Chapter 3

Truth be told

The smell of rotting corpses lingered in the air, but they were gone. Disappeared to the place where they were born, HELL. Missey was still in her white tiger form and planned on staying in it until she got home, it would be quicker that way. She stormed down the road then took a shortcut through the thick undergrowth. She could smell Blakes scent... maybe this is the way he came earlier? She had to stick to the shadows... White Tiger in a street... not good. She had never taken this root before, and yet she knew it so well. It brought her out across the road from her home, there was no sign of the bike yet, and so she changed back to her original form and walked across the road. Getting to the door she moved the mat to reveal the spare key then let herself in. She was surprised to hear the alarm of her door go off, it was the alarm for inhuman activity, and let’s face it she was no longer human. The sound of it pierced through her ears like a scream from a newborn baby. She clawed her ears until blood appeared on her fingers; she had forgotten that her nails were longer now. Missey coiled on the floor until suddenly the noise stopped. Unwinding away from her knees she straightened up and looked towards the alarm box. There in the shadows stood a muscular figure, to a human it would be undetectable, but with her new sight, she knew who it was. “What are you doing here Ruben?” she asked. How dare he come here now?

“Nice to see you too,” he said sarcastically “Anyway, where’s your pet?” Ruben was pushing his luck and he knew it, he smelt like alcohol but whether that was just from working in the pub or he was drunk, she couldn’t tell.

“Back off, Rubs, he is not my pet and it’s none of your business where he is after you attacked him earlier,” she tried with great difficulty to keep her temper down.

“You heard about that, did you? You look nice by the way,” he was playing it smooth, well trying.

“Why are you here anyway?”

“I’m your best friend Missey,” Ruben had travelled from the alarm to her face; she could feel his cool breath on her cheeks and smell the stench of alcohol in his throat. He was drunk, but why?

“What’s the matter with you, Ruben? What’s happened?” All her anger had gone now only to reveal sympathy. He was not happy.

“Stuff, which you don’t need to know about; I’ll be back tomorrow. Make sure your thing is out.” He stumbled out of the door and left it open. Missey gazed at him in the distance, long after he was unseen. A touch on the shoulder awakened her from deep thought; she turned to see Blake, with a worried expression on his handsome face. “Are you okay?” he asked gently.

“I’m fine,” she lied “let’s get you cleaned up you already seem a lot steadier,”

They walked into the front room and Blake chucked the keys onto the sofa, he sighed in frustration, Missey had gone into the bathroom to run a bath after taking her leather jacket off. His body ached all over from being ill and being beaten up. There were so many questions he had but he didn’t want the answers yet, he was just thankful Missey was alive. A call echoed in from the bathroom, he sighed again then went to join Missey.

Blake walked in; his face was totally fucked with blood. His hair was covered in the thick gooey liquid. A scratch caped his cheekbone down to his neck. He was attempting taking of his sweatshirt, but he wasn’t making it look easy, he winced as he bent his arms. Giving up just watching, she sat up from the sink and walked over to him. She pushed him onto the toilet seat carefully not to hurt him. “Wait there.” She ordered. Missey walked into the kitchen and grabbed the scissors; it wasn’t like she couldn’t get him new clothes. She made her way into the bathroom and cut down the front of Blake’s top. “Thank you, Missey, for everything,” nothing but honesty in his gaze. She didn't realised vampires hurt so easy... She thought through all the story books. Maybe it was just demons that couldn't be hurt?

“It’s okay Blake; you’ve helped me as well. There has always been something missing in my life, and now I’ve found it. The tiger in me is now unleashed.” She chuckled.

“Nice to know, that I can help some people,” he sighed. Missey’s hand went under his chin and forced it upwards making him look into her pools of heat.

“Don’t let yourself be put down Blake, you deserve a lot and one of them is affection,” her breath was warm on his face, making him shiver. He desired her in more ways than one. He brought his cool hands up to her waist to stop her from pulling away. He had had enough of not getting what he wanted, what he needed. He had been to hell and back in some ways since meeting Missey. Surely there could be something good out of this meeting, other than how he felt about her.

“You hold all the affection I need if only you let me have some,” he brought his face towards her only an inch away from her soft lips.

“You already do,” the words left her lips without a thought. Her next actions only being driven by her heart’s desire. The brief touch of their lips made every nerve stand to attention. Tender, soft skin; so sensitive. Cool on warm lips. So hesitantly... Her own desire made its own way through her body as fast as never before. She pulled away before this level of intimacy could deepen and become something uncontrollable. It was like electric. A sharp pull towards each other. If only a small gesture of closeness, like this one had her feeling so wanton then any more would have her convulsing on the bathroom floor with a painful need that would be unable to sedate. Only a kiss... It was only a kiss. Mr Brightside was soon playing in her head. Maybe a way of controlling herself again? She headed out of the bathroom before she could loose herself again.

*************

He was totally frozen to the spot, and totally in the mood. She obviously didn’t want to though, and could you blame her? He was caked in blood and goodness knows what. He took his jeans and pants off, with great difficulty and pain. Getting into the bath hurt but when he got comfy it really did help. The water ran around his body like silk, it made all his wounds heal in an instant.

Missey was in a tornado. She was worried about Ruben and falling for Blake. She had a head full of feelings, and it began to give her a headache. She had to get out of the house, away from everything, away from Blake. So she decided to go to town, the vampire needed some new clothes anyway. “I’m going to get you some clothes Blake, can you survive until I get back?” she called from outside of the bathroom.

“You have little faith in me Missey,” he called.

“Just checking,” she announced before grabbing her leather and the keys from the sofa. Stepping outside made her feel almost human again. It was early morning, about 2, the 24 Hour down the bypass should be open.

The air smelt just like any other day, the street was empty like always, the way it had been for four years. The street was quiet apart from a distant car alarm sounding through her ears. With her heightened senses, she tried to hear if anyone was about; no one. She never did like the neighbourhood. But the house was fine on its own, and the never having to come out to make awkward conversations with the community just added to the bonus. When she finished high school, she had managed to work hard and buy the bungalow.

The night was cool but she didn’t feel cold, walking over to the motorbike, the wind flowed through her honey hair, her worries seemed to float away with the wind. Climbing onto the bike, the sound of birds and other creatures of the night floated in her ears, everything was calm and quiet. Until the sound of the animal bike ripped through it like a knife in water. The speed in the seat made it feel like a roller-coaster... like her emotions. Her mind running on pure adrenalin. Before heading to the stall, she decided to take care of something that was bothering her, Ruben Bantern.

Missey arrived outside Ruben’s place. Ruben had never had any problem, that’s why she couldn’t understand what his problem was now. He had a loving mother and father, and even an older sister. She got off her new bike and walked up the steps and stopped at the door. She sighed and knocked. It took a while for her to hear footsteps, but he opened the door. He looked terrible his reddish hair was all over the place. He was holding a bottle of vodka in one hand and leaned against the door with the other. “Hey,” he said in a gruff voice before taking a gulp from the vodka bottle, “What are you doing here?” he seemed to have forgotten earlier at her place, so she didn’t mention it.

“We need to talk Ruben,” she said a little less confidently than she intended.

“Oh come in Missey.” He sighed obviously pissed off by her presence. Both of them went into the kitchen, it was nice if you avoided the empty booze bottles on the table. They varied from Jack Daniels to scotch, to cider and WKD, there was everything you could think of in relation to alcohol. “So what do you want to talk about?” He sounded bored, and that wasn’t surprising living in this dumpster, and the worst bit was the smell, it was like walking into the home of a hobo that didn’t know the meaning of a bin or a bath, and the new sense of smell since being reborn to the life of a Zidirian didn’t help either. All she could do was hide it with her jacket and pretend she was just emotional.

“What the hell is wrong with you? You attack my friend-” she was interrupted mid-sentence,

“Let me just say, that he attacked me first, at yours,” he slurred but you could tell he was being smug about it. Normally, she would find drunken guys attractive, but tonight she was just plain pissed off with her best mate’s immaturity. She was getting frustrated at him for acting so dumb.

“He was ill, and he’s a protective creature!” she yelled.

“And so am I!!” he yelled back. Before realizing what he had just said. Did he call himself a creature? Missey was startled by her own reactions but before she could stop herself, she broke down and cried. Her knees buckled beneath her, she landed with a hard thud on the cream carpet, “I’m sorry Missey a lot has happened,” nothing like what had happened to her, nowhere near. He had no idea what she was.

“Like what? Being reborn whilst you were being fed on by a vampire? Being yelled at while your best friend is pissed out his tree? Falling for the vampire that fed on you and killed your family member? Being a totally different person, let alone creature?” Everything just got blurted out, and she couldn’t help it. She was alone in this world other than Blake and at this moment in time, she didn’t want to be near the one she wanted to love and cherish because he was just getting hurt all the time, and it was all her own doing.

“Well, not that out of this world but still pretty bad. Mum and Dad are in the hospital and Kate has gone missing.” He wobbled a bit but eventually got to the floor next to Missey. They both just stared at each other for a moment, until Ruben burst out crying, he put his arms around his legs and sobbed, his vodka bottle tilted in his hand. How did Missey not know about this? “When did this happen?” Missey was so confused.

“Last week. Mum and Dad were in a car accident and Kate has just gone off the grid. She's not answering and as far as I'm aware, she doesn’t know about the accident. That's how I managed to get the blood so quick. I was already at the hospital.” Missey had always been there for him and now, when he needed her most she wasn’t there. Guilt seemed to have created a permanent spot at the pit of her stomach, making her feel sick. She wondered how this could happen. Did it have anything do with Blake? And it was strange as that is how her mother died… She put her hand on his shoulder and with the other took the vodka from his grasp, trying to forget she had even thought about Blake becoming involved. Ruben didn’t even attempt to argue, which made her feel worse. He grabbed her and hugged her as soon as the bottle was out of the way, she didn’t protest, just embraced his emotions like they were her own. Her past wounds were being ripped out, at the memory of her mother’s death. What hurts the most was the identifying of the body, her sobs were more like cries now, and both of them had tears running down their faces. Soon Rubens sobs were quiet, he had passed out, probably from the alcohol. God sake... this is becoming a regular thing. They both sat there in eachothers arms for what seemed like forever.

Shit, Blake. He must be worried or just very, very shrivelled up from the water. She sat up from Ruben’s arms and gazed at him; for the first time since meeting Blake, Ruben, actually looked peaceful. He looked so much younger like they were back in high school. She missed those days, especially in the summer when they went on picnics and beach walks, the walks when she was human, and didn’t know Blake and about vampires. Standing up her head began to spin, holding onto Rubens' head for support didn’t help, and it just woke him up. He groaned a lot until he realized who it was. “Oh Missey, are you okay?” he asked slowly getting up. He seemed okay after all the alcohol, surprisingly after all he had.

“Yeah,” she lied, “do you remember last night?” she asked hopefully.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Yes,” he said before he yawned. He looked tired, all flashes of youth fading out of him.

“Then pack your bag, you’re coming with me,” she ordered.

“What about your friend?”

“You're more important at this moment Ruben,” that was true to a certain extent, but he needed to be with her or he would just go back to drinking, which was out of the question. “Now where is your suitcase?” Ruben shrugged. Her tiger powers didn’t work on him, unfortunately. She sighed and walked into his room, needing no directions. She knew the small house well enough to walk around it blindfolded. Ruben came in beside her and went into the draws. She got out five t-shirts and out of the other draw one pair of joggers and a pair of jeans. He rubbed his eyes, which had dark shadows under them before he yawned again. Missey walked over to him, his eyes were closed, as a sign of exhaustion. “How long has it been since you slept a night?” she asked tenderly.

“A week,” he whispered. “ Its been a rerun of work, hospital visits and alcohol to get any sleep at all. Usually enough to sober me up to start it all again.”

“Go lie down, get some rest, I'll come back later,” she said whilst pushing him gently to his bed. His eyes still closed. As he collapsed onto his bed, she whispered, “I’ll be back soon,” he nodded only half-heartedly before he started to snore. Missey walked into the kitchen and picked up all the bottles, put them in the bin and checking for any other ones that still had the tormenting liquid in, she only found one bottle of Jack’s. She left the house and headed to the shop.

Missey had only picked up enough clothes for three days. By now, it was morning. The light was blistering after spending countless days in the shrouded light of home and the new vampires lair. She forgot how much the heat of the sun felt so good when riding on her bike. Wind through her hair, the roar of the engine. Back at hers, she was met by a bare-chested and worried hug from Blake. “Where the hell were you?” he almost shouted. He had put his jeans back on, darn it, she was hoping she could dress him.

“I’m sorry; I took a small detour,”

“One that you could have told me about, I was worried…” he trailed off and stepped away. “I’m sorry. I don’t control your life,” that was true.

“It’s okay. Here are your clothes,” she said passing him the bag. “Go get dressed; Im gonna take a shower. Then I need to nip out again.”

“Okay, thanks.” He left Missey standing in the front room. He felt so damn better after that bath but when she didn’t come back, all the calming strands that the bath had given him faded away, and he couldn’t go out because of the sun. Where had she been? He heard the door go, and then quickly got changed. He just hoped she wouldn’t be very long. He hated the feeling of not knowing where she was, it was the feeling with no word, the one that makes you feel like a lost puppy, or a bookmark without a book, too big for such a word as loneliness... perhaps empty?

Arriving back at Rubens place, Missey didn’t bother knocking, she just walked in. If he was asleep she would pack for him. She stepped in and walked towards the bedroom where he laid, in the same position as before, still snoring lightly as well. Sitting down beside him on the bed, he stirred, why is it that this kept happening to her, it was like having a CD on a loop that you couldn’t stop.

Leaving him to his rest, she took of her jacket and headed to the kitchen. She knew the place well. Finding marigolds, and the cleaning spray, she set to work. Blitzing the place free of hobo smells and alcohol. Two bin backs later and a whole bottle of spray, it looked great. The only thing left to do was hoover and change the bed... when Ruben was out of it. As if on queue, she herd him start to move.

“Ruben, are you okay?” She called.

“I am now, thank you for letting me sleep,” he said groggily, whilst walking into front room. “Jeez... it looks great. You didn't have to.”

“No problem, right let’s get you sorted,” she said pulling him back into the bedroom.

*************

They got on the bike and raced home, Ruben loved the speed. Pulling up outside the home, Missey got off the motorbike and waited for her friend to join her. He seemed to hesitate for a minute or two and then got off. “What’s up?” she asked just out of curiosity. He was with her now, safe from his own sorrows, for now at least.

“Just hope your vampire doesn’t hold grudges,” he said sheepishly. Missey smiled at his answer, she walked off and waited at the door for Ruben. She hoped he wouldn’t get bitten, but to be honest she didn’t know how this was going to go down; she just knew this wasn’t going to be easy.

From the bedroom, he could hear her precious voice, the voice of his angel, but there was someone other than her, the human that attacked him. His senses ran wild within; he tried to compose himself before walking in to join them. He took the door handle in his hand and sighed. Blake stepped into the hallway and walked towards the kitchen. There they were. “What’s he doing here?” he said through clenched teeth, it was almost a growl. So much for composing himself.

“Ruben meet Blake, without attacking each other, Blake this is Ruben,” Missey said walking over to stand near Blake who was severely tense at her touch but after a while relaxed. “He will be staying with us for a bit,” she looked at him in the eye and whispered “be nice. He’s my friend as well.”

“Fine,” he sighed tiredly. She kissed his hand in appreciation, maybe a warning? He put his cool hand under her chin and forced it up so she was looking right into his eyes. His eyes were the opposite of hers; they were cold and a definite, grey-blue, the colour of a tiger’s eyes. He tenderly kissed her on the lips and then walked towards the bedroom. He was definitely not happy about the idea of having Ruben stay.

“I guess he does hold grudges,” he said “then again, I can’t blame him,” He said putting the kettle on. Missey rolled her eyes and went to her room to talk to Blake.

She knocked on the door, just as a precaution. “Come in Missey,” he called in a groaning voice. She turned the door handle and walked in closing the door behind her. He was lying on the bed looking up at the ceiling with his eyes wide open, and dark shadows under them. “You come to calm the beast down?” he said in an irritated voice. He didn’t bother to even look at her. She walked over to him and sat down next to him. “Yes I have but think of it more as helping you,” Missey explained. “I know this is difficult, but you’ve got to understand that he was here before you,”

“How is this meant to make me feel any better?” he said looking up at her. “You need to remember, Ive been alone since I changed. Ive had literally no one. Then you show up and that whole world I know gets turned upside down. I have to share you, protect you, live and breathe with you like I have been doing it for years. That's what is expected. That is what is needed. Now I have to do that with him around to. I am a vampire. We hunger for blood. That's it. That is my existence. I don't know how to do this. This room has become my solace. It smells of nothing but you. It is my way of keeping control and you want me to get along with him. He wants what I want. I don't usually have to fight for what I want... I don't usually have anything I want to fight for.”

“Your right I’m sorry, I’m just making it worse. I’ll leave you alone,” she answered standing up and heading towards the door,

“Don’t go, please,” Blake begged, his face screwed up.

“Okay, but If you want me to shut up, just say.”

“Fine,” he smiled. Missey laid down beside him, just thinking about the future. Blake sat up so that they were at eye level; they just gazed at each other. Words unspoken, looming around them, so many questions that needed answers, questions that could wait for today. His cool hand skimmed her face, making her heart gallop, her breathing becoming unsteady. Their eyes not losing contact, their skin almost touching.

Blake leaned towards her; he could hear her heart singing its precious melody, her warm breath on his lips making them tingle. He wanted her, all of her, right now before his patience ran out.

Their lips made contact, and Missey opened her mouth to protest but was only stopped by his tongue. His hands were around her and pulling her towards him, she was too lost to try and protest any more, she wanted this. His lips were cool but surprisingly soft. His hands cupped her face gently. His lips however, were demanding. Needy. She cold feel herself starting to get closer. Her body being pulled closer to him by his need for her. She craved his touch, his cool, vampire touch. She wrapped her arms around his neck forcing her further onto his lap. His groans came out more like growls; he was enjoying himself, that’s all that mattered. They were lost to each others kiss. Out of the depth of her mind, she was absently aware of the other man in the house. “Stop,” she breathed.

“But I want you, Missey,” he protested, starting to slow his kissing.

“Open your eyes,”

He grumbled. “Please Blake,” she pleaded. He sighed but did it; he opened his eyes, like awakening from a dream. His hands remained on her face for a fraction longer before they fell to his lap. He obliged like he had a choice. Their eyes never left one another. Missey still sat on his lap, her legs around his torso and her delicate arms around his neck. “One day,” she whispered, standing up away from him.

Turning around she saw his legs crossed on the bed, he made no move to stand up. “Come out when you’re ready,” avoiding her erg to touch him, the feeling almost overwhelming. She started towards the door, but before she could touch the handle, his hand grasped her arm, turned her around and stared. “He’s outside,” he whispered, “I can hear his heartbeat, get him away from me then I will be out.” Blake dropped his arm and stepped back. Missey walked out and there was her friend, just like Blake had said. “I guess he heard me,” Missey just rolled her eyes. Now she was hungry, it was way too late to go out for dinner, and her home was full of human food that now sounded revolting. Tofu, onions and garlic... ugh. Not enough meat. Her mood perked up as she recalled the forest on the other side of town. She used to play there as a child, weaving through the bushes and trees; all sounding so inviting as they may be the key to her meal. She sat on the sofa and waited for Blake while watching The Hairy Bikers inspect Wagu Beef... Needing someone to teach her the ropes of her new found freedom that was, the forest... Or maybe she should just go to the butchers. Yes, he needed help too if he was going to live with a human, he needed to find something other to drink or whatever it is he did instead of human blood. If he was a Zidirian couldn’t he survive on the meat like she could?

Blake walked out of the bedroom, and saw her, sitting on the edge of the sofa. She was shadowed by Ruben, his new personal hate. “Please could you help me?” his attention was swayed towards Missey, who was now standing.

“Sure, with what?” he said as lightly as he could manage in the situation.

“Hunting,” she answered plainly

“Yeah, sure, when do you want to start?”

“Now,” she replied. Her words ate away at him; she was so eager. He thought she would be repulsed at killing life, but she was completely the opposite.

“Err okay,” he stuttered.

Getting ready for her first hunt didn’t take long, putting her scruffs on, just in case it would get a bit messy. Her adrenaline was pumping and it would give her chance to think about things. She had no idea what would happen but she was excited, the sense of her natural animal was clear and her body knew it. She stepped out of her bedroom, ready and raring, Blake lingering near the door. He had been shopping during the evening so that he would be prepared for the upcoming events of dusk. Wearing a long, leather coat, a black shirt and jeans, completed with a belt holding a staking knife and what looked like a whip. Missey had no idea where he had got the coat and equipment but then again god knows where a vampire got most of his “badass” things. Or maybe he was planning a trip to the Matrix? Letting the moment pass, she walked over to him and turned around to see Ruben standing in the hallway. Missey looked up at Blake, who hadn’t diverted his eyes away from Ruben since she walked in, his jaw was clenched and his fists were out. She had no fascination in what had gone off in the room while she wasn’t here, her anticipation was too engulfing. “Blake, wait outside,” she commanded, partially pushing him out of the door. As soon as he was out, she turned to Ruben and just simply said, “Look after your own needs,” hopefully he would get the message to look after himself from, other men in the house and to generally be better than being in his own house too long. Before leaving she ripped the alarm off the wall so it wouldn’t pierce through any more people’s ears. Satisfied it was deactivated; she got her jacket on and followed Blake out the door.

Blake stood up from the porch stairs at the sight of Missey, just as a sign of respect. His hands were still clenched at the toe rag on the other side of the door. This all felt so wrong, like leaving a vulture to look after a sick zebra, he would eat it then fly off. Ruben was that vulture and the house was the zebra. All wrong. Missey strode across the porch and leapt all three steps in one go, her body making little effort with it. Blake wanted to show off a bit so, jumped off the side and over a bramble bush, perfect execution. He rushed over to Missey, who was staring at him, in a bored sort of way. “Total show off,” she concluded face to face. He couldn’t help but snigger at her precise answer. She grabbed his hand and started to walk, but it was away from the road and more importantly the motorbike! “Where are we going?” he requested, not bothered by the clasping hand of Missey’s round his own, to be honest, it felt good.

“We are going to the forest, it’s where I used to go as a child with my mother, and I often saw a deer or a mountain lion there.”

“Okay then.” He responded. He wanted to know more about this enchanting woman, he had decided to follow her anywhere, but why? There could be a past that would explain his abrupt feelings towards her. But was it any of his business? Well yes. She knew near enough everything about him, what about her? After a while of walking and thinking about how to approach the subject of times gone by, he settled on “May I be so bold to ask you a question?”

“That was a question,” she antagonized.

“Oh ha,” Blake said sarcastically. He took a breath, “If I can’t know who you are now than can you tell me who you were? Your family and so on…” Missey took a deep sigh, this was a tender subject, he could tell, but why? What happened?

“My mother died four years ago, she was forty-six,” Missey felt a familiar lump in the back of her throat, it was slowly edging forward but she was determined not to cry. “It was a Thursday, I had just got the bungalow and I went to go and see her. She had been acting strangely all week but that day was the worst.” The two of them had stopped and Blake was trying his very best to soothe her pain by stroking her arms with his cool touch.

"I walked in and she was packing the rest of my clothes, which I left there. I should have seen it coming; she was acting so weird around me, avoiding my eyes, blocking conversation. She was flustered like something was going to happen. It was.” Tears rolled down her face. He brushed it away with his hand and then kissed her gently. “It’s okay, I know your pain,” he whispered his head against hers. Together they were standing on the edge of the trees, he pulled her closer to him for an embrace, burying his chin in her coat. “I will always be here for you Missey. We will keep each other sane.” He assured her looking into her teary yet still beautiful eyes. “Now let’s have some fun, shall we?” suggesting towards the woods. Missey nodded, a devilish smile took the place of her sorrow; she led the way.