Hello Darkness

Chapter Forty

Vampires have lived alongside humans for centuries and we never noticed. Are we truly that unobservant or are vampires that good at concealing themselves? The more I consider, the more it seems humans prefer blissful ignorance over believing that something inconceivable might exist.

I bury my head into Victor's back to avoid the wind whipping my face. I am riding on the back of a motorcycle with a man I barely know and it feels so natural. I'm not squirming or wondering how much longer until we stop and I can get my space back. No, it's not like that at all, it's like I've known him for years, like we're a pair of friends reunited. He's sun-warmed leather spritzed with a spicy cologne. He's comfortable.

We don't travel for long before we pull up to a rickety old building, in the middle of nowhere. It's nothing more than a glorified barn, one that had been fixed up decades ago but was left to waste. The aluminum roof is rusted and sagging. I think that's a tree growing from the moss between the cracks. Not to mention, it's peeling mulberry paint needed a fresh coat ten years ago.

Victor cuts the engine and I slip off the bike first. Voices and the low thrum of a base come from inside. The building sits lower than the parking lot, but I'm not sure if the steps will hold our weight. The wood is rotted from years of neglect, but the parking lot is full. "What is this place?" I turn back as he's pulling the key out of the ignition.

"It's a special kind of bar."

Then the smell hits me. Overwhelming me, swirling into my senses confusing my brain. Sharp daggers shoot through my jaw. "There are humans here."

"Yes," he says watching me, studying me. Waiting to see how I will react.

I managed to keep away from the smell all day, secluding myself to Gabby's house and refusing to let her crack a window. "Take me back. I can't be here. I'll kill them." I push against his chest, but he blocks me from moving.

"You won't kill them. Rivera assured me—"

"How does he know? I haven't even been around humans yet. I don't know that I can control myself. I will kill them."

He holds firm. "You won't."

A comforting tingle warms my body. His words trickle down deeper than the surface. I look up from the gravel and find his fangs also exposed. His fingers curl into fists at his sides, but his gaze remains on me. The warmth spreads until the smell doesn't seem so overwhelming and I can breathe without the urge to find the source.

His fangs are nothing short of terrifying. For the first time, I'm looking at a creature, until days ago, I believed was a concoction of my imagination and late-night television shows. But he's so much more than that. He's my protector and I his. I will do anything for him.

I reach forward my thumb lightly brushing his lips to view his slightly exposed canines. My eyes shift to his, studying the way the stars fleck his eyes with golden burts—the way his scar slips down his face in precise yet jagged cuts.

Heat bubbles in my stomach. I will do anything to find the person that gave him that scar, and put them through the same pain.

He doesn't move, merely stiffens, at my touch. He lets me stare for another moment before he flicks his lip and the canines retreat.

I stumble back, like it broke the connection. My own fangs retreat. Where had those feelings come from? We just met. My face grows hot. "I'm sorry," I breathe.

"Don't be." His voice is soft.

"I don't...know what came over me."

"It's our bond."