Everything about him looked as though he had been carefully carved by an expert craftsman and then breathed into life. I was sure this was how they survived. Jonah’s extreme beauty had given him away instantly. Thanks to the Vampire I had once ignorantly befriended, I now knew what hid beneath features like that. I was angry for allowing myself to be sucked in by his looks; they were merely a mask, disguising what he truly was—a killer.
Jonah dialed a number and spoke so rapidly I could barely catch the conversation. He hung up just as swiftly. “My friends are coming, they’ll be here soon,” he said.
“These friends of yours, are they like you?”
“Yeah … for the most part.” He paused. “Thank you for your help,” he said begrudgingly.
I snapped back a look that read a sarcastic “you’re welcome.” I was surprised he had even attempted any form of thanks. Something about the way he looked at me was chilling; I didn’t dare ask any more questions.
I got up and started puttering about nervously. I could hear how difficult it was for him to breathe. Despite his arrogance, I found myself softening toward him once more. But then I’d soften even for a raging killer pit bull if it were in pain.
Reaching for my bottled water, I offered it to him. He simply snorted. I’d forgotten for a moment. Putting it down, I reached over to the sleeping bag; it had fallen away from around Jonah’s body. Instinctively, I yanked it nearer to his shoulders.
Without warning, he grabbed my wrist, flinching as his injuries met my skin, and taking me by surprise. I flashed my eyes to meet his. He held me so tightly I couldn’t break free. The Vampire tilted his head and pulled me in. My heart began to thud, and I froze, filling with fear.
Crap, maybe this hadn’t been a smart idea after all.
Running his lips close to my neck, his breath tickling my skin, I found my insides doing strange somersaults, and suddenly I wasn’t afraid anymore. His bottom lip skimmed my earlobe, sending little shock waves through me. He lingered and then whispered, “I meant … thank you.” His words were sincere and soft—I felt my heart flutter.
He released my wrist and I hovered over him, searching his eyes. They bore into mine. I indulged myself, feeling both confused and elated, but after a few minutes, I broke the connection and slid away. I didn’t want or need the distraction of Jonah, a Vampire no less, derailing my thoughts away from Gabriel. Even if sometimes it felt as though I was hopelessly searching for a ghost.
I made my way into the bare kitchen to retrieve some more logs for the fire. I was glad I’d gathered them this morning, before I went in for my shift at the pub.
Sitting on the floor, I absorbed the situation and took a few minutes to myself. I would help him however I could because if I knew anything about myself, it was that I was a good person. And perhaps in exchange he might share some insights into his world; he might have some clues about what I was, and where I belonged. It was an extremely dangerous game, but what choice did I have? I returned to the living room and added the wood to the fire. We sat for what felt like hours in silence. Eventually he broke it.
“Is this where you live?” He raised his eyebrows as he strained to take in the hollow shell around him.
“For now.”
“You’re not from here,” he guessed. “This place isn’t your home.”
“Home is wherever I hang my hat. I don’t exactly belong. Time just goes by, the people change, scenery changes. I don’t change.” I teased a little, testing his reaction.
He tilted his head to the right at my response; he was trying to figure me out. “Your eyes … they’re older than your smile, but you’re not like me,” he mused aloud. “But you’re not, well, human either.”
“What would make you think I’m not human?” I rebutted, a little too high-pitched, feeling slightly offended. I had never considered myself unhuman.
“You have no scent. I didn’t know you were coming until you were in front of me.”
I considered that for a moment. As far as I was concerned, I was human, even if I apparently couldn’t die—well, not in the conventional manner. “So what? Given your condition, perhaps your senses are somewhat impaired,” I reasoned. I didn’t want to give too much away, not yet.
“What are you exactly?” he said, dismissing my vague reply.
I pondered for a moment. “I suppose that’s the million-dollar question,” I said. “Oh, and by the way, I don’t remember smiling at you.”
That made him laugh a little and I flushed, unable to stop a grin spreading over my face.
“See? You do like me after all.” He choked, shuddering, and shifted uncomfortably, seemingly trying to subdue the overwhelming agony that flowed through him.
I sat for a while, calmly weighing my next move. “You can call me Cessie, by the way.”
He raised his eyebrows a little, encouraging an explanation.
“My friends called me Cessie.”
“Past tense?” he asked.
“I haven’t seen them for a while, but that’s what they called me. I guess you can, too.”
With the faintest curve of his lip he said, “Honored, I’m sure.”
Hoping the olive branch had softened him to me, I tried again. “You didn’t answer my question before—how can I help you? You’re in a lot of pain. I can see.”
He looked at me emptily. Finally, through gritted teeth, he said, “My friends will take care of that.”
“Who are these friends of yours? What happened to you?”
He contemplated his reply and then offered it, albeit reluctantly. “My friends are the ones I travel with now. We came here, hoping to rescue another, well, another Vampire like me.” He paused. “It didn’t exactly go to plan, and the Pureblood’s clan took me captive.” He snarled angrily, revealing his fangs.
The sight of them caught me off guard and I took a second to collect myself. “The Pureblood’s clan? I don’t understand.”
“Purebloods were the first Vampires to inhabit the Earth. I was human—once. But I was bitten, changed, turned—whatever term you’d prefer to coin. That makes me a Second Generation Vampire. Vampires serve the Pureblood who changed them, as part of their clan, or army, if you’d rather.” He struggled on, shaking.