Lost ( chap 4)

Alice checked herself in the mirror for the second time, feeling satisfied with her look, she picked up her brown bag. Checking her mailbox as she headed out. Amidst the bills and advertisements, she caught sight of a letter; her house rent was due again. Inhaling deeply, she forced a smile on her face not wanting this to ruin her morning.

Teaching wasn't always her dream job, she had actually studied broadcast journalism in college, hoping to become a newscaster. However, life had taken a different turn for her after graduating. Jobs in journalism became scarce and she needed something to pay her bills and teaching was the most available option at that time, which she had now learned to appreciate.

Oasis was a nice school, even though her salary wasn't fat enough, it was way better than the other schools she had applied to.

She grabbed a cup of coffee as she made her way to the staff room. "Good morning" she exchanged greetings with her other colleagues. The staff room was lively as usual, like another class room on its own. She began reviewing her students' essays from the previous day's English class, not wanting to pile up work for herself.

" Hey Alice, can I speak to you for a minute?" she looked up from her desk, it was John Cowell a maths teacher.

" Sure, what's up?"

" I am in a pinch" he explained " I have got a small issue and won't be able to chaperone the excursion next week, can you please cover for me?" he asked clasping his hands.

" As much as I would love to John, I already have a lot on my plate and chaperoning an excursion is a big responsibility for me right now"

John nodded understandingly, " I know it's a lot to ask, but I'd appreciate it if you take my place. You can even have all the chaperone stipend, it is up to $300 for the day"

Alice bit her lips, $300 can go a long way in sorting some of her bills. " Okay, I will do it"

" You are the best." He said, giving her a thumbs up. " I would send the details of the excursion to you"

The day of the excursion, Alice packed her hair in a ponytail, she wore the school staff T- shirt a black joggers and canvas trainers to match. She was accompanied by two other teachers, Mr Cooper and Mrs Lillian. Mr Cooper a middle aged teacher, cleared his throat to address the students as they arrived at their destination.

" Welcome everyone, to Red peak hills formerly known as bloodvile town" he bagan " this place has a rich history, dating back to the olden days where it was a thriving town. Overtime, it has evolved into a popular tourist center, offering a unique opportunity to explore and learn more about our environment, culture and history"

A student raised his hand, " yes, let's hear from David sparrows" Mr Cooper said, gesturing his hands towards the chubby kid. " I heard lots of vampires lived here during that time." The students burst into laughter at his words making his face turn red.

" Those are myths David, vampires do not exist in real life" Mr Cooper replied as the noise reduced. " So without wasting much of our time,let's explore this beautiful place, and please make sure to stay together and don't wander too far into the forest. We want to ensure everyone's safety and make the most of our time here."

The excursion was fun, Alice was glad to have accepted the offer to chaperone the students in place of John. It was already past four, the children gathered together to prepare for their departure. Mrs Lillian made a head count on the students and discovered a person was missing. They counted again to make sure, but a person was still falling short.

" I think Daisy is missing," a dark girl spoke. " Where could she have gone to? Alice panicked." She was with us throughout, I think she disappeared at the last minute". another student spoke. " Maybe a vampire took her," the chubby boy from earlier joked. Causing students to murmur.

" Keep quiet all of you" Mr Cooper ordered, turning to face the teachers " I would go look for her, she might not have wandered far. These naughty children" he hissed.

" Don't worry I will go look for her," Alice offered.

" Are you sure? Lillian asked.

" Of course, I would give you guys a call when I find her"

" Daisy, Daisy" her voice echoed through the forest, she had been walking for more than 30 minutes now and was already getting tired, sitting under a tree trunk, she brought out her phone, just then her phone rang, " miss Alice, we found Daisy", Lilian spoke the other end of the phone.

" Oh thank God, I will be on my way now" relieved, she stood up with the help of a long stick which she used as support. As she walked back,the area was getting more and more unfamiliar. She had marked a few trees but couldn't find any of the marks. 'was she lost' she thought. It can't be, she said, shaking off the thought. But it was already getting dark.

She pulled out her phone to call one of the teachers but her phone displayed the '' no service' message, fear gripped her. She started to Walk quickly, her feet rustling through the underbrush. It was already past six,but she still kept on walking, she had gone to look for a missing student and now she was the one missing. " Why, why, why" she kept saying in frustration as hot tears streamed down her face.

Alice sat on a nearby rock, raising her phone for signal, she hoped they would find her soon. As she moved the phone around, her eyes landed on a small opening in the nearby hillside piquing her curiosity.

She approached the cave like entrance, the inside was dark. She turned on her phone's flashlight and stepped into the cave to get a better view of the insides. Her eyes spotted a wooden box, that looked like a coffin at the far end of the cave, " what's that" she whispered cautiously approaching the box.

The box had intricate engravings on the top and sides of it. She ran her fingers over the beautiful designs temporarily forgetting her predicament. Wanting to know what was inside, she tried opening the box, but decided against it not knowing if it was something dangerous. " I should leave" she advised herself. But the unexpected happened.

She had only cracked the box open, but as soon as she stepped back, a black smoke escaped from the box. She froze. Her eyes widened as a hand pushed the box open.

Her phone slipped from her shaky hands as she watched in horror, her heart racing like crazy as a figure rose from the coffin. She stumbled backwards as she tried to run, " this can't be happening" she muttered, she cleaned her eyes again hoping it was an illusion.

Vladimir stepped out of the coffin, his eyes looked around the cave and spotted a girl on the floor shaking like a leaf. His eyes narrowed, why could be perceive her human scent, he looked at his hands,it was as pale as a dead body. He felt thirsty, he wanted blood! His face twisted in disgust as it dawned on him. He was supposed to wake up as a human but instead, he still had his vampire form.

The realization ignited a fierce anger within him, " did you touch my coffin?" His voice dripping with malice.

" Stay away from me" Alice screamed as she flung a handful of sand at him. She had tried to run but the creature had blocked her way. A cold shiver ran down her spine. 'what had she gotten herself into'

" How dare you touch the coffin, you ruined everything" Vlad was bitter, his sacrifices had been thrown in the mud because of this stupid human. He held held her neck and barred his fangs at her. Her face has gone pale as tears filled her eyes.

Alice could feel the cold hands of the creature on her neck, its eyes were a deep shade of red, she knew she was in hot soup.

She felt a wave of dizziness wash over her, her eyes rolled back as everything went black.