Next part, as promised! Part 9. Comment & Vote, please!
Oh no, Sinclair is actually showing some emotions?
- Ilianna
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--Back to the present-
I sighed. That was so unexpected. I hadn't planned on seeing his face tonight, and to be saved by him nonetheless.
But it hurt, to see that look on his face, and I had never thought to be on the other side of his rifle, even if he hadn't pulled the trigger. I didn't understand why, though.
A limousine pulled up to me, and I saw Sinclair's monogram on the side of it, so I knew it was safe.
"Come iiinnnnn," said the husky voice. It was Bones. One of Sinclair's drivers, and I hated him. He seemed to enjoy pissing me off.
"No."
"The prince requires your presence at the commemoration party tonight for his dead father," Bones said, staring at me through the window with furtive, serpent-like eyes. "You wouldn't want to make him...angry, do you?"
"I'm not going in any car with you," I spat. I flipped him off. "I'd rather walk."
"Poor baby." He made a pout, which looked strange on his slightly toad-like face. "Wouldn't it be unfortunate if I 'accidentally' ran over you on the way?"
"Dammit-I don't care anymore. Fine."
I went inside of the car, sitting on the far side of it, away from Bones. He sniggered as he started the car and sped off.
"So how was tonight? Had any trouble?"
"Thanks to you guys who didn't even tell me he was an elder vampire," I sniped back.
"The prince wanted to test you."
"What's there to test?"
"Poor puppy upset that the prince didn't tell you? Is the prince's bitch upset?" he taunted.
"Shut. The. Fuck. Up," I said, though gritted teeth.
"Embarrassed that you were acting like a female dog in hea-"
In a flurry of movement, I had my gun off my back holster and jabbed straight into Bone's head.
To his credit, he didn't make any sudden movement and crashed the car, but just kept on driving.
"If you shoot me now, we're both gonna crash," he sneered.
"This has silver bullets in it. I might die, I might not, but you'll definitely die," I warned, clearly pissed. "Pull over right now."
Finally, the words struck him. I knew one thing Bones was scared of, and that was death. He pulled over the car.
I kicked him out, found some rope in the trunk, and tied him to a tree with a secure knot.
"I'm going to get you for this," he said spitefully. I smiled at him.
"Be a good boy and stay on your leash," I crooned, mussing his hair.
6 hours until sunrise. It'll take him a while to escape, and it'll show him.
I slid into the driver's seat, ignoring all of Bones' profanities, and sped off towards Sinclair's mansion, my anger assuaged. Sinclair won't be having his driver tonight.
Well, tonight is getting a bit slightly better. I smiled to myself as I waved goodbye to Bones.
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"Omigosh, Kay, you look so pretty tonight," Jenny said, beaming at me.
Jenny was my only vampire friend, and probably the preppiest and most optimistic vampire I've ever met.
I looked in the mirror. I was surprised by the transformation. I was in this lovely midnight blue cocktail dress, with a long slit down the middle to my belly that did not look in any way slutty.
Just elegant. I had a necklace of diamonds around my neck, and I wondered just how much that was worth.
All of this was lent to me by Jenny, of course. I wouldn't want to show up in a $19.99 Forever 21 dress. Actually I did, having ruined the $8,000 one (that I also had on loan), and I felt so out of place when I had looked at Jenny. The woes of poor people.
She also did my hair and makeup; just the right amount of makeup, but still making a wonderful transformation nonetheless. I smiled at myself in the mirror. Then I frowned. Then I furrowed my eyebrows together.
"Are you done making faces at yourself?" Jenny asked me, grinning. I saw her fangs. Sometimes I forget she's a vampire, with the way she acts. "Come on, let's go downstairs."
When we went downstairs, everyone went quiet for a moment, looking at the both of us. It was always like this; this was why I hated going to vampire events.
The chatter resumed, but I would catch pieces of conversation, going: "That's the mortal girl. What's she doing here?" or "So that's who >he< granted his blood to" or "That's the girl who had slain those two ancient vampires? She looks so...vulnerable".
"Just ignore them," Jenny said, winking at me.
Jenny let go of me, just after pulling me into a tight hug. "I'm going to go dance with Winter right now. Go enjoy yourself, okay?"
Before I could answer, she toddled off into the sea of people. I sighed. She left me. I leaned against the wall, feeling completely out of place. The only mortal amongst the vampires here.
"Hey, you look gorgeous," came a voice. I felt a hand on my shoulder, and was about to brush it off when I realized that it was Forrest. He was the next closest thing to a friend here, but not quite.
I looked up. Forrest grinned at me, looking handsome too, dressed in a black collar shirt and a loose red tie. "I don't get to see you this dressed up often. You should do it more-you look absolutely scrumptious."
"Feet kisser," I said, but I knew I was smiling anyway, pleased.
"Only yours." His grin widened.
"Where's Sinclair anyway?" I asked. "I want to talk to him. Now."
"I think he's in his room. He hasn't show his face all night for the party, but I saw him at the gathering downtown earlier." Then Forrest leaned in closer. "I'd like to see him riled up sometime, that Sinclair. Even though his father died, because of...you just can't tell what's on Sinclair's mind. Like nothing can trouble the guy."
I shrugged. I knew what Forrest meant. "Okay, thanks. His room is on the second floor, right?"
"Yes...Kay?"
"What, Forrest?"
He frowned. "Just be careful."
Glad for an excuse to get away from the party downstairs, I climbed the stairs and looked for Sinclair's room. Why the hell did his mansion have to be so ridiculously huge, anyway? Did anyone seriously need a hundred bedrooms? Christ.
I finally found Sinclair's room. The largest and the most opulent one in the mansion. I opened the door to his room, feeling anger rise up in me as I remembered the night's events. I would have died...if >he< hadn't saved me.
Sinclair was there, with his back turned to me and gazing out of the window. He didn't move, even as he heard me enter.
"Sinclair," I said, calling out his name, not holding back the anger in my voice. "I almost died tonight."
He turned his head a fraction, and he looked at me coldly. "And so why didn't you?"
"You know very well why! If...Ryder...hadn't saved me, I wouldn't still be alive. You didn't tell me Kayne was an elder vampire, Sinclair! I wasn't prepared at all!"
"Then that's your fault," he sneered, his eyes boring into mine. I flinched. They were so cold, so empty...so angry.
Never, in the year that I had worked for him, had I seen him like this. Usually he was just impassive. No feelings. "You should have been prepared for any situation."
He removed his hands from the sides of the window, and then walked towards me, slowly, like a predator. Sinclair's blue eyes were cloudy.
Sinclair grabbed me roughly by the arms, and pushed me onto the bed. I was shocked, and didn't say anything-my words were caught in my throat.
Then he leaned over me, both arms on either side of me, straddling me. His face was dangerously close, and he had his lips parted to show me his fangs. To scare me, I think. And it worked.
"You couldn't even get out of that situation without Ryder's help, Katherine," he snarled. "Maybe it was a mistake to save you."
"We had a deal, Sinclair," I said. My eyes were wide, and I tried not to tremble. Fear can feed a vampire's hunger, even though I knew full well Sinclair was very apt at restraining himself.
"I should just kill you right here and right now," Sinclair said.
He trailed a finger down me, from my throat to my belly-the skin that my dress exposed. I shivered.
"I don't even know why I saved you," he continued, angrily.
Then he nuzzled his face into my neck. I felt him lightly pressing his fangs against my skin, threatening to pierce it. I didn't dare move an inch, petrified.
"A mortal like you, a person who can be subject to such emotions makes a weak warrior-a warrior who can't even fight by herself!"
I didn't say anything, worried about provoking him. God, Sinclair was never like this.
We stayed like that for moments. Then, slowly, he raised his head.
When I looked at his face, I was shocked; really shocked. Here was something I had never expected to see from Sinclair, the vampire-the powerful vampire who held thousands of vampires under his thrall, who ruled with fear, who always had an impassive face...
His eyes held hurt in them. Pain.
"Katherine," he murmured, suddenly. He leaned his forehead against mine, and held my hand in his, squeezing it. "This feeling...this feeling of utter pain and loss. Is it okay to feel it? This human...emotion? It makes me feel so weak, something my enemies can manipulate. I've never felt it before."
Oh god. I stumbled into something I wasn't supposed to stumble into; Sinclair, mourning the loss of his father. Sinclair, worried about feeling the pain of losing someone dear to him.
I wrapped my arms around him, unsure of how to console a...grieving vampire.
And then something even more shocking happened; the City Master, the one who supposedly felt no emotion, the one who showed no interest in anyone for centuries, kissed me.
The strong scent of sweet, red wine filled my senses as his tongue explored my mouth. I could feel all the grief and the pain in that kiss.
He was massaging my cheek with his thumb, and then his lips left my own to trail down my chin to my neck, assaulting me with soft kisses there.
Even though I knew how vulnerable that place was, I didn't feel as though he would bite me there.
He didn't. In fact, he pulled away a little, and then said to me: "Katherine. You want my blood, don't you? You crave it."
I closed my eyes. I did. I craved his blood, ever since he gave me his that day.
My body that had tasted it had always yearned for it, to the point that I was craving blood from other people, too; like a vampire. But I had always fought that desire, telling myself I was human. I walked in the sun, after all-but Sinclair did too, since he was ancient and powerful.
Sinclair bit his tongue and then leaned in again. "Take it," he urged me quietly. The pain was still there, in his eyes. I opened my mouth and accepted him, licking his tongue with my tongue, sucking on it.
It tasted so sweet, the feel of his tongue colliding against mine. I bit down on his tongue, drawing more blood from it.
Taking his blood again.