by CR Guiliano
“A rogue who frequents the fringes of my territory. My warriors have been tracking him, but he’s elusive.”
“Try the Harbinger, that’s where I picked him up.” The Harbinger was another club, much like this one, but not nearly as classy. It sat about 5 miles south of the city, in a rundown area near the train tracks. A few minutes after Tobih had spoken, a tall, thin man, most likely another vampire, entered, and stood to the side of the chair Tobih was currently sinking into.
“Young Tobih has had an encounter with Harrow. He met him at the Harbinger. Take a few warriors, and check it out.”
The man silently nodded, and left, and the master’s attention was, once more, on Tobih. He fidgeted uncomfortably under the scrutiny.
“How much have you learned being a vampire?”
Tobih shrugged. “Not much, really. I know going out in the sun hurts, burns, though I don’t combust into a pile of ashes, like in the movies. I don’t know if garlic, or holy water, or crosses bother me. I know having an empty stomach feels like both hunger, and thirst, and the ache is unbearable.” Tobih paused. “I know I don’t have inhuman strength, can’t move lightning fast, and smell any better than I did before.” The last sentence came out bitter enough, even Tobih noticed it in his voice. If he had to be a vampire, why couldn’t he have some of the cool stuff that came with it?
“The movies made by humans rarely get the paranormal world right. The sun burns, true, and we avoid it for comfort. It won’t kill us, unless we are exposed long enough to get infrared radiation sickness. But that takes a lot of time, and you’d end up with a fairly painful sunburn before that happens. Garlic, holy water, and crosses are insignificant, and mean nothing. The strength you speak of comes with age. The longer you are a vampire, the stronger you will get, though not as strong as a warrior, or a master. You are not only a fledgling, but scent laetus, as well.”
Tobih tilted his head. “What’s laetus?” The master seemed uncomfortable, and it didn’t appear he was going to answer Tobih’s question. ‘Never mind.” Tobih sighed, the exhaustion started to get to him. He really just wanted to go home. He glanced at the large clock on the wall above the master’s head, realizing dawn was getting close. He hadn’t known he’d been here for so long.
“What do you know of the bouncer, Kelle?”
Tobih frowned. “That he’s an interfering human who has stopped me from feeding…twice.”
“You don’t think him handsome?”
Tobih squirmed, his dick twitching just thinking about the big bouncer. “Well, yea, so?” The master smirked again, and Tobih felt like he’d missed something significant, he just wasn’t sure what it was.
“Do you know he is not entirely human?”
That surprised Tobih, and he sat up straighter. “Really? He’s a vampire too?” The vampire across from him shook his head, his silver-blue eyes sparkling in amusement.
“Kelle is an anomaly. He is half human, and half wolf shifter, though he isn’t aware of it. Do you know anything about wolf shifters?”
Tobih stared at the other vampire, stunned. He had no idea there were such things in the world. “Wolf shifters, like…werewolves? Creatures that turn into monsters, and hunt, and kill indiscriminately?” The club owner shook his head.
“No, wolf shifters are no more monsters than we are, though they are more violent, and rough around the edges. Shifters don’t have the decorum, and manners vampires do, their lives more about instincts, mates, and territory. The two men who you were going to feed from were wolf shifters. Their alpha stopped them, just as Kelle stopped you. If you had partaken of their blood, things would have been…well, it would have been very difficult for you.”
Tobih didn’t understand that. Blood was blood, right? Except, the human’s blood had been much thicker, and richer than the blood of the animals he’d drank from. So, maybe shifter blood was even more so, though he was just guessing.
“As a member of my coven, I wish a favor from you.”
Tobih grew suspicious immediately. “What kind of favor?”
“Actually, two favors. I would like you to come to me for your blood needs for now. I have a considerable number of feeders…” The boss waved his hand at the twinks in the room. “…and can provide the nourishment you need. The other, is give Kelle a chance. He’s…drawn to you. That’s why he felt he had to protect you from the two shifters herding you towards the feeding alcoves.”
Tobih wanted to glare, and tried to ignore the brief image of Kelle fucking him into a mattress. “Why should I give him a chance? I don’t even know the guy. Does he know what I am, what you are, if he doesn’t even know what he is?” Tobih would not want to be the person who enlightened—Kelle—about the real world, and what it contained. He was still trying to wrap his mind around being a vampire, and now had to contend with werewolves too?
“Let me just say, it would be worth your time to do so. Kelle is a commendable male, and would protect you…”
“I don’t need protecting. I’ve been doing fine by myself.” Tobih probably shouldn’t have interrupted by the look on the face of the master, but he had his pride. He didn’t need some overbearing, he-man thinking he owned him, and could tell him what to do. He’d escaped a life full of that, and wasn’t going to allow it now.
“Have you? A couple of weeks of being a vampire, and tonight is the first night you’ve tasted human blood? You would have drained Kib, if I had not interfered, and caused his death. Is that what you call ‘doing just fine on your own’? And you would have allowed a couple of brash shifters to use you like a fuck toy, just to get a few mouthfuls of their essence, and that’s even if they allowed you near their necks. A shifter’s neck is sensitive, and they protect it fiercely. You never would have gotten close enough to sink your fangs in. A laetus wouldn’t have the ability to do such a thing anyway.”
There was that word again. Tobih wondered if he could look it up on his computer, since the master wasn’t going to tell him what it meant. Tobih crossed his arms, and remained silent. He didn’t think he’d done that badly after the shock of finding out what he’d become. It could have been worse. He could have been attacking anything with a heartbeat, but he hadn’t.
“You try my patience, fledgling. Go on, it’s almost dawn, and I’m sure you’re tired. Be here tonight, and I’ll allow Kib to feed you again.”
Tobih stood, and turned to the door. He looked back over his shoulder at the club owner. “What’s your name?”
“Thayne, Master Thayne to you.”
Tobih nodded, not sure he’d be using the title, or not. “And how often will I need to feed?” Tobih could still feel the energy within him, no matter how tired he was, and it was thrilling. It would be nice to know he had regular meals, after nearly starving to death. Do vampires die? After they died to become one? Tobih didn’t know, but he wasn’t about to ask…Thayne. At least not right now.
“As a fledgling, you will need to feed often, in small portions. Once you age a little more, you will only need to feed about once a week, and can fill your stomach fully, once you have control over your hunger. You will also find feeding during sex highly pleasurable, if not imperative.”
As Thayne was speaking, one of the pretty twinks approached him, crawling onto his lap, and tilting his head to the side, offering his vein. Thayne’s eyes remained glued to Tobih’s as he lifted his lip, exposing impressive fangs, and slowly sank them into the small man’s neck. Tobih couldn’t see past the edge of the desk, but with Thayne’s hands hidden, and the sudden rocking of the feeder, it wasn’t hard to guess what was happening. Tobih’s body grew hot, and his cock stirred. He turned away, and left the office, closing the door behind him, only to turn, and be confronted by…Kelle.
Chapter 3
Kelle paced outside Thayne’s office. There were voices, but for whatever reason, Kelle’s sharp hearing couldn’t make out the words through the thick door. He was worried, though he trusted Thayne. He was sure his boss wouldn’t hurt
the small man, though he might forbid him from coming to the club anymore. Kelle wasn’t sure what he’d do, if his boss banished the guy. He huffed, and bit his lip. He’d do what he always did, come to work, go to the gym, and go home, to his empty apartment. Just because he was obsessed with the guy, didn’t mean there was anything there. The little man didn’t like Kelle, in any way, if his struggling, cursing, and…hissing, had been any indication. The thought made Kelle’s chest ache, and he rubbed at it.
He looked over when he heard the door open, to see the man come out. When he turned, Kelle noted he didn’t seem quite as pale as he did before, and vaguely, he looked like he’d filled out, just in the short time he’d been in there with Thayne. Kelle pushed the confusing thoughts aside, in favor of finding out the man’s name. “What’s your name?” He was tired of thinking of him as ‘the small guy, the little man, the hot piece of ass he’d like to bury his cock in, and bite him until he screamed, etc.’ guy.
“Tobih. You’re Kelle?”
Kelle nodded, pleased to hear his name on those perfect lips.
“Thayne seems to think we need to hook-up. You like fucking?”
Kelle blinked, then blinked again. He’d never encountered a man so blunt before. “Uh, yes, I like fucking.” What was Thayne thinking, trying to set them up? The litt…Tobih obviously wasn’t attracted to Kelle, so why would he think he’d sleep with Kelle?
“You like fucking men?”
Kelle grinned, he wouldn’t exactly call Tobih a man, at least not a full grown one. He was young, small, and pretty, but he had to be at least of legal age to be in here. “I only fuck men. Women are too fragile for my kind of loving.” He watched Tobih’s beautiful amber-gold eyes darken, and when he glanced down, there was a noticeable bulge in Tobih’s tight jeans. He had an answering one in his own, but he ignored it. He wasn’t about to jump into bed with Tobih. For whatever reason, he felt as if Tobih was more than a hook-up, and he had his number one rule to think about. Not that he wouldn’t throw that out the window for a chance to get to know Tobih, and eventually sink his very interested dick into that delectable ass.
“Care to come to my place, and suit words to actions?”
Kelle shook his head. “I can’t. I’m still working.”
He could see the disappointment, and no small amount of anger in Tobih’s face. He was disappointed too, but he wouldn’t rush things. Not with Tobih. It was a gut feeling, and Kelle never ignored his gut.
“Well, fine then.”
Tobih huffed, and strode past Kelle, not looking back. He watched the beautiful man leave, and hoped he hadn’t made a mistake. It wasn’t like he had rejected him, he wouldn’t do that, but Tobih hadn’t let him explain, his pride bruised by Kelle declining his very tempting offer.
“Kelle.”
Kelle twisted around to see Thayne standing in the doorway, shirtless, and his rumpled slacks undone, and barely hanging on his hips, and covering his bits. Kelle’s blood boiled, and for some fucking reason, for a split second he saw everything in black, white, and gray, and his gums ached. He took a shuddering breath when Thayne spoke.
“Calm down, wolf. I didn’t touch your mate. I have my own lovers.”
Kelle took a few deep breaths, making his thundering heart slow. Once he felt composed, Thayne’s words registered. Wolf? Mate? What the hell was his boss talking about?
“Come on. I think it’s time you knew who you are working for, and what is happening to you.”
Kelle followed Thayne back into the office, curious, and a more than a little confused. When he entered, he saw Thayne’s usual entourage scattered about the room, two of them reclining on the couch as if they were drugged. Both had glazed eyes, and one looked…well fucked, if Kelle had to put a name to the man’s disheveled look, his hair messed up, lips red, and puffy, a hickey on his neck, and a blanket around him, as if he were naked under it. For that matter, all the men in here were in various stages of nudity, and Kelle couldn’t help be a little bit jealous, except his mind conjured up Tobih, and he found he had no interest in any of the beautiful men keeping his boss company.
When he looked back at Thayne, it was to see another pretty man in the club owner’s lap, and Kelle’s jaw dropped to see the heavily rounded belly. If he didn’t know better, like the small man with the stranger he’d seen before, he’d think Thayne’s boy was pregnant.
“Close your mouth, Kelle. He is pregnant, from my seed.”
“That’s not possible. He’s a man. Men can’t get pregnant.” What kind of trickery was this? First he sees Tobih’s eyes turn red, and fangs protruding from his mouth, now he has his boss telling him a man can carry a baby? Kelle stumbled back against the wall when his thoughts turned to reality, and Thayne’s eyes turned blood red, and he lifted his lip, showing some very impressive—and very sharp—fangs. “What the hell?”
“Why don’t you go lie down, sweetness. The rest of you go with him.”
The room cleared out, two of the twinks helping the practically incapacitated ones on the couch, as Kelle tried to make sense of what he’d seen. When Thayne looked at him again, his eyes had returned to the silvery-blue they always were, and he smiled, no fangs showing, though his lips were closed. Kelle shook his head. Maybe he was losing it. He’d been under a lot stress, what with his obsession over Tobih, and the confusion that brought, and the thoughts of living his life all alone.
“Come sit, Kelle. I’m sure you have many questions, and I have a few of my own.”
Kelle wasn’t sure he wanted to approach his boss, never having seen Thayne like this before, but he made himself move, and sit in the chair in front of Thayne’s desk.
“Ask. I can see the confusion in your eyes, and feel it.”
“Feel it? How can you feel my confusion, and what’s with the red eyes, and fangs?” Kelle almost believed he’d fallen into an alternate universe, or was dreaming, or something when he watched Thayne’s eyes turn red again, and grin with his fangs showing prominently.
“I am a vampire, Kelle. A master vampire, and before you deny that’s possible, you might want to keep an open mind. There is more to learn.”
“A vampire?” Kelle was stunned, and incongruous. How was this possible? Vampires were fictional characters in movies. Some sparkly, some lethal, but regardless, they weren’t real. Yet, his boss, Thayne, was saying not only were they real, but he was one. “It can’t be.” Kelle couldn’t wrap his head around it. The idea was ludicrous. And yet, somewhere deep in the back of his mind, he’d known Thayne was different, as were a lot of the employees, and clientele for that matter, in the two years he’d been working here. He just hadn’t realized how different.
“Fuck! That means Tobih is a vampire too.” How the hell was he attracted to a creature who sucked blood to live, no matter how sexy he was? Kelle stood, suddenly needed to get out of here. The office was closing in on him, and he needed air.
“Sit down, Kelle. There’s more.”
Kelle shook his head. “No, no, I can’t…no more revelations. It’s too much.”
Kelle turned, and fled, ignoring Thayne’s repeated call for him to stop. He was going to have to find another job after this. He couldn’t continue working at a place full of vampires. Just the idea had him wanting to laugh hysterically.
*~*~*~*
Tobih wanted to avoid Bent like the plague, but he needed the blood Thayne could provide, so dutiful showed up there every night. Slowly, he got to know the other vampires who worked there, the warriors, and Thayne himself. He’d finally started calling Thayne master, though it chaffed him to do so. He’d been on his own for going on six years, and didn’t need, nor want to have to answer to anyone. But Thayne, he was different. Kind, patient, informative. He held nothing back, telling Tobih anything he wanted to know. Lately, he’d even gotten affectionate, caressing Tobih’s hair, or kissing him on the cheek.
It took some time, but he realized Thayne was sharing his feeders with only him, since he’d not seen any other
vampires sucking from them. When he asked about it, Thayne just reminded him he was a fledgling, and needed Thayne, and what he could provide right now, and his warriors were perfectly capable of finding their own blood sources. He also started teaching him how to pick out humans who would be receptive to his advances for blood. Something Tobih had wished he’d known how to do weeks ago, when he’d first been turned.
He staunchly ignored the fact he hadn’t seen Kelle since the night he’d met Thayne. Tobih didn’t need him. He had Thayne, and the feeders, and the other vampires to hang with, so Kelle’s absence shouldn’t bother him. But it did. He refused to ask about the wolf shifter, or half wolf shifter from what Thayne had told him. Obviously, the guy hadn’t been that attracted to him, if he wasn’t around anymore. Tobih figured he’d moved on, found another job, away from where Tobih was, which hurt, but he’d get over it. Why he missed someone he didn’t even now was a mystery, one he had no desire to figure out.
Tonight was Saturday, three weeks since he’d found out about Thayne, and the place was packed to the rafters. There were multiple motorcycles in the parking lot, and cars were lined up even along the street. To avoid the crowd, Tobih headed to the alley behind the club, and to Thayne’s private entrance. He’d gotten so used to his nightly visits with Thayne, he didn’t even knock as he strode into the office, only to stop short.
There on the floor was Kib, with Thayne over him, fucking him hard, and fast, his fangs buried deep in the man’s neck. That was nothing new, Tobih had seen Thayne take his feeders plenty of times, while he fed from them. Thayne had even offered a few of them for Tobih to fuck, but he’d declined. One, he preferred to bottom, and these pretty men weren’t tops. He also didn’t want to accidently fuck one of them who was ripe. He had no desire to have kids. At least not right now. Second, he might be holding out for a certain wolf shifter, even if he wouldn’t admit it to himself.
But what had him frozen in place was the huge man behind Thayne, and buried deep in the club owner’s ass, bucking in rhythm to the other man. Not once did Tobih think Thayne would allow himself to be penetrated, but from what he was seeing, the master was loving every second of it. While he watched, Kib cried out, spraying the floor with his spunk, even as Thayne groaned loudly, and the huge man behind him roared. Seconds later, Kib collapsed on the wet spot he’d created, and both Thayne, and the man still buried within him shifted to the side so they didn’t crush the much smaller man.