Eye of the Beholder

by M. D. Grimm

  He chuckled. “Perhaps. But I don’t tell Justin everything. And I certainly don’t want him to be your new best friend. I’m not ready to share you yet.”

  I blinked once, slowly. “Huh?”

  His expression turned serious. He took a step closer once again and bent his head, his lips near my ear. I couldn’t stop the shudder that ran through me.

  “Please don’t avoid me again,” he said softly. “If you have a problem, I request that you tell me. As a favor to me, Vulcan. Your well-being concerns me.”

  I wanted to deny I’d been avoiding him, but that would be childish and an obvious lie. It would insult both of us, so I didn’t bother. I took a deep breath and nodded.

  “I promise,” I said.

  “Thank you.” He stood up straighter and peered at the stage. Vamps began to set up instruments. Cassius removed his jacket, showing off bare arms in a sleeveless black shirt that hugged his solid frame. My mouth dried as he handed Jessie the jacket. I wanted to touch and stroke those muscled, curved arms. So not fair.

  “Come,” he said and took my hand gently in his. His eyes glimmered. “I want you to have a front-row seat. I think you’ll like the song I have in mind.”

  I meekly followed him, and that surprised me. Yet at the same time, it didn’t. I’d never met anyone like Cassius before. I doubted there was anyone else like him anywhere in the world. And he seemed to be interested in me. Why, I couldn’t begin to guess, and I wondered if I should just enjoy it while it lasted. There was no harm in that, right?

  Dain’s dead eyes flashed across my mind. I bit my lower lip, the pain distracting me from memories.

  Cassius let go of my hand as soon as we were on the dancefloor. Then he moved to the stage and effortlessly jumped onto it. The vampires in the band grinned and greeted him like an old friend. I didn’t recognize them so I wondered if they were part of Justin’s coven. Justin himself was off in the corner, appearing smug and proud of himself. I curled my lip at him. If only he knew how low he ranked in Cassius’s eyes.

  It wasn’t long before the music began, and let me just say that no mortal could ever accomplish what a vampire could when it came to music. Not only did they simply have longer lives to practice their skills to perfection, being a vampire gave them an otherworldly grace no human could hope to have. Like the deadliest, most efficient predator, no move was wasted and their absolute focus on their craft made for a flawless performance. It was perfect and clear and filled with emotion and depth. After the first few chords, I recognized the song. My eyes widened, and I had to laugh. Cassius had my kind of humor. And my taste in music.

  Powerwolf. He was going to sing a fucking Powerwolf song called, aptly, “All We Need is Blood.” Granted, the band’s whole gimmick was geared more toward werewolves, but a number of their songs dealt with vampiric themes. The crowd certainly ate it up.

  Cassius opened his mouth, and if I didn’t already have a crush on the guy, I would have developed one right then. His voice was operatic, deep and resonant, silky and commanding. It was fucking perfect. The actual singer of Powerwolf had nothing on this guy. My aches from the vampire attack were long forgotten as I shouted with the crowd, jumped to the beat, screamed along. I’d been to a few concerts before, and none of them held a candle to this one.

  The vampires flawlessly flowed from one song to the next, changing artists, covering different songs from varying eras and styles. Cassius’s voice fit them all, bringing age and gravitas to songs only decades old. Several of the songs I was sure were in Latin, and I couldn’t for the life of me determine their origins. Not that I tried very hard. I was enjoying the moment way too much. He hit every note with utter perfection, and the Latin was smooth and flawless, reminding me that was probably his first language. He owned that stage, and for a brief moment, he met my eyes and winked.

  Yeah, I felt sufficiently serenaded.

  Then he was done, and despite the crowd’s insistence he keep singing, he shook his head and left the stage. People parted for him as he approached me, and pride and smugness filled me when he took my hand. Jealousy flashed on so many faces I wanted to cackle. Then I mentally slapped myself. I didn’t need everyone hating me or thinking I was Cassius’s bitch. I gently extracted my hand. He glanced at me with a frown but didn’t argue.

  “Yeah, you’re good,” I said casually. Good like Mozart had been good with a piano.

  He smirked at my understatement.

  “How did you get so good? It’s so unfair.”

  He chuckled. “What else do I have to do with my nigh immortal life but learn a skill and perfect it? I hate being bored. I already had mediocre talent and after studying over the centuries with a few greats, I got better.”

  Damn right you did.

  Of course now I wondered who “the greats” were that he’d studied with.

  We headed back toward the bar, and the crowd continued to catcall Cassius. He acknowledged it all with a faint smile on his face, but that was his only reaction. Then the DJ took control again, and I stopped short when I heard the song suddenly blaring through the speakers.

  Dude. That was my jam.

  Cassius stopped and turned back. I didn’t make a sound, but the moment I stopped, he seemed to sense I was no longer near him.

  “Vulcan?”

  “Join you in a minute,” I said, smiling sheepishly. I jerked a thumb behind me, knowing my back would hate me in the morning and not caring. “They’re playing my song.”

  He tilted his head and seemed to consider the music. “Who is it?”

  “Hollywood Undead. They’re utterly LA. Can’t miss it.” I turned to head back to the dancefloor, and Cassius placed his hand on my back. Startled, I looked at him.

  He smiled and raised an eyebrow at me. “I know how to dance, just as I know how to sing.”

  I grinned.

  He wasn’t joking. Who knew such an old vamp could move? His ease at dancing helped me relax and live in the moment, and the gleam in his eyes as he watched me actually made me more expressive with my dance moves. He obviously liked what he was seeing, and I couldn’t stop myself from putting on a show. The music thumped against my ears, my bones, and it ran through my veins as the strobe lights flashed in the dark, pulsing with the beat. The fog machine was getting in on the act, obscuring part of the dancefloor, giving the place an ethereal feel. I had to take off my jacket, becoming flushed and sweaty. Did I imagine the growl I thought came from Cassius?

  I wore a simple tight tank that showed off my arms and the arm socks that hid my cuff blades. I tied the jacket around my waist and kept dancing. Cassius grabbed my hand and twirled me. I laughed loudly and played along as the beat quickened, as my heart pounded. He seemed intent on touching me, and I wasn’t going to deny him… or myself. Not this time.

  While my hands soon became sweaty, his were bone dry. He grinned as our dancing turned rather dirty. When the song ended and the next started, we were still focused on each other. I let him twirl and swing me around the dancefloor and somehow avoided tripping over my own damn feet and falling on my face. I trusted him not to let me go.

  But when the third song ended, I had to hold up my hands and gasp in air.

  “Hold on there, Patrick Swayze.”

  He laughed, apparently understanding the reference.

  I realized I lost my jacket. I glanced around for it. Someone called Cassius’s name, and he turned away. It was then that arms slid around me, one around my neck, the other across my chest, trapping my arms at my side. My breath caught.

  Cassius snapped his head back around as if sensing something. Maybe my panic? My eyes widened as I stared at him. I knew I wasn’t imagining the red gleam in his eyes, nor the reason for the growl that rumbled out of his chest.

  Hot breath puffed against my neck, and my stomach tightened even as my bowels threatened to loosen. Dear God, I hadn’t had time to feel fear when the vampire attacked me earlier, but now I did. Now I felt the fear, the terror. I froze, wondering w
hat would happen.

  “You will let him go,” Cassius said, snarling. “Now.”

  “Why would I do that?” the other vampire said hungrily. “I never knew how well he moved before. I would have missed a lot if you hadn’t stopped me from ripping out his throat.”

  My eyes bugged out of my head. Was this the same asshole vamp that attacked me earlier tonight? Oh, you piece of shit!

  The growls continued to rumble out of Cassius as he watched us. Despite the darkness and the strobe lights, I could see his canines descend, and his eyes grew redder, brighter. He crouched slightly, the move utterly predatory. Despite knowing he was going to defend me, instinct made me want to cringe away.

  The crowd quickly realized what was going on, and we became the main attraction. I vaguely noticed bouncers move through the crowd, rounding up humans ignorant of the paranormal. Their scent would make them stand out since thralls and feedbags distinctly smelled like their vamp masters. The fog and flashing lights obscured much of the action, and I highly doubted Cassius’s vamping was noticed or understood by the ignorant. This could get ugly real quick.

  I took a deep breath and subtly moved my wrists. The cuff blades slid out soundlessly. The vampire holding me yanked my head to the side, and scraped his fangs across my skin. My heart punched against my ribs even as Cassius snarled again. He couldn’t simply charge us; the vamp could snap my neck as easily as a human snapping a pencil in half. I had to get the damn vampire’s hands off me, and then Cassius could rip him to shreds. I had to be sneaky and wait for the perfect moment.

  The arm around my chest was steel, but it only locked my upper arms, leaving my elbows and forearms free. I could bend them, and though it would be awkward to try to reach behind myself and stab him, I had to try.

  Something brushed against my mind, like a feather. I narrowed my eyes as the gentle brushing came again. It was insistent but… polite. I stared at Cassius, and he tilted his head slightly. I lowered the barriers around my mind, the ones Dain taught me to construct.

  As soon as I did, I felt…. It was so weird. But it was Cassius. Whatever it was, I knew it was Cassius.

  Use your right hand. Stab his face.

  What choice did I have but to trust him? He’d given me no reason not to trust him.

  The arm holding me wrapped from left to right, which meant the hold on my right was weaker than the left. I fisted my hand, and my muscles tightened.

  “He’s mine,” Cassius said, distracting the vamp. At least that better be what he was doing. His my ass.

  “I see no bite marks on him,” the vamp said. I heard the insulting smile in his voice. “It would seem the ancient one has lost his bite.” He raised his voice, including the crowd. He liked the attention.

  “That’s smart,” I said, unable to resist. “Insult the former Roman centurion. How’s your history knowledge, vamp? How many battles did the Romans win?”

  He scraped his fangs across my neck. “Shut your mouth, you stupid mort—”

  I shot my hand up and slid the blade a breath away from my own skin, knowing I had only one shot and I couldn’t miss. My shot hit true. The blade was longer than my hand and gave me the extra length I needed. The blade pierced the vamp’s face, though I didn’t know how badly since he instantly let me go, shoving me violently from him as he shrieked. I slammed into the floor and slid a few inches before colliding with several bystanders. I sucked in air and sat up in time to see two black figures struggling. Then they were moving so fast I could barely see the blurs. Clamoring came from the crowd, which was now exclusively vamps with thralls in the back, as they obviously enjoyed the scuffle. Even as several hands helped me to my feet, one of the black figures flew across the room and slammed hard enough into the wall to leave a dent. Then it dropped out of sight behind the stage. My heart pounded.

  Is that Cassius? Please, God, no!

  “Vulcan.”

  I snapped my head around and staggered, limp with relief. Cassius prowled across the dancefloor, eyes still gleaming red, fangs visible. Everyone gave him a wide berth. I straightened, and my heart trembled as he lifted a hand and brushed his fingers across my neck, the touch as gentle as a feather.

  “He didn’t break the skin.” I tore my gaze away and searched the stage. “He dead?”

  “If not, I will rectify that.”

  I looked back to see him staring at the stage as well. Another growl came from his chest. The crowd lost interest as the DJ took up the music again. Bouncers disappeared behind the stage. I focused on Cassius and dared a lot to reach across the distance and touch his arm.

  His muscles were tight, his hands clenched into fists. He was also trembling, and I suspected in fury. I didn’t know how to feel about his possessiveness. It made me alternately excited and terrified.

  As soon as he felt me, he snapped his head around. I made the mistake of looking into his eyes. His rage blasted through me, a hard knock that left me breathless. Pressure filled my mind, overwhelming, suffocating. I could only see the red, and it held me prisoner, cocooned in safety yet shackled in slavery. I was abruptly floating, drifting on a cloud of nothingness, waiting for a command. Waiting for my master to give me an order.

  Cassius cursed viciously and wrenched his gaze away. The tether snapped, the red vanished. I stumbled back and collapsed with a grunt. I was me again, and I knew what had happened. My mental barriers had been blasted away. I hadn’t had time to reconstruct them after the vampire tossed me away, but I wondered if they would have been strong enough to withstand the force of Cassius’s mind. Holy shit, he was strong.

  Trembling, I took a deep breath, trying to shake off the dregs of the whammy. It wasn’t one used for seduction or persuasion. No, that was the violent, hunting whammy that dominated. The one used to crush a mortal’s mind to dust. My legs were weak, and I didn’t bother trying to stand.

  We were ignored. For that I was grateful, and I methodically rebuilt my mental barriers. The strength of Cassius’s whammy shouldn’t surprise me. Jesus, what was I getting myself into with this ancient vamp?

  I didn’t know how much time passed before Cassius knelt in front of me. He didn’t touch me. That was for the best since I was still trying to put myself back together. Stupid! I was so stupid. If Dain were still alive, he’d smack me upside the head for my carelessness. Who knew better than me that you should never look a vamp directly in the eyes, especially when their emotions were running high?

  “I’m sorry,” Cassius whispered. I took a deep breath and raised my head. I stared at his nose, which was what I should have done in the first place. His eyes were blue again, his fangs retracted. “Did I hurt you?”

  I shook my head. “I just—” I croaked. I cleared my throat. “I need to use the bathroom. Then I’m done for the night. How ’bout you?”

  “Yes.”

  He held out his hands, and I let him pull me to my feet. I wobbled slightly and winced at my aching back but managed to stand on my own. Once inside the bathroom, I splashed water on my face, and the cold liquid slapped the rest of the lingering effects of the whammy away. I stared at my face in the mirror and hated my dilated pupils. As I continued to watch, they minimized, and I felt almost normal again.

  “You got a sexy master there,” someone said.

  I lifted my head and met the eyes of another human in the mirror. He stood behind me, tattooed and pierced, his hair spiky, his clothes clingy. He wore a dog collar, and I could see the bite marks all along his arms.

  I raised an eyebrow. “He’s not my master.”

  The feedbag blinked. “Well, what the hell are you waiting for? Others are going to snap him up if you don’t.”

  I grunted and glanced away. I didn’t know whether to be flattered or annoyed. I dried my hands and walked out. I found Cassius by the bar. He leaned against it, the restroom in his direct line of sight. He saw me and seemed to relax. I frowned. Did he think I’d run away? Granted, it was probably the logical thing to do. Then again, the supernatu
ral world wasn’t always logical, was it? And what I felt for Cassius was completely insane and against everything I was ever taught.

  Cassius held out my jacket as I approached. I smiled and took it. He must have found it somewhere on the dancefloor. Thank God. Nicole would kill me if I lost it. And considering the hefty amount I’d paid for it, I’d be tempted to let her.

  “I’ll walk you to your motorbike,” he said.

  I opened my mouth to turn him down, then remembered what had happened in the space of barely an hour.

  “Yeah, that’d be good.”

  Chapter Seven

  Death metal spilled from the speakers, filling the workshop as I fed the furnace before grabbing metal and hammer, and began pounding. Dain had stressed the importance of the smith’s frame of mind when it came to forging and forming works of art. For weapons, I always listened to aggressive music, and with jewelry or other ornamental items, I listened to something smoother, prettier, like New Age stuff or symphonic metal. That was the magic of smithing—it wasn’t just the materials one used or the skill, but the mind and heart behind it all.

  Hours passed as I descended into the rhythm of forging. Nothing else existed, just me and the metal, the heat of the fire, the ache of my muscles. The sweat that slid down my face and arms and the music that throbbed against my ears. It was visceral and all mine.

  I’d barely slept the past week, working night and day, eager to finish Cassius’s sword, which I’d done the night before. I’d also taken two other commissions a couple days ago, one a sword, the other a spear. The duchess had recommended me to two vamps, both from different covens, one from Vancouver, the other from New York. Now I worked on the rapier for the New York vamp.

  Evening rapidly moved into night by the time the blade was complete. Not the sword—the hilt still needed to be attached—but the blade itself was finished. I tempered it before setting it aside. I turned off the music, and the sudden silence was more deafening than the blare of guitar and growls of the singer.