Fading Darkness (Bloodmarked #1) (8 page)

He was pressed up against all of my curves
and I could feel his heart beating faster inside his chest, and his eyes
narrowed slightly as he looked me up and down then returning those melting blue
eyes back to my eyes. As he looked at me those eyes cooled and the icy blue
crystals hardened.

“Are you satisfied yet?” he asked as if it
bored him to constantly prove himself right.

I couldn’t answer right away, and then I
realized that was because I had lost my breath. I took a deep breath before
giving him a firm, “Never.” I tilted my chin up higher showing my defiance. I
had to clear my head if I was going to get any of those answers I needed.

Something he said earlier was eating at me,
“What did you mean about not getting to me in time last night? You knew what
happened? How the hell do you always know when I’m in trouble? Are you like
psychic or something?”

He fought to keep a smile from forming, but
the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, and he pursed his lips to cover
it. “Or something,” he said with finality, and I could tell that was the end of
that particular topic.

“Does it have something to do with the fact
that you’re old as dirt and have all those ancient powers?” I threw back at
him, hoping to catch him off guard with my newly discovered information.

He didn’t even flinch, but still found my
ignorance amusing, apparently, because his faint, barely there smile grew
wider. “Ancient powers? Who have you been talking to?”

“Well, is it true? Do older vampires have
more power than young ones?” I asked, wondering if he would confirm what Shane
had told me.

“Yes, it’s true. Why? Am I starting to show
my age?” he asked teasingly as he checked his reflection in the window behind
me. He ran his hand over his head and added, “Whew, no grays.”

“Hilarious,” I said, drawing out another
smile from him. The look he gave me was unnerving. It was like he knew me
inside and out, and he was looking past all those walls I put up to keep people
from getting too close. “So how old are you then?” I blurted out, suddenly
curious about him again.

“Old,” he replied. “I stopped keeping track
after the first hundred years,” he narrowed his eyes as if studying my
reaction. I wasn’t sure why, but this didn’t surprise me. I think I was more
shocked that he was giving up information about himself freely, even if it was
a bit vague.

His expression turned almost sad and he
seemed a hundred miles away when he said, “The years start to blur together
when you let go of life and stop caring whether you live or die, but I guess
you know something about that don’t you.”

The reminder that he was following me, and
helping
me was like cold water in my face. I was mad and needed more information. “You
seem to know an awful lot about me, or so you think. Why do you want to help
me? What exactly is in it for you?” I demanded.

“I’ll answer your questions, but only if
you’re ready for the truth,” he said cryptically.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that you don’t trust me, and until
you do, you won’t believe the truth.”

“Well, why don’t you just tell me what you
know and let me decide what I believe or don’t believe,” I said hotly. It
sounded like he was keeping a lot from me.

“Not now. You should go home and rest.
You’ll need a lot of sleep to regain your strength. I’ll meet you again, but do
you think you could take it easy for a while and try not to get killed,” he
said tiredly, as if we had already been arguing about my defiance of his orders
for hours and this was his final plea.

As much as I hated him telling me what to
do, I knew he was right in this case. Sleep was all my body wanted right now.
“Fine, but if I find out this whole nice act is to set me up for something or
if you double cross me, I won’t hesitate to kill you.”

“Aw, your sentiment is touching, but a
simple goodnight would have done just fine,” he said, unfazed by my threats.
God, he was an arrogant son of bitch. I guess it was earned though. Hundreds of
years of gaining power and strength made me wonder if I really couldn’t take
him. But it wouldn’t stop me from trying if I had to.

My cheeks felt hotter, and I added, “I’m
serious. You may be watching me, but just know that you’re on my radar now too.
One wrong move and you’re dead.”

“So you’re going to be watching me?” he
asked with a wry smile. My stomach twisted when I realized how he took my last
threat. Obviously, he was more turned on than scared. Shit. Then, his tone took
on a more serious note, “Actions do speak louder than words, so maybe you’ll
see that my actions don’t add up to what you perceive to be your enemy.”

“Yeah, we’ll see about that. Or maybe, you
just signed your own death wish,” I said, all the fire in me diminished. The
threat didn’t feel as believable even to me, especially knowing it didn’t
bother him in the least.

He began to back away but stopped. “Oh, and
by the way, I didn’t dispose of his body. I turned him into the proper
authorities. I have a few contacts in the department who know a little about
our world and are good with cover-ups. Had you caught the news today, you would
have known that.”

I was speechless, and a small part of me
wondered if Holly’s dad was one of those contacts or if he even knew anything
about vampires at all.

“His family will get to say goodbye,” he
added, and after another moment of silence, he said, “I’m not completely
heartless.”

“Ha, like I said, we’ll see.” It was only a
matter of time before he showed his true nature, and when he did, I would be
there, stake in hand.

He watched my face carefully and shook his
head disapprovingly, but his eyes filled with determination. “You’ll see that
I’m on your side, not against you.” He looked at me then with a softer
expression, and said, “Get some rest.” Then, he turned and walked away. He
really did like having the last word.

That last look left me reeling, and I was
too tired to compete with him for the absolute final word. It was childish, but
we were both very much Type A personalities.

Competitive natures force people into those
kinds of immature tests with a drive to win. Winning those little mind games
gave one a sense of control, of power. And I could tell that like me, he very
much liked to be in control, the one of power.

Right now, though, my need for sleep was
slightly more urgent than my need for power. Since there wasn’t much action
tonight, I dragged myself back to my futon where my body gratefully succumbed
to unconsciousness. I slept. And slept.

It was a good thing Clint didn’t need me
until Tuesday, because I slept until early that morning. Waking up refreshed
was one of the best feelings I’ve ever experienced. It felt so good to be
strong again, like brand new.

I still couldn’t bring myself to go into the
bedroom, even after its new makeover. If the thought of someone I barely knew
sneaking into my bedroom at night to redecorate wasn’t so disturbing I might
have said it was thoughtful. He tried to erase the gruesome image from my
memory, but it was too late. It had singed itself on the back of my mind
permanently, like a bad tattoo I couldn’t remove. It was a constant reminder of
a really bad night.

I rolled off the futon and stretched every
muscle in my body. They had felt so tight and stiff from all I put them through
the other night. Once loose and limber again, I reached for the remote and
flipped on the television waiting for any news on potential attacks last night.

It was weird. There were no attacks, murders,
or missing persons, as if all the vampires in town took a vacation. Even more
strange were the
suicide
victims found in random spots around the city.

There were two last night, which wasn’t
strange in and of itself, but it was the first time kids were found around town
with slit wrists, an unknown substance in their systems, and unusually low
blood counts. Coincidence? I’ve learned to stop believing in coincidences.

Reports said that police have been
suspicious of someone in town that has been selling this new drug that acts
like a jacked up hallucinogen and stimulant put together with a very violent
comedown period. Witnesses claimed it appeared to make them very confused and
carefree, then very depressed and suicidal, but toxicity reports showed the
high levels of the drug, alone, would be enough to kill someone. The working
theory was that these kids were taking the drug and wandering around town on
their buzz, then cutting themselves after coming down from the high, while
bleeding out, but there was something that didn’t add up.

Witnesses who found these bodies didn’t find
any blood trails. I bet I could guess where the blood went. The police were
being very hush-hush about it all. They have been saying suicide and have
refused to comment on the drained blood from the bodies. They never actually
confirmed that the bodies were drained and assumingly dumped, but the media has
been relentless, desperately trying to prove something else is going on, like
murder. All they’ve been able to go off of were witnesses. They can’t prove
anything on that, but that wouldn’t stop the public’s suspicions from
eventually causing mass confusion or hysteria, unless this situation was
brought under control.

The next few days went by without event. I
worked and I patrolled, but came up empty every time. I had a few attacks on
me, but nothing life-threatening. I needed to talk to Gavin. If he really
wanted to help me, he could start by helping me track down the bastard
responsible for those personal attacks, especially when they have hit so close
to home, or
in
my home.

It didn’t seem so bad asking him for help
now. Stubbornness aside, in the grand scheme of things, it was a little like my
relationship with Shane. I can just use Gavin to get information. Plus, I
wanted to dig a little deeper into that big head of his.

I worked most of the day and with a quick
trip to the grocery store, I went back to my apartment and fixed an easy meal
before going out in search of the elusive and supposedly gone-good vampire.

†

It didn’t take long for him to find me. It
seemed he could sense when I really needed him. Otherwise, he was just
everywhere at once. This guy was basically a beast and had powers beyond the
norm, but he wasn’t a god. At least, I didn’t think he was. He’d probably
refute that thought.

I had walked the city for hours hoping to
find a few vampires to kill, but there was nothing, and finally, I decided I’d
stay in one place and wait for Gavin to come to me. It worked. Maybe he just knew
when I wanted to see him. That was a scary thought. I was lying on the lawn
under the Arch when I felt someone near, that unusual sensation I only got from
his overwhelming presence. 

I was just lying, arms spread out, knees up,
on the cold ground, staring up at the 630-foot structure looming above, minus
my I-pod. The sound of traffic on the highway was enough to keep the
silence-induced insanity at bay.

“Well, I would introduce myself properly,
but you already know my name from all the stalking you do so we can just skip
all the
un
pleasantries,” I said flippantly, without looking in his
direction.

“Why can’t you take my advice and just lay
low for a while? I thought I told you to stop going out hunting every night,”
he said with his usual barely contained anger. It made me sit up and turn back
toward him.

His towering silhouette was dark in front of
the blinding street light behind him. I could barely make out the color of his
jeans and the t-shirt covered by the black leather jacket he wore. I noticed
the loosely laced rims of his black boots.

“Why do you keep tabs on me?” my anger
matched his. “And it’s not like anything happened. Since you were watching, you
should have noticed that there haven’t really been many vampires around
lately.”

“I’m trying to help you stay alive but
you’re making that an impossible task,” he snapped. “You’re becoming more careless
than ever and drawing too much negative attention to yourself.”

I don’t think I would ever understand his
intentions, and it pissed me off that someone would pretend to want to help me
for no reason.

I shoved myself off the ground in a flash
that earned me a shocked look on his face. He underestimated my power, and so
did I. That reaction surprised me a little too. Each day I felt slightly
stronger.

“What do you care what happens to me anyway?
Who the hell are you? You just show up in my life and start lecturing me on all
this safety first bullshit! What’s in it for you, huh? What’s you’re angle?” I
screamed.

He measured my reaction for a moment, and
then his expression softened, realizing he pushed too hard. “I didn’t come here
to engage in more fighting. You want answers, and I need you to know I’m on
your side. Will you walk with me?” he offered his hand as a sign of peace.

I took it knowing this accord was
situational. It did not mean that I trusted him. He clasped it tight and I felt
a surge of electricity course through my veins. “By the way, I’m Gavin West.
I’m not sure I can say it was a pleasure to meet you, either, Lucille,” he said
with a slanted smirk. I answered with a mirrored look.

His hand was strong and warm compared to the
chill of the bitter autumn air. At that moment I had a chance to take in our
surroundings and noticed a shift in the atmosphere. I looked up at the night
sky to see the first snowflake of the winter float down and land on my
forehead. Several more followed as we both stood there and admired the big white
flakes swirling around us.

Well, I pretended he was doing the same, but
I felt his sharp eyes on me as I watched the snow fall around me. I was sure
that from far away this would look like a very normal, and possibly, romantic
moment- a couple hand in hand standing in a giant snow globe, framed by the
Arch with the twinkling city lights in the background. It was in complete
contrast to reality.

He pulled me toward the street, and we
walked in silence unsure of where to go from there. I didn’t know what to say,
and I thought it might be the physical contact that was clouding my mind. At
that moment, I slipped my hand from his, and he gave a quiet laugh, stepping
toward the curb gesturing for me to get on a sleek, black, and very large bike.

It figured that a man with so much power
would want the best and most powerful toys. There was no way I was letting him
kidnap me on that thing. Who knew where he wanted to take me? I had no interest
in finding out.

“No. Absolutely not.” God, I sounded so
responsible right now that it tasted a little like vinegar in my mouth as I
said it. Bitterness aside, I was not getting on that thing with him, even if it
did look like a rush.

A peculiar look of interest and humor
crossed his face. Wait, he was laughing at me? “So… you’re afraid of a bike?
This from a girl who thinks about, even embraces death when it’s knocking on
her door. Oh, that’s right, I forgot. You’re not afraid of risking death but
more afraid that maybe there’s a chance you might actually live a little,” he
accused as he mounted the bike.

A low blow and pretty spot-on accusation.
I’ve already cheated death, several times. Allowing myself a normal human life
felt like cheating my family and all others who suffered untimely deaths at the
hands of monsters like me. I was born into a world of death. It’s what I know,
what I am. I’m a bad omen, like a real-life devil child or grim reaper or
something. So why even bother trying to live when I existed to kill?

“Quit sulking and get on,” he huffed.

“For someone who’s been around probably
since biblical times, you sure are impatient. What’s you’re rush when you have
all the time in the world?” I asked.

“I only have a short time to convince you
I’m not your enemy before you come up with a reason to want to kill me again,”
he explained. This was true. The answer was so simple and to the point that it
was hard to doubt. I also appreciated the dry humor in his voice.

There was something about him that seemed to
draw out my worst insecurities about who I was, like he was taking them into
himself, almost like he was empathetic.

I swallowed my pride in hopes of gaining a
few answers. “Well, that’s inevitable, but I guess I could humor you,” I said
wrapping a leg around the bike. “It’s not like it could kill me anyway,” I said
in a hollow voice, more to myself.

But something could
, I reminded
myself. That thought sent a shiver through me. Before I could analyze it
further, I got on the bike and rested my feet on the foot pegs, my hands on my
knees.

My hopes for no physical contact were dashed
when he said, “You’re going to want to hold on.” He flipped the ignition switch
and the engine roared to life. He revved it up, and I felt the rumble of the
vibrations beneath me as it growled and groaned louder.

I still held my knees but leaned in as close
as I could stand to be near him. It was close enough to feel the light shaking
in his back from laughter. My stubbornness was funny to him, but as soon as the
bike lurched forward, that stubbornness was lost because I felt myself slide
backward from the pull of bike’s momentum.

My hands instinctively grabbed for fistfuls
of his leather jacket to keep me from falling. I couldn’t get a very good grip
and had no choice but to hook an arm around his waist. I tried not to
concentrate on the rock hard ripples he had going on under his thread bare
t-shirt. And I especially wanted to forget that my palm had just run down the
length of those abs against my will.

I tried to disguise my shameful groping as
tightening my grip in order to hold on, but his body had gone rigid and tensed
beneath my hand as if he sensed a change in me. He probably sensed my
discomfort and was thinking about all the possible crude remarks he could make.
But he said nothing.

Instead, he took off like a shot, and I
really was gripping him tighter to stay on. We flew down the streets at a speed
that felt a lot like my top speeds. I could barely see past his broad frame,
but the wind on my face was amazing, minus the occasional stinging from the big
wet flakes pelting it. The feeling was a lot like running actually.

We eventually came to a stop in front of a
high rise in the Central West end of downtown. It was massive and very
befitting to the monster movie setting of my life. It was an old gothic style
tower of dark stone. I thought I even spotted gargoyles at the very top but it
was too far up to make out a definitive figure, or maybe it was just a little
wishful thinking.

My life was so screwed up, it was nice to
find the humor in it every once in a while. It was, if anything, consistent to
find all the things that matched with the horror movie clichés. Consistency was
better than instability and uncertainty. I would take it where I could get it
these days. Lately, my life was becoming more and more unpredictable. Who knew
what tomorrow would bring?

I needed to live one day at a time, and I
especially needed to get through the night knowing I would probably hear things
I didn’t want to hear, like the truth about what a monster I was.

I released my grip on his body as soon as
the bike stopped moving and swung my leg over it stepping onto the sidewalk in
front of the looming building, craning my neck to take in its enormity. The
feel of his torso under my hands was still in the forefront of my mind and to
regain focus and balance I did everything I could not to stare at his well-muscled
body and perfectly chiseled features.

I failed miserably. My eyes automatically
found his intense gaze, the one that feels like it was only meant for me, like
he was looking inside me. I started drowning in the deep blue abyss of his
eyes. Then, he gave me a sideways smile and asked, “You must have enjoyed the
ride. See. It wasn’t so bad was it?”

“Why do you say that?” I asked a little
guarded, fearing I was giving something away. I tried taking a mental inventory
of my reaction and what he could be seeing in me, but it was too late.

He responded quickly, “Because of that goofy
grin on your face that you’re trying to hide.”

His comment revived my bad temperament, and
I was grateful for the clearing of the mind fog I often found myself lost in
when he looked at me that way. I was able to put a genuine scowl back on my face.