Chapter 11
Venatus, as it turns out, means hunting. They like to use that
word to differentiate themselves from the hunters or sicari. If
you ask me, it's all the same thing. We just use different
weapons.
Keir met us half way to the building. Then we headed for the
rooftop. Oh all right, Keir dragged me, though I would have
gone on my own had he let me. He felt I would fight him and
perhaps I would have had I known the whole truth. Bram almost
seemed too comfortable with the manner that Keir was treating me.
The trip there through the complex was almost a straight shot,
not the tangled twists and turns that I had taken while a slave.
It amazed me at how brilliantly simple it was. Had I not been
pulled along and been busy trying to keep my own footing I would
have noticed that there were doors where walls had once been.
There is no need for a vampire to take a circuitous route as
they can easily memorize them and would not become lost as a
slave might. The straight route is quicker and more efficient.
Both Keir and Bram were in a festive mood. They laughed and
bounded along like two jolly ol' chaps going on a fox hunt and
me they treated as they would an unwilling hound.
I really was quite reluctant. I didn't want to leave the
tranquillity of my little room. Besides I had things to do as I
remembered I'd promised to help Kenneth block others out. Yet
they would have none of that when I protested.
"Why? I thought we had all we needed here."
"You still need the skills, in case something happens. You
could become separated from the gens, or worse. We all have to
learn sometime." Bram said. "Like drinking from cows, it's a
survival tool."
"Yeah, well if it's like drinking from cows it's not going to
help me much."
"Oh, this will help. I assure you." Keir yanked me a little
faster and I realized why. Heremon stood at the doorway to the
stairs.
"Going to get your feet wet, eh?"
"Yep." Was all I said. I was in no mood to antagonize him.
Besides I didn't have much time to talk as I nearly tripped up
the stairs.
Yet I still felt his indignation at me. I gave him no ammo and
so he fumed.
Going up the stairs of the building I bumped and scraped my
knees as I tried keep pace. Upon reaching the rooftop Keir
slung me to the ground, sincerely disappointed that I had been
so slow. Bram had already been there waiting for over a minute.
I wanted to take a moment to catch my breath but Keir would
have none of that.
"Tonight you learn to hunt." Keir proclaimed in my mind as he
pulled me to my feet. I suppose the first thing about hunting
is you have to be quiet and telepathy was the quietest form of
communication I knew. "Our target tonight will be an easy one
in the town."
"The town?" I asked afraid of what that meant. Though I
didn't know any of them really, I had become attached through
Lacey's and Al's stories and of course my own brief experiences
there.
"You are to find the weakest link in the herd." Keir said.
"Excuse me?"
Bram explained, "The town is our secondary food supply. The
King does not like it to become impotent. Therefore,
occasionally we do as nature does and remove the old and weak."
"But the agreement with the Sheriff…?"
"He knows of this clause. Besides if done correctly, the
autopsy results show the victims died of natural causes. Easily
explainable to the rest of the public."
I shook my head. I doubted I'd ever understand humans or
vampires. Now I'm sure I won't.
Then it clicked. "Died?'
"Yes."
"As in I have to kill someone?"
"Of course."
Come on! They had to see where this was going. "You guys have
been trying to teach me not to kill and with recent-"
"It is within our lex non scripta to kill for survival or when
the King commands." Bram reminded me.
"So did the King command this?" Neither of them answered. I
wanted to hear it from the King himself. I mean, how do I know
that they just weren't playing with me?
"You do not need to hear it from him. Do not interrupt him."
Keir stopped me from attempting to probe the King.
"So this is a test."
"Of sorts." Keir agreed.
"Of sorts? Of absolutes." I was ready to run off now. I
didn't want to be here but I knew I didn't have much of a
choice. "Will I or will I not follow orders? Will I do as I'm
told? Will I willingly commit murder?"
Bram looked away as I scrutinized him.
We all know the answers to this quiz. I have been broken and
there's no going back from that.
The real question was; who's applying the test and what were
they truly intending to learn from it? I could feel Keir's
anger swelling. He didn't like me questioning him. I guess I
was looking for punishment from anywhere I could get it.
Speaking of which, I decided I should be a little polite.
"Keir, I want to thank you for not punishing me."
"For what?" He genuinely seemed confused. Was he going soft
on me?
"I'm sure she means for blocking us and not attending you the
moment you called." I scrutinized Bram, was there a reason he
didn't let me explain.
Keir also seemed to notice. Bram shrugged it off. "She's just
a bit nervous. I mean weren't we all at our first test of
loyalty. She's been through a lot the past month. Let her do
this at her own pace."
"You've been concerned about my mental health since my subortus
and yet you are encouraging me to go and do something likely to
traumatize me even more? Do you even know what the hell you
guys are doing?"
"I'm not worried about traumatizing you." Keir laughed.
"This won't traumatize you, I promise." Bram said.
"That's a stupid promise to make." I muttered.
Keir made it clear he wouldn't hear any more arguments. "Each
of us has taken lives. You included. We all have many souls
within us some vampires listen to what they say and others do
not. None have been driven insane by any of it. There is
something inside us that scares even the bravest vampire. How
you handle this proves your worth. That is the test you face no
other."
"Why don't we begin with the basics?" Bram interjected. "You
know how to kill, but the skill lies in making it look as if it
is a natural death. This may be achieved in several ways. The
easiest is stopping with several sextarii left and either
letting nature take its course or staging the death to appear to
be an accident."
"Of course we're not letting you off that easy." Keir just
couldn't get enough enjoyment out of this could he? "We've
prevented you from deplevi so that you can learn control.
Tonight, the King wishes for our target's memory to not be lost.
Thus not only must you take his soul but do so in a way such
that no one would believe a vampire had been there."
"Yeah, no traumatization at all." I rolled my eyes and Bram
couldn't help chuckling.
Keir mentally cleared his voice. No sound obviously, just a
sudden impatient clenching feeling came from him.
"Let us proceed to the next step; selecting your target."
"The King doesn't already have one picked out?" I asked.
"He does, hence why I won't allow you to contact him. Part of
this exercise is for you to determine whom in the town must die."
I took a deep breath and kept myself from strangling him. I
mean how am I supposed to know what the requirements are to
recognize the target when I'm blocked from the one setting the
criteria?
"We've already given you the criteria." Bram attempted to be
helpful before Keir spat at him.
"Let her figure it out."
"She'll have enough to figure out without you teasing her."
"You know you don't have to be here for this." Keir wasn't
really upset just a little annoyed that Bram was helping me.
"And how would you explain to the King that I wasn't there to
witness the target's death?"
Keir began to grumble but during their banter I had worked my
way through my memories of the last few minutes and determined
the criteria. The next step was obviously to find the target.
The easiest way I could think of was to examine everyone in the
town. It was easier than I thought. Up here their voices were
easier to discern from those in the complex. Nearly a hundred
of feet of rock and concrete muffled the slaves' voices.
The townspeople weren't fearful, since not all of them knew
what was out there. They knew that in the town the lights must
go off at night and all doors locked, no one was to open them
unless there was an emergency. Some people I felt questioned
those traditions now but most adhere to it as there were always
stories and myths about monsters and serial killers in the area.
This is what one couple told their child as she begged to go
out to play with a new toy despite the dark.
There were only a few dozen voices that I could make out and
half of those were already mostly asleep with only a few
lingering thoughts of daily routines. It is those that I
eavesdropped in on first. The half asleep mind is one with the
fewest guards and is the most flighty so a person finding random
thoughts going through their head wouldn't think anything of it.
Of course, that is also the problem with them, as the thoughts
are hard to control.
The first two minds I touched were of healthy forty something's
that had a busy day hiking. The third owned the bank and ran
figures through his head. He was of no use to me. The fourth,
a hair dresser, had plenty that could be of use. I learned of
many different people in the town, of their routines and
affairs. While there seemed to be a few possible people to
target, none stood out. It was through her that I sought out
the fifth and I hit the jackpot. The postman was an elderly
gentleman. Not old and frail enough he however had delivered a
large parcel of medicine to the eldest man in the town. I could
see him through the postman's eyes. He was hardly able to lift
the package. His old dog looked on hoping there would be a
treat for him to come out of the box. The name on the package:
William Campbell.
This person I recognized for another reason and should have
thought of him first as Al nudged me. How long ago had it been
since Al encountered Old Bill trying to warn him of vampires?
Too long. Amazing that the old coot was still alive. Well… Not
for long anyway.
All of this I processed before Keir came up with a response to
Bram's bluff and I kept him from answering when I nearly spoke
the name aloud. "Old Bill!" I finally realized who it was that
would die tonight but didn't feel so happy about it. "Old
Bill?" I asked again. Damn had I not known him by name and had
Al's memories this would have been a little easier.
"That's the one."
"He's still alive?"
"Think of him as vintage." Bram tried to joke, but it wasn't
helping.
Nor did Keir when he added, "Besides you'll be putting the old
man out of his misery."
I hated that, perhaps more than a random or accidental killing.
I didn't like any of this. I didn't like the idea of killing a
harmless old man. I didn't like that they treated the situation
so lightly, that it was a game to them. Maybe after 1500 years
it would become a game to me. Not right now though. Not after
recent events. All they manage to do is confuse me on what's
wrong and what's right. I don't like that either.
"You want me to kill somebody just after I nearly killed Missy?
Isn't this reinforcing the wrong values here?"
It shocked me when Keir forcefully searched my mind. My
memories came rushing back to me unbidden. Missy offering
herself to me, my ripping into her skin and then… I hated it.
Seeing her fall pale and lifeless to the ground was the worst.
Then he laughed aloud. It echoed off the building and the
hills. They probably heard it in the town. I cautiously
watched the town to see if any lights popped on but none did.
"You did not almost kill her! She still had a sextari or two
left. I see I will need to watch over your feeding for a while
longer. You still don't have a grasp on simple quantities."
He may be laughing on the outside but on the inside there were
questions, like why hadn't I told him? He now put two and two
together and realized Bram had stopped me from mentioning it to
him earlier. It did not please him for us to keep anything from
him. It was not I keeping it from him, however. Bram had told
me he spoke to Keir on it earlier. Why would Bram lie about
that? Why didn't he tell Keir? Did this mean the King didn't
know either? Bram avoided my gaze. I was about to probe Bram
to find my own answers when Keir sobered up a bit.
"We're not telling you to kill a vampire, Antoniette, just a
weak human." Keir said.
"Oh come on!"
"It is what you are ordered to do."
"Toni, think of it weeding out the gene pool." Bram seemed
oblivious to my anger.
"Remember your comment about double standards earlier? Well,
this is one." I put my foot down. Kill, then don't kill, all
at the King's whim. Why should I be his puppet? I wasn't going
to kill and that is that.
"Don't be ludicrous." Keir laughed again, softly this time.
All this time I still watched the town and keeping half my mind
on it. I'd been searching for where Old Bill lived. Based upon
people's thoughts it was easy enough to find.
I hadn't really paid attention to the layout of the town
previously or to the fact that I could clearly see the buildings
in detail half a mile away in the dark. My eyesight's always
been good and the vampire blood only helped that. It seemed so
natural that I could see them that I didn't realize a normal
human wouldn't have been able to see that far. Anyway, it was
at this point that I noticed the location of the Sheriff's
office and that it was directly across the street from Old
Bill's loft. Therefore, the Sheriff (who lived above his
office) had a direct line of sight at Old Bill's door.
Keir knew what I was thinking.
"All the better to challenge you with. If he sees or hears
you, it's game over."
"What happens then? If I fail this test?"
"You die. Let us begin." He said it so seriously. I had no
choice but to believe him. Of course maybe I should fail it on
purpose, just so I could prove him wrong and get myself out of
this mess at the same time.
Bram wrapped an arm around me as if to say "it will be all
right" and I knew I would not fail. I liked being in his
presence too much. I wanted him to wrap his arms around me
after this was all through too. So I would do as I was told and
Old Bill would die tonight. I just would have to rationalize it
as Bram said to keep my morals satisfied.
Keir gestured for us to move. He began to run and took a leap
off the building. I half expected him to fly. He didn't. He
didn't exactly fall either. It was a big vault with a graceful,
soft landing. Something that I've only seen in the Olympics
only not as far. I watched him in awe at the gracefulness of
his large bulky body gliding through the air. "Bram?"
He put a warm hand on my shoulder. "It'll be all right." He
took off, then took a beautiful bound off the end of the
building. He landed with a thud. Why couldn't these people use
stairs like normal humans? I couldn't see why I shouldn't, so I
started back down the way we came up to the roof. "Toni, be a
vampire. Don't take the human way out."
Be a vampire. Yeah, sure, right. Now he wants me to be one,
what happened to that night I asked him to sire me? "Toni."
Keir scolded me. They both were so attentive to my thoughts.
"Do as I'm told, right?" Right, guess there is no easy way
out. I took a deep breath, felt that good ol' vampire blood
running through my veins, crossed my fingers and began to run.
The blood pumped faster and faster, as my legs matched its
speed, before I knew it or could stop myself I had reached the
end. Then there was nothing beneath me! I was running on air.
Just like in those cartoons. I sure as hell wasn't going to
look down though, cartoons could always run on air until they
look down. I never felt so free! To be attached to nothing,
just floating there in the air, this was great! I should have
taken my friend up on her offer to go sky diving years before I
was brought here. I would have been hooked immediately.
I was moving down though. My freedom had only lasted a second
or two, if that. Slowly I felt it. I was nearing the ground.
I suddenly realized I didn't know how to land. What do I do
with my feet? It was too late. I hit the ground. My feet
still moving I tripped over them and rolled for a bit. I think
I hit every rock in the area. Geez that hurt. I must have
broken several bones, had I been human. As it was I think I got
a couple of joints out of place, yet that didn't matter they
would heal almost instantly, which was also an unpleasant
feeling as they popped back into place.
"Toni!" Bram ran to my side and helped me to my feet. "I
guess we should have started with the basics on that too. Maybe
only one floor."
"She will learn quickly enough." Keir seemed impatient and a
little perturbed at my first failure.
"I thought vampires were like cats and were always supposed to
land on our feet?"
Keir fully in his hunter mode now prowled along in the dark,
moving quickly but stealthily. I tried to copy his movements
and only managed to keep kicking up dust and stubbing my toes on
rocks. Meanwhile, Keir was pushing more thoughts into my head.
"Vampires are hunters by nature. Identifying targets is only
the first step. Now you must think upon how you will strike.
Silent and quick is the best method, but not always the correct
one. Use the resources at your disposal. Most importantly do
not leave evidence behind.
"You have discovered some of your strengths already but this
night is your time to feel the power of what you are. Become a
God!"
"Stop being so melodramatic Keir." Bram said.
"Me? Melodramatic? Never! I say, never!"
"You are such a drama queen." Bram was playing with him now
and had lightened Keir's mood a bit.
"Yes, you should see me in my evening gown and pumps." Keir
joked. It was not a sight I wanted to see, even thinking about
it made me squirm.
"I have. They only slightly improved your looks."
"I'll be more than happy to leave the two of you alone." I
rolled my eyes. It was evident they weren't competing for my
attention. Besides I had a hard enough time concentrating on
running and remaining quiet to play their game. Why were they
being so childish lately anyway?
"What are you implying?" As if Keir didn't know.
Bram did. "There's always room for one more."
"I don't know, three's a crowd." Keir nudged Bram.
"Get a room boys." It would be easy enough for them to as we
had reached the town. What would have taken me ten minutes to
walk took about a minute for us to run.
Can you believe it? That's about 30 miles per hour! I wasn't
even winded. No one else seemed excited over this fact. Of
course they were still too busy playing to notice. Bram hardly
ever flirted with me like that anymore.
No, I'm not jealous. Well, not a lot anyway.
We speed through the shadows of the town. It wasn't easy to be
very quiet as it was very like an old western town and even had
wooden walkways. They creaked a bit and were quite uneven so my
toes caught in-between the slats once or twice. Thankfully
there was a stairway going to the second floor balcony on the
outside of the building so no sneaking around furniture in the
dark was needed. We slowly climbed it trying to remain silent,
I now in the lead.
This seemed too easy. The little chatter there was in the
heads of the townspeople had nothing to do with burglars
sneaking through town. Even the Sheriff, fully involved in some
inane sitcom, knew nothing of the prowlers across the street.
Encouraged by my seeming invisibility I reached for the door
handle. Bram's hand landed on mine. "You can't go in there."
His mind spoke to me. "You have to be invited into a person's
house."
"Hmm, I don't remember inviting you into my apartment."
"Well, I just kind of fell in." He said coyly.
"What would happen if I wasn't invited in?"
"Nothing, it's just tradition."
"Seems kind of stupid to me."
"It is there so that we don't just waltz into someone's house
take them and leave evidence behind, as one is apt to do."
Keir was becoming somewhat impatient. "Enough babble, you came
here for a reason."
"How exactly am I supposed to get to him if I can't enter his
house?"
"That is for you to solve." Keir stood arms crossed.
I thought about it for a time. I scanned the old man's mind.
It was surprisingly easy as he slept there were no blocks.
Perhaps I should try that on some vampires. A bit of ire
emanated from Keir which told me that was a bad idea. So I went
back to searching the old man's mind. Fuzzy as it was by sleep
and old age.
I shouldn't have. There were so many memories so many
experiences the old man had. All that would be lost to a
certain degree. The loss of his loving wife to cancer touched
me, and even his dog had gone through hard times. Poor puppy;
I've always had a soft spot for dogs.
His dog! Yes, there it was laying in the shadows. I searched
the old timer's mind for more details. Then I started whining.
Not a normal human whine a dog's whine, or a fair impersonation
of one.
"What the hell are you doing?" Keir seemed ready to grab me
and throw me over the balcony.
"I'm luring him out." I whined more and scratched at the door.
I had plenty of practice imitating my own dog in my youth. The
dog itself was hard of hearing so it didn't even know there was
someone at the door. The old man had become accustomed to
letting his dog out in the middle of the night. He slowly got
out of bed mumbling something about his aged dog's bladder and
approached the door.
He began to open the door weary eyed and tried to pat his dog
on the head only to find the dog wasn't there. His hand slipped
on the door handle. He became more aware of his surroundings
and that his dog indeed wasn't at the door. The door began to
slide open and he looked out to find me standing there. His
eye's widened as he realized what I was. It was too late to
protest for I grabbed his shirt collar and dragged him out onto
the balcony, and without thinking dug my teeth into his neck.
Somehow he knew this day would come, but it wouldn't stop him
from struggling. He should have also known that's what vampires
want. The adrenaline rush that pushed through him at that
moment excited me. His weak arms pounded against me and I
hardly felt it.
Panic gave into disbelief as he did not wish to accept this was
happening to him. He didn't want to die. Oh he knew he was old
and would one day, but not like this, not at the hands (or
teeth) of a vamp. His fear of death was great, perhaps more
than his fear of us.
I fed upon that as much as his blood. I even took a breath and
showed him my bloody face to provoke new terror in him. It was
almost too much for his little heart and I feared he may really
die of a heart attack. My training kicked in and I stopped when
I felt him fall back into unconsciousness.
"Heed my warning son. Those are some people you don't want to
mess with."
"My daughter…" I muttered.
"She's gone. Forget about her." He said as he took my arm and
tried to turn me back to the town. I wouldn't, couldn't let
that happen.
I blinked the memory away. Al didn't want me to kill this man.
He'd tried to help Al and Al wanted to return the favor. As if
he could. He didn't understand I didn't have a choice.
"Great she's lost her nerve." I barely heard Keir in my head.
The Old man's blood was pumping too hard.
"Why are you hesitating? Kill him." It shocked me that it was
Bram and not Keir who said this.
"What?"
"Kill him." It took me a moment to realize it was the King
giving me that command.
Ah so I was being punished. Or at the very least having my
loyalties tested. Would I kill for the King, or would I fight
back? If I didn't do either would they punish me then?
What none of them realized is the blood lust had already taken
hold of me. I was still hungry. Perhaps not for this man's
blood but for any blood and he was handy. I hadn't moved my
mouth away from his neck.
I began drawing blood again. I dragged it out of him as one
would suck a milkshake through a thin straw.
The man barely whimpered, and that the dog heard; amazing! It
charged. It was old but it still had energy. It headed
straight for me and as it leaped, Keir smacked it back into the
room so hard I heard a crunch. I wasn't sure whether or not it
was dead, and I didn't really care to find out. So much for not
leaving evidence around.
I nearly finished taking the old man to his grave. I felt the
tingling of his soul touching mine. Memories I'd never seen
before flitted before my eyes.
Driving an old Chevy Master sputtering through the woods. A
near empty town came into view, it would be a wonderful place to
start a family. A beautiful woman crossed the road and winked
at me. Then the same woman in a wedding dress.
I felt his heart seizure and even though he died I found my
saliva could close the wound. Without an in depth autopsy I
figured one would conclude he'd been scared by a failed burglar
attack and died of a heart attack.
An elegantly dressed black man stepped out in the path of my
wife Teresa and me as we walked down the dark street. The dog
beside me growled menacingly. "I have a proposition for you."
Said the man, whom Bill didn't know anything about at that
moment (but I saw it was Keir).
I had an alarmed feeling then. All the preceding took barely
ten seconds from the moment the dog attacked to the man's death.
I looked straight across the street and saw movement in the
apartment above the Sheriff's station. I looked up to Bram and
Keir. They noticed it too. We decided to get moving, and we
did just in time to miss the load of buckshot that would have
hit Bram had he still been standing there.
"I'm sorry sir." I said with Bill's voice. "I'm not looking
for any investments nor trouble. So if you please…" I led
Teresa in a wide circle to avoid the stranger.
Keir suddenly appeared before me with his sharp teeth bared.
Teresa tried to scream but suddenly lost her voice and gestured
frantically to me about it. "I will not be snubbed!"
Across the way I heard the Sheriff mutter, "Damn vampires." I
hated doing it to the Sheriff. I mean after all the guy helped
me out before and I didn't like how the King had manipulated
him. Despite that I put the thought about the heart attack and
burglary into his head. There'd be no in-depth autopsy if there
were any at all.
We ran cross the balcony and jumped down to ground level. It
wasn't until much later that I realized I landed on my own two
feet in the middle of a run. Seems I can only do things well
when I'm not thinking about them.
"Wha-" I found I suddenly couldn't speak either.
"My proposal is simple." His tone changed again. "You are the
grocer in this town now are you not?" He didn't leave me time
to answer. "You will deliver one tenth of your order to the
building in the south every week. If you do, you will live a
long and happy life. If you do not-"
He didn't finish his sentence but grabbed Teresa and to my
horror ripped open her blouse then bit into her breast. I was
incapable of movement no matter how much I wanted to help my
wife or vomit.
A moment later he vanished. I caught Teresa before she fell to
the ground and I knew what I must do.
Sheriff Arnold was unrelenting. He knew of the menace and
suggested I do just as ordered and speak of it to no one.
Fearing for Teresa's life I did just that. Over and over, every
week I delivered the food to the empty building. At times,
supplies were low or a growth spurt in the small town kept me
from delivering the full ten percent. At these times a vampire
visited me, never the same one. A posture to show their size
and strength? Each time Teresa would be sacrificed and
sometimes raped. I could do nothing as they immobilized me
instantly.
We kept our silence while we ran. Sheriff Jones of course did
not pursue us.
I felt intoxicated. Old Bill's blood prickled and I felt a
surge of indignation. Damn vampires indeed.
Old Bill remembered Sheriff Jones too.
A new Sheriff came to town. He tried to fight the vampires and
ordered me to stop my offerings. As Bill, I protested but the
Sheriff offered hope. Hope that the attacks on my love would
stop. So I stopped delivering my goods. That was a mistake.
It was not my wife who suffered. It was me.
The attackers came in the night. I didn't even see their
faces. I wasn't even sure they were there, but my body felt the
pain all the same. I knew then I would never defy the vampires
again. Sheriff Jones had a similar change of heart not long
afterwards. I never saw the vampires again (at least not until
my death) but I saw many walk into their building and I did what
I could to warn them away.
The door slammed behind us and I realized I as Toni too had
walked into the vampire's building and I didn't care.
Bram snatched me up and twirled me about. The room spun, it
was spinning before he picked me up but now it was like being in
a centrifuge. He laughed and kissed me as he set me down.
"Get off me you damn vamp!" I swiped his hands away.
"Whoa, Toni, are you okay." He looked down at me concerned,
why would he do that?
"I'll leave you your damn groceries if you just don't hurt me!"
Keir and Bram exchanged a look I didn't understand. "Get
control of yourself." Keir began to step forward but Bram
stopped him.
"Toni, you're not a crotchety old man. Let go of his memories.
Clear your head. You can put up shields against internal
voices too." A little of that got through to me and I did
manage to clear my head a little. It wasn't enough.
Bram's hands gripped me so hard. The sharpness of his breath
made me cringe. "The King does not appreciate week old meat old
man!"
"I swear I didn't know." I feared this vampire more than any.
He never left me unscathed.
"If it happens again I will take your sweet bride." Bram
hissed.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it won't, I swear." I fell into a
bubbling mess.
Keir hit me hard. The ground came up even harder. Its cold
cement seemed super real. Another slap to the face came and my
head cleared enough to see Keir standing over me. Bram held his
arm.
"She's okay now." Bram said.
As if nothing happened, Keir took my hand and lifted me off the
ground. I realized I'd let the memories take me over. Yet
something else I'd have to guard against in the future.
"I'm sorry." I sobbed as Bram moved to embrace me.
He kissed me hard and that awoke something else in me; my own
passions. I folded my arms around him and just to confirm I was
still Toni I wanted to undress him right there.
He laughed. "That's better. You're you again."
"I don't know." Keir said. Was that a sly smirk on his lips?
"Maybe we should let her continue, just to be sure."
"Keep dreaming." I told Keir as I wrapped my arm around
Bram's. He was mine and I wasn't letting go.
Keir guffawed. "Come on. Let's get back to the complex." He
certainly was in a good mood tonight.
Bram and Keir laughed almost all the way back. I still hadn't
fully recovered from the ordeal but I certainly felt their
exhilaration.
"Ohh come on Lighten up." Keir nudged me. "You have to admit
that was exciting."
I shrugged.
"Pretending to be a dog is just classic." Bram laughed harder.
He imitated the whimpering and it did sound funny.
They had turned this from a gloomy hunting trip into a fun
filled fraternity initiation. I was one of the gang now. I
realized this excursion wasn't about weeding the gene pool,
learning to hunt, or anything like that. It was about the
adventure. Taking the trip is what the trip was about.
"Did you see how close those shots came to my head?" I asked
getting a little caught up in it.
"You got to admit the Sheriff's aim is improving." Keir's
laugh was deep.
We'd arrived at Bram's door and I was just a little sad to see
the escapade end. Of course my night wasn't over. Bram made an
interesting proposition that I just couldn't turn down and his
lips and tongue spoke volumes of it. I gave into it drunk off
the excitement and Bill's blood.
Keir obviously feeling a little like a fifth wheel started to
head off.
Bram felt a bit of disappointment and maybe not so
surprisingly, so did I.
I grabbed Keir's hand while still holding onto Bram. "Keir
wait."
I pulled him inside the room with us and into a kiss. I wasn't
done with this night's adventure.
By: Christine Schnell
