Innocent Blood

Innocent Blood (chapter 26)

Chapter 26

For the first time, my phone rang, and I missed it. It happened when I washing up in the kitchen, I heard it ring but had though it was the television and by the time I realised it to be the phone, it stopped. The screen showed a picture of a telephone receiver with a '1' beside it. My hands were shaking with excitement, wondering who it was that had thought enough of me to call, Achlys? Alastor? Oh God, maybe even Aristaios! I shouldn't have been surprised to find it were none of them, but I was. My heart sank when the screen displayed the missed callers identity as 'Mark', I couldn't help but feel resentment at the fact Mark, who had known me only four days could call me when THEY didn't. I put down the phone, the object that served as a reminder that my 'rescuers' had forgotten me, and went to resume my washing up. Before I reached the kitchen, I heard the phone buzz. A text message alert.

MARK - HEY, JUST 2 LET U KNO WE HEADIN OUT AT 7. LET ME KNO IF U WANT PICKD UP. MARK x

Despite my earlier decision not to join them, I found myself typing back a reply as I walked through to the bedroom. 'HEY MARK! YEAH IM JUS GETTIN READY. IL WAIT DOWNSTAIRS. C U SOON XX' I changed my top for a tighter fitting, sequin one, keeping my dark skinny jeans and flat shoes. My hair was an issue, I wasn't sure on how I should style it and in the end I settled for leaving it down.

Mark was already waiting downstairs when I got there. He was in the passenger side of a small blue car, I walked over a little nervously and got into the back seat. "Claire, this is Sean", said Mark, indicating the driver, "and Jo", nodding his head to the woman sat beside me. "Mark's girlfriend." She clarified. The woman looked to mature to refer to herself as being a 'girlfriend'. She looked to be in her late twenties, with a short, pink pixie cut hair style and so much eye make up on that her eyes looked like black holes in the dim car light. "Nice to meet you both." Sean pulled away as I clicked in my seatbelt. "Are you going in like that?" Jo asked me, she probably didn't mean anything bad by it, but it didn't stop me from takin offence. "Leave her alone Jo, she looks fine", said Mark, looking over his shoulder at us. "She looks fine yes, but she looks about twelve!" She exclaimed. I stared back, shocked at her bluntness. "Oh don't get me wrong, everybody wants to look young, but its just not going to help us get you into an over 18's club."

We pulled up on a street, busy with people. Jo pulled out a bag of makeup and began slapping it on my face whilst Mark and Sean stood outside the car talking to a group of people. Next she took out a hair brush, "my hair is fine", I protested, shying away from her. "I'm just putting some body into it." Whatever that meant. She went on to pull and tug at my hair, and within seconds announced that I was ready, without mentioning my fresh, hideous scar or prickly hair. The crowd walked up to the door with us and I was sure the security was going to single me out and demand I.D. He didn't, apparently Mark wasn't lying when he said he had connections, he chatted away to the two security men at the door whilst the rest of us filed into the club. Our group managed to secure two tables and I slipped into a seat next to Jo. I hadn't noticed that Stacey had joined us until she greeted me from across the table, I couldn't miss the looks she fired at Jo, although Jo never seemed to notice.

The night was exceding my expectations, the music was nice and my company made me feel part of the group. The time had come for Mark to take to the stage, I was surprised at the cheers that exploded when they were announced. Apparently they were local celebrities. Mark was the singer, with a guitarist to his left and a drummer behind him. Most of the people from our crowd sang along with him and I felt a little left out at not knowing the words. Jo, who was on her feet beside me, watched him with total adoration in her eyes, I could see now that she was younger than I had first assumed, more like a girl in her late teens, just wearing the make up as a mask for the club. Like me. Halfway through their first song, my eyes found Stacey. She mouthed along to his song and that look in her eyes wasn't too different from Jo's. She caught me staring and probably realised that I had spotted they way she looked and him, for an instant she looked annoyed then pointed in the direction of the band and nodded enthusiastically, I smile and focused back on them.