Belle Morte Bites (Belle Morte 4.3)

Urchins

London, 1879

Ludovic de Vauban was never sure if he liked London or not.

The seething crush of people was fascinating to watch, and there was a lot of beauty in the city. He found himself enthralled by this world that he wasn't really a part of, while at the same time feeling completely out of place and overwhelmed by everything.

Part of him still wanted seclusion, and recoiled at the sheer number of people living here. But a stronger part no longer wanted to be alone.

A gaggle of ragged children ran past, and Ludovic's gaze followed them, seeing for a moment, another child, with bright eyes and a laugh like an angel.

Marie . . .

How could eighty years have passed since he lost her?

The children split up, scattering throughout the crowd, several of them falling into step behind wealthy women in silk dresses with ruffled bustles, and men in tailored frock coats and top hats.

Ludovic felt a little pang in his heart for the children.

The wealthy upper class wanted for nothing, but for many Londoners, life in the city was a daily struggle for survival. Unemployment was soaring. Families crammed together in single rooms in rundown boarding houses, frantically trying to scrape together enough money to keep the roof over their heads one more night. Homelessness was rife, and children were no exception.

Did these ragged urchins even have families?

Ludovic turned away, but a sudden shout drew his attention back.

The children were scattering, but a middle-aged man whose girth strained against his waistcoat had grabbed a little girl, holding her tightly by the arm. She fought to break free, but he was three times her size.

Ludovic was moving towards them before he realised it.

Pickpockets were common on these streets, and Ludovic didn't blame them – for people born into poverty it was near impossible to climb out of it – but the sight of a man who had everything shaking a little girl who had nothing filled him with anger.

The man raised a hand to hit the girl, and Ludovic lunged. He caught the man's wrist, using his own body to shield the girl.

"Don't," he warned, low and deadly.

"Take your hands off me," the man blustered.

"Take your hands off her first."

"How dare you." The man tried to pull back, but Ludovic held him firm.

"Let her go," he said.

The man's face darkened with disbelief, and Ludovic wondered if he'd ever not got his way before. People like him thought their wealth and power could buy them everything, and they were usually right. Not this time, though.

Ludovic tightened his grip until the man squeaked with pain and finally let the little girl go. She fled, clutching her arm to her chest, and didn't look back. Ludovic hadn't expected a thank you.

He released the man.

"I should have you arrested," the man snapped, rubbing his wrist. There'd be bruises later.

Ludovic shot him a cool look. "Try it if you want to."

For a moment he thought the man would, and he felt a flicker of frustration.

Ludovic could easily outrun and outfight any human authorities, but he didn't want to draw attention to himself. Anonymity was how vampires survived. Still, if saving that girl meant he had to leave the city, then so be it. There wasn't much he could do to help London's paupers, but he would not stand by and watch a child get struck for trying to survive.

But perhaps the predator that lived inside him was looking out through his eyes, for the man went pale suddenly and swallowed.

"I think I have to . . ." His voice trailed off.

He backed off, suddenly very interested in a shopfront on the other side of the street, and never noticed that Ludovic had quietly relieved him of his purse.

The ragged children of London weren't the only ones who'd learned to pick pockets.

It didn't take him long to track the little girl down. The streets heaved with people, but Ludovic's sharp vampire eyes quickly picked out more thin, dirty children, and he followed them as they slipped through the crowd, finally congregating at the mouth of a narrow alleyway. The little girl was among them.

Ludovic hung back, watching as the children spoke among themselves, and one of them examined the girl's arm. Even from a distance, Ludovic could see the red marks that the man's fingers had left. Fresh anger sparked.

The children disappeared into the alleyway, and Ludovic followed, just in time to see them drag a warped sheet of wood away from a broken window. One by one they climbed through the frame.

At least they had a roof over their heads, although Ludovic suspected it was only temporary. Whatever that building was, it belonged to someone, and sooner or later they'd realise the children were living there. Then those children would be back on the streets, and Ludovic's chest clenched as he realised that many of them wouldn't survive.

For a vampire, life wasn't as physically hard. Sleeping rough wasn't any more comfortable for Ludovic than it was for a human, but he couldn't freeze to death. He didn't need food or water, and if he needed money then it was easier for him to find work. So many jobs revolved around physical labour, and Ludovic's great strength meant he was always likely to be picked for the job over a human.

Some of these children would starve or die of dehydration. Others wouldn't survive the coming winter. Ludovic had seen children die in this way before, their tiny bodies frozen in the gutters, where no one spared them a second glance. If they survived the winter, they were still prey to the diseases running through the city, or any number of accidents that might befall them.

There was nothing that Ludovic could do to save them from any of that.

But there was something he could do for them now.

With the money he'd stolen, Ludovic bought bread and cheese, bacon and smoked meats, jam and ginger beer, and some warm blankets. He packed them all into a basket and then he waited.

The sun dipped below the horizon, turning the sky bloody, and then night rushed in, the black vault split by a slice of moon. Still Ludovic waited. He didn't dare reveal himself to the children in case it frightened them off – their safe place wouldn't last forever but he would not jeopardise it while they still had it.

So he sat close to the mouth of the alley, until children stopped trickling into that filthy gap between the buildings, and then he approached their little den. He paused, listening. The sounds of soft breathing and measured heartbeats drifted out – the children all seemed to be asleep.

Ludovic lifted the sheet of wood away from the broken window, as quietly as only a vampire could. Inside the small room, the children were huddled together on the floor, some covered with threadbare blankets, others clinging to each other for warmth. They were all too thin, and it made Ludovic's heart ache.

Reaching through the window, he put the basket on the floor, then replaced the sheet. The children would never know he was there.

Early the next morning, just as the sun was coming up and the city was wreathed with autumnal mist, Ludovic returned to that alley. The sheet was still over the window, but his sharp hearing picked up the murmur of excited voices, the ring of laughter, the sounds of eating.

The children who lived rough on London's streets would know precious little kindness, and there was nothing that Ludovic could do for them long-term, but just for now he had made them smile. He'd made sure they wouldn't be hungry, even if it was only for a day or two, and when they went to sleep again tonight, they'd have proper blankets to keep them warm.

He smiled as he walked away.