The Dark Proposal (The Claire McCormick Trilogy) (17 page)

That night, Claire was applying her makeup in her bedroom. As she watched herself put on black eyeliner, she felt like pinching herself. She rarely wore black makeup; what was she doing? She looked down at her black pants and frilly black top. She felt so awkward wearing one color.

Once she was ready, she texted Daniel that she was on her way. As she left the apartment, she walked past Samantha, who was also getting ready to work another shift at the sports bar. “Um,” she said.“Theresa’s funeral is Tuesday, not tonight.”

“Sam, please don’t start,” Claire said as she put on her coat, which was also black.

“I’m not. But it’s weird to see you dressed like this. Where are you going?”

“I don’t know. Dan said it’s some goth hangout. I guess his friends who are in that band are performing there.”

“Okay,” Samantha shrugged and zipped up her boots. She offered to walk with Claire to the bus stop.

As they walked, they were quiet at first, watching their breath form in the cold early December air. Once they arrived at the spot, Samantha suddenly said she was sorry.

“I know I’ve been difficult these past few days. I wasn’t like this for the hell of it, but I was and am concerned. But if this is what you want, between you and Daniel, then I’m here for you.”

Surprised, Claire looked at her and saw she was biting her lip nervously. “I honestly don’t know what will happen between Dan and I, but I’m glad whatever does happen, you’ll be okay with it.”

Samantha gave a relieved smile and squeezed her hand. Claire squeezed back and the two exchanged knowing looks.

The bus came soon after, and the two got on. Samantha got off three stops later while Claire took it all the way to the ferry terminal. She made the boat in time and rode it while sitting near a window, trying to make out the lights against the dark sky.

When the ferry docked, she found Daniel was there waiting on the other side. He was also dressed all in black: leather jacket, jeans, and a button-down shirt with the first two undone, exposing his chest. Although his pale skin glowed against the dark attire, there was something sexy about his appearance. Maybe it was because he looked so mysterious dressed as he was.

They kissed hello and Daniel ran his curled fingers down her face. He then took her hand and walked her out to the street. Instead of taking the subway uptown, he hailed a cab. “The club we’re going to is a bit out of the way,” he told her as they got in. “It would be best to do this than do a lot of transferring.”

“So we’re going to a club? A rock club?”

“It’s a club as in only certain people are allowed in. But don’t worry, I’ll get you in.”

During the ride, Claire searched her mind to figure out what sort of club Daniel was taking her to. He had never told her he was part of some exclusive organization, so this was definitely something new about him. What could it be? As the ride went on, she could feel flutterings in her stomach - but not good flutterings. They were the ones that made her almost shake with tension.

They arrived on Lower East Side, to a place with a red-painted exterior, along with fake black cobwebs and painted crosses decorating it. Loud heavy-metal music thudded from inside. They approached the bouncer, a big, burly man who looked bored. Daniel teased him for not looking enthusiastic enough, and he laughed and slapped Daniel on the back. “It’s been a while! Where’ve you been?”

“Teaching a bunch of brats,” was the reply. “I could use some relaxation.”

The bouncer laughed again and noticed Claire. “Ah, some fresh blood tonight?”

“She’s with me. It’s her first time here,” Daniel put his arm around her shoulders.

The bouncer accepted the payment and gestured them inside. Walking in was like going through the openings of one of the haunted houses Claire went to while growing up. There were black walls with black light bulbs faintly shining in the pathways. She expected a cutout of a ghost or monster to suddenly pop out at her.

Instead, she started to see other members of this club. People dressed in all black, and some of the women wore very revealing clothes. Couples - opposite and same-sex - made out in the corners as Daniel guided her through the pathways until they reached the main floor.

It was fairly large, with about sixty people covering the room. Red and black lights lit the place, and there were red velvet seats along the walls. Scantily clad women danced on the platforms dotting the floor as the metal music thudded away. A band was playing, but it was not The Black Roses.

Claire felt uncomfortable. She was far from living the gothic subculture, and this was not her scene at all. She could have sworn people were looking at her and seeing her discomfort, most likely laughing at her. She looked at Daniel, who was searching the room for the others.

Trying to shake off her uneasiness, Claire said to him, “I never knew you’d like this type of place!” When he frowned at her, she added, “I mean, I thought you liked softer music and quieter places!”

He shrugged. “Sometimes you’ve got to let out your wilder side. Everyone has different aspects to them. Oh, I see them! They already got a spot. Come, let’s go.” He took her hand again and guided her through the crowd. Claire kept her focus on following him as the club members stared at her. She was a new face to this exclusive club. Plus, she was with Daniel, who seemed to know quite a few people as they exclaimed their hellos and patted his back. As long as she was with him, she would be safe.

They reached a corner where Hilde, Michel and the three rockers from Brooklyn were seated. Everyone stood up and kissed Daniel. When they got to Claire, she got kisses on the cheek. However, when Hilde approached her, she leaned in to her lips. That made Claire flinch and blurt out, “I’m not drunk.”

“You’re not?” Hilde replied. “Eh, maybe tonight you will be.”

They all sat down and began chatting. At first, everyone talked about their week. Daniel and Michel traded professor stories while Yvette, Jessica - or Carys as she’d corrected Claire when they said hello - and Antonius talked about the new songs they had written. Hilde tried to get Claire to loosen up, but she was feeling very shy in this strange place. Daniel didn’t seem to be aware of this, and continued talking to Michel, who was patting his hand a little too much.

Claire tried not to let it show that she was a bit bothered by that. Yes, this group made no secret they were openly affectionate with one another from the moment she first met them. But now since she knew exactly what they were, was she going to be pressured into as adventurous as them? She was never interested in bi-curiosity, and watching Daniel and Michel be almost absorbed in each other increased her discomfort. Not that she cared what Daniel did anymore, it was just she couldn’t exactly escape this situation.

She noticed Carys was looking at her, an amused gleam in her eyes. Claire realized she had just read her mind, so she sat up straighter, her downcast eyes looking at the empty table in front of her.

Empty table? Why was the table empty? There were no drinks or anything on it, like any other club would have.

She lifted her head and turned her focus to the crowd of people gathered on the main floor. Many of them were holding bottles of beer or cocktail glasses. Yet this group had nothing.

Then Claire spotted something that nearly made her gasp. Not too far from where they were sitting, she saw two young women nuzzling each other. One raised her bare forearm to the other, who put in false pointy teeth into her mouth. The woman took the arm and bit into it. The other let out a pleasured moan as a single drop of dark red blood ran down her arm. Her companion started licking and sucking at the wound.

Claire was ready to stand up when a young man approached the group. He wore a loose black t-shirt, with the collar cut up to give it a wide V-neck. He had bloodied marks on his neck and forearms.

Arms stretched out in offering, the young man, who looked to be no more than twenty years old, smiled broadly as Antonius and Yvette stood up. His smile was like he was accepted by some people he had long admired. He held out his arms and asked them to “do that thing again.”

Claire held in a gasp as the two opened their mouths and their fangs suddenly jutted forward. Yvette sunk hers into the boy’s forearm while Antonius went for a fresh spot on his neck.

Claire jumped up and blurted out that she had to use the bathroom. Grabbing her arm and pulling her down, Daniel hissed over the loud music, “You’re not going anywhere.”

“Why did you bring me here?” she said.

He nearly sneered at her. “Why not?”

Pulling her arm away from Daniel’s grasp. “I really have to use the bathroom.”

“All right,” he said. “But can you wait?”

“No.”

“You’re going to have to.” He then turned around to a waitress who was delivering drinks to the people seated behind them. He crooked his finger at her, and she let out a giddy squeal. Putting down her tray, she hurried over and stood over Daniel. She also had bloodied bruises on her arms and neck, along with fangs in her mouth that turned out to be fake as she adjusted them while looking deep into Daniel’s eyes.

Grabbing the waitress’s leg, which was fully exposed by a miniskirt, Daniel placed her foot along side of him and ran his hand languidly up to her upper thigh. His eyes were burning for the waitress just like the way they had burned for Claire weeks ago. When he got to the sensitive parts of her thigh, he squeezed the flesh. She moaned, and the others, especially Hilde, smiled delightfully.

Claire felt intense fear while watching this. She knew what was going to happen and she was powerless to stop it.

Daniel opened his mouth, bared his fangs and bit into the waitress’s thigh. She let out a cry that mixed both pleasure and pain. Claire watched frozen as Daniel began to suck away at the wound. Hilde and Carys cheered him on, while Michel rubbed his shoulders. Yvette and Antonius stopped feeding off of the boy and joined in on the cheering. He fixed his shining, now multi-colored eyes on Claire as they taunted her with his lust for blood. She could only sit with her mouth hanging open.

She didn’t know how long Daniel fed off of the waitress, but at one point, the cheering turned into concern and her moaning began to fade. Michel stopped massaging his shoulders and began patting Daniel to stop. Claire looked up at the woman and saw she was about to faint. Yvette and Antonius caught her and called over a bouncer who carried her away. Antonius pointed out to Daniel that he got out of hand.

“Yes, well,” he wiped his mouth, leaving a trace of blood on the back of his hand. “She’s always tasted delicious.”

There was a communal laughter and Daniel looked at Claire. “You going to be okay?”

As if his words unhinged her, Claire felt bile rise in her mouth. She stood up and pushed and shoved her way through the crowd to the exit door. She didn’t care who she knocked over, she had to get out of there.

The exit door led to an alleyway behind the club. There, she let out a pile of vomit and heaved more of whatever was in her system until she was certain she would throw up her organs. She felt dizzy, and couldn’t get out her head the image of Daniel’s eyes while he drank from the waitress’s thigh. The greedy hunger, the callousness, and the snide laughter in them were still penetrating in Claire’s mind.

She stood up and exhaled heavily. She could still throw up if she wanted to, but she felt too sick to even do that.

She was wiping her mouth of the vomit, when she sensed someone was behind her. It had to be Daniel, or at least one of the other vampires. Great. Now she had to face them. There was no use running away because they could always catch up with her. Or do something horrifying to her.

She turned around to face Hilde, who looked at her with curiosity. Tilting her head to the side, the vampire asked if she was all right.

“Yeah, I will be once I get away from this place and you guys.” Claire didn’t care what she said. Let the vampires beat her up. Let them torment her. She wasn’t going to put up with them anymore.

Hilde didn’t look amused. “Have you lost your mind?”

Claire thought for a second. “Yeah. I probably did. I probably had my mind twisted around, thanks to Daniel. He did that to one of my roommates, why not me?”

“No, he didn’t have to. You lost it on your own.” She took a step towards her and Claire backed away. “Relax. I’m not going to hurt you. But you realize you’re going to have to come back inside?”

“No, I won’t be going back in there.” Claire shook her head.

“Why? Because you saw how much your man likes to blood? Because you saw what he - and all of us - really are?”

“Exactly. That’s why I am done with him, and all of you.”

“You were okay with us just minutes ago. What happened, Claire? You seemed to be on a road to acceptance.” Hilde’s voice, though soft, was also taunting.

Claire tried to answer, but couldn’t form the words. Instead, against her will, tears began to brim in her eyes. She turned her head away so the vampire could not see.

But she did. “Don’t cry. There’s no need to.”

Sniffing, Claire faced her and said, “You guys are torturing me.”

“You’re torturing yourself. Daniel is giving you quite a good opportunity, and the more you say no, the more the pain comes. All you have to do is say yes and everything will be fine.”

“Why are you doing this to me? What do you get out of it?”

“I want to see my Daniel happy. He’s lonely and we’re not as close as we used to be. He thinks, and I agree, that you are a worthy companion. It may not last forever, no, but it will last longer than most mortal relationships. You will always have each other’s loyalty. What more could you ask for?”

Claire was afraid to answer her. She sighed heavily twice, trying to clear her mind so Hilde wouldn’t read it.

The vampire reached out and took her hand. “Come. We can’t keep them waiting. Calm down.” Claire gritted her teeth to keep the tears from coming out her eyes. When she succeeded, she looked at Hilde who said, “All right, that’s better. Let’s go.” She guided her back into the club, where everything was the same as before. The music was still screaming, and the people were still biting each other. Several saw Claire and sneered at her. Hilde warded them off by telling them she was new to the club.