Picky Eater

Ch 2: Deal

Ben slammed the door in this woman's face, pressing his back to the wood. Mind whirring, he caught his breath now more sober than ever. The woman—the vampire– on the other side snickered and rattled a tune against the door again.

"I'd love to be friends, if you'd open the door," she said.

Yeah.

Fuck that.

Ben bolted back up the stairs, practically throwing himself at Nino's side. He jumped on the bed, not caring if he kneed Nino in the side and mercilessly shook him. "You useless vampire!" Ben snapped and shook him harder until Nino's brows furrowed. "Nino, wake up!"

"No," Nino groaned and strung his arm around Ben, pulling him back onto the bed.

"What happened to all that concern for my livelihood you had last night?! There's a vampire at the door—" Ben insisted, and Nino's eyes popped opened "—and she knows my name."

A flash of red sparked across Nino's eyes and Ben sighed, relieved he finally got through to him. Jumping over Ben, Nino scooped his shirt off the ground and fumbled his arms inside as he hurried to the door.

"Stay here," he said, but Ben knew that wasn't happening, a restless feeling forcing Ben to his feet.

He ran after Nino. Couldn't help himself as he cowered at the top of the stairs, bending down so he could still watch Nino open the door to reveal the same little girl as before. Seeing her again, Ben noticed this girl was carrying Gucci luggage. She had long silky spindles of black curls, half pulled back by a white bow. Everything she wore from the coat, the shoes, the dress, and even the pearled button-up shirt looked like it cost more than Ben's first year rent in the city.

She stood eerily still with her big doe eyes staring up at Nino, no emotion on her face like she was a porcelain doll. Nino drew back. "Evelyn? What are you doing here?"

Ben's back straightened. "You know her?"

Nino glanced up at him. "She's my niece, Evie. Come on," Nino said, motioning Evelyn inside, and Ben was too late to stop him.

"Wait! Wait!"

"Come in—"

"Thank you!" The vampire woman sing-songed, appearing again and shoving Nino back on her way inside the apartment. Ben's stomach dropped to his toes. She pushed her sunglasses back through her long ruby red hair like a headband. Everything about her, like the little girl, seemed overdressed. Her dark eyes took in the apartment as she strolled deeper inside, the clack of her yellow heels bouncing off the walls. The heels matched the flared-out dress with ruffled puff sleeves hanging off her shoulders.

"Bianca? What—?" Nino looked between them. His face misshaped into a question mark. "What are you doing here? Why are you here? How did you even know I was here?" Ben had never seen Nino so thrown off his game. He was suddenly several inches shorter and much younger than ever before.

The vampire woman, Bianca, bent her neck to look up at Ben as she offhandedly spoke to Nino. Ben caught her slight Italian accent, the same one as Nino's. "I am your older sister. It's my job to know everything. Ben, come down from there." She raised one hand and pressed one to her chest. "I swear on my undead life I will not bite you." A smile pulled at her lips, and she winked. "Unless you ask me to."

"You're not funny," Nino grumbled.

Ben took a few steps down, looming closer, but wasn't ready to join. His eyes stayed trained on Nino. "You have a sister?"

Crossing his arms, Nino scowled at her less like a sister and more like a uninvited wild animal scratching up the furniture. "Unfortunately. This is Bianca Ventura, my older sister, and a menace to society."