CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
I did the most unlady like thing and spat my drink all over the table in our apartment as I sat in the center of the corner sofa.
"What?"
"Mattie's coming here! You know Rose has to check up on their members if they're sort of… out of reach."
I just stared at James who said that casually. He'd just came out of the shower, a towel draped on his shoulders, half covering his hair. I only thanked God that he was wearing jeans.
"So Mattie's coming… here?" I couldn't believe it. I couldn't help the grin that spread across my face like wildfire. He's coming here!
"Yeah although that wasn't the only thing that I wanted to tell you." James walked over to sit on the edge. He leaned over, "Paper is planning something. It's obvious. I don't know what they're thinking but whatever it is, you have to be careful not to show Paper any affection."
"I can do that, I don't particularly like Paper anyway." I grinned.
"You know what I mean!" He cried out.
Bad time for a joke!
I ran through the last few days in my head as a feeling of dread invaded me. Nothing of importance flashed out. So why?
No. It wasn't that.
We did it.
We found out Mattie's past. But it opened more questions than answers. Would the answers be here still?
Are they downstairs in the archive room and if so, do I have to go down there again?
"What do you mean by 'planning something?'" I asked.
"A large amount of people haven't been in today. It's been the same for the past few days."
"Have you told Cindy this?"
"She already knows."
Cindy was out. I wasn't sure where she was exactly. Both of them seemed to disappear whenever they want to. It made sense when we were trying to learn where everything was but now…
A thought crossed my mind.
"Are you two okay?"
James looked startled. "Yeah, why?"
"It might just be my imagination but you both are rarely in the same room as each other. It was like that in Rose." I think. I only saw them briefly on rare occasions and it wasn't my job to pry.
"It's fine, Alice." He shuffled, uncomfortable with this topic.
"But there's another thing." I continued. "Have you been... " I struggled for the right word ".. feeding regularly?" I've never seen him or Cindy drink, at least fresh blood.
To be honest, I only remembered again they were not human after seeing that farm. But I'll keep that to myself.
He blinked. I could almost hear the cogs stirring in his head. "Yeah, when we first started living at Paper, we both had some." He shrugged. "I invited Cindy round for coffee so yeah, we're both fine for a good few months."
Few… months?
"Blood lasts you that long?" I said shocked. I remember Mattie having some regularly but to know that…
"Differs from vampire to vampire. It's like with humans."
Silence fell on us as I tried to digest this new piece of information.
It only ended when someone decided to knock on our door.
It was Mariah. Jeez, I hadn't seen her in how long.
"Alice? Would you be able to come with me? There's someone here to meet you."
I looked at James and we had that moment where we actually shared a look.
"Sure. Have you seen Cindy, by the way?"
"I haven't, sorry."
I don't know but this is getting kinda fishy.
James and I followed Mariah. We took the same steps, took the same lift down, until someone stopped us and asked if James could follow her to some place I don't really know.
James was right. There was nearly no one around and it was nearly noon. Weird. Most people would be making their way to the Lower Deck but it's like a ghost town.
Okay… Think! I have Alpha and Beta.
When we both got there, Mattie was nowhere to be seen. Was he late?
My hands inched to my waist. What are they planning?
We stopped on a level just above the Lower Deck and I was led into a lab. It reminded me of my university room with six tables, each fitted with their own sink and gas valve. Stools dotted the room.
The far wall was made entirely out of glass and it was the only thing that separated this room from the one next to it, another lab. On the rest of the walls was various posters and the periodic table.
We went through a door that was right next to the glass wall on the left hand side and strangely enough it looked exactly like the control room downstairs that Rose wasn't supposed to know about. Complete with the panel, the window it observed that lead into the next room with the white padding, I almost wondered if it had that trapdoor.
This room wasn't empty though. On the three stools sat a man and a woman in a white coat who looked at me almost as if they were scared of me. Two bulkier men in a black suit had their arms folded. They stood (or leaned, it was hard to see from my angle), on the far wall. Clearly these were for security.
Well , shit.
The moment I stepped in the two men ran at me.
Holy fuck, I didn't realise they'll get me so soon!
One of them aimed for my head, whilst the other at my feet. I had to back away half remembering there was a table behind me to dodge. They crashed into it, one guy sprawled on the floor. He might have struck his head really badly by the sound of the crash it made.
The other guy, on the other hand, was over on the table.
There was no time, I grabbed Alpha and trained it on his head. As he got up I lowered my aim to his leg.
"Stop!" Mariah screamed.
I froze.
But then the guy rushed at me, punching me in the stomach then wrapping his arms around me to haul my ass over his shoulder in that control room. With a lot of struggle he had his arms under mine in a lock. I was helpless.
"Oh, Alice." Mariah sighed. "You're not much of a match on your own, are you?" She said once the door was closed. She leaned against it.
I swear, if I had regained my breath faster, I'd had given her an answer. Instead I just stared daggers at her. If only looks could kill...
She walked right up to me and stroked my cheek. I attempted to bite that bitch's finger off but she dodged it. Lucky her.
"Shame Rose need weapons to fight." I saw her spin… I looked down at my waist. Alpha and Beta were gone! She spun Alpha around her finger.
Panic settled in faster than I could keep it at bay.
Shit! Am I going to die just like Daniel and Jess? Shit, shit, shit, shit...
"You're lucky though, we asked for you personally." She pointed toward the window where a door in that room next door was open. In a blink of an eye, I saw a mane of brown hair.
I squinted. It can't be? Is it?
Stop moving!
Almost like that person in that room heard her, he did so and looked at us.
Or rather, at the window.
"M-Mattie?" I mumbled in disbelief.
No way.
No way was this man right in front of me was the Mattie I knew.
Mattie didn't have that long hair.
Mattie didn't leave his eyes that dark red.
Mattie didn't scare me the way this guy did.
It was feral, animal-like. That and the way his clothes were torn and dirty.
"Yes, that's Matthew Taylor." Mariah said.
No.
What?
That's Mattie?
I can't imagine this man smiling at me the way Mattie did with me.
"He's been with us for a few months and because of that, he neglected having much blood. In that state, he's considered a rogue."
"A few months?" I almost screamed the words at her. "Vampires aren't for experiments and neither are humans!"
"What makes you think we're experimenting on him?" Bitch Mariah cocked her head at me.
Is she alluding to downstairs?
She wouldn't know Rose was down there.
Would she?
"Because any sane person wouldn't have let him in this state!"
I struggled in my restraints but he only held tighter.
Mattie was a blur in that room. Running around.
He's like an animal exploring his new environment. A real animal. Vampires… they're completely different to a human.
"We're human, Alice. Both of us. And humans experiment and learn and fight. That's why we're the top in the predator chain, yes?" I didn't bother answering. "Every single person in Paper is human. Including… you!" She indicated toward the woman at the panel who gave her a small, clear bottle with some pills inside it.
"This is a new experiment and it brings me pleasure to say that you're the first person to test this!" She shook the pills in my direction. "The aim is to try to increase the life expectancy of a human whilst still being human. To even more than hundred."
I think my face must have expressed the 'what the fuck' I instantly thought.
"And this little thing comes in the form of a pill, so if you please…"
Mariah came over and tried to open my mouth.
"Excus-" I made biting motions at her. "Fuck off."
Mariah actually put her hands on her hips as if she was a tutor and I the student. "Please, Alice. This if for the name of science and quite possibly the history of mankind."
"I'm not swallowing some weird shit."
"But if you don't, then we'll force you to. Have you noticed the amount of people currently at Paper today?"
I stared at her. This was what James was alluding to.
"The majority of people have blood type o. I've simply removed everyone with that blood type today."
I don't get it.
"You're the only one in this building with that blood type."
Oh no.
That's just-
What the fuck?
There's a rogue vampire in the room.
Not to mention it's Mattie.
Mattie who's in love with me.
Who finds my blood the… best taste in blood for his palette.
I'm dead. There's no way out of this if he's set free.
"You've gone pale, Alice. Are you okay?"
I swallowed. There really is no way out of this. I don't have Alpha or Beta.
I'm scared. I'm scared out of my mind. What do I do?
"So, do you want to willingly help us test this pill out or would you rather have your partner be set on you."
I said the only thing that I knew, "Neither."
Mariah sighed. I hadn't realised it but she had a pin in her hand. The next thing I knew, she had pricked my finger. A drop of blood oozed out.
No, no, no!
Then the door in the other room opened and Mattie was no longer there. At the same time, the security man behind me released his grip and the door behind Mariah opened.
"Run, piggy, run." She whispered.
I ran. I ran at Mariah, knocking her on the floor and grabbing my guns off her. If I had even a tiny drop of the powers of Mattie's vampiric blood within me, I hope that it would help me.
I got to the Lower Deck because if I had to fight Mattie on a narrow hallway, damn, I had no chance.
I heard him then. Behind me.
But he wasn't there.
Shit. Where the fuck is he?
A loud crash behind the food stores grabbed my attention. They shook then toppled on the floor casting a cloud of dust to poof in the air. Chairs and tables screeched across the floor, some snapped and some even flew across the air like they were being dragged.
Being dragged toward me.
I trained Alpha and Beta at the huge dust cloud. There was nothing I could do. Humans are really weak compared to a vampire.
Why was I even trying?
Once the dust cloud died, Mattie wasn't even there.
Shit, he's teasing me?
I looked around me. Nothing. I can't fucking see him.
No, he's fucking playing with me. Playing with his damn food.
But then I heard footsteps. They came from behind me.
This time he was there, walking toward me with a shade of red eyes that I've never seen on Mattie.
It scared me.
My hands shook.
Then he broke into a run and like Caim, he jumped.
Holy fucking shit!
I shot him in the chest. Three times. Once in the leg.
It's fucking Alpha!
He landed on me. Right on me. The wind just escaped me in that second and I banged my head on something.
I lost track of them. My guns. Where are they?
Mattie just stared at me.
Nothing I could do… nothing I could do… why was I even…
"Mattie, just fucking kill me already!" I screamed.
In the next second pain erupted from my neck as he dug his fangs into me. Hard. Fast. Deep.
Then the darkness overtook me and I collapsed.