“Okay, good,” she said with a grin. “I just wanted to check the chemistry. It’s definitely there.”
He smiled. “Maybe we should check again, just in case.”
She pushed him back into his seat.
He couldn’t wipe the grin from his face as she picked up her drink.
***
Bridget smiled as she walked into the bar. Her sense of smell had picked up something tastier than a willing victim. A baby vampire was in the building. A vampire without a clan. Her smile widened.
“Hey, gorgeous.” A guy with a cocky smile and whiskey breath blocked her path.
Her smile turned to ice as she stared him down. “Get out of my way.”
He was human, and he could have been useful before she’d had a change of plans. As it was, he was nothing more than a cockroach to step on. She gave him a shove and moved past him.
“What the… Slag!” he shouted after her.
She didn’t waste her time responding. The new vampire was lurking in a dark corner with a pretty human girl. The girl from the slightly less trashy clothes store in the arcade. She sucked in a breath as she took in the identity of the vampire. The greasy-haired teenage security guard! She scowled, one hand dropping to her hip. What were the chances? Pretty high, she realised as she remembered where she’d come across the damned Winter clan vampire in the first place.
It really didn’t matter who he was. She had a job to do and not much time left to do it.
With her sweetest smile, she approached the cutesy couple in their secluded booth.
“Hey, gorgeous,” she greeted Larry, her gaze devoted to him.
He swallowed as he stared back. “Hey…”
“Get lost, cougar,” Amira snapped, putting her drink down.
Bridget ignored the girl. Her compulsion would force Larry to follow her. She would use him to turn Zack. “Get up, Larry. You’re coming with me.”
He shifted with a wince. “I’m coming with you.”
“Larry!” Amira yanked his arm and he fell back on his ass. “What are you…”
Bridget forced a smile and turned to the girl. “Be quiet and sit still.”
Agape, Amira did as told. Bridget concentrated on Larry, getting him out of the booth and away from his possessive girlfriend.
“Amira, I…” He turned his head, and Bridget sighed.
She pulled his head around to face her. “You will shut up and follow me. Now.”
He did as told, but Bridget bit her lip when the scent of the girl caught up to her. She hadn’t eaten yet, and Zack would need to be fed once he was turned. She turned and told Amira to get up and follow them, too. Forcing Larry to watch his girlfriend get drained would be good training for him. He could be an asset to her clan, not as much as Zack would be, but still… he could have his uses.
Chapter Eighteen
Zack put the umbrella in his bathtub and moved around the flat, taking his coat and sunglasses off. The conversation with Chloe was still bothering him. He almost wanted to go right back to her house with the umbrella just to get the chance to speak to her again. She knew something, and she wanted to tell him. He’d analysed her reaction to death. She definitely wanted to tell him, and whatever it was, it would be better than the nothing he had now.
His doorbell rang just as he went to get the umbrella. He kept it in his gloved hand as he went to answer the door. Checking through the peephole, he saw it was just his neighbour, Kenny.
“Oh, hi,” he said, opening the door.
“Everything okay?”
“Um…”
“You were stomping around.” The guy sounded suspicious.
“I didn’t think I was. Sorry,” Zack said, wondering what was up with the guy.
“Going somewhere?”
He had noticed the umbrella in Zack’s hand. Oh, right, he was a cop, and he was supposed to be nosy about his comings and goings.
“No. Just…tidying up.”
“Oh. Well. Let me know if you speak to Bridget.”
“Bridget?” Zack’s curiosity rose.
“I need to speak to her.” The guy didn’t elaborate. He just moved swiftly down the hall.
Zack closed, locked, and bolted his door. He put the umbrella down and decided he needed a cup of tea. Maybe the rain would go off and he could return the umbrella without looking like an idiot.
***
Kenny called Bridget again, got no answer, and threw the phone across the room. What good was a girlfriend who wasn’t there when he needed her? He shook his head.
“Fucking stupid bitch,” he cursed.
This was all her fault. The Council was putting him on probation, which basically meant he’d be working without pay and subject to random checks. He was suspected of manipulating his abilities, which could only mean one thing. Bridget had reported him for ordering her around. As if she didn’t get off on it. He always let her go when she told him to stop. She always smiled when she realised he’d commanded her to do something she liked doing anyway.
He got her, and she got him. It was what made them work. He wasn’t a very romantic kind of guy, but he’d do almost anything for Bridget, and he’d done some things already that he knew could have gotten him into trouble with the Council. He hadn’t cared because those things had been for her. But now? She’d better have a damn good explanation for this.
***
Bridget led Larry and his bitchy girlfriend to Zack’s flat. She got her key out once they were on the stairwell. She’d had enough questions from Amira when they’d left the bar, so she’d compelled the girl to shut up. Now they were good little children, following her to their fates. She smiled. The day was finally looking up.
Getting to Zack’s door, she stopped and listened intently. The sound of the TV was faint. He was in the living room, then. She moved forward with her keys, and a noise from her right made her turn.
“Kenny,” she said. “You nearly gave me a heart attack.”
He was pissed. She’d seen that look before, usually right after a call from his Council.
“Get in here,” he told her, folding his arms.
She moved forward, cursing internally. He always had to throw his weight around at the worst of times. She moved involuntarily and her anger grew with every step. Her bespelled followers moved with her.
“What is it, Kenny? I’m busy right now.”
“Screw that. You owe me an explanation.”
Whatever was going on, he wasn’t going to be consoled without speaking to her. She turned her head. “Larry, Amira. Go to Zack’s door and visit with him. Wait there for me. Do not leave.”
She kept walking until she was in Kenny’s flat, only looking back when Larry and Amira were at Zack’s door. She sighed and turned her glower on Kenny.
“This had better be good.”
“Funny, I was about to say the same thing to you.”
***
Zack got up cautiously. The knocking on the door was eerily light. He didn’t think it was Kenny again, and it certainly wasn’t Bridget. He checked through the peep-hole and saw two familiar faces from the arcade. Surprised, he opened the door.
“Uh, hi,” he said.
“Zack, we came to visit,” Amira said, sounding oddly flat.
“Yeah. And Bridget’s going to be here soon, too,” Larry put in with an equal amount of enthusiasm.
“Em, okay, I guess. Come in,” he said, letting them in.
Did everyone at work know where he lived? He shrugged the thought off as he locked the door behind them. “Tea or coffee?”
Amira shrugged. “We were on a date.”
He glanced at Larry, who nodded.
“We were.” He shrugged as well and then Amira took his hand.
“So… no tea or coffee.”
Zack moved on to the living room. He hit standby on the TV remote, not wanting them to notice the trashy sitcom he’d gotten caught up watching. His brain was easily amused these days. It was sort of embarrassing.
“Larry got really hot,” Amira said, sitting down on the couch. She still had a weirdly flat tone to her voice.
“Amira fancied me before, anyway,” Larry said.
Zack started to wonder what was going on, more so when the two of them started to make-out on his couch.
“What the hell…” He got up and went into the kitchen, dialling Bridget’s number. Those two had to be on drugs or on Aftershocks at a bare minimum.
He sighed. Her phone was ringing out. He tapped his fingers on the counter top and considered Chloe’s number. She knew them both, at least. Maybe she could help.
***
Bridget listened to Kenny rant, and all she could think about was how much better he’d look with his top off. When he finished and waited expectantly for her to speak, she let her mind check over the insane accusations he’d flung at her.
“Kenny, sweetheart, why would I want you on probation? The last thing I need is the Council poking their noses into my business. They don’t need to know about us.” She shook her head. “If anyone has it in for you, it’s that little bitch Chloe and her stuck-up, goody-two-shoes attitude.”
He was drinking in her every word. She almost wished she was lying to him. It would have been a thrill to get away with it.
He grabbed her suddenly and kissed her hard. She kissed back, and he pressed against her. She knew she wasn’t getting out of his flat without pleasuring him, but she also knew exactly how to turn him on and finish him off faster than he could jerk himself off. So she did her dutiful girlfriend part and turned to leave.
He caught her hand. “I could make you stick around.”
“You could. But you don’t have to. I’ll be back. I’ve got things to do, but when they’re done…” She held her breath that he’d let her go without a fight.
His sated state seemed to mellow him slightly. He let her go.
She kissed his cheek and dashed out of the flat. It was time, finally, for Plan C.
***
Chloe answered the phone before she could think twice about it. Zack was actually calling her?
“Hello?”
“Chloe?”
“It’s me. What’s up?” She tried to keep her voice steady.
“I, um, well… it’s kind of weird, and I didn’t know who to call.” He sounded so awkward.
She smiled. “What’s going on?”
“A couple of people who work in the arcade came to visit. I’m not sure why, but supposedly Bridget’s coming over, too. Only she hasn’t yet, and now I think they’re dry humping on my couch,” he told her, stage-whispering the last part.
Chloe was stuck between amusement and horror. “Who’s there, Zack?”
“The security guard and the Indian girl from the clothes shop.”
He clearly couldn’t remember their names. For some reason, it drew a wry smile out of Chloe. Until she remembered the security guard was Larry, who was now a vampire. Her smile froze.
“I’ll be right over.” She hung up, grabbed her keys, shoved on her boots, and left.
***
Zack jumped up at the knock. He rushed to the door, thinking it was fast for Chloe.
Checking the peephole, he took in Bridget’s irritable expression and hesitated. Something was weird about the whole situation. He shook it off. Bridget’s job was to protect him. He knew he could trust her. Audrey had told him not to, but she wasn’t real so her opinions shouldn’t count. He opened the door and let Bridget in.
“What’s going on?” He kept his voice low.
She closed the door behind her and moved towards the living room. “It’s happening. We need to move quickly.”
His brain rushed to keep up with her words. “It’s happening? What…”
She pushed the living room door open, made a noise of disgust, and strode forward.
“Cut that out,” she snapped, capturing the attention of the young lovers on his couch immediately. They both turned to her, falling away from each other.
Zack hesitated at the doorway. He didn’t like the way the kids’ faces slackened when Bridget spoke. There was something hideously eerie about it.
“Separate,” she said as the girl straightened her dress and the guy folded his arms. She turned to Zack, shaking her head. “They’ve been drinking, if you couldn’t tell.”
He tried a smile, but it didn’t want to surface. Swallowing, he tugged at his hair. “So, it’s happening?”
What was happening? The vampires were there? He was too freaked out to ask. He didn’t want to contemplate what it all meant. Where the hell were his sunglasses?
She nodded, glancing back. “Larry, get over here.”
The tall guy got to his feet and moved towards her.
“How are you doing that?” Zack flushed when he realised he’d said it out loud.
“I’m a vampire, Zack. It’s one of my many talents.” Her irises seemed to flash red for a second. He blinked and they were back to normal. She sighed softly. “Amira, restrain Zack for me.”
The girl got up as Zack realised what was happening. He stumbled backwards, and Amira rushed at him, slamming him into the wall in the hallway. He groaned at the pain his shoulder took as the girl’s hand knocked it into the wall. She remained holding him there, determination in her gaze.
He pushed against her, and Bridget snorted.
“The girl works out, Zack. You’re too soft. Give it up.” She turned to the guy. “Larry, fangs.”
His mouth opened, his teeth sharpening in an instant. He looked to Bridget, and she smiled.
“Get over here and rip Zack’s throat out.”
***
Pushing at the girl, Zack gasped in a breath.
“This is it, Steve. I’m dying.”
“Don’t be so melodramatic. Nothing’s wrong. Calm down.”
“I’m about to have my throat ripped out by a vampire. I don’t think that’s melodramatic!”
“Have you been taking your pills, Zack?”
“What? No. Who cares? I’m about to be murdered!”
***
The hand that caught Larry by the throat was strong and familiar. Bridget’s enjoyment muted itself as she turned to find her lover standing in her way. He had a look of betrayal on his handsome face. She smirked as Larry’s jaw moved, his teeth snapping inches from Zack’s spaced-out face.
“What is this?” Kenny sounded furious.
“This is Plan C, Kenny.” She knew he couldn’t control two vampires at once, but she wasn’t going to have very long to convince him that she was doing what was best for everyone. “Your Council is abandoning you. Why don’t you come with me? I’ll be leaving as soon as—”
“As soon as what, Bridget?”
Chloe’s irate voice hit her ears, and her gaze moved past her lover. The punky girl was standing just inside the front door, a stake in one hand.
Bridget rolled her eyes. “Piss off, Chloe.”
“Let me past,” Chloe demanded, fortunately directing her command at Kenny.
Kenny was still holding onto Larry. Amira still had Zack restrained, though from his babbling, it was obvious he wasn’t in the room with them right now. This could still go Bridget’s way. She looked at Kenny, meeting his own angry stare and reflecting it back at him.
“How can you just stand there while that bitch acts all high and mighty? Aren’t you going to rip into her for what she did to you?”
Kenny turned his head slightly and looked back at Bridget.
“What have you got left to lose, Kenny?”
She knew she’d hit a nerve when he closed his eyes. In that brief moment, she knew he was making his choice. His grip slackened, and Larry yanked himself free.
“You fucking…” Chloe’s impending insult was killed by Kenny’s backhand punch. She crashed to the ground, dropping the stake.
Bridget smiled as Larry bit into Zack’s throat. Her trepidation vanished as she saw her plan unfold. Her intent was to turn Zack, not to ‘hurt’ him. She hadn�
�t been sure the distinction would matter until Larry followed her orders.
“Finally.” She looked at Kenny as he moved closer to watch. “We’ve got him.”
***
Chloe jumped to her feet, unable to see the stake. Kenny was blocking her path, but she had to stop what was happening and she knew what her best bet was. She glanced around and picked up the golf umbrella she’d given Zack. She could see the blank stare on his face as Larry drank from him.
Please, please, let him be okay.
Tearing her gaze away, she moved quickly. Kenny’s arm blocked her first strike but she got in a second well-placed thrust before he turned on her. Bridget fell to her knees, staring at the end of the umbrella sticking out of her chest before she burst into ashes. Larry fell away from Zack, dazed and blood-spattered, followed by Amira who snapped back into focus and shrieked at the blood on her arms. Bridget’s control broke the second she died.
Kenny turned to Chloe, rage in his gaze, and she shrugged at him, breathing hard from the exertion and shock of what she’d done. It wasn’t her place to kill vampires. She’d never done anything like that before. She trembled as she looked at the ash-covered umbrella on the carpet.
“You’re going to pay for that.” Kenny’s fists were balled as he advanced on her, venom in his tone.
She glanced at Zack as he slid down the wall. He looked dead—glassy-eyed and covered in blood.
Hot tears pricked her eyes. If she failed him after all this, she didn’t know what she’d do.
Kenny’s first punch connected hard, followed by another as he roared at her. The air was knocked from her lungs as she was thrown onto her back.
Her vision blurred as Larry attacked Kenny from behind. He was no match for the older, bulkier guy. Even if he wasn’t a necromancer, Larry didn’t stand a chance.
“Back the fuck off, dead-boy.”
The single command had Larry back off and stand stock-still while Kenny advanced on her again, cursing and spitting his fury out as he got ready to kill her.
He fell on her, his hands gripping her neck. She could see the blind hatred in his eyes as he started to choke her. Her hands scratched at his wrists as she tried to make him let go.
Amnesia Bites (Shady Arcade Book 1) Page 13