by Jana Denardo
“That’s what I was hoping for, being strong-strong.” When Arrigo’s glare got worse, Luc added, “Just joking. Cut me a break. I’m scared.”
Arrigo started the car. “I know. You won’t be alone when you face them.”
Luc nodded. “You’ll be there, and it’ll be okay if you are.” Strange, Luc thought, he actually believed that.
LUC TOOK a deep breath in, standing in front of the Alibi, instantly regretting it as the scents of beer and puke washed over him. So much for a deep breath to calm down with. He stood there for a moment in between Siobhan and Arrigo, working up the nerve to go tell his father everything he needed to. It was like tangling with a gator, only more dangerous.
“Are you sure you’re ready?” Arrigo put a hand on his shoulder.
Luc leaned into his touch. “I have to be. I need done with this. And it needs to be here because they’ll hopefully be less likely to attack us when we’re in public.”
“We’ll go off your lead.”
Risking the stench, Luc sucked in another deep breath and then walked into the bar he’d spent years working in. As the half-empty parking lot suggested, it was a slow night. No one even bothered to look their way. Luc spotted Henri’s hyena-pack of friends by the pool table. His brother and Da worked the bar, Henri scowling, probably resenting having to pick up the slack Luc’s absence created.
Luc dipped deep into himself, gathering his courage before stalking across the bar and slapping his hands on the bar top. Suddenly his da and Henri didn’t look so big or so frightening. Without looking, he knew Arrigo and Siobhan were a few steps behind, keeping watch.
Da widened his eyes, then smirked. “I see you found him. Told you he’d turn up like a bad penny,” he said to Arrigo.
“Thanks for your concern, Da. I could have been dead in a gutter.”
“I trained you to be tough even if you’re a peeshwank. I wasn’t worried.”
“You have a lot of nerve showing up here. You owe me for all the hours I put for you.” Henri swung out from behind the bar.
Luc jabbed a finger at him. “I owe you shit. You two are gonna listen to me.”
“Like fuck.” Henri grabbed at him, and Luc swatted his arm away.
Da chuckled, making Luc wonder if this attitude was what he wanted all along. “Henri, enough. This ought to be good.”
“One, I quit!”
Henri roared with laughter. “You’re right. This is good.”
“I mean it. I quit. Two, I moved out. All my stuff is gone.”
That lured his father out from behind the bar. Luc forced himself not to take a step back. “What? And just where do you think you’re going without a job? With him?” He swept a hand toward Arrigo.
“Yeah, I’m living with them.”
“Well, now you know how he plans to earn money.” Henri cast a glance at Arrigo, who glowered back.
Luc caught Henri’s friends closing in. He whirled on them. “This don’t concern you,” he roared at them, shocked when they retreated a few steps. “And I don’t care what you think, Henri. I’m living with them way up in the sky in that sweet penthouse. I don’t see any reason for me to come back here or see any of you again.” His chest heaved. He’d done it. He’d gotten it all out and resisted the urge to punch Henri in the face.
“Da, you gonna let him talk to us like that?”
Da shrugged. “He’ll be back. They’ll get bored with him soon enough.”
“Like hell. Even if they did, I would never come back here.” Luc punched his palm. “And they won’t get bored with me. I’m with people who care about me.”
Henri snickered. “You’re such a couillon.”
“Whatever. You can’t hurt me anymore.” Luc took a step back and grabbed Arrigo and Siobhan’s hands. At the top of his lungs, he added, “Since you’ve all been making gay jokes at my expense for so long, I might as well say it. I’m bisexual and this is my boyfriend!” He held Arrigo’s hand high before pulling him in for a quick kiss. “And that’s all I had to say.”
Luc shot them the bird before grabbing Arrigo’s hand again. He hauled Arrigo and Siobhan out past the patrons, leaving his stunned family behind. Luc quick-walked them a block away to where they left the car, shocked no one followed them.
“Holy Mary, Mother of God, I did it!”
“And you didn’t need us for any of it. I told you you had it in you.” Arrigo grinned.
“Well, I did need you for that fuck-you kiss.” Luc laughed as Siobhan unlocked the car.
“I like the sound of that.” Arrigo tugged Luc into the back seat.
Siobhan sat behind the wheel, and Arrigo held Luc close as she started the car.
“I did it,” Luc whispered. “God, I’m free.”
“You did amazing.” Arrigo kissed him, leaning against the side door as he half pulled Luc into his lap.
“None of that in my car.”
Luc rested his head on Arrigo’s shoulder, peeking at Siobhan’s reflection as she watched them in the rearview mirror. “Your bigger worry is I get car sick in the back.”
“I’m pulling over, and you get up here.”
Arrigo captured Luc in his arms. “He’ll be fine. Home, James.”
“I’m pulling over and you’re getting out, Arrigo.”
He laughed. Luc locked fingers with him, only then realizing he was shaking. It didn’t matter. He’d finally stood up to his father and that’s what counted.
“WHEN YOU said we were going on a date, I didn’t expect it to be outside of Vegas.” Luc looked out the truck window. The light pollution had mostly faded as they had gotten farther from the city. Luc knew the rocky formations around them had a reddish tint to them, giving them their name. Even with his improved vision, he couldn’t pick out the red now except where the headlights splashed over the rocks. He wasn’t sure about this dating stuff, not with Eleni still out there, but the idea of taking a break and being with Arrigo had been too tempting, especially after the emotional impact of moving out. He needed something to relax him after dealing with his father and with the uncomfortable thoughts Arrigo had put in his head about his mother. Luc refused to believe they were true but a lingering doubt nagged at him. This outing would hopefully silence the doubts because if his mother wasn’t out there somewhere, still holding him in her heart even if she couldn’t have taken him with her, he didn’t know how to handle it.
“I couldn’t think of a good compromise.” Arrigo sounded a little embarrassed to Luc.
“You mean all your ideas involved money, and I don’t have any.” Luc couldn’t hold back the bitterness in his tone.
Arrigo scowled. “That’s part of it. But even more so, we don’t know each other well yet. I had no idea what you might want to do. I thought I could introduce you to something I enjoy.”
Luc rubbed his chin, peering across at Arrigo. “It’s not outdoor sex, is it? I’m not cool with getting scorpion bites on my ass.”
Arrigo snorted. “No, I prefer relative comfort for sex.”
“Good to know, bougre. So what are we doing?”
“Astronomy. I like looking at the stars. I thought it would be a nice quiet evening out. We could talk. Look at the heavens. Maybe bore you.” Arrigo parked the truck in a level area off the road. “Even if it’s not your thing, it would be good to show you some of the things I’m into.”
“Makes sense.” Luc climbed out of the truck, accepting the folding chair Arrigo passed him. It still surprised him Arrigo had a truck or camping chairs. They seemed more like Luc’s thing than Arrigo’s.
Arrigo hauled out another chair. From behind the truck’s seats, he grabbed a long box Luc assumed had to be a telescope. It reminded him of a rifle box at first glance, but there were differences.
Luc grabbed the cooler. “You know it’s not true we don’t know nothing about each other.” Luc followed Arrigo, figuring he knew better how and where to set up for sky watching.
“True. I know you like fishing and feeding sha
rks and might have a mini death wish going on.”
Even in the dark, Luc could clearly see Arrigo’s smirk. He wanted to slap the smirk off Arrigo’s face or, better yet, kiss it away.
“Don’t forget I like arrogant jackasses who enjoy slumming it.”
Arrigo snorted again and started setting up the telescope.
“You’re crazy for books and know about a million ways to keep a too-white condo spotless even while owning a cat. Not sure how that helps dating-wise other than serve as a warning since I don’t read so good and I’m kind of a slob.”
“Fair point. So long as the common rooms don’t look like Oscar Madison lives in them, we’re fine,” Arrigo said.
“Who’s Oscar?” Luc felt a flare of worry. An old lover?
“The Odd Couple?” Arrigo shrugged at Luc’s confusion. “Before your time.”
“Since you’re older than sin, you know tons of things from before my time.”
“I’m not older than sin.” Arrigo clipped the telescope on its tripod. “Close, though. Fadil is older than sin.”
“From the way you talk about him, he’s practically a caveman, he’s so old.” Fadil again. Luc needed to know more about Fadil since Siobhan and Arrigo kept bringing him up. Jealousy soured his stomach. Luc thought for a moment. “Are there caveman vampires?”
“Not that I’m aware of. The virus seems to affect only modern humans.” Arrigo waved Luc over.
“Okay. But I can’t argue we still have lots to learn about each other. I’d never guess you’d like stargazing. To get to know me, you could watch some Swamp People. That’s a lot like I used to live.”
“I don’t watch reality shows, but for you I can give it a shot.”
“Merci.” Luc swallowed hard as fears bubbled to the surface. “Arrigo, what if we don’t like what we find in each other? What if you decide in a couple weeks me living with you ain’t working? This gotta be awkward for you.”
Arrigo reached over, stroking Luc’s shoulder. “It has to be far more awkward for you, Luc. I’m not taking care of you just because I feel like this is all my fault, but obviously that’s part of it. I like you. But if at the end of the day we decide it’s not working, that all we had between us was some lust and a few fun encounters, I’m not going to kick you to the curb. I’ll make sure you get a great mentor to help you adapt to this life.”
Luc bobbed his head. “I believe you would, and I’m grateful.”
“But before we start planning where to send you and chuck it all, let’s see how this goes.” Arrigo smiled.
Luc returned it. “That would be my choice, too, even though all your windows scare me a little.”
“They should.” Arrigo’s smile melted into seriousness. “You’ll burn. If it gets to be a problem, I’ll sell, and all three of us can find a more suitable house. As I’ve said, Siobhan’s more practiced with fledglings than I am.”
“Has she made a lot of vampires?”
“Not really. Neither of us has made many fledglings, but she’s been called on to mentor fledglings who’ve been abandoned. They’re usually smarter than to ask me.”
Luc made a humming noise. He didn’t want to talk about this anymore. He couldn’t think about Arrigo handing him off to anyone, even if it was to Siobhan. He appreciated her help but didn’t want it to just be him and her. He shouldn’t have brought it up. He should learn to ignore his fears when they were this pointless. Maybe he’d feel more comfortable with the whole living arrangement talk if he hadn’t just packed up all his stuff and told his da to fuck off and go to hell. Jesus, this was even harder to think about than Arrigo’s comments about Luc’s mother, because it was unfolding right in front of him.
Pointing at the tripod, he asked, “So how does this work?”
Arrigo accepted the change of topic without a word. He bent over, looking through the eyepiece. He picked out something, then waved at Luc.
“Have a look.”
Arrigo stepped back and let Luc put his eye to the tube. It was an impressive view, more stars than he could count twinkled at him, but they just stood there. He didn’t know what he expected, moving stars? X-wing starfighters? He almost said this was too slow and boring for him, but was fishing any better? It was hours of sitting and waiting too.
“What am I seeing?”
“Mostly I thought you’d like a close up of the moon. She’ll be your companion in the heavens for the next few centuries,” Arrigo said so brightly, Luc wasn’t sure the man could even relate to someone in Luc’s position anymore. Maybe he was right about not being a good mentor.
Luc gulped. Centuries. How could he deal with that? Arrigo seemed happy. Siobhan too. Hell, even Eleni seemed to enjoy being a vampire, so maybe there was a big upside he needed to explore.
“Yeah. Okay.” He peered back through the scope. The moon was beautiful. It wasn’t as if he had never noticed it before. He had dreamed of the moon as a kid, of being an astronaut long before he realized you had to be smart.
Arrigo gently moved him aside and looked back through the scope, moving it slightly. “There is Orion. The star in the upper right is Betelgeuse and in the bottom left is Rigel.”
Luc peered into the scope. He had no idea which stars Arrigo was talking about, but he nodded anyhow. “Those sound familiar.”
“Beetlejuice was a movie, and Rigel is used a lot in Star Trek.”
“That’s probably it.” Luc smiled.
“And in the lower right of the constellation is Bellatrix.”
“Oh, like in Harry Potter,” Luc said brightly. Finally, something he knew.
Arrigo chuckled as a coyote howl sounded closer than Luc was comfortable with. “Yes. Go ahead. Look around.”
Luc slowly moved the scope. Arrigo sat in one of the chairs behind the scope and rummaged in the cooler. Luc let the silence take them. Silence suited him. Hunters and fishers usually needed it. After a while, the quiet made him edgy, however. He hoped Arrigo would say something.
As if reading Luc’s mind, he piped up with, “If you like this, we have to come back during a meteor shower. That will be more interesting for you.”
“I’ve always wanted to see a shooting star.” Luc left the scope and got himself a beer, one of the fancy ones he’d never heard of before. It was bitter and strong, making him grimace as he sat next to Arrigo. “It was usually too cloudy back home.”
“I’ll make sure you see some.” Arrigo looked over at him, studying him until Luc was almost uncomfortable with the attention. “I’m glad she didn’t kill you.”
“Yeah, me too.”
“No, you don’t understand. She could have killed you outright, of course. What I meant was, when she decided to turn you, she had to drain you to the point of death.”
“Arrigo.” Luc shuddered. He didn’t want to know about how it worked. He didn’t remember most of it, and he didn’t want Arrigo dredging that up.
“The point is, the virus that turns you into one of us most often doesn’t work. It’s one of the reasons Siobhan and I rarely even try to turn anyone. We’d want to be certain we were turning the right sort of person, and it would mean risking the life of a friend.”
Mais, if they were going to talk about it, Luc might as well ask the question praying on his mind. “What about the person who made you. Fadil? I thought he was a friend.”
“Not then. He has said he wouldn’t have done it had he known me better. I was a brash kid who impressed him. He was different back then too.”
Luc’s ears perked up. “You’re a kid? You don’t just look like one? Really?”
Arrigo chuckled. “I’m not sure how old I was, no more than twenty-one, but that was a man back then, not a kid just starting out. I was a soldier, as I told you.”
Luc nodded, thinking about that. “You’re saying I could have as easily died as turned into a vampire.”
“More easily. Otherwise we’d overrun our food sources in theory. As we are now, we can drink without hurting anyone, but if ther
e were millions upon millions of vampires, there wouldn’t be enough blood. The virus is weak. It’s like the opportunistic infections that tear through people with AIDS but don’t affect people with a good immune system. Our bodies can usually destroy the virus, so someone has to be completely weakened before we try to turn them.”
“I see.” Luc looked up at the sky, taking a big swallow of beer. “I don’t want to talk about this. It makes me all cold inside. This is a date, right? Can we talk about more fun things?”
“Sorry. Of course. Here, let me find another quadrant for you to look at.” Arrigo set aside his beer and stood to play with the telescope.
“But while we’re on serious subjects, tell me why you wanted to go out with me, for real this time.” Luc took another swig of beer, not sure he wanted to know the answer.
Arrigo made an exasperated sound. “I’ve told you. It’s true. I thought you were cute, and sometimes I think with my dick. So I tried to get to know you better.” He pointed the telescope toward the west.
“Really?”
“Really. Though Siobhan had a disturbing observation about it all, a thought that had crossed my mind as well.”
The tone of Arrigo’s voice told Luc Arrigo didn’t want to tell him this, so Luc had to know it. “Oh?”
“She said you reminded me of me, back when I was still human.” Arrigo straightened up, looking at Luc. “She’s heard the stories of my mortal life a thousand times if she’s heard them once.”
Luc made a face, waving him off. “I can’t see how that’s possible.”
“Because you know this me. Rich, self-assured, with lifetimes of experience.” Arrigo waved Luc over to the telescope. “But when I met Fadil, I was what you are now: young, uneducated, and poor. He befriended me and molded me. Maybe that’s part of what I was trying to do with you.”
Luc pondered that. Arrigo was right. It wasn’t a comfortable thought. “You did say you liked helping people.”
“I do. And I could see you needed a helping hand. I’m not saying that to be mean.”
Luc held up a hand. “You ain’t wrong, Arrigo. I did. I do. But I still can’t picture you like that.”