My Beloved

by T.M. Mendes

  It felt like she had the chills and she spent the rest of the night not getting an ounce of sleep. It was about an hour before sunrise when Vincent knocked on the door. She knew this because her body started to hum in anticipation and her neck ached.

  "We need to leave before the sun gets up. Anya was supposed to take you, but as you know she's not here. Darcy is calling on another human he knows to make sure you're taken care of today," he said while leaning on the door frame. "I know you're going home tonight so I'll be in your room the moment the sun goes down. Get dressed and ready, we're burning sunless seconds." Without another word he left, leaving Wendy to feel empty. He was shorter than normal.

  She scoffed at herself. 'Shorter than normal,' like she knew what his 'normal' was. She hasn't even known him that long! "Stop being so pathetic!" she hissed at herself and got up. When her feet touched the carpet, she was surprised at how bad it felt. Like the carpet itself was uncomfortable on her feet. In fact, anything her skin touched felt almost painful. Even with that revelation, she still was too stubborn to go to Vincent. Walking to the en-suite bathroom, she turned on the water to warm. Removing her glasses as she got undressed, she did everything slowly. Her entire frame ached like she had the longest workout of her life yesterday. Stepping in the warm cascading water, she jumped back out. Every pellet of water sizzled on her skin. It was extremely hurtful so she quickly made the shower cooler.

  The colder water felt better but only enough to get washed up and then quickly stepped out. She soon discovered even towel drying hurt so she settled on patting herself gingerly. "I can't go a whole day like this," she muttered as she just got done getting dressed in a long sleeved white shirt and yoga fitted pants with draw strings. She knew what she had to do, even if she didn't like it.

  Walking out in the hall, she sighed in reluctance. "Vincent?" she called out.

  Within a second, he was there with a patient look on his face. "Done being stubborn?" he asked, which in turn she nodded with a slight scowl. "Good. I hate to see you suffering. Let's go back in your room."

  She followed him while her body started to hum in excitement. Like it knew what was coming. It gave her a much needed break from the aches.

  "I'll be quick," he uttered before bending down to hold her in his arms and quickly went to her neck. She held her breath before she felt his elongated fangs pierce her flesh. The ache immediately went away, replaced by a blissful almost drugged-like state. A loud moan escaped her as she pressed herself closer. Every draw from his mouth made her buzz. Her lower stomach clenched as her nails dug into his arms. When he pulled away, she looked up at him through half-lidded eyes. "Better?" he asked with labored breath. His eyes were once again an almost midnight blue but was slowly returning to their icy color.

  "Yes," she breathed and wanted to be in his arms like this forever and quickly squashed the disappointment when he pulled away.

  "We'll leave in ten minutes. That will give us enough time to drop you off and come back here to sleep. Unless I could carry you there, in which case you'll have enough time for breakfast."

  Wendy thought about being in his arms again if only for a few more moments and without hesitating, "Yes, I'm hungry so that seems like a good option."

  He smirked, knowing her real reason before leaving the room. Oh she was in trouble alright. In trouble of giving in too soon.

  Chapter 9

  Wendy

  "Be safe," Vincent murmured and bent down to kiss Wendy's forehead softly. She closed her eyes and let herself enjoy the moment before reality came crashing down once more. "There's another human girl-"

  Wendy cut him off, "Girl."

  Vincent sent her a confused look. "What?" he asked, not understanding.

  "You always say 'human girl,’ or ‘human guy.' I'm human and it offends me how you separate them."

  Understanding flashed across his face before he smiled down at her. "I sincerely apologize for upsetting you then." He took her hand and kissed the top of it, causing her to blush. Vincent was looking at the horizon and noted the black blanket of the night was quickly becoming a lighter deep grey. "I must go. I'll see you tonight. The girl's name is Dominica." He stole a very quick kiss before flashing away, leaving her in the lobby of the hospital.

  In a daze she walked inside and went to the elevators. Stepping onto it, the doors nearly closed before an arm stopped it. A darker skinned woman stepped in. She had an aura around her that told Wendy not to mess with her. With the tight leather jacket, black cropped hair and even blacker eyes, she screamed intimidation. 'An assassin,' Wendy thought flippantly and trained her eyes on anywhere else but her. It was a long quiet ride until the elevator dinged, saying she arrived on the floor she was supposed to get off at, but so did the other woman.

  "Are you, by any chance, Wendy?" The woman's voice was raspy and it suited her.

  Wendy gulped and nodded reluctantly. 'Stop being such a coward!' she reprimanded herself.

  "Hello, I'm Dominica. I believe you know of my arrival?"

  Wendy sighed in relief, knowing the woman wasn't going to hurt her. "Normally, I don't take babysitting jobs, but the money was too good to pass up. Oh, and I don't do the whole, 'making friends' thing."

  Wendy was sort of glad for this cold demeanor. It meant she didn't have to put up a front and try to be nice and talk to her. When she didn't say anything else, both girls walked to Markus' room. Wendy stopped outside the door though.

  "Who are you to me? I-I mean, what am I going to say about how we knew each other?" Wendy asked while picking at her nails. Dominica was so much taller than any woman or girl she was used to. She was nearly six feet tall, and add in all the leather she was sporting, she looked dangerous. Definitely not someone anyone would think Wendy would hang out with.

  Dominica sighed in annoyance. "This is why I don't do these kinds of jobs Just say I asked to do a college report on the kind of defect your brother has." Noting the look of surprise on Wendy's face, the Amazona got impatient. "I make it my job to know all aspects of any case or job I'm hired for. Now let's go in before I completely lose my patience and decide to kill someone out of sport."

  That made Wendy jump as she all but ran inside her brother's room.

  She forgot how early it was when she saw her brother still sleeping. His surgery was scheduled in another two hours so they'll prep him in an hour. Sighing to herself, she paid no mind to Dominica and sat down at a nearby chair. Her parents should be here any time now, which both comforted and worried her. They'll be wondering about the woman in the room. She was hoping they'd buy the college bit, but was still unsure.

  "Oh, you're here early! Do you want some coffee, dear?" an older nurse asked when she walked into the room. Wendy politely declined since coffee makes her have anxiety.

  "I would love some," Dominica said with an eye roll. Yep, it was official: Wendy did not like this girl.

  "Er... sure, let me go get that for you real quick." The nurse looked confused as to who this was, but knowing Wendy was there reassured her some. When she left, Wendy bravely gave her the stink eye.

  "What? If I have to stay here and watch you, I'm going to need coffee."

  Wendy sighed and chose to just ignore the rude woman while flipping through an out-dated magazine that she had already read in the past two days. The nurse came back moments later with a cup in her hand but she wasn't alone. Her parents came in with tired smiles when they spotted their daughter.

  "Oh, who's this?" Debbie asked with her head cocked slightly to the side. She bit back a yawn and waited for an answer.

  Dominica put on a believable smile and walked to the couple. Wendy held her breath, making sure she wouldn't hurt them. "Hello, I'm Sarah. I'm doing a research paper for my college on the heart defect your son has. I hope you don't mind? I'm just going to be observing, you won't even know I'm here."

  Wendy was stunned to see how polite Dominica was being. And Sarah? She guessed it was to protect her true reason why she was here.

/>   Jim smiled and nodded. "It isn't a problem at all."

  Wendy grimaced to herself at the fact how gullible her parents truly were.

  Although Dominica was a convincing liar, if she were them, she'd ask for a student I.D. or something! Maybe with everything she's dealt with in the past several days made her less trusting. Wendy decided that was a good thing, she just wished she would've thought this way in different circumstances.

  "Sweetie? You're awfully quiet. Are you okay? You know Markus will pull through this." Her mother sat beside Wendy and pulled her to her side for a hug. Wendy wished she was worrying about Markus. It'd make things easier for her. But she knew she had nothing to worry about with the surgery. It was everything else that had her on edge.

  "I'm fine, mom. Really. I'm just tired." Wendy saw her mom look doubtful and apprehension seized her when Debbie's eyes widened, looking at her neck. "Oh my! What happened to your neck?"

  Wendy's hand immediately went to the place Vincent had fed from and felt two raised marks. Congruent to his fangs. She internally cursed him from his stupidity, but more so, hers when she forgot she would need to cover them up. White hot flashes of need coursed through her when she touched the marks so she quickly stopped touching them.

  "I-It's nothing! I fell and hit my neck on a corner." She wanted to hit herself because of the stupid lie, but her brain couldn't come up with anything better. Debbie frowned at her daughter before letting the subject go. Breathing out a silent breath of relief, she snuck a peek at Dominica and saw she was frowning at her. Did she not know of vampires? She made a mental note not to mention anything to her just in case.

  Just then, Markus woke up with a slight groan. "What are you people doing here at this ungodly hour?" Wendy had to snicker to herself. They both hated waking up early. The only reason she was up was for her brother and the fact her mind wouldn't shut off.

  "Whoa... who's the hottie?" he asked once he spotted Dominica. Wendy could tell she was trying not to glare at her brother and that fact made her want to snicker.

  "This 'hottie' has a name. I'm Sarah and I'm doing a paper on your heart defect. I hope you don't mind."

  Markus gave her a charming smile and Wendy wanted to roll her eyes at her idiotic brother. He was forever a flirt. "Not at all. Please, come sit, and I'll tell you anything you want to know."

  Wendy could see Dominica had her jaw clenched with irritation and again, she had the urge to laugh. The whole situation was funny.

  "Thank you, but I'll stay over here," she said through clenched teeth, trying to keep her composure.

  Markus then made a big show of yawning. "Whew! Man, am I tired! Maybe I should just sleep then?" His implications were clear and Wendy did let a giggle slip out as Dominica all but stomped over to the chair beside the bed and sat down. "Wow, I suddenly feel much more awake! Okay, now ask away, beautiful," Markus said with a smirk.

  "Pfft!" Wendy accidentally slipped out. All heads snapped in her direction and it looked like her parents were in the same state as her. Both Dominica and Markus were glaring at her. "S-Sorry," she stuttered, trying desperately not to laugh out loud. The whole thing looked ridiculous though! If only her brother knew who 'Sarah' really was. He'd still probably want to make a pass at her, Wendy thought with an internal eye roll. Giving her another pointed look, Markus went back to 'wooing' Dominica with his 'charm'.

  Half an hour passed before a surgical nurse stepped in. "Hello, I'm Nancy, and we're just going to prep you for surgery. Here's some paperwork for you to look over and fill out. The anesthesiologist will be in shortly to go over the procedure, and then we can get going!"

  Because Markus was eighteen, he had to sign the papers. Not even glancing at the words, he signed them.

  "You idiot! You're supposed to read them!" Wendy said with an exasperated look.

  Markus shrugged and leaned back. "I'm too lazy right now," was all he gave her.

  The nurse chuckled and checked his IV. The door opened, revealing a male with doctor scrubs on and one of those surgical hats. His had pictures of clowns on them. "Hi, I'm Dr. Bartlet, your anesthesiologist. Now since I saw you've never had surgery before, here's what to expect. I'm going to put a mask over you once we get into the operating room for oxygen. This is to keep your lungs clear and open, okay? I'll then put the drugs into your IV to make you sleepy. It should only take maybe five seconds before you fall asleep, and the next thing you know you'll be awake in the recovery room. Very simple and easy. Of course there's always a chance for complications with the anesthetic."

  Markus sat up straighter with some difficulty. "Like what?" he asked, making Wendy detect a note of worry.

  Dr. Bartlet gave him a reassuring smile. "You may have trouble waking up but that doesn't happen very often. You're in good hands, and we'll take good care of you." The smile on the doctor's face was genuine and put a sense of ease over the family. Dr. Bartlet turned to said family, "Do you want to have a quick moment with him before we take him back?" he asked.

  Debbie and Jim nodded as Debbie teared up. Wendy stood up along with her parents and they all gathered around Markus. Wendy bent over and hugged him quickly. "I'll see you later," she whispered and stepped back for her parents.

  After another five minutes of tear-filled hugs from Debbie, Markus was ready. He looked determined but also scared when they began to wheel his bed away out into the hall. Once the door shut, they all sighed. It was really happening. Markus was getting the care he needed to live.

  "I'm going to go take a walk," Wendy stated and began to go out.

  Dominica jumped up. "I'll join you."

  Her parents nodded in reply before Wendy left them.

  "You really don't have to follow me, you know. I'll be fine," she said with a huff. She got a sense of déjà vu from her interaction with Anya. The thought brought the question on how she was doing but she didn't dwell on it too much.

  "It is my job," was all Dominica said before turning back to silence. Wendy sighed to herself before going outside to breathe in the fresh air. Hospitals always felt stagnant to her. With its constant smell of disinfectants and the air of sadness surrounding the building, she avoided them at any costs. Even though her eyes felt heavy, her body felt jittery, so wanting to shake it off she decided to take a walk around the entire building. It was silent except for the cars off the freeway not too far away and the occasional honking of a horn.

  Wendy's steps made dull thuds against the concrete from her worn out sneakers, while Dominica's were completely silent. Lethal. Even when she had high-heeled boots, you couldn't hear a sound. It made Wendy nervous but she reminded herself she was here to watch out for her, not to take her out.

  "What are those marks really on your neck?"

  That made Wendy stop short but she quickly continued walking. "N-Nothing. I told you, I fell." Wendy's reply was curt and gave off the distinct impression to leave it alone, but Dominica didn't care.

  "Bullshit. Those look like needle marks. Tell me the truth. Are you using drugs, because if you are I'm out of here!"

  Wendy turned around stupefied. "No! Of course not!" No one could doubt the truth in her voice so Dominica nodded.

  "Well then that's all I care about."

  Not saying anymore, they resumed walking. "Why did you get so worked up over the fact I might have been using?" Wendy asked a little reluctantly.

  Dominica huffed and crossed her arms in defense. "None of your business." Her words left no room for argument so with a grumble to herself, Wendy continued her walk. They were now in the back of the hospital and it was even more quiet. Wendy got this feeling of foreboding in the pit of her stomach, making her pick up the pace.

  "Stay behind me," Dominica instructed, obviously feeling something wrong. Cool wind nipped at the exposed skin of Wendy's arms. Her ears strained to hear anything that was amiss but came up with nothing.

  "Hmm, what do we have here?"

  Both eyes snapped to a man a ways away. Wendy felt fear ripple through h
er at the sheer size of the mammoth. He was built like a bus, wide and tall, with a stance like a bull that’s ready to charge. Wendy saw Dominica take a gun out from behind her swiftly.

  "Darcy must really like you to hire this one here. My owner wants your head as an early birthday present." He spoke with a wry grin and took out a gun quickly and pointed it at Dominica. Wendy's blood was rushing in her ears, making it hard to concentrate. She wanted to run but she knew there was no way she cold dodge the bullet that was sure to fire her way if she tried.

  "Maybe next time, Tiny," Dominica said with a sneer and shot at him. He dodged the bullet and in turn shot his gun as well. Wendy was expecting loud bags but quickly noted they both had silencers on.

  "Run!" Dominica yelled at Wendy as she continued to shoot at the large man. Wendy wasted no more time as she took off sprinting trying to find cover. Her glasses were flopping wildly from the run. The back of the hospital was unfortunately barren of any hiding place so she knew she had to somehow make it to the corner where she can hide better. That was an easy three hundred yards away though.

  "Ah!" she squeaked when a bullet whizzed dangerously close to her ear. She heard a grunt and dared to look back. She gasped when she saw Dominica tackle the man to the ground, sending both guns clattering to the ground. Looking ahead of her, she saw how close she was to safety but she worried for the other girl. Groaning out loud for her impossible conscience, she made a sharp U-turn and ran back. Her breaths were coming out in puffs. Dominica was grunting, trying to get the man to stay down as she fished out a knife but her eyes spotted Wendy running toward them.

  "What the hell are you doing?! Get out of here!" she yelled, making Wendy stop short Determination surged through her though and she quickly spotted a stray board. Gathering up as much courage as she could, she picked it up and got close to the grappling duo. The beast-like man was gaining the upper hand but had yet to notice the small target approaching.

  Raising the wood like a bat above her head, she slammed it down onto the man's head, causing his movements to cease. Blowing out a large breath, Wendy let the wood clatter to the ground and stumbled away. She could see he was still breathing, which made her glad. She didn't want to kill anyone even though he was sent to kill her.