by Margot Fox
The rooms were an absolute maze. Some were so old they dripped with subterranean water. Others were so new that Tesa could smell the drywall mud. Most were completely unlit, the only source of light the thin sheen that every living thing has, invisible to normal humans.
The building seemed to have been erected in a hurry, perhaps with hallways created out of much older spaces, partitioning them. It almost seemed like it was meant to confuse the inhabitants, and Tesa finally gave up on trying to keep track of directions.
She kept as close as she could, trying to relieve the tension of Gunner’s fingers on her wrist. He finally swerved into a room and stopped as though he had hit a brick wall. Tesa collided against the back end of him and clung there, slightly out of breath.
“Gunner?” came a low, oily voice with an accent Tesa could not place. “What a delightful surprise. What are you doing here?”
Gunner shifted his weight, edging backward. Tesa inched toward the door, understanding that Gunner wanted to retreat. He placed a hand protectively around her, guiding her to stand behind him as though trying to obscure her.
“Helmut,” came Gunner’s sudden answer.
Helmut? Tesa thought, searching her memory. Did she know that name? It sure sounded familiar.
“It's such a surprise to see you here, brother,” Helmut purred.
Tesa dared to glance around the room. There were sofas set up against every wall with at least a dozen people watching them, half-caught in gestures as though they had suddenly paused when Tesa and Gunner had entered the chamber. Some were apparently human, and some were apparently vamps. Their eyes glittered faintly in the half-light as everyone waited to see what would happen next.
“Who do you have there, Gunner? Have you brought me something special?”
“Oh, Helmut, you look like you've got everything here that you need. How did you acquire such a beautiful collection of… Followers? Is that what you like to call them?”
Tesa could hear Helmut sucking the inside of his cheek thoughtfully. As Gunner continued to back out toward the doorway, she placed her feet delicately against the floor, moving as stealthily as she believed Gunner intended her to.
“Yes, yes, my little nest is quite cozy. Would you like to stay a bit? Perhaps sample some of the more exotic flavors?”
“Yes… I was meaning to ask you, what is that I smell?”
Tesa heard the challenge in his voice and cautiously sniffed the air. Was there something she was missing? It all smelled the same to her: copper, salt, the stench of humans. But then… something else. Something like a bruise. Something dark and wrong-colored.
“Smell?” Helmut repeated vaguely. “Perhaps the college students?”
“No… I think it’s something else,” Gunner answered. Tesa could hear the dare in what he was saying. Was he trying to provoke a fight?
“Something else… There’s always something else, no? Let me arrange a sample for you, brother, and you can give me your expert opinion…”
“Perhaps another time, Helmut,” Gunner purred.
“Another time, then. Perhaps if your situation becomes lean? No? You certainly seem to be doing well for yourself,” Helmut continued.
Tesa could feel him getting closer, circling to the side. She realized that he was trying to get a clean view of her and took a larger step toward the doorway.
“You seem to have acquired something quite rare, yourself. Is that right? Quite rare, indeed. Have you brought her here for me?”
She could feel Gunner's body stiffen protectively. “We are just here to visit, Helmut. Just to experience your hospitality.”
“You're not going to share? Not even a little bit?”
“She's not mine to give. Stark —”
Tesa gasped audibly. Stark? What does he have to do with this?
Gunner spun around, his eyes blazing in the dark. “Silence!” he hissed. His fingers tightened around her wrist so suddenly that she almost cried out.
Tesa shrank back, pressing her lips tightly together so that nothing else could escape. She wanted to be gone now. Unbidden, all the old dream images crept back into her mind. The teeth, the tongues, the blood. The tearing, the terror. She could hear the vamps on the couches licking their lips in anticipation. She could feel her heartbeat beating dangerously fast. And Stark had accused her of broadcasting her thoughts…
“Oh, that's all right, princess,” Helmut said loudly, talking directly to her. “There's no need to be afraid, little one. You're perfectly safe —”
But he didn't have time to finish. Before she knew what was happening, Gunner had picked her up by the middle and was hurtling back through the club, back to the front door. She tucked her knees and arms in for safety as he ran at superhuman speed back to the crowd and the cool night air.
Once outside, the change was astounding. It was as though she'd been dropped from a height. The air felt hot and thick, viscous as honey. She had a hard time breathing after the sweet, fortified vampire atmosphere she'd just been exposed to.
Somehow Jamie was already there with the Bentley and the door open. Gunner practically threw her into the back seat and they sped off, back the way they'd come.
“I'm sorry, I'm so sorry,” she babbled. “I didn't know what to do, I got so frightened —”
“— it's all right,” Gunner interrupted, holding his hand up. “I shouldn’t have brought you. You're not ready. I don't know what I was thinking."
Tesa shuddered, her body wracked with uncontrollable tremors. Helmut had known what she was thinking — the horror of the feed. He saw the i,age in her mind, she was sure of it. He felt the terror in her gut. And he had liked it. Everyone there had liked it. She could sense their anticipation. What had he intended to do?
When Gunner reached for her hand, she didn't object. She let him pull her toward him and fold her in his arms. As he had instructed her during Grant’s memorial, she looked at his face. The calm descended immediately upon her, cutting through her fear like a lighthouse beam. As her core trembled, she held on to the image of him for dear life, gulping at the feeling of safety until she could control herself.
He pushed his hair back from his forehead with his fingertips and shook his head. “That was too much for you,” he said, almost to himself. “I want you to know that you were never in any real danger. Helmut would never risk it, but still... I should not have brought you. I should have gone myself…”
“To find Jolie?”
He pulled away slightly looking down into her face and searching her eyes.
She nodded. As soon as she said the words, she could feel the truth in them. She had sensed it in his heart when she opened himself to her, though not in words at the time.
“That was why you brought me, isn't it? You can tell me the truth.”
“Oh, Tesa… There are so many things I cannot tell you. Not yet.”
“But—”
“ — but yes,” he nodded. “Yes, you’re right. I knew if we found her, she would be more likely to come to you than to me, and so…”
“So why did she run away?”
He didn’t know. He didn’t even have to say it; she could feel it like a neon sign pulsing in the connection between them. Some part of her was delighted to find out that the connection worked both ways, that she could understand him too. Another part of her was terrified at what Jolie could have gotten herself into.
“We will find her,” he said. “I promised Bernie…”
“Then we will find her,” Tesa repeated.
CHAPTER 17
When she opened her eyes in the morning, her first thought was of him.
Gunner.
She stretched luxuriously, running her fingers along the slick, smooth expanse of satin sheets, disturbing the surface like it was a pool of water. She arched her back and purred happily to herself, feeling the buzz in her muscles left over from the night before.
It seemed almost too literal: to get drunk on someone. When she took his blood it changed her, just as h
e had said it would. Yes, it had given her fangs and sensory abilities beyond her wildest dreams, but there was definitely more to it than that.
She felt aware of her boundaries, as though she was just starting to understand that she was like a puzzle piece. She was meant to have a partner. Someone to fit into. Someone to complete her.
And little by little, Gunner seem to fit. Yes, he was aggravating. He was sarcastic. He was smug and annoying and superior. He was also attentive and thoughtful and she had to wonder just how many times he had saved her life already.
She sat up and looked around the room, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand. It was like something out of a fairytale.
Being richer than a rock star sure doesn't hurt either, she thought.
She slid out of the fluffy comforters and padded to the mirror, slightly surprised at what she saw. Yes, it was definitely happening. That last meal of Gunner’s blood had definitely put her over the tipping point between scrawny alleycat and sleek, full-bodied animal of prey.
Hooking her hand on her hip, she regarded herself with a mixture of pride and surprise. The silk nightgown stretched so taut over her curves that she could practically see herself naked. Her bosom spilled over the neckline and her hips looked like they were about to burst through the seams.
One more bite of pancake, and they're going to have to cut me out of my clothes, she thought wryly.
She heard her bedroom door open but didn't bother to hide this time. A small fireworks display of thrill went off in her chest as she realized that Gunner had popped suddenly into the room, as he seemed so fond of doing.
She turned around, raising her arms and bouncing just a little. “This was your plan all along, wasn’t it? Too fat for clothes?” she accused playfully.
Gunner crossed his arms over his chest. He was wearing a loose-gauge silk sweater that clung to his broad shoulders and biceps like it had been specially made. With a grin, he let his eyes wander over Tesa’s form shamelessly.
“You’ve figured it out. That was definitely my plan,” he confirmed.
“Well, then I can never leave this room, Gunner,” she scolded him, pretending not to notice the way he sighed and drank in the sight of her. She felt good — really good — to be back to a more solid form. Confident.
“Oh, clothes are not really a problem, are they? I’ll hire people to walk in front and back of you with giant ostrich feather fans to hide the good stuff.”
She rolled her eyes. “But I like clothes…”
He grinned. “All right, fine. You’ll need a new wardrobe, I assume. I’ll ask Jamie to gas up the helicopter.”
Her eyes went wide. “What? Helicopter ? Really?” she stammered.
“Well sure... you don’t think we’re going to drive, do you?”
“Drive?” she asked eagerly, bouncing on her toes like a teenager. Her skin slipped across the fabric of her nightie and ignited tiny sparks everywhere it touched. She could sense his immediate, enthusiastic appreciation. “Drive where?”
“How do you feel about Chicago?”
“Michigan Avenue?” she sighed delightedly. “We can do that?”
“Of course,” he smiled. “Another time, I would say Paris or Milan, but our concerns… We should stay close. Soon, I promise.”
“Jolie,” she nodded, understanding.
“Yes, Jolie,” he confirmed, knuckling his chin. “A little bird told me that your friend is a bit more of a risk-taker than I would have thought.”
Tesa glanced at Gunner, then immediately looked away to try to keep her thoughts private. “Well… I barely know her, really. It’s more Bernie I’m concerned about.”
“I understand,” he said calmly. She was happy to see his pleased expression hadn’t faltered even a little bit. “But, I sense you know more about this than you’re letting on? Is that true?”
Tesa wrinkled her nose. What did she really know? Not a whole lot. Still, it was starting to seem as though keeping things from Gunner was not going to be an option. If she knew it, he seemed to automatically know it too.
“She was at your garden party… She was one of the, um...”
“Ah,” he nodded. “And I take it her mother is unaware of her activities?”
Tesa shrugged. “Well, it’s not like she does it all the time. It’s just a side hustle, I guess. She’s saving money for school. She wants to be a nurse.”
She could see a shadow of an expression cross his face. Was that pity? Distaste?
“What is it?”
Gunner took a deep breath and paused. Finally he held out his hands, palm up.
“Tesa, things used to be different. Before everyone knew about us, that is. Things used to be more like this. Like we have here. There was a certain expectation.”
She shook her head, not understanding.
“Well, you know. We would take a human and give them…” he waved his hand in the air, gesturing to the furniture, the paintings, the clothes. “Everything. Absolutely everything.”
“Like with me,” she added.
“Yes,” he smirked, “only without all the kicking and screaming, usually.”
Tesa shoved her weight to one side, watching his eyes follow the motion with a smirk. “Oh really?” she countered. “Women just threw themselves at you? They didn’t mind being eaten by monsters or anything? You expect me to believe that?”
He shrugged. “It’s not really that strange, Tesa. Wealth has a way of making people somewhat pliant.”
Pliant. She turned the word over in her mind as she looked at herself in the mirror. I have to admit… This place, all this wealth… Maybe it did help.
“But now that the world knows about us, there are other elements.”
“Other elements like what?” she asked, walking to the wardrobe and opening the door. Her fingers pushed the selection of dresses around. None of them seemed likely to last, even to Chicago.
Distracted, he averted his eyes as Tesa leaned over to rummage through a drawer of skirts and jeans.
“Well, new nests have sprung up. They haven’t had time to become established. They don’t have the resources of the old families.”
“They’re poor?” she asked, pulling out a flowy sky-blue skirt and eyeing it critically.
“In a word, yes. And inexperienced. And hungry. Hungry like a newborn. It makes them… incautious.”
Pausing, Tesa looked over her shoulder at him with a skirt held in midair. A skirt with a stretchy fabric, of course.
“It’s a tale as old as time, really,” he explained. “A man wants what he wants, but doesn’t have the means to support his desire, so—”
“So they lie,” she finished for him.
He nodded reluctantly. “Sometimes. And other times these young people are a bit enamored of the concept, frankly. They tend to throw themselves into the middle of—”
“Don’t blame the victims!” she scolded him. “If you tell me how they’re ‘asking for it,’ Gunner, I will—”
“Okay, okay, okay,” he chuckled, putting his hands up. “I won’t blame the victims, even if they are sort of asking for it. They don’t know what they’re getting into, in any case.”
“Right,” she snipped, holding up two button-down tops that matched, but were never going to close over her new bosom. Instead she found a v-neck pullover to complete her outfit.
“Right,” he repeated.
“So, let’s go buy you all new clothes?”
“That’s the old-fashioned way you were talking about?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Indeed it is.”
“Well, okay then, if you insist. Now get out!”
She shooed him off with her outfit in her hand, feeling decidedly playful. She had complained sorely about cabin fever, and the thought of travelling even just a few hundred miles away… It was thrilling. The people, the lights… All the new sounds and experiences with her new heightened senses… She felt a surge of delight and joy in her heart.
CHAPTER 1
8
Tesa stood behind Gunner for protection from the winds that whipped across the back lawn as the helicopter settled onto the pad. A small door flipped open on the shiny, bug-like body and Jamie hopped out. He scuttled toward them, crouching low as the blades continued to twirl around and flatten the lawn.
Gunner grinned confidently and gave Tesa an enthusiastic thumbs-up sign. Tesa nodded nervously. She tried to keep her lips closed because the whipped-up air kept drying out her teeth, but she was so excited it was almost impossible to contain her smile.
Jamie stopped and waved them forward. Gunner tugged Tesa by the hand and then ran, stooped over, to Jamie, accepting the headsets he offered them. Tesa slipped the padded cups over her ears and adjusted the mouthpiece wire, instantly grateful for the noise reduction.
“Ready?” came a voice in her ear. She nearly jumped at the clear sound of him, so close. It reminded her of how easy it was for him to break into her mind and see her thoughts.
I wonder what it would be like to be a real vampire, she thought suddenly, instead of just a Gypsy with fangs. It wouldn’t be so bad to know everything all the time.
Shaking off the thought, she followed Gunner and Jamie back to the open helicopter door. Gunner picked her up easily and deposited her inside, winking confidently. She took a seat in the back, raising her eyebrows questioningly at Gunner as he settled in the pilot’s seat, snapping the restraints over his tight leather jacket.
He saw her dubious expression and chuckled into the microphone. “Of course I can fly it. Do you think I would own something I couldn’t use?”
She tried to settle into her seat, but the fear of the trip was beginning to gnaw at her, threatening to rise.
“Please can we go?” she said suddenly.
He turned back to look at her reassuringly. “Thinking of backing out, are you?”
She nodded quickly, belying more urgency than she meant to. He smiled and turned around, flipping switches and turning dials. “Okay, princess, we are just about ready.”
Tesa dug her hands into the rich leather of the seat, trying to distract herself with sensations of touch and sound and ignore the reminder that they were about to be up. In. The. Air.
