So You Used to Be Human - Book 3 (Original Version)

Chapter 21: Hail to the King, Baby

Sammy stormed off into the penthouse and I had no choice but to follow, if only to defend my honour. She stalked into the kitchen and I opted not to follow her all the way in. I was going to keep the centre island with it's row of six burners and flattop grill between us for random acts of violence that were no doubt coming my way.

I rallied, more than a little insulted at the presumption that I hadn't been hurt or affected in anyway by what was going on. That wasn't fair and Sammy knew it, but she played dirty whenever she could.

"I died last time! Apparently many, many times. Remember that? Because I sure as hell do." I remembered something and at least had the decency to be embarrassed. "Thanks for coming outside to get me by the way."

"What the fuck are you on about?" Sammy was legitimately confused. "I didn't come for you. That was Jaime and man that girl can kick some serious ass. For someone who doesn't want to be a vampire, she's awfully good at it."

Okay then: I hadn't been expecting that. What the fuck?

"Jaime was the one who came out and got me?"

"I would have, but she was way better at it. The way she laid into those guys you would think she actually cared about you or something." Sammy's brain caught up to her and she turned back to me, incredulous. "Wait, did she tell you it was me? And you believed her? God you're such a dumbass!"

Sammy pulled out a bottle of very expensive looking scotch and tow glasses. She poured me a glass and slid it across the counter to me.

I caught the glass and drank gratefully, noting not for the first time just how white everything was in the penthouse and how at home Sammy was. Everything was all shiny and space age, sleek and modern and very, very expensive. This was the King's place, his palace of record and while it looked very ordinary at least for a millionaire, there were some custom modifications that had been made to turn the place into a very comfortable vampire lair. The huge floor to ceiling windows were covered with adjustable UV gels that blocked out most direct sunlight; you could stand in front of the windows with the sun directly in your face and not burn, that's how badass the windows were. They gave the King the illusion of being normal and he utilized the technology as much as he could, especially since he had to be in the public eye as a result of being a successful rapper. Nothing spelled out that you were a vampire like blacked out windows, and that was the last thing the King wanted to bring attention to.

There was a whole system of metal grates just outside the windows that were designed to be invisible when folded up, but offered an additional layer of protection against the sun (and falling out the window) in the event of a catastrophic emergency. Even if things went to shit, death by sunlight was not going to be an option, not for the King.

***

You all know the King, since you've no doubt seen him on tv at some point of your life. His shiny bald head was iconic on it's own, even more so since he had proclaimed himself the King of Atlanta, Georgia and then legally changed his name to first name "King" title "the". I'd once asked him if anyone called him "The" as a nickname and had regretted the question, so yeah: don't do that. At least he hadn't changed his name to a symbol like he had been tempted to do, but apparently Prince had beat him to it. Wow, will you look at that: Prince and the King. Pity we would never see that concert ever happen.

Don't ask what the King's previous name had been either. He is simply the King, no matter where he goes.

The King was about 6'2"and would have easily passed for a basketball player, not just because he was a tall black man, but because he looked like the perfect athlete who could very easily wipe the floor with any opponents he wanted to. Even with the loud and immaculately tailored suits and the accompanying fur coats, he looked like he could easily shrug the coat off and dunk on you without breaking a sweat. This of course was the vampire in him, but other vampires just didn't have his swagger, they didn't wear their physical superiority like he did... like a king. He had been a vampire for about four hundred years with about three hundred of those years spent in Africa and Asia; he had heard all about what was going on in the Americas and had wanted no part of it. That decision had not been his finest hour, but at the time he had probably known about five other vampires, so to him he was already a species on the verge of extinction.