NightFall: Book One: Bloodlust Is the Cure for the Immortal Soul (19 page)

In a
ll honesty, he knew what her favorite music was.
He also knew she was coming to Paris and to the club last night. The fact that she hit the bull’s eye unwittingly caught him off guard. He would just chalk it up to the fact that he had his mind turned off to hers.
He let his mind roam free but
didn’t pry into hers. But, she could most certainly
keep him on his toes.

So he said,
“Well, I’m glad I had the right music then.”

“Yeah.
I’ve been a fan since 1990. The music and lyrics are pure poetic genius. It can certainly take you away.”

Van put his hand at the small of her back and smiled. “Well, then. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

“It’s definitely what I call
‘
all-purpose
’
music.” She tipped off her fingers. “I pretty much do everything to it. Eat. Sleep. Work out. Meditate.”

“You forgot one thing,”
Van said.

“What’s that?”

Van brought his mouth
to her ear. “Being intimate,”
he whispered, his warm breath caressing her flesh. Goosebumps traveled all over her heated skin.

They locked eyes. “Yeah,”
Simone barely got out.

Van’s eyes
took on a carnal look
as they settled on her lips.

Just a small kiss,
he reasoned. They were out in the open. An innocent kiss wouldn’t hurt. He slowly lowered his head and Simone’s eyes started to close. Van brushed his mouth over Simone’s awaiting lips.

Just a taste,
he told himself sternly. That was all he would have to allow himself. But one touch of her smooth, sweet lips and that innocent kiss turned into a small sparring match. He let his tongue gently sweep inside. She tasted of heaven.
Of sweet sin.
Of red hot passion.

Van pressed his body flush with hers.
Hard body against soft body.
Simone wrapped her arms around Van’s neck. She responded enthusiastically to Van’s lips. When she moaned quietly in his mouth, he squeezed her just a bit harder against his aroused body. He wanted to throw caution to the wind and say the heck with it and take her against the wall in the alley.

His arousal had totally muddled his brain. Simone most definitely made him just about forget his serious obligation. No. It wouldn’t be right. Taking her in a dark alley way.
Even if she consented.
Even is she were already a vampire. The first time with her should be in a satin bed with her nakedness surrounded by tiger lilies, her favorite flower.

Van mustered the power and control to stop. He kissed her softly once more before lifting his head. Her eyes were dilated with pleasure and arousal. Her hazel eyes took on an even greener color. Yes, she was with him all the way.

“Wow,”
was all Simone could manage.

“I know.” Van caught his breath before he held out his hand. Simone grasped it.
“Home?”

“Yeah.”
Simone walked a little but closer to Van’s body. The radiating heat was comforting. “I had a wonderful time tonight, Van. Thank you.”

Van brought her hand to his lips. “The pleasure was all
mine
.” He thought for a moment. “I’m sorry. Let me rephrase that. The pleasure was both of ours.”

Simone laughed as they continued their contented
walk to Simone’s car.

Raven’s smile was both annoyed and covetous. When was it her turn, for goodness’ sake?

She pursed her lips. If she had to continue slaving for Zane, she might as well get some nun clothing now.

“Well,”
she said to the night. “I better go relay this information to Zane.”

CHAPTER IX

“Di
s-moi ce que vous savez.
Tell me what you know.” Zane demanded as soon as Raven stepped through the door.

“No hello? No hey, Raven, daughter of mine? Good to see you?” Raven said sarcastically. She shut the door and crossed her arms.

“Qui
t your mindless antics, girl,”
Zane said austerely. “
I demand you tell me.”

“
Qui?
Who?”
Raven always loved playing cat and mouse. How it frustrated Zane so.

“You,”
Zane ground out. “I swear, Raven. If you don’t tell me……” He gripped her arms in his vice-like hold. He didn’t have to finish his sentence. She knew what he implied.

Bruises again,
she thought to herself. Too bad she couldn’t use them as evidence.

“You will heal.” Zane had been in her head as usual. “Now quit with your blasted tomfoolery and tell me everything. Don’
t make me beat it out of you,”
he said, his voice dripping with menace.

Raven thought momentarily about misleading him, but unfortunately, he would know. His threats could not be taken lightly. One did not laugh at his warnings. She knew he would make good on them. Still, she couldn’t help baiting him sometimes. She had to have something.

Raven let out an exasperated sigh.
“All right.
Quit your freaking whining.”

“
Don’t push me, Raven. Go on,”
he demanded harshly. He let go of his grip on her. She could see the impressions of his large fingers. He’d squeezed her so roughly that she actually saw some fingerprints indented on the skin or her arm. She decided to move away before speaking.

“Van Pirone seemed to be so entranced in the human named Simone Timms. Whether I Blended or not didn’t matter. Van was so focused on Simone. I could’ve practically announced my intrusion. I doubt they would have noticed.” Raven grinned mischievously.
“Especially when they were making out right there on the sidewalk.
It looked like they had to fight it or they would have embarrassed themselves in front of God and everybody.”

“Weaklings,”
Zane muttered under his breath, nose upturned in pure disgust.

Raven smirked in provocation. “I don’t know. Van looked pretty strong and very sexy from where I was sta
nding. A nice specimen of male
if you asked me.”

Zane frowned. “Well, no one asked for your inferior assessment, Raven. I just want the facts.” He gave her a leer she knew all too well. It was the look right before he was going to say something hurtful to her. “Besides, Van wouldn’t want
you,”
he said nastily. “No man, or vampire, for that matter
,
would. You’re not one of them. And you’ll never be one of us. Face it, half-breed. You don’t fit in anywhere.” He laughed dryly. “Maybe you should join the circus with the other freaks and outcasts.”

Raven’s heart
started hammering fiercely. Oh
, how she’d like to drive a stake through his hollow chest. Or throw him to the sun. She hated him.
Truly hated him.
She loathed his vicious and blatant disregard of her feelings. He constantly and deliberately tried to make her feel insignificant.

Zane closed his eyes, opened his arms and puffed out his chest as if inviting Raven to carry out her thoughts. However, she knew it was a guise. The second she tried to go through with it, he would snap her in two. And he wouldn’t even have to touch her to do it.

Zane laughed vainly as he dropped his arms and opened his eyes
. “That’s what I thought. Now, f
inish telling me the rest of what you have found out.”

Raven felt so ashamed of her lack of boldness. She went on anyway and told him the remainder of what she found out of her snooping.

*

Van felt like whistling a merry tune on his way home. He felt exhilarated.
More alive than he’s felt in a while.
He had been waiting for Simone’s kiss for over a century. One touch of her lips sent his hormones into overdrive. She kissed him without abandon. She had wrapped her arms around him and didn’t hold back. She gave her whole self to the kiss. He could feel it. Every part of her body was charged with excitement. He felt it within her.
Around her.

That is why he chided himself later. A woman like Simone would make a man, with br
eath in his body, forget who he was
. For a moment there, as he pushed himself against her, he almost did. He though he would lose control.

Who knew one small kiss could turn a man into an animal.

Van made his way through the front door of his home and stopped cold. He saw Saldivar sitting in a chair, his hands at his knees. Not odd to some but very out of the ordinary for Van to see. Saldivar was the epitome of calm. And to witness him so beset made him take a step back.

Saldivar’s face looked set in stone. Nothing moved, save for his chest moving in and out rapidly with breath. He hardly blinked. His amber eyes glowed with the fire of a rage unknown to Van. He seemed not to notice Van even when he stepped in front of him.

Saldivar’s eyes weren’t vacant but, yet, held a transparent kind of void. Van couldn’t describe the look. How it baffled him so. Van studied Saldivar’s body language.
Rigid.
Rapid breathing.
Eyes narrow in an anger that was almost tangible. Van was uncertain on how to approach him. Given his state of trance, he might startle Saldivar into acting first, thinking later.

Van looked around. Studied the living room, trying to find out what was causing his friend such perturbation. His gaze honed in on a crumpled ball of paper on the floor near the table. He bent down to retrieve the object. He knew it wasn’t his. It wasn’t there when he had left to meet Simone. He opened it and smoothed it as best he could. His heart turned to ice as he read it slowly and silently.

He didn’t understand. Where did this awful poem come from? He knew for certain Saldivar didn’t write it. The poem explained how thi
s guy loved to torture his prey, l
oved to absorb their pain, their life. He explained himself as a beast and his love of fresh blood. And draining them to the point of death made him feel somewhat
invincible.

Van studied the penmanship. He was unknowing of the author but had a sick feeling Sa
ldivar knew exactly who, w
here, why a
nd how this poem came to him. He wished he knew what was in Saldivar’s mind right now but was unwilling to pry.
Saldivar wouldn’t appreciate the intrusion like this.
Especially now.
So he crumpled the paper and tossed it into a black waste basket and waited for Saldivar to acknowledge him.

A few minutes must have gone by before Saldivar blinked away the haze that had engulfed him.

Saldivar finally looked up and was shocked to see Van standing there.
“Van?”

“Saldivar.
What is the matter? This is unlike you. You didn’t even hear me enter my home five minutes ago. You have never acted this way before. You tuned you mind out to everything.” Van’s voice was filled with worry. “I don’t have to look inside your mind to know that the reason you’re in this state is because of that black-hearted poem.”

“Yes.”

“Tel
l me who sent it. Who wrote it?
” Van demanded softly.