If she thought I wasn't capable of killing her, then she wasn't as good at this game as she made out.
I took a deep breath in and squared my shoulders. Then checked myself in the staffroom mirror. Doug, my boss, insists we all wear black. I never used to wear black. I was more of a yellow and green kind of girl. But Sensations has a black dress code for staff. It doesn't matter what you wear as long as it is black. I rebel sometimes. Wear bright coloured bangles, a necklace with a bright logo hanging down between my breasts. Or, like today, bright yellow happy faces hanging from my earrings. They make me gag, but I can tell they have an even bigger effect on Doug and Jett.
Doug runs the bar, he's OK, in a quiet head down kind of way. But Jett scares the hell out of me. He's the Master of the City and you can feel it. I know when he is in the room. I know when he is close. My whole body tingles with the power of his office. The urge to bow and scrape undeniable. Well almost. I fight it. Like I fight Doug. And Lucinda. And Samson. I fight them all, but they put up with me, because Lucinda has told them to. I don't know quite what sort of hold she has over the vampires in this city, but it's big and powerful. It's not that they fear her, it's something else. Something deeper. I don't get it. I don't really want to.
I undid my pony tail and ran my hands through my long blonde, wavy hair. Pulling it back into a tidy tail, fastening it high up on my head. Even tied up it came well past my shoulders. I liked my hair tied back when wearing earrings I needed noticed. The happy faces dangled merrily against my jaw. I studied my face. Pale white. I didn't normally get a tan in summer, but even if I had tanned in the past, I was turned in the middle of winter. A winter that had followed on from a very wet and uninspiring summer the year before. So, no tan, just a translucent white that coupled with my platinum blonde hair made me look almost albino.
My eyes didn't help. Normally a cerulean blue, when hungry the red creeps in from the edges, tingeing them a strange unnatural purple. At the moment they would be more red than purple, but contact lenses put paid to that. Now they were nothing more than a boring dark, dark blue. You can't hide red with lighter colours, so I have to go dark. It's a tell I hate. Doug knows when I haven't fed for a while, because me eyes are suddenly dark blue instead of light.
I swiped my lips with a bright red lipstick. The colour would draw attention to my full lips and away from my tell-tail eyes. Usually I like people noticing my eyes. They're big and bright and I have been told, beautiful. But no one likes blood-shot eyes, so bright red lips it is.
Brushing my black tank top down and adjusting my black skin tight jeans I pasted a smile on my face and pushed open the staffroom door.
The smell of humans engulfed me and made me suck in an unnecessary breath of air. I paused and struck my hand out against the wall to stop myself from collapsing. I felt so weak in the face of all that life force. So tiny compared to the enormous size of humanity. A fly to be swatted away. A bug to be crushed under a rubber soled boot. I licked my lips, undoubtedly removing some of my well placed lipstick, then shook my head to clear the pounding of heartbeats that had taken up residence in there.
I needed to feed. I needed blood. My eyes closed as I forced those thoughts aside and straightened up to my full height; five foot eight inches, out of heels. I could do this. I could last another two hours in Hell and then break free of the devil's hold for a little longer.
I'd have to sell a little more of my soul to do it. But what's my soul worth in the light of all those innocents?
I pushed the remaining door open that led to the clubroom floor. The thumping music filled my ears immediately, clashing with the heartbeats for a moment and then winning the war. I started humming along to the song: Black Eyed Peas I Gotta Feeling, sinking myself into the music and not the call of the blood.
I could do this. Just two hours more. I could cope.
The first human in my face was young. Maybe only just legal in an establishment like this. Being New Zealand, the legal age for drinking alcohol was eighteen. He looked like he might still be in school. Last year before hitting college. Last fling with his best mates, out on the town at the infamous Sensations. Living life on the wild side.
I breathed through my mouth. I don't need to breathe, I'm undead. Well, half of me is. But, the Norms notice if your chest fails to rise, your pulse fails to beat at the side of your neck. If you fail to blink. It took a full month for me to master the practice of pretend living. The older vamps do it in their sleep. I don't think I do. I don't know. I haven't had someone sleep beside me through the day since I turned, to tell me otherwise.
I smiled at his innocent, beguiling face. A small smattering of dark stubble brushed his cheeks and jaw, making him seem more cute, than rugged. He didn't carry himself like a man who had seen a bit of the world. His innocence permeated the air between us. His life force, his blood, screamed victim. Prey. It would be so easy to glaze him. To draw him in. To lure him into my web and then feast until he was no more.
So easy.
Yet another reason why I wear contact lenses when I am so hungry. You can't glaze past the silicone hydro-gel. There'd be no on-the-spot hunting here. I couldn't satisfy my Dark Shadow's urge. It would have to wait until I disrobe from this shell I wear. Leave Sensations, remove the lenses, open myself up to the Dark. A transformation as beautiful and horrendous as a butterfly from a chrysalis.
“What can I get you to drink?” I asked, ramping up the smile a bit. If I could dazzle him with my pearly whites, then he wouldn't notice the wrongness of my eyes.
“Jim Beam and Coke.” Ah, a wannabe. Not quite one of the big boys, but giving it an honest go.
I poured him a triple. If he lasted the next two hours I might just allow myself to hunt him home.
He handed over his money, holding onto the note a little longer than necessary. My lips finally made a believable smile. You're mine, they said. He smiled back already trapped in my web and going nowhere fast.
I turned to the cash register and noticed Doug watching me from the other end of the bar. He knew, but he wouldn't say anything. As long as I started the hunt outside of Sensations's door. I didn't meet his eyes. I knew what they would show. Relief. Relief that I was playing at being a good little vampire at last. That I was willing to feed again.
I returned the change to pre-college boy and slammed it home with another wattage overloaded smile. He crumbled, licked his lips and hesitated before being called back into the false security of his crowd. Safety in numbers, it does work. But, only if you haven't already swallowed the bait. It would take little for me to separate the now weakest from the herd.
I returned my attention to the next victim in line, but he lacked what I wanted. I couldn't say why it was I hunted the younger of the species. Maybe it was their will to survive. They're not so jaded. They still believe in happy endings. Like I used to. I tried to ignore that side of me. I tried to feed from only scum. But, my Light-filled side was not as strong when I hadn't eaten for six days. I knew I should have fed closer together, then my Light would have more control over the Dark Shadow inside. But, that part of me that didn't want to feed at all was so strong too. This week it won.
And now my Dark Shadow would get what she craves. Young, innocent, full of life. Blood. If I was a demon I'd be stealing their souls too. The younger, the better. More power for the evil in the world. But I'm not a demon. I'm a half-vampire, with a penchant for the young and beguiling. A taste only for their blood. Their souls would be safe tonight, perhaps even their lives. I did have some control over the Dark Shadow, at least where killing was concerned.
But, my soul was another matter. Another matter entirely.
The next few customers blurred into each other. The music my only safe haven in amongst the plethora of blood-filled bodies that swam over the dance floor and retreated to the bar for replenishment. One rapidly beating pulse after another. One sweat soaked, humanity reeking body after another. All clamouring for their next fix. Just like me. Addicts to ou
r own personal drugs.
Young pre-college boy was back for another round. This time he'd gained some courage. His smile more flirtatious. His eyes leaving my lips and trailing over my upper body. I was taller than him, but it might have been an illusion. The bar was the highest spot in the club. Good for spotting trouble above the rhythmic movement of the crowd. Today I could see all the way across the room to the group of vampires in the corner, sitting on the gold, brown and red plushly furnished dark gleaming wooden benches that makes Sensations the chicest spot du jour.
No humans were with them yet, but they were hunting. Just like me. One happened to look up at the moment my eyes spotted him. He raised his half full glass in a salute and smiled a knowing smile. He knew me. He probably thought he knew all about me. He'd be wrong. His name's Marcus and he lives with Samson and Lucinda. He's part of their group. He's also going be the first one I stake. He's too cocky, too confident. He thinks he rules the world.
A soft clearing of a throat in front of me brought me back to my mark. I smiled.
“Sorry, got distracted there. Another Jim Beam?” He liked that I had remembered what he was drinking. I'd served over thirty customers since I last did him. It made him feel special. He should have felt special. He was the only person in this room who mattered to me now.
“Yeah, thanks,” he replied. Smile bigger, eyes showing more than just approval.
I poured the drink with a little vampire flourish, not enough to draw attention, just enough to impress the impressionable. It was all part of the act. The lure. The web. My Dark Shadow approved of my tactics. She practically purred in anticipation of the hunt. Doug moved closer in my periphery.
I slid the finished drink across the bar and leaned down provocatively. “This one's on the house,” I said, just loud enough for him to hear. He swallowed and I watched the movement closely.
“Wh...when do you knock off?” he asked haltingly, caught in my trap. So easy.
I flicked a glance at the wall clock. One more hour. I was about to reply when Doug leant in and whispered, only loud enough for a vampire to hear, “Go now, you need to feed.” He pulled back and offered a smile. I didn't return it.
I didn't need his help. I didn't need his concern. I could control the need. The hunger. I didn't need a free pass, a get-out-of-jail-free card. I didn't need him or anyone else.
I turned back to the young guy and smiled. “One more hour.” Doug shook his head and walked away.
The guy nodded and went to say something else, but a drunk pushed in front demanding a beer. I winked at the guy, his face beamed and he returned to his mates to watch me from their table off to the side.
The next hour dragged. My Dark Shadow complained incessantly. I was starting to notice the older humans. The ones in their late twenties and thirties. The ones still capturing what is left of their failing youth. They weren't young enough for my taste, but the Dark Shadow didn't care. Their hearts beat, blood flows in their veins. What more do you want? she asked.
I wanted freedom. I wanted my life back. I wanted the sun and hamburgers and my innocence again. I wanted the last few months to not exist. I wanted to ignore the ad in the paper for competent and experienced bar staff at Sensations, the most popular bar in Auckland City. I wanted Samson to never have entered my life.
I wanted a lot of things, but the Dark Shadow only laughed. She laughed and laughed and laughed; taunting me, teasing me, belittling me. What I wanted was a pipe dream. What I wanted no longer existed for me.
The young guy returned for a final drink, a final smile and his final chance of escape. Leave now, my Light-filled side commanded. Run while you can. Instead I found myself saying, “Meet me out front in fifteen?” He nodded, in a daze. And I hadn't even used an ounce of Sanguis Vitam.
Fifteen minutes felt like fifteen hours. I worked on autopilot, but never failed to know where my target currently was. One sip of his drink. A bark of near drunken laughter in response to one of his friend's jokes. A hand through his sandy blonde short hair. A quick glance towards me at the bar. Then a furtive gaze over the top of another sip from his glass. He took a break to go to the toilet, but I wasn't concerned he would escape. His eyes never left me as he crossed the floor.
He wanted me to follow him, but I wouldn't. Sensations was off limits. He didn't know this, but even my Dark Shadow resisted my prey's pull. Patience was the hunter's helper. Patience and a keen nose for blood.
I served the last customers of the night and cleaned the bar top. Loaded the last of the glasses in the dish drawer under the bar, the rest would go out to the kitchen and the larger dish drawers there. The busboy could handle those. The bell was rung, the bar was closed and Doug proceeded to gently round up the crowd and suggest they head for the door. He never turfed them out immediately. Always gave them a moment to gather their courage and finish their drinks.
The pull that brought the Norms to the bar was hard to switch off. Even if the vampires had all but left, waiting in the shadows on the street outside, the Norms clung to the safety they perceived in the dim light of the club. It was only their sense of propriety that convinced them in the end to leave.
I chucked my apron in the hamper by the basement door and fished my keys out of my pocket, giving the illusion of normalcy. Doug watched as I crossed the floor to the front door. Normally I would say good-bye, but my fangs were too long to talk.
I stepped out into the cool night air and walked some distance away. Stashing my keys back in my pocket, I removed my disposable contact lenses and discarded them in a nearby bin. No more than thirty seconds later my prey emerged from the sanctum of the club.
I sighed. He'd had his chance not to follow. I hadn't even looked at him as I left the bar. He could have taken a bit longer to finish his drink, Doug would have allowed it. Even knowing I needed to feed, Doug still fights for the Norms rights to say no. He would have provided a safe haven for my young guy, if the young guy had indicated he needed one.
He hadn't, so here we were. Him saying goodbye to his friends. A few coarse comments and ribbing from his supposed mates and then with hands in pockets he sauntered over to where I stood in the shadows of a tall building. Waiting.
“Hi,” he said awkwardly. Not sure what to do now when faced with the object of his desire. I smiled winningly and batted my eyelashes a little demurely making sure he couldn't see the red that now would be obvious in the lights. This one would like a little less brash and a little more girl, I thought. He relaxed ever so slightly.
“Do you live around here?” I had a sudden hankering for more than just blood. Or at least, my Dark Shadow did.
“No, North Shore.” Damn. I didn't ever take them home, even when the Dark Shadow won and I let her feed off more than just blood. It was never at my place. That was my sanctuary. My haven from the evil in the world.
“Come on,” I said and clasped his hand, “walk with me a bit.”
His palm was sweaty. He was nervous. I didn't think he had picked a girl up in a bar before. I'd have to make sure I gave him a good memory when I finally glazed him, but first, we needed a quiet spot.
I had no intention of harming him. My Dark Shadow may have wanted more than just blood and sex, but I was still in charge. I would take only what I needed and no more, and in return he'd have a memory to rival all others. That way, Lucinda wouldn't feel compelled to hunt me. To follow that Nosferatin pull that would lead her to a vampire about to kill.
Young pre-college boy didn't know what he was offering, but he was offering it willingly. There was no theft about to be performed.
I led him down a dark alley away from the late night, or early morning bustle, of Karangahape Road, or K Road as we called it. He followed without a care, he was so besotted he didn't even realise the danger he was willingly walking into. I stopped at the darkened stoop of the back door to a business, long since closed for the day. Turning to him, I laced my arms about his neck and pulled his body against mine.
“You're cute
,” I purred against his ear, his hands started roaming hungrily. I wished for the thousandth time, that they would fight. That this one would be the one to deny me what my body craves. This one would hold the key to my salvation. But he didn't. He wanted me as much as I wanted him. But, for a very different reason.
His hand had made it under my tank top, one smooth move and he had released my bra strap at the back. I was impressed, but also hungry. My eyes when I opened them cast an eerie red glow about the alley we are in. I let him cop a feel then pulled back and whispered, “Look at me.”
He did, they all do. It was so damn easy I wanted to cry. In a second he'd think he was between silk sheets, wrapped up in an unknown woman's embrace. She'd be hot, he'd think he was in heaven. I made him believe he performed magic with his hands and mouth. That she told him he was the best she had ever had. She cried out in ecstasy again and again and he knew it was because of him. I made him believe he was a god tonight.
Then I bit. I bit before I lost my courage. I bit before the Light inside rebelled. I had come too far to not feed this night. If the Dark Shadow was denied now, people would die.
The first mouthful of his life giving blood exploded in my mouth. I cried out in bliss, giving the guy in my arms real material for his glazed induced dream. One swallow led to another and another. The world dimmed to just me and my prey. So sweet, so thick, so beautiful. In that moment I worshipped the body before me. I honoured it with each pull of blood from its veins. I relished it. I devoured it. I consumed it.
I was alive again and the world was a brighter place.
And then I heard the faint beat of his heart; staggering, failing, slowing. The Dark Shadow growled when I tried to withdraw my fangs. This was the hardest part. The battle of wills. She was strong, but then so was I. I would not harm this boy, this giver of life. I would not kill despite my body's desire to do so. We raged a war for a few more seconds, seconds that felt too long for the boy and not long enough for the vampire within.
Sweet Seduction Sacrifice Page 36