by Sky Winters
“The murders…”
“Right, they don’t have the same rules that the vamps here have. Our vamps only kill once a year. The rest of the time they feed off synthetic blood, blood from blood banks, things like that. But the Old Worlders? They kill however, whenever. We’re just cattle to them.”
Miranda shifted her weight and crossed her arms.
“What’re we supposed to do? Kill them all?
Peterson shook his head.
“No, no. They have leaders, think of them as ’ambassadors,’ who’re overseeing everything. If we can take them out, they’ll leave. For now, at least.”
Miranda thought of the severe face of Madame Moroz.
“Like Moroz?”
Peterson looked away in thought for a brief moment.
“That name sounds familiar. But listen, we need to get out of here. It was a bad idea meeting in the open, but they’re got ears everywhere. Give me a call at this nu-“
But just then, a crack sounded through the still of the night air, and Peterson jolted in place. An expression of pained surprise crossed his face. His hands shot up to his chest, where, to her horror, Miranda witnessed a spurt of blood erupt and pour down his shirt. Peterson stammered forward, taking jerky steps before collapsing at Miranda’s feet, a pool of blood forming under him.
Miranda pulled out her pistol and turned. In the distance, about a hundred feet away, was Michael, flanked by vampires clad in dark clothes. He his hand he held a rifle, smoke wafting from the barrel in lazy circles. On his face was a sardonic expression.
“Good to see you again, kiddo,” he said, before kneeling and taking aim, this time at Miranda.
Chapter 13
The bullet slammed against of the metal support beams with a loud pang, and Miranda dove for cover. She flicked the safety off on her pistol and poked out of cover, blind-fire cracking off a triplet of shots before another rifle shot rang out, this time striking the metal close to her face, the beam thrumming as though it had been pounded with a massive fist.
“Give up and we won’t kill you, kid,” called out Michael. “Promise!”
Miranda stayed in cover realizing that if there was any doubt in her mind about the loyalty of her fellow officers, it was gone now. With frantic sweeps of her eyes, she scanned the nearby area for any sign of Roman, and didn’t see him. Peeking out behind her cover, she watched as Michael drew another bead, and ducked back just as another shot fired, the bullet clanging against the metal once again.
Miranda felt a sense of dread creep through her adrenaline-wracked body. Soon the vampires would close in, and with Michael laying down suppressing fire, there was no way she’d be able to make a run for it without risking a gunshot. She took one more look, and saw a pair of vampires walking towards her with slow steps.
But just as she was about to give up hope, she heard the pealing of tires and the low thrumming of an engine, followed by a pair of heavy thuds.
“Miranda, get in!” called out a voice that she immediately recognized as Roman’s. She looked out from behind cover and saw the sleek form of Roman’s car pulled up onto the grass of the park; Roman’s face was visible through the dark glass of the driver’s side door. Another shot rang out, and Miranda heard the metallic thunk of the bullet against the passenger side of the car. Roman was positioned to block Michael’s line of sight.
Taking a deep breath, she ran towards the car. And as she ran, she noticed that her legs were moving with speed and grace that she had never been capable of before. She closed the distance to the car within seconds, and leaped into the open back door, pulling it shut behind her as soon as she was in. Roman then peeled off, another shot sounding followed by a punch-crack impacting the back window and sending a dense spider web of cracks spreading out from the middle of the window where the bullet hit.
Roman revved the engine, and the car sped off, through the park and back onto the road. Miranda looked over the back seat, through the broken window, and saw the group of vampires stand still, watching the car leave. And Michael stood behind them, the rifle propped against his shoulder as he pulled a phone out of his pocket.
“What the hell happened back there?” asked Roman, his eyes on the road ahead.
“They killed the lieutenant,” Miranda said, her voice faraway and monotone, the image of Peterson lying dead on the ground fresh in her mind.
“Jesus, I’m sorry,” said Roman, making another turn.
Miranda let the subject of Peterson’s death drop, wanting to get the image of his death out of her mind.
“We have to kill the ambassadors,” she said. “That woman, Madame Moroz, she’s leading the Old-Worlders. Some of them, at least.”
“Right,” said Roman. “We take her out, it won’t stop them, but it’ll slow things down, maybe give the Old-Worlders pause before trying to take this city over.”
“So what do we do? Just kick down the doors of the police station and take them all out?”
“No,” said Roman. “We meet with the rest of the vampires on our side, back at the safe house. We find out what they learned, and figure out some way to cut off the head of the Old-Worlders- take out their leaders.”
“Something tells me this will be easier said than done,” said Miranda, sitting up.
“Something tells me you’re exactly right,” said Roman, driving on and into the night.
The safe house was packed with the rest of the vampires and their humans when Roman and Miranda arrived. They were sitting and standing here and there in the spacious living room of the house, all engaged in idle chatter. All eyes turned to the pair as they walked in, as though now that Roman was here, the planning could really begin. Miranda noted how the vampires were now looking to Roman as something of a leader since Mr. Nowak was killed, and she couldn’t blame them- he exuded a certain strength and force of will that made her feel calm and safe just by being around him.
“What’s the story, people?” he said, the words leaving his lips on that Slavic accent that Miranda was starting to not be able to get enough of.
Kieran stood up and spoke, his dark orange hair slicked behind his ears.
“The Old-Worlders seem to be moving into place to take over all of the societies in some kind of a blitzkrieg, either by killing anyone who opposes them or buying them off.”
“Buying off New York vamps?” asked Aron, his voice incredulous.
“Not surprising,” said Kieran, “plenty of our kind don’t really care whose running things if they can hold on to their penthouse apartments.”
Another vampire, a young-looking woman with a shaved head and pierced nose spoke up, her voice carried in smooth, Italian tones.
“Yeah, forgetting that they’ll have about a month to enjoy it before the hunters break in and stake them.”
Murmurs of agreement broke out among the crowd.
“Anyone else?” asked Roman, eagerness in his voice.
“Yeah,” said Simone, standing up. “A couple of Old-Worlders are meeting with some NYPD higher-ups tonight.
Roman said nothing, looking down, his chin in his hand, a look of consideration on his face.
“Well, that seems to be a perfect opportunity to strike at them. But surely they’re already considered this.”
“They have,” said Vincent. “Which is why a distraction is necessary. If we can split up, cause some chaos around the city with the societies, then they’ll have no choice but to run the meeting with a skeleton crew.”
“But won’t they just postpone the meeting?” asked Miranda.
“No,” said Roman, “speed is their greatest advantage. If they can rush in and seize power, they’ll be able to move to the next step of bringing in other Old-Worlders to solidify their hold on the city. The longer they wait, the more we can rally to fight them off.”
“But are we ready now?” asked another vampire in the crowd, a man with middle-aged features and a mane of wild, blond hair.
“It doesn’t matter if we are, what matters is
that we have to be,” said Roman.
Heads in the crowd nodded in response.
“Where’s the meeting taking place?” asked Roman.
“Upper East Side,” said Vincent. He looked at his watch. “And we’ve only got a few hours.”
“Then we don’t have any time to waste.”
Chapter 14
Time passed, and the plan was set: different groups of vampires would attack the homes of higher-ups in the New York society who were suspected of working with the Old-Worlders. They determined that they’d call on help, and the Old-Worlders, knowing that good relations with the entrenched leaders of the city are key to their takeover, would be obliged to help.
And once the meeting was left with a skeleton crew, Roman and Miranda would sneak into the meeting, ready to take out the Old-Worlders in a quick strike. And though Miranda was scared, she knew that fighting by Roman’s side was where she was meant to be.
When the details were worked out, the group broke apart, with each team heading towards their appointed location. There they’d wait for the call from Roman, when they’d strike. And when they left, Roman and Miranda were alone in the house.
“This all seems to insane,” she said, pouring herself a glass of wine and lighting a cigarette.
“What’ve I told you about smoking inside?” said Roman, a sly grin on his face.
“Are we really going to be able to pull this off?” she asked before bringing the glass to her lips and taking a sip.
“All we can do is try,” he said, pouring a drink for himself.
Miranda walked over to one of the living room windows, looking out over the grass of the long lawn, towards the quiet street beyond.
“Nice place,” she said.
“It is,” Roman said, joining her by the window.
Miranda tried to ignore the quaking of anxiety in her belly as she thought about the hours ahead. And as Roman drew closer to her, she began to feel calmer, safer. Without thinking, she tilted her head to the side, resting it on his shoulder. Roman responded by wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her close. Miranda closed her eyes, concentrating on nothing but the feel of Roman’s soft jacket against her face, and the slow expansion and contraction of his chest as he breathed.
But after a moment, the comfort and calm Miranda felt was replaced by another feeling, a feeling of arousal that began to brew deep within her. She turned her body, looking up at Roman’s face as he looked out of the window. And as she admired his profile, the urge to please him, to make him feel good slowly overcame her. Placing her hands on his sides, she turned his body towards her, and looked up at his face, at his red lips, his narrow, sly eyes, and his dark, long hair. Leaning up she kissed him, placing her lips on his gently, almost chastely, before opening her mouth and letting her tongue slip from her own mouth into his.
Roman responded to her kiss by pulling Miranda close and grabbing her hips. She sensed him begin to feed off of her passion as she kissed him. He kissed her hard, as though he could drink her in. Miranda felt his hands move from her hips to the top of her shirt, his fingers stopping at the buttons, working on each one for a moment before undoing it and moving down to the next. Miranda slipped off her leather jacket and tossed it away as Roman finished undoing her blouse. Once completely unbuttoned, she pulled it over her shoulders and threw it aside as well. She mirrored his actions, taking off his jacket and t-shirt, throwing them away to the same unseen corner of the living room. Still kissing him, Miranda moved her hands along his hard, sculpted body; she wondered if she could ever get tired of the way he looked and felt.
Miranda pushed Roman back towards the couch, and he fell into it, his eyes in a knowing expression. She then moved towards him with slow, slinky steps, not taking her gaze off of him. His arms were spread along the back of the couch, and Miranda allowed herself to make a sweeping glance at his thick, long arms before stepping down to her knees. Reaching up while looking into his eyes, he moved her hands along the cool, smooth fabric of his slacks and up to his belt. With careful movements of her fingers, she undid the golden, gleaming buckle, followed by the fastening, finally pulling down the zipper with slow drag.
Pulling the zipper apart, she exposed the white fabric of his boxer-briefs, strained by his erection, which seemed to be on the verge of bursting through. Looking up at him with sly, smiling eyes, she dragged her fingers along the length of his cock through his underwear. Roman let his head fall back against the chair, waiting with patience for what was to come next. Miranda moved her fingers up towards Roman’s waist, slipping them under the waistband of his boxer-briefs. Then, she pulled his pants down with a slow motion, his erection springing free. She looked at his hard, long cock with feelings approaching hunger. She wanted to please Roman, to make him feel good, to make him cum.
She wrapped her right hand around the base of his shaft and began to move it up and along the length of his cock, first slowly, then with more speed. Miranda took her time, moving her fingertips along the sensitive ridge of his prick.
Next, she began with her mouth. She started with her tongue, taking quick, darting licks along his shaft, mixing quick kisses in with her licking. His cock tasted musky, with a hint of manly sweat. She couldn’t get enough of the way he tasted, and continued to lick and stoke him. She moved her mouth up towards the head of his prick, sliding her wet, soft tongue along the ridge of his head. She felt the first shivers of pleasure rush through Roman’s body as she did this, and knowing that she was pleasing him only made her desire for him all the more intense.
She made one final volley of kisses up his length before stopping at the end of his cock and lashing it with a flurry of licks. Miranda then decided to stop teasing. From her vantage point, she looked down along his cock to the base, admiring its girth and length. She didn’t know how she’d be able to wrap her mouth around it, let alone take it all into her, but she was more than willing to try. She parted her lips, and wrapped them around his head, taking the entirety of it into her mouth. First, she let it sit there, letting Roman feel the warmth and wetness of her mouth, letting his head rest against the plushness of her tongue.
Then, she began to work her tongue around his head as it lay in her mouth, pulling her lips apart just enough so that he could feel the movement of them on his cock. Still licking him within her mouth, she moved her head down, taking more of his length into her. His taste grew stronger the more of him she took into her mouth, and she could sense her mouth water as the taste and smell of Roman flooded her senses. She wanted more and more of him in her, but she knew patience would only heighten his pleasure. And hers.
She began moving her head up and down, moving her lips along the first few inches of his cock, her tongue caressing and lashing his flesh all the while. Roman began to moan as she sucked him, and he moved his right hand along her side before coming to a rest on the back of her head. With gentle pressure, he pushed her head down as she sucked, imploring her to take more of him. She knew well that this was what he wanted, but still, she made him wait. Miranda moved her hands to his sides, and up to his chest, working on his cock with nothing but her mouth and tongue. Roman’s own hands moved to her breasts, taking them into his cupped palms and feeling them move against the rough skin of his hands as she bobbed her head.
Finally, she decided it was time. Relaxing her throat, she moved her mouth slowly down the remaining length of his cock, taking more and more in, inch after inch. She felt the hard pressure of his rigid prick press against the back of her throat, but still, she took in more. Roman let out another low moan as she moved her lips more and more, until finally she reached his balls, pressing her lips against them as she came to a stop.
Miranda paused for a moment, letting his entire length rest in her mouth and throat, letting herself grow accustomed to the feeling of his prick entirely in her mouth. She tasted the unmistakable flavor of salty cum on her tongue, and she knew that it wouldn’t take more to get him to unload himself in her mouth. Then, she m
oved her head up, until she was at the head of his cock.
She continued to bob her head, the air filling with the gentle sounds of her slurping and sucking on him. Miranda focused on the head of his cock, continuing to provide attention to the most sensitive parts. After a time on the head, she repeated the process of taking the entirety of his prick into her mouth, letting the full length of it rest in her before slowly withdrawing it. Looking up, she could see Roman’s chest move up and down in quick, jerking breaths.
She narrowed her eyes as she sucked him, looking into his with a sensual, burning glare, her irises shimmering in sexual delight. As much as it turned her on to please him, the thought that he was putty in her hands filled her with a naughty pleasure. She knew that all it would take would be the slightest ratcheting up in intensity before he would cum for her.
Miranda decided it was time for Roman to cum. She picked up the pace of her sucking, moving her lips faster and faster around his head, sliding her tongue as she did so. Tightening her grip on his shaft, she took his balls into her other hand, and applied gentle, but firm pressure. She continued this three-part technique, listening to Roman’s breath quicken. Finally, with a deep grunt, he came. Miranda felt the first ropes of his cum against the back of her throat- the rich taste of salt filled her palate, and the thick texture of his cum poured into his mouth. More and more cum sprayed into her, and she felt the pulsations of his cock as orgasm took hold of it. She slowed her pace, tightening her lips around his prick and letting his orgasm rush through him, letting him unload himself completely into her mouth.
Then, his orgasm faded, and Roman took a long, slow breath, his hand running through Miranda’s hair. She let his sizable load of cum roll in her mouth for a few moments, feeling the texture of it run over her tongue. Miranda never much cared for the taste of semen, but with Roman, she savored it. It was almost sweet. She looked up at him one last time with her smiling eyes and swallowed, letting him watch her bring the cum down into her throat. Sticking out her tongue, she let him see that she swallowed every last drop.
