Fran

The outside world was unknown to her, but she could see a glimpse of it through the window in his room. None of it looked as it once did....It made her sad to think too much about it. So much had changed in the last ten years, Elisa had a hard time remembering what the world was like before. She had been a happy and carefree child before the collapse, she was sure of that much..... She and her little brother Carson had come from a loving home, with loving parents, who had done their best to shelter them from the craziness of the out side world. Of coarse that had all changed in a blink of an eye.

Elisa cautiously looked out the dirty window......hoping to see Fred and Casey coming up the back trail, but they were no where to be seen. The wind was blowing hard causing the tall grass around the house to hypnotically sway back and forth. She stepped back from the window and sat back down in the lawn chair, the only piece of furniture that was left in what had once been Casey's fathers room.... Whom everybody else in the group just called old Ben.

Of course no one actually stayed in the room anymore or anywhere else in the house for that matter.... they lived in a bunker underneath the house that old Ben had build back in the 1960's. Soon after the fiasco that went on to become the Cuban Missile Crises, old Ben had quietly started the construction of his bunker. In his mind there was no doubt and he had been sure of it at the time.... that liberal tree hugging Kennedy would get them all blown to hell.

Elisa didn't give a damn as to why old Ben had built it, but she was thankful ..... If not for the bunker they would all no doubt be dead or worse by now. There was maybe an hour of daylight left, she hoped Fred and Casey made it back before then, but it was getting late and she was starting to get worried... Elisa had one main job in the group, it was a simple task, but essential. She was the Watcher....

Anytime a team left the bunker, it was her job to lock the back door behind them....and wait and watch for the team to return and let them back in. If they were not back before dusk.... then it was her absolute duty to walk into the closet where the bunker hatch was, climb down the ladder, and seal the hatch behind her. It was a duty she took serious.... It was a death sentence for anyone in the group left outside.

Ten Years Earlier

Elisa Biggs sat at the dinner table holding her little brother and mothers hands as her father said the blessing.... She was hungry, but her father had a lot to be thankful for, so the blessing was long.... as usual. Tony and Melissa Biggs were loving parents and godly people who were hell bent on bringing their children up to love Jesus Christ and the Lord Almighty. Elisa waited patiently, and then finally her father mouthed the magic word...."Amen"

"Amen" was the response from around the table.

Elisa wasted little time digging into her meatloaf, it was her favorite dish at supper time. Her mother was the best cook ever as far as she was concerned. Carson, her little brother who was five and three years her junior did not share his big sisters love of their mothers meatloaf. He sat quietly merely picking at his supper, trying not to look directly into his fathers disapproving eye's..... "Carson stop picking at that food and eat it son, your mother worked her tail off in the kitchen on this meal that the good lord saw fit to provide for this family. Show some respect for the blessing you have received tonight...."

"Yes sir." was Carson's reply, more importantly, it was the right reply. He and his bottom side knew better than to back talk his father at the dinner table. His mother smiled a little, and tussled his hair. " Eat up son, it will make you big and strong like your dad" she said.... Carson did as he was told.

"Elisa.... how did that math test go yesterday???" her father asked.

Elisa beamed, she had good news to share...." I got an A-, only got one answer wrong. Miss Billensey said it was the best grade in the whole class." She proudly responded. Now it was her parents turn to beam, both had wide smiles across their face's.....Her father quickly put his fork down and wiped his mouth. " You see Girl....What did I tell you....Apply your self, study hard, believe that God has your back.... and good things will follow." Elisa smiled and nodded. It was important that her father was proud of her and she was pleased with his response.

"How about you little man, did you have a good day at school today???" Tony Biggs asked his son. Carson just sat there for a moment, he had quite a good day at school indeed and did have news of his own, but it was not particularly good news like Elisa. He thought a moment longer before finally just blurting it out...." Tommy Linsting said a Vampire got his Grandma last night and took her away, he said he saw it biting her on the neck, and now his Grandma is missing." Carson said with a blank expression on his face.

His mother was flabbergasted, she looked at her son and said, " Why that's a terrible thing for Tommy to say, there are no such things as vampires and monsters Carson, Jesus just does not allow such evil things to exist son."

" But Tommy said he was there and saw it.... He said the vampire looked just like the man who works down at Taylors Hardware store, only bigger, with red glowing eyes....Tommy said he ran home and told his parents, and when they went to check on his Grandma.... she was just gone!!!" Carson pleaded.

Tony Biggs slapped the kitchen table hard with his hand, startling everyone,...." That's enough Carson, you heard your mother , there are no such things as vampires son, and that is the end of this discussion." he said firmly. " Yes Sir" Carson said as he went back to picking at his food. Melissa Biggs looked at her husband with worried eyes. It was all over the news just this morning that Miss Mary Linsting was missing, as was Mark Peppers, the man who worked down at Taylors Hardware store. They were not the only people that had gone missing of late either.

Just then Tony's cell phone began to buzz in his pocket, he did not usually take calls during dinner, however when he looked at the phone he saw that it was his neighbor Merle Nagen. The Biggs and Merle and Fran Nagen had been neighbors for the past fifteen years, they attended church together. The Nagen's were an older couple in their sixties and were like grandparents to Elisa and Carson. Tony went ahead and answered the phone, if Merle was calling this late, It had to be important.

" Merle, how you doing buddy"

" Not to well Tony, got a bad case of the heartburn, I was wondering if you might have some antacid tablets..... and if so, if I could get a couple of them from you?"

Tony looked at his wife....' Merle wants to know if we have any antacid tablets...." Melissa nodded that they did have some. " Sure Merle we have some, if you can give me just a few minutes I can bring a couple over...."

" Oh no Tony, I wouldn't want to put you out like that, If it's okay, I'll just send Fran over in a minute to grab them......"

" Sure sure Merle, you know you and Fran are welcome to stop by anytime."

"Oh thanks a lot Tony, I really appreciate that, Fran will be by in just a moment...."

"Alright Merle, I will talk to you later buddy, hope that heartburn gets to feeling better....." Tony hung up the phone and finished what was left his meatloaf. A moment later there was a load knock at the front door.

" Elisa, go let Miss Fran in" Tony told his daughter.

" Okay Dad...." Elisa said with a smile, she loved Miss Fran. She quickly left the table and walked into the living room and opened the front door and was utterly shocked by what she saw.....Fran Nagen stood there completely naked, her eye's were glowing a bright red and she was smiling.... her teeth were incredibly white, long, and pointed....they looked like sharks teeth.

" Come here child and give granny a hug...." The thing that used to be Fran Nagen said. Elisa screamed and turned to run, but the Fran Thing reached out and grabbed her by the back of her shirt and yanked her backwards, the shirt tore and Elisa fell to the floor just as her father bolted into the room, followed closely by her mother and little brother. Tony Biggs grabbed a large wooden bat that sat just behind the front door. He was a big man with a big swing.....So when he hit the vampire on the top of its head with the bat..... it completely shattered it. The thing shrieked in pain as blood began to pour down it's head and face, however it did not back up..... instead it stepped into the Biggs living room and seemed to grow even bigger right before their eyes. Before Tony even realized what was happening, a large hand with incredibly long and twisting fingers reached up and around his thick neck and lifted his three hundred pound frame completely off the floor. The Thing held him like that for just a moment, then with just a quick twist of its wrist there was a loud popping noise and Tony Biggs body became limp and his eyes went blank.

"Daddy!!!!" Elisa screamed, as the Vampire threw his lifeless limp body against the wall as she watched helplessly. The Fran Thing was now at least seven feet tall, it suddenly threw it's head back and howled like the savage beast that it was.....Melissa Biggs grabbed her two children, one under each arm and darted into the kitchen towards the back door. She stopped at the sink and put her children down quickly.... She looked her daughter directly in the eyes..... "RUN!!!!" she screamed as she opened the kitchen knife drawer and grabbed a big meat cleaver. Elisa grabbed her little brothers hand and they ran to the back door, opening it just as Vampire Fran stepped into the kitchen. The very last time that Elisa ever saw her mother, she was swinging a meat cleaver like a madwoman at a creature that she said Jesus would not allow to exist....Her last thought before she shut the back door was....Where was Jesus now??

There was a thicket of woods just behind the Biggs home....Elisa held her brothers hand tightly as they raced to them, plunging head first int0 them at break neck speed, trying to drown out the screams that were now coming from their house. Quickly and quietly they wound their way through the woods..... finally they came to the old well house that they always used as a fort. They opened the small wooden door and stepped inside. The two of them lay down and curled up together on the cold concrete floor and waited.

The Here and Now

Elisa opened her eyes with a start, the room was nearly dark....it was way past dusk.....she had messed up and she knew it immediately. Elisa quickly got to her feet and started for the hatch in the closet.....suddenly someone banged on the back door..... " Elisa.....Elisa it's me Casey!!! Let ME IN!!!! PLEASE!!!!" Elisa ran to the back door and started to undo the deadbolts when someone forcibly grabbed her shoulder, she turned around.... and there was old Ben. He did not say anything, he just shook his head. The room was not yet fully dark and she could see that he was crying. The two of them made their way back to the closet, climbed down into the bunker....and sealed the hatch behind them.