B004SOYUR8 EBOK Page 3

  She followed him to the front door. Nicole was a lot more nervous than what she thought she’d be.

  What if the others were here?

  What if he did kill her?

  Nicole could not seem to calm her fears, but yet she also could not keep her eyes or thoughts off of Alec Norwood either. He was weaving his spell around her. Though she was aware of it, there didn’t seem to be anything that she could do to stop it.

  Inside was even more stunning than she had imagined. The house was furnished in 19th century pieces that were absolutely dazzling. The couches were covered in red and black velvet. Above them there was a crystal chandelier that glittered with light.

  “Would you like something to drink? Maybe some brandy?” he asked.

  “Sure.” Nicole figured she didn’t really have anything to lose. He didn’t need to drug her to make her defenseless. His eyes did a good enough job of that.

  “Please sit,” he told her, handing her a glass.

  “Thanks.” Nicole sat on the couch, but she was at the edge, ready to flee at the first sign of aggression.

  “You should relax. I already told you that you are safe with me,” he assured her.

  “Thanks,” she said again.

  Alec sat on the couch next to her, but was a little too close for comfort.

  “You know … I had planned to scare you so that you wouldn’t come looking for me again, but I find you interesting.”

  “I guess that’s fortunate,” she smiled.

  “Have you ever had sex with a vampire?” he asked as casually as if he were asking her if she’d ever walked in the rain.

  Nicole cleared her throat. “Um no … I couldn’t … and I wouldn’t.” A blush spread across her cheeks, while at the same time the thought brought on a delightful tingling sensation.

  “What a shame. I could show you such wicked delights,” he said in a low voice. His eyes moved from her face to the contour of her neck, and then to the cleavage that was visible above her dress.

  Damn! She knew she shouldn’t have worn this dress.

  Ethan had picked it out for her for the specific purpose of catching Alec’s attention. Maybe that hadn’t been such a good idea?

  Nicole swallowed hard. What was wrong with her? It wasn’t as if she were a virgin. She was acting like a teen on her first date. He must really think she was a naïve girl.

  “What about this Omar?” Nicole asked, changing the subject.

  “Even if what Ethan says is true, Omar is not someone to go up against.” Alec scowled.

  “But wouldn’t it be worth it if you could find this secret?” Nicole asked before taking a drink of the brandy.

  Alec was silent, watching her intently.

  Nicole felt uncomfortable. It was like he could see right through her.

  “Let’s dance,” he told her. Picking up a remote from a side table, he switched on the stereo.

  “Oh I don’t know,” Nicole hesitated. She couldn’t deny the fact that she was attracted to him. She found it hard to keep her eyes off of his broad chest, and those hands that could make magic come out of a guitar. She couldn’t help but wonder what they would feel like if they were caressing her skin. Most of all, she was drawn to his eyes - his vampire eyes.

  But Ethan had warned her about getting involved with him. Would she become his feeder?

  “Please … I insist,” he told her, holding out his hand to take hers.

  Reluctantly, Nicole placed her hand in his. His touch was cool, but the sensation of his skin next to hers was wildly erotic.

  He pulled her from the couch and into his arms. They began to sway to the slow melody that drifted through the room. She felt his hands glide down her back to her behind, and even lower until he could slip beneath her dress.

  “Alec,” she whispered.

  He smiled. “My appetites are insatiable, including my appetite for the pleasures of the flesh.”

  She felt his lips on her neck, kissing her lightly. Her hands instinctively went up to his hair. How she wanted to run her fingers through that silky mane of hair. Suddenly his hands were cradling her face and his lips came down on hers. She opened wide to receive his tongue, drowning in the feeling of him exploring her mouth.

  Then she was somewhere else - in a bed of black satin. The sheets tangled around her as he entered her so slowly that the anticipation of fulfillment was agonizing. Another body slid into bed beside them - another man. He was dark like Alec, and just as breathtaking. He was kissing her face as he softly caressed her breast.

  Nicole gasped. She was unable to wrap her mind around the pure ecstatic feeling that flooded through her in that instant.

  She opened her eyes and she was back in Alec’s living room - his arms around her waist to keep her from collapsing. Nicole blinked, unsure of what had just happened.

  Had she been daydreaming? How could a daydream give her such an erotic experience?

  “Did you like that?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she breathed.

  “I could do that for you … and so much more,” he whispered in her ear.

  “I would have to be your feeder. Ethan told me.”

  Alec blinked at her, as if he were coming out of a daze. “That isn’t always true. Sometimes I just make love to a woman because I want to.”

  “How did you do that?” she asked.

  “I can send images to your mind,” he told her in a low - hoarse voice.

  Nicole could feel the power of his desire, and it was overwhelming. His lust surrounded her like a blanket of heat, and she had to struggle to break free of it.

  “Why were there two of you?” she asked.

  Alec looked at her sharply. Abruptly he stepped away from her and his eyes scanned the room. His nostrils flared as if he were picking up on some scent that she couldn’t detect.

  Suddenly the front window exploded in a spray of glass. Nicole was lucky enough that as soon as she heard the shatter, she covered her face to protect it from the flying shards.

  He stood there - his eyes glowing red and his lips pulled back in a snarl, exposing his fangs. It was the one that had been in her head - touching her so intimately.

  Alec was in a defensive stance, ready to spring on the intruder. “How dare you come in here?” Alec roared.

  “I just wanted some of what you were having. She looks delicious,” he growled and lunged at Nicole.

  Alec pushed her out of the way and leaped toward the other vampire, knocking him to the ground.

  The two of them flew through the air, and then hit the floor with a loud thud. The intruder began laughing hysterically. “Really Alec, you are out of shape.”

  Alec stood up, scowling at the laughing vampire. “Victor, you should be hung out to dry in the sun.”

  Victor stood up, and for the first time Nicole got a good look at him. He was striking, just like Alec. She was beginning to think looks and charisma were just vampire traits. He had eyes as black as the night, with black hair that curled softly around his neck. Victor was definitely into the whole Goth look, he wore all black leather.

  “I see you have a new feeder. You should be careful with this one and keep her around awhile.” Victor laughed at the sullen look on Alec’s face.

  “She’s not,” Alec spoke through clenched teeth.

  “Okay … I just thought …” Victor’s voice trailed off when he saw the fury on Alec’s face.

  “What are you doing here Victor?”

  The amusement was now gone from Victor’s face. “You’ll probably want to know that Omar has your friend … that Light Seeker freak, Ethan.”

  Nicole gasped.

  “How do you know this?” Alec asked, his composure returning.

  “I saw some of Omar’s clan take him. He was in the parking lot at Dark Wind,” Victor explained, as he was brushing some imaginary dust from his jacket.

  “He broke the code of silence.” Victor gave Nicole a malicious smile. “If he were going to tell her … he should have t
aken her life or made her his feeder.”

  Alec looked toward Nicole. “Daylight is coming. You will have to get back to the Dark Wind without me. Take my car and leave it in the lot. And do not let anyone approach you until daylight,” he warned.

  “But what about Ethan?” Nicole objected.

  “I will deal with that later. Daylight is coming and you must go. The keys are in the car,” he told her.

  Nicole started backing toward the door, still unsure if she should turn her back on them.

  Alec smiled and blew her a kiss. “It’s been sweet.”

  * * * *

  Blinking against the midday light, she tried to open her eyes. Nicole willed herself to roll out of bed. She had not arrived home until almost dawn. She’d been so exhausted that she’d only had strength enough to fall into her bed, and then she was out. Everything was a blank until the moment she’d tried to open her eyes to the light. She felt drained, almost like she didn’t even have enough strength to walk.

  A thought occurred to her. Had she been bitten?

  Forcing her legs to move, she walked to her small bathroom and gazed in the mirror. She was in a frightful state. Her hair was a tangled mess, and the black dress she’d slept in was now a mass of wrinkles. Nicole examined her neck carefully, looking for any puncture wounds. Then she looked over her arms and shoulders. She didn’t seem to have any wounds. Nicole let out a sigh of relief.

  Stripping off her clothing, she jumped into the shower and let the warm water run over her while she tried to gather her thoughts. If someone had told her a week ago that she’d dance with a vampire, she’d have laughed herself silly. Now she was forced to accept these creatures as real. Still, she could not quite make herself look at Ethan or Alec as creatures. But they fed on blood. They were predators as sure as any predator in the swamps.

  Getting out of the shower, she quickly dried herself with the towel that hung near the tub. She then ran a brush through her hair. Rushing from the bathroom, she found an old pair of jeans and a T-shirt, and dressed as quickly as she could.

  Nicole picked up the phone that sat on the nightstand next to her bed and started to dial Ethan’s number. She wanted to see for herself if he was there or not, but then Nicole remembered that he had never once answered the phone before dusk. She couldn’t believe that she had missed so many clues that would have pointed to something being off kilter with her boss. She’d always assumed that he was simply a night person.

  He was that all right, but for different reasons than what she would have thought a couple of days ago.

  Nicole wasn’t sure what she should do next. She couldn’t call Ethan or talk with Alec until after dark. The only thing there was to do for now was go into work. Grabbing her car keys from the kitchen counter, she got in her car and headed toward the Quarter, where Ethan’s office was located.

  * * * *

  Inside the small - cramped office, Nicole found everything exactly like she’d left it. She switched on the lights and her computer. There wasn’t a lot to do until she could contact Alec again. In the meantime, she decided she would find out everything she could about vampires. Nicole opened the computer’s browser and started searching for information about the undead.

  Most of what she found was a little silly, but she did find a couple of Internet sites that were downright chilling. People that claimed to be vampires were asking for volunteers to become feeders. She wondered how many of them actually were immortals?

  After an hour of searching, she’d found nothing of significance. A lot of nonsense about garlic and burying the vampire victim face down, but not much that would help her get Ethan away from that Omar character.

  For a brief instant, Nicole had to wonder why she was even trying to do anything at all.

  A vampire was a vampire, right?

  But he was her friend, she reasoned. Plus, he was trying to do something about it, and it wasn’t exactly his fault that he had been turned. No that was Alec’s doing, but he’d only been trying to save Ethan.

  She wondered why Alec had bothered to save Ethan. It just didn’t seem to fit with the typical vampire profile, especially with Alec.

  A site on the list of search results caught her attention.

  Vampires in the Light

  Nicole clicked on the link. When the page opened she knew she’d found something of some significance. Unlike many of the vampire sites, this one seemed to be someone’s story.

  Many years ago I was cursed, doomed to eternal darkness. It is a curse that is colder and lonelier than the grave could ever be. I believed that this would be my existence for all time, but then I found a place where the vampire can live in the light. It is not of this world, but at the same time, it is. I stumbled upon it by accident, only to find that our kind is forbidden entrance into this place of light. This is what the vampire’s curse really is.

  This could not be a coincidence.

  Nicole looked around the site for contact information, but there was none. She had to locate this person - this vampire. She had to find out what he knew. Nicole decided it was time to call in a favor from one of Ethan’s buddies at the police department. They could easily trace the site to whomever had put it up - she hoped.

  Chapter Four

  Nicole stared down at the address that she’d scribbled in her notebook, and then back up at the sign in the window of the little building.

  Déjà vu Tattoo Body Art

  The address was in a seedy area - near the riverfront. When she’d first read the address, she’d been doubtful. Now Nicole was even more skeptical about the accuracy of the information she had received from Ethan’s cop friend.

  She tried the door and it was locked. Peering into the window, Nicole strained to see what was inside, but it was too dark. The sun was nearly down. If this guy was one of them, it only made sense that he might not be out quite yet.

  One moment she was alone, and the next instant he was standing beside her.

  “Looking for something?” he asked.

  Nicole swallowed her fear. She was determined to confront this vampire about what he knew. He was a frightening figure, nothing like Alec or Victor. He was completely bald, and all the visible parts of his body were covered with tattoos, strange - macabre images of women with blood flowing from their throats. Across his shoulder was a large image of someone that appeared to be half human and half beast.

  “Are you Dash?”

  “Who wants to know?” he asked with a heavy British accent. A dark smile spread across his lips.

  Nicole decided to push forward, regardless of the consequence. “I know you are a vampire.”

  Growling, he drew back his lips in a snarl and flew at her.

  “I belong to Alec Norwood,” she gasped, saying the first thing that came to mind.

  He stopped, but his eyes were still glowing with deadly hunger. “You are lying! You do not smell like a feeder.”

  Nicole rushed to get her words out. “I’ve come to ask you about the Place of Light.”

  This gave him pause, and he backed away from her.

  “I saw your website and I need to ask you about it?”

  Nicole’s head started throbbing and she knew that he was trying to probe her.

  “What would be your interest?” he asked, his voice back to normal.

  “Do you want to stand out here and talk, or can we go inside? I assume that this is your place,” Nicole smiled, hoping to bring some sanity to the situation, if possible.

  Dash shook his head. “You are either very stupid or very daring.”

  “I’m neither of those things,” she assured him. “It’s just very important.”

  After pulling some keys from his pocket, he stepped over to the door and opened it. Standing aside, he held the door open so that she could enter. Dash followed her in, and a moment later the lights came on.

  “I don’t need the light,” he told her, “but I assume that you do. Oh, and sorry about frightening you. I thought you might be on
e of them pesky vampire slayers.”

  Nicole decided to get straight to the point. “What did you mean about a place of light?”

  “It was a figment of my imagination,” he laughed.

  “I don’t believe you.”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “What would be your interest anyway?”

  Nicole sat down in one of the tattoo chairs. “What do you know about the Light Seekers?”

  “Oh please … make yourself at home,’ he said sarcastically, motioning to the chairs.

  “Thank you … I will,” she smiled sweetly.

  “I know nothing,” he stated flatly.

  “My friend is in trouble. Omar has him so I need to find out as much as I can about the Place of Light.”

  “Well if Omar has him … he is no more,” he said cryptically.

  “Maybe there is a way to let others know about this place, and Omar will not have such a hold over your kind.”

  Dash shook his head. “Most of my kind, as you call them … are very comfortable with the darkness. They wouldn’t care. Those of us that would like to live in the light … are few. Anyway, no one will believe?”

  “I will,” she offered.

  Dash grabbed her arm. “Do you mind if I just have a little taste?”

  Nicole pulled her arm away. “Yes I mind … and so will Alec.”

  He laughed. “Are you still using that story?”

  “I know him,” she informed Dash.

  “You one of his groupies?”

  “No … a friend,” she exaggerated. She’d only seen him a few times, but his name seemed to work to keep the vamps from trying to feed on her, this one at least.

  “Seems you make a habit of having vampires for friends,” he commented.

  Dash appeared to lose interest in her. He was rummaging through a fridge, looking for something. A moment later he pulled out a clear bottle filled with red liquid.

  “You don’t mind do you?” he asked, before downing the contents of the bottle.

  Assuming that it was blood, Nicole pulled a sour face.

  “What?” he asked. “It is mixed with other proteins you know. My own creation,” he told her proudly.

  “The Place of Light … tell me about it,” she prodded.