by Dawn Gray
She saw him, a tall man with spiked blond hair, bright red lips, and what seemed to be glowing silver eyes. He smiled at her, wicked intent in his grin, and held up a glistening red fingertip … wet with her blood. Before she could glance down at the vital fluid that flowed from her arm, she watched him slide the tip into his mouth, running his tongue over it until the liquid was gone.
The hairs on her arms and neck seemed to stand on end as he smiled, showing strangely perfect white teeth. As his smile got wider, she noticed the elongated tips of two of them. Her body shook uncontrollably, but she couldn’t tear her eyes from his. It wasn’t until a woman gasped in her ear that she turned in the direction which it came from. An older black woman stood there staring at her, her chubby hand covering her full mouth. Shaking her head, she reached out and tugged on Lily’s arm.
“Oh, my child, this is a very bad ting,” she whispered, taking a clean towel and wrapping it around Lily’s arm. “You been touched by him. By the black one. Dis him mark.” She shook her head again, and touched Lily’s cheek. “You need a priest, girl, one to bless you before the night comes … and he returns.”
“A priest?” Lily inquired. “What exactly was he?”
“He a vampire, my girl, Satan’s follower.” Her accent made her words hypnotic and Lily felt herself falling into her voice, but she felt a soft hand against her wrist. Snapping her back to reality, she looked up and to her left.
“Where did you go?” Kylie asked, looking over at the woman.
“Ah, some guy in the crowd scratched my arm.” Lily sighed, shaking her head to clear the fog. “She was helping me clean it. Thank you. I’ll do what you recommended as soon as I get back to the hotel.”
“See dat you do, child, see dat you do!” And with that, the woman disappeared back into the crowd of people.
Lily turned to Kylie, fighting the confusion that floated through her. One thought remained as she made her way through the crowd again. Where was she going to find a priest in New Orleans? Then, the thought hit her. St. Louis Cathedral, which sat right around the corner, would be the best place to start. Looking back at Kylie, who was pulling her in the direction of a frozen Daiquiri bar, she decided she could wait. There was still enough time before sundown to get to the church on time.
The old woman looked at him out of the corner of her eye as she strolled past him. He stood on the corner, watching what had just happened from the shadows and trying to pinpoint which way the other one had gone. Suddenly the old woman stopped and stared at him, stepping into his line of sight.
“You best be goin’ now, boy!” she ordered, looking directly into his eyes, even though they remained hidden behind his dark sunglasses. He stood straight, looking down at the woman. “Dat one is special, she needs your protecting. You cannot let the dark ones have her! She is your light, you know.”
“Who are you, woman?” he demanded, his tone hypnotic, but the old woman just smiled and stared. “How do you know what’s going on?”
“My eyes have seen too much, boy. The dark ones, they take over, but you … you are still here. Why do you think dat be, boy?”
“A family curse,” he answered, shaking his head as he watched the two girls move away.
“Think, child. There be more to dis than meets the eyes.”
He watched her move, walking away with her load of laundry in her arms as if meeting him was nothing, just an everyday occurrence. Slowly shaking his head, he moved away from the wall, blending in with the ebb and flow of bodies that surrounded him.
His wicked smiled grew as he watched the two women walk away. Languidly he placed the blood-covered fingertip into his mouth and sucked on it once again. Then he turned to move down Bourbon Street, towards the quieter end. Just before the end, where several houses stood with their window shutters closed, he turned down the small alley between them. With a creak and a slam, he shut an iron door behind him.
The alley darkened, creating a tunnel that slowly sank into the earth, filling with the moist scent of decay and musk. He pressed his hand against the solid door before him and pushed gently, opening it with ease. As he stepped inside, he smiled at the numerous others standing within the cavern walls. Cement, as thick as three feet in some places, kept out the water that surrounded the city. Unfortunately it seeped through, leaving puddles as he walked.
“Have you come with good news, Damon?” the man before him, who sat on a throne made of human bones, questioned.
“Yes, my sire,” Damon replied, bowing slightly. He never took his eyes off the dark-haired man, nor did he let down his guard with the others that surrounded him. Vampires were ruthless creatures. “She is here, within the French Quarter.”
“Very good!” came the voice of the man on the throne. “Tonight, you will bring her to us! Bring us her blood!”
“Yes, my liege.” He bowed again, stepping back into the darkness of the room. He grinned, this time wickedly to himself. He wanted her, wanted her body and blood for himself. If she were what his sire claimed, then why couldn’t he have her power? Why would he have to share? Soon, he thought to himself. Soon he would have all the powers of the vampires, and this one young being would give it to him.
Chapter Two
The air was cool against her flush face, and she smiled at how light she felt as the alcohol flowed through her. She hadn’t had a drink in years; after finishing the large, frozen drink, Lily knew exactly why. She didn’t like the light on her feet feeling, and she sure didn’t like not having her wits about her. There was nothing more she needed right now than to feel the fog and forget the past.
Her divorce had gone through almost two years before, and it had been her and her three children since. Sure he took them several days out of the week for a few hours, but that didn’t give her much time to get things accomplished, especially her writing. There were men in and out of her life in that period, but none that she introduced to her children. They were still recovering from their father leaving, and his sudden marriage to a woman they hardly knew, so in order to help them adjust she kept her romances separate. However, there had never been one that held her interest or struck her as a match, so they were short-lived relationships.
Kylie giggled beside her and grabbed her arm in order to keep her balance. Having had one or two more than Lily, the giggly woman was also quite light on her feet. Oddly enough, she was having a good time laughing at the lampposts instead of what was going on in the streets around them. Lily watched her twirl around in a circle before sitting down on the steps of a large building that cornered Conti and Chartres. Lily sighed as Kylie put her head down between her legs, so she began to rub her back. As she stood there, she felt the wave of danger only moments before a hand covered her mouth, her body jerked away from her tipsy friend.
She felt his hands ripping at her hair, dragging her back into the darkened alley. Gasping, she drew in breaths faster than her body could process. She scrambled with her feet, trying to find a foothold in the cement, anything to get her advantage back, but he was forcefully pulling her along. She didn’t even know how she got there … the last thing she saw was Kylie, perched on the steps of the courthouse three blocks away from the resort. She reached up with battered hands to grip the wrist of the man who held her hostage, digging into his skin with every bit of her nails, but this didn’t stop his movement.
Glancing around the best she could, she took in the clotheslines that ran from one building to the next. She wondered if she yelled for help if anyone would hear her, or even bother to come to her rescue. It didn’t matter anyway; she didn’t have a voice. Even as she opened her mouth to scream, she knew that she was too frightened to do anything. Then, it happened.
He stopped walking and flung her up against the wall. Lily hit with a sickening thud and all the wind rushed out of her body. She shook her head to clear her vision, making it to her hands and knees before looking up. Her heart nearly stopped as her kidnapp
er squatted down in front of her and smiled that perfectly white smile. He ran a hand through those spikes and then clapped his hands.
“I knew I would have you before the night was out,” he whispered to her in a raspy voice, one that chilled her to the bone. Lily tried desperately to sit back against the wall, but he reached out and grasped her hair once again. “I knew I made a good choice for my dinner.”
She panicked as he pulled her against him, holding her tightly to his cold body. Pushing with all her strength against his chest, he didn’t move. Instead, his grip got tighter.
“What the hell do you want from me?” Lily cried out, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks.
“I want your blood!” he snarled, and when he did she caught sight of his elongated canine teeth out of the corner of her eye.
She screamed as loud as she could, but he slapped a hand across her mouth, muffling the noise as he went for her neck. Lily’s eyes went wide as the pain and pressure tore through her body. She was going to die there that night. She wasn’t going to see her family, or her children, again.
Bullshit! her mind screamed at her, filling her with determination and strength. With that one word, her world came crashing back at her, sobering her from the alcohol in her veins and returning the fire to her eyes.
Reaching up and pulling his hand from her mouth, she screamed, “Get off me, you son of a bitch!”
With both fists, she punched at the back of his head, numb to the feeling of her throat tearing. In a last ditch effort, assuming this monster was still physically human, she brought her knee up quick and hard. She connected with his groin. Abruptly his mouth ripped away from her neck. He snarled at her, as she fell back against the wall, holding a hand to her pale and ravaged skin. Suddenly he looked down the alley, noticing the black shadow that stood there. An instant later, he was gone … as if he never existed.
Lily couldn’t believe her eyes! She wanted to think what she had just experienced was real, but he was gone and only the dark figure remained. Her hazel eyes scanned over his form as he moved in.
“Get away from me, you bastard!” she snarled at him. The deep-throated chuckle he gave in reply set her blood on fire. As he approached, she slid weakly down the wall. He reached out for her, wrapping an arm around her waist and supporting her easily. “I won’t be lunch for you, too!”
She could see him then, as if someone had switched on a light. He was just as she remembered him from earlier in the day. He had the soft face of a man in his early twenties, a strong jaw line, and distinguished nose. His eyes were what she noticed; the pale, silver-blue of them looked ancient, as if they had seen many lifetimes. His black hair barely spiked up from his forehead; cut short all around, but with enough there to run your fingers through. His arms were solid muscle, but nothing overpowering, and they held her there with confidence as she felt his hand take the wrist of the one protecting her neck. She could feel the arm that supported her back slip down to cup under her buttocks, bringing her in closer to him. The gentle hand that held hers slid down her arm and rested between her shoulder blades.
“What do you people want from me?” Lily questioned, staring into those ghostly eyes. The fire she felt with his body so close was overwhelming, and it was all she could do not to tremble as she went weak against him.
He smiled seductively and leaned down towards her. Lily, who thought he was about to kiss her, turned her head away, exposing the bruised and broken skin of her neck. Despite the terror that ran through her, Lily suddenly noticed how relaxed she was in his arms, how right his body felt to her. She tried not to give in to the feeling of home that he exuded. The illusion was shattered as she felt his hot, wet tongue against her, blazing a trail of fire over and around the wound. Suddenly she was struggling again.
“Get off me!” she hollered, pushing against him, terrified for her life again.
“Stop struggling!” he snapped back. His voice, deep and masculine, beat through her. It echoed in her ear, filling her with a desire she hadn’t felt in years. The feeling instantly stopped her from moving, and she froze in his arms. “Our saliva can act as a healing agent; I’m trying to fix the damage.”
“Who are you?” she whimpered, closing her eyes as the tears began to fall, the salty streams running down to the tip of his tongue. She felt him pause, then lap at the wayward stream before moving back to his task. Her pulse beat against him, and she knew just what he was as he breathed in deeply, taking in the scent of her. “Why is this happening to me?”
“Hush, woman, just close your eyes and rest.” His voice was pure silk to her ears, and even as she fought against it, his suggestion was winning.
Her world started going black, but she could still feel every inch of his powerful body as it pressed against her, especially his arms as they wrapped tightly around her body. The hand against her rear kneaded her flesh as if memorizing the feel of her, and her head lolled back, exposing more of her skin to him. Her mind moved back towards the time she had seen his eyes, heard his voice. She wondered what he was doing to her, with her.
You’re safe now! That honey voice penetrated her thoughts as she slid deeper into the darkness.
How can you promise that, since I don’t even know who you are? she whispered in reply, unsure of whether it was done with her lips or thoughts.
My name is Jared.
Lily’s world closed off, and she saw nothing except blackness, heard only the hard beat of her heart.
Damon stood in the shadows, watching the animal scoop her up and turn to leave. He roared, hissing under his breath that she was getting away. His eyes began to glow fiery red as he bared his teeth, his fangs dripping with her blood. She was his, to do what he wanted with, his to drain dry … or make his own!
The vampire turned and stormed off, moving back into the growing crowd of drunk and obnoxious tourists. Looking for another victim, he scanned the flow of people. Spotting two young women giggling on the corner of Bienville, cocktails in hand, he moved over to them silently. The power of the vampire and their mirages was infinite, so what the two girls saw when he smiled at them was impressive. Gone was the pale skin and blood-filled lips, no longer was there dark, sunken shadows under his eyes or a corpse-like feel to his body. He looked like any other young man to them, handsome and full of the promise of a fun night.
He wrapped his arms around their shoulders, with very few words exchanged, and moved down the darkened side of Royal, away from the prying eyes of the crowds.
Gently, he set her down on the soft pillow top mattress. Her giddy, drunken friend had fallen soundly asleep as soon as they had entered the suite, with a little persuasion on his part, and now he was left with her. Softly he pushed her hair back from her face, moving over dried tears that had streamed down her warm flesh, and reached down to unbutton her shirt. His hands touched the flesh beneath the cotton barrier and he closed his eyes.
He had never had so much trouble touching a woman before, but every contact with her sent his senses flying. He found himself tripping up and over his every intention. He sat down on the bed beside her, exposing her neck, and noticed some of the still ravaged skin was red with irritation. It felt natural to lie beside her, his arm slid under her neck—cushioning it as he moved closer—his body shaping to hers.
Jared pulled her shirt down further, exposing the pale skin of her breast that swelled above the lacy bra she wore, and he clenched his fingers together as he ran his knuckles over it. He felt desire rush through him as he became hard and uncomfortable in his jeans. He moved slightly, trying to relieve it, but nothing worked … the closer he got to her, the harder he became. Gently, he pressed her limp hand against his erection, trying anything to ease the pressure, but that didn’t do much except make him like iron.
He wanted to move away, to leave her lying there quietly, but the terrible sight of her neck compelled him to move closer. Cautiously, he touched her skin with the tip of his
tongue, running a swirling pattern over the rough wound. Jared closed his eyes, letting the feeling of being so close to her run through him. After a while, he calmed down.
Her skin was salty and sweet at the same time, and he wanted nothing more than to taste all of her. But he backed away, having completed his task. It was then that he saw the gash on her arm, the red and swollen spot where the vampire had made his mark. He slid off the bed, coming around to kneel at the other side of her. With a kind touch, he brought his lips down over the gash, running his tongue over the broken skin. Oddly enough, he found that he could taste her blood. Quickly he backed away, licking his lips and savoring the copper taste on his tongue. He couldn’t go back, couldn’t take from her again, it woke up a primal part of him that he had so long ago put aside.
With one fluid motion, Jared was up and out of the room, leaving Lily there in her open shirt. He snuck out of the suite, slipping a keycard in his pocket as he did so. Having the card would allow him to be with them when the two girls rose with the coming light.
Lily woke up with a start, sitting bolt upright in bed, a decision she regretted as her head throbbed and the room began to spin. She wasn’t sure how she had gotten back to the hotel room, but she recognized the brick walls that surrounded her. With unsteady feet, she climbed out of the bed and made her way into the living room, where she heard Kylie’s voice.
As she opened the door and looked out into the brightly lit room, Lily stopped dead and stared at the person sitting next to her friend on the couch. The night came crashing back to her and her hand flew up to her neck, rubbing the spot that was torn and bleeding only hours before. What she found was the smoothness of her skin under her touch, but the ache of where the two canines had punctured remained, telling her that it wasn’t just a dream.
“Lily, oh, I’m so glad you’re okay,” Kylie yelled, causing Lily to wince as the other girl ran to catch her in an embrace. Lily hugged her back but stared over at the blue-eyed man who sat looking at her. “After Jared brought you here, I didn’t think you were going to ever wake up. I can’t believe someone took you. I’m so sorry I got drunk.”
