Enjoy. For disclaimer, see chapter two.
I am a hunter who cannot kill.
I'm weak no matter the price on the bill.
I thought I would never falter in the hunt,
But I'm not so naive still.
I'd never met a creature I couldn't kill. It was that simple. No matter what, everything always dies.
Except for Him. I didn't think of him for three years after I left. At least, not until
Dragonetti pushed the file across the table.
He'd hired me before. He didn't seem to learn that he was wasting me on idiots who could have been killed with regular bullets. He got tired of my complaining, so he gave me "something harder."
"Here's that challenge you've been wanting," he told me.
I raised my eyebrow. "Sure," I said, my disbelief obvious.
I opened the file. I didn't even pay attention to the name. My concern was how much he thought he was going to pay me. "I think I found a slight problem with this."
I placed the file down at the table and pointed to the amount of money at the problem. "You see this number? Obviously you must have gotten this file confused with another one, because, well, there's no way in hell I'd ever work for that price. I'm gonna guess and say either it's a typo, or you're just plain stupid." I chucked the file back at him. "So unless you're gonna tell me that's a typo, stop wasting my time."
He scowled at me. "Ms. Thorne, I don't know who you think you are to order me, but—"
"Look," I said cutting him off, "you've hired me to work for you seven times this year. You know my standards when it comes to my work, and specifically, my payment."
"Ms. Thorne, you came to me very highly recommended, but I find you a most trying individual. My patience with you wears thin. I'll let you have a few days to think over my offer, and then we'll meet again. If you've reconsidered, we'll discuss the details of when and how you'll receive your payment."
"Which we both know's gunna have a lot more zeros on the end of it."
He gave in and relented to my demands for a much higher paycheck. Only then did I realize it was my former lover I was supposed to kill. I didn't think it would be an issue at all. He was just like any other vampire. So what if I'd slept with him.
I stood on the roof a building, seventeen stories up, directly across from his apartment. The large glass windows made it eyes to snipe him.
I saw him. My finger was on the trigger. But I paused. Another woman had walked into the room. He kissed her, passionately. She had blonde hair, like me.
He'd replaced me. It was to be expected, but still, he'd replaced me. I didn't like that one bit, not at all. It shouldn't have bothered me, but it did.
I got up, disabled the gun, and walked on. I would kill him, there was no doubt in that, but it would be another way. I would make it up, close, and personal, true Julia Thorne style. Dragonetti wouldn't like it, but screw him. I always liked knives best.
I am a mercenary with the French disease.
You can call it love if you please.
But calling it love never seemed right,
As it was more that my heart had been seized.
Three days later, the hunt began. I'd watched, researched, and studied my prey.
I would kill. After all, it's what I was born to do.
I sauntered into the nightclub, practically oozing confidence and sex. He didn't notice me whatsoever. That pissed me off.
I'd get his attention all right.
I grabbed the nearest idiotic human. The man was young, in college perhaps and somewhat intoxicated, though not quite drunk. Not that that mattered to him. As far as he saw it, it looked as though he was about to get lucky with the first attractive female to ever come on to him in a bar. Like I said, idiot.
I was all over him. Best way to get attention is to make a scene. If it had been any other night, I might have actually gone home with the guy. I was being rough, and he sure as hell didn't seem to be complaining. A lot guys hate it when their future one-night-stand is rough. They start thinking S & M and flip out.
We were definitely getting looks from his entourage, even one or two whistles. Eventually one of them came over. It didn't surprise me. Lots of Vampiric men love it when a woman is rough. Makes them think she won't freak out when he sinks his fangs into her throat latter in bed.
"Hey babe," the vamp said. "How about I show you what a real man's like?"
I came up from giving my companion the world's biggest neck hickey with a flick of my hair.
"How about you back off? Can't you see I'm busy?"
I leaned down and gave my companion a kiss so fierce it looked like I was trying to suck his soul out by way of his mouth. When I came back up for air he was gasping for breath. I downed a shot and turned back to the vampire.
"I thought I told you to get lost."
"Come on, there's no use in wasting your time with a loser like that."
"Really, cause from where I'm standing you're the damn loser."
At this point, the vamp proceeded to get angry. "Hey listen bitch, nobody—"
"Quinn, what the hell are you whining about this time?"
There he was, the devil himself, my prey.
"Dude, I just…"
"Get lost, Quinn."
He turned to me, but I went back to kissing my companion before he could see my face.
"I'm sorry about my friend. He has a large habit of being a pain in the ass."
I sat back up. The guy I'd been kissing passed out, either from alcohol or lack of oxygen.
"Pity, seems my date's passed out." I turned to face him.
"Deacon Frost, it's been a while."
Frost looked startled for a minute before he recovered. "Well, well. Julia, what a surprise. It's been what, twelve months?"
"Really? I haven't thought about it." That pissed him off, I could tell. "After all, I've been rather busy. You?"
"I've been alright."
He was cold. It made me want to smile. This was too much fun. I'd missed this, pissing him off.
"Can I buy you a drink?" he asked.
"Sure."
"Same as always?"
He still knew what I liked. Damn, what a surprise.
"No actually." I turned to the bartender. "Bloody martini, heavy on the blood."
"Bloody Martini?" asked Frost, raising an eyebrow.
"One black olive and red vodka mixed with well, blood."
"So you've finally joined the superior species," he stated with a knowing smile.
"I'll just let you guess on that." I smiled as the bartender handed me the drink.
At that moment, Frost's new girlfriend came and draped herself over him. The annoying ass hole from before, Quinn, wasn't far behind.
"Babe, can we go yet? This place is getting soooo boring," she crooned.
"Hey, Deac man, why are you talking to the super bitch monster?"
I laughed at that. Quinn jumped. Frost told me once my laugh was like a mix between the most seductive sound on earth and nails on a chalkboard. I didn't understand what the hell he was talking about, but whatever.
"Oh, 'super bitch monster.' That one I like. I take it you keep him around for the occasional comic relief?"
"Deac man, do you know this chick?" Quinn asked in confusion.
"This is Julia Thorne, an old friend of mine. Jules, this is Quinn."
"Yeah, I got that. Who's the platinum blonde slut?" I asked motioning to his girlfriend.
Her face squeezed up into anger. My gun was aimed at the center of her forehead before she even had time to move. She froze. I had a feeling I knew what her thought process was at the moment. After all, no human can move that fast.
"Shit!" exclaimed someone, probably Quinn. Deacon just stood there, smirking at me.
"This is Mercury. Quinn, shut your mouth. Your breath stinks."
"No way, no freaking way," Quinn said, staring.
"Something wrong Quinn?"
"She can't move like that."
"I believe I just did," I stated smoothly.
Quinn just stared. Mercury glared. Deacon smirked. I became very aware of the thirty or so vamps in the club starting to notice my gun.
Deacon laughed. And just like that, I was back in his circle, back to kill him.
Somehow or other, I ended up in his apartment that night. I walked in, taking in the sights, the possible locations of weapons, and the security cameras. I glanced at the fountain, or was it a pool. Who knew?
"Like the ducks."
He smiled. "You always said you thought they were cute."
"No, I believe I always said I thought they looked evil."
"Cute, evil, what's the difference?"
"I like the view."
I paused to look out the window. The entire skyline was spread out before me. Deacon came up behind me.
"Beautiful isn't it?"
I nodded. He put his arms around my waste, holding me tight, a very bad position for me, because I couldn't reach any weapon easily, a fact I became very aware of.
He kissed me lightly on my neck. I felt his fangs brush my skin.
"Deacon," I said, my tone warning him he was going to far.
"Twelve months was too long Jules. I've missed you."
"I was under the very firm belief that we were over."
"Really," he smirked. "Whatever gave you that impression?"
"For starters, your girlfriend sleeping on the floor below this."
"Jealous Jules?"
I snorted. "Oh please."
"I think you are."
He didn't let me speak. Instead, he sang softly into my ear.
"Take, oh take those lips away that so sweetly were forsworn;
And those eyes, the break of day, lights that do mislead the morn.
But my kisses bring again, bring again;
Seals of love, seals of love, but seal'd in vain, seal'd in vain.
Take, oh take those lips away that so sweetly were forsworn;
And those eyes, the break of day, lights that do mislead the morn, the morn."
I paused after he finished before I said anything. "Why is it you only sang to me when no one else was around?"
"I believe it's 'sing,' as in present tense," he said, kissing my neck. "You're the only person I sing for."
"Pity, I'm sure you're girlfriend would love a private performance."
He turned me so that I was facing him.
"Stop talking Julia."
Then he kissed me. He kissed me as if it was the end of the world, and this was our last minute before we were sucked into oblivion.
It was later that night when I sat up and quietly got out of bed. He lay there sleeping, completely unaware he was about to die. I went to where my discarded clothes lay, and grabbed one of my knives. He hadn't been surprised when he'd seen the weapons; he expected it. He even helped me remove some of the sheaths in my haste to remove my clothing.
I'd picked my favorite to kill him with. Coincidentally, he'd given it to me. It was silver, with tiny vines of climbing roses etched all over the blade. There were even tiny thorns on the vines.
I walked over to the bed. I sat down and knelt over him. I raised the knife for the killing blow.
But it never came down.
I paused and stared at him. I watched his sleeping form in confusion. Then I realized it.
I cursed him. Damn him for doing this to me. Damn him for loving me. Damn him for making me love him back.
I through on my clothes and left. I needed time to rethink, to recalculate. I needed time to convince myself he meant nothing, was nothing. I needed time, because I wasn't about to admit defeat.