The Oldest Dream of Eternal Night
Chapter 28: Smell of dried blood

Chapter 28: Smell of dried blood

Another flash of light caught his eye, coming from a corner of the parking lot. A lone figure, surrounded by a glowing, almost burning red aura. Kaiser squinted, trying to make out the details, but his friends’ voices abruptly snapped him back to reality.

"Kaiser! Are you zoning out or what?" Carter shouted, shaking his shoulder.

The world suddenly regained its colors, as if someone had flipped the lights back on. Kaiser staggered, nausea twisting his stomach. His hands were still trembling, and his throat was dry. "Shit..." he groaned, rubbing his temples.

"Did you see something or not?" Yuki asked impatiently.

POV: Hugo

At the same time I wanted Kaiser to find the bastard who had kidnapped Ben, I silently prayed he wouldn’t see anything. The risk was too great. If his ability fully activated... I clenched my fists in my jeans pockets, watching Kaiser out of the corner of my eye.

A creepy smile stretched across his lips, growing wider, as if he were in a trance. His eyes gleamed, his pupils so dilated they looked like two black holes.

"Is he overdosing or something?" Carter asked, his voice shaky as he nervously chewed on his toothpick.

Yuki narrowed his eyes, analyzing the scene. "No, I’d say more like..."

"He’s happy?" Hassan finished, raising an eyebrow behind his glasses.

I stared at Kaiser, trying to catch his gaze. With his pupils like that, he looked like the Kaiser from Saturday afternoons, when he’d pop two of his antidepressants to "zone out a little." But this was different. He was weird on top of being out of it. "Hey, Kaiser! You good?" I called, my voice higher than I’d intended.

No response. He just stood there, frozen like a statue, his deranged smile fixed on some invisible point. We called out to him again, Carter even shouting his name. Nothing. Just that hollow stare and that grin sending chills down my spine.

"He’s kinda freaking me out, guys," Yuki muttered, taking a step back. I noticed tears in Kaiser’s eyes, yet he was still smiling. What the hell was this?

Carter growled in annoyance. "I hope he hasn’t lost it."

"Can’t lose what you never had," I joked, shaking Kaiser by the shoulders to snap him out of it. "Come on, man, wake up!"

Finally, he turned his head toward us, blinking slowly, as if returning from another world. "Bro, you look totally out of it," I said, half-relieved. "Did you see anything at least?"

"Yeah," he muttered, his voice hoarse.

"Did you see the Wunder?" Yuki asked, leaning forward.

Kaiser shook his head. "No. He’s not here."

"Damn it," Carter swore, clicking his tongue. "What did you see, then? A clue?"

Kaiser stared at us, his gaze still eerily empty. "Everything..."

Carter lost his patience and slapped him hard across the face.

"Damn it! That fucking hurts, you bastard!" Kaiser yelled, clutching his cheek, finally snapped out of his daze.

"You were talking like some creepy monk, bro," Carter snickered.

Kaiser grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Anyway, I saw a lot of stuff, but no vampire in sight."

Yuki sighed, crossing his arms. "So, we’re back to relying on the police."

Kaiser narrowed his eyes, turning to Hassan. "Actually, Hassan was the Wunder a guy or a girl?"

The question made me think hard. At first glance, from what Hassan had said, it was a man. But what if it wasn’t? That metallic smell, that stench of dried blood I’d caught on Ben... I’d smelled it before. On her. Sabrina. That bitch. Everything suddenly fell into place.

"I gotta go!" I blurted, not waiting for their response. I sprinted to the bike rack, ignoring my friends’ shouts. My bike, a rusty old thing was there, chained to a pole. I yanked it free, jumped on, and pedaled like a madman, my thighs screaming from the effort. The wind whipped my face, but I didn’t care. Sabrina. She was involved. I was sure of it.

I don’t know how long I pedaled. The streets blurred past, the houses growing larger, the lawns more manicured. Sabrina’s villa stood at the end of a tree-lined avenue, a pretentious mansion with white columns and massive windows.

I tossed my bike onto the grass without bothering to prop it up and ran to the door. My fists pounded against the heavy wood.

A maid answered—a small, gray-haired woman with a wary look. "I need to see Sabrina. Now," I growled, my voice shaking with rage.

"Miss Sabrina isn’t—" she began.

"If she doesn’t come down, I’ll go get her myself, and it won’t be pretty!" I roared, my throat burning.

The maid narrowed her eyes, but before she could respond, Sabrina appeared at the top of the stairs, arms crossed, a smug smile on her lips. She wore a black silk top, her hair cascading down, she hadn’t come to school today, and I’d bet my hand she was the one who’d taken Ben.

She dismissed the maid with a sharp gesture and descended, her heels clicking on the marble. "What do you want, Hugo? Have you lost your mind?"

I didn’t give her time to play innocent. In two strides, I was on her, my hand gripping her throat. I leaned in, sniffing her neck. The smell was there :acrid, metallic, like dried blood. "You damn leech! Where’s Ben?"

She broke free with a fluid motion, leaping back as if she weighed nothing. But I wasn’t here to play. My reflexes took over, and I was on her in a second, my foot slamming toward her ribs. She crossed her arms to block, but the force sent her flying across the living room. Her body crashed into a leather couch, which screeched as it slid across the floor.

Sabrina recovered in a flash, faster than I expected. Her face had changed. Her already pale skin was now ghostly white, her eyes glowing like embers. Her ears had elongated, pointed like a bat’s. Her lips stretched, revealing sharp fangs. "Shit," I snarled. "I made a mistake. I should’ve gutted you right away."

She let out a shrill laugh. "What are you talking about, Hugo? Ben’s the one who dumped me after using me."

"So you decided to get revenge? I swear, if you’ve hurt a single hair on his head, you’re dead, Sabrina!"

She didn’t answer. Instead, she lunged, her claws glinting under the chandelier light. I raised my arms to block, but her nails slashed my forearm, leaving searing cuts. Blood soaked my T-shirt.

I roared, veins bulging in my arms, neck, and temples. Rage pulsed through my muscles. I was strong, much stronger than her, and I could take hits. But she was fast. Too fast.

I charged, throwing a right hook. She ducked, her claws raking my left side. Pain exploded, but I gritted my teeth, pivoting to knee her. She dodged, agile as a cat, and slashed my thigh.