Part 9
Gabriel sighed. He was beginning to lose his fascination with Nyx now. She lay beside him, again, she'd set up the room, candles burning nicely, twisted shadows playing on the walls. He hadn't been able to take his mind off the drawing. Kait would find out soon, and she would be pissed.
What would he do? If she left him, what would happen? Would he stay with Nyx? And then what would happen to Kaitlyn? Everyone would know what had happened, there was no way Kait would ever cheat on him. People would know. They would talk.
Nyx seemed to know something was wrong. She didn't like it when she didn't get her way. Her red eyes seemed to glow dangerously. They were lit softly now by the candle light.
"I can tell you're tiring of me," she said.
He shook his head. "You miss nothing, do you?"
She smiled. "Not much gets past me. But I think I have a way to keep you interested." She ran her long, talon-like black nails up his chest.
"And what's that?"
She moved so she was lying on top of him, her warm breath caressing his face as she spoke. "What if I told you there was another world out there? A world of Power and darkness."
"And?" Gabriel tried to hide his interested in this. It sounded intriguing. A new world? He'd seen a lot in his life. What more could possibly be out there.
Nyx smiled, knowing she had his attention. "It's called the Night World. It's a secret society of vampires, witches and shapeshifters, the creatures of legend, and we're all real, and all around you."
Gabriel's eyebrows raised. "Vampires?" His lip curled. His time as a "psychic vampire" feeding off life energy rather than blood, was over now. The legend of vampires had apparently originated somewhere around this idea, they were just a story.
Nyx laughed her deep, throaty laugh. She opened her mouth, and she seemed to almost transform before his eyes. Her red eyes seemed to change colour to a deeper, darker red, fire glowing within their depths, her beautiful face took on a predatory look, her dark lips became fuller and redder, and her canine teeth grew. They curved to delicate points, sharp as needles, and glimmered in the strange lightning.
He remembered the first dark pleasures when Nyx had slipped into his bed the first time. He remembered a sharp pain, at then blissful nothingness for a while afterwards. But she was always gone before he woke, and before he could really analyse what had happened. Normally, he hardly remembered it at all.
"You've been feeding on me, haven't you?"
She smiled a little, "I know, I'm a bad girl."
"That's okay. Sometimes I like bad girls. I'm assuming you're telling me all this for a reason."
"Oh yes. There are rules against talking about the Night World. Generally, I tend to follow them, but for you, I'm willing to make an exception."
Gabriel frowned. She was up to something. She wouldn't be telling him all this for no reason at all, especially if there were rules about talking about it. And if he refused whatever she wanted, would she kill him?
Nyx ran her long nails down his cheek. "I want you to join me."
"You want me to become a vampire?" Well, that was a surprise. He should have known there was something wrong with her. But, a vampire? Who would have guessed. But there were the plus sides. He would be immortal. He would live forever. He would be faster than humans, stronger.
She could get used to the blood thing. And who said he needed to stay with Nyx? Once she changed him, then he could dispose of her, and then he could bring Kait over.
Nyx was looking at him with an intense gaze, as if she hadn't sensed what he was thinking, which was good on his part. "Well?" she asked.
He sighed. "You don't just decide to become the waking undead on a whim. You're gonna have to give me time to think about this."
Nyx sighed and rolled away. "Fine, but my offer is only good for forty-eight hours. After that...well, it's my decision."
"So I either join you or die."
"Pretty much."
Great. He had forty-eight hours to think about this. Think of a way to get out of it.
* * *
Part 10
"Why didn't you guys *tell* me?" Anna looked at one drawing, then another. She was still upset, and now, her pale face was flushed with anger. "You knew!"
"Kait didn't show us the drawings until tonight," Rob said.
Kait flushed. "I didn't show you, exactly, you just took them."
Anna turned her angry gaze on Kait. "But you still knew."
Kait turned away. "I didn't tell anyone cause I didn't recognise the guy in the drawings. And," she added quietly, "I'm afraid they'll come true."
There was a moment of silence. They all looked at the drawings again. Kait as a vampire, and clearly Sebastian killing Kait, and then Kait killing Sebastian. What did they all mean? Kait's drawings had always come true before. No matter how bizarre they seemed, it was inevitable that they would eventually happen.
"So there are vampires?" Lewis said finally. "You're boyfriend's one, and Kait's going to become one."
"Kait is not going to become one," Kaitlyn said sharply. "At least, I hope not."
"What's Sebastian's surname?" Rob asked.
"Redfern," Anna said. "Why?"
"Isn't Redfern the surname of your roommate Kait?" Rob asked.
Kait frowned. "Rowan? Yes. But I don't think she'd attack me and turn me into a blood sucking monster."
"She has a sister, doesn't she?" Lewis piped up.
"So where are we heading with this?" Anna asked. "We're saying the Redfern family are vampires?"
"It makes sense if you think about it," Lewis said.
Kaitlyn shook her head. It was hard enough to believe that vampires existed, and one had nearly killed a close friend, but it was even harder to believe there was a whole family of them. But Lewis was right, it did kind of make sense that the vampires should all be the same family. Maybe there were others out there.
She shuddered. It was a frightening thought, vampires walking among people, looking and acting like them, and never knowing until the last minute they were there. By then it would be too late. She took the drawings back from Anna.
"I've had enough for tonight," she said. "I'm going back to my room. I'll see everyone tomorrow."
Kait sighed and left the boys and Anna in Anna's room. She headed back to her own room, feeling as if she could sleep for a month. She wasn't sure why she suddenly felt so tired. It was almost like a compulsion, drawing her back to her room. As if someone was telling her to do it.
She opened her door. The lights were on. That was weird. She'd turned them off before she left. Rowan wasn't home. She was still out. But someone else was in the room.
Sebastian gave Kait a nasty smile. Kait just stared. She seemed unable to move, unable to call out for help as he came closer. All he did was shut the door.
"I told you you'd pay," he said cheerfully. "Don't bother screaming. No one'll come."
Kait remained frozen, unable to do anything as he tore her throat out.
* * *
Gabriel sighed. He was beginning to lose his fascination with Nyx now. She lay beside him, again, she'd set up the room, candles burning nicely, twisted shadows playing on the walls. He hadn't been able to take his mind off the drawing. Kait would find out soon, and she would be pissed.
What would he do? If she left him, what would happen? Would he stay with Nyx? And then what would happen to Kaitlyn? Everyone would know what had happened, there was no way Kait would ever cheat on him. People would know. They would talk.
Nyx seemed to know something was wrong. She didn't like it when she didn't get her way. Her red eyes seemed to glow dangerously. They were lit softly now by the candle light.
"I can tell you're tiring of me," she said.
He shook his head. "You miss nothing, do you?"
She smiled. "Not much gets past me. But I think I have a way to keep you interested." She ran her long, talon-like black nails up his chest.
"And what's that?"
She moved so she was lying on top of him, her warm breath caressing his face as she spoke. "What if I told you there was another world out there? A world of Power and darkness."
"And?" Gabriel tried to hide his interested in this. It sounded intriguing. A new world? He'd seen a lot in his life. What more could possibly be out there.
Nyx smiled, knowing she had his attention. "It's called the Night World. It's a secret society of vampires, witches and shapeshifters, the creatures of legend, and we're all real, and all around you."
Gabriel's eyebrows raised. "Vampires?" His lip curled. His time as a "psychic vampire" feeding off life energy rather than blood, was over now. The legend of vampires had apparently originated somewhere around this idea, they were just a story.
Nyx laughed her deep, throaty laugh. She opened her mouth, and she seemed to almost transform before his eyes. Her red eyes seemed to change colour to a deeper, darker red, fire glowing within their depths, her beautiful face took on a predatory look, her dark lips became fuller and redder, and her canine teeth grew. They curved to delicate points, sharp as needles, and glimmered in the strange lightning.
He remembered the first dark pleasures when Nyx had slipped into his bed the first time. He remembered a sharp pain, at then blissful nothingness for a while afterwards. But she was always gone before he woke, and before he could really analyse what had happened. Normally, he hardly remembered it at all.
"You've been feeding on me, haven't you?"
She smiled a little, "I know, I'm a bad girl."
"That's okay. Sometimes I like bad girls. I'm assuming you're telling me all this for a reason."
"Oh yes. There are rules against talking about the Night World. Generally, I tend to follow them, but for you, I'm willing to make an exception."
Gabriel frowned. She was up to something. She wouldn't be telling him all this for no reason at all, especially if there were rules about talking about it. And if he refused whatever she wanted, would she kill him?
Nyx ran her long nails down his cheek. "I want you to join me."
"You want me to become a vampire?" Well, that was a surprise. He should have known there was something wrong with her. But, a vampire? Who would have guessed. But there were the plus sides. He would be immortal. He would live forever. He would be faster than humans, stronger.
She could get used to the blood thing. And who said he needed to stay with Nyx? Once she changed him, then he could dispose of her, and then he could bring Kait over.
Nyx was looking at him with an intense gaze, as if she hadn't sensed what he was thinking, which was good on his part. "Well?" she asked.
He sighed. "You don't just decide to become the waking undead on a whim. You're gonna have to give me time to think about this."
Nyx sighed and rolled away. "Fine, but my offer is only good for forty-eight hours. After that...well, it's my decision."
"So I either join you or die."
"Pretty much."
Great. He had forty-eight hours to think about this. Think of a way to get out of it.
* * *
Part 10
"Why didn't you guys *tell* me?" Anna looked at one drawing, then another. She was still upset, and now, her pale face was flushed with anger. "You knew!"
"Kait didn't show us the drawings until tonight," Rob said.
Kait flushed. "I didn't show you, exactly, you just took them."
Anna turned her angry gaze on Kait. "But you still knew."
Kait turned away. "I didn't tell anyone cause I didn't recognise the guy in the drawings. And," she added quietly, "I'm afraid they'll come true."
There was a moment of silence. They all looked at the drawings again. Kait as a vampire, and clearly Sebastian killing Kait, and then Kait killing Sebastian. What did they all mean? Kait's drawings had always come true before. No matter how bizarre they seemed, it was inevitable that they would eventually happen.
"So there are vampires?" Lewis said finally. "You're boyfriend's one, and Kait's going to become one."
"Kait is not going to become one," Kaitlyn said sharply. "At least, I hope not."
"What's Sebastian's surname?" Rob asked.
"Redfern," Anna said. "Why?"
"Isn't Redfern the surname of your roommate Kait?" Rob asked.
Kait frowned. "Rowan? Yes. But I don't think she'd attack me and turn me into a blood sucking monster."
"She has a sister, doesn't she?" Lewis piped up.
"So where are we heading with this?" Anna asked. "We're saying the Redfern family are vampires?"
"It makes sense if you think about it," Lewis said.
Kaitlyn shook her head. It was hard enough to believe that vampires existed, and one had nearly killed a close friend, but it was even harder to believe there was a whole family of them. But Lewis was right, it did kind of make sense that the vampires should all be the same family. Maybe there were others out there.
She shuddered. It was a frightening thought, vampires walking among people, looking and acting like them, and never knowing until the last minute they were there. By then it would be too late. She took the drawings back from Anna.
"I've had enough for tonight," she said. "I'm going back to my room. I'll see everyone tomorrow."
Kait sighed and left the boys and Anna in Anna's room. She headed back to her own room, feeling as if she could sleep for a month. She wasn't sure why she suddenly felt so tired. It was almost like a compulsion, drawing her back to her room. As if someone was telling her to do it.
She opened her door. The lights were on. That was weird. She'd turned them off before she left. Rowan wasn't home. She was still out. But someone else was in the room.
Sebastian gave Kait a nasty smile. Kait just stared. She seemed unable to move, unable to call out for help as he came closer. All he did was shut the door.
"I told you you'd pay," he said cheerfully. "Don't bother screaming. No one'll come."
Kait remained frozen, unable to do anything as he tore her throat out.
* * *