When Henry finally arrived at Vicki's office he was breathless, his lungs and feet ached and his eyes were tired and heavy. His stomach growled with a hunger that he had not know in centuries. Her office seemed dark and vacant, but he knocked on the door and called her name. Reaching for the door nob he felt concern upon finding it unlocked. Henry stepped inside and called her name once more. "Vicki? Are you in here?"
He tiptoed through the room and tried to listen carefully for sounds of life, eventually finding Vicki sprawled on her sofa, still fully dressed, boots and all. Henry panicked as he realised he was unable to hear her heart beating. Rushing to her side he had to remind himself that these weak human ears would be incapable of hearing the rapid drumming inside her chest.
"Vicki, can you hear me?" Henry placed two fingers against the pulse in her neck, feeling it beat slowly but rhythmically. She didn't stir, but her chest rose and fell with each shallow breath. It was then that Henry noticed Vicki's arm was outstretched towards the floor - an empty whisky bottle had fallen from her grip and rolled across the timber floor. She was fast asleep in a drunken stupor - but she was safe.
Henry picked up the bottle and placed it on her desk then pulled off her shoes and sat them neatly beside the sofa. Vicki looked so awkward and uncomfortable despite being out cold. He attempted to gather her up in his arms. Lifting her like a limp rag doll Henry tried to hold her close with one arm and pull out and the sofa bed with the other. Henry groaned with the strain of it all. "Damn Celluci... .you seriously need to stop with the donuts and hit the gym once in a while!"
Vicki groaned in his ear, her eyes fluttered briefly, looking up at him as he placed her back down on the sofa bed. "Mike? What... you... doing...here?" Her words were slow and slurred.
"Shh Vicki. Go back to sleep. Everything will be OK I promise." Henry comforted her as he removed her thick leather jacket.
"Wha...?" Vicki mumbled again.
Henry grabbed some blankets from a nearby closet and covered her with them, tucking her in carefully. He reached out and stroked back the stray strands of hair from her face. "Just go back to sleep. We'll talk tomorrow." Henry lifted her head and placed a pillow underneath.
"O...K." Vicki quickly rolled on to her side, gathered the pillow up in her arms and closed her eyes again.
Henry sighed and felt the urge to stretch to relieve the pain that was now throbbing in his back. I'm too old for this... Henry thought to himself, and clearly so is Celluci. As he put his hands on his hips and leaned from side to side he caught a whiff of his underarms. Good Lord I reek of something unimaginable.
Knowing that Vicki was unlikely to mind, Henry headed to the small bathroom adjacent to the office. Closing the door behind him he stripped off Celluci's distasteful, sweat-covered attire and turned the shower taps - watching the steam billow and fill the room. He stepped under the water, only to feel the sharp burning sting of the heat. Finding it too hot for his human flesh he seethed as he lept back out again to adjust the temperature. This time as he stepped back in he found the warmth of the water soothing and therapeutic. Another pleasure he had been unaware of for all these years. The jets of water massaged his scalp as he foamed Celluci's hair with Vicki's shampoo.
Henry looked down as the soap suds trailed down over this strange and unfamiliar body. Reaching for a cake of soap he forced himself to wash Celluci's 'unmentionables'. If this had been the body of a man other than Detective Celluci, he may well have found the whole situation a little homo-erotic.
Henry stepped out of the shower and toweled himself dry. He looked at himself in the mirror and studied his reflection again. Henry rubbed his hands across his face, feeling the prickly stubble of Celluci's five-o'clock shadow. Henry recalled his younger years, remembering how he meticulously groomed daily - shaving, trimming nails, combing his brown locks of hair. Even as a vampire he still took pride in his image. Now, as he looked at Mike Celluci in the mirror he wasn't sure if he should actually care about appearance or not. Henry sincerely doubted that the Detective would be treating his body with the same level of respect. He cringed as he wondered where Celluci may be, or what he may be doing with his body.
With a sigh Henry wrapped the towel around his waist and picked up the crumpled, smelly clothing from the floor. He filled the sink with warm water and dunked the items in. Scrubbing them with soap he then rinsed them thoroughly before wringing out the water.
Opening the door to the bathroom he stepped back into the office where Vicki was sound asleep. Quietly stepping over to the chairs around Vicki's desk he draped his wet clothes over them in order to allow them to dry.
Henry shivered - the cold night air causing goosebumps on his mostly naked form. He considered stealing a blanket from Vicki, though she looked so peaceful and content. He quietly crept in beside her for warmth. Just for a moment he told himself, promising to be awake and fully dressed by the time she woke.
His body ached, his mind was riddled with a hundred different questions. Henry felt vulnerable, homesick, anxious and overwhelmingly uncomfortable. Seeking out the only thing that comforted him he placed his head against Vicki's chest. Pressing his ear to her breast he listened to the familiar rhythmic sounds of her heart beat. Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump. It soothed him, it nurtured him and just for a moment he felt secure and safe. Like a child with its mother he wrapped his arms around the woman he loved and clutched her tightly.
His eyes closed, his body relaxed and for the first time in nearly five hundred years Henry Fitzroy fell into a human sleep.
Mike stood outside the magic store, beating on the front door. "Sinead, open up! I know you are in there!" A little metal bell on the back of the door inside jingled as he continued to thud. Dogs barked nearby in response to his commotion.
A light in a room above the shop switched on and a set of drapes parted to reveal Sinead peering down at him. She opened the window and leaned down to loudly whisper. "Henry?" she asked cautiously.
"Oh come on Sinead. You know its me... it's Mike Celluci. Let me in."
"How can I be sure?" she whispered back cautiously.
"You fucking told me to come visit you once I did the spell alright! So here I am!" Mike yelled up to her.
Sinead's mouth twitched suspiciously before she disappeared from view. The room in front of him lit up as Sinead approached him and unlocked and opened the door. "Hurry and come in then will you... it's late."
She was wearing a white satin robe that clung to her supple body. It was held closed by a thin belt that tied to a neat bow at her waist. Her nipples were taut and clearly visible as they pressed against the thin fabric. The robe itself was barely long enough to cover her private parts - a hint of her backside visible as she stepped past him to close and lock the door behind him. Her hair was tied in a loose pony tail, however she quickly freed her long brown hair, stroking her fingers through it as she walked to the back room. "So the spell worked I see?" She called back to him with a subtle smile, beckoning him to follow her.
"I want you to undo the spell. Now." Mike clutched his fists and ground his teeth.
"So soon Detective? What's got you so spooked?" She took a seat in her reading room and crossed her legs, making sure Mike could see the line between her thighs all the way to her buttocks.
"Just change me back." He demanded.
"We made a deal detective." Sinead smiled her demure smile again.
"I nearly hurt Vicki..." Mike growled and threatened, "I could hurt you too." His hunger for blood was distracting. The sound of Sinead's blood was thumping in his ears.
"Tsk tsk" she clucked disapprovingly as she shook her head. "I should have known you would go to her first. You're just as bad as Henry."
"Sinead... quit playing games. I won't ask you again."
"You were supposed to come to me first Michael." She stood and meandered over to him, swinging her hips seductively. She traced her fingers down the buttons of Mike's shirt. "You forget Detective...you signed on to play this game. Henry becomes human like you wanted, and I get to play with his body." Sinead's hand drifted lower to cup the front of his pants.
Mike inhaled sharply, his erection stirring in his pants. He averted his gaze and cleared his throat. "Well the deal is off."
Sinead stepped back and walked back towards her desk, where a small bottle of perfume lay sitting on top of its surface. She untied her belt, letting her robe fall open, smiling as Mike's gaze wandered to her breasts, to her smooth tanned belly and lower still to her pubic region. She laughed as Mike looked away with embarrassment.
"Please, tie your robe back up." Mike begged quietly, constantly shifting his gaze across the floor.
As her robe fell to the floor Sinead reached for the small vial of perfume, spraying it across her neck and bosom. "Don't you want me Michael?"
The scent infiltrated Mike's nose and within an instant he was under the minx's love spell. He felt light headed and giddy. He stood motionless for a moment, in awe of her presence. "Oh Sinead" he eventually murmured with a smile.
"Come to me." the witch beckoned.
Mike was already unbuttoning his shirt and pulling it over his shoulders as he stepped towards Sinead. He was reaching for his belt and struggling to remove his pants while falling to his knees. He was kissing her belly while attempting to disrobe entirely "You're a Goddess." he whispered quietly.
Sinead chucked quietly. "Wait.," she called down to him. "First you need to feed."
"Whatever you wish My Love." Mike responded, rising to his feet.
Sinead reached for his arms and wrapped them around her waist, pulling him to her. She turned her neck and offered it to him. "Follow your senses Michael.. you know where to bite. Drink, but be gentle."
Mike was panting like a beast, his nostrils flaring with a mixture of sexual desire and hunger. His eyes turned to black orbs, his fangs were exposed as he leaned in towards her neck. Tentatively he placed his lips to the warmth of her flesh, the tip of his teeth scraping against the vein.
"Go on" She urged him.
His fangs sank into her neck like a pin bursting a balloon - her blood gushing over his tongue and in to his gullet. It was intoxicating, addictive, like a high the Detective had never known. With each pump of her heart he kept drinking, sucking her blood like the hungry animal that he was. He was distracted briefly by the sensation of Sinead tugging and pulling on his hair, hearing her whimper with what sounded like pleasure.
Mike was still blissfully unaware when Sinead began beating her fists on his back, begging him to stop. "Stop.. enough!" he faintly heard her beg again as the pounding on her hands on his back began to weaken.
Mike took another gulp of blood as he realised that Sinead had gone limp in his arms. Her heart was barely beating. "Sinead? Sinead?" He laid her down on the floor and took her face in his hands. "Oh God! What have I done?"
She blinked up and him and smiled faintly. "You did as you were supposed to Michael" she whispered with a husky voice. "Now feed me... before it's too late."
"What?" Mike asked, in shock.
"Your blood... give me your blood. Do as I ask." Her eyes fell closed in her weakened state.
The Detective quickly slashed open his wrist with his teeth before placing it to Sinead's lips. "Here..."
Almost unconscious she opened her mouth and let the blood drip past her lips, pulling herself up with whatever remaining strength she had left to drink from the wound. Just as he had done with her only moments earlier, Sinead began to suck the life from Mike - gulping down his vampyric blood until he was eventually forced to pull away from her grip
Mike sat on the floor and stared in awe at Sinead, watching her eyes flutter until she eventually passed out. He shook her body but she did not respond "Oh God.." he muttered again, "I didn't mean to hurt you too."
Mike eventually stood and paced back and forth across the room for quite some time - all the while chewing on Henry Fitzroy's beautifully manicured nails. He had no idea what to do, how to react, and yet all he could think about was Sinead.
He was distracted by the sudden realisation that the sun was starting to rise. It was like an inbuilt alarm clock telling him to seek out the dark where he belonged. His skin twitched and tingled as if it could sense the impending burn of dawn. With no time to think, no time to plan, all he could do was pick up Sinead's body and head for the basement.
The dark room was cluttered with old furniture and knick-knacks. There was a small window on one wall which looked out over on the pavement on the street outside. Mike rushed to slide an old timber wardrobe in front of it, hoping it would suffice in blocking out the sun's rays.
Mike picked up up a dusty blanket and carried Sinead to a sheltered corner of the room. Wrapping the blanket around her he held her close and tenderly stroked her cheek. He began rocking her softly as morning began to arrive.
One final thought slipped into his mind before everything turned black.
God help me survive until sunset.
With one last intake of breath, Mike Celluci had his first experience with death - the cold, lifeless slumber of a vampire.