Beyond (10 page)

“
Strange, ”
he mumble d, wondering why Claudia ’
s taste buds ha d n ’
t adjusted and become more like his , practical ly immune to alcohol. But then again, she should ’
ve been able to pass through the field of grass at Island of Eden without feeling the way she had . She ’d failed that test. Perhaps her body ha d n ’
t adjusted to becoming a full venator yet. He brushed the thought away. Suddenly he felt a presence.

Austin sip
ped his beer to look like he fit in with the crowd, trying not to be obvious that he was looking for someone. Every so often, he shifted his eyes to the dance floor.
The presence was not a dangerous one, but he wished he could spot wh er ever he or she was located.

Claudia wondered why
Austin kept look ing elsewhere during their conversation , and was surprised at her irritation that he wasn ’
t giving her his full attention. She was sure he was eyeing a girl he wanted to dance with , b ut why did she care? She shouldn ’
t care.

Without warning,
heat rushed to her face , then travel led down to her stomach. When she placed the palm s of her hands on her cheeks to confirm the sensation , she was surprised by the contrast in the temperature. Her whole body felt like it was on fire. Her heart thumped faster , and her pulse ra ced too fast for her to keep up. Everything around her seemed to be moving in slow motion.
With her head spin ning and her body fe eling disconnect ed from her mind , she thought it was s trange that the tension that encased her when she first walked into th e room was gone. Completely at ease and with high spirits, she thought she could conquer the world .
F
ree as a bird , she wanted to soar as she blazed with heat that manifested through her entire body.

“
Claudia, ”
Austin scold ed , feeling concerned and mystified.
“
You ’
re not supposed to chug the whole thing down like that.
”
The tall glass she held was empty , and h e had only turned away for a minute. She had consumed all of it too quickly. Even so, being a venator and with her selective memory, she shouldn ’
t feel the effect of the alcohol, at least not like this. Or sh ould she?
It stunned Austin to see her this way. She ate and sle pt a lot less than her human life needed. She surely could move almost as fast as him. He ’d wanted to test her limits, but this…he was extremely baffled. Perhaps she was still more human than venator.

Claudia sprang o
ff the barstool, wrapp ing her arms tightly around Austin. Unaware of her strength, she almost knocked him off his stool. She pressed her chest i nto his ; he could feel her heart beat escalate.
“
Hellooo there. Less danccce.
”

She was clearly intoxicated. He sat there
, frozen , not knowing what to do. He felt the presence again, closer now, so he snapped his head to the right.

“
Don ’
lookie at chickies.
”
She placed her hand on Austin ’
s cheek to force him to turn his head to her.

Stroking her arms, he tried to calm her down. He took pleasure in knowing she was jealous when he was looking at other girls.
“
I wasn ’
t looking at other girls. You know I only have eyes for you. Just sit down for a minute. Let me ta ke you home.
”

“
Nooooo. Me don ’
wanna. Me wanna dance.
”
Claudia headed out to the dance floor without him, almost tripping on her heel s.
Austin caught her fall and took her to the dance floor.

He knew better, but Claudia was extremely flirtatious, dancing and having the time of her life , and he decided to stay. Claudia swayed seductively in ways he had never seen her move , as his arms firmly held onto her waist to hold her steady.

“
I always knew you had a seductive side, a not so innocent side.
”
He chuckled.
“
If I ’d kn own you would loosen up this much, I would have given you a drink a long time ago .”

Claudia moved with the rhythm
of a girl possessed by the beat of the bas s . Her hips swayed in a beguiling motion , sending Austin ’
s heart into such a frantic pace he was sure it would explode . Her hair flowed to the same rhythm , i n all the right places. For a moment Austin forgot himself. His eyes could see only Claudia, beautiful and sweet as the dawn. For a moment, there was no other person in the room.

The music had taken her, had taken them bot
h.
She wrapped her leg around him and leaned back, unafraid of falling. Austin felt a moan escape his throat.
If only I didn ’
t have to control myself with you.
The thought struck him like a winter-chilled blade .
He had to take a deep breath from her sensual caress. In an unwanted slow motion, he pulled her up and took a step back.
“
I should take you home. Maybe that wouldn ’
t be a good idea either. I think I need to cool off.
”

He fought his attraction through the next several songs, then Claudia suddenly stopped.

“
Had enough?
”
Austin asked, laughing inwardly, amused by seeing another side of her.

“
I…don ’
…feel…
.”
She leaned over , prepared to vomit .

As Austin rushed her to the nearest exit, he
sensed the presence again , stronger this time.
Before he closed the door, he looked over his shoulder, pas t the long narrow hall , to make sure they weren ’
t being followed.

Chapter
5

T
he golden full moon lit the sky , a beautiful night in contrast to where they were—an alley. Austin quickly swept the perimeter, but the gruesome stinky smell of rotten food mixed with mildew twisted his head to the left. He spotted several empty bottles near the large trash bin, a few parked cars, and a dimly lit street lamp that flicker ed every few seconds.

Austin held Claudia loosely so she could move freely.
“
Claudia, let me take you home.
”

“
Noooo. Me likie herre, ”
she whined.
“
Me tummie…don ’
likie…
.”
She turned and ben t over to puke…but nothing happened .
Swaying slight ly back and forth, her eyes focused on the ground. “
Preeedddy ,” she said.

T
hey were in an alley for crying out loud.
What could be pretty?
It was a good thing he looked down . Claudia ’
s index finger traced the movement of dark shadows that twirl ed around them. They were long and thin, resembling snakes without heads. Austin had never seen anything like it, but before he had a chance to evaluate, he focused on something white that buzzed by his face . With a swift movement of wing s , Michael appeared .