Bite Shift

16

"Am I gay, now?" It was out the second Rhys's driver side door was shut.

"What?!" He asked and I suddenly felt ridiculous.

"Did you see the bartender in there?" He nodded in response. "I have never felt like that about a woman. Hell, I have never felt that way about a man. I wanted her. I wanted to touch her and lick her. I wanted her with every cell in my body. I wanted to take her out back and.... I don't know....eat her, taste her, be with her. I don't know what I was feeling but I had a seriously strong fantasy about her while I was standing in the middle of the bar."

"That's blood lust. Every sense you have is heightened. Vision, hearing, taste, smell and, yes, desire. The desire for sex and blood can be mixed together. Many vampires desire both sexes. To us, male or female means nothing. It is about the person; their body and their blood. You were attracted to her and that turned on your sexuality and your need to feed. Over time, that can be honed. For now, I highly recommend you do not go to bed with anyone, boy or girl."

It was my turn to laugh. "Rhys, I can't remember the last time I slept with anyone. I wouldn't worry about sex anytime soon."

"Don't laugh, Kate. You are very beautiful and alluring now. You will be intriguing to humans. They will feel your power without knowing what it is. They will just want it. Many humans like to play with danger, whether they want to admit it or not. Being with you would be like having a dangerous, exotic animal in your home; breathtaking and dangerous. Furthermore, the long period without intercourse will make your desires even stronger. You will need to be satiated soon or risk losing control."

Where do I even start with those few sentences?!

"Did you just refer to me as an exotic pet? And what do you mean satiated? Wait... better question... why aren't you overwhelmed with lust? Hasn't it been like 300 years?"

There was that laugh again. Apparently, Rhys found me very funny. "First of, it has been 235 years since I turned, not 300 and I haven't been without company, just without another vampire to share my life with. I have had many women. Some share my bed more than once but most I never see after our one night."

"Rhys! You dog. I never pegged you for a player."

"I am not a player. I enjoy women and every six months or so, I looked for companionship so I don't lose my grip. You will see. I can get the bartender's phone number if you'd like."

Now, I was blushing again. Serves me right for making fun of him. It was hard to imagine Rhys, picking up chicks at a bar and taking them back to his little flower-lined cottage. Maybe he is the kind of guy that insists they go to her place. Oh my God! Maybe he uses Tinder!

"Twice a year? I can handle that."

"Please don't assume that we will have the same needs. Everyone is different and your powers are tied into your cravings. I will teach you more when your powers manifest. Until then, we need to get to Sorin."

"Oh yeah. That was another question. Who is Sorin and what am I pledging? It is like a vampire sorority?"

"Hardly, and you will need to turn off the jokes for a while. I love your humor but he will not. Sorin is Lord of Pittsburgh."

"You can't be serious," I blurted out. Man, I have to work on my internal filter.

"Dead serious. He is head of all vampires in our region. When a new vampire is made, they have 24 hours to present themselves to him for registration and pledge. It is up to him if you stay in the city or are cast out."

"He could send me away from Pittsburgh?! Why?!"

"If you listen to what I tell you and follow my directions, you will not be exiled. You will only see him if called and do not need to worry."

I was starting to hyperventilate. What if he sends me away? Where will I go? I will have to convince Tom to let me leave Pittsburgh with the girls. "What are the directions?"

"Sorin is old and has a great deal of power. Be respectful to him, he has earned it. He comes from a time that my parents would call the Dark Times. He is old-fashioned and likes his women demure and submissive. Be a lady." He must have known I was about to say something because he held up his hand to silence me. "I know it is 2019, Kate. I merely ask that, in front of Sorin, you only speak when he speaks to you and curtsey when he walks in. He will respond well to that. You only have one chance to make your first impression."

Do it for your girls. "Got it."

"I should have had you change but I did not think about it. He will not mind the clothes if you act as I say. He only needs to see you as someone who will follow the rules and not cause any problems in his city. It is probably good that you are dressed down. You do not want him to desire you. You want him to think of you as rarely as possible."

"Rhys, I am seriously starting to panic. I took a C in my public speaking class because I didn't want to talk to the class about the importance of handwashing. I can't talk to an ancient Lord who has the power to exile me."

"Yes, you can. You have to. Every newly created or visiting vampire must pledge to Sorin. I will be next to you. He cannot hurt you, only your sire can inflict physical punishment, but he must be pleased with you if you want your time in this city to be easy."

If I can survive nursing school, I can survive this. You can do this, Kate.

"What do you mean that only you can hurt me?"

"It is an old law among us. If a vampire breaks a law, only his or her maker can inflict the punishment. It is to protect us and ensure the correct amount of punishment is handed down. Please do not fret. Even if you ever broke a law that requires this, which I do not believe would ever happen, you will heal it. Did you not notice that you do not have a single scratch from last night's attack?"

"Actually, I did, in the bath tub while I was washing off all that junk. Not a single mark. I see your wrist is also healed. Can we heal everything?"

"Almost everything," he said. "You cannot regrow a limb once it is severed. The removal of the head will kill you."

"What about a stake to the heart?"

"I see you have watched some movies. A stake to heart would put anyone down. But, once the stake was pulled out, the heart would repair itself and you'd be back up the next night. You'd be starved but alive."

"Holy crap! No more 'sleeping wrong' or twisted ankles or achy knees. No more back pain."

"And, all you have to do, is get through one quick meeting with Lord Sorin and we can go home. We might even have time to watch one of those movies you were talking about."

"You don't have a TV."

"It was delivered shortly after we left. Apparently, it is a 'smart TV' and we can 'stream'. I assume it is like watching something on the computer."

"You don't know what streaming is? Have you lived under a rock??"

Rhys turned to me with a sparkle in his eyes. "I am screwing with you, Kate. I have Netflix on the work computer at the hospital. I just usually watch documentaries and do not waste my time on fictions but am excited to watch movies with you. We can 'Netflix and Chill' like a shirt I saw the other day."

"That does not mean what you think it means, my friend. How about Netflix and slow-cook some blood?"

"You got a date."

That is, if I survive meeting an ancient vampire who is in charge of a whole city and asks his demure females for a pledge. I am not pledging anything; I don't care how old he is. These sweatpants are staying on. I'll curtsey but that's as far as I will go.

Rhys won't let anything happen, right?