Waning Moon (6 page)

Oh, no.
No. No. No.
It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t.

Gabriel? Shouldn’t he be in bed…in his death sleep? How was he walking around during the day?

Oh. Yeah.
He was a master vampire. And some master vampires could do that.

Damn.

Mia nudged Tony as he darted back into the kitchen. “Hey, what’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost again.”

Tony swallowed hard. Gabriel was here. Gabriel was here. Gabriel was here. “I, uh, I gotta go to the bathroom. Be right back.” He slammed the bathroom door shut and sat on the toilet while cradling his head within his hands. What was he gonna do? What would he do if Gabriel saw him?

He’d just have to face it. There was no way around this predicament. Gabriel was a customer and Tony worked here so he’d just treat it as if he were any other customer. Yeah, that’s what he’d do.

Determination swimming inside, Tony went out of the bathroom and into the kitchen. He overheard Mia asking Gabriel for his order and the vampire said he’d have an onion bagel with cream cheese and lox with a medium vanilla coffee.

When Mia walked to the kitchen to confirm the order with Tony, she asked, “Do you know him? He’s a vampire, you know. Strange that he’s out during the day. You’re acting like you know him from somewhere.” She snickered.

Tony bit his lower lip. “Um…yeah, I do. He’s the new neighbor. The one that’s been making all the loud noise.”

“Oh, okay. I’m gonna go take my lunch break so Anna will be at the register, ’kay?”

“Okay.”

Tony suddenly felt a strong compulsion to leave his station and go to Gabriel. The urge was great and he felt like he had to see the vampire, he just had to. He abandoned the kitchen and strode into the main part of the café where he sat on the opposite side of the round table that Gabriel was seated at and began to sweat bullets.

“You finally came,” the vampire commented.

Tony rubbed his neck. “I just felt a sudden urge to sit with you. And why are you here? How did you know I work here?”

Gabriel sipped his coffee daintily. “My marks tell me where you are at all times. It was rather easy to follow your scent, too. You smell like lavender and morning dew.” He made a fanged grin.

“That’s creepy! And how are you able to stay awake so long? Aren’t you tired?”

“I admit I am very tired but it’s worth it to see you, my cute little servant. When will you be done with work?”

Tony was at a loss for words. Gabriel neglected his daily death sleep to see him. Why? Why did he have such a profound interest in him? He was nothing, nothing important, nothing special. Nothing at all.

“In three hours my shift will be over,” he said sourly.

Gabriel replied, “All right. I will come to get you when you’re finished.” He drank the rest of his coffee and wrapped the bagel in a blanket of napkins. “I’ll see you later, Tony.” He dabbed some Purell on his hands, pushed his chair beneath the table, and left.

Tony cringed. The way his name rolled off the vampire’s tongue as if it were an exotic candy frightened him, made his whole body shudder. Why did this man have such an effect on him?

Why?

And how?

Why did muscles deep within his groin clench at the sight of this man. His cock was twitching and aching for his gentle mouth to take him. Tony raced back into the kitchen just in time for another order and pondered how this man now gave meaning to his once empty life.

He broke four more dishes and one mug. Luckily, no one saw and he painstakingly waded through the next three hours until he heard the door to the café swing ajar and he peeked his head out to see Gabriel had come back.

Heart fluttering in his chest like a hummingbird, Tony hung his apron on the rack in the kitchen, signed his name off the work schedule sheet, and ran into Gabriel’s arms. He inhaled his musky, rosy scent and combed his fingers through the silky mane of hair. Gabriel uttered, “My, my, someone is eager to see me.”

“I’ve been thinking about you all day,” the were-panther remarked with a sniffle.

Gabriel slipped out of the hug and took Tony’s hand within his. “We’re going to go somewhere, so just hold my hand and follow me, all right?”

Tony nodded. He felt as if some part buried within him had been unlocked and set free—the beast he had ignored for so long. His panther rubbed against his metaphysical walls, purred lowly and softly, padded around his mind and laid down like an obedient housecat.

He had been so afraid. Afraid for so long, and for what? He’d set the panther free from the cage that he had trapped it in and now it was like a kitten. It craved Gabriel’s touch and nudged Tony’s thoughts as if to say,
“I’m here for you and I like him, can he stay?”

Gabriel led Tony downtown and while they were walking, he stopped and stared at him intently. “You finally let go, Tony. Good. Your beast is very pleased. From now on, it’s up to you to control it, though.”

He raised Tony’s wounded finger to his mouth and sniffed it. “Ah, your blood is so tantalizing. I’d feed on you right now if we didn’t have to go to see my master and we weren’t in public. I promise to savor you slowly tonight.” His voice was like a flowing stream, smooth and relaxing.

“Why are we going to see your master?” Tony asked.

“He has something urgent to tell me. I thought I’d take you with me since you’ve been thinking about me all day like a schoolgirl with a crush.”

Tony blushed. “H-how did you know that?”

Gabriel sneered. “The marks tell me what you’re thinking most of the time. I could feel your anticipation and eagerness to see me.”

Tony huffed angrily. “You can see into my head? What the hell! I never gave you permission to do that!”

Gabriel was taken aback. With wide golden eyes he replied, “I am sorry, Tony. I will give you your privacy from now on. I was just so worried about you, you kept breaking dishes at your job and if someone were to find out, you could have been fired.”

Tony thought irritably,
That’s my business, not yours. It doesn’t matter if I get fired or not. I’ll just find another job like this. Not like I can become a doctor or anything since I have the lyrianthropy disease in me.

Gabriel raked a hand through his golden mane and announced, “We’re here.”

They were outside a tattoo parlor called Wicked Poison. Gabriel went inside and Tony followed uncertainly. They went down a flight of stairs and into a dark, cold basement that was lavishly decorated. The walls were painted scarlet with white roses, there were three couches, and an old Victorian loveseat, a large rectangular coffee table in the center, and paintings of horses hung on the walls. There were no windows and the darkness was stifling. Tony noticed a full king-size bed at the far right corner and Gabriel went over to it and peeled the blankets back to reveal the resting form of the Master of New York, Alexander DeRaise.

The master vampire’s hand snaked out and caught Gabriel’s wrist, pulled him onto the bed. Tony crossed his arms over his chest as he watched Alexander wrap his arms around Gabriel and plant a tender kiss on his forehead.

Tony found himself growling in annoyance at the sight of the other vampire touching his Gabriel.

Wait.
His
Gabriel?

That damn panther was messing with his head!

He closed his eyes and saw the panther stalking the corridors of his mind, black lips curled back in a furious snarl as it gazed at Alexander fondling Gabriel. Tony came back to his senses and jumped on the bed, tore Gabriel from Alexander’s arms, and kissed him fervently, heatedly, and possessively on the lips, savored the sweet yet tangy taste that followed.

Gabriel quickly broke away. “Tony, what was that for? I was only saying hi to my sire.”

Tony shrugged, cheeks fiery red. “I-I know that, it just-it made my panther jealous. Not me. The panther. It thinks that you belong to it.”

Gabriel paused and then laughed. “Your panther is jealous, huh? Tony, you know full well that that means you yourself are envious. The panther is a manifestation of your true feelings after all.”

Tony’s voice caught in his throat and he managed to retort with a pout, “Whatever. It just made me feel left out when you suddenly went to Alexander like that. That’s all.”

Alexander cleared his throat and both Gabriel and Tony turned their head in his direction. “Now that that’s out of the way, Gabriel, I’d like to tell you something.”

“Yes, master?”

Alexander flipped his golden hair onto his back and stood from the bed. To Tony’s surprise, the man was fully naked, and a long jagged scar ran from his right shoulder to his left hip. He tried not to gawk, but it was hard with such a handsome sight before him. Gabriel scrambled to the dresser and held out a fuzzy red robe for the master vampire to put on.

“My master, Michael, is coming to visit New York and he will be staying with me for a few days. I’d like you to be my support, if that’s all right.”

Gabriel answered, “Of course, master. I have one request, though.”

“What is it?”

“Can I have Tony stay, too? I don’t want him out of my sight, unless he’s at work. He has a fight coming up in a couple days and I want to train him for it.”

Alexander said, “Of course. He’s welcome just as much as you are, After all, he is the only servant you’ve ever truly marked and liked. I’m shocked to see you have taken such a liking to him already.”

“Thank you, master! We won’t disappoint you.”

“Michael’s flight will be arriving tomorrow afternoon, so I was thinking you could just spend the night here with me.”

Tony interrupted, “Do I have to stay, too?”

“Yes, Tony, you also have to stay.” Alexander slitted his eyes. “If everything is all right with Gabriel.”

“Oh, yes. Everything is fine. I am thrilled to finally meet your sire, master. May I ask why he is coming?”

Alexander sat on the loveseat and rested his back against the arm. “He is coming to discuss future government policy. As it stands vampires still don’t have the right to vote, and we’re seeking to change that by proving we are living beings.” He gave a devilish smirk. “Even if it’s only for half a day. I can tell you’ve been neglecting your sleep, Gabriel. Go to the bed and lie down for a bit. I’ll entertain myself with your new kitty.”

Gabriel barked, “No! I mean, I’m all right. Tony just got off work and he’s exhausted, so it’d be best if he laid down instead of me.”

Alexander rested his chin on his knuckles and smiled warmly. “You both are free to use the bed. I’m going to go out for a bit. Just don’t make too much of a mess, all right?”

He changed into a pair of jeans, a black T-shirt, and leather boots. It was then that Tony noticed the Pegasus tattoo on his left arm and asked himself how he hadn’t seen it before. Alexander slipped into a long furry white coat and ascended the stairs.

Tony glanced at Gabriel and then fell onto the bed. His muscles twitched and throbbed from standing up all day bent over a stove. He nuzzled his head into the blankets, smelled the scent of apples and lavender and fresh linens. Gabriel crawled beside him and stared into his eyes.

“Shall we sleep, Tony?” he asked softly.

Tony nodded and they slid under the covers and fell asleep, hands loosely intertwined together.

*

Snow dappled the streets in bright white patches as a cool wind stirred among the back alleys, toppling over wastebins and light carts as a tiny form crouched low against the side of a brick building. Clad in a tattered, stained blanket, the boy shivered from the intense cold, teeth clattering together, body quaking as he brought his head to his knees and tried not to bite his tongue as another blast of snow buffeted him from the side.

A group of boys circled around the lone youth and one by one each bent down and grabbed a pebble from the ground and aimed it at the boy huddled against the wall. He braced himself as pebbles rained upon him in a cruel assault, the other boys laughing and sneering as they attacked him, faces reminding the boy of what the devil must look like, a perpetual, wicked grin with gleaming evil eyes and haunting laughter. He heard the sound of hooves clacking against the cobblestone road but ignored it as the boys continued their harsh beating.

“All of you are picking on one frail boy? In this mess of a blizzard?” boomed the voice of a man. The boy tilted his head up to see that a carriage had stopped before the alley, the pith-black horses stomping their hooves and snorting impatiently in place as a man cloaked in a red velvet overcoat descended from the cab and briskly strode to the boy’s side.

“Why are you hurting this young man?” the man queried and cocked an eyebrow. The boy took notice of his long blond hair that fell in rich waves to his waist, recognized the finely sewn long-sleeved shirt with cream ruffled sleeves and dark dress pants behind the velvet cloak as those only the richest of people donned and sucked in an anxious breath.

What was this man doing, stopping in the middle of the road, coming into an alley, and speaking to those other boys who were harming him? What was he up to, and what exactly did he want?

Everyone always wanted
something
in return. He had learned that only recently.

One of the boys, a brown-haired youth with a jagged scar on his left cheek spoke up. “We have to get rid of him, mister. He has the disease and will give it to us all if we don’t do something fast.”

The man knelt down on one knee and reached a leathered, gloved hand toward the shuddering, hurt boy and said gently, “Why don’t you come with me? I have some hot stew ready in the kitchen. You can warm yourself by the fire.”

Gabriel huffed. “I don’t trust strangers. My parents taught me that much at least.”

The golden-eyed vampire replied kindly, “Really? What good parents they were. Rest assured, I am not like other people. I promise I will give you a warm meal and a soft bed to sleep in.”

The boy cocked a quizzical brow. “Why bother? I’ll die in a year or maybe less. I have the ‘sickness,’ you know?”

The man chuckled lowly to himself and raked a hand through his impossibly long blond hair. “You know I’m a vampire, right, boy? Well I’m no ordinary vampire. I’m a pureblood, a rare treasure among elites. My blood can keep your illness at bay. It has natural antibodies it that defy any disease, as long as I give it you to periodically.” He extended a hand. “So, what do you say? Do you want to come live with me, and I promise I will keep your illness in check until I find a cure?”