Page 26 of Inhuman Natures #1
Shaun
Rake and DJ’s front door looked like it’d been ravaged by a pack of wild animals. Deep gouges mottled the wood, chunks of it lying around the stairwell. The hinges seemed intact, but there was no way the door could just be sanded down and repainted. The whole thing would need replacing.
“Well, shit. There goes our deposit,” DJ said, rubbing the back of his neck.
“I’ll find a way to pay for it,” Shaun said. Not that he had any legal means of getting money, but he’d figure it out.
“It’ll be fine,” Rake said.
“Your door’s destroyed,” Shaun pointed out. Thanks to him, he didn’t need to add.
“It’s just a thing,” DJ said. “Things can be replaced. People can’t.”
Shaun stared at the door, imagining the damage being done to Rake and DJ instead, should Lawrence have got hold of them. The idea of them being torn to pieces was so sickening that he had to look away. His nails dug into his palms as he fought to keep his anger at Lawrence under control.
“What do we do about this?” DJ asked him. “He knows you’re here, and I feel like it’s only a matter of time before he figures out how to get to you.”
The second Shaun had chosen to go to Rake and DJ’s flat instead of hunkering down in the closest place possible, he’d put them in danger. He needed to keep them safe now.
“I can talk to some of the other vampires and ask for help.” It wouldn’t be his first choice, but Lawrence’s attack gave him few options for recourse.
“Who are these other vampires?” Rake asked. “Can you trust them?”
“Are half the population secretly supernatural creatures and we humans have been sleepwalking through a society being taken over by monsters?” DJ’s question had both Rake and Shaun turning towards him, matching expressions of confusion on their faces. “What?” DJ said. “It’s a legitimate concern.”
“If half the population was drinking blood every night, or wolfing out during the full moon, I’m pretty sure people might notice,” Shaun said gently. “There’s only a few dozen of us in each city. Some smaller places don’t have any of us at all.”
Rake ushered them back into the flat, a pensive expression on his face.
“Have you met any werewolves?” DJ asked as he bounded in beside Shaun. Apparently, he was over being terrified by Lawrence. Distracting him with talk of werewolves seemed enough to lighten his mood.
“I met one, but Lawrence only told me afterwards.” Which he’d been enraged about at the time, and unable to do anything other than sulk alone in his room. He’d noticed the guy’s scent was different to a human or a vampire, but he hadn’t figured out why.
“What did he look like? Was he big and muscly and growly? Did he come up and sniff you?”
“You’re getting werewolves confused with bears.”
DJ flopped down on the sofa. “Which kind?”
“Both the human and animal variety,” Shaun said, managing a smile as he settled himself down beside DJ.
“All this conversation has told me is that neither of you know anything about the animal kingdom,” Rake grumbled.
“Ignore him,” DJ said. “Tell me about the werewolf!”
“There’s not much to tell. He was a normal-looking guy that Lawrence met with when we visited Wales. I think Lawrence was seeing if we would be allowed to settle nearby. We don’t mix with werewolves much—they stick to more remote places.”
“He was going to force you to live in rural Wales, miles from anything?” DJ asked, horrified.
Shaun laughed, surprising himself that he could find any humour in their current situation. The DJ effect, for sure. “Let’s just say I’m glad we didn’t decide to stay.”
“Is that what you have to do when you move cities? Ask the others who are already there?” Rake asked.
“It’s what we had to do when we came to Brighton. Ask Lynette—who runs the territory—for her permission to stay. She drinks our blood, we make some vows.” He flapped a hand. “You know, stupid ceremonial shit.”
“Mistress Lynette?” Rake and DJ asked at the same time.
“Oh, yeah, kinda forgot about that,” Shaun said, annoyed with himself. He’d planned to avoid revealing more information. Clearly, he wasn’t thinking straight.
“Wait, we’ve been going to a vamp BDSM club for months and didn’t notice?” DJ said. “Don’t tell me that’s what the VIP room has been hiding this whole time?”
“It’s the only public place in the club where fangs are allowed out.”
“Are all the other members vampires?” Rake asked.
“No. Just a fair few. Mostly Lynette’s creations. Any human that’s allowed into the VIP area is compelled.”
“Paulo and Oliver—the couple who recommended us—are they vampires?” DJ asked, aghast.
“I don’t think so,” Shaun said. “They’re probably a favourite of one of Lynette’s creations if they’re around a lot, though.
But I wouldn’t know for sure. I didn’t really get to socialise with the other vampires.
Not like Lawrence ever let me out for long.
” And there Shaun went, bringing the mood down again by reminding them how pathetic he was for never standing up to Lawrence.
That was, until now. He’d paid for it dearly, but given he was currently snuggled on the sofa with DJ, the rebellion felt very much worth it.
“But you can go to her for help? She seemed fair enough the times I’ve met her,” Rake mused. “She could offer you protection from Lawrence?”
As DJ began to sing ‘Angels’ by Robbie Williams in an octave that he struggled to reach, Shaun considered Rake’s questions. “I hope she’ll hear me out. But I don’t know for sure.”
“Why not?” Rake said. “Surely she would take your side, given he’s tried to break down our door to murder all of us?”
“The problem is that you both shouldn’t know what I am,” Shaun said.
“It’s not allowed. She’ll compel you to forget if she finds out you know about vampires.
Plus, they’ll punish me for revealing it.
” Unless Shaun recreated them both, they shouldn’t know anything about the supernatural world.
Shaun didn’t add this to his explanation, lest the couple offer to become vampires to stop him from getting himself into more trouble.
It seemed like the sort of thing they would do.
“Lawrence didn’t hide what he was from us either,” Rake said, right as DJ finished up his song on an ear-splitting note that had Shaun struggling not to wince. “You really are just as good as Robbie, sweetheart,” Rake added.
“Yeah?” DJ sounded genuinely touched.
“Sure, but that wasn’t a compliment to either of you,” Rake replied with a smirk. DJ reached out to punch him on the arm, but missed spectacularly.
As he watched their easy camaraderie, Shaun made up his mind. “I should go see Lynette. It’s the only option. I’ll just have to avoid telling her about your involvement.”
“Do you think you can get away with lying to her?” Rake asked.
“I’ve never revealed my vampirism to anyone other than the two of you in fifteen years. Lying is part of my existence.”
“Then it should be easy enough,” DJ said with a toothy smile.
Shaun only wished he had DJ’s optimism.
As Shaun stood at the front door the following night, not long after waking up from his sun-induced slumber, he wished more than anything that he didn’t have to leave Rake and DJ.
They’d spent the rest of the previous night lying in bed together, talking for hours, until every word that came out of DJ’s mouth had been punctuated with a yawn.
DJ had quizzed Shaun on just about every paranormal entity possible, from ghosts and zombies to angels and demons.
Shaun knew embarrassingly little, however, not having come across anything other than that sole werewolf.
DJ had fallen asleep in the middle of the conversation about the potential existence of mermaids, but Rake had stayed awake longer, quietly questioning Shaun on aspects of vampire society as well as picking Shaun’s brain on subjects he hadn’t considered in a long time.
It felt a bit like attending an interview he was unprepared for when Rake asked about his hobbies and Shaun realised he only had one: books.
Stories had offered Shaun an escape from many a long night.
So he’d told Rake about how—before becoming enamoured with Lawrence—he’d wanted to study English Literature at university.
He’d tried his hand at some writing, and whilst he hoped nobody would ever discover the evidence of his forays into fanfiction, he’d enjoyed the craft.
Rake had listened intently to him speak, his dark eyes with those stupidly long eyelashes boring into Shaun in the low light. The casual way Rake had offered his laptop for use if Shaun chose to take up writing again had made Shaun’s chest ache with feelings he couldn’t quite identify.
As the night grew perilously close to morning, Rake had tried to insist once again on accompanying Shaun to the club. Shaun had dissuaded him, and then lay and watched as Rake’s eyes slipped shut.
Humans were noisy sleepers. Shaun hadn’t ever experienced it before. He wouldn’t exactly describe DJ’s snoring or Rake’s occasional mumbles as nice , but they instilled him with a level of comfort he hadn’t known he’d needed.
That comfort saw Shaun right through his own sleep to the following night.
But when Rake and DJ did what he was coming to consider their ‘usual’, bracketing him in between them and holding him tight, Shaun wanted them to never let go. And after they took turns kissing him—Rake dominating his mouth, DJ playfully exploring—Shaun practically had to peel himself off of them.
“Be careful,” he said, looking at both of them in turn. “Don’t go outside at night. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Rake nodded, his jaw set hard. He looked seconds away from grabbing Shaun and keeping him inside.
“You be careful, too,” DJ said, one hand gripping the sleeve of Rake’s jumper as if to hold him back.
“I will. I promise.”