“What do you mean, it’ll cost me?”
Charlie knew he had nothing of value to offer the hooded woman. With his wallet, keys, and phone missing and a vague recollection of what had transpired in the last 24 hours, he feared his luck was about to hit rock bottom.
The woman looked up at Charlie and gave him another crooked smile. “I want… a little bit of your blood.”
Is she insane? Charlie thought to himself. Of all the things, why would she want that from me?
“That’s a … weird request,” Charlie replied. “Why would you want that? What are you going to do with it?”
The woman shrugged. “Maybe I’m a vampire.”
Charlie froze for a moment. She could actually be a vampire. Maybe I’m getting off easy with just a little drop or two. Looking around, there was no other option to help Charlie out of this predicament. He had no other choice to comply and reluctantly nodded to to the woman.
The hooded woman lunged at Charlie’s right arm and pulled back the sleeve. Before Charlie could pull away, she jammed a syringe into his upper forearm, perfectly pricking the right vein. This is not the first time she’s done this, Charlie wondered to himself.
After successfully withdrawing the blood, the woman applied some pressure while bandaging the tiny wound she made into Charlie’s arm. Shocked by the transaction, Charlie froze as the woman placed the syringe out of sight and handed over her phone.
Excitedly, Charlie pulls out the business card in his pocket and realized that there’s no contact information beyond a name and a company. “Excuse me,” Charlie addressed the hooded woman. “Do you know anything about a company called Blackjack Enterprises or a person named Karen Shin?”
The woman shook her head. Feeling the adrenaline rush of drawing some blood, Charlie looked up ‘Blackjack Enterprises’ using the phone’s data. In just a few moments, he found an address just a half-mile away and memorized it.
Once Charlie handed back the phone, the woman suddenly laughs loudly and ran off into the darkness. Charlie looked out to see what direction she pursued, but she was completely out of sight.
“What the … this is not going to be a good night,” he muttered. Lacking a sensible alternative, Charlie began his trek towards the address of Blackjack Enterprises. Each step did little to jog his recent memory. The pains in his body began to subside, but he still could feel them brushing roughly up against his suit.
In the distance, Charlie spotted two larger, menacing-looking men. Both wore dark black winter hats. One carried a video camera pointed in Charlie’s general direction, and other appeared to toss a crowbar from hand to hand. They walked slowly towards Charlie.
“You look a little lost, beautiful,” one of them called out.
You’ve got to be kidding me, Charlie worried.
— Lee
