I heard the smile in his voice when he responded. “What made you change your mind and pick up?”
“Don’t flatter yourself; I was bored. Why are you calling me?”
I could tell he was amused. “I wanted to see how your first day went.”
Oh. He was wondering whether I munched on anyone.
He corrected himself. “Actually, I wanted to see how you were. There are a lot of supremacist morons at Peel, and I figured your first day might’ve been rough.”
I cleared my throat. “It was fine,” I lied.
“Good. Put on something sexy. Tonight will be your first lesson on being a vampire.”
***
Andre drove us up to the front of the club, leaving the idling car for the valets to pick up. Even though it was a Monday, there was still a long line snaking down the street.
The screaming began as fans caught sight of Andre. The sight of so many excited woman—and men—shocked me until I remembered he was an international celebrity.
He waved and smiled, looking cool and collected. The screaming escalated, some women even rushing out of line to get closer. Bodyguards materialized just in time, holding Andre’s eager fans back.
Andre came over to where I stood teetering in my uncomfortable heels, and he draped an arm around my waist. I stared at where his hand rested. That was awfully presumptuous of him. I grabbed his hand to peel it away from my waist and cameras went off.
Instead of letting me remove his hand, his fingers curled around my own, and he leaned into me, murmuring, “Just go with it. They want a show.”
I bared my teeth at the cameras, trying to fake a grin.
We walked inside, and the thrum of music pounded my ears. Now that we were away from the gawkers, I pushed his hand away, “Just because I came out with you does not mean I’m your date,” I yelled over the music.
He gave me a devil-may-care grin. “Fine. Follow me.”
We wove in and out of dancers, drunk club goers, and more fans. He led me upstairs. More bodyguards stood by the entrance to what I assumed was the VIP section. Seeing Andre, they opened the doors.
I followed him into a room full of curtained alcoves, where swanky-looking groups of people chatted over their drinks. An entire side of the room was made up of one-way mirrors, so VIP members could look out onto the club without themselves being seen.
He broke away from me and walked over to a table, probably schmoozing with his high-end customers. I walked over to the one-way mirror, and watched as couples danced and friends laughed.
I pushed my wavy hair away from my eyes, and fidgeted with a ring I was wearing. Why was I here? So far I hadn’t learned anything remotely vampire-ish, and frankly, this VIP crowd made me uncomfortable.
“We meet again.”
I looked up to see Theodore, the Scottish vampire who had laid me out the day before, standing next to me.
“You still owe me an apology.” What I had meant to say was hey, but even a bad day couldn’t completely wipe out my attitude.
“Saucy minx.” He laughed and twirled his glass of wine—or some other dark fluid I wasn’t willing to dwell on. “No wonder Andre’s pursuing you. He so does love the chase.”
His words put me in an even fouler mood. “For your information, Theodore, Andre is not pursuing me. He’s giving me my first lesson on being a vampire.” My explanation sounded weak, even to me, and I briefly considered whether Andre did have an ulterior motive. But I wouldn’t let Theodore see any of my personal misgivings. “It’s none of your business anyway.”
He smiled at me. “That’s where you are wrong, tootsie.” I gashed my teeth together at his idea of an endearment. “I am Andre’s right-hand man. It’s my business to know these things. And if Andre’s interested in you, it’s my job to make sure you are not a threat.”
I was shocked.
“Me?” I asked incredulously. “A threat?”
Andre appeared behind us. “Ready?” He looked at me.
“For what?” I asked, momentarily distracted.
“I have more to show you.” He turned to Theodore, who was still gazing intensely at me. “Theodore, I’ll meet back up with you later tonight.”
Theodore nodded and reluctantly left.
“Theodore sucks,” I said. “… Pun unintended.”
“Theodore is looking out for my best interests,” Andre replied. “Now come.”
I let Andre lead me through another door. We stepped into a richly decorated private lounge. Crimson velvet couches were placed throughout the room. A series of paintings of Greek gods and goddesses hung along the amber walls. The one-way mirrors here opened onto a balcony.
But the most shocking part was the room’s seclusion. We were alone. I couldn’t decide whether the presence of psychotic fans and pretentious VIP members was preferable to being alone with Andre.
“I figured you were the type of person who favored small, intimate settings to large crowds,” he said.
I tried not to dwell on the way he said intimate, which seemed full of sexual undertones. Then again, maybe that was just me.
“Are you pursuing me?” I blurted out, using the same wording Theodore had.
He raised an eyebrow. “Pursuing?” He paused long enough to make me feel like an idiot for bringing the subject up altogether. “That would imply that you were prey. And I think we can both agree that’s definitely not the case.” Why I thought Andre would give me a straight answer was beyond me.
“But,” he continued, “when one has lived as long as me, people become predictable—boring. You, however, are anything but.”
I looked him in the eye, trying to not be distracted by how beautiful he was. “Sorry to burst your bubble Andre, but I have a soulmate.”
“So?”
“So, I’m not going to fall in love with you.”
“I wasn’t asking for anything nearly so tedious,” he said. “Perhaps we could start with friendship?”
I snorted. Fat chance we were going to be friends. But I’d play nice.
“Fine.”
The sounds of the club dully thrummed through the room, and the song that came on caught my attention. The melody coursed through me.
I walked over to the doors that led to the balcony, transfixed by the music. Andre came over, unlatched the door for me, and followed me out.
“What song is this?” I asked, completely overtaken by the melody.
He was silent for so long I figured he hadn’t heard me over the music.
“You’ve never heard it, I can promise you that. It’s forbidden from distribution in most countries.”
Go figure.
“Why is it forbidden?” I asked, distracted.
He gazed at the crowd, who were completely lost in the music. Seeing all their empty eyes sobered me up.
“This song was sung by a siren—by your mother in fact.”
My head whipped around, the song’s spell broken. “This is my mother singing?” So much for not appearing too eager where my past was concerned.
He nodded.
“Did you know her?”
He nodded, a few loose strands of his hair falling forward as he leaned on the ledge. “Yes, I knew her.”
I wanted to flood him with questions, but the strange sound of my mother’s voice kept distracting me. “What’s wrong with her voice?”
“She is using glamour. It’s one of your powers as well. It’s the ability to bespell others.”
This was the second time I’d heard about this power, but I was skeptical that I actually had this ability. Wouldn’t I have already felt it?
“Luckily the glamour is diluted by the recording, and anyway, Celeste is only singing about enjoying the moment. Pretty harmless. But still, it’s outlawed in most places because the song bespells listeners without their explicit consent.”
I listened to the lyrics.
Carpe diem they say,
Seize the day,
Because before long,
&
nbsp; Tomorrow will dawn,
And you will be gone.
“I read about sirens. You were right. Apparently we don’t last long.”
“I know.” He was solemn. “Lucky for you, your vampire genes gave you a back up plan.”
I gave him a long look. “I read about vampires too. And it seems like a pretty lousy back up plan if you ask me.”
In the background, my mother was still singing. I got chills hearing her voice. She might be dead, but not forgotten.
Andre’s phone rang. He pulled it out and looked at the number. “I need to take this. I’ll be just a moment. When I get back we’ll begin.” And like that, I was alone.
I walked out onto the balcony. Leaning over the ledge, I raptly listened to the rest of the song. Once it was over, I watched the crowd slowly awaken from the song. They were invigorated.
I went back inside, feeling like I was an interloper on their fun.
When I tried closing the door behind me, it wouldn’t latch. I jiggled it, and tried to force the lock into place. Distracted, I mistook the light tread of footfalls behind me for Andre.
Until someone grabbed a fistful of my hair.
Yanking my head back, my attacker placed a sharp knife at my throat.
In a gravelly voice, the man spoke in my ear. “If you move an inch, I will slit your throat.”
Chapter 12
I RAISED MY hands in surrender, barely breathing. How did an attacker get inside the most guarded room in the club?
“Good. Now follow my instructions exactly. I am going to calmly lead you out of here as though nothing’s wrong. If you scream or otherwise alert anyone that that’s not the case, I will kill you—don’t think I won’t either. I promise you, I mean every word.” He said this with such lethal coolness that I believed him.
But I’d also watched enough CourtTV to know that once I left the premise with him, my chances of survival drastically decreased. And that realization was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I’d had a really shitty day already, and I. Just. Couldn’t. Take it. Anymore.
From within me I felt something release, and a wave of power washed over me.
Moving fast, I grabbed the hand that held the knife to my throat and squeezed. He screamed and dropped the knife.
Using the arm I held as leverage, I catapulted him over my shoulder, vaguely impressed I could throw a grown man across the room. He hit the far wall and slid down.
I walked over to where he lay gasping, put a hand to his throat, and squeezed. “What do you want with me?”
“Abomination,” he wheezed. And then he threw me off of him.
I skidded along the floor, but before I had the chance to get up, he was on top of me. He cocked an arm back and punched me repeatedly in the face. Something crunched, and blood poured from my nose. The smell of it triggered something primal, and I felt my canines elongate in response. My nose stung badly, and my eyes teared up from the pain.
Believing me sufficiently incapacitated, he stood up and picked up the knife where he dropped it. I backed up, still on my back. My self-defense classes hadn’t prepared me for this. I didn’t know how to fight, and this guy did. But I had more to lose.
Almost casually the man walked back over to me. He kneeled down over my body. “Hmm, if you won’t leave quietly, I’ll just have to kill you now.” He ran a hand down my face, toying with me. My attacker was enjoying this. Enjoying my pain and the slow process of ending another life.
I moved quickly, kicking him swiftly in the chest. He fell back, and I followed him. We rolled together, grappling for possession of the knife. I grabbed his free hand and bent his wrist back until I heard a snap. He howled in agony, and I made the mistake of relaxing. With his good hand he sliced the dagger down my cheek and drove it towards my heart. I jerked my body to the side at the last minute, and my attacker plunged the knife into my shoulder. I screamed.
Behind us the door opened, and then a roar eclipsed my scream. I saw the whites of my attacker’s eyes a second before his body was torn away from mine and flung across the room like a rag doll. I heard the sickening crack as his body hit the far wall and the plaster gave.
Andre stood at my feet, looking like a fallen angel. A very pissed off fallen angel.
“Take him away!” I heard him order his bodyguards.
Andre bent over me, concerned. “I am so sorry,” he whispered.
Andre’s gaze flicked to the knife that was still plunged in my shoulder before shifting back to me.
“I need you to stare me in the eyes,” he commanded. “Don’t look away.”
I glanced at his hand, which he’d wrapped around the hilt of the dagger.
“No,” I whimpered.
“Gabrielle, focus on me. Focus.” I stared into his eyes and felt everything fall away. It was just him, me, and that whimsical feeling I could really get used to. And then it all shattered as Andre yanked the knife out of my shoulder.
The scream ripped from me.
“Shhhh.” Andre soothed me like I was a small child. Someone handed him a towel, and he used it to halt the bleeding. It took many minutes for the pain and nausea to become manageable.
“Aren’t you supposed to give me a drink before you go about pulling out knives?”
That earned a chuckle. “I can’t be giving alcohol to minors. I might lose my liquor license.”
I rolled my eyes. As if Andre actually followed the rules.
“I think my nose is broken,” I said.
He glanced down at my nose. “Then it already healed itself.”
“What?” I realized the pain in my face had lessened. “How is that possible?”
He picked me up, somehow managing to shrug even as he carried me.
“Vampires heal much more rapidly than normal humans,” he said.
We passed back into the VIP common room, where people huddled in clusters, some with their camera phones pulled out, taking shots of us.
“I can walk, really,” I said, struggling against him. Reluctantly he put me down. “So vampires heal quickly. But I’m still human, aren’t I?”
A crease appeared right between Andre’s eyebrows. I tried not to think about how breathtakingly gorgeous he looked.
“Gabrielle, I think we can agree that you haven’t been completely human since you woke up in the hospital. Your nose is proof that your body already has the ability to return itself to its original state. This same ability keeps vampires frozen at whatever age they were changed.”
“So what does that mean?” I asked.
He only shook his head. “I don’t know.”
***
When we approached the onsite paramedics, there was not much left for them to mend. The bruising on my face had lightened to a nasty yellow color—apparently this was a good thing—and the knife wound on my face had almost completely healed.
Most surprising of all, my shoulder wound had closed up, making stiches unnecessary.
The next few hours were weary. I repeated my story over and over to the police. Luckily the police—and just about everyone else on the island—happened to be supernaturals, which made telling the truth a whole lot easier. My assailant was in custody, and the police force was currently running a background check.
Eventually, Andre rescued me. For once I appreciated his pushy ways. He pulled some strings and got me out of the police station before 1:00 a.m.
I met him at the entrance, where he was sitting in one of the vinyl chairs. I laughed. I couldn’t help it. The sight of him dwarfing the seat in the sitting room of the police station, clad in his designer clothes, was ridiculous.
“Inspector O’Reilly wanted me to give you her best regards,” I said, walking towards him.
At some point today, my opinion of Andre had drastically changed. Maybe it was that he reached out to me when I had been feeling like a social pariah, or maybe it was his tragic history. Or maybe it was that he saved my life.
He gave me a smoldering look, one eyebrow arching u
p.
“Oh, cut the brooding crap,” I said, walking past him to push the door open, “Thanks for getting me out of there.”
Andre followed me out. “So that’s it?” he asked. “You’re going to act as though you didn’t nearly die two hours ago?”
I stopped in my tracks and faced him, the chilly night air prickling my skin. “How am I supposed to act?”
“Bothered. Scared.”
“I am bothered, and I am scared. Happy?”
“No.”
I looked at him curiously. “Why do you care?”
“It’s my job to protect you.” He looked angry.
I closed my eyes. “Just because I am your newest member does not mean you’re entitled to question why I act the way I act.”
“I am when you are blatantly cavalier about your life!” He ran a ticked-off hand through his hair. “Being what you are, the price is much too high.”
“My soul is fine. I already know it’s time that screws all you vampires over.”
He quieted down. “I wasn’t talking about that.”
I was surprised. “Then what were you talking about?”
He opened his mouth to speak, thought better, and shook his head. “Never mind. Let’s get you back. We’ll reschedule training.”
We got into the car, and Andre pulled out of the police station.
I ran my fingers over the upholstery, thinking about the fears I buried deep. “Who was he?” My voice was so quiet I wasn’t sure I spoke the words at all. “The man who tried to kill me?”
Andre’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Scum.” He looked over at me. “The police didn’t tell you who your attacker was?”
I watched the scenery fly by as Andre accelerated down the dark city streets. “All they told me was that he was currently in custody, and they were doing a background check.” I was glad Andre had turned the guy in. I got the distinct impression that most people who crossed Andre disappeared. I couldn’t say why, but I was relieved my attacker hadn’t died.
Andre muttered something about incompetent police, but to me he said, “Your attacker is Timothy Watts, a laid-off construction worker and an alcoholic. More importantly, he is one hundred percent human.”
“What?” I shook my head. “That’s not possible. The man threw me across the room, and he moved quicker than I’ve ever seen a human move.” I remembered my own inhuman feat of strength. I had also tossed a person—a full-grown man—across the room. Then I remembered what other physiological changes my powers brought on.
The Unearthly (The Unearthly Series) Page 8