by Judith Post
Enoch glanced out the French doors. The sky, as usual in November in Three Rivers, was dependably gray. "Do you want to get out of the apartment for a while?"
Voronika cocked her head, interested. "To do what?"
"The girls will need boots and winter coats soon, and there's a food court at the mall."
"Boots?" Voronika rose in one fluid motion—a vampire thing. "I've seen pictures in magazines of boots that go past your knees. Women wear them with skintight leggings."
Now she had him intrigued. "You look good in skintight."
Voronika laughed. "Come on, girls. Let's get out of here for a while." She looked at Enoch. "We'll eat at the mall. Don't worry about supper."
He waited for them to leave, then squared his shoulders and went to confront Crystal.
When the door opened and she saw him, she dropped the alarm clock she was about to throw—again. It already had dents in its side. She glared. "What do you want?"
"I want you to grow up. If you're going to act like a crazed, newly turned vamp, we can always chain you to a wall."
She looked uncertain. "You wouldn't."
"I would."
She frowned at him. "But you're nice."
"What's your definition of nice? I'm no push-over, and you're pissing me off."
Her shoulders slumped and she sagged onto the bed. She looked so young, so vulnerable, it pained him. She buried her hands in her thick, chestnut hair. "It's not fair! I put up with Mom the whole time I grew up, and now she's ruined my entire life!"
Enoch sat beside her, enough space between them not to touch. "What can I say? Life isn't fair. I'm stuck down here, cleaning up Caleb's messes. Am I happy about it? I'm learning to adjust."
She turned to study him. "You didn't want to come here?"
"And leave Home? No."
"Don't you get mad sometimes?"
He shrugged. "I used to. Not so much anymore. It is what it is. I make the best of it, and once I decided that, I found things to love on Earth."
"Like Voronika?"
He smiled. "She changed everything."
Crystal reached out both hands to grip his arm. "How did you do it? How did you let go of the anger?"
"I looked at the alternative. I got tired of my own whining. I decided to make the best of it. First, I started working with the generals, and then I found a purpose, and finally, I found Voronika."
She scrubbed her hands over her face. "Lucinda's doing that, isn't she? She's learning to adjust."
Enoch nodded.
"Why can't I?"
"You just took the first step. Anger's a good thing. You have to admit you got screwed, then you can work past it."
"And Lance…."
"Is a lot like your mother. He'll always put himself first."
Tears welled again. "I thought if maybe I found someone, it would make things better."
"It will," Enoch told her. "But he's not the right one."
She took a deep breath, nodded. "I'm done throwing things now."
"Good. Voronika took the girls to the mall. Do you want me to drive you there to meet them?"
She shook her head. "Not tonight. Tonight, I think I'll rent one movie after another, cry all I want to, and then start being nicer to my little sister."
"She'd like that," Enoch said. "She thinks you're near sainthood."
Crystal laughed. "She's still a kid."
"But a damned smart one."
They left the room and Crystal settled on the sofa in front of the TV.
"Rent as many movies as you want to," Enoch told her. "Hungry?"
She shook her head. "I'll just grab snacks tonight. Do you think a few sips from you would help me control my Lance lust?"
"Let's find out." He let her feed from him until she was satiated. Then she pressed a hand to her lips.
"I feel better, less hungry…for everything."
If his blood helped Crystal control any of her urges, it was a blessing. And since everyone had already been fed, he decided that he and Ulrich would eat out tonight before they went to Feral's club. He hadn't stepped inside a restaurant since the girls moved into their apartment, and he missed dining out.
Ulrich woke at sunset, and Voronika returned home with the girls a short while later.
"Hey, sis, want to rent a movie with me?" Crystal called.
Angel's eyes went wide in surprise. Lucinda stared.
Crystal shook her head. "I think some of my hungers are passing. I feel more like me again."
Angel rushed to plop on the couch beside her. Lucinda heaved a sigh of relief and went to curl on the loveseat across from them. Voronika tossed Enoch a questioning look, but went to join the girls.
"You boys are going out tonight, right?" she asked.
"We have a vampire to visit," Ulrich said.
"Have fun."
"Did you find boots?" Enoch asked.
"We all did." She raised an eyebrow. "You're going to like mine."
He felt his blood race. His mind pictured Voronika in a black bra and thong…and boots.
"Down, boy," Ulrich told him. "Right now, we have things to do."
Enoch drove them to the restaurant across the street and they took their time over their meal, talking strategy. The club wouldn't reach full swing until after nine, and they wanted it crammed with customers when they got there.
Ulrich gave a wicked grin. "I think this is going to be the most fun I've ever had, working with you. Are you sure you can pull it off?"
Enoch paid their bill, with a generous tip, and started to the Jaguar. "I'll try to follow your lead. You're a natural at annoying people."
Ulrich laughed. "Everyone has special talents. Try to keep up."
Incisor scowled when he saw them, but motioned them inside. "Feral's busy right now. She'll be down in a few minutes."
Enoch shrugged. "We didn't come to see her. We came to have a good time."
Incisor's frown deepened, but what could he do?
Ulrich walked straight to the bar, forcing vampires to move out of his way. Every stool was taken, but he walked up to a big vampire—old, by the looks of his incisors—who was sipping a drink and said, "I want your seat. Move."
The vampire's shoulders stiffened, and he slowly turned to look at them. "Who's going to make me?"
Ulrich's blue eyes sparkled with humor. "Me, myself, and I." He nudged the vampire's friend, who was sitting next to him. "You, too, out of here."
The friend turned, his eyes rimmed with yellow, but caught himself when he saw Ulrich's Viking garb and Enoch's wool pants and silk shirt. "You're the general and the angel?"
Ulrich would be hard to miss—one advantage of having a Norse friend who didn't keep up with styles. Vampires recognized him.
"That's us," Ulrich bragged, "and we can mop the floor with every last one of you."
The vampire grinned. "And why would you have to do that when we good, law-abiding vampires respect and admire your services so much? It's our privilege to give you our seats."
The two vampires bowed slightly before they left. Ulrich snorted. "Well, aren't they polite?"
Enoch chuckled. "They're clever enough." He gave the girl bartender his drink order, "Chardonnay," and turned to study the room. As usual, every seat was taken. He scanned the patrons, curious if there were a lot of familiar faces. He stopped when he saw Macy sitting at a table, surrounded by vampires. One of them had his hand on her upper thigh.
Ulrich followed his gaze. "I can feel the chill from here. Who is she? Why do you care?"
Enoch explained about seeing her face when he touched the dead boy. "Danny and I tried to warn her about venom, but she didn't believe us."
"I could go over there, sling her over my shoulder, and throw her out on her ass," Ulrich said.
Enoch shook his head. "She'd just come back some other night. She thinks Lucifer has a plan for her."
"Yeah, it's called Hell. In our religion, the goddess Hel rules the underworld, probably where you pagan
s came up with your ideas."
"The name, at least." Enoch watched Macy take the vampire's hand, rise, and start upstairs with him. Stupid girl. She was going to let him feed off her. Halfway up the stairs, she must have felt his gaze on her. She looked up, saw him, and waved.
He gave his head a quick shake no.
She blew him a kiss and disappeared up the steps.
"Damn it." Enoch emptied his wine glass.
"Slow down, friend. We're going to have a long night."
Enoch nodded to the bartender for another one. "You know alcohol doesn't affect me any more than it does you."
Ulrich raised his eyebrows, surprised. "I didn't know it ever affected you."
"It doesn't." Enoch took a sip from the second glass and leaned his back against the bar, facing the room.
Ulrich did the same. He pointed to a female vampire three tables away. Her dark hair framed a heart-shaped face. Her eyes gleamed almost violet. "What do you think of that one?" he asked.
Enoch's gaze swept the table. "Not a bad one in the lot."
"Let's start there." Ulrich's whistle pierced the room. When the dark-haired beauty looked at him, he grinned and raised his glass in a salute.
She licked her lips and stood. Everyone watched as she crossed the room to him. "I heard you were off-limits." Her voice purred, sultry and coy.
Ulrich's grin widened. "I've been saving myself for you."
"Oh, honey, you'll be happy you did."
Ulrich spread his legs, and she wedged herself between them. "No sex," he said. "I promised my mother I'd abstain, but my friend and I have been feeling lonely. We're willing to offer a few sips to anyone who helps lift our moods."
She inhaled deeply. "Just lick my cheek when you want me to stop."
Ulrich pulled at his white tunic, showing golden tan skin. She sank her fangs a few inches below his collarbone, and he stroked her hair. He let her take a half-dozen, long draughts before his tongue flicked out to touch her cheek.
When she turned to go back to her table, she staggered slightly. She glanced at her table and motioned for them to try Ulrich, too.
As the women lined up, Ulrich said, "Form two lines, girls. My friend's in a generous mood, too."
One of the women threw herself on Enoch. He caught her and held her steady, smiled, and unbuttoned his shirt. So many women gasped, it felt like the entire bar was holding its breath.
"Remember me?" the girl asked.
"I never forget a face. You tried to drink from me the last time I was here."
"You could have killed me. Didn't. Now you're offering yourself up. Why?"
Enoch settled her on his lap and motioned to Ulrich. "My friend here needs a night out. If this makes him happy, why not?"
She bit into his flesh, near his shoulder, and moaned as she drank. Her hands rubbed all over him. If Voronika saw this, there'd be hell to pay, but for Enoch, feeding wasn't an erotic experience. This was business.
When she drew back, she put a hand on his chest to steady herself. "Thank you," she whispered.
That's all it took. Between Ulrich's women staggering as they wove between tables and Enoch's barely able to stand, female vampires lined up. Feral, wearing a scarlet kimono with a high slit, came down the stairs, her face twisted with fury. She stormed toward them.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Ulrich sipped his beer as a vampire drank from him. "We decided to be part of the fun. You said you loved seeing us, so here we are."
Her lips pulled down. "You've disrupted everything. The women aren't buying drinks, and they're not paying attention to my male guests, who come here, hoping to get lucky."
"Too bad for them." Ulrich flicked out his tongue to lick the girl's cheek, and she pulled back, almost falling. A friend in line caught her.
"Stop." Feral turned to the women. "No more. If you want venom, visit my bartenders or servers."
No one moved.
Feral whirled on Enoch. "Out! Get out. And don't come back."
He looked at Ulrich. "We haven't broken any vampire rules. We'll come as often as we like."
"Fine, then offer your blood somewhere else, not here."
Ulrich shrugged. "Our car's parked in the next lot if anyone wants to follow us there."
When they left the bar, females followed them. The women who remained were either mortals or so satisfied, they only ordered water to drink and waved away any male who came near them.
Feral, arms crossed over her chest, screamed after them. "How often are you going to stop here?"
Enoch turned and grinned. "How often are you going to send Lance to see Crystal?"
Her jaw dropped. She stared. Turning on her heel, she went upstairs.
Ulrich kept up a steady patter of conversation as one vamp after another sipped from them in the parking lot. After the last female fed, Ulrich turned to Enoch and asked, "Success?"
Enoch felt as weary as Ulrich looked. "Not bad for a first volley. What do you think?"
Ulrich motioned to Feral, framed in the window of the top floor, looking down on them. "I think she's pissed."
Enoch smiled. "Are you in the mood for a drink?"
"Is it on you?"
"I could use a keg."
"Then let's order one." They went back inside, frowned at two vampires sitting at the bar, and took their places when they moved.
"I'm going to have to eat a case of raw steaks tonight," Ulrich said. "I don't know if you ever get depleted, but I'm feeling a little weak."
"Is that so?" A tall, thin vampire stalked toward them, an ugly snarl on his face. "I flew in from the west coast tonight to have some fun, but you boys ruined it for me. I'm not too happy about that."
Ulrich tried not to laugh. "I'd say I'm sorry, but I'm not."
The vampire lunged, moving at warp speed, but Ulrich ducked under his blow, and knocked his feet out from under him. He kicked him onto his back and sank his knee onto his chest. "What do you think, Enoch? A little slow and sorry?"
Enoch sipped his wine, then waved a hand. "Give him a break. He might not know you're one of Bart's generals."
Ulrich looked surprised. "Do you think he realized you're an angel?"
The vampire's expression changed from anger to fear. "Allow me to express my apologies. I didn't realize…."
Ulrich held out a hand for Enoch to yank him to his feet. "Damn, it's been a long night."
"I don't like the atmosphere here," Enoch said. "Let's buy a keg on the way home. We'll stop at the store for steaks."
Ulrich pulled the vampire to a standing position. "Be more careful who you challenge. You don't want to end up true dead."
The bar was deathly silent as they headed to the door. Incisor met their eyes, and Enoch could swear he'd enjoyed himself. "See you soon," Enoch said, and the vampire nodded.
Once in their car, Enoch sighed. "Damn, I thought the line would never end."
"You've ruined one of my fantasies," Ulrich complained. "I thought it would be exciting to have women stand in line for me. Not so much."
Enoch started the engine. "Let's buy our stuff and go home."
"Too bad you can't sleep," Ulrich said. "On nights like this, sleep makes everything better."
"I wouldn't know." They stopped at the grocery store and Enoch bought every steak in the cooler. Then they stopped at the liquor store, and he bought a keg.
The apartment was quiet when they got home. Everyone in bed. Two hours later, Ulrich's color had returned to normal and his smile was sloppy. "Good night, old friend. It's always an adventure with you."
Enoch glanced at the clock. In three hours, Angel would be up, and he'd have to drive her to school. After that, he was going to meditate. For a long time.
Chapter 30
A cell phone rang and woke Ulrich. He glanced at the blinds that made their bedroom pitch black. What time was it? He glanced at the clock on the bureau. Half past six—sunset at this time of year.
No one answered the phone. Vo
ronika and Enoch would be up, playing parents to Angel. The call must have been for Crystal. In a few minutes, the phone's music started again. Only someone young would load crap like that as a ring tone. He strained his ears to listen.
A soft voice said, "I don't want to see you anymore." There was a pause. "No, you don't love me. You love my venom. Leave me alone." The phone went silent.
Good girl! Ulrich grinned against his pillow, impressed. Thoughts scudded through his mind. Had Feral, in a pique, told Lance to call Crystal? Or hadn't Lance talked to his dark mistress yet? He and Enoch had made it clear they'd heckle her if she didn't put Lover Boy on a leash.
He listened to Lucinda's breathing. They shared a king-sized bed, but she slept on one side, and he slept as far from her as he could get on the other. They never touched. Too dangerous for him. Lucinda was temptation on legs. She wore pajama tops and bottoms to bed each night, trying to be modest, but her lush breasts pressed against the soft material and made the buttons gap. Her ass was meant to grab.
He pushed those thoughts aside. Silently, he slipped from underneath the blankets. He wore a long nightshirt to bed and bent to reach for his leather pants. Lucinda turned and moved. A hand slid up his inner thigh and cupped his privates.
He gasped.
Lucinda chuckled and squeezed.
What was the wench thinking? He might be undead, but he wasn't true dead.
Damn, he'd let one female after another feed from him last night and came home with his testosterone so high, he thought his balls might explode and fall off. Then he climbed into bed next to the sexiest woman he'd ever met and wouldn't let himself touch her. Now this?
He jumped as though she'd set his pubic hairs on fire. "What are you doing?"
She sniffed. "How many women did you have last night?"
"None." He pulled on his brown breeches. He tugged his nightshirt over his head.
With vampire speed, Lucinda was standing in front of him, pressing herself against his chest.
"Stop it!"
Rubbing against him, she said, "I smell dozens of women on you."
He pushed her a few inches away. Those soft breasts couldn't touch him again. He'd lose control. "They fed off me. Enoch let them feed from him, too. We did everything we could to disrupt Feral's business."