Into the Darkness (8 page)

Chapter Ten

“Sit.”

I didn’t need to be told twice. I sunk into a velvet upholstered couch in a decked out master bedroom. The 1900’s Victorian style carried through to this room, with a lovely chandelier twinkling in the middle, electric candles instead of wax, cream painted wood paneling up to the high ceilings, drapes, rugs, and the lot. It was beautiful. I was almost too tired to appreciate it.

The Boss had taken a seat to my right in a chair, his legs up on a footstool and his fingers intertwined on his lap. Since Jared was being stitched up and calmed down somewhere within the house, there wasn’t much I could do but wait. I had decided to trade the Boss for answers, mostly because I didn’t have much choice, but also because he seemed to think I had leverage.

“How did you find this place?” he asked in a deep, calm voice.

“I thought I got the first question?”

That perfect face beheld me for a second, utterly patient.
“Very well.”

He was humoring me. I was too tired to be indignant. “What are you?”

“To your kind, I am a fable, for the most part. A myth. A representation of me exists in stories and ballads, in histories, and within popular culture.”

I sighed tiredly. “I hate riddles—I can never figure them out.
Can you just tell me like you’re talking to a five-year-old?”

“You’
ve heard of vampires?”

I scoffed. “You’re saying you’re a vampire?”

His lips hinted at a smile. “No. Vampires aren’t real. I—my species—inspired the stories of vampires. We’re not unlike humans, very similar, actually; but yet, we’re not of the same race.”

I was not following along. “As in…you’re from somewhere else?”

“You use race to denote color, religion, difference in appearance, and other unimportant things. When in fact, those are just differences in genes. Not large differences, either. We, on the other hand, use it to denote somewhat…larger alterations to the fundamental principles in genetics. Our heritages, yours and mine, originate from the same place, but along that evolutionary road, there is a fork. We are on one side of that fork, you are on the other.”

“What if I don’t believe in evolution?”

“Then God wanted a little more diversity. Either that, or He has a sense of humor.”

“Oh, He definitely has a sense of humor,” I mumbled. I was proof.

“How did you find this place?” he asked.

“Wait, you didn’t actually answer the question. So you aren’t human, but you’re
like
human?”

“Correct.”

“What are the differences?”

“That’
s another question.” His eyes twinkled mischievously, giving me a hot flash. “But I’ll answer. We, my species, are physically superior. We’re larger, faster, stronger, and have more acute senses. Our eyes work better in low light, like a nocturnal predator. Your kind thinks you’re hunters—you’re incorrect.
We
evolved as hunters. It’s the difference between a domestic cat and a lion.”

I opened my mouth to ask more questions, especially since it seemed humans got the crappy end of the gene-pool, but he held up a pointer finger.
“My turn.”

I let my mouth snap shut. Fair was fair.

“How did you find this place?”

I shrugged, relaying the story of my night. As I got further along, the crease in his brow deepened. When my babbling came to an end, the only sound in the room was the ticking of a
clock.

I took that as my cue to ask another question. “Why don’t people see you guys
or notice you?”

“Your boyfriend’s roommate had full memory?” he sidetracked.

“Yes—wait! You have to answer mine first!”

“Very well.”
The crease didn’t lighten. “There’s more to this world than humans can tolerate while still hanging onto their oblivion. Humans like their experiences to largely fit in a few categories. Another branch of human, our species, gives them trouble to no end. They don’t understand us, making them uncomfortable. What humans don’t understand, they fear. What they fear, they kill. There was a lot more burnt at the stake than just witches. We’ve been found and persecuted often in our history. It then becomes necessary
not
to be found.”

“But if you’
re kind of human, why don’t you just fight back? Especially if you’re stronger or whatever.”

“First, let’s return to you. How did you know this was the right place?”

I sighed. “I saw a lady looking like a super model wearing a see-through gown walk into the house. You guys have a strange fascination with sex—I connected the dots.”

“Only
we
have a strange fascination?” His eyes were twinkling again, looking at me in a knowing way. It was the wrong time for a burst of arousal to drench my panties.

“Since I doubt you care about the answer to that, I won’t count that question.”

Laughter rumbled out of his muscular chest. “Generous of you.”

“Okay, so, why don’t you guys just fight back?”

“Another of our traits is a problem with procreation. Humans procreate like a virus. You don’t live as long, but you replace yourself multiple times within your life. We’re faster and stronger, but not nearly as populace. Plus, we’re violent—preferring to tear our enemies apart face-to-face, rather than creating weapons to do it on a massive scale. Even if we could compete with your numbers, we cannot compete with your bombs and other weapons of destruction. Humans have become absolutely ingenious with inventions, many of which are bent on destruction and monitoring. It’s best to steer clear.”

“Okay, but—“

He held up a hand again. “How did you find my secret chamber?”

I once again told my story, as fast as possible. Part of my mind, the one raised in a protective bubble, couldn’t believe what I was hearing. It sounded so far-fetched—surely I would have heard about this. There was a giant mansion in the city, for cripes-sakes. Someone might have said
something
along the way.

The other part of me, however, that had seen shadows moving in the darkness since I could remember, was soaking up every word. I could understand how they could move through the world undetected, since no one had ever believed me when I’d pointed them out. This man
had walked through a street light, in public, and stared at me; but Jared, walking right beside me, hadn’t noticed him. The part of me that demanded proof had it, which made my brain immediately soften to what the Boss was saying. Plus, though they were larger and muscled, they did look human. Even if they did get noticed, why would anyone think they were anything different than a football player? Or a really pretty, scary chick?

“How do you stay hidden? And why can I see you?” I fired at him as soon as I could.

“I will count that as one.” He waited for me to nod impatiently before he went on. “As you’ve noticed, we each have various abilities offered to us. Most of us can affect humans with our pheromones, inspiring lust, fear, and a few other emotions with fluctuating degrees of effectiveness. Some are better than others, because some are stronger in magic than others. That trait is one that has become invaluable to staying firmly behind the veil of myth.”

My brain stuttered on
magic
, but couldn’t process until the issue of my, once believed, craziness was put to rest. “But why can I see you?”

“Anyone
who looks hard enough, or opens themselves to it, can see us. Like a magic show, if you pay attention, you can find the strings and hidden doors. I assume you’re open to it. What I don’t understand is why our pheromones don’t work with you.”

I shrugged. I had no idea, but I was intensely relieved.

He nodded, guessing as much.

I didn’t know whose question it was, so I snuck another one in. “Why do people classify you as vampires?”

The Boss smiled. “That’s not how they classify us, it’s the myth they created on our behalf. Faster, stronger—“

“Beautiful,” I blurted.

A smile ghosted his lips as he nodded. I got the impression he was thanking me for the compliment. “My species is not always beautiful, but some are, yes. We also drink blood.”

I choked on my spit. “You drink
blood?”

He smiled, his eyes sparking with hunger. My body cultivated a similar spark in response.

“There is much power in blood,” he explained, his eyes on me steadily, as if I were prey. “Some people have more than others, making them taste sweeter. Like chocolate, or candy. It’s better with arousal. Better still if we don’t pollute them with pheromones during the extraction. Though that’s much more work. Too much, usually, as I have previously explained.”

“That’s a lovely way of saying it—extraction.”

His smile got bigger.

“So you only, uh, drink the blood of humans?”

He closed his eyes and said, “Hmmm. It’s amazing that your smell constantly changes. Is it based on your level of arousal, I wonder?” His dark eyes flashed open, analyzing me.

I flushed within that stare, the tug becoming ten times more pronounced. It felt like my body woke up
—all the tired and achiness from earlier evaporating, leaving me clearheaded and exuberant. My skin started to tingle and I broke out in goose bumps, wanting to touch him so badly my fingers trembled.

“I have a boyfriend!” I proclaimed abstractly, struggling to regain control.

His eyes never wavered. “Humans are peculiar when it comes to mating. Although, that’s probably necessary with a species that procreates so excessively that diseases have bloomed into existence to hinder the ability.”

“Right, yes. Uh…” I nearly banged on my head to get it back in gear. His gaze was doing strange things to my stomach. “So you don’t take each other’s blood? Your own, uh, kind I mean?”

“As I said, within blood is power. Humans have determined magic does not exist, deciding instead to explain everything they can with science. When that fails, they turn to God. In today’s age, very few can harness the magic around us even though they have the potential, and those who can, limit it to reading palms, balls, or cards. You did a good job of killing off the magic users throughout history—men and women.

“
My kind, and a few other species, do know how to access that power, harnessing it to our own ends. If we take blood from someone stronger, our power will grow. For that reason, since I work within a high level of power, I am extremely careful who I let take my blood. It’s a dangerous weapon to lend out.”

“So…you
can
give each other blood, but it would give people unfair advantages. Like a car that can go a lot faster after a shot of NOS, but slows as the NOS runs out?”

“Yes.”

“How long does it take to run out?”

“Depends on the power
—or magic—level of the drinker, and that of the…donator.”

”
So, what about the other myths? Does your skin burn when the sun hits it?”

“No more than yours. Or maybe less—you are fairer than I. Irish decent?” He smiled at my
furrowed brow. “As I said, we’re nocturnal, mostly. We prefer the night. Our eyes are sensitive to light, for that reason. But some of my race has to blend in with humans. We have to do business and act like members of the community to maintain our assets. Protective lenses help that, but it’s like one of your kind working a night job. It plays hell on the system.”

I shook my head. “I’m not quite following.”

“Humans have a chemical in their brains that reacts with light. Daylight means wake up. As night falls, their brain signals sleep time. That’s a common issue with newborn babies—their brains are confused, thus having them waking and sleeping on—what humans deem—the incorrect schedule.”

“And so…yours is backwards to ours, then?”

“You can be taught.” His dark eyes sparkled. Seeing my glower, he changed the subject. “Were you taunting me earlier?”

“With the whole…secret room, thing?”

He nodded.

No sense beating around the bush. “Yes.
Kind of.”

His head quirked.
“That’s a dangerous game to play.”

“
I fought a giant with a whistle and a letter opener. I’m a slow learner.”

“Yes, about that…” He shook his head and shifted in his seat. “How were you able to…fight Jonas off for so long?”

I shrugged. “I could…kinda…sense him coming; so I got out of the way.”

He leaned forward, studying me, his gaze turning hard. “Your blade glowed red.”

“Oh, thank God you saw it—I thought I was hallucinating!”

“But you’
re human…”

“Are you trying to convince me or yourself? Becaus
e I just want you to know I’m on board with those findings.”

He shook his head. “Humans can’t harness their power un
less extensively trained. That’s assuming we’re able to find a human as open as you are. And yet…”