My two-year streak of not killing a human was about to come to an end. A sudden sensation caused my throat to tighten as I waited in the bushes. The students I'd seen so far were good contenders, but my desire left me wanting something much more. I stifled the cough with my filthy hand, then looked down at the bits of grey fur in my palm.  Squirrels were my life support, but I could only last so long on their blood. Tonight, I was going to treat myself to something much tastier. I wiped the fur onto my black jeans and checked my watch. Three in the morning.

There was the rumble of tires against the cobblestone street in front of the Vanderbilt Hall. I put my trusty sunglasses over my eyes to shield myself from the light of the cab. My heart was leaping. This could be the one. The tires came to a slow roll, then a complete halt.  The potent smell of exhaust caused me to gag.  I held my breath and crouched down even lower.  Between the tiny leaves, two figures emerged into the bright yellow glow coming from the dormitory.  This was a sight I had grown to become familiar with: two girls, loud and tipsy in tight dresses, laughing as if they had just seen the funniest thing in their lives.  They closed the doors of the cab and headed across the to the main entrance of the building, attempting to balance by using each other for support. 

I watched closely as they stumbled along, and my lips formed into a grin.  She's the one.  As they neared the entrance, the two separated.  One went to the right, towards the other high-rising dorms.  This was a difficult decision. Two humans full of delicious red rivers that would finally end my starvation were right in front of me. The one that veered to the right was about medium sized; a pudgy blonde with the dark roots sticking out of her damaged hair.  The neon yellow dress she wore hugged her body in all the wrong places as she carried her heels, the soles of her chubby feet turning black.  She would a fine pick, but the other...she was divine.  Her long dark hair blew in the wind as she fumbled with her purse.  The navy-blue dress gripped the curves of her small body. She was in decent shape. She could run.

I emerged from the bush, mulch crackling under my feet as the cab pulled away. The surrounding campus was desolate—an excellent time to move in.  I raised the hood of my cloak so it rested just above my eyes and trotted along the cobblestone to the precious girl.  She didn't seem to notice as I tiptoed behind her.  By then, her school ID was in her hand.  Once she held it up to the scanner and entered the building, my chance would be lost. 

"Hold on, there!" I grinned with joy as she looked at me. I took my wallet out of my pocket.  "Did you drop your wallet?" 

She looked into her purse, confused. "No...I don't...that's not mine."

"Are you sure?" I asked. 

She started giggling, the smell of her boozy breath hitting my nose. "Yeah, like...that's not mine."

"Okay, if you say so. Have a good night." I turned like I was about to leave, then rushed forward, grabbing her purse and throwing it as far as I could in the direction of the park. It landed all the way across the cobblestone, right in front of the bushes.  "Now, you dropped your wallet."

In her stupor, she leaned forward and shoved me. Not that hard, of course. "Hey, what the hell? What is your problem?"

In an effort to retrieve her purse, she turned and grabbed the handle of the stairs and walked down them, nearly falling over herself. She left her ID card on top of the railing. It was then that I knew her name: Molly Fitzpatrick. I shoved the card in my back pocket and followed the drunken little thing across the street. She bent down to pick up her purse, then almost fell backwards when she got back up. When she turned, I stood there with my fangs barred. She shoved me again.

"Leave me alone, you creep!" she said, starting to walk back towards the dorm and putting the strap of her purse back over her shoulder.

That was when I lunged at her. I pulled her backwards and she fell onto the cobblestone with a grunt. Her wide, terrified eyes followed my pocket knife as it made its way closer to her.

"Cooperate with me, Molly. I have no problem with killing you right here, right now." I watched with glee as her body trembled. "You're going to get up, and you're going to come with me, and you're going to do exactly as I tell you, understand?"

My new prey nodded, and I helped her to her feet. I held her hands behind her back with my one hand, the knife to her neck with the other. I needed to get her someplace more secluded. The security cameras, if they were even working, didn't need any more incriminating evidence.

"Get moving," I whispered, although it wasn't needed.  She was no longer fighting. 

The parking lot after the cobblestone was nice and dark, empty as well.   Molly trembled under the dim lights.  The ominous minarets and the park were getting closer.  I would release her there.  Her strength was reemerging as we rounded the side of the historic brick building.  The walkway and trees came into view.  It was so tempting not to sink my teeth into her neck right then and there. A few more steps. Just resist it. I tightened my grip on her wrists. If I was going to go through with the task, which I was, it had to be done to the full potential. 

We stopped at the fountain.  It was a few feet away from the park's entrance.  During the light hours, water poured under the feet of marble eagles into a round filthy pool of algae and lilies.  Now it was silent. This side of campus always was at night.  I still clung to the trembling Molly, my hand holding the knife to her neck now trembling with excitement. I put away the knife and moved my hand to cover her mouth. Something told me that she was about to start screaming. 

"Now Molly," I said, trying to calm her.  It's best to try and soothe them in their last moments. I let go of her hands and crossed my fingers.  "Molly, drop your purse on the ground and you're free to go, understand?" 

She gave a nod and I uncovered her mouth. Molly threw the purse on the ground and for the fifth time, I watched as my meal took off through the park.  I waited a few seconds.  It's only fair to give the poor thing a head start—not like she would've needed it, though. Still drunken and dazed, Molly tripped after running about a hundred feet in her black heels.  Frustration boiled up inside me. I ran over and grabbed the shoes off her feet while she was still down. Molly got to her knees and attempted to stand. I grabbed the back of her dress, lifting her to her feet.

"What are you doing? You're supposed to run!" I said, kicking her in the back.

She just fell down again, grunting when she her little knees hit the concrete sidewalk. I picked her up and placed her on her feet again. She tried to shove me away.

"Go away!" she said.

"I'm not going anywhere! You have to run from me!" I said.

Molly Fitzpatrick, drunk, shoeless, with skinned knees and bloody hands, took off running. She wobbled left and right as I stood there watching. She was so slow. She seemed much less drunk when she got out of the cab. Even though I was disappointed, I ran after her. It was too late to try and find someone better. Closer, closer. I grabbed the back of her hair and swung her around, pinning her small body against the trunk of a tall palm tree. 

"Did you really think you could run from me, Molly?"  I dug the nails of my right hand into her scrawny shoulders.  My left was fastened around her throat. "Well?" 

She didn't answer, just shook with heavy breaths.  Nerves had overtaken her.  Her piercing brown eyes gazed into my own, wide with fear.  I could tell that she had the same questions as all the others.  Who are you?  What do you want with me? Molly's hands pressed onto my arm, trying to force it down and away from her neck.  I pressed my other palm into her chest, forcing her back even harder against the skinny tree. 

"Please...no..." she choked, the smell of alcohol hitting me one last time.   

I grinned, trying to stop my emotions from protruding into my current mindset. "I'm sorry, Molly." 

Before she could utter another word, my fangs were buried into her neck.  The sweet taste of blood, human blood, danced around on my tongue.  I pulled with my sharp teeth across her throat and she fell into my arms.  From there, I set her on the ground and drank, sucking down gulp after gulp until I was satisfied.  Everything felt better in those moments. Everything was calm. Finally full, I rose from her neck and wiped the blood from around my mouth with the back of my hand. She was unconscious.

"Now I hate to do this, Molly, but trust me, death is much sweeter than living like this," I said.

My home was littered with weapons, but the one I pulled from behind my back was only for special occasions. I called it the Paradise Finder, because it sent my victims away from the life they would live without it, full of struggles, shame, and torture. I raised my beautiful, freshly cleaned machete above my head. Decapitation kills Factoris vampires. One fell swoop, a quick disposal of the body in the river, and my night could go on.

As I was getting the perfect angle on Molly's neck, there was a sudden disturbance. Lights were coming through the park, a pair of lights I was all too familiar with. The golf cart sporting the campus security logo bumped up and down along the pavement.

Run, you fool. Run! There was no time. I couldn't be caught near the body. Quickly, I rolled Molly into the muddy ditch off to the side of the path, then bolted. The library was the closest refuge. I leapt behind a table on the back patio. The golf cart rounded the corner, past the ditch, and circled back around towards the entrance of the park, but they weren't done. They always circled three times.

Look what you did to her, a beautiful young girl with all that potential, not laying dead in a ditch while you cower beneath a table. How pathetic. My legs were hugged against my chest, the machete sitting close by. The city across the river looked more miraculous than usual tonight. You're a disgrace.

"Not now," I said.

I banged my head against the metal edge of the table. The golf cart made it second circle long ago. Where was the third? The sky was getting a tad lighter. Where was the third round? If you actually used your brain, you wouldn't have landed yourself here, would you?

Tires over pavement. The lights faded towards the entrance. Now was the time to move. Machete in hand, I rushed across the park and to the ditch, but my memory was failing me. There were quite a few ditches in the park from where the river used to flow, giving nineteenth century patrons boat tours of an old zoo. I followed the path of the dry river up and down the park, up and down the park. My mental stability broke more with each step. The entire river was empty, and my victim's body was missing.