The Vampire's Prey

by Vivian Murdoch

  I take a deep breath and bellow out Simon's name. The thunks stop, and I hear a barrage of curse words filtering out from the hallway. I have his attention. Within moments, his frame fills the door, and my heart fills with dread. I don't have to win. I just have to hold him off until Adrian can get out of the room. I'm praying he doesn't decide to be petty and just ignore my message. I know I was wrong, but I'm trying now. I hope that counts for something. Simon stalks towards me, a murderous glare in his eyes.

  "I guess I need to use handcuffs instead of rope, don’t I?"

  He shifts the hammer around in his hand, so the blunt end faces towards me. I gulp. Hopefully this isn't the hill I die on. But if it is, as long as Adrian is safe, I don't care. As he comes closer, I dodge out of his reach. I can tell I'm not at my full capacity, but adrenaline is my friend. It's the only thing keeping me upright at the moment. He bobs back and forth, trying to fake me out, but I do my best to keep up with his movements.

  "Don't tell me you're here to watch him die. That's so sweet!"

  "He's not going to die, not by your hands."

  "Oh, so you're going to kill him? Somehow I don't believe that.” Sneering, he lunges for me and misses.

  It's a close call though. Too close. My legs and arms feel like heavy weights as I move them around. How much longer until sunset? Two minutes? Twenty? I don't dare take my eyes off Simon long enough to check. However, the prickling in my neck tells me it's soon. I can almost feel Adrian stirring. An unspoken rage seethes inside the entire house. Just a little bit longer. I can do this.

  His eyes keep darting back towards the hallway, and that's when I know I have him. I wait for his focus to shift, and I lower my center of gravity before barreling into his abdomen. His oof of discomfort balms my ego, and I keep running with him until his back slams into the oven. His eyes bulge out with the pain, and his hammer clatters to the floor. The once pristine tile shows cracks and exploded bits from where the hammer takes its trek across the floor.

  Simon bellows his anger as his arms try to intertwine around mine, but I'm not having it. Not anymore. Sweat pours down my back as I tussle and wrestle with Simon. He certainly outweighs me, but I have an advantage with my agility. Like an eel, I twist and turn, not letting him get a hold of me. I made that mistake once before. With Adrian’s life on the line, I can’t let him win. Maybe this will be the way I can atone. Just fight him long enough for Adrian to wake up. I will fight my brother, this monster, with every ounce of my power. Even if I die, I will die doing the right thing.

  Everything in me hurts, but adrenaline pours through my body, keeping me upright and moving. Gotta keep moving. I won’t let myself stop. I ignore the burn and protestation of my muscles and focus just on Adrian. Only Adrian. Silently, I send up every prayer I can that Adrian wakes up soon. Simon wraps his hands around my waist and chuckles in my ear. On instinct, I slam my elbow backwards into his abdomen, giving me just enough space to whirl around and bring my knee up into his groin. He crumples to the ground with vile shouts of pain and retribution.

  Anger takes over my body, and it's my turn to straddle his hips. How dare he think he can touch me like that, treat me like that, and get away with it. My love for Adrian and sorrow for Barbara flow through me, filling me up. Power flows through me as I look down at the man beneath me. My fisted fingers crunch through bone as I bring it hard into his cheek. Pain blossoms through my knuckles, but the satisfying crunch overrides the pain.

  "How dare you lay your hands on me, you filthy scum," punch. "My body is not yours to touch ever!" Punch.

  Simon howls in pain and brings his arms up to block any more blows. Grabbing each wrist in a hand, I bring them back down to the floor and pin him there.

  "You seriously thought you were going to rape me and get away with it?"

  Chuckling, he spits out some blood from his mouth. "Whores like you are always asking for it anyway. I would have had you wet and begging for me, just like you do that monster."

  Screaming, I let go of one of his wrists to punch him again, but my hand is stopped by another. Adrian, my brain breathes. I can see by the widening of Simon's eyes that I'm correct. I allow the gentle force to lift me off of Simon. Turning, I look at Adrian, but he isn’t looking at me. His beautiful lips are twisted into an angry sneer as he looks down on Simon. Moving me behind him, he reaches down and grabs Simon by the throat and hauls him to his feet.

  "You fucking dared to lay a hand on her?" Without turning around, Adrian speaks to me. "What all did he do to you?"

  Looking down, his eyes roam over my body, his lips twisting at sneering at each bruise, each abrasion, each mark on my body until he looks down at my wrists. The blood is dry now, but the rope burns are stark against my pale skin. Adrian’s nostrils flare as he takes in my injuries before he tightens his fingers around Simon's throat. Within moments, Simon’s eyes begin to droop, and his body starts to go slack.

  "Adrian, please don't do this.” My palm feels feverish against Adrian's cool skin.

  "Don't do what? Kill the man who tried to kill me? Dared to touch you?" He looks at me, and pain and hatred swirl in his eyes. I take a step back and force myself to breathe. "I guess you hunters want to be together. Is that it?" He looks back at Simon and sneers. "You deserve each other."

  "No," I wail, not even caring how I sound at the moment. My one chance at happiness is slipping through my fingers, and I can't bear it. "I don't want him. I've never wanted him."

  "Someone like him then.” His fingers close even tighter. "Your kind always tends to stick together."

  "I want you," I whisper, relieved to finally say it out loud.

  Adrian pauses for a moment before looking at me. His eyes are dark and cold. My heart constricts as he looks at me so impassively.

  "I guess that's unfortunate then, for I don’t want you."

  His words slam straight to my gut. What have I done?

  "Please," I beg. "If not for me, don't become the monster he claims you are."

  Snarling, Adrian whips his head around and pins me with a glare. Simon's eyes start fluttering closed, and I know my time is short.

  "I have killed hundreds of people. What difference will this one human make?"

  "Please.” The words are barely audible as I slide down to the floor into wariza. "Please sir, spare his life.” Tears drip down my cheeks as I look up at him. His whole frame is rigid and taut. "You don't have to do this. You don't have to be like him. Like me."

  Pain blossoms in my chest as the gravity of what I am hits me hard. I judge people based on what they are and not who they can be. Adrian showed me there was so much more to him than a blood sucking fiend.

  "I am so sorry. I only did what I thought was right."

  The small muscles in his jaw twitch as he stares at me for several moments. I don't dare breathe.

  Turning back to Simon, Adrian shakes him a bit to bring his focus back. "You will tell me everything.” I feel the compulsion and watch as Simon actively fights it.

  Simon shakes his head, and I rise up from the floor to join them. "He has his contacts in. Hold him still."

  Reaching out, I pry Simon's eyes open wide to slip out the contacts. He attempts to struggle, but Adrian holds him firm, making my job much easier. Simon always chose to wear contacts that matched his own eye color, that's why you never know if he's armed or not. Once the contacts are out, I drop them to the ground and squish them with my heel. Nodding, I slip back and give Adrian space.

  He peers at my eyes and grimaces. “So that’s how you did it,” he murmurs. “Shit brown. Got it.”

  I ignore the sharp pain from his words. I deserve every one of them.

  "Now then, let's try this again. You will tell me everything."

  Simon's eyes grow wide as everything spills from his lips. He tries desperately to stop it, but it keeps pouring out of him. Most everything he's saying is old news to me, so I tune it out. No need to relive everything from my time back with The Family.

&n
bsp; During his rambling, I pause and actually start to pay attention. I knew we killed monsters, but I didn't know that most of those we killed were innocent humans. My stomach churns, and I feel ill. Feeling the kitchen, I make my way to the guest bathroom and heave into the toilet. Not much comes out since I haven't really had that much food, but it feels good to purge nonetheless.

  On my way back out, I spot my bunny sitting on the bed. My heart aches as I pick it up and hold it to my chest. Burying my face in the soft toy, I sob as my heart continues to break.

  How could I not see? How could I not trust? My Bible lays forlorn on the floor, the blue embossing winking up at me from the dim lights. I was just a puppet in their mission. Nothing more. Now, I have no one, and it's all my fault. A loud cough startles me out of my thoughts, and I look up to see Adrian carrying Simon. His eyes are wide and unfocused.

  "I have wiped out his memories of everyone and everything dealing with The Family. It's messed up his brain a bit, but he should no longer be a threat. I'll put him into your car, and you can do with him as you will. He's alive, but mentally, just barely. I hope this is agreeable to you because it cannot be undone."

  A small kernel of hope blossoms in me. "You can erase memories?" Setting my bunny down, I quickly swipe out my contacts. Nervously, I look up at him. "Please, erase mine. I cannot live in a world where you're not in it."

  Adrian leans in and smiles. His breath fans my hair, and I sigh in relief. Finally, the pain will go away.

  "That is your punishment little one. Your way of doing penance. I will not take your memories away from you. Instead, you'll have to live with them. You made your choices, now live with your consequences."

  He walks out of the room, and my heart plummets. It is truly over then. Picking up my bunny, I follow him out and watch as he tosses Simon into the backseat.

  "Adrian..."

  "Silence.” His compulsion slams into me, and my lips clamp shut. "You will be allowed to speak in fifteen minutes. Now leave," he compels me.

  I want to stay. Every bit of me fights, desperate to prove to him that I'm different. He's made me different, but I cannot fight his will. Not anymore. Not now that I no longer have my lenses. Wordlessly, I climb into my car and drive away.

  I don't even know where to go, I just keep driving. The tears no longer come, and I am beyond exhausted. Pinks tinge the sky as the sun creeps closer, and that's when I finally decide to stop.

  The large medical facility looms in front of me. I rehearse once more what I'm going to say before parking the car near the emergency entrance and racing inside.

  I find one of the nurses and grab onto her. "Please, you have to help me!" I shout, trying to invoke a panic I'm not actually feeling. "I found a man on the side of the road. He was staggering and slurring. I think he's had a stroke!"

  The nurse motions to a few others and they slide a stretcher out to my car. Simon, thankfully, is still lying there, muttering all sorts of nonsense. They get him out of my car and strap him down onto the gurney.

  "Miss, we're going to need you to come inside and fill out a report and speak to the officers. One should be on their way soon."

  "Oh, I completely understand! Let me get my car out of the emergency zone, and I'll be right in."

  Her warm, trusting smile pricks my conscience just a touch, but there's no way I can answer any questions. I've already done enough damage. I cannot link anyone back to Tucson or Club Toxic. Luckily, I still have at least half a tank. That will get me somewhere.

  About two hours later, I feel the pull of exhaustion. If I continue anymore, I might drive off the road. I still have all the cash I made while bartending; that will get me at least a few days in a cheap motel. After that, I have no idea. I can't go back home. I can't go anywhere.

  My lips twitch as I spot the nearest town with a hotel. Truth and Consequences, New Mexico. Fitting. I pull into the most rundown place I can find and pay for my room. It's small and smells of smoke, but it has a bed that looks relatively clean. I crawl in and force myself to sleep. It isn't that hard, since the need to sleep has been nipping at me for the last few hours. I sleep fitfully, clutching to my bunny every time I wake up.

  15

  Adrian

  It's been three days since I've last seen Evangeline. Every time I think about her, I am filled with a deeper pain than I have ever known. I never expected to fall for anyone, much less a mortal hunter. Talk about irony. Every night is the same—I go to the bar, do some work, shoot back some blood, then go home.

  Several of the sweetbloods approach me, but none of them spark my interest. The only face I want to see begging me is hers. No one else will compare. But what can I do about it? I cannot have someone here who tried to kill me. You can't build a relationship on a lie, and she's been lying from the moment I locked eyes on her.

  "Enough."

  I look over and see Lucius standing next to me at the bar, a scowl on his face.

  "You can't keep doing this to yourself."

  "What else would you have me do? I don't trust myself with your staff right now. I don't think any of them can handle me at the moment, and I'm sure you'd rather I not break your toys.” I motion for the bartender to get me another shot of blood. "A negative this time."

  Lucius shakes his head. "So it's done then?"

  Nodding, I shoot the blood back and wait for the warming tingle to infuse me. Per usual, it sits like lead in my stomach. Once I've tasted ambrosia, it's hard for me to go back to mere generic mortal blood.

  "Simon is babbling like an idiot. I wasn't careful with how I erased his memories. He may regain perfect brain function. He might not. I don't particularly care."

  "What of Evangeline," he murmurs, fingering the bar in front of him.

  "What about her. She tried to kill me."

  Lucius laughs, the sound hollow. "And you haven't killed someone? We haven't? Look, I wasn't there for anything that happened between the two of you, but I know regret, and I see it etched in every fiber of you. Just go get her back."

  Snarling, I grab onto the bar to keep myself from lashing out. It would not do to make an enemy out of Lucius. I take several breaths to calm down before speaking again.

  "She came here to kill us. I'm sure you would not be so forgiving if she came after your precious Selene."

  His eyes flash for a moment as he looks over at his mate. "No, probably not. But then, she didn't, did she? Look, she was here for weeks and didn't make a move. She only tried to kill you after she thought you killed her friend."

  "That's not the point. She should have trusted me!"

  "Think rationally my friend. She's been brainwashed since she was a child. She gave herself to you, body and soul. In her own way, she did trust you, until, in her mind, you broke that trust."

  Shaking my head, I stare off in front of me. "I can't trust her ever again."

  Lucius reaches over and slaps my shoulder. "Then you're a bigger idiot than I ever imagined."

  "What's that supposed to me?"

  "It means you're letting your happiness slip out of both hands because you're putting your love of honor and duty above your heart. I'm not saying trust her implicitly but talk to her. Give her a chance to repent. Given what you've told me of her, she would love nothing more than to wipe the slate clean. It will take time on both ends of this, but if you don't try, you'll always be wondering."

  I sit there, watching him walk over to Selene. The love between them fairly crackles in the air every time they're together. I thought I had that with Evangeline. Could I still? If Lucius is willing to let her back, why can't I?

  He is right about one thing—my pride and honor took a big hit. Is she worth giving it another chance? My gut clenches in response. My days have been empty since she's left. Even Marion has been offering to stay later just so I am not alone. The time for moping ends now.

  Resolved, I check my phone. Based on her current coordinates, I have just enough time to get to her location before sunrise. By tomorro
w night, she will be back in my grasp. Catching Lucius' eye, I nod slightly and head out. I almost miss the knowing smirk on his face before I leave.

  If I left sooner, I might have her back tonight, but as it is, I don't want to be caught helpless during sunup without having a frank discussion with her first. I'm willing to rebuild the trust, but I need to know exactly where she stands. The hotel she's staying at is dingy and rundown, but it's not like she can afford anything else.

  Another stab of guilt hits me. I've basically taken away every avenue known to her with nowhere to go and no way of taking care of herself. What she did was criminal, but she didn't know any better. What I was doing was way worse. I knew how badly this hurt her, but I did it anyway.

  I still have a few hours until sunrise, luckily, this hotel does have a closet. Grabbing the bed, I put it up at an angle against the frame and hang sheets over and around it. Unless someone comes in and dismantles it, it should keep the sun from reaching me. Just in case, I put out the do not disturb sign, so that no one interrupts me while I'm indisposed. I slip into my enclosure and close my eyes, thinking of Evangeline as the sun drifts up.

  The moment sunset hits, my eyes fly open. Thankfully, everything seems to be as I left it. Pushing the mattress away, I take a quick shower and get dressed. Whipping my phone out, I check the locator and see that she's still within the city limits. Heading out to the car, I drive off to a bar just a few miles down the road.

  The smell of unwashed bodies hits me as I make my way inside. Thumping music and humping bodies swirl around me and overwhelm my senses. But then, I catch a whiff of her scent. It's fresh and clean, calling me to her side. Making my way to the bar, I see her cleaning out some glasses. Her frame is a little more slender than when I saw her a few days ago, and the dark circles under her eyes definitely weren't there before. My heart thumps hard against my chest as I inch ever closer to her.