Fangs for Freaks (13 page)

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Authors: Serena Robar

Tags: #Vampires, #Fiction, #Horror, #Best friends, #Horror & Ghost Stories, #Juvenile Fiction, #Social Issues, #School & Education, #Friendship, #Fantasy & Magic, #Horror stories, #Universities and colleges

BOOK: Fangs for Freaks
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He surprised me by finally answering my question. “A friend told me about this job after I graduated college. I used to play football but wasn’t good enough for the big time and security sounded kind of interesting. Especially this kind of stuff.”
“Babysitting a bunch of girls in a sorority house is interesting, huh?” I teased him and he smiled.
“Well, not until this morning it wasn’t. But I never knew about your kind before. I mean vampires. I had no idea they walked among us and all. It’s been an eye-opening experience, I can tell you.”
I nodded in agreement. It had been for me as well. But I was puzzled why the Tribunal employed human security guards and posed the question to him.
“You guys can only operate during the night. We can do things during the day, like transport and investigating.”
“And do it under the cover of daylight, without being thwarted by other vampires?” I was starting to understand. Pretty smart, actually.
“I used to do mostly transport of mutant, er, half-bloods,” he corrected himself quickly, “but I guess that will all change soon. I hope I don’t lose my job.” He frowned at the thought.
I tucked my arm through his and squeezed gently. “I don’t think you have to worry about job security. We aren’t going anywhere and we’re certainly not the most popular girls in the Undead community.”
I was the queen of understatement.
He patted my hand and kept it through his arm and we walked in compatible silence. Todd was a nice guy and he was there to protect me. But he also knew I could protect myself. He respected that ability in me, unlike Thomas. It was kind of nice; I hadn’t been able to walk arm in arm and admire the sunset in a long time. He was no Thomas, but I wasn’t all that thrilled with Thomas right now.
I sighed heavily and Todd looked at me in question. “It’s nothing. Life is complicated,” I said.
He smiled teasingly. “Boyfriend?”
“At this point, I’m not sure.” And the thing of it was, I
wasn’t
sure. If we didn’t have mutual respect of our abilities, what did we have? We didn’t have the physical side. I sighed again.
We rounded the block and a Starbucks came into view. It was teeming with coeds desperately needing caffeine.
“Why don’t you go get a latte, I’ll be right around here.”
He shook his head, “I can’t do that, Colby. I have strict orders you’re not to leave my sight.”
“You know what I need to do though, don’t you?”
He shifted uneasily. “I think I get the gist of it. It’s no big deal, Colby. You have to do what you have to do.”
“I won’t do that in front of you, Todd. But you’re right, I
have
to do it.”
“How about a compromise? You find, er, someone and I’ll be your lookout. I promise I won’t peek. I’ll just be close at hand if you need me.”
I nibbled on my lower lip in indecision. I hated feeding in general and I certainly didn’t want Todd the Rent-a-Cop watching me do it—but what choice did I have?
“Okay fine. Do you want a coffee?”
He nodded in agreement and we went inside the store. It was cool and calming. I loved the way Starbucks decorated their stores. And the aroma of flavors. Intoxicating. I could smell a Starbucks a block away.
There was a pleasant-enough guy behind us in line. He had a newspaper and wore cutoffs. While Todd was ordering his drink, I spoke to the gentleman and he nodded, as though in a trance.
Todd waited for his coffee and I enjoyed the hustle and bustle of people. When his order was ready, I directed him outside and to the side of the store. There were large Dumpsters next to the building and it was slightly exposed but if Todd was acting as my lookout, I didn’t need anything more secluded.
Todd asked me what we were doing; I told him we were waiting for someone. Sure enough, my new friend left the coffeehouse, cappuccino in hand, and joined us. I beckoned him further into the shadows. After Todd was satisfied I was in no danger, he turned his back to me.
I studied my victim for a moment and then slipped my headgear into place. His eyes widened a moment but he didn’t move. I gently tilted his head to one side and whispered, “Everything is going to be okay,” then sank my fangs into his neck.
I closed my eyes and drank, holding him upright and steady, close to me. I discovered early on that some people fainted when I was feeding, not because they were in pain or I was drinking too much, just that their blood pressure dropped suddenly. Now I held them close, to avoid hurting them.
When I was done, I licked across the wound and it instantly healed. I pulled off my fangs and looked deep into his eyes. I told him to forget our meeting and have a great day. He wandered away slowly, still in a bit of a daze. Once he entered the busy courtyard he seemed to shake out of the trance I’d put him under and went about his business.
I looked at Todd and found him staring at me in open-mouthed disbelief.
“You watched me!” I accused, angry he’d broken his promise.
He took several strides in my direction. “I had to make sure you were safe, Colby.”
“You lied to me,” I hissed at him, trying to pass him by.
He grabbed me by the arms and said, “Don’t make a scene. I’m sorry I lied to you, really I am, but your safety is my number-one concern.”
“It changes everything now, don’t you see?” I was fighting with tears. Todd was a nice guy and we were getting along so well. I was hoping he would want to be my friend, but now that was impossible.
“Why does it change everything? I don’t understand. Help me understand, Colby.”
“I thought we could be friends. But now you’ve see me as some dark creature who feasts on human blood and that changes
everything
.”
I wanted to storm away but part of me hoped he would understand. That he wouldn’t think I was so terrible.
“I don’t think you’re some freak at all. You’re just different. You didn’t hurt that guy, you were very nice. Almost reverent in how you treated him. He’ll never know he played a part in your life and that makes me a little sad, for him.”
“Huh?” I was so not prepared for this speech.
“Here we are. Two species existing together but one of us has no idea the other exists. Like we’re on two separate plains. Your kind depends on us, needs us to survive, but we’ll never know your culture, who you really are or your sense of humor.” He touched my cheek and I smiled in spite of myself.
“It seems like a small price to pay for getting to know you better. Really understanding you.” His mouth was moving closer to mine and I was caught up in what he was saying. I didn’t disgust him. He wanted to know my kind better. He wanted to know
me
better. He respected my Protector skills. Even though he knew what I was, he wasn’t afraid of me or disgusted by me. When his lips drew close to mine, I didn’t resist. After all, Thomas didn’t want me. I leaned into the kiss.
Eight
H
is lips touched mine. I realized too late I’d just fed and my mouth was still warm with blood. Todd didn’t seem to mind; in fact he deepened the kiss immediately. He wrapped his arms around me and I let him hold me. He tasted like caramel and coffee and for a moment I didn’t think about Thomas or my responsibilities as Protector. I just lived in the moment. Todd ended the kiss and held me, softly kissing my jawline, and whispered in my ear, “Bite me, Colby. Let me give you what you need.”
I jumped away as though burned. What kind of sicko game was this? Todd didn’t have the hots for me! He had the hots for
vampires
. Ewwwwww.
“Leave me alone,” I commanded and he nodded, entranced by my command.
I ran away from him toward the park, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.
I can’t believe I kissed him and let him hold me!
He probably got his jollies while watching me feed on the other guy.
I hated this! I hated being different and living in a human world where people didn’t understand or they got excited at the thought of feeding us. For the first time since I became Undead I doubted I could do it. Stay Undead, that is. It would either break my spirit or drive me crazy and that scared me more than any vampire with a grudge ever could. Thomas was the only one who understood and I could hardly share my confusion over this experience. With Piper in Europe, I’d never felt more alone.
It was well after dark when I finally made my way back to Psi Phi House. I still didn’t know what I was going to do. What could I do? I had to find a way to cope with all these feelings, but who could I turn to? My parents wouldn’t understand, vampires certainly wouldn’t understand. Maybe there was a reason half-bloods weren’t allowed to exist before now. Maybe someone, somewhere in time figured out how hard it would be for us and made the merciful decision to snuff us out of existence.
No! My mind railed against that treacherous thought. We did deserve to exist, we could survive. I was not giving up hope yet. I rounded the corner, just as two cars pulled up to the House. I recognized Mr. Holloway and Thomas immediately, but the occupants of the other car were strangers to me.
I slowed down and greeted Mr. Holloway politely, nodded to Thomas and waited to be introduced to the others. I hadn’t met them yet but I had a pretty good idea the lady in question was Cookie Flannegan and one of the gentlemen with her, sporting streaked blond hair and a Hawaiian shirt, was probably Lance, Tina’s ex-boyfriend.
Boy, my day was just getting better and better.
“Is this her?” Cookie demanded, ignoring, yet again, my hand to shake. I really was beginning to think I was lord of the Undead lepers.
“This is Colby Blanchard, the half-blood Protector,” Mr. Holloway confirmed, giving me credence by introducing me using my full title. I really wished I’d rethought the braids and “Barely Legal” shirt.
“Where are they?!” she demanded, shaking her finger at me.
“I assume you mean Tina and Sage? They’re inside,” I responded politely, resisting the urge to grab her finger. Why did every vampire I met have such bad manners?
“Charles, I want them home. I want them on the next flight back to California with me,” Cookie demanded, and I widened my eyes in surprise. No one I knew talked to Mr. Holloway in such a familiar manner. That is, no one but me.
I was waiting for the deep freeze when he surprised me with a gentle rebuff. “Now, Cookie, you know the law. The girls are staying at Psi Phi House. I know it’s difficult for you but that is the way things are going to be.”
Cookie seemed to crumble a bit under his stern kindness and I noted the tears glistening in her blue eyes. “But I didn’t even get to say good-bye,” she whispered brokenly.
Uh, these were not the actions of a wicked vampire slave master. These were the actions of a mother who’d had her children taken from her. Uh-oh. What was the deal here? What had I done?
“Let’s all step inside, if you please,” I suggested, taking the despondent Cookie by the elbow and guiding her onto the porch.
I glanced at Thomas, whose expression was devoid of emotion, except for the clenched jaw and muscle ticking by his ear. We entered the house and I immediately went in search of Tina and Sage. I found Sage upstairs and told her Cookie was here to see her and she squealed with delight. She pushed past me to greet her and I had the sinking feeling this was going to turn out very badly … for me.
I saw Sophie and asked if she’d seen Tina.
“Not since yesterday, mum.”
I made the rounds upstairs, knocking on doors and getting no response. I hurried downstairs to witness Sage and Cookie hugging each other and Sage telling her all about her adventures to date. Including the attack by vampires, which had Cookie checking her over from head to toe to make sure she was truly safe. The look she shot me was pure venom. How dare I put her little girl in danger, it seemed to say.
I smiled weakly and hurried to the library. I slipped inside the bookcase and called to Tina. Where was she?
I found Angie watching reruns of
Buffy
and asked if she’d seen Tina.
“Nope, not since yesterday. She was on the computer after Lucy when I went to bed. Colby, isn’t this hysterical? Look at their faces! They have no idea what a vampire really looks like. Too funny.”
I ignored her and stepped into the sleeping dorm. I noted two beds were unmade, and assumed they were Lucy and Angie’s. I opened the door to the next partition and found one bed slightly askew, but the others were perfectly made up. Had Tina slept down here last night or had she gone upstairs?
I hurried out of the dorm and asked Angie, “Where did you sleep last night?”
“In the first bed. I didn’t make it yet. Is that okay?” She seemed concerned, especially after seeing the expression on my face.
“I can’t seem to find Tina,” I told her and she immediately jumped up to help me look.
“She probably slept upstairs and didn’t hear you call her,” Angie tried to reassure me but I was beginning to panic. Something wasn’t right, I could feel it.

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