The Midnight Watch

My neighborhood was never a safe place at night. If your house didn't get broken into you were considered lucky. Crime was rampant during night time, that is until a Neighborhood Watch was set up. The watch was set up by a group of people who moved into the neighborhood a couple days ago. Since most crimes happened at night the neighborhood watch were out from sunset to sunrise. Now nothing happens around the neighborhood, the silence just doesn't seem right. We used to see shady characters walking down the sidewalk at night, now all we see are cars with the name The Midnight Watch painted on the sides.

Due to the neighborhood watch only being active at night some kids I knew started making up stories about The Midnight Watch, the most common being that they take whoever they find at night to the woods. There was nothing in the forest at the edge of my neighborhood. I told them this countless times, yet they don't believe me.

One night I was laying I my bed, unable to fall asleep. I looked out my window and saw someone walking down the sidewalk, with something in their pockets. Just then one of The Midnight Watch cars pulled over to the side of the road. The stranger, who looked over at the Watch Man who got out of the car, began to run away. The Watch Man chased the suspect with incredible speed, and caught him. I stared out the window with a look of disbelief. The Watch Man threw the suspect into the car, then looked at me and waved.

I remained at the window for a few minutes. As I was about to go back to my bed I saw the Midnight Watch car, drive into the forest. The next morning I went over to one of the kid's house and told them that they're right, something is in the forest. The kid stared at me with a look of shock, then asked what is in the forest. I told him that I didn't know. The kid told me to come over to his house later at night.

I walked over the the kid's house and saw him in the front yard with a backpack. I asked him why he wanted me to come over and he said that we're going to go see what is in the forest. I told him that I wasn't coming with him and that he was stupid for doing this at night. I turned around and started to walk away when I felt something hit me in the back of the head. Stumbling forward, I fell into a bush as the kid yelled, "Screw you!" I stayed in the bush for a bit when I heard a muffled scream. I peered out of the bush to see one of the Midnight Watch cars drive away, and a backpack laying on the ground.

I stared at the backpack with wide eyes. The Midnight Watch just abducted a child. I felt like crying, but mustering up my courage, I got up. I knew where he was being taken, and I knew he needed help. Taking the flashlight strapped to the backpack I began walking to the forest. I walked for what seemed like hours, following the tire tracks in the ground. I kept looking down at the tracks until I bumped into something. Looking up I saw it was the Midnight Watch car I saw earlier. Looking past it I saw a dimly lit cave.

I walked through the cave as it went further and further down. The cave got steeper and steeper and I walked. Finally my flashlight shone on a door. It was a large wooden door with a brass door knocker in the shape of a snake. I open the door and peeked inside. There were a bunch of wooden boxes scattered around the room. One was opened and filled with dirt. I carefully stepped around the room trying to not knock over the many candles lit on the floor. I got to the door on the other side of the odd room, and without hesitation I opened it.

My stomach turned upside down at what I saw. The room smelled horrible and bones were scattered about. Tall red candles lit up the room, showing multiple bodies of people and animals. What stopped my still was the table in the middle of all it. On the table laid the still corpse of the kid. His neck had a clean slice in it and blood-stained cups were placed around him. I stood still until a thought made my blood run cold. The deep cave, the box filled with dirt, and the blood-stained cups, the reason why the Midnight Watch is only seen at night, they're vampires. The entire neighborhood watch is a group of vampires!

I shuddered and felt like I was about to puke, then my heart stopped. A hand was on my shoulder and a voice whispered in my ear, "Isn't it a bit late for you to be out?"