King's Blood: Vampire Lust (A Serial Novel, Part 3)

by P. J. Day

  “You have seriously outdone yourself, Jack.”

  “It’s no bother, really. Why not live it up a bit? This is dinner is subsidized anyway,” I said beamishly.

  “I hope this doesn’t come out the wrong way, but you don’t have to try so hard, you know? I mean, both our dates have been like the greatest dates of all time for me, personally.”

  “Good. I can’t experience daylight with you. I guess one can say that I am compensating for being a little on the strange side.”

  Holly took a swig of the wine and her eyes lit up. She gave me an inaudible “wow” and took another one. “This is so fucking good!” she said, clamorously. She then covered her mouth and was noticeably embarrassed. “Did I say that out loud?”

  I grabbed her hand and smiled. “No one heard you...just have fun.”

  Holly whipped her blonde locks away from her shoulders and leaned in, the tips of our noses separated by a couple inches of empty space. On second thought, it wasn’t empty space; it was full of free-floating tension which was ready to throw us into some sort of fervent physical bond that would elicit the sneers of every patron and employee at this fine establishment, causing us to be thrown out like a pair of lustful teenagers. I had to relieve the pressure.

  “I don’t know if I can continue doing what I’m doing,” I said to Holly.

  Holly leaned back at her chair and gave me a concerned look. She continued to hold my hand and in a soft voice asked, “Continue doing what?”

  “Ted’s leaving and I’m going to be myself with this job. Yeah, he was kind of an irresponsible employee, but we were a team, and he knew his stuff. I don’t know if I can continue doing this without him. Especially now that the stakes are at an all-time high.”

  “Gosh, I’m sorry to hear that,” said Holly. “What do you mean by the stakes being at an all-time high?”

  “You can’t tell a soul, okay?”

  “Of course not; I mean, who would I tell anyway?”

  I motioned the garçon to leave our table for a minute, as he stood there attentively at our service.

  “Our intellectual property, our software, everything that Schnell has created and depended upon for the Asian markets, has been compromised by the Chinese government.”

  Holly was taken aback by what I just had said. Her eyes bulged out and the romantic verve in her eyes was diminished by my revelation.

  “I’m sorry to hear that. Wow, sounds like a big deal. So, what do they have you doing over here, then?”

  “They want me to gain access to their servers and fool them into installing some spy software to gain evidence of what Schnell thinks is going on. Look, I’m not going to bore you with the details. I’m just really nervous, and the last thing I want to happen is get caught.”

  “You’re a confident guy, they’ll never suspect what you are trying to do,” Holly said, as she caressed the top of my hand.

  “See, but that is why I’m upset Ted bailed. I can’t believe this guy let me down. But I understand his position. It’s just not worth it anymore. This whole deal...I didn’t sign up for this...I just want to make a living while being behind the scenes.”

  “Let’s not talk about this anymore. It’s stressing you out. What is it that you really want to do?” Holly asked, trying to change the conversation from its serious tone.

  I gave Holly a smile and my shoulders relaxed a little. I sighed and looked directly into her eyes. “I just want to be normal...to have a normal life,” I said.

  Holly slightly chuckled and tightened her grip on my hands. “But you are normal.”

  “No, I’m not. I can’t go out during the day. I have this crazy diet that I have to follow. I work nights out of my home. There is this terrible sadness that sometimes envelops me when I’m alone, because I feel I know too much.” I immediately realized I was being extremely candid with her. However, there was something about her that, no matter what I said, it felt safe. Maybe it was that understanding look she always had in her beautiful, emerald-colored eyes, or the way she always pouted her lips with empathy. There was no judgment but enough sagacity within her to have a deep understanding of my predicament without knowing my true identity.

  “You don’t have to do this all your life, Jack,” Holly said.

  “But this dinner, my lifestyle, everything that I have bought and owned, which has become my identity, for better or worse, is hard to come by when you don’t have a day job.”

  Holly didn’t understand that this job was all about my survival. Without it, I was just another vampire toiling the wilderness at the risk of turning feral or even worse, death…

  “Jack, you’re such a good-looking man. When I first saw you, I thought you were the most frighteningly striking man I’d ever laid my eyes on,” she said, with sincerity and a slight slur, probably brought on by the wine.

  I blushed and even though I agreed with her, I was still pretty embarrassed with her assessment. “Stop it...are you buzzed?” I paused and thought about her comment. I shouldn’t push her away, I thought. “Thank you, Holly, that’s real nice of you to say.”

  “No, seriously, you can walk into any job interview and get that job. You’re a very good-looking man and you dress amazingly on top of that,” Holly added.

  Enough of physical appearances. I wanted to ask Holly how she really felt about me: my insides, what makes me tick, who I am in her own thoughtful words.

  “Holly, what do you think of me? What do you think of my condition, does it bother you?” I asked.

  “No. So what, you can’t go out in the day. Big deal. Adjustments can be made. I’m a night owl anyway. It’s not like you’re a vampire or anything.”

  I gave Holly a sullen look. It’s not like you’re a vampire or anything; what did those words mean? No one believed in vampires. Hell, I didn’t believe in them like how the movies, books, and urban legends portray them. We don’t fly, we don’t kill indiscriminately, anymore, at least. There really is nothing paranormal about us.

  “Do you believe in vampires?” I asked, with a careful tone.

  Holly laughed a little and took another swig of the fine wine. Little droplets from her drink began to stream down the side of her mouth. She wiped them off with a napkin and proceeded to point at me, in jest. “Are you one of those guys who thinks he’s a vampire? Do you attend those blood-drinking parties?”

  “No, don’t be silly...of course not. However, I was reading in this book about obscure medical conditions, and there have been cases of people born with the need to consume blood in order to live.”

  Holly gave me a look of disbelief. I didn’t she think she was buying the direction I was taking the conversation. In fact, I think I was confusing her. Maybe, I shouldn’t go down this road yet.

  “Pfft...that’s disgusting. Also, I love reading those medical books, too, and never I have come across a case study like the one you described,” she said.

  Why did this have to be so difficult? Human beings were so predisposed to avoid, chastise, and obviate any genetic defect that threatened the purity of consistent human formation. I was a freak and there was nothing I can do about it. How did I let Holly know more about me before I really let her know more about me? Screw this, more alcohol. That should loosen further inhibitions.

  “Enough of vampires. Garçon! Another glass for the lady.”

  The waiter poured Holly another drink and then proceeded to take our three-course dinner request. We continued to converse about everything at Petrus that night: our past relationships, sex, children, politics, religion, and the countries we would like to visit. These conversations further solidified how much in common I had with Holly, and also reinforced my attraction to her, both physically and emotionally. We fed each other dessert, she drank two-thirds of the wine bottle, and began to get extremely touchy-feely with me. Holly was on cloud nine and so was I. She was a bit tipsy by the time our amazing dinner ended, but still lucid enough to want to continue the night. “Let’s go to a club...let’s
dance our asses off,” she said loudly, except this time she didn’t care if anyone heard her exuberant outbursts.

  “Fine by me,” I said, as I took my phone out and searched for the best dance club in all of Hong Kong.

  I paid the $800 dinner tab with my company card and escorted Holly out of the restaurant. We staggered out of the building like a couple of kids coked up on Adderal, sharply focused solely on fun and exploration. We got into a cab and headed straight for a club called Lynx. According to what I read online, it was a pretty hard club to get into. However, that is what connections are for. I called Ted and asked him if he could get us in somehow. In a bit of coincidence, the V.P. of Psytech was really good friends with the owner of Lynx and Ted. My boy called in for one last favor.

  The line for Lynx was around the block. The crowd was pretty mixed. The majority of course, were probably 10 years younger than both Holly and I, but he V.I.P. line was full of sophisticated, beautiful people in their late 20’s to early 30’s. We walked right up to the the tan, ’roided-out bouncer, wearing a skin-tight, short-sleeve cotton t-shirt and skinny jeans. He had razor-shaped eyebrows and massive jowls. “How can I help you,” he asked, in a cockney accent.

  “Jack King,” I said.

  “Hmm...let me see.” The bouncer used his index finger to scroll down the list that was attached to the aluminum clipboard. “Nope, don’t see a Jack King.” The bouncer gave Holly an eyeful. “But, since you brought a supermodel to the party, I have no choice but to let you in.”

  Holly’s cheeks turned red and she was visibly appreciative of the comment as she flashed me a vernal grin. He lifted the velvet rope and Holly and I walked right in. “I was kidding, you’re on the list,” said the bouncer, his voice trailing off as we continued toward the club. What a scoundrel, I thought, but how could I judge a man who just pulled off something that I would do if were in his position? I’d do it with more tact, and subtlety—who was I kidding? Holly looked absolutely stunning. It’d be hard to show any kind of restraint, I probably would have done the exact same thing as dude-huge just did. Give the supermodel’s date a hard time, just for fun.

  We could hear the loud bass from inside the club reverberating throughout the walkway leading into the V.I.P. section of the club. A scantily clad hostess greeted us at the entrance. Holly caught me checking out her backside. “Those eyes of yours sure are quick,” she said.

  “I can’t help it. It’s right there for the visual taking. Her outfit is meant to do what it did to me. It’s science.”

  We walked to our table, which was one of many in a row lining a large balcony that hung over the dance floor. The music was thumping at the highest decibel that was possible for humans to bear without running away screaming. It sounded like a combination of trance and hip-hop. The rhythmic motions of the hundreds of dancers below created a metrical wave of flesh. Holly began bouncing a little as she couldn’t resist the pulsations emitted by the tribalistic compound of beats we found ourselves in. The bass was so powerful, I could feel its beat in my body. I pointed to the really expensive bottle of vodka on our table and then pointed to the dance floor. “You want to hang up here or dance?” I yelled at Holly.

  “What?” she asked, my question obscured by the loud music.

  “You want to dance?!” I shouted.

  “Yes!” Holly yelled back, her whole body moving as if it were possessed in a trance-like state.

  We made our way down an elevator to the dance floor. Holly pulled my arm and led me to the bar. As soon as we arrived at the bar, she wrapped her arms around my neck, grabbing and pulling my head toward her thick, rose-colored lips and placed them against mine. The soft, supple velvety feel of her delicate mouth was now pressed against my my face, just millimeters away from some incredibly sharp fangs. I kept telling myself...Holly, don’t use your tongue...please, don’t use your tongue. She then frenched me passionately and I made sure to open my mouth as wide as possible, hoping she didn’t slice her tongue with my naturally sharpened cuspids. I held her tightly in my arms, enjoying every second of our oral embrace. She then turned her torso forward, her soft thighs and ass firmly pressed against my lower extremities, we remained locked at the lips, as her right hand held onto the back of my head. I felt every single drop of blood in my veins coursing throughout my entire body like a river which just burst through a dam, first trickling out of a tiny hole and eventually bursting through in a violent torrent. Everyone downriver be damned!

  Our undulating bodies were in tune with one another in more than ways than one. It was just me and this gorgeous, sensual woman; everyone and everything around us was just a prop at that very moment. Holly grabbed my hands and placed them on her hips. I felt every last bit of her slightly prurient and nuanced rotations from her hips, as her pelvic bones touched my fingers and the thickness of her posterior resting on the palms of my hand. Splendidly, she showed off her optimal physical fitness with each and everyone one of her sultry thrusts. My lips then slowly moved away from her glistening, jutted mouth and began making their way to the center of her neck. I started salivating uncontrollably. I made sure to keep my lips as close to the flesh of her neck as possible, to avoid unpleasant drool from escaping my mouth. My teeth made delicate little pulls at her skin, small prods at first and then slight yanks, as I tested Holly’s tolerance.

  The moist osculation continued throughout the night. My fingers and hands delicately stroked every inch of her fit and toned body, except the parts that might make her squirm on the rather public dance floor, which would have jettisoned us out of this place for being too hot and heavy. Our bodies were rhythmically entwined the whole night. Sweat, saliva, and pheromones were shared with lustful comfort between us. Holly then looked me in the eyes and had both hands on my face as she said, “Thank you...I have been thinking about you every hour since I’ve met you.”

  “Me, too,” I said loudly, making damn sure the two most important words uttered so far for Holly were clearly heard.

  A slow song came on and I put my arms around her shoulders as I gently placed her head against my chest. I checked my watch and noticed it was 11:30. Whoever sent me the instant message would be waiting for me at midnight at Ngo Ngo. I didn’t want to break the moment between Holly and I, but anyone who claimed to know who I am shouldn’t be taken lightly.

  “Holly, let me get you a drink.”

  “Sure,” she said, smiling.

  We both walked to the bar and asked the bartender for an apple martini. I gave him my card so he could keep the tab open.

  “Holly, I’m sorry but I need to make a quick phone call and check on Ted. Just wait for a minute, okay?”

  “Don’t be long...I hate being alone,” she said, giving me a long kiss.

  “I won’t...give me three minutes.”

  I headed to the door that lead to the outside patio next to the bar. The bar had designated this place for all the smokers. I heard from Ted that Hong Kong law can fine individual smokers rather than the bar and club owners themselves; don’t know how that is enforced, but they seem to be all here striking up the most interesting conversations; I overheard the words mango, Stephen Hawking, and the Toronto Blue Jays all uttered in what I thought was one sentence.

  “You staying out of trouble?” I asked.

  “Yeah, just sitting here watching television, ”he said, as I heard faint keystrokes in the background.

  “Get off the laptop. What did I tell you earlier?” I reprimanded Ted.

  “I’m just sending out emails to my best clients. Letting them know I’m resigning and thanking them for all the years of support.”

  “Can you seriously stop? Just wait until you get home to do that. I don’t trust anyone here.”

  “Okay.”

  “Listen, since you’re on my laptop, I want you to do something.”

  “Fire away.”

  “Check out my IM conversations from yesterday.”

  Ted hummed as he scrolled through my programs and my IM convers
ations on my desktop. I checked in on Holly through the door to see if she was all right. Predictably, I noticed some dirtbag with a shaved head and an Ed Hardy tee-shirt begin to strike up a conversation with her. She exhibited an uncomfortable posture while flashing polite smiles at the aggressive flirt. Nothing she couldn’t handle I thought. I continued my conversation without worrying too much.

  “Did you find it?”

  “Who the hell is Roe7163? They claim to know who you are?” asked Ted in a perplexed tone.

  “Yeah, weird, huh?”

  “You’re not thinking of meeting them, are you?”

  “Of course not; I want you to meet them, if the situation presents itself.”

  “What? There is no fucking way I’m doing that. Especially, with all the potential snoops running around.”

  “Just put on the little outfit you had on at the coffee shop earlier today and scope out the scene, then report back to me.”

  “No way, no how, man.”

  “Ted—”

  “What? I told you I don’t want to involve myself with potentially dangerous situations anymore.”

  “You’re leaving me behind. You’re leaving me to fend for myself, knowing full well that I’m vulnerable.”

  “Are you giving me a guilt trip?”

  “Yes.”

  “Jack...” Ted said, in his usual whiny voice for situations like these.

  “Come on, one last favor...promise.”

  “I thought getting you in the club was the last favor?”

  “That was the second-to-last favor. You owe me a lot of favors, quite frankly. Believe me, this won’t be your last favor, either.”

  There was a small pause in our conversation knowing Ted was struggling with my request. However, I had bailed him out of many situations in the past, and I was bailing him out before he left for Los Angeles by hiding him in my room and lying to my company in regard to his whereabouts. If they found out that I was lying and harboring an extremely valuable and AWOL employee, I might be fired.