by Judith Post
Ulrich's shoulders relaxed. "You can have a good, undead life. It's possible. I'm glad you're starting to see that."
Angel crossed her arms over her chest, frowning. She gave her sister a long, sad look. No one caught it but Enoch, and it made him worry. Was there something he was missing?
Crystal glanced out the French doors at the evening sky. The last trace of pink had faded and clouds blocked the moon and stars. Excitement simmered under her casual words. "The sooner we eat, the sooner we can train."
Ulrich locked gazes with him. Crystal's mood swing was too sudden. But then Enoch thought of Maggie. Maybe being changed sent a woman's hormones up and down as much as pregnancy did. What if Crystal bounced from depressed and sullen to enthused and excited at just a word or two? He shrugged. It was better than having her constantly moody, trying to work up the nerve to walk outside into the sunshine.
They formed a line and loaded their plates before heading to the table to eat.
Angel swallowed a bite of food and looked at her sister. "I got two A's today at school."
"Mmm, that's nice." Crystal glanced out the French doors again at the city skyline.
"One of them was in arithmetic," Angel said.
"Good." Crystal finished her sandwich and waited impatiently for the others to finish their meal.
Angel stood, hands on hips. "You don't even care about me any more!"
Crystal jerked, startled. She stared. "Of course, I do."
"No, you don't. You don't pay attention to anything I tell you. All you think about is…."
Crystal interrupted. "Don't be silly, Ang. You're my sister. I've always cared about you."
Angel glanced at Enoch, then back at Crystal. She bit her bottom lip.
Crystal came around the table and hugged her. "I'm sorry. Everything that's happened has been too much for me, but I'm getting better. At least I don't want to eat you anymore."
Angel smiled. Tears misted her eyes, and she hugged Crystal back. "This lust thing will pass too, right?"
"Right." Crystal glanced out the French doors. The sky was black now.
Angel sniffed, wiped at her eyes, and sat back down. She picked at her food.
Voronika reached for Angel's hand. "If you're not hungry, you can eat later. What if we get some of your homework done, so we can watch TV?"
A cheap bribe. Voronika knew Angel loved the show Sleepy Hollow. What kid could resist a headless horseman riding around town on a white stallion, trying to bring about the apocalypse?
Ulrich frowned at Crystal. "You're in a hurry tonight."
"If we get finished early enough, I found a book on Enoch's shelves I'd like to read."
Lucinda stared. It was clear from the look on her face that she wasn't quite buying Crystal's story, but she finished her sloppy joe and got up to throw her paper plate in the trash.
Enoch wasn't quite buying the story either. Neither was Ulrich, but he wasn't sure what he should believe.
Crystal sighed. "Look. I'm trying. I want to be a good vampire. Help me."
Ulrich nodded and pushed to his feet. "Let's go then."
Enoch pulled on his work-out hoodie, and they walked the few blocks to the alleys they'd begun practicing in. Enoch and Lucinda walked ahead to separate themselves from Ulrich and Crystal. Suddenly, Ulrich dropped onto Lucinda from a rooftop and pinned her to the ground. Crystal dropped on Enoch, and when he grabbed her by the throat, she smashed a fist into his face.
"Good!" he told her.
Lucinda kneed Ulrich in the groin, and Ulrich rolled off her. Then the sparring began. The fights rose in intensity, and both girls were doing a good job of holding their own. They'd lose to generals, but they knew more moves than most. When the sparring finished, the girls dashed off to hunt for food.
Lucinda returned before Crystal. Her face was flushed from exertion and her breasts heaved as she caught her breath.
Ulrich tore his gaze from her and looked at Enoch. "If you walk the girls home tonight, I'd appreciate it. I could use some time to relax."
Lucinda looked at the bulge in Ulrich's snug, leather pants. She grinned. "Cool off all you want, but it won't help you. Neither will cold showers. Someday, you'll have to give in and further my education."
"Education." Ulrich groaned. When Crystal returned, he motioned for Enoch to take the girls away.
Lucinda took one side of Enoch and threaded her arm through his. Crystal took the other. "Will you protect us from the big, bad monsters?" Lucinda teased. She looked up at him, smug.
Enoch shook his head. "Right now, I'm trying to protect Ulrich from you."
Her smile crumbled. "You don't think I'm a good match for him?"
"I think you're exactly what he needs, but he's my friend. If he asks for my help, he gets it."
Lucinda swayed her hips more as they walked. Now, she looked cocky. "Sometime, soon, he'll quit asking."
It was Enoch's turn to laugh. "I've known Ulrich a long time. He's nothing but stubborn."
"But he's nice, too. And he can be kind, not like my father and brothers."
Enoch heard the pain behind the words. He grew serious. "Ulrich's a good man. I'm proud to call him a friend."
Crystal's shoulders sagged. Her steps faltered. "I want to be in love."
"You?" Enoch kept his voice gentle. "You're still young. It's too soon for that, but it will come, once you know yourself better."
Crystal glanced at Lucinda. "I'm like you. I've never been loved. I mean, there's Angel, but she's a kid, my sister. I want…."
"We know what you want." Lucinda drew a heart-shape on her chest with her fingers.
Crystal's lips trembled. "I want someone to think I'm special. I want someone to want me more than anyone else in the world."
Enoch wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. "It will happen. You have no idea how special you are, but someone will recognize it. Give yourself time."
When they reached the apartment, Angel was in bed, asleep. Voronika patted a spot on the couch beside her, motioning for Enoch to join her. Lucinda sat in front of the TV and flipped through channels until she found an old rerun of Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot. Crystal pulled Pride and Prejudice off a bookshelf, but couldn't block out the TV. Eventually, she sat, laughing, with Lucinda as they watched the movie.
Voronika sighed. "How did it go during training tonight?"
"Better than usual." He told her about their conversation on the way home.
"Girls. They love to fill their heads with romance."
"You were married once, when you were mortal."
She tossed him a look. "My parents chose my husband. He was a good man. It worked."
Enoch reached for her hand, stroked it gently. "Not the stuff of romance."
She scooted closer, put her hand on his thigh. "I was happy enough with just sex until I met you."
He ran a hand through his pitch black hair. "We might never have sex again at the rate we're going."
She laughed. "We'll rent a motel room if I don't get some soon. I can't get enough of you, angel."
"It's mutual." But he'd been the one who wanted love, too. Sex, alone, hadn't been enough. He wanted all of Voronika. It took a long time before she felt the same way.
The vampires didn't head to bed until dawn. No pink tinged the horizon. Clouds brooded overhead. When Enoch loaded Angel into the car to drive her to school, Ulrich still hadn't returned. His friend had a lot of sexual frustration to walk off.
When Enoch returned and let himself into the apartment, he found Ulrich standing over Crystal, furious.
"What happened?" Enoch looked from one of them to the other.
Ulrich pointed at the girl. "I returned from my walk to find her on the balcony with Lance. I had to peel them apart. They didn't even hear me until I yelled at them."
Enoch took a deep breath. He knew Ulrich's temper. "And Lance? Where's he?"
"I spotted Scarlet in the parking lot. I tossed him down to her."
"You what?" A vampire couldn't harm a human in Three Rivers unless it was self-defense.
Ulrich tugged at his beard, frustrated. "I know the damned rules. Scarlet's a freaking vampire now. She caught him. They both fell to the pavement, but a few scratches serves them right."
Enoch turned to Crystal. His fingers balled into fists. He tried to tamp down his anger. "That's why you couldn't wait to leave the apartment last night. When you went off hunting, you met him, didn't you? And you set up this meeting?"
She licked her lips. "He loves it that I've become a vampire. He thinks I'm sexy."
"His hands were all over her when I found them." Ulrich's hands fisted, too.
"Did you bite him?" Enoch's voice surprised him, it was so harsh.
Crystal turned her head, not answering him.
"You did, didn't you?"
Ulrich nodded. "She was licking his puncture marks when I pulled them apart."
Enoch rubbed his forehead, fighting for calm. "He's addicted to venom. He's using you. I know you want love, but this isn't it."
"He loves me!"
That's what Tindle had told him and Danny. Her vampire loved her. How easy those words were to say, especially when the speaker didn't mean them.
Enoch took a deep breath. "Feral sent Scarlet to find Lance. I'm guessing he'd tried to get into the club, and Incisor turned him away. He must have mentioned that he knew you. Feral's using him to get to you. That means that it's dangerous for you to see him. And he doesn't care about that."
Crystal blinked. "Lance wouldn't do that."
"He'll do anything for venom." Ulrich had calmed down. He tried to explain to Crystal. "Feral already sent Scarlet to kill you. Who knows what she promised Lance if he could bring you to her?"
Crystal's hand went into her pocket and gripped something.
Enoch raised an eyebrow. "A cell phone?"
"No."
Enoch walked to her and pried the phone from her grip. "Where did you get this?"
Crystal bit her bottom lip.
"No problem, I'll ask Lance myself."
Enoch read the number on the screen and was about to call it when Crystal said, "No! Lance followed you and Voronika when you went to Maggie's house. He gave it to Angel to give to me when she was at the playground."
Enoch tossed the phone to Ulrich. He wanted to throw it against a wall. What a low-life, chicken-shit thing for Lance to do. No wonder Angel had been so upset when they left Danny's house, why she'd been on edge lately. "That says a lot, that Lance would use your little sister to get to you."
Would Feral try to use Angel? It would prove almost impossible. Voronika or he were always with her. The park had been the one time they'd let her out of their sight, besides school. And she was never alone there. If a vampire came to collect her on the playground, the whole city would hear about it, and Feral wouldn't like that. Neither would he. He'd go to her club and dust her sorry ass.
Crystal's shoulders squared. Her chin shot up. "What else could Lance do? If he knocked on the door here, you'd turn him away."
"Damn right, I would!" Enoch looked out the French doors. The gray sky matched his mood. He'd look for Scarlet. He'd pound her into the ground. He'd go to Feral's club and blast holes in every table. He'd turn Lance into a mass of blisters.
"Enoch?" Crystal sounded scared. Even Ulrich looked worried.
"What?" Did mortal parents feel so damned helpless? So frustrated?
He tried to think of a mantra, something that would make him more rational. When he was sure he wouldn't shout, he looked at Crystal. "Fine, invite Lance over for a visit. Let's get to know him better."
She stared.
Ulrich gaped. "Are you crazy?"
"No." Enoch clung to his calm. "If Crystal wants Lance, and Lance wants Crystal, we should take that seriously. Invite him for dinner. I'll make something special."
'No." Tears misted Crystal's eyes.
"Why not?"
"He won't come. He doesn't like you."
"We got off on the wrong foot," Enoch said. "I didn't like him either. But if he loves you, he'll want what's best for you. So do we. We should learn to get along."
"He still won't come." Crystal shifted from one foot to the other.
"Why?" Enoch wouldn't let it drop.
Crystal wouldn't meet his gaze. "He doesn't care about dinners and manners. He wants us to be together. He wants…."
"Sex and venom?" Ulrich asked.
Crystal nodded.
"And?" Enoch pressed farther.
"He wants me to change him," Crystal said, her voice small.
"So it's not love," Ulrich said. "It's selfish. It's all about Lance."
Crystal turned on her heel and ran down the hallway. She slammed her bedroom door behind her.
Ulrich walked to the kitchen and poured himself a tall glass of ale. He looked at Enoch.
"Why not?" Enoch reached for the wine.
"What do we do now?" Ulrich asked.
"I don't know. The more we try to stop her, the more she'll want Lance." Enoch sank onto one of the stools at the kitchen island.
"I say it's time to visit Feral's club again." Ulrich drained his glass and poured himself another. Vampires weren't big believers in moderation. Not that they needed to be. It took a lot of alcohol to bother a vamp.
Enoch cocked his head to the side and thought about Feral. Finally, he nodded. "We'll go tonight, and when we leave this time, she won't want to see us again."
Ulrich smiled. "Now I have something to look forward to." He drained his second glass and headed to bed.
Enoch carried his wine onto the balcony and sat, brooding. So far, everything about Three Rivers worked to Feral's advantage. How could they flip that, make Three Rivers unappealing?
Chapter 28
Angel could feel the difference in Enoch's mood the minute she settled in the car. Her usual chatter about her day at school died on her lips. She clasped her hands together in her lap and waited.
He gave her a quick glance, his black eyebrow lowered in irritation, but he didn't say anything until they were halfway home. The quiet bothered her more than her mother's constant yelling. He'd found Crystal's cell phone, she just knew it. And he'd learned that Angel had snuck it to her. What would he say? What would he do? Would he tell her to pack her things and get the hell out of his life?
Tears threatened. She didn't think she could stand his silence much longer when he stopped at a red light and stared at her. "I know you think you were helping your sister," he started, "but Lance doesn't love her. He's using her. And Feral's using him."
Angel felt her heart drop into her stomach. The tears evaporated. Fear crawled under her skin. No one scared her like Feral did. When Feral smiled at Crystal after Desya turned her and said, "I know you're hungry. Eat your sister as a snack," Angel had never known such fear.
Angel tried to talk, couldn't. Her throat felt dry. She swallowed and tried again. "Feral knows Lance?"
Her voice cracked, and Enoch grimaced. The light turned green. He pushed on the gas pedal, concentrating on traffic. When he did talk, he sounded sad, upset. "You're a kid, but I'd rather you know the truth. Lance has been letting Scarlet feed off him. When she licks his puncture marks to seal them, vampire venom enters his bloodstream. I'm guessing he's hooked on it."
Angel blinked, confused. "But how did Lance meet Scarlet?"
"Ulrich and I think he tried to get into the club, but got turned away because he's not twenty-one. He must have mentioned that he was a friend of Crystal's, hoping that would buy him a favor. Feral found out and sent Scarlet after him."
Angel clasped and unclasped her hands. Worry wormed through her brain, painting ugly pictures. "Why?"
"Feral hates Crystal. She blames her for Desya's death."
"But Desya almost killed her!" Heat burned her cheeks. "It wasn't Crystal's fault. It was Desya's."
"I know." Enoch stretched a hand toward hers and patted it. "That doesn't change thin
gs, though. Feral won't stop hating Crystal, and Ulrich and I think she'll keep using Lance to get close to her."
"She wants to kill her, doesn't she?"
"Yes." They turned into the apartments' parking lot and Enoch pulled into an empty slot. Leather crunched when he twisted in his car seat to look at her. "Right now, your sister can't think straight. Too much is happening inside her. Most new vampires are chained to walls until their bloodlust goes away. Then their usual lusts kicks in. My blood helps Crystal have more control, but it's still a struggle for her."
He paused and Angel nodded that she understood.
He went on, "I know that Voronika and I are new to you, and Crystal has been your rock since you were born, but for now, you have to trust us. When something involves Crystal, you need to talk to us about it."
She swallowed hard, blinking back tears. "I thought if I helped Crystal, she'd like me again."
He winced at those words, but nodded. "I know, but that might take a while. Right now, she doesn't even like herself. It will take time."
She hadn't thought of it that way. Enoch was right. Crystal didn't like herself as a vampire. Somehow, that made Angel feel better. She took a ragged breath. "Mom always said I was nothing but a sneak. I'm sorry."
"I wouldn't trust anything your mother said," Enoch told her. "And I don't agree with her. If anything, most of the time, you're a little too honest. You say what you think."
She sniffled, lost for words. Somehow, talking to Enoch always made her feel better. "Will Crystal be all right?"
"I don't know, but I hope so."
Not the answer she wanted to hear. Sometimes, Enoch could be a little too honest too.
Chapter 29
When Enoch and Angel went into the apartment, Lucinda and Voronika were both awake.
"I can't sleep with all the noise Crystal's making," Lucinda said. "It goes between sobs and hearing things smash against the wall."
Enoch looked at Voronika. "Is there anything you don't want to lose in your room?"
"She can't get to the jewelry you gave me." Voronika flinched when a shoe bounced off the closet door. "She slowed down for a minute, but must have regained her strength."