Part 17 (1/2)
”You weren't there. You didn't see,” Nancy said, glaring at her. She looked at Jeremy in misery. ”Now we're going to die.” She turned to face Jessica again. ”They'll come after us, too.” Jessica felt a chill snake along her spine, but she hesitated, knowing she needed to speak carefully. ”All right,” she said at last.
”Say that such creatures do exist. Was either of you actually bitten?”
Jeremy and Nancy stared at each other.
”No,” Nancy said.
”No,” Jeremy echoed.
Another silent moment pa.s.sed.
”Good G.o.d!” Jeremy said sickly.
”What?” Jessica asked.
”She'll become a vampire.”
”Oh, G.o.d!” Nancy agreed. ”Mary will be...one of the undead.” Her words were so dramatic that they would have been funny, if the situation hadn't been so tragic.
”It's the truth,” Jeremy said firmly.
”All right, listen. Often truth is simply what we believe it to be,” Jessica said.
”Don't start with the psychobabble,” Jeremy said angrily.
”I'm not. The point is, if you see something as true-and I'm not going to try to tell either of you that you're mistaken or it's all in your minds-then, in your life, at the very least, it is true. So let's say vampires do exist. Make a list of ways to deal with them.”
Nancy and Jeremy stared at each other in confusion.
”Like...garlic?” Nancy asked.
Jessica smiled. ”Like garlic. Is either of you religious?”
”I was raised Catholic,” Jeremy said.
”Methodist,” Nancy said. ”Like Mary.”
”Great big silver crosses would be good, then,” Jessica said.
”What if Mary was Jewish?” Nancy asked suspiciously.
”Then I would suggest a great big Star of David,” Jessica told her.
”I see. Because what's important is that I believe that would stop a Jewish vampire?” Nancy asked.
Again, Jessica answered carefully. ”Here's one way to look at it. There is a supreme being, and for the sake of argument, we'll make it a 'he.' And he's the ultimate good. But there's evil in the world, and good or evil are in a constant battle for supremacy.
We'll a.s.sume that the two of you are good, and that whatever killed Mary is evil. So as representatives of good, you have to combat the evil.”
”With garlic?” Nancy asked. ”With whatever you believe will work,” Jessica said.
They needed to believe they could fight. She was pretty sure she had accomplished that, at the least.
”So what should we do now?” Nancy asked.
”Go back to your dorms and get what you need, then come back here. I'll have everything set up for you. No one will know you're here.” She paused, then offered a rueful smile. ”We'll go by all the old legends, so don't invite anyone in. Anyone at all.”
”Right. A vampire can't come in unless invited,” Nancy said.
”That's the traditional thought,” Jessica agreed.
”We need holy water and crosses,” Jeremy said.
”Right. And I'll see you have everything you need for a good night's sleep,” Jessica a.s.sured them.
”I don't know if I'll ever sleep again,” Jeremy said.
Jessica placed a hand on his. ”I wish I could make this not hurt so badly for you,” she told him. ”But grief...it's something you have to go through. All the stages, but you have to live, too. You have people who love you. Think of how badly you're hurting.
You wouldn't want to make anyone else hurt like that, right?”
He sighed deeply. ”Of course I want to live, of course. It's instinct, isn't it?”
Oh, yes, he was right about that.
She acknowledged his words with a slight smile and a nod. Just then the pizza arrived, and both Nancy and Jeremy found themselves able to eat.
In the middle of a bite, Jeremy started crying.
Nancy held him. Jessica sat silently.
Her heart seemed to bleed. He was truly in misery.
And he was truly afraid.
There was little he could do.
Little but be frustrated.
Bryan chafed irritably through the rest of the morning and the early hours of the afternoon. Jessica had befriended Jeremy and his fellow students, but he barely knew them. He had nothing to offer them after their loss.
Jessica, pale and shaken, had been out of the house as soon as he finished telling them what had happened. He simply bided his time, watching the sky all the while.
At last the afternoon waned. He had checked the times when the nurses' s.h.i.+fts changed, and, thanks to modern technology, he had found the blueprints for the hospital online, as well as the current delegation of s.p.a.ce.
He arrived with time to spare, making his way first to the cafeteria.It was busy, which was good. He took his time, pretending to read the newspaper, watching, ready to grab his opportunity when it came. When it did, it was easy enough to snag a key card from a young orderly who neglected to realize he had left it on his tray.