by Jen Pretty
“Super. See, even being around you unwillingly gets me a target on my back. How will your team keep me safe from this?” I questioned. “Also, I have a car and can drive myself.”
“No, you have a death trap on wheels. Even with repairs, that vehicle is not road worthy, and you are lucky I found you before the rogues did.”
Unbelievable.
“The rogues wouldn’t have found me if you hadn’t been snooping around and left Randy to watch me. You might as well have set up a flashing light on my apartment. And that is a fine car. It never lets me down.” Damn hoity vampire. Probably drives a brand-new sports car.
He scratched his forehead with a finger and took a deep breath. I was starting to enjoy stressing him out. It was a bit of passive-aggressive retaliation for all his death threats. No sympathy for super-vamp.
“Ok, fine,” he said. “We can compromise. You may have your own vehicle, but you live here. That is non-negotiable. I can’t protect you elsewhere.”
“There are a lot of vampires here. How do I know I’m safe here?” Locked doors didn’t stop him from entering my room. It probably wouldn’t stop any of the other vampires here either. I could install a few extra locks. Or maybe an alarm system. With lasers.
“The vampires here won’t harm you. Let’s not forget the vampire who killed your parents is still free. With your help, we could find him.”
I considered his words for a minute. The ridiculous idea of revenge had crossed my mind a few times over the years. I won’t deny it. Most of my research had been focused on how to kill them in case I ever saw that vampire again.
“Do you know who did that?” I whispered, taken aback by the turn in our argument.
“Unfortunately, I don’t know his name, but I heard about the incident. I can help you track him down.”
That wasn’t a bad offer, on top of everything else.
“You said I’m not human,” I said looking him in the eye. “I want to know why I see you and what I am.”
“I will gather all the information we have on your kind and present it to you upon the signing of our agreement.”
I narrowed my eyes at him, but he seemed immune to my death glare.
“Do we have a deal?” he held out his hand as if I should shake it, but I just glared at his hand like it would probably eat me.
He sighed and dropped his hand. He could hardly complain when he’s the one who purposely tried to scare me into working for him.
“I’ll get my lawyer to draw it up,” back behind his desk, he straightened some papers that didn’t need straightening. I noticed the one on top was similar to the letters I took the first time I was in his house. I was still curious about the letters but needed to find a way to get the ones I borrowed back on his desk before someone found them in my backpack.
I made my escape, and moseyed towards the smell of food, hoping the monsters left me something to eat. I didn’t want to sit with a bunch of hungry vampires, but I had skipped a couple of meals now and needed something before I fell over.
The dining hall was nearly empty now. A couple of vampires were still sipping coffee, but the rest had left.
There was an extensive buffet with shiny silver warmers along one wall. At one end was a small stack of plates, so I grabbed one and moved down the table opening and closing the warmers. They contained dinner foods. It made sense since it was evening, but I usually had eggs and toast at this time of day. I grabbed an asparagus stuffed chicken breast and a dinner roll. Close enough.
The food was amazing. I had never eaten such a good meal. The vampires on the far side of the dining hall didn’t even glance my way, so I ate in peace. An older woman who appeared to be in her mid-60s came out and took away my plate when I was finished. I thanked her and was glad to see more humans in the house. I grabbed a cup of coffee from the pot on the buffet and went exploring.
The main foyer led to several different wings, the first one I explored had a full gym. My gym paled in comparison to this one. Rubber mats lined the entire floor and mirrors covered every wall. A large open area on one end would have been perfect for yoga practice. The other side had free weights and machines as well as treadmills and stationary bicycles. A couple of vampires were in the room already, so I ducked back out.
At the end of that hall was a large movie theatre. It could comfortably seat thirty people, and the screen rivalled the one at the theatre in the mall eight blocks from my apartment.
When I finished my coffee, I walked back to the dining hall and returned my mug.
As I was leaving, someone called my name. I turned to find a tall, athletic-looking vampire striding down the hall towards me.
“Yes?” I said, taking a step backwards.
He smiled, flashing his sharpies. “My name is Cedric, and I’ve been assigned leader of Team Lark.”
I scowled “It’s called Team Lark?”
He just kept smiling at me. Ugh.
“Ok, fine, what’s up?” I asked.
“We’re meeting in the conference room in twenty minutes.”
“And where is the conference room?” I asked.
“North wing, lower level.” He turned and walked into the dining room. Great. Which way was north?
After walking around for more than twenty minutes, I found a room set up like a classroom with a small group of vampires seated at desks. Cedric stood at the front of the room. As I walked in, everyone turned to look at me.
I waved awkwardly.
“Now that our Lark has arrived,” -he flashed me a toothy grin- “we can start.” Cedric cleared his throat. “First, introductions. Lark, this is Gabby, Eric, Tommy and Vlad.”
I laughed. Vlad? Really? When Vlad scowled at me, I stopped laughing. “Hi, good to meet you,” I muttered.
“So, the plan is to hit some shitty night clubs and round up some rogues. Any questions? No? Great, let’s go,” Cedric said not leaving any time for my questions. They all stood, and I took a step back. Four massive vampires bearing down on me where I stood by the doorway was intimidating, to say the least.
“Hold on,” I said. “Are we just going to wander around in bad areas? That’s the plan?”
“Ya, there isn’t any other way to do this. We know they frequent nightclubs. That’s how they find their meals,” Cedric replied.
“And how do you find your meals?” I asked, maybe not wanting the answer.
He smiled that creepy sharp smile. “We have volunteers.”
Nope. I did not want to know that. Who in their right mind would want that?
“Let’s go,” Cedric said, shooing me back out the door. At the end of the hall, we went through a door into a garage. The team of vampires were pumped up and bouncing around as we wound our way to a large van with three rows of seats. Everyone piled in, leaving a place in the second row open for me. That is how I found myself packed into a tin can with a bunch of vamps, hurtling down the highway listening to thunderous classic rock music. I might have wondered if things could get weirder, but I didn’t want fate to take it as a challenge.
We pulled into an underground paid parking garage in a depressing neighbourhood. Everyone started getting out, so I slid out too and followed the group through a door into a urine-scented cement staircase. We climbed the stairs and exited through a door at street level. Though we were far from my old apartment now, the dirty streets were the same as the ones I always walked. There were nightclubs and bars all up and down the block, and the team chose one seemingly at random, and we all went in. A band played heavy metal music on a dirty stage, the floors were sticky with what I hoped was beer, and the place was definitely beyond capacity. I bet the health inspectors didn’t come here during business hours. The vampires fanned out, leaving me standing alone by the door. Thanks, guys.
At the bar, I ordered a drink. No way was I doing this sober. Turning back to the crowd, I tossed back my drink. Time to find some vamps and get the hell out of here.
I moved towards the dance floor and was loo
king around for any vampires. Cedric moved up beside me. “Dance,” he shouted into my ear. He was dancing, but I didn’t feel like joining him. When I ignored his suggestion, he yelled again, “You look suspicious.”
He was right, I probably did. So, I started trying to dance to the music, if you could call it music. It was just loud noise with a slight beat. Finally, Cedric just grabbed my hips and made me move. I let him but kept looking around. After an hour, I was tired of dancing and hadn’t seen a single vamp except for the ones I had come with.
“Let’s move on,” Cedric said in my ear, but the whole team must have heard him because they headed for the door too.
Out on the street, I could finally hear myself think again. “That sucked,” I said.
“Most nights are like this,” Vlad said in a Romanian accent. “Hopefully we do not have to wait for a vamp to drain someone before we catch them, now that you are here.” He bumped my shoulder with his and then strode off down the sidewalk.
I scrunched up my face. Heavy metal music and sticky dive bars every night. Gross.
The next club we went into was also packed, but this time with young men and women in tight, bright clothes, some of them couldn’t have been over 18. The music was fast dance music, and the bodies gyrated and convulsed like the sea in a storm. There was no way in hell I was doing that, so I sat at the bar, ordered another drink and sipped it slowly, watching people.
And they were. All people, I mean.
When Cedric collected me an hour later, I was feeling discouraged. We walked out of the dance club, and the rest of the team caught up.
“Don’t worry. It’s only the first night. We will find some soon,”
I was about to reply when a vampire walked out of an alley and headed across the street. I nudged Cedric and pointed with my chin. The team immediately sprang into action. Vlad had the other vampire by the throat in a heartbeat his arms wrapped around the chocking demon so tightly, the muscles in his forearms strained and bulged. Tommy said a quick word into his cell phone as Cedric went back down the alley the vamp had come out of and returned a moment later. A white van with blacked out windows pulled up, the back doors opened from inside, and Vlad forced the other vamp into the back. The van took off and then we were walking back towards the car park.
It was over so fast I was stunned silent. When I found my voice again, I asked: “What just happened?”
“You did your job, and we did our job,” Cedric replied.
“Was that a rogue? How do you know he wasn’t a good vampire?”
“Every vampire who comes into the city has to present themselves to Mr. Crowden. So, if you see a vampire and we’ve never met them, they’re breaking the law. That particular vampire drained a girl in the alley.”
I spun back to look at the alley, but Cedric clamped a hand on my elbow and pulled me along.
“What are you going to do?” I asked.
“Getting you home and then update Mr. Crowden.”
“I mean about the girl. Her body?” He didn’t reply, just kept tugging me towards the parking lot the van was in. “You can’t just leave her there,” I said struggling against him now.
“What would you have us do? Call the police and say a vampire bit a girl? People don’t believe in vampires, Lark.” His radio made a buzzing noise, and he unclipped it from his belt and replied in silent whispers.
I spent the rest of the walk back thinking about the girl who lost her life in the alley. I felt terrible that she was just lying in that dirty alley; surely someone would be missing her. People would be looking for her by morning. I hoped they found her.
Back down the smelly stairwell to the lower level of the parking garage, we climbed into the van. It was only 2 am now, so I wasn’t exactly tired, but I had seen enough for one night. I stared out the window considering the way my life had taken a sharp turn in the last week. I couldn’t say I was happy about any of it.
At the mansion, I climbed the stairs to my room and locked the door behind me. Then locked myself in the bathroom.
I took out my cell and sent a text to Frankie: This sucks. Want to hang out?
Frankie replied a moment later: I’ll pick you up in 20.
I unlocked the bathroom door and went back into the bedroom, hunting through my pile of clothes for something clean to wear. The smell of cigarettes clung to my hair too, but I didn’t have time to shower, so I stuck my hair in a pony-tail and changed into semi-clean clothes.
Good enough.
I passed several vampires who nodded or congratulated me. I didn’t feel like I had done anything at all, so I just kept walking out the front door and down the driveway to the gatekeeper.
“Hey Lark, good work tonight,” the vamp in the gatehouse said as I approached.
“Thanks, I guess.” He opened the gates, and I stepped through just as a motorcycle pulled up and stopped. When the biker pulled off his helmet, and I realized it was Frankie, my jaw dropped in disbelief. I had never seen him with a motorcycle before.
Frankie smiled at me and swung off his bike. “I never needed it before,” he answered my unasked question.
“This is amazing,” I declared. I had never ridden a motorcycle before but had always wanted too.
Frankie took another helmet out of his bag and squished it on my head, doing up the strap before knocking on the top of the helmet with his knuckles. I smiled, and he smiled back at me. He strapped his own helmet on and straddled his bike. He remained standing, waiting for me to join him.
Once I awkwardly climbed on, Frankie sat down and reached back, taking my hands and wrapping them around his stomach. When he started up the bike, the engine was loud, and adrenaline flooded my bloodstream.
As we pulled away from the curb, I tightened my hold on Frankie, and he sped down the street. The rush was amazing and perfect. Frankie took us through the city and past the last street light into the darkness. One headlight cutting through the night. It was cold in the wind, but Frankie's body and the flush of my blood kept me warm enough.
He pulled off the highway onto a dirt track, stopped the motorcycle, and cut the engine. The silence was deafening, and the stars took up the sky like a million drops in an ocean. I hadn’t been outside of a city in so long, I had forgotten what it was like out in the country.
Frankie steadied the motorcycle while I slid off. I stumbled but regained my footing. I had no idea how to get the helmet off, but as my fingers raised to the strap to try and figure it out, Frankie's arms came around my shoulders from behind, unsnapped it, and then pulled the helmet off my head. I was glad I had worn my hair tied up because it would have been a total disaster now if I hadn’t.
I turned and wrapped my arms around his waist. I sent him a silent thank you as his arms wrapped around me too.
“You’re welcome.”
“We didn’t meet by accident, did we, Frankie?” I had figured it out a while ago but wasn’t ready to confront the fact he had manufactured our whole friendship if you could call what we had a friendship.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, “I just wanted to keep track of you at first, but the more I hung around you, the more I wanted to protect you. Keep you safe from the monsters that had stolen your childhood.”
“Then why did you let me get involved with them now? Did you tell them where I was?”
“Mr. Crowden found you. He heard your heart rate go up when he sat beside you at Arnie’s and knew what you were. If it had been any other vampire, I would have killed him, but Mr. Crowden is cleaning up the city, and with your help, he will get it done. I’m sorry for not telling you the truth long ago.”
“It’s alright. I knew it was just a matter of time before another vamp found me. Besides, if I can get used to this job, I can do some good with the stupid curse of mine.”
He smiled and released me. He pulled a blanket and a glass bottle out of his bag, then took my hand and led me along a narrow path that opened up to a meadow. He laid out the blanket on a hill, and we sat do
wn, he passed me the bottle of rum, and I took a sip. When I offered it back, he refused it. Of course, he was driving. I should probably follow his example if I didn’t want to fall off his motorcycle on the highway. Frankie laughed at the thought at the same moment I did. Then I laughed harder at how weird my life had become.
“Tell me about being a warlock,” I said, laying back and closing my eyes.
He snorted, “It’s not as thrilling as it sounds. I mostly do magic for important people with a lot of money. Boring magic, like making them look younger or be more successful in business.”
“Wait, why are you living in our shitty building if you can do magic for rich people?” He bit his lip and looked at the grass. I noticed his cheeks were red, was he embarrassed?
“I didn’t live there at first. It was almost two months of pretending before I got an apartment in your building so I could keep an eye on you.”
“You creeper!” I laughed. “I can’t believe you lived there willingly!” I tore out a handful of grass and threw it at him. He laughed and started picking grass off his clothes.
After an hour, the sun was coming up, and I had a yoga class to get to, so we gathered up the blanket and headed back into the city. Timeout over.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Frankie drove me to the yoga studio and then went across the road to a small coffee shop to wait for me. The class was much better this time. I felt calm and centred after my early morning ride with Frankie.
After class, I double checked the schedule and realized the next self-defence class was that evening which reminded me I hadn’t called to quit my job yet and had a shift scheduled tonight. Oops. I called Mr. Fellum. He informed me that my father had already called to let him know I wouldn’t be back. He was pretty ticked off but didn’t sound all that put out. He probably already had me replaced. Of course, Mr. bossy-vamp had already called. I should have thought of that. Now that my evening was open, I decided I would come back and take the class.
I walked out of the gym and found Frankie leaning against his Motorcycle. The picture of a hot biker with his sunglasses on, boots crossed at the ankles, and arms folded over his chest -- showing off his muscles. It’s not like I had never noticed that he was attractive, but now that I had talked to him and he had shown me the place in the meadow, I was seeing him in a new light. I wondered if he had been holding back from me before, or if I had just never bothered to notice; too caught up in my own stuff to see the man in front of me. The really hot man.