Demonspawn (29 page)

She laughed. “Call me Victoria, please.
Vickie just sounds, blah.”

I laughed too. “Okay.”

The TV was on in the far corner. Again, I
thought that was strange. I knew Victoria would say I watched too
many movies. I guessed vampires didn't watch TV. They spent all
their time seducing people for blood and roaming the night. But
here was Victoria, watching TV.

“You want something to drink?”

She went to a tiny fridge and pulled out a
bottled water. I looked at it, then at her. She nearly read my mind
and rolled her eyes.

“There's no blood in this fridge,” she said.
“Man, I'm not that weird. Here.”

She sat on the couch. I sat in the chair
across from her, the same positions when I was first here.

“So what brings you here?” she asked. “I
never
have company, so this is nice.”

I looked down for a second, still feeling a
little foolish for even coming to Victoria's house. “I just needed
a friend to talk to. We
are
friends, right?”

“Sure. I have to say I've never had a man
with demon blood for a friend before. What's up?”

“Sadly, woman problems.”

She nodded and smiled. “And I thought we were
gonna talk about something supernatural. Again, I like this. I
guess we're talking about Cindy?”

I frowned. “That obvious?”

“Yup. I saw it about ten seconds after I
first saw you two. Little clues. Body language, facial
expressions.”

“Well, how does she feel about me?”

“I don't know.”

I rolled my eyes. I took that as a polite way
of saying “not the same as you”.

“Well, I'm not really sure, Alex. I spent
most of my time studying you. She thinks you're attractive, I can
tell you that. Shit,
I
think you're attractive. If you
weren't so hung up on her you'd be in that bed right behind
us.”

I glanced at the king-sized bed in the middle
of the basement. “Can vampires have sex?”

“Would you like to find out?”

I turned red. “Uh, no thanks. But don't take
that the wrong way. You're gorgeous.”

She laughed. “You're definitely a rare one. I
wonder if it's the demon in you.”

I was starting to hate that word.

“I was born back when black people were only
three-fifths of a person,” she said. “It's nice to see people like
you not caring about race.”

“Well, too bad it's only one way. She just
sees me as a friend.”

“She told you this?”

“Nope. And I'm not gonna ask, either.”

“Why not?”

I laughed a little. “Victoria, even if she
did have feelings for me, do you think she could really date
this?”

I stood up and lifted my shirt. My wings grew
from my back. I extended them fully, nearly touching her basement
wall, then folded them up behind me. It was amazing how huge they
were. But when I folded them, they took up almost no room. After
giving her a good look I willed them to disappear, and they shrank
once again into my back.

She smirked. “Hey, I'd date a guy with wings.
That would make for some fun sex.”

I was finally starting to feel at ease around
her. “What a thought.”

“I'm just saying. I've fallen in love with
vampires
and
humans. No reason why it's gotta be different
for you. Alex, it took me a
long
time to get used to being a
vampire. I'm not trying to belittle what you got going on, but for
us, we go from being human to suddenly being very much in danger
from the sun. We stop eating and drinking
everything
, and
now it's blood only. Having to reverse your sleep, stay inside like
a prisoner for twelve hours a day, and watching everyone you care
about age while you don't. Hell, I thought I'd lose my mind for
sixty years or so. So if you're the product of some supernatural
accident, and the only problem you got is woman problems, I'd say
you're doing okay.”

I absorbed what she said for a moment and
smiled. “Thanks, Victoria. You're right. Thanks for listening to me
bitch.”

“Anytime. Least I can do for pulling an arrow
out of my chest. Anyway, the answer to your problem is simple. Just
tell her what's up.”

“You sound like my sister.”

“Alicia. Smart girl.”

I laughed. I
did
feel better, although
I had no plans of listening to her or Alicia's advice.

We talked and watched a little TV for about a
half hour. It was relaxing, and I admit it helped take my mind off
Cindy. I never would have thought in a million years I would have a
vampire for a friend.

It was around eleven when her cell phone on
the end table rang. She picked it up and excused herself. I watched
TV alone for about five minutes when she hung up and put a hand on
my shoulder.

“You up for a little ride?” she asked me.

“Where to?”

“The city. Just got a call from my cop buddy,
William. He needs a little help.”

I stood up. “You help the cops?”

She nodded and I followed her across the
basement. “Every now and then. I actually own a few businesses
across the states. But if William has something going on that looks
like it might be supernatural, I'll lend a hand. And of course he
pays me.”

“I'm almost afraid to ask, but like
what?”

“Well, if a vampire or werewolf goes a little
crazy and starts killing people.”

“We have werewolves in Maryland?”

“Yup.”

What a thought.

We rode her car into the city. Looked like a
brand new Porsche, with a folded down soft-top. I knew there
wouldn't be anything I could contribute to help the police. It
didn't take me long to figure out where we were going. Traffic
started to back up, and it wasn't because of the normal reasons. We
could see a crowd on the sidewalk not too far ahead, with a cop in
the middle of the road directing traffic.

Victoria parked her car and I walked next to
her.

“William didn't give me much on the phone,
but there might be a body up ahead. You okay with that?”

I flashed back to my quick trip to the demon
world. I thought I could handle a single body.

We pushed our way through the crowd until we
got to a yellow police tape barrier. A cop was also there. He gave
Victoria a quick look up and down, then looked back at the crowd.
About twenty yards away we could see a black sheet in the middle of
the street. Cops were everywhere and seemed to be gathering
evidence. Victoria searched the scene until she found what she was
looking for. Her eyes locked on a guy probably in his mid thirties
talking to a uniformed cop. She waved at him. William Sloane.

“William! Over here!”

He looked over and approached us. He looked
like he'd seen a lot of bad things in his life. He walked slowly,
as if he couldn't be bothered to walk fast. He was a big guy, but
his shoulders were slumped as if he were tired. Slightly graying
hair, steel blue eyes. He tried to smirk as he drew closer, but it
didn't quite come off right.

“Victoria. Thanks for coming.”

“No problem, William.”

He winced. “Fuckin' call me Bill. I hate
William.”

She ignored him. “What do we got here?”

“Come see for yourself.”

He held the police tape up for her. I
followed, but Bill put a hand on my chest.

“Relax,” Victoria said. “He's with me.”

“Ah. Is he a-?” He didn't finish the
sentence.

“No, he's not.”

Bill gave us both some kind of pass, I guess
to identify us to other cops. The three of us approached the black
sheet. I felt my heart beat a little harder with each step. But
that was it. If it had been a year ago I might have thrown up. It's
scary that the sight of my first dead body didn't affect me that
much.

Bill leaned down and pulled the sheet back.
Young guy, in his twenties, lying there dead on his back. He stared
up with a blank expression and his eyes wide open. His skin was
pale white. He looked normal enough. He wore a tee-shirt and
bluejeans.

Although it was hard not to notice the bite
marks on his neck.

Victoria saw them too, and made a sound of
disgust.

“Shit,” she said. She knelt down to study
closer. Then she actually put her nose to the man's neck and
started sniffing.

“Tell me it's not what I think it is,” Bill
said.

“Oh, it's what you think.”

“Damn,” he said. “When the hell does your
kind start attacking in the middle of the street? We haven't got a
single witness yet. This whole thing just bugs the shit out of
me.”

“Has the body been touched?”

“Nope. What you see is what you get
here.”

Victoria started sniffing up and down the
body like a bloodhound. It didn't take a genius to see that
obviously vampires had strong noses. Her face stopped just above
the man's ankle.

She pulled his pants leg up to reveal another
set of bite marks.

“What the hell?” she said.

Bill looked at me with confusion. I was worse
off than he was. I had no clue of what was going on.

“Two vampires?” Bill said.

“Yeah.”

He shrugged. “And that's weird?”

“Very weird. This has all the signs of a
newborn. But that doesn't make any sense.”

I looked at her. “Newborn?”

“Newborn vampire. I'll explain later.”

She was quiet for a moment, continuing to
study the area. Another cop came over and pulled Bill to the side,
so Victoria and I stood there over the dead body.

I didn't think I had anything to offer
Victoria, but as I stood there something ate at me. Something was
bothering me, and I couldn't figure out what it was. Some detail
that I couldn't quite see, but I knew was there.

“People just don't get bit and turn into
vampires,” Victoria said, leaning close to my ear. “There's a lot
of different factors. Blood type, heredity. So believe it or not,
vampires are rare.”

I nodded. “So two newborns are
extra
rare?”

“You catch on fast. Exactly. Something isn't
right.”

“Okay. How do you know newborns did
this?”

“Just a feeling. A seasoned vampire, like
yours truly, will never be seen, and would never leave a body. This
strikes me as a newborn, crazy and out of control for blood. And
two sets of bites, well, you can add.”

“Did
you
kill anyone when you were
first turned?”

She gave me a look. She may have said we were
friends, but it was obvious she didn't appreciate the question.
“No, I didn't.”

I left it at that.

She searched the street. “Okay, so two
newborns wake up somewhere around here. They're confused and
thirsty. They attack someone in the middle of the street and kill
him. Their senses kick in after that, their humanity. They need to
run. Their instincts tell them somewhere dark and safe.” Her eyes
fell on something and she smiled. “Like right there.”

She pointed over the crowd to a corner
butcher shop on the other side of the street. The place was closed,
like all the other small shops nearby.

“A butcher shop?” I said.

“Yup. Shit, I can smell the blood all the way
over here.” She gestured to Bill. “William! We'll be in touch. I'll
call you tomorrow.”

“You better,
Vickie
.”

She talked to me as we pushed through the
crowd and crossed the street.

“William is a good man. I met him when he was
a rookie. He's actually saved my life a few times. Typical stupid
cop. Married to the job. I've tried to get him over the house a few
times just to watch a movie, but he won't.”

I shook my head. “I still have trouble seeing
you sitting on the couch watching TV.”

“I only go out to feed. When I first saw you
I thought you were another vampire, moving in on my territory. It
was only when I heard your heartbeat that I knew you weren't.”

“I still don't know what I am.”

“And you probably never will. Get used to
that, Alex. Accept that, and live your life. Don't throw years away
searching for an answer that might not be there.”

I nodded behind her, and realized something.
Victoria was suddenly my mentor. Also, there was something personal
in her words. I wondered if she had searched for an answer she
couldn't find.

Without another word we stopped in front of
the butcher shop. Victoria studied it for a moment and stared into
the darkened storefront. She walked around the side and circled
toward the rear of the place. I was a step behind her. The back
door was open.

She gave me a smirk and nodded. “Jackpot.”
She lifted her head and sniffed around the door.

“Smell anything?” I asked.

“Just a lot of meat and blood. I'm not gonna
be able to pinpoint anything in here. So be careful.”

“It's a little dark.”

“That's okay. I can see in the dark.”

I felt foolish. So could I, and I had
forgotten.

As soon as we stepped inside the first thing
I noticed was the smell. It was horrible. I wasn't sure if a
butcher's shop normally smelled like that or not. Victoria didn't
seem bothered by it at all, which was amazing considering her nose
was stronger than mine. I gagged a few times, and Victoria gave me
a strong look and put a finger to her lips.

It was pitch black, but I willed the darkness
to vanish, and the light gray swirled in. Over a few seconds
objects and shapes came into focus. A table with cleavers hanging
from the side. Large freezers. A door that led into an office. A
set of double doors that led to the front of the store.

Victoria continued to sniff the air.

“Smell anything yet?” I whispered.

She shook her head.

She stared at the office door for a second,
then walked past it to the double doors. She pushed them open
slowly and searched the room before moving another inch.

I saw movement in the corner, near the locked
front door.