Elizabeth and the Vampire's Cabin(21)

Elizabeth tried her hardest not to think of Aaron's cruelty and focused as hard as she could on her magazine. She had to. It was the only way she was able to receive news about the outside world. The vampires would often come back with newspapers and magazines, which they would give to Aaron and he would give to her. Elizabeth had never met the other vampires on the island. Aaron had forbidden them from approaching her or Arthur. She wasn't even aware of how many there were. She had never tried to discover the answer to that, because if they were anything like Aaron then she had no desire to meet them. But she fervently hoped that they would never stop coming back with news from the outside and Aaron would never punish her by refusing to give her new reading material.

As she looked through the magazine she came to an article about her brother. Sadness suddenly descended upon her soul. It was all about the match made in heaven between the Texas heiress and the grandson of every fanboys favorite cartoonist. It reminded her of how much time had passed since she had last seen Austin. He talked about the future of his grandfather's comic book universe and the latest blockbuster being made about the superhero it was based on. The interviewer mentioned his little sister, Elizabeth. Austin talked about her camping trip and how she was due in Texas for the wedding in another two months.

Elizabeth groaned. No one knew to miss her, because she was supposed to be out of contact with no phone service for three months on a deserted island. Only the island she ended up on was filled with vampires and she had no clue when she was going to be allowed to leave. She wondered whatever happened to Mark Taylor. Had her brother tried to contact him? What was Mark saying to him? She couldn't believe that Austin, though very self-centered, hadn't inquired even once about how his baby sister was holding up, all by herself, on an island devoid of most technology.

Elizabeth left the cabin, determined to get some air. She walked out the door, onto the front porch, and through the front yard. Elizabeth found this cabin to be perplexing, because it had a front yard. She didn't understand why it needed a yard. But there it was. A white picket fence created a rectangular front yard in order to separate her home from her non-existent street and imaginary neighbors. She wondered if the builder thought it would be cute. A cabin with a white picket fence would make the occupants of the cabin feel less lonesome and less situated in the wilderness. Elizabeth thought it was a creepy living choice that Aaron had made for them. Again, she had the 1950s flashback. Her, Aaron, a white picket fence, a dog, and two and half kids (as per the law of averages) living together while Aaron sucked her blood and dragged her kicking and screaming to the bedroom every night.

She reached the guest house where Arthur lived, knocked on the door, and called his name. She heard him make chimp noises back at her. Arthur had gotten in good control of his shape shifting over the last month. He opened the door as a human and greeted her kindly with a large smile. He was always extra nice to her. At any other time in her life, she would have found this annoying. But she needed that kindness now that she was trapped every night with a monster. She asked him if he wanted to go for a run across the beach. He nodded happily and left his guest house. He then changed into a chimpanzee. More and more he enjoyed spending his time in animal form.

In order to walk on the beach, Arthur and Elizabeth had to walk down a long set of stairs alongside a sandstone cliff. When Elizabeth found out how high up they were on the island (three? four stories?), she was in awe that Aaron was able to carry her and Arthur up it. They had both been unconscious when they arrived at the island. She would never know how he could lug up the motor boat. The stone staircase that had been cut into the side of the cliff was not large and she was surprised, as well as disappointed, that he hadn't stumbled off it and broken his neck.

When they reached the beach, Arthur immediately went into a run. He had never been athletic before Aaron made him into a half vampire, and he loved the way his body moved as a chimp. He had finally learned to love exercise. Elizabeth jogged while Arthur leaped ahead. Occasionally, he ran back to her and followed at a slower trot, or he waited for her up ahead as he rolled in the sand or splashed in the water. Though night would soon be falling on the island, and that did not bode well for Elizabeth, she took delight in the fun Arthur was having. She pushed herself farther to get her heart rate up even more. Endorphins flooded her brain, edging out the trauma of the last month. Vigorous exercise was the only way she could stay sane, but even the benefits of exercise were not always sustaining her. She had always had a strong heart as well as a strong mind. But under the strain of being a captive on the island, her mind and heart were breaking. Something needed to change soon. Because if things continued on the way they were going for much longer she was going to have a nervous breakdown.