B007XKEWAE EBOK (32 page)

The human thought better of it and started to walk past Fulton.

"Not that way," the vampire doorman said. He unfolded one arm and pointed with his thumb that the human should walk along the far side of the warehouse away from the queue.

Francesca released her hold on Fulton's and Gabriella's hands and took an extra step forwards.

"We don't take kindly to cutters," the vampire said folding it's arms back across its chest.

Fulton hoped there wasn't going to be any trouble. Even with his vampire strength he wasn't sure he could take a human who was built like this guy. Taking on a vampire built like that would be akin to playing chicken with a freight-train.

Francesca moved in closer to the vampire and stretched up on her tiptoes. The vampire still had to lower his head down a lot to hear what she whispered. When she was done Francesca resumed a normal standing position and the other vampire straightened up and waved them past.

Once they were inside Fulton turned to Francesca, "What did you say to him?"

"I reminded him of a favour I once did for the guy who runs this place."

"What sort of a favour?"

Francesca gave him a mischievous smile, the poor lighting in the small antechamber glinted in her dark eyes. "A lady never tells."

Fulton raised an eyebrow, "Since when did you become a lady?"

"Touché," Francesca said, "I'll tell you all about it some other time."

Gabriella had moved a couple of steps ahead of them during their exchange and walked through the door at the end of the anteroom and into the club proper. A set of stairs led up to a second floor from immediately beside the entrance. Unlike the other vampire club Fulton had been in this one didn't have a stage. Instead the entire circumference of the club was a raised section about five metres wide with a waist high rail running around the edge next to the main floor,
except for the points where a series of steps led down onto that main floor.

The main floor itself was about a metre below the level of the raised section that went around the perimeter. Both the main floor and the raised section around the edge were crowded with humans and vampires. Unlike the last club there were no human captives in cages or chained up anywhere else. He asked Francesca about it and she told him that the upper floor was used for much the same sort of thing as the upstairs of the other club he had been to. She pointed to a double door a quarter of the way around the perimeter on his left and handed him a little money, Fulton folded the notes and put them in the inside pocket of his long coat.

"Food is through there and they charge for it."

Gabriella tugged on Francesca's arm. She had moved so she was on the bottom step of the stairs and when Francesca turned her head to look at her she nodded upwards. Francesca looked back at Fulton. "Have fun," she said starting up the stairs.

"I'm sure
you
will," Fulton replied his eyes locked on Gabriella's.

Gabriella stared back at him but she was the first to break contact when Francesca passed her.

Fulton watched them all the way up until they passed another burly looking vampire who was keen to let them past.

When the door closed behind them and the vampire standing beside it started to give him a funny look Fulton
decided it was time to mingle. Mentally taking a deep breath he started down the steps in front of him and plunged into the mass of bodies out on the main floor. The music that emanated from speakers mounted on the ceiling and built into the base of the raised section blasted out something that Fulton guessed would be called nu-metal-goth or something like that.

Fulton was just working up the courage to talk to one of the dancers when a feminine hand touched his shoulder. He got a whiff of a familiar scent and then she spoke in an equally familiar voice.

"Fancy finding you here."

Fulton whirled around removing his shoulder from under her hand. His coat flapped out behind him as he turned.

"What are you doing here?"

The young human girl regarded him with wide eyes surrounded by thick black circles of make-up. The rest of her face was hidden beneath a thick layer of white make-up. Her lips had been painted blood red, trickles of a fluid which had the appearance of blood but smelled nothing like it traced down from the corners of her mouth and dripped off her chin. Some of the fake blood then landed in the gap created by the black PVC top between her breasts as it pushed them up. The fake blood then ran down between them. She had painted the exposed parts of her body and arms in the same white make-up as her face.

The girl noticed his eyes following the trail of pseudo-blood and she smiled displaying normal human teeth.

"You didn't think I was really scared by your act, did you?" she said.

Fulton nodded.

The girl laughed, "Silly." Her face turned serious.

"When you didn't come after me I went back to the club to look for you but there was some trouble."

"That would have been me," Fulton said.

"Ooh, a bad boy. I like that. Anyway, ever since then I've been checking out loads of these clubs looking for you."

Fulton didn't know what to say to that. He had hoped that he had managed to scare the girl enough to make her return to her home or at least look for
somewhere else to get herself sorted. At  the very least he had hoped to put her off this vampire fetish. But that had been the old Fulton, why should he try to put her off what she was so sure she wanted. Especially when he could get something out of it as well.

"Well here I am," he said moving closer to her. "Why don't we get back to where we should have gone then."

The girl hesitated and tilted her head back to look up at him, "You seem different."

Fulton put his arms around her back and put his hands on her behind. He pulled her closer so that their bodies were pressed together.

"Different in a bad way?"

"Hell no," she replied. "I'm different too. I think I'm ready to do this properly. You know, go upstairs."

Although she was trying to sound sure of herself the slight quaver in her voice and the doubt on her face were easy for Fulton to identify. But this time he wasn't going to let petty residual human emotions guide him. She said she wanted to, he did want to, so he was going to.

"Come on then."

He took hold of her hand and headed back the way he had come. The vampire watching the door at the top of the stairs gave the girl a full once over.

"Not worth the two you came in with but very nice. And unspoiled as well, good choice," he said.

Fulton didn't answer he just pushed past dragging the girl after him.

"What did he mean? What other two?" the girl asked.

"I came here with my sire and her lover," Fulton answered not even having to lie.

The upstairs section of this club contained the same sounds as the other Fulton had attended, an assortment of moans and groans, slaps of leather and rattling chains and other sounds he couldn't immediately identify but which his imagination provided an assortment of images to go with them. Unlike the last club this one had been divided up into a series of separate areas by hospital style curtains and rails, giving at least a little privacy. Although some of the silhouettes they could see as they walked between
the curtained cubicles left nothing to the imagination.

Fulton found an empty cubicle and pulled the girl in behind him. He released her hand so she could pull the curtain closed behind them while he looked around. There was a low bed up against the back wall at about shin height. The mattress and sheets were well worn, still ruffled and stained from the last occupant's use. Assorted sexual accoutrements and toys were strewn on the floor having spilled out of a torn cardboard box in the corner. Also on the back wall located at varying heights above the bed were a series of metal hoops linked by metal chains and leather straps. Fulton guessed that there were at least a few cubicles or another room where the furnishings were of a higher
standard since he couldn't really see Francesca or Gabriella putting up with this.

"Shall we get started?" the girl offered.

Looking at her standing there waiting for him to use her, desperate that it would somehow make her feel better or give her a better life, Fulton felt a resurgence of the feelings that had made him try to help her that first time. The feelings only strengthened when she started to undress. She made the process totally mechanical as if it was a chore she had to complete. There was no expression on her face the whole time she stripped, except at the end when she removed her final item of underwear when her face was clouded by a mask of
hopelessness. As if she couldn't believe how low she had sunk.

Taking a deep breath and plastering a false smile on her face the girl looked up at Fulton and gave him a slow twirl.

Fulton closed off his emotions. They were only a remnant of his old weakness, since he had joined Francesca he had gone past all that. Maybe they were why Gabriella had been so quick to forget what there could have been between them. Francesca never showed weakness, she was sure of herself and what she was. That was how Fulton should be.

He took hold of the girl by her slender shoulders and thrust her down onto the bed. Instead of being turned off by the unkempt surroundings he viewed them as an outward expression of how
he should feel. He should revel in the depravity.

Fulton stood above the girl as she waited nervously spread-eagle on the bed. She looked almost as though she would throw up. Fulton unbuckled his belt and dropped his trousers and boxer shorts.

"So now are you going to turn me?"

Fulton had finished with the girl and was stepping back into his trousers. Now that it was over the girl seemed relieved. She had gone through her trial and now it was time for her reward. She pushed herself up and approached Fulton tentatively.

"I gave you what you wanted, now I want you to make me like you. I want to live forever."

She pushed her hand up Fulton's chest under his shirt. "We can be together forever," she whispered using her other hand to brush her hair aside as she tilted her head to expose her neck.

Did Fulton want to be with her forever. Francesca had Gabriella why couldn't he have a little slut for himself. He could use her when he wanted and if
he did get bored with her he could always get rid of her.

Fulton knew that the whole idea of forcing someone else to endure a life like his should have been abhorrent to him. It still felt that way but he had given up living by his feelings. They were what guided him when he was weak but now he was past that.

"Are you sure you know what you are asking for?"

Why was he still hesitating he should just get on with it.

"I'm sure," the girl answered just loud enough for him to hear."

Fulton let his face transform. His jaw shifted to accommodate his fangs, his brow shifted and his nose was pulled up and back. He liked the tips of his fangs
and bent his head forwards. The scent of the girl made his head swim.

He couldn't go through with this.

He put his fangs to the smooth skin of her neck and applied pressure. The resistance gave way when his fangs punctured the skin and sank easily the rest of the way into her flesh. Her warm blood pulsed out of the wound filling his mouth. The girl let a quiet moan of pleasure escape her lips.

Fulton gulped the liquid down until the torrent was reduced to a trickle. The girl's pulse was weak as her heart tried to pump a greatly reduced amount of blood through her body. Reluctantly releasing her Fulton held the girl upright with his left hand. He brought his right hand up and used his fangs to open a wound into the veins on his wrist. He spat his own
blood away and presented the wound to the girl.

He had to press his wrist up against her mouth and hold it there for her. For a moment she didn't move and Fulton wondered if he had drained her too fully. Then he felt the tip of her tongue  searching the wound. In the next instant she had latched onto his arm of her own accord and was sucking his blood desperately, like a woman lost in a scorching desert presented with a fresh water fountain.

When she was done Fulton guided her on to the bed and let her lay there while she recovered. No, recovered was the wrong word, she would never recover from what he had done to her. Fulton ignored the guilt he felt. Transformed was
a better word. She was going to be transformed into a superior being.

Fulton left her in the cubicle closing the curtain behind himself. He waited outside and couldn't  help but listen to the sounds coming from the other cubicles. Through the cacophony of noise he could still make out the familiar sounds of Francesca and Gabriella together. They were really going at it in there. Fulton flushed hot and stalked towards the door. He needed a break.

"Just getting some air," he told the vampire on the door. "I'm letting the girl get her breath back as well before I give her some more."