Waning Moon (3 page)

His stomach grumbled in complaint and he opened the fridge to see nothing but stacks upon stacks of blood bags. Closing the fridge in disgust, he rummaged through the pantries and finally found a box of
Frosted Flakes
. He ate the entire box but the hunger was persistent and he had a strong craving for meat. Unfortunately for him, the vampire didn’t eat anything but blood and a few scarce foods, and Tony’s stomach rumbled like thunder as he tried his best to quietly make his way to the front door where a sliver of sunlight slanted in from the bottom.

“You can’t leave,” murmured a familiar voice, and Gabriel sat upright and stared with groggy interest.

Tony froze. He shouldn’t be able to wake up now, during the day. All vampires fell into a death-sleep during the day, unless they were old enough and powerful enough to be considered a master vampire. Then they could stay awake during the day and sleep whenever they pleased. He cursed himself for foolishly assuming Gabriel wasn’t a master vampire because he was the blood-child of Alexander DeRaise, and panicked, took in sharp breaths, his brow starting to sweat. He tried to turn his hand so he could escape but his body was suddenly very stiff and very numb, his knees buckled, and he dropped down.

“Why can’t I move right?” Tony asked irritably.

Gabriel replied, “I told you that you couldn’t leave and your body reacted accordingly. I told you already, didn’t I? That you belong to me now.”

“So as long as you’ve ‘marked’ me as yours, I can’t leave?”

“Exactly.”

“Damn it. I really need to go. I have work today.”

“Then call and cancel. I want to know you more.” Gabriel got to his feet and glided to Tony.

Tony averted his eyes. He couldn’t stand to look into those golden wells anymore. “Please just let me go! I can’t miss work today. I’m late on my payment and—”

“I’ll pay them for you. Now, I want you to take a seat on the couch and talk to me for a bit. I find you very amusing.”

Tony rolled his eyes and said, “Fine,” and did as Gabriel said.

“You attacked me last night.” The vampire spoke plainly.

Tony gasped as Gabriel lifted his arm to show him the jagged claw marks that were still seeping blood. “I did that?”

“Yes, you did. It will heal sooner or later.” He licked at the blood and continued to stare at Tony. “You don’t remember?”

Tony shook his head. “No, I don’t. I really would like to leave if you don’t mind. Thanks for helping me.”

“You will
not
leave.” Gabriel’s voice was menacing. “I want to know you better, Tony Silvers. I want to know why you didn’t care for your life last night. I want to know what you were thinking and why.”

“How do you know that I didn’t care if I lived or died? Did you take a peek into my mind? Like all nosy vampires do?”

“I felt it when I drank your blood. You didn’t care if the were-hyenas took your life or not. You had given up.”

Tony chuckled darkly. “Yeah, that’s right. I didn’t care if I lived or died, and you had to butt in! Look, I am not your pet or whatever so just let me go home and go to work. I’m not interested in you the way you are in me. Sorry. And you’re right, I don’t care if I live or die. My life is nothing compared to other people.”

Before he could blink, Gabriel had pinned him down on the couch. He growled. “You do have a reason to live. You are mine now, and I decide whether you live or die, understand? I am your master now and I control you. I make all your decisions and I will not let you end your life in vain. You want revenge, don’t you? And happiness? I can give those to you, I swear. Trust me.”

Tony gazed up at the vampire in astonishment. This man, this man he just met, cared about his life? Cared enough to mark him as his own and forbid him from taking his own life? Who exactly was Gabriel and why was he doing this? For what purpose was he using him for? There had to be a catch, right?

“What do you want from me?” he whispered hoarsely.

Gabriel answered, “You, Tony. I want you. I want to keep you safe. I want to know you more. I don’t know why but I am hopelessly drawn to you, like a moth to a flame. I can’t let you go, not now…not ever. I feel a strong connection between us. I just don’t know why.”

The were-panther grumbled. “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, but fine. I’ll stay with you. Not like I have a choice anyway.” He knew that he couldn’t keep going, that he couldn’t have his own way with this man, this vampire. That Gabriel was in complete and total control of him…and some part of him loathed it while another rejoiced at the feigned freedom he had to give up. He had never been completely free ever since that day, now, had he? So why bother with trying to stand up to Gabriel, when ultimately, in the end, he would give up eventually? Because that was the kind of person he was. A coward and a follower.

Gabriel’s left pearly fang protruded from his upper lip. “Good. Now, are you hungry?”

Tony nodded in embarrassment. “Yeah.”

“I’ll go and pick up something for you. Stay right here, okay?”

“You can go in the sunlight?”

Gabriel grinned. “Of course. All master vampires can go in the sunlight.”

“Then why are your windows all boarded up?”

“Just because I can go in the sun doesn’t mean I like it.”

Tony chewed his bottom lip nervously. “Oh.”

Gabriel combed a hand through his onyx mane. “Just stay here while I’m out. You can look around but do not touch anything. I’ll be back soon.”

Tony remained silent as the vampire got dressed and left the house. When he was sure Gabriel was gone, he rummaged through the house on his tiptoes, ears alert, as he went into each of the three bedrooms and fished through the drawers. Everything was so neat and eerily tidy. Gabriel’s clothes were folded in perfect squares and the whole house was void of any signs of wear and messes. Everything seemed to be in top condition from the way the covers were spread on the bed evenly with no creases to the simple organization of the furniture with no pictures or keepsakes lining the walls and tabletops. He felt as if he was being suffocated because the house was so clean and spiffy, so dark and free of any outside influence. There was definitely something majorly wrong with this man, and Tony wasn’t going to stick around to find out. He finally found his clothes laid in one of those perfect squares on the kitchen table.

After shrugging them on, he bolted to the door and welcomed the lustrous rays of the sun as he stepped outside, relishing the way the sun made blue spots dance in his vision as he became accustomed to the light.

Tony ran with the image of his panther in his head, its powerful legs springing forward. To his surprise, the house was only a few blocks from downtown and he managed to flag down a vacant taxi and went straight to his apartment. As he walked inside the building, an indescribable feeling of dread and terror surged through him and he shook it off as his nerves from being kidnapped by that weird vampire and trudged up the steps to apartment 73-D.

He locked the door and let out a sigh of relief. Taking his sneakers off, Tony lounged onto the couch and threw his head back.

His panther growled in warning and he jolted upright to see the one person he never wanted to encounter in his life ever again.

At least not alone.

The Regis of the New York were-panther clan and his “sire”.

Lukas.

Lukas towered over Tony as the were-panther shrank into himself and let the other man pace back and forth around the room irritably.

“Lu-Lukas, why are you here?” Tony asked meekly. One of Lukas’s rules of the clan since becoming Regis was that he have a copy of everyone’s house keys in case of “emergencies”. He loved to barge in unannounced, relished the look of shock and surprise on the other person’s face as they saw him, an intruder, but their Regis, a figure of absolute terror, in their home.

Since Gary, the former leader of the clan, was killed by Lukas a couple months ago, Tony had sulkily anticipated his arrival but never once thought that today would be the day. He’d made eye contact with Lukas before, felt the scars on his back flare with pain whenever the man passed by him.

This was the man who not only turned Tony into a monster but also the man who had broken into his family’s house when he was twelve and murdered his parents and little brother right in front of his eyes. Lukas told Tony then that if he told the authorities anything about him he’d kill him too, so Tony never said a word to anyone about what happened. Tony didn’t understand how the police weren’t able to track him down by DNA, until he’d learned that scientists were still studying lyrianthrope, or shifter’s DNA, as it was vastly different from a human’s.

Tony trembled as Lukas’ deep brown eyes, so dark they were almost black, peered at him with dubious intrigue. “Tony, it’s been forever since we actually had a talk. Do you know how fucking hard it was to keep quiet when I saw you in that crowd of panthers? Do you? Huh?”

Tony chirped, “N-no, I don’t.”

“I knew you wouldn’t understand. They never do. But you’re special to me, Tony. I decided to let you live. That’s a privilege, a real fucking treat, you know, since you already know what I usually do with all my victims once they’re dead.” He grinned wolfishly revealing rows of sharpened teeth.

Tony had a flitting thought that maybe Gabriel hadn’t been so bad after all. Maybe the man would’ve even let him stay there and protected him. He liked him a lot, right? It wasn’t too late. Once Lukas left, he would go back and beg him to help the clan get rid of him He was a master vampire, and master vampires were said to be able to go toe to toe evenly with the leaders of shifter packs.

“Can I get you anything to eat or drink?” he asked, the claw marks beginning to flare and throb.

Lukas narrowed his eyes. His soulless, empty eyes. “I came to talk, not sit and have lunch. I’m going to have a battle for the position of beta and I want you to win. If you don’t win…well, let’s just leave it at that. You’re of my line, so you should have an advantage. And you
will
fight. The next clan gathering is tonight, so I’ll see you there, Tony.” He patted him hard on the back and went to the door, sniffed the air, and gagged. “And what’s that god-awful smell on you? Take a shower before coming.”

He left. Tony sagged in his seat, his bones feeling like pudding as he let the tension coiled in his muscles relax.

He hated fighting. He absolutely hated it. And he knew each and every member of the clan and the thought of fighting them to gain a title felt, well, silly. Childish, even. But if that’s what Lukas wanted, he’d have no choice. He’d win and get closer to the bastard. Yes, he’d get closer and closer until he got close enough to take the other man out.

The only problem was that Tony was scared shitless of Lukas. He wanted him dead but at the same time knew that he couldn’t do it alone. He’d need help. He’d have to meet secretly with other members of the clan that hated Lukas as much as him. How he would arrange such a meeting was beyond his comprehension, though.

As all these thoughts whirled in a tornado inside Tony’s head. He ate a bologna sandwich and drank some water as he watched the evening news and debated on his course of action.

Images of Gabriel reeled in his mind. The man was handsome, yes, stunningly handsome. And he was kind to Tony, kind enough to save him and bandage him up and then…

His cheeks grew hot as he recollected what had happened between him and the vampire and he hopped into the warm shower as he tried to think of how to kill Lukas.

He hummed a song to himself as he shampooed his hair, letting the water stream in thin rivulets down his body.

Every time he closed his eyes, an image of Gabriel leaning over him, pale lips pursed, golden vampire wells gazing into him longingly, affectionately.

He turned the water off, grabbed a towel, wrapped it around his waist, and padded into the bedroom. He’d see Gabriel tomorrow. Yeah, he’d go to his house if he remembered how to get there correctly and ask for his help in killing Lukas. He didn’t care if it was murder, the man had to die.

The man had to die.

A cold wind curled around Tony’s right ear and he was quickly yanked from his sleep as it meandered to his neck and tickled him.

“You seriously thought you could flee from me?” scoffed a familiar voice that reminded him of smooth satin rubbing against his cheek.

Tony flinched as Gabriel reached out an ice-cold hand and gingerly cupped the curve of his chin. “H-how did you get in here?” he asked sullenly, biting back the urge to nuzzle his face into the other man’s hand.

“Some vampires can walk through walls, although it does take quite the large amount of energy to do so.” Gabriel yawned. “So if you don’t mind, I’ll be sleeping here tonight.”

“No way! You took advantage of me! Like I’d just let you sleep in my apartment after what you did—”

At that moment the vampire leaned in close, so dangerously close, irrevocably close, and pressed his smooth pallid lips against Tony’s. Tony’s eyes widened but then closed as something inside him surrendered to the feel of Gabriel’s mouth locked with his, and he gave into the heavenly sensation of the other man’s arms linked around his neck as their tongues danced in a silent ballet of innermost passion.

Tony couldn’t help but moan as Gabriel’s fangs grazed his lips and a small droplet of blood dripped down onto Tony’s shirt collar. Gabriel pulled away from the kiss and licked hungrily at the stain. Then he sent a trail of fiery kisses along Tony’s collarbone and neck until he reached his left ear, nibbled at the lobe teasingly, and then bit down onto his throat.

Tony grabbed onto Gabriel’s coat as if it was the only thing anchoring himself to reality, and let out another loud moan as Gabriel’s venom coursed through his veins and began to take its blissful effect.

*

As Gabriel drank, he slid his hands beneath Tony’s shirt and onto his back where he came upon a jagged part of the skin and felt four diagonal claw marks that ran deep into the man’s flesh. He suddenly withdrew from the were-panther and left Tony in a dazed stupor while he maneuvered the other man and himself onto the couch.