I could smell the decadent night air, but something on it spoke to me of oddity, of things just out of my reach. I felt something that was almost an interruption to the flow of life around my supernatural senses.
I cast my sharp gaze around the park to see what was causing it.
“I’m not here to fight you, Crowley.” The voice was soft, well below the hearing of the mortals around me. I could not tell what gender it was, and that was a warning in and of itself. Brownyn sensed the change in me and glanced at me in concern, ice cream almost forgotten, when she saw me straighten.
“Where are you?” I matched its low tone perfectly. Bronwyn gave me an odd look when she saw my lips move but no sound emerge.
“It doesn’t matter. They are watching you.”
“Tell them to fuck off and mind their own bloody business.”
The last words were spoken to the empty, still night air. The speaker was gone. I was uncomfortable and defensive. Not seeing the owner of a voice coming or going rarely happened to me. I had a greater ability than normal to tune into my surroundings, direct my prey, and keep track of the species near to me, and it only failed me in times of extreme danger or when the perpetrator was extremely stealthy.
I stood up and scanned the crowd, trying to pinpoint the source of the message, but it was too late. Humans bustled all around us, and there were no flashes of white skin that signaled the presence of another vampire. The speaker was truly gone, whoever he or she may have been. I toyed with the idea of it being Allenby, but I had not seen him for quite a while. Maybe he had moved on to other pastures. His eye color told me that he was not confined to the city.
Bronwyn got up and forced me to look at her, ice cream abandoned. “What is it?”
I smiled down at her, hiding my trepidation. “Nothing. C’mon let’s get out of here.” Although the sinking feeling coursing through me soured my night, I kept it well hidden from this defenseless girl. She didn’t need to know what had happened, or what the warning had meant. I would keep her safe from harm to the best of my abilities, without alarming her. “I want you in a much more private place.”
Her gentle eyes swept through me, and the outside world ceased to exist as I got lost in her quiet, affectionate regard.
I had really fallen very, very hard for this young mortal.
We went home and spent what was left to us of the night tangled together in passion.
The next evening when I woke up, I was snuggled in Bronwyn’s arms. She cupped my breasts as I stretched, and I stole a quick kiss from her.
“Evening, Bronnie.”
“Beloved angel.” Her arms tightened around me as my stomach grumbled. “I suppose you’re going to have to go out for a bite to eat?”
“Well, I don’t exactly have humans stored in my refrigerator, so yes, I’m going to have to duck out for a quick bite.”
“I’d be okay with you storing them in the fridge.”
“Good.”
“Just not under the bed.”
“There’s no need to worry about that. They just won’t fit.”
She laughed, and I soon joined in.
“I love that you’ve loosened up so much, beloved angel,” she said.
“I’m going to miss you.”
I sat up and stared at her. “You’re going to miss me? Where on earth are you going?”
She stroked my face. “Relax. I’m not really going anywhere. Just for a week. It’s a week in Queensland. You know, after school finishes.” She smiled. “We arranged it about ten months ago. I’m sorry I can’t bring you with me.”
“Oh,” I said. “When are you out of here?”
“I’m leaving on Sunday night,” she said, blushing. “I don’t suppose you’d take me to the airport?”
“I can do that,” I said. “I’m going to miss you.”
My stomach grumbled.
She grinned. “I recognize the signs. Why don’t we go into the city?
It’s been a while since I saw Kings Cross.”
“You saw Kings Cross last night,” I said, slipping out of bed and heading toward the shower. Bronwyn came with me, and it took us quite some time to get moving.
An hour and a half later I emerged from the thick bushes in a back street of Kings Cross. Bronwyn waited for me, but was looking around anxiously at the shadowed figures that haunted the same place we did.
“Relax, my young mortal,” I said. “You have nothing to worry about while I’m here.”
She took my arm and hugged me. “Are you sure about that?”
I pulled her to a halt and gazed into her eyes. “I’m extremely hardy, and I’m also strong and fast. You have nothing to fear.”
She gazed at me, eyes flickering, and I sighed.
“Look.” I extended a wrist so she could see the unblemished, white skin, and then gently nicked it with a fang. Blood poured from the wound as I held it out to her.
She gasped and then quieted as the skin closed, and the blood flow ceased in seconds.
“See?” I said. “It takes a lot to damage me. I’ll heal before anyone has the chance.”
“Wow,” she said, finally finding her voice. She studied my face with disquiet eyes. “You look like a normal woman, and I know intellectually that you aren’t one . . . and then . . . this . . . wow . . .”
“Does it frighten you?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I think I finally know that I’m safe around you, but some of this stuff is very hard to take in stride.”
I smiled. “I know. But believe me when I tell you I love you and I would
never
intentionally hurt you. You really
are
safe around me.”
“Okay,” she said. She took my hand and pulled me forward. “I think I just need a little time.”
“I have nothing but time,” I said with the ghost of a grin.
“Why so sad, angel?” she asked, pulling me to a halt. She stroked my cheek.
I gazed at her beautiful face, a frozen moment in time. “Nothing.
I’m fine. I love you.”
She gave me a sad smile. “I love you too and I don’t think you’re ever going to know how much.”
I held her so our entire bodies touched. “I think I do.”
She pulled away from me, and we walked again. I cleared my throat. “So, my beloved mortal, where are we going?”
“I want to go to the Test Tube Factory,” she said with an evil grin.
“Don’t you like any other watering holes in this place?”
“They play pretty good music.”
“That waitress we keep getting just drives you insane, doesn’t she?”
“Not anymore. Now I know there’s no way in hell that you would ever have slept with her, I’m good.” Bronwyn glanced at me and braced herself. “What did you do to her? And that girl I saw you with the first time—what was that about?”
“The waitress . . . don’t worry about her. I didn’t touch her with anything other than my teeth.” I sighed. “The girl, Bronnie, she was sick. Very sick. She didn’t have much time left, and I gave her what she wanted.”
Bronwyn flinched. “What was wrong with her?”
“She had cancer.”
Bronwyn grimaced. “Beloved angel. I’m sorry for ever doubting you.”
I shook my head. “It’s okay. How were you to know?”
We arrived at the Test Tube Factory. There weren’t many people around, so we got in quickly and sat at our table. Bronwyn and I exchanged a glance at the waitress who came to our table. Our normal waitress was nowhere to be seen.
This waitress was as beautiful as the last one, and as full breasted, if not a little more so. She bent over, almost spilling out of her dress.
Bronwyn and I exchanged a glance and sighed.
For the next two nights, until Bronwyn was to leave on her vacation, we settled into an easy rhythm. I got up in the evening and went out to feed, and when I came back, we either went out for a ride on the bike, or I took her to bed and loved her for all I was worth. She slept with me during the day and we stayed together all night.
On the third night, I took her to the airport. The trip was silent for the most part. Bronwyn sat in the passenger seat, nibbling her lip.
“Hey, lover, why are you nibbling?” I asked, glancing at her.
“I’m going to miss you. Isn’t that obvious?”
“And I’m going to miss you, and I sincerely hope you go nuts and enjoy yourself.”
“I’ll enjoy myself, I know that, but I just worry about you, that’s all.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Why on earth are you worried about me? I’ll be here when you get back, and you’re only gone for a week.”
“I just don’t want you to be sad, that’s all.”
“I won’t be. You’re always with me, beloved mortal, even when you’re not standing beside me.”
She squeezed my thigh and smiled.
We drove along in silence for a few moments. As we got closer to the airport, she shifted in her seat.
“What gives, my beloved mortal?” I asked.
“I don’t want you to wait with me. Can you drop me off?”
“I don’t mind dropping you off, but why don’t you want me to wait with you?”
“This is already hard enough. I hate goodbyes.”
I nodded. “So do I.”
We pulled up at the departure drop off. It was busy; the cars were parked two deep but by some miracle I got a spot at the back against the curb.
We got out, and I opened the boot and pulled out her luggage one handed. She fidgeted as she waited for me.
She lunged into my arms and squeezed me for all she was worth. I gazed down at her, and she kissed me, tasting me, running her hands over my back. When we broke, she was gasping for air, and I was silent, staring at her with wide eyes.
“Oh, God, I’m going to miss you so much,” she said.
“Easy, lover,” I whispered, pulling her in close again. “What time does your flight get in? Do you want me to pick you up?”
I felt her nod.
“You can always call me, you know,” I said.
“You have a phone?” she asked, shocked.
I burst out laughing. “Yes, I have a phone. Do you want the number? And don’t forget I won’t be answering it except after dark.”
She dug in her pockets for paper and pen, but I was already reaching into my car and pulling out paper and pen from my cluttered center console.
I wrote quickly and neatly, and handed her the paper. She studied it with wide eyes.
“I had no idea you had a phone,” she said.
“I think I must have gotten it specifically for you.”
“Did you?” she asked, wide-eyed.
I laughed. “No, sorry, love. I didn’t get it for you. I got it so I could keep tabs on Rose.”
“Ah,” she said.
Two girls burst out of the glass doors and ran toward us.
“Bronnie!” The dark-haired taller of the two was waving at us.
They skidded to a halt when they saw me.
“I’d better go.” Bronwyn sighed.
“Take care of yourself,” I said, giving her a gentle hug.
“I will, and I’ll call you as often as I can,” she said, kissing me gently.
She grabbed her luggage and walked toward her whispering friends. They stared at me, but I did not acknowledge them. I got into my car and maneuvered out into the traffic, headed for the city and Kings Cross.
I was hungry, restless, and already missed my beloved mortal.
Twenty minutes later I was sitting by the old fountain in Kings Cross. I ignored the teeming mass of humanity all around me. I remembered the message I had gotten and wanted to see if there really were any vampires watching over me.
I closed my eyes and extended my senses. Most of what I felt was raw emotion, but it was too hard for me to discern individual thoughts.
The general gist of it was a desire for drink and sex, which did not surprise me.
I could not feel any other vampires, and was surprised Allenby was not there.
Finally, with disquiet in my heart, I got up off the old bench, neatly side-stepped an unconscious drunk, and headed back to my car.
I wanted to go home and watch old horror movies, and try to forget how much I wanted Bronwyn by my side.
When I got home, the message light on my answering machine was blinking. I gave it a brief smile and hit the replay button.
It was Bronwyn. “Hey, lover, you really do have an answering machine, and you recorded a message and everything. I’m proud of you.” There was a slight rustling sound and indistinct voices. “I just wanted to let you know that I arrived safely and that I love you. I’ll give you a call the night after tomorrow. Bye.”
I hit the stop button. I didn’t want to erase the message.
I went to my basement and lay back on the suddenly too large bed with a sigh. I picked up the remote, flicked on the television, and channel surfed until dawn when sleep overtook me.
The next night I left the house with the rosy glow of dusk still in the sky.
I wanted to go into the city to feed. I was feeling restless and toyed with the idea of visiting my old friends the lions in the zoo.
I took my bike into the city and purposely parked in the Harley riders spots on Darlinghurst Road. I walked the streets, looking for my next victim.
I saw a woman in her thirties leaving a bar. She was well-dressed but rumpled and drunk. She had a hint of cruelty about her eyes and mouth, and clothing that spoke of expensive taste and money.
I wanted her badly.
I trailed her down the back streets of Kings Cross as she weaved toward her car. After five minutes of searching, she staggered up to an old Holden, fumbling in her purse for the keys. Finally she found them, and after the second attempt to get the key into the driver’s side lock, I was by her side with my hand on hers, steadying it.
She screwed up her face and stared at me, trying desperately to focus her eyes. “Thanks,” she said, as though nothing were wrong with a perfect stranger standing so close to her that they almost touched.
“You’re welcome,” I whispered. “Do you want me to take you home?”
She frowned. “I’m not that way, muff muncher.”
I smiled. “I am.”
Before she had any idea of what was happening to her, I had her in a strong embrace, and my drooling fangs were headed toward her hot and throbbing neck.
She screamed as my teeth broke her skin, but it died as I pulled the precious blood from her body.
I caught her as she collapsed, near death. I did my usual trick of covering the fang marks, and carefully put her in the car, tossed the keys onto the seat beside her, and locked the door.