Chapter Three
As Cecilia wandered through the seedier end of Bourbon Street, I followed along on the rooftops.
She had affected a drunken stumble and seemingly wasn't paying attention to her surroundings. She was the perfect bait. Her out-on-the-town clothing revealed plenty of her skin, which was flawless, and the color of coffee lightened with a lot of milk. She was barely five feet tall and built very slightly. To human eyes, she looked beautiful, weak, and very drunk.
To human eyes, anyway.
She stopped in front of a dark alley, seemed to consider it for a long time, and then staggered into it. I saw two men watching her, and one elbowed the other. They followed her, shooting sidelong glances, making sure no one was paying attention. Making sure there were no witnesses.
They entered the alley and signed their own death warrants. Cecilia was very practiced at this game, and she stayed far enough ahead to be out of easy reach, but close enough to be followed. When she deemed she was far enough from Bourbon Street, she sat down on a milk crate. The men approached her, and one of them said, "Hey, you know you shouldn't be walking alone this late at night, right?"
"Yeah. Something could happen to a pretty little thing like you," the second chimed in.
"He's right," said the first guy. "All /sorts/ of things could happen."
The second moved to block her from moving deeper into the alley. Cecilia stood up and looked at the first one. All pretense of drunkeness left her, but the creeps seemed to not notice. "What sorts of things?" she asked evenly.
"I'll put it this way. If you don't fight, this will go a lot easier," Creep number one said.
"Hell, you might even have some fun. If you don't fight," Creep two.
Cecilia stepped toward the first one. She was still moving slowly, human speed. I smiled slightly; she intended to have fun with these two. I agreed. Their kind made me sick. "What if I told you the same thing? What if I told you that it would hurt you a lot less if you didn't struggle?" she purred seductively.
The first guy shot a glance at the second, confused. This wasn't how this was supposed to go. "What are you talking about?"
The second guy said nervously, "Look at her eyes, Jay. What's wrong with her eyes?"
"What am I talking about?" Cecilia asked retorically as she paced. "I'm talking about the fact that you're in the last few seconds of your pathetic little lives. I suggest you get on your scuzzy knees and pray to whoever it is that listens to the prayers of human trash."
The second guy had blocked himself from the only escape by placing himself between the dead end and Cecilia. The first guy was starting to edge back toward Bourbon Street, and I could tell from his body language that he was getting ready to run.
I dropped from the roof soundlessly into the alley, blocking his escape. He turned to leave the alley, apparently shaken from the way his intended victim had been talking to him, and found his path blocked by me. "Stay a while," I smiled at him. "You were eager to have some fun a few minutes ago. So let's have some fun."
I launched myself and hit him at the same time Cecilia took down the second guy. They didn't have time to so much as whimper. I pressed my knee into my victim's chest. I could feel his lungs spasming as he tried to pull in a breath to scream, but the pressure I was putting on them wouldn't allow it. I put my face close to his and took in the almost-comical expression of extreme fear. "This is what the people you've hurt felt like. Everyone you've ever victimized felt the way you do right now. And this is your payback for your crimes."
I sunk my teeth into his neck, severing his carotid artery and jugular vein as easily as a seamstress would snip a bothersome thread. I formed a seal around the wound with my lips and drew his life force into myself. The feeling was ecstacy. As the blood drained from him and into me, there was a high, a sense of fulfillment, that could never be described. It was so much more than sustenance. It was elation; it was total victory.
All too soon, the body was drained. I felt no remorse; this man would have raped and robbed my mate, left to his own devices. Cecilia was standing over her victim, dabbing at her mouth with a hankerchief in a civilized way. "Disgusting creatures," she said mildly.
"The world is better off," I agreed. I looked at the sky and saw that it was rapidly lightening, our sign to retreat home. "Should we dump them?" I asked, thinking of the nearby swamp where the alligators would take care of the evidence.
She sighed, as if I'd suggested a chore that wasn't really necessary. "I suppose. We'd have to hunt somewhere else for a few weeks if we don't."
I pulled her close and kissed her. "I'll take care of it."
She smiled. "Do you mind?"
I shook my head and smiled back. "I'll be home in a few minutes. I love you, Cici."
"I love you too, Mason."
Author's Note: I hope you're enjoying the story so far! I see from the traffic stats that people are reading; I wouldn't know if you're enjoying or not, because I haven't gotten any reviews. If you'd like to see this finished, please let me know what you think. It's not a threat, it's just fair warning...without any motivation, this story will probably die an early and ignonimous death =( so please, take the time to leave a short review with your thoughts! Thank you in advance!