Page 85 of Missing Piece
Your hunger caused this,Vincent shot back, jaw clenching as he made his way through what had once probably been an office. He slipped into a corridor, following the bloody odor, scanning each shadow as he neared a large area toward the center of the building.
Your human weakness caused this. You made him,it retorted.
Richard was squatting on the ground, his attention fixed on a human who twitched and writhed in agony. The man’s skin was pale and clammy, his veins dark and swollen. It was clear that Richard had tried to turn him, and failed. Again.
A primal fury threatened to consume Vincent—this was the exact shit that would get them caught. He forced his hands to unclench, fighting the urge to tear Richard apart. But he couldn’t. Not yet. Whatever remained of Richard’s followers were nowhere to be seen. He needed to know where they were.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. “Richard,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “What are you doing?”
Richard didn’t look up, his attention still fixed on the dying man. “I’m makin’ a new world, Vincent. A world where we don’t have to hide in the shadows, where we can live open and free.”
Vincent scoffed. “You really believe your own bullshit? That you can remake the world by turning enough humans?” He gestured at the writhing figure. “Because it looks like youjust failed. Again.”
Richard stood slowly, smoothing his shirt and spreading the blood on his hands down the front. “The only reason we’re like this is because our kind has to hide. Solomon understood that.”
Vincent’s grimaced at the name. “Our maker was a sick, reckless fuck. He would have been carving into people regardless—being a vampire was just cover,” he snapped. “That’s the reason we are what we are. Solomon didn’t make us as part of a grand scheme. You’ve deluded yourself into thinking your existence has more meaning than just being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Richard’s mouth curved into a smile. “Worth a try,” he said with a shrug, reaching a hand out towards Vincent. “And perhaps you’re correct.”
Vincent retreated, watching the bloody hand extended towards him.Don’t let him touch,his beast snarled.
“Glad that’s settled. Now call your little minions and get the fuck out of my town.”
Richard advanced, his face shifting to amusement as Vincent backed away. “You wanna know somethin’ interesting? In the months and years I was alone, I spent a long time hidin’. I didn’t have a maker around to show me how to be a proper vampire, how to control this thing inside me that was always so hungry. I barely survived on vermin and drunks who wandered too close—”
“I literally do not care.”
Richard’s face flickered, just for a second, before reforming into a smirk. “I don’t suppose you do. After all, you left me to die in that basement.”
Vincent glanced aroundthe space. Aside from years of debris and the dead man on the ground, there was nowhere to retreat without Richard getting a chance to grab him.Keep him moving and talking. An opening will present itself eventually.
Normally, he would have no qualms about charging headlong into an enemy and tearing them apart, but he didn’t know how Richard’s ability worked. It seemed to require touch, but did that mean only his hands? Or would any contact give him control of Vincent’s reality again?
He couldn’t risk it.
“Is that what this is about? You want an apology?” Vincent edged sideways, maneuvering into the open area to put more distance between them.
“An apology? No.” Richard’s laugh was hollow. “I would sooner expect the great Vincent Bellenger to walk into the sun than give an apology. This is about connection, my friend. Sure, it’s nice havin’ drones I can order around, but the fact is—I miss having equals.”
Vincent bared his fangs in a snarl. “You’re not my equal, and you never will be. You’re nothing but a pathetic excuse for a vampire. You turned a fucking child. Even the old ones have lines they won’t cross. Even Solomon wouldn’t have crossed that line because he wasn’t a fucking idiot.”
Richard brightened, as if he’d been expecting the vitriol. “Oh, I know that. But it was such sweet forbidden fruit, and isn’t that what bein’ us is about? Bein’ able to do whatever we want to whoever we want?” His voice dropped to a purr. “I have a multi-state following just because I can. Do you want that? Pure freedom?”
Vincent kept watching Richard’s outstretched hand. “No.”
“I can make it so you don’t feel guilt. You’ve been around these humans too long, fully integrated. I can make youforget all of that so you can be free—”
“I said no!” Vincent roared, his voice echoing through the warehouse.
Richard merely chuckled, shaking his head. “You see? You let yourself be tamed. But I can fix that. I can remind you what it means to be truly free.”
He lunged, hand outstretched, fingers splayed like claws.
Vincent was ready. He darted to the side, adrenaline surging through his veins. He wouldn’t let Richard touch him. He wouldn’t let himself be controlled again. He couldn’t.
Richard steadied himself and groaned loudly. “Why must you make this so difficult? I’m tryin’ to help you! What’s the point of being one of us unless we get to do what we want? Why live within the confines of pathetic humans?”
His thoughts and his beast’s overlapped in that moment:Adam.But he couldn’t say that aloud.
