Page 2
Story: Ache For Her
The girl laughed. “Oh, it’s okay, Ronnie.” She looked back, her face sultry as she held her hand out. “I’m Lilah.”
I swallowed, staring at her hand. The polite thing to do would be to reach out and shake it. It wasn’t usually my goal to be gentlemanly, but in order for my plan to work, it was. She had to trust me, but those weren’t the thoughts pouring through my head now. Her bright, flawless skin. Her perfect pouty lips. Her rich scent. But most of all, it was the pulse at her wrists as her hand was still suspended in the air toward me.
I calculated how long it would take to murder the guard and drag the girl back to the bushes to drain her. If I did that, I’d have to immediately run in and take out Greenie afterward.
No, I needed better revenge than that. There had to be suffering, like all the moments I suffered without my mother.
My impulsive nature wasn’t going to get the better of me this time. I was going to carry out the plan I’d perfected the past few nights while I lingered in my suite in downtown Philly. A place way too posh for the little boy who’d grown up with an addict. Not now though. Now I could have whatever I wanted.
I smiled and took Lilah’s hand. “Simon,” I told her, giving her my name. Sure, I could’ve used a fake name, but I wanted them to die knowing who I was. It would all come out eventually, and then Greenie would understand why I was taking his life. He’d understand why I was taking so much joy out of it too.
“Hi, Simon,” Lilah said, her perfect little smile still there.
Just like Kayleigh.
My stomach rolled. These dumb bitches who had everything made me sick. My teeth clenched, and I bit back a growl threatening to the surface.
The guard eyed me. “We need to get you inside now, Delilah.”
Her face faltered, annoyed by the guard trying to tell her what to do. I held my hands up in a perfect passive stance. I knew how to take girls. It was kind of my thing as Galen’s top Feeder scout. I went into places with one thing in mind: finding the trash that could be turned into jewels with a little polish. “I swear I’m not a weirdo,” I said, making sure to put the perfect amount of amusement in my voice. “I just moved in down the street.”
Lilah looked the way I pointed. “Oh, did you buy the Custer’s house?”
I shrugged. If there was anything I learned, it was never to fully commit to something I hadn’t researched ahead of time. Humans could smell bullshit more than they realized. An intuition or something. “I don’t know. Maybe,” I told her.
Her smile grew wider and a sense of accomplishment rang through me. I already had her on the string. It didn’t hurt that humans were always attracted to my kind. Maybe it was because we were all extremely good looking, but I was pretty sure it also had something to do with the fact that we always had a hint of danger to us. Stupid humans. Then again, people always trusted those who were good looking. If I cared to look, I was sure I could find some actual scientific evidence to back that theory up, but I didn’t need it. I had years of vamp experience to prove it. People were enamored with good looking people, even more so if they looked like they could be trouble.
“Well, welcome to the neighborhood,” she said, her brown eyes twinkling.
The guard’s lips thinned. He surveyed the area, looking from the house to Delilah again and again. He was actually doing his job well, but he would be no match for me. “Thanks,” I told her. “You lived here long?”
“My whole life,” she said. “I live here with my grandfather.”
I nodded. I already knew all this. I knew that her parents had died when she was younger and that her grandfather and his cohorts had raised her. Because of who he was, she was treated like a princess. She had a car, but she never drove it. She was carted around like the Queen of England. If she wanted to go shopping, her bodyguards took her. If she wanted anything, she could expect it the next day.
Revenge was almost mine. There was no way her grandfather was giving her up, and that was what I was banking on.
“I moved down here for work,” I told her. “Not sure how long I’ll be staying, I tend to move around a lot.”
Her smile faltered a little. I swear I could write the whole of this conversation before it even started. She was already enamored with me and we’d barely spoken to one another. It was the vamp gift. The perfect predators. We easily pulled in prey for the kill. Too easy sometimes.
Not this time though. I was going to drag it out.
“Well,” I said, giving her a smile. “Maybe I’ll see you around sometime?”
The guard, finally seeing an end to the conversation, took up his stance next to Delilah. He placed his hand on her elbow and I had to quell the surge of anger that threatened to flare.
“See you around,” she said.
I walked down the sidewalk as if I was taking a moonlit stroll. Once I hit the shadows, I put on my vamp speed and hid in the bushes opposite the house again.
Despite my greedy thoughts, everything was going to happen right on track. Take the girl. Ransom the grandfather. But not for money, for his life.
I smiled as I watched Delilah walk up the main walk to the house. Her head twisted around to try to see me, but I was already gone.
Game on.
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I swallowed, staring at her hand. The polite thing to do would be to reach out and shake it. It wasn’t usually my goal to be gentlemanly, but in order for my plan to work, it was. She had to trust me, but those weren’t the thoughts pouring through my head now. Her bright, flawless skin. Her perfect pouty lips. Her rich scent. But most of all, it was the pulse at her wrists as her hand was still suspended in the air toward me.
I calculated how long it would take to murder the guard and drag the girl back to the bushes to drain her. If I did that, I’d have to immediately run in and take out Greenie afterward.
No, I needed better revenge than that. There had to be suffering, like all the moments I suffered without my mother.
My impulsive nature wasn’t going to get the better of me this time. I was going to carry out the plan I’d perfected the past few nights while I lingered in my suite in downtown Philly. A place way too posh for the little boy who’d grown up with an addict. Not now though. Now I could have whatever I wanted.
I smiled and took Lilah’s hand. “Simon,” I told her, giving her my name. Sure, I could’ve used a fake name, but I wanted them to die knowing who I was. It would all come out eventually, and then Greenie would understand why I was taking his life. He’d understand why I was taking so much joy out of it too.
“Hi, Simon,” Lilah said, her perfect little smile still there.
Just like Kayleigh.
My stomach rolled. These dumb bitches who had everything made me sick. My teeth clenched, and I bit back a growl threatening to the surface.
The guard eyed me. “We need to get you inside now, Delilah.”
Her face faltered, annoyed by the guard trying to tell her what to do. I held my hands up in a perfect passive stance. I knew how to take girls. It was kind of my thing as Galen’s top Feeder scout. I went into places with one thing in mind: finding the trash that could be turned into jewels with a little polish. “I swear I’m not a weirdo,” I said, making sure to put the perfect amount of amusement in my voice. “I just moved in down the street.”
Lilah looked the way I pointed. “Oh, did you buy the Custer’s house?”
I shrugged. If there was anything I learned, it was never to fully commit to something I hadn’t researched ahead of time. Humans could smell bullshit more than they realized. An intuition or something. “I don’t know. Maybe,” I told her.
Her smile grew wider and a sense of accomplishment rang through me. I already had her on the string. It didn’t hurt that humans were always attracted to my kind. Maybe it was because we were all extremely good looking, but I was pretty sure it also had something to do with the fact that we always had a hint of danger to us. Stupid humans. Then again, people always trusted those who were good looking. If I cared to look, I was sure I could find some actual scientific evidence to back that theory up, but I didn’t need it. I had years of vamp experience to prove it. People were enamored with good looking people, even more so if they looked like they could be trouble.
“Well, welcome to the neighborhood,” she said, her brown eyes twinkling.
The guard’s lips thinned. He surveyed the area, looking from the house to Delilah again and again. He was actually doing his job well, but he would be no match for me. “Thanks,” I told her. “You lived here long?”
“My whole life,” she said. “I live here with my grandfather.”
I nodded. I already knew all this. I knew that her parents had died when she was younger and that her grandfather and his cohorts had raised her. Because of who he was, she was treated like a princess. She had a car, but she never drove it. She was carted around like the Queen of England. If she wanted to go shopping, her bodyguards took her. If she wanted anything, she could expect it the next day.
Revenge was almost mine. There was no way her grandfather was giving her up, and that was what I was banking on.
“I moved down here for work,” I told her. “Not sure how long I’ll be staying, I tend to move around a lot.”
Her smile faltered a little. I swear I could write the whole of this conversation before it even started. She was already enamored with me and we’d barely spoken to one another. It was the vamp gift. The perfect predators. We easily pulled in prey for the kill. Too easy sometimes.
Not this time though. I was going to drag it out.
“Well,” I said, giving her a smile. “Maybe I’ll see you around sometime?”
The guard, finally seeing an end to the conversation, took up his stance next to Delilah. He placed his hand on her elbow and I had to quell the surge of anger that threatened to flare.
“See you around,” she said.
I walked down the sidewalk as if I was taking a moonlit stroll. Once I hit the shadows, I put on my vamp speed and hid in the bushes opposite the house again.
Despite my greedy thoughts, everything was going to happen right on track. Take the girl. Ransom the grandfather. But not for money, for his life.
I smiled as I watched Delilah walk up the main walk to the house. Her head twisted around to try to see me, but I was already gone.
Game on.
OceanofPDF.com