PANDORA

by Rebecca Hamilton

  “Good evening, Flynn,” he said, making up the distance between us. He paused mere inches from me. “My, my, when the cat’s away, the mice will play.”

  “Which mice have you heard were playing?” I asked, careful to rein in the hint of irritation wanting to surface in my tone of voice.

  Timothy laughed. “Now, let’s not play this game, you know nothing escapes my attention. That’s why the Mistress has me keep an eye on things.” He shook his head, reaching forward to place a hand on my shoulder. “I think you’ve been hanging around Robin too much. Getting bad ideas from him.”

  “Funny how often the two of you exchange that sentiment. When I was hunting like an animal, he told me you were the bad influence.”

  A smirk punctuated the comment. Timothy bristled. “Yes, well, lapses in judgment and poor feeding habits aren’t exactly the same. One looks bad for the hunted, the other looks bad for the hunter.”

  “And I exhibited no lapse in judgment. I simply had to strike at the best possible moment. Surely even the master of spies has some clue how an assassin performs his duties.”

  “Master of spies.” The squeeze Timothy added to my shoulder spoke a thousand words. “Just remember that the next time you’re tempted to try and get away with something.” Lifting his hand, he brought it to his brow in a salute and started for the stairs again. “Good evening, brother, and Happy Birthday.” A cackle drifted in the air between us, the final waste of breath Timothy offered before disappearing down the stairs. I stood in place with teeth gritted, tempted to give chase and sever his head from the rest of his useless body.

  “Flynn.”

  Knocked from a homicidal tailspin, I turned, directing my attention to Sabrina’s guard as he stared at me. Even Paul possessed the fear of me in his brown eyes when they regarded me. “Sabrina is waiting,” he said.

  I nodded and closed the distance between us as Paul opened the door to her penthouse. A shiver ran up my spine when I entered and the click of the door closing behind me bore an eerie finality to it. At first it seemed my fears were unwarranted. As was tradition, Sabrina had lit the room with candles. I removed my glasses, slipping them into my pocket just in time for her to acknowledge my presence.

  “Is that my dark killer?” she asked. Had it been anybody else, I would not have been disquieted by the soft, sweet tone of voice she possessed. As it was, her greeting did nothing to quell my apprehension.

  “One and the same.” I indulged in one last, steadying breath before continuing inside. Strolling through the sitting area without pause, I walked to her bedroom and leaned against the doorway. “Good evening, dark mother,” I said, eying my mistress. “You look radiant as usual. I trust your time in New York was pleasant?”

  Sabrina smiled. Sitting in a chair facing her desk, she surveyed the jewelry laid before her, her hands busy fastening an earring to an ear. I stood straight again and walked closer, picking up her necklace. Sabrina lowered her hands, yet sat perfectly still, allowing me to fasten the gold chain around her neck and place a soft kiss just below her ear.

  She smelt like roses. Her cheeks were ruddy from a fresh feed. A soft moan rose from her throat as I stepped away. “Darling Flynn,” she said with a chuckle. “You are debonair as always.”

  “Only for you, Mistress.” I smirked as she looked at me. Her eyes caressed mine in a deep gaze reminiscent of ambrosia, delectable and decadent. I drank from it as we stared at one another. “My charms may seduce the mortals, but for you, they are a mark of my devotion.”

  “And devoted you are, dear.” Sabrina turned in her chair to face me. “Five years has passed us by rather quickly, hasn’t it? And you have only impressed me all the more with what a vampire you have become.”

  Bowing, I allowed my smile to become all the more sinister. “As always, I have you to thank for that.”

  She stood. “I only bestowed the dark gift, my son. You are the one who has become the face the seven covens see in their nightmares.” Sabrina stepped close to me, placing a hand on the lapel of my coat, her gaze never straying from mine. “If I had to do it all over, I would slide my teeth into that frightened mortal and allow him to cross into immortality again. Your will is as sure as it was when I commissioned you to be my assassin.”

  Her chest touched mine and her lips hovered close. I felt my fangs slip from their hiding place as I plunged into a state of arousal. “And I would drink from your wrist again eagerly,” I said, “Bathing my tongue with your blood.”

  “Oh yes, I know you would.” I felt a hand slide down and cup me through my trousers. The groan I emitted brought a smile to her face. “You desire to kiss me, my killer?”

  I shivered, my voice husky as I issued my response. “I desire to do far more than that.”

  Sabrina laughed in response. Her hand granted me an extra squeeze. “Oh, I know you do, but first tell me, my darling Flynn, if the task I assigned before I left has been completed?”

  “Yes, it has.” My hands burned with the desire to touch her as well, rising in a cautious manner beyond my own volition. A slow nod preceded a hard swallow. “A dagger straight through his heart, just as you requested.”

  “Very good.” She leaned closer, tipping her head to entreat me. My hands landed on her back. Shutting my eyes, I moved forward to engage her lips with mine.

  Until her other hand wrapped itself around my throat.

  My eyes flew open. Hers did as well. A look of malice replaced the seduction which had been present no more than mere seconds prior. “Insolent vampire!” she yelled, her fangs slipping out. “How dare you not confess your sins to me?”

  Before I had the chance to react, I found myself being thrown onto a chair, the hilt of my sword digging into my side as I spilled onto the seat. Sabrina slapped me across my face with such force it whipped my head to the side. Her heeled foot crushed down on top of the arousal her previous actions brought about.

  I screamed with pain, my vision swimming. Grabbing my chin, she turned my head to point my face in her direction again.

  “For four years I have come to rely on you, Flynn!” I imagined the entire coven house could hear her as she roared, but I found myself nothing but thankful as her foot let up its pressure. “To do as you are asked and when you are asked to do it! I asked that you kill Anthony two days prior to when you finished the task. Two days! I had to find out from Timothy that you extended Anthony mercy to go on a little hunt for you.” Grabbing my coat with both hands, she lifted me to my feet, slamming me against her body. “May I remind you I have killed people for less insubordination?”

  I sneered, pain radiating from my groin. “No, you need not remind me. I am usually the one doing the killing for you.”

  Sabrina hit me again, but held onto me to prevent me from flying back. I hissed at the affront, but she ignored the outburst and drew me close again. “I am embarrassed at you!” she said. “That I have to have a talk with you I normally reserve for the underlings. What do you have to say for yourself?”

  A growl rumbled from my throat. I fumbled for words, landing only on the accusation thrown at me by Timothy. “I can only apologize for my lapse in judgment.”

  “Lapse?” Sabrina threw me back onto the chair and straddled my lap. “A lapse in judgment would have been for you to kill him in front of a witness or to strike at an inopportune moment, not to hold off his execution for two days. This was an underling, not an elder.” Her fingernails cut into my skin when she grabbed me by the neck, drawing rivulets of blood. “So, let me ask, what was so damn important that you would consort with a traitor and an enemy of the coven?”

  Swallowing hard, I presented a half-truth to the only soul I seemed incapable of lying to. “I lost something and wished to have it back. Nothing more. There was no treason in my actions.”

  “Your disobedience was your treason. What was this item?”

  “A piece of jewelry.” I paused, attempting to make my plea sound convincing now that the worst of the pain had faded.
“Anthony was unable to find it, though. I promptly disposed of the piece of waste after that.”

  Sabrina raised an eyebrow. Her grip relaxed, but only slightly. “Jewelry of what sort? And why was this important to you?”

  “It was not important. Merely a trinket I stole from one of my victims, but sold in haste. I wished to give it to Rose.”

  She continued staring at me, her gaze searching and skeptical. I met the look she shot me measure by measure, a disarming grin ghosting at the corner of my mouth. “Mistress, I merely thought the bastard should be good for something before I ended him.” My smile broadened. “You would have been amused, watching him believe I would spare his life.”

  Sabrina’s eyes remained locked for another precarious moment, until her scowl finally relaxed. She drew in a deep breath, letting go of my neck. I nearly sighed with relief when her fangs retracted. “You are devilishly sadistic, my assassin,” she said. “I should have known you were merely making sport out of him.”

  I scoffed. “Naturally, Mistress. I am nothing but loyal to you.”

  “Yes, you are, Flynn.” Sabrina stood. She strolled back to her desk and sat in front of her jewelry once more. Lifting her other earring, Sabrina set about the task of securing it to her lobe. “It’s a shame Anthony was not able to procure your piece of jewelry.”

  “Yes, well, we both know what a moronic waste of space he was.” I rubbed my neck, feeling the grooves where Sabrina’s nails had dug in. The scent of blood teased at my nostrils and when I lifted my fingers, the viscous liquid glistening on my glove verified the slight damage done. “He looked better as a pile of dust than he did as a vampire.”

  Sabrina laughed. “This better have taught you a lesson, though. When I say they are to die, they die at once and not a moment afterward. Exceptions can be made, but not for personal errands.”

  “Lesson learned.” Sitting up in my chair, I wiped at the blood on my neck one final time. “Now, tell your assassin what he might do to make it up to you.”

  She smiled. “My darling Flynn. He does live for the kill.” Glancing at me to wink, she turned her attention back to the collection of gold in front of her and slipped her rings on her fingers. “There is one thing, as much as I was hoping to hold off on assigning you a task on your birthday. Timothy informs me this particular problem surfaced over the weekend, but I’d like it taken care of immediately.”

  “A problem with one of the other covens?”

  “No, but I think you will find this target in particular amusing, just the same. Consider it a present of sorts.”

  “Amusing? Do tell.”

  Sabrina turned to face me after securing her last ring into place. “A human girl. Unfortunately not the first time she’s been spotted, but she decided to linger around this time. Such petty nuisances when they don’t know how to leave well enough alone.” She paused to sigh. “One of your siblings took notice and managed to follow her home. Now, I need my assassin to strike while the iron is hot.”

  “A human?” I laughed, incredulous. “Tell me you are jesting.”

  “I’m not, and this one is no ordinary girl, otherwise she’d already be dead.” She raised an eyebrow in my direction. “So don’t underestimate her.”

  “Underestimate her?” This only served to tickle me more. I shook my head. “The covens throw the best they have to offer at me and all of them meet with a swift end. I highly doubt some mortal girl is going to give me much trouble.”

  “As I said she is not ordinary. I believe she might be a sorceress.”

  “A sorceress? Has she attempted to call down hexes on the coven or turn one of us into a newt?” I continued to chuckle, but when Sabrina failed to join in my merriment, I sobered. “Who is the girl and what harm does she mean you?” I asked.

  Sabrina stood, walking back to where I sat. The look in her eyes caused my stomach to churn again, heavy-lidded seduction dripping from every step she took. Slowly, she lowered herself slowly onto my lap, tilting my head again to ensure she had my full attention. This time, when her fangs slipped from their hiding place, my teeth slid out in arousal.

  My mistress grinned and leaned close. “Do you trust me, dark son?” she asked. Her lips touched my neck.

  My eyes drifted shut. I nodded, whispering, “Completely.”

  She placed a kiss further up my neck. The points of her teeth tickled at my skin. “And you still desire me?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “Your mistress has not forgotten your birthday kisses. I will reward you for your loyalty to me. But first, I need you to quiet your mind and listen to my words.” Her lips found my ear and teased at the lobe with her cool breath as she spoke. “The girl must die. And my killer my assassin will do it for me without needing to know why. Instead, he will do the deed exactly as he was asked. When he returns, then I will show him my appreciation. This is all the motivation you need. Understood?”

  A slow nod followed her words. “Yes,” I said, speaking the word while hearing it echo as though through a tunnel. My mind seemed to be swimming down the current of Sabrina’s ministrations, not tethered to my body. “I understand.”

  Her lips departed from their position beside my ear. She pulled back and, like a moon emerging from an eclipse, her face slowly came into view. Our noses brushed and mouths touched when she leaned closer, the contact tentative; teasing. I rose slightly to kiss her back, but she stopped me with a finger placed on my lips, pushing me against the back of the chair.

  “My kisses will be here waiting for you,” she said. “In the meantime, you will go to Temple University. You will locate a girl named Monica Alexander. She has brown hair with a blonde streak that runs down her bangs, and she resides in a small house by the edge of the campus.” Sabrina’s fingers slid into the breast pocket of my suit jacket, depositing a small slip of paper I knew would contain a more precise location. “Kill her quickly and silently, and bring me the scarf she wears around her neck as proof of her death.”

  I swallowed hard. “It shall be done as you say.”

  “Good.” Sabrina stood, severing the connection. I blinked, my head feeling as though it was surfacing from being submerged. Sabrina looked down at me, smiling as I stood. “Is that a new sword, dear?” she asked.

  Glancing down at the katana, I furrowed my brow at the weapon, as though I had forgotten about its presence until that moment. “Yes, it is,” I said, looking back at her. “I figured the red and black suited me.”

  “And its previous owner?”

  My grin turned devilish. “Gone to meet his maker, I am afraid.”

  “Very good,” she said. Sabrina turned and began walking away. “Humans are such contemptible animals, aren’t they? Perhaps you can use that blade to do away with my nuisance.”

  I nodded. “I shall.” Producing my glasses from my pocket, I adjusted my coat. “Contemptible, indeed. Thank you for freeing me of that curse.”

  Sabrina smiled in response and her parting words carried just as much enchantment as the execution order she presented. Dazed, I did not recall when I started for the door, except that within moments I found myself in the corridor once more, headed for the stairs. The stride marking my exit out into the night was a purposeful one, and such a posture continued unfettered until I emerged onto the street.

  Standing before the coven’s main entrance, I lit a cigarette and shoved the pack back into my coat. As I slid my gloved hand into my pants pocket, however, my fingers touched the hard metal of Lydia’s necklace and took hold of it as if on instinct. Withdrawing the chain brought forth my lie, positioned right before me with moonlight reflecting from its pendant. A sinister smirk crawled across my face. Lydia’s voice resonated in my ears.

  “Why don’t you just wear it to spite me?”

  “Your wish is my command,” I said. With a nod, I fastened the chain around my neck and hid it underneath my shirt. A shiver settled in my bones, though, the air about me taking on a disquieting sensation. I did not know from whence i
t came; only that it was there and did not belong to either Sabrina or myself.

  I shrugged, apt to brush it off for the time being. My gait resumed its deliberate tenor, bound several blocks east, toward Temple University. For as much as I could have guessed I might be on the threshold of epiphany, little did I know just how right I was.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Smoke wafted from my cigarette, drifting toward the ceiling. My eyes were fixed on the building across the street from me, studying what appeared to be the sole occupied row house on the block. While my chosen shelter at least boasted an enclosed porch, the neighboring homes, including the one currently being renovated behind me, showcased boarded up doors and windows, their exteriors even more dilapidated than the address provided to me by Sabrina. It made perfect sense to me that my quarry was not home. I wished to be anywhere else myself.

  A quick glance heavenward revealed the time to be about ten, which meant I had been standing there for almost two hours. I growled, shifting my attention back to the house, and mused on my target once again. Snooping around the coven had never earned an assassination order for any other mortal those caught were quickly dispatched as dinner and never spoken of again. This girl, however, had managed to raise Sabrina’s ire, and details about her were woefully sparse. I only knew that she was a ‘sorceress’.

  Which I less-than-willing to believe.

  Raising the cigarette to my mouth, I drew in deep and fought to ignore the aching in my body for warm blood. I had not hunted prior to arriving, so bent and determined to get this over with. Now, I suffered the consequences. “Where is this bitch?” I muttered. “Figures she would take her precious time getting here.”

  I exhaled a stream of smoke. Flicking the remainder of my cigarette at the ground, I succumbed to the urge to incline against the nearest wall, but misjudged the distance between my body and the newly colored surface. A paint-splattered sheet slid beneath my feet, causing an array of supplemental implements stacked precariously atop it to crash to the ground and make all manner of racket. Righting myself, I clenched my eyes shut and gritted my teeth. A deafening silence followed the entire debacle.