Gabriella shook her. This was the most bizarre evening. “No.” She flicked her talons at her. “Go away, Goldie Locks, before I consume every bit of you.”
This woman was delusional.
The woman crawled on her knees toward Gabriella. She halted at Gabriella’s feet and offered her neck. “Do it. Take me. I have no family. I have no job. I’ve been fired from every one of them. I can’t pay my rent. And the cops are probably out searching for me.”
Gabriella cocked her head. “Get up.”
The woman stood at attention.
Gabriella sighed. “What is your name?”
She’d never become personally close to her victims. There just wasn’t any time, and it made the whole encounter a bit weird.
“Barbara,” the waitress piped up.
“Okay...Barbara. Come inside my house.”
Barbara followed her, pattering at her feet like a lost puppy. The last thing Gabriella needed was a pet. They were so high maintenance.
Gabriella eased the front door slowly closed, eking out every groan from the hinges. Barbara hadn’t flinched. She pointed to the sofa. Barbara sat dutifully.
Gabriella crossed her arms. “First thing’s first. How did you find me?”
Barbara leaned forward. “I followed you in my car as you and that hunk of a guy left the restaurant. I ditched my car at the top of the road and then made my way into the woods.” Barbara squeezed her hands to her hips. “I’ve made my decision. I want to live forever.”
Gabriella waved her hands. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. You have no idea what you’re asking.” She shook her head. “It’s not as simple as you think. There’s pain involved.”
That ought to convince her to hit the highway, Gabriella thought happily. Once Barbara left from whence she’d come, then Gabriella could just call it a night. But Barbara made no effort to escape. Apparently, pain was not a problem for Barbara.
Gabriella paced. Her hunger was escalating. But using Barbara was against her code. And turning her? That was a whole different thing. She halted before Barbara and raised her hands. Although her fingernails had grown four inches, Barbara only stared at them with awe. So Gabriella compromised.
“You’ve had a bad night. Sleep on it, as you mortals say. Tomorrow, I’m sure you’ll feel better. You’re welcome to sleep on my sofa. Help yourself out in the morning.” Gabriella nodded to her. “Goodnight.”
“But I want to stay up with you.”
“No. You rest now.”
“Then we’ll talk in the morning.” But before Gabriella could set this confused woman straight, Barbara corrected herself. “Oops. Sorry. I mean we’ll talk tomorrow night.”
Gabriella retired to her bedroom, fighting the compulsion to bite into Barbara, something she was sure she’d regret. She locked her door, which was silly for a vampire, but she did it for Barbara to hear the click of privacy.
She plopped onto her bed and stared at the ceiling. Gabriella thrummed her nails on the mattress. Thanks to Barbara, she had nothing to do for the rest of the night. Since the evening was a complete bust, Gabriella picked up a book from her nightstand. She had to do something to keep Max out of her head, and reading might quell her state of arousal. Funny about those clams, she thought. She was sure she would pay for her culinary greed, but nothing bad had happened. It was just the opposite. Her libido was still echoing. Gabriella sighed and opened the book that a teenage patient of hers had given her. Hmm? “Twilight.”. She loved a good, vampire fairytale. Gabriella chuckled. “Teenagers!”
She tried to read slowly, but she smoked every graduate of the Evelyn Wood speed reading course, finishing the novel in two minutes. She tapped her toes. Now what? Damn! She was hungry again. Barbara lay conveniently in the next room. Gabriella could smell her blood. “Must not bite. Must not bite. Must not bite.” She repeated the mantra. She set the book next to her copy of Dante’s Inferno, and swung out of bed. She waved her hand at the door. Her bedroom lock released. Gabriella headed to the kitchen for a snack, her footsteps vampire silent. She traced her tongue over her fangs, anticipating a taste of B positive, her favorite flavor, but what she found was Barbara sitting at her kitchen table weeping, her face buried in her palms. So much for a quick snack.
Gabriella pulled out a chair and sat across from the blubbering woman. Her compassionate doctor side had kicked in. She patted her surprise houseguest on the head. “What’s wrong?” She then continued with her probing. “Where does it hurt? When did it start? Has this ever happened to you before? Do you take any medications? Are you allergic to any medicines?”
Barbara lifted her swollen, red, teary-eyed face from her hands and stared at Gabriella. She sniffled. “What?”
“Sorry. Emergency doctor habit.” She politely flicked her wrist at Barbara. “Go on. Tell me more.”
Barbara hiccupped. Tears rolled down her cheeks.
“I’m sorry. I don’t have any tissues. Vampires can’t cry.”
“That’s all right,” Barbara choked. She swiped the back of her hand across her now bulbous nose and sniffled again. “I have no place to go,” she blubbered. “And now I can’t stay here.”
Gabriella winced. “I didn’t say that...exactly.” She cocked her head. “How old are you, Barbara?” She looked dewy youthful; that was before her temporary splotchy complexion.
“I’m nineteen.”
She was right. Barbara was but a baby.
“You’re nineteen years old and you’ve already had five jobs?” Gabrielle patted Barbara’s hand. “Perhaps you’re not cut out for waitressing.”
Barbara shook her head. “I’m not. That’s the problem. I want to be a chef. I spent so much time in the kitchens mesmerized by all of the culinary creations, that I got fired from one job after another for being a pokey waitress.”
“Well, you did practically set the restaurant on fire.”
“That was an accident,” Barbara protested.
“So go to culinary school.”
“I’ve applied, numerous times, and have been rejected by every school. I don’t have a high school diploma, and forget the references.” Barbara hunched her shoulders. “Most importantly, I can’t pay the tuition. I can’t even make my rent.”
“You didn’t finish school?”
“No. Growing up, I got shoved from one foster home to another. My mother was an alcoholic. I hear she’s dead. I never knew who my father was. I don’t think she knew who he was either. I fell into the wrong crowd and got into trouble a lot; smoked some pot, skipped school, shoplifted, and took a joy ride in a stolen car. I didn’t steal the car, but I got in it.” Barbara hung her head. “Same thing. When I turned eighteen, my last foster parents kicked me out. I straightened myself out and quit hanging out with those losers. I was a good waitress, when I actually waited on tables. I just didn’t want to be a waitress.”
Barbara locked her gaze into Gabriella’s eyes. Gabriella chose not to hypnotize her, and restrained reading the woman’s thoughts, allowing them to run pure.
“How old are you?” Barbara asked.
“I’m 850 years old.”
“Wow! You look great. If they could bottle your beauty, you’d be rich.”
“Yes, immortality can do that. But I have no need for money. I am quite comfortable here.” And alone, she thought, for the good and the bad of it.
“You must own this gorgeous house outright.”
“It was an abandoned home. Too secluded for most people. It sat sadly empty. Its previous owners died fifty years ago. They willed it to no one.” Gabriella folded her hands and grinned. “I fabricated a deed and hypnotized the town clerk.” She sprang her hands up in delight. “And voilà, the place was all mine!”
“How crafty!”
Gabriella nodded with a self-assuring smile. “I know.”
Barbara was growing on her. For a moment, Gabriella wanted her to stay, indefinitely. That was until Barbara probed into Gabriella’s past.
“Were you a physician in your
mortal life?”
“No,” Gabriella responded sharply.
Gabriella’s tone failed to deter Barbara.
“So, what did you do 850 years ago?”
The simple question that rolled out from Barbara’s Cupid’s bow lips stabbed Gabriella in the heart. She pressed her palms to her chest, barricading the well-intentioned but invasive words.
Barbara cocked her head and waited for Gabriella’s reply.
Gabriella paused. She’d give Barbara an abbreviated response to satisfy her.
“Instead of learning to needlepoint, I’d sneak away with my Uncle Claude to fish and to clam. So, I guess you would say I was a fisherman, or rather a fisherwoman.”
“You were such a renegade!” Barbara waggled her finger at Gabriella and grinned. “No wonder you ordered the clam chowder.” She nodded. “I can whip you up a clam chowder to die for!” Barbara chuckled at her gaffe. “Oops! You’re already dead, sort of, but you’ll love it anyway.”
Gabriella laughed so hard she could’ve cried, even though she couldn’t. She missed a hearty guffaw. Barbara reminded her of her own loneliness. But she wouldn’t use that as an excuse to turn Barbara, a decision that would be permanent.
Their laughter abated.
“So tell me, how did it happen to you?” Barbara asked, her eyes soft and her forehead wrinkled with sympathy.
Gabriella shook her head and waved her hand.
“It happened to you when you were fishing, right?”
Now who was reading whose thoughts.
“It’s not important. It happened centuries ago.”
“But it is important. It changed you. Go ahead and tell me. We have all night. And fair is fair. I told you my story.”
“Not much to tell. My Uncle Claude and I set out to fish as usual. We had pulled in our best net full of clams ever when Volk surprised us.”
“Volk?”
“Yes, the vampire who made me, and Uncle Claude. He wanted me, but first he had to kill Uncle Claude. My uncle blocked me from Volk, protecting me from him. But a mortal is no match for a vampire. Especially a king, like Volk. He slew Uncle Claude, and turned me. I promised to be his mate, his queen, if he spared my uncle. So he turned him as well. My dear Uncle Claude secured my escape to the new world, placing himself under Volk’s wrath. I never saw Uncle Claude again. I’m sure he has met his true death.”
Tears rolled down Barbara’s cheeks. “You must have been terrified. And your uncle, he was such a hero. I bet you miss him and your whole family awfully. I wish I had a family like that, an Uncle Claude who’d risk his life for me.”
“I had no choice in who I’ve become, but Barbara, you do.”
“Yes, I do have a choice. I choose to stay with you, to become like you. I have no family. No job. Please, I beg you.”
Fueled by the nightmare of her past, Gabriella’s hunger consumed her. She hadn’t fed in hours. A surprise attack would be best. Barbara wouldn’t have time to fear what was about to happen, her transformation. In a moment of weakness, Gabriella lunged at Barbara’s neck and released her from her mortal misery.
Chapter Four
Barbara grew heavy in Gabriella’s arms. As she sucked the last drop of blood from Barbara’s neck, Gabriella eased her pale and lifeless body to the floor. She’d done it. There was no turning back. Gabriella had to work fast. Sinking her wet fangs into her wrist, Gabriella dripped her vampire blood into Barbara’s mouth, completing her transformation. Barbara belonged to her now, a fact they might both soon regret.
Barbara coughed and then went rigid. Her eyes flashed open. She let out a howl that pierced Gabriella’s already sensitive ears. Thankfully, the house was secluded. No one but the animals in the woods were the wiser. Barbara flung her head back, and her eyes rolled back into her head, leaving glossy white slits. Panic gripped Gabriella. The pounding in her chest caught her by surprise. She hadn’t felt that way since she was mortal. This was bad.
It had been centuries since she had turned anyone, and that was because Volk had insisted upon it. It had made her stomach clench every time. She couldn’t wait to get it over with. Volk had supervised her, and most importantly, he had assumed responsibility for the newly feral vampires. But Volk wasn’t here, thankfully, so she would have to tend to Barbara.
Gabriella paced while Barbara gurgled in between her spasms. She knelt down beside her and brushed her blonde bangs from her cold forehead. Barbara’s eyes curtained back into place.
“See? I warned you there’d be pain involved.”
Barbara clawed at her, her fingernails rivaling Gabriella’s.
Gabriella reared back. “Easy now. I know you’re starving.” She held up her palms. It was like talking down a psychotic patient before hitting him with a Haldol dart, except no tranquilizer would put Barbara down. The only fix for a feral vampire was blood, and lots of it. The stash in her refrigerator wouldn’t be enough, but it was a start. She’d have to recruit K.L.
Gabriella sprinted to the fridge and grabbed six pints of blood. She tossed them one at a time to Barbara who emptied them in succession, throwing the collapsed bags over her shoulder. When Barbara was sucking on her fourth bag, Gabriella picked up her cell. Answer, you tardy vamp! She had listened to four bars of “Thriller” before she heard his voice.
“K.L., I swear, you are the slowest vampire ever.”
There was a thud in the background.
“Sorry, Gabriella, I was busy. It’s been a slow night in the lab, and I had a hankering for a fresh snack.”
“Anyone I know?”
“Doubtful. It’s some new guy from radiology. A real dream. He’ll definitely be a repeater. I thought you would be busy with that hunk of yours, Maxwell. But you know I don’t poach.”
“Yes, I know. Unfortunately my evening with Max ended prematurely. I’ll fill you in later. Right now, I need your help.” Gabriella clutched her cell. “I turned someone. Actually, she was our waitress, and she followed me home. Long story short, I put her out of her mortal misery.”
“Aha,” K.L. said. “And now you have a feral vamp on your hands.”
“She’s crawling on my floor at this moment, and I’ve emptied my stock. I need an emergency supply.”
“I’ll be over with the goods as soon as I dump this gorgeous specimen back in radiology.”
Gabriella shoved Barbara away with her foot. “Hurry. And bring some padlocks.”
“Gotcha.”
“Thanks, K.L.”
“No problem. I’d do anything for you.”
That anything had only just begun.
****
A gust of wind heralded K.L’s arrival.
“Sorry about calling you tardy,” Gabriella said.
“No offense taken.” He slid the backpack from his shoulders and zipped it opened. It was overflowing with bags of blood from Fang Hospital. He looked at Gabriella. “Enough?”
“Wow. Looks like you emptied the whole blood bank. What if a mortal needs a transfusion?”
“Taken care of. I’ve managed to recruit a couple donors. And once I had a little nosh of my radiology prince, he refilled my O neg cache.” K.L. stared at Barbara, who was disheveled and writhing on Gabriella’s floor.
“More!” she rasped.
“She doesn’t look good. Oh, my. What’s with the hair?” K.L. shot his hands to hips. “We better work fast.”
Barbara grabbed his ankles.
“Hey, now. Don’t touch the King.” K.L. waved a bag of blood over Barbara’s head. “Especially if you want something good to drink.”
Barbara let go of him and knelt at his feet. She panted steadily.
“That’s a good little subject.” He tossed the bag of blood across the floor. “Fetch, my darling.”
While Barbara busied herself with her “food”, Gabriella bowed before K.L. “Genius! All hail, King Louis the Hundredth.”
Gabriella recalled when she had first met K.L. New at the hospital, she had wandered into the lab and discover
ed him sucking down a bag of blood. When he revealed his real name, Gabriella chuckled. Born in Germany, he’d never been to France, but he was crazy about French kings, and chose the moniker, King Louis the Hundredth. He joked that all the other “king numbers” were taken. But his hospital ID covertly read as K.L. Hundruth; her ID displayed Dr. Gabriella Van Court. M.D. Aside from being vampires, they shared the same mission: hiding among the mortals at The Fang. They’d become fast friends.
As promised, K.L. had come to the rescue.
K.L. dumped the padlocks from his backpack. They clanked onto the kitchen table. Barbara’s head shot up. A ring of blood circled her mouth. But then her feral voraciousness yanked her back to her bag of blood. She smacked her lips loudly.
“We’ll have to work on the manners as well as her hair.” K.L. pointed to the front door. “But you know what we need to do first.”
Darn! Gabriella really loved that planter. Once Barbara’s belly was full, Gabriella would have to lock her in her coffin. Dawn was approaching, and K.L. and she needed the rest. They couldn’t babysit Barbara. It would be a disaster if she got loose. She’d stockpile prey, and Gabriella couldn’t afford to garner attention to Barbara or herself.
“She’s slowing up. I’ll get the coffin. Keep an eye on her, will you?”
“All right. But don’t be long. It’s going to take both of us to put her down.”
Gabriella sighed. “There goes my snapdragons and ivy.”
“Too late now, deary. You could have just brought home a dog, or even maybe a werewolf.” K.L. pointed to Barbara, blood smeared across her face. “She’s yours now.”
“I did it in a moment of weakness.”
“We’re all inhuman, aren’t we?” K.L. joked.
“Thanks for making me feel better. But Barbara isn’t going to feel better for a while.”
“She’ll get over it. We did.”
Gabriella shook her head. “Don’t remind me.”
Gabriella pushed the front door open and stepped out onto the porch. She paused and sniffed the crisp night air. She should’ve had Max in her bed, where she wanted him, to playfully nip his neck and reap the rewards of a mortal man’s passion. But she created Barbara, and she was responsible for her.