Fighting Destiny (Central Coven) (6 page)

The witnesses called the slave many things: demon, ghost, and evil spirit.  The Senator was found among the dead that evening, and thankfully they stopped trying to resurrect the dead.  The newly born vampire escaped, probably first to Turkey and then onto the European continent.  

“I understand now why you believe a necromancer is controlling the vampires, but why do you want to see Grey?”  “There are several reasons actually.  First, I want to find out how he is managing to avoid the spell of the necromancers.  He may have an amulet to protect him.  Also, I would like to know how we ended up rooming together.  Don’t you think it is more than a coincidence we are both supernaturals, and while neither of us wanted a roommate we were still assigned the same room?  And even though we have only known each other for a little less than two weeks we are both being singled out by psychotic vampires? Call me a fool, but I have a feeling Grey knows something about that,” I reasoned. 

“I can’t argue with you when you put it that way.  After dark, I will contact Grey.  But, just know getting in deeper with him is risky.  He is safer yes, but there is no such thing as a safe vampire,” Anita cautioned.

I wasn’t really sure what you were supposed to wear to flush out an enigmatic vampire.  It might be cliché, but I chose my black party clothes.  If I could dance all night in them, I should be able to be stealthy, and get away in a hurry, right?  Anita strolled in wearing jeans and a dark t-shirt.  She saw me and doubled over laughing.  “Excuse me for not knowing how to dress when meeting the ‘un-dead’,” I snapped.  “I’m sorry,” she said trying to hold in her hysterics, “I just didn’t realize you would go Goth because of our little adventure.”  “Yeah, yeah.  Let’s get this over with okay?” I grumbled.

We decided to by pass the main floor by going out our window.  We were going to leave as soon as it got dark, but we saw so many people when we went to dinner that we waited until eleven. Anita went first, she peered over the side, and when she was sure no one was around, she gracefully and silently leapt to the ground.  I stood on the ledge, raised my arms slightly to the sides, stepped off into the air and levitated. I floated to the ground, a little slower than Anita did, but only a little.

“That was much faster than the stairs, too bad we can’t do that everyday,” Anita grumbled.  We walked a couple blocks in silence, heading for a cluster of trees behind the sports fields. I wanted to teleport, but Anita wasn’t sure where Grey was going to meet us. 

An indescribable sensation caused the hairs on the back of my neck to stand up.  I turned to ask Anita if she felt it too, but she raised her hand to silence me. But she didn’t need to say anything, because the fluorescent yellow/green glow of her eyes told me she did. “Someone is by that tree,” Anita whispered and pointed to a large pine near the sports fields.  In a blink she ran the length of a football field to get there.  “What the hell,” I said to myself, and teleported over to Anita.

The tree was clearly visible under the brightness of the full moon, but no one was under the tree.  I scanned up the branches of the giant pine tree, and halfway up was perched a giant mountain lion.  Well, at least that explained the weird feeling. “That certainly shouldn’t be in town,” Anita said.  “I agree, who ever that is, they really should have shifted out in the woods.” Anita’s face bunched up and she shook her head.

I pointed at the giant feline, “That is a shape shifter.  You know, a person in animal skin.”  “I guess there is no end to the world of weird I am going to have to learn about.  But now that you mention it, I feel like I know that cat.  Weird,” Anita observed.  She wandered closer, “It smells familiar too.”   “All the same, unless Grey turns into a cougar…we still need to be looking for him. We have time later to figure out where we know this cat from.  Still, we should definitely bookmark this issue for when people aren’t disappearing. I do like to know what other supernaturals are around me.  Just seems like a good thing for a witch to know.”

“Where do you think we’ll find Grey?” As Anita considered my question I felt cold fingers gently brush the side of my neck.  My hair was swept aside so quickly it was as if a gust of wind concentrated on that one lock of hair.  Then the lightest touch of wintry lips to the curve of my neck.  “If you wanted to find me, all you had to do was ask.  I am at your service,” he said and bowed.  “Grey, knock that seduction crap off would’ya,” Anita snapped.  “Only if
she
wants me to,” he replied with a fiendish grin. 

I am supposed to do something here.  I can tell because they are both looking at me.  Oh, boy I really want to kiss him. Probably not what Anita was expecting me to do.  Why do I want to kiss him?  I like Finn. Really, I do.  At least usually I like him a lot, but right now I would like to…

Yeah, I’m definitely screwing something up judging by the way Anita is glaring at me.
“Grey, we need to ask you some questions,” I managed to blurt out. 
Yes!  I have questions, that is why I’m here. Thank God, my brain still works, well, kinda.
  “Is that
really
what you want to do right now, ask me questions?” 
No,
“Yes,” I managed to spit out.

Unaware I had taken a step toward him.  He put his hands on my shoulder, slid them leisurely down my arms, and took hold of my hands.  His gaze was mesmerizing; I couldn’t resist him any longer.  He let go of my hands, put them around my waist, and kissed me, first softly on the lips, then deeper, until I felt dizzy.  Then he pulled away and laughed, “You need to be more careful I could have had you if I wanted to.  They really planned this right, coming after you when you are so ill prepared.  We are seductive creatures; we can make you love us if we want you to.  Do not forget that,” he warned.

I scowled.  To be honest part of me was compelled by him, but on some level I was also genuinely attracted to him.  However, now I was just pissed off.  He thought he displayed his power for me, and showed my weakness.  It was time he saw a display of my power, and perhaps a small taste of my wrath.  That will show him not to use his damn vampire mojo on me.

I placed my hands in a diamond formation in front of me, with one hand on top of the other.  My eyes flashed green.  Anita saw my transformation and began to chuckle.  Luckily, as fast as Grey’s reflexes were he was too cocky to see what was coming.  I summoned an orb of swirling, pulsing energy and projected it towards Grey.  He flew backwards several feet and crashed into a tree.

I teleported over to where he was lying at the base of the tree, “Never underestimate me or the extent of my power.”   He tried to lunge at me, but I teleported away just as quickly.  I stood in front of him and looked him in the eyes, “You have no power over me.  You were able to kiss me, because unfortunately I dig the whole hot bad boy thing.  You shouldn’t forget for one moment I could set you on fire with one word.  Don’t piss me off again.” 

“Mmm…I like you,” Grey said with a smirk spreading across his face.  “I wanted to do this nice, but you are being very difficult.  I need answers, not games.  Start talking,” I opened my hand to reveal a large flame dancing off my palm.

Anita rapidly began to explain what we wanted to know, because she was afraid I would lose my temper.  Grey reached into his shirt and pulled out a St. Christopher’s medal.  Well that answered that question.  The religious symbol protected him against those who call on demons to perform their magic.  It didn’t have to be Christian, just something the wearer truly believed in. Demons and spirits could not act on him to complete the necromancer’s spells because they were afraid of the light and everything that symbolized it.

“Do you know why Anita and I are roommates?” I asked him.  “I knew one or both of you were in danger. I figured you would figure it out faster if you were together.  Not to mention, you are easier to keep an eye on this way.  So I broke into the housing office and rearranged your housing assignments,” Grey explained with a shrug.  That was two of my questions he cleared up, this was proving to be a very profitable excursion.  “Why are you looking out for
us
?  Do you know anything else you aren’t telling us?” I asked.  “Well I have reasons for keeping track of you, and I know plenty of things I am not telling you. But, that is for you to uncover at another time,” Grey said smirking.

He moved close, so close I could smell the fresh rain scent of his skin.  I wanted to touch him, but I wouldn’t give him the pleasure of knowing he was effecting me.  “Chèrie, do you want to kiss and make-up,” Grey propositioned.  “Eh, bien non.  Of course not.  I might be over you,
for a while
. But do go ahead and hold your breath, ” I snapped, and walked back towards the dorms.  

“Well played Grey.  She’ll be putty in your hands in no time,” Anita said smirking, then turned and walked off.  “I had underestimated Chloë. She is much more powerful than I realized.  I was so worried about what Grey could do to Chloë, I never considered what a witch that powerful could do to even the strongest vampire. Definitely something to remember,” Anita thought.

I could hear her thoughts, which was odd, but I didn’t have the brain space to figure out why just then.  Maybe I was so keyed up from using my powers, and because we were such good friends.  Maybe…. I’d figure it out, later.  I was still getting used to the world of weird (as Anita kept calling it) too, tomorrow I could figure this out.

Anita caught up to me, and I put my arm around her shoulders.  “Is he always so temperamental?” I asked.  “He doesn’t like surprises, and your little exhibition of power back there was certainly a surprise,” Anita said laughing.  “Even I didn’t know you could kick his ass like that,” she continued still in awe.  “He ought to know what he is dealing with.  That was the lesson he thought he was teaching me.  Although, I have a feeling he was holding back.”  “I did love watching him smash into that tree,” she said with a chuckle in her voice. 

“So what next?” she looked at her watch, “it’s not too late yet”.  “Lemme think… how about we go back to the dorm, maybe play some pool, or see if our gorgeous neighbors are still awake.  How does that sound?” I proposed.  “Sounds like fun to me,” she said bouncing with excess energy.  “And uhm, can we forget about my momentary lapse in judgment?” I pleaded.  “You mean that steamy hot kiss with Captain Fang? Already forgotten.” 

Funny how obligations don’t pause when you have something serious going on.  Like I still have classes to go to.  I want to experience college, see what human girls my age do, but my life keeps interrupting my plans.  Making it to class seems trivial while I am trying to figure out why a group of sociopathic vampires is attacking my classmates.

No, I don’t have a major, unless a major problem committing to something is a subject. Hell, it doesn’t seem like I can commit to having only one crush.  Academically, I am interested in Biology, but also deeply interested in History, or maybe Political Science.  Personally, I really like Finn, he is gorgeous and charming, but Grey is so…so…hot.  Eh, I’m a freshman; I have some time to figure it out. 

Anita on the other hand knows what she wants to do.  She is going to major in Communications, because she wants to make use of her enhanced abilities (to
influence
people), and go into Public Relations.  I hope someday to be as sure of myself as she is.

Ugh, and the issue of class attendance, well let’s just say it is a work in progress.  I am still going to have to go to those if I want to stay in college long enough to consider this a life experience.  Anita and I are not morning people. I mean hullo she
is
half vampire, which is why we relish that our first class doesn’t start until eleven.  If we continue to have covert missions late at night, we might not even make the eleven o’clock class.

Our first class was World History in the Language and Literature building.  If we walked out the back of our dorm we could be at the building (if we traveled at a normal human pace) in ten minutes or less.  It would have been nice to make up time by teleporting, or running for Anita , but any humans would have been seriously disturbed by our sudden appearance in the building’s inner courtyard.

Ordinarily we walked to class with Finn and Dean, but we had gotten up late this morning. No surprise.  We missed breakfast, and the boys had already left for class by the time we headed out.  I opened the door and found a note taped to it addressed to the both of us.  It read,
Good morning sleepy heads.  Tried to wake you, but it was like waking the dead
. (Anita snickered.)
We hope to see you in class, Finn and Dean
.

The classroom was tucked in the bottom floor of the oddly shaped building.  Only the periphery of the building had classrooms the rest of the first floor was consumed by an open outdoor courtyard.  There were bushes and flowers planted in the middle of the concrete walkway.  Each wing had to be accessed through separate doorways; one floor contained the offices for the History Department and the Foreign Language Department.  The other wing contained a computer lab, and a few classrooms.

Our classroom was in the left corner of the bottom floor. It had no windows, and the only natural light came in through the doorway.  It was an odd shaped room with sharp corners, and an L-shaped arrangement of the students’ desks around the professor’s podium.  Luckily we made it to class on time, because there was no sneaking into this room.