Blood and Guitars

by Heather Jensen

  There was no safe place to go. Not really. But being outside gave me a better view of our surroundings and as a result made me more aware of the night. That was good, considering I didn’t want our conversation to be overheard. We walked across the street to the little park and the pond. Trey was silent, apparently determined to let me to speak first. I chose to stay out of his head. If I was going to come clean, I wanted him to be able to decide for himself what to think of me. Knowing his thoughts would give me an unfair advantage. Besides, I’d forced my way into his mind once, and it had been one of the worst nights of my life. I wasn’t about to go there again.

  We walked to a small dock that overlooked the pond. The breeze blew gently, adding a sense of normalcy to a situation that was anything but. I took a deep breath and said, “You were right, you know … about me keeping something from you.” His head jerked up and he gazed at me, but he still didn’t speak, waiting for me to continue. “But I wasn’t lying about the danger I’ve put you in. I wouldn’t be telling you this at all if I didn’t know for sure now that it’s too late for me to try and pull you away from it.”

  Trey had turned to face me now, leaning against the railing. He pulled me closer, and I couldn’t imagine how he wasn’t looking at me with accusations in his eyes. He seemed concerned, but not overly so. It was like he was expecting me to come out with some silly little scandal that could be made to disappear with the right amount of money.

  I took a deep breath and began. “I’ll understand if you never want to see me again. But there’s no avoiding this now. I just want you to know that it’s all been real for me. My feelings for you are not a lie.”

  “Just tell me.” His voice was barely above a whisper, but it rang loud and clear to my ears. “Whatever it is … you can tell me.”

  I turned away from him, looking out over the water and leaning against the wooden railing. The moon shone in the distant sky, omniscient among the wisps of clouds, and I was reassured in my decision. I found my nerve and did the only thing I knew would convince him of my true nature. The thing I’d fought against every time Trey had kissed me. I unsheathed my fangs and my already impeccable eyesight became even sharper as my eyes took on their natural luminescence, almost glowing compared to the duller version that I walked around with most of the time. Trey put an arm around my shoulders. This was it. I was going to tell him everything. From this point forward, there would be no turning back.

  Trey’s hand cupped my chin and I turned to face him. My mouth was open, my fangs exposed, my eyes glowing a faint poison green. A soft gasp escaped Trey’s lips and he flinched, pulling his hand away reflexively.

  “Trey….” But what could I say? How could I explain any of this to him? As he stared at me, at my true form, I desperately wished for him to understand. I hadn’t needed anything from anyone in a long time, but there was no denying how much I needed Trey to understand me at that moment. His eyes narrowed and instead of backing up like I expected, he stepped toward me again. “I-”

  “Shh…” He raised a finger to my lips to silence me. Then he stared at me brazenly, studying all the details of my face with wonder in his eyes. I was shocked into silence as I waited for him to say something … anything. He took his time, probably just as lost for words as I was. He trailed his fingers down my cheek, pausing to run his thumb over one of my fangs. After a moment his heartbeat slowed and his breathing returned to normal. “This … this is like a really weird dream.” He spoke slowly, his eyes never leaving my face. “But if you’re in it too, well, I guess I’ll take what I can get.”

  “This isn’t a dream. The danger I spoke of is real.”

  He closed his hands around mine as he searched my eyes. “Just tell me one thing. Are you still the woman I fell in love with?”

  I met his gaze and nodded. “I’ve lied to you about a lot of things, but my feelings for you are the only truth I have left.”

  Trey’s chest heaved as he took a quick, shaky breath of air, then suddenly his arms were around me, pulling me tightly to his chest. He held me like he was never going to let go. I hoped he wouldn’t. He pulled back enough to gaze at me again, brushing a strand of hair away from my face.

  “Look at you,” he breathed. “I don’t even know what to say….” He traced my lips with his fingers again. “You’re breathtaking.”

  I choked on a laugh, disbelieving, and he smiled at me. I had missed that lazy half-smile more than words could express. I couldn’t believe he was still standing here with me, somehow unafraid.

  But the worst part wasn’t over yet.

  “I know this is a lot to take in for one night,” I said. “But this is really only half the problem. I have a lot to tell you.”

  His eyes darkened and for the first time I thought he might be starting to grasp the gravity of our situation. He nodded and pulled me away from the dock. I walked with him to a spot under a tree where we sat on the grass. I didn’t know what else to do but start at the beginning. I explained to him that I’d been hunting the night we’d met at Carlie’s, and that I’d been fascinated with him and changed my mind about drinking from him almost immediately. I’d stopped there to explain that I wasn’t a killer. That I was able to feed without harming the donor, and then I continued, saying that I hadn’t expected to ever see him again and then he’d just shown up at The Waking Moon later and changed everything.

  “Wait a minute,” he interrupted. “Your friend Mark … the doctor … is he…?”

  “Mark is a vampire. Yes.”

  Trey ran his fingers through his messy hair and then nodded for me to continue. I told him how I’d been relieved to have a legitimate reason to keep seeing him when Celebrity Dent had offered me a job as the album artist. I was taking a big risk by being so close to him, but I thought it would protect us both if I was working for the band. I explained all the important points, including how I’d left him after the VMA’s to attend a special ritual with others of my kind. I briefly explained about the Synod and how they’d led the ritual that night. He didn’t say much as I spoke, but I could read his reactions in the way his heart sped up and slowed down. I paused a moment to let him think through everything so far.

  “The men who came for you at the restaurant,” he said, thinking ahead of the story. “They were vampires.” It was more of a statement than a question. “That’s the night everything changed. Who were they?”

  “They were Emissary,” I said. “They work directly under the Synod. The Elders of the Synod were waiting outside for me in a car.”

  “What did they want?” He leaned forward, anxious.

  “They gave me those pictures you saw at my house last night and forbid me from continuing our relationship.”

  He furrowed his brow and entwined his fingers in mine. “Huh. Well, that explains the sudden breakup.”

  “I was just trying to protect you,” I explained. “I convinced them that you didn’t know what I was, and they agreed to leave you alone as long as I obeyed.”

  “What changed?” His heart was thumping again in anticipation. “What made you decide to come clean tonight, after everything?” I hesitated, knowing this was the part he might not be able to forgive me for.

  “I found something out last night,” I began. “We have a club that caters to our kind across town. That’s where I went after I left you at my place. I found out that someone had been putting up pictures of us all over the club, and who knows where else. A lot of the vampires are angry that I let a human get so close to our world. They don’t care what you know … they see you as a threat.”

  “So … they want to make me a vampire?”

  I shook my head. “Not many vampires want the responsibility of creating another.”

  He swallowed hard, understanding. “They just want to get rid of me.”

  “I’m sorry. You have to believe this is exactly what I was trying to protect you from. I can understand if you never want to speak to me again, but I’d never be able to live with myself if
I didn’t warn you.”

  Trey gave a small resolute nod. He got to his feet and walked slowly back toward the dock. I resisted the urge to reach out to him with my mind, though it was killing me not knowing what he was thinking. For several moments I watched him in silence. Then I stood and went to his side. He was leaning with both hands on the wooden railing, staring out over the dark water. I waited for him to say something, and after a moment he turned his head to look at me.

  “The way I see it, my days as a human are numbered.”

  I opened my mouth to speak, wishing it could be any other way. But he was right, and nothing I could say would make it less true.

  Chapter 48

  “That leaves me with one option,” Trey said. “I guess I’m about to get real acquainted with your world.” He turned toward me, looking grave. “What do I do now?”

  “You have to decide if you can ever forgive me for putting you through all this. If not I’ll need to find someone else to change you and mentor you in the ways of the night.” I braced myself for his answer. I didn’t even deserve him.

  He looked at me, incredulous, and a humorless laugh escaped his lips. “Do you really have to ask?” Then he pulled me close and said, “Falling in love with you isn’t something I just decided on. I can’t control my heart. It doesn’t do what I ask of it.” Trey pulled my hand to his chest where I felt his heart thumping.

  “Yeah, well that kind of control doesn’t even come with the vampire territory,” I admitted, staring up at him. “My heart is just as stubborn as yours.”

  “It has to be you,” he stated. I blinked at him, still unsure. “Aurora,” he breathed. “It’s always been you. I don’t want a life in the dark without you. I … I don’t even want a life in the light without you.”

  “Are … are you certain? After everything I’ve put you through, you must hate me.”

  “Hate you for loving me?” There was that lazy smile again. “I could never hate you. I’m hopelessly in love with you.” He took my face in his hands, and I still saw wonder and amazement in his eyes as he leaned toward me slowly.

  I found it easier to drop my guard than I would have expected. Now that it didn’t matter that Trey was seeing me in my true form, fangs and glowing eyes and all, I relinquished control and let myself be absorbed by the kiss. When our lips met, Trey’s emotions blended with my own seamlessly. His lips were warm and soft and familiar, and my heart ached to think that I might have missed kissing him like this for all of eternity. I kissed him back with more fervor than I’d ever allowed myself, no longer forced to hide who I truly was. Trey responded by wrapping his hands around the small of my back and pulling me close against him.

  Maybe it was because I was no longer forced to fight my instinct, but I felt like I was kissing Trey for the first time. Suddenly everything was exaggerated and brand new, like the texture of his hair between my fingers, and the wonderful smell of his cologne as it rose through the neck of his tee shirt.

  Then I tasted blood. Trey’s blood. Okay, so maybe I’d never actually tasted Trey’s blood before, but I’d smelled the intoxicating scent of it rushing through his veins since the first night we’d met. He tasted even better than I’d imagined….

  But something wasn’t right. Why did I taste Trey’s blood?

  I pulled back and saw the puzzled look on Trey’s face as he raised a finger to his mouth, touching his bottom lip on one side where blood was rising to the surface.

  He looked up at me, almost embarrassed. “I … I think I got a little caught up and … uh …”

  It was obvious now. He’d nicked his lip on my fang, which was both hopeless and adorable.

  “Let me see,” I said, smiling and tugging him forward by his shirt until we were only inches apart again. “Close your eyes.” He looked at me, hesitating for only a second before he let his eyes fall shut. I brushed my lips against his, kissing his mouth again, only this time slowly and deliberately. His heart raced and I could feel through the emotional link that he sort of liked not knowing what I was going to do to him. Kissing a vampire while bleeding could easily be too much to ask of any mortal man, but not Trey. He just kissed me right back. I prolonged the kiss for longer than was necessary, but I just couldn’t help myself. When I did pull back, his eyes fluttered open and I smiled at him. “Better?” I asked.

  Trey licked his lips and then brought his finger to his mouth again, checking it for traces of blood. But the cut had completely healed. He let out a quick breath, staring at me in disbelief. “That’s amazing. How did you do that?”

  “Just one of the many things I’ll get to teach you,” I said, satisfied.

  “I’m going to enjoy practicing that one.” Then a look of comprehension crossed his face and he gazed at me like he was seeing me for the first time. “This is why you always pulled away from me. You were -”

  “Afraid I’d let myself get caught up in the rush and you’d see me for who I truly am,” I finished for him. “I never wanted to pull away from you. I still can’t believe you were so patient with me.”

  Trey looked at me adoringly. “And I thought you had trust issues,” he said with a small laugh.

  “I have my share of those, too,” I assured him. “Just not with you.” But all the talk about trusting people made me realize that we needed to share our decision with the one vampire who might be able to help. “There’s someone we need to see,” I said. “His name is Antonio. He’s my maker.”

  Trey gave me a determined nod and took my hand, leading me back across the street.

  “Where’s your car?” I asked, suddenly realizing that it wasn’t parked out front.

  “I parked down the road a ways,” he admitted sheepishly, pulling me down the sidewalk in the right direction.

  “So you and Kacie could ambush me?” I asked, pretending to be angry.

  He laughed. “Ambush is such a strong word.”

  “I still can’t believe she went along with it.”

  “I showed up with a guitar and a bleeding heart, looking all sorts of pathetic. What would you expect her to do?”

  “Throw you out, maybe,” I teased.

  “That’s one option.” As we walked past The Waking Moon Trey’s footsteps paused and he turned to stare at the front of the building.

  “What?” I asked.

  “I … I was just wondering,” he said thoughtfully. “If no one broke into The Waking Moon, how did the front window end up in pieces all over the floor?”

  “I smashed it when I sensed you coming,” I admitted.

  Trey grinned and looked at me in disbelief. “Are you serious?”

  “It wasn’t one of my better plans,” I admitted.

  He laughed out loud and pulled me closer to his side as we walked. We reached his car and he opened the passenger side door for me and gave me a hand inside. Even the knowledge that I was a vampire, and more than capable of ducking into the car by myself, hadn’t curbed his desire to be a gentlemen.

  “Where does this Antonio live?” Trey started the engine and glanced at me. I gave him directions to Antonio’s and he pulled out onto the street. There weren’t many cars on the road as Trey navigated the streets of Clearwater. He was deep in thought, and I wanted to make it as easy as possible for him. There was just so much I needed to tell him, to prepare him for. It would take some time.

  “What are you thinking about?” I finally asked, my curiosity getting the best of me.

  “You mean you can’t read my mind or something?” Trey smiled at me playfully.

  “Maybe. But I’d rather you just tell me yourself,” I said.

  Chapter 49

  Trey did a double-take and stared at me for a second before returning his eyes to the road.

  “I really didn’t expect you to admit to mind reading.” He let out a nervous laugh and then sighed. “This is going to take some getting used to.”

  I smiled at him reassuringly. “Last night was the first time I used my abilities to read your thoughts.
”

  “Seriously?” He seemed surprised.

  “That was when I thought breaking up with you would prevent you from having to go through all this. I hoped that knowing your thoughts would give me more ammunition in the argument to convince you we couldn’t be together.”

  “Hmmm….”

  “What?”

  “Nothing.” He smirked and then added, “It’s just that if I could read your thoughts, I’d probably do it all the time.”

  “At least you’re honest,” I said sarcastically, grinning at him in spite of myself.

  He chuckled and said, “You’re just a mystery. You always have been. Now, I guess I sort of know why.” He was silent for a second and then said, “What else can you do?” But before I could think of a way to answer he spoke again. “I bet you can run really fast.” I just smiled. “And a vampire wouldn’t be a vampire if they weren’t really strong.”

  “I can hold my own,” I admitted.

  He grinned at me in amazement. “I know I should probably find it emasculating that my girlfriend could take me, but it’s just so hot.”

  It was my turn to laugh this time. “I could definitely take you.” He laughed, too. I was aware of the fact that he kept glancing at me out of the corner of his eye, but always with adoration and a hint of disbelief. Not once did I see a trace of the resentment I had feared.

  He couldn’t hide the somber edge in his tone when he spoke again. “When will you change me?”

  I reached across the center console and touched his arm, knowing this must be hard for him. “Vampires can only be created during a full moon. That won’t be for… ” I glanced out the window, looking in the direction I knew the moon would be. “ … 23 days.”

  “Really? I guess I wasn’t expecting it to be that long.” He ran a hand through his hair and turned at the next street when I gestured to it. “Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind being human a bit longer, it’s just a little nerve-wracking. I feel like a sitting duck.”