Austin and Ines
Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2021 10:10 am
Three days previous
“Ines.”
“Hey Austin! I was just talking with Richard about you and---”
“I love you and I totally want to hear about that, but I need you to shut up for a second.”
“...”
“Thanks. So like, bad shit is going down tonight. You, Richard, the kiddos… stay inside.”
“What are you---”
“Hush! Just do it. I promise I’m right. And… I’m caught up in it. I just want you to know that I love you. And if I don’t see you again, you were my best friend.”
“Austin, what the fu--”
*Click*
***
Ines paced back and forth past the mountain of cases she had to work on staring at her phone. She wanted to call the police. Call hospitals. Something to check on her brother. But everytime she started dialing the number, she stopped. What was she going to tell the police? Austin’s behavior had gone erratic. He had disappeared from her life for two years and then reappeared. Even after she moved to New Orleans after law school to be closer to him, nothing made sense.
A couple weeks ago, her daughter had asked her, “Isn’t Uncle Austin older than you?”
“That’s right. He’s three years older.”
“Why do you look so much older?” It was a childish, impertinent question but it had brought into clarity something on the edge of her mind. He did look younger. She had compared pictures to when they went to Houston Pride together before he disappeared. He was identical. He only visited at night and demurred offers of lunch dates. He had gushingly asked her to listen to a friend of his who ran a radio station and amongst the many crazy (crazy) things he talked about, there were vampires. Was he trying to tell her something?
And now he had predicted a riot and tried to keep her safe. He was involved in something that was too big for him, she was sure of it. But there was no one she could call and it was making her sick. She told herself for the fifteenth time that the vampire theory was stupid and started dialing the number to the hospital again when the phone rang. Austin. She shrieked into the phone, “You little bastard! How dare you keep me worrying for three days after that call!” Tears welled up in her eyes and her voice thickened, “I thought you were dead!” Despite being three years younger than Austin, she often took a motherly tone with him when he was being stupid. Which was… often.
“I know,” he said, his voice flat with just a bit of the lilt she was used to. “I’m fine… but we should talk. Probably not at home.”
Austin was rarely serious, even when he was trying to be. She remembered him going on Houston media to hurl invective at gay bashers with his hair dyed teal. “Okay. I think so too. Things are weird, Austin… what are you caught up in?”
“I promise I’ll tell you everything. This is serious.”
“Where do you want to meet, then?”
“Roundup Saloon.”
Her eyes rolled into the back of her head as he named the absurd, redneck gay bar he enjoyed frequenting. He did not understand why she didn’t want to have a serious conversation at a country/western club - but eventually relented and they met up at a park that evening. The park was full of joggers, but no one paid them any mind as they walked. He was in a pink hoodie and seemed darkened about something.
After too much silence as he battled in his head for what to say, she spoke up, “Austin, I know something’s not right and I think you were trying to tell me something. I just wasn’t ready to hear it.”
He looked over, genuinely confused, “What?”
She took a deep breath, “I started thinking about that show you wanted me to listen to. And all of his crazy theories… but then I started thinking about the vampire revolution he talked about sometimes.” Austin stopped and suddenly looked stricken at his sister. She continued, “You were trying to tell me, right? You haven’t aged. You never eat around me. You only visit at night.”
There was a long pause, “I never thought you’d put that together. I just thought you should know more about the cyptids loose around here. You know… for Richard, Evan, and Bailey.”
“You… introduced me to a show about vampires and didn’t think I might see the similarities in your behavior?”
He smiled and shrugged, “I guess I don’t have to come out now.” He smiled happily and swept her up in a big hug, “I know it’s weird! But it’s okay, I promise.”
Her eyes filled with tears, “It’s not okay Austin!” she said in a stage whisper. “You… died then? That’s when you disappeared?”
“I’m not dead!” he said petulantly. “I’m walking here with you. I’m talking to you. I love playing with Evan and Bailey. I have friends. If I do all of those things, how can I be dead?”
She looked around and led him off the jogging path, facing him and holding his hands, “Your friend talked about drinking blood, and hungry fiends, and these terrible creatures who run your lives that you’re fighting against. Fine, maybe you’re alive, but your life isn’t like mine. It isn’t even like it was.” She choked up again, “You… thought you were going to die. You knew about that riot and thought something was going to kill you.”
His eyes welled up with tears this time, but with blood and she instinctively tried to pull back. He held her hands firm though, “No, please don’t go. I’m sorry.” He wiped his eyes on the sleeves of his pink hoodie, leaving long streaks of red. “We were fighting against the vampires you heard Andre talk about. We were trying to free ourselves and I was scared, I won’t lie. But we won! But… I had to…” he said, his face trembling again.
“The riot. You did that? That’s how you knew we should stay inside?”
He nodded, the tears coming again as Marcus Bradley’s face flashed in his mind’s eye, “Yeah. I provoked the cops to… well, I guess you saw on the news. We needed the police to be occupied or we would have all been killed! Me, my friends, the other Anarchs, and everybody the bad vampires would have hurt after they killed us!” he babbled, continually wiping tears away.
She stepped forward and embraced him tightly, “Shhh, it’s okay Austin. I can’t even imagine the things that you have to deal with. I can’t judge you. I won’t. But, just promise me one thing. You’re not the bad guy, right?”
He shook his head rapidly, still wiping away the tears of his memory, “No. Never.”
Ines gave him a brave smile, “Good. That’s all I ask. And before you think this makes us good - I don’t want you to start giving me daily updates on what life as a… fucking vampire is like.” He laughed, his tears finally giving way. “I love you and want to know that you’re doing well, but I don’t think I can handle everything. At least not yet. Is that fair?”
“Yeah, I understand. But everything else will be the same? Coming to see Evan and Bailey?” She pursed her lips and gave him a familiar look that said ‘you know better.’ “What!? Why?”
“Austin, think about it. You’re in some kind of battle according to your friend. People want to hurt you. Bailey already notices that you look younger than me. What happens when she’s a teenager? Do you want some edgy teen posting online about his vampire uncle? Who would see that? Would it hurt you? Would it hurt her?”
He watched a couple of joggers pass by before he started speaking again, “Please tell me this isn’t goodbye. I couldn’t handle it. You’ve always been there for me. Always. Even at that horrible school.”
“It’s not goodbye, I promise,” she said firmly. “I know I won’t go telling the world, what… who you are. Richard won’t either. When the kids are in college, if they’re ready, then we can reconsider the truth. But until then… cards, presents if you want are fine. But it’s not safe for them to ask questions.” She looked at his quivering lips, “Austin, you know I’m right. Can you guarantee me that you can protect them? Or even yourself?”
“No.”
She wrapped him up in a tight hug, “We’ll get through this, big brother. You’ll always have me and we’ll figure out the rest.”
“Ines.”
“Hey Austin! I was just talking with Richard about you and---”
“I love you and I totally want to hear about that, but I need you to shut up for a second.”
“...”
“Thanks. So like, bad shit is going down tonight. You, Richard, the kiddos… stay inside.”
“What are you---”
“Hush! Just do it. I promise I’m right. And… I’m caught up in it. I just want you to know that I love you. And if I don’t see you again, you were my best friend.”
“Austin, what the fu--”
*Click*
***
Ines paced back and forth past the mountain of cases she had to work on staring at her phone. She wanted to call the police. Call hospitals. Something to check on her brother. But everytime she started dialing the number, she stopped. What was she going to tell the police? Austin’s behavior had gone erratic. He had disappeared from her life for two years and then reappeared. Even after she moved to New Orleans after law school to be closer to him, nothing made sense.
A couple weeks ago, her daughter had asked her, “Isn’t Uncle Austin older than you?”
“That’s right. He’s three years older.”
“Why do you look so much older?” It was a childish, impertinent question but it had brought into clarity something on the edge of her mind. He did look younger. She had compared pictures to when they went to Houston Pride together before he disappeared. He was identical. He only visited at night and demurred offers of lunch dates. He had gushingly asked her to listen to a friend of his who ran a radio station and amongst the many crazy (crazy) things he talked about, there were vampires. Was he trying to tell her something?
And now he had predicted a riot and tried to keep her safe. He was involved in something that was too big for him, she was sure of it. But there was no one she could call and it was making her sick. She told herself for the fifteenth time that the vampire theory was stupid and started dialing the number to the hospital again when the phone rang. Austin. She shrieked into the phone, “You little bastard! How dare you keep me worrying for three days after that call!” Tears welled up in her eyes and her voice thickened, “I thought you were dead!” Despite being three years younger than Austin, she often took a motherly tone with him when he was being stupid. Which was… often.
“I know,” he said, his voice flat with just a bit of the lilt she was used to. “I’m fine… but we should talk. Probably not at home.”
Austin was rarely serious, even when he was trying to be. She remembered him going on Houston media to hurl invective at gay bashers with his hair dyed teal. “Okay. I think so too. Things are weird, Austin… what are you caught up in?”
“I promise I’ll tell you everything. This is serious.”
“Where do you want to meet, then?”
“Roundup Saloon.”
Her eyes rolled into the back of her head as he named the absurd, redneck gay bar he enjoyed frequenting. He did not understand why she didn’t want to have a serious conversation at a country/western club - but eventually relented and they met up at a park that evening. The park was full of joggers, but no one paid them any mind as they walked. He was in a pink hoodie and seemed darkened about something.
After too much silence as he battled in his head for what to say, she spoke up, “Austin, I know something’s not right and I think you were trying to tell me something. I just wasn’t ready to hear it.”
He looked over, genuinely confused, “What?”
She took a deep breath, “I started thinking about that show you wanted me to listen to. And all of his crazy theories… but then I started thinking about the vampire revolution he talked about sometimes.” Austin stopped and suddenly looked stricken at his sister. She continued, “You were trying to tell me, right? You haven’t aged. You never eat around me. You only visit at night.”
There was a long pause, “I never thought you’d put that together. I just thought you should know more about the cyptids loose around here. You know… for Richard, Evan, and Bailey.”
“You… introduced me to a show about vampires and didn’t think I might see the similarities in your behavior?”
He smiled and shrugged, “I guess I don’t have to come out now.” He smiled happily and swept her up in a big hug, “I know it’s weird! But it’s okay, I promise.”
Her eyes filled with tears, “It’s not okay Austin!” she said in a stage whisper. “You… died then? That’s when you disappeared?”
“I’m not dead!” he said petulantly. “I’m walking here with you. I’m talking to you. I love playing with Evan and Bailey. I have friends. If I do all of those things, how can I be dead?”
She looked around and led him off the jogging path, facing him and holding his hands, “Your friend talked about drinking blood, and hungry fiends, and these terrible creatures who run your lives that you’re fighting against. Fine, maybe you’re alive, but your life isn’t like mine. It isn’t even like it was.” She choked up again, “You… thought you were going to die. You knew about that riot and thought something was going to kill you.”
His eyes welled up with tears this time, but with blood and she instinctively tried to pull back. He held her hands firm though, “No, please don’t go. I’m sorry.” He wiped his eyes on the sleeves of his pink hoodie, leaving long streaks of red. “We were fighting against the vampires you heard Andre talk about. We were trying to free ourselves and I was scared, I won’t lie. But we won! But… I had to…” he said, his face trembling again.
“The riot. You did that? That’s how you knew we should stay inside?”
He nodded, the tears coming again as Marcus Bradley’s face flashed in his mind’s eye, “Yeah. I provoked the cops to… well, I guess you saw on the news. We needed the police to be occupied or we would have all been killed! Me, my friends, the other Anarchs, and everybody the bad vampires would have hurt after they killed us!” he babbled, continually wiping tears away.
She stepped forward and embraced him tightly, “Shhh, it’s okay Austin. I can’t even imagine the things that you have to deal with. I can’t judge you. I won’t. But, just promise me one thing. You’re not the bad guy, right?”
He shook his head rapidly, still wiping away the tears of his memory, “No. Never.”
Ines gave him a brave smile, “Good. That’s all I ask. And before you think this makes us good - I don’t want you to start giving me daily updates on what life as a… fucking vampire is like.” He laughed, his tears finally giving way. “I love you and want to know that you’re doing well, but I don’t think I can handle everything. At least not yet. Is that fair?”
“Yeah, I understand. But everything else will be the same? Coming to see Evan and Bailey?” She pursed her lips and gave him a familiar look that said ‘you know better.’ “What!? Why?”
“Austin, think about it. You’re in some kind of battle according to your friend. People want to hurt you. Bailey already notices that you look younger than me. What happens when she’s a teenager? Do you want some edgy teen posting online about his vampire uncle? Who would see that? Would it hurt you? Would it hurt her?”
He watched a couple of joggers pass by before he started speaking again, “Please tell me this isn’t goodbye. I couldn’t handle it. You’ve always been there for me. Always. Even at that horrible school.”
“It’s not goodbye, I promise,” she said firmly. “I know I won’t go telling the world, what… who you are. Richard won’t either. When the kids are in college, if they’re ready, then we can reconsider the truth. But until then… cards, presents if you want are fine. But it’s not safe for them to ask questions.” She looked at his quivering lips, “Austin, you know I’m right. Can you guarantee me that you can protect them? Or even yourself?”
“No.”
She wrapped him up in a tight hug, “We’ll get through this, big brother. You’ll always have me and we’ll figure out the rest.”