Bloodthirsty Bastard: A Hero Club Novel

by T. L. Christianson

  I regarded him from beneath my eyelashes. “Honestly, I was making myself pretty miserable seeing you—but not seeing you.”

  His eyes sparkled as he gazed at me, “I knew you’d come around. It was just a matter of time.”

  “Ha…you really think so?” I asked, punching his arm.

  “I knew so,” he replied, meeting my eye.

  Leaning over, we kissed above the lunch, almost tipping over the bottle of wine.

  Ethan definitely did not give me the creeps.

  As we continued to eat, the sun poked through the clouds. I closed my eyes and leaned back onto my arms, bathing in its warmth.

  Ethan reached over and rubbed my jean-clad thigh. “I have something for you.”

  “Oh?” I asked, blinking in the bright sun.

  He held out a black velvet jewelry box.

  “Oh? This is soon,” I teased.

  He laughed, “It’s not that. Look inside.”

  Opening the top, a wave of shock ran through me. There inside the box was a relatively large silver cross on a thick corded silver necklace.

  “Uh…” I struggled with what to say. This was a beautiful gift. The cross was attractive and modern, but not really my style.

  “Oh, wow…I don’t know what to say. I’m not really religious. We’ve never talked about religion. Are you…religious?” I rambled.

  “It’s silver. It’s for you to wear under your shirt.”

  “Wow, the cross. It’s so…so… so big,” I stammered, trying to come up with something to say.

  “I can’t tease you anymore; I bought this necklace for the chain. Here is the pendant I picked out for you.” Pulling a second rectangular black velvet box from the pack, he opened it, careful to not touch the contents. Inside was a beautifully crafted silver dagger pendant.

  “It has to be big to be used as protection,” he said, his lip twitching.

  I raised my eyebrows in comprehension. “Oh! Against you? This looks like the knife you wear on your ankle.” I picked it up to examine the tiny dagger.

  “It’s solid silver. If you touch any moroi with this, it’ll be pretty effective. High-quality silver like this will burn—badly.”

  I shook my head, a warm feeling bubbling up inside me. “You got this for me to use against you?”

  He nodded. “Well, hopefully not, but yes.”

  “This is stunning! You’re such a dick. You totally tricked me with that cross. I was thinking of any and all kinds of excuses to not wear it.”

  He cracked up again, “I know. Actually, Alina chose this for you, but I knew you’d hate it. I stumbled across this artisan jeweler in the village. I showed him the dagger, and he replicated it.”

  “Oh,” I chuckled. “You aren’t the worst gift giver after all.”

  “Me? Never. Paying attention is most of the work. How can I not pay attention to you?”

  Leaning over, he brushed kisses over my lips one more time, and this time the bottle of wine did fall over. Ethan quickly righted it, but the deep ruby liquid had already flowed out over the snow like blood.

  I’d never believed in signs, but this felt like a sign.

  Couldn’t anything go right for me? Couldn’t I just have one special moment with a man who loved me?

  “Put it on!” He told me.

  “A little help?” I teased.

  His chest shook in silent laughter. “No way, that’s all you.”

  After changing out the cross for the dagger, we packed up the lunch before returning to the SUV.

  I was quiet.

  I was too quiet, but I kept thinking about the wine spilling over the edge and pooling in the snow.

  It looked so much like blood.

  Gazing out the window, I clasped the little dagger in my palm.

  18

  A few days later, we flew home with several people from Balaur. I guessed most of them to be moroi based on their old-fashioned demeanor. Again, Ethan sequestered me to the rear of the plane. It annoyed me, but at the same time, I did like the privacy, and I would be able to sleep. This was a long flight, and I had no intention of spending even a moment of it with creepy Freddie.

  The teacher inside me chafed at my name-calling, but I couldn’t help it. The New York vampire was an unnatural creature, and everything he said seemed to highlight how inhuman he actually was.

  When the plane touched down in LA, I was a bit shocked by how quickly the flight had gone by. I waited for all the passengers to exit before collecting my things and making my way through the cabin. Ethan stood near the door, waiting for me.

  “Did you get some sleep?” He asked, giving me a quick kiss.

  I gazed out into the orange, early morning light. “I did. You?”

  “No, we’re still trying to iron out the parameters for deep learning on this AI.”

  “Ahh…I have no idea what that means, but I hope you figure it out.” I told him as I stepped outside, expecting to be greeted by the cold. Instead, a warm wind swirled my hair and whipped it against my face.

  Back at Aubrey’s home, I arrived just as she was leaving for work.

  “Hey! I want to hear all about it—tonight!” She called out as her heels clicked on the front walk toward her car.

  Her husband, Chance, stood in the living room, his mouth grim.

  “How’ve you been? How is Lucy?” I asked, gazing around the room.

  He turned his head to the side to reveal a long scratch down his face. It continued on his chest, disappearing beneath his t-shirt. “Not exactly swimmingly,” he drew out in his Aussie accent.

  I blew out a breath. “Oh, no! Where is she?”

  “Well, Aubrey’s too nice to say anything, but I’m not. You need to get your devil cat out of my house. That thing is a menace.” He folded his arms.

  I cringed, anxiety making a blush spread up my neck. I wasn’t sure what to say, and for a moment I stood there, hurt and bewildered.

  He continued, “Look, it’s not that I don’t like you, but Aubrey needs to focus on herself right now, not you.”

  “I don’t want her to focus on me. That’s not what I want.” Sighing, I blinked to prevent myself from crying. “Okay, I’ll get out of your hair.”

  He shrugged, “You know the way Aubrey is? Always taking in strays…”

  I’d heard enough though and cut him off. “Look, I get it. I’m on my way out. You’ve made it perfectly clear.” I tugged at my suitcase to pull it toward my bedroom.

  Once I’d closed the door behind me, Chance’s voice called out, “It’s nothing personal. I like you and all, but…”

  I ignored the rest of his explanation/apology.

  Sitting on my bed, I swallowed past the lump in my throat. His comments were personal, this whole situation was damn personal. I never asked Aubrey to get involved in my life—she was the one that stepped in.

  My eyes burned from exhaustion, and tears that had threatened, finally spilled over.

  I’d planned to rest for a while, however, after my little talk with Chance, I realized that I couldn’t stay here another day.

  After a quick shower, fresh clothes, and makeup, I was off to work to check on the empty townhome Ethan had told me about.

  At Dumont, sitting at my desk, I began to pull up the files for Dumont housing. The previous tenant of the empty townhome was Zara Corbyn. The residence had been unoccupied since she moved out about a year ago.

  However, when I searched her up on the company database, her file was locked.

  Ignoring that, I pulled up the information and documents for company housing and began to read them. The place would be cleaned and maintained by Delila and Edgar Stevens, the same couple who took care of the main office building.

  I electronically signed the lease agreement and forwarded it to Mel to have Ethan sign. While I waited for them to get back to me, I woke my computer by moving the mouse.

  In the google search box, I typed, Zara Corbyn.

  News stories and pictures of police tape
popped up. The first article caught my attention.

  Last night around 10 pm, police were called to a home in De Luz on reports of a mountain lion attack. Authorities say they are tracking the lion that attacked 22-year-old Zara Corbyn, but there has been no sign of the animal. Zara was a programmer for a local tech company. Her family back in the United Kingdom have been notified of her death.

  I gulped. Well, mountain lions did exist here, and one had attacked me.

  But…

  This was a mysterious death.

  Was Zara one of the mysterious deaths?

  Aidan, the intern, stopped by my desk and leaned against the semi-transparent panel. “Did you pass my ideas on to Ethan yet?” His eyes wandered to my computer screen. “Wow, mountain lion attack in De Luz, anybody we know?”

  “Did you know Zara? She worked here about a year ago.”

  He scratched his head, “Nope, doesn’t ring a bell.”

  “Well, this was her.” I pointed to the picture on my screen. “She lived here on campus and was killed in her home.”

  He leaned forward to read more. “I was here, but I don’t remember her. Maybe they got the company wrong.”

  “How many tech companies are in De Luz?” I asked, my brows furrowed.

  He shrugged before backing away. “Let me know what Ethan thinks? Okay?” He shot finger guns at me before turning away.

  I scanned more articles looking for a description of Zara’s injuries. When I found one, my suspicions were confirmed. Her carotid artery had been punctured, and she died of blood loss.

  My mouth went dry.

  Had she also been in a relationship with Ethan?

  My heart pounded in my chest.

  He told me he’d killed people.

  Would this happen to me? Could this happen to me?

  I tried to shake my fear off, but it clung to me like a second skin.

  As magical and wonderful as Ethan was, could he do to me what he’d done to Zara?

  Glancing up, I could see my vampire pacing in his office on the phone.

  My throat closed up, and I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t speak. My body went into full panic mode, and I knew I had to get away from here—away from him.

  Not wanting to draw attention to myself, I did my best to stumble out through the glass door into the sunshine.

  Gasping, I put one hand to my chest and tried to count my breaths. However, parked next to the door was Ethan’s motorcycle bringing tears to my eyes.

  Nothing worked out for me.

  Nothing ever ended happily for me.

  Was I doomed to be alone?

  Tears gushed down my face as I unlocked the BMW and slid behind the steering wheel.

  I wasn’t fit to drive at all.

  Counting my breaths, I began to calm down until a pounding on my window made me jump.

  Aster stood there, her sweet face contorted with worry. “Hey, girl. What’s wrong? What happened?”

  I wiped at my cheeks, which I knew would be all splotchy from crying. I am not a pretty crier. I’m one of those puffy, red-faced criers.

  The Barbie opened my door. I folded over my steering wheel to hide my face, and she stroked my back.

  “Oh, honey, panic attack?” She asked.

  Not knowing what else to say, I nodded, my forehead touching the leather of the wheel.

  “Yeah, I get them too sometimes. But you shouldn’t drive. I’ll stay with you until you feel better.” Stepping away, she leaned against the back door and lit a cigarette.

  She puffed a few times before handing it through the open car door.

  “No, thanks…I’m trying to quit nicotine,” I told her.

  She shrugged and puffed away. “Shit, you must be exhausted. What’s the time difference between here and Romania? Like twelve hours or something? Why didn’t Ethan give you the day off?”

  I pulled out my vape and sucked in a lungful.

  “He did,” I said on an exhale. “But I came in to try to set up housing. I’m sort of having a housing crisis.”

  “Ahhh… Are you moving into that empty townhouse? I live here on campus also.” She smiled.

  I nodded. “Yeah, the one that used to be Zara Corbyn’s place. Did you know her?”

  Aster’s eyes flashed briefly before she asked, “Who?”

  Had she been mind-erased to forget the English woman?

  I pressed my lips together, fear prickling at me. Poor Aster, I wondered if she knew what Ethan and Mel were.

  I’d already emailed the paperwork, should I run back in and tell Mel I changed my mind?

  If I confronted Ethan, would he keep his word to not compel me?

  I sat there, lost in my thoughts until Aster spoke, “Look, you shouldn’t be here. I can drive you home and tomorrow. Does that sound good?” She stubbed out her cigarette on the bottom of her stiletto.

  “Are you sure? You don’t have to.” I told her reluctantly.

  “It’s no problem. I’d never forgive myself if you fell asleep or had another panic attack behind the wheel.” She stepped back, and I slid out and around to the passenger side.

  Exhaustion filled me, and as soon as I closed my eyes, I fell into a dreamless sleep.

  I awoke when the car came to a stop in front of Aubrey’s house.

  Aster leaned over, staring into my eyes. Then her voice took on a strange cadence. “We’re here. You’ll be all right. Everything is going to work out. Tomorrow you’re going to feel much better and forget all about Zara. You’re not going to look into her anymore. You’re not going to spend another thought on her.”

  Blinking, I wasn’t sure what had happened. My mind felt as if it were stuffed with cotton. Tiny Aster shoved me out of the door and into my bedroom.

  I lay down onto the bed and stared up at her. Aster looked like a princess with her white-blond hair and big blue eyes.

  She continued in her soothing voice. “You aren’t going to remember anything about Zara Corbyn. You’re not upset. Everything is going to be all right. You’re going to feel much better when you wake up. You were just tired, and I drove you home.”

  That’s right, I thought.

  I couldn’t imagine why I’d been so upset…Oh yeah, the cat and Chance. He wanted me to move out…but there was something else.

  Something I couldn’t remember.

  Something I’d forgotten.

  Or had I?

  The feeling that I’d forgotten something important began fading like clouds on a sunny day.

  Everything was going to be all right, and tomorrow I was going to feel much better.

  Waking up around noon, I checked my phone. Excitement filled me as I read. I could begin moving into the townhouse this afternoon.

  In the kitchen, I poured myself a cup of coffee and spotted my car fob on the counter. Peeking out the front window, there sat my little electric BMW.

  How had I gotten home? I didn’t remember driving home from Dumont.

  Scrolling through my phone, I smiled at my pictures of Ethan and me in Romania as I waited for the coffee to brew.

  Pixy wandered inside through the partially open back door, and I stroked his head.

  “You’re a good boy, aren’t you? I’m gonna miss you, you sweet thing,” I told him.

  He let out a loud baaaa before wandering off.

  I felt extremely unwelcome in this little Temecula home now. Some distance between myself and Chance would be for the best. Then, maybe Aubrey could see that Ethan wasn’t the terrible guy she made him out to be.

  We could get together and have barbeques and have dinner parties.

  Maybe marriage and children were still in the cards for me, after all.

  I just had a good feeling that everything was going to work out.

  I’d just been tired and needed sleep.

  Inside my bedroom, I began emptying my drawers into black trash bags. Looking around, I realized that most of my things still sat packed in boxes. Moving should be pretty straightforward, so I starte
d loading my car. Before I knew it, the little guest bedroom was empty.

  I stripped the sheets and stuffed them into a laundry bag. Some dust lay on the mirror, so I grabbed a rag and began to dust the furniture. Then I noticed some crumbs on the floor, so I pulled out the broom, mop, and bucket and cleaned the floor.

  When I finished, I opened the window to let in the afternoon breeze. I could hear loud pounding coming from Chance’s workshop and flinched.

  Yep, it was time to move.

  I was in no mood to say goodbye to the man.

  Glancing around the empty bedroom, I heaved a sigh of relief.

  This was the end of this chapter of my life and the beginning of a new one. If I stayed any longer, it might ruin my friendship with Aubrey.

  Cat carrier in hand, I scrawled out a check to make up for part of the damage Lucy had done to their house and left it on the entry table. Pulling the house key off my keyring, I laid it down on top of the check.

  “Goodbye house,” I whispered.

  19

  After entering the gates of the Dumont estate, I wound my way around the narrow road until I came to a cluster of townhouses built like a little village surrounding a small park.

  Number 5 was mine. Stepping out, I smiled at the neat little modern structure. Being on the end, it was one level with two bedrooms.

  Opening the door with a wave of my hand, I gazed around. Other than the air smelling a bit stale from being closed up, the place was clean, and the accompanying furniture looked new. I opened all the windows to allow the afternoon breeze in before unloading my car. Making trips to carry in my meager belongings, I had the strangest sense of deja vu.

  I stopped in the driveway and stared at the front door. Why did this look so familiar?

  Shaking it off, I shook my head, dismissing the idea.

  Inside, I filled Lucy’s water and food bowl and set them in the iron holder on her purple mat.

  I upended the black trash bag full of my bedding into the washing machine and started it up.

  When my phone buzzed, I picked up cheerfully, “Hello?”