Blood Bound

Chapter 14: A little bit of Macgyvering

I'm gazing into the far horizon, hardly aware that I'm still clutching the hunting knife in my hand. The truck has long gone but I'm still frozen in place. I feel both terrified and somewhat surprised. My heart still hasn't calmed down, beating crazily in my chest. I actually scared a grown man! Me! I chuckle nervously at the ridiculousness of it all but then the spirit of seriousness creeps in and possesses me.

We're in deep shit.

It's almost noon and we're two hours away from Tok. Oh, and Sophie's still completely useless in her hibernation.

What the hell am I supposed to do?

First priority is to get Sophie away from direct sunlight since I don't know if the sleeping bag is providing enough protection. I put the hunting knife into the backpack, lamenting the fact that I forgot the leather holster back in the truck compartment. Let's just hope it doesn't cut anything inside, or worse. . .me.

Sliding the two handles of the other backpack om my right arm, I bend down and secure my grip on Sophie's legs. I heave and begin dragging her towards the restroom. The strain on my muscles is massive and I regret not exercising last winter, as sweat steadily drenches my back and forehead. Who knew that limp bodies could be so heavy?

Once I reach the stalls reserved for women, I collapse next to the bundled up sleeping bag, gasping for air. My arms and back are already aching from the physical strain. I glance down and notice that the sleeping bag is torn in some places after being dragged on the gravel. I hope it's not completely ruined. . .

I stand up on wobbly legs and scurry towards the sinks. The tapid water from the sink is like nectar from the gods for my parched throat and I gulp it down greedily. I take my glasses off and splash some of it on my face, the cooling effect being a nice treat to my warm frame.

Cooled off, I sit back down near the entrance but make sure that the door is closed. My back welcomes the coolness of the concrete wall as I gather my thoughts. I have to admit that we're pretty screwed. We're not that far away from home, which means we don't have a good headstart to get away from the other vampires. It's at least consoling to know that they're not going to be following us during the day since they probably suffer the same plight as Sophie. But I'm more concerned about their familiars as they can walk around in daytime.

Then there's the worry that the trucker might have called the police, since I claimed to have killed my best friend and threatened to kill him as well, if he didn't let us off.

I groan as regret begins to seep in.

That idea seemed so good at the time. I rest my forehead tiredly on my knees, feeling helpless.

What should I do?

Stay here until the sun goes down?

It's too risky, I counter my own suggestion and shake my head. If he called the police, they might search the place and find us.

Then what?

I glare at Sophie's sleeping form and can't help feeling resentment towards her. It's all her fault, I fume inwardly. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be in this mess. I'd be living my quiet life as I intended. In my frustration, I kick her moodily on her side. No reaction from her, like I expected. I might as well be kicking a corpse.

Her backpack slides down to the side on the floor, revealing the half open compartment that stores the map. I grab it and unfold it on the concrete floor. Unfortunately, the map doesn't reveal the pitstop that we're in but I can guess the estimated location. I gaze at it for a while before an idea strikes me.