Jade and Allison had come to keep me company during work. It was strange seeing them have absolutely no memory about what had happened, but I was glad Eric had glamored them either way. It would have taken some time to get over the entire debacle, and while I remembered everything perfectly, their complete oblivion about it all helped me forget as well.
I couldn't help but feel anxious. A vampire knew my identity, and while he wasn't like most of them, he still was a vampire. It made me suspicious of Sam as well. I knew he was a shifter, would he know there was something up with me? I could only hope that he hadn't lived long enough to experience mermaids and didn't even know we existed.
Even though it wasn't busy, I made a decent amount of tips that night. I convinced my friends to stay until closing time so I could drive home with them as I didn't really wanted to be alone in the dark. It wasn't like my friends could offer me much protection, but it made me feel more at ease.
I told my friends goodbye, promising I would come over tomorrow for drinks and a movie, and continued to walk up my drive way. Ever since we went to Fangtasia I kept all the lights on, and even though Eric said it didn't work, I kept a can of pepperspray in my hand while I unlocked the door.
As I stepped inside, something crunched beneath my feet. I looked down to find a brown folder on the ground. It must have been slipped under the door, but I couldn't help but wonder why, since my mailbox was right next to the road.
I reached down to grab it, closing the door behind me first, and continued to the living room. There was no name on the front of the folder, and no return address on the back. It seemed like it hadn't been delivered by the mailman, but by someone else.
With my curiosity growing I ripped open the folder, taking out the smooth paper what was inside. I had expected something like a letter, but instead I found five photos inside. My eyes focussed on the first, and I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
The photos were of me, and to my horror, I was naked. The black and white picture depicted me, taking off my bra. The next one was of me, taking off my panties. The next one was me in the water, as was the fourth, but the final one took my breath away, and not in a good way. It was me again, but apart from my naked body, there was something more on the photo. It was my mermaid tail.
"Motherfucker," I cursed out loud, gripping the pictures tightly between my finger. My blood was boiling as my skin grew hot. I couldn't believe he did this. Here I was, thinking he was unlike any other vampire I had met, but Eric was exactly the same.
I felt violated, but above all, I was scared. These pictures were taken during the day, which meant Eric had actually told someone about me and send them to do his dirty work. I immediately recognized from where they were taken, and I thought I had made absolutely sure there had been no one there.
My eyes scanned the final photo again. The tail was clearly visible, even though the picture was black-and-white. It shone brightly in the sun. Even I had to admit it was a perfectly timed picture, but I had no idea why he would send me this, without any note. Was he trying to blackmail me? Was this his perverted way of getting into my pants?
I sighed, trying to control my anger because I didn't feel like ruining my own plumbing like I had ruined Fangtasia's. I have had my run ins with vampires before, but this was a first. At least I could always claim the photos were photoshopped, or that it was a silly costume. Everyone knew mermaids only existed in fantasies, right?
Darkness had fallen outside, which meant that Eric was awake. I looked out of the window to my car. I wanted to have a relaxing bath to end the day on a positive note, but everything had turned sour in a matter of seconds. I needed answers, and I needed them now.
As always, there was a large line outside of Fangtasia. Only a few days before I stood among them, anxious to get in and get a taste of what vampires were like. Now I wished none of it had happened. If I had declined I would have never met Eric, and my identity would still be safe.
I had no intentions of joining the queue, instead, I went to the front (with protests from the people behind me) and confronted Pam, who was checking ID's again.
"I need to speak with Eric," I said, my voice stern, even though she probably wasn't very impressed by it.
"We all do, darling," Pam replied with a fake smile.
"Pam, I don't have time for games. I really need to see him."
I guess Pam saw the determined look in my eyes, and even though it was reluctantly, she still stepped aside. The people in line began to shout in anger, but it took one look from Pam before they were silent again. I stepped past her, and headed in, right into the place I vowed to never visit again.
My work clothing felt oddly out of place, but that was okay because I wasn't here to fit in. My eyes rested on the door to the bathroom for a mere second, flashbacks of what had happened returning to my memory. I shook my head. No. I was here for answers, not for post traumatic stress.
Eric was seated on his usual spot: the throne. I barged over, not caring that I hit several people with my shoulder on my way over. When I stood finally before him, the pictures clutched between my fingers he looked at me.
"Serena," he said. I could tell he was surprised to see me here, and I had no idea why. Did he really think I would let this go?
"We need to talk," I demanded. "Now."
Luckily, Eric obliged. With incredible speed he stood next to me, and it wasn't until now that it dawned on me that this was the first time I was with him without protection ever since he found out what I was. My rage was partially transformed into a form of fear as he could do whatever he wanted with me now. No laws of property were protecting me.
When he placed his hand on the small of my back to guide him to his office, I shivered and quickly stepped aside. Eric seemed to acknowledge that I felt uncomfortable and didn't try again. Once we were in, he closed the door behind us and moved behind his desk.
"Talk," he then simply stated.
"What the fuck is this," I said, throwing down the folder on his desk.
Eric used his vampire speed again and before I could blink he had the pictures in his hand. As he looked at the first one, a smile unraveled on his lips, and I wanted nothing more but to hit him.
"Well, these are excellent pictures, Serena."
But to my surprise, his smile disappeared like snow before the sun when he rested his gaze on the final one.
"Are you trying to blackmail me?" I tried. "If you want my blood you know you can take it without asking. Is this a matter of principle for you?"
Eric ran his fingers through his hair as he studied the photo intensely.
"I didn't take these pictures, Serena."
"I'm not stupid Eric, I know these were taken during the day. Did you seriously tell someone about me? Are you deliberately trying to risk my life?"
"No. I had no one take these pictures. This wasn't me."
I ruffled my brows as my fingers started to play with the hem of my work t-shirt. Was this another cruel joke, like the pictures? I couldn't tell anymore, as vampires were notoriously hard to read.
"Then who did take them?"
Eric placed the photos back on his desk as he sat down behind it.
"I don't know."
"What do you mean you don't know?" I said, growing impatient.
"I said, I don't know."
Eric's voice was laced with rage, and I wasn't sure if he was angry with me, or with whoever took these pictures. What I did know was that it had become very apparent that he hadn't ordered to have these pictures taken.
I sat down on the chair before the desk, rubbing my hands together. "This is bad, Eric. It's obvious you're not the only one who knows, and god knows how many people have seen these pictures by now."
"Was there no note?"
I shook my head. "The pictures were it."
He seemed to have been lost in thought, and I could only hope that years of wisdom would help him in solve this mystery.
"I know you can protect me during the night," I said, before quickly adding, "If I wanted to. But you can't during the day. These pictures were taken, during the day. And how did they know? The only people who had their suspicions were you, and Pam."
"It wasn't Pam," Eric replied immediately. "She would never do something like this."
"Maybe she unintentionally told someone else," I suggested, not trying to point any fingers, but merely make sense of the situation.
"Trust me, it wasn't Pam."
The words trust me felt strange coming out of the mouth of a vampire and I wasn't sure if I could ever believe him. How could I trust him when I was able to keep my identity a secret for years, and now in a matter of a day it seemed like everyone knew.
"What do we do, Eric?"
"First of all, you, do nothing," he said, continuing before I could protest. "I will take care of this."
The favors he owed me kept adding up.
"Eric, no offense, but if it wasn't for this stupid bar and that fucking vampire, I would've never been in this position, so I feel a little conflicted about trusting you."
Within a split second he stood before me and I felt obliged to stand as well. My heart rate began to increase as his face was now closer to mine than it had ever been before. Nothing could hold him back when he attacked, and I wished I was wearing something like a scarf to at least cover my neck.
"You have no other choice but to trust me, Serena."
He had captured me with his gaze and I wasn't able to pull away, as if he was glamoring me anyway.
"Your word means more to me than your trust," I said, before realizing his face was now so close that if he was alive, I would have felt his breath on my skin. "Promise me you'll find whoever did this."
Eric didn't hesitate for a moment. "I promise."
"I'll leave you to it then."
I escaped his gaze and grabbed the pictures on the desk. Eric protested, claiming he still needed those but I knew better than to fall for his little games.
"Just remember what it looked like," I told him, not really feeling comfortable with leaving my nude pictures with him.
Before I was able to head out of the door, I could hear Eric speak behind me.
"Don't worry, I will."
That night, I couldn't sleep again. These vampires were costing me more sleep than I wanted to admit, and even though my body was tired, my mind wasn't. While I was glad Eric hadn't taken those pictures (unless he was lying, but something told me wasn't), I was still scared about the fact someone else had.
To avoid going completely insane, I told myself it had been sheer coincidence. Someone probably thought I was going skinny dipping and decided it would be funny to take some pictures. Little had they known that my legs would suddenly change into a tail.
But why send them to me? This part still remained a mystery to me, and I knew it was going to keep my up all night if I didn't push it out of my mind. I had to trust Eric on his words, and hope he would deliver. As afraid as I was to admit it, he was the only hope I had.
A/N: Things are getting serious! The remainder of the first book will revolve about solving this mystery, which should bring her and Eric very close ;) I want to thank you for reading this story and leaving a review. I really love reading them and please let me know your thoughts!