Whiteout (Aurora Sky

by Nikki Jefford

  “If you want a little kick in your cola, I’ve got it right here. May I offer you something?” he asked, addressing my neck.

  I turned to my other side, obstructing his view of my neck wound. “What about you? Are you drinking?”

  The vamp’s eyes shown in the strobe lights that began cartwheeling across the dance floor in a flurry of fragmented light. “That depends. Are you offering?”

  Was I offering? Let’s see. Sure. Why not? This was the plan, wasn’t it? Lure a vamp out of the club and abduct him. How was that for a poetic twist?

  Although killing wasn’t the plan, I kinda wanted to stab this vamp. One less creeper in the world.

  “What’s your name?” I asked.

  “Zack.”

  Darn. Not Jab.

  Zack. Jab. Did it really matter? They were all the same. Predators.

  “How about I get you a drink first?” Zack suggested, still showing no teeth when he smiled.

  Over his shoulder, I noticed the grinder guy had attached himself to a curvy brunette, humping her from behind.

  Any second she’d break away. I watched obsessively, but he kept right on grinding. She moved forward and he moved with her. A group of women, rocking to the tempo, gave them extra room to carry on. It appeared the fly had succeeded.

  I turned my attention back to my own pest problem.

  I am the spider, I reminded myself. And he is the insect.

  “How about we find a nice private corner and you suck my blood already?” I suggested, cutting to the chase.

  Zack grinned, and this time he showed teeth. He had at least two up top that were filed to points.

  “Straight to business,” he said. “I dig it. Follow me.”

  He pushed away from the pillar and walked along the service counter, leading the way.

  Dante sat at the far end of the bar, aviator sunglasses still over his eyes. He turned to take a look at Zack as he passed. Once Zack cleared Dante, he aimed his aviators at me and mouthed, “Jab?”

  Once he saw the shake of my head, Dante lifted a bottle of root beer to his lips. His faux mustache touched the rim as he tilted the bottle back.

  “My friends and I have a corner booth. No one disturbs us.”

  Friends. My ears perked up.

  “There are more of you here?”

  Zack grinned, showing his teeth again. “Yeah, want to meet them?”

  “Sure.”

  “What’s your name?”

  “Anna.”

  Zack led me to a corner booth. Even the strobe lights didn’t reach the shadowy vinyl bench between the dank wall and table.

  Three guys and a young blond woman maybe a couple years older than me sat in the shadows. She-vamp or suck toy? I wondered, glancing at the blond. She had fierce blue eyes and wore a short-sleeved black dress that looked more like funeral attire than nightclub. Her hair was layered and long enough to cover her neck. While the guys shot me a fleeting glance, the blond gave me a hard stare that took in everything, including the bite mark on my neck. First guess: vampire.

  Zack leaned against the table. “Hey, everyone. Say hi to my new friend.” He looked from me to the others. “That’s Kyle, Stanley, Robert, and Alice.”

  No one said hi or asked my name.

  Kyle slipped out of the booth and stood. “Why don’t you slide in next to Stan and me?”

  “Okay,” I said slowly, not wanting to at all. I’d identified the club’s vamps. That seemed good enough. I really didn’t want to cozy up with them, but Zack had just introduced us. It wasn’t exactly a “hi, bye” situation.

  At least there was another woman at the table, but if she was anything like Giselle, it would be like trying to befriend a barracuda.

  I took a tentative step toward the bench and sat slowly, scooting in reluctantly. Kyle sat back down. It was a tight fit. His thigh and Stanley’s pressed against mine, forming an Aurora Sky sandwich.

  Zack pulled a chair over and plopped down near Kyle.

  Kyle turned to me. “What’s your blood type, sweetheart?”

  Sheesh. Wanted to know what was on the menu this evening, did he?

  “AB negative,” I answered.

  “That’s a shame,” he said with a glance toward Alice.

  She looked at the table and tugged on a strand of hair, twisting it around her finger. As she fiddled with her fair locks, I caught a glimpse of red teeth marks on her neck. I’d been wrong about Alice. Suck toy.

  The vamp beside Alice put his arm around her.

  “AB is AB. Oh well,” Kyle said. “Beggars can’t be choosers.”

  “Who’s begging?” Stanley asked, and the two of them laughed.

  I was only half listening, as I’d caught sight of a familiar mustache. Dante stood at a tall round table, emptying his root beer. A waitress set down another and took the empty bottle. The aviator glasses were folded and hanging from his shirt collar. He faced a booth a few down from us, but he only had to move his eyes sideways to see me.

  Relief washed over me when I reminded myself that I wasn’t alone.

  Kyle swept my hair over my shoulder, exposing my neck and the wound Arlo had made.

  “Nice wig,” Kyle said. “What do you think, Alice? Would you ever do blue?”

  “I like her blond,” the vamp with his arm around her said.

  Alice looked across the table at me and frowned. “I’m not into fake. What’s wrong with your real hair? Why hide who you really are?”

  Wow, that was deep coming from a suck toy/vamp groupie/Chillers chick.

  My heart constricted. What was up her butt? The vamps’ suck toy was more suspicious than the vampires.

  My body tensed. Kyle and Stanley would feel it. Thinking about it made me tense up more.

  “What’s the matter?” Kyle asked, turning to me.

  “I like the color blue,” I said, throwing in a pout. It wouldn’t be too hard to convince them that my ire was nothing more than a catty reaction to Alice’s insults.

  “Blue’s cool,” Kyle said.

  Let me guess. Red was rad.

  “You look like you’re a pretty cool chick,” he added.

  Alice rolled her eyes. “Why don’t you dispense with the small talk and bite her already? She obviously isn’t opposed to it.”

  I frowned. Way to throw me to the wolves. So much for girls looking out for one another. Alice’s frosty blue irises zeroed in on mine.

  “What did you say your name was?” she asked.

  I narrowed my eyes. I hadn’t. “It’s Anna.”

  “Is that a real name, or is it as fake as your hair?”

  I clenched my jaw and glowered at the pesky woman across the table.

  “Hey. Be nice, Alice,” Kyle said. He leaned over the table. “Robert, can you take your woman out dancing or to the bar for a drink? She’s ruining the mood.”

  Robert’s forehead wrinkled and he leaned his head toward Alice in a loving gesture. “We don’t have to go. I can make them leave.”

  “No,” Alice said. “They don’t want me here. I’ll go.” She slid out from under Robert’s arm and stood.

  Robert followed her out of the booth, but not before aiming a glower of contempt around the table. He looked more like the pet in this scenario. Alice had the vamp wrapped around her finger. I had to give her credit for that.

  “I’m parched anyway,” she said, brushing her layers forward and over her shoulders as though suddenly self-conscious. “The four of you only ever think of your own thirst.”

  Robert’s lower lip quivered. “You should have told me.”

  “Well, sometimes it’s nice to be asked.”

  “Whatever you want, Alice.” Robert held his arm out to her and led her toward the bar.

  Kyle gave a derisive huff. “She’s got that one whipped.” He turned to me. “Now, where were we?” Kyle ran his finger lightly down my neck. “Do you mind if I have a taste?”

  “And me,” Stanley said from my left side. “Can I have a taste too?�
��

  I opened my mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Before I could form a coherent thought, Kyle’s lips were on my neck, sucking the skin that had already been bitten.

  Stanley lifted my wrist without waiting for an answer, and sharp teeth pierced the tender skin near my palm. The pain of it caused tears to spring to my eyes. I blinked them back, furious at being trapped in the booth and taken off guard. My wrist itched and burned. It was almost a relief to have Stanley sucking at the wound. I sucked air between my teeth as blood rushed through my veins to the lesions in my skin.

  I’d once envied Noel for not having toxic blood. Not anymore. Not while I was being fed on. My stomach churned. I willed the last traces of toxin somewhere within my bloodstream to infiltrate these assholes and knock them out.

  But they kept sucking and sucking and sucking. They could do whatever they wanted in their dark corner. The lights kept strobing. The music pounding. Everyone was distracted and unaware.

  My eyelashes fluttered and my head felt light.

  Then I remembered Dante and suddenly opened my eyes. I wasn’t alone. He wouldn’t leave me as he’d done on that first mission in Fairbanks. He had my back this time.

  I stared out into the club and found him, still stationed at his table. He was looking in my direction, and for a moment I thought everything would be okay. But the expression on Dante’s face wasn’t one of concern. His eyes were hooded, oblivious to my emotional distress. He was too busy watching the two vamps suck on me.

  He had a hard grip on his bottle. His knuckles had turned white. If he squeezed any tighter he might have broken the glass.

  I’d seen that look before. Forever ago, it seemed. He’d had the same look on his face when he’d taken me on my first assignment in the field and gone into a house party as Janine’s boyfriend. Dante had taunted a vampire named Patrick into biting and sucking Janine. I’d caught Dante watching with the same rapt expression he had on his face now.

  He moistened his lips. Lips I wished I’d never kissed. Blind rage rushed through my veins, hotter than blood.

  Fane would never sit back while vampires bit into me and lapped their tongues over my skin.

  “That’s enough,” I said, pulling my wrist away from Stanley.

  I’d wanted to yank my arm away, but my body swayed and my brain fuzzed over.

  Kyle pulled back. My neck burned where his lips had been. Stanley wiped his mouth on the back of his hand.

  “Why don’t I go get you a drink?” Zack asked. Dante hadn’t been the only one watching the suck fest. How nice of Zack to let his friends get first dibs.

  My jaw ached when I ground my teeth together. “I don’t want a soda,” I snarled.

  Zack tapped the hidden pocket within his coat.

  “I don’t want that either,” I said. “I want to go.”

  Zack stood. “I’ll give you a ride home.”

  “Sure,” I said sarcastically. My tone was lost on the group.

  Kyle slid out of the booth and I scooted to the edge slowly. When I stood, black spots formed over my eyes and I blinked rapidly.

  I walked past Dante without making eye contact, Zack trailing behind me. The sound of a glass sliding across the long wooden counter seemed to follow me. One foot in front of the other, I made my way through the club. It was as though I had tunnel vision. The only thing I saw was the door.

  The cold air grasped me the moment I stepped outside. It especially stung at my neck and wrist.

  Footsteps followed mine. I kept moving forward, through the parking lot until I reached the truck.

  The sound of techno music receded and the wooziness returned. I leaned against the passenger’s side door.

  “My van’s over here,” Zack said.

  As if I’d step within ten feet of a vamp van.

  Before I could answer, a hand appeared from behind Zack and grabbed him by the shoulder. “That’s nice, but you’re coming with us,” Dante said as he clamped his right hand over Zack’s mouth.

  15

  Active Duty

  “Get the door,” Dante said as Zack struggled against him.

  My fingers slipped over the truck’s door handle. I hadn’t had a drop of alcohol and yet I wasn’t fully operational. How much blood had I lost? I felt like I’d been bitten, licked, and sucked dry. I opened the door on the second try.

  “Grab the gun from the glove box,” Dante said.

  That task proved easier than opening the door. Snatching the gun from the glove box and holding it made me feel better. Back in control.

  Dante yanked Zack’s head to his lips. “Get in or get shot,” he said.

  “I was just going to give her a ride home,” Zack insisted.

  “Sure you were,” Dante said. “Regular old do-gooder looking out for the local ladies. Now get in the truck before I make you.”

  I stepped aside as Dante pushed Zack against the seat. He scrambled inside, beginning to shake.

  Dante kept his eyes on our hostage while asking me if I’d prefer to drive the truck or hold the gun on Zack.

  “Gun,” I said.

  Hoisting myself in after Zack proved somewhat difficult. The seat seemed very high up. I had to pull myself in rather than jump.

  Once settled with the gun trained on Zack, Dante closed my door and hurried around the hood to the driver’s side.

  “Why didn’t you tell me you had a boyfriend?” Zack demanded.

  “He’s not my boyfriend,” I said. “He’s my partner.”

  Confusion swept over Zack’s face. There wasn’t any time for follow-up questions. Dante got inside the truck quickly and started it up.

  “Was Jab at that table?” Dante asked.

  “No,” I said.

  Dante put the truck in drive and headed out of the parking lot. Once on the road, Dante demanded, “Where’s Jab?”

  “Jab?” Zack repeated. “I haven’t seen him in over a month. He’s not exactly a regular.”

  “I’ll bet,” Dante said. “Probably comes into town when he’s ready to grab his next victim.”

  Zack’s shoulders hunched into his neck. “I don’t know anything about that. I’m not even friends with the guy.”

  “But you know where he lives,” Dante said.

  “If I did, I’d tell you, but we’re only acquaintances… barely that.”

  “Uh-huh,” Dante responded, turning sharply at the next light. Zack had to grip the bench to keep from falling against Dante.

  “And what would you have done if you took her home?” he questioned, nodding his head in my direction. “Tell the truth now. I’ll know if you’re lying.”

  Zack looked at me before answering. “She’s the one who wanted to get bitten. So, yeah, I would have asked to come in for a drink. Why wouldn’t I?”

  “And if she refused?”

  “I’d drop her off and be on my way.”

  Dante burst into laughter. He laughed until tears leaked from the corners of his eyes. “Dude, you’re too much. I know all about your kind. Can you believe this guy? He must think I was born yesterday.”

  I didn’t answer or join in the hilarity. I felt fatigued and hungry… hungry for blood.

  The streetlight ahead turned yellow as we approached. Dante stopped. My slumped posture held me in place better than Zack, who had to throw a hand forward and catch himself on the dashboard. A Honda Fit pulled into the spot next to us, waiting for the light to change. I held the gun in my lap, pointed sideways at Zack. For his part, Zack didn’t appear interested in screaming for help. He kept still, watching the streetlight rather than the vehicle beside us.

  When the light turned green, Dante eased into the intersection, allowing the Honda to drive ahead.

  Zack studied Dante’s side profile. He seemed more interested in him than me or the gun pointed at him.

  “Who are you anyway?” Zack asked. “I’ve never seen you around.”

  Dante glanced over and grinned wide. “Don’t recognize me? How about now?” he asked,
pulling off his mustache and tossing it on the dashboard.

  Zack took a good, long look. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before.”

  Headlights from behind us reflected off the truck’s rearview mirror. Dante adjusted it.

  “Reach inside my pocket and pull out the folded piece of paper inside,” he said. “Go on. Unlike you, I won’t bite.”

  Zack did as he was told. Once he had the square of paper, he unfolded it and looked down. He stared a moment before taking a closer look at Dante.

  “You’re vampire hunters,” he breathed. “I am so dead.”

  “Not tonight,” Dante said. “We’re going to let you go. All you have to do is take this flyer with you, call the number on it, and send them our love.”

  “That’s it?” Zack asked. “You’re going to let me go?”

  Dante slapped a hand over Zack’s shoulder. “We’ll catch up again. You can count on that.” He pulled over along the shoulder of the road. A car blasted its horn and whizzed by.

  Once the truck came to a stop, Dante leaned against the steering wheel and stuck his open palm out in front of Zack.

  “Before you get out, give me your phone.”

  “My phone? Why?” Zack asked.

  “Do you want us to let you go or not?” Dante demanded.

  That must have been answer enough for Zack. His arm jerked back as he stuck his hand inside his outer coat pocket. He handed his phone to Dante.

  “You want me to call this number, but now you have my phone,” Zack said, holding up the flyer.

  “Don’t want you calling too soon,” Dante said, tossing the phone into a cupholder.

  Zack hunched forward, giving the device one last longing stare. Humans and vampires alike had a seriously unhealthy addiction to their electronics. Zack should be counting his lucky stars he got to live another day.

  I opened my door and slid my legs outside. As soon as I touched ground, I turned around, keeping my eyes and gun on Zack. He scooted along the bench and hurried out of the truck. As he moved aside, I hopped back inside the truck and slammed the door without a word of goodbye. More like good riddance. I was done for the night.

  Dante slammed his foot on the gas pedal. The tires spun and screeched before jolting the truck forward.