by Kat Cotton
I had a power, a real power. Why should I give that up?
Chapter 31 Clem: Power
“You have to get rid of that power.”
It was okay for Kisho to say that, because he didn’t have the power. I had it, and I wanted to keep it.
I sat on the sofa with my arms folded.
“Look at you. You’re shivering even though the heating is on as high as it will go and you have every blanket you can find on you. Do you want to be like this for the rest of your life?”
So, I was a little bit cold. It was winter.
“I saved our lives. We’d have never been able to take on those minions without me zapping them. And when we get home, what then? The Vampire King isn’t going away. We’ll have battles to fight, and I need to be strong.”
“You won’t be able to fight him with that power. It’s his power. It’s not some magical gift from the universe. It’ll come with a price, and it’s a price I don’t want you paying.”
I needed a drink. A drink would warm me up. I got up and put on a warm coat.
“I don’t really want to talk about this now.”
“Fine, then,” was all he said.
“Fine.” And with that, I left the hotel. I thought he might follow me, but he didn’t.
I wandered around the streets, looking for a bar. Hell, there were a million to pick from, but I had to find one right for brooding-style drinking. That meant nowhere filled with happy drunks or sleazy drunks or talkative drunks. Eventually, I saw a sign for an upstairs bar. I had a good feeling about it.
There were only three other people in the tiny space. I could work with that. I sat at the bar and ordered a drink.
“Vodka,” I said.
“On the rocks?”
Hell, no. I didn’t need to get any colder.
“Straight up.”
The barman poured it for me, and I drained the glass, then asked for another. The vodka burned as it went down, but the warmth soon faded.
“Hard night?”
“Yep.”
I hated to admit it, but Kisho was right. This wasn’t my power. It didn’t belong to me, and it didn’t feel right. But, even if I had wanted to give it up, it wasn’t like I could get rid of it that easily. Powers aren’t like boots that don’t fit right. You can’t just return them to the store.
And if I had this power, the temptation to use it would always be there.
The barman pointed at my glass, asking if I wanted another one. I hadn’t even realized I’d finished. I drained the dregs from the glass and handed it to him.
I really needed someone to talk to about all this. Someone neutral. I sure as hell couldn’t talk to Kisho, not even Nic. I had so few friends and not a single one in this country.
Mai. It was a long shot, but she might be free. I sent her a text.
She messaged me back saying she was in the area. About twenty minutes later, she turned up. She was wearing an awesome coat with a big fur collar. That would be so warm. Hell, though, was that real fur? Gross. But then, I guessed foxes didn’t care that much. If you’re going to rip out the guts of another animal and eat it, you might as well wear their skin. She took it off and hung it on a rack near the door.
I’m not one for pouring my heart out to complete strangers, but sometimes you need to do just that.
“You killed her?” she said.
“I had to.”
Mai nodded. I’d thought she might be a bit weird about my killing one of her kind, but she didn’t seem that upset. She hadn’t been that fond of Hana herself.
“She was filled with darkness,” Mai said.
“There’s something strange about me,” I told her.
She gave a little nod but didn’t say anything. I liked that about her.
Then I told her about my powers.
“They aren’t your powers,” she said. “You got them from someone else?”
I nodded.
“That’s never good. Look how cold you are.”
She touched my arm. The warmth of her hand emphasized the coldness of my skin.
“True, but it’s awesome. I just zap people. Pow. And they back off. It’s something I could use. It’d make my life so much easier.”
“How’s that different from Hana? She took things from other people, too.”
I hadn’t exactly stolen this power, though. He’d given it to me. The Vampire King. I’d only wanted to distract him. I hadn’t asked for this whole energy exchange thing.
“Admit it, you don’t want to give it up because you love having that power.”
I nodded. I had no illusions about that. I’d become totally badass. The feeling when I’d zapped those people had been beyond anything I’d ever known. Better than cake. Better than good sex. Better than... well, anything.
“Are you sure you totally want to use it for good?”
“What do you mean?”
“That power causes intense pain. It’s pure torture. Did you really need to go that far? There’s a line here, and you have to be really careful you don’t cross it.”
This conversation was getting way too deep for my liking.
“So, how was the concert?” I asked her.
Nice topic change. Mai’s eyes lit up, and she smiled.
“Amazing. Unbelievably amazing. Life-changingly amazing.”
I listened while Mai fangirled. I let the ideas brew away in the back of my head without confronting them.
The sun was coming up when I left the bar. That didn’t mean the streets were quiet, though. They were crawling with drunks and hell knew what else. If there was an attack, I’d be ready for it. Hana had been destroyed, but that didn’t mean there weren’t a bunch of other evils out there wanting to attack just for shits and giggles.
I had no desire to hurry back to Kisho, though. He’d just lecture me or ignore me.
He didn’t understand. When we got home, war was a definite threat. We’d have to fight the Vampire King. I couldn’t do it without this power. I could zap things. Zap them so that intense pain flooded them. That was not something you gave up in hurry. An asset like that could make all the difference.
Stupid Kisho. Stupid Mai.
I took a shortcut through an alley. I was pretty sure it led to the hotel. We’d been this way the other day. A block up, there was a fish shop, then a barber. Maybe I’d stop for ramen on the way because it was so damn cold.
I stomped as I went, mainly to hear my own footsteps echo. My angry footsteps.
I’d almost got to the barber shop when something flitted at the corner of my eye. A demon?
It was following me. I didn’t need to see or hear it. I sensed it. The hairs on the back of my neck rose. Damn demons. I’d teach this one a lesson. No gentle sexual aura, even.
I spun and got him in my sights, then raised my hand.
The power surged through me. I loved that power. An orgasm of destruction. My body twitched. I wanted to be like this forever. I had something that made me strong.
The demon hit the ground. He twitched too, but it wasn’t a happy twitch like mine. He writhed in pain. I’d caused that, and I’d enjoyed causing it.
I rushed to him, ready to pull my knife and finish him off. From the groans of agony, he’d probably welcome it.
But when I got closer, the truth hit me.
He wasn’t a demon. He was human.
A very drunk human in a lot of pain.
I tried to check if he was okay, but he flinched away from me.
Hell, I should’ve checked if he was a demon or not first. I probably should’ve checked that he actually planned to attack me, too. Now, he might die.
“You okay?” I asked.
He just gurgled back at me.
I’d really zapped him hard. I had the power, but I had no idea how to unzap someone. I didn’t even know if it was possible. Nic had recovered after the Vampire King attacked him, but then Nic was a vampire. The humans at the warehouse had recovered too. Still, they were young and fit
, but this guy looked pathetic even for a human.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
I’d call an ambulance. Except I had no phone with me and no idea how to even do that. I couldn’t just leave him. I needed to help. Why had I never taken a first aid course? Maybe paranormal first aid. I was all about killing, not saving.
The guy wouldn’t let me near him. I watched and I waited. He didn’t seem to get any better.
I couldn’t just go around zapping people. Just because I had a power didn’t make using it okay.
A delivery truck came down the alleyway. I waved them over.
“Help,” I said.
The driver understood that much. Then I pointed at the man lying on the street, in case the driver hadn’t seen him.
The driver said a bunch of stuff I didn’t understand. I shrugged.
“Sorry, I don’t know.”
He talked louder. Still didn’t understand.
I mimed talking on a phone. He nodded. I actually exhaled. Then I mimed an ambulance, hoping he understood what I meant by the blinking hand light on my head and the siren noises.
He gave me the thumbs-up. He got it.
What next? Did I just leave, or wait for the ambulance? It wasn’t like I’d be any help, and I didn’t want to answer a whole heap of questions about what had happened.
I waved to the driver and walked off.
When I got back to the hotel, Kisho was sitting on the sofa, staring into space.
I stood between him and the television set, forcing him to look at me, hands on hips.
“So, smarty-pants, even if I want to get rid of this power, how do I go about it?”
He stared back at me, not answering. He’d obviously not considered it.
“I can’t just walk up to your dad and say, ‘Hey, Mr. Vampire King, you left something in me.’ All the smudge sticks, all the cleansing, isn’t worth a bucket of shit. You know what I think is the only way? Kill the Vampire King. He dies, his power dies with him. It’s the only thing that makes a lick of sense.”
Kisho nodded. I didn’t like the look of sorrow in his eyes.
Only one person could kill the Vampire King. We both knew that.
“Promise me one thing, Clem.”
I knew what he was going to ask. “I won’t use that power again. I promise.”
Then I sat on the sofa beside him and rested my head on his shoulder until I fell asleep.
Chapter 32 Nic: Escape
The mayor phoned and asked if I wanted to go for a drive. He’d come over to pick me up.
He might have time in his life for fun outings, but I had other things to do.
“I heard there was a great new bakery opened up down the coast road. It’s won awards and everything. We can check it out.”
“So, what’s this about? Lucio’s gone into hiding, and there’s been no trouble.”
“Nic, can’t we just hang out? Does the city need to be in trouble for us to spend time together?”
“We’re not buddies. And I’ve got to spend time at home.”
I couldn’t leave Vlad for all that time just to go eat cakes with the mayor. We were at a critical part of his training. I hadn’t let him out of the basement since the tea party, but he wanted to leave. I knew. I could sense it. I wasn’t sure why. After he recovered, he’d been content, but as he’d grown stronger, his longing for freedom had intensified.
“I think it might be beneficial to renegotiate the continued supply of petty criminals. I’ve been getting few complaints about it.”
Okay, maybe a drive with the mayor might be a good way to spend my time. I didn’t like being manipulated, though. The mayor still needed me. Even if Lucio kept a low profile, he’d strike again. Without his gang, he’d be a lot easier to take down, but he could cause some damage first.
The mayor picked me up, and we hit the highway.
“Nice car,” I said.
“It’s not bad. Not very fuel efficient, though.”
Who needed fuel efficiency when the seats were so comfortable?
“Hey, talking of cars, do you have Clem’s Mustang?” I asked.
“Yep.”
“Are you going to give it back to her?”
The mayor tsked. “I’m not sure.”
“It’d be nice if you did. Otherwise, she’s going to be all, like, ‘Wah wah, my precious car has been destroyed... Nic, get back my car...’”
“Hey, you do a pretty good impression of her.”
“Yeah, I do, don’t I? All I need is a short skirt and badly colored hair, and you’d not know the difference.”
“And a good set of knockers. She has great knockers.”
“I’ve not noticed,” I said. I turned up the air conditioning. I didn’t want to think about Clem Starr’s body parts.
“Have you heard anything about the Vampire King?” the mayor asked.
So, he hadn’t been in contact. That was a partnership that would’ve never lasted long.
“Not a thing,” I replied. “But he likes to keep things quiet. He will strike back. The thing with the Northside Gang might’ve died down, but it’s just a taste of what’s to come. There’ll be more gangs. I can’t fight them all. I don’t even want to. Once the Vampire King goes public, all matter of creatures will flock here, wanting to follow him. This city is pretty much fucked. If I were you, my mayoring friend, I’d shut up shop and move somewhere else. Give the whole place over to them.”
The mayor kept his eyes on the road, not answering for a while.
“No can do. It took me too long to become mayor in this city. I’m not giving it up. The whole point of this campaign was to expose the vampires. We can fight them.”
The mayor’s plan had one fatal flaw. It relied on the Vampire King’s son rising up to defeat him. He’d not considered that maybe that son didn’t want to do that. Maybe that son just wanted to watch sappy romances on Netflix and do housework instead of taking over the Vampire King’s realm. If he’d actually met Kisho, he’d realize how weak his plan was. Teddy bears had more killer instinct.
We’d reached the coast road now. Luckily, the mayor had tinted windows, because that sun reflecting off the ocean looked strong enough to fry a vamp.
“I want you on my side, Nic.”
“See, there’s one really big issue I have with that. You want to eliminate vampires, and I’m a vampire. That causes a conflict of interest, don’t you think?”
“Not really. I said I could get a special dispensation for you.”
The mayor didn’t really get it. I was happy with my life as it was. I didn’t want to live in his non-vampire utopia with a special dispensation. I didn’t want to be reliant on the good graces of others for my very existence. Even if the dispensation included all my pack, what about other vampires who were happy to live a peaceful life? He wouldn’t give them all dispensations. And one day, the mayor would no longer be mayor. Vampires live forever, but special dispensations don’t.
“That won’t work for me.”
“Think about it. You’d be under the protection of the city.”
“You think this war is inevitable?”
I didn’t want this war. People didn’t care about things like self-improvement and motivation when their lives were at threat. They only cared about surviving and finding food. The whole war thing sounded like it would cut into my profits. Even if I moved out of town, things like that spread. You couldn’t have a huge human vs. vampire battle in one city without it making the news and then other places thinking it sounded mighty fine. The mayor believed he was doing the right thing, but he was just stirring up a whole pot of shit.
Maybe if we were on the other side of the world, we’d be fine. Lisbon had awesome custard tarts.
“The war’s coming, whether you like it or not.”
That put a bit of a dampener over the whole road trip. Even the award-winning bakery didn’t lift my spirits.
The mayor and I were both fairly quiet on the drive back. The fun had d
isappeared.
“So, what are you going to do?” I eventually asked the mayor. “You must have a better plan than to get the Vampire King’s son to commit patricide. You couldn’t even fight off Lucio’s gang on your own. This whole operation is irresponsible and badly thought out.”
The mayor didn't answer. He didn’t say a word until he dropped me off. He just sat there, fuming over his stupid plan, and I sat in silence, not able to get thoughts of Clem Starr’s body parts out of my head. Why had he mentioned her boobs?
I didn’t feel lust. I’d killed off every lustful thought I’d ever had. Those thoughts made you weak. Clem Starr proved that. She used it to kill every demon she’d ever met. I was unobtainable, just out of reach. That was the source of my power.
“See you later,” the mayor said as he dropped me off. “And think about what I said. Team Mayor and Nic, remember?”
I gave him a half-hearted salute and went inside. He could believe in Team Mayor and Nic all he liked.
“Vlad, I’m home,” I called out.
I waited for him to say his usual “Tasty?” but there was silence. I hoped he was okay.
But the basement door had been busted. I searched the house. He wasn’t in the bathroom. He wasn’t in my bedroom or any of the spare rooms.
“Vlad? Vlad?” I called.
No answer. I went into the kitchen. No Vlad, but there was a gaping great hole where the window had been.
Someone had stolen my unicorn baby!
I ran out into the street, calling for him. Hell, he could be anywhere. Panic flooded my body, and I actually had a sheen of sweat on my skin. I couldn’t worry about my appearance now, though; I had to find that kid.
Had this all been a conspiracy? The mayor inviting me for a drive, luring me with award-winning bakery treats, so that someone could come into my home and steal Vlad?
My heart clenched. I’d known the mayor wasn’t really my friend, but for him to betray me like that hurt me a lot.
“Vlad?” I called.
A dog barked in one of the yards. No other response.
Who’d take him?
Lucio. It had to be. I’d find him and I’d slice the skin slowly from his body. No easy staking death for him.