by Sophia North
Alessio nodded in agreement. "Which is why I've come to you with my concerns. I can think of no one else capable enough to deal with the situation and remain discreet."
Vlad's heart sank. He was back on duty before changing out of his uniform from his last mission. Penny was going to kill him. He had to see her before leaving to clean up this latest mess.
"You can count on me, Alessio. I've spent too many hours in negotiations to watch everything destroyed over a fucking misunderstanding. I should have paid more attention to the vibes Dante's been giving off." Vlad stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Now I have a few questions for you."
"I suspected you might," the older vamp replied.
Vlad straightened in his chair and lowered his voice. They may be in the sanctuary of the Grand Elder's Starr Chamber, but the walls of Lowerton always seemed to have ears. "Is there any truth to Dante's fears?"
"My son's obsession may be problematic but he is rarely wrong. Only Wilhalf possesses the knowledge to answer your question and as you know, we've not been able to find a trace of him since defeating Haan."
"Marvellous, I'll be sure to add locating his ancient ass to my list," Vlad growled, disgruntled by the growing complexities. "Maybe I'll get lucky and find all three of them cavorting somewhere in the wilds of Broadstone Heath."
Glancing over at the mantle clock, he silently cursed. It was almost midnight and he still needed to shower and change before heading over to Penny's.
"I will hit the road in a couple of hours and find shelter by dawn. It will give me a head start at finding the bastards."
Alessio smiled. "I like your confidence. God speed."
More like Goddess, Vlad mused. And his was waiting.
Chapter Four
IN THE MIDST OF CANDLELIGHT, a bottle of champagne, still uncorked, sat chilling in an ice bucket. What had started out to be a promising night was fast approaching utter failure.
In the street below the low revs of a sports car pulling up could be heard, causing Penny's well trained ears to take notice. It sounded like Vlad's McLaren Spider.
Scrambling up to her platform bedroom, she peered down through the large window next to her bed at the road below.
The jet black Spider pulled up outside her door. Vlad had finally arrived.
Penny didn't know what she wanted to do first. Kiss him, or take him to task for his tardiness. Were vampyres really so dense? Surely they knew what a 'special surprise' from a woman meant?
Well, that ship had long sailed. At midnight, Penny gave up and changed into her usual nightwear. Pyjama bottoms, with a tank top and long knitted jumper. And all three of them were liberally splattered with paint.
Not exactly the glamour puss she'd been earlier. Her newly bought lingerie 'treat' for Vlad was back in its tissue-lined box. The sexy 'come hither' hair, she'd spent an inordinate amount of time on, was now pulled back into a loose pony-tail.
Penny glanced at her bed and considered pretending to be sleeping. Make him come to her and set the tone for the rest of their night together. But she quickly dismissed it. Her anger wouldn't be appeased by acting the supplicant. Better he knew how not to treat her going forward.
Hearing the key in the door, she sprang into action.
Flicking on some Miles Davis, she picked up one of her paint brushes and assumed the pose of an artist at work. The door to her studio creaked open but she ignored it, pretending to concentrate on her work.
On the easel was one of the unfinished Mystery paintings she was struggling to complete. In the flickering candle light, the landscape looked even more eerie than in sunlight. She'd been trying to summon her mediumistic frame of mind but had yet to be successful. Deep down she wondered if the reason was due to her continued reluctance to part with them.
Unfortunately, when the electricity got cut off today, the decision was taken from her. She'd caved and deposited half of Reginald Reilly's money into her bank account. But paying her electricity bill in full for the first time in months was not much of a victory after she found out it could take up to three days for the power to be turned back on.
So the candles, whilst an excellent romantic mood enhancer, were also a necessity. Thank the goddess for battery technology.
"Hello Dragon, I hope you are not too pissed with me," Vlad's deep husky voice whispered in her ear, as he wrapped his arms around her from behind.
Penny wanted to melt on the spot. But, determined to see through her plan, she instead forced herself to stiffen, as if cross.
Vlad let her go and sighed. "Ah, perhaps I’d hoped for too much."
Finding Penny dressed in her delectable 'work' outfit had gone straight to his head. And in tight leather trousers, the result was a painful tightening below the waist. He needed some distance between them in order to lessen the effect.
It was obvious Penny was in no mood for amorous play.
Vlad couldn't have been more wrong. She felt his erection at the small of her back and wanted nothing more than to turn around, drop to her knees and pay it proper homage. Yet, she knew Vlad would not let her do that.
The most intimate they'd been thus far involved heavy, but fully clothed, petting from the waist down. And to be fair, that had only occurred for the first time before his last mission.
"You're in uniform and driving the Spider. How long will you be away this time?" she asked in a cold voice.
Vlad removed his long leather coat, tossed it onto a nearby armchair and ran a hand through his shoulder length, pale blonde hair. "I need to leave within the hour. As for the length of my absence, believe me, I am highly motivated to keep it as short as possible. I've...missed you."
Penny's heart skipped a beat at his awkward confession. Putting her paint brush down, she turned to him, all thoughts of punishing him gone. She became putty in his hands when he confessed his feelings for her.
The shoulder of her jumper slipped down to reveal the strap of her Aegean blue tank top. The colour matched her eyes perfectly.
"I've missed you too," she whispered huskily, walking over to him seductively.
Vlad's erection thickened. Fuck, this woman had a strange power over him. Amongst female vamp circles he was known for his restraint and focus on satisfying his partner. In fact, only a rare few could claim to have ever brought him to full climax, and they were long gone from London.
Penny rubbed against him as she encircled his waist and nestled her cheek on his hard chest. "You've not kissed me hello yet," she said, nuzzling against his black silk dress shirt. She loved his sense of style. He always favoured fabrics that accentuated the sensual.
Grasping her under the arms, Vlad drew her up his body to face him. "Allow me to rectify my egregious oversight."
He captured her lips in a long deep kiss. Penny instantly wrapped her arms and legs around him. Vlad responded by cupping her bottom.
Penny was no model. A woman with her short stature would never be seen on a catwalk. But what she lacked in the long-legged department, she more than made up for in the voluptuous category.
Her large, full breasts were barely contained by her flimsy tank top. One of Vlad's extremely large hands only just managed to cup one. Their passionate kissing caused a strap to slide down her shoulder and as Vlad lowered her onto the generous leather sectional, he removed her jumper.
Vlad’s mouth watered as her full pink nipple puckered into a hard nub. Her body quivered in excitement. Unfortunately, the logical side of his brain butted in to question whether or not she was shivering exclusively from delight.
"Is it cold in here?" he asked in a thick voice. He, of course, did not feel such things.
Penny flushed slightly, she wasn't about to discuss her money problems with him. Besides she really didn't give a fuck about the heat. All she wanted was this gorgeous vampyre to keep going. She'd be warm enough once they continued with their sexual play.
"There's an issue with the boiler, I'll get a man round tomorrow to fix it," she lied easily, taking the opportu
nity to divest Vlad of his shirt. "Don't stop."
Vlad looked down at her. She was primed for some loving, but his suspicious nature had kicked in and he was not going to let it go.
Pressing kisses down her throat, he surreptitiously assessed the state of her studio, hoping it might reveal more to the story. Nothing appeared out of place. Although she seemed to be burning an inordinate number of candles.
When Penny ran the heel of her hand down his cock through his trousers, he nearly lost all ability to speak. "You've certainly set the mood tonight, love," he groaned as she reversed her caress.
Penny barely comprehended a word. The feel of his erection made her breathless. He felt much larger than she would have ever guessed.
Biting her lip, she went to work at trying to undo his zipper. But Vlad stayed her hand and tilted her chin upwards. "Easy, sweet. I need to be on my way soon," he gritted out through clenched teeth. Deeply regretting it.
He might as well have dumped a bucket of cold water over her head. "You cannot be serious?" she said sternly. "You’re really going to leave?"
Vlad got up and tugged the crotch of his trousers in a vain attempt to create some room to accommodate his full erection. "As I've explained countless times, I don't have any say in the matter. My duty to the Council must always come first. You knew that when we started seeing each other."
‘That may have been the deal until it started fucking with our blossoming sex life,’ she silently fumed.
Tugging her clothing back into place, Penny stood up. Her blue eyes flashed with anger as she gathered up his shirt and threw it at him. "Duty calls, Viking. Best be on your way," she remarked curtly, blinking away tears of frustration.
This was not how he'd imagined their reunion going but knew full well there would be no reasoning with Penny when she was in a temper.
Shrugging into his shirt, Vlad hid his true emotions and off-handedly replied, "At least let me help you clean up before I depart." He flashed to the far wall to flick the light switch, expecting it to come on. It didn't.
"Don't tell me, there's something wrong with the fuse box," he stated blandly. "Are you having money troubles again?"
Penny bristled at what she felt was a condescending tone in his voice. "Please don't start. It's incredibly difficult to take financial advice from someone who no longer understands the concept of money. We humans have to earn our livings. And you've never hidden your opinion on how I earn mine."
Vlad winced. Desperate for a distraction from the awkwardness between them, he'd grabbed the first available topic that had popped into his head. Rookie mistake. This is what happened when he started letting his cock do all the thinking.
"Penny..."
She cut him off. "Save it. Isn't it time you do as commanded?"
Vlad sighed. "I'll text when I'm back. We need to talk."
But Penny had already zoned him out. "Fine, whatever."
VLAD GUNNED HIS MCLAREN Spider down a narrow country lane, taking the sharp corners easily at breakneck speed. Eager to release his frustrations, he slammed down on the accelerator, recklessly pushing the car to its limits. But he didn't care, he was already dead.
"Sunrise in ten minutes," the car's internal system chimed out. "Blackout mode will commence in nine minutes, thirty seconds."
Vlad swung the car down a near imperceptible track into a woodland. At an acceptable distance, he stopped and backed the Spider into a small copse of trees.
Leaning back, he stared up through the budding trees at the brightening sky. He'd insisted on his council vehicle being a convertible. Had even offered to purchase it himself before they commandeered all his wealth, so particular were his requirements. He owned a fleet of sports cars, but the Spider was his favourite. He had little interest in fucking Italian flamboyancy or German boxes. He'd take British engineering any day.
Exhaustion washed over him. His work as a diplomat had become more and more draining since the decision to allow vamp breeding again. Vlad had not been in favour of lifting it, but his dissenting vote had been in the minority. Resentment in the colonies was on the rise and Lowerton's edicts on how vamps live amongst mortals weren't as powerful as they used to be.
Vlad didn't blamed them for their distrust. The last Council of Elders had been a joke. Riddled with delusions of grandeur, it had become complacent and inefficient in its administration of the Empire. The centuries of peace Wilhalf had presided over were taken for granted. The fools believed they were infallible.
Big mistake. This casual attitude had allowed the seed of their own destruction to fester from within. The Serpent Brotherhood managed to place its members into the upper echelons of Lowerton society, their tentacles had even gone as far as the Council of Elders. Anton and Simmons had both been elected to it and no one was aware their true loyalty laid with Haan.
If not for Alessio stepping in as Grand Elder, Vlad sometimes wondered what would have happened. No doubt they'd all be bowing down to the Council of Thirteen in the States. A truly horrifying thought.
Watching the roof descend, Vlad shifted in his seat, attempting to get comfortable. An image of Penny sprawled out beneath him, her face flushed with desire, flashed through his thoughts. He was playing with fire by being with her.
His vow to never sleep with a mortal woman was precariously close to being broken. And having lasted for over three hundred years, gave some idea as to the power Penny had over him.
It wasn't logical. And it certainly wasn't sane.
Maybe he should be grateful that the likelihood of her speaking to him anytime soon was practically zero. It might help him to see sense.
A future with Penny could never be. She claimed not to want children, but he had his doubts. And he couldn't risk it not being true. That damn vow of his wouldn't let him.
Vlad never spoke with Penny about his past. She had no idea of the deep scars he carried at having been a bastard during his human life.
"Blackout commencing in T-time thirty seconds. Sweet dreams, Elder Barath," the Spider's computer generated voice rang out.
"Like fuck they'll be," he muttered, making a mental note to have the Tech crew reprogramme his system's commentary selections. Phrases like 'Sweet Dreams' were bloody intolerable and no doubt the handiwork of Begsy, former Watcher, and resident joker, in charge of Tech. Vlad was going to enjoy having him reassigned to grunt duty. Let's see how fucking clever he was then.
Chapter Five
"HONESTLY, IT'S AT THE point where I'm thinking of calling it quits," Penny announced in a fit of high drama to Simone. "He actually said his duty came before me! The prick. I hope his duty keeps him warm at night cos he sure as shit won't be in my bed. There are plenty of vamp fish in the sea. And I mean to bait my hook."
She didn't really mean a word of it. But damn, it felt good to say.
After waking up to find her studio hit by one of her red rage episodes, Penny had walked amongst the strewn canvases and paint splatter in a daze over what she'd done. She had no memory of the episode and it frightened her greatly.
The only bright spot to her otherwise perfectly dreary day was discovering the electricity and gas had been turned back on. Hurrah for civilisation.
Penny had stood under a hot shower until it ran cold. Grateful she would no longer need her gym's facilities in order to remain hygienic.
Unable to stay and face tidying the mess, she'd emerged from her shower, got dressed and came directly to Simone's. She needed calm logic and a drinking partner, in that order, to help purge her current dark mood.
Unfortunately, Simone was refusing to take part in the latter.
"Come on, please Simone. I promise you'll like Mitchells, it's full of vampyres. You'll be right at home. Even Vlad and I have been there together," Penny pleaded, neglecting to mention the occasion with Vlad was only one time, and involved him hauling her out of the club while sternly instructing her never to go there again. But she reckoned with Simone in tow, she'd be perfectly safe. Her friend could h
andle any unwanted vamp attention.
"I can assure you, Pen, I will not partake in trawling vamp clubs to assist your asinine plan to find a replacement for Vlad," Simone coolly responded.
Penny should have been offended but wasn't. She had no intention of finding a Vlad replacement, but it made her feel better to believe she could.
"Well, if that's the case, the least you can do is feed and clothe me. Your wardrobe is way more vamp than mine and I'm starving."
Simone nodded but added, "If you insist on going to Mitchells then you must bring Alfred along. You'd be doing me a favour. He's been a nightmare since Dante's absence and I could do with a night off from his constant hovering."
Alfred squawked noisily from his gilded cage in the corner. Simone had ordered him to remain in his Raven form and locked up where she could be completely certain of his location.
"Seriously?" Penny asked in disbelief, clearly unhappy with the notion.
Simone held up her hand. "Those are my terms and I suggest you accept them. Believe me, you will not appreciate the alternative."
Penny glanced over at the large raven and scowled. "You better know how to dance, bird man."
THE CROWDED DANCE FLOOR heaved as the strobe lights caught the revellers undulating to the beat. The stark white faces and limbs illuminated by the flashes did not betray the true natures of the club's inhabitants. At Mitchell's it was hard to tell who was human and who was vamp, given the clientele's preferences for hard rock and gothic dress sense. No bullshit pop was allowed to be played at Mitchells. A guaranteed way to ensure the human women who came were the right ilk for the real patrons - vampyres.
The club had become something akin to a breeding ground, as each woman who entered was sized up as a potential vamp gene carrier. Human females compatible with male vamps were known to demonstrate certain key characteristics. Not that these were by any means full-proof, but at least they helped narrow the field somewhat.
