Eternal Service (33 page)

Right. Alex didn’t remember hearing a phone ring that night. So Raymond could sleep with a ton of prostitutes but for some reason had to lie to get out of sleeping with her, even with the effects of new blood in his system. She didn’t know what it felt like to be compelled, but she had read enough examples of the process in the Colony documentation to see the signs. A lag in memory and perhaps disorientation were at the top of the list. For memory erasing, a headache usually followed. She didn’t have a headache after Raymond left, but she really didn’t remember a phone ringing. He had shared with her a very intimate part of himself when he told her the story of Wilma’s death while they were in Florida. She had felt special to him when he shared the story. So was he repulsed by her body maybe? Why were men so confusing?

“I shouldn’t have said anything. Especially knowing how he feels about you.”

Alex’s eyes widened and she turned quickly towards Sulie. “He’s told you how he feels?”

“I can read his thoughts at times. Lately he’s been pretty open with them. Ben has told me that Raymond’s aura contains bright red in it, which usually means he’s in an amorous mood. He’s been in one about 24/7 lately when you’ve been around. Your aura had red in it the last few days as well.”

Alex blushed. “I didn’t think my attraction to him was that obvious.” She looked up at Sulie and wondered if Raymond would man up and tell her himself about those awful parties.

Raymond dressed casually in a white polo shirt and khaki pants. He glanced quickly at his watch and realized he ran late. No time to shave, but he was only meeting Dixon for another early morning breakfast meeting where he would watch his best friend eat.

He started down the stairs and noticed Sterling on his way up, who reeked of blood, alcohol and sex. Sterling had obviously not spent the night at Fang Manor, and he appeared well–fed from his nocturnal activities. Raymond tried to hold his tongue, but the slight pause was enough to give Sterling concern.

“What?” Sterling huffed. He stopped walking up the stairs and barely looked at his father.

Raymond stopped mid–step and stared at his son. His eyes narrowed and his nose wrinkled. “You smell like human females.”

Sterling didn’t even blink. “I’m half human, thanks to you having cavorted with one.”

Raymond’s cheeks grew red. His hand tightened on the hand railing. “Sterling!”

Sterling allowed the reprimand to go unnoticed. He now looked his father squarely in the eyes. “What offends you more? That I was with humans? Or that I was with women?”

Raymond leaned against the banister. He had not expected the question. He replied honestly, “Both.”

“Since vampire women ignore me, and I detest human men … I guess you’re shit out of luck.”

Raymond didn’t have the time to get into this again with his son, but he still began a protest. “Sterling,” he said softly, “It's not just the company you keep.” He took a deep breath. “If you could find yourself a wife …”

“A wife? Right. I’ll ask the Vampire Council to arrange that when they have a moment. Oh, wait, we already tried several times. They don’t want me. Nobody does.”

“The Council serves a purpose.”

Sterling closed the distance between the two of them. He got up into his father’s face. “Fuck the Council. I don’t need their services, or their blood bank to keep me in check.”

Raymond’s face tightened as he prepared for the shouting match, but his son finished their conversation by filling in the words for both of them.

“Why don’t we skip to the end, Dad? You tell me the merits of finding that special vampire someone; I blow you off because, being a half–breed, I’m a genetic reject. You then launch into how a human woman of quality and worth could be turned into a vampire. I tell you that there’s no way in hell I’d want any of the human women I’ve been with turned. They'd just be raging bitches as vamps tormenting me for eternity, or even reject me because they’re full vampires and I’m only half. Of course, the conversation can’t end there. I then have to lie and promise to take your words under consideration. You would pretend to believe me. And then the two of us would go on about our lives until the next time you feel the need to nag me.” He looked at his father, “That sound about right?”

Raymond’s shoulders sagged. “Yes. I think that just about covers it,” he sighed.

“Good talk, dad,” Sterling sneered as he slapped his father on the shoulder. “I’m going to bed.” Sterling continued up the stairs, not looking back at his father.

It was the same lecture. Raymond was tired of it. After all, at a certain point in time, how do you parent a child who is almost 180 years old? Sterling wasn’t living the life Raymond and his late wife had wanted for him. Raymond had sat with his dead wife at her grave site the day he buried her and had promised to raise their son to be an honorable man. Somehow Raymond knew that his late wife wouldn’t approve of Sterling’s love life, and it hurt Raymond to think that he had failed her. He continued down the stairs and gave his son the win for the argument.

The house was quiet. Evidently, everyone had already started their day. He was running late. He grabbed his car keys from the key rack on the wall and headed out.

******

The GPS had to be wrong. The Mexican restaurant was in a part of town where anyone would be worried about parking a Jag. At this morning hour, the streets were clear, but Raymond suspected that mere hours ago the streets were filled with teenagers hanging out on the street corners, with prostitutes hoping to turn a quick buck, and drug deals going down.

The restaurant was painted an ugly canary yellow. Chunks of paint were missing from the sides of the building, but the graffiti covered up most of the remaining paint. The only thing nastier than the sight of the place was the smell. It reeked of burned beans and heavy cheese. The few letters that were left on the broken marquee suggested they had the best breakfast tacos in town, so this must be the place.

Dixon could never show up for anything on time, and this morning was no exception. Tardiness was one of the human’s less endearing qualities, but it was pure Dixon through and through. Even now, Raymond still had the courtesy of showing up on time. He just had to wait, like always. Three decades ago the bad habit irritated Raymond, but now … well its strange how you can forgive such quirks when you care for someone.

The two had forged a strong bond over the decades. Each had saved each others’ lives at some point during the friendship. Dixon was well integrated in the vampire lifestyle, and Raymond had learned a lot about living in modern times from Dixon.

Raymond never had a friend that was such an open book. Everything was a good topic of conversation, not just about sports and how careers were on the right track. Maybe everyone had such a confidant in his life, but for Raymond, his didn’t come until he met Dixon. And now the man was leaving.

A covered wooden bench was next to the restaurant, so Raymond took the opportunity to sit in the shade as he waited. The morning sun wasn’t too taxing, but it made him appear more human to have a seat. The old bench gave way and creaked under his weight. He pulled out his pocket watch and noted the time. Five minutes late – not late by Dixon’s standards. Taking a deep breath, he settled more on the bench and thought on the passing of time, wincing at the thought of Dixon’s retirement. As excited as Raymond was about having Alex as the new Director, it bothered him to see Dixon go.

A car entering the parking lot caught Raymond’s attention. He turned, hoping to see Dixon’s red BMW, but it wasn’t him.

Dixon drove a red BMW—the newest sport car in a line of several Dixon had owned. The man was in the middle of a mid–life crisis when he had joined the team, and had gone through his third divorce just after coming on board with the Colony. He was a playboy want–to–be with a romantic heart who just wanted to find the right woman, but failed at every turn. Watching Dixon’s failures was one reason Raymond never wanted to put himself out there again. There was always too much pain where love was concerned.

And meeting women had certainly changed over the years. Through Dixon, Raymond learned about such things as speed dating, Internet dating and online porn sites. How could Raymond blame his son for living a modern life in a time when sex is only a few clicks away on your keyboard? Dixon always proclaimed that he wanted to find the right woman and settle down, but what was love anymore to this generation of modern man? Maybe Raymond felt just too old fashioned.

Another car entered the parking lot, and this time it was the car Raymond knew so well. Seventeen minutes late. Typical. Dixon quickly parked and offered the usual excuses of work and bad traffic. It was so typical of him. Raymond made a passive hand gesture to dismiss his tardiness.

Raymond took another good look at the restaurant before they entered. “You sure you want to eat here?”

Dixon opened the door, its handle the shape of a burrito. “People who don’t eat shouldn’t judge. I discovered this place last week. Best breakfast enchiladas in town.” He paused as he entered the building, “You’ll have to take my word for that.”

Raymond nodded in agreement and followed his friend. The place had a few empty tables in the back, so they found the one with the least number of crumbs on the table. The breakfast crowd was sizable, so maybe they did have good food here. They sat down and the table tilted to one side. The folded paper coaster under the leg did little to level the table.

After sitting down Dixon asked, “So, what do you think of the captain as the new Director? I mean, I know she just started, but what is your gut telling you about her so far?” He grabbed a napkin and slid the crumbs onto the floor.

“Alex is nice. I like her.” Raymond then decided to add, “It does take a bit to transition into any new job and I think she’s doing great so far.”

Dixon added a second coaster to the table leg. “OK. So she’s handling the differences of the team?” No need to say “vampire” or “immortal” here and draw attention to themselves.

“Yeah, she can handle weird well.” Raymond paused while Dixon ordered a breakfast enchilada and two coffees for them. He always did the ordering when he could, allowing Raymond to blend in.

Raymond handed his unopened menu back to the waitress before she left the table. “Alex is asking all the right questions, she’s not just interested in the job, but us as a people. I think she’ll do well.”

“I know Sulie likes her.”

Raymond smiled. “Sulie likes everybody. But, yes. I do think they get along quite well.”

Dixon took a deep breath. “There was one incident, a few years back,” Dixon began. “It involved a stalker.”

“Alex told me.”

Dixon’s eyebrow rose. “Did she mention she is seeing a psychologist?”

Thinking back, Raymond remembered his private conversation with Alex. She had said she was working on getting past her fear. “She eluded to it, yes. Will that be a problem if she accepts the position?”

“Usually you don’t want a high-level individual seeking counseling, but Alex took all the necessary precautions. The plus side of it is that she’s nearly invisible.”

“How so?”

“Well, for one thing, she drives to and from work at different times. She also changes her route making her drives very random. She switches gyms often and varies her workout routines. She’s also not a regular at any restaurant, bar, or store. She blends right into the background, just like you all do. In fact, … she’s perfect for you.”

Raymond felt some odd mental patterns from Dixon. He knew the human well enough to know something was up. “What’s on your mind?” he asked.

Dixon’s eyes shifted back on Raymond’s. A smile spread across the man’s face. “There was a list of candidates for the position. I had already been leaning towards selecting Alex for the job, but Sulie was the one who picked her.”

Raymond took a deep breath. The smell of the food filled his nostrils and was nauseating. “My sister chose our new Director?”

A slight chuckle escaped. “Sulie thought Alex was a good fit.”

Raymond leaned in. He sensed something odd in the mental patterns coming from his friend. “A good fit for what? Being the Director?”

“Mostly. She told me afterward that she pushed for Alex because she thought you might be attracted to her. Thought it might get you back into the game of life.”

Raising his voice, Raymond asked, “Game of life?”

The coffees arrived, and Dixon waited for them to be alone before continuing. “She’s worried about you. Wants you to be happy and find someone.”

Raymond’s jaw tightened. “Sulie has no right to interfere.”

“Hold on,” Dixon said, his hand waving in front of Raymond like a stop sign. “Family gets to interfere. It's what makes them family. Besides, it isn’t the first time she’s tried to set you up with someone. It's only the first time you’ve been interested.”

First time?
Raymond thought of all the times he had promised his sister that he would never tell Dixon of her love for the man. Now to find out that she had been playing matchmaker all these years was too much of a violation. She had known the intense pain he had gone through over the loss of his wife, why would she match him up with another human?

“She has your best interest at heart, Raymond. Just remember that.”