"I'm a two hundred fifty year-old vampire" excerpt from Dark Journeys anthology

Excerpt from A Problem with Werewolves. Dan's girlfriend presents him with an unpleasant surprise.

Monique stepped back, and her eyes captured mine. “I’m a vampire.”

A three-word statement of the impossible, I thought. I searched her face but failed to detect any sign that she was joking or subjecting me to some test.

“I’m a two-hundred-and-fifty-year-old vampire. I was born in a small chateau not far from Grenoble. A distant relative attacked me when I was thirty years old and made me into an undead creature. After that horrible evening, I lost my husband and two daughters. They were eleven and seven.”

I couldn’t swallow, and my racing pulse thrummed throughout my body. Her serious manner didn't change. I looked at the remaining whiskey and downed it in one gulp. Though the room was chilly, perspiration formed on my forehead. This isn’t real, I thought.

  In Dark Journeys, short stories and dark poems describe perilous paths taken by mortals, vampires, and other creatures of the night. Some survive, others do not. Why not join them on their journey through the gates of hell, so to speak.

My Vampire 's Aura - a dark poem by Neil Benson

My Vampire's Aura

My free will is gone;
your aura commands me.

You draw me each night,
to ecstasy and pain.

you show me your beauty,
but I know it's not real.
Your lovely face
masks a soul so dark.

After the pleasure,
you draw my life's blood.
You keep me alive,
you need me no more.

The weaker I become,
the greater your pleasure.
The time is not long,
when you take my life from me.

Your promises are hollow;
I am one of many.
Bodies strewn through time;
discarded like waste.

Tonight will be special.
I have a treat for you.
The bright, silver dagger,
I found in your dresser.

When you take me in your arms,
I will end your undead existence.
My life is spent,
but others will be spared.

My Red-haired Lover A dark poem of vampire love by Neil Benson

My Red-haired Lover

 Bright red hair caught my eye.

A sly, fey smile drew me in.  Musky fragrance made me reel.

My mind was not my own.

She took my hand in hers,

and led me to her car.

As we drove into the night,

her fingers played with my thigh.

She led me into her home,

and pulled my face to hers.

Cool lips pressed against mine.

Her tongue caressed my mouth.

Hot passion burnt my soul.

She took me to the bedroom.

As her dress fell to the floor,

she pulled me to her breasts.

Soon my clothes were gone.

She stroked me with her hand,

then took me in her mouth.

My body became red hot.

To bed she pulled me down,

and eased me into her.

As ecstasy drove me mad,

her fangs entered my neck.

I cried out in pain and joy.

She whispered you are mine.

I said I was her slave.

Her lover for all time.

Related articles

• The Ravishing (and Often Disturbing) History of Red Hair

Undead Embrace - a vampire horror poem by Neil Benson

A dark poem from a mortal to a vampire lover.

Whenever I run,
wherever I hide,
your dark presence finds me.
It fills me with fear.
It fills me with joy.
I try to resist you,
but my will always fails me.
I am drawn back to you,
across distance and time.
Memories of pleasures,
no mortal could imagine.
Feelings of pain,
no mortal could endure.
My resistance is fading,
closer I come.
Your dark Castle in front of me,
where you've lived for all time.
I go to your chamber
to submit to your will.
Your perfect face before me,
a goddess of death.
Your pale white lips
and dark blue eyes
draw me to your netherworld.
Your mind caresses my cheek
and strokes my body
until I am aflame.
Closer you come,
and I show you my neck.
Ecstasy overwhelms me,
with the sharpest of pain.

My Red-haired Lover A poem a vampire love by Neil Benson

My Red-haired Lover

 Bright red hair caught my eye.

A sly, fey smile drew me in.

Musky fragrance made me reel.

My mind was not my own.

She took my hand in hers,

and led me to her car.

As we drove into the night,

her fingers played with my thigh.

She led me into her home,

and pulled my face to hers.

Cool lips pressed against mine.

Her tongue caressed my mouth.

Hot passion burnt my soul.

She took me to the bedroom.

As her dress fell to the floor,

she pulled me to her breasts.

Soon my clothes were gone.

She stroked me with her hand,

then took me in her mouth.

My body became red hot.

To bed she pulled me down,

and eased me into her.

As ecstasy drove me mad,

her fangs entered my neck.

I cried out in pain and joy.

She whispered you are mine.

I said I was her slave.

Her lover for all time.