Vincent

Chapter II

The night was unusually cold for September but it was a welcome cold it hadn't gotten below 75 in over a week now. I had found a tree on the eastern side of the pasture. It was an old oak tree that had to be a hundred years old the trunk was so big around that it would take three of me hand in hand to get all the way around it. I was sitting on the ground with my back against the tree and my spelling book in my back pocket watching the cows most of which were starting to lay down for the night. I laid the rifle across my legs and reached into my back pocket and pulled out the book. I had read this book probably 20 times but had never really understood it because I really didn't even know how to read. I didn't understand some of the bigger words in it but I could spell every single word in that book.

When I heard a cow make a God awful noise I opened my eyes and realized I had fallen asleep. I jumped to my feet and ran towards the noise while trying to load the rifle.

“Damn why didn't I have the rifle already loaded.” I thought to myself.

The noise had stopped but I had locked onto where it came from and saw the cow about 30 yards ahead of me. There was a figure beside it but there was not enough moon light to tell what it was because it had clouded up. I started yelling and making noise of my own to scare whatever it was. But it never moved a muscle. When I was about 15 yards away I could see what looked like a man bent beside the cow with it's face in the cows neck. This startled me and I slipped on some cow shit and fell face first to the ground hitting my head on a rock. I rolled over and jumped straight back up with the rifle up to my shoulder point at the man who was now standing over the cow looking straight at me. He had a long trench coat that looked to be black or at least a dark color of some kind. I felt something hot and wet on my forehead I wiped it away thinking only it was sweat, but when I looked at my hand I saw that it was blood from the fall. It felt like hours but I'm sure it was only minutes I stood there a steady stream of blood now coming down my face and dripping from my chin.

“Who are you?” I screamed

The man said nothing and never moved, he just stood there staring at me.

“This is your last warning start explaining yourself or I will shoot!” I exclaimed.

Still nothing, no movement and not a sound came from him. This is also when I noticed the blood that was on the front of his chin.

“OK you give me no choice.” I said.

I pointed the rifle at his heart and put my finger on the trigger and started to squeeze. I heard the gun go off and when the smoked cleared I saw the man right in my face with the barrel of the rifle in one hand pointing it up into the sky. He pulled the rifle from my hands and threw it so far it didn't see or hear it hit the ground. I stumbled backwards slipping again and fell onto my back.

Looking up at him I cried “What are you? What do you want with me?”

The man then reached his hand out and offered it to me.

“Believe me if I meant you harm you would be dead by now.” the man said .

After a few minutes I reached up and took his hand. He pulled me to my feet with what looked like no effort at all. The blood from the cow that was on his chin was gone now and I could see his coat was indeed black.

“Who are you and what did you do to my cow?” I asked.

“Who I am ,I would say, is not as important as what I am.” he laughingly said “As far as what I did to your cow would you prefer I did it to you?”

I was shocked by what he said. What did he mean “what I am”?

“My name is Alexander and as for your cow well I was hungry so I fed” said the man.

“I do not understand you have only killed the cow you have taken no meat from it” I said as I pushed myself to my feet, “how could you say you have fed?”

“Haha” Alex laughed, “Oh how much of the world you do not understand boy. I bid you farewell here is some money for you livestock.” Alex reached into his pocket and threw some bills to the ground at my feet. Then he turned and started off towards the woods.

“Wait I demand to know why you have done this!” I yelled rushing towards him.

Suddenly before I could even blind he had me in his hand by my throat holding me above him.

“How dare you demand anything from me boy.! I could snap your neck like a twig before you knew I had you in my grip.” said Alex angrily.

Alex dropped me to the ground, I landed on my back and I was struggling to catch my breath.

As I regained my senses Alex was still standing over me with a strange and worrying look on his face. He looked as if he was listening to something but what it was I could not tell. Then he looked at me and said the words that changed my life forever.

“Do you really want to know what I am?” Alex asked with worry in his eyes.

“Yes I do” I said slowly in a trembling girlish voice.

“Very well but you will have to leave you family and life behind and never look back. We will leave immediately.” said Alex.

Before I could answer he had me in his arms and I could feel a sharp pain in my neck. I realized Alex's face was buried in my neck and I was feeling more and more tired I could not keep my eyes open. I tried pushing him off, but to no use I was growing weaker by the moment. Finally I knew my time in this world was over and I began praying for my soul then...........I felt nothing!