Club Vampyr

Chapter 22

Previously on Club Vamp: Michel makes arrangements to get Kerry out of the country, but instead of rushing her directly to the airport, he instead decides they should follow through with the original plan to go to ClubVamp and get the boss's attention. Kerry freaks out, realizing that the boss is really the guy who had pulled her out of traffic the day before. Emphasis on day. When Michel hears this, he becomes really animated and leaves her with Tim for a moment. Kerry finds out that Michel was watching as the vampire killed her friend, only stepping in to stop it once she and Nathaniel entered the room:

"I think you killed my best friend."

"Tell me I'm wrong," Kerry asked, her voice as neutral as she could make it. She didn't want him to know how betrayed she felt, but more importantly she didn't want him to hear the pleading tone that was surely in her voice. She wouldn't beg, she decided, especially since she was sure she was right.

"I can't," Michel explained, sitting down with his fingers steepled in front of him. His middle fingers pressed against his chin as he observed her carefully. "I killed Nelle."

He said the words as though it were a simple action, with no consequences to anyone, just like he would say 'the moon's bright tonight' or 'I can see well in the dark'. Kerry stared at him, furious breath coming quickly and her eyes widening in betrayal and grief. "I hate you," she murmured quietly, tears streaming from her eyes.

Michel blinked at her, his eyes becoming dull. The transition was so quick, it looked like a flinch. "Sit down," he commanded harshly as she moved to leave. "I'd willingly leave it at that, but you've forced my hand."

"Oh geez, really?" she said sarcastically, not bothering to wonder what she had done to make him tell her anything. "It's a shocker that little ol' me could force the hand of a cold blooded killer."

"If I'm a cold blooded killer," Michel responded coldly, "you're a nosy, spoiled child." He paused for a second, anger creeping into his classic features. Finally he sighed, running his hand through his hair. "How'd we get into a name calling match?"

Kerry regarded him, venom still in her eyes. She didn't notice that he had inadvertently used the word 'we'. There were a lot of things she wasn't noticing, but would later keep her awake for hours contemplating and reliving. "You killed my best friend!" she accused again, slightly hysterical. Kerry leapt from her seat, her hand connecting sharply with his cheek. She observed him, heaving heavily through her nose, and made a fist with the same hand, wondering if it would do more damage if she tried it again.

"Don't think about it," Michel warned, standing up so that her chest was inches from his. He looked down at her dispassionately. "I allowed it once, since what you said is true, but you at least have to give me the courtesy of explaining before I give you the chance to hit me again."

"So you can just lie to me?" She asked, backing off.

"Lying to you is an exercise in futility." He sat back down, leaving her hovering uncomfortably above him. For a few awkward moments she remained standing before backing into her seat. "The best way to explain this is to point out what you already know. You know that I was watching as Nelle died; you know I changed her. You know that I'm third in command under Andrew, but that I'm hiding a great deal of power from him. He showed you that he has the Hand of Surya, and that he is unstable. What you don't know yet are my reasons, and you were right for guessing that there was one underlying factor beneath everything."

Kerry crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him so he wouldn't forget she was furious, but now her sense of curiosity was keeping her rooted to the chair, and hanging on to his every word. If this was honesty from Michel, then hell was really flying and pigs were freezing over. "What is it?" she finally asked, trying not to seem overly eager.

"I'm here to kill him," he said simply.

Somehow, Kerry wasn't surprised.

"But first, I have to discredit him. He has this idea that vampires and humans can coexist, and that we won't all become addicted to the large amount of blood suddenly available, and that you won't do everything possible to obtain our powers. Or worse, see us as a threat and eliminate us one by one as human nature predicts. Somehow, he's gotten quite a following."

Kerry thought about that, not noticing as he observed the thoughts flickering across her face. A few minutes later, she finally spoke up. "So to discredit him you set up a murder on opening night at his new club? You were watching through the security cameras to make sure that everything went according to plan."

"Yes. A body was the best way to ruin the club."

"But there was no scandal," she mused, her brow drawn together in thought. "Because you saved the victim?"

"I didn't save her. She's still dead."

Kerry didn't notice she was no longer angry; what Michel was telling her was so much more interesting and thought provoking than the fact Nelle had almost died. It was like now that he was telling the truth, the fact he was in the wrong was almost secondary. Kerry had always been more interested in the whys of a situation than the ultimate outcome anyway. "So what now?"

"Now, it's a bit tricky," Michel told her, finally easing into a relaxed position. "Now I don't just have myself to protect."

"You involved me long before I was ever involved, if that makes sense. I've been a part of this since the first time we met. At least now I'll know what hit me if it gets me killed."

Michel nodded once, agreeing with her assessment. "You asked me earlier whether there were any other options besides running away, and I didn't respond."

"Deliberately."

"Yes. There is one other option. We have to take him out before he gets to you."

Kerry stared at him silently. She was already starting to forgive him for Nelle, and she didn't know why. It might be his sense of rationality, or it could go back to the fact she always expected the worst from him and he constantly validated her suspicions. She looked at his blue eyes, trying to be so sincere on his handsome face, and really did hate him a little. "You want me to do it, don't you?" she asked with a sense of the inevitable.

"You've killed before," he said simply.

"It was self defense!"

"So is this."

"No," Kerry pointed out. "This would be premeditated. It would be murder."

"No one would ever know," he promised. "You'd just have to intentionally let him get close to you—"

"No!" Kerry exclaimed. "I will not just kill someone in cold blood. I'm not like that."

"Like me, you mean?"

"Sure, or anyone else who would take a life. The jails are full of people like that. If you knew the real me at all, you'd know I'm not one of those people.

"You'd be surprised what I know about you," Michel said, rising to his feet and slipping his gun out of the back holster and placing it on the table between them. "You'd be surprised what even the most altruistic person would do under the right circumstances. If pushed, anyone can take a life. It's human nature." Michel observed her face. "Or maybe you wouldn't be surprised at all."

"Mich—"

"Take the gun," he urged. "You won't have to pull the trigger. Just lure Andrew into a trap, and I'll take care of the rest."

Kerry stared at the weapon in his offered hand, her memory being dragged back to that night four years ago when Marsala had promised her the exact same thing. It had been the worst mistake of her life. She shook her head desperately. "Don't put me in that position again."

"Kerry," Michel said, his voice grave. "This is me. I'm not Marsala and Andrew is not in the same situation I was. You're not betraying anyone."

"What about myself," she said softly. "I'm betraying myself."

Michel grabbed her arm, holding her wrist steady as he slapped the gun into her hand. "I don't need you with me on this," he said harshly, and then changed his tone to something gentler, "but I'd like you to be."

"Then why give me the gun?" she asked, placing it gingerly on her lap.

Michel shrugged. "Protection. I can tell you aren't carrying the one I gave you earlier."

"At this rate I'll go through your entire armory," Kerry joked, looking down at the weapon she wouldn't shoot. She wondered if he was trying to set up an opportunity for her to kill his boss – even though she had been clear that she wouldn't – or if he really wanted her to be able to protect herself. Vampires were quick, after all, but they weren't superman, and they couldn't outrun a speeding bullet. "Ok," she said finally, "I trust you."

Michel's eyebrows shot up, and he stared at her as if she had just said something incredibly interesting. "You trust me? I was the one who ordered the death of your best friend. I'm a cold blooded killer who is trying to get you to do my dirty work. How can you trust me?" he questioned, self-disgust evident in his tone. One again, he was pushing her away.

Kerry sighed, standing so that they were back to being inches apart. "Of course I'm having trouble with that, but I also can't help but remember that you changed her. You didn't have any ulterior motives besides helping out Tim." Kerry paused, putting her hand boldly on his chest. "But I wonder, was that the real reason?"

"I did change Nelle out of guilt and a sense of obligation," he promised. "But it wasn't because I set up her death. I feel no remorse for that – someone needed to die."

"Then why?" she asked, slipping her hand up his chest and around his neck as she molded the front of her body to his. "Did you really do it because she was Tim's son's girlfriend?" She gently kissed the curve of his neck, pulling back so she could see him. "Why, Michel?"

"Because then you walked into that room," he whispered softly. "I did it for you, Kerry."

For a moment she had to close her eyes, protecting herself from the fierce expression on his face, or maybe from the rush of emotions surely present on hers, but then she had to open her eyes to make sure it was real. "I know," she claimed, kissing him forcefully.

"You were so close," he said between kisses, navigating her back onto the couch. "And wearing that evil little outfit. You screwed everything up." He kissed her again, his tongue rough against her lips. His hand slid up her thigh, fingers curling around the band of her underwear. "Do you love me?"

Kerry stared at him for a beat as he paused, waiting for her answer. Her traitorous heart pounded wildly in her chest, and her mouth went dry. "No," she answered hoarsely.

"That doesn't matter to me," he reminded her, pushing himself away. "But I have a feeling it means something to you."

He's trying to trick you! Her mind screamed. Kerry sat up, pulling her skirt back down and cleared her throat. "It does," she told him, searching his face for any signs that she had given the wrong answer. His eyes were unfathomable. She wanted to kiss him again, to allow him to seduce her. It was strangely like a death wish, she realized, wanting to allow him to touch her before it was too late. She realized that she had subconsciously known that once this was all over, whether she survived or not, she would never see him again. Why shouldn't she let them go out with a bang, then? God, she thought, it would so gooood. Kerry clasped her hands on her lap, her nails digging into her palms, and stared downwards as a blush crossed her cheeks.

He observed her for a moment before moving away, sitting behind his desk and fiddling with his computer. As he was typing, his fingers moving rapidly over the keyboard, Kerry listened to the taps and tried to calm herself. She thought about this Andrew guy and everything she had just learned. Then, to distract herself, she considered everything at a deeper level. Why was she the target?

"Hey Michel," she asked, her head snapping up the moment she thought of something. "Have you considered that it might not be me he's after?"

He glanced up, one of his eyebrows raised in question. "He admitted that it was."

"But what if it's not? What if he's really playing a game with you?"

Michel stared at her for a beat.

"It kind of fits," she rushed on. "He's either the blindest fool ever, or he knows that you're out to kill him and he's toying with you. He knows we have history, and he sees me as the best strategy."

"I had thought about it," Michel conceded.

"And," Kerry asked, trailing the word off in a question.

"And it's a possibility."

"But one you believe to be the case?"

"Oh. No," he said shortly. "I truly believe it's you he's after. You've intrigued him."

Kerry's nostrils flared. "Let me translate that for you," she responded. "I might be the target, but you know I'm not the ultimate prize. However, if I still believe that my life is in danger, I'm more likely to help you."

"Your life is in danger," he promised. "I wouldn't lie about that, but there is a chance that he wants me to be concerned with your safety more than my own."

"I hate vampire games," Kerry exclaimed vehemently.

Michel sighed. "The world is made up of games," he said wearily. "Even you play them."

Kerry didn't like that assessment, even though she rationally knew it to be the truth. "You're right," she told him. "I know this girl from high school who told her pre-med boyfriend she was pregnant last year, and after they were married she claimed to have lost the child. Everyone was so sympathetic to her and I couldn't understand why no one could see the truth."

"A lot of people don't want to see the truth," he told her, clicking on his mouse. "And then there are people who would rather see the worst than live safely with their heads buried in the sand."

"You're talking about me, aren't you?"

"It usually takes years for someone to develop the kind of cynicism you have towards the world. You seem so proud of your ability to see through people, as though it's a gift, and here you are drowning in all these manipulations."

"I don't think—"

"So you're allowed to psychoanalyze me, but I'm not allowed to make a few observations about you?" he asked, settling back in his swivel chair with his arms clasped loosely across his stomach. "That fits. You see, Kerry, you see what you think is truth with everyone around you, and you have a remarkable ability to be right most of the time so that you take for granted that all your assessments are true, but when it comes to yourself you're one of the blindest people I've met in a long time."

"What do you mean?" she asked sharply. "Give me an example."

Michel smiled. "That would make it too easy for you." He stood, stretching slightly. "It's time."

"Time?" Kerry asked, scrambling to her feet.

"The club is going to close in about half an hour. Andrew likes to sit in the empty club after closing. I think this would be the perfect time to approach him."

"It sounds too obvious," Kerry told him, "like he's setting up a time for us."

"Of course he is. But he expects us to notice that and judge it as a trap, so that's why we're going with the obvious."

"But," Kerry argued. "What if he thinks we'll decide that since he's setting up a time, we'll assume he doesn't expect for us to go for it, and therefore knows that we will?" She paused, "I think I'm getting a headache."

"Look, just let me take care of the planning, ok?"

Kerry wanted to argue, but finally nodded.

It only would have taken Michel a few minutes to outline his plan, but she interrupted him with questions so frequently that it took them almost the full half an hour. Kerry was starting to see why he decided to prepare her so early. When he finished, she could do nothing but stare at him with a horrified expression on her face.

"That won't work," she told him. "It's too… I don't know."

"Only phase one happens tonight. We'll worry about the rest of it tomorrow."

Kerry shook her head. "I don't think I can do that."

"Kerry," Michel said sharply. "Calm down. Panicking won't help."

"Calm down," she asked incredulously. "You want me to walk right up to someone trying to kill me and lie to him. Never mind that this guy is a vampire with supersensitive senses and will be able to hear even the slightest hitch in my heartbeat and smell the nervous sweat dripping down my back."

"You're being melodramatic."

"I'm being rational," Kerry shot back. "I'm not some secret agent or anything who has been trained in stuff like this."

Michel put his hand on her shoulder, giving the most comfort he ever really did without brining the intimacy of sex into things. Kerry moved closer to him, putting her head on his chest as she twined her arms around his back. He held her awkwardly, as though it had been a long time since he had done anything quite so chaste. "I'm scared," she muttered against the soft cloth of his shirt.

"Hmmm," he hummed in agreement.

"Not only for me," she told him, listening to the slow, steady beat of his dead heart. "I'm scared for you."

"I'll survive," Michel assured her. "It's what I do best." Tentatively, his hand touched her hair, his fingers stroking down the back of her skull before he forced himself to stop.

"Michel?" she asked softly. "If you're worried you can stay with me today. I'll stay home from school and make sure no one comes into the apartment."

He stiffened against her, and Kerry could feel his surprise, then he placed a tender kiss on her forehead. "Thanks," he told her, and she could hear the amusement in his voice, "but I have somewhere safe to stay the day."

Kerry pulled back with regret, feeling surprisingly comforted even though she had to initiate the contact. When did she start to feel safe with Michel? Around the time he saved her life days ago? Or had it started long before that? "I guess I should go," she said finally.

©RelenaFanel.April2.2008

I've been updating this story for 2 years now. 22 chapters later, and you'll be pleased to hear that it's starting to wind down. Watch for the final 2-3 chapters in the next month or so.

I'll soon be introducing a new CotN story. It's called Dreams, so keep an eye out for it starting the first of May (or sooner). If you want something new to read IMMEDIATELY, check out Carnival (CotN), my Spring Break submission for Murking Fantasy on LiveJournal. Links are in my profile, but it should be posted on this site soon (so long as I remember).