by Lee Colgin
Oswald’s laughter filled the basement as he left.
Black lacy panties lay on the floor of his cell. Fresh semen stained the front.
No way. Gianni was better than that. Maybe he was gone after all, safe and sound in some new town, forgetting about all of them. Oswald was taking out his frustration on Franklin, but Franklin wouldn’t let the man get to him.
The sovereign would be dead soon enough.
Gianni
His phone chimed on the dresser across the room, but Gianni was in bed high as a fucking kite. For all the effort retrieving it would take, it might as well have been at the bottom of the ocean.
Oswald had offered his blood, and refusing might have blown Gianni’s cover, so he drank. He drank so much he could feel colors. Blue felt especially nice, like waves rocking him back to sleep. He closed his eyes.
The phone chimed again.
It might be important. In fact, Gianni was sure it was important, seeing as only one person had his new number, and that was Tabea. He’d found her again through the donor directory and enlisted her help in getting back in touch with Hayleigh. He’d ghosted on both women and owed them explanations. Plus, he would need their help.
Gianni rolled over to his stomach and pressed up onto his hands and knees. It seemed safer than trying to sit up directly, but doing so made him dizzy. Oswald was old, nearly two centuries, and his sire had been ancient. The combination made his blood the strongest Gianni had ever sampled, usually sipped in small doses either for bonding, healing, or as an aphrodisiac. In their shared history, it was often used for all three at once. Oswald liked it rough, and Gianni regularly needed his blood’s medicinal properties in the aftermath.
Tonight, Oswald had given him a river, and his body could hardly contain it. He felt the current in his bones. This much blood would re-addict him—surely Oswald intended to have Gianni dependent on him once more. The plan worked. Gianni would now need regular infusions to function. A damnable step backward, but sometimes one had to go back to move forward.
The blood bond threw a wrench in Gianni’s plans, but he’d detoxed from the powerful elixir twice now. He could do it again. Gianni sat back on his heels and knee-walked to the edge of the bed. He could see the phone from there, but could he stand up? The thought of Oswald seeing incriminating messages before he could delete them motivated him to try.
Slowly and steadily, Gianni put his weight on his feet and managed one foot in front of the other until he could collect the phone from the dresser and fall back into bed. Success. He wedged himself against the headboard and looked at the screen. Tabea must have been successful because the messages were from Hayleigh.
Unknown Gianni? Tabea Perez gave me your number.
I’ve been so worried about you! No one would tell me what happened.
Are you okay?
Gianni programmed the number into his phone and replied, sobering up enough to type.
Gianni I’m sorry I scared you. Am okay now. Back in Philly.
Hayleigh Are you with Oswald? Are you sure you’re okay?
Hayleigh Can I help?
Gianni Yeah. I’m sure. Can you tell me what happened? Did Franklin contact you, because nothing else makes sense.
Hayleigh He did. He said the Scourge had you, and he wanted to talk to our leaders to stage a rescue. I thought Oswald would be faster. Was I wrong?
The final confirmation fell into place. Not only had Franklin saved him, the man had sacrificed himself to do it.
Gianni had to get him out of there.
Gianni No, you weren’t wrong. You were great. I want to tell you everything, but I have to delete all these messages. We’ll have to start over and be more careful.
Gianni Can’t trust Oswald not to check my phone.
Hayleigh Just tell me what to do.
Gianni Can you help me pack my stuff? He’ll let me visit if it’s to get my things. I can fill you in then.
Hayleigh Of course.
Gianni Okay, let’s start over… Text me back, send the first messages again. We’ll go from there.
Gianni deleted the texts, and they had the conversation again. He would ask to borrow a car to get his things. Better yet, he’d ask for a driver. Then Oswald would have no reason to be suspicious of his motives. When the sovereign inevitably read the texts, they’d only back up the request.
As he lay flat on the sheets, the high which had begun to wear off during the serious conversation came slamming back. Gianni closed his eyes and saw green behind his lids. Green felt like Franklin. The tingle in his spine was absent, but the slayer’s eyes sparkled in his imagination. Dream Franklin kissed him. Gianni moved his hand to his cock, stroked himself, and pretended it was his slayer.
Being at the Farthing again brought no comfort. The vampires there hadn’t liked him before he’d gotten himself captured by the Scourge, and they definitely didn’t now. It was a long trip; they’d have to stay over a day. Gianni had arranged to stay with Hayleigh so that his driver, Bart, could take his room. He and Hayleigh were assured plenty of time alone.
They’d packed everything that would fit in the SUV. All there was left to do was sleep and head back to Philly. He settled next to Hayleigh in her bed, tired to the bone. Planning a jailbreak and consequent escape was exhausting.
Hayleigh was propped on her side, wearing pale yellow pajamas with suns on them, waiting for the full story.
“I thought Bart would never leave. Tell me everything—you promised,” she said.
“I will, I swear, from the day I met the slayer until now.” Gianni grinned. “But first we have to discuss what you’re wearing.”
She looked at her chest, covered in rays of sunshine. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”
“You’re a motherfucking vampire! What’s with the suns?”
She laughed. “They’re cheery, okay? I like them. Plus, you can’t tell me you don’t appreciate the irony.”
He joined her in laughter. “Oh, I do.” Feeling normal again was amazing, if only for one day. By tomorrow night when they woke, he’d be jonesing for Oswald’s blood, and reality would smack him back down. But for now, he had a confidant and a story to tell.
He began with the night he confronted his stalker and ended with, “I just have to break him out of Oswald’s basement before the Scourge comes to kill us and then find somewhere to hide, possibly until we die.”
Hayleigh was silent. Gianni added, “Don’t worry, I have a plan.”
“Oh, as long as you have a plan,” she began, rolling her eyes. Then softer, “You’ve got it bad for this guy.”
Gianni sighed. “Apparently.”
“You’re crazy, falling for a vampire slayer. And don’t talk about dying—someone will be honored to turn you.”
“I can’t even think about that right now. I’m too worried about what the next week will bring.”
“How are you going to get out? Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Well, the plan involves some offshore bank accounts and temporarily living in a van, but I think I have that covered. There is one thing you could do…”
21
Peril
Franklin
There was a lot of time to think when locked in a cage alone in a vampire’s basement. Days and nights ran together. According to Franklin’s tally of hash marks in the dirt on the floor, he’d been there nearly two weeks. He was fed, but not enough, and his water and toilet buckets were changed daily. He’d been given a towel and soap but nothing new to wear. Putting dirty clothes over a clean body was its own kind of torture. Otherwise, he’d been left alone to rot.
Franklin was growing thin from the reduced diet. He’d halved his exercise regime to compensate for the lack of calories. The longer he waited, the more unlikely an escape attempt would be successful. There were at least six different guards, maybe more, and they always came in pairs. He’d have to incapacitate and outrun two immortal beings with only a pocket knife as a weapon, and it wa
sn’t even silver. That was only to leave the basement. He didn’t know what lay waiting in the stories above.
His father would have learned what he’d done by now. Cameras in the main hall would have caught it all. Denhart Senior would assume Franklin was dead, and he was probably glad, after the shame Franklin had brought him. Franklin tried to feel sad and found he couldn’t. His father had never cared enough to get to know the real Franklin, only the soldier. Only the hunter mattered to him. What harm could letting Franklin have a dog have done? He thought of Spike and hoped she’d found a good home.
It was endless, the thought spiral and the guilt. Franklin wallowed in it, absently stroking the beard he still wasn’t used to having.
Gianni had not come back to see him. With all his heart, Franklin hoped the vampire had heeded his warning and left.
It was only a matter of time before Oswald killed Franklin or the Scourge killed Oswald. They’d plan their attack for dusk, when any daytime security systems the sovereign might have in place went offline. The vampires would just be waking and could be taken by surprise. Franklin listened for disturbances upstairs, but all was quiet.
Would the Scourge kill Franklin when they discovered he was still alive?
Or would he simply be trading prisons?
Gianni
All the elements of his plan were ready, but that did nothing to assuage Gianni’s terror. This was going to be risky, and even the best-case scenario still came with a week’s worth of painful withdrawal symptoms. It was early evening, the brief window he could go outside in the twilight when other vampires had to stay indoors. Oswald had no human staff, which meant if he could get Franklin out without waking anyone, they would have a short head start.
Oswald slept soundly beside him. Already, Gianni wanted his blood; his veins ached for it. The sovereign had been thorough in his entrapment, giving him copious amounts of blood more often than ever before. Recovery would be a struggle this time.
Gianni slipped from the bed and padded over to the bathroom. He only needed to take four things with him: a key to the basement cell; keys to the van; his phone; and Franklin. Everything else was stashed two blocks away in the cargo van he’d purchased.
Some elements of the plan had been easy, like acquiring keys to Franklin’s cell. He’d done such a good job of convincing everyone he didn’t care about the slayer the keys were hardly guarded. He’d nicked one, made a copy, and had it back on the guard’s belt without anyone being the wiser.
Buying a commercial vehicle had been more challenging. The money took days to transfer to his new account. After persuading a salesman to stay late, then came excuses to leave the house early. Finding a van with no windows and an empty cargo hold took several nights. The purchase itself took time, as the paperwork had to be submitted by the finance officer during the day. Gianni had driven away triumphantly in a high-top sprinter van the size of a small house.
More time ticked by as he supplied the van with everything they’d need for the week it would take Gianni to cycle through the withdrawals. He’d no idea what condition Franklin would be in, so he’d stocked first aid supplies. Everything was safely locked away in the cavernous vehicle.
All that was left was collecting Franklin.
Gianni tiptoed from the bathroom, through the hall past the guards’ rooms, and down the stairs to the lowest level. Carefully, he opened the door to avoid the creaking sound, and there was Franklin, doing pushups in his cell. Gianni made it halfway down the stairs before Franklin noticed him. The slayer sat back on his haunches, eyeing him from behind the bars. If Gianni had to guess, he would say the man looked disappointed.
“Gianni,” Franklin said. “What are you still doing here? It’s not safe.”
Oh well, Gianni couldn’t expect a warm welcome after the way he’d treated Franklin last time, though the slayer’s worry was sweet. “Shush, keep your voice down,” he whispered. “I came to get you out.”
Franklin’s jaw dropped.
The familiar expression made Gianni eager to touch him. God, how he’d missed Buffy. “Sorry it took me so long.” He fumbled with the key, unlocking the cell. “I had a lot to do.”
Franklin looked bewildered. He hadn’t moved from his spot. “I thought you hated me. You should hate me.”
Gianni flung the door open, grabbed Franklin with both hands, and pulled him up to kiss him quick and hard. “I love you too, you idiot.” Another violent kiss. “Now let’s get out of here.”
“Wait.” Franklin kissed him this time, hands squeezing his shoulders tightly, as if making sure this was really happening. “What’s your plan?”
Gianni rolled his eyes. “We leave. That’s the plan. Hurry.”
“The guards?”
“Sleeping. Oswald, too. We don’t have much time.”
“How many in the house? Right now.”
“Two guards and Oswald. It’s early. If we hurry, they won’t be able to follow us outside, even if they do wake up.”
“Got it. We should have weapons, just in case. Is there anything?”
Gianni shrugged; he hadn’t thought of that. “We shouldn’t need them.”
“It’ll only take a second.” Franklin went to the wooden staircase railing and gave it a swift kick.
The sharp crack wasn’t loud, but it wasn’t nothing. Gianni hoped it wouldn’t carry upstairs.
Franklin grabbed one splintered stake of wood and handed a second to him.
Gianni took it. “Let’s go.”
“You lead. I’ll have your back.”
The stake in his hand made Gianni nervous. If it came to a fight, they were dead. Three undead vampires against two mortals was shit for odds.
They ascended the first flight of stairs on silent feet. Creeping slowly around the corner to the second flight, they found the coast clear. Franklin followed on Gianni’s heels.
Almost there.
A sound came from above: a creaking floorboard.
Gianni froze and held his breath. When only silence met them, he continued around the last corner on the main floor, with only one set of stairs left until ground level and their exit.
What he saw took the air right out of his lungs.
Oswald blocked their path, standing tall and menacing in spite of his ridiculous orange robe. Hands on his hips, he asked through pursed lips, “What do we have here?”
Gianni reached behind him, keeping Franklin at his back and out of Oswald’s range. There was no talking his way out of this one. If he could get Franklin out the door, the slayer could make a run for it.
Oswald pointed to Gianni. “One naughty little vampire earning himself a proper spanking.” The accusatory finger moved to Franklin. “And one spurned lover who thought his luck had changed for the better.” Oswald tsked low in his throat, staring at Gianni with a scowl. “Did you really think I didn’t know?’
“How?” Gianni managed, his heart in his throat. Oswald would kill Franklin just to hurt him. He had to get the slayer to flee.
Oswald laughed, a mean sound with no real mirth. “You aren’t nearly as good at this as you think. Running around on your ‘shopping trips’ coming back with jewelry you don’t wear and books you don’t read. That, and you tripped the alarm.” His sinister smile revealed fangs. “Oh, you didn’t know about the alarm? You wouldn’t. It’s silent and alerts my guards to your comings and goings. I’ve been waiting for this moment.”
“Take me. Let him go,” Gianni begged as he pulled the keys to the van from his pocket and handed them back to Franklin. “You can punish me all you want, but leave him out of it.” To Franklin, he said, “White cargo van, two blocks northeast.”
“Oh, Gianni, stop trying to control things. Leave the deceptions to the master and stick to what you’re good at—spreading your legs.”
“Don’t speak to him like that,” Franklin thundered, stepping forward.
Gianni was too stunned to stop him.
“My, my, the spurned lover speaks. Afraid I�
�ll hurt his feelings? Go on, defend him if it makes you feel good, but Gianni knows his place. Don’t you, pet?”
Franklin lunged for Oswald, but Gianni was faster, grabbing the slayer by the shoulders and hauling him back.
Oswald’s mocking laughter filled the room.
“You have to get out,” Gianni commanded, pushing Franklin toward the last flight of stairs.
“No. I won’t leave you with him.”
“Damnit, Franklin, you have to go. He won’t kill me.”
Gianni turned back to Oswald. The glee sparkling in the sovereign’s eyes filled him with rage. He had to try something. Anything. Gianni leapt at the sovereign, stake in hand, aiming for his heart.
Oswald caught him with only a small step backward, redirecting Gianni’s wrist so the stake struck thin air. Gianni was no match for Oswald, but he didn’t have to beat him—only delay him long enough for Franklin to run for it. He had a fist in Oswald’s hair and yanked with all his might.
As he struggled in Oswald’s iron hold, Gianni screamed to Franklin. “You need to go!”
Instead, Franklin leapt into the fray, attacking Oswald while the sovereign was preoccupied.
Oswald twisted from Gianni’s hold and blocked Franklin’s strike with ease. He swung the smaller vampire behind him and squared off against the slayer.
Gianni jumped onto Oswald’s back and clung there. “Franklin, go! He won’t kill me.”
Oswald roared and reared backward, slamming Gianni against the wall with such force the air was knocked from his lungs. Gianni lost his grip and sank to the floor, leaving Oswald free to go after Franklin.