When I opened my mind, things got weird. I could hear people talking even though I knew that no one else was in the house other than Tony and Mei Wah. I could hear cars and telephones ringing. I was hearing the nearby neighborhood. I could smell things, too. Mei Wah had eaten some type of pork for his evening meal. Tony... I could smell him! I remembered his smell from last night. It was akin to fresh-baked bread. I knew it wasn't his true smell, but I knew his smell because he was my kin, my liege.I reached out with my mind to locate that connection between us. It felt like a line.Funny, but there were two of them. I didn't have time to explore further because Tony was standing in front of me. "Did you do that on purpose?" he asked."What?" I asked. My eyes scanned his form in appreciation. Damn, he was one sexy man. He was wearing black jeans and a dark shirt with the cuffs rolled up. The shirt was loosely untucked, but I could still see the broadness in his chest and arms. Whil
I heard knocking at my door. I had removed the silver jewelry and left it in a wooden bowl I had found on the bedside table for Mei Wah to dispose of, but I wrapped the crucifix in cotton and placed it on the bureau next to my bed. I decided to keep my discovery to myself just in case Tony didn't know everything Thirds could do. "Come in." Mei Wah entered. "Tony would like you to join him in the living room, if you please." He smiled. "You look beautiful this evening, Miss Kim.""Thank you." I followed him up the stairs. "Mei Wah, how long have you been with Tony?""Since the beginning, ma'am." "The beginning? 1929?""Yes, Miss. My mother died during the Depression. My brothers, sisters, and I didn't know who our father was, and to be Chinese in New York during the Depression was ... not easy.""How old were you, Mei Wah?""Seven, Miss. Mr. Tony took my family to a safe house that he owned. He made them go to school and learn a trade. But me, I wouldn't do what he asked." Me
Mei Wah opened the door for us and we drove--to all places—Club Midnight!Instead of letting us off in front, Mei Wah let us out in the back of the club. There was a security guard waiting to greet us. I felt like a rock star! Tony led us up to VIP, and we were surrounded by local celebrities such as ballplayers and even a city councilman. I saw my favorite newscaster. I know Tony wasn't going to let me choose him as a willing donor. He was too close to the public eye!Many who saw me seemed to take a double-take. I had to ask Tony what was up. I mean, I think I'm cute, but I'm not worthy of all the attention.Tony leaned in to me to whisper, "You've fed last night and the effects are still present. You haven't learned how to mask it yet. Your eyes are golden rimmed." He reached into his coat pocket and handed me a pair of black sunglasses.Once I donned them, I felt a little more comfortable schmoozing.Tony had said that my willing donor would also be my benefactor—sugar daddy,
He might have been in his mid-thirties—if that. He was fit, tanned, and good- looking with semi-messy blonde hair that he probably paid a stylist a pretty penny to create. Judging by the suit, I could tell that he was pulling in the big money."Okay. Here it goes." Before I could rise Tony stopped me with a hand on my arm. "You need to do this alone. Take Mei Wah and the car. He'll make sure nothing happens to you. Just remember two things. Don't take too much blood, and he must be able to make the choice to be yours of his own free will. If it's against his beliefs, then he will lose his mind. Do you know what I mean?"I nodded though I didn't understand, but I would still do what he asked. I approached the man. He was sipping bourbon on the rocks. I glanced behind me, but Tony was already gone. I rubbed my hands down my legs and tried to convince myself that this was not the same as being a pusher.I took off my glasses and sat next to him. "Hello."He smiled and nodded at me.
Tony had brought my teeth out, but that was with pain. He had also made my teeth retract, and that was with a kiss.I concentrated on Paul, on the food. Maybe that would do it. Even with how attractive Paul was, I wasn't ready to start kissing strange men.I caught the scent of his blood beneath his skin. It made my stomach twist. My mouth began to water, and I could feel the teeth lower. I nuzzled the food. It was beginning to smell delicious.I could feel Paul transfer his weight from one foot to the next. I let my tongue glide along his salty skin and groaned deep down. Paul echoed the sound. I nibbled, and his hands sprung up but fell back down to his side.I broke the skin at his neck, but Paul didn't draw away from me. I buried my teeth in to the quickening pulse at his throat, and the blood gushed into my mouth causing me to shudder in pleasure. Paul's hands stroked down between us, and I smacked them away. But I could understand his desire. I felt myself tingling down low.
I checked the time—close to three AM! I cursed. Unsure how to begin, I first started at a run, then I concentrated on Tony's smell and taste, and before I knew it, it seemed as if I could almost see him. I thought about being there, and I was moving faster than I could think. I can only describe it as teleporting though I could sense myself moving through space. Maybe I was in that limbo that Tony had tried to describe to me. He had tried to make me understand that we could do the seemingly impossible because we were no longer completely a part of this world anymore, but it was hard to understand because I had never believed I had ever left the world in the first place.I stopped the sickening motion outside of a house immediately familiar to me. It was the house that William had brought me to days before. I headed toward the house then kicked off the fancy fur slippers in irritation. I checked my watch. I'd lost fifteen minutes, and that meant it was after three AM.They'd be in the
The Elder swiveled to face Kaniji. The temperature dropped suddenly. Something was about to happen, and I was already scared as it was. I didn't need to see Kaniji get a psychic backhand.I interrupted whatever was about to happen. "I don't have a problem telling anything." I said angrily. "I was judged unfit because I had no memories. But I was told that I had no instincts, and that's a lie! I have a survival instinct! And that's what caused Johan to die and me to survive.""We toyed with you!" Kaniji yelled.Craggy Face scooted away from her, and not a moment too soon because Kaniji went flying as if a hand was gripping her throat. She was yanked, the way my mama used to threaten to do me!Kaniji ended up kneeling before the Elder, who hadn't flinched, and in front of me, too. "P ... Pl ... Please!" Kaniji gasped. The hold must have been released because Kaniji collapsed and then threw herself prostate at the Elder's feet."A million apologies for my rudeness," she croaked.T
I had to get out of there. I had a room full of angry Vampires and another dead Council Member. Before anyone had time to react, I thought about being outside and was standing in the grass in front of the mansion. I felt anything but safe, it was getting late, and I had no idea where I would sleep tonight ... today. I had no intentions of going back to Tony's, not after lying about the holy relic and killing my second Council member in so many days. Besides, Tony and I had some major trust issues. But I had an idea. It might be as much of a death sentence as anything else I'd done since dying. I was going back to Paul's.It was harder to find Paul's line. It melded with the other humans in the city. If it had been a day later I don't think I would have been able to trace the feel of him. I concentrated on Paul, and then I began traveling to where he was located. I could feel myself in a different place, that other world. There was nothing to focus on and nothing to feel, but I cou