11. Nerves

"Mmm," Reece murmured, savoring the taste of the young girl's blood as it glided down his throat in a deliciously warm current. Although the current began to slow, his strength continued to skyrocket, until the current stopped entirely. The body pressed close to his perfectly muscled torso went limp, finally succumbing to death. He lay the body down gently, taking care to treat it as respectfully as he dared. If anyone happened to see his moment of weakness, he'd lose the power he possessed over them. It was his ruthless and contemptuous nature that kept the other vampires in the clan fearful and obedient. He knew that one slip-up, one little mistake, would awaken the independent spirit in them all and send them scurrying off.

Reece laughed to himself, imagining what the many vampires in his clan would be like without each other. It'd be only a matter of time before they were either attacked by other vampires or killed one too many people, alerting the world to their existence. If it hadn't been for his father's leadership abilities and charisma, they'd have done just that already. And when… circumstances had changed and Reece had joined, he helped to further strengthen the bonds of the group. It was selfish and self-centered to think of himself as the main bonding agent, and he knew it was. Hell, everyone knew that if it weren't for him, Terrence's plans for a united vampire front would've been only a fleeting dream. Reece was the proverbial glue holding the together.

Reece forced himself to come back into reality, to focus on the present instead of some of the stinging memories of the past. He placed the girl's hands on her stomach gently, wiped the two small trails of blood leading from the puncture wounds on her neck, and closed her eyes. He brushed his hand over the dew covered leaves below and straightened himself out. He glanced down at the eerily peaceful young woman he'd lured and drained of blood. Somewhere deep within, there was a pinprick of pain stabbing into him, something he willed never to feel. Reece wrenched his gaze away from the body and dashed off back towards the safety of his powerful position, back to the numb feeling he'd managed to grow and nourish within himself. He couldn't afford sympathy or weakness.

He was nearing the edge of the camp. He knew this by memory more than pure scent or aura. He'd been here with his father and this clan for nearly 110 years, having helped to set these borders himself. Reece was extremely bright, "near genius" as his father would say. He'd assembled the feeding schedules, set the borders, and planned defensive actions towards any sort of encroaching attack upon the clan. He'd even set up an escape plan for if they were ever discovered. Not that that was likely: Reece had taken precautions against discovery, too.

He slowed his racing steps down to a saunter. It was his usual gait; something that proclaimed his cool indifference towards the world, as if there was nothing around that he couldn't deal with. In addition to that, he knew it made him look absolutely godly. There were no females in the clan he was particularly attracted to but he knew that sometimes desire was a better controller than fear. Upon reaching the door of his father's quarters, he hesitated. Was there anything dire or important his father had needed done today? Any important task he'd handed out to a clan member? Not that he could recall. There'd only been a small patrol sent out. Reece had to do his father's dirty work once again and order Abby to circle the perimeter of the camp and slightly beyond, searching for any survivors from their most recent fight. He knew his father could handle something like that easily; he could go without Reece for a while.

Reece was just about to head towards his own quarters when his father's voice beckoned him, "Reece! Come here, my son!"

Shit, he thought, wanting more than anything to just be able to relax in his favorite chair with one of his many history books he'd collected over the years. It'd been his dream, once, to be able to help make history. He wanted to be in politics, someplace where he would have power over more than just people: over history. "Coming, father," he called back, grabbing the knob and stepping across the threshold onto the onyx-colored marble his father adored.

Terrell sat in his usual chair, looking as regal as usual. A pleased smile spread across his face upon seeing his son enter, "Ah, Reece," he stood, crossed the room and wrapped his son in a friendly hug, "How was your meal?"

"It was fine, father. It went perfectly well." Reece pulled away, Terrell's hands resting on his shoulders still. "How has your morning been so far?"

"Excellent, just excellent," Terrell pat Reece's shoulder jovially and then turned to sit back in his beloved mahogany chair. "Abigail reported back with fantastic news!"

"Oh?" Reece stepped forward until he was a few feet from the raised platform on which his father sat. "Was there a survivor found?" Reece might still feel a tiny pang of pain when killing an innocent mortal, but he had nothing against killing another creature like himself.

Terrell's smile deepened, "Would you enjoy the honors, son?"

"When have I ever turned you down, father?" Reece smiled wickedly, his features taking on an almost devilish quality. He turned and exited his father's quarters and headed toward his own. He wasn't sure whether the captive was conscious or not so he may need some entertainment. He unlocked the door and stepped inside, walking over to one of his many full shelves. He pulled out a volume with a worn leather binding. There were gold embossed letters on the cover, reading simply, "Biology". It was another of his loves: life and the study of it. It was ironic in a way; someone who ends life so easily is absolutely fascinated by it. Reece laughed to himself bitterly.

He tucked the book under his arm, closed and locked his door, then headed towards the containment cells. He unlocked the door to the containment building and locked it behind him. He glanced up and down the hall, looking for a room with an information file in the basket on the door. The last two doors on his left each had a file in their individual baskets. He headed towards them, opening the second to last door. Behind the bars of the cell sat a vampire who looked like he was in his mid-30's. He was short, skinny, and noticeably more pale than your average vampire; quite the opposite of Reece. The captive's hair was jet black, making him seem paler if it were even possible.

The new vampire didn't seem to notice anything. Reece cleared his throat quietly, causing the captive to jump. He was on his feet and pushing on the bars of his cage, trying to reach for Reece. His face was distorted into a hideous snarl. Reece stood there, his eyebrow cocked.

A bemused smile crossed his face. "Heh, feisty, aren't we?"

The other vampire only answered with a low growl.

"Well, let's get this over with, shall we? First of all, what do you call yourself?" Reece pulled up a chair from the corner and lowered himself onto it, facing the bars and the furious male. The other vampire just continued to snarl at him, refusing to offer an answer. "Still not answering? Honestly, that's quite rude of you. Maybe I should've checked your file before I came in… I just assumed you may want to cooperate considering I could easily kill you if I didn't get the information I was searching for." Reece gave a polite smile to the other male, his eyes the only thing portraying his vicious nature.

The other male continued to push on the bars, his arm outstretched towards Reece's chest. Reece sighed deeply.

"Fine," Reece said, nonchalantly, "I can wait. I just wouldn't expect any sort of amenities if I were you, though. I do reserve the valuable things, such as blood, for those who manage to work with me." He opened his book and began to read the first page. A minute or two passed before he spoke again, 20 pages later, "How long has it been?"

The male stopped, curious, "Since…?"

Reece smiled discreetly, knowing he'd trapped him, "Since you've last fed, of course. 2, 3 days, maybe?" He didn't even bother glancing up from his reading.

"4 days, actually." The male said, reluctantly, "There was not much time for it before we left the..." He trailed off, finally realizing what Reece was doing. He hissed.

"4 days? Really? Seems like we'll be playing the waiting game, then. I've fed today already, so I won't be in dire need of blood for another week." Reece paused, pretending to think hard. When he finally answered, his voice was drenched in fake awe, "Why, doesn't that gives you maybe a day or two before you'll just be raving mad with thirst? But that's only if you've got the sort of control that I have."

There was another hiss from the caged male, "You bastard…"

Reece laughed cruelly, "I don't deny that for a second! But now the ball is in your court, my captured friend. All I need is information and you'll be given what you deserve." Reece returned to his reading, enjoying the new information and insight he always seemed to receive whenever he re-read a book.

There were 5 more minutes of silence before the captured male finally broke it, "My name is Richard Hardy from a small camp about 20 miles from here." He sounded defeated and tired, his shoulders sagging slightly. "What else do you want to know?"

Reece suddenly sat forward, his piercing gaze focused on his captive, "Why are you here? What was your camp hoping to gain from us, hmm?"

"More feeding grounds, more members, and information…" Richard said, "We needed information on someone."

"Oh? Just someone or does this someone have a name?" Reece questioned, allowing only a small portion of his irritation to show in his voice.

"The Informer is what they call him. We just wanted to meet him, see what he had on our leader, if anything. We just wanted to make sure-"

"Hah! Of course he has information on your leader! He has information on everyone except my own clan here. I wouldn't allow anyone to have a glimpse into the inner workings of my creation. Unless they plan on not seeing another tomorrow." Reece stood, walking over to the bars slowly. He bent down, looking Richard in the eyes, his tone dangerous, "How much have you seen and heard here?"

"Enough." Richard said, refusing to look Reece in the eye.

"Oh no, no, no." Reece scolded, "That just won't do, will it? We can't have anyone know anything about our camp." Reece fixed Richard with his most horrifying snarl he could muster, scaring Richard have to death.

"Wha-what are you going to do to me?" Richard scrambled backwards a bit, pushing himself up against the opposite wall. His voice was shaking from the shivers running up and down his body.

"Nothing more than what you deserve, Richard, my friend," Reece unlocked the door on the bars and stepped in, closing the door behind him. He was a mere foot from Richard's shaking form. His voice dropped down to nothing more than a smooth whisper, "What a sneak deserves." His hands shot out with lightning speed, grabbing the sides of Richard's head in his hands. In his weak state, Richard had barely any time to react before Reece jerked his neck to the side. There was a loud snap as his neck broke and his flesh tore, the head coming clean off.

Reece stepped back, dropping the dismembered head to the floor. He wiped his hands on Richard's shirt and opened the bar door once more. He pulled out a cell phone and dialed in a number, Alabastor answering on the first ring, "Yes, boss?"

"Alabastor, please come to rooms 1 and 2 in the containment building. There have been a few mishaps that I need cleaned up."

"Right away, boss." Alabastor hung up. Reece did the same, putting his phone back in his pocket. He grabbed his book and went on to the next cell: cell 1.

Inside was a woman, her hair also jet black in color. Reece wasted no time, sprinting up to the bars and tearing the woman's head clean off. With no blood on his hands, he picked up his book off the floor where he'd dropped it and left the containment building. He pulled out his cell phone once more.

"How did it go, son?" Terrell answered after 3 rings. "Anything worthwhile?"

"Nothing more than the usual, father. Fear, blood, dismemberment… nothing surprising coming from me." Reece replied, his voice sounding only slightly annoyed.

His father didn't seem to notice, laughing heartily at his son's joke, "Of course, Reece, of course! Any information I may need to know?"

"It was just another attempt at locating the Informer, father. Like I said, it was nothing surprising. Another clan hoping to see how much the Informer had gotten on them." Reece opened the door to his quarters and put his book back on the shelf gently for another day.

"When will they learn?" Terrell sighed into the phone dramatically, "We're the only clan out there that he hasn't managed to completely crack."

"Yes, I know that, father. And I plan on keeping it that way." Reece ended the call, tossing his phone onto the armchair in the corner. He flopped down onto his chaise lounge, somehow managing to make even that look graceful. He sighed deeply, covering his eyes with his forearm.

Suddenly, there was a knock on his door. Reece groaned, pushing himself out of his comfortable position and growled towards the door, "What the hell do you want?"

"Err, Reece, Terrell told me to come ask you to-"

"Tell my father that he can do it himself if it's so dire. I'm currently busy and wish not to be disturbed." He lay back down, replacing his arm over his eyes once more, "And if he feels so inclined, he can just call me."

"He did tell me you'd say that…" The voice outside his door answered resignedly. Reece could hear them fiddling with something in their hands.

"Of course he did," Reece muttered under his breath, "Trust me, whatever it is, he can certainly handle it on his own or even have Alabastor do it."

"But Reece, he-"

"Did I ask you to talk back? Go tell my father what I said this instant or, so help me, I'll kill you." Reece said, his voice going dangerously quiet. He could hear the vampire at his door retreating quickly.

He sighed deeply again, pushing up off his chaise once more. He grabbed his phone, waiting for his father to call as was expected. Sure enough, Reece's phone rang and he answered it quickly.

"Reece, it's certainly unlike you ignore my requests," Terrell said, his voice a mixture of amusement and confusion.

"Father, I did your dirty work twice already this morning; I think I've earned a bit of time to myself." Reece said, annoyed. He began massaging his forehead.

"Did I say you were finished with your work for the day?" Terrell's voice grew hard and stern.

"Father, I've done plenty today. Whatever you need done, just have Alabastor do it." Reece was desperate now. His nerves were frayed and he just wanted to relax for a while.

"Reece, I don't give a damn what you 'need'. Get your ass over here before I make Alabastor do something a lot more painful for you!" Terrell was threatening now. He would only treat his son well when he obeyed his whims. When Reece wasn't so willing to do so, Terrell reverted to treating him as just another one of his followers.

Reece sighed deeply, admitting defeat, "Fine, father, fine. I'll be right there." He ended the call, flung his door open and slammed it shut behind him. If anyone interrupted him on his way to his father's quarters, they wouldn't live to feed again. Barely 10 seconds later, he burst into his father's quarters, glaring daggers at him.

"What in God's name do you want?" He demanded, his temper flaring.

"So wonderful of you to finally join us, Reece. I was beginning to fear that you wouldn't show." Terrell was still seated in his beloved chair, his voice taking on a falsely welcoming tone. He was smiling one of his cruel, vicious smiles.

"Just get to it, father. What is so important that you need me, and only me, to get it done?"

"Oh, so now you're interested in what I have for you, hmm?" Terrell was slathering on the fake happiness, until Reece felt he was drowning in it.

"Yes, now just get on with it. What the hell do you need me to do that couldn't have waited maybe an hour or two?" Reece took a few steps towards his father, his face stony.

"Well, I needed someone skilled and careful enough to pay a visit to the Informer. Unless this job is too high above your level, I suggest you get moving so you can be there before tomorrow." Terrell ended the conversation abruptly, leaving Reece standing there like an idiot. His mouth had fallen open. Upon noticing this, he closed it quickly and stormed out of the building, not bothering to close the door behind him.

He took off at a sprint, pocketing his cell phone that he had still been holding. He knew he'd end up needing it.

"Damiana, what's got you so distracted?" Daniel asked, looking his friend over nervously. She had seemed sort of out of it today. Even after school had ended, she seemed very distracted by some other thoughts. He was just about to get into his car when she had walked up to him and leaned on the roof.y

"Daniel, can I ask you for a favor?" Damiana asked, innocently enough.

"Sure, whatcha need?" Daniel felt something in his chest tighten. He realized prematurely that he was nervous about what was to come.

"Can you give me a ride someplace? I mean, it's out of town but not that far out of town. I'll pay for gas and everything!" Damiana clasped her hands together, putting on a pleading face.

"Depends… how far is 'not that far'?" Daniel asked, feeling suspicious.

"Honestly, Daniel, it isn't that far. Just the next town over. I just wanted to visit a cousin of mine who I haven't seen in a while." Damiana held onto her pleading face, trying to guilt Daniel into taking her.

"Alright, when do you want to head out there?" Daniel dug in his pocket for his cell phone, hoping to add the date to its calendar.

"Today. Right now." Damiana reached into Daniel's pocket and grabbed his keys. She unlocked his car and tossed her backpack onto the back seat. "Shotgun!"

"Dami, you're the only other person in the car, of course you get shotgun. Now gimme my keys." He caught the keys Damiana threw to him and got into the driver's. He started his car and pulled out of the parking lot, heading towards wherever Damiana directed him.

Author's Note: So yeah. Dismemberment. Lovely, isn't it? [Warning: you just passed through a sarcasm heavy zone, side effects may include confusion, sudden dislike of author, or a few laughs.]

DISCLAIMER: No vampires were harmed in the writing of this story. In addition, no doors were seriously injured, either.