Letters to Romeo

Simon's thoughts came back to the present, where he continued to lean his back against one of the headstones, and he stared at his father's grave. He took another sip from the flask that contained blood in it.

His family's memories weren't fond ones, but he enjoyed one particular memory the most. And that one single memory was enough to make him smile wide. A distinct look of craziness appeared in his green eyes that could scare a person away.

"Miss me," he said to his family in a cheerful voice. "Also miss yourself as you are dead, and that I am the only one alive."

Saying this, he started to walk away from the cemetery and made his way back to the boy's Dormitorium. He decided to drop by at the human hunter's dorm and walked into the corridor. When he knocked on the door, he received no response, and the door didn't open. It seemed like Conner wasn't in his dorm.

Did Dante already get Evans to him? Simon questioned himself before heading back to his own room.

Conner sat in front of Mr. Evans in the counsellor's office, who looked at him with keen eyes. Conner hadn't been invited by the vampire to come and join him, but he had come here of his own free will.

"What is it that is worrying you?" asked Mr. Evans in his polite voice.

"I have started to dream about things that doesn't make any sense, Mr. Evans," answered Conner, wanting to see what the vampire would tell. He remembered seeing this man in his dorm and compelling him to forget about what had happened to Reese.

Mr. Evans' eyes flickered in intrigue, and he inquired, "And what are these things that you dream about?"

"I keep seeing my late girlfriend, who passed away some time ago. I see her asking for help, to save her from people who are trying to kill her," explained Conner, making up a lie as dreams could be anything, and he wanted to get more answers that concerned Reese's death. He knew that even though the reports in the infirmary mentioned Reese to have a heart condition, something wasn't right.

It was as if people were hiding the truth, and he also remembered how his very best friend was hiding something from him.

"Dreams are tricky, Conner. They are the figments of our subconscious imagination," explained Mr. Evans, leaning against his chair and holding his hands together, placed them on the surface of the table. He said, "Reese was obviously very close to you and you have been deeply affected by her death. Conjuring scenarios in your mind when you are sleeping isn't uncommon. Sometimes it relates to trauma. Is there anything else that you noticed?"

Mr. Evans and Conner stared at each other for the briefest seconds before the human boy shook his head.

"It's just the dreams," replied Conner, and Mr. Evans gave him a nod.

"If the dreams are getting too much, affecting your day to day activity and life, let me prescribe you some medicines. You can go and ask for it in the infirmary," said Mr. Evans, pulling out the writing pad and scribbling on it. He tore the page and handed it to Conner. "These will help in reducing the dreams and allow you to sleep."

Conner took hold of the page, staring at it. If Mr. Evans was indeed a vampire, it meant he was manipulating every student who stepped inside his office. He wondered if the prescribed medicines had the ability to nullify the effect of Silverwater, so that the vampire could compel the person again.

He offered a smile to the counsellor, "Thanks a lot Mr. Evans. I hope these help. I will see you later."

"Of course," replied Mr. Evans with a pleasant smile.

Just when Conner went to open the door, someone placed their hand on the door, and it was the counsellor.

"Did you want to speak about something else, Mr. Evans?" asked Conner as he turned to meet Mr. Evans' gaze. His hand was still on the handle, but he couldn't open it as the counsellor's hand on the door was firm.

Mr. Evans' smile continued to stay on his lips, and he said, "Unfortunately, I cannot let you go from here."

"What?" Conner's heart shuddered a little as dread started to fill up in his mind.

"Did you think I wouldn't notice? For a person from a hunter's family, you aren't that smart, are you?" questioned Mr. Evans.

Conner's eyes widened, and he used all his force and kicked the vampire away from him. Mr. Evans's back hit the table, which pushed the table to the side, making a creaking noise. Conner quickly pulled out a gun from his jacket, pointing it at the vampire. His hands were slightly unsteady, which the vampire noticed.

Mr. Evans chuckled softly and asked, "Did you really think that a mere gun would harm me?"

"You are a vampire, silver bullets should work on you fine," replied Conner, and the look in the counsellor's eyes turned serious this time.

"Don't you know that bringing weapons on the premises of the university is prohibited? This alone will be enough for you to get some time behind the bars made by us," stated Mr. Evans, and he quickly moved towards Conner. But Conner quickly pulled the gun's trigger.

The vampire dodged, moving left and right, while Conner continued to pull the trigger until Mr. Evans caught hold of his wrists and he snatched the gun from Conner. Conner struggled and tried to fight off the vampire, using all his strength, but the vampire was clearly stronger.

Conner tried to kick and punch the vampire, grabbing the door's handle once again and just when he opened it, Mr. Evans pushed the door close. The vampire caught hold of Conner's head and hit it right on the wall, leaving the boy unconscious and falling on the floor.

Someone knocked on the door, and Mr. Evans pushed Conner's body to the side before slightly opening the door with a charming smile on his face. It was three students who looked quite worried.

"Mr. Evans, did something happen?"

"We heard the sound of gunshots! Are you alright?" came the concerned words of the human. The three students tried to take a peek inside the room, and they found the table had been moved from its original position.

The vampire turned over his shoulder and then looked back at the students, "I was rearranging some of the things in the room. Too much dust has been collecting in here and I am allergic to dust."

"And the gunshot?" asked the girl, with her eyebrows furrowed.

"Oh the gunshot," chuckled Mr. Evans, and he said to the three students, "I hope you can keep this as a secret to yourself. Come closer." The pupil of his eyes widened, and he looked into the eyes of the three students, controlling them all together. "You heard and saw nothing here, and were just walking in the corridor. Leave now."

After being compelled by the vampire, the three students turned around and left the corridor. When he was about to close the door, the door was pushed open harshly and in came Elder Luciano.

"What do you think you are doing, Evans?!" demanded the Elder vampire, who was walking nearby, had heard the gunshot fires coming from the office. His red eyes flared.

"I had a little situation, Elder Luciano," Mr. Evans looked to the side, where Conner laid.

"Who is this boy?" demanded Luciano. "A hunter's gun?" He noticed the gun in Mr. Evans' hand. "Isn't this the hunter's son whom Dante and the others were talking about? Take him to the dungeon!"

Mr. Evans had hoped for Conner not to do anything stupid that could bring attention to him, but firing the gun had done just that.

"Yes, Elder Luciano," Mr. Evans complied with the order. An unconscious Conner was soon shifted from the counsellor's office to the dungeon, where he was tied up in the chair and placed inside one of the cells.

When Conner regained consciousness, he found himself tied in ropes, and his surroundings were mostly dark, except for the front, where the torches burned brightly on the walls.

He tried to pull and set himself free, but every pull was a push of the harsh rope on his skin. There was no one around, and he was surrounded by the rusted iron bar of the cell room where he had been placed. On one side of the walls, he caught sight of a small window and noticed it was dark. It seemed like he had been unconscious for many hours now.

Conner had hoped to speak to Melanie about what he had found, but he hadn't expected the vampire to be quick enough to catch him. Though his current situation wasn't helpful, he came to affirm his visions that their university counsellor was a vampire. But the worst thing was that he confirmed Reese's death wasn't by heart attack.

Someone had killed her!

"Is anyone here! Please help me!" Conner shouted for help.

But Conner didn't know that the dungeon was located far from the centre of the university inside the restricted forest. Receiving no response, he tried to free his hands even though the ropes were quick to bite his skin.

Minutes passed, but Conner didn't give up, knowing fully well that if he didn't get out of this place, he would be killed by the hands of the blood-sucking creatures. While he continued trying to free himself, he heard footsteps approaching from the right side of the dungeon, echoing through the place, and he stopped what he was doing.

After five seconds, a man appeared in Conner's view, and the person wore a crisp looking grey suit. When their eyes met, Conner caught sight of red eyes, and he gritted his teeth.

"Looks like the little rat has finally been caught," said the vampire, clicking his tongue and making his way to the front of the cell where Conner was held. "You must either be very brave or very stupid, for firing silver bullets at one of Veteris' staff."

"Vampires like yourself need to be shot," stated Conner, glaring at the person.

Conner didn't forget the way his father had been clawed and how he had suffered as if he was on the verge of his death. During the weekend, he had seen the night creatures' cruelty and how they had attacked his people. Not to mention... They were responsible for Reese's death. He knew it!

"I must go with extremely stupid," replied Luciano, crossing his arms across his chest. "I have been waiting to catch one of you and it is good to see you showing yourself on how much harm you can do to our kind here," his red eyes narrowed at the mere human.

Conner glared back at the vampire, not backing down. He knew the blood-sucking creatures wouldn't bat an eyelash when it came to sucking the humans' blood or snapping the humans' heads to kill them.

"How many of you are there in this place?" questioned Conner, and Luciano stared at the boy, not liking the tone that was used on him.

"Tch. What difference does it make? You are going to die in a few hours anyways," remarked Luciano. "What are your plans, hunter? Where else have you hidden your supply for us? If you have the supplies, it must mean you have come fully prepared. When have the hunters planned to attack us?" questioned the Elder vampire.

Instead of replying to the vampire's question, Conner questioned him back with, "Was it you who killed her?"

Luciano wasn't one bit fond of humans, and the boy in front of him had some nerve to question him without answering him. He raised his hand as if signalling someone, and one of the guards appeared from the direction where the vampire had come from.

"The gate," said Luciano, and the guard came forward and opened the gate of the cell. Once the guard stepped away, the Elder stepped inside the cell, and he took a round around the chair where the boy was seated.

"Argh!" Conner winced in pain when the vampire caught his hair and harshly pulled it back. He gritted his teeth in anger.

"It looks like you weren't educated on how to behave with your elder, less when you aren't in a position to be asking questions," stated Luciano, pulling his hand down further for the human to groan in pain. "A young human, your blood must taste fairly decent, unless you have Silverwater in your body."

"Did you kill Reese?!"

Luciano didn't know who this Reese was, nor was he bothered by it. He let go of the boy's hair and landed a punch on Conner's face, who scrunched his face in pain.

"You didn't answer my questions, human. Where is your hunter's hub, and what have they planned for us?"

"There's no plan," spat Conner, glaring at the vampire.

"Lies!" Luciano glared back, and he said, "It looks like you won't answer without a little help."

The vampire's hand quickly moved to Conner's neck, and he squeezed it. Conner started struggling for air, and his body violently shook in the chair, trying to get away from the vampire's hold.