Bleeding Royalty (Revamped)

Chapter 3: V & V Forever

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        Needless to say, it was very awkward when I came back to the car with an armful of roses and a chocolate box that was nearly the size of me.

            "What on earth?" Anna was turned around in the passenger seat, staring in awe at the gifts in the back of the car. "If libraries are giving roses and chocolate out to girls now, I'm totally going to start participating in this whole 'reading' thing."

            "Here, start it now." I handed her the handwritten card, which she snatched out of my hand. I glued my hands to the steering wheel and stared ahead of the car at nothing in particular, too stunned to turn on the car. "Everything is from the client. Everything."

            Her mouth fell open as she finished reading. Anna placed the card down on the dashboard, and a silence fell between us. Silence and Anna rarely got along well.

            "Say something," I demanded, starting to get worried. Now Anna was staring ahead of the car like I once was, expression blank. "Tell me you're scared, and I shouldn't go through with this call. Tell me this is some practical joke. Tell me I'm stupid for ever going in there, and this guy is a complete psychopath."

            Anna muttered something under her breath.

            I leaned in. "Nobody can hear you when you whisper like that, Anna." I whispered.

            "I said, freaking call this hot, romantic bastard already, before I do!" she shouted in my face.

            "Anna," I said. "Let's be rational, here. I don't even know who this person is, and they're sending me roses and a huge ass box of chocolates? This is too good to be true."

            "It was your tip! It was generous. You're just saying that because he bites people's neck once in a while!" Anna insisted. "He said, when you're ready, call him. Well  I'm impatient, I'm ready, and I'm your best friend. And I say, call him now!"

            I ignored her. "Call it now, you mean," I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest. " This thing thinks I'm its pet or something. I'm not calling it and giving in. I have control of this situation."

            "He did call you kitten," Anna pointed out, still referring to the vampire as a man. "Did Gram tell you anything about this type of vampire?"

            "She told me that only a few select vampires have the power to enslave another vampire, using just their mind. That's what my client did. They controlled a lesser vampire into trying to kill me." My knuckles were starting to get white, I was now squeezing the car wheel so hard. "This vampire is old as hell, Anna.  And I'm hoping I'm wrong...but the 'feeling' I've been getting, Anna."

            "The 'feeling'," Anna echoed, completely enthralled. "Wait, can you tell me what this 'feeling' is again? To be honest, I've just been going along with it and pretending I know what it is..."

            I gave her my famous blank stare. " It's a horrible sense that I get whenever something goes terribly wrong in my life."

            "Did you get that feeling when your parents...?" Anna tightened her lips. "Sorry."

            "It's fine, Anna. And yes, I did." I let out a slow breath, not saying anything for a while. "The 'feeling' is that I'm dealing with a creature who was in the room while I killed that newborn in the library. The 'feeling' is that this creature, whoever they are, has previously asked for other hunter's help before me. The 'feeling' is that this creature can kill me with a snap of its fingers. And the 'feeling'... is that this creature is playing with its prey, it's food, like any other predator would. The feeling...is that this creature could be what Gram described as an Ancient.