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“Gotcha. I can't stand Kelly Ann either and she's family. Don't get me started on Aunt Mae. ”

Despite herself, Amaliya laughed and held the phone closer. The voice of her cousin made her feel safer somehow. Safe from what though? The bogeyman wasn't outside the door. The monster was in the room and already living inside of her.

“I think she has less teeth now than before. ”

“Maybe Kelly Ann is punching them out,” Sergio suggested. “You know, she's a lot like our dead Uncle. ”

“Violent and stupid?”

“And ugly. ”

“True dat,” Amaliya agreed.

She looked over at the body. It was amazing how little blood there was, but then again, she had drained him dry. She couldn't stay here any longer though. If Rob's truck stayed idling out in the parking lot, it would get hairy

for her real quick. Especially if the sun was out.

“Okay, so I'll get you tomorrow night,” Sergio said, realizing the conversation was at an end.

“Thanks again,” she whispered.

“Hey, it's what family is for. ”

“You always were my favorite,” she confessed.

“You say that to all the cousins,” he teased, then said in a more serious tone, “take care of yourself. Get some rest. I'll see you tomorrow. ”

The loud buzzing that followed the click of the phone being set down made her sigh. She hung up the phone. It was probably stupid to call her cousin, but she had used what little remained of a phone card she had at the bottom of her bag. Hopefully, by the time the police traced it, she would have said goodbye to her grandmother and sworn her cousin to secrecy.

Sliding off the bed, she looked down at Rob's body. The rage she had felt earlier still burned in her. She felt shame that she could kill without remorse.

Rubbing the side of her nose with one finger, she cocked her hip, and stood over Rob, looking down at him with intense hatred. She now fully understood what she was capable doing. Somehow, the slaughter of the people in the fraternity did not seem like her actions. It was as if she was another person doing unspeakable things. Even draining the crazy woman earlier in the night had not made her feel inhuman. In her mind, she had rationalized that she had saved the woman's children from having their crazy mom barge into their home and murder their father.

But this. . .

She subconsciously licked her teeth.

“I enjoyed this,” she said softly.

It shamed her how much she had enjoyed killing Rob, but she could not deny it. The last two nights were a blur of bad luck and terrible actions. This one incident had taught her one thing for certain. She liked what she was now. For the first time in her life she knew exactly what she wanted.

She needed to find another of her kind. Someone to teach her how to control her powers and guide her as to what she should or should not do. Fuck Professor Sumner. She would find her own damn way and show him a thing or two about survival.

Tugging on her black jeans, she formulated a plan in her mind. It would take some time, but she was sure she could find one of her own kind. Hell, she'd go to freaking New Orleans if she had to. Fishing around on the floor, she found her socks and glared at the dead man as she pulled them on.

Maybe she was fucked up, but she had been fucked up ever since she walked in on her Dad doing her slutty cousin. Stomping her feet to get her boots on all the way, she glanced at the covered mirror. Flipping it off she walked over Rob's body and quickly packed up her bag.

Hot anger filled her once more as she thought of Rob grabbing her and trying to rape her. It was far too reminiscent of what had happened between her and Professor Sumner. She would not let herself ever be in that situation again.

Picking up the pack of cigarettes, she pulled one out and tucked it between her lips. She lit it and took a deep drag and savored the moment. After shoving her hat onto her head, she yanked the door open and walked outside. Impulsively, not even sure if it was the smart thing to do, she vaulted over the rail and landed with a thud on the ground below. Nothing hurt, nothing felt sprained, nothing felt wrong.

Looking up she saw the night clerk staring at her through the window in shock. Walking over to the door, she yanked it open. She felt the dark power inside of her swelling up, and she said in a low voice, “Sleep. ”

Without a word, the clerk fell face first onto the counter, hit it with a resounding smack, then slipped out of sight onto the floor. Sliding over the counter, Amaliya avoided landing on the man and headed for the small office visible beyond a cracked door. As she suspected, a series of three monitors was set up and an ancient VCR whirred loudly as it taped the scenes. Hitting eject, the tape slid easily into her hand. She would destroy it later, once she was far away from here.

Climbing onto the counter, she sat and pondered her options. She could set Rob on fire and let the whole thing burn, but she had heard children in the other rooms. Her name wasn't recorded here and she could be a million different girls in Texas with her dark hair.

“Eh, fuck it,” she said. She slid off the counter and landed lightly on the floor.