Ashes of the Day (12 page)

That’s not what happened. Instead he’d come home, locked himself in his room, and emerged a surprisingly short while later looking like this.

She glanced at him again. “I don’t understand. How is this supposed to help?”

Damian quirked one perfectly plucked eyebrow at her. “Did you not complain last night that none of the rest of us could understand the difficulties you faced as a woman?”

Julie’s jaw clenched. Was he making fun of her? “Yes. I did. And you still don’t.” Dressing up like this was interesting, but it was
not
the same.

Damian nodded. “Very true. But at least I’m trying,
chica
. I’m walking a mile in your shoes tonight, if you will, in an effort to show you what can be done with them.”

“What can be done…with shoes?”

“Indeed.” Damian paused and stuck out one foot. The graceful wave he sketched at the fuck-me heel put Julie in mind of a game show hostess. “On the foot of a woman who knows what she’s doing, this shoe is a formidable weapon.”

“If you say so.” Julie glanced skeptically at the pump.

Damian laughed softly and reclaimed her arm. “You’ll see,” he promised as they resumed walking.

There was a fey light burning in his eyes; Julie wasn’t sure she trusted it. Even his smile seemed a little too savage, a little too eager.
His smile? Her smile?
“I don’t even know what to call you when you’re dressed like this.”

Damian’s smile softened. “I’m still the same person I’ve always been,
chica
.”

“I guess.” Julie cast another glance at Damian’s ensemble. “How’d you even know how to do all this?” Maybe he could give her some tips.

Daman shrugged. “Ah, well, as to that. This isn’t exactly the first time I’ve…experimented with different looks.”

Yeah, she’d believe that all right. Glancing at their surroundings, Julie felt her stomach tighten into knots. Her steps slowed. Oh, crap. They were now only a couple of blocks from where she’d been attacked. She so did not want to be here tonight.

“Easy now,” Damian murmured. “Be brave,
mi cielo
.”

“M-maybe we should come back and do this some other time. I’m hungry, Damian. Can’t we just get something to eat and go home again?”

Damian shook his head. “I don’t think so,
chiquita
. It’s much like falling off a horse. Some things are made worse by taking time to think about them. It’s best to get back on immediately.” Damian tightened his grip on her arm and drew her along, gently but firmly. “There’s nothing for you to fear tonight. I have everything under control. It will be all right. You’ll see.”

Julie frowned as a new thought occurred to her. “Did you get dressed up like this just to distract me from where we were going?”

Damian gazed back at her. A playful smile flirted with his lips. “I wouldn’t say entirely, but that may have played a part. And it’s not as though I didn’t tell you where we were going. Now, come. It’s time to pay a call on the men who upset
mi
niña linda
.”

It didn’t take long to find them. Unfortunately. Julie drew in a sharp breath as they rounded a corner and the scent in the air brought last night’s panic roaring back. She ground to a halt as she caught sight of the group congregating on the other side of the street. Five men, leaning on their cars and chatting, conveniently near the opening of the same alley they’d chased her into the night before.

“D,” she whispered, her voice suddenly hoarse as tremors coursed through her body. “Let’s go back. I don’t want to do this.”

Damian’s gaze slid over her, assessing her. “Now, now,
chica
. This is no time for second thoughts. You know I’m not fond of backing down from a fight, especially where
mis bebés
are concerned. So we will do what we came to do,
sí
?”

“No,” she protested as he pushed her gently into the entranceway of the closest storefront. The store was closed, of course, at this time of night, but Julie felt sheltered there, safer than she’d felt on the street. If they could only stay hidden there for a little while, invisible, until the men left or Damian changed his mind. “Let’s just stay here, okay?”

“That’s exactly what I want you to do. Stay right here and watch while I give your friends
una pequeña lección
. A little lesson. Can you do that for me?”

Julie’s heart raced wildly. She nodded, unable to speak. But she didn’t like this. Oh, she didn’t like it at all!

“
Bueno
.” Damian’s expression softened. “Ah,
belleza.
Te amo con todo mi corazón
. I love you with all my heart. You know this,
sí
?”

He kissed her on the forehead, then pulled back, his smile morphing instantly into a frown. “
¡Ai!
Lipstick,” he muttered as he rubbed her skin clean with his thumb. “Much better. Now, stay here until I tell you to come out. Understood?”

Julie nodded once again, even though she had no idea what she was agreeing to. She had the distinct impression there was something he was keeping from her, but what? And there was still that very strange gleam in his eyes—the one she didn’t trust at all.

Giving her a last wink, Damian smiled. Then he turned and crossed the sidewalk and stepped into the street, headed straight for the group of men. If Julie didn’t know him, she never would have guessed he wasn’t a woman. His steps were light. His hips swayed provocatively. Even the way he held himself was different, although that might have been due at least in part to the heels.

Julie watched as Damian strolled closer to the men. She quailed as they sighted him, straightening to attention even as Damian’s steps grew more hesitant. He stopped where he was, in the middle of the street, and let the men come to him. Words were exchanged. Julie knew she should be able to hear them—it was hardly that far, after all. Damian shook his head, probably in answer to something one of the men had said, but the words were lost. The buzzing rush of blood through Julie’s veins deafened her to anything else.

The men moved closer, stalking Damian like prey. The thought infuriated her. He wasn’t prey, damn it. And neither was she. “This is stupid,” she grumbled, nervously drumming her fingers on the cool glass of the store window. So what if Damian had instructed her to stay out of sight? She should be out there with him, there in the street, fighting her own battles. Damian lifted his head suddenly and laughed, as though he hadn’t a care in the world. Julie watched as the men stiffened, anger and disbelief displacing their smirks, their leers turning into thunderous scowls.
Oh, fucking hell.
They’d figured it out.

Enough is enough.
Never mind what Damian said about staying put. She didn’t need to stay hidden. She wasn’t afraid anymore. She was just good and pissed off.

She took a step back, away from the window, ready to join the fray when, without warning, a heavy weight slammed into her from behind. She was shoved face-first into the window. The glass stung her cheek as she struck it. It vibrated like a drumhead but miraculously stayed intact. The impact stunned her. Her eyes watered. She lost her breath.

“Goin’ somewhere, girly?” a voice rasped in her ear. “Didja really think we was gonna let you run? Or maybe you wanted to go and join your little fag friend? Come to think of it, maybe I should check. Make sure you ain’t one too.”

Fury rolled through Julie as the man pawed at her. She gasped for air, pulling in a deep breath.
Enough…is…enough!
An angry cry left her throat and she slammed her fist into the window. The glass shattered with a loud crack. Razor-sharp shards rained down upon them. The man holding her jerked back, still keeping a grip on her, pulling her with him—his last mistake. Julie stomped on his foot, her heel coming down hard on his instep as her training kicked in. Foot. Knee. Groin. She recited the words in her head, striking each target in turn.

He shrieked and groaned and doubled over. As he finally lost his hold on her, Julie spun around and grabbed him by the throat. Her training told her he was incapacitated now, it was time to run, but she was too…damned…mad. She snatched a piece of glass from the pavement then rose to her feet, pulling the man up with her, then pushing him against the nearest wall.

Fear was not going to make her decisions for her—not anymore. No one else was going to do it either, especially not this grubby man who’d just had his hands all over her. She was Vampire. And from here on out, she’d make her own damn decisions.

Julie eyed her captive angrily. She had one hand clenched around his neck, the other around the broken shard. He squirmed and struggled, until she raised the glass where he could see it. His eyes grew immense. He went glacier-still as she laid it across his throat. Only his gaze appeared to waver, tracking Julie’s every move. His eyes widened even more as they focused on the blood flowing over Julie’s wrist. Her blood, warm and thick, welling up from between her fingers.

There was a dull pain radiating from her hand. Julie knew she should drop the glass, but she could not make her taut muscles relax, couldn’t loosen her fingers, couldn’t make herself move. Part of her wanted to slit the man’s throat. Part of her thought that might be a mistake. Indecision held her immobile.

“Easy,
chica
.”

Damian
. Julie sighed in relief. For a moment—for several moments for that matter—she’d forgotten all about him. She felt a pang of guilt. “D. Are you okay?”

“Shhh. Of course. I’m fine.” His hand rubbed gentle circles on her back. “Let it go, child. You don’t want to kill him.”

Didn’t she? Julie wasn’t so sure. She managed to shake her head, the movement stiff, awkward, shaky.

“I’ve got him,” Damian murmured. Fisting one hand in the man’s hair, he used the other to gently pry Julie’s hand from the glass. “It’s over now. Why don’t you go and tend to your hand.”

“But…”

“I’ll take care of him,” Damian promised. He flashed an evil smile at the frightened man still pinned to the wall. “You may trust me on that count.”

Julie nodded. Turning away, she uncurled her hand and took a look. The cut was already healing. Normally, she’d want to lick it closed, just to make sure. But not while she had an audience. Instead, she ripped a piece of cloth from the hem of her dress—the garment was ruined now, anyway—and used it as a bandage, although that was mostly for show.

Curious, she glanced across the street. Five men lay strewn on the sidewalk or over their cars, as though they’d been thrown there. She’d bet anything that, in this case, looks weren’t deceiving. As far as she could tell, they were all alive. Just as well, she supposed.

“Let me go.” The plea came from the man still caught in Damian’s grip.

The sound of his voice pulled an angry snarl from Julie’s throat as she turned back around. She was still so mad, so hungry, so unsettled. She wanted justice, revenge…something. Her fangs ached for release. She huffed out a sigh. “I guess we have to release him, don’t we?”

“Not just yet we don’t.” Damian’s smile turned a shade crueler as he bent to whisper in the man’s ear. “Listen to me,
cabron
, it’s a shame I shall have to take so much of your memory. But there are two things I would have you never forget. Always remember that it was a little girl who bested you tonight and a faggot who saved your life.” Then he sank his fangs deep into the man’s neck, flooding him with venom until his struggles ceased and his knees sagged and his head lolled to the side.

Julie swallowed hard. She felt a heaving in her gut as she watched Damian savage the man. She couldn’t tell if she was excited or horrified—or horrified
because
she was excited.

Finally, Damian raised his head. His lips were a crimson smear as his eyes met Julie’s. This time, however, their color owed nothing to any type of cosmetic. A hard smile curved his lips and his eyes were filled with grim satisfaction. He nodded toward the unconscious man. “Come,
chica
, my little princess warrior. Come and taste your victory. You’ve earned it.”

Julie wrinkled her nose. Earned it? Yes, probably. But did she want it? “I’m not sure I’m hungry after all.”

Damian shrugged. “Do as you wish, but I should think you’d at least want to celebrate. Tonight, you’ve overcome your demons. Surely that merits a small toast?”

Put that way, how could she resist?

Trembling inside, Julie took her place next to Damian. The smell of fresh blood laced with venom hit her hard. Her fangs pulsed suddenly with want. It seemed at least one part of her was not undecided after all. She took a deep breath and bit. One swift bite, no different than the tens of thousands that had come before it. The way the flesh gave and tore as her fangs pierced through it—that, too, was nothing different. Ah, but the blood that filled her mouth,
that
was something new.

It held the flavor of fear, sharp and bitter, unlike any blood she’d ever tasted. She recognized it instinctively, however. She knew it immediately for what it was as it crackled in her veins like static. She couldn’t say she liked it, but after everything she’d been through, the fear and the anger, all the upsets of the evening, it was oddly satisfying. She drank deeper, chasing the odd flavor, rolling it around on her tongue. She still didn’t like it, not quite, but she could imagine getting used to it, just the same.

The stars were winking out when Julie and Damian finally returned home. Watching from the front window, Conrad studied the pair grimly as they approached. He was relieved to see them return. The cloth wrapped around Julie’s hand was somewhat ominous and as for Damian’s appearance… Well, he couldn’t even begin to address that subject. It dredged up memories, emotions, longings, fears, things better off forgotten.