by A A Mize
“Did you learn anything new?”
“I was too nervous to ask about Rachel. Besides, it felt more like an investigation the way she kept asking questions.”
“What kind of questions?”
“Normal stuff, I guess. If I’ve found a place to live and work, how long I’ve known you, where I got this ring, whether or not Dominic was single. That kind of thing.”
Sophie noticed the shift in her friend’s demeanor and it was obvious that the conversation was making him uncomfortable. His eyes dropped to the ring on her finger and she swore his face blanched.
“Well, if it’s not just Rachel that’s had you in outer space all night, then what’s up? Is something going on back home, because if you need to go back, I completely understand.”
“What? No. I’m curious about Yvette, is all. Who is she?”
“Not sure. I don’t think Dominic has ever mentioned her before. I know he had a roommate before me. I know it’s a woman but rarely talked about her and never in detail so I can’t really be sure it’s the same person,” Lukas admitted. “But don’t you worry about her, Soph. I don’t think Dominic wants her around much.”
“Could have fooled me,” Sophie grumbled, picking at a loose string on the cuff of her sleeve.
Lukas looked over her shoulder toward the door. “Speak of the devil,” he said, grinning darkly as Yvette emerged from the shadows of the alley.
Somehow neither of them had noticed that the lights in the alley had gone out. Darkness seeped into every corner of the doorway, kept at bay by the large neon Crow’s Nest sign over the door. Before the shadows had settled, the light of the neon was enough to see comfortably, even for Sophie, but now it was as if a haze had settled over them.
Sophie’s breath caught in her throat at the sight of the beautiful blonde. Again the memory of what happened the night before flashing in her head, ending in the sly, mocking smile Yvette had shot her just before closing the door. Some primal part of Sophie knew something she didn’t feel right about the woman. Instinct, perhaps.
“Don’t be like that, Lukas,” Yvette cooed, hands up in quiet defense. “I’ve come to make peace with Sophie.”
“That so?” Lukas said, eyes narrowing.
Yvette ignored him, locking eyes with Sophie instead. “I know things got a little awkward last night and I’d like to clear the air between us over a drink, if that’s alright?”
Lukas watched the two cautiously, eyes darting to Sophie. All she would have to say was no and Lukas would make her leave, but Sophie didn’t want it to come down to that. If Yvette wanted to have a drink, Sophie didn’t see any harm in it, even if Lukas did seem incredibly tense.
“Yeah. That’s fine,” Sophie replied, a little less than enthusiastic. There wasn’t a single part of her that wanted to sit across from the enchanting creature that had slept with Dominic just the night before. But if Yvette was special to him in any way, she didn’t want to be rude to her and make her own life difficult in the process.
“If you say so, Sophi. Call me if you need anything,” Lukas said, giving Sophie a peck on the forehead on his way out. He glanced at her one last time before disappearing into the night.
“Now that it’s just us girls, how about we close that door? The last thing we need is some drunk guy coming in here and harassing us, right?” Yvette closed the doors, latching the shutters from the inside. With one fluid movement she perched upon one of the bar stools beside Sophie, leaning over the counter and grabbed a bottle of Scotch, her breasts nearly spilling out of her shirt as she did so.
Sophie glanced away nervously, placing her hands between her knees as if to warm her fingers.
“Here, dear,” Yvette offered, pouring them both a glass. “This’ll warm you up, then.”
“Thanks.”
“What brings you to New Orleans again? A family emergency, right?”
A strange feeling came over Sophie; as if trust were being forced on her by some unseen hand. Instinct told her it wasn’t okay to talk about Rachel too much, but she found she didn’t have complete control over what she was saying.
“My cousin was found dead in City Park. The police say it was an accident, but I don’t know if I believe that. If she was murdered, and I feel like she might have been, I just want to find out who killed her and get the justice she deserves.” The feeling of control returned to her, but she still felt some strange force lingering right outside of her space.
“What terrible business.” Yvette put her hand over her heart. “I’m so sorry that death was what brought you here. It’s such a beautiful city, rusted edges and all. Maybe someday, after all this has passed, you’ll look back on New Orleans as a place you once called home and not have such shadows over it.”
“Well, the police haven’t been of much help so far. They gave me a cause of death but like I said, I’m not convinced. I planned on staying until I got to the bottom of it, but whether or not I do, I’ve considered calling New Orleans home for good. Even with everything that’s happened, I love being here,” Sophie replied, refusing to look at the other woman, whose eyes she could almost feel burrowing under her skin.
“So, do you plan on continuing your stay with Dominic and Lukas, then?”
“Maybe. We’ll just have to see what happens.” Tired of the questions, Sophie decided to ask her own, talking between sips of her drink. “What about you? You said you hadn’t made proper arrangements for staying, so I assume an emergency brought you around?”
Yvette smiled into her drink. “Not quite. You see, a few years ago, I broke up with Dominic. Thought I could find someone better, I guess. Well, it didn’t work out that way. I came back so suddenly because I realized I need him. I wanted to make things right with him before he moved on. I don’t know if you picked this up yet, but Dominic is very private, and he can take a bit of time before he lets go of...well, anything. I’ll admit, I was more than a little surprised to see you at his house.”
Sophie threw back the rest of her drink to keep from getting choked up on feelings of disappointment. The thought of him making up with Yvette made her throat burn even more than the alcohol. If he accepted her back, Sophie held no chance with him in the future, assuming there was even a possibility of that happening. It didn’t seem probable. Still, the idea of that door being closed forever was painful.
“Lukas is my sister’s ex. He offered to talk to Dominic for me and get a place for me to stay.”
Silence passed between them before Yvette spoke again. “I know this is a strange question to ask, so forgive me if I am being too nosy, but do you have a boyfriend? A special interest, in Lukas perhaps? Sorry if that’s prying too much, you two just seemed really close.”
It was blatantly obvious that Yvette was digging for information. Her line of questions made Sophie realize that the other woman had not come to clear the air, but to be sure that Sophie wasn’t after Dominic.
“He’s a good friend. It might sound weird to say that I feel like I’ve known him forever, but I do. As far as a romantic interest in him? No. Not at this point. I had a boyfriend back home, but it didn’t work out,” Sophie said, staring into the bottom of her empty glass. The situation was getting more tense and she could tell her answers were not what Yvette wanted to hear. She could feel the tension growing in the air.
Sophie didn’t miss when Yvette’s eyes cut down to the ring Dominic had told her to wear, nor did she miss the flicker of a grimace on her beautiful face. She must have recognized it and Sophie felt a twinge of pride in her gut. At least there was something that she held over Yvette.
“Let’s cut to the chase, alright? I think you should leave. I don’t care if you stay in the city, that’s your choice. But I want you away from Dominic. I saw the way you looked at him last night, and frankly, I didn’t appreciate it. If you don’t leave on your own, I’ll simply have to make you.” Yvette smiled, crossing her arms over her chest.
Sophie bristled. “You can’t be serious. It seemed to m
e like Dominic didn’t want you around. I’ve been around for over a week now and he hasn’t mentioned you at all. Lukas didn’t even know who you were, and he’s been living there for a couple of years. I think if Dominic gave a crap about you any more, he wouldn’t have seemed so reluctant at having to have you stay. Until he asks me to go, I’m staying right where I am. You think you can threaten me and make me leave? Well, you can hang that up right now.” The words slipped through her teeth as calmly as she could muster, but inside she was ripping the bar to pieces.
Without warning Yvette tackled Sophie off of the barstool, cracking her head on the cement floor. Stars flooded Sophie’s vision, the silhouette of her attacker outlined by red light from the neon signs. Consciousness began to slip from her until the pain of her wrists being pinned to the floor brought her back around. Gasping for breath, her vision began to clear, and she realized she was staring up into glowing red eyes, as if some demonic creature had taken over Yvette.
Sophie’s eyes widened at the sight and she tried to lift her arms from the floor to no avail. Yvette was straddling her, looming over her, a beast ready to strike. Fangs shimmered in the light as she laughed at Sophie. “Weak little girl. Go ahead, fight back if it makes you happy, but I’ll tell you now that struggling is futile.”
Sophie realized that Yvette’s lean body was deceptively strong, and she had no chance of fighting back. In desperation she screamed out to draw attention from the shop next door in the hope that someone would rescue her. The sound was silenced by Yvette’s mouth, her lips pressing hard on Sophie’s. Sharp pain tore through her tongue and blood filled her mouth. Her attacker laughed, licking blood from her lips while Sophie coughed to prevent herself from choking.
“If you scream again, I’ll rip out your tongue. Do you understand?” Yvette whispered in Sophie’s ear. When she didn’t get an answer other than a small sob, she sat back and slapped Sophie’s cheek, whipping her head to the side with a loud pop. “Do you understand?” she repeated, hissing through bloodied teeth.
That time Sophie nodded, tears streaming into her hair, blood tinting her lips dark red.
“Good girl. Now, I’m going to get up and get a little drink for you. Move and I’ll make you regret it,” she said, releasing Sophie slowly.
Yvette strode behind the bar and began preparing to make absinthe. Sophie had watched Lukas make the drink dozens of time, and though she had never made it herself, she knew that the glass Yvette was using was far too big.
“My favorite,” she giggled joyfully. “It’s almost like alchemy, don’t you agree? I’ve always liked this place, you know. They have the good stuff.” Water dripped steadily onto sugar as Yvette spoke, sliding a finger down the side of the glass. “Dominic used to bring me here and we would get drunk on it. But as you can clearly see now, I’m not a normal human. It takes a special process to get me drunk.”
While Yvette was busy talking, reminiscing on days past with Dominic, Sophie pulled her cell phone slowly from her pants pocket and began to blindly dial Lukas’s number. All the time she was afraid to breath, her attention focused on Yvette. One thing she wasn’t counting on was the light. Even from the place practically beneath her thigh, somehow Yvette saw the light of the phone. Sophie had underestimated the abilities of her attacker, mind still reeling with how any of this could be real. What kind of creature was she dealing with? Was Yvette even human?
Enraged, Yvette ran around the bar, snatching the bottle of absinthe from the countertop. She kicked Sophie’s phone from her hand as he victim rolled over and started to crawl toward the cell phone skittering across the concrete floor. She never made it.
Within seconds, Yvette was sitting on Sophie’s back, yanking her hair. Afraid to cry out, Sophie gasped in pain as her head was pulled so far back she became unable to close her mouth, hands pushing against the floor, hoping for relief from the strain. With her other hand, Yvette poured the absinthe down Sophie’s throat, forcing her to swallow it in ragged gasping gulps. The green liquid burned Sophie’s wounded tongue, mixing with the blood to choke her. It seemed the near drowning would never end. The alcohol kept coming from the bottle, making it difficult to catch her breath.
The vivid green liquid splashed into her hair, her shirt, and the floor below. The bite wound on her tongue soaked up the alcohol, allowing it to enter her bloodstream directly. Her head was spinning, throat on fire. She could see her phone, only a few feet away, but she was too terrified to go for it again. Yvette stayed on Sophie’s back for several minutes, laughing as her prey struggled to continue pushing herself up.
Sophie retched and gagged but Isabelle wouldn’t let her vomit. She clamped her hand hard on Sophie’s mouth. “Don’t you do it,” she warned before she flipped her over to sit on Sophie’s hips. This time she didn’t bother restraining her victim’s hands. Sophie was powerless, her senses distorted, pupils unable to focus on her assailant. Small green flashes of light flickered just outside her field of vision and everything seemed to leave a trail as it moved.
“Now, now, Sophie, you’ve had too much to drink,” Yvette tutted, wagging her finger in her face. “Maybe I can help with that,” she said, her thin fingers gripped Sophie’s wrists again right before her fangs penetrated the tender flesh of her victim’s shoulder.
Self-preservation kicked in instantly and Sophie fought back. Her feet kicked from under Yvette, shoes sliding on the wet floor, unable to gain traction. Pain surged through her body at the bite, but she was unable to scream. Sophie could feel the blood leaving her body, sucked out through the puncture wounds. What strength she had left began to fail her and by the time Yvette withdrew Sophie had stopped struggling and lay limp on the floor.
“I missed this,” Yvette whispered, mostly to herself. A little unstable, Yvette stood, wiping the blood from her lips with the sleeve of her black coat.
“Go home now, little girl. Back to where you came from,” she threatened, walking to the door and unbolting it. “And get this place cleaned up or you’ll have hell to pay by Mamma. Oh, and one more thing. Don’t even bother telling anyone about this. I mean, it’s not like they’ll believe you, right?” Yvette chirped before disappearing into the darkness.
Alone in the dark, Sophie wept, unable to move for the longest time, stuck in a puddle of her own blood, tears, and absinthe.
24
Hours had passed since Yvette’s attack and Sophie felt worse than before. The adrenaline was gone, heightening the pain. Fear hadn’t been enough to sober her up completely and the haze of absinthe surrounded her senses, dulling them. She’d sat trembling on the floor of the Crow’s Nest and thought about her next move. She was terrified to return to Dominic’s house. Yvette would no doubt be there and if Sophie never saw her again it would be too soon. But she didn’t have a choice. All of her belongings were in that house, including the cash she’d gotten for her car. She’d need it to get back to Mississippi.
She would have to go back. Walking around the Quarter wouldn’t be a good idea with her shirt bloodied and wet with liquor. She shivered and pulled her coat on, crying in pain as she moved her shoulder. The bite seemed to radiate heat with every movement. It only got worse as she cleaned up the bar; sweeping up the glass and mopping what seemed like gallons of absinthe from the floor.
Cleaning had added insult to injury, but she knew there would be questions if Mamma came in and saw the mess that had been left behind. There would be enough trouble about the missing bottle. She was ready to leave what happened behind her, but she was concerned. The condition she was in would give her poor mother a heart attack.
Across the Quarter she stumbled, keeping far from people to not arouse the wrong kind of attention. She pulled her coat tight and tried her best to dry her tears before she got back to Dominic’s. If she could manage to hide what had happened, she could skip town and never look back.
Yvette’s laughter drifted from the kitchen when Sophie arrived back at the house. She was weak and exhausted, hardly able
to make it the few blocks across the Quarter from work. The only hope she had, was that Lukas was already home and able to protect her. Assuming he could protect her against a monster.
As quickly as she could manage, she ascended the stairs, pain radiating through her body with every step. All she wanted to do was pack as quickly as possible and leave before anyone asked questions. She shut the door quietly and locked it, wondering if the lock would be enough to keep Yvette out. The space was no longer a haven for her. Every bump and creak of the house set her on edge. She tried to convince herself that if Yvette wanted her dead, she would have finished her off at the bar.
With trembling fingers, she touched the bite on her shoulder. It was swollen and sore, but she hadn’t had a chance to view the damage yet. Carefully she stripped off the blood and absinthe–soaked shirt, a shudder covering her flesh with goosebumps as her damp skin was exposed to the air. The mirror across the room had never been so difficult to approach and the sight it held made her sick.
The left side of her face was bruised where Yvette had slapped her. Thick purple marks wrung her wrists and her shoulder had two deep punctures, surrounded in swollen, bruised flesh. Her tongue seemed the worst part, but only because it hurt the most.
Explaining to her family why she looked the way she did would be difficult, but she knew she couldn’t stay until her wounds healed. Yvette was some sort of fairy-tale monster, and Lukas and Dominic might be, too. The fangs she swore Lukas had the first night he came home high were exactly like those that had so easily pierced her flesh, and although she had never seen such from Dominic, everything about them began to fall into place.
It seemed crazy to think she was in a house full of … she shook her head. No, monsters weren’t real. They were just creatures from old horror stories; and yet she couldn’t deny that there were eerie similarities. Dominic and Lukas never went out during the day, the house was closed off and dark, and there wasn’t a scrap of food in the cabinets before she arrived. Every little thing she had noticed since arriving became another reason to suspect them.