Though he yearned to take a huge bite of the smooth, fragrant flesh, he fought the urge. No killing tonight! He contented himself with nibbling on the ragged skin surrounding the wounds and gently sucking the boy’s thick, syrupy blood.
CHAPTER 17
Zac showed Rosie the plastic bag filled with the white, little pebbles that he’d found in the two football players’ gym bags. “Do you know what this is?”
Grinning, Rosie’s opened the bag and fondled the drug. “It’s crystal meth.”
“Is it worth anything?”
Rosie’s eyes widened in an “are you crazy” kind of way. “Uh . . . yeah. That’s a lot of product.” Through narrowed eyes, she scrutinized him. “You’re no farmer, are you? I get it,” she said, nodding. “You’re operating a meth lab, aren’t you?”
Zac smiled mysteriously, but didn’t comment. “I know plenty of buyers. I can help you move it . . . uh, for a cut, of course.”
“Of course,” Zac said.
Rosie reached for the plastic bag.
“Hold on, little lady. I can’t give you all of it.”
“Don’t you trust me?”
“I don’t trust anyone. Let’s see what you can do with a small portion and then I’ll give you more.”
“Fair enough.” Rosie emptied out the contents of her small makeup bag and Zac filled it with the white substance.
Surrounded by Rosie’s shopping bags, Jonas sat miserably in the back. He and Zac had left the basketball player slumped and unconscious, but his heart was still beating when they’d hurried out of the arcade.
Jonas wondered if the boy would report the attack to the police. Probably not, he decided. His wounds were miniscule and he’d sound like a crazy person if he spoke of being bitten and sucked by two young men in an arcade.
The basketball player had only been an appetizer for Zac. The next person that Zac encountered tonight wouldn’t be so lucky. Jonas didn’t intend to tag along on Zac’s next fresh kill. Nor did he want to be a part of drug dealing. His mother would be horror-stricken to learn that her son had traded a promising future as a physician to deal illegal drugs.
“Pull over, Rosie. I’m going to walk back,” Jonas said.
“Why?” Zac asked suspiciously. “Thinking of going hunting without me?”
“Hunting at night?” Rosie asked, perplexed.
“I’m giving you and Rosie some privacy.”
“You’re such a sweetheart . . . and so thoughtful,” Rosie said, smiling at Jonas.
“We don’t need any privacy,” Zac interjected bitterly. “Rosie was going to drop us off at the hotel and then go take care of some business for me.”
“I thought we were going to hang together at the hotel for a while,” Rosie said, sounding hopeful.
“No, I’ll see you after you’re finished doing business.”
“All right,” Rosie said with obvious disappointment. “What time do you want me to come back?” Her tone was so pathetic. Jonas lowered his eyes, unable to bear witness to her shameless plea.
“Call me at the hotel . . . around midnight,” Zac instructed.
“Cool. I’ll see you around midnight,” she said.
“I said, call me!” Zac shook his head in exasperation.
Eventually, Zac would suck Rosie dry, but the poor girl was so head over heels, she couldn’t comprehend the danger she was in. Needing to survive to take care of his family, Jonas couldn’t allow himself the distraction of feeling sorry for her. Couldn’t risk trying to defend her.
He didn’t trust Zac and had already grown weary of his company. Jonas promptly decided that he and Zac should part ways as soon as possible. The repugnant existence he’d been leading had to come to an end. Realizing that he was able to fit in easily with humans, Jonas determined that he didn’t have to depend on Rosie for a ride to Miami.
Undoubtedly, Zac would go out and kill tonight while Rosie was selling his drugs. With his affable manner, Zac would befriend some poor soul and then turn on him, leaving the body limp and depleted. Then Zac would return to the hotel satiated and in good spirits as if returning from dining in a fine restaurant.
While Zac was in a good mood, Jonas would ask him for the money to purchase a bus ticket to Miami—to salvation. The journey would be lengthy and the hunger would be as torturous as a long prison stint, but Jonas would endure it. As long as he filled himself with the flesh and blood of small creatures, he wouldn’t have to worry about attacking his fellow passengers.
Zac returned to the suite, and roughly shook Jonas’s arm, waking him from a pleasant dream. Though hazy eyes, Jonas stared at Zac. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
“Did Rosie call?”
“I don’t know; I was asleep. Did you call the front desk to check for messages?”
Zac glared at Jonas, his wordless response informed Jonas that he hadn’t mastered using a telephone.
“Using a phone is easier than driving, man,” Jonas said. “You just pick up the receiver and push zero, and you’ll get the front desk.”
“Do it for me,” Zac said in an authoritative tone of voice.
Jonas noticed that Zac’s cheeks were flushed from recently feeding, yet his mood was as sour as when he hungered. The vampire had many mood swings and was a complete mystery at times.
Jonas sat up and reached for the bedside phone, content in knowing that soon he’d be free of Zac’s erratic temperament.
“Any messages?” Jonas asked the person on the other end of the phone. “No? Okay, thanks.” He hung up and glanced at Zac. “You have Rosie’s number. Do you want to call her?”
“I told her to call me at midnight. She’s going to regret stealing my money.”
“Rosie’s crazy about you; she wouldn’t steal from you?”
“Come, we have to find her.” Zac snatched impatiently at the bedspread that Jonas was cocooned inside. “Get dressed.”
“You disturbed my sleep, Zac,” Jonas said crossly. “I’m not a nocturnal creature like you, and I don’t enjoy running around in the middle of the night.”
“You expect me to give you bus fare to Miami, yet you deny assisting me,” Zac said sneeringly, letting Jonas know that he was well aware of his plans.
Jonas shrank back from Zac. “My thoughts are supposed to be private!”
“Well, they’re not! You should guard your thoughts as carefully as you avoid feeding on humans.”
“You read my mind, so you realize that I’ve reconsidered your offer. I really need to see Madame Collette as soon as possible.”
“I don’t have any traveling money for you. It’s all gone—I spent it.”
Jonas looked aghast.
“Tracking humans on foot is time-consuming. I bought myself a driving machine. Nothing snazzy, but it’ll get us around.”
“You bought a car!”
“I sure did. I’ve got the title.”
Jonas sighed. “I don’t want to depend on you to drive me to Miami. Listen, I’m not like you, Zac. I don’t want to survive on living flesh.” He pressed his palm against his heart. “Don’t you understand; I want to salvage the last bit of humanity that’s left in me.”
“You should be in the theater. You deserve applause for that fine performance.” Zac clapped his hands sarcastically.
“I’m being sincere. From the time you saw me, you knew that I despised being under this hideous spell.”
“You’re not under any spell. You’ve been changed into a . . .” Zac shook his head. “Well, I can’t say for certain what you’ve been changed into. But I do know that you thrive on living things, just as I do. The only difference between you and me is that you’re much more brutal . . . more savage in the way you go about killing.”
Jonas dropped his head in shame.
“The truth hurts, doesn’t it?”
Memories of his victim’s screams and anguished pleas flooded Jonas’s mind.
Zac narrowed his eyes. “You know, I’ve seen some gruesome sights in my time, but
the way you mutilated the boy that you yanked out of that driving machine was like nothing I’ve ever seen.”
“I couldn’t help myself,” Jonas whispered in a tortured voice.
“And neither can I; so what makes you better than me?”
The ringing telephone interrupted their argument. Zac shot Jonas a look that commanded him to answer the phone.
Jonas willfully crossed his arms in front of his chest. “I’m not your servant. If you can drive a car, you can surely pick up a phone.”
Zac yanked up the entire headset and console. When the headset toppled to the floor, Rosie’s voice could be heard saying, “Hello? Zac? Are you there?”
“Yes, I’m here.” Zac spoke in an unnaturally loud voice directed at the receiver that rested on the floor.
Giving Zac a look of disgust, Jonas picked up the receiver. “Hi, Rosie. Are you on your way? A few minutes? Okay, I’ll let him know.” Jonas looked at Zac. “She’ll be here shortly. I’m assuming she’s bringing you cash, so I’m repeating my request . . . can I have the money you offered a few days ago?”
Zac stared at Jonas stonily. “Yes, but you have to earn it.”
“I won’t do anything that involves killing.”
A quick, elusive smile played at the corners of Zac’s mouth. “I’m not asking you to kill.”
“What do you want me to do?”
There was a soft tap on the door.
“Ah, Rosie’s here! I have important business to take care of.”
“But . . . What about—”
“We’ll talk later.” Moving with a slow and graceful confidence, Zac went to the door.
CHAPTER 18
Rosie entered the hotel room in a cloud of perfume. Though she was thoroughly doused in the floral fragrance, she had hardly masked her alluring human scent. She took a stack of worn bills from her purse. “Count it,” she said to Zac.
Zac methodically sorted through the pile, straightening and organizing the currency by denomination, and then he gave Rosie her cut.
“Good job.” Zac patted Rosie on the shoulder.
“A pat on the shoulder—is that all I get?” she asked, her face upturned, her lips puckered.
Zac’s eyes slid away from her glossy lips and fixed on her neck. He bent close to her, and lightly stroked the bandage. Brushing his mouth against her throat, he murmured, “Take it off.”
As if stripping away a layer of clothing, Rosie slowly, seductively peeled away the adhesive. Not yet healed, the punctures were a fiery red.
Zac caressed the bite marks. Rosie trembled in response.
“Does it hurt?” Zac asked.
“Not much,” she whispered, her eyes closed and her neck outstretched in offering.
Though he was sitting on the other side of the room, the soft beating of Rosie’s heart was enticingly audible to Jonas, thrilling him with waves of excitement. He wanted her as badly as Zac did. Maybe more.
Zac had fed sufficiently and was only toying with Rosie, using her as a nightcap. Jonas, on the other hand, was famished.
Zac licked the twin wounds. A sigh of arousal escaped Rosie’s painted lips.
The sight of her exposed wounds; the sound of blood pulsing through her veins was so tantalizing, Jonas felt his heart constrict.
Standing on her tiptoes, Rosie’s short black skirt hitched up higher, exposing her thighs and giving a glimpse of her plump buttocks. The urge to reach for her was overwhelming. Sweetly tormented by the thought of filling his mouth with chunks of Rosie’s juicy buttocks, Jonas shuddered.
Near delirium, Jonas snatched the key card from the bedside table, stuffed it in his pocket, and made fast strides toward the door.
“Where are you going? Don’t you want to join Rosie and me?” Zac inquired, holding a swooning Rosie in his arms.
“No, I need some fresh air. I’m going for a walk.”
“You don’t have to walk. Do you want the keys to the driving machine?”
“No!” The roar of the blood that coursed through Rosie’s veins grew louder, beckoning Jonas—beseeching him to draw her in his own arms and drink from her. But he was ravenous, aching for more than trickles of blood.
Absorbed by the pressing desire for a more substantial meal, Jonas left Zac and Rosie and went out into the night.
Denying himself the speed of the elevator, he once again selected the darkness and obscurity of the exit stairs.
In the crowded commercial strip where the Atwell Hotel was situated, streetlights blazed abundantly. But in an effort to save money, the ones on the less populated side streets of the city had all been extinguished.
His silhouette barely visible, Jonas paced down a narrow back street with his hands in the pockets, his head hung low. En route to the city park, the rough rustle of his denim pants legs broke the eerie, late-night quiet.
Rabbit, squirrel, pigeon, and opossum were hardly filling, but that was all the city park, with its meager dining options, had to offer. White-tailed deer were elusive creatures, but hopefully one would make an appearance on tonight’s menu. Grinding his teeth in anticipation, Jonas hastened his steps.
The park was particularly bleak. Pitch black in most areas. The trunks of a few trees were decorated with white, decorative lights. Aside from providing much needed illumination, the effect of the white lights was peaceful and soothing.
Shying away from the lighted areas, Jonas sought the shadows. As he walked deeper into the darkness, his footfalls alerted the small, furry creatures that inhabited the park. He ignored them as they scurried out of his path.
Startled by an unexpected smell, Jonas stopped suddenly. There was a familiar sweet aroma—a human scent that was uniquely fragrant. Tracking the source of this titillating scent, he noticed a slender female figure sitting on a park bench. She was bent forward, her hands cradling her cheeks, her head bowed in contemplation.
She removed her hands and looked toward the sky as if searching for a heavenly answer. Her face, hallowed in moonlight, was a breathtakingly familiar sight.
His heart leapt in his chest. It’s her! The lovely girl that he’d secretly watched walking the path near his burial site.
Standing behind a large tree, Jonas merged deeper into the shadows. And through the darkness, he stared at the girl with undisguised longing as he inhaled her unusual, heated fragrance.
He searched her face, and was surprised to see gleaming tears beginning to trickle from her eyes. Her despair seemed palpable; the air seemed to thicken with her sorrow, and Jonas longed to come out of hiding and comfort her.
But he didn’t dare reveal himself. He was a predator, after all. Absolutely unable to trust himself. Nights like this, he wasn’t sure if he could control his monstrous nature.
The girl’s sweet scent was potent as it drifted on the night breeze. His senses were thoroughly aroused, and a vicious hunger rose in Jonas, twisting and knotting his insides. He had to get away from her.
Intending to slip to a more remote area of the immense park, Jonas stealthily stepped away from the tree. The sole of his right sneaker inadvertently crunched into a discarded cellophane bag. The sound reverberated as loud as an explosion.
The girl gasped. Her misted eyes, wide with fright, shot in his direction. Her nervous fingers groped for the clasp of her purse. “Don’t come near me. I have a gun!”
Amazed that he was only a few feet away from this beautiful angel—this dream girl—his throat felt as if it were closed tight, choking off his words. For a moment, he couldn’t speak. Pushing past his nerves, he found his voice. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to scare you.” Jonas spoke as calmly as he could.
“What do you want?” she shrieked, jabbing her hand inside the opening of her purse.
“I don’t want anything. I was taking a stroll through the park—”
“At this time of the night?” The girl’s voice was shrill with suspicion. Jonas saw that her hand was wrapped around a cylinder object. Most likely mace . . . not a gun. Taking anoth
er bullet to the chest was unendurable; he gave a sigh of relief.
“I won’t hurt you,” he assured her, backing away, his hands held up in surrender.
It took a tremendous amount of inner strength not to attack her, but he continued moving away from the girl. He desperately needed to feed, and with the glorious scent the girl emitted, he was certain she’d make a delectable meal.
The girl wiped the tears that streaked her face. “I’m sorry for the way I reacted. I mean . . . the way I yelled at you, you’d think that you tried to accost me.” She gave a little laugh that had a tinkly, musical sound.
“It’s okay. I’ll leave you in peace. Good night,” Jonas said, unable to take his eyes off of her face.
“Wait. Where are you from? Your accent . . .”
“I’m from Haiti. I’m here doing farm work to pay for my education.”
“Are you enrolled in school?”
“Not yet. But soon, I hope.”
“What’s your name?”
“Jonas.”
“My name’s Holland. Maybe I’ll see you when school starts.”
“Yes, maybe.” Jonas rushed past her, walking fast. And when he was out of her range of vision, he broke into a run. Fleeing as if the Devil himself was on his heels, Jonas didn’t stop running until his legs nearly gave out.
Miles from where he’d left the girl sitting, Jonas found himself on an unpaved, deserted part of the immense park. A hiking trail. Surrounded by boulders, wild foliage and trees, he bent at the waist, panting as he tried to catch his breath. From the corner of his eye, he saw a pair of wide, expressive eyes watching him with curiosity.
Caught off-guard, a white-tailed deer stood momentarily frozen in fear.
Jonas captured the animal, grabbing it by a hind leg as it made an attempt to leap from harm’s way. Breathing raggedly and growling unnaturally, Jonas dragged the struggling animal behind a boulder. With both forearms holding the deer in place, he bit into its side, viciously tearing out large hunks of meat with his strong teeth. Oblivious to the mournful cries of the wounded animal, Jonas stuffed himself, eating its flesh and slurping from a cavity that was pooled with blood. Motivated by a blinding hunger, he ferociously consumed the animal in minutes.
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