Fading Darkness (Bloodmarked #1) (16 page)

“Looking forward to it,” he said sourly.
“Let’s go.”

He turned off the gas on the fireplace and
moved to the door, holding it open for me. As he ushered me through the
doorway, his hand lightly brushed the small of my back sending more of those
chills up and down my spine.

I turned my head back and shot him a look to
tell him to keep his distance. He found it amusing and held up his hands in a
gesture of innocence. It was not a good idea to allow any physical contact that
could be considered
friendly
. He needed to keep up a more professional kind
of conduct, or he would be dealing with a lot of un-
friendly
physical
contact.

†

It didn’t take us long before our first
encounter. I felt them above us on top of the four-story building in front of
us. There were at least three of them. They were stalking us, or probably just
me, since I seemed to be the only one on their shit list. It was weird having
so many calm nights until now though.

“They’re mine,” I shot Gavin a look. “Don’t
even think about stepping in.”

“It’s all yours. I think you need to let off
a little steam, so I’m just going to hang back until you need me,” he said.

“I don’t need you,” I reminded him.

I snuck over to the two-foot wide
pass-through between buildings and did a sort of Spiderman crawl up both walls.
They thought they had the upper hand, but all I needed was my rage to take them
down. They were even nice enough to give me a hand up when I reached the
rooftop. It wasn’t the most pleasant landing, but once on level ground, I immediately
went into kill mode.

There were actually five of them, and after
facing the assassins and having a few nights off, it only took about a minute
before I was standing on an ash-covered rooftop. That was over way too soon,
and I needed more. The adrenaline pumping through my system barely had time to
reach the tips of my fingers and toes.

I craned my neck in both directions
expecting more, but there was just silence. I moved to the edge of the building
that overlooked the sidewalk where I left Gavin standing, but it was empty.
Where did he run off to?

I went to the opposite edge that overlooked
another street and heard a scuffle in the unlit alley across the street. I
peered closer and noticed two figures fighting. I immediately jumped into
action and threw myself off the side of the building, lightly springing off the
first fire escape landing then off the second. My feet hit the ground, and in
less than a second I was across the street watching Gavin drive a broken slat
from an old produce crate into some vampire’s heart.

“What the hell was that all about?” I asked.

“That, Lucille, was the reason vampires have
been coming at you, why the First know about you. That was a spy,” he sounded
irritated. He looked around as if he expected another.

“Wait, did you know about this all along?
You knew they were spying on me and said nothing to me,” I accused, and his jaw
worked. His eyes narrowed slightly and averted mine. He was so busted. “Are you
kidding me?”

“It wouldn’t have done any good for you to
know. They would have still figured you out,” he sounded very sure of that, but
it sounded like there was more to it. His eyes were apologetic and he looked
guilty.

“What else aren’t you telling me? This isn’t
just about the spies,” I said.

“There’s nothing to tell. Everything I’ve
done was to help keep you safe,” he said unapologetically.

Something about the conversation made me
think of the past few days. Every night I went out to patrol and came up
empty-handed, there was a sense of security. I went out hunting, knowing I
wouldn’t run into any trouble. Suddenly, it hit me.

“You’ve been hunting for me, stealing my
kills! That is my fight, not yours!” I screamed.

“I did what I had to do. They were getting
closer to you, so I took the attention off of you while they were spying.”

“I told you I don’t need your help!” I
shouted. Then, I threw myself at him with all the newfound anger building
inside me. “Stay the hell away from me! I can handle it!”

I exploded with rage throwing punches right
and left, trying desperately to keep up with his speed and strength. I could
handle myself, and he needed to know that. With a burst of unexpected strength,
I shoved him back against the alley wall, breaking off chips of brick that fell
to the ground like gravel.

He stood there stunned and the look on his
face was one of admiration, and the fear in his eyes seemed to mirror my own.
It felt as if I were slowly turning into an evil creature of the night. Once
the shock subsided, I came at him again. I struggled to keep my ground, and I
knew he was letting me beat him up at this point. I didn’t care anymore. I took
advantage of the opportunity to kick his ass while I could.

He took it, but his eyes told me his true
nature wouldn’t allow it for much longer. He was getting pissed at my
reluctance, but the sooner he figured out I wasn’t cut out to be a team player
the better off I would be. Maybe he would leave me alone, and I could go back
to life before him, which was much less complicated. Everything has become so
screwed up, and right now, I was putting the blame on him for all of it. There
was a lot of grunting and sounds of frustration, but I wouldn’t relent.

After another moment of pummeling, he
stopped it instantly by forcing me back into the opposite building that made up
the alleyway. I didn’t stop fighting, but it ended up much the same as our
usual tussles. My arms were pinned above my head, and my legs were wrapped
around his waist, squeezing as hard as I could but, basically, just earning
myself more momentary bruises.

He was already so close with his body pushed
hard up against mine, but he leaned in further to whisper in my ear, as if the
mere sound might soothe me. “Would you please stop fighting me?”

The light breath stirred the loose hair that
fell from my ponytail and tickled my ear sending intense sensations pulsing
through my whole nervous system. I noticed his body go rigid against me and his
eyes grew darker. I was reminded of that friendly contact I tried so hard to
avoid and needed distance, fast.

The only part of my body with a little
wiggle room was my torso, so I braced my upper back and my trapped hands
against the wall behind me and shoved my hips forward as hard as I could. He
looked at me with surprise and something logic told me to avoid at all cost.

Ignoring the growing heat emanating from
deep inside my body and the disturbing urge to keep my legs around him, I
unlocked them from his waist and landed with ease, breaking his hold on my
arms. Springing back up, my elbow caught his nose and twisted his head to the
side. His head slowly turned back so his eyes met mine. They pleaded with me to
stop fighting, and I suddenly felt drained, all fight in me was gone.

“I’m sorry you’re upset, but I did what I
had to in order to buy you more time before the First found you,” he said in
remorse. It sounded genuinely sincere for a vampire, with no hidden undertones
suggesting selfish motives. I couldn’t beat someone up who was doing a better
job of it than I ever could. “I don’t keep things from you to hurt you
intentionally,” he added.

I pivoted and paced a few steps away from
him while dragging my hands over my loose hairdo. I let out an exhausted breath
and took in a deep breath to replace it. The fresh air in my lungs helped calm
me. I was mad, but I couldn’t hold the intensity of that anger because my
rational side told me it wasn’t Gavin I was mad at. I turned back to him
preparing to reason with him as much as I could.

His arms were crossed and his head was down
slightly, but he was watching me carefully, like always. His dark lashes hooded
his eyes making them look even darker. They were smoldering. His mouth was
turned down in a pout with a smile hidden underneath, and he knew I had already
forgiven him.

I folded my arms over my chest and chastised
him with a hard look, but knowing I wasn’t actually mad at him made it
difficult to maintain that harshness. He saw my struggle and the pout turned
into a full blown smile that was completely unguarded and sweeter than I have
ever seen from him.

I felt my heart leap about as high as my
throat, which I had to clear before I could verbalize that rational thought
that was quickly slipping from the forefront of my mind. Before I completely
forgot what I needed to say, I opened my mouth, and the words rushed out. “I
need to know more. I told you I don’t want you keeping things like that from me
anymore. I can handle it,” I said with a little uncertainty.

He saw that on my face and looked skeptical.
“I promise to keep you more informed when I learn more,” he said, and I had a
feeling that was the best I would get out of him.

“And since I now know about the spies, I can
look out for them on my own. If you want to take the attention away from me, I
think we should go back to hunting separately,” I said, wanting to regain a
little piece of normal.

He considered it a moment before saying, “I
do need to dig further into those mysterious deaths around town.”

“Plus, we could cover more area by splitting
up,” I persuaded.

The half-smile slowly crept back to his face
as he waited a moment to give his decision. He definitely enjoyed irritating
me. “Promise at least that you won’t do any-”

“-Anything reckless. Yeah, I got it,” I was
excited to have more of my freedom back.

He was really taking this whole protective
thing to the extreme. I wasn’t used to anyone looking out for me. I didn’t want
to have to owe anyone any more than I already did. There wasn’t much more to
give than my life. And that had already been handed over to the dark side
unwillingly, so I felt that the least I could do to counteract that evil was to
rebel against that dark side a little. I still wasn’t sure of the exact details
on how I ended up another spawn of Satan, but the fact that I was a monster, or
would be someday, was more truth than I could handle anyway. That was a Q and A
for another day, or night. Right now, I just wanted to let loose on all the
vampires in the city.

“Are we done here? Can I go now?” I said
anxiously.

He grinned at my excitement, but I didn’t
care if I was bouncing up and down stupidly. “How can I deny you when you look
so happy?” he asked, and I was sure it was a jab at my priorities.

Most girls my age beamed at the thought of
shoes and accessories, but I loved fighting. He looked me over more closely,
and his smile grew wider. Something in me changed that I couldn’t describe.
There was a powerful ache deep down inside, but I was unable to pinpoint the
source. The sight of him looking at me that way made me feel exposed, and I had
to bow my head to hide the confusion and vulnerability from showing on my face.
I felt some sort of longing for something that was missing.

I rebounded quickly and shook the unusual
new development. I should not have been wanting anything because I did not
deserve anything. I didn’t need to fill any voids in my life because I should
not even be alive. I
was
a void, a big walking void that did not deserve
to experience such human emotions.

“Well then, meeting adjourned. We’re done
here. Peace out,” I said, swiftly covering my melancholy before turning to
leave.

“Remember to be careful,” he said to my
back.

“Whatever, just don’t take any more of my
kills,” I shot over my shoulder.

“I’m done hunting tonight. I have other
matters to attend to,” he added.

“Right, go make yourself useful and figure
out that whole suicide cover-up thing,” I said looking at his still smiling
face as I walked backward. I pivoted back away from him to get on with my
hopefully productive night.

“
Please
, be careful,” he said with
the smile still in his voice.

He still had to have the last word, and he
was still insufferable. I threw up my arm and gave a sharp flick of my hand,
middle finger up. He could have the last word if he wanted, but actions always
spoke louder than words. I heard the quiet laughter fading as I set off in a
dead sprint. I was ready to kick some ass.

I woke up late the next afternoon. Last
night proved to be extremely eventful. I didn’t realize how much Gavin was
doing this past week. It was so good to get back to a typical night at the
office. Every muscle in my body ached. I decided to go out for a walk, and took
in the sights with more appreciation like I did yesterday.

I found myself waiting for night to come so
I could go to Gavin and tell him about the productive night I had. I also hoped
he might have more information about what’s been going on in the city’s
underworld.

I grabbed a sandwich from the Deli at the
nearby grocery store before coming back to the apartment. Tossing my I-pod on
the breakfast bar, I dropped to the stool and unwrapped the sandwich. After
inhaling that, a handful of chips, a can of soda, and a bowl of cereal, I
showered and threw my hair up into a messy bun before throwing on a pair of
black yoga pants and old t-shirt. I topped it off with my down-feathered black
coat complete with hidden pockets on the inner panels that are perfect for
stashing sharp pointy objects.

It had only been dark a short time when I
ended up in the grand lobby of Dracula’s tower arguing with the same
receptionist as always. He was extra excited tonight to report that Mr. West
had already stepped out for the night. He loved telling me no, but it took me a
while to believe him. What did Gavin need to go out this early in the night for,
unless he had a lead on the suicides that couldn’t wait? Oh well. I was anxious
to get back out there again tonight anyway, so I headed out into the bitter
cold night.

After coming across a few vamps that put up
a decent fight, I still needed more. Rounding a corner, I passed a couple of
people coming out of a bar that were smiling and laughing, going about their
happy lives. Something in the simple scene gave me pangs deep down in my
stomach, but I wasn’t sure why.

I was still trying to shake it off as I kept
my head low, moving forward when I sensed another one right behind me. I spun
around, reaching for the spike in my coat, when he stopped dead in his tracks
and threw up his hands in surrender.

“Shane, damn it! I told you to never sneak
up on me like that,” I said, pulling the spike back, which I managed to stop an
inch from his heart.

“Sorry. Are we a little on edge tonight,
baby?” he said, and the flirtation seemed to make my skin crawl. Normally, I
would shrug off the annoying come-ons, but I just wanted to stick to business.

“I’m fine,” I said a little too sharply. “Do
you want something?”

“Just checking on you. I worry about you,
you know,” he said too sweetly.

“I don’t want to hear it. Where’s your
girlfriend?” I asked.

“She’s out. Clubbing or something, whatever
girls do,” he shrugged it off.

“So you’re not with her then?” I asked.

“At the moment, no,” he said slowly, as if
speaking to a small child.

“Because if you’re not, and she’s out there
killing people, I might be inclined to put a stop to it, permanently,” I
threatened.

“Leave her alone. She’s fine. I can handle
her myself. Why don’t you start worrying about your own boyfriend,” he said,
changing the subject.

“He’s not an assassin, if that’s what you’re
referring to. Why don’t you let me worry about the company I keep,” I said,
oddly defensively.

“Easy, I was just saying that you know
nothing about him. He keeps himself a mystery, yeah?” he said, making a very
good point.

I knew nothing about Gavin, and he knew everything
about me as far as I was aware. I should really learn the art of prying. Holly
was good at that, but I never really cared to get to know anyone as a part of
my no-attachment rule.

“Like I said, don’t worry about it. Now, if
you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some hunting to do. And I suggest you stay out of my
way unless you want a stake to the heart. Next time you sneak up on me, I won’t
stop myself,” I warned.

He threw his hands in the air and backed up,
“Touchy, touchy. I’m gone. You’re no fun tonight anyway.”

He turned and disappeared behind the corner,
and I took off in the opposite direction, craving a good kill, or several. I
felt wired, like I had just downed eight cups of coffee, and I needed some sort
of release for all the pent up energy. Killing vampires was like a cure-all for
anything with me. If I ever got over-emotional, I hunted. If I ever got
restless, I hunted. If I ever got frustrated, I hunted. Killing evil,
bloodsucking creatures of the night was very therapeutic.

I was in for some serious therapy. Vampires
came out of every dark hole in the city, and there was no shortage of remedial
activity. Usually, after so many kills, I become content, but tonight, I was
just as restless as before. The frustration only worsened with each kill, making
me beat them to a bloodier pulp than usual. I didn’t know how many kills I had
tonight because I lost count, but nothing was taking away the edge.

There was an emptiness in me that couldn’t
be filled, a sort of longing that scared the shit out of me. My thoughts slowly
began trailing back to Gavin as I wondered what he was up to and why he wasn’t
around earlier. I tried coming up with the questions I obviously wanted to ask
him but came up with none. All I knew was that I wanted to talk to him.

The night dragged on, and I kept at it until
the sky began to lighten just beyond the eastern horizon. The more I fought,
the more I had to prove to myself. I needed to remind myself of what my purpose
was. He would probably berate me later for drawing attention to myself, but
after every kill, I checked around every corner and didn’t sense any spies
nearby. Then again, he wasn’t around tonight to reprimand me, so apparently he
was learning to trust my judgment.

I snuck into the cemetery before going home,
and wandered through the stone statues until I ended up at the one that
reminded me of him. At that point, I considered actual therapy, because no
amount of fighting was erasing him from my mind. I stomped all the way home,
not losing any steam, and to top off the frustration, I got a sleepless night
of tossing and turning, and the brief moments that sleep found me, I dreamed of
icy blue eyes.

Thankfully, my circling thoughts were
interrupted by my phone ringing. I usually don’t mind time to think, but when
nothing seemed to get resolved, I was ready to be put out of my misery.
Fortunately, it was Clint needing me to work a few hours. I happily accepted
the extra shift, and the day went by faster than expected. Not a fan of Pop
music myself, I was actually excited to have the new Taylor Swift album
released. It made for a very busy day at the music store. I was still in
desperate need of therapy once my shift was over because all I wanted to do was
see him.

†

He wasn’t going to get away from me this
time. As soon as the sun went down, I stood outside Gavin’s building
contemplating my next move. In order to avoid another pointless squabble with
the snooty receptionist, I waited for the opportune moment when he glanced down
at whatever trashy magazine he was reading, and I plunged through the rotating
door leaving only a light breeze in my wake as the only evidence I was there.
Once near the stairwell, I slowed to a stop only to break through the flimsy
locked door. Picking up the pace, I ran the entire sixty-one floors making good
use of all that left over energy from my previous frustration.

After busting through the door that led into
the short corridor with the elevator on my right and his front door on my left,
some of the frustration quickly subsided, and I instantly felt the exhaustion
hit me at once. Again, I let myself in to find the familiar scene of a lit
fireplace and calming music. The sound of the shower running was faint in the
background, so to kill time, I snooped around a bit.

Although it was warm and inviting, the place
lacked real personality. It looked as if he hired an interior decorator to do
the entire place, but he didn’t add anything of himself. I didn’t know what I
was expecting, but there was just nothing that told me who this man was, no family
photos or anything, not that they would have had cameras back then. I guess I
was beginning to see him as his home was, warm and inviting, but the fact that
it was just a shell of a real home with no heart, became evident. His place also
reflected him in another way, very inviting but cold under the surface, a fact
of which I needed to keep reminding myself. No matter how sincere his
intentions seemed, underneath he was still a monster with selfish goals.

I needed a change of scenery so I walked out
onto the balcony, and the view slammed into me so hard it knocked me
breathless. Unable to take my eyes off the miles of city lights and unique
structures spotting the cityscape, I felt the rest of the way toward the
railing with my hands outstretched in front of me, then leaned forward so that
my fingers wrapped around the wide cold stone rail. To get the full effect of
the height, I stepped up on the base of the railing and wedged my boots between
the thick stone balusters. Bending further over the edge, my stomach pressed
against the cold stone.

I could barely see the ground from where I
was. Through the now lightly falling snow, I made out the tiny lights of
passing cars. I was used to getting a bird’s eye view of the city from six- or
seven-story buildings, but this was like seeing the city with brand new eyes,
closer to a hawk’s or falcon’s eye view. It was amazing seeing it as a whole
and taking in the entire city with one glance, almost like an enhanced
satellite image. I felt like I was high enough to touch space.

The thought made me look up at the cloudy
sky and pick out the one star I could see. It did actually shine brighter up
here above the thin sheet of city smog. In that moment, I felt that odd sense
of invasive emotions that crept its way into my core. I knew he was watching me
with that intensity again.

A strange feeling came over me that made me
very self-aware, but instead of worrying about what I looked like, I just felt
confident in that moment.

“It’s beautiful,” I said without turning, a
little surprised at my own words.

“Very,” he answered much more certain of his
words and thoughts than I was. I still felt his eyes on me though, and at that
point, I turned to face him for confirmation, but he chose that time to dip his
head low. When he lifted it to meet my questioning gaze, he shrugged it off,
and said, “I take it you’re here for a report on my findings.”

I averted my eyes, and craned my neck to
peer over the edge and got swept up in the mystifying city view all over again
before surprising myself again by saying in a low disconnected voice, “I’m not
quite sure why I’m here.”

He was there in an instant, that outer
warmth radiating across the boundary of personal space, confusing my thoughts
once again. His hand grasped my chin, lifting my head back up to meet the shocked
expression on his face.

“You look exhausted,” he said with concern.
He searched my eyes for something I knew I had to rid myself of for good. I
remembered the coldness and rage he had looming within and got back to business.

I shook his hand off and said, “Actually, I
do
want to know where you were last night. Did you get a lead on the suicides?”

He regarded me briefly before responding
with, “I want to take you somewhere. We should get out of here.”

“O. Kaaayy? Are you going to tell me what
you know?” I asked skeptically.

“I’d rather show you this town’s real
Underground,” he said, and for the first time the usual easy smile returned to
his face. I wondered if I should know what he was talking about, but his
expression displayed nothing but pure enjoyment in this new idea. I really had
to fight to find that coldness in him, but it was an ongoing battle that I was
currently losing.

It didn’t sound as if he wanted to tell me
anything about the suicides, or maybe it was just that he hadn’t found
anything. With reluctance, I gave in to the odd request, and decided to just go
with it. “Fine. Why not? As long as I get some answers.”

“Whatever you want, as long as it doesn’t
end with you trying to hit me,” he teased.

“You love fighting with me, otherwise you
wouldn’t piss me off so much,” I retorted in a more upbeat disposition.

This drew a full-blown laugh out of him that
sent shivers up and down my body. That sound was divine. Why did the sound of
it have to have a direct impact on my inner chemistry?

“I only piss you off when you piss me off.
Maybe I wouldn’t have a reason to piss you off if you’d just listen to me,” he
retorted, jokingly.

“Ha! That’s funny. You wish,” I said,
grabbing his biceps and shoving him away. He lightly bounced playfully back in
step with me before moving ahead to get the door for me. I stopped fighting him
on little things like that and just got used to him playing the gentleman.
Maybe things like manners and habits carried on from the human life. I didn’t
know how vampires worked, but I really
did
need to start facing those
facts.