Gabrielle shifted the groceries in her arms, juggling them and her keys as she rushed to get home and fix dinner since Joshua was coming for a meal. Her mind was running over errands as she walked toward the darkened parking lot.
“Hey, baby, how about a good time?”
Closing her eyes, pissed off by the annoyance, she swung around to yell at the jerk behind her. Standing in front of her, four men larger than she was leered.
Oh shit! She dropped the bag and tightened her fingers around her keys as she waited for one of them to make a move.
“Why don’t you guys just get out of here?”
It took a moment for Gabrielle to recognize the voice, and, while she appreciated the gesture, she didn’t think that Lance was really any match for the four oversized thugs who were intent on causing trouble.
“Walk away, man, and we won’t hurt you.” The ringleader smiled, but it was a mockery of a sort of friendliness.
“Yeah, man, walk away. You don’t want us to have to hurt ya.” The second man, similarly dressed to his friends, walked towards Lance.
Lance looked at the man moving towards him then looked at Gabrielle. She watched him, trying to read his actions, and was startled when he yelled “Run!”. She took off for the grocery store, her purse swinging on her arm as she sidestepped one of the would-be robbers. He quickly ignored her when he heard the grunts of pain behind him. He turned, intending to join in the fun, and was surprised to find two of his friends already down. His eyes widened in fascinated horror as Lance jerked one man towards him and bit deeply into the bared neck.
Gabrielle’s luck wasn’t much better than the four thugs. The store manager finally agreed to call the police, but refused to go outside to help. Growling at him, she reached out and grabbed the baseball bat the man kept on the customer service counter. Whirling around, she ran out of the store and back towards her car to help Lance. She slowed beneath a streetlamp, eyes wide as she took in the three men lying on the ground and the one still held by Lance’s hand. Her mind seemed to turn in opposite directions; one part of her brain was glad the would-be robbers had gotten what they deserved, the other part was not quite willing to admit to the scene before her.
Lance finally dropped the man, licking his lips as he turned to face her. Gabrielle was frozen in place, not sure if she should run or try to reason with him. He took a step forward, she took a step back. He took another step forward and halted when the sirens could be heard. He hovered at the edge of the light cast by the streetlamp, studying her. Gabrielle turned her head at the shout from police officers approaching. When she turned back, Lance was gone.
Lance puttered around the apartment, thankful he had a couple of days before he had to return to the bar. Justin had taken one look at him and promptly retired to his room to work on his homework. The young man cast curious glances at his friend, wanting to help but not sure how. Lance just shook his head in response to Justin’s questions. By the time Wednesday rolled around, he decided to let Gabrielle determine the future of their relationship. If it became necessary to wipe her memories, he would. There was too much at stake.
When he and Justin arrived Wednesday night, Lance was surprised to see that Gabrielle didn’t appear to be afraid of him. He appreciated that; not wanting any discomfort to affect the working relationship the five of them had. As usual, the waitress brought drinks over to the piano as they warmed up. Walking behind him as he played, Gabrielle leaned forward to speak quietly in his ear.
“We need to talk.”
Lance nodded, never taking his eyes off the piano keys. Justin gave him another questioning look before turning back to continued flirting with Dionne.
The crowd was fairly light since it was a Wednesday, and the two men kept the music soft and jazzy to help ease people of that middle-of-the-work-week hump that everyone seemed to suffer from. At the end of the evening, after helping Viki and the waitresses usher last-minute drinkers into cabs and clean up, Lance whispered that he was going to Gabrielle’s apartment. Justin nodded once and turned to the left to head to their apartment.
Gabrielle was silent on the drive, not looking at Lance as he relaxed in the passenger seat. He followed her upstairs, and she couldn’t help the shiver that ran down her back when she couldn’t see him. The silence remained, darkening a little as they entered her apartment. Gabrielle immediately started the coffee pot, thinking she would need several jolts of caffeine to make it through the conversation. Lance simply followed her into the kitchen and sat down at the table, just like he had done several times before.
When the coffee finished brewing, she poured two cups and took them to the table. After setting one down in front of her guest, she sat down and wrapped her fingers around the cup. They both sipped the beverage, neither one sure where to start.
“Thought I saw a ghost once.”
Of all the things he expected her to say, that wasn’t one of them. He laughed, relieved to feel the pressure ease in his chest. She stared at him for a minute before grinning. The silence was lighter then. After several more moments, Lance gazed at her.
“I don’t know what questions you have, but I’m willing to answer them.”
Gabrielle nodded and set her coffee cup back on the table and rubbed the edge of it with her finger.
“It wasn’t a strange hallucination caused by too much Ben & Jerry’s and not enough sleep?”
He shook his head. She sighed and rested her head on one hand. “I was afraid you were going to say that.”
His grin still made her knees weak, and she struggled past that bright flash of desire she always felt. Things had changed.
“So…vampire.”
Lance nodded. “Yeah.”
“How long?”
“Long time.”
“But I’ve seen you in daylight? You’ve eaten food and drunk beer. How?” Gabrielle chewed on her lip.
He pressed his lips together for a moment. “Movies and books only get part of it right, and we’re glad for the misinformation because it makes it easier to cover our existence. We can go out in sunlight, provided we’ve fed recently. We don’t have to drain blood in order to feed, and we can eat ‘real’ food and drink other things. We are stronger, have more enhanced senses, live longer.”
She returned her gaze to her cup, stroking the painted surface as she thought about what he said. “Have you ever killed anyone?”
“Human or vampire?”
At the question, she looked up at him. “Either, I guess.”
Lance sighed. “A very long time ago, I killed some men who tried to hurt my sons. It was a different time then, disputes were settled in a different way. As for vampires, we tend to police ourselves, but we do take action when those among us live outside the rules and bring danger to everyone.” As he spoke, he remembered the vampires he had killed after he embraced Justin.
“Is Justin a vampire?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“And that’s why you ‘died’ two years ago.” She wasn’t surprised anymore by his answers, her curiosity growing as he spoke.
“It was time to move on. Especially these days, it’s hard to keep things concealed when you’re so much in the public eye, and you can only explain away so much plastic surgery.”
Nodding in understanding, Gabrielle stood and walked to the counter to refill her cup. She raised the pot at him and got a nod in response, choosing to bring the whole pot over instead. She refilled his cup and set the pot on a trivet on the table.
“You’re taking this awfully well.” He studied her eyes to find the truth of her thoughts.
“You know, I’ve been on my own along time, even before I was alone with Joshua. I’ve seen the way people act towards each other, and I’m convinced that monsters really do exist. I’ve had to be very aware of them to protect myself and my son, so I know the warning signs; get a chill up my back.” Gabrielle looked him over. “I don’t get that with you. I’m not quite sure how all of this works, but I’m not afraid I’m going to wake up one morning and find you with your fangs buried in my jugular.”
She stopped for a moment and looked at him. “You do have fangs, right?”
At that, Lance burst into laughter. “Yes, I do. And you don’t have to worry about the biting.”
Chuckling softly, Gabrielle reached out to pat his hand, only hesitating for a moment. He took the gesture in the manner it was meant, smiling warmly at her.
“What happened to those men?”
He shrugged. “Probably ran off to lick their wounds when they came to.”
“So…they’re not dead.” Gabrielle looked down into her coffee cup, thankful despite the anger she still felt towards them.
A gentle tug on her fingers caused her to look up, and Lance just looked at her. “No, they’re not dead. Remember, we don’t kill unless we have to.” He paused for a moment. “Did you think I had?”
Studying his face for a moment, she finally shook her head. “You don’t strike me as the type who kills indiscriminately. I think that would cause more problems and draw more attention than you want.”
“We have very strict rules when it comes to dealing with humans.” He finished his coffee and watched as she relaxed even more. “I still say you’re taking this well. Most people would freak and lose it completely.”
“There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”
Lance looked at her, and she shrugged. “I read a lot when I was helping Joshua with his homework. It’s a big world; I don’t think everything can just be explained away with a wink and a smile.”
With a simple nod, he agreed with her. Once more, he found himself relieved that she knew one of his secrets. He ignored the little voice in the back of his head that worried about the number of people who knew.
They felt her the moment she walked into the lounge, electricity rippling across their skin. She moved easily around the patrons, wending her way to the back table and settling in. At their first break, Lance moved to the back table and took a seat across from her. She smiled at him.
“Thank you for joining me.”
He nodded. “I’m guessing you’re not here strictly for the music.”
Her laughter was soft and warm. It reminded him of warm days in the fields outside him home in Portugal. “No, liebling, this is not a pleasure call, although it certainly could be.”
The offer had been laid before him several times, but he never accepted. “Thank you, Michelle, but I’m afraid I must pass.”
She nodded, the smile fading. Dionne brought another glass of wine for Michelle and a glass of water for Lance, flicking quick glances at the couple before turning away. She hurried back to the bar to see what Gabrielle knew, finding her friend surreptitiously watching the back table.
“Who is she?”
The older woman shrugged. “Old friend, it appears.”
“Hmm.” The other waitress just arched an eyebrow before filling another order.
Lance could feel the stares of his coworkers, but ignored them and kept his gaze on the woman in front of him. Red-gold hair swept over creamy shoulders. The dark green halter top highlighted the ivory of her skin. She was a beautiful woman and knew she would fill his bed with pleasure, but the politics involved would cause more than its fair share of headache.
“What’s wrong?” His voice was hushed.
Michelle sighed. “William wants you to come after you are finished here. There have been some problems with some of the children. A council has been called.”
Lance nodded, slowly turning his glass as he stared into the swirling water. He had heard the whispers on the streets, hoping that it wasn’t true. He sighed once before looking over at her.
“We’ll be there.”
A slim eyebrow lifted at the “we”. Lance simply continued looking at her. “He’s my childe, and if there is trouble with other children, I won’t leave him alone.”
Her nod was regal, and then her eyes narrowed. He felt Justin’s approaching, but did not look away from her.
“We’re back on.”
Lance nodded once to indicate he heard and then nodded once to Michelle. She smiled at him before he stood and moved back towards the stage. She waited until they were into their third song before standing and leaving the bar. The moment she left, both men sighed in relief.
Contents
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