Graveyard Shifts: A Pat Wyatt Novel (17 page)

It was my turn to be amused. “Oh,” I said with a small laugh, “I thought about the consequences.” I wasn’t going to let him bully me. “In fact, I’ve been thinking about them for a few days now. The truth is I’ve wanted to do that to him ever since I met him.” I knew I was pushing him over the edge. I could see it in his shoulders. And if he lunged at me, it would give me just another reason to shove a stake through his non-existent heart.

“He was
really
good,” I continued. “Granted his
dick
isn’t as big as yours, and he’s not as smooth and cunning as you are. But other than that, he was a great
fuck
.” My mother would not have approved of my choice of words, and I hated using that kind of language, even in the most strenuous situations. But it just felt too damn good to stick it to him like that.

Samuel’s face became inhuman. His eyes narrowed, with his brows pulled together, and his lips were a thin line. He hunched over like he was going to pounce on me, and his hands were balled up into fists, making the muscles in his shoulders and arms contract. “You do not know what you are saying,” he hissed.

“Oh,” I said with a smile, knowing that I was being a fool with a death wish, “I think I do. Actually, for the first time in a long time, I’m happy. And it’s not because of you. It’s because of that dog, as you so readily called him.” He hissed like a cat, and my eyes widened. “Don’t you hiss at me,” I snapped. “I’m not someone you can push around, mister. I’m your wife, not your golem.” I’d looked up a lot of information online after Mike left, and I found that some of the creature features were very interesting. A golem, for example, had to do whatever you told them or they would revert to their original state, which was usual rock, clay, or mud. So I was pretty confident that I knew what I was talking about.

“You belong to me,” he said, pounding his chest with his fist. “Me! Me! Me!” Every time he said the word, he punched himself as a male gorilla would if he was faced with a predator. “Both in body and soul! You will
not
talk to your master that way!”

“My
master
?” That struck a nerve. “How dare you. You don’t know me at all, do you? I’d rather die than spend one more second as your wife.”

“That can be arranged,” he hissed again, but this time it was a low throaty sound, and he exposed his fangs.

“Go ahead,” I hissed back. See, I told you. Death wish. “Do it! You know you want to,” I said, sweeping my hair from my neck. “Come on,” I taunted. “I have a nice juicy artery with your name on it. Can’t you hear it calling? Samuel. Samuel.” Now I know in the face of death, I should’ve been more tactful. But taunting him was too much fun. “That’s what you do with all your other girls, right?” I continued. “You suck them dry and then leave them for dead.

“You know what’s funny?” I said, dropping my hand. “I thought vampires were above all that. I thought that you were the smarter beings. Silly me.” I slapped my forehead with my palm. “I guess I was wrong.”

Samuel’s sneer faltered, and I knew he was at a loss. “We are smarter than you,” he said at last.

“Really?” I asked in my best valley girl voice, as I twirled my hair like a twelve-year-old. “Prove it.”

“What?” he asked caught off guard.

“Prove,” I said, cocking my head to the right, “it.” Then I cocked my head to the left, folding my arms.

He straightened up to his full high, looking down his nose at me. “No,” he snapped. “I do
not
have to prove anything to a whore.”

I laughed, wagging my finger at him. “That’s because this whore is right. A smart being would’ve made sure that he could satisfy his wife before he married her.”

It happened so fast that it was a blur. He rushed over to me and smacked me right across the face with his full vampire strength. The force of it pushed me to the floor, and I could feel that he’d split my lip wide open, the blood dripping onto my hand. I had to check my teeth with my tongue in order to see if they were all there. They were.

I glared up at him breathlessly. And he moved, quickly picking me up and pinning my arms to my sides. Then he leaned me backward, my hair falling away from my neck, as his fangs sank into me right below my jaw.

The pain was excruciating, and I almost blacked out. But he unhooked his teeth from my flesh, whispering in my ear, “I. Will. Make. You. Mine.” And when he sank his fangs deeper into my artery, I blacked out.

.

chapter

FIFTEEN

Something pulled me into a deep sleep, and when I woke up, I was in the middle of the graveyard, but this time it didn’t have a dream-like quality to it, so I knew I was there.

The first thing I did was stand up. After all, I couldn’t very well greet him lying on the ground, that’s for sure. So I waited on bated breath for him to come, noticing that someone had replaced my clothes with a flowing red dress made of silk. The sleeves were long, and it had with an empire waist and a train. The color was a fantastic contrast to the dark earth below my bare feet. My whole life I had wanted a dress like this one, and now I had it.

Shivering in the cold breeze, I smelled the rusty scent of the earth as my hair blew away from my face, flowing in long waves down my back. I just couldn’t believe that my loving husband had done all of this for me, just so I would feel welcome into his vampire family.

I looked around for him, but he was nowhere to be found. I thought back to all of the wonderful things that we did, from the first time we’d met to when I woke up in this magical place. I daydreamed about what had happened before my return to the graveyard. We’d made love so passionately that I never wanted to stop.

Wait…wasn’t that…? That wasn’t right. I thought maybe it was just my imagination for a minute, but I was pretty sure…we had made love, right?

Memories flashed in my head. Smiles. Sneers. Teeth…very sharp and pointed teeth. What did all of it mean? Maybe it was nothing. Then again…

I took a deep breath, trying to remember the whole day. Bits and pieces were gone, and they were replaced by other memories that were less vivid. They were a jumbled and blurry mess of thoughts and images. Then I thought back to the party. This had fuzzy parts too. I couldn’t remember…or was it that someone didn’t want me to?

The flashes came again. A hallway. Mike. Samuel. The painting called The Ivory Lady. Nothing was coherent, just rough film cuts reeling through my head. I thought that maybe it was the excitement of him coming to change me at any moment. Oh, how I wanted to change. Then a small voice in my head asked,
Do you?

That was ridiculous. I loved Samuel. “Ow!” Pain shot through my chest when I thought of…what was wrong with me?

I caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of my eye, and I turned to greet him. “Samuel,” I said with a smile as he came walking from behind the stark white tomb in all black. I thought of nothing else but him as he rushed over to me, placing his arms around my waist. “Oh, Samuel,” I sighed in his arms. Wait a minute. Why was I excited to see him?

He kissed me. “Oh, Pat. I love you so.”

“I love you,” I said, seeing loving embraces. Mike. A story with yellow eyes and sharp teeth. Wolves. Golems. Samuel. No longer a lover but a monster. All the images were chaotic. Like a nightmare.

Nightmare.
That thought made everything come back to me. That’s when I realized that Samuel had erased my memories and replaced them with his own twisted version of the truth. I looked up into his eyes and saw the emptiness behind them. No human emotion. Just a dark nothing.

I looked away, not wanting him to influence me, so I tried to be discreet about it. And then I remembered all too well that he’d smacked me so hard across the face that I went flying. “How did I get here?” I asked the nearest tombstone, acting like I was confused. Which really wasn’t that much of a stretch, considering that I was.

“You do not remember?” he purred in my ear, and I stifled a shudder.

“I remember making love,” I stated, still looking at the tombstone. “And last night. But I don’t remember how I got here.”

“It is all right, my love,” he said. “I will remind you.” He kissed me again, and it took all I had not to push him away and spit in his eye. “Are you ready?” he asked, sounding happy.

“What for?” I knew perfectly well what for. But I wanted to stall for as long as I could so I could think of a way out of this mess.

“Your transformation,” he clarified, smiling with his fangs out.

Suddenly, my throat felt dry. “Oh,” I managed to say. “That. Not quite yet, darling.” I paused, swallowing. “But I’m sure I can be persuaded.” I moved my hand down the front of him as my heart pounded in my ears. I could barely breathe I was so terrified.

He smiled. “Are you nervous?” he asked, delighted. I knew he could hear my heart jumping all over the place.

“Very.” More like scared to death. No pun intended.

“There is no need to be,” he assured me in a quiet, gentle and manipulative voice. “It does not hurt. I promise.”

“Is this a dream?” I sure hoped it was.

He moved his hands down my lower back, pulling me closer. “No,” he said, shaking his head, “it is not.”

I smiled tightly, trying to make it as genuine as possible. “Samuel,” I whispered, “I want to go home and have you do it there. This place gives me the creeps.” Trying to act like I was happy was
not
working. I mean, I was feeling as mad as a hatter on a good day.

“Why?” he asked, noticing that something wasn’t right. “Last night you were perfectly fine with being here.”

“Yes…well…” My voice was shaking. “That was last night. This is now, and I want to go home.”

“My love,” he said, comforting me, “it is all right. We shall go home.” He patted me on the shoulder, and I sighed with relief. “And I will finish the job there.”

That relaxed me a little. “Thank you,” I said with a real smile. “You’re so wonderful,” I lied again. But who was counting anymore? Me. That’s who.

His grasped tightened on my waist. “True,” he agreed. “But it is a shame that we have to leave. I had a surprise for you.”

“Oh, really?” I asked quickly. He was making me uncomfortable. “What is it?”

He held up his index finger, letting me go as he went behind the tomb to fetch something. When he came back out, I saw that he was dragging what seemed like a heavy load. But with a closer look, I realized it was a person. And not just any person. It was Mike.

Poor Mike, he was all battered and bruised. His nose was bleeding badly, and his left arm was clearly broken. All I could do was stand there, staring at him, wide-eyed. I knew if I moved Samuel would most likely kill him and then me. So I just stood there stiff as a board.

He looked like a true vampire when he said, “Your first meal, my love. For when you wake up.”

“That’s…”
Careful, Pat
. “Very thoughtful of you,” I said softly. “But shouldn’t it be fresh?”

His mouth curled up into a twisted smile. “That is why I will keep him for you until you have changed.”

The thought that he was baiting me did cross my mind, and I knew then that he was waiting for me to slip up and try to save Mike. And just like that, Samuel shook him back and forth so fast that I almost didn’t catch it.

I wanted to run to him, but I planted my feet firmly on the ground. I looked at Mike. He winked at me, and I breathed a small sigh of relief knowing that he wasn’t hurt too badly.

“Hm,” Samuel said, looking dissatisfied. “Maybe you are right. You should have a fresh meal.” He picked Mike up by the scruff of his neck, and his feet dangled off the ground. “Maybe I should just snap his neck,” he hissed, his hand enclosing around Mike’s throat. “Just so he will not suffer.”

“Go ahead,” I said with a shrug, and he was pleased with my response. Then he let Mike go, and the poor wolf fell down to the ground with a thud.

Samuel did that annoying chuckle, and I thought that Mike didn’t deserve that. “Oh, he deserves this,” Samuel answered my mind and kicked Mike in the stomach. He flipped over like a pancake and groaned. “Do you wish for me to let him go?” he asked with a sneer.

I shook my head, biting the inside of my cheek. “No. But you can keep him if you’d like.”

He smirked. “You’re right. I could if I like. However, I do not, so I must dispose of him. How would you suggest I do that?” he asked, taunting me. “Beat him to death? Suck out all of his blood? Crush his skull?” He placed the sole of his shoe right on top of Mike’s temple, and Mike whimpered as Samuel pressed down on him.

“Samuel, stop it!” I shouted, and when I tried to recover, it didn’t turn out the way I wanted. “We don’t need him.” I waved Mike off. “So just let him go, please.”

He shook his head. “After what he did, I do not see that happening anytime soon.”

“You mean about what happened last night.” I blinked, trying to play up the confusion. But really, I was blinking back tears.

His brow crinkled. That caught him off guard. “What happened last night?” he asked, and I knew that if I keep the subject going, he’d forget about Mike completely.

“When he told you off,” I clarified. “He was drunk, and you know it. There’s really no need for all these dramatics, dear.” I tried to make sure my mind was blank, but for an instant the image of Mike and me in the hallway flashed through. I shook it off quickly, but Samuel narrowed his eyes at me. I tried to pretend nothing happened, even though I knew he saw it too.

He nodded, taking his foot off Mike’s temple. “Perhaps you are right again. Perhaps I have been a little harsh on the boy.” Mike tried to get up, but Samuel kicked him down again, pulling his lips back from his fangs. “Then again, I do like the idea of having him for dinner. So perhaps I should just take a large bite out of the lawyer,” he said with a harsh laugh. “It will be bitter, but I think it will be worth it.” He swept Mike up into his arms, leaning him backward so his neck was fully exposed. And just as his fangs were about to sink into Mike’s neck, I couldn’t stand it anymore.

“Mike, no!” I placed my hand over my mouth, but there was no way I could recover from that.

Samuel roared into the sky, throwing Mike aside. The werewolf hit a tombstone and looked like he’d been knocked out. I rushed over to him, kneeling beside him. Then I placed my ear to his chest to make sure he was still breathing. He was. Barely.

“You bitch,” Samuel screamed. “You remembered! How is that possible?”

“Mike,” I shouted, shaking his shoulders. “Mike, please wake up!” I shook him again frantically trying to rouse him. “Mike, I can’t deal with him by myself.”

“Get away from him, Patricia,” Samuel commanded, pointing at me as he walked toward us. I shook Mike again because the only thing I could think to do was get him up. But Samuel kept moving toward us. “I command you to come here,” he yelled.

“Never,” I hissed, glaring up at him.

He grabbed my arm. “You heard me. I said get away from him!”

I moved my free hand around, searching the ground for something, anything that I could fight him with. That’s when I found a thick, pointed stick and held it to his chest.

His eyes widened. “Pat, put the stick down,” he said, and for the first time I could see that he was truly scared for his afterlife.

“Let go of my arm, Sam,” I hissed, narrowing my eyes at him. And realizing that I was serious, he let me go.

Thinking on my feet, I felt around my neck. There it was. The cross. He’d been stupid enough not to take it off before he tried to kill me. And I took it from my neck, placing it in Mike’s hand. It was peculiar because that seemed to wake him up, and I almost cried out for joy. But that would have to wait.

Samuel was moving closer again, but all that did was make an indent in his shirt where his heart should’ve been. And when Mike got up, he held the cross as I held my makeshift stake toward Samuel. His eyes blazed, and I could almost feel the anger rolling off him.

“You are not serious about this, my love, are you?” he asked in a breath, and I held in my laughter at the sight of him being so scared.

“You come any closer,” I said menacingly, “and you will see just how serious I am.” That wasn’t an empty threat, and he held his hands up, backing away from us.

I stood, placing Mike’s arm around my shoulders, as we still held our weapons toward him. Then we backed away from Samuel, while he backed away from us. And once out of his sight, we turned tail and ran.

After a minute or two of hearing the hollowed earth crunch under our feet, I looked over my shoulder just to make sure that he wasn’t following us. He wasn’t. So it was safe to slow down. When we stopped, Mike threw my necklace back at me, and I caught it without a second thought.

“Put it back around your neck,” he said, grimacing in pain. “You need it more than I do.” He staggered backward, and I helped him sit down on a dilapidated tombstone. Then I refastened the chain around my neck and tossed the stick aside to help him with his wounds.

“You look real pretty in that dress,” his voice was garbled by his bloodied lip, and when he smiled, his left eye was so swollen I thought that it must have hurt something awful.

“Thank you,” I said, glancing down at his hand attached to his unbroken arm. It was bleeding. “What happened to your hand?” I thought that maybe he scraped it when he fell.

He opened it, showing me the palm. It was raw, almost down to the bone, and had a distinct crucifix-shaped mark. “Your cross is what happened.”

My eyes widened in shock. “So it’s true. Silver does hurt you.” He nodded, and I had to take a couple of deep breaths to suppress the panic that came over me. I looked around frantically, making sure that no one was trying to kill us.

“Don’t worry,” Mike slurred, patting my arm with his bloody knuckles. “He won’t come after us. Although when he does, he’ll most likely bring backup.”

“What are we going to do?” I asked gravely. I just felt like curling up in a fetal position and crying. If only that would help us out.

“Well,” he said, his voice becoming harder to understand, “I think first we should set my arm so it won’t be crooked when it heals. Then we can think of somethin’.” I walked in front of him, grabbing hold of his forearm with one hand and his upper arm with the other.

“Okay,” he breathed slowly and deliberately. “On the count of three, pull my forearm out, making sure it’s straight, and then push it back in to connect the bone.” When he told me that, my eyes widened like he was crazy. “It’s all right,” he assured me, “you won’t hurt me.”

“Are you sure?” I was doubtful about that, but he nodded. “Okay,” I sighed. “One. two…”
Dear Lord, help me.