Darlings of Darkness: A Vampire Anthology Part 3

"Count me out," Kylarai said and stifled a yawn as we moved to the sliding gla.s.s door off the attached kitchen. "I've been up for almost twenty-four hours. I'm going to bed."

The early morning air held a slight chill that caressed my naked flesh as I slipped out of my clothes. The sky was the color of absolute black, the darkest piece of night just before dawn breaks the barrier on the horizon. A thin cloud cover blocked out every star.

I stood at the end of the yard and looked out, onto the stretch of field behind the house. The tree line, which was about half a mile away, taunted my wolf. I longed to run and stretch my muscles to capacity. I needed to feel the burn as I pushed myself to the max.

Unlatching the gate, I turned back to see Shaz drop his t-shirt on the patio railing. His build was average but firm, and I allowed myself to sneak an extra glance at his well-formed body. As a werewolf, one certainly got used to being nude. Nudity came with the territory.

The gra.s.s crumpled softly beneath his feet as he approached, only to spring up again when he'd moved on. I knew he was going to touch me before he actually did. His energy was warm and seemed to reach for me. A hand gently traced the curve of my waist.

I raised my head to look at him. My eyes turned wolf in a blink; the deep brown of my irises filled the whites so they were no longer human. He smiled down at me and placed a quick kiss on the tip of my nose.

"Ready?" His low, smooth voice was a whisper. Those intense jade eyes held a teasing glint.

I gave him a playful shove. His closeness was undoing my last bit of resistance. I needed the change, and with the full moon only two days away, I was more than ready to run wild.

In response to his question, I threw my head back and looked into the sky, as if it were a dark velvet veil that hid the secrets of the universe. I held my hands out before me and just let the wolf inside break free.

The sudden blast of supernatural energy that shot through me forced me to my knees. A small cry escaped me. For just a split second, I was flooded with the most horrid pain. It flowed over me as bone and muscle shifted in reformation. In an instant, the pain had become soothing languor. In seconds, I stood in my backyard as a large wolf, with fur the same ash blonde as my hair.

Shaz makes the most beautiful snow-white wolf due to his insanely white-blond hair. He is much larger than I am, with green orbs that stand out in awe-inspiring intensity. He nuzzled me with a wet muzzle before bounding through the open gate.

We raced across the field at top speed. We always tried to beat each other to a particular tree at the far edge of the field. Shaz often took off fast and then burned out, so I planned to take advantage of that at just the right time to propel myself forward and win.

The wind in my fur was a cooling breeze that carried the scents of the forest to my sensitive nose. Blood on the air informed me that a few coyotes had managed to kill a small doe not long ago. The slightest hint of rain still indicated an early morning shower, and I savored the scent.

Just as I'd expected, Shaz began to lose his steady pace and dropped in speed. I took the opportunity to burst ahead of him, and he nipped at my heels. I stood in front of the victory tree with the best mocking, tongue-lolling, goofy grin that any lupine could muster.

When he arrived at the tree too late, his response was to wrestle me to the ground in a series of playful bites and nips. I could hear little critters running through the underbrush to take cover. I broke free of Shaz's grip and pounced on him to bite the tips of his ears. He feigned surrender and followed up with a nice bite on my flank, one that might actually bruise.

After we'd exhausted ourselves, we rested in the soft gra.s.s beneath a large evergreen tree. We easily fell asleep amid the sounds of the early morning birds waking and the last few hoots of an owl as he made his way home for the day. I rested my head on my paws and dozed. Shaz's head rested on my back, and before long, I heard the soft sound of even breathing.

To be a wolf wasn't hard. No, the hard part was to go back to being human afterward. In a world of noise, pollution and selfishness, I enjoyed the relief, the escape to something pure, natural and free. More than once, I had entertained the thought of living among nature as a wolf always and saying goodbye to the human world. However, it could never be so simple.

As a creature with a duel nature, to deny one risked the other. Several shifters had chosen one side, human or wolf. Most of them had driven themselves into madness. The balance in-between was often hard to find, but it was always worth it.

I sighed with contentment and allowed all human thought to blow away on the gentle breeze. Human worry had no place here, among the forest and its occupants. I was wolf and comfortably so.

Chapter Four.

Friday night was the hottest night at Lucy's Lounge. I figured I would stop by for a bite to eat before making the short highway trek to Edmonton. The lounge kitchen made a to-die-for sirloin steak.

I touched up my smoky, dark eyeliner in the car. No lipstick, I rarely wore any. Tonight I'd decided to exchange my casual attire for basic black dress pants and a snug, corset-style, black top. My hair flowed long and loose down my back.

I preferred to park near the back of the lot. I didn't see the point in fighting for the closest s.p.a.ce. By parking in the back, I had to walk past the alley that ran behind the building. No sooner had I approached it than I felt that cool, undead presence. Arys was down there.

I debated leaving the brightly lit lot and entering the darkened alley. Two guys whistled at me as they walked to their car, but I paid them little attention. My mind focused only on that cold energy drawing me in. That centuries-old power seemed to beckon to me on the still night air.

I have a natural distrust of alleys. They're not known for their safety. They are too dark with too many shadows to hide in. Anything, vampire or other, with any kind of psychic ability, can shield its energy. In effect, it can make as if it weren't even there and leave its victim unaware. What a big bad wolf I was, afraid of the dark. However, Arys was down there, which a.s.sured me that nothing else was.

I moved silently forward. I could feel Arys in the blackness. I had gone halfway down when another alley intersected, and the scent of fresh blood pulled me to the left. I wasn't surprised to find him draped in the shadows with a woman clutched tightly in his grasp.

Even in the dark, I could see the whites of her eyes as she struggled. He held her immobile, and my heart paused when her gaze landed on me. I was still yards away, but she saw me clearly as her vampire-induced disorientation loosened its hold. She gave a strangled cry, and Arys clamped a hand over her mouth. As she whimpered, I stood frozen, unable to come to her aid as she hoped. If anything, my presence only excited the vampire more.

Arys's pupils were a drowning black. His mouth was smeared with blood as he drank from her jugular. I should have been sickened, but I wasn't. Had becoming a supernatural creature made me immune to human suffering? Not entirely.

The fear in her wide-eyed stare bothered me more than her fading life. My own reaction to the scene bothered me more. Despite my own personal beliefs and born humanity, I am a predator, and in that moment, I enjoyed what I saw. The scent of spilt human blood tantalized my senses. The sight of the crimson splashes stirred things low inside me.

As the light began to fade from his victim's eyes, she ceased struggling and hung loose in his embrace like a forgotten rag doll. I watched in complete silence until she was nothing but an empty husk, and her vacant, dead gaze stared over his shoulder at me.

Arys stepped back and let her hit the ground with a thud that dropped my stomach to my knees. "Did you enjoy the show?" He wiped a hand across his full lips, and his tongue flicked over his crimson-smeared fang-teeth. "I always appreciate an audience." The predatory glow in his eyes began to fade as he came towards me.

"I see you've been a busy boy tonight," I commented casually, though I couldn't deny the rapid beat of my heart.

"Yeah, well, they're good for more than just one thing." He cast a glance back at the body, and I got an unwelcome visual of the vampire making love to the woman that now lie dead. He'd taken her to his bed, possessed her body, and enjoyed her heat, but intended all along to take it away.

The human side of me was shocked that I wasn't more appalled at Arys's nonchalance. He spoke like those guys in high school, the ones that most girls fall for before they realize their mistake. Though the wolf in me did not take life from its lovers, it did, however, appreciate his predator logic.

I swallowed heavily, suddenly apprehensive and too aware of the sweet scent of blood drying on the corpse. I'd never thought that I'd feel threatened by Arys, but I decided that maybe I should.

I knew that Arys killed with discretion. Vampires do not have to kill to survive. However, feeding without the kill was like s.e.x without the o.r.g.a.s.m, according to my colleague, Kale Sinclair. It explained why some vampires just quit giving a d.a.m.n.

Arys watched me with cool blue eyes and a curious expression on his forever-young face. "What's your deal, Alexa? What brings you on a vampire hunt tonight?"

"I was just pa.s.sing by. I felt you down here." I licked my dry lips, and my head filled with visions of tearing into warm flesh. I could almost sense blood, hot on my tongue, as its intoxicating scent filled my nostrils. I wanted to consume the life within the girl's blood. I shook my head, and my vision cleared. "You shouldn't be killing in town. It's dangerous."

"Let me worry about that, my lovely wolf." Arys studied me hard, and I wondered if he somehow knew what I'd just seen. With a hand on my back, he guided me out of the alley towards the glow of the light. "But, I am curious what had you hot footing it out of here so fast last night."

I told him about Raoul as we walked, giving him my best rant, one that would have been wasted on Kylarai and Shaz. The energy of his fresh kill buzzed around Arys, which gave me goose b.u.mps and a constant tingle down my spine.

"You shouldn't have gone to him."

"I know. I thought maybe he was in real trouble. Lord knows why I'd even care."

"I certainly don't see why you do. Every time you give him a chance, he lets you down. There is so much more out there. Why limit yourself?" He laid a warm hand on my forearm and gave a gentle squeeze. I couldn't mistake the meaning of his words nor deny the warm heat that rose to meet his touch.

My breath caught as his energy danced along my skin and raised the little hairs on the back of my neck. His magnetic pull remained familiar, but the flow was different. The living, breathing power of my wolf rushed to the surface to meet the dark, icy power of the undead. If Arys's sharp gasp was any indication, he was as surprised as I was.

His hand moved down my arm until he had entwined his fingers in mine. With this more solid connection, our two very different powers joined into one that took my breath away. A warm glow hummed all around us. Pleasure raced through my blood, and I wanted more. Arys's pupils dilated in response. I could feel him peering into my soul.

I felt him in my head, a gentle touch on my mind. In the same moment, we shared a thought, a memory. He saw through my wolf's eyes as she raced through the forest, answering the call of the night. b.l.o.o.d.y images flashed through my head and the rush of sinking fangs into a soft, slender neck entranced me.

I wanted more. I wanted to climb inside him and roll around in all of that power. He took a step and closed the remaining s.p.a.ce between us. The heat grew into a fever, something I fought to escape before it consumed me.

"Arys, stop." With all my resolve, I pulled my hand from his and shoved him back. He blinked at me a few times but didn't step out of my personal s.p.a.ce.

"That was amazing. I would never have guessed you could do that," he said. The look he gave me was undeniably full of desire.

"I didn't do anything," I stammered. He wasn't buying it.

"I knew you were more than a shifter, but I didn't realize how much more. This is more than a human's natural ability." His expression was serious, but he sounded drunk. The energy had buzzed me, too. It continued to throb through my veins. "You're a metaphysical dream, Alexa. I've known vampires like you, but never one whose mortal heart still beats."

"I'm not a vampire, though. I don't need to take from others to survive."

"Your energy calls like something that has never been human. It seeks something from me." He shook his head in wonder but never took his eyes off me.

"The energy, it's not always sensual," I offered lamely. I didn't know what to say, and I was feeling very ill at ease.

"No?" Arys raised an eyebrow, but a satisfied grin spread across his handsome features.

I did my best to fight the blush that crept across my cheeks. My face felt hot, and I wanted to offer any lame excuse just so I could escape the sudden awkwardness.

"Arys, I have to go. Duty calls." Not exactly a lie, but he looked at me like he knew d.a.m.n well I was making a getaway.

I had to, though. He shared so many of my abilities, and my power seemed to really like him. The metaphysical attraction had been progressing over time, and I didn't fully trust myself around him anymore.

Needless to say, I skipped the sirloin steak dinner that I'd been antic.i.p.ating. I made up for it by stopping by Swiss Chalet to grab a delicious chicken dinner on my way to see Lena.

She's one of just two humans that Veryl works with. She's a natural witch and a truly amazing spell caster. Lena was white witch to the core. All of her spell casting focused on things like healing, strength and protection.

Lena helped me learn how to focus, to concentrate. Without that, I couldn't control the outcome. She taught me plenty of tricks for both accessing and grounding excess energy. Without her, I would most likely still be a b.u.mbling fool with little control or skill.

A few times a month, Lena and I got together to work with energy. As a spell caster, her manipulation usually required the use of an object as a conductor and storage point whereas I tend to be my own conductor. Though she uses the energy in a different way than I do, we call and manipulate it the same way.

I truly enjoyed the time we spent on focal exercises and female bonding. Lena reminded me a little of my mom, and I valued our relationship.

The office building we all used as a base was dark, except for the one light that blazed in the kitchen, where Lena was making tea. We'd have the place to ourselves, which was just as well considering we were going to be playing with energy.

"Good evening, Lena," I called from the entryway so I wouldn't startle the older lady.

"Hey Alexa, how's it going?" She smiled up at me when I entered the room. Her eyes sparkled, and she looked at least a decade younger than her fifty-three years.

"Pretty good. How about yourself?"

"Great, thank you. Just fixing a cup of herbal tea. Care for some?" Her long, dark blonde hair hung in a French braid to her waist.

"No. Thank you, though," I said as I dug into my Swiss Chalet bag. "You're not hungry, are you?"

"Oh, heavens no. I ate an entire pumpkin pie by myself for dinner." She patted her small belly as if it were enormous.

"How's the shop keeping going?" I asked. Lena owns a small magic shop on Whyte Avenue, in Edmonton, where she sells all kinds of neat new age gear, magic books, and trinkets.

"It's great. I had to hire a part-time girl to help out a few times a week."

"That's awesome. Good for you."

I sat at the table and chatted with her while I chowed down on chicken, potato and veggies. Dinner wasn't quite as succulent as a rare steak, but it was still d.a.m.n good. After a long moment of quiet satisfaction, I gathered my garbage together and headed for the silver trashcan.

I asked, "So what have you got for me today?"

"Just some of the focal exercises from last time. I don't think there's much more that I can show you. You're a natural anyway."

"Aw, that's sweet of you to say." My cheeks warmed in response to her compliment.

She shrugged. "You've such an uncanny ability. Some of us have to work really hard to achieve what comes so naturally to you." She studied me thoughtfully, and I paused in mid-motion as I dug a piece of gum from my purse.

"What?" I asked when her brow furrowed in one of those worried looks that only a mother can wear.

She shook her head, and her braid moved like it was alive. "I don't know dear. I do hope you're careful though."

Lena often expressed concern for me. In our world, no shortage of things can get you killed. Power and ability are just two of many.

"I'm always careful, Lena." I tried to smile rea.s.suringly, but she dismissed my phony attempt.

"Seriously, Alexa. Don't let too many people know what you can do. It's far better to be underestimated."

I knew that firsthand. However, the real danger was those with similar abilities. I can't hide my psi abilities from others with the same.

I leaned against the kitchen counter and crossed my arms over my chest. I watched as Lena pulled a small, blue velvet bag from her jeans pocket. She reached inside and withdrew a small green gem that I couldn't identify. Lena had more charms and amulets than I had hair on my head.

"I'm just going to draw a small circle on the floor so I can energize these charms." She shook two more gems out of the bag, one ocean blue and the other a deep purple.

She poured salt straight from the box on to the floor, which enclosed her in a protection circle large enough to sit in comfortably. I never joined her within it. Since I'd become a werewolf, I wanted nothing to do with that magical cage. Something in my wolf nature shied away from the magic of others. It gave me a strong sense of discomfort that grew with the unnaturalness of the intended result. Of course, I use metaphysical walls on others. I just don't want them used on me.

She told me once that she doesn't like being inside the salt circle either, due to claustrophobia, but it would keep her safe if something bad detected her magic and decided to drop by.

"What should I do?" I asked. I frowned at a splash of dipping sauce on the inside of my wrist. "You have nothing new for me?" I pursed my lips and watched as she laid the three charms on the floor so that they formed a large triangle.

"Why don't you work on that touchless psi ball again? You did far better than me." I had created a bigger ball than Lena, but at the size of a grape, I hardly found it to be brag worthy.

The no touch energy ball had taken a lot out of me. It involved creating the ball without the use of hands. The mind-only ball was much easier said than done. The fingertips are an especially sensitive tool in a psi exercise, a key factor in most energy conduction that united the body and the mind in creation. To do it with the mind alone was both uber advanced and d.a.m.ned hard.

"That was a h.e.l.l of a task." I held my breath when she wiggled her fingers above the purple gem.

The energy she drew into her circle hummed on the air. She whispered a word of Latin as the stone began to glow.

"What are you doing to them?" I nodded toward the colorful stones.

She held up a finger to indicate she needed a moment of concentration. I took the hint and left my next question unvoiced. I knew better than to chatter away when someone was trying to focus. Jez was famous for it.

Instead, I returned to the small round table. I pulled the wooden chair out with a sc.r.a.pe and angled it toward the front entry rather than Lena. I closed my eyes, cleared my thoughts, and took a deep breath. I actually put my hands behind my back, to resist the urge to use them. As I simply tuned in to my surroundings, I could feel the power that Lena had called p.r.i.c.kle along my skin like pins and needles.