At Rover's
Sarah came back behind the counter and placed Ryan's soda next to his plate. She looked taken aback when she noticed who was sitting next to him. "Shannon?"
Shannon looked up once he heard his name and showed a weak grin. " Sarah right?"
She nodded at him smiling. "Good to see you again."
"You guys know each other?" Ryan asked from beside him. "I thought you just came into town?"
Sarah explained to Ryan how she met him with Anna at the Carnival and how Shannon was nice enough to help see the guy who got killed so that Anna and Sarah could go home safely. Shannon faked a smile and took a sip from his drink. Ryan stared at him for a few seconds then turned away and frowned.
"So, Shannon." Sarah leaned her arms against the counter, but keeping her back straight. "You liking town so far?"
Sarah's personality was big, and she didn't shy away from starting a conversation with anyone. She made her presence known, and it was natural to her. Yet, she was confident and responsible. Everyone wanted and hated to converse with her.
Shannon did not meet her eyes as he shrugged. "It's not bad."
"Would you like to eat something ? We have just updated our menu for vampires." Sarah pulled the menu from under the table and placed it on the counter.
"Not today." He scanned the diner before turning to look at the menu. "But I would like to order the type O soup. For to go. I heard it's delicious."
"Absolutely!" Sarah noted in eagerness. "Would you like to add anything else?"
"That's all sweetheart." Shannon winked before finishing his last sip. Shannon had turned to Ryan when Sarah left for the kitchen. "So you're alone here?"
Ryan looked at him in annoyance. He turned to look at the other seat empty beside him and back at Shannon. "Clearly."
"Listen, I think you and I got on the wrong foot." Shannon said to him but it came off almost deceitful. Shannon's expression was anything but genuine. He raised his hand to shake Ryan's smiling. "Any friend of Sarah and Anna is a friend of mine."
Ryan stared at his hand with uncertainty then raised an eyebrow at him. Shannon's smile was menacing. His energy felt dark and twisted. Ryan had felt it, but now he was disgusted by him. He stared at Shannon's raised hand for a minute with suspicion before looking back at him questioning his statement. "Anna doesn't have vampire friends. Sarah? maybe. She could be trusting of your kind, but Anna would never."
Shannon pulled his hand back and gave Ryan a lopsided smile. "Really? and why not?" He appeared curious. At that moment, Shannon wanted to do only one thing; to rip Ryan's head off and move on with his night. He had been ripping people's heads, stabbing them with even a butter knife, anything that was in his reach. Ripping people's hearts with his bare hand. In Europe, for many years, that was how dark his life was. Over the smallest disagreements, someone looking at him the wrong way, a disrespectful tone; Shannon ended them fast, and made sure it was painful.
This time was different. Other than having vampire police in town, he was being vigilant. He had a mission to undertake, and he knew he had eyes on him that was more powerful than he anticipated. Shannon did not have any back up. No friends. No henchmen. No one whom he can trust. He knew that in order to get people to help him with his mission work, he needed them to trust him first. Ryan however, was someone Shannon needed to be removed from the equation.
With Jared
Jared dropped off his jacket on the leather couch in the foyer and walked straight into the living room. He sat on the big lofty couch facing the fire place.
After taking Anna home, Jared had walked her to her door and attempted to control his posture but failed He craved another kiss, the taste of soft lips. He smiled widely, surprising Anna for showing teeth for the first time. She had commented on it and they both laughed about it. Anna remarked that they were very attractive, and Jared shushed her with a kiss. He kissed her like he had kissed her a million times before. It was natural like their lips were made for each other, and they were both in sync. He wished her goodnight and left after.
After everything that Jared had been through in his life, and through all the people that he had met and became friends with. Never did he believe that he could meet someone in his lifetime that felt so warm and understanding. Anna had been kind and patient, and didn't seem to be taking things so seriously. She was charming, and Jared craved spending every remaining minute of his life if just talking with her. She was genuinely a good person, and out of all of the friends that he made, none matched her energy.
Tomo came out of his bedroom when he heard Jared come in then sat on the couch next to him, eyeing him carefully.
"How's umm, how's the date?" Tomo grinned at Jared.
Jared narrowed his eyes at Tomo. "what are you talking about?"
Tomo chuckled as he poured two glasses of bourbon on ice already placed on the table. "You woke up earlier than usual, which is not new but the fact that the house smelled of cologne too was what got my attention. Oh and also a bunch of blood bags were missing, so I assumed it must be the girl with the magic blood you're keeping your self full for."
Jared's eyes went for the door in alarm. "Can you keep your voice low?"
Tomo had stopped laughing then, shaking his head before taking a sip from his drink.
"how was it?" Tomo asked. "was she comfortable?"
" She was fine." Jared looked at Tomo cautiously, making sure his voice low, " I'm only telling you this because I don't want you to worry about my whereabouts the next coming days. Not for you to bring it up again. Especially when Shannon is around."
"I won't." Tomo ran his fingers threw his hair slowly, narrowing his eyes in concentration at the fire. "I mean..that's good for you man." Tomo paused and sat straight. Realizing that this meant Jared was getting into something serious, which was unusual. Tomo never thought that Jared was going to leave him out on the personal stuff, especially when it came to a girl, someone that was special as Anna which Tomo was secretly eager to know more about. This hurt him a little but he understood that Jared wanted to keep it secret only because Shannon was there. Still, it didn't stop him from asking, "How umm...did you talk to her about her blood thingy-"
"Tomo." Jared cut him off. Jared's response wasn't harsh, it never was with Tomo, but this time he was adamant. " Please. Don't bring it up. Ever." Jared looked over his shoulder towards the front door again.
Tomo kept his stare at the fire and nodded, clearly hurt. " I'm sorry."
Jared furrowed his brow at Tomo. " I want you to take Shannon somewhere tomorrow." Tomo looked at Jared in confusion, but waited. " I need to take care of something and I don't want sensing anything concerning me. There's something odd about him and I just can't trust him."
"Alright." Tomo nodded in understanding. "Does it have anything to do with her?"
"Yes." Jared replied shorty. "I think there's probably a handful of people who do know about her in town. Including her two friends."
" Does she know that I know?" Tomo asked.
" No." Jared appeared concerned for a minute. " You're not a danger to her, and she doesn't need that knowledge of another vampire knowing about her blood."
There was a short silence between the two best friends before Tomo grinned at Jared and said, " So you don't think I have it in me to be as dangerous as any other vampire who could easily be thirsty with such knowledge?"
Jared narrowed his eyes in disgust and shook his head again. " You don't have it in you to kill a fly, Tomo." Jared cracked a smile.
" You keep thinking that, Jared!"
Shannon barged in the house an hour later, looking overly exhausted. He headed straight to the kitchen looking over the fridge for any remaining blood bags.
"where have you been?" Jared walked in the dim lit kitchen.
Shannon grinned at his brother and leaned his back against the refrigerator. " Why? You worried about me?"
Jared leaned against the door frame. "I actually want to know if you have hurt anybody tonight." Jared replied, meeting his brother's eyes.
"Nop!" Shannon shook his head and pushed off the refrigerator, walking out of the kitchen with half a dozen blood bags. "I was just out for a drink at a boring diner."
Jared didn't turn to look at Shannon so he wouldn't notice his face flinching. Jared followed Shannon down the hallway and into the living room. "Which... diner?" His voice returned steady.
" It doesn't matter." Shannon relaxed on the couch and sighed loudly. " You wanted to know If I hurt anybody, well I didn't, so relax."
Jared remained quiet as studied Shannon as he devoured one blood bag after another.
"It's just so fucking hard living here, I don't know how I'm going to bare-" Shannon turned his head to look at Jared who seemed to be stuck in another world. " It's the one close to that abandoned church." Shannon narrowed his eyes at Jared when he noticed that his face turned pale, but Jared quickly managed his expression. That was probably the diner Anna worked at, but he knew that Anna wasn't there tonight.
" The sun will rise soon." Jared said as he walked to the basement door. He stopped walking midway and turned to Shannon. " Tomo sometimes passes out on his bed and forgets to come down the freezer." Jared explained. " I sometimes wake up to his screaming and his body half burnt and him gasping for breath... well you know how that process goes."
Shannon cringed and looked away disgusted.
"Remind him!"
The place had turned quiet. Tomo and Jared had already gotten in their coffins and fell deep in sleep. Shannon was sill on the couch and sipping from a blood bag as the first light of morning crept through the living room windows. Shannon felt his skin prickle and put his blood bag aside. He stretched his arms long and wide before standing up. He walked through the hallway and noticed Jared's bedroom door ajar.
Shannon walked to his brother's bedroom door and examined the room briefly before walking into it. He stood there to take in the whole room, from the bed to his open closet to the shelves piled with books and painting utensils.
Shannon noticed that his brother's room was very basic and dull. Turned out that nothing ever changes with Jared. He snorted at the thought and had almost turned to leave the room when he noticed something catching his eyes behind Jared's bed. It was half hidden, a portrait that caught his curiosity. Shannon pulled out the portrait and held it in his clear view.
It was an ordinary portrait of a girl. Jared had drawn her of brown hair and hazel eyes, leaving everything else to the imagination. It was beautiful and very clean, Shannon couldn't deny it.
A portrait that appeared familiar to him. He gripped the painting more closer and studied it for a few more minutes before it hit him. Shannon grinned at the eyes staring at him in the portrait. He didn't have to think twice of whether it was a portrait of someone Jared knew or just from imagination.
It were the eyes that gave it away to Shannon. His mouth twitched, Shannon knew who it was and the thought of knowing something Jared didn't thrilled him to pieces.
He returned the portrait to its place and hurried to the basement feeling a force of energy coming through his blood stream, yet bitter.