The Vempere: Chapter 1

Continuing, introducing a new character mentioned in the prologue.

 

Chapter 1

The haziness of the dream faded away leaving Sindel standing in the middle of her living room. Her eyes scanned the familiar room. The living room was spacious with a couch and coffee table next to the door positioned in front of a television. The walls were still the original white they were when she got the apartment. The floors were a dark hard wood, polished so they shined in the artificial light. The far left of the room had three windows with thick black curtains covering them to keep sunlight out. Beside the windows were a few of Ayeka`s school pictures, positioned in order of her grades. On the right side were sword racks and other miscellaneous weapons. Near the exit of the room stood a glass case that held smaller weapons, mostly consisting of knives and a few guns she had bought on a whim.

Confusion filled her until her eyes set upon a man leaning against her front door. Her chest tightened as her black eyes set upon his azure eyes. She noted the speckles of lavender that graced the blue of his eyes that matched his natural violet hair that reached his narrow waist. He held a wine glass in his hand with his favorite wine, Cabernet Sauvignon. His bangs rested at his jaw line shielding most of his face from her which she knew was sculptured in masculine handsomeness.

To her surprise he only wore a pair of faded blue jeans that hugged his lean hips and were comfortably loose around the rest of his legs. Her eyes scanned his bare torso biting her lip as she did so. His wide shoulders looked more demanding outside clothing and his full chest to back it up. His arms were in well proportion to the rest of his body with the likeliness of a swimmer. Her eyes lowered to his abs that she still remembered the taste of and the small trail of hair that went from the bottom of his belly button down into his jeans.

“Sindel…” His deep Cajun accent made her shiver no matter how much she hated it.

“Yes?” She forced herself to whisper.

He turned her head to look at her. “I`ve missed you.”

She clenched her eyes shut at his words. She ached to hear him say those words in reality but she knew deep down inside, he was probably dead. “It is torture seeing you like this.”

He pushed himself off the door and set his glass on the coffee table by the couch as he approached her. Sindel`s eyes opened as she felt his hands slide up her arms. She always loved the fact that he was taller than her. Being five foot eleven she liked the fact that he was six foot three. She didn’t feel like an Amazon as Ayeka always accused her of being.

She looked up at his adolescent face wondering what he would look like as a man. She last saw him at the age of twenty before he disappeared. He would be breathtakingly handsome, even more so than he was then. Woman everywhere wouldn`t be able to deny him, sadly, herself included. She felt her heart breaking as she looked up at him. A single tear slid down the side of her right eye causing the man in front of her to sigh.

“Don`t be sad Sindel.” He brushed away her tear causing her lower lip to quiver before she embraced him. She rested her head on his chest as her body shook from the tears she held back in real life. In reality, his disappearance had torn her apart more than she could have ever imagine. He was her best friend, confidant, everything she ever wanted she had found in him and now he was gone.

His hand slid down her hair as he held her against him. “Find me Sindel…” Her head jerked up to see him smiling down at her. “I will certainly be happy to see you.”

“Sindel…” A feminine voice filtered through her dream.

Sindel saw the man`s face start to fade. “No… wait!”

Sindel snarled as she awoke to see Ayeka`s beautiful face staring at her with wide emerald eyes. “Sindel?”

“What Ayeka?” Sindel snapped tossing the covers from her body.

Ayeka took a step back. “You were crying…”

Sindel stopped and rose her eyes to Ayeka`s. “I was crying?”

“Yes and mumbling I`m so sorry.”

Sindel clenched her eyes shut as she drew her knees up to her chest. She rested her head on her knees as she felt the bed dip beside her. “I saw him in my dreams.”

“Sindel…” Ayeka ran a hand down her back attempting to soothe her. “It wasn`t your fault.”

“He died because of me…”

“We don`t even know if he is.”

“Ruxandra saw his face… saw what he drove… and he disappeared the next night.” She rose her black eyes to Ayeka. “If he survived, he would have come back by now.” She cleared some hair from her face as she lowered her knees and stood to her feet. “That was almost two years ago…”

“I know Sindel.” Ayeka sighed as she rose to her feet. “Look, random subject change. I have a new lead on Ruxandra if you want to take it.”

Sindel`s eyes darkened a degree. “I want nothing more than to kill her.”

“Good.” Ayeka pulled some of her blonde hair behind her ears as she pulled a hand written plan out of her back jeans pocket. She laid the piece of paper on Sindel`s bed. “There is this club called Frost in the warehouse district of the city. It is rumored to be a Vampire only bar and numerous people have said they have seen someone matching Ruxandra`s description there.”

“All I need to know.”

Ayeka grabbed Sindel`s arm. “Look, in light of this dream you had… let`s try to have fun tonight okay?”

“Fun? We`re out to hunt Ruxandra…”

“Sindel. Look. I`m tired of you just existing since he disappeared, I miss you.”

Sindel adverted her gaze. “Fair enough…”

“We used to laugh together, do things together, now we just simply live in the same apartment and rarely talk. Let`s go out and have some fun okay?”

Sindel looked over at Ayeka who gave her a coy smile. “Alright kiddo, just for you.”

“Thank you Sindel.”

“No problem, get dressed and we`ll head out.”

Ayeka looked down at her watch. “It won`t have anyone there now. It`s still early.”

Sindel rose an amused eyebrow. “With how long it takes you to get ready…”

Ayeka scoffed. “Oh whatever Sindel.” She turned on her heel and headed out of Sindel`s room, slamming the door behind her.

Sindel laughed at Ayeka`s teenager behavior. Ayeka was unique to her. The only mortal woman she had found a friendship with. After Sindel found Ayeka running out of an alley at the age of six, seeing the vicious murder of her parents; Sindel adopted Ayeka and raised her like her own.

Sindel walked over to the stereo in her room and checked the c.d. in the player. With a content nod she turned the player on and switched it to song seven. ‘Ghost flowers’ by Otep started playing as Sindel went through her closet looking for clothes to wear to a club.

Sindel mumbled some of the lyrics as she grabbed a pair of black leather pants. She swayed her hips as the music became heavier as the female lead singer started to scream. She tossed the pants onto her unmade bed as she searched for a shirt. She pulled out a violet half shirt made of spandex. The shirt looked as if a large cat had torn up the material. The shirt left her shoulders bare and the medium sleeves reached her mid forearm while the bottom of the shirt barely reached the top of her stomach.

Sindel slid out of her sleepwear and changed into her clothes. She walked over to her mirror and looked down at her exposed muscular stomach. Normally she wouldn`t allow herself to be so exposed but Ayeka had mentioned having fun. The shirt hadn`t been worn in quite some time since the color reminded her of his hair. She switched out her belly button ring to a silver ring with small silver links that dangled from the bottom of the half moon shaped ring.

A half Vampire with a belly button ring. She had gotten her piercing as a dare with Ayeka one night after a test of wits. Ayeka thought Sindel would cave buy her a computer rather than get her belly button pierced. Ayeka ended up buying the computer on her own.

Sliding a brush through her hair, Sindel watched her expression harden as she looked at herself in the mirror. Usually when Ayeka ‘wanted to have fun’ she wanted her to find a man. The result was always the same every time they stepped into a club. They would take a seat and scout before they made their move after Ruxandra. In that time they were approached by many men trying to court them, usually very poorly. She knew it would end up the same way as it always did. Both of them coming home empty handed and lonely. Ayeka due to her high standards and Sindel because none of them were him.

“See i`m all done!” Ayeka announced as she walked into Sindel`s bedroom. Sindel looked back at Ayeka to see her in a black half shirt that said ‘Punk Rock’ with a torn sleeve. She had a belly button ring similar to Sindel`s that fell to the edge of her black and purple plaid school girl mini skirt and black knee high boots.

“A blonde in black…” Sindel shook her head as she grabbed a pair of socks from her dresser drawer. “I will never get used to that look.”

“I refuse to wear white.”

“But you look so nice in white.”

“Just as you look nice in fuchsia.”

“Oh shut up.” Sindel slid her socks on as she hopped over to her closet grabbing a pair of lace up knee high combat style boots. She slid them on and laced them up. “Get armored up, i`ll be out in a minute.”

Ayeka bounced out of the room like a little girl causing Sindel to laugh as she finished lacing up her boots. She rose to her feet and turned off the light. She closed her bedroom door behind her as she walked down the hallway, Ayeka`s humming becoming louder as she approached the weapon`s cabinet in the living room.

Ayeka had her skirt raise up enough to show she was wearing a black string thong. She clipped a sheath of throwing knives on her thigh and fitted it so it wouldn`t slide down her leg.

“Good choice.” Sindel agreed as she grabbed two sheaths with a six inch blade and two throwing knives on either side of the blade. She strapped them to her thighs and turned to see Ayeka smoothing her skirt down over her blades. “Ready?”

“Yup, let`s go enjoy ourselves tonight Sindel.”

“Yeah, I think i`ll try.”

Ayeka nodded in approval. “Let`s go.”

 

***

Phil Milcrow lightly knocked on his best friend`s apartment door. After no answer he opened it and snuck inside. Phil knew this man like the back of his hand, if he didn`t answer his door something was wrong.

The strumming of a guitar caught his attention causing him to pause and listen. His friend had a hauntingly beautiful voice with a slight southern drawl to make women swoon everywhere. The man`s ability to attract women like flies to s**t usually made lesser men jealous. Yet after all the seductive offers, Phil still noticed the haunting emptiness in his best friends eyes. He knew he compared them to the one woman he ever loved. A woman who by more than mortal standards was considered untouchable. He sighed as the lyrics of the song he sung started.

“A moth into a butterfly and a lie into the sweetest truth

I'm so afraid of life

I try to call your name but I'm silenced by the fear

Of dying in your heart once again

 

I see the seasons changing

And in the heart of this autumn I fall

With the leaves from the trees

 

I play dead

To hide my heart

'Til the world gone dark fades away

 

I cry like God cries the rain

And I'm just one step away from the end of today

 

I see the reasons changing

And in the warmth of the past I crawl

Scorched by the shame

 

I play dead

To hide my heart

'Til the world gone dark fades away

 

I stay dead

'Til you veil my scars and say goodbye to fate

Before it's too late, before it's too late

 

I play dead

To hide my heart

'Til the world gone dark fades away

 

I stay dead

'Til you veil my scars and say goodbye to fate

 

I play dead

To hide my heart

'Til the world gone dark fades away

Before it's too late.”

 

Phil gently closed his eyes at the melancholy lyrics. “Phil…” A deep voice with a Cajun accent called out to him. “I know you`re there.”

Phil walked into the bedroom to see his best friend sitting at the edge of his bed with a black acoustic guitar in his lap. His waist length violet hair was back in a pony tail and his jaw length bangs were pulled behind his ears. His azure eyes with speckles of violet rose to Phil, sadness apparent in them. “I didn`t mean to sneak up on you Gab.”

Gabriel shrugged his massive shoulders. “I`m not worried about it.”

“Why so down?”

“I was just thinking about her and what she must think of me.”

“She probably thinks you died.”

Gabriel snorted. “Very funny. At least then I wouldn`t be a coward.”

“You aren`t a coward Gab.” Phil brushed a stray strand of hair from his face. “Who sung that song anyways?”

“You`re favorite band.”

“Oh you mean that chick band? Him?”

“Yeah, even though they have a male fan base.”

“The band is obviously pointed toward women who are sappy enough to listen to love songs…”

“Which are melancholy and usually have to do with death.”

“Since when have you been into darker things like that?”

Gabriel shrugged again as he stood to his six foot five height. “I try not to think about that.” He set the guitar on its stand and turned to Phil. “What brings you here?”

Phil sighed. “I wanted to see you man. You don`t stop by anymore, you just go out to get your…” He looked a bit awkward for a moment. How could he put, ‘the need to drink someone`s blood’ in a polite way? “needs met.”

“There is nothing else to life it seems.”

“It has been almost two years Gab. When the hell are you going to tell her you`re alive?”

He bared his teeth flashing his larger than normal canines. He usually didn`t, but when she was brought up into conversation he tended to lose himself. He lost all the work he did to reconstruct his life and survive… minimally. “She was too torn about her revenge, her fear about the woman stalking her. She wouldn`t do anything even if I walked into her apartment at this very moment.”

“I don`t know Gab…”

“You`re a bit too optimistic for my frame of mind at the moment.” He growled.

Phil sighed. “Look, why don`t you go out to a club or something? Get your groove on and perhaps you`ll meet someone…”

“I don`t want anyone else…” Gabriel snapped looking back at Phil to see his startled expression. Lord knows he had tried. He couldn`t even walk outside without someone approaching him, offering anything he needed. If it was only about getting laid, that would be easy. He tried to force himself to kiss a girl once but his body screamed in protest of the act. The girl wasn`t her. In his mind, nobody else would do so he would spend the rest of his life alone until they saw each other again.

“I`m sorry, I didn`t mean to offend you.”

Gabriel shook his head “No… you`re right.” He walked into his closet and flicked the overhead light on as he sorted through his wardrobe. “I need to stop being like this.” He leaned his head against the doorframe with a silk shirt in his hand. “I`m not even myself.”

“I`m glad you`re seeing this.”

“More than you know but it just hurts so much…” He felt his voice falter. She rose so much emotion in him that it almost destroyed him the day he was forced to walk away from her and hear her cries of protest.

“I know Gab…” Phil leaned on the opposite side of the doorframe from Gabriel. “Just get out and enjoy yourself. Let loose for f***s sake.”

Gabriel rose his eyes to Phil`s. “Thanks Phil… I think I will.”

“I`ll join you…” Greg propositioned as he stepped into the bedroom, drawing silence and making Gabriel curse inwardly. Phil`s younger brother Greg was one of the biggest disasters Gabriel ever knew. Something always went wrong when he was around. The thought made a growl rumble in Gabriel`s chest. So much for relaxing.

Author's Note

Okay so I added a few more than one but there you go. Gab is one of my favorites, he will get less depressing later.