Well, let him get worse! Just who, him? I'll tell you when I decide. In the meantime, I'm the one who'll be the worst.
Danielle's back.
- I found you some bandages. You look terrific.
- Thank you. Can you help me bandage your hand?
- Of course.
I pulled it forward to make the vampire more comfortable and started looking at his outfit myself. Danielle was also wearing light grey leather pants and a silk shirt. But his shirt was incredibly silver in color. Just to the shade of his eyes.
- It suits you," I noticed. - You're so beautiful!
- You flatter me," the vampire was embarrassed. - You'll be the prettiest one today!
I gave him a smile.
- Anyway, I can't compete with Medislav.
Danielle smiled back.
- I'm not attracted to Mecislav. I have other tastes.
I felt myself blushing. But my tongue has never failed me.
- That's funny, but so am I.
The vampire's eyes laughed frankly.
- Poor Mecislav. For the first time, some woman does not find it attractive!
- Is this the first time?
- In all the time we've known each other!
I remembered the sharpened profile of the vampire, his honey and gold skin, and I nodded.
- You can understand them. Where are my crystal shoes?
- Shoes are waiting outside the door.
- And is she in the same style? To become a costume?
I feel bad. Danielle was just having fun.
- Yeah. What did you want? Diamond shoes, gold heels. So you wouldn't be ashamed to lose!
When I saw what I had to wear on my feet, I wanted to be somewhere in Haiti. Or where I could walk barefoot in the city? That one, the fashion designer by her leg, the shoes... I've never worn one of those! They were narrow boots on a heel of about ten centimeters. The bright scarlet leather they were made of was covered in pseudo rubies and beads.
- I'll break my legs sooner! - I'm sorry. - I want to put on my shoes! Where are they?
Danielle looked at me like I was a stupid kid.
- Your shoes are soaked, and you humans are too fragile creatures. You'll catch a cold and get sick.
- I know. You're the one who can't be beaten by a log. Either I get sick or I break a leg. And may you fangers be ashamed of yourselves! You couldn't even choose a decent shoe!
- It wasn't my choice, you know.
The grey eyes were laughing at me, but so easily and mercilessly...
I wouldn't know. I tried to put this stuff on and I walked down the hall. It didn't work out so well.
Come on, I'll practice! Especially since the boots were going to the whole ensemble. I whistled down the stairs and looked at the other vampires. Vadim was wearing the same gray silk and gray skin as Danielle. And his eyes were like a stormy sky. Boris flaunted the colors of the scarlet sails. Scarlet is gray, gray is scarlet.
Our outfits were more complementary than hostile to each other. But the rhinestones were only allowed to me.
- Charming," I gave it to you. - And where is His Majesty?
- Of course, here," a low voice was heard.
I turned around. Mecislav was standing behind me. All I had to do was reach out and touch his chest. The hairs on the back of my head stood up. Yes. You could whistle from such a spectacle. Which I did. And immediately I got mad at myself, touching all sides. What is it?!
- Aren't you afraid?
- What? - His surprise was genuine.
- I wouldn't go out in those clothes if I were you. If even your kind of jaw makes me sick... You should just be arrested for insulting public morality.
- And I'm not going to go. I'm gonna go. Is the car ready? - Mieczysław's last phrase was already addressed to Sniegerew.
- Yes, sir.
- Okay, great. Boris is driving.
- Yes, sir.
I licked it quietly. Mecislav dressed in all black. A shiny black vinyl doused him from head to toe. Every muscle, every bend like a second skin. No jewelry, no embroidery. The lines of his body were so perfect that he didn't need anything. The natural beauty highlighted in black made him as beautiful as a grenade launcher. I had a terrible desire to stroke him, to walk on his skin with my hands, then with my tongue, to go down on his chest lower and lower... Jane! That's enough!
The vampire's shirt was unbuttoned and a large honey and gold skin triangle was visible. A little lower than his neck, on his collarbones, the edges of his shirt collar were fastened together by three black matte chains that emphasized his tan. Or was it not a tan? Vampires don't get a tan, so it's a natural color. I wonder if his skin tastes like honey, too. Hey, what am I thinking, actually? The tall boots fit the vampire's legs almost to the thighs, and they're fixed in the back with black buckles. Coal-black hair was tied to the ponytail with an intricate black hairpin and thrown behind the back. Over the shoulders, two sword arms protruded like wings. I wonder if they had blades of silver or not? I wish they did.
I put my water pistols behind my belt. Guns, too. That's funny. But for want of the best...
- Jane...
- Yeah? - I looked up.
Mecislav gave me scarlet leather sheath.
- I can't get you anything better in such a short time, but it'll do. Let me, uh...
I didn't get a chance to say anything when his hands slipped down my waist, securing the knife. The heat from his fingers got to me. They were still incredibly hot for a vampire. There was a long wave of pleasure going through my body. I wanted to stand on tiptoe, touch Mecislav's lips, close my hands on his neck and rub my whole body against him like a cat. And then... What do I care about Dyushka, if I want, I want...
Jane! Wake up!
Mecislav looked at me with mysterious dark eyes and smiled. And I could almost feel his hands ironing my body. And I pissed myself off.
- Tell me, are all women throwing themselves at you or are they just my wishes?
I managed to dazzle Mieczysław once again. He slammed his eyelashes, and I noticed their density and length. I was even a little jealous. And the eyelashes, and the look on his face. Anyone else, even Daniel, it would have been funny. In Mieczysław, it's touching and incredibly seductive.
- I guess that's how almost all women feel. A lot of people have confessed to me.
- And you tried to meet their expectations," I summed up. - Did you dress us like this on purpose?
- Yes, of course. Don't you like it?
- It's not my dress style.
- And what's yours, curly? Sweaters with worn elbows and jeans with faded knees?
He hit the spot, and I sparkled angrily with my eyes. Damn, how can you be so angry with a man and want him as much?! Maybe it's because he's not human, but a vampire. Or maybe it's because he's amazingly handsome. I guess it's both.
- They're comfortable enough. And I don't care about beauty.
- Sloth, laziness or carelessness?
- More like self-confidence. Nothing's gonna ruin me. I'm charming in any weather and in any environment. That's it.
The green eyes were laughing. Did he find me funny? It's quite possible.
- It's rare among women.
- Then you knew few women," I returned a compliment to Mieczyslaw about the Russians. He smiled and offered me a hand.
- I'm asking you to broaden my experience.
He had something in his eyes that made me angry. And I reacted before I knew what I was saying.
- You are the king, but I am not the queen. And especially not a royal whore. So let me take my place in the entourage.
I went up to Daniel and took him under my arm. My grey eyes were shining with joy. He definitely wanted me to say no to Mieczysław. He was too sure of himself. And now he looked at me with light mockery and surprise.
- Am I the first woman who refuses to come under your arm?
- The first one. In a few centuries.
- It's nice to be the exception
to the rules. - I did what I wanted to do a long time ago. I pressed my face against Daniel's shoulder and slowly, even lazily rubbed my cheek against his shirt, closing my eyes. Silk caressed his skin, and I knew perfectly well that a stupid dreamy smile was blurring on my face. But what do I care who and what they think of me? The important thing is that Danielle gets me right.
- The car is waiting for you," Snegirev's voice destroyed my idyll.
On my doorstep, Danielle picked me up and carried me through the snow. I shrieked and grabbed his neck.
Not for fear, just in case. And also, I just wanted it. Mecislav was amazingly handsome, but I was more attracted to Daniel.
Why? Probably because he represented for me the closeness of the mind that I had relied on all my life, and Mecislav was just a challenge to my waking sensuality. And then there's "Catherine syndrome." What can I do about it? I just don't have the guts to be too beautiful. Then you start counting how many flaws you have yourself. Jealousy, I guess...
There was a cherry foreigner waiting for us at home. What kind of brand, the hell with it. I can only tell the wheels from the steering wheel in cars. What a jigula from a foreign car.
Mechislav sat down in the front seat.
- Fasten your seat belt, Jane. Vampires may survive the worst disaster, but you're still human.
- I should have thought about it earlier," I shrugged my shoulders.
- It's possible. But be warned, in front of Andre, you will do as I say. If I tell you to jump, you'll jump like a cutie. I tell you to fuck me in front of the whole audience, you'll fuck me.
- You can't count on the last one," I snapped.
- Really? - A vampire uttered the word with a to-and-so intonation... And a slight disdain, and a half order, and surprise - she's offered, and she refuses, you fool... Well, let her. But I'm not his bedding to use and throw away. Danielle's better. How many women have a vampire had in three hundred years?
And it immediately flashed into my brain. For an artist, each of his women will be a muse, even if only for a short time. And for someone like Mechislav... A passing episode. I didn't even argue.
- You're not my type, Mečislav," the voice sounded tired and squeamish. It was clear even to me. And the vampire did not stand the challenge.
- Tastes change, curly.
- You can change your skin, but you can't change your heart.
- Interesting logic, Jane. I will continue your thought. You can't change your heart, but it could vomit.
- Is that a threat or a warning?
- It's just a life experience.
I rolled my eyes. But I didn't answer anything. I was just more comfortable with Daniel. I sat wedged between him and Vadim. The vampires, however, were very polite. They were 18th-century gymnastics... No hands grabbing your knees by accident, no attempts to squeeze tighter. Everybody's got to have such manners. The car was going into the unknown. I leaned on the back of the seat, trying to get comfortable, threw my hands on it. My hand slid on Daniel's shoulder, then on his back, and I froze. The vampire's heart wasn't beating.
- Danielle? - In the silence and dusk of the car, my voice sounded like bells.
- Yes, Jane?
- Your heart's not beating.
- But I'm a vampire," he explained it as if everyone had to know the details of vampire anatomy. But I never hesitated to ask if there was something I didn't know.
- So what if you're a vampire?
- People's hearts are beating because they need to disperse the blood and feed it with oxygen. Vampires don't need that. If necessary, I can do without air for weeks.
- Oh, I see.
Actually, I didn't understand anything, but I didn't want to ask either. Vampires are not human, that's clear.
But I didn't want to consider them walking and talking corpses. Probably because it kept me away from Daniel.
- When it's over, we'll sit down and I'll tell you in detail about vampires, wolfhounds, breamers, kikimoras, incubas, succubuses, goblins, and all the other paranorms," Danielle promised.
- The rest of you? Aren't vampires and circulation the only species? Are there more of you?
Vampires wanted to.
- No," Danielle laughed and squeezed out. - Vampires aren't the only species. Now the stats of the Council of Elders are, for every twenty-four thousand people, one paranormal. But I think our numbers are much larger.
- I never would have thought! And we don't notice anything...
- Why is that? You've already noticed.
- It's thanks to Kata. I'll take her head off for that! Dragged me into this kind of fight...
- You can't," Danielle said.
- Why the hell would that be?
- And I won't let you. You and I only met because of a friend of yours. And problems are temporary. It's all being solved.
- I'd like your optimism.
- You, Jane, are a creepy pessimist. But I like it.
- And you look at the world through the pink glasses. And I'm not sure it helps to stay healthy.
- Don't worry, Curly," said Mieczysław softly. - Now Daniel's health is in no danger. I will personally see to it.
I measured it with a look in the rearview mirror. How many times can you call me that disgusting nickname?! And it makes no sense to protest. It's gonna be a nickname anyway. Is it my fault that my hair looks most like a haystack? It's not because I'm a slob. It's just that there's a lot of it and it's very fluffy. That's what it is... something. People do chemo on small sticks or weave African pigtails for this effect, and I've had it all from birth. And the main problem is how to put that mane in something like a tail.
- I can't tell you how it calmed me down!
- You won't get any other peace of mind.
- That's right, too. Better you than Duke.
- Yeah. I'm definitely better. And I'm not so sick of you yet.
- I mean, by the balls," I said. - And in your dreams?
Mieczysław quickly changed the unfortunate subject to him. You bet! Don't let your subordinates know that their superiors actually leaked it from my dream, like a toilet!
- When we get there, we go like this. Me up front, then Boris and Vadim, then Danielle and Vadim. Boris, I suggest you keep an eye on the girl. I need her alive and well for now. Danielle, try to look around a little less and a little more, behind your back. Do you have any more questions?
- Alone, I climbed in. - When will the fight begin? Today or tomorrow?
Mechislav looked at his watch.
- It's 1:00 in the morning. That's very convenient. I think we're gonna have at least one fight out of three tonight. Or we won't. As it happens. Boris, Vadim, get ready for the worst.
The guys were already ready. If it wasn't for the car, they would have taken the stand low, saluted it and shouted like pioneers: "Always ready! "But in the car, you can't wave or shout. I had to confine myself to the devoted views of my superiors. The bosses must have noticed, but they didn't give the look. Snob's lousy.
The car gently slowed down in front of the club we escaped from last night. I got stunned when I saw the sign. The wolves were beautiful, but as soon as I remembered what was under the building, I wanted to get away.
- It's not a bad place," said Mečislav.
- Are you going to move here if you win? What do you mean, his residence? - I couldn't stand it.
- Yeah. What's the big deal? It started when one feudal lord kicked the other out of the house and moved into his castle.
- Robbing, killing and raping in the process. Indeed, your medieval way of thinking, I couldn't stand it.
Mechislav shone his eyes at me.
- I assure you, Curly, Duchka... yuck, Andre has the same views. So pray for my victory. At least I won't rape you.
Yeah, everything will be purely voluntary under deep hypnosis or even in dreams... Noble, bastard... Ha!
- Let's hope to win.
- You're freezing, baby, that's why you're so sad.
And he was 1
00 percent right. But I wasn't complaining. Feeling my heart, we're about to get really hot. The club was open. From there you could hear funny music, voices and laughter.
- Boris, help Jane, - ordered Mechislav.
- Don't," I protested, but it wasn't there. The chief's orders were not discussed. Boris helped me get out of the car, picked me up and carried me to the door.
- It's not hard? - I was wondering.
- No, the vampire was surprised. - I can lift three of your weights.
- They're all vampires, right?
- Yes. The physical strength of a vampire is several times that of a human.
- And yet you're going up three, okay, five against Andre's entire company.
- It's not about physical powers, it's about magic powers.
- I don't get it?
- Fighting is an ancient custom. - Boris put me on the club floor. I shaken in bloody heels and he picked me up. - Careful. If you break a leg, the chief will rip both of my legs off.
- I wish I could rip my legs off and stuff! Did he choose these disgusting shoes himself?
- That's the details.
Boris was as calm as a statue of the commander.
- Wow, details - if you're gonna pay for his stupidity! So you guys have absolute tyranny?
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