Survivor (10 page)

I frowned at him, and he hurried to cut me off.  “I
am not saying you have a mental disorder.  It’s just that the human brain is a
mystery.  My blood could heal broken bones easily, but there is no way to tell
what effect it would have on your mind, and even your physical difficulties are
mostly due to your brain injury.”

I thought about that for a minute.  Exactly as I
was.  Never changing, never aging, never dying and moving on.  I would always
be just as I was.  The disabled vampire.  Well
that
was pretty much the
worst fate I could think of.

 We pulled up to a big white house with a lake in
the backyard.  It looked like someone’s summer home.  There were several shiny
cars parked out front, and the windows of the house were all lit up in the
dark.  I sighed.  I would never be a vampire.  So much for the quick solution.  “Are
you sure your friends will be okay with you bringing a human?”

He slipped out of the car and got my chair from the
back.  “Bringing a human with me won’t be considered unusual,” he said with an
uncomfortable shrug.  
Okay
.

He was pushing me up the driveway toward the door
when another car pulled up.  A bunch of people piled out of the pick-up.  A
couple of guys were riding in the bed.  I noticed the big, brown haired one
almost immediately, and my eyes found Cynthia in the group as they walked by.  Someone
tossed a muffled, “Hey Pete,” in greeting and then they were gone.  I let out
my breath, not realizing I had been holding it.

“They won’t do anything here,” Peter said softly.  “Like
I said before, they are just pulling pranks to make life difficult for me, they
aren’t bad people.”

I didn’t reply.  I really doubted that burly guy was
good people.  One of the group had lagged behind, and she joined us silently,
startling me when she spoke.  “Hello Peter,” she said in a rich, even alto.  “I’m
glad you could join us tonight.”

Peter didn’t pause or seem surprised.  He had known
she was there.  “Good evening Leah,” he said politely.  “I wouldn’t miss your
party for anything.”  We made it to the soft glow of the porch light and I
shifted so I could see the woman that walked with us.

“Hello,” she said, extending her hand.  “You must be
Melody.  I’m Peter’s good friend Leah.”  I shook her hand firmly and gave a
tentative smile.  She was beautiful, in a sort of earthy way, with long, wheat
colored hair and chocolate brown eyes.  Except for her flawless skin, she
looked like someone who spent a lot of time outdoors.  She was wearing faded
jeans and a white tank top.  My eyes lingered on the pretty bracelet that
glinted in the light as I shook her hand.  It was made of shiny silver, but it
fit her down-to-earth vibe- two snakes linked in a circle with their noses
touching and their tales entwined.

Seeing my eyes on it, she smiled “It’s beautiful isn’t
it?  It was my present from Peter.”  She gestured up at the old house and
winked at me.  “Today is my birthday.”

I smiled back, wondering just what this woman was to
Peter.  “Happy birthday,” I said genuinely.  She was different than the other
vampires I’d met- not that I’d met that many.  She was so soft and mellow.  She
didn’t have that buzz of nervous energy the others seemed to have.

She frowned, looking up at the house.  “I’m afraid
there isn’t a ramp,” she said apologetically.  “This place is old, I suppose,
but I love it.”

I nodded agreement.  You could feel the space around
you, even in the dark, the wind through trees and crickets chirping in the long
grass.  “It’s wonderful.”

She glanced down at me.  “May I take her inside, Peter?”
 I noticed that Peter had been awfully quiet throughout this exchange.  It was
a little odd that she was asking his permission, and not mine.

“She is mine,” he said quietly.  I glanced back at
him. 
What?
 Leah’s gaze flicked over my neck and I blushed.  Oh, his
human.  
My snack, not yours.
  There was an odd tension between them, and
it was making me uncomfortable.

“Good,” she said, still smiling kindly.  “Let me
take her in.”  She scooped me up without warning and I instinctively wrapped my
arms around her neck, expecting her to drop me.  But she was a vampire, not the
slender human she appeared to be.  She carried me as if I was a baby.

I should have been alarmed after that last little
exchange, but I wasn’t.  Everything about her was very soothing and peaceful.  She
wouldn’t hurt me.  Behind us, Peter snapped my chair shut with a click.  He didn’t
protest as Leah carried me up the stairs and into the house.

There weren’t many people here, but they all looked
at us when we came in the door.  Peter followed with my chair, and Leah set me
in it like a doll.  “Hi everyone.”  She waved to the room at large.  “This is
my guest, Melody.  Please treat her well.”

Peter cleared his throat uncomfortably behind us and
Leah laughed.  “And don’t be too hard on Peter tonight, it’s my birthday and I
don’t want to talk about politics.”  She glided away to take a drink from the
brown-haired guy, giving him a meaningful look before she snatched his beer and
headed off into the biggest group of people.  I shook my head.  
Vampires
.

Peter seemed to relax as he took me around and
introduced me to his friends.  He was right; I wasn’t the only human there.  I
noticed several people I thought must be humans.  I wanted to talk to them, but
they were always glued to their respective vampires.  As the night wore on, I
saw why.  They were here more for food than for companionship.  I tried not to
stare after I saw the first vampire feeding right in front of me.  The people
seemed to be enjoying it, so who was I to interfere.

Peter took my hand, probably sensing my elevated
pulse.  “You’re safe here,” he whispered in my ear.  “Leah made sure of that
when she brought you in.”  And Peter had made sure when he said I was his.  No
sharing. 
Good grief
.

I was surprised when I found myself actually
enjoying the evening.  Peter’s vampire friends were a lot like him.  They were
mostly kind and easygoing.  I suppose that’s not so much of a surprise.  If they
were sharing everything, and living closely together as they seemed to do, then
a coven would be made up of people who got along well.  I hid a smile, thinking
that it was like a big family.  I had to remind myself that the people around
me weren’t really people- they were predators.  It was just so hard to remember
that when they were joking, and laughing, and eating bright pink birthday cake.

About halfway through the night, Peter’s cell phone
chirped insistently.  He glanced at the screen and sighed.  “It’s my boss,” he
said apologetically.  “The firm is working on a really sensitive case.  I need
to take this.”

I smiled to let him know it was okay, and he made
his way out to the porch where it was quiet.  I sipped my little glass of
champagne, feeling like a teenager.  Technically, I wasn’t supposed to drink,
but I really doubted one glass was going to kill me.  I started guiltily when
Leah sidled up beside me.  She slid onto a bench next to me, two little paper
plates with cake on them balanced in her hands.  She handed me one and I set my
drink aside to take the proffered treat. 

“Did Peter abandon you?”  She asked playfully, taking
a bite of her cake.

I shrugged.  “He had to take a phone call.”

Leah nodded.  “Work?”  She guessed.

I took a bite of my cake, letting the sugary
frosting melt in my mouth.  “Yeah.  He seems like a really loyal employee.” 
Though I was guessing it wasn’t human business at this hour.

She considered this for a moment, running the
plastic fork over her teeth with a clicking sound.  I didn’t know whether to
laugh or call for help at the casual display of fangs.  “Peter is really
devoted to everything he does, when he chooses to be,” she said at last.  “He
always seems serious and straight laced, but….”

I nodded.  “But he’s not,” I finished for her.

She sighed.  “It’s all a front.  In actuality, he’s
a rebel.”  She grinned and whispered in a conspiring tone.  “He’s a hippie.” 
She shook her fist dramatically.  “Down with the man!”

I laughed aloud, and a couple of people across the
way shot a surprised glance at me.  Leah chuckled.  “You know what I mean,” she
said, waving a hand dismissively.  “He doesn’t like to follow the rules, he
only does so because he has to- and then only so far as absolutely necessary.” 
She sighed.  “His biggest fear is responsibility.”

I frowned, not agreeing at all.  “He’s the most
responsible person I know,” I said truthfully.  “He’s a hard worker, he always
keeps his promises, and he does everything he can to help others.”

The pretty blonde regarded me skeptically.  “Mmm…” she
said, noncommittal.  “But he shirks he responsibilities to the coven- to his
race.”  I got the sense that she was fishing to see how much Peter had told me,
or how well I knew him.

I bristled at her words, rising to the bait.  “Of
course someone wouldn’t want to be forced to do something like that.”  Sure, I
didn’t get why he didn’t just do it and get everyone off his back, but it was
still his decision.

I expected her to be upset that I was disagreeing
with her, but Leah just shrugged.  “Don’t get me wrong,” she said lightly.  “I
understand his hesitation.  But this is about more than contributing to the
population.”  She gave me a direct blue look.  “He is selling himself short. 
His fear and lack of confidence will keep him from growing and developing.” 
She sighed wistfully.  “He will make a wonderful master someday.”

On that note, she stood and gracefully made her way
to a group that was chatting by the refreshment table.  I rubbed my forehead,
wondering just what the heck was going on.  She had such a calming presence,
but something in the way she had looked at me just now set off little alarm
bells in the back of my head.  I glanced her way again.  A tall man in the
group handed her a champagne flute, and my eyes widened.  I recognized the silver-haired
guy from the coffee shop.  His eyes met mine from across the room and he
inclined his head to me before turning back to chat with Leah.  I knew was a
vampire the minute I saw him.  No human had any business being so oddly
perfect.  It made me think about the random strangers I passed on the street
every day.  I wondered if all the models in the world were vampires.  Picking
up my glass, I took a big gulp of the sparkly stuff.  The thought echoed
through my mind that you never knew who was watching you. 

After Leah left, I found myself watching the others
more closely.  I noticed the brown-haired guy, Viktor, glancing at me
throughout the night, but other than that, everyone behaved themselves.  Apparently,
they all really respected Leah, not that I blamed them.  Something about her
just inspired loyalty.  When we left for the night, she drifted by again.  “Thank
you for coming to my birthday party Melody,” she said in that rich alto.  “I
hope you will join our circle of friends from again very soon.”

I smiled back.  “I’d like that,” I said sincerely. 
She didn’t seem to look at me as disabled.  In fact, I hadn’t noticed one
person here treating me like I was different.  Maybe because to them all humans
were disabled.

Peter stepped in front of my chair, cutting off my
interaction with Leah.  “Leah,” he said with a hint of vampire in his voice.  She
just looked at him.  With just that one look, his entire demeanor changed, the
tension melting away like a puppet with its strings cut.  It was frightening.  

“I’m going to go outside for a bit,” I said,
gesturing toward the old porch.  Peter nodded, but neither one of them spoke
until I was out of hearing.  The screen door banged closed behind me and I
paused just outside the door to take in a deep lungful of night air.  I glanced
over my shoulder at the party behind me and a dull headache started behind my
eyes.  I was reaching my limit for processing strange crap.

I couldn’t get down the stairs, so I was trapped on
the big, wrap-around porch.  I turned and headed around the side of the house, where
I could get a better look at the night sky.  When I rounded the corner, I
paused to let my eyes adjust.  It was darker over here, but that just made the
moon and stars seem that much brighter.  I don’t know how long I sat there,
staring out at the black sky, before a voice spoke from the darkness, scaring
the bejesus out of me.

“Beautiful isn’t it?”

I jumped and frantically searched the shadows on the
porch for a person.  He waved and I was finally able to see him, a pale figure
sitting on the railing, his back against a post and one knee drawn up to his
chest as he looked out at the night.  I took a deep breath and told myself to
calm down.  Peter and the others were just a shout away, and nothing in this
man’s posture implied that he was about to attack me.  He turned his head to
look at me, and the dim light from the window glinted on his silver hair. 

“You’re the guy from the coffee shop?”  I tried to
sound casual, as if I wasn’t fazed by moonlight conversations with strange vampires.

There was movement in the dark.  I think he nodded. 
“Haine,” he said softly.  “And you are Peter’s Melody?”

I pushed my chair forward, and leaned my forearms on
the railing so I could look up at the sky.  “Are you hiding out here too?”