Read Online Vampires in Devil Town by Wayne Hixon - Free Book Online Page A

the road, slamming on the brakes, the van sliding a little on the gravel. He stood up from the seat, still crouched over and, reaching over Rain, took several vicious swings at Rachel’s face. Each time his fist connected, the rope pulled on her neck, abrading it.
  “Shut the fuck up!” he shouted.
  Rachel wanted to slump, wanted to collapse with exhaustion and pain, but the ropes kept her upright. Maybe she brought this attack upon herself. No. That was exactly what victims thought. She wouldn’t let herself become a victim.
  Bones whipped himself back into the driver’s seat, jerking like a barnyard rooster, and pulled the van back onto the road.
  “Let me out,” Rain said. “I don’t want to be near you right now.”
  “Like hell,” Bones said. “She’s a liar, Rain. Just a stupid liar. I don’t want anyone but you.”
  “What about that one time?”
  “I don’t know what I was thinkin. You was on yer period. You know I don’t like it when yer bleedin.”
  “Yeah, but it happened. I coulda just sucked you off or somethin but you had to go and do... that .”
  “I’m not bitchin with you. I’ll slice you up and down before I get in an argument with yer bitch mouth.”
  The van hummed along the road. Bones fired up another cigarette, his hand trembling, his head jerking forward on his neck.
  “So you don’t want to fuck her?”
  “No way. She’s a skank.”
   And you’re a real fucking prize , Rachel thought.
  “Then you don’t care if I mess up her face?”
  Rachel cringed at that. Maybe she had only succeeded in making this girl jealous. A jealous girl, Rachel knew from experience, was nothing to take lightly.
  “Go right ahead. I’d like to see her messed up. Just don’t make her bleed too much.”
  Rachel heard the slow unsheathing of the knife and all her muscles drew tight within her bondage. She didn’t know which would be worse—being dead or going through life as a hideously scarred freak.
  Rain ran her finger along the blade and looked almost furtively at Rachel.

 
    Seven
     
    Rain crouched down in front of Rachel, trying to steady the knife in front of her as the van raced through the night. Rachel continued to probe the girl’s eyes, unable to discern any singular emotion in them.
  “Time for some music!” Bones shouted from the driver’s seat, obviously thrilled at the prospect of more bloodletting from the back.
  Suddenly, the van exploded in music. It was Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazelwood singing “Some Velvet Morning.” Not really something Rachel would have expected Bones to be a big fan of.
  Rain leaned in toward Rachel, placing her cheek against her ear. The girl had a hint of the same whiskey and cigarette stench Bones had, but there was something beneath it. Something sweeter. Something a little more innocent.
  “I’m going to cut your ropes,” she whispered. “Just whimper a lot so he thinks I’m cutting you.” Her voice was more the compassionate girl Rachel hoped she was rather than the vicious slob she feared.
  Rachel didn’t say anything. She didn’t know what to say. For the first time in this whole horrifying evening, she saw a glimmer of hope. A tingle ran through her. Was Rain just putting her on? Building up her hopes to make the cutting more painful? This was the same girl who’d slashed her foot only moments before.
  “What is this shit!” Bones shouted from the front.
  Rachel’s heart skipped a beat. At first she thought he had heard what Rain whispered to her. Then she realized he was talking about the music. He frantically slapped at the dial, searching for something louder, undoubtedly. He stopped when he got to some kind of testosterone-driven crap metal.
  “That’s more like it,” he muttered. “These guys fuckin rock.”
  Rachel wasn’t familiar with whoever he was talking about and she didn’t really care. Rain leaned over her and severed the rope