The explosion followed immediately, fortunately not too strong. With the goal to tear his head off.

The torso collapsed to the ground. I realized it was pointless to go and check if he was dead. He had it well figured out.

I was beginning to be disgusted with all of this.

"Why?" I asked Agnieszka, as if she might know.

"He was afraid of what we might do to him. Afraid he might not endure it. Afraid of what his own masters might do to him afterward."

She recited it like a mantra she had said a thousand times herself.

"You're a bunch of bastards, aren't you?" I remarked, without expecting an answer.

"Yes," she affirmed. "Only the toughest and cruelest survive for millennia."

Millennia. Against my will, I shuddered.

"Shall we go?" I suggested.

"I need to drink and then eat," she reminded us.

I looked at the policemen and raised the gun to remind them who was in charge. Then Agnieszka took the floor. They listened carefully, and even though it seemed impossible, they were now even more terrified than just a few minutes ago. Suddenly, they found themselves in a horror story. Not in a pleasant movie horror, but in a real one, where they could easily play the main role – victims.

"I'll wait," I said. "Do you need privacy for that?" I asked, not knowing what I would do if she answered yes.

The four of them were now teetering on the brink of absolute panic, ready to bet everything on one card and throw themselves at her.

"No," she replied and approached the blond.

Then she went around to the others. If I didn't have such sensitive senses myself, I wouldn't have noticed what she was doing, but like this, I could – she was sniffing them.

"As I said, I only need half a liter of human blood," she returned to the blondie.

"You smell the best. You don't smoke tobacco or weed, you don't drink, you're healthy. The others..." she shrugged.

"And what if I don't want to give it to you?"

"Usually, I can arrange it so that people want to give it to me, but here, I would appreciate your cooperation."

"Then we'll let you go," I made her offer more tempting.

"Let us go? Sure!" grumbled the one who hurt Agnieszka in the beginning.

His jaw was swollen, and that probably gave him a little relief from the pain.

"Why not?" I replied. "Nothing happened here."

The vampire leader's body was losing its human proportions, transforming before my eyes into a shapeless mass of biological matter of uncertain origin.

It didn't progress as quickly with the others, but they didn't look like ordinary corpses either.

"Your pathologist will have a hard time. And I'm not sure if your bosses will praise you if you don't sweep this under the rug," I said.

In my opinion, they would do best to disappear because someone would be punished for this botched operation. And they were the only ones left alive.

"So?" Agnieszka asked the blond.

"Will you... will you bite me?"

If our situation hadn't been so miserable, I would have had to laugh. He had just seen three people, or beings, to be precise, die, and he was most afraid of being bitten by a vampire. Actually, a female vampire.

"No," Agnieszka replied and produced a sterile-wrapped medical needle for blood collection and other paraphernalia from her pocket.

The whole process went unexpectedly smoothly. The blood collection and drinking demoralized them, and they withdrew into passivity in the hope that their nightmare would end on its own. Since Agnieszka was collecting blood, the ruffian had been pale, and he had moved to maximize the distance between him and her. I wasn't sure, but it seemed to me that he muttered prayers. Why not, a bit of repentance wouldn't hurt him.

In the end, I confiscated their phones, destroyed the radios in the cars, and for good measure, I let the air out of all the tires. I left them with the pistols but without the magazines. I planned to get rid of those on the way.

Some of my strength had returned, and it was no problem to push Agnieszka's car onto the road.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Without further discussion to avoid being heard by the policemen, we said our goodbyes. Evelyn headed back into the woods to where she left her Mini, and Agnieszka and I cautiously drove together along the gravel road. I was driving, and she was sipping the remainder of the still-warm blood. I didn't mind; I liked blood too, just the animal kind. I had met people who had very refined culinary tastes but were monsters of an entirely different order than Agnieszka or me.

"Well, and now I'm hungry," she said when she finished her liquid breakfast.

I was almost uncontrollably hungry, and the sheep grazing just a bit lower down the slope seemed like the ideal food. But I didn't want to scare the public with the specter of a wolf pack tearing apart their herds.

Fortunately, we arrived at my car, sunk into the soft ground of the waterlogged meadow. I had to focus on something else. I didn't want to leave it here, and surprisingly, with Agnieszka's help, I managed to push it back onto the road. I had forgotten how strong Agnieszka was. But I shouldn't have; I had seen her face two vampires. And she carried me quite far.

"It's a shame Evelyn couldn't track that armored van," I muttered before getting into my car, and we went our separate ways.

After we left the deserted fourth-class road for a much busier highway, I had to concentrate completely on driving because getting to the inn was more challenging than I had assumed. After the adrenaline rush, the aftermath of the fight almost paralyzed me. Steering became torture, and pressing the brake pedal was a challenge.

"You'll probably have to shop on your own," I said when we both got out in Karolinka in front of the shopping center. I could barely stand on my feet. A short fight with a vampire had marked me more than I thought possible.

"Probably yes," she agreed. "You don't look very good. I'll also stop by the pharmacy for some soothing medicine."

"Very strong drugs," I clarified.

"Just the ones without a prescription," she replied with a hint of reproach.

I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be a joke. Maybe yes. I needed at least a large dose of codeine. Or something even stronger.

I tried to smile, but just lifting the corner of my mouth hurt too much. I couldn't remember when I got hit in the face, but it definitely happened. And I would say, several times. Maybe when he was trying to knock me down from behind.

I settled back into the car. I might have fallen asleep, but somehow, I had to move to the passenger seat. Agnieszka was behind the wheel, starting the car. I was relieved; I didn't feel capable of driving.

We stopped in front of a pharmacy almost instantly. Great country, pharmacies everywhere. Why did I even leave this place? I couldn't remember.

I slumped into the seat, trying not to attract too much attention. It worked. Agnieszka finally returned, and the car now carried the aroma of raw meat from the previous shopping, as well as healing ointments. "They have only small shops here, but you can buy almost everything in them," she assessed.

"Bullets?" I attempted a joke. "Explosives?"

She smiled. "You didn't say you needed any. But I didn't come across that kind of shop."

She shifted gears, and as we drove, even though she drove as cautiously as before, every tiny bump now felt like a sharp stab. Every jolt, every pothole was like playing roulette.

Damn vampire. I gloomily pondered my next challenging task – I had to discreetly move into the room. It would probably raise eyebrows if Agnieszka threw me over her shoulder and carried me upstairs.

We managed it. To any casual observer, it must have seemed like I was in bad shape, and Agnieszka was helping me a lot, but that didn't matter.

* * *

In the room, I sat exhausted on the bed, focusing on my shoes, pants, and, most importantly, the belt. I was losing sensitivity in my fingers, and I hoped I could unfasten the buckle. I needed to get everything off, assess how bad off I was, wash up, and so on.

Life isn't a cakewalk. I managed worse things. With the help of six pink pills and two hefty shots of Jameson, which Agnieszka wisely added to the shopping, I pulled it off, and surprisingly, I didn't faint or vomit during the process.

I seemed to have every part of my body bruised, skin torn in many places, seemingly intact in others but separated from the underlying connective tissue. I counted eleven wounds deep into the muscles, in places where the vest gave up, and the vampire dug his fingers into me. I could handle all that; the worst part was that my bones hurt. It felt as if someone had stretched me under a press back and forth. Even my eyes hurt. I sat on a chair, legs on the bed.

But he was dead. That thought helped. A little. Actually, a lot.

"You look terrible," a familiar voice from the door.

I had forgotten to lock it behind me, and I didn't hear her coming.

"I brought your weapons," she raised a sports bag.

I must have been much worse than I thought; I usually don't forget about my weapons. "Thanks."

She gave me a critical look. I was sitting on the bed only in loose shorts. The cold air felt good, and another shot of Jameson warmed me up.

"Maybe we should really find a discreet doctor," she suggested.

I just shook my head. I didn't know whom we could trust in this area, and I was convinced we'd be better off not trusting anyone.

"If any of your wounds get infected, we'll have to. I don't dare to massage you, but I have ointments that might help. Ibuprofen anti-inflammatory, arnica, and I even managed to get an antibiotic with a silver additive."

"Do you think it's necessary?" I poured myself another shot. I wasn't sure if one bottle would be enough because the pain was escalating rather than easing.

"Yes, the largest piece of undamaged skin I see isn't bigger than my palm."

"I'm wearing shorts," I reminded her. "Maybe it's hidden underneath."

"Humor hasn't left you; that's good. Lie on your stomach."

It wasn't a request; it was more of a command. I didn't object and complied.

"I heal quickly," I said, to not completely give up.

"I hope so because otherwise, I'll take you to the hospital."

At the first touch, I almost groaned, but then I got used to it, or she was gentler. Later, either the Jameson worked or those ointments were as effective as Agnieszka claimed.

"It looks really interesting," a familiar voice pulled me from my semi-conscious state.I felt numb and terribly hungry.

The door lock clicked, and a stream of cold air dried the moist surface of the waterproof jacket. I turned my head.

Evelyn entered the room, her hair wet, large droplets sparkling on the non-absorbent surface of the jacket. It was raining outside.

"But I'd understand a different position. I won't disturb," she added.