Love Bites

Reflections

He watched her stir, eyelids fluttering open then squinting against the harsh fluorescent light directed at her face. He skin immediately beginning to redden. She hissed, a primal sound, not learnt, just automatically embedded when the vampire genes destroyed the human ones.

"Get that light out of my fucking face!" she snarled, bucking against the restraints, it was tilted down by an unseen hand. "Why am I here? What do you want?"

"Answers." The voice came from the shadows. 

She twisted and bucked again, turning to make out the face that went with the voice. He smiled, he was enjoying watching her struggle, the colour of her eyes transitioning from black to red and back again. Fear and anger, anger and fear, two exceptional motivators.

"To what?"

"To questions about who you are." The man came out of the shadows, sat down in a chair opposite, then lent forward resting his forearms on his knees, hands clasped. His eyes blazed a dangerous orange. "Because I know there is more to you than meets the eye."

"I don't understand what you mean. I was a human, yes but I'm one of you now." Her voice grew wild. "I'm one of you!"

"Do you know who I am?" the man asked ignoring the whine in her voice. She shook her head. "I am Elder Masterson, the head of the Vampire Council. If you were truly one of us, you would know that."

"I...but I was only turned.."

"Silence!" Masterson bellowed standing up suddenly. He removed his jacket and began unbuttoning his cuff links.

"But...I... please!" The first contact was swift and hurt like hell, the second bought with it more force and more pain than she'd ever know. She screamed, a shrill piercing scream and he laughed. A cold, hard laugh which cut through to her very bones. She knew then she was dead.

                                                                           ***

The pacing hadn't stopped, Cal was turning everything over and over in his mind.

"Cal, I know you're dealing right now, but we have to go get her sooner rather than later. We can't wait this out."

"Don't you think I know that!" he roared, his eyes darkened and his fangs shot out. 

Cassie recoiled, almost backing straight into the still burning fire. "I'm sorry," she stammered.

Cal took a deep breath and dragged his hands down his face, "God, Cassie, I'm so sorry. I just...I just don't know how to handle this. I've never felt this way about someone before and the thought of losing her, and..."

He didn't need to finish the sentence, Cassandra knew what he was trying to say. "I think I may have a solution but it's a hail Mary at best."

He looked into her eyes. The most unlikely ally he ever thought he'd have. He nodded, "Okay, let's hear it."

                                                                                     ***

They crouched in the elongating shadows, just as the sun was hiding from the world. The trees and bushes opposite the building afforded them a decent amount of cover, but Cal still felt his stomach turning over like a gymnast practicing tricks.

He looked out over the building. A nondescript office block with high glass windows that offered the illusion of transparency, something which couldn't be further from the truth. The logo-less sign in front of the building simply read: Elder & Council Attorney at Law. Hiding in plain sight, how novel. The building looked functional and the security guard at the door not that out of place, but Cal knew the truth, that there were many, many more where he came from.