Scent of a Vampire

by Jude Stephens

  "Thanks." I turned and went down aisle two. The pocketknife was on the small side but it would have to do. As I was headed back to the counter, I grabbed the box of donuts I dropped earlier.

  I checked my items out and went out the door, just as what I'm sure was a real prostitute, came in with a rather scary looking man. I tried not to stare. It was a little startling to find myself in contact with this part of the world. It wasn't a normal part of the world I moved in. You know this world exists. It just never touches me. It was kind of a surreal moment. I made my way back to the motel room and let myself in. I didn't see Alex anywhere and I panicked for a second, until I realized the bathroom door was closed. I set my bag down to unpack it. I heard a groan from the bathroom and ran to the door. "Alex! Are you all right?"

  All I heard was another moan and I grabbed the doorknob ready to go in, terrified I would find Alex on the floor, passed out and bleeding or something. When the sounds became a little louder, I comprehended just what they were. I backed up slowly and as quietly as possible from Scent of a Vampire – Jude Stephens

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  the door. I sat down on the bed, unsure if I should leave but not liking the thought of sitting outside in the dark. So I just sat there and listened. It was strangely exciting, sitting here picturing Alex in there, stroking and pulling and.... I jumped up. I had to get out; go sit in the car or something. At that moment the bathroom door opened and Alex came out with his jeans still open. I was so embarrassed that I couldn't look at him. He came to stand in front of me. "Olivia, look at me." I looked up at him. "Don't be embarrassed at what you heard. I had to take matters into my own hands. Literally. It is painful to be so hard.

  "I normally wouldn't have difficulty controlling myself but between being here with you and not being able to touch you and that damn Sensay blood, well, I had to do something."

  "I'm not embarrassed by what you were doing. I'm not a prude or anything. On occasions I've had to take matters into my own hands too, you know."

  He groaned. "Please for the love of God Olivia, stop." My eyes widened. "There is no way you can be in that kind of mood again. You just well, you know." He took my hand and placed it against the front of his jeans where there was an obvious bulge. "How is it you have no idea about vampires when you just spent two days with one? A vampire has the ability to make love many times in a night." He squatted down in front of me and looked me in the eyes. "If you were mine, you would have known that. I would have made sure I loved you long and hard my every waking moment."

  I felt like I had to defend Roberto. "Well maybe he was concerned about me. Maybe he didn't want me to be sore. He is kind that way."

  "Hmmm, maybe he was. And maybe what I would have done if you became too sore would have been to use my tongue on every sore spot on your body. As I told you our saliva has agents in it that promotes healing." I didn't like the fact I was learning more about vampires in the last few hours than in the two days I spent with Roberto. Still I felt I owed him to at least try and defend him. "Well, I'm sure he didn't want to frighten me with too many strange things at once."

  Alex chuckled, "Yeah you're probably right. Knowing Roberto he was probably just concerned about you and didn't want to alarm you with an over abundance of passion." I didn't want to hear anymore. "Do you want me to take out the bullet or not?"

  Alex stood up and removed his shirt. I stared at his muscular chest with a smattering of fine gold hair on it. When I shivered Alex asked, "Are you cold?" With laughter in his voice.

  "Oh shut up and lay down on the bed." I snapped.

  "Ohhh baby I've been waiting all night for you to say that." He wagged his eyebrows at me.

  I couldn't help but smile back at him. He was quite the charmer.

  I didn't want to do this but knew I had no choice. I went to the bathroom and got some towels Scent of a Vampire – Jude Stephens

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  and filled the ice bucket with warm water. I took an antiseptic wipe out of the first aid kit and wiped the blade of the pocketknife.

  "Do you know exactly where the bullet is lodged?" He pointed to a spot right beneath his collarbone.

  "Before you start, if I pass out, which I normally don't, but I'm thinking with your Sensay blood in me I'm going to feel this more than normal."

  I hadn't even given that a thought. But it made sense, if I could feel pleasure more than normal; it stands to reason I would feel pain more than normal. Well heck, that wasn't good. Now I really didn't want to be doing this. Alex continued, "If I do pass out, don't leave the room. When I wake at dusk we'll continue on to Buffalo. I'm sure Roberto will meet us there. The sunsets just before eight tonight and it should only take us six hours to get to Buffalo. I can have you back with your parents by three am." I was overcome with emotion and hugged him hard.

  "Thank you Alex. I'm so worried about them." He hugged me back. "I know babe, that is how I feel about my family too. I'd do anything to keep them safe. Tonight while we're driving I'll tell you all about them, especially my sister. Her and I are really close or were. I haven't seen her in a while." He sounded sad.

  I took a deep breath, "Okay let's get this over with." Alex took one of the towels, corded it and put it in his mouth. He again pointed right to the spot where I should cut. I forced my mind to the place that I went with my patients when I needed to manipulate limbs that no longer worked. I knew it caused them pain but I also knew it was for their own good.

  I steadied my hands the best I could and with no more hesitation, cut into Alex's chest.

  Chapter 17

  Alex closed his eyes, so I had no way of knowing how much pain he was in. I made a small incision about an inch and a half long. Remarkably there was not a lot of blood oozing out of the wound. I knew I had to act fast because of Alex's accelerated healing.

  I set the knife down and mentally prepared myself for the worse part. I closed my eyes and slid my index finger into the wound. Alex twitched a little. I started to move my finger around in the wound. I felt the bone but did not feel any bullet. I didn't want to probe too hard and make it worse if it dislodged and moved. I moved my finger a little to the right and felt the bullet. It didn't seem to be embedded in the bone but felt like it was resting up against it. With my free hand I reached in the first aid kit and got the tweezers. They didn't look like they'd be long enough but it was going to have to do. I carefully inserted the tweezers with out removing my index finger. I wanted to make sure that I didn't lose where the bullet was. I quickly glanced up to look at Alex's face. His eyes were still closed but he had broken a sweat on his pale face.

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  It was difficult to get a hold of the bullet. Every time that I got a grip on it and started to pull, it would slip out of my grasp. I finally managed to move it by using the tweezers and my index finger to guide it.

  "Yes!!" I exclaimed when I pulled it free from the hole. I dropped the bullet on the towel and got the ice bucket with the water in it.

  I wrung out a washcloth and gently cleaned the wound. I looked at Alex's face, which was relaxed now. He had indeed passed out. As I held the cloth against the oozing wound, I reached up and took the towel from Alex's mouth.

  "Yikes." I said as I looked at the shredded towel. His fangs must have been out. Taking the towel from his wound I was amazed to see the blood flow had already slowed down. I couldn't help but wonder why last time he had lost so much more blood than this time. Oh well, I was just happy to see the wound was beginning to knit together. It was fascinating to see something so extraordinary. I set to cleaning up but kept glancing at Alex to make sure that he was all right.

  When I was done cleaning, I took a shower and dressed in the best clothes I could find in Leeds's suitcase, which happened to be a pair of black leather pants and the tube top. At least they were clean. I ate one of the apples I had bought earlier and drank the orange juice. I looked at the box of donuts but had n
o appetite for them. Nothing like digging into a mans body to put off your appetite I thought. Feeling a bit tired I glanced at the clock. It was four-thirty.

  Soon it would be dawn and somewhere out there Roberto was getting ready to go to sleep.

  I wondered if he was thinking about me, if he was worried. There was nothing I could do at the moment so I crawled into the bed beside Alex. I scooted over next to him to check his wound. It was healing nicely and the bleeding was down to a drop. Alex groaned softly and threw an arm around my waist. Not wanting to disturb him I just let it lie there. I looked at his face, which was boyish in his slumber. His mouth was gorgeous with full soft lips. He had a little blond stubble on his strong jaw. I remembered how he had kissed me a few days ago, soft and sensuous, like he needed to savor it. I inhaled in a deep breath in order to stop my racing heart and my senses were assaulted with his scent. He had the sweet scent I knew now that all vampires have, but underlying that was a muskiness mixed with, Oh God, a wave of white-hot lust hit me. I understood now what Alex had been talking about. It had to be the Sensay blood. My desire for Alex was painful. It was like the blood flowing through my veins was on fire. I could feel my clitoris swell and begin to throb.

  I eased Alex's arm from around me and slid out of the bed. I stumbled into the bathroom. I had barely closed the door when I slumped onto the floor and in a frenzy of need ripped off my leather pants. I barely touched myself with my fingers before I felt the first ripples of an orgasm hit me. I lay on the bathroom floor shaking with my pants around my ankles and I began to cry.

  I lay there sobbing and didn't hear the door open. The next thing I knew Alex was picking me up and carrying me to the bed where he laid me down. He lay beside me and gathered me in his Scent of a Vampire – Jude Stephens

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  arms. He never said a word, just stroked my back. After a little while he went still and I knew that he had fallen into his slumber.

  I was so tired but couldn't fall asleep. I stared at Alex's still form and thought about how gentle and understanding he was. He made me feel treasured like I was the only woman in the world. I was so confused because my heart constricted whenever I looked at him. Am I falling in love with two men?

  What was wrong with me? Even with my mind in turmoil I felt fatigue overtake me. I fell asleep thinking I needed to do something but I didn't know what to do.

  When I woke up I felt tired and disoriented, as if I hadn't slept enough. I looked at the clock on the nightstand and it read eleven forty-seven. No wonder I was still tired, I only slept five hours.

  I lay there and let my mind wander. All of this was such a mess. My parents are in danger. Some fanatics who want me dead had shot me at twice. I've had my wardrobe overhauled by a horny devil. And I have two men, well vampires, who I think I may be in love with. And oh yeah, my best friend was in Italy without me. We had always talked about going to Europe together.

  We were going to backpack and stay in hostels. Our last big adventure before we got old. Now she was there and I was here. I was not able to even take care of myself. This whole situation was ridiculous. I am a grown woman. And what's more, I am semi intelligent. What I really needed was to make some decisions for myself for a change. Distance was what I needed, distance and time alone to sort out my feelings. I was sure that if I had some time to myself that I would see things more clearly.

  I would most likely realize my feelings for Alex and Roberto were just manifestations of the intense emotions plaguing me the last few days. Suddenly I felt much better. I started to silently slip out of bed and again caught myself and smiled. I guess I would never get used to sleeping with vampires. I didn't shower, just washed up because I was anxious to get on the road. I did take time to write Alex a note. I thanked him for taking care of me and that I was going on ahead to Buffalo. I also told him I was confused over my feelings and I needed some time to myself. I made sure I left half of the money from the envelope for him and took the other half, which totaled four hundred dollars. That would be plenty for tolls and gas and a rest stop along the way. Maybe there would even be enough to buy myself some decent clothes along the way.

  I also grabbed the maps Leeds had packed.

  I found my appetite was back, so I took a donut from the box and opened the door carefully so that the sunlight wouldn't hit Alex and stepped out. It seemed awhile since I had last seen the sunlight. Was it really only three days ago?

  Good grief, it felt like weeks since I left Buffalo. I got to the car and thought of one more thing I should do so I ran back to the room, slipped inside and took the 'Do Not Disturb' sign from the doorknob and slipped it on the outside of the door. There, I didn't want a maid or someone else opening the door and finding Alex in his death sleep. I got in the car, folded the map so it would be easy for me to read and pulled out of the parking lot. After only one wrong turn, I was Scent of a Vampire – Jude Stephens

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  headed in the right direction. Luck was with me because the turnpike traffic was pretty light.

  While driving, I had a lot of time to think. Alex and Roberto were probably right. If these Guardian people wanted me dead, we were going to have to leave Buffalo. I thought about how I was going to explain all of this to my parents. I didn't think that they would freak out. They weren't the freaking out kind of parents at all.

  I could hear my mom now "Ohhh, vampires Olivia! Did you ask to see their fangs? Did they turn into bats? You shouldn't let an experience like that pass you by Olivia." My parents were all about living life. I always felt they were a little disappointed in me since I turned out to be so cautious.

  Maybe we could head north into Canada. My parents would talk sometimes about relatives we had there. All I knew, as I flew across the highway, was I couldn't wait to see them. I drove for an hour and checked the gas gauge. It was getting low and in my hurry to leave I forgot to fill it up in Philly. I had just passed a sign advertising a rest stop a few miles up ahead and decided to pull off to refuel. After putting gas in the car I went to the ladies room. I determined I could take a few minutes to sit and eat something. I took out the map to see how long a trip I had yet.

  I was in Allentown. According to the map I was about three hundred and fifty miles from Buffalo. I looked at the clock on the wall. It was two pm. With luck, I would be in Buffalo around seven. Mom and Dad would be sitting down to dinner. Maybe Mom made her yummy post roast. I checked the cash I had left and decided I had enough to go to the gift shop and buy a tshirt or something to put over my tube top.

  I was getting tired of the stares I was getting from men and the glares from women. The gift shop didn't have much of a choice in apparel. I decided on a t-shirt that was advertising a local zoo on it. It had a picture of a beautiful white wolf on it. I loved the zoo and wished I had time to visit.

  When I got back in the car, I went to put my envelope full of cash in the glove compartment and saw the gun in there. Looking around me as if people were watching, I took the gun out and put it under my seat. Though I didn't think there was any reason to worry at the moment, I knew the Guardians were dangerous. I wasn't a fool. And I wouldn't let them hurt my family.

  As I continued driving north, I made plans. First, of course, was explaining everything to my parents. Once more I was thankful that my parents were cool. They wouldn't call me crazy and try and have a psyche evaluation done on me. Then we would need to pack everything we could, clothes, documents, pictures, and mementos. We could probably be ready to leave first thing in the morning. I would get maps and drive to our relatives in Canada. We would be safe there. I wondered how I would get word to Alex and Roberto. Maybe I could send them a letter at their casinos. I was amazed I hadn't even gotten their phone numbers. How bad was that? I slept with one of them for Pete's sake. And I couldn't forget Leeds, even though he was a bit off, I wanted to somehow get back to see him. He was lonely and needed a friend to talk to. I didn't forget about Janel either. I needed to contact her too. Wi
th so much to think about the time and the miles flew by and I got excited when I began to see road signs for Buffalo.

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  I started to see things that were familiar, and a nervous jittery feeling began to nag at me. I tried to tell myself it was because of everything that had happened in the last few days.

  I guessed I would be home in about a half hour. The dashboard clock said it was seven o'clock.

  Without thinking, I swung off the road on the next exit I saw. The nervous feeling was turning into panic, which was building inside me until it was making me sick to my stomach. I pulled into the, thankfully, almost empty parking lot and opened the car door and threw up. I was scared. What was wrong with me? I closed the car door, wiped my mouth and laid my head back. I took some deep breaths and tried to calm myself down. I felt a little better. I wished that I hadn't left Alex. That he was with me now.

  I looked around the parking lot to make sure that no one was watching me because I'm sure I looked suspicious just sitting here. At the far end of the lot I spied a pay phone. YES! I could call home. I would feel much better talking with Mom or Dad. And best of all, those damn Guardians wouldn't be able to trace it. I watched cop shows and if you didn't stay on long they couldn't trace it. It wouldn't matter anyway. I wasn't going to stick around here. I found some change and got out of the car. I kept looking around me. The jittery feeling wouldn't go away.

  Great now I was paranoid. It felt as though there was a target painted on my back. I made it across the parking lot without being shot at or kidnapped. Well at least that was encouraging.

  With nervous, shaking hands I inserted the coins into the slot. I carefully dialed the number to my parent's home. There was a second of silence and then it rang, once, twice, three times. I knew that if it rang again, the answering machine would switch on. Then I heard a click. Thank God!