The Van Helsing Conjecture – Excerpt No. 113

Clara kissed Evelyn on the forehead. From out of the corner of her eye, she spotted three men looking their way. Their awkward and exaggerated movements indicated they had way too much giggle water.

“Do you see them down the road?” Clara whispered.

She was accustomed to seeing vampires appear to be in two places at once. What made this experience unsettling was being in physical contact with one while that happened.

Evelyn grabbed both of Clara’s hands to keep them in place as she turned around for a good look. Clara’s mind registered the sensations and visualised Evelyn facing two places at once… that was off putting…

“It looks like fun,” Evelyn sang.

A cinematic, nighttime photograph capturing three men, silhouetted against the snow-covered streets, stumbling through the deserted alleyway, their figures blurry and distant, with bottles of whiskey or vodka clutched in their gloved hands, the labels gleaming faintly in the dim light. The snowflakes fall gently, casting a serene atmosphere, as the men, dressed in worn, earth-toned winter jackets, insulated pants, and scuffed boots, struggle to maintain their footing on the icy pavement. The men's faces, indistinct in the darkness, are faintly lit by the faint glow of distant streetlights, their breath visible in the chilly air. The snow-covered buildings, dark and monolithic, loom in the background, their windows like empty eyes staring back. The overall mood is one of melancholy, the only sound the crunch of boots on snow and the muffled laughter of the men.

Disclaimer: This novel is an work in progress and readers may encounter grammatical errors and inconsistencies. Please view this a draft and not a published work.