*VICKY*My eyes went wide. I felt a tremble shoot through to my hands and placed them in my lap to hide my fear. "You want me to kill Baden?"Lord Tybrius fell back into his seat. "Can you?" he asked, still eyeing me. "He's an old friend of yours, after all. An old subordinate."I now knew where this was going. The others thought I was called here on accords of the photo in the news. But Lord Tybrius knew otherwise: I was here on business."Won't that entice a war?" Zerger asked. "Between the Predators and Kindred?""If Baden is a Predator," Lord Tybrius continued. "Then that means they already called for a war when they attacked a Kindred—a superior at that."Baden had been badly injured the last time, but he could feed on human blood. He would recover soon. However, there was one thing that remained doubtful."I don't think he's one of their leaders," I suddenly noted. "Baden was a good Commander, but I don't think he has it in him to command the Predators.""I agree," a fourth Elder
*VICKY*As soon as I got home, I let loose, and tears flowed down my face onto the hardwood floor below me.I should know better by now. Blood Bonds, matehood…it's all a ploy set by the Elders to ensure Kindred didn't feed on humans. That's all it was. Love? It was a long-forged myth.I was the one who had gotten him into this entanglement because I couldn't resist him. I let my guard down, and I got everyone in the crosshairs. It was better for him and me if I kept to myself and let this go before it went any further.And yet, here I sat, on my living room floor, crying harder than I had when Jacob revealed himself 500 years ago.This was horrible, and I fucking hated my decision.I dabbed off my tears and tried to think positively. I just needed to get through the next three years; then, I could fall into a deep sleep, and when I woke up, things would return to normal.This will work. It had to work.A startling knock on my door woke me from my thoughts. For a minute, I had hoped it
After Lord Tybrius took his leave, I began to gather the items required to make the journey to Orene, a town about an hour's drive from NYC. If I was to fight and truly embrace my warrior side, I needed help, and the only person I could think of was Jenny, who ran a shop just on the edge of Orene, near the Shimila Mountains.Jennifer was the fourth-generation owner of the store, and their family had been serving humans and supernatural beings for more than a hundred years. I had been frequenting Jenny's shop for the past 50 years, and during my time in Orene, had become very close with her mother and grandmother.I pushed open the wooden gate."Vicku, Vicku!" the parrot at the door greeted me warmly."It's Vicky," I heard a familiar voice from the back of the store call out. "I've taught you many times, Mr. Joe." She huffed and then smiled once she saw me. "Vicky, long time no see!"Jenny was a short brunette woman, around 50, who had a divine love for birds and a lack of patience for
*VICKY*One of the two men sitting in the smoking room had gray hair and looked to be about 50 years old, and his full muscles supported the collar of the suit. The other man, however, was the complete opposite. There was something different about them—a glow almost. Although he looked about the same age, he had much less hair, and his wrinkles intensified when he smiled in our direction.The two men rose to greet Markus as soon as they saw him, and they even considerately extinguished the cigars in their hands."Markus, it's wonderful to see you again," the first man began. "Thank you for having us featured in your gallery this evening. I know my grandfather would have dutifully appreciated it.""Oh, your grandfather was only one of my closest artist companions, Devin. It's the least I could do—especially with the talent that runs in those veins." Markus then turned to look at me. "The steel sculptures out in the entrance; they're only some of Devin's newest pieces. Beautifully create
*VICKY*There was no right or wrong in a relationship. There was only mutual accommodation, tolerance, and trust. However, as the saying goes, it's easier said than done and after establishing a relationship, it takes the willpower of both individuals to keep the momentum going.As is evident, I still had a lot to learn in this matter and I had never been slapped so hard in the face by reality, as I was now. I stopped what I was doing and looked at him helplessly."Leon…what're you doing here?" My voice was raspy and disjointed, and his name almost came out like a whisper."I'm sorry for just showing up…I didn't know when the exhibition ended, but I see now…" He looked around the space at the dimmed lights and the bare walls. "I won't take up much of your time, but I needed to talk to you." His eyes were focused on me, but darted to Markus the second he coughed. "I think I'll give you two some space…" Markus stated awkwardly. "Make sure you lock up?" He tossed me a set of key
*VICKY*Things had become desperately out of hand. As I stood in the middle of the darkened and desolate streets of Newtons City with Leon's hands wrapped around my waist and my lips moving in the same rhythm as his, I could feel the passion swelling inside of me. His scent was enveloping me, and I could tell by the grip on me that he could feel the immediate relaxation that this moment brought both of our souls.I pressed myself harder into him, pushing my lips into his and getting as close as possible. He returned my eagerness, moving his hand up to my face and holding it firmly in place as he held onto me, like I was never leaving him again.Then, the kisses slowed and he broke our connection briefly, only to lean back in and kiss my cheek, and my lips once more. My heart began to race again. "There is nothing I want more than this," he murmured against my mouth. "But we shouldn't really do this in the middle of the street. We might get charged with indecency." I stopped an
*VICKY*Had I heard him right? Was he actually asking me this? He kissed my neck, and breathed me in. The aroma of his heightened Blood Perfume and sex spun around us, and I was scared I had let my emotions get the better of me."W-what?" I asked, still high from the pleasure he was still giving me, mixed with pure surprise. "Bond with me," he repeated, this time through continued kisses.Even though it killed me to stop, I pulled myself away from him and turned to look at him. I didn't want the moment to end, but I needed to ensure that he knew what he was asking."Leon…" "Vicky, don't question it. I'm asking you…" His hand reached up to hold my face and I could see in his eyes just how serious he was. "I want this." "But if I do this…" I began. "Your whole life will change…you'll be granted eternal life, you'll have to come up with a new alias every hundred years…""None of that sounds so bad," he said, nuzzling himself into my neck. "Not now…but trust me, after your fir
*VICKY*The next evening, I stood in front of my bedroom mirror and gazed at myself. My pale skin contrasted beautifully against the navy blue evening gown Leon had purchased the day before. I topped it off with some long black earrings and a black clutch bag that I had thrifted in Newtons City as a 'just in case' accessory.I looked stunning; to the human eye, even moreso. But I couldn't stop thinking about the box lying in my living room from Markus. After opening it, I couldn't bring myself to move it. Instead of facing my problems head on, I decided to leave it and go about my daily tasks. Except, everytime I returned home, it was there, like a constant reminder of my past melding with my future.God, why now? Talk about ill timing. It was like a consistent reminder that Leon's life was in danger, and now that we were bonded, whoever was after him, would have even more incentive to attack. I needed to get to the bottom of it before it was too late—but there was still that part o