Page 75 of Accidental Vampire

He shifted his weight and softened his knees. Relaxing into his space.Hisspace. I’ll give him that. Vampires were particular about our spaces. It was where we were the most vulnerable. He flexed his hands, the room solidifying around him. He flicked his eyes out down the hall. To Tiffany. He lifted his chin, eyes narrowed. She was mine, but all this was his. He could take it. I would take her. I smiled partway, no need to flash fang.

I gave him, and all his hidden weapons, my back.

“No.”

He said before my foot completed its first step.

I turned my head just enough to keep him at the edge of my senses. It was the answer to the only question that mattered. And I agreed. I could not kill Veronica.

But I could claim Tiffany as my own. Not as her maker. Not yet. As her lover, for sure.

Do it in public and do it fast.

The mortal’s words banged my brain. Veronica’s weak spot, her only weak spot, was her damned rules and traditions. She was sentimental for a star-crossed lovers’ tale. To make up for his absences, Warren had gifted her an originalRomeo and Juliet. She even made her favorite assassin take that name.

I strode for the door, not caring if Shaw got out of my way. He grabbed for my arm as I passed him.

“This is not the time.” His words were soft, but his eyes were on fire.

I looked down at where we were joined. He relented and dropped his grip. I continued out of the room, Shaw’s “fuck” echoing down the hall.

FORTY-FIVE

SHAW

Zinnia matched my pace as I retreated from my own demons. The girl had had a panic attack. Sugar had called for backup, his inexperience pushing him to the edge.

We had no need of conversation as we navigated our way back to the Lido Deck, giving our merry band of trauma survivors their space. She was tapping on her tablet, her short legs not having any issue keeping up. I unlocked the one door that connected the two halves of this building. Gonzo wanted a biometric lock, but there was something comforting about a brass key. It was a tangible reminder of the stakes.

“You get anything on the footage?” Zinnia didn’t look up as we entered the Bridge, stepping over Gonzo’s long legs sprawled about. Richard, and his pop culture obsession, tainted every space with his nicknames. Sugar wasn’t even immune. He renamed that poor kid within a minute of meeting him.

“Nada, just the clip I sent you. Ski masks are so 1970s, Kinda like the vibe actually. They just rolled her out of the van.” I had already seen the clip of the dirty van pulling up and the girl falling out. Zinnia wanted names of the people who laid hands on Emily. They debated the finer points of attire and jewelry, looking for identifying features.

My tablet was here charging. I had burnt it out, re-watching the fight between Tiffany and Lachlan. Tiffany’s predictable break had pulled me to the roof. It was Lachlan’s unpredictable break that had me obsessing over surveillance footage. He was a slow motion disaster, like standing on the shore, watching water drain from the beach, unearthing treasures and trash, knowing the tsunami was coming. Knowing you were the one that caused the earth to break.

I scanned the monitors with Lachlan’s and Aurora’s rooms. Aurora was in her bed, I squinted at the screen, masturbating, naturally. She was probably hoping to snag Gonzo’s attention. All angles in Lachlan’s space were empty. I tapped the display to bring up the common areas. They were all empty, too. Same with the roof and the immediate exterior. A wave of foreboding crashed over me.

“Where are they?” I wiggled the mouse to get it to scroll back in time.

“Ah yeah, hot date, I’m sure.” Gonzo said, cracking open a can of Diet Dr. Pepper.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Priorities, man. You want me to interrupt the Emily thing for the two of them using dress up as foreplay?”

Zinnia scooted over now as we raced through the footage.

“Got it.” Zinna backed up to our confrontation in the Rec Room. It was eerie to watch it in two dimensions. Really old vampires have a tangible energy to them. It makes a Patron a patron. I hadn’t thrown that kind of metaphysical weight around in years. I was beyond shocked to feel that rippling from Lachlan. Zinnia shivered and Gonzo whistled low through his teeth at just the replay.

We watched him pace the room. I checked the timestamp, a few hours had passed. Tiffany slept. A soft smile curled my lips. Sleep was a good sign. She needed it.

“No audio.” Zinnia grumbled.

They had an animated conversation. He had her by the upper arms, impressing something important on her. She reluctantly agreed. Lachlan darted out, and she stalked to the bathroom.

“Where’s he… ah.” Zinnia jockeyed the mouse to flip through the different hallway cameras. He stopped outside of Bisou’s room, knocked, and pushed his way in.

“Oh, she’s gonna be pissed.” Gonzo said under his breath, pushing in closer like the carnage was about to happen.

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