by Susan Harris
Giovanna's eyes opened wide in horror. We have lingered for too long! She turned round and round, frantically searching for Bethany, but could not see her through the raging storm. At the top of her voice she called out over the roaring winds. “Bethany! Bethany!” The wind tore at her voice, turning her distraught cries to pitiless whispers. “Run to the shore! Run to the jetty, and don’t stop until you're on the boat!”
A few feet away, Bethany could hear nothing over the winds. Her head throbbed through the sheer volume of the torrent, and her skin burned under the touch of the merciless cold. Fear started to stab at her conscious again, a sinister voice booming in her head, mocking her. You should have run when you had the chance! Now you will stay here! Stay here and become as the stalagmite people are! The voice laughed. See them?! That is what you will become! She twisted her head left and right, trying to spy the stalagmite people lurking behind the waves of snow. Whimpering and afraid, icy tears slid down her cheeks.
Bethany shrieked when something latched a hold of her arm and started to drag her away into the worsening storm. She bucked, tugged and dug her heels into the ground as hard as she could, but still could not break free. The opposing force was too strong, and the brutal cold of the blizzard was sapping her strength. The stalagmite people have come to get you! The voice in her head cackled. Oh, how they have come! And now you will spend eternity like them, with them!
“...Ethny... stop... me... make...” Bethany heard Giovanna's words carry over the wailing winds, but she could not understand what was being said. She tossed her head from side to side, trying to spy Giovanna. A minor, and somewhat lucky, break in the snow allowed Bethany a glimpse of her sister, who had a tight hold of Bethany's arm and was dragging her with vehement effort to the harbour. Once Bethany realised that it was not the horrid, stalagmite people dragging her off to her doom, she stopped fighting against Giovanna and ran besides her.
Together, Bethany and Giovanna dashed onto the jetty where the Sojourner stood waiting. He did not sway nor flinch under the mounting pressure of the storm He stood perfectly still and held out a golden hourglass that hovered mystically above his outstretched hand. Blue sand poured from one dome to the other, and it had nearly run through to the bottom. Bethany eyed him curiously as Giovanna scooped her up and carefully lowered her into the sloop. His face was hidden beneath a ragged, drooping hood, his whole face hidden by a deep shadow. Giovanna climbed down after Bethany.
The Sojourner had been watching the sisters closely. As Giovanna placed her last foot in the sloop and joined her sister, the hour glass rotated fantastically in the air above his hand before exploding into fiery, copper dust. Turning, he went to step down into the sloop. A sharp blast of icy wind froze his feet solid, freezing them to the ground. The Sojourner looked down at his frozen boots rather comically and grunted. He pulled at his feet and the ice broke away in thick shards.
Giovanna seated herself next to Bethany and draped her arm around her shoulder. “Did you see what happened just now, with the Sojourner?” She whispered into Bethany's ear. Bethany nodded, her eyes glued to him. “That is why we had to rush, that is the cause of the storm. Icy winds freeze anything here, anything that gets in its path. The Sojourner is lucky, he cannot be frozen. We are luckier. If we had not reached the dock in time we would have been frozen. There is no release once one is frozen.”
The weight of Giovanna's words sunk into Bethany, her face drawing pale. She looked to the people trapped beneath the spiraling stalagmites in the distance and shuddered, “Are we still in danger?”
“No. From here on in, we are safe.” Giovanna shook her head and watched The Sojourner climb down into the sloop. Picking up a pair of sturdy oars, he sat down on the bench across from the sisters. “Let’s sail away, little sister. Sojourner, to the other side,” Giovanna bellowed above the sea winds.
The Sojourner nodded his hooded head once and began to row.
Date Night
Dawn Kirby
Date Night
Dawn Kirby
Jarrod stepped off the curb and jogged across the street. Nodding thanks to an older gentleman holding open the door, he slipped inside the restaurant and headed for the bar. In less than twenty minutes he was going to meet the so-called perfect woman his friends had been talking about all week. They had all sworn she was everything a man could ever want and more, and she’d come looking specifically for him.
He glanced in the mirror over the bar, checking his blond hair for the millionth time. Might as well look his best for this gal.
“Big date?” the bartender asked.
“Let’s hope so.” He chuckled. “I’m flying blind on this one.”
“Ah,” the man said, nodding his head. “Never did like those things. I was always afraid to see who my brother thought I’d be interested in.”
“This little set-up comes courtesy of the woman herself.”
“Really? Well that certainly puts a different spin on things, doesn’t it?” He gestured toward a bottle of Jack. Jarrod nodded. “Yeah,” he chuckled, “I’d want a little something, too.”
Jarrod laughed. “I figure tonight can go one of two ways. One, she’ll be everything they say she is, and I’ll be one lucky man. Or this will be the worst date I’ve ever been on.”
“Assumptions such as those can lead to trouble,” a sultry voice said.
Jarrod looked down at the scarlet red nails resting on his shoulder and slowly moved his eyes up. The petite young woman standing beside him was beautiful with pale, fragile looking skin, bright blue eyes, long, auburn hair that hung just below her shoulder blades. A long, black velvet dress accented every soft curve of her body.
“Sometimes a little trouble can be a good thing,” Jarrod said, cocking his eyebrow slyly. A gorgeous smile spread across his face. “Please tell me you’re here for me.”
“I am,” she said, smiling back at him. She held her hand out to him, rolling her eyes shut when his warm lips made contact. “My name is Letalia.”
“Jarrod,” he said caressing her hand with his thumb. “Then again, you already knew that, didn’t you?”
Letalia winked at him and walked away from the bar. After flashing a grin at the bartender he slid off his stool to follow behind her. As tempting as it was to ease into the booth beside her, he decided to sit across from her. From there he could see all the important features… not to mention undress her with his eyes. He’d become pretty good at making women think he was looking at their faces while they talked. The trick was to use their own body language to his advantage.
“You do realize I’ve never seen you before?” Jarrod asked, taking a menu from their waiter. The young man was quickly dismissed.
“I realize that,” she said, running her long, delicate fingers along the collar of her dress. She watched as his eyes darted between her face and her chest. Silly boy, she thought. Oh yes, he was going to work out nicely. “I enjoy watching the men I choose to approach, for a while. You never know what kind of crazies you may meet if you don’t do some poking around.”
“Do you run background checks, too?” he asked, watching her fingers closely as they moved closer to her face. He smiled, imagining his hands on her neck. “Maybe take a few thousand pictures?”
“Good Lord, no. I’m not that obsessive.” Her tongue brushed her upper lip as her eyes swept across the crowded restaurant. “How can anyone be expected to talk with all these people around?”
“I’m not above leaving,” he said, grinning broadly.
“But we haven’t had dinner.”
He shrugged his shoulders and leaned into the table. “To tell you the truth, I’m not all that hungry.”
She leaned in closer; an innocent smile graced her face. “Your eyes say different.”
“That’s because they see you.”
“Confidence,” she whispered. “I like that.”
“So what’d ya say we get out of here and find a place we can get to know each other better?”
Without a word he stood up, shoved his wallet in his back pocket and laced her arm through his, breaking her steadfast gaze. Stunned, he shook the fog from his head. “Shall we?”
“We shall,” she said, handing him her valet ticket. “I’ll even let you drive.” Jarrod’s mouth opened, but she quickly placed a finger to his lips and smiled. “Don’t worry. The directions to my place are in the GPS. All you have to do is follow them.”
“You sure you want to go to your place?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. Hotels have served their purpose fine for years.
“I’ve watched you, remember? If I feared for my safety we wouldn’t be here.”
Within minutes they were speeding down the road toward her house, the sound of rain on metal filled the cab. Judging by the directions mapped out on the Jag’s GPS, Letalia’s house was located just outside the city limits. Not that he minded the drive. The extra time gave him an opportunity to do what he could to seal the deal.
“Tell me something, Letalia. What made you decide to ask me out now?”
“I’m hungry,” she said, batting her eyes. “And if this works out the way I want it to, I may even end up with a playmate.”
“You’d go through all of this just to have a boy toy?” He chuckled. “Lady, all you had to do was ask. There’s no way in hell I’d turn you down.”
“We’ll see about that,” she whispered, unbuckling her seatbelt. Her hand slid slowly up his thigh. A little nibble on his ear wouldn’t hurt. She could already feel his excitement, his anticipation. “We’re nearly there.”
“Good.” His grip on the steering wheel tightened. He wasn’t sure he could maintain his composure much longer.
Suddenly the car lurched forward then slowed again. The gauges flickered. The motor sputtered and then quit all together. Jarrod scanned the dark road for some sign of life coming their way, but saw nothing. If he remembered right, they were travelling one of the two roads nobody ever went down.
“Now what?” he asked, dropping his hands from wheel. “You realize we’re probably stuck here for the night?”
“Not if we walk,” she suggested. “We might even get lucky.”
“I’m up for taking a chance if you are.”
He got out and opened her door before she could reconsider. It was raining and they were stuck. The quicker they got help, the quicker he could get a taste of her. Now that he knew that’s all she was after, he saw no harm whatsoever in hiding his attraction. Then again...
“How do you feel about rain and naked bodies?” he asked as they made their way up the rain-soaked road.
“It’s never bothered me before,” she answered. “How about you?”
“Never tried it.”
“Well, if you don’t mind a bed made of water and grass it’s not half bad.” Now that she had him alone and completely helpless, it was time to decide if he was worth keeping. All he had to do was care. “Do you know what my name means?” The question was so ridiculous to him he laughed. “You laugh, but I’m serious. Do you know what my name means?”
“Babe, do you know how little I care?” She stopped cold and glared up at him. “Look, you want me, and I want you. That is the only thing on my mind right now. Quiz me some other time.”
She struck so fast he never saw her move. He fought hard as she pushed his body into the ditch. He fell back, splashing into a puddle. He looked up at her, disbelief apparent. When his eyes met hers again, he shot off the ground like a bullet. The eyes he’d thought so gorgeous before were now blood red.
Letalia caught him by the foot and yanked his body to her. He watched in horror as fangs replaced her near perfect teeth. She laughed, digging her nails into the back of his head. He tried to fight as she tilted his head to the side, but the strength she possessed was unbelievable. Her fangs sank deep into his neck. Blood trickled down her chin, staining his shirt. She drank deeply, taking as much of him as she could, and as fast as she could. The world around him blurred. His went mind blank.
“My name,” she whispered as he took his last breath, “means deadly.”
Letalia stared at Jarrod’s lifeless body, unsatisfied and disappointed. Killing a man like him should have felt wonderful. Sucking the life out of him gave her the same sense of power it always had. But at the same time it was different. She felt empty. Death had come far too easy.
A wicked smile spread across her blood-stained lips. Death may have come easy, but who’s to say she couldn’t bring him back? Oh, how would he like that? Wouldn’t making him pay for what he’d done every night for the rest of his long, long life be the ultimate revenge?
Convinced she was doing the right thing, she dug her nails into the thin layer of skin on her wrist, ripping it away. Blood oozed from the wound. She kicked his head into position and covered his mouth with her wrist. If she could get enough blood down his throat maybe she could turn him.
Minutes passed. Jarrod still lay motionless on the ground before her. Determined to make it work, she pressed her thumb down hard just above the tear on her wrist. Blood flooded his mouth. Just when she thought it was pointless to try further, she felt his lips tighten slightly. His tongue started to lap at her blood eagerly. He was still too weak to move, but the survival instinct had finally kicked in.
“There now,” she whispered, wiping a thin line of blood from his chin. “Doesn’t that feel better? You just keep doing what you’re doing and then, when it’s all over you’ll be mine forever.” Jarrod’s lips broke away from her wrist. His eyes shot open. Something was wrong. No matter how hard he tried he couldn’t get the fog out of his mind. “What? Don’t you want to be with me?” she pouted. He nodded, and she smiled. “Then go on. Drink it. We can’t have any fun unless you get better.”
He did as he was told. The promise of actually being with this gorgeous woman was the only motivation he needed. Whatever she was feeding him was already having an effect. He felt better, stronger. Granted, even getting out of his clothes right now would be difficult, but he wasn’t above giving it the old college try.
Letalia smiled, reading the thoughts running through his fuzzy mind. Even now, as helpless as he was, sex was still the only thing on his mind. Her smile grew wider. A plan had come to her within the last few minutes. One that was sure to make his sad existence miserable. He’d be hers, but he would never know what it was like to be with her… or with anyone else for that matter.
As his lips slipped away from her arm, the usual coma preceding the change took him. She threw his body over her shoulder and walked back to her car. Once his body was securely locked in the trunk, she slid into the driver’s seat. She keyed a number into her cell phone and dropped it into the cup holder.
“I take it the date went well?” an amused male’s voice answered.
“Just start the car,” she spat at him. “I’m not in the mood to deal with you right now.”
“Fine, but you better hurry. Sunrise is close.”
“I’ll be there long before that happens,” she assured him. “Do me a favor and get the couch in our room ready. I’m bringing home a guest.”
“You mean you’re bringing home a toy,” he corrected. His tone sounded annoyed to say the least. “I don’t know why you keep doing that. We always end up killing them.”
“Not this time,” she smirked. “This one’s earned a special spot on my shit list. I think you’ll like what I have planned for him.”
“Do tell!”
“Give me a chance to get home, and I’ll be more than happy to show you instead.”
“I don’t even get a hint?”
“Let’s just put it this way,” she said, readjusting the rearview mirror. “The man is about to learn firsthand what the word celibacy means.”
“But feeding,” he stuttered. “You know what it’s like.” This time she really had lost her mind.
“I have not,” she said defensively. “I gave him a chance. He chose this path himself.”
“What does that mean?”
She sighed, gripping the wheel. “It means he will never again lay hands on a woman.”
Letalia hung up the phone and raced toward home. The sooner she could get Jarrod out of her trunk and into her house the better. The next stage in his life needed to start soon. And thanks to a little experimentation, she’d figured out how to speed up the time it took for the body to turn from human to vampire. By tomorrow night he would be fully awake and thoroughly miserable.
