A Slayer's Story
Part 2Okay, I admit it... yes, I watch "Buffy" and Yes, this was inspired by the show, but it's all it's own... this story is not completed but is currently over 88 pages long. It started one night when I couldn't sleep. I'll post more segments when I have time. Feedback can be sent to stories@iwuvjoey.com. Thank you.
Several hours later...
Taylor made her way to the pond. It was beginning to get dark. She found the nearest picnic table and laid her head down and cried. Carrie and Kyle found her. Carrie told Kyle to go back down to the car.
"Taylor?" Carrie sat down next to her. "Please let me in." she said. Taylor looked at her, tears streaming down her face.
"I want my Johnny back." she cried. Carrie pulled her into an embrace and just let her cry.
"I know. I want Taylor back." Carrie said to herself. Kyle joined them a few minutes later and had Taylor cry on his shoulder for awhile. When she finally calmed down a little, Kyle said "Stop being such a bitch and let us help you thru this. I'm your brother and Carrie and Peter are your best friends. We want to help." Kyle made his sister look at him. "Understand, little sister?"
She nodded.
"C'mon, Peter and mom are worried about you."
"No. I'm not ready to go home. Please, I have to go see Tony. I have to know what he knows." she said.
"It's getting late. We should wait until tomorrow. Okay?" Carrie asked.
"I really don't want to talk to anyone else." she replied.
"I'll take phone messages." Carrie offered. Peter came running over to where they were.
"You look like you've been thru a war, Taylor. Who won?" Peter asked. She smiled. "I got you to crack that frown." She stood up to hug him.
"I'm sorry I kneed you. I just wanted to be left alone."
"Just be lucky that you haven't done any permanent damage." he teased.
"Okay, T. If you don't want to go home. Where do you want to go?" Kyle asked.
"The football field." She whispered. Kyle looked at Peter.
"If that's where you want to go." Kyle said.
"Please?" Taylor asked her brother as tears began falling down her cheeks.
"As long as we get some food on the way," Peter said, "you mom says you haven't eaten today."
"I'm not hungry." she said.
"You don't eat, we don't go to the field." Kyle said. Taylor looked at Carrie.
"You gotta eat, T. Johnny wouldn't want you to starve yourself." Carrie put her hand on Taylor's shoulder.
"Mrs. Clarke? Where's Taylor?" Jason spoke into the phone.
"Kyle and Peter are out looking for her. Why? What's wrong?"
"It's Johnny. His body is gone. It's missing from the morgue." Jason said, he couldn't believe Johnny's body was missing.
"What do you mean gone?"
"Honey, what is it?" Mr. Clarke asked his wife.
"It's Jason. Seems the hospital lost Johnny's body." Mrs. Clarke told her husband. He took the phone from her.
"Jason? Mr. C here. What's going on?"
"My mother's in hysterics, my dad's fuming and I'm in shock. How can a hospital misplace a body?"
Peter's car phone was ringing when they all got back to the cars.
"Hello?" he asked.
"Peter, it's Mr. Clarke. Are Kyle and Taylor with you?"
"Yes, hold on." "Kyle, it's your father."
"Dad? What's wrong?" Kyle asked.
"You and Taylor have to come home. We need to go up to the college. The Bakers need us."
"Okay, dad. We'll be right there." Kyle said. "T...give Carrie your house keys, we have to get home."
"What's up?" Taylor asked.
"We're going up to the college. Jason and his parents need us."
"Carrie, here...take my car, too. Peter? Make sure she gets home okay?" Taylor replied. She handed her keys to Carrie and followed Kyle to his car.
Jason was waiting for them at the lobby of the hotel.
"Jay...daddy told me what happened? Where are your parents?" Taylor asked.
"Dad's at the police station and mom's sleeping. Let's get you all settled then I'll take you to see my mom." Jason suggested.
"Go ahead and take Taylor to see your mom. I'll stop by in an hour." Mr. Clarke suggested. "T is the medicine your mom needs." Kyle said.
"Alright, we'll see you soon." Jason said.
"Mom? Are you awake?" Jason asked as he and Taylor entered the room. His mother was staring out the window.
"I'm over here, Jason." she said.
"Taylor's with me."
"How much have you told her?"
"Not much. Taylor, have a seat." Jason pointed to a chair. Mrs. Baker turned and looked at Taylor.
"There's been a new development, Taylor. It seems that the morgue has already cremated Johnny's body." Mrs. Baker said.
"So there won't be an autopsy? We won't get to say goodbye to him?" Taylor asked.
"Looks that way, kiddo."
"Mom, something's fishy here. Everyone knows it." Jason said.
"It still doesn't change the fact that your brother is dead, honey. Daddy and Mr. Clarke are going to figure this out. Where's your mom, Taylor?"
"They were checking in, we came straight up."
"Well, why don't you and Jason run along? I'm going to try to get some sleep. I promised Mr. Baker that I would." Mrs. Baker asked.
"Okay. I need to call someone. Is it alright if I use the phone?" Taylor asked.
"Sure."
Taylor dialed the number Tony gave her.
"Hello?"
"Tony? It's Taylor. I'm in town. I want to see you." Taylor said when Tony answered the phone.
"You have to come alone. I know you've been to the campus so meet me in the chapel. I will explain everything to you once we meet." Tony said.
"Alright, 30 minutes?" she asked.
"I'll be waiting." Tony said and hung up the phone.
"Jason, I have to go. Could you please tell my parents I won't be long?" Taylor asked.
"Where are you going?"
"Out. I have to see someone." was all Taylor told him as she disappeared out the door and down the hall. She checked her purse to make sure she had enough money to take a cab. She did, but decided to find an ATM and get some more out, just in case she needed it.
30 minutest later at the college chapel.
Taylor did not see Tony when she first arrived at the chapel. She sat in a pew, prayed for Johnny and then began to read the bible as she waited. She felt someone sit behind her.
"Don't turn around, please. I'm not completely healed yet." a familiar voice said. It wasn't Tony's, it was Johnny's.
"What? It can't be?" she whispered in disbelief. She grasped the bible and closed her eyes.
"It's me, sweetie, but you must not tell anyone about me. They won't understand. I still don't understand."
"Understand what? That you're alive? We were all told you were dead. Then we find out that your body is missing from the morgue. What's going on?" Taylor asked.
"Come. I'll show you." Johnny said and put his hand on her shoulder. They both stood up and Johnny led her up to the bell tower.
"Johnny? It's too dark up here, I can't see anything." she replied when he closed the drop door.
"I'm sorry, but for now, you have to be patient and understand that this is how it has to be. Please try to understand."
"Understand what? You're scaring me." Taylor's voice began to tremble. Johnny reached out for her cheek.
"Don't worry, everything is just fine. You're very safe with me Taylor and you always will be."
"Then tell me what's happened and why everyone believes your dead and why in the hell did you break things up with me in the first place?" Taylor got bold.
"At the time, I thought it was the right thing to do. My life has changed so much in the past three days, you can't imagine."
"Johnny, I loved you with all my heart and soul, when Jason told me you were dead, I didn't want to deal with that. I still don't want to deal with it. I read all the stuff in that envelope and Can't believe that you couldn't say all that to me over the phone or in person. It's like you were planning your own murder, even your own suicide." Taylor sat down on the floor where she was at.
"Let me explain something to you. At that time, all those letters and writings that I wrote were and still are absolutely true. Every word. The drugs were real. Tony will tell you."
"You were clinically dead. A doctor pronounced you dead. How come you're not?"
"I'm a vampire." he stated matter-of-factly.
"You're lying. This conversation isn't happening. I'm dreaming." Taylor began to cry.
"Sweetheart, I'm not lying to you. How else could I survive the beating I got? All my ribs were broken. My skull was split open in several places, my left leg was shattered..."
"Stop! I don't want to hear anymore. I want out of here now." she cried.
"Honey, I'm not dead forever, I'm just a vampire." he stated and lit a candle so that she could see him, see how pale he had become and how flawless his skin had become. He looked like a wax statue.
"I'm real. I swear. You're not dreaming, this is really happening." Johnny sat down next to her and got so close to her that she could feel every breath he took.
"What do you plan on doing now?" she asked.
"I want you to come with me. I can't be anything without you. I can't do anything without you."
"What about my family? My life?" she asked him.
"We could stage your death, my mentor will help."
"Is that what you did? Stage your own death?" she asked him.
"No. Someday, I'll explain what happened outside that ATM, but I still don't like to talk about that right now. It's still to fresh."
"I need time, Johnny. Time to decide what to do. Does Tony know about you?"
"Yes, he does. He found out last night after he returned from seeing you. I'm so sorry you had to go through all that." Johnny said.
"I mean it, I need time. This is all too strange. I need to comprehend everything." Taylor said to him.
"Okay, I'll give you a few days and then I'll have Tony call you so we can meet again to talk."
"Whatever. I have to get out of here." Taylor looked away from him.
"I still love you, Taylor. I never stopped." he kissed her cheek.
"Please Johnny, let me go." Taylor begged him.
"Okay. Here's the doorway. Can you find your way down?" Johnny asked.
"Yeah, I can. Good-bye." Taylor said and left without taking another look at him. Once out and away from the chapel, she found the nearest bench, sat down on it, and cried in her hands. Tony had been watching from a distance and went over to her once he was sure there was no one watching.
"Taylor. I'm so sorry you had to find out like this." Tony sat down next to her.
"How do you mourn someone who is dead but isn't? How?" she asked him. He handed her his handkerchief.
"It's hard to believe, isn't it?" he asked.
"Very. This can't be happening," she laughed nervously, "it just can't. This all is not real. I have to get back to the hotel...no, I have to go home. I need to find a phone." Taylor wiped the tears from her eyes.
"C'mon, I'll take you to one." Tony said.
"Carrie? It's Taylor. Do you have my car?" Taylor asked.
"No, Peter has it. Why?"
"Nevermind. I'll call Peter. Thanks." Taylor hung up with her and dialed Peter's house.
"Hello?"
"Is Peter there? It's Taylor." she asked
"One moment." "Hello? Taylor? You okay?" he asked.
"No, I need you to come get me, I'm at the chapel on the campus. I need a rational mind to talk with. Please hurry."
"There's a coffee shop across the street from Johnny's dorm. Meet me there in an hour, okay?" Peter asked.
"Thank you." Taylor replied and hung up the phone.
"You're not going to tell Peter about Johnny are you?"
"No. Because I don't believe it myself. I'm going to go home, Tony. Away from this place and away from any and all memories of Johnny. What just happened, wasn't real. My mind is playing tricks on me." Taylor told him.
"Do you have a mirror on you?" he asked.
"Yes."
"Let me see it." Tony said. He wanted to show her something.
"For what?" she fished out the compact and handed it to him. He opened it and had it facing her so that she could see her neck.
"What are those marks on your neck?" he asked, pointing the bite mark out to her with his finger.
She took the compact from his other hand and stared at the marks. She felt faint, dropped the compact, and fell to the ground. Tony caught her on the way down. The compact mirror smashed.
A few minutes later...
"Taylor? Taylor...wake up, Taylor. Look at me." Tony gently smacked her cheeks.
"What? Get away from me. Stay away from me." Taylor said when she came to. She ran from him and went in search of the coffee shop that Peter told her about. She took her hair down out of it's French braid so that she could hide the bite mark. She wasn't sure if she would tell Peter about what just happened to her.
"Taylor, what's going on?" Peter said when he sat down across from her.
"I can't stay here. I need to go home. I can't stay in this town any longer, Pete, please don't ask anymore questions."
"You have to let your parents know that you're going home."
"I know. We'll stop by the hotel on our way. Give me the keys. I'm driving." Taylor said calmly.
"You're not going to tell me what's happened to you tonight are you?" Peter asked Taylor as she pulled into his driveway.
"No. I'm not. I've got everything under control. I'll call you tomorrow." Taylor said.
"You swear?"
"Yes, I swear, good night." Taylor said. She waited until he was in his house before leaving and going home. There was a news van still camped out on her front lawn.
"Taylor! Taylor! Could I have a few words with you?" the reporter asked.
"No! Just leave me alone and leave my family alone and leave the Bakers alone. Just leave us alone." Taylor said angrily. She went into her house and collapsed on the nearest couch. Johnny was standing in her living room.
Johnny went and got a wet wash cloth and a glass of water. She was still out when he returned "I'm so sorry this is all so hard on you, sweetheart. I'll make it up to you, somehow." he said as he put the washcloth on her forehead. She came to a few minutes later.
"What are you doing here? Go away. Leave me alone." Taylor moved away from him.
"I knew you'd call Peter to come and get you. I also knew you'd come here. I don't think you should be alone. I want to answer all the questions you have. All the questions I had when everything first happened to me."
"You left a mark on me, damn you. Why did you do that? Tony noticed it right away. Why the hell did you do this to me? Why, damn it?" she screamed at him.
"That reporter is still outside, take your yelling down a few octaves, T...please." he pleaded with her.
"You are not here in my house right now. This conversation is not happening..."
"Taylor? It's Carrie. Are you here?" They both heard Carrie come in the front door. Johnny disappeared.
"Yeah, I'm in the living room." Taylor said as she took a sip of water.
"Your mom called me. She didn't want you to be here alone. You okay?" Carrie asked as she looked at the washcloth.
"Just a headache. Didn't feel like going right to bed so I thought I'd sit here with a washcloth on my forehead. The dampness helps a little." Taylor lied.
"Oh, ok. Did you call your mom yet? She's expecting a call from you."
"No. I'm going to go sit out on the patio. I just want to be alone. Is that news van still out there?" she asked.
"Yes? Why?"
"I wish they would just go away." Taylor walked off out of the living room. Carrie took a piece of paper out of her pocket and dialed the phone number that was on it.
"Hello?"
"Kyle? It's Carrie. Taylor's home and I'm going to stay over? How's Jason and his parents?"
"Things are a mess here. Could you do me a favor?" Kyle asked.
"Tell me what it is first and then I'll let you know." Carrie replied.
"Give Taylor space to be alone. She's really moody and Peter thinks that if we keep smothering her, she's going to crack on us. Understand?"
"She's a lot stronger than we're giving her credit for, don't you think?"
"I do, but I want to be on the safe side." Kyle insisted.
"Alright. Call me when you wake up in the morning. It's late, I'm going to see if I can get her to go to bed." Carrie told him.
"Ok. Good night."
"Taylor, I'm going to go to bed. If you need anything, call me, okay?" Carrie asked when she opened up the patio door.
"I'll see ya later, Carrie." Taylor said as she stared up at the stars. She was alot calmer than when Carrie first got there.
The next morning...
Several TV crews were back in front of Taylor's house when she awoke the next morning. She went to the mirror in her room. The bite mark was completely gone. There was no sign of a wound anywhere on her neck.
"Taylor...we're home." Kyle yelled through the house.
"Hi...what time is it?" she asked.
"Almost noon. What happened to you last night? Jason said you made a phone call and left not more than twenty minutes after you saw his mother. Who'd you go talk to?"
"Tony. I needed to find out everything I could. I couldn't go through with it and walked around the campus and decided to come home. I couldn't stay up there any longer. Where's mom and dad?"
"Making a statement for the Bakers. Dad wants you to make one too. The Bakers want you to speak at the memorial for him at the college on Friday. Can you..."
"I can't do it, Kyle. I can't." Taylor said and ran back into her room and locked her door behind her.
"Taylor, c'mon. You can't just not talk about him. It's not right. He was a part of you."
"Shut up, Kyle. You don't know what you're talking about." Taylor said and turned up her radio to drown him out. Kyle eventually went back downstairs and told his parents what went on. Taylor came down an hour later.
"Where you going, honey?"
"Out for a drive."
"Be home for dinner. The Bakers will be here."
"Mom, I can't see them right now. I'm sorry." Taylor said and kissed her mother good-bye.
"Good girl, Taylor." Johnny said from the trunk of her car. After Carrie left the night before, Johnny had returned to see Taylor. Taylor had calmed down enough to talk with him and they talked all night long. Taylor had decided that she wanted to be with him, no matter what so they devised a plan for her to drive her car off a cliff. Taylor had met Johnny's mentor and prepared her footlocker of things she wanted to take to remind her of family and friends. Johnny and Dr. Albert left with the trunk before sunrise. The plan was for Taylor to get upset with a member of her family, alienate herself to her room, write notes to her loved ones and leave. If anyone were to ask her where she was going she was to say out for a drive, acting upset the whole time. She left early to go visit the pond, hers and Johnny's favorite spot. She wanted to be sure she was doing the right thing. Johnny had hid in her trunk so that he could help her out of the car right before it would go over the cliff. "I can't go through with this. It's not right." Taylor said to herself, "but, this is my only chance to be with Johnny again. I have to take this chance. I just have to."
"Mom! Where'd Taylor go?" Kyle said as he came running down the stairs, clutching a letter in his hand.
"Out for a drive. Why?"
"I found letters addressed to me, you and dad, Carrie, Peter, each of the Bakers, and Tony on her dresser. Mom, I think she's going to kill herself." Kyle said. He sat down on the bottom step and dropped all the letters onto the floor.
"That's nonsense."
"Think about it mom. The love of her life was murdered, now his body is missing. She's been hiding from everyone, hasn't really mourned. Is very moody." Kyle recited them off to her.
"Impossible. Not my daughter."
"Unbelievable." Kyle said to his mother sarcastically and left in search of Taylor.
"Taylor, we have to get out of here. Someone's coming." Johnny tried to send Taylor a telepathic message. He could sense someone close to her coming after her. Taylor came back to her car. It was still a few hours before nightfall. Taylor stayed beside the pond just staring into the skyline.
"Taylor! Taylor! I know you're around here somewhere!" Kyle yelled. Taylor ran and climbed up into a weeping willow tree. Praying that Kyle wouldn't find her. Peter came from the other direction shouting her name.
"Peter! Any sign of her?"
"No. No sign of her anywhere."
"Her car's in the parking lot. She's got to be here somewhere...unless...oh, no." Kyle said, looking at the pond.
"No, Kyle. Don't go there. She didn't drown. She's still alive. We'll find her." Peter tried not to sound frightened.
"She keeps a blanket in the car. Go get it. I'm going in." Kyle said and ran into the pond. Taylor couldn't stand it anymore. She came down from the willow tree and went to the edge of the lake.
"Kyle Edward Clarke! Get you ass out of that pond before you make yourself sick!" she screamed, walked back to her car, got in and drove off. Peter stood there staring at her. He noticed that something wasn't right with her. She was too calm with herself. He ran the blanket over to Kyle.
"You're right, Kyle. Something is definitely not right with her." Peter said. Kyle used the blanket to dry off.
"C'mon, we can't let her go. We've got to stop her. I really believe she is going to kill herself." Kyle was afraid.
"Where's your car?"
"C'mon, follow me." both men ran to the car. It had two flat tires. "Damn her. When I reach her, I'll kill her myself." Kyle said.
"C'mon, my car is over here." Peter said.
Home Next