Sanguine Inclinations

Chapter One: Cardinal and Main

HelaineI couldn’t help feeling nervous as I stood at the top of the steps leading down into his basement apartment.We had been friends for some time—maybe acquaintances was a better term—but the point is that we’d known each other for a while now, at least through moving in similar circles.He should have been my type. I had always had a problem with the pretentious wannabe rockstar types, but there was always something about him that put me ill at ease, and if I was honest, neither this street nor the hour was helping.His apartment sat below the corner of Cardinal and South Main, and the street signs stood ominously above me like a guillotine.Cardinal was a lovely little street, with its artist alley, street food, and live music . . . if you weren’t privy to the area’s reputation, and ignored the missing persons posters.Speaking of music, I could already hear the haunting melody emanating from the bottom of the stairs. If I could say nothing else for him, he was an excellent gui