Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to The Reformed Vampire Support Group, Catherine Jinks does. I do own the rights to Raquel, however
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As we walked and searched for my biter, Dave explained the Do's, Don'ts and Can'ts of being a vampire. I'm glad he was my sponsor for the night; he was very patient and explained everything in a way that just about anyone could understand. Any questions he didn't know how to answer, he told me straight up that he wasn't sure. There was no beating around the bush, there was no promises that the others would know, it was all straight forward so there was no misunderstanding. But our conversation drifted from vampires to our interests, hobbies and our selves.
"No way! You were in a band?" I said in total shock.
"And a damn good one too. I was the guitarist and the back up vocals," Dave said, seeming amused by my excitement.
"Awe man, I've wanted to be in a band forever. As much fun as singing solo is, it's much more fun when you're doing it in a group," I admitted with a meek smile.
"Well, you've got the look down, I'll give you that," the vampire beside me teased. I knew he was talking about the fact that half of my head was shaved bald. Most people, including my mother, found my hairstyle off putting. Though Dave didn't seem to mind. I was about to comment on his appearance when my companion's phone rang. He looked at the screen before answering.
"What's up, Father? … Yeah? … Alright, we're coming back now. We'll see you in a bit." With that, he hung up. When he saw my look of curiosity and grinned. "The priest found something." I smiled back before we started walking back. Dave shoved his phone back into his jacket pocket, which I had insisted he take back. But now that I was outside again, I wish I had kept it. I was trying to keep from shivering and chattering my teeth in the cold. But apparently I'm not very good at hiding my chill, I felt denim drape over my shoulders and hands rub up and down my arms.
"If you're cold, you just need to say so," Dave said with a chuckle. I pulled the jacket closer to me and gave him a thankful smile.
"I don't want you getting cold either," I justified as we continued to walk. He blinked before chuckling and puffing out his chest.
"Men don't get cold." Both of us broke out into a fit of laughter at the obvious lie. The rest of the walk there consisted of laughing and joking. I had a feeling that Dave hadn't really relaxed in a really long time. It took us about 20 to 30 minuets to get from where we were back to the church. Nina and Horus were waiting out front for us.
"We were starting to get worried," the smaller vampire said with a smile.
"About bloody time you got here. It's freezing and you two are taking your sweet time," Horus barked. Without waiting for our response and with a swish of his overly dramatic cape, he stormed back inside.
"Me thinks he doesn't like me very much," I said, looking between them.
"Horus is just an ass, ignore him," Dave stated with a shrug. I looked to Nina, who confirmed this statement with a nod. The three of us went into the church to be greeted by the group.
"Now that we are all together, I'll tell you all what I found out," Father Ramon started as we sat down. "There were about four people reported tonight, but only one of them was brought in. So there are three people unaccounted for. Luckily, this isn't the first time these people have been brought in, so we have names," the priest handed the names to Dave. "I'm going to rely on your hacking skills to figure out where these people live. If there are photos of them, show them to Raquel and hopefully she'll find a familiar face." Dave nodded and folded the paper before shoving it into his pocket.
"But what are we going to do once we find this guy?" Horus asked, crossing arms, "I'm not doing another Casmir." Everyone looked worried before Nina spoke up.
"I don't see why this should bother you, Horus. It was Dave, Father Ramon and I the majority of the time, you and everyone else just sat at my mum's house until we came back," she snapped at him.
"Yeah, right. We may not have been there to watch you make friends with Ruben and all that crap, but you came back with not just one but three mad men in toe!"
"Bite me, Horus!" This argument was getting us nowhere.
"Will you two shut the fuck up!" I growled at them, causing them both to stop and stare at me. "I don't know what happened in the past, and I honestly don't care. Regardless of if this is the same song and dance y'all have done before, whoever bit me is out there and who knows when he will strike next. We need to find out who he is, where he is and track him down so there aren't more members than there needs to be." I whipped around to stare down at Horus. "I don't know what your problem is, but you need to take that pole out of your ass and be helpful. And if you so much as mumble a snide remark between now and when this guy is caught, so help me I will beat you within an inch of your immortal life!"
Horus and the others stared at me in awe. I didn't learn until later that they hadn't seen a vampire have enough energy to behave in such a way. There was a moment of silence where I vaguely wondered if I had done something wrong.
"About bloody time someone said it," Nina stated, breaking the silence.
"Raquel is right, this arguing is getting us nowhere. If you don't want to participate, Horus, you don't have to," Father Ramon said with a nod. I heard Nina mumble something about Horus slowing us down if he wanted to help.
"I think we've had enough excitement for tonight. How about we all head home? We'll get more damage done if we go home and figure out a plan. If you think of anything, contact me," Ramon said with a nod.
"I don't have anyone's numbers," I stated, though already pulling out my phone and Hello Kitty address book.
Within 15 minuets, I had everyone's names and numbers, and even some email addresses in my phone and in my book. Everyone was starting to pile into two cars, and I was unsure of what to do.
"Where do you live, Raquel?" Nina asked. "Depending on what part of town it is, either Dave or Father Ramon can take you home."
"I live on Wongala Crescent Pennant Hills," I said, wondering if it would be better if I walked. Nina seemed to ponder that.
"I live right by there," Dave said, opening the passenger door from where he was in the drivers seat. I smiled before getting into the car. Nina bent down to look into the car.
"I'll see you guys next Tuesday?" she said.
"If not sooner," Dave said, readjusting his sunnies. Nina nodded before closing my door and heading over to Father Ramon's car.
"So, what's with the glasses?" I asked as Horus and George got into the back seat.
"Vampire eyes are really sensitive, like I told you earlier. Bright lights can cause us to bleed through our tear ducts," Dave explained, starting the car. I thought about the night and realized everyone had been wearing sunglasses, excluding Father Ramon. That's when I remembered that I was wearing some as well.
"Who's am I wearing?" I asked.
"Some of my spares, you can keep them if you want." I couldn't believe how kind Dave was, I would have to ask Nina later if he was really this nice or if it was some kind of act. It took us roughly eight minuets to drop off Horus and George before Dave turned around and headed towards my house.
"Dave?"
"Yes?"
"Thank you." Dave looked at me briefly from the corner of his eye. "You've been really good to me tonight. You've taken really good care of me and helped me along with this vampire thing. I don't think I could have handled it without your help." He smiled as he kept his eyes on the road.
"Whenever you need help, Raquel, ask me. I'll try to help you in any way I can," he said before starting to slow down. "Let me know when I'm getting close to your house." It wasn't until he said anything that I realized how close we were to my house. It's not generally very hard to spot my house. I'm the only red brick house on my street, but then again, there are no two houses that look alike. When we got close, I pointed it out to Dave and he parked next to the sidewalk rather than in the drive way, seeing as both my parents were home.
"You have my number and my email if you need anything," Dave said as I unbuckled. I smiled and tentatively hugged him. I felt a gentle squeeze around my waist before I was let go. As I opened the door, my mother was coming out of the house. "Do you need me to talk to her?" Dave asked, seeing the upset look on my mother's face.
"I think Father Ramon would have better luck getting to my mom," I said, also seeing the less than happy expression my mom was wearing.
"Just have her call the Father and he'll explain everything," Dave said as I grabbed my purse from under the passengers seat. I waved as he reached over and shut the door. He waved back before driving off. I approached my mom and smiled meekly at her.
"Where have you been?" She said, her arms crossed over her chest. "It's almost four in the morning and you promised to be home by at latest 12."
"Mom, you wouldn't believe me if I told you," I said before my mom held out something for me. I looked at it to find it was a drug test. "Mom, I'm not like that anymore! Just- let's go inside." She arched a brow before letting me inside. When I got inside, I heard her gasp.
"You're pale as a sheet!" she almost cried out before turning me around to look at me. "Are you sick? Do I need to take you to the hospital? What happened?" Before my mom could continue to interrogate me, I dialed Father Ramon's number and shoved my phone over to her.
"Father Ramon should be able to tell you everything. Just tell him that you're my mom and he'll explain what happened," I said before going and resting my head on the table. This was going to be difficult.
(Authors Comments: OMG this is SO much better than the fan fic I had going on before! Alright, y'all know I write romance scene's before the plot even gets there. So, in order to read the next romance scene, you have to have read the book. Who killed Casmir and how was he found?)