Vampire Dating Agency (6 page)

CHAPTER
NINETEEN

There was no word for them. No word
to describe what they were.

All around
her, shadows of pointy black ears danced in the glowing red light. Twisted
black claws gripped the bars outside the cages, silver teeth shimmering. Green eyes
blinking.

Although
she’d heard them growling and howling several meters away down the corridor, as
soon as Madame Nightshade entered the commotion in the room ceased. Haley
stepped through the open doorway, her eyes darting around, unsure if she was safe.
The cages were stacked upon one another, covering the room’s circumference and
reaching almost as high as the roof.

“Do have a
seat,” Madame Nightshade said, closing the door.

Haley stepped
onto the blue carpet where two cushioned cylinders stood facing one another.
She sat down on the nearest one, her knees trembling together. Madame
Nightshade walked past her to retrieve something from the side of the room.

“Is – is it
safe in here?” Haley stammered.

Madame
Nightshade took the seat opposite. She rested a computer tablet on her lap.

“As long as
I’m with you, you’re safe,” she assured her. “Although they are rather hungry.
Perhaps you could let one nibble on your finger for a bit?”

“My finger?”

“Only joking.
Can I have your name again, dear?”

“Haley
Watkins.”

Madame
Nightshade’s fingers glided across the screen.

Haley leaned
forward.

“It says here
you’re a virgin, is that correct?”

Haley
blushed. “It says what?”

“That you’re
a virgin. Did you make it up? Trying to get your approval faster?”

“Uh – uh…”

She touched
her ear lightly.

Her friends
seemed to have gone silent for the time being.

“Well?”

“It’s …
that’s correct.”

“Are you
sure?”

Haley nodded.

“Who was your
last boyfriend?”

Haley’s lips
twisted. “Boyfriend? Oh, I don’t know.”

“Have you
ever had a boyfriend?”

“Of course I
have!”

“So – who was
the last one?”

Haley took a
deep breath. “This is very personal.”

“Answer her
question, Haley,”
Maurice
piped up.

She inwardly
glared.

“I’m merely
trying to facilitate the most comfortable path to your dating experience,”
Madame Nightshade explained.

“I know,”
Haley mumbled. “My … last boyfriend was … about a year ago. Maybe a bit more.”

“How long
were you together?”

“Seven
months.”

“And you
didn’t sleep with him?”

“No.”

“Nor with
anyone else.”

“No…”

“Are you sure
you want to be doing this?”

Haley sat up.
“Pardon?”

“Are you sure
that … a
vampire
is your preference for dating?”

“That’s why
I’m here, isn’t it?”

“How did you
reach that decision then?”

“How did I…?”

“How did you
decide you want to be with a vampire?”

Haley looked
away a moment. “Something … spoke to me.”

“Such as?”

“It was just
a feeling I had,” she adlibbed. “I wanted … something more than what was out
there. You know? Something where I had no idea what to expect.”

The light
flickered between them.

“I know
exactly what you mean,” Madame Nightshade said. “I just hope you’re ready for
what’s coming.”

“I hope so
too.”

“So would I
be right to say you’re looking for your perfect match then? Someone who is
going to commit to you long term?”

“As opposed to
what?”

“Well. I can
set you up with some people to meet tonight. I can show you photos. Describe
their personalities. What they’re searching for in a partner. That’s the
conservative route.”

“Like fixing
me up?”

“Yes. I mean
you’re obviously not going to be interested in the more explicit activities we
have on offer. You just want to meet them right? See where you go from there?”

“I suppose
so.”

“There is
another way we can do it though. We have a special room upstairs where anyone
can walk in and mingle with one another. That way you can see if anyone clicks
with you face to face.”

“That
sounds…”

“It’s more
guaranteed to find you a suitable partner. These computers can only account for
so much.”

“But … it’s a
little nerving?”

“The process
exposes you to anyone who is in that room. So it might attract unwanted
attention.”

“But don’t I
have protection here?”

“Yes. And no.
If someone wants to hurt you, there’s always a way.”

“Are you
trying to warn me?”

“No dear, the
decision is yours.”

Haley
swallowed. She touched her lower lip.

“Haley,”
Maurice’s
voice stirred.
“Go and meet them.”

Madame
Nightshade watched her closely.

“Haley…”

“I guess
we’ll try it then,” she said softly.

CHAPTER
TWENTY

I was there in that moment. Conscious
and alive. Present and nearby. I wasn’t aware that the moment would be
reflected on. I was too busy caught up with my current distraction to notice.

She told me
she was a princess. By name … by blood… I wasn’t sure exactly how she wanted me
to take it. I could tell she’d been in the company of vampires before,
establishing her boundaries early. No biting. No kissing. No touching. Until
she was sure I was hers.

Of course I’d
never be hers. I’d never belong to anyone.

Her defense,
while an elaborate parade, would eventually quiet down after hours. She was
wearing sunglasses and wouldn’t take them off, which kept me from being able to
pierce her mind instantly. She had a small cross hidden beneath her chest, and
I could smell a faint touch of garlic coming from her handbag. Experienced, was
she. Cautious and wise.

But of
course, it wouldn’t matter later. She hadn’t been picked out by one of the rich
and gentlemanly vampire types – she’d been selected by me for an entirely
different purpose.

In truth,
while her high status and cautious nerve did attract me initially, I could all
too easily see I was going to get bored with her.

And it was by
that very token to which she owed her life.

“It’s like we
can’t even relate to each other anymore,” she was saying. “That deep
connection, or wavelength, or whatever bond you share with your closest friends
and family – it’s all just make believe. In the air. I was having lunch for
instance with my friend Bree the other day and – we’d been friends for seven
years mind you – and she was talking about her life and her boyfriend and their
problems, and I just realized – I don’t know this woman. I don’t know what
she’s thinking. She certainly doesn’t know what I’m thinking. And yet there’s
been no one I’ve been closer to. It just makes you realize that however much we
think we connect with someone … it’s all in our mind. It’s just to hide how
alone we truly are. Do you … ever feel that way?”

No.

No, I didn’t
understand what she was getting at.

It may have
been how she worded it. Or perhaps I wasn’t listening.

“Would you
excuse me?” I asked, getting up from the table.

“Oh sure,”
she said eagerly. “I should – you know, I have someone I want to call and –”

“Meet you
back here then? Ten minutes?”

She stood up
with a thin smile, as though she could read me. As though she owned me.

“See you
soon,” she said, her eyes sparkling.

I nodded, and
she left the terrace at her end, while I left via mine.

I didn’t need
to go to the bathroom, though I may have implied that was my excuse. I just had
to … break away …

I realized in
comparison to the last few women I killed that I particularly disliked my
wonderful ‘Princess’ and dislike could be an excellent tool in finding one’s
motivation for these things.

Of course, I
didn’t need to get space to realize that much. There was something else …
something in the air tonight … I could feel it …

It wasn’t
ordinary…

Music.

Ah, yes.

Nothing like
the somber space-age atmosphere converted into sound.

Beats, tunes,
tempo. My senses were drawn elsewhere.

I walked
through a heavy archway and realized I was approaching the Introductions Room
below me. I leant over the bannister and saw the faces of many I recognized –
some lambs, some tigers, some … birds of another feather.

I knew it,
within myself. I knew what face I was searching for.

And as
beautiful as my Princess was … she didn’t have it.

I wasn’t
compelled to kill her like I was –

Ah.

There she is.
Look at her. She looks…

Perfect.

My Goodness.

I leered over
the bannister’s edge, laughing to myself.

Her eyes were
drifting upward. But she couldn’t see me yet.

She could not
see.

I walked
slowly down the adjacent staircase, watching as other suitors introduced
themselves, shaking her hand, beckoning her with tightlipped conversation.

She laughed.

She smiled.

She seemed so
deliciously happy.

I moved into
the crowd, amongst my vampire brothers, blending in.

I took my
time. Approaching her slowly.

The closer I
got, the larger she became.

The fixation,
the bloodlust, the willing madness that came with a dose of night time
intoxication –

“Good
evening, Madame Nightshade,” I said pleasantly. “What a couple of angels you’ve
allowed grace the presence of our insidious lair tonight.”

“Would you
like to meet them?” the Madame replied.

I bowed my
head.

“Melanie,”
the taller girl said pushing her way in to shake my hand.

“I’m
honored.”

Then I turned
my sights on my true target.

“And what is
your name, my enchantress?”

“Haley,” she
answered. “And you are?”

I told her my
name.

CHAPTER
TWENTY-ONE

An electronic ambience hummed
throughout Vampire Dating Agency’s manor. Footsteps trotted quietly up and down
the carpet, and gloved hands slid along the walls. In one room two vampires, a
male and a female, were sitting on the floor staring into a mirror without
their reflection. In the room above them, a woman crawled across ground,
gobbling up fallen rose petals till she reached the bed where her lover waited.
In the dungeon below, a dragon shifter roared in agony as a group of robed
figures poked fun at him.

The night
time air and atmosphere breezed through the openings, and merged with all.

Haley was
still in the Introductions Room. She was sitting by herself at a small table,
although Melanie would be returning with cocktails soon. She felt exposed,
vulnerable and flooded with adrenalin. All around her she could see the
monsters. Some looked perfectly normal, handsome even. Others not so much.
She’d spied a few ‘higher vampire’ types with shriveled gray and purplish skin,
their faces wretched and disfigured. It seemed frightening to think that even
they thought they had a chance with her or any of the other young women. No one
in their right mind would want to date them. When they looked at you, it was
hard not to scream.

“You’re doing
great, Haley,”
Maurice’s
voice came through in her ear.
“Ms. Armistice wanted me to tell you that
she’s very proud of you. At the moment no one suspects you, and you’ve
successfully infiltrated the agency.”

“What do I do
now?” Haley whispered.

“We can’t
discern whether you’ve met the vampire we’re seeking yet,”
Maurice said.
“But hopefully he’ll make his presence known to you soon.”

“His presence
known to me?”

“Yes, we
expect at some point some of these vampires will attempt to court you.
Hopefully it isn’t too many. But you look just right to draw our killer out.”

Haley took a
deep breath. Her fingers moved to her wrist, checking her pulse.

“How are you
doing?”
Jason
asked.
“Do you still think you’re up to it?”

Haley covered
her mouth. “I don’t know.”

“Thanks for
that,”
Maurice
could be heard to say.
“What she really needs…”

“It’s
important she understands what she’s getting herself into. You can’t expect –”

Jason’s
transmission was cut short.

Nausea crept
through Haley’s lungs.

“What are you
mumbling about all the way out here?” Madame Nightshade asked, appearing out of
nowhere.

Haley’s eyes
darted about nervously, as she made way for the vampiress to join her table.

“So … what
did you think?”

“Think?”
Haley stammered. “About what?”

“About our
selection of gentleman, of course.”

“Oh,” Haley
gushed. “Well –”

“Don’t worry
you won’t be set up with one of the purple kind,” Madame Nightshade assured
her. “It’s rare for humans to be attracted to them.”

“Yes … some …
people left me unsettled…”

“So? Was
there any that you liked?”

Haley wiped
her fringe from her eyes. “Maybe. I guess.” She hesitated. “What happens next?”

“You can hear
them, speaking amongst themselves,” Madame Nightshade murmured. “If you listen
hard enough, you’ll be able to hear them talking about you…”

Haley’s gaze
drifted out into the room in front of them. The voices were muffled, indirect.
Inaudible. It seemed much more likely that they had been distracted elsewhere
by now. That they’d forgotten about her. Even with the vampiress sitting next
to her, they were locked away, in the shadows, out of reach…

“Haley. I
want Haley.”

Her ears
pricked up. She thought she heard her name. But no … no, she couldn’t have.
They wouldn’t be talking about her, as though she was anything. That she’d left
a mark. That was really just –

“Haley.”

She turned to
the right.

Melanie was
standing over her.

“Come on,
take it,” she said motioning to the drink in her outstretched hand.

Haley took
the cocktail.

Melanie sat
beside Madame Nightshade. “Any developments?”

“Someone is
about to come forth,” Madame Nightshade answered.

“For whom?”
Melanie replied, sipping her cocktail. “For Haley?”

“Oh yes, for
Haley.”

“What about
me?”

“We will find
someone for you, don’t worry,” the Madame assured her.

She climbed
out from the seating and peered back at them.

“I’ll leave
you to it.”

“Wait,” Haley
said, half leaving her own seat. “What am I supposed to do?”

Madame
Nightshade stared back at her. “Nothing.”