This is Part Two of a three-part story told from Peter’s point of view.
For Part One, read Changes on the Wind – In Prelude
For Victor’s point of view, read Changes on the Wind – Uncertainty
***
I had come close to asking if I could call upon Victor the next evening when I stood at the door, watching him depart. The words settled on the tip of my tongue, but all I could manage to spit out was a simple question. Would he be occupied?
Not knowing if he sensed the hidden meaning written between the lines, I could not even interpret them if I had to be honest with myself. There were impulses wriggling underneath my skin, actions I could sense myself holding back without knowing what they might entail or why I kept them shadowed. A wall blocked revelation from rushing headlong into my consciousness, but heaven only knew why. I trusted Victor. I enjoyed his company. I wished to be around him when we were separated and felt happier when we were together. Still, something prevented me from adding everything together and staring eye-to-eye with the sum total of the equation.
Perhaps it was not knowing what he might be thinking. We were drawn toward one another – always had been, even when we stood at odds with each other. For being a telepath, though, I refused to read the thoughts of somebody I cared for to the point of preferring to wrestle with uncertainty than invade the sanctity of their private ruminations. “An out of practice telepath,” I murmured to myself as I sat in my chair, staring at the clock on the wall. Yes, I had been hidden in a closet for so long, I had nearly forgotten what I was.
I glanced down at the hand cradling a half-depleted glass of scotch. Foreign memories surfaced of when these fingertips illuminated with energy, when they caused other immortals to cower and burn with the sheer force of my will. Ever since Flynn came to the surface, though, I hid away from myself so much, I could not bring myself to regard my own reflection in the mirror of self. “I am father,” I whispered to myself. “I am brother. I am seer…”
“… I am vampire…”
The admission forced a shiver up my spine. I swallowed hard and closed my eyes. A whisper traced across my thoughts, but I shoved it back and drew a shaky breath. Opening my eyes once more, I tightened my hold on the glass and wondered if I was as much afraid of peeling back the layers for Victor as I was myself. I had no reason to; Victor had come to accept each and every thing I revealed to him about who I was. He neither blinked, nor cowered, and yet I kept the door shut, with the lock held firmly in place.
Perhaps because I feared what laid underneath.
“This is ridiculous.” My eyes flicked to the clock on the wall, seeing the hour hastening toward ten in the evening. I had not received a phone call from Victor and yet, I needed to see him. Why alluded me, but it became enough of a compulsion that I set the glass onto a table and ignored the unfinished liquor in favor of fetching my coat from the closet. During one of our conversations, I recalled him mentioning the neighborhood in which he resided and figured, should I be unable to locate his residence for myself, I could at least bring my Blackberry with me. Fetching it from the entryway, I slipped it in my pocket and set out to the streets.
Digging my hands in my pockets, I wove my way through San Francisco, not paying much attention to my surroundings except to use them as landmarks. I searched memories of conversations for a description of his house. Faintly, I recalled such mentions as the exterior of the house, the adjacent buildings, and other details which gave me more of a compass to go on. Within a half-hour, I found myself entering the community and after an additional fifteen minutes, located the residence which matched Victor’s description.
Approaching the entrance, I readied myself for apologizing to the occupant, should my recollections prove faulty. I drew a deep breath inward and knocked on the door, slipping my hand back into the protective folds of my coat pocket after doing so. The night stilled, the noise in the periphery drowned out by my own apprehension. The moment the door swing open, though, I was forced to smile.
Victor appeared in the doorway and the moment his eyes met mine, he mirrored my grin. “Master Poet,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting you.”
I chuckled. “Yes, I know. I did not give you much forewarning.” Pausing, I fished for how to explain my presence, not apt to confess I set out so deliberately. “I was out and happened to wander into your neighborhood.”
He peered over my shoulder, eyes scanning around the immediate area before settling on me again. “Considering I don’t see a vehicle, I will have to assume you walked.”
“Yes.” I freed a hand to run my fingers through my hair. “I do not drive. A long story, but I have very rarely indulged the practice for quite a few years.”
Victor nodded, his characteristic grin surfacing. “And at your plodding pace, I assume you could use a chance to get off your feet.” He sidestepped, freeing part of the entry. “Please, come in.”
“Thank you, brother.” Nodding, I entered, pausing a few paces inside to regard the interior. I slipped my coat from my shoulders slowly, my eyes skimming over my first glimpses of a house just as impeccable as the elder vampire who stood beside me. Yet, it still bore an air of hospitality to it. Much the same as its occupant. I heard music filtering from somewhere else in the house and basked in the tranquility such an atmosphere provided.
Glancing at Victor, I grinned. “I trust I am not interrupting anything important?” I asked, perking an eyebrow.
He chuckled and shook his head. “Not at all, brother. You caught me in a moment of enjoying an old past-time, actually. My business last night was finished without any trouble.”
“I am glad to hear that.” My smile broadened despite myself. I folded my coat in the crook of my arm. “What old past-time would that be?”
Victor led me toward the coat closet in the main hall. As I procured a hanger from inside, he gestured toward the source of the sound. “I believe I’ve at least tentatively mentioned my affinity for music?”
I slipped my coat on the hanger and secured it in the closet. Nodding, I followed Victor away from the entryway, my eyes still flicking about my surroundings. “You have mentioned it a few times,” I said. Finally, my gaze settled on Victor. “It is quite pleasant, actually. What piece is that playing?”
He raised an eyebrow, glancing away as he stopped to listen. “Mussorgsky. Pictures at an Exhibition.” He looked at me and grinned. “I understand his Night on Bald Mountain piece is more famous because it was used in a Disney movie. One of the odder things I’ve ever discovered.”
Victor punctuated his words with a chuckle. I could not help but to grin in response, imagining the elder vampire being familiar at all with such aspects of mortal popular culture. Still, the music dancing around us formed a soothing blanket of notes and I found myself unable to break eye contact with Victor. His chestnut-colored irises held me steady and I could not look away. Truth be known, I did not wish to. “I cannot say I am all that familiar with Disney movies,” I said. “At least not any longer. Just the same… I quite like this.”
Something about those last four words gripped me from the inside, coiling around my psyche and taunting me. Strangely enough, Victor did not blink and neither did he avert his eyes. Instead, the smile remained affixed on his face. I felt a pull which dissipated when he finally turned his head. “There is much more where this comes from, brother.” He stepped toward a corridor and angled his body in an unspoken invitation for me to follow, perking an eyebrow as a tentative glance rose to engage me before drifting away again. “I would enjoy showing you, if you would not mind indulging me.”
Nodding, I walked toward the back of the house with him. As Victor turned away from me, I settled a hand on his shoulder, answering a subliminal dare to make contact with him. My fingers lingered only for a moment prior to lifting, but by the time we emerged past the main portion of the house, I was forced to shove my hand into my pocket. A slight wave of nervousness settled onto me. “So, what do you mean much more?” I asked, perking an eyebrow as I continued to follow him.
Victor chuckled, but did not glance back at me. He led me to a short set of stairs and paused. “I think I shall let the room explain itself.” The staircase descended into a large room that encompassed half of the residence’s width. Grinning, he stepped aside, his eyes finally meeting mine expectantly as I stepped into the room. A piano sat in the center of the room, displayed prominently, with in-wall speakers which linked to a sound system playing the rich tones of a brass ensemble. Strings and woodwinds joined the symphony and I drifted inward a few paces further, surveying everything with my mouth hung slightly agape.
An assortment of other leather cases, zipped closed, rested on display shelves on the wall opposite the stereo. Atop a couch laid a collection of sheet music, scattered about as though Victor had been thumbing through it prior to my arrival. I heard him humming along with the music as I gravitated toward the piano and skimmed my fingers along the top. Turning, I regarded the elder vampire again. “You are quite the musician, are you not?”
He chuckled and nodded. “As I said, an old past-time.” His smile softened, eyes settling on me for a brief moment before glancing about the room. “My one great solace, music. When I bought the house, it was partly because I could envision all this in place.”
I nodded, directing my attention back to the piano. As my gaze settled on the arrangement of ebony and ivory, I lightly pressed a couple keys, my fingertips caressing each one in a reverent manner. They touched something sacred and wished to linger, as though they could express something with the instrument I could not otherwise. I regarded Victor again when I felt I could trust myself to do so. “I am soundly impressed, brother. I had always debated playing an instrument, but never could sit still long enough to appreciate them as I ought.” My fingers stroked the keys absentmindedly. I cocked my head toward the piano. “Might I trouble you to play something?”
A broad grin lit up his face. I felt a rush of warmth simply at seeing his expression and mirrored his smile. “No trouble, Master Poet. I would love to.” He seemed to wince at his words, but recovered before I could acknowledge the gesture as anything more than an afterthought. I lingered by the piano. Victor indulged in a deep breath before stepping around the couch to shut off the sound system. I watched as he strolled to the piano bench and settled into place. His eyes fixed on the keys I touched. I lifted my hand reflexively.
Victor’s gaze swept upward to meet mine. “Any particular request?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
I deliberated on the question all while staring at Victor. Something meaningful. My memories whispered a song I remembered from my youth, the notes forming the ghost of an echo inside my consciousness. I felt a soft smile settle on my face. “Do you know Clair de Lune?”
Victor nodded, grinning again. He broke the gaze by turning his attention to the keys before him, his hands lifting from his lap and settling atop the first chord of the song. Out of my periphery, I noticed his foot raise to settle on the proper tonal pedal and without a single sheet of music before him, Victor began to play. The first few notes emerged, both tickling a sense of bittersweet reverie and firmly planting me in the present. Another person might have heard a melody being played, but I felt it in the marrow of my bones.
His fingers lifted and settled on each series of keys as though painting a breathtaking landscape with music. I heard poetry and watched the piece flow through him, feeling as connected to him in that moment as I had ever been. Images without form tickled at me. Words without definition swept through my mind and the hand which had been touching the keys rested atop the piano out of a need to hold onto something. I felt both unsteady and enthralled; confused and yet, somewhere in the back of my mind, I saw each conversation and filtered through each look we exchanged, wondering. I could not bring myself to ask the question to myself, though, and the final notes resonated around me with my eyes still distant and my mind still a million miles away.
My gaze shifted to Victor with my head still swimming. The soft smile affixed on my face was met with an equally-gentle tone of voice. “You are… quite the maestro, Victor,” I said.
He chuckled lightly, yet Victor held perfectly still, frozen in position with me not flinching from the posture I assumed. The world seemed to pause for a few beats, communicating something unspoken toward which I remained daft. I could not ascertain what we were searching each other for, but the wall around my sentiments prevented me from piecing together what laid before my eyes. His hands lowered from the keys. “No one has ever called me as such before, but I thank you, Master Poet. From you that is high praise, and means a great deal.” Victor’s voice possessed the same subdued intonation mine did.
Slowly, he stood from the bench, stepping away from the piano while I remained standing beside it. Still, I watched him consider me as he slipped his hands in his pockets. “Thank you for indulging me,” he added.
I shoved my hands into my pockets as well, as though my subconscious found itself responding to a subliminal suggestion at seeing him perform the action. “The title is well-earned, Maestro.” I permitted myself a wink. “And it was no indulgence. It was quite lovely. I…” I hesitated, attempting to ascertain what I wished to say. I loved it? Yes, this was certain, but might be saying too much. I fought the urge to furrow my brow at myself. Why did I think that? Where had my mind drifted without informing me of its destination? I cleared my throat, my grin turning somewhat disarming. “I… have never heard it played in such a manner before. My mother used to play it all the time, but you… have a gift.”
Victor chuckled, his head dipping as his eyes lowered to the floor. He lifted his eyes back to mine, his chin rising as he grinned back at me, a hint of playfulness emerging in his expression. “I like to think as such, at least, but I admit, I no doubt have several centuries of practice over your mother.” The look on his face softened as it seemed he considered my words. “I did not realize she would have played, and that being the reason you chose the piece. It is one of my favorites.”
I chuckled in return. “Yes, undoubtedly for as much as she enjoyed playing, you would have quite a bit more practice.” His words resonated in my mind, though. One of his favorites. I had to nod. “It has remained one of my favorites as well. For many reasons.” As our eyes lingered in a gaze again, I forced mine to shift away, as though attempting to hide something from Victor which might have been patently obvious had I continued to regard him. I surveyed the collection of instruments. “You play all of these, brother?”
He nodded, turning to face the display. “Yes, to varying degrees of mastery. The piano is…” Victor chuckled. “Or, rather to say, I took to the piano best.” He glanced toward me, then stepped toward the shelves, removing one hand from a pocket to rest it on a leather case. “Clarinet.” It settled on another case beside that one. “Oboe.” He raised his fingers to settle on one the next shelf up. “Trumpet.” They then lowered two shelves down. “Bassoon.” Slipping his hand back into hiding, he moved away and regarded me again. “I could go through the list. Mostly woodwinds, as I’m partial to them. The brass are not my favorites, though I keep a trumpet for the odd times it strikes me to play.”
My eyes had followed the movement of his hand as he touched each instrument. Lost in wonder over the thought of one person having mastery over such a collection, I could yet hear the chords of the piano piece resonating in my mind and wondered if Victor possessed the ability to create such lovely music with each one. “Woodwinds…” I heard myself say distantly, the first word escaping my lips as was apt to at the moment. I glanced back at him and grinned. “I might have to continue showing up at your doorstep in order to hear you play each one.”
Victor chuckled, grinning. “Perhaps you can simply tell me the next time you are inclined to indulge me and I shall retrieve you rather than making you walk all this way.”
I held my smile steady, but surrendered to the notion of how often I felt inclined to call upon him. “I shall have to do so. I did not mind the walk in the slightest, though.” Inside my mind, I heard myself finish the thought. ‘Because it was a walk to see you.’ My eyes flicked to the instruments and my grin turned somewhat playful. “Perhaps you might coax me to take further interest in learning one of these myself.”
He did not respond at first and I feared glancing back at him, wondering why it seemed my mouth was running away on me. Swallowing hard, I felt an undercurrent settling and finally dared myself to make eye contact with him again while he looked lost in thought for interminable moments. Victor blinked several times and drew in a deep breath, flashing a subtle grin at me. “If you would be so inclined, I would hardly object, brother. I did not think you would be one to find an affinity in such things, so I confess, I rather like the idea.”
I nodded. My feet moved of their own volition, closer to where he stood while he continued looking at me. “Yes, I know, it is not the first thought one associates with me.” I punctuated my words with a chuckle. “I have actually fancied the notion on and off the past few years especially, I simply did not know where to start.” Pausing just shy of Victor, I pointed toward the array of instruments. “What would you suggest, Maestro, if you were to recommend one to me?”
He stared, unmoving for what seemed like an eternity, eyes fixed on mine and lungs filling slowly with a deep breath. A shiver ran up my spine completely bereft of the assassin when I caught the way he looked at me, but Victor averted his eyes before I could react further. “For you, brother?” I watched his gaze shift from one instrument to the next and linger on the wall. He hesitated, then turned his head to regard me again, looking somewhat apprehensive. “Strings,” he said. “A violin. The movement of a bow across the frets is something akin to the mastery of a sword. I would say it would be almost natural for you.”
I perked an eyebrow, but glanced away, eyes distant as I considered the recommendation. A smile touched the corners of my mouth. Inside my mind’s eye, I saw the fluid motions of a bow dancing across the strings and saw myself holding one, with Victor standing close by, watching me play. Some euphoric surge of happiness accompanied the picture. I regarded Victor with a soft expression. “That… actually sounds rather tempting, I must say. Do you happen to know how to play one?”
Victor nodded, with our eyes locked again. He grinned. “I do. Not as proficiently as some, but well enough.” He raised an eyebrow. “Would you consider having me teach you, brother?”
My smile brightened despite myself. “Brother, I would be honored if you did.” I chuckled. “So, you can play your instruments for me and teach me the violin. I think this sounds rather pleasant.”
Victor laughed, nodding in return. “Very pleasant. There might be hope for you yet.” He winked.
“Perhaps. I almost believe it when you say it.” My grin turned coy. “I knew the term maestro came to mind for a reason.”
His eyes lingered on mine. I could have been mistaken, but it seemed as though his shoulders lifted a fraction of an inch, his expression softening a minuscule amount. The corner of his mouth seemed to curl an extra millimeter upward and it was the first moment of our many locked gazes that night where I desperately wanted something. Distantly, I realized what it was, but I could not look away. Fortunately, Victor simply nodded and said, “You are the wordsmith, Master Poet. So, I am hardly surprised you came up with something apropos.”
Moments elapsed without anything happening, either of us acting upon whatever impulse had woven us together and sucked us into its gravitational pull. I managed to look away and we drifted apart enough that the temptation waned and normal conversation took over as much as possible. An unmistakable tension settled on the room which strained the normal tenor of our banter, but not enough that either of us seemed apt to acknowledge it.
Victor drove me home some time afterward. I parted company with a smile and a ‘see you soon’, but walked up to the house feeling much more unsettled than I had been prior to departing. As I slipped my key back into the lock, I found myself asking what in the heavens was happening to me. My sentiments crowded in on me and started to gain an unmistakable form, something I found myself having to confess with brick by brick of my wall crumbling right before my eyes. My thoughts drifted back to the gaze exchanged which seemed rife with electricity. What had I wanted?
I wanted him to kiss me. To close the gap and press his lips against mine. I drew a shaky breath as I opened the door and slammed it shut behind me. My coat flew off and landed on the floor, my keys shoved into my pocket with me nearly collapsing into my chair. When had this happened? When did my heart begin to slip into the ether and set its sights upon my best friend?
I shut my eyes and sighed. I could not be the only one. The attraction buzzing between us jumped from one body to the other and back again, and yet I did not know what Victor might be thinking and had not reached the level of urgency where I could even justify reading his mind. This marked uncharted territory for me. Never before had another man done this to me and yet, something seemed so right about it.
“Utter nonsense,” I murmured to myself and rose to pour myself a drink. I passed out on my bed some time later with the debate still unresolved within me.
The next evening, I rose and paced the floors, tempted to indulge in a hunt, but not wanting to move for fear that I might miss Victor. John perked an eyebrow at me on more than one occasion, but I ignored him in favor of setting out to Nocturnal Embers after a few hours had elapsed. My Blackberry sat dormant in my pocket. I could not bring myself to using it. Instead, I returned to the house and whittled away the hours until settling in to sleep for the day.
The next evening was much of the same. By the third night, I felt the familiar ache of needing to feed and knew if I did not answer it soon, there would be hell to pay. Just as I finished buttoning my shirt, I saw my Blackberry buzzing on my dresser and perked an eyebrow as I strolled over to retrieve it. Victor’s number flashed on the screen and had I a pulse, my heart would have leaped at seeing it. I immediately pressed the call button. “Hello, brother,” I said, bringing the phone to my ear.
Victor hesitated for a moment, then said, “Hello, brother. How does the night find you?”
I shrugged, attempting to sound nonchalant. “Well, for the most part. I have simply been meandering about the house, attempting to settle on what to do for the evening.” Pausing, I perked an eyebrow. “How does the night find you?”
He exhaled a shaky breath. “Well, although I’ve had a frustrating evening.” He paused as well. “I was actually thinking about indulging a hunt, brother, and thought I would see how you felt about joining me.”
“I was actually planning on much the same thing.” I grinned, resting a hand on top of the chest of drawers as I leaned against it. “You should know I would hardly refuse to accompany you.”
“Yes, I know. It is…” Victor trailed off for a few seconds. “Brother, I have a question for you. Have you ever indulged a bit more in your hunts?”
“Indulged?” I asked furrowing my brow.
“Yes.” He chuckled. “Are you in the mood for a little seduction to find our meals this evening?”
I blinked and then suddenly realized what he meant. Flashes of my days as an assassin resonated within me, those times when I would seduce and lure away my victims to indulge in them, both body and blood. A shiver of a different sort traced up my spine and for a moment, I debated whether or not I could partake of such a thing without it affecting me adversely. The debate provoked a soft sigh. Why could I not indulge in such matters without fear of the assassin?
‘What am I? I am vampire, that is what.’ I nodded in a resolute manner. Victor had to be the most self-assured, confident vampire I knew and such a thing often made me jealous. To indulge in the hunt without fear of losing one’s soul. To embrace that which made us what we were – immortals – and not be consumed by it. I wished to learn this more than anything else in the world. Victor might have offered to be my teacher in the matter of music, but tonight, I wished a different instruction from the maestro.
“Yes,” I said, not knowing how much time had elapsed. “Yes, it has been a while, but I used to partake of such a thing rather frequently.” My smile turned a trifle more sinister than normal. “You wish to indulge in a bit of mischief?”
I could almost hear the grin across the line. “Yes, brother, I think mischief is the operative word.”
“Come by and pick me up. Heaven only knows I could use it right now.”
Victor heartily agreed and we both hung up. A few minutes later, the doorbell rang and I spirited out the front door without much of a farewell to John. Instead, I walked side-by-side with Victor to his car and climbed in, exchanging a devilish smirk with him before we set off toward downtown. Not much discussion transpired en route, with the exception of Victor admitting he had been preoccupied with the political arena the past couple of days. “You could say that was what provoked the hunt,” he said as he turned into a parking garage.
I nodded slowly, acknowledging the sentiment with as much understanding as I could impart. I confessed toward moments when the inclination to shred apart humanity became more pointed than others, without acknowledging their usual source. Victor smiled softly in recognition, then asked if I was ready before opening his car door. I nodded and followed him, assuming a place by his side again as we strolled out onto the street.
The city bore a distinct hum to it, with a thousand pulses resonating in the area surrounding us. I felt the light chill of a breeze blowing past and exchanged another smirk with Victor as we crossed the street. One of the larger nightclubs in the area laid in front of us, rife with possibility and causing an ache to infect me from head to toe. I held back my fangs while we glamored our way past security, and stood at the edge of the room, surveying the crowd gathered with my hunting partner.
I inhaled deeply, savoring the scent in the air; humanity laid before me, yet I beheld it in a much different manner. Something hearkening back to my earliest days as a vampire. I recalled seducing my prey, yet the notion was such a distant recollection, it tempted me to curse my youthful moral wrestlings. The finer pleasures of being an immortal laid nearly spread before me and the word seduction resonated within my mind, forming a siren call. I glanced at Victor. “It has been a long time since I have tasted wanton lust in their blood. As I recall, this is a feat very easily accomplished.”
Victor grinned in a devilish manner, his eyes glinting as he nodded slowly in response. “Yes, lust is quite simple to entice, brother. I think the pair of us will manage to find something for both our tastes.”
Nodding in response, I drew another deep breath inward, shivering as I caught a tendril of Victor’s scent in the process. I tried my hardest to conceal the reaction it inspired while we strolled deeper into the recesses of the club, yet my fangs almost descended of their own volition. Swallowing hard, I cast a quick glance at Victor, then redirected my attention to the mortals engaged in their various pursuits, attempting to redirect the fledgling temptation toward a victim. We paused beside the dance floor and I stepped closer to Victor. “Lead the way, dear brother,” I whispered.
Inhaling again almost became my undoing. Victor’s scent seemed to break through any other in the crowded room, with a worse form of temptation than even the pulses thudding around us. He glanced at me and must have read the drunken expression on my face, for he smiled and flashed a hint of fangs. For a moment, I thought he knew the object of my attention, but he motioned for me to follow as though sensing my need being much more a need for blood. I strolled beside him willingly, yet my eyes continued gravitating toward various parts of his anatomy. His neck. His shoulders. His arms, torso, and…
I lifted my gaze before it could descend below his belt.
We swept past a few mortals dancing, two vampires who might as well have worn the robes of death and been its dark harbingers. The lights were dim and colored beams flared down from projectors in the ceiling. The room bustled and as I forced my eyes away, I caught sight of humans flocking by a bar. A set of stairs led to a lounge area. A few mortals conversed while seated on plush sofas. Doors led to back rooms, but the selection on the floor seemed ample enough. “Do you see anything which strikes your fancy?” I asked, risking leaning closer to Victor again.
He paused and skimmed around the immediate area with his eyes before stopping. I watched his gaze settle on a human and the wicked grin emerge anew. “I think I just did.”
Turning my focus in the direction I saw him looking, I regarded a redheaded woman not too far away, dancing with a brunette I could only ascertain was her friend. Both women slender, they bore curves in all the correct manners and were indeed an intoxicating sight to behold. I saw Victor lick his lips from the corner of my eye and shivered again, wondering if half my problem was being away from the attentions of a woman for so many weeks. I perked an eyebrow at myself.
I could allow the denial to persist for another evening, I supposed.
While Victor’s eyes continued drinking from the sight of the redhead, I regarded the other woman and admired her from head to foot and back again. Firm breasts, long legs; yes, she inspired a glint of lust in my gaze and I was all too willing to use her for those ends, knowing how rapidly I was unraveling otherwise. “Yes, and with a companion,” I murmured only loud enough for the elder vampire to hear. “How quaint and convenient.” The corner of my mouth curled upward as I rifled through her mind. “Oh, her thoughts are sinful, brother. Her companion’s as well. They came out tonight desiring a bit of action.” I turned to look at Victor. “What do you say we give it to them?”
A flicker of something I could only define as unadulterated desire crossed Victor’s eyes as we regarded one another, yet I could not be certain if my words or the convergence of our gaze again prompted it. I ignored the part of me which seemed intrigued at the latter and mirrored the wicked grin which spread across Victor’s lips. “I think that sounds like a marvelous idea, brother,” he said. “Perhaps we should go introduce ourselves?”
“After you,” I said, extending a hand pointed toward our would-be conquests.
Victor nodded. We both crept up on the women and within seconds, both surrendered willingly to us, held in our thrall with their bodies’ reactions bereft of thought. Hands traced across scant clothing and warm flesh and for a while, Victor and I seemed to be lost in the moment, indulging the beginnings of debauchery in such close proximity to one another. With the women there, it kept our desires focused and as we lured them away, we glamored another security guard past his watchful eye and into a private room.
I groaned the moment the door closed and the brunette threw herself into my arms. Fangs descending, I kissed her hard and deep and sank into the impulses throttling through me.
A shiver assaulted me at once. I ignored the faint whisper of my alter ego while pressing the stranger against a wall and allowing my hands a much more sensual exploration of her body. As I kissed down her neck, I stole a quick glance Victor’s way and watched him dispatching of his victim’s clothing, his hands and mouth very similarly occupied. My eyes rolled back and I stole a quick taste of my conquest, listening to her moan in response to my ministrations.
It did not take much to push me over the edge with her.
Clothing fell with haste, my suit jacket and shirt landing atop the blouse she had already shed. Her short skirt lifted. The moment my pants joined the other discarded garments, I wasted no time in throwing her down and entering her in one solid thrust. She worked me to a fever pitch and the conjoined sounds of moans and groans from the activities in the other side of the room built a frenzy from which I could not descend. Climax transpired within moments and my teeth sank into her neck only seconds after I felt her clench around me.
Her blood rich with lust, it flowed freely into my veins and my eyes shut as I relished the feed, the taste of endorphins saturating the viscous liquid pouring down my throat. I moaned sharply, but pursed my lips again around the bite marks, imbibing swallow after swallow until I felt her pulse begin to wane and the hands clutching onto me relax before they fell limply by her sides. Pulling away, I slipped from inside her, issuing a few steadying breaths. My eyes shut. I remained in the same position for interminable moments, attempting to catch my bearings and push back the assassin. I almost had Flynn subdued. He retreated back a few solid paces. But then, I heard something which knocked my focus completely to hell within seconds.
A moan of completion. My eyes darted to Victor and the redheaded woman with whom he had been occupied. He drank from her neck as well, his skin bare and nothing hidden from my vision as I took in the sight of him. A lean body, the sinews of his torso marked with toned muscle across its topography. My fangs remained down and in that moment, I wanted him as I had wanted nothing else before.
I saw myself ripping him away from his conquest once he finished feeding and pressing against him. Lips meeting lips, fangs cutting into each other while we explored each other as we had the women we claimed. Topping to the ground. Driving teeth into his neck. I heard him moan and groaned as well as I felt myself beginning to lose control.
Kneeling on the ground in front of the now-dead body of my victim, I could not take my eyes off Victor.
‘Well, is that not a curious thing, seer. When did you drift toward the other side of the fence?’
No. Not Flynn.
Not now.
I clenched my eyes shut, obliterating the mental image while covering my face with my hands. Inhaling sharply, I shook my head. ‘Damn you, assassin. Now is not the bloody time.’
‘Oh, I think this is a splendid time, boy scout. My, my, look what you have managed to do without my prompting.’
I shivered. ‘Yes, I am enjoying being a vampire for once. You should be grateful.’
‘I am tickled. Utterly tickled. And with a companion. Might I introduce myself to him?’
‘No.’ I gritted my teeth. ‘No, you leave him alone or so help me, I shall find some way to end you, Flynn.’
‘Ending me would end you, too. What a conundrum you face.’
Swallowing hard, I forced my eyes open, staring off toward the other side of the room. ‘I promise you, it shall be worth it. If you scare him away…’
‘You shall do what?’ He laughed in a mocking manner. ‘Are you infatuated, seer?’
The question caused me to blink. Victor pulled away from his victim and I was forced to glance down toward the floor.
‘Well? Are you?’
I rubbed my face with my hands and sighed. ‘What I am is none of your business, assassin. Now crawl back into the hole from where you came.’
He snickered, but retreated into the shadows, leaving me shaken in more than one manner. I felt Victor’s gaze settle on me, but refused to look at him, not wanting him to know I had just stopped my alter ego from emerging right in his presence. Beyond that, though, I heard Flynn’s question echo in the stillness of my thoughts and issued several steadying breaths as I denied the answer to that question. I knew, though. Without speaking the words, I knew exactly where the truth of matters laid.
Coming to a shaky stand, I gathered my clothing and attempted a disarming grin for Victor’s sake. He appeared puzzled, raising an eyebrow at me with a solemn gaze issued toward me. It made me ache to see him look so lost, but I could not bring myself to discussing the matter with him. Not yet, anyway. I needed to get home and do a sizable amount of thinking.
I slipped my pants on and kept my shirt untucked after securing the buttons closed. Threading my arms through the sleeves of my suit jacket, I slipped on the shoes I had discarded at some point during the fracas and ran my fingers through my hair. Victor spoke at last, stating it would be a good idea for us to dispose of the bodies and I nodded in agreement. We set to the task in silence, and with the same tense quiet, we wandered back to his car and secured ourselves inside.
The journey home was strained, at best. Victor turned on the radio, in some effort to drown out the deafening sound of our thoughts as it seemed we both wrestled with what to say to one another. He cleared his throat reflexively when we were halfway to my house. “Did the hunt bother you, brother?” he asked.
I had been looking out the window, but with the question, I shot my focus to Victor and shook my head. “No,” I said. “Heavens no, not at all. I quite enjoyed myself, actually.”
He nodded, but frowned as his eyes remained fixed on the road. “Did I…” The question trailed off before he could finish it.
I perked an eyebrow. “Did you what?”
He sighed and shook his head. “Nothing, brother. I don’t wish to pry.” Victor glanced at me and grinned, but even the grin looked somewhat forced.
Frowning in response, I considered him and fought the urge to groan at myself for wishing to keep my silent ruminations hidden. He was floundering. I had no need of reading his mind to know what Victor was thinking as I stared at him. My mind felt too chaotic, though, to offer him the type of reassurance I would have liked. “I had a good time tonight, brother. Honestly, I did.”
Victor’s grin became more genuine. He parked the car in front of my house and nodded, shifting slightly in his seat to line me in his sight. His eyes traced across me and I looked back at him, fighting the urge to do something. Touch his face. Kiss his lips. Whisper to him gentle reassurance that somehow, some way I would figure things out and be able to converse with him more freely. Instead, we sat in silence until Victor nodded. “I did as well. Take care, Poet. And thank you for the company.”
I nodded slowly. “I appreciated the company as well, Maestro.” The term of endearment slipped as the only comfort I could provide before I opened the car door and slipped out from the vehicle. Pausing a moment to study him, I finally averted my eyes and shut the door, not wishing to make matters worse with half-baked thoughts and trite platitudes. My hands slipped in my pockets and a casual gait marked my path back to the door. Behind me, I heard his car drive off, leaving me standing on the stairs by myself. As I turned my head, I watched the taillights drift farther away, until he turned and disappeared altogether.
With a sigh, I finished ascending the stairs. The air around me became heavier, the world duller once again. I paused in front of my door and slipped my keys from my pocket, but then remained standing there, holding them in my hands.
I could produce my Blackberry and call him. I could run after him. I could scream out to him the very words I could not bring myself to uttering for myself. Instead, I dismissed each notion and finally unlocked the door, not slamming it shut this time. Not even slipping off my jacket before I settled in my seat. Instead, I stared off into the distance, eyes on the clock, listening to the steady ticking as though it would be enough to drown out my thoughts. Truth be known, I knew nothing could now.
I had crossed the path of no return. The rest would be inevitable.
Posted via web from from the poet’s pen
