THE HAUNTING OF SHERRY RED

A vampire short story.

 

     Sherry Red walked along the edge of a cliff with the ocean crashing on the sharp glossy black rocks below and the wild salty wind whipping about her, blowing her long red gown wildly about her. Black seagulls screamed overhead, riding the rough winds swirling about.

    There was something or someone here calling her, calling her out to this ledge. She stopped walking and took a deep breath, “I am here! I am here!” The roar and crashing of the ocean and the wild wind tried to silence her voice but didn’t succeed. Sherry’s voice cut through the wet stormy chaos and rang out, sharp and clear. “I am here!”

    Sherry turned in a circle, looking, waiting, knowing something or someone was out here this wild stormy night, someone seeking her.

    Then she saw it, something large, dark and hulking, swiftly approaching her. Sherry gasped, feeling fear flooding her body. Suddenly she couldn’t breathe or move. She was paralyzed with her terror.
   The thing that was approaching was huge, dark and like a shadow. It loomed over her. She found she could move and took several steps backwards and came dangerously close to the ledge. In the large shadow creature she saw two orb like things near where its head should be.

    A savage gust of wind hit Sherry causing her to lose her balance. She turned her head and looked down, down at the sharp glossy black rocks below with the waves crashing over them again and again. She knew she was going down. She waved her arms crazily in an instinctive attempt to keep her balance. No good. She was falling off the ledge and within seconds she’d be dead on the sharp rocks below. She temporarily forgot the dark hulking shadow creature.

   She screamed, a high desperate scream and felt herself falling backwards. Something grabbed her and she came to an abrupt jolting halt. Black seagulls wheeled about her, their voices sounding eerily like her scream. Sherry looked up but all she saw was blackness closing in and taking away her sight. I’m passing out was her last thought.

 

    Sherry Red woke in a dark, strangely warm place. From somewhere she could hear the ocean crashing and hear the wild salty wind roaring. I’m in a cave, she thought. Gradually she could see a little as moonlight was filtering in through the cave’s distant opening. She sat up and glanced about. She had been lying on some blankets on the cave’s dry dirt floor.

    Sherry sensed it, that same presence that had lured her from her safe home out into the storm tossed night. She knew it was close. She looked wildly about and spotted the dark shadow across the cave from her, watching her out of its two white orb like eyes.

    She choked on her fear, taking several deep breaths. It would do her no good to be out of control with her terror. The shadow creature had done her no harm as of yet and she believed it had caught her when she fell, preventing her from falling to her death. She swallowed. “What do you want?”

    The shadow shifted and rose and started toward her.

    Sherry wished she hadn’t spoken. All she could do was watch it seemingly to glide across the cave’s dirt floor until it reached her. And as it drew closer she saw it take on the shape of a tall human male. As it came to a halt beside where she still sat on the blankets looking up at it she could almost see its features.

    “What I want is you Sherry Red.” Suddenly it was looming over her.

    Sherry gasped and turned away from it but she couldn’t escape. It spread out and enveloped her in its shadowy darkness, pulling her into its essence. She cried out, feeling her mind reeling in pain and despair.

    “I want you Sherry Red. I want all of you.” She heard it speak all around her and inside her as well. Then she felt a sharp pain at her neck and on the inside of both her thighs. This was followed by a sickening, siphoning sensation. Sherry cried out and thrashed but the shadow closed tighter and tighter around her. As her consciousness started fading she heard the ocean crashing on the rocks outside the cave and she could hear the black seagulls screaming crazily. Sherry Red wanted to scream too but couldn’t. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t do much of anything.

 

    The ocean crashed against the sharp glossy black rocks below. Sherry Red stood on the cliff ledge gazing down at them. The wind gusted and heaved about her in the damp dark night. Her red gown billowed wildly around her as if it were alive. She smiled, her eyes radiant like two white orbs in her face.

    She opened her mouth and sang, a beautiful haunting and seductive song in a high sharp voice that unfurled from her and undulated out across the wild shifting ocean. She sang and sang. Soon she knew prey would be coming, unable to resist her song.

   Around her she was aware of a dark shadow, her second presence, hovering like a living entity that existed with her like an aura.

   Sherry waited and her patience was rewarded. A rustling in the bushes and small trees that lived along the edge of the cliff told her she had been successful in luring her prey to her. She turned to face the newcomer. A young healthy male dressed in a jacket, black jeans and hiking boots. The wild wind whipped out his dark hair.

    “Hello.” Sherry Red greeted him.

    “I sensed you out here, calling to me to come to you.” He said.

    Sherry smiled. She felt her shadow aura tremble in anticipation. She stepped toward the young man and reached out. He saw her orb like white eyes clearly and saw her mouth full of sharp fangs and made to flee.

    The shadow reached out and wrapped itself around him and the realization of the horror of his situation showed in his terrified eyes and suddenly pale skin.

    “I was calling you to me.” Sherry Red told him.

    “Why?” he managed to gasp.

    “I want you.” And she sank her fangs into his throat and took him.

    The wind whipped wildly about Sherry Red, causing her red gown to rise up in the wind and enfold her and her prey. The ocean crashed on the rocks below and the black seagulls rose up high in the stormy dark night sky screaming and winging about crazily.

   

   

 

   

Reviews

[Matthew Kult]

Hello Tina,

Been a long time since I have been able to read some of your work, and let me tell you I was not disappointed. I will have to agree with most of the reviewers about the imagery, it was quite excellent. I also love that picture, I must know where you got it.

You have a very dark, but traditional, mine. It was nice to go back to the base of a great vampire tale. Excellent Work.

Regards,

Matthew

[Omar Nazario]

I love your style of imagery. The opening and the end gave me chills. Great Vampire tale.

[Black Cat Fever]

Very chilling and eerie vampire tale. Has an excellent does of what makes a great tale, darkness, mystery, attack and conversion (so to speak) and then she's out hunting with her seductive voice. Fantastic write!

[Jaidyn DeVoir]

Great Imagery, and lovely write. You did an excellent Job on this.

With Love,

Jaidyn

[Star Wolf]

A very eerie and spooky vampire story. Sherry Red seems to have ended up like a cross between a vampire and siren. The shadow creature must have been some sort of vampire himself. This is awesome!

[Eric Cox]

Very cool tale. Excellent pen on this. Awesome job on the horror, imagery and creativeness. A very cool write.

[Marie Harrison]

Hot vampire write from your pen. I love d the images of the ocean, the rocks and the gown. Very fun and well told vampire story.