Chapter 35: Seeking Advice

Previously: Danielle Slade, great grand-daughter of Adam Slade, has arrived in Lucky Palms to escape the trauma and drama that tormented her parents. While enjoying the freedom of her new home she has made a friend who may, himself, harbour dark secrets...

In this chapter Danielle uncovers some of the mystery around her new friend, Clark ...


Danielle was really enjoying the freedom of her new life in Lucky Palms. The relaxed atmosphere and simple joie de vivre that pervaded the town was infectious. Together with the good weather and the awesome landscape, the place certainly lived up to the claims made by her old biker buddies back in Riverview.

Out here on Lakeside Drive, clearly poorer and less attractive, which in many other towns would be considered 'the wrong side of the tracks', there was a real sense of community and many pleasant hours were spent with her neighbours in the nearby park and bars.

After their first meeting just a few weeks previously, Danielle and Clark had quickly become fast friends. Clark didn't seem to enjoy being out in the hot mid-day sun that was common of a Lucky Palm summer, but they would spend hours on the phone or sharing a laugh in the many friendly clubs and bars dotted across the city.

Of their hangouts, their favourite was the Three Palms Lounge. It was an unusual mix of sophistication and simple fun. The smart décor encouraged all the visitors to dress up but then you had some of the oldest and best classic arcade machines to play on.

Much to Clark's amusement Danielle had yet to master the fruit machines of Lucky Palms as she claimed to have done in Riverview. But that was fine; they shared triumph and failure equally which made their nights there all the more entertaining.

One night, however, their good mood was interrupted by one of the older visitors to the Lounge.

Danielle was taking her turn on one of the classic pinball tables, with Clark offering helpful "advice" and playful commentary when Danielle noticed this woman glaring at Clark. As the woman turned to walk away from the machines she sneered, just loudly enough for Danielle to hear her, "Tsck! Biters, shouldn't be allowed out!"

Although he kept joking with Danielle, she could tell that Clark's mood had been affected by that woman. But why, what did she mean 'biter'?

Ending her game, Danielle had to ask her friend what had happened.

Clark tried to pass it off as nothing, "Oh, pay her no attention, just some sad old crone who doesn't like to see young people out enjoying themselves."

"No Clark," Danielle persisted, "I can tell she upset you, and what did she mean by 'biter'? What sort of word is that?"

"Honestly, it's nothing ..." but Clark could see that his new friend wasn't going to let this lie, "OK, it really is nothing really, but ... I ... I have this condition, it's why I am so pale and can't spend long in the sun. It's not a problem; I just have to take special medication ..."

"Oh," Danielle was momentarily nonplussed, unsure how to react, "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"No, no," Clark smiled broadly and tried to reassure her, "it's not that common and most people will never have come across it. And it's not like I'm sick or anything, it's more about having to be careful about my diet. And there are even upsides too! I mean there are some things I can do better than you, like ... run faster, read quicker, stuff like that."

Danielle smiled back, feeling a little calmer, "well, I may have to put you to the test on that some day! But, what's with 'biter', it doesn't make sense?"

"It's an old word," Clark sighed, "some people use it still for people with my condition. Because we look a bit different and can do some things better than 'ordinary' people. In the old days, some places, they tried to make out we were a threat and wanted to lock us away. That's why I had to leave Moonlight ... too many people there with old views and ... and, well, I didn't want to take it anymore."

Danielle could see these old memories were upsetting her friend; the fun had suddenly gone from their evening. "Look," she suggested, "there's not much going on here now, how about we go get a bite to eat?"

So, the two of them headed off to the Blooming Cactus where the views over the city as the last rays of the sun withdrew from the city below and the cool night air moving gently around them, restored a sense of peace after the unsettling incident at the Three Palms.

--*--

A few days later, Danielle was in Sandy's, her local bar, talking with a neighbourhood friend, Zahra Diwan.

"So, Clark and I were there having fun on the pinball machines when this old biddy just started staring at us, at Clark really, and then she said something mean about 'biters'. He said it didn't but I know it really upset him, except he wouldn't really say much about it. He said it was because he has some sort of medical condition but I'm sure there's more he didn't tell me."

Zahra was, herself, shocked by Danielle's story. "Really, she used that word? I didn't think there was anyone in Lucky Palms with those sorts of attitudes these days. That really is pathetic!"

"Yeah, Clark said it was an old and bad word for his condition ..."

"Condition?" Zahra interrupted her, "is that how he described it? How much did he tell you?"

"Umm, nothing much," Danielle was getting concerned by Zahra's unexpectedly serious tone, "just that he had to be careful what he ate, that he was on meds, and, uhh, that it meant he could run really fast."

"OK, well I suppose it is a 'condition' of sorts though I'm not sure why he would want to hide it, not here in Lucky Palms anyway." Zahra, turned as the door to the bar opened and their friend Romon entered, "Look, Romon knows more about this than I do, he can explain it properly."

Zahra waved at Romon, inviting him to join them and outlined Danielle's story and questions about Clark.

"It's simple really," he started, "Clark is a vampire ..."

Danielle's hand went instantly to her mouth, "Oh my god! It didn't even occur to me, I'd heard stories but ... I didn't even believe ..."

"No," Romon continued, "and why should you. I don't think any vampires have lived in those valley towns for centuries, they tend to stick together in small communities in the central cities and, more recently, out here in the desert towns."

"Wasn’t there some old rhyme, sure I heard it from a couple of the old folks in Riverview, how did it go ... oh, something like 'Beware, beware the moonlit night; for the vampires take to flight; beware the vampire's bite; set your blood alight...'"

Romon laughed, "Ha, haven't heard that in an age! Yeah, back in the old days there were all kinds of superstitions about them. As with a lot of these things there's a small element of truth. A vampire is basically a very minor genetic mutation but it does make a significant difference in how their bodies make blood ... so, back in the day, to stay alive they would have to consume blood. But not like in a transfusion, they actually had to digest it. So, you can imagine how this scared people who didn't understand the basic biology of their 'condition' ... and the 'fangs' didn’t help either!"

"Fangs!" Danielle literally yelped, "I thought that was just unusual dentition ..."

"No, it is one of the obvious physical indications of vampirism, the skin tone, the unusually bright eyes, and the sharpened teeth. Unfortunately it fed right into the fear of difference that stunts superstitious people."

"So," Danielle asked, "is it dangerous, y'know, being a vampire ... or knowing a vampire?"

"No, certainly not these days. We've discovered that it is blood plasma that they need and that can be mass produced now so they don't need whole blood or die of 'the thirst', as they say. And he's certainly not going to be attacking you for your blood. In fact, he has several benefits as a vampire. As he told you he is capable of moving at great speed and that is not just a physical attribute, his mind also works faster than ours so he can learn new skills more quickly than you or I. He is also likely to live a lot longer than any of us, which may or may not be a good thing of course."

"Wow, I never thought leaving Riverview would be such a change! Thank you Romon, that does make me feel a bit better, but I just wish Clark could have told me this himself, I don't understand why he is so cagey about it."

"Well, he is new here, and not everywhere is as relaxed about vampires as Lucky Palms. Didn't you say he moved here to escape? Perhaps where he used to live was still plagued by those old and backward views? I think you should try to speak to Clark about it, properly ... or ..."

Zahra suddenly interjected, "Yolanda."

"Yes, have a word with Yolanda Shaw. She's head of the local Vampire Community Council and will be able to help you and Clark deal with any issues that might come up. What I've told you I have learnt from working with the local news teams and I bet there's a lot they and I don't know. Anyway, he really has nothing to fear here; he probably just needs to meet more people like himself, who know what he's been through."

Danielle was relieved to finally get some understanding of Clark's issues, but realised that she still had a lot to learn. Unsure about how she might broach the subject with Clark, he had been quite vague and almost evasive after all, Danielle decided she would first have a word with this Yolanda, who might help her help Clark.

--*--

The following day Danielle contacted the office of the Vampire Community Council to speak with Yolanda Shaw. She was slightly surprised to be passed through directly to Yolanda’s mobile.

After very briefly outlining her concerns about Clark and her desire to know more about vampires, Yolanda agreed to meet that afternoon. "I'd be delighted to meet and talk through some of your concerns, but I am very busy today – I'll be at the Solitary Novel book shop for a while, perhaps we could talk there, over a cup of coffee?"

Such a positive response was more than Daniele had expected so readily agreed to the meeting in town.

On arriving at the book shop Danielle was rather taken aback to see Yolanda sat so casually in the afternoon sunshine.

"Ahh yes, having moved out to these desert cities we had to develop some new products to make our lives easier and a good sunscreen was among the first!" Yolanda explained. "I’m surprised that your friend Clark hasn't discovered it yet – it is readily available from most of the general stores in town, or our offices in an emergency."

The two women ordered coffee and sat at one of the tables in a quiet corner of book shop café and Danielle described in more detail her worries about Clark, especially as, according to Yolanda, he had not yet connected with other vampires in Lucky Palms.

But when Danielle mentioned Moonlight Falls Yolanda's posture stiffened, it was as if her whole body tightened. "Moonlight Falls? I think that may explain a lot I'm afraid."

"Moonlight Falls was one of the first places where a vampire community became established," Yolanda continued, "it's far away from major urban centres and kind of isolated. The story is that the town was actually founded by a vampire family. Unfortunately they hadn't reckoned on the antipathy of the local population, there were some small settlements along the river and they were quite hostile to these 'strange' incomers.

"Anyway, over the years the hostility escalated and the two populations just became more and more entrenched. There is virtually no interaction between vampire and human and if you don't fight with and for your own you can be completely ostracised. Quite a few of the vampires here in Lucky Palms are from Moonlight Falls – they couldn't take the constant warring that has beset the town."

"That’s terrible," Danielle gasped, "that sounds like hell. I'm not surprised Clark wanted to escape, he's far too kind and gentle for such a place."

"Just remember, Danielle, that no one leaves such a place unscathed. He's obviously still wary of people getting too close to him. So, be open with him, show that he can trust you and I'm sure he will tell you all that he needs to in good time. And, of course, do encourage him, not pressure just gentle encouragement, to get in touch with the community council; we can do a lot to help."

Looking quickly at her watch, Yolanda realised she had another meeting in a few minutes time, "Look, I'm sorry, but I really have to go now. I hope I've been able to help you and, here, take this leaflet – it lists all the services we offer and the scheduled events we run. When you're ready, you'd be welcome, you and Clark, to come along."

As Yolanda hurried out to hail a cab, Danielle looked over the small leaflet that she had been handed and wondered what she had got herself into. As much as she loved spending time with Clark did she really want to get that involved with someone who could be so very damaged?



Chapter 36: I Believe In You