Free Her Vampyrrhic Heart by Simon Clark Page A

glimpses of creatures that made the forest their home. A pair of badgers rooted through fallen leaves. A boar trundled past, snorting loudly. After that, shots of roe deer, a water vole, more foxes, and a stag heading down the river bank to take a drink. Each creature possessed those unnaturally bright electric light bulb eyes as a result of the night setting on the camera exaggerating the natural moonlight.
    â€˜Maa … annn …’ groaned Jez. ‘I live in the countryside. I see animals like this every day.’
    â€˜Wait.’
    â€˜I’ve had enough, I’m going home.’
    â€˜Any second now.’ Kit’s eyes fixed on the television, completely absorbed by the images.
    The screen blinked as the camera cycled through to the next shot. At first nothing appeared other than the black and white view of trees and the river. Owen heard something, however. Crunching. Rustling. The sound of a large animal shouldering its way through the trees. The sound grew louder, then a loud crunch: wood snapping. After that, an altogether more mysterious sound came from the TV.
    â€˜Is that whispering?’ Jez took a close interest now. ‘Can you hear whispering?’
    Kit nodded. ‘Lots of people whispering, that’s what I thought, too.’
    The sounds grew even louder. A tree creaked as some hugely powerful force pushed it aside. And yet Owen still didn’t see what caused the sounds. Not for another five seconds, that is. Suddenly the camera shook. The tree to which it was fixed must have been subjected to a violent shaking.
    After that, it arrived. A huge, humpbacked silhouette. If the camera had been placed at head height then this creature, whatever it was, must stand higher than a human being. The whispering intensified. As if a dozen people whispered furiously amongst themselves. Apart from the black silhouette, the body that passed in front of the camera was featureless. That is until pairs of bright lights sprang from it. For all the world, it looked as if bright light bulbs had been embedded in the beast.
    â€˜Tell me if I’m wrong,’ Kit said quite calmly and slowly, ‘but am I right in thinking those are eyes? Lots and lots of eyes.’

NINETEEN
    C
alm after the storm …
    That’s how this time felt to Tom Westonby. Earlier that night a figure had climbed down the chimney and had remained in the fireplace as if the flames were no more harmful than warm bathwater. After staring into the face of June Valko the creature had scrambled up the chimney again. Now here they were, in the calm after that extraordinary event – that is to say, an extraordinarily disturbing and frightening event.
    The fire still burned brightly, filling the living room with light. June sat on the sofa, a mug of coffee in her hands. The woman gazed thoughtfully at the burning logs in the fireplace, no doubt still haunted by what she’d experienced tonight. Tom occupied an old leather armchair. An outsider might have thought Tom and June were relaxing there – a contented couple, sleepy and ready for bed. Tom knew they were anything but sleepy. Yes, they were emotionally and physically exhausted. However, neither would allow themselves to fall asleep tonight. Too much had happened. June must be in turmoil – her world had been turned upside down.
    In a low whisper she asked, ‘Will he be dead? Because he was there in the fire, wasn’t he? The man … the thing … that you said was my father.’ Her expression suggested she was mentally replaying what she’d witnessed earlier. ‘A man wouldn’t be able to stand in all those flames and not be hurt, would he?’
    â€˜The heat wouldn’t have caused much damage. After all, he’s no longer human.’
    â€˜You used the word “vampire”.’
    â€˜To be more accurate, vampire-like. Those things out there don’t run away from crucifixes or garlic, their reflections