so, I've missed a few updates and obviously I am aware of that. I've been massively sick for the last week running on pre-written chapters, so when they ran out, I just didn't have the mental power to write any more.
I'm still sick but slightly less, so I've got a few ready and daily updates are hopefully back. sorry for leaving without any explanation
for those who care, I'll explain what's been going on with me after the chapter :)
enjoy
☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎
It was finally time to get into another fight. We knew more of what to expect this time so we weren't going in as blind as before, but we also unfortunately weren't attacking Aiden himself.
"Why not?" I complained as I pouted, eager for a fight. Some random ally of Aiden's wouldn't be a good fight at all. They weren't strong enough.
"We're not ready for that," Mike repeated for the thousandth time.
I sighed heavily — dramatic and throwing a tantrum over it. He looked at me for only a second longer before turning to everyone else. He was fed up with me already, which I didn't blame him for. Something was making me particularly irate lately, always trying to look for opportunities to fight anyone I could.
A pair of arms wrapped around me from behind, connecting with my bare skin where my shirt didn't quite reach my waistband. I leaned back into the body behind me as Colby's lips pressed to the top of my head. I was just delusional enough to assume he was doing it to comfort me in some way, and I knew to some extent, he agreed with me that the sooner we just obliterated Aiden, the better.
Exhaling slowly, I placed my hand on Colby's forearm and turned my head to the side so I was leaning it against his chest, looking up at him. He returned my gaze, his eyes pure blue as they pierced mine. I almost wanted to smile and I didn't even know why. Standing like this with him was different.
"-Colby when we go."
Completely distracted by Colby, I hadn't heard a word anyone else had said until I heard my mate's name from Mike. I blinked away my trance as I turned back toward the group, pulling away from Colby's embrace. He kept a hand on my hip like he couldn't bear not to touch me, and just nodded. I assumed that meant we were heading out.
I allowed myself to be swept up off the floor.
Like the clan, Aiden's allies — the few he actually had and seemed to care about — were located all over the place. There were no direct territories besides feeding spots and a lair, so you could be in one clan's building then cross the road and suddenly be in another's. But this particular street had his name all over it. He had his name on most of the businesses, and influence in those remaining.
A fellow clan under his allegiance spent a lot of time here, meaning we could cut them off on their way home. Of course, they wouldn't be drunk because stupid vampires couldn't get drunk, however, getting attacked would still be the last thing any of them expected.
Tonight, I was a vital part of the plan. I had to get as many people outside as possible, which meant committing arson. I was perfectly fine with that.
"Why don't we just make a molotov?" Jake asked as he examined our first target, the biggest of all the buildings and probably the fanciest. It was some restaurant I'd never heard of before that was, of course, open all night.
I glared at him. "There are humans inside, we could hit one. Just give me a few minutes, I'll handle it."
"Go wild, Amy," Cassie mused. I nodded and left the group hovering outside in the dark, slipping through the front door of the restaurant. Most if not all of the vampires inside would have no idea who I was, which made things a lot easier for the clan. They might have recognised any of them but not me.
Instead of going up to the host, I went to the bar and bought a drink with the highest alcohol content, smiling slightly brokenly as if I was upset about something. To keep the story going, I chatted with the bartender for a little while since it wasn't too busy. I told her about a fake relationship and always getting let down, that this was the last straw and I was building up to breaking up with him. She seemed quite sweet as she gave me some advice.
But as soon as I thought the seed was firmly placed, I forced my eyes to tear up a little and excused myself to the bathroom, discreetly taking my drink with me.
Luckily, no one was inside, so I poured my drink on the floor, gathered some toilet paper, and set it alight. Letting it fall to the floor as a flame licked into the air, I exited the restroom to go back to the bar. It wouldn't take long for the flames to engulf everything in there, mostly likely spreading out if I left it long enough.
"Are you feeling better?" asked the bartender, a soft look to her eyes. I sighed heavily, looking away from her. "Hey, why don't I pour you another drink on the house?"
"Can you do that?" I whispered back.
She smiled. "Not supposed to, but who's counting?"
I gave her a little laugh and nodded gratefully. She poured me another, which I actually drank this time for the fun of it. It burned as it slid down my throat but I shook it off.
Considering that fire had been going for a few minutes now, there was no way it hadn't spread at least to the men's room next door. I cast a brief glance over my shoulder to see smoke seeping out under the door and had to disguise my smile.
A couple more minutes passed before, finally, the fire alarm started blaring. At the exact moment someone opened the door to the bathroom and a flame shot out toward her. The whole room was engulfed, exactly as I'd hoped. People started rushing out while the vampires and other staff tried to calm them down to leave in an orderly fashion. I casually strolled among them beside the bartender, muttering about how scary it was that something like that had happened so suddenly.
I spotted Jake and Tara instantly. They were lounging comfortably on someone's car hood, as if it was their own.
"Everyone relax!" yelled a guy in a fancy suit who could only be the manager of this place. "We'll put the fire out and assess the damages. Go home for tonight. Anything left inside will be returned to you once it is safe."
"Be safe," I told the bartender, backing up a couple of steps.
She scoffed. "Yeah, like that's possible round here. How does a fire start in the restroom of all places?" She rolled her eyes with a sigh, patting my shoulder. "Make sure you give him hell, yeah?"
I smiled, this time not because I was acting, but because I thought of the vampires we were about to attack and imagined what it would be like to give them hell. She didn't even know what was going on here, even if what she'd said seemed a little suggestive that she may have known about vampires. She'd never know about me, though. Some vampires didn't even know about werewolves because we did something called mind our own damn business.
"Thanks, I will," I promised her before waving her off.
She disappeared into the crowd, and I examined the faces of those who weren't heading for their own cars. All of them besides the manager were vampires. Their smell was making my nose twitch uncomfortably.
"Go home," one of the vampires told the manager, nodding coldly over his shoulder. "Now."
"I'm going home," he replied and slipped passed. He'd most definitely been compelled. He wasn't the manager here at all, just a pawn to make humans feel more comfortable. I supposed that made sense.
When the last human was driving away, the vampires finally caught sight of me still standing there. They frowned slightly, a couple of them muttering to each other, and I acted like I'd only just seen them. I hurried over, distress on my face. "Would you help me?" I pleaded, staring up at the nearest one. He was definitely the leader.
Apprehensive, he shifted to block the others from my view, his eyes trailing around my face for any sign of a slip. Unfortunately for him, I was a good actor. "With what?"
"I don't have a way home," I lied, pushing my bottom lip out. "Please, would someone be able to drive me home? I need to get back. It's been a terrible night."
"Can't you call someone to come get you instead?" he challenged, calling the bluff.
I frowned. "I don't have anyone."
"We can't help you, we've got to sort this place out. Didn't you hear about the fire? Or see it? There are tons of damages. Just order a cab or something."
I gave him my best begging face. It was a mixture of desperation and complete helplessness — not to mention innocence that men killed for. Focusing only on him, I stared up into his eyes for a long few moments like I was going to cry.
My ears picked up voices behind him.
"Dude, you haven't fed properly in a while. If she's got no one, take her home and feed."
"She's a werewolf, I can't compel her to forget like the others," he replied, too quiet for me to hear without my extensive senses.
None of this was a part of the plan but I had seen an opportunity and figured I should take it.
"It'll be fine. Just do it. We'll handle here."
"Alright," he finally sighed. "How far do you live?"
"Not far." I motioned in a random direction and happened to spot the car Jake and Tara had been on. They were gone now, hidden. Our original plan was quickly changing. An ambush wasn't as fun as this.
We walked to a car in the corner of the lot, which I was honestly shocked this vampire even had, and I slid into the passenger side. The second the door closed beside me, my phone dinged with a text in my pocket and the leader cast a glance at me suspiciously. To keep my story going, I sighed heavily as I looked at it, my head down like I was ashamed of something.
'the fuck is the plan?'
I didn't have any doubt it was Colby. I quickly replied then made an effort to look annoyed and upset at the same time, shoving my phone aggressively into my pocket.
"Were you the girl talking to Kate?" the vamp beside me asked casually, though I could hear the tense undertone to his voice.
"Kate?"
"The bartender."
"Oh... yeah, I was. What did you hear?"
He turned off of the parking lot and I vaguely motioned in a direction to keep him busy. "That your boyfriend cheats on you a lot and didn't turn up tonight to have dinner with you. It's a bit late for dinner, though, isn't it?"
"I prefer nighttime." I turned my head to stare out the window up at the sky. That statement was probably the only true thing I'd said to him so far.
"Was your boyfriend the one who texted you?" I didn't answer him, turning instead to my lap. I fiddled with my fingers uncomfortably, my bottom lip sticking out. "I'm guessing that's a yes," he sighed. "Acting all controlling and jealous as if he isn't the one who cheats on you?"
I nodded.
"Do you live with him?"
"No but he might be waiting at my apartment. He's... like that." I motioned for another turn and suddenly perked up. "Do you think... you know... because of what you are, you could protect me?"
"You know what I am?" he replied almost shocked. Did he not know anything about werewolves besides that we existed?
"Yeah, I can smell it. But you didn't answer me. Please? I... I don't want him to..." I trailed off as if it was too hard to talk about.
His jaw ticked. "Is he human or like you?"
"Like me," I decided. "He's stronger than me, I can't put up much of a fight."
"Why don't we make a deal?" he suggested. "If you let me bite you tonight, I'll hurt him as badly as you want me to."
I sat back to think on that for a few moments, still occasionally gesturing in certain directions. Then I just nodded. "Okay."
"Have you been bitten before?"
"No," I admitted, which was actually true.
"We'll talk about it later."
I didn't answer him again, staring out the window. I'd been spotting the others following along every now and then, but the time wasn't right just yet. Originally, I only planned to get out of hearing distance, but something a little more exciting was being presented now. I saw another opportunity.
When we neared an obvious apartment building, I motioned for him to stop but didn't get out. Looking across the seats at him, I said, "What's your name?"
He glanced at me shortly. "Thomas... or, just Tom, I guess."
"Amy," I informed him, choosing not to give him my full name in case he was aware of me already. This man was one of Aiden's allies, there was every chance he'd been warned of us. And every chance Aiden was happy to let him get killed.
"Is your boyfriend here?" he diverted.
I shook my head. "I can't see or smell him, so..." — I flicked my eyes down to the console and tilted my head so I was looking at him through my lashes — "you were going to bite me even without a deal, weren't you?"
He hesitated for a short while staring back at me. I couldn't tell what he was thinking about now, or why he wasn't just grasping at the opportunity.
Finally, he reached for his door. "No."
I frowned but he was already out. Hurrying out with him, I saw he was hovering at the hood of his car with his arms crossed and his head turned away.
"You got enough shit on your plate," he said quietly, "so you don't need me making it worse. Just go home. If your boyfriend's there, say my name. I'll hang around until you're safe inside."
I didn't know what to say back. I was staring at him like he was crazy. How was a genuinely nice vampire like this allied to Aiden? Why wasn't he as cruel?
"Did I ever tell you my boyfriend's name?" I questioned, my mind racing a million miles an hour. I could feel my heart beginning to match the same pace and I didn't know what to do about this situation now it had unfolded.
Tom just shrugged. "It doesn't matter to me, I recall you saying you were going to break up with him, anyway. Why tell me?"
I pressed my lips together for a moment. "None of it was true."
☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎
don't worry, I don't think I have to explain myself or anything, I'd just like you to know what a kick up the ass I've had
coughing, sneezing, limited breathing, insomnia at night and fatigue in the day, migraines and headaches, back and stomach aches caused by the strength of my coughs, lightheadedness
I literally didn't have the brain function to do much more than watch YouTube for the last week — and for those who don't know, I have a job, so it's been wildly different to my normal life.
I appreciate the comments and things I've been seeing, so happy to see this book is getting some recognition. I don't expect it to grow too much, but I don't really need it to. Bad Taste and Vampires Rule have that in the bag, this one was just for fun. a new way to write Rebecca in another form (aka slightly less annoying to begin with)
so thanks everyone and know I am a bit better now so I'm planning on getting more chapters out for you
- Kiwi 🥝