Dance Until Dawn

by Berni Stevens

  ‘Goth Central?’ I asked. ‘Why?’

  ‘To make a change from the cemetery, and to see how you react when surrounded by people.’

  I didn’t like the sound of that. ‘React?’

  ‘Do not panic,’ he reassured me. ‘If I thought for one moment you could not cope, I would never risk taking you.’

  ‘Well, that makes me feel a lot better.’

  ‘It is time for you to get up.’

  I was well aware of what I was wearing under the duvet, and it wasn’t an awful lot, and somehow I didn’t feel ready to give Will another peep show. I had never been particularly comfortable parading around half-naked in front of a boyfriend; although Will wasn’t in the boyfriend category, and let’s face it, he wasn’t exactly a boy either.

  ‘Can you pass me my jeans?’

  He raised an eyebrow. ‘Why the demure school girl act? I believe I have seen you in your underwear before.’

  ‘When I was in agony and nearly unconscious,’ I retorted. ‘I thought you men from yesteryear were supposed to be gallant.’

  ‘And I thought dancers ran around half-naked a lot of the time.’

  ‘You’ve been mixing with the wrong kind of dancers. We tend not to run around half-dressed in front of strangers. Especially male strangers.’

  ‘So, suddenly I am a stranger again,’ he sighed as he turned away. Going over to the farthest chair, he picked up my jeans where I’d left them just before dawn, and threw them across to me. ‘I shall be upstairs.’ With that parting shot, he left the room.

  It was unlike Will to take offence quite so quickly – if at all. Perhaps he had grown tired of me, and I wondered what would happen if he had. Supposing he threw me out onto the streets to fend for myself? I shuddered – that was not a good thought.

  I got out of bed and grabbed some clothes from the dressing room before collecting my jeans where he’d thrown them. Then I went downstairs to take a quick shower.

  When I went upstairs I found Will talking on the phone. He glanced at me as I entered the room, waving me to the sofa. He was clearly not a happy vampire. I hoped it wasn’t my fault. Paranoid? Me?

  ‘I shall be there. Goodnight Luke.’ Will replaced the phone on its dock and faced me.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ I asked.

  ‘Nothing that need concern you.’

  ‘Great. So why don’t you just open the front door and boot me out, it’ll probably solve all your problems.’ My tone was acerbic.

  He raised his eyebrows in surprise. ‘From where did that little diatribe emerge?’

  ‘Your off-hand behaviour, your patronising refusal to include me in recent events and all this bloody secret squirrel rubbish.’

  ‘Secret squirrel?’ He looked genuinely puzzled.

  ‘If you don’t want me to either treat you like a stranger or to feel like one myself, then try including me,’ I said. ‘If you are genuine in wanting a relationship with me, then I can tell you now, you’re going about it all the wrong way.’

  ‘I have formed that opinion myself,’ he said with a wry grimace. ‘I apologise if you have felt somewhat superfluous to various discussions. I suppose I am just a three-hundred-year-old man trying to relate to a twenty-five-year-old woman. Men from my century did not discuss battle strategies with their women, in fact they did not discuss much at all with their women.’ He shrugged and leaned back against the carved cabinet. ‘I am trying—’

  ‘You got that right,’ I agreed. ‘Very bloody trying.’

  I was rewarded with a wicked grin.

  ‘You always have an answer,’ he said. He moved to sit in the armchair opposite me. Leaning back, he crossed one leg over the other whilst resting his arms on the arms of the chair. He appeared as relaxed as usual, although there was an air of apprehension about him that I’d never felt before.

  ‘Elinor, I am going to have to become more visible for a while.’

  ‘You look pretty visible to me.’

  He ignored my pathetic attempt at humour, merely lit a cigarette and looked at me through the plume of smoke that curled upward. ‘How well known are you in North London?’

  I was surprised at the question. ‘You know I was never famous.’

  ‘No, you misunderstand,’ he corrected me. ‘I simply want to know if you have many friends and acquaintances in this part of London.’

  ‘Well there’s Greg and Fliss, the couple who lived downstairs in my old place,’ I replied. ‘Then there’s Caroline, Joe and the rest of the gang in Crouch End. Some of the chorus live in the Wood Green and Turnpike Lane areas. I don’t know anyone in this part of Highgate though, I never mixed in those kind of circles.’

  He nodded, frowning again. ‘What I need to know is, if we go to Camden, are you likely to bump into any of your old friends?’

  Ah, the penny finally dropped. Of course, anyone from my old life would probably have a heart attack to see me wondering around Camden supposedly alive and well.

  ‘It’s possible I suppose,’ I said.

  ‘Perhaps we should change your appearance?’

  ‘You can forget either cutting or dying my hair.’

  ‘Changing your hair is the very last thing I would ever suggest,’ Will looked horrified. ‘I thought perhaps different clothes to the kind you normally wear, just for a while at least.’

  I narrowed my eyes at him. ‘Do not even presume to make me wear some Laura Ashley floral creation or a taffeta ball gown.’

  Will laughed, and I realised I had actually missed his laugh over the last few days. He did seem to be growing on me lately, which was potentially not good. He stood up, and threw his cigarette butt into the fireplace.

  ‘Well, that would be rather extreme,’ he agreed. ‘The thing is, I need to make an appearance at my club fairly soon, and I do not want to leave you here alone.’

  I didn’t want to be left alone either.

  ‘So who’s coming after you, or us, exactly?’

  ‘I am pretty certain now that it is Khiara. Which is why I need to visit my club. She or her people will certainly go to my club at some point, and if someone informs her that I have been absent for some months, she will come here.’

  ‘Who would tell her?’

  ‘Anyone with whom she comes in contact. A vampire of Khiara’s age is highly skilled at extracting information.’

  I really didn’t like the sound of that. ‘I thought you would be able to sense her if she came near here.’

  ‘That is so, yes. But if she arrives mob-handed as it were—’

  ‘Which is why you don’t want to leave me here on my own,’ I understood now.

  ‘Exactly so.’

  ‘Shit.’

  ‘As you so colourfully say.’

  The reason for Will’s distraction was now very apparent. I stood up.

  ‘I could go and find my incredibly attractive woolly hat if you like?’

  ‘If you would be so kind,’ he nodded. ‘At least by covering your glorious hair, you will not stand out quite so much.’

  I went back downstairs and rummaged around in the dressing room cupboard until I found my black hat. Unfortunately, I wasn’t going to be able to see what it looked like in a mirror, so I’d just have to hope that I didn’t end up looking like a complete prat. I pulled my hair back, twisted it in a knot and then pulled the hat over it. It felt OK. Mentally shrugging, I ran back upstairs.

  ‘If people laugh—’ I began as I went into the room.

  ‘You look adorable,’ Will interrupted. ‘Shall we go?’

  Fifteen minutes later we were on the platform at Highgate tube station, just as a train arrived. We squeezed ourselves into a carriage crowded with people going home from work, and I felt decidedly nervous. So many people.

  Since I’d been fe
eding regularly, some of the pain and horrific tension had eased, and I felt calmer, more rational. But I wondered what would happen in the summer hours, would I stay asleep for longer? Sunset would be hours later after all.

  My attention suddenly returned to the feel of warm bodies and their throbbing pulses all around me, which presented a very real problem. I hadn’t been this close to so many people since my rebirth. The last time we had travelled on a tube it had been after the commuters’ rush, and there were far less people. This felt … uncomfortable. I was beginning to feel a bit panicky, hemmed in on all sides by warm, living bodies.

  I could hear their pulses.

  I could definitely smell their warm blood.

  I looked up in wide-eyed panic at Will. Never one to miss an opportunity, he slipped his arms around my waist and pulled me up against his body, almost as though he knew exactly how I was feeling – which he probably did. His touch, miraculously, calmed me down and I breathed a sigh of relief. The headlines that raged in my head thankfully evaporated, erasing, ‘Female lunatic attacks commuters on the Northern Line.’

  We got off at Camden Town and made our way to the exit.

  Camden was always busy at almost any time of the day or night, and we walked up the High Street toward the market. The stalls stood empty now, closed up for the night, but the streets were still crowded. The pavements bustled with people of all ages, colours and creeds, all busy going somewhere; home from work, out for the evening, or just for a walk.

  I had always been fascinated by the huge number of Goths and vampire wannabees who congregated in the Camden area. It seemed to attract them like a magnet. Possibly because of the amount of Goth clothes and jewellery shops in Camden. I had always loved to browse in them, although I would never have been brave enough to wear any of the more outrageous outfits. The streets were full of the flamboyant and Gothic that evening – some girls carried handbags or backpacks in the shape of coffins or skulls. They stood in little clusters, preening their multi-coloured hair that had been gelled to stand up in gravity-defying spikes. Their eye makeup, lips and fingernails were all painted black, and a few of the girls wore magenta-coloured net underskirts beneath their tight-fitting black dresses. They looked oddly attractive, like an exotic tribe peculiar to North London. Will and I passed by them, and were completely ignored in our comparatively boring attire of jeans and leather coats.

  How amusing to think two real vampires had just walked quietly by them and they hadn’t even spared us a glance. Although having said that, it wasn’t strictly true, as several girls had spared Will more than a glance, but I was beginning to get used to it. Strangely, he never seemed to notice the attention he attracted.

  He looked down at me and, with a mischievous smile, offered his arm.

  I gave him a strange look, but slipped my arm though his anyway without comment.

  ‘We cannot have you getting lost in the crowds can we?’

  ‘Apparently not.’

  We went down the steps to the Regents Canal towpath and stood for a while, watching and listening. The canal itself glittered like a black ribbon, moving at a sluggish pace, its many secrets hidden in the murky depths. There were a few people walking along the canal path, mostly couples.

  We passed by the Pirate’s Castle, which I thought should probably be renamed Dracula’s Castle, although the younger kids might not like it as much. We walked slowly past the moored barges in the visitors’ basin. Music blared out from a few of them, but nothing recognisable.

  The night’s scents were an almost overwhelming concoction of exotic food and people. I felt full of anticipation, yet had no idea why. It was good to be out and walking about. Almost as though nothing untoward had ever happened.

  As we reached Cumberland Basin, Will stopped and raised his head. His nostrils flared. I watched him, seeing him then for what he was – a very dangerous predator. He looked back at the Feng Shang Chinese floating restaurant and I followed his gaze, looking at the diners silhouetted against the brightly lit windows.

  ‘I need to feed, but there are rather too many witnesses.’

  ‘Could put them off their noodles.’

  I had never seen Will feed, and to be honest, I didn’t relish the thought of it at all. If he only ever picked on beautiful women, I didn’t think I could stand by and watch him. I truly didn’t know how it would affect me. I had a sneaking suspicion I might feel jealous, even though I had no right to. I didn’t much like the idea of him observing my quandary either.

  I looked across the canal at the beautiful Regency houses with gardens leading down to their private moorings. Many of the houses had their own boats and I wondered just how much money it would take to live here. The majority of the houses had at least four floors, with roof gardens and terraces as well as regular back gardens. The nearer we walked to Regents Park and St Johns Wood, the more opulent the houses became.

  ‘Are those your dream houses, Elinor?’ Will had obviously been watching me.

  ‘If I were still human perhaps. But there are rather too many neighbours for our kind of lifestyle.’

  ‘True.’

  Secretly I thought Will’s Georgian mansion in Highgate was better by far.

  We walked in the direction of the zoo and I sniffed the air, now thick with the pungent aroma of different animals. Not always a plus, these enhanced senses. Will turned to me, ‘Hunting is common sense, always try to find someone on their own, for obvious reasons, or lure them away from other people. Be discreet, be quick and then get the hell away from the spot as soon as possible. That is all there is to it, other than knowing when to stop feeding so you do not kill them.’

  ‘Why are you telling me this?’

  ‘Should anything happen to me, you will need to find your own food.’

  ‘Is anything likely to happen to you?’

  Will stopped walking and clasped his hands to his heart with an overly dramatic gesture. ‘I do believe she is beginning to care. Be still my beating heart.’

  ‘Our hearts don’t beat.’

  He smiled then, taking my arm and threading it back through his again. ‘So true again, my very clever Elinor.’

  ‘I thought you said you only fed on the willing.’ I changed the subject quickly.

  ‘Most are willing for me,’ he said with a touch of arrogance. ‘Would you like to hunt with me?’

  I shook my head violently. ‘No, of course not.’

  ‘Then I shall leave you here for just a few minutes, and return as soon as I can.’

  ‘Leave me?’ I felt horrified. ‘You’re going to leave me here alone?’

  Will stopped walking again and put his hands on my shoulders. Gently, he tucked an escaping tendril of hair back under my hat.

  ‘Elinor, should anything untoward happen, I will know immediately, and I shall return to your side with all speed, do not worry.’

  ‘Worry is my middle name.’

  ‘My mistake, I thought it was Jane,’ he bent down and kissed my forehead.

  We were level with the Snowdon Aviary before he turned to me again. ‘Stay right here, I shall only be a few minutes.’

  Yeah, yeah only a few minutes. I found it odd that Will felt confident enough to leave me alone. I wasn’t sure whether to be pleased or annoyed. He clearly didn’t expect me to run off, although I had no doubt he could track me down before I’d got very far.

  I had no idea what would happen if I needed to choose and feed from my own victims. Choose or starve, I supposed. For the moment I preferred drinking from a china mug and not knowing where the contents had come from.

  I hoped Will wouldn’t be long, I hated being here on my own. Standing alone on a canal path in the dark wasn’t exactly my idea of fun. Or exactly safe either.

  I heard footsteps behind me and turned around, hoping to see Will. Unfortunate
ly it was two male city types who’d clearly had more to drink than was good for them. Perfect.

  ‘All alone? I don’t think it’s safe to be all alone here. Do you Clive?’ said the taller of the two. ‘P’raps you’d like to come along with us?’ His upper crust accent sounded slightly slurred and just as though he had a plum stuck in his larynx.

  ‘I’m waiting for my boyfriend,’ I said, and wished Will would miraculously appear.

  ‘He seems to be a tad late doesn’t he?’ said the other, and they both laughed. They sounded like a couple of snotty hyenas.

  The first man waved an open whisky bottle under my nose. ‘Fancy a little drinky girly girl?’

  ‘No.’ I wished Will would hurry the hell up.

  ‘Not too friendly is she?’ said Clive, draping his arm across his mate’s shoulders.

  ‘Oh, I think she could be persuaded to be a lot more friendly.’ They both leered drunkenly at me.

  Shit.

  ‘Go. Away.’ I said. Come on Will, how the hell long does it take you to feed? Unless of course he was doing something else as well … but I really didn’t want to think about that.

  ‘Only if you say pretty please.’ The two of them laughed uproariously. Hilarious.

  ‘The lady said go away I believe,’ Will’s voice came from behind me, and I turned to him with relief. At bloody last.

  He sauntered up to my side and put an arm possessively across my shoulders.

  ‘Shall we go?’ he said to me, and I nodded. Yes, somewhere far away from these two jackals. As we passed the two men, I screamed at a sudden flash of steel, as one of them drew a knife, and the next thing I knew, both of them were lying on the ground not moving.

  ‘What have you done?’ I gasped in horror. ‘Please tell me you haven’t killed them.’

  ‘They needed their heads banging together,’ Will shrugged. ‘No harm done, they were just drunk.’

  ‘Just drunk? They had a knife.’