Carlos

I wake up with a raging headache and the uncomfortable feeling of being hungover without being able to remember why.

Gradually, as I stare at the ceiling, memory comes creeping back, and I sit up with a groan.

That's right. John is a vampire, and we can't be together because he'd probably kill me, which sucks — no pun intended — because otherwise he's the perfect guy.

I pause and examine my hangover-addled thoughts.

Is he the perfect guy?

I mean, kinda. He's handsome, and kind, and he likes dogs. He's hard-working, and honest (apart from the whole vampire thing), and he wants to help people. Not to mention he's a god in bed.

Most importantly, the attraction seems to be mutual.

Do I want to be the Bella to his Edward? Honestly, not really. But it had felt good to be desired. It had felt good to get fucked, too, and I'd been hoping for a second round. Now it seems like, after a brief and unexpected downpour, my sex life has returned to the parched, barren desert I'm accustomed to.

Sighing, I rest my elbows on my knees and massage my eyes with the base of my palms. Figures the guy I fall in love with wants to eat me. That's just my luck.

I check my wandering thoughts again and frown. Fall in love? That can't be right. Lust, sure. Longing, yeah. But love?

I search my feelings, testing them carefully, and what I find surprises me. It's not full-blown yet, but it's definitely there and it's growing fast.

Great. I'm in love with the perfect guy, who gave me the best sex of my life, broke up with me before we even got together, and now says we can never be a thing because it would destroy us both. And despite all that, I'm pretty sure I'd risk my life for one more night with him.

How pathetic is that?

~ ★ ~

True to his word, John accompanies me on my quest to contact Kyle. I select my garage as the site of our 'seance,' for lack of a better word, because it's secure, secluded, and a place to which Kyle has already demonstrated a connection.

"So, how's this work?" John asks, as I spread a circle of salt on the cracked concrete floor, having cleared the center of my workspace for the purpose.

"It's not complicated," I say, keeping most of my attention on my work. "I'll enter a trancelike, meditative state, and invite Kyle to speak with me. It will be easier for him this way. Instead of having to pull energy from this world in order to manifest, I'll use mine as a bridge to his."

"Is it dangerous?"

I shrug. "Everything has risks. You can drown in a bathtub, or fall off a ladder and break your neck. But done right, with proper precautions, the risks are minimal."

"What do you want me to do?"

Circle complete, I walk around it twice, making sure it's even and unbroken. "Just watch and listen. You probably won't be able to record anything on your phone — electronics tend not to work properly in situations like this — but take notes if it helps. I might say things that make no sense, and I won't remember what I've said when I come out of the trance. Also... if I get possessed, you'll have to do the talking — to whoever, or whatever, is inside me."

"How will I know if that happens?"

I take a deep breath and tie my hair back with a band. "Trust me. You'll know. And if for some reason I don't come out of it on my own, just do the banishment ritual like I showed you. It's pretty simple. Alright, let's get this done."

I move towards the circle, but John grasps my uninjured arm. "Wait. Are you sure this is a good idea? You don't have to do this, Carlos."

Surprised, I accidentally look directly at him, something I've been trying not to do since he told me to abandon all hope of another tandem shower, much less anything resembling a relationship. Doing my best to present a mask of stoic determination, and not the face of a frightened man in mourning for his love life, I nod.

"Don't worry. I've done this hundreds of times for my aunt. Just, um, don't let me leave the circle until you're sure I'm me and I've finished the ritual. If you have to, just knock me out."

"Knock you out? Did your aunt ever do that?"

I shrug and fidget a little. "Maybe once or twice. It's no big deal. Come on. Are we doing this, or not?"

Reluctantly, John follows me into the circle. I sit in a cross-legged position and he sits on the floor facing me.

"I'll restrain you if I have to, but I'm not gonna hit you," he says.

"You will if you have to. Believe me — you'll know, and you'll barely recognize me, anyway. In fact, just try to remember that you are hitting me, if that happens. Aunt Toni..." I trail off and clear my throat. "Aunt Toni would forget sometimes."

He sighs unhappily. "Carlos, I know it might not seem like it, because it's how you were brought up, but forcing you to do something that frightened and could potentially harm you, and then adding violence to the mix... It sounds an awful lot like abuse."

I shake my head. "Maybe it fits the definition, but I never felt unsafe with Toni. As a kid, at least. She was always super careful and never made me do anything dangerous. It was only as I got older, and she started getting obsessed with tracking down the last demon that possessed my mom, that she started... taking a different approach."

Unconsciously, I rub the left side of my chest. John notices and frowns.

"I've seen your burns," he says, his eyes fixed on the spot where, beneath my clothes, three parallel scars mar my skin. They match the size and shape of the hot iron that made them. "Did Toni do that, too?"

I look away. "Let's just concentrate on Kyle. We can talk about me and my trauma later."

He frowns, but nods. "Fine. So, what now?"

"Just... be quiet and pay attention," I say, and shut my eyes.

I take a deep breath of the cool, oil-scented air, and a sense of calm washes over me.

I always loved working in the garage, bringing my aunt tools when I was barely old enough to walk, helping her fix all the cool cars and trucks. It was a little kid's dream. After my mom disappeared, and Toni asked me to help her with her other work, I was thrilled.

Of course, I also got possessed all the time, didn't attend regular school, had no friends, and didn't even have the internet to distract me because Toni didn't want the electrical energy interfering with her 'work.'

So, did Toni abuse the power she had over me? Probably. Did she mean to hurt me? No — of that, I was sure. Now she's missing, and while I might not owe her love and respect for the way she raised me, I owe her my best effort to find her and to use the skills she taught me to figure out what, if anything, this case has to do with our family and to stop whoever's trying to complete the Ritual of Feasts.

Focusing my mind, I slow my breathing until I'm taking no more than two breaths a minute. Then, once my mind is still as a pond reflecting a perfect image of a clear sky, I invite Kyle for a chat.