by Tijan
They turned, annoyed, and stopped short. One of them gasped, but the other looked like she was going to argue before the other dragged her outside. I knew that I should’ve cared about what I’d just seen since vamps don’t follow orders unless there was a reason, but I didn’t.
Flipping the lock, I rounded on Kates. “How could you?!”
She rolled her eyes and approached the mirror. As she primped her hair, she shrugged. “You have to get over this hang-up with vamps, Davy.”
“Hey,” I pointed a finger at her. “You should have just as much of a hang-up with them. I mean—”
Kates rounded and stared at me. I saw the warning, but I didn’t heed it. “Your mother used to kill vampires. We all know what they did to her.”
“You don’t talk about that. Ever!” Kates seethed.
“They branded you—”
“Shut up!”
“I know your mom was a slayer, but they slaughtered her, Kates. How can you be okay coming here?”
Kates slapped me. I fell against the wall and tasted blood on the inside of my cheek, but I rounded back and exclaimed, “You had no right bringing me here. You really had no right bringing Emily.”
Oh god. I gulped. Emily had been left alone. Throwing open the door, I hurled myself through the crowd. I know that I jarred a bunch of them, but I didn’t care. I just needed to find my roommate and get out of there. We were like sitting ducks in Dodge.
Then I stopped in my tracks and my mouth fell to the floor. Emily sat, squashed in a booth, with three vampires around her and at the end sat her Luke Roane vampire. He looked relaxed, lounging back in the booth, but I saw the way his eyes darted over his men and Emily. He didn’t share in the conversation, but he was in control of it. They glanced at him occasionally, like they were waiting for a signal from him to change the subject.
He didn’t. He looked content and yet, he still looked like the predator he was even though he dressed like a normal college student with tight-fitting shirts and trendy blue jeans. He wore a black shirt that molded to his lean form.
I could tell Emily was miffed that she didn’t sit beside him, but she was still all smiles. Vomit came up in the back of my throat, but I swallowed it back down. He didn’t deserve her gushy fuzzies.
“That’s why I brought you here.” Kates paused behind me. “He’s a Hunter, Davy. You know what they do. You want to know why all those vampires are on campus, ask him.”
I watched how the vampires instinctually felt Kates’ approach. They all looked up with eager eyes, but not him. He turned and looked straight at me. I met his gaze without a flinch, even though I felt my insides snap. I had to hold it in, he couldn’t know. Then I glanced to his collarbone where a corner of his shirt had fallen to the side and saw the beginning of his mark.
I didn’t need to see all of it because I’d seen it before. It was the mark that all Hunters were branded with once they’d gotten their first kill. It was a symbol of interlocking crosses with the Hebrew inscription for remembrance in the middle. Craig told me once that the symbol stood for their humanity. They were branded to remember what it was like to be human, so they could keep a reverence for the humans that they’d sworn to protect. The Hunters were an elite league and a vampire had to be invited by the Elders. Only a handful roamed and guarded each state.
As I watched Emily’s smile slip at Kates’ arrival, I knew that they were both safe. Hunters guarded against the Craigs of the vampire world. They hunted their own, the ones that refused to accept the new decree not to harm humans. Two Hunters had arrived and ripped Craig to shreds with no jury or bargain when I’d lit him on fire. They were judges in themselves and those two Hunters had made their judgment on Craig.
Suddenly feeling nauseous, I pushed through the crowd to a side door and found myself in a back alley.
The door hadn’t closed behind me before I heard him. “You’re running away.”
He leaned against the door, relaxed and primed for attack. His fangs didn’t show, but I wondered if he’d had them ready for me. Something told me this vampire wouldn’t mind violating his decree with me.
“You’re using my friend.” I thought I caught a flash of amusement, but it disappeared just as quick.
He remarked, emotionless, “They’re using me.”
Kates was. Emily wasn’t.
‘You’re not good with your own shield.’ I heard him in my mind and gasped before I shoved him out. I was more irritated he’d gotten in without me realizing because I was better than that. He smiled and I bared my teeth. “You don’t get to read my mind.”
“Not anymore. You just blocked me,” he spoke, bored, and had the nerve to stretch in front of me.
“You’re an asshole.” He was getting harder to block, not from my mind but from feeling him. Though, it wasn’t like the last time. I didn’t feel the evil reach inside of me.
He laughed, but his eyes were so cold. “You’ve never spoken to me and this is our first exchange? Oh wait, you taunted me, right? ‘I know what you are.’ Isn’t that what you said or did I get it wrong? You think I’m some animal.”
I lashed out, “Been taking trips in my mind?”
“I haven’t needed to,” he shot back. His eyes sparked a bit. “You read loud and clear. I’m surprised you’ve gotten away with it for so long.”
I frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“Lying. All you do is lie. I’ve known about you for a couple of days, but I could tell right away.”
“I don’t lie.” I reacted, tersely, and my hands formed tight fists.
He looked down at them, but he smirked. “Yes, you do. That’s all you do. You lie to that boy you’ve got dancing to your tune. You lie to your roommate. She doesn’t know who we are. You’re lying to yourself when you think you don’t want Kates here.”
I stiffened at his proclamations. He had no idea… “Get away from me and stay away from my friends.”
Something went flat in his eyes. The look had been there, but I hadn’t seen it till it was gone. It vanished completely now and I knew he was furious. “Your friends won’t stay away from me.”
“How do you know Kates?” I asked. He’d mentioned her by name, which meant something. I remembered the two vampire females in the bathroom. They’d either known me or they’d known Kates. I needed to know why…
I suddenly felt sick. I felt actual vomit surge up in my throat, but I clamped a hand over my mouth and whirled to a corner. It spewed out before I could stop it. He was quiet behind me. I expected some taunting, but there were none.
“What?” I asked weakly as I wiped at my mouth. “No words to insult me with? Maybe I’m just drunk.”
“You could be. You drank what? Four shots?”
So he’d been watching from the beginning…
“I highly doubt it.” Something was off in his tone, like he knew something that I didn’t. I wasn’t pleased with it. I felt that he wasn’t pleased either. That’s when I gasped further and wretched again.
I had been feeling him. Somehow, I’d slipped inside without the evil lashing at me. As I glanced at him through watery eyes, I saw that his mind was elsewhere. He didn’t know I felt inside of him. I took a small breath and stilled, concentrating to explore what else was in him. Duty. It blared at me. I was startled by that, but then I surged further and tentatively touched what was beneath it, pain. It was blistering. It reminded me of the girl on the roof. She’d felt the same pain, but unlike her surrender this vampire was firmly and completely devoted to… something. He defied death or maybe death retreated from him. I’d never felt what I felt from him.
“Stop that!” He hurled me out of him.
I gasped and fell against the bricked wall. My arm scraped against the roughness and I watched, frozen, as his coal eyes took on a keen alarmed look. The air was charged around him. I sucked in a breath and smelled what he did. My skin had torn from the wall and even I could smell the blood in the alley.
“Are you an a
nimal?” I whispered my challenge and waited for his response. It was like something inside of me had uttered those words, something that wasn’t from me—and he knew it.
He blocked me. I shielded him. And yet—there was something else, some entity, that felt the other between us. Suddenly, it was too much and I gutted out, “Get away from me!” The connection was destroyed and I felt it reel inside of me.
“Gladly.” Acid dripped from him and he was gone in the next second.
The door slammed behind him and I was left to gasp for breath at his abrupt exit. It was too much. His presence had been too much. Too many things swirled around inside of me, but I closed my eyes and concentrated on breathing. I remained there until I felt my feet beneath me, until I was able to stand and breathe at the same moment.
Then I remembered my question. He’d known about Kates, but I didn’t know how. I needed to know for her safety.
CHAPTER FOUR
I went back inside, but the moment I approached their booth Roane jerked his head towards the door. The other vampires stood and followed him. Kates frowned at the abrupt exit, but Emily gushed with a glazed look over her face.
She smiled at me with stars in her eyes. “Did you see him, Davy?”
I had more than seen him, but I wasn’t about to share that with her. I asked Kates, “What happened to her? She looks drunk.” There were no empty glasses in front of Emily.
“What do you think?”
Kates was still annoyed with me, but my stomach rumbled and I pressed a hand over it. I had worse things on my mind. With a closer look at Emily, I saw the glazed eyes, flushed lips, pink cheeks, and then I saw her neck. There was a small red mark over her artery. “What did they do?”
“What do you think?” Kates asked flatly, bored. Hell, she probably watched the whole time.
Vampires weren’t supposed to feed off humans, but I knew a few of them used lovebites to sneak a taste. It was frowned upon by the Elders, but not strictly prohibited—especially when it happened in a bar. It was considered the same as making out to them.
“I’m bored,” Kates announced.
Emily smiled, drunkenly. “Did you see him, Daveeena? He was here and then he was… out there and now… he’s… he went that way.” She swung her hand towards the door and smiled sleepily.
“Maybe we should go.”
Emily protested, “But… he’s…”
“Not coming back, wino.” Kates snorted and stood. She stretched and pretended to heave a big yawn—her boobs arched in the air.
I rolled my eyes. “Come on, Emily. I’ll get you home.”
Kates dropped her arms abruptly. “You had four shots. You can’t drive anywhere.”
“I’m fine. Really.” I could’ve told her about the nausea, but she was mad. I wasn’t feeling all friendly and soul-confessing.
“Well…” Kates raked us up and down and then glanced over her shoulder. “I think I might stay. I’ll give you a call.”
Emily stumbled, but I caught her. Then I frowned even more when I saw her cheeks pale abruptly. Lovebites are just that—they’re little nips. They don’t take too much blood, but she was reacting as if they drank her empty.
“Did you drink?” It would explain a little…
“She had some beer. She’ll be fine. Take her home, get her in bed. She’ll be the same tomorrow.”
I didn’t bother to ask Kates how she’d get back. I knew she’d be fine or sleep somewhere else. She was still branded and a lot of vampires held a grudge. “Just… be safe.”
“Yeah. Whatever.”
“Seriously, Kates. Safe, not stupid, remember?”
“Yeah. I know,” she grumbled and shoved through the crowd. I watched as she disappeared into the bathroom until Emily stumbled in the opposite direction. Someone caught her and pushed her ahead. I tried to grab her, but someone else bumped her further ahead. Pretty soon, I watched helplessly as Emily managed to fall out the front door backwards.
Talk about exits.
I darted through the crowd and found Emily on the wet sidewalk, ashen, and with mud on her khakis. If the girl could see herself, she’d be mortified. She looked like every other drunkard.
“Come on. Let’s go.”
I bent forward to help her stand. Fishing the keys out of her pocket, I guided her to the car and in the backseat. My inner empath alarm was going off when we drove off. There were an inappropriate number of vampires. My home town had a population of 2,000. Southdale wasn’t big, but it wasn’t a three hundred bump in the road. We averaged five or six vamps. Benshire was at least 12,000. That meant there should be around 200 hundred vamps around. I knew the vampire population would be significantly more compared to home, but as I drove past Bud’s, I saw more than I should’ve trolling the streets and alleys.
Emily puffed out a snore and there was a speck of drool at the corner of her mouth. Of course. She’d be one of those slobbering drunks when she drank. Then I remembered the red mark. The vampire drank from her. That meant some of him was in her. It was a small bit, but it was something. My stomach rolled over on itself as I considered the possibilities.
Too many vampires. That girl had jumped from my building and eight vamps had been there. A Hunter was here and he looked like he was permanently staying. Something was going on.
No—forget it! I did not want to get involved with the local vampire political crap. They had their own community. As long as they stayed away from me…, but they hadn’t stayed away from Emily. I was worried they wouldn’t stay away from Kates. She’d been branded as a slayer’s daughter. It was known that a vampire slayer’s strength passes to her daughter at the slayer’s death. The vamps hadn’t hurt Kates then, but if they saw the burned mark in her skin they’d know that Kates had the strength of a slayer. She could handle her own, I knew that, but I knew that a lot of them still held resentment towards slayers of all kinds—the good and bad. If there was an overabundance of vampires in the area, which I was pretty sure there was, chances were good that some of those with chips on their fangs would be in town. If they ran into Kates… who knew what would happen.
I had to know. It was for Kates’ safety.
Suddenly, I felt like I would vomit again. I pressed my arm over my stomach, but it didn’t help. I felt the first gag and veered the car over to the edge. Bursting through the door, I upchucked my entire stomach contents on the side of the road. When I leaned back on my knees, I warily eyed three vamps in the alley. I waited, since I didn’t know what they would do. If it came to it, I could probably obliterate a vampire just from my breath. It was rank.
“Davy?”
“Yeah?” I wiped my mouth and moved back to the seat.
Emily peered at me through foggy eyes, haphazard hair, and pasty white cheeks. Talking about vampires…
“Where’d you go?” She frowned, confused.
I held the steering wheel in my hands, but I needed a breath to settle my stomach. “Nowhere. You fell asleep.”
She giggled. “Did you see him? He was there. He didn’t talk to me, not really, but he was there. Am I pathetic? I think I need to do something. Maybe I could—what kind of girls do you think he likes? I bet he likes girls like your friend. She’s a little skanky, sorry. I’m not able to stop what I’m saying before I say it. But she is.”
“Don’t worry, Ems. I know what you think about Kates, but… there’s more to her. Trust me. She’s a good friend.”
“Not to you.” Emily poked the air with her thumb. Not her hand, her thumb. It was comical to watch.