Chapter Seven (Alexander)
I woke feeling like death.
My head throbbed something awful. My throat was dry and felt like it was on fire. I must have burnt my tongue on something because it was numb and painful as it stuck to the roof of my mouth. My nose felt stuffy and my vision was blurry as I forced my eyes open.
I sorely regretted it from the horribly bright light that shown through the curtains and into the room. I barely managed a whimper of pain and pulled the blankets over my head, curling up for a moment until a sudden shock of nausea struck me so hard, I almost vomited in the bed. I threw myself out of bed and instantly my knees buckled so I hit the floor.
I moaned in pain, struggling to my trembling legs as I managed to stumble toward the bathroom. My stomach churned and bubbled as I felt the bile rising through my throat, burning the whole way. I knocked on the door for a second, then gave up and just burst in, heading straight to the toilet. I just barely made it as I fell on my knees, grabbing the seat and heaving inside.
I choked and trembled, spitting and gagging as I managed to empty everything I'd ever eaten in my entire life. I sat against the toilet, breathing hard against the seat as I tried to catch my breath before I heard someone clear their throat.
I blinked a couple times, then rubbed my eyes before holding my hair back out of my face to see Vladimir leaning on the counter where the sink was, wearing only a towel around his waist. My whole body went rigid at the sight of him.
A hard muscled body with creme skin held tight all the way over his smooth, rolling abs that vanished into the plush white towel around his waist. His black hair was still glistening wet and not styled for once, so it was damp and hanging over his forehead, above a pair of dancing blue eyes.
"Ah." I managed stupidly, then winced at the sound, reaching up to touch my temple as I let my hair fall back over my face in an attempt to hide my burning cheeks. Vladimir sighed, pushing off the counter casually, hardly shy about flaunting himself.
How could he be?
He was... gorgeous. Godly. Something about being around him made me feel inferior. Any self-confidence within me was sapped the moment I saw him and I hated myself for my aching groin at the sight of the water trickling over his torso toward his towel.
I shivered, looking away as I spit a little before wiping my mouth.
"Good afternoon. It's about time you woke up. You slept a good twelve hours." Vladimir commented, his voice sounding a little louder than it should have. I winced and covered my ears for a moment, squeezing my eyes shut before peering up at him, confused.
"What... happened?" I managed, my voice small. Vladimir studied me for a moment with a stern frown before he averted his eyes.
"Well. That's a good question. Last time I saw you, you were heading off to a rock concert. Next thing I know, you show up at midnight, completely intoxicated. Mark and Slade were also extremely drunk. I know it may be perfectly legal here to drink, however, you are not from here. You also have a very low tolerance for alcohol, which only makes matters worse." He finished very loudly and I whimpered, curling up against the toilet, covering my ears a little before peering up at him past my ear.
He looked down at me for the longest time and I wanted for him to speak loudly again, but to my immense relief, he just held his hand out to me. I carefully reached up, taking his hand and forcing myself not to look at him. My legs wobbled a little, but Vladimir kept his hand in mind. The way he held my hand was very gentle. It was like he was handling a China plate or something.
"Do you remember anything that happened last night?" Vladimir asked me after a moment. I blinked and looked away from him, reaching up to place a hand against my head thoughtfully. I remembered going to the concert. Kristophe had driven us... Kristophe.
Right! Kristophe was talking to that Sen guy in the bathroom. They were talking about something. I know it was important, but... The harder I tried to remember, the more my head ached.
"I just remember the concert," I admitted slowly, debating whether to tell Vladimir about Kristophe or not before I caved, "And Kristophe was talking to someone in the bathroom. Some guy named Sen. He wasn't one of us. He was... something else. But I can't remember what they discussed. I'm sorry." I grimaced, then blinked as Vladimir put a hand on my head, ruffling my hair.
I loved the way his tapered fingers felt as they ran through my hair, his nails just barely grazing my scalp, giving me goose bumps.
"It's all right," Vladimir said gently, his touching lingering on my hair before he pulled his hand away, "I'd be surprised if you remembered more than that. As I mentioned before, you were heavily intoxicated. It's any wonder you didn't fall into a coma. We should have some coffee before you go out and do anything." I didn't like the idea of leaving, but I couldn't sit around in the room all day.
I just nodded, then frowned when Vladimir paused to smile at me.
"And then you can have breakfast. Pancakes and syrup and eggs. Heck, why not throw some blood in there? We'll mix it with the syrup." He added. My stomach shuddered and I went back to the toilet, heaving up whatever was left.
"You're cruel." I managed between gasps as Vladimir went back to the mirror, giving a slight nod.
"Yes. I am. Of course," His voice rose, making my ears ring as I slumped to my knees and covered my ears, "I'll ask them to throw in some ice cream too! How yummy! Strawberry cheesecake ice cream, and by strawberry, I mean good ol' AB positive. How does that sound?"
I responded by vomiting, ignoring the smile Vladimir wore on his face.
After I finished puking hard enough to make my entire body ache, I went back to to the room and changed into some jeans and a striped t-shirt before I went on ahead of Vladimir to the restaurant. I easily spotted Slade, Mark, Zander, and Storm at one of the bigger tables.
Slade was slumped over, his hand resting on a giant mug of coffee, dark circles under his eyes and he wasn't flamboyantly dressed. Instead, he wore a simple pair of plaid pajama pants and shirt that most definitely belonged to Zander given how plain it was.
Mark just sipped his coffee and ate his breakfast without a care in the world while Storm gave him a strange look before he spotted me and waved me over. I sighed in relief and drifted to sit between Storm and Zander.
"You look terrible." Storm told me honestly. I grimaced, rubbing my temples again, trying to soothe away the headache.
"I feel terrible... Looks like I'm not the only one." I added, looking at Slade, who just buried his face against the table cloth, covering his head with his arms as if he was trying to hide away from the world. Zander sighed, glancing at him pointedly before looking at me with a frown.
"Slade's had more visions in one night than he's had his entire life. What did he drink? Was it just alcohol or did he get some of that blood wine crap you bloodsuckers drink?" Judging from his insult, he was angry. And the fact that he was talking to me meant he was mad at me. I couldn't even remember drinking the stuff.
All I knew was that my head was killing me. I felt like I'd been whacked over the head with something.
"Don't blame him, you jerk," Mark retorted, pausing to wince as if raising his voice was painful before he cleared his throat and spoke for gently, "Alex was drunk before we got there. Slade drank on his own accord." He reached for some food at the center of the table and Slade whimpered.
"Ye gonna spill dat." But Mark ignored him and ended up bumping his elbow into Storm's orange juice, making it flood his plate. Mark cursed and glared at Slade, who just curled up tightly, shivering a little. I frowned and opened my mouth to ask what was wrong, but Slade responded before I could even ask.
"I am neva eva drinkin' again," He whimpered, his eyes squeezed shut against the bright lights in the room, "Even when I turn twenty-one, I will neva eva pick up anotha drink eva again."
"Good." Zander responded loudly as he bit int his bagel, making Slade cringe. Zander was being a bit mean, but he was probably punishing Slade for being too rowdy and wild. I now completely understood why Slade's mother insisted Zander be his caretaker.
"Well," Storm said, clearing his throat as he poked his eggs with a fork, "Now that you three got a taste of a rock concert, you can join us tonight when we attend the show at the opera house." I blinked and looked at him as Mark choked on his food, thumping himself in the chest while Slade looked like he was going to slump out of his seat like a corpse.
"Opera house?" I asked, grimacing. Storm gave a proper nod, eating his food polite before placing his fork on his plate.
"My father wants to visit the opera house a few blocks down. They're having a two hour long showing featuring some very well-respected opera singers. They also invited a famous violinist to open them up and close them out." He responded. I didn't know what to say to that and the fact that Vladimir had planned it also unnerved me because it meant he wanted all of us to attend and saying no to Vladimir was like saying no to a maneating shark in your bathtub.
"Sounds... fun." I mumbled. I wasn't going to complain, though. Opera sounded three hundred times better than rock right now. The last thing I wanted was another wild party with bodies rubbing up against me. That was the thing that annoyed, and embarrassed me the most. I was way too close to Mark last night. That much I remembered.
"I don't want to," Mark complained, making Storm shrug as if he couldn't care less what Mark wanted right now, "Can't we go see a movie instead? I've never even listened to opera."
"Good. This'll be your first chance." Storm replied curtly as he finished his meal, then excused himself. Mark watched him leave, then averted his eyes, frowning at his plate before he looked up.
"I think Storm hates me because of last night." He deadpanned. I raised an eyebrow, cocking my head as Zander just rolled his eyes.
"He doesn't hate you. You probably just scared him. Vladimir told me we were really wasted." I pointed out, making Mark look at me doubtfully before Slade looked up with sleepy eyes, reaching out to grab Storm's fork before pausing.
"No. He doesn't hate ya. He's just gonna fuck the crap out o' you tonight." He mumbled, making Zander and I snap our heads to stare at him. Mark squeaked, his cheeks blushing before he glared at Slade.
"What the hell, Slade?" He demanded. Slade winced at how loud Mark's voice was before pausing. He looked uncomfortable for a second, gritted his teeth, then burped and sighed in relief before sitting up a little straighter now as he used Storm's fork to pick off whatever Storm left behind.
"What? Tha' wasn't a suggestion o' anyfin'. I mean, he's really gonna fuck tha crap outta ya." Slade answered, using Storm's fork to shovel his breakfast into his mouth. My stomach squealed in disgust at the sight and I felt like I was going to puke again, so I covered my mouth and looked away as Mark blushed harder.
"I can't tell if you're joking or not." He muttered, making Slade snort as he nibbled on some toast, pausing again to grimace and burp. Zander rolled his eyes and looked away from him, shaking his head.
"I ain't jokin' wif ye; I'm serious. When I touched 'is fork there. I coul' feel in me 'and. S'probably how he plans ta make ya pay fo' las' night. Best o' luck to ya, bloke. I already suffer my punishment whenever this twat is 'round." He jabbed at thumb at Zander, who threw his hands up in disbelief. I sighed, rubbing my temples again and closing my eyes before reaching over to grab a slice of Slade's toast.
"Oi, get ye own--" Slade stopped speaking the instant his hand touched mine. His fingers latched onto my wrist and his eyes flashed, making me wince. He was completely frozen in his seat, his eyes staring straight ahead, getting a very far away look in them. Zander cursed and shot to his feet, but he didn't touch Slade.
"Damn it! He's having another vision." He managed, his fingers reaching for Slade, but stopping a few inches from him as if he was too afraid to face the consequences of touching him. Slade's eyelids looked heavy now, leaving his eyes halflidded as he parted his lips. I noticed goose bumps rising on his skin, his fine little hairs standing on end.
"So many people... But I can't see 'em... Only voices. Voices an' lots of shoes. Someone is 'oldin' me 'and, takin' me somewhere... M'warm, though. I can feel a breeze through the holes in me pants, through the holes in me shirt. The man 'oldin' me 'and... says... I need ta hide. I-I dun want ta hide... I want ta..." His voice trailed and he jolted forward as if someone had punched him in the back. Seconds later, Slade was trembling violently.
His eyes went wide as his body slumped out of the chair and he hit the floor on his side, his body convulsing heavily. Blood oozed from his nostrils and over his lips where blood began to bubble free past them down his chin. I noticed a little trickle from his ears, making my eyes widen as I shot to my feet.
Zander dropped down to his knees by Slade instantly, touching his shoulder gently, but it was all he could do as Slade seized.
"What the hell was that about?" Mark demanded, rushing over to stare at Slade in shock.
"It was one of those stronger visions," Zander cursed, "Ever since he woke up, his powers have been at an all time high. He knows what we think before we say it, he knows what we said and why. This is the first big vision he's had since that time before Christmas. And it's getting dangerously close to his last..." Zander looked pained as his finished, snatching napkins off the table to dab at the blood on Slade's face.
A few of the waiters and guests were panicking as they crowded around, but Mark kept them back and assured the waiters that they knew what they were doing.
"Have them call an ambulence immediately." Zander ordered and Mark obeyed, turning to the waiter and trying to tell him to call the hospital. The waiter seemed to pick up on it and rushed to the kitchen to call. Meanwhile, people murmured and whispered in Italian around us as Slade continued to seize. It was the longest seizure I'd ever seen him have.
By the time the ambulence showed up, however, Slade had gone still and was slumped on the floor, his eyes closed now, blood smeared across his face and down the sides of his face from his ears. Zander helped the medics get him into a stretcher.
"I'll call you once I have news." Was all he told me before he was rushing off with Slade in the stretcher, leaving Mark and I to stand there, staring after them.
"Doesn't he usually see things in a vision? Hence the word vision?" Mark asked, stunned before turning his head to look at me. I narrowed my eyes, clenching my fists.
"Yup. Which means he was having a vision about only one person." I realized, then headed for the lobby to the front doors. Mark ran after me, tagging along at my heels as I walked outside, wincing at the bright sunlight above. Mark also flinched for a moment at its hot rays before he rushed after me.
"Wait, what're you talking about? Alex, what's going on?" He demanded, frowning at me as I tried to hail down a cab.
"Do you have your wallet?" I asked, scanning the streets before flinging my hand out at the sight of a cab. The pearly white vehicle drove up along the curb as Mark patted his pockets, then withdrew his wallet. I snatched it from him and whipped out a twenty before tossing it back at him, making him yelp in protest as I opened the back seat.
"Oh, hell no!" Mark exclaimed angrily and ducked into the car before I could shut it, making me glare at him, but I didn't have time to lecture him as I turned to the cab driver and gave him the directions to my destination. The man nodded and drove away from the curb, pulling onto the street.
"What the hell is this all about?" Mark demanded impatiently as I scanned the streets closely, my eyes flickering quickly.
"No time to explain."
"We're in a fucking taxi. You have plenty of time to explain."
"Not everything."
"Can I at least know where we're going?"
"The Moretti Manor." Was all I said, making Mark look at me questioningly, but thankfully he stopped talking as we rode to the edge of the city. Just outside the brightly lit and bustling city was the quieter area with smaller businesses and more homes. One home in particular sat amongst the smaller houses. A typical white manor complete with Roman columns holding the second and third floor up with a three car garage, all of them used up as well as a very attractive looking bike sitting in the driveway.
I thanked the driver and tossed him the cash before climbing out with Mark close behind me. I stepped onto the sidewalk, then walked along the cobblestone walk with Mark sticking close to me as we approached the large front doors.
I didn't even need to knock before Vincent answered the door, looking surprised at my presence.
"Where's Luca?" I demanded. Vincent blinked, frowning a little in concern.
"He is upstairs preparing for the opera tonight. May I ask why you need to speak with him?" He asked, making me frown.
"I want to know what's going on and what the Morettis are planning. I know they're involved with my people. They have to be, otherwise, my friend wouldn't be having visions about them. His visions are all about Luca. I know they are because he's blind in his vision." I explained angrily. Vincent glanced at Mark, who shook his head and held his hands up to say it wasn't he that we were discussing. Vincent frowned, looking back at me.
"I apologize, Mr. Gray, but I have no idea what you're talking about. Luca is not involved in anything right now. His family is very busy right now and couldn't possibly risk their social status to assist either side of your species." He informed me sternly.
"That's impossible," I protested impatiently, "Slade's visions are about Luca. I know they are."
"Either way," Vincent said gently, "I cannot allow you to upset the young master tonight as he has a very important meeting at the opera house. I ask that you please leave. If you have any further concerns, please phone us before you make an unexpected visit."
"Vincent--"
"I am sorry, Mr. Gray. Please have a good evening." Vincent didn't even let me finish before he shut the door and I cursed loudly before whirling around to face away from the door. Mark grimaced, looking at me in concern before I started down the path toward the sidewalk.
"What'd we do now?" He asked quietly as I scanned the streets, waiting for another taxi to pass by. I nibbled my lower lip, pausing to flinch as my fang sank into my skin. I paused, touching my lip before licking it off. My tongue tensed uncomfortably, still scalded from... well... I'm not sure actually.
I had assumed it was the alcohol, but it wasn't that kind of burn. Blood wine burned like straight whiskey, but it wasn't that kind of burn on my tongue. It felt like I had just put a flaming marshmallow in my mouth.
"Mark, what does my tongue look like?" I asked, then stuck my tongue out in his face. He snorted, then paused to see that I was serious before he studied it, frowning deeply.
"Jeez, what'd you do? It looks like you burnt it on something. It's all red. Like, not normal red, but painful red." He added as I ran the tip of my finger along it, grimacing. I lowered my hand, looking at Mark as he looked at me in concern.
"Something's not right." I stated, making Mark 'tsk' as he folded his arms over his chest.
"Is anything ever right?"
"No, I mean... I feel like I'm forgetting something super important."
"Uhm... Did you put underwear on this time?"
"Not like that! I mean, something life or death. It's bugging the crap out of me... Tell me what happened when you found me drunk. Any details you can remember." I ordered, watching Mark cock his head thoughtfully, pausing to frown as he touched the side of his head.
"Uh, well... I remember leaving you in the bathroom. I remember going back to dance. Slade was getting really touchy feely. He kept groping me and making fun of me, calling me a wanker. We went back to the bathroom after a while to find you, but you weren't there, so we went looking all over that freakin' place for you and Kristophe suggested we go back to the car because the music was too loud. We came back and you were in the car, slumped over in the seat with an empty bottle of blood wine in your hand. There was a lot of blood everywhere, but it was like you smashed all the bottles up for the hell of it." Mark explained, making me blink in confusion.
I didn't even remember what happened after I left the bathroom at the concert after overhearing Kristophe and Sen. I felt a little chill go through my spine, though, as I remembered Sen's eyes.
His strange three pupils shaped like black commas in pools of muddy green.
There was something else in the back of my mind. I tried to grasp it as Mark hailed down a taxi.
Something was clawing at the back of my mind.
Wait.
Claw.
I could instantly see Sen in my head, his creepy eyes and his nails extending into long, torn claws and his thick fangs bared at me in a smirk. His mouth was moving, but I couldn't focus on what he was saying. For some reason, seeing the image in my head scared me to death. My heart started to pound and I almost gasped aloud, but managed to control myself as the image flashed out of my mind just as soon as it had appeared.
Sen had attacked me. He had to of, but... I still didn't understand. He attacked me, but he got me drunk and left me there. What did that even mean?
I didn't have time to ponder it as we managed to get a taxi, taking it back to the hotel to get ready for the opera show in a couple hours.
Slade and Zander weren't going to be there. Slade would probably still be in the hospital, which meant it'd just be the Gothica Clan and myself going.
Wait, to the same opera that we were going to. It had to be. How many opera houses had a show going on at the same time in the same city? There wasn't any coincidences.
I was going to that opera house tonight and I was going to find Luca.
And I was going to find out just what the hell was going on.