"What are you doing out here?" she asked. "Come in. You're going to freeze to death."
I looked beyond her and shook my head. "I think it's best if I'm not around people."
"Are you okay? What happened?"
I didn't say anything. I couldn't tell her any of it anyway.
"Wait here," she said. "I'll be right back."
I almost left right then, knowing I shouldn't be here, but I couldn't bring myself to go anywhere else.
She returned a moment later and grabbed my hand.
"This way," she said and pulled me along.
Her hand was warm in mine and helped to sedate much of my anger.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"Somewhere to get out of this rain," she said over her shoulder.
She led me across the street and one block over to the city's largest and nicest park. Normally it was crowded with people even at this time of night, but the rain had scared everyone away. She pulled me down a flight of stairs and along a paved path until we stopped beneath a bridge. Above us, a walkway led to another section of the park.
She shook her hair free of rain. Long and wet dark tendrils stuck to her cheek and neck. She looked up at me. "What's going on?"
She wrapped her arms around herself to keep warm. I wish I had a jacket to give her.
"Have you ever had one of those days where you wish you could sleep forever?"
She smiled kindly. "Many times. Do you want to talk about it?"
"I wish I could, but I can't."
Thunder cracked overhead making her jump. "I'm not a fan of storms."
"I remember."
"You remember?" she repeated. "When? I never told you that."
I should've said something to try and backtrack, but I just stared at her. Emma had never lied to me. She had been the one constant in my life, whether she knew it or not.
She shivered.
"You're cold," I said.
"Aren't you?"
I reached forward and pulled her to me, my arms wrapping around her tightly. She molded to me, like she was born to be there. I exhaled, releasing the last of my anger, and rested my chin on top of her head.
We remained still for several minutes. I didn't want to move, afraid I would never get this moment back if I did.
"I wish you would talk to me," she whispered. "I could help."
I looked down at her and her up at me. "You already are."
I stared into her blue eyes, wishing we could be together. I would give up everything for her.
She reached up and gently pressed her warm palm to my cheek and slid it behind my neck. She pulled my head toward hers and lifted up on her tiptoes until our lips met.
I didn't mean to kiss her as hard as I did, but I was desperate to hang on to something real. She kissed me back just as fiercely, our lips sliding over each other, our tongues meeting. I picked her up, and her legs wrapped around my waist. She was light in my arms. I could hold her forever.
Thunder exploded and lightning cracked across the dark sky. She yelped. She quickly followed it up with a nervous laugh, and I chuckled with her. She buried her head into my neck and I breathed in everything about her. I had dreamed of this moment so many times.
She leaned back and searched my eyes. "Thank you for saving me earlier. I wish it hadn't come with a price. The thought of you working with Victor makes me sick."
I slowly released her and stepped back. "I would do anything to keep you safe."
"Why?" she demanded.
The way she said it was almost like she was waiting for me to confess something.
"I should go."
"What if you didn't?"
I scoffed. "I don't have a choice, you know that."
"You could leave town."
"And where would that leave you? You don't think Victor would come after you?"
She shrugged. "Maybe I could go with you?"
"You would do that? Leave everything you know to go with someone you've known for only a couple of months?" I asked incredulously.
She kept her gaze steady. "Maybe I know you better than you think I do."
I averted my gaze and swallowed the heaviness in my throat. "I would never ask that of you."
"The city isn't safe," she said. "It hasn't been for a long time. Police don't care anymore and the whole court system is jacked up. My own mother…" She looked away, a fire burning in her eyes. "Something has to change. We live in fear in our own homes."
"Life should never be lived in fear," I said.
She eyed me suspiciously. "I was given that same advice when I was a kid and going through a hard time."
Air caught in my chest. I had said too much. "I should go."
"Don't."
"I have to."
She touched her fingers to her lips, as if remembering our kiss. "Will you come back to me?"
I closed the distance between us. "Always."
I bent down and pressed my lips to hers, gentler this time. This could be the last kiss I ever shared with her. I savored everything about it. The plumpness of her flesh between my teeth, the taste of her tongue as it twisted around mine, the sweet smell of her shallow breaths. I had meant what I said. I would always come back to her, but she wouldn't know it.
Reluctantly, I pulled away. "Stay safe."
I didn't look back at her even as she reached for me. I jogged into the rain, my heart lurching.
As I made my way toward the Devil's Playground, I thought back to the time I had told Emma not to live her life in fear. I promised I would always be there to keep her safe. She probably didn't believe me, we were only twelve after all, but then I had proved it to her.
She had snuck away from home again and came to the park where she found me. Her parents were in the middle of a bitter divorce due to her father being an alcoholic. Her father came looking for her later that morning. He had been drinking and stumbled into the playground. Mothers grabbed their children and bustled them away.
When he called for her, Emma reluctantly came forward. I stayed close to her side. Her father had grabbed her roughly by the arm and when he raised his fist as if to hit her, I caught it in my smaller hand. I still remember the way his hooded eyes had widened in surprise, but they closed a second later when I punched him in the jaw.
I had taken Emma's hand and ran all the way home with her. This made me late returning to Ironwood. When Roman rose from his tank, he had come looking for me. That was the last time Emma ever saw me, but I had still kept an eye on her like I had promised.
Turning a corner, I cursed out loud at the feel of her lips still lingering on my mouth. I shouldn't have kissed her. That was such a dick move. If Victor ever found out how much she truly meant to me, he could easily use her to get to me. I had to be more careful and not let my emotions control me so much.
Even if that meant I lost the love of my life.
27
I didn't have to announce my arrival like before. When the guards at the gate saw me, they opened it and let me pass without question.
Victor was there to greet me at the front door of the Devil's Playground. He glanced down at his watch and looked up at me. "A few minutes early. Good man. Already starting off the job right."
He walked inside the building, knowing I would follow. He turned to his left, away from the club that was already blaring music for the night.
Following his path past a lounge area and down a long hall, I couldn't help but think of the man he used to be. My mother hadn’t said much about him in her journal, but what she had written was all positive. He had been there for my mother when my father hadn't. He had even been at my birth. I wondered if there was any good left inside him, no matter how small.
Victor led me into a surprisingly small office. I expected something grander to match the rest of the building, but there was only an old black loveseat on one end and a desk and rolling chair on the other. A single abstract painting hung on the wall. It was one of those inkblot drawings where peopl
e see different things.
"Have a seat," Victor told me. His guards moved to come into the room but he stopped them. "Stay out there."
Victor rounded his desk and sat down. "I'm sorry about that nastiness this morning. I don't like to conduct business like that, but I saw no other way to get you to work for me. And I always get what I want."
I said nothing. What could I say? I looked up at the painting.
Victor followed my line of sight. "What do you see?"
"I can't decide. It could be a bird, but the lines there at the bottom suggest a different animal."
"Interesting you mention a bird. It reminded me of a crow when I first saw it. That's why I purchased it." He waited for a reaction but got none from me. "Most people see a wolf."
"I can see both," I said. "I've never liked drawings like these. I prefer straightforwardness and not masked images."
"I can appreciate that. Wouldn't it be an amazing world if people didn't wear masks?"
"What do you want from me?" I asked.
"Tonight you'll be going with me to one of my clubs on the other side of Pigtown. A couple of hours ago, it was attacked by that annoying vigilante who can't seem to keep his nose out of my business. I want to question a few of my guys that weren't carted off by the police to find out how it happened. That nightclub held something very important to me, and it's been destroyed. Someone has to pay."
"And what will my role be exactly?"
Victor smiled. "You're going to be my punisher. You have a deadly look in your eye that can be quite frightening. Did you know that about yourself?"
I stared at him.
He laughed. "There it is. I think you'll get results. And, well, if you don't, then you can knock some heads around."
"I'm not going to torture anyone." I folded my arms to my chest showing my resolve.
He tapped his fingers on the desk eyeing me carefully. "Here's the thing, Adam. If you do your job right, it won't come to that. But in the end, you will obey me."
"And if I don't?"
He spun his chair around to stare at the painting. "That girl at the lab. Emma is her name, right? She sure is a pretty girl."
"Leave her out of this." I could jump up right now and strangle him until he died. I wondered if I could do it. I felt strong enough, and I was sure angry enough. But I didn't know the level of his strength. It could easily mirror my own.
He swiveled back to me. "Just do your job and there will be no more nastiness. I like you, Adam. I think you have a great future in my empire. You remind me a little of myself when I was your age. I had a grand vision of the world and what it should look like. I fought hard to get it there until I realized it was an impossible dream. Human nature doesn't allow for any type of a utopian society."
"That's where you went wrong," I said. "You can't have a utopian society, but you can have the next best thing."
"Oh, yeah? What's that?"
"To create a balanced world. There's always going to be bad people doing bad things, but if society allows one of those people to gain too much power, then something needs to change."
"Who do you think should force that change?"
I met his gaze. "Whoever has enough courage to go toe-to-toe with the bastard."
He leaned forward real slow. "Your words are about as veiled as the painting behind me. Why don't you tell me exactly what you want?"
I want my fist through your skull. That's what I felt like saying, but now was not the time for honesty. "I want to get this over with."
He slapped the top of the desk aggressively, but grinned, a crazy look in his eye. "Then let's give you what you want! I bet Dax already has a car waiting for us. He loves a good interrogation."
I stepped outside. It had stopped raining, leaving an earthy smell in the air. Victor was right. A stretched SUV limo was parked out front with its engine idling. Blue lights glowed from beneath it.
I slid onto the leather seats and sat opposite the Physician. He watched me the entire time, much like an aggressive guard dog would. I didn't shrink from his stare.
Victor's other guards piled in, with Victor coming in last. Most of his men were built like tanks, a couple of them even bigger than me.
None of them spoke to me on the drive over. Very few even looked at me. Victor was silent, too. He was on his phone most of the time, texting someone. A couple of times he growled.
We arrived at Blue Fire, the same club I had left not more than a few hours ago. The men I had restrained in the alleyway were gone, the police already taken them away. The front doors were closed with a cop standing out front. If they were still there, what were we doing here? But then Victor shook the hand of the police officer and walked right in.
Unlike before, no music played. The silence made the wide-open, darkened space feel like a tomb. The bar area was bathed in greenish light shining down from the high ceiling. No other lights had been turned on.
Several police officers sat at the bar laughing and having drinks with the bartender. Other than them, only a handful of club employees lounged around at various tables talking quietly in the darkness. I noted they were all females.
One of the taller officers with a shaved head turned around and smiled big. "Victor! I'm glad you could personally come."
Victor strolled up to him and slapped him on the back, grinning. They chatted like they were old friends, asking each other what they've been up to. I moved closer. That's when I recognized the other man. He wasn't just a regular cop. He was the Chief of Police—Michael Graber. A new rush of anger flooded my system, and I nearly lost it right there.
"We rounded up the men like you asked. They're in the back room." Michael nodded his head toward the rear of the building and took a long drink of a blue liquid from a frosted glass.
"What about my men that were taken in earlier?" Victor asked.
Michael wiped his mouth with the back of his hairy hand. "Don't you worry about them. They should be out within twenty-four hours."
"Good man. I knew I could count on you." Victor turned around and said to the ladies, his voice sharp, "What are you doing just sitting there? Take care of my boys."
They jumped to attention and hurried toward us, all smiles. A woman with long dark hair sauntered over to me. She wore a short black skirt and a colorful halter-top. She grabbed my arm and guided me to a chair.
"Have a seat, baby," she ordered as she squeezed my arm.
"I prefer to stand."
She trailed her fingers up my chest. "It will be a lot better if you're sitting down."
She shoved me backwards, taking me by surprise. I lost my balance and fell into the chair.
"My name is Bliss," she purred. She lifted her skirt just enough so she could straddle me comfortably. She ran her fingers through my hair. "You're new here. I like new guys. They always get special treatment."
I jerked my head away. "Leave me alone."
I was trying to hear what Michael and Victor were saying as they were suddenly speaking in hushed tones.
"You must be having a rough day," Bliss pouted. "I can fix that."
She lowered her head to my neck and ran her tongue across my skin. Chills exploded across my flesh, but I tried not to focus on it. I pushed her head away.
The next fifteen minutes were a different kind of torture than I was used to. Bliss continued to grope me, touching me and kissing me in all kinds of places, but I responded just enough not to draw the other’s attention.
Several of the other men were engaged in full-on make-out sessions in front of everyone. Not my style and never would be. Victor glanced my direction a few times. I tried not to show my disdain for the girl grinding against me, but it was difficult. The only hands I wanted on me were Emma's.
The Physician was there, too, but he sat alone at the bar talking to no one. He didn't even have a drink, but he did chew on a long stick of jerky the bartender handed him. Something was off with him, and one of these days I needed to figure out what.
I heard what I could of Victor and Michael's conversation over the sounds of Bliss talking in my ear. Victor was asking him about the vigilante and what they knew of him. Of course, Michael knew nothing, but tried to placate Victor with empty promises of finding him. Victor also mentioned the destroyed blood bags. Michael promised twice as much by the next day. There was also some talk about the security footage in the building. Michael had watched the film, but had no leads. He handed a disc to Victor. If I got the chance, I wanted to watch it. I don't think anything on there would give away my identity, but I'd like to be sure.
Victor set down his glass and turned around. "It's time."
I jumped to my feet, making Bliss stumble from my lap. I was the first one behind him, anxious to get out of this dark place, but the others were slower to detangle from their partners. The Physician came up behind me as quiet as a wolf in the forest. I didn't hear him, but I sure felt his presence.
The police stayed at the bar while we disappeared into the same room where I had destroyed the blood and drugs. A floodlight had been set up, providing light to the once dark room. The walls were painted in blood, making it look like someone had taken a chainsaw to a dozen bodies. One of Victor's men turned and threw up at the sight of it.
In the center of the room, three men had been gagged and tied to chairs. Victor stepped over a broken table and stood in front of a guy that looked about my age with blond hair and a tattoo of a small dagger on his left cheek.
"I'm disappointed in you, Clark," Victor said and ripped off thick tape covering Clark's lips. Dark material of some kind had been stuffed into his mouth. Victor reached up and yanked out a sock.
By the size of Clark, he was probably a bouncer. He spoke quickly. "I'm so sorry Victor. I was at the front doors managing the line. I didn't see anyone sneak around back, but I swear to you, it will never happen again."
"So you didn't see anyone unusual?" Victor asked.
"No way, man. Like I said, I was out front. There was a long line, and I was real careful to screen anyone who came in."
Victor punched him hard in the face. His head snapped backwards. "I don't give a shit about the front of the club. The Crow snuck in the back. If you can't give me anything useful, shut the hell up."
A Hero's Death: Aris Crow Vampire Legend Page 18
