The Chronicles of Koa: Netherworld (4 page)

Koa shook her head. “Not this time. I need human blood at least once a month, or I’ll be too weak to defend myself.” She was tired of the taste of rabbit blood anyway. She needed a delicious mouthful of warm human blood. Her fight with the Syths the night before had drained her a lot sooner than usual. She and Halston had developed a schedule for her feedings. The battle last night had thrown it off.

He held her hand and patted the back of it. “I’ll take you. I want to keep an eye on you.”

Koa shook her head. “No Halston, you cannot come. They don’t take kindly to your kind.”

“And I don’t take kindly to theirs either.”

Koa looked up and gave him a coy smile. “But you like me, don’t you?”

Halston let out a breath and looked away. “Of course I do, Koa. You’re not a typical vampire though. You’re humanity gives you hope.”

“Good…but I must go alone.” Koa looked around to make sure no one was close enough to hear her. She lowered her voice. “The Wryn are not bad vampires. They are the best kind that we could ever hope for. At least they don’t kill people. I swear, they are all registered and they follow the rules you’ve set.”

Halston looked unsure but didn’t protest. Instead he watched her with curious eyes.

Koa shifted, avoiding his gaze. She looked across the street at a couple having wine at an outside table. Halston had no idea how much she wanted him to kiss her whenever he gave her that icy blue look. It was a look of deep concern that told her he truly cared about her.

Koa was still fairly new to Halston’s organization, but she had been killing vampires with him for a few years now. She knew how much he hated that she was about to go to the castle of one of the oldest vampire clans in Europe.

B
lood was like liquid chocolate. Koa savored the flavor and the euphoric rush. The moment the warmness of it touched her tongue, her eyes closed in bliss. Colors flashed behind her eyelids, and she moaned with delight. She couldn’t resist it because it was necessary for her survival.

Blood just happened to be delicious as well. She licked his neck clean with three long strokes, leaving two small puncture holes. She was neat. She wiped her mouth and her canines returned to normal. Her eyelids fluttered in delightful bliss.

“Are you done, Mistress?” Ian spoke to her in an almost timid voice, as if he didn’t want her to be finished. He craved more. Koa rolled her eyes and crawled from on top of him. He reached for her and she pushed his arms down by his head.

Koa lowered her tone. “Did I tell you to speak?”

Ian shook his head and she smiled. She enjoyed such dominance. It excited her that such an attractive young man thought of her as a goddess.

“Good boy.” She played with his hair and sighed. “I’m sorry, Ian, for being so rude. I didn’t mean it.”

Ian nodded, still too afraid to speak, lest he disobey his mistress. He had such an innocent face. She wondered how many hearts he had broken with that face. It was odd to think that they were the same age. Sometimes Koa contemplated what a normal life would have been like. College, boyfriends, parties…it seemed like such a foreign idea to her.

She traced his lips. There were many times when she’d almost kissed him, just to remember what a kiss felt like. She trusted Ian, and felt safe, therefore she didn’t want to ruin the arrangement they shared. It was far too valuable, for both of them.

She had just drank a full blood meal, and she still felt a little tired. She hadn’t slept the night before, and she had spent the day traveling from Paris to London, so that she could meet with her pet.

Ian was beautiful. She almost leaned down for a kiss. His lips were soft under her fingertips. She craved physical satisfaction beyond a meal. Her skin crawled with desire.

Koa snatched her hand back and hopped off of him. She darted to the door and held it open for him. “Run along.”

Ian gathered his backpack and ran to the door. He was enamored. She could see it in his eyes. She wondered if he knew just how strong she was. Even though he respected her, chances were, Ian only saw a small girl with a pretty face. He smiled at her as he left the room. He was attractive, but Koa was saving herself for someone else.

Koa didn’t make eye contact with Ian. She didn’t want to look her meal in the eye at that moment.

Koa sighed. She supposed Ian wasn’t just a meal, he was her pet, and he had been so for nearly three years.

Lexi, the keeper of the castle and one of the four leaders of the Wryn clan, came around the corner and stopped before her door. Koa smiled at her. They were both friends and business associates. She was just as small as Koa, but far advanced in her vampire skills.

Lexi, at over two hundred years old, still looked like a woman in her early twenties. She had bouncy brown hair cut just above her shoulders and large dark brown eyes. She wore the tallest heels Koa had ever seen and skimpy dresses.

Lexi watched Ian walk down the hallway and gave Koa a sidelong glance. “When are you going to use that
lovely
young man for more than his blood?” She smirked.

Koa rolled her eyes but laughed. “He is more like a brother than a lover.” She raised an eyebrow. “If he’s so ‘lovely,’ why don’t you take him to your bed? You have my permission, but you cannot glamour him. I don’t want him confused about who his mistress is.” Koa grinned. “I doubt you have a chance with a sweet human like my Ian.”

Lexi flicked her hand. “I don’t want that little boy. You are more my type.” Lexi winked and reached for Koa’s long dark hair. She sniffed it. “Just as soon as you get over your Goth phase. What’s with the blue hair and thick black liner?”

Koa flashed an amused smile and leaned against the door. She folded her arms across her chest. “Great, everyone is insulting me today. Let’s all pick on the poor, little, Asian girl.”

 Lexi leaned in close to Koa’s ear. “Oh, sweet pea. One night with me will have you forgetting your name, let alone your race.” She frowned. “And you’re a mutt anyway. You’re not a full Asian, just as much as you aren’t a full vampire!”

Koa burst out laughing. Lexi was relentless. “Don’t make me tell Greta that you’re flirting with me. I know it’s blondes that you really like. And sorry, I’ll never go blonde.”

Lexi folded her arms. “Greta is one of many. You think she has any say in what I do?”

“Sounds exhausting,” Koa said as she imagined having one boyfriend, let alone many.

Lexi glanced behind Koa into the room. “Staying the full night this time? You waste so much money paying for a night when you only stay an hour or two.”

Koa grinned. “Are you complaining?”

Lexi shook her head. “Of course not. I’ll accept as much money as you’re willing to waste. But come on, have a drink with me. We can have a ‘
girls
night out.’” She thought a moment. “That is what you kids are calling it these days?”

Koa cringed at being called a kid. Just because she was twenty-one, didn’t mean she hadn’t seen enough of the world and been through enough to make her just as seasoned as Lexi. Koa’s watch buzzed over on the side table. Her face lit up.

“I have to go now Lexi.” She began shuffling Lexi away from her door. “If I don’t see you on my way out, book me for the same time next week.” She remembered something and turned serious.

“I almost forgot. Please transfer a thousand pounds out of my account and into Ian’s. Tell him that I don’t want him staying at shabby hostels anymore. I can smell it on him.”

Lexi nodded. “Sure. Good night then.”

“Night.” Koa closed the door and darted over to her watch. Halston’s face appeared on the bright face of the watch. The fluorescent light only illuminated his pale skin, making him look more angelic. She smiled and pushed the side button.

“Good evening, Halston,” she purred rolling onto her back and holding the watch over her. He stared down at her for a moment.

“How was your supper?” Halston asked.

Koa shrugged. “Young. Fresh. Eager. The same as always.”

He nodded. “Well, it’s better than the alternative. I know you. You’d never forgive yourself if you killed someone for a meal.”

Koa sat up. “Unless they deserved it,” she noted. “I’d forgive myself just fine.”

“Well, don’t get too eager with those college kids. We don’t want any… accidents.”

Koa scoffed. “It was an honor,” she said. “For him.” Her grin widened.

Halston shook his head in disapproval.

Koa’s smile faded in mild annoyance.
Why does he have to be so good all of the time
? She rolled her eyes. It was practically in his DNA to be the good guy.

“Besides, Ian is not just some college kid. He is special, and I don’t feed from anyone but him. We have a good arrangement. I am glad that I found the Wryn clan when I did. I was so much weaker when I lived on animal blood.”

Halston gave her an odd look. He cleared his throat. “You don’t …sleep with him? Do you?” He seemed embarrassed to even ask the question.

Koa laughed lightly. “Of course not, Halston. What do I look like? A whore?” She laughed a little more jovially. “Ian is hot, sure, but I could never.”

“He’s hot you say?”

Koa laughed again. “Oh yes, Halston. He’s like totally drool-worthy. I mean, I can’t keep my panties dry whenever he looks at me,” she joked. She gave him a look. “Jealous?”

          Halston ignored her teasing. He remained serious. “Then, tell me. What do you do with him?”

Koa peered at him, curiously.
Why does he care now
? He’d never asked before. She sighed and gave a little shrug.  She looked up at the ceiling and blew her bangs out of her eyes.

“I don’t know, Halston. It starts with a seductive smile. Then, there comes the glamour. Just like any person I’ve ever fed on, I press on his thoughts a little here and there. He dreams while I drink. He dreams of all of his deepest desires coming to true. And then, when he looks at me, it’s instant infatuation. They see me for the first time after I drink, and to them, I look like an angel. No offense,” she said to him, cringing at the word angel. It sometimes made him withdraw when she mentioned it.

Halston looked at her for a moment, and then nodded. “It all sounds pretty intricate.”

“It is. I’m not sloppy. Even a full-blood can make a mess of things. I may be young when compared to other vampires, but I’ve developed my own little ritual. And it works.”

“And no one dies.”

She nodded, with a small smile on her lips. “That’s right. No one dies.” Koa rolled over onto her belly and set the watch in front of her. “See, I’m a good girl. I promise.”

He seemed to perk up again. “Good. Meet me at the safe house. We have a mission.”