I swallowed one last gulp of blood and then bent over to hurl.
It was, well, a process. Thankfully no matter how much I seemed to vomit the amount I drank always managed to outweigh it. Or at least it kept me standing. I still didn't understand if it was the sight alone that made me sick to my stomach or something else, but it certainly wasn't the smell. Standing where I was, it was already washing over me once again and making me itch inside my skin.
Managing to regain control of myself, I bent down over the body that lay in the alley with me. I reached down and placed my hand near the unconscious woman's lips. After a few fretful seconds, her breath brushed my fingers and I nodded to myself, she would be fine when she woke up. Despite everything, there was still that overwhelming fear that grabbed ahold of me whenever the subject of death rolled near. I had little problem with killing in self defense now, but there was no argument in my opinion for why any bystanders had to be hurt. A sigh brushed past my lips and I tried to not look at the woman again as I pushed myself back up.
My feet carried me onto the sidewalk and I looked both directions habitually. There was no one around but I wiped my mouth against my sleeve for the hundredth time anyway, just to ensure I had no blood dripping down my chin. It was a cold night, one that forced me button up my lettermen jacket and keep my hands in my pockets to stay warm. Still, the clear sky above was encouraging and the crisp air did do something to decrease the pressure weighing on my chest. I cast a glance in the direction of the safehouse and headed the other way.
Everything back there was too heavy. Every time I walked through that door I could feel the tension and the worry polluting the air, I could see the mourning and bloodlust that showed so blatantly in everyone's faces. The empty streets held none of that. Here no one was plotting revenge or reminding me of all the people whose lives had been cut far too short. If there was any problem out here it was how few people there were.
My shoes scuffed against the pavement as I plodded down the sidewalk, not bothering to pick up my feet anymore than necessary. It was quiet enough to hear a sneeze two blocks away, the only sound besides that of my sneakers being the hum of a large neon sign across the street. Even though it was glowing, the doors were closed for the night and the lights inside the building turned off. I guessed this part of town wasn't very popular.
Or at least I thought so until footsteps sounded behind me. Not trying to be paranoid, I only bothered with a quick peek over my shoulder. A woman that didn't look much older than me had turned onto the street. It was fine, I promised myself, what were the odds that another bad thing would even happen? One hundred to one at least, it wasn't anything to concern myself with. Although all those thoughts were of little comfort. Maybe if I sped up then-
A hand wrapped around my shoulder and I turned to stone. Sucking in a deep breath, I squeezed my eyes shut and then opened them to find the woman I had just seen behind me. If I had been able to wrap my head around what was happening, I would have willed my muscles to move harder. Instead, I prepared myself for everything from the worst to nothing at all.
"You look scared stiff," the woman spoke with humor in her voice but it didn't come across in her expression.
She was right, of course, I was. So much had happened in the last two weeks that I wouldn't have questioned it if she had attempted to gut me at that very instant. There was no one around either, no one to ask help from or to keep her from doing whatever she wanted. However, she released my shoulder and took a step or so back to give me healthy margin of breathing room.
"Your Apollo, right?" she asked the question with a smile, revealing a pair of fangs behind her pale lips.
Already unnerved, I nodded. Maybe it would have been smarter to deny it, to tell her to go stick her head in the sand. I wasn't that kind of person though, never had been. Besides, her pointed teeth made it far less appealing to lie to her.
Once she had received confirmation of who I was her small smile grew to a grin. Pushing a long strand of dark away from her face, she spoke up again. Her voice was one that drizzled like honey, sweet but with a bitter aftertaste. "In that case, how do you feel about making a deal?"
"W-what kind of deal?" my voice came out hoarse and I was unsurprised when I found my mouth so dry that my tongue was stuck to the roof of it.
Her dark green eyes glinted with what I could only describe as malevolence, and she reached into her pocket. Pulling out a small piece of paper that wasn't even the size of my palm, she waved it teasingly in front of my face. I wrinkled my nose and snatched it from her swiftly. Only then did I realize it was a photograph.
My gut conformed into a new shape that made it hard to breathe and my eyes prickled. I was horrified, devastated. This couldn't be real. Yet somehow I knew... "How did you get this?"
"Snagged it myself," she told me smugly.
That was it. At that point I couldn't take it anymore, my blood had reached it's boiling point. "Give Him Back!" I screeched and reached out, shoving her as hard as I could. A familiar pain sprouted from my own lips but I ignored the blood that began to trickle down my chin.
Even on the ground, she kept that same smug, self-assured, antagonizing smile. Her hair had fallen into her face but she merely brushed it aside and looked up at me as if I had played directly into her plan. It only made me angrier but I restrained myself from ripping out her throat like she deserved. Without her there was no hope of me knowing where he was or what had happened to him. Deep breaths continued to rattle my frame as I watched her stand back up and dust off her pants.
"Simmer down kid, I said I had a deal to offer, didn't I?" she raised a thin eyebrow before bending down and picking up the photo that I had dropped. Holding it aloft, she shook it in front of me like it was a prize to be won. I tried not to pay attention to the worry that hid behind those hazel eyes or the defeated slump of his shoulders, but it was impossible. My gut twisted tighter and I shook my head in frustration.
"I'm listening."
"Good, cause it's fairly simple. You can either give up on the rest of your clan mates right now, that means turning around and leaving, no backtracking or second thoughts, or," she took the photo between her hands and ripped it in half. A pang of guilt jolted my heart and I watched the photo drift to the ground.
She didn't have to finish for me to understand exactly what she meant.
"It's a deal."
Most people probably would have had to take at least a second or two to think about it, but I couldn't risk that. I couldn't risk him. There were so few people I held dear to me in this world that it wasn't much of a contest. It didn't matter what kind of blood was pumping through my veins, it mattered that there was no one I considered myself closer to. I had lost my old life to the clan and then risked my new one more times than I was willing to count in under three weeks. In all that time I had never considered it worthy of my life, but for him I would have risked my own life and much, much more.
The woman before me sneered and held out her thin hand, "Good choice."
***
I sat on the stoop in a state of perpetual worry.
My arms were crossed tightly over my chest and despite my best efforts my teeth continued to chatter. It was far colder now than it had been earlier in the night, but I wouldn't be able to sleep if I didn't make sure first. Yawning, I watched the smoke from my breath curl up into the sky. I couldn't imagine having to wait much longer, the stress that was already piled onto my shoulders threatening to overwhelm me. I closed my eyes shut and pressed my forehead against my knees as I waited.
"How long have you been out here?"
Kohl's voice caused me to look up. He stood with a smile on his face, his eyes back to their beautiful calm hazel. Without wasting a moment I stood up and threw my arms around him. He was warm and comforting and I felt relief when my eyes were able to withhold my tears. It had been the right choice.
"You're as close to family as I have, you know that?" I mumbled into his shoulder as I felt all my emotions from before begin to come back and buckle my knees beneath me.
One of his hands slid around my back and the other ran itself through my knotted blonde hair. "I know," he let out a heavy sigh and I felt his chest rise and fall as he did. Pulling me away just long enough to meet my blue eyes, I watched his smile break. "I'm glad you're okay," he whispered back.
