The house sat cramped in between two others in the middle in the quiet night street.
Levi approached the ajar front door, its hinges creaking as light spilled out.
His body freezing in the night cold— he used his two hands to tie his silver white hair into a tight bun, his violet eyes cold yet hesitant.
'Should've killed that thing before it had the chance to escape.'
And with that thought he marched into the house.
Reaching the front steps and feeling the wood creak underneath his weight.
He took a deep breath, turned back to look at the moon bask everything in an eerie light— it was indeed a perfect night to kill.
He slowly pulled the front door open.
~Ch-chk.~
The cock of a shotgun stopped him dead in his tracks.
One foot barely through the threshold before he found himself staring down the barrel of a shotgun.
'Oh, fuck.'
He stopped not because of fear but more he knew not to test someone with a gun.
The man held the gun with shaky hands, despised the fact that he tensed his arms and sharpened his gaze of Levi.
Next to him, a woman— probably his wife from the way she hid behind him— and behind her, a teenage girl with trembling eyes and hands digging into the hem of her dress.
But they were completely irrelevant. The only person with any relevance in this house was the person— no, the thing— he'd been chasing down for about two hours.
And it had started getting annoying. It was right next to their daughter— blue-black hair, unnaturally pale skin, disheveled hair and sweat-drenched clothes.
The father spoke in a crackly voice.
"Le- Leave me house, now!"
Levi didn't even give him an ear. His eyes were still scanning the house, then his sights set on the framed picture on the far table.
It was a picture of them all— even it— happy and whole.
His eyes lazily drifted back to the man's eyes, scared yet trying to feign control for his family.
'He's never pulled that gun before.'
Levi brought his hands to his eyes, rubbing them and trying to find the right words to deescalate the situation.
"I said move!"
He shoved the gun further to Levi's face.
He raised a finger to the thing.
"What do you think that is?'
The thing buried herself further behind her former sister and mother.
The man furrowed his brows.
"She's my daughter, her name's Isabella Clark, and she's been missing for weeks now! She just came back tonight, and she said her kidnapper was right behind her.
So, I don't care who the hell you are— LEAVE!"
Levi smirked. His eyes looked at it.
"You realise that's an overused excuse."
The thing quivered its lips, tear welling up behind its eyes. "Daddy, he did so many terrible things to me. Make him go away."
As soon as their father heard its words, his jaw visibly clenched so hard they make a cracking sound.
Levi raised his hand in surrender.
"I know how that sounds but I promise you that— is not your daughter. Come on, look at her skin, look at her eyes— does she still look the same?"
It didn't give them a second to think it through.
"Daddy, that's because of all the terrible things he did to me."
'She's pretty good.'
Levi could clearly see the man's tolerance and anger reach its peak, in the corner of his eyes— he saw it smile, unnatural and chilling.
He pulled the trigger—
~BAM.~
The shot etched through the door, leaving splinters flying.
Levi shifted to the left— pulled the gun from his grasps and used the end to slam against the temple of the man—
Sending him to the floor.
~Ch-chk.~
He cocked the gun again, pointing straight for it.
The mother and daughter instinctively jumped in front of it.
The mother spoke.
"Whoever you are just leave us alone."
Levi dragged a hand across his face.
"Look I know it's hard to believe, but that's not your daughter anymore — your daughter's dead and that thing— is just a vampire."
They all stopped, staring at him like a crazy person for a second.
'Great, now I sound as crazy as I look.'
He thought while trying to get a clear shot of the thing before the mother was guarding perfectly.
Behind him— the father silently stood up and jumped on Levi's back.
Making him stumble backwards and drop the gun.
The father's grip was tight around his neck until he stretched his hands back— grabbing the man's shirt and thrusting him to the floor.
Levi held his throat, trying to stabilise his breathing before whipping back his head to see the mother now with the gun.
'oh shi—'
His thought was cut short as he jumped to the side to avoid the bullet tearing through the air.
He whipped himself back up to just in time to steal the gun from the woman.
But now the father and mother covered the girl, guiding both their kids behind them.
They slowly tracked back with every step forward Levi took, the entire situation was now very irritating.
He placed his hands on his waist, brought his head down, and shook it gradually.
"If you won't believe me, then how bout I show you."
He reached within his pocket, pulling out a pocket knife from within.
Opened his palm to them— his eyes locked with its.
He extended the knife to his palm, placing the cold metal against his skin and creating the incision—
He was drawing blood.
The blood trailed off his palm and the knife— its eyes locked onto it, mesmerised.
He couldn't help but smile.
'No matter how hard you try, you're still just a wild animal.'
Its neck twitched violently— the sound making the parents and daughter flinch and turn their eyes to it.
First the veins blacken and run throughout the body, all headed for the eyes. The sickly yellow eyes glowed but all around it darkened like an omen.
Then they watched as its fingernails stretched out of its roots like jagged claws.
Its mouth open slightly to reveal the canine like fangs fully extended and its entire expression sour.
Unconsciously, the parents and daughter turned back and backpedaled towards Levi with their eyes wide for each captivating moment.
They finally reached him as the daughter behind them bumps into Levi.
The vampire's fangs drooling profusely, its breathing in ragged gasps and ready to attack.
It lunged for Levi—
~Ch-chk. BAM!~
He dragged the gun from the mother and fired point black at it.
Sending it flying towards the far end of the wall in a heap.
The barrel of the gun still smokey.
Their mother finally unsheathed her daughter's eyes, her tone almost silent, "Is it dead?"
"Nope," Levi answered matter-of-factly, "Wish it was that easy but I'm assuming that this gun wasn't loaded with silver bullets, now was it?"
The man answered while staring at his former daughter, "No. What happened to my baby girl?"
"Vampirism happened to her and if you don't want the same to happen to you I suggest you leave now."
Levi answered without sparing them a glance.
Neither did they need one, without delay they turned on their heels and walked out the door— only throwing their former daughter pitiful glances.
Levi walked to the kitchen, turned on the tap, brought a glass to it and filled it with water— he drank it.
Then proceeded to rummage through their cupboards and finally found it—
Salt.
He walked to the front door, lining up the threshold with salt and then the same for the windows, backdoor and any exit he could find.
Casually glancing at the body of it as it twitched violently, forging its body back together.
He walked back to the kitchen, pacing around the tight space and rubbing his chin like he was trying to remember something — then it hit him.
He moved back to the room and broke the leg off one of the wooden chairs, grabbing the piece and observing it.
---
And he continued to prepare for minutes to hours until it finally fully healed and woke up.
Its eyes flustered open to see Levi sitting in front of her— knife in one hand and stake in the other.
Leaning next to his seat was the shotgun and adjacent to that was a bottle filled with water... Or so it thought.
"It was a good plan, I admit, but I've caught you so talk... Where your hive located?"
He asked directly.
It blinked twice, unable to believe what it was hearing— she stretched for Levi's neck—
Not as fast as he grabbed the bottle and drenched her in it—
It jumped out of its body, feeling the sizzling acid-like feeling wrap every inch of its body.
Thrashing wildly, trying to peel the feeling off her body.
She spotted the door, without a second thought she moved, running past him in an attempt to escape.
Just like running into a brick wall—
She fell backwards with a smashed nose and a flattened head.
Hearing Levi's boots creak over the wooden floors until he loomed over her with an indifferent expression on his face.
"There are a lot of ways this could go— but you die in them all. So now it depends on you whether you want to die quick or painfully...
Where's your hive?"