“You’re welcome.”
“Now Calida,” Siri said. “I’m going to bring in another donor for you. Please don’t do anything to upset him. He doesn’t know that you’re, well, that you’re a vampire. Understand?”
“Won’t it be obvious?”
“That’s been taken care of . . . please behave.”
Calida beamed an innocent smile at them. “Okay, Siri, I’ll be real nice.”
Siri placed a gauze pad on Ryan’s arm and had him bend his arm. She then put the used needle in a bag and walked over to the door and left.
Calida lightly caressed her lips with her fingers for several seconds. “We’re alone again.”
“Yeah, we are. Is that a problem?”
“Not for me.” And Calida’s eyes changed from the deep violet color to a soft pink. “I can see your thoughts a little clearer now.”
“Please don’t do that,” Ryan said. “I don’t want you to do that.”
“I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Stop.” Ryan stood up.
Calida’s eyes returned to the deep violet color and Ryan relaxed. The touch of her mind on his faded.
“I’m sorry, I don’t want to upset you, but you’ve been thinking about me. You can’t hide it.”
“I’m not trying to hide anything. How do I know you didn’t place these thoughts in my mind?”
“You don’t.”
Ryan reached for his pills, but they weren’t in his pocket. He abruptly looked at her. “You didn’t.”
“Didn’t what?”
“You’re not being nice.”
“I’m not trying to persuade you,” Calida replied. “I’ve been thinking about you also. Does that mean anything to a scientist?”
“This all part of how you acquire blood.” Ryan said. “You control your victim’s thoughts and they submit to you.”
Calida looked away. “You don’t understand me as much as you think.” She stood up and walked over to her cot, but didn’t sit down.
Ryan felt lightheaded from the blood loss. “I want to understand,” he said, rubbing his forehead with his hand.
“I don’t always intrude on someone’s mind to get their blood, okay?”
“Then why do it?”
“It’s something you can’t understand.”
“Maybe I could, so tell me.”
Calida turned away from him, reached down, and stroked her pillow. “You only see me as a thing that kills to eat. There’s no point in talking about it.”
“You do kill us for food, but I’m willing to listen.”
“If you only could feel what it’s like.” Calida turned back toward him. “I’m driven to blood—the desire is overwhelming—especially once I start to feed and then I lose control, but it’s something that I’ve acquired some control over. Can you understand?”
“I think so, I didn’t realize, none of us did, that you had any control over it.”
“It’s taken a long time. I’ve fought with this . . . for centuries.”
“You’re telling me that you can make a choice?”
Calida nodded. “I can choose not to take someone’s blood, but as I grow hungrier it gets harder for me.”
“Then how do you pick who dies?”
“I take the old, the homeless, or the sick.” And she gave a quick, alarming smile. “Or the occasional jerk who is asking for it.”
Ryan looked away from her for a moment. “These are people,” he said. “And it’s murder.”
“And for me it’s survival.”
Ryan stood up and walked over to the plexiglas. “I just wonder how many people have gone missing because of you.”
“Gone missing?” Calida opened her eyes wide and laughed. “Your society doesn’t miss the homeless. It doesn’t miss the thousands of drug addicts that wander its ghettos looking for a quick salvation.” Her eyes flashed an angry pink. “I feed off the living trash of your society. So who’s really to blame?”
“If only you could testify in front of congress,” Ryan said. “You’d open up some eyes.”
“I don’t know. Your government is blind to everything that goes on. It’s kept me well fed for the past seven years.”
Ryan wondered for a moment where his moral compass was pointing and he wasn’t quite sure. Calida had certainly opened his mind to the sad truth that when he looked into the mirror of society his reflection stared back at him. “But what about the other vampires,” he asked after a quiet moment. “They take anyone.”
“They don’t live long enough to learn control, I think, which is why they’ll take children or anyone else who crosses their path.”
“You told me that you have never taken a child, I remember.”
“I avoid children, although there have been some tough situations.”
“After nineteen hundred years I believe you.”
Calida rolled her eyes. “Ryan, a woman doesn’t need to have her age thrown in her face.”
“Huh? I’m sorry,” he said, and blinked at her. “Uh, so when you look at me I’m not always just food?”
“Not always.”
“And right now?”
“You’re still food right now, but in a good way.”
“Well maybe good for you,” Ryan said, and he found himself smiling.
Calida walked up to the plexiglas and stood right in front of him. “It’s dangerous to be with me, though I don’t always bite to kill.”
“But do you always bite?”
“Almost always.”
“Is that why you’ve turned others, for companionship?”
Calida sat down in the chair next to the feeding tube. “It’s always been a mistake . . . and there’s never any real feelings once they change.”
“What do you mean by them not living long enough?”
“They’re not like me. They age like you . . . a human, and they can’t turn anyone. At least they haven’t so far.”
“That would explain why the world isn’t up to its neck in vampires,” Ryan said. “Tell me something.”
Calida carefully folded her hands on her lap and crossed her legs. “What?”
“Why didn’t you imprint me?”
She was silent for a moment, then looked away and asked, “The night we met?”
Ryan nodded. “Why didn’t you?”
“When I catch food I’m going to eat right away I don’t bother with it. You seemed like a sure thing at the time.”
“I thought so to,” Ryan said. “So you can control both when you imprint and your desire for blood.”
“Perhaps, but only so far.”
“Okay, but maybe this means you’re not just a cold blooded killer, do you see that?”
“My blood is as warm as yours.”
“Yes, I know that, but you also could have imprinted me when you held my hand after you’d been hurt.”
“Maybe I didn’t because you were being kind to me. You touched my cheek. That’s the last thing I remember about my father.”
“How much do you remember?”
“Nearly everything.”
“What happened?”
Calida’s eyes went dark. “He touched my cheek and said goodbye.”
“When you were sent away?”
“No, before I took his life.”
Ryan looked at her but didn’t know what to say.
“Where is Siri?” Calida turned away from Ryan for a few seconds.
“They’ll be here any minute.”
“When they get here I want you to leave.”
“Look, I’m sorry if I’ve—”
“Come back when we’re done,” Calida said. “Please come back and we’ll talk.”
“I’d like that, but I need to set up the device before I leave.”
Calida nodded. “Listen, I won’t reach out into your thoughts anymore. I know a promise from a vampire doesn’t seem like much, but you can accept it if you want.”
“You want me to trust you?”
“I don’t want to hurt you or Siri.” She stood up and stepped over to the table where she took a tissue out of a small box. “I better wipe the blood from my eyes before my new friend gets here. No reason to scare him.”
“You don’t want to give him the full show,” Ryan said. “You didn’t make that easy for me.”
“No, but you certainly watched me,” Calida said. And Ryan watched her smile again, but this time it was a natural smile without any vampire pretense. Calida looked up at the one-way mirror. “They’re here.”
Ryan only saw his reflection in the mirror.
Siri and a young man wearing the agency’s standard dark grey trainee sweats walked through the door. The man had wavy blonde hair and stood slightly taller than Ryan. He was also boyishly good looking. Ryan glanced at Calida. The young man had her complete attention. He also noticed that her eyes were back to their original sparkling blue from earlier. She seemed to have more control over her physiology than she let on. He made a mental note not to underestimate her ever again.
“Calida,” Siri began, “how are you feeling?”
“Much better, Doctor Lei.”
“Then the treatment is working?”
“I hope it’s a good sign,” Calida said. “And who is this?” she asked and shyly pulled her patient gown down over her knees.
The newcomer looked at Calida, his eyes wide open. “Hi Miss Villena, my name is Christopher.” His nervous speech nearly masked his slight southern drawl.
Calida glanced at Ryan for a moment and then gave Christopher an innocent smile. “You’re very nice to help me this way . . . please call me Calida.”
“I’ve been told what happened to you . . . um, Calida. I’m glad to help so you can get better.” Christopher continued to stare at her. “How much longer will you have to—I mean, take blood this way?”
Calida frowned. “I’m not really sure, Christopher, but I’ll probably need blood for a long time. Isn’t that so, Doctor Ryan?”
“You don’t look as bad as I thought you would,” Christopher said. “You actually look—you look good, even healthy—really healthy.”
Calida ignored the look on Ryan’s face. “That’s the nicest thing anyone has said to me all day.”
“She’s much closer to death than she looks,” Ryan said.
Calida rolled her eyes at Ryan. “Will you talk to me once we start, Christopher? It’s kind of scary for me.”
He smiled warmly at her. “Don’t worry, I’ll talk to you the entire time and everything will be fine. But why are you trapped in there?”
Siri looked at Ryan and raised an eyebrow.
“I think Doctor Ryan is worried that I might touch someone and contaminate them or something,” Calida answered. “It’s silly really, I mean I just took a shower over there,” she said in an aggrieved tone, and pointed to the far wall.
Christopher glanced at the exposed showerhead and gave Ryan a disapproving look. “I’m not surprised, doctors don’t think about someone’s—”
“Okay, Christopher,” Ryan said and gestured toward the chair by the feeding station. “Please sit there and Doctor Lei will get you connected while I set up the pumps . . . have you been briefed on their operation?”
“No problem, Doctor Ryan—I’m an equipment specialist, this setup looks simple as pie. Are you the one who slapped it together?”
“Just make sure you pay attention to the alarm and shut the valve off when it beeps, okay?”
“I’m sure I can handle it.”
“Doctor Lei will help if you forget anything, isn’t that right, Calida?”
“Sure. Doctor Ryan . . . you’re not staying?”
Ryan smiled. “No, the sight of blood makes me nauseous. Okay, you’re all set,” he said to Christopher.
Calida sat down in her chair. “See you later, Doctor Ryan.” She moved forward in her chair and patiently waited for Christopher’s blood.
Ryan turned away from the feeding station, looked at Siri who wore a half smile, shook his head, and walked out of the cell. And just before the door closed behind him he heard Christopher say: “I know this must be very difficult for you, Calida, so you just call me Chris, okay?” Ryan chuckled to himself as the door closed.
The Director walked down the long hallway of the Senate Offices wing. His two assistants maintained a discreet distance behind him as he rhythmically waved his cane back and forth. At 11:30 PM on Friday night the senate had just adjourned its business for the week. Even so, the halls were busy with staff members and faceless aides making their late night rounds as they scurried back and forth in a perpetual dance of private negotiations between their bosses.
The Director ignored the activity just as he was himself ignored. The offices he now shuffled past were some of the more prized spaces. He arrived at the last office to his right and walked through the open door.
A staff assistant glanced up as the Director entered the office’s reception area and stood up from his small desk. He greeted the Director with the same manner as a four star hotel concierge.
“Welcome to Senator Asinas’s office,” he said. “The senator is just finishing up with the Secretary of Homeland Security. May I get you or your assistants anything? Coffee? Tea? A drink of your choice?”
“Oh no, my young man,” the Director replied. “We are just fine right now.”
A large, richly stained mahogany double door opened up behind the reception area. Out walked a tall, lanky man in a dark blue silk suit followed by the senator.
“Thank you very much, Mister Secretary,” Senator Asinas said. “And tell that lovely wife of yours that Becky wants to have you both over for dinner, and she refuses take no for an answer.”
“I’ll do that,” the tall man said. He looked at the Director for a brief moment and left the senator’s office.
“Please come in,” Senator Asinas said to the Director. “And Michael, please get his two assistants something to drink.”
“Yes, Senator.”
The Director entered the senator’s private office and glanced at the elegant Brazilian rosewood paneling that provided the backdrop to the office’s decor. The senator’s desk was centered on a large window through which the night lights of Washington softly sparkled. The walls were covered with pictures of the politician in the company of various world leaders and celebrities along with dozens of plaques and other accumulated detritus highlighting a lengthy career in the top echelons of public service.
Senator Asinas gestured at one of the two overly large, dark brown leather chairs placed at slight angles a respectful distance from the front corners of his desk. The Director stopped in front of the chair on the desk’s right side and eased himself down with the aid of his cane. The senator continued around to the back of his expansive desk and sat down.
“How was the drive down from the Catoctin Mountains?” Senator Asinas asked.
“Just fine. Same messy traffic of course.”
“Of course. I’ve never been to a major city that has figured out the traffic problem,” the senator said, and he swiveled his chair and looked out the window behind his desk. “How is your latest trainee class doing?”
“Excellent. We’re very pleased with the quality of our latest group.”
“Very good.” Senator Asinas turned back to his desk, reached for a cigarette and lit it using a large, carved ivory lighter. He let out a long exhale of white smoke. “I take it the capture was a success?”
“Very successful.”
“Losses?”
“Five men.”
“And how is our young lady?”
“She’s hardly young,” the Director said. “But she’s completely healed and showing signs of cooperation with our good doctors.”
“Extraordinary, this is excellent news.”
The Director took out his small wooden pipe and fondled the bowl for a moment. “Doctor Ryan has successfully started her on a safe feeding protocol. In fact, earlier this evening he tested his equipment with himse
lf as the subject.”
“Did she respond well?”
“Oh yes, she appeared to thoroughly enjoy the meal. Of course she’ll need more than a single donor can safely provide each night.”
“If she doesn’t take to the field we can always keep her as an effective interrogation tool.”
“She would be far more effective than the water boarding technique.”
The senator leaned forward and picked up a silver pen from his desk. “I have spoken with Senator Pachy concerning our proposal. He’s agreed to place it on the committee’s agenda at our next meeting, although he’s decidedly skeptical.”
“Decidedly? Can he be persuaded to provide the crucial committee vote?”
The senator picked up a small note pad and opened it. He then began to underline several entries. “The Vice President has stressed that we’ll need to accommodate Senator Pachy’s financial sensibilities with substantial back up.”
“What do you require?”
“I’m going to make a closed channel request to my friends at the Government Accountability Office to perform an assessment on the cost savings that can be realized if we activate her.”
“That would be very good . . . she wouldn’t need the same accessory personnel while in the field not to mention our savings on daytime travel costs.”
Senator Asinas chuckled. “How many agents are normally required to solve a significant problem?”
“Significant? That’s hard to say, but even our lesser assignments require a dozen or so personnel in the field along with the logistical support provided by our communications and equipment specialists.”
“And how many would this female need in a supporting role?”
“Oh my, Senator, that is very clever,” the Director said, and he stopped rubbing his pipe. “I’d think just a tag to keep her on track.”
“Sounds like a real cost savings. I’d expect Senator Pachy to appreciate these efforts.”
“Certainly this would appeal to his sensibilities.”
“He’s practical about financial matters, practical to a fault.” The senator put the small notepad down and gave his pen a twist. “Even though this is a small committee beyond the normal reaches of congressional oversight, we must be diligent and not draw unwanted attention to our activities, yes?”
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