Evolution (6 page)

Kerstrande

M
Y
HIGH
hopes for the evening spiraled south quickly enough, and not in the direction I wanted them to. Being a vampire had always been good for my libido. My need for blood often ran off on others as an enhanced sex drive to release inhibitions. Forever seventeen with that sort of power—yeah, I’d abused it at first. Now when I wanted it to work, it was useless since it didn’t work on Genesis at all. Every time we got hot and heavy, he got sleepy. I wondered if it was his abilities to see what others couldn’t that protected him from my power.

But waste not, want not. I’d been craving him for days. I fed, only taking a little blood. He slept, curled around me like he really wanted me to stay. When I gave in and laid my head on the pillow beside his, I actually fell asleep.

The graveyards weren’t new. I’d dreamt of them for years since becoming the undead. Usually my victims would pour out of their graves, reaching for me and screaming dreadful sounds that would haunt my memories for days. I never did sleep much.

This time the dream wasn’t frightening but peaceful. I sat in the middle of the graveyard, seeing grass, trees, and flowers bloom in bright color around the area filled with death. So much life spilling forward. I almost felt like the sun had started shining on me again. How long had it been?

When I opened my eyes, it was almost dawn. The kid still snoozed beside me without a care in the world. Were the dreams his doing? I touched his hair, enjoying the silky smooth feel of it between my fingers. We couldn’t do this. He’d be another headstone to weigh me down.

The last thing I needed was those pretty, flower-colored eyes haunting me from beyond the grave. I’d promised Anya that I would never steal another life. If only I’d been wise enough to make that promise before meeting her.

Genesis

M
Y
CAT
mewed me out of a dream that featured Kerstrande and I having a picnic on a beach that sat just feet from the graveyard. Always with the headstones. At least there were flowers there today.

The paws in my hair became a wave that surged out of the water and ripped me away from him. I came awake screaming, but Mikka only looked mildly amused. Her tail swung around in casual happiness, perched on the edge of “feed me before I bite you” rhythm.

“Holy crap, you scared me!” I told her, rubbing my eyes and trying to get the awful dream out of my head. She was worse than any alarm clock I’d ever owned and had no snooze button. I rolled out of bed feeling a little weak in the knees and made my way to the bathroom to relieve myself, then to the kitchen to fill her bowl. She munched in a purring, happy squat that made me tired just watching.

How had I gotten home anyway? Hadn’t I been with Kerstrande? Or was that all a dream?

The phone rang. “Hey, Rob,” I said since his name popped up on the caller-ID.

“Everything okay?”

Was that a trick question? “Yeah, I’m good. Why?” I made my way back to the bathroom, flicked the light on this time, and stared at my disastrous hair. I would so need to bleach it and redye it.

“We have practice today at the studio.”

Was I off from Down Low? I glanced at the calendar on the wall in the kitchen. I didn’t start until seven. “Okay. I just have to work at seven, so I’ll bring extra clothes along.” Brushing through my hair didn’t make it look any better. How bad would I look bald?

“Are we cool?”

He’d been asking me that a lot lately. “We’re cool.” I was, at least. I wasn’t sure if he was still having issues with me or not. Growing up together couldn’t save us from all the differences we sprouted as we got older. He’d never really seemed to get over our one big variation. Mainly, me being queer.

I touched the left side of my neck while playing with my hair, and my brain registered an “Ow.”
What the hell?

“What’s wrong? You got all quiet.”

A bruise swelled an angry blotch of red, purple, and blue, covering the left side just above my collarbone. The same spot the spider bite had been. “I have a giant bruise on my neck.”

“Like a hickey?”

I’d never had a hickey before; were they painful? “It hurts. It looks like I got hit by a baseball bat or something.”

“Did you meet some pretty vampire chick who dug your neck? I hear once you show interest, they’re all over you. The whole free blood thing.”

Did they have to pay for blood? I tried to remember if I’d seen anything in the beverage aisle the last time I’d ventured into the grocery store. Damn. The bruise looked awful. Maybe Cris would have something to help. I’d call him right after I got rid of Rob. “No girl,” I told my friend.

He sighed but then finally said, “Do you remember anything?”

Like I somehow wouldn’t remember something gnawing on my neck? “Nothing that could cause the bruise I have.”

“Were you drinking? You know you have no tolerance for alcohol.”

“I had a chili-cheese dog in the Park.” Kerstrande’s lips brushing mine haunted my memory. Had it been a dream? The dreams I had of him were usually more erotic and less disappointing.

“We’ve got a meeting with the new manager today. If you’re not well, I can stall. After all, what are best friends for?”

I gave him a weak laugh ’cause it hurt too much to do more. “I just need some sleep. Meet you at the studio later—noon-ish, okay?”

“Sure.”

We hung up without saying good-bye, and I dialed Cris to ask for some alternative medicine.

“Gene.” I could hear the smile in his voice. Cris was the only person I knew who loved me for all my craziness, even if he didn’t
love,
love me. He knew about my second sight and spent the past few years helping me control it. We’d been off-and-on lovers for that time. I imagined his beautiful pale-green eyes, crinkled in the corners with happiness. His dark-brown hair would be spiked in nearly three inches of perfection, the very tips blond for added style. The way he said my name sounded seductive, though I knew he didn’t mean to. “What are you doing up so early?”

So I filled him in on the progress of the band and all the changes that had happened in my life.

“Kerstrande Petterson, eh? He’s sort of a big fish.”

I sighed into the phone. “Do you believe in love at first sight?”

“Yes. Never experienced it myself but seen it in others a time or two. You think he’s the one?”

Was I willing to say that out loud? No, not yet. “So the bruise….”

“Smooth subject change.” He laughed. I could almost see those wide, strong shoulders of his moving. I had a major shoulder fetish. At least he made me smile even though I was exhausted. Was it okay to lust for one man but want to be with another? Cris was everyone’s fantasy guy. I guess even mine. “I’ll stop by the club tonight and drop something off.”

“Thanks.”

“Anytime, babe.”

The bed called my name as I hung up for the second time. I crawled back in, Mikka curled up beside me, and I let sleep take me back into more dreams of Kerstrande.

Chapter 6

J
OEL
got me out of bed. He arrived a little before eleven with a bucket of freshly fried chicken and some excuse about how I needed more protein. The chicken would last me a couple days, and I was as thankful for the free food as I was for the wake-up call. I arrived at the studio just in time.

We performed for a man with dark hair and glasses. He had the sinister, bad-guy look most Japanese anime gave to men with glasses. When I remarked on it to Rob, he just laughed and told me not all people with vision problems were evil.

It wasn’t my best performance. The producer whined about my hair, which was purple. Thankfully I’d found a box of wash-in color under the bathroom sink. The wild color made me feel more normal than I had in days. When Rob argued with them about originality to let me keep the color, I was grateful. He had bitched at me about the heavy black eyeliner before we’d even entered the building but at least supported me in public. If I could have found my colored Sharpie set, my nails would have been purple zebra stripes, but it just would have been more for them to dislike, I guessed.

Mr. Glasses handed us each a folder. “We’re starting from scratch. You’ll have three months to complete fifteen tracks. Ten for the CD, the rest for special releases.” The guy was Aaron Tokie, our new manager. Supposedly he’d managed Triple Flight too. I already missed my old manager.

I pawed through the stack of songs, none of which I’d written, all of which were popular crap. “I didn’t write any of these.”

“So?”

“Evolution has always played my songs. I write the lyrics and the melody and Rob finishes the score.”

“We’re establishing a fan base for you. These songs were written by seasoned songwriters and customized for your group. After two or three CDs, we may be able to add a few of your own pieces.”

Sounded like corporate bullshit to me. And this was why I didn’t want a big label. Devon warned me about how bad they could be, encouraged us to do it on our own. Yet I let this happen despite knowing Devon’s history in the industry. I sighed. Rob and Joel looked so hopeful I bit my tongue to keep from complaining further. How could this cookie-cutter pop crap be better than my stuff?

“We’ve hired a voice coach for you. Feel free to play with the style, and we’ll work out the differences during production.”

I got style choices, how generous. I must have made an unhappy noise ’cause Rob nudged me.

“The Green room is reserved for you to practice.” That was all he said before he ushered us out the door. We found the Green room easy enough. It was named for the label on the door, which said GREEN but wasn’t green and neither was the room. Practicing the music didn’t help. It was crap—stuff I didn’t want to listen to and really didn’t want to sing. Some of the songs were love songs with female pronouns. Did they expect me to pretend I was straight? I took a black Sharpie and changed the wording to make it more universal.

Our only pause was for a fifteen-minute photo shoot for some teen magazine. When I reminded the guys I had to work at seven, they decided to end the day on that note. Joel bought Chinese food, and we ate it sitting on the hood of his Mustang. Rob patted me on the shoulder. “It will work out. We can make the songs our own. Play up the rock.”

Yeah. I’d do it for them. Sighing heavily, I dug into the orange chicken and brown rice. Having rich friends who liked to feed me was probably the best thing about my life at the moment.

“You remember anything more about last night?” Rob asked, sweeping my hair aside to stare at the bruise.

“Yes and no.”

“What’s that mean?” Joel frowned at me, stole a piece of chicken, and ate it before asking, “You get drunk?”

“No. I just don’t know if I dreamt it or not. Everything’s kind of weird.” I stuffed a wonton into my mouth and crunched into the cream cheese center, chewed and swallowed slowly. “’Sides, it’s embarrassing.”

Rob slid closer. “Do tell.”

I growled at him, though it didn’t sound scary even to me.

“Come on, kiddo. We’re pals. And I bought dinner. So talk.” Joel boxed me in on the other side.

The blood that heated my cheeks embarrassed me more than the fragmented memories of last night. It wasn’t like I was a virgin, so why was I blushing? I’d been little more than fifteen when one of the older kids from down the street had introduced me to sex. Cris had shown me how good it could be, and for that I was grateful. “I saw Kerstrande.”

Joel raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t hit him with your car again, did you?”

“No. We went somewhere. I passed out.”

“Why’d you pass out?”

“He kissed me.” It had happened. I’d spent the entire day convincing myself of it. There was too much in my head to ignore.

“That’s weirder than those Japanese comics you read. He probably just sucked on your neck, and you passed out because his vamp powers were too much for you. The old ones can make the feeding good like that,” Joel said as he dug through the fortune cookies. “I read in the paper the other day that more than fifty percent of professional musicians are vampires now. The whole immortality thing, I guess.”

Both Rob and I stared at him. Did he know a lot of vampires? Joel pulled something off his car windshield and glared at it. Had someone been passing out flyers? My car didn’t have one, and I was parked right next to him. He crumpled up the paper in his fist.

“It was probably just a dream,” Rob pointed out. “Genesis is always daydreaming about something. We know how overactive his imagination is.”

It was? I kicked a rock with my shoe. “I doubt it matters anyway. Kerstrande is like a mega star. I’m not even a blip on his radar.”

“I don’t know about that. Looked like you were more than a blip to me. I don’t know how that boy has played straight this long. He looks at you like you’re a piece of candy he wants to unwrap.” Joel handed me a fortune cookie. I took the paper too and threw it on the other seat to be tossed out when I went home. “’Sides, not everyone has to have big-boobed ladies like I do. And you liking the big dog just leaves more of the ladies for me.”