to just pass him by when their horses reared, screaming as they did. The two riders held on tight but one lost his grip and fell off.

    The town folk stopped what they were doing, pausing on the wooden walkways in front of the business. Everyone’s attention was now focused on the two horses and the one fallen rider.

    The stranger pulled his hat back down to cover his face, a smile on his bluish white lips. He had spotted what he wanted coming out of the Mercantile with a basket on her arm. A young, rather pretty but not beautiful woman. She was nicely curvy in an expensive dress that only her black pointed boots peaked out from under and a bonnet on her head to protect her from the sun. Her hair was done up in a tight bun concealed under  the bonnet with a few stray curls escaping from beneath the bonnet to frame her face in a pretty feminine fashion.

    The stranger took her scent deep within him. He smiled, licking his fangs and strode off down a dusty side street where a corral of horses were kept.  These horses belong to a livery stable, the vampire thought. The horses grew restless at his approach. Before he reached them and the livery stable he came to a side door of the town’s hotel and opened it, slipped inside and closed it behind him. It was a storage area. He’d stay here until night. He had his prey’s scent and now he’d be able to find her anywhere. He settled in behind some wooden crates listening to the restless horses and the voices of the town folk. The vampire had caused a stir but not one that lasted too long. He didn’t plan on sticking around long enough to cause a bigger stir.

 

    Sunset. The vampire listened. The horses had remained restless all afternoon and evening. He could hear several town folk talking to them, trying to calm them down but nothing worked. The owner was a bit concerned. He could hear several Indians talking in their language nearby. They smelled different than whites. They had a wild, natural smell.

    The vampire stood and opened the door and slipped out into the darkness. He started walking. Oil lamps burned in shop windows. Light, music and voices spilled out of the Saloon. A group of men stood outside smoking and talking. Horses stood patiently where they were tied to the hitching post in front of the Saloon building.

    Several older men sat in rocking chairs outside the Mercantile smoking their pipes and talking softly. The vampire strode with his head down, easily picking up the scent of the woman he had chosen.  He strode along the wooden walkway following her scent. She was here in town. She hadn’t left town for some homestead. The vampire smiled. He was going to enjoy this. He followed her scent down a side street of shops that ended in several large houses. These were huge elegant houses. Mansions for the town people.

    Her home was the second house on the side of the street he was on. He glided along the wooden walkway to her home. She wasn’t alone in the house. Oil lamps burned inside. A white picket fence bordered the property with all sorts of flowers and large rose bushes growing inside the fence. There was even a dog living in the house. The vampire’s smile deepened. The dog would be no protection if that’s what the humans had it for.

    A buggy was coming down the street. The horse snorted and the driver cracked his whip over the back of the horse to keep it moving. The horse grew agitated but kept on moving down the street. Two people rode inside the buggy. The vampire molded himself deeper into the shadows until the buggy passed by him. It stopped at a house further down the dirt road on the opposite side of the street creating a dust cloud around it. The humans getting out of the buggy after the driver opened the door were too busy with themselves to notice the vampire.

    He moved around the side of the house to the back door. The dog knew he was there. It was on the other side of the door anxiously sniffing and whimpering. The vampire growled a threat. The dog fled. The vampire opened the back door and slipped into the house. Two humans were in the parlor talking. Burning oil lamps lit the room. His prey was on the second floor of the house.

    The vampire moved silently through the house to the stairs leading to the second floor. There was no sign of the dog. The vampire reached the second floor. A candle burned in a metal candle holder on a table at the end of the hall. The first door at the top of the stairs was where his prey was.

    He reached the door and opened it. The young lady was in her night clothes, wrapped in a light silk robe with a night cap on her head, sitting in a chair reading by candle light. Before she could turn he had closed the door and crossed the room. He pulled her up from the chair and into his arms. She dropped the book and her long hair, loose now, tumbled down her back from beneath her night cap.

    She made a gasping sound but that was all she had a chance to make. The vampire had her on her back on the bed and covered her with his body. His cowboy hat was down on his back now, held in place by the cords under his chin. It was in his way and he pulled it off and tossed it to the floor. He stared down at his prey with his yellow feral looking eyes, showing her his fangs with a menacing smile.

    She looked horrified, certain he was going to ravish her. She hit him uselessly with her fists. The vampire laughed at her pitiful efforts to protect herself then put his face to her throat, licking at her pulse several times then he bit, sinking his fangs deeply into her jugular vein. She cried out at the searing pain. The vampire hungrily pulled her blood from her body and swallowed it into his. Yes, so sweet and salty, just what I was hungry for, the vampire thought. He feasted happily on her.

 

   At dawn her parents found her dead in her bed, icy cold and strangely white. At dusk her corpse was gone from the parlor where it had been placed in a coffin and put on view for mourners to come visit. The vampire and his new companion moved onto the next lumber town. They were both very hungry. Soon there would be more of the chosen.

    

   

Reviews

[Eric Cox]

Nice historical touch to this vampire story. Nice pen upon this.

[Star Wolf]

Awesome vampire story. Very different in a lot of ways from what I usually read. Haven't come across vamps in the old west days very often.

[Black Cat Fever]

Wonderful! How different to read a vampire tale that takes place in the 1800s of the old west. Fascinating, love the hunt that goes on, love reading/seeing a vampire in a cowboy's outfit.

[Sean M. Addams]

very cool story ..liked the detail and your stor and storyline alot ... overall I thought it was interesting and you did great on it..nice work!!