The evening began with romance.
Hunter was the perfect dance partner, and our first lesson was wonderful. Almost immediately, I could tell that he already knew how to dance. He wasn't unsure of any of the steps, and he was able to guide me while the teacher was helping other couples. We were learning the waltz, and my hand was on his shoulder as his hand pressed against my shoulder blade while he held my other hand as we stood facing each other. I stepped back as he stepped forward, and we were soon moving in sync to the box step. Our movements followed a square pattern of side, forward, side, back. Soon, I didn't need to look at my feet as I let Hunter lead me in the simple dance.
It was so much better than the awkward swaying I had done with my partners at school dances. I felt almost graceful as we began to transition into some of the basic turns that the instructor showed us. At first, I had been counting the one, two, three rhythm in my head, but now the music did its magic as I moved in step with Hunter. I could imagine gliding across the dance floor with him at a ball, like a princess in a fairytale. Dancing with him was the most romantic thing I had ever experienced. The teacher, also, had noticed that he knew the dance, so she spent more time correcting the other couples' mistakes. We got to spend more time on our own, making it feel less like a class and more like a real dance. The position we were in made it natural for us to keep looking at each other. I didn't want the hour to end.
After class, Hunter asked me where I wanted to go next. I told him to drive us anywhere that we could be alone. He put on soft music, and we didn't talk as he pulled out of the dance studio parking lot. I think we were both contentedly wrapped up in the romantic mood of our dance session. Eventually, he turned onto a back road without any streetlights and kept driving until he found a secluded spot by the woods. He turned off the car and the music and gazed at me in silence for a moment.
"Allison, I would like to share everything with you. If you will allow me to explain my circumstances, I think you will understand."
I, however, wasn't in the mood to talk. At this moment, we were alone with only the pale light of the distant moon between us and total darkness. Romance was the only thing on my mind. As far as I was concerned, we would have plenty of time to talk later.
I moved closer to him. "Hunter."
"Allison." The way he said my name told me that talking was no longer on his mind.
His lips found mine, and the first kiss was slow and tender. It was how I imagined that he would have kissed me on the dance floor. We took our time, enveloped in our own world. Sweet, unhurried kisses gradually built to fevered passion. Hunter began to kiss my neck and then stopped to look at me.
"I left it at home," I said and kissed him again.
He kissed me deeply and returned to driving me wild with a hot trail of kisses down my neck and past my throat toward my cleavage. My hands were in his thick mane of dark brown hair, and my breathing was quick and shallow. He stilled and pulled as far away from me as he could.
"Allison." The husky sound of his voice sent a sharp thrill shooting through me.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that I should have been the one to stop things before they went too far. I was so attracted to Hunter, though, that I didn't care. Once again, I was overwhelmed with a sense of déjà vu as I watched him try to regain his composure.
"There are things I must tell you." His voice was steady now. He slumped forward in the same instant that I heard glass breaking.
"Hunter!" I leaned toward him as a bright light suddenly shone in my eyes through the open window. I heard the door behind me open and felt someone grab me around the waist. I screamed as I was dragged from the car.
"Shut up," said the man with the flashlight. He had angled it toward the ground and had a gun in his other hand.
I froze in terror, my mouth going dry. The other one let go of me, but then I felt something metal pressing into my back. He must have had a gun, too. They forced me to walk into the woods as my heart pounded with fear. What had they done to Hunter? With growing horror, I realized that they had shot him. The breaking glass I'd heard had been the sound of the bullet going through the windshield.
"Told you these back roads are a gold mine for finding couples parking."
"This one is even prettier than the last one. Don't worry girlie, we're gonna have some fun. We can satisfy you better than your boyfriend."
I heard them speaking through a haze of unreality. This had to be a nightmare, just like the awful one I'd had about being surrounded by death. Please, I prayed, let me wake up now. I didn't panic until they stopped and pushed me to the ground. I began to scream, but a hand clamped over my mouth. The one who had been holding the flashlight was on top of me, pinning me down. His partner was kneeling behind my head and muffling my screams with one hand while he held my shoulder down with his other hand.
"Damn! Wish I hadn't gone first last time. She looks so innocent."
The one on top of me smirked. "Gonna find out soon."
"Hey!" His partner's shouted warning was too late to alert him to the danger.
With an inhuman growl, Hunter pulled him off of me and snapped his neck like a twig. He dropped his body on the ground and came after the second man, who was now scrambling backwards and trying to stand up. I had sat up as soon as he let go of me. I watched now as my boyfriend grabbed him and sank sharp fangs into his neck. It wasn't like the movies. Except for the fangs, his face was not that of a monster. His eyes didn't glow red or anything like that. When he turned away from the man, his mouth was not covered in blood. In a moment, his fangs receded and disappeared from sight.
"Allison." His voice was not that of a demon. It was the same voice that I knew so well. "Did they hurt you?"
"No. You stopped them." Any minute now, I would wake up.
As he moved toward me, I scooted back. "What—what are you?"
He stopped, and his expression changed from concern to anger. "I am your beloved," he thundered. "I cursed myself to this existence in order to save you. Now you shrink away from me!"
Something shifted in my mind. "Ah, Delwyn, you have gone to vanquish death, but what of me? I grow weaker with each passing hour."
He sank to his knees before me, anguish on his face. "I was too late. Forgive me, Rowena."
I now came back to myself and stared into Hunter's dark eyes. "Rowena. It wasn't a dream. You were in my room that night, and you called me that name."
"Allison, we have to go before someone finds us here." He managed to help me to my feet, but I backed out of his reach when he tried to guide me away.
I looked at the bodies on the ground. "You killed those men."
"Murderers and depraved fiends. I have killed many such as these." He walked over to the one he had drained of blood and pulled out a pocketknife to slice open his neck. "It may help to confuse the police."
"We have to call the police and report the crime." I was clinging desperately to something rational.
"They would have too many questions we cannot answer. Do you want to relive your ordeal? They can no longer hurt you or anyone else."
This time, I let him lead me away from that terrible scene. All the fight had gone out of me along with the fear. It was easier to let Hunter take care of everything while I tried not to think about it.
"They must have parked their car on that dirt road I saw nearby. I should have sensed them approaching, but I was distracted."
I said nothing until I saw the bullet hole in the windshield and remembered his slumped form. "They shot you!"
"I was stunned almost unconscious until my body could expel the bullet. That is why I was unable to protect you." His expression darkened. "I heard your screams."
I shuddered and looked again at the cracked windshield. "Can you see to drive?"
"Yes. It will not hinder my vision." He opened the passenger door for me.
I got into the car, and he walked around to the driver side and wasted no time in getting us out of there. Now that I was coming down off of all the adrenaline, I was hit by sudden exhaustion. We rode in silence, our earlier happy mood completely shattered. Dance class seemed like an eternity ago.
Hunter stopped the car, and I realized that we were in my driveway. I looked at him, and he held my gaze. "Allison, I am going to walk you to your door now. You will prepare for bed and go to sleep. You will not dream. You will sleep peacefully and awaken rested in the morning."
"Yes," I agreed.
I followed his instructions and didn't think about anything at all before I went to bed.