by Anjela Renee
“I can’t believe you’re alive, Mary. I cried for a week when I heard you were dead.”
“Oh, Sally, I didn’t know you were one, too. Enri never told me. I missed you so much,” Mary cried while hugging Sally.
“Ladies, I hate to break up the love fest but we have more important things to discuss. Let’s take this in the next room,” Connor said, as he walked into the living room.
Sally couldn’t believe her dear friend had come back from the dead from so long ago. Sally hadn’t been able to make too many friends in the modern era and was very lonely. She was thinking of how fun it would be to have a close girlfriend again. They all sat down in the formal living room. Sally wondered what Connor was doing here and when he had arrived.
“Okay, now that everyone is seated and revived, we need to figure out what we are going to do about Maurice,” Javon stated.
“I just can’t believe my sweet Maurice, who used to bring me a flower every day, is so evil,” Mary said with sadness in her face.
“I'm so sorry, Mary. I know you were so in love with him. He kills like it’s nothing; I don’t think he came out of the turning completely sane,” Sally said as she comforted her long lost friend.
“So let me get this straight: Javon turned Maurice and Enri turned Mary and nobody knew what the other had done?” Connor asked. Everyone nodded his or her head in agreement. Connor got up from his seat and began pacing the room. “Well, we need to lure Maurice out before he hurts Abby.”
“How do we do that?” asked Javon.
“I have an idea.” Everyone turned to look at Enri. Connor sat back down as Enri got up from his seat and moved to sit next to Mary. He placed his hand on hers, but she pulled away from him.
“Maurice loves Mary more than anything, so in order to lure him out we need to get him a message that Mary is alive. Once he’s out, we can follow him back to Abby”
“This would be where my special set of skills may come in handy,” Connor began. “Every Vampire leaves a unique scent behind. I’m a werewolf, so I can follow it without being detected, and we’re sneaky like that.”
“I will send Mary’s picture around to all the Vampire bars with a message to call to set up a reunion,” Enri responded.
“Okay, it’s settled. We have a plan to get Abby back and to arrest Maurice for his crimes,” Sally said as she hugged Mary, still excited to have her friend back. Everyone began to disburse to get ready for the plan. Mary and Sally remained in the room alone. Mary began tearing up.
“Why are you crying, Mary?” Sally asked.
“Everything. I feel like this whole thing is my fault.”
“There is nothing you could have done. Enri should have told me about you. If we want to find someone at fault, it’s him. Maybe Maurice would have been okay with you by his side,” Sally pointed out.
“Please don’t blame Enri. He loves me. I just never felt the same for him,” replied Mary sadly as she looked down at the floor.
“Let’s forget this nastiness for a while. You will stay with me for now, okay?”
“That would be great.” Mary laid her head on Sally’s shoulder; they immediately fell right back into their friendship.
Chapter 24
Maurice paced the floor of the house he was staying at. He knew he had no choice. He was going to have to turn that fucking bastard. He knew an old abandoned factory that would work for the turning; Detroit was full of them.
He pulled out his phone and dialed Brian’s number.
“Brian!” he barked into the phone. “I’m texting the address. Meet me in one hour. Don’t be late.” He shut the phone and then kicked the wall in frustration. “UGH!”
Maurice sent off the text to Brian and headed off to one of the Vampire bars he liked to troll for food. There was a blood whore he used often who worked there. She let him do things the others wouldn’t. He thought he could pay her to work as food for the turning. He would also need to stop at the hardware store to get chains, rope, duct tape, and a few other supplies for the turning.
Maurice walked into Hunger, another Vampire bar. Bloodlust was tame compared to this place. It was where Vampires went when they wanted to be Vampires, to give into their more primal nature. The place was very dark and the music was thumping through the building. All the Vampires that routinely visited places like that were like him. He was a Vampire and liked to kill and hurt humans. There were some rules: you couldn’t kill the donors but everything else was pretty much every man, or vampire, for himself. He walked to the bar and ordered a drink and saw some acquaintances of his. A woman walked up—he knew her from past dealings. Her name was Audrey and she was sired by a bastard named Carlos. She wasn’t evil like most of the Vampires there, but she did and went where her sire wanted her to. Her hair was a short brown and she had hazel eyes. She wore black leather pants and a leather crop top. He knew she hated the outfits Carlos made her put on; she wanted something more feminine and simple.
“Maurice, my friend,” Audrey gushed. She grabbed for him and hugged him despite the lack of response on his part.
“Don’t tell anyone; I have a reputation uphold.” Maurice wasn’t friends with anyone but Audrey managed to cut through his evil exterior. She was probably the only one on the face of the earth, besides Mary, he had ever cared about. The way he felt about her was never sexual; it was pure friendship he felt for her, perhaps even felt like she was a little sister. “I’m here to get a donor. I don’t have time for you right now.”
“But Maurice, I haven’t seen you in so long. Carlos took me to Holland, Michigan for the Tulip festival in May and decided to stay and feed on tourists for the summer and fall.”
“Yes. All those pretty flowers and lakeside breezes must have been very difficult to deal with.”
“It was actually very nice, but I still missed you. Eventually Carlos got bored and wanted to come back to slum it with the degenerates again.”
“Audrey, I have a turning I need to attend to and I need a blood donor.”
“I saw Andrea a few minutes ago; she likes you and I’m sure she would do it.”
“That what’s I was thinking.” Maurice drank the rest of his drink with one last gulp and got up from the bar. “I will see you soon.”
Audrey smiled and she walked off toward the dance floor.
Maurice found Andrea with all the other blood donors. She looked up at Maurice and smiled.
“Are you in need of me?”
“Yes, my dear; I am buying you for an extended period of time.”
Andrea smiled even bigger. “That’ll cost you.”
Maurice scowled. “I figured as much. Come on; you will be paid more than you make in a year.”
***
Brian waited at the empty factory where he was meeting Maurice for his turning. The place was worse than the house they had stayed at in the ghetto. All the windows were broken out and it smelled like someone used the whole place as a toilet. There were rusted out metal pieces everywhere and empty beer bottles and other garbage.
“You ready?” Maurice said, startling Brian as he suddenly appeared behind him.
“Shit…you scared me. Who is that?”
“This is Andrea. She will help you through the turning.”
Andrea was a robust woman with a pretty face and wavy auburn hair.
She rolled her eyes.”Hi, Brian. I feed Vampires all the time; this will be cool to see an actual turning.”
Brian scowled at Andrea, not in the mood for chitchat.
“Okay, I have prepared a room with what we will need. This way.” Brian and Andrea followed Maurice to a small room that must have been an office at one time. It had a couple chairs, a sleeping bag on the floor, and some rope and duct tape in the corner.
“What’s all that for?” Brian asked, looking at the supplies on the floor.
“New Vampires are dangerous; you’ll be tied up until you can feed without killing.”
Maurice told him what to expect: extreme pain,
constant nightmares for the first day, and then extreme blood hunger throughout the process.
“Are you sure you are prepared, Brian? This is the worst pain you will ever have, and I guarantee you will never forget it.”
“I am more positive than ever.”
“It’s not too late to forget this whole thing; return the girl and you can walk away from this whole life forever.”
“I have nothing to go back to. I want eternity.” Brian bent his neck, giving Maurice access. Maurice bit down on his neck, drinking down the blood. He continued drinking until Brian started to pass out. Then, he pulled out his fangs as he lowered Brian onto the floor. He bit down on his own wrist and placed it up to Brian’s mouth. Brian was barely able to drink, then latched on and started drinking greedily. Maurice pulled back his wrist.
“The exchange is complete. My blood will work its way through your system and you will start feeling pain shortly. I wish you the best.”
Brian lay on the sleeping bag on the floor and within minutes he began clutching his stomach and writhing in pain. “I feel it. Oh my god, it hurts…. It feels like every nerve in my body is on fire,” Brian screamed.
“My end of the bargain has been completed. Give me the address. I will return and check on you in a few hours. I will leave Andrea to look after you.”
“I will take good care of you, Sweetie. Just let me know when you get hungry.”
Brian began screaming louder, tearing at his skin. Maurice restrained him by tying him up with some rope.
“The address—now, or I leave you to starve of blood hunger. You aren’t strong enough to escape.”
“My front pocket; it’s in my pocket,” Brian said between moans.
Maurice grabbed the piece of paper. He read the address and was getting ready to walk out the door when Andrea stopped him.
“I’m supposed to show this to you.” She shoved a text with a picture in his face. He grabbed it and couldn’t believe what he saw. It was a picture of Mary with a number to call. He grabbed Andrea by the throat.
“Who sent this?” He released her throat enough for her to talk.
“It was a mass text from a bouncer at one of the clubs. I don’t know anything.” He released her and she fell to the ground and began coughing while trying to catch her breath.
“Watch over Brian. When he needs to be fed, give him the wrist only. If he tries to take too much, hit him with this taser gun; he’ll recover.”
Maurice threw the taser to Andrea and left.
Chapter 25
Enri, Javon, and Connor were meeting in the study to finalize the plans for the evening. The room was decorated with dark woods and masculine leather furniture. The room had the scent of sandalwood and old cigars. There were various golfing and fishing decorations purely for embellishment.
“Have a seat, gentleman, and let’s get this underway,” Javon announced as they entered the room.
It was two in the afternoon and almost no other Vampires would be awake. They made plans for that evening and hoped to get a quick response from Maurice. Enri had a couple of pictures in his phone of Mary he sent off with a message to call to exchange Mary for Abby.
“Are you sure this will be safe for Mary?” Enri asked worriedly. Time had done little to his feelings for her. He still held onto the hope she would someday return the feelings.
“You love her, don’t you? I can see it in your face.” Javon already knew the answer.
“I fell in love the moment I saw her through her bedroom window. I am a sad old Vampire in love with what I will never have.”
“There is no shame in falling in love. If she was meant for you, it wouldn’t be so hard. When it’s easy, it’s meant to be.” Javon felt bad for his friend. Now that he knew the love of an eternal mate, he wanted all his friends to have one.
“But you don’t keep falling for women you cannot have; first Sally now Mary. I thought in time she would begin to feel the same way, and now she’ll leave me. I know it.”
“I’m sorry, old friend. Life hasn’t been fair to you. Maybe you and Sally will reunite? She could use the distraction; she seems lonely.”
“I think it’s time for me to give up any thought of a mate. It just isn’t meant to be. Enough of my problems; let’s get your woman back.”
“Thank you for doing this, both of you,” Javon said to Connor and Enri.
“I have officially issued a warrant for his arrest. It could take time for a bounty hunter to track him. However, unofficially, you have my help and the help of a few of my pack members,” Connor promised.
“Let’s feed and get some rest; we will need it for tonight. Do you have extra rooms for everyone?” Enri asked Javon.
“Yes; food and blood are in the kitchen, and all rooms are lightproof.”
Javon concluded the meeting, and went into the kitchen. Enri and Javon each had a bag of blood, which Sally graciously warmed for them. Then they all had some food, said good day, and went to get some rest.
***
After a day of restless sleep, everyone was up and ready to get the rescue under way. It was dark out so the city’s Vampires would be swarming the bars for a meal and a good time. Enri had just hung up the phone and walked over to Javon.
“That was the bouncer at the club. I instructed him to send the text to all the Vampires and blood whores in the city. If Maurice tries to feed at one of the bars, he will get the message.”
“I just hope this will all be enough,” Javon confessed. He had dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep. He just couldn’t stop worrying about Abby and what was being done to her. Sally came down the stairs with Mary following behind. Javon could see Sally had some fun dressing Mary up in her clothes. She had styled her hair the same way she wore it in the 1600s.
“Doesn’t she look beautiful?” Sally asked, as they were seated in the room with everyone else.
“She is always beautiful,” Enri replied.
He looked over at Mary and she looked away from him.
***
Sally smiled at Connor and walked into the library. She took a book off the shelf to read. She read the twilight book but wanted something a little hotter. She ordered a variety from the internet and now she needed a little alone time to enjoy her spoils. She settled in and started reading, and then heard a knock at the door. She looked to see Connor standing there. She thought he would definitely make a good character in one of her books.
Connor walked into the room and sat next to Sally. She wasn’t sure what to say or even why he came in here. “Connor, I want to say thank you for helping out,” Sally said to him, trying to break the silence. She reached out and held his hand. He looked up at her and Sally felt unexpected desire run through her whole body. She quickly pulled away; she didn't want those feelings and was angry with herself for having them. Perhaps it was just hormones; maybe she just needed sex.
“Sally, there is a reason I came in here. I wanted to talk to you alone. I like you Sally. I’m not sure why; I’ve never felt like this toward a Vampire before, but I hope we can spend some time together.” He brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. “You never know, you might like me back.”
“I don’t know, Connor. I don’t think this is the time. With everything going on, I can’t even begin to think about things like this.”
“I know the timing is off, but the opportunity presented itself and I just wanted to let you know how I feel.”
Sally was startled by another knock at the door. She looked over to see Mary coming inside the door. “Javon said I would probably find you in here. Am I interrupting something?”
“No; I was just leaving. You have a nice visit. Think about it, Sally.”
“Yes, I will.”
Mary came over and sat next to her when Connor left. She waited until Connor completely left the room before she began speaking. “Do I have to ask what that was about?” Mary asked.
Sally knew Mary wanted to know every detail, but she wasn’t ready t
o discuss Connor with anyone yet.
“I have a better idea: let’s talk about books.”
Chapter 26
Maurice called the number from the text Andrea showed him. He still wasn’t absolutely sure if it was real. He agreed to meet to see if it was really Mary.
He sat at a booth at Bloodlust in the agreed spot, the VIP section. He wasn’t planning anything funny; he just wanted his Mary, if it was really she.
Javon, Enri, and Mary entered the club and approached Maurice. He stood up as soon as he saw Mary.
“Mary, is it really you, my love?” Maurice took her and hugged her in an embrace. He started feeling emotions he never thought he would feel again.
“Yes, Maurice, it’s me,” Mary replied, breaking away from his embrace.
Maurice looked at Mary. She looked beautiful, just like he remembered, but she didn’t have the love in her eyes which he remembered from so long ago. “How?” Maurice replied, unsure of what else to say.
“Enri turned me shortly after you disappeared. I tried to kill myself; I was heartbroken when you left.”
“Oh, Mary. I dreamed what it would be like if we were together again.” Maurice took Mary in his arms and immediately began kissing her. She resisted at first then let him kiss her. It was so familiar remembering what it was like in the beginning, when they kissed under the big oak tree in the clearing.
“That's enough,” Enri replied, pulling Maurice away from Mary.
“I love you, Mary. I want us to be together; just like we use to be,” Maurice pleaded.
“You went rogue, Maurice. What happened to you? What happened to the good man I feel in love with? The man I wanted to marry.”
“Let’s sit, shall we; before we attract attention?” Javon insisted. They all sat down together at the table. A waitress came by to take drink orders, and Javon sent her away.
“I want my mate back,” Javon growled.
