David woke up with Max in his head for the second time in two nights and he was satisfied to know he'd succeeded in his mission in messing with him.
'Have fun last night?' Max said in his cool calm façade and David smiled at Dwayne but said nothing and they both dropped down and went out into the main cave. 'That's the last time you ever do anything like that.' David could hear the frustration in Max's voice and he was pleased he'd pushed him to an uncomfortable place.
'Whatever.' David dismissed Max's directive and it was then Dwayne noticed exactly what mood David was in.
'I want you to show Michael what we are, what he is. Show him tonight.' David rolled his eyes, it was the last thing he wanted to do tonight. 'And I know about Star and Michael. You lay a hand on him David, you're dead.' Max's tone turned deadly and David's anger peaked again.
'What's he on about?' Paul asked as he and Marko appeared.
'Apparently he didn't appreciate our visit.' Dwayne answered him, putting on his shoes, while David stood there looking like the epitome of pissed off.
'Nah, what did the bitch do this time?' Marko asked looking hard at David and David looked at him.
'She fucked him.' David said in his low voice and they all looked up at him, disbelieving how calm he was.
'What the fuck is she doing alive?' Marko looked over at her still sleeping form, disgusted and David slid his eyes over to her with an equally abhorred expression.
'Get out.' David said still looking at her.
'Huh?' Paul asked him like he didn't understand him.
'Get out!' David barked at them and they all knew well enough to get out of there. Marko was right, what the fuck was she doing alive? He wouldn't have put up with this from anyone else ever, in fact he'd killed his last 'girlfriend' for doing something similar and had chosen not to maintain any relationship after that, until Star, and the fact that Max knew fucked him off even more. He leaned against the back of the couch watching her, it would be so easy to kill her right now, to tear into her and drink her dry like he'd fantasized about so many times before. She wouldn't even know what had hit her and he could then get rid of the kid and go on like he had for the past century, doing whatever the fuck he wanted. He knew it was what Marko wanted and even though Paul seemed to like her, maybe he too had had enough of her, but Dwayne had told him he was meant to be with her and that had always stuck in David's mind. Maybe this was what Max wanted, he'd never wanted Star in the mix and to orchestrate this killed two birds with one stone. He had to give Max credit, he, like David, always got what he wanted no matter who was involved. He saw her wake up and he was instantly in her head and found her thinking about Michael and how much she wanted to see him again and then he saw her panic over not following through with his orders and wondering whether he was aware of that fact or not.
'I know you disobeyed me.' He answered her unspoken thoughts and her alarmed eyes found him and she instantly sat up covering her naked body. 'And I know what you have done.' He said looking her up and down and he saw her blush embarrassingly. 'I know everything.' David stood up and walked to her morphing his features into the monster beneath and he enjoyed the fear it provoked. It was the only aspect of this whole thing he was enjoying, he was about as close to being hurt as he could remember ever being. He grabbed her jaw hard, digging his nails into her skin and dragged her to her feet. He stood there staring at her and without warning he belted her hard across the face. 'You've left me no choice now Star, I'm going to have to give your boyfriend a dose of reality. Our reality. Your reality. You fucking leave this cave and you'll get far more than a sore cheek. You can be sure of that.' He watched as she began to crumble in front of him and he turned and left. David came out to the top of the cliff and the boys all watched him sceptically.
'It's time we showed Michael. We'll take him down to Panther.' David announced getting on his bike and Paul looked over at Dwayne with his face screwed up.
'So are we gonna go get him?' Marko asked and David shook his head.
'No, he can come to us.' David said, slightly distracted before shaking it off. 'Let's go to the Boardwalk.' David felt like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders but he still managed to maintain his cool careless exterior as they walked onto their turf. He tried to centre himself and stop thinking about Star but he was struggling. He couldn't believe she'd done it. As seemingly weak and submissive as he'd grown to know her to be, she'd shown real balls to not kill Michael after everything he'd told her and everything she'd seen David do, but she was also incredibly stupid to have let him catch her sleeping with him. They walked along the balcony above the stage area and looked over at the crowd below.
'So what are we actually going to do?' Marko asked David and Paul put one leg over the railing and looked at him. 'Are you going to finish her?' David looked at him and sighed. He didn't know what he was going to fucking do.
'If you're gonna kill her, can we kill him too? The guy's a dick.' Dwayne added. The whole Michael thing had proven to be nothing but a pain in the ass and Dwayne was over it.
'We have no choice with Michael and… I don't even want to think about her right now.' He turned his attention back to the crowd and tried to absorb some of the atmosphere, it was buzzing and he slowly felt his tension fading as he watched the girls shake their bits in front of him. He could feel Marko was still unhappy but Marko sometimes struggled with the way David chose to deal with things and he was just going to have to get over it. Dwayne pulled out a cigarette and lit it, leaning on the railing and David nudged him prompting him to hand one over. They stood there for a while content to be distracted by the crowd before them and surprisingly they didn't sense him approaching.
'Hey!' Paul called out just about losing balance as Marko was yanked backwards and out of the way before David had an irate Michael pulling on him and turning him to face him
'Where is she?' He demanded and David blew a lungful of smoke in his face laughing at him.
'Take it easy Michael.' David was dangerously on edge and Michael had no idea what he was doing or who he was dealing with.
'Where is Star, David?' He made himself clearer and David grabbed his jacket collar and changed his tone.
'Michael, you ever wanna see Star again, you better come with us now.' His expression became deadly serious and he snarled at Michael as he passed by him leaving Michael looking at Dwayne, who was his usual emotionless self and he followed David to his bike. They arrived at their rides and found Michael's bike was parked in front of David's and David snorted to himself. Michael was really throwing his dick around.
'Where are we going?' Michael demanded to know but he got no answer from anyone. 'If you have hurt her…' Michael thinly threatened and David stopped and looked at him. If he could, he would rip his tongue out and watch him drown in his own blood but instead he got on his bike and started it up.
'No holding back boys.' David projected to the boys. 'Get on.' He said to Michael and he motioned to Michael's bike then they all watched as Michael got on his bike and moved out of David's way allowing David to pull away and be followed by his boys.
They pulled up down the end of a side street leading onto Panther Beach and parked up their bikes. The boys all jumped off and climbed into a tree, which was a vantage point of a group of guys partying around a bonfire and Paul smiled at his brothers once he realised who it was. David laughed, it was Greg's boys and this couldn't be more perfect.
'Walk this way!' One of them sang as he danced around to Aerosmith.
'Talk this way!' Another one joined him and Marko smiled.
'Fate works in mysterious ways boys.' Dwayne silently said to the rest of them and David looked back at Michael.
'Michael! Over here.' David ordered him.
'Come on Michael.' Paul taunted him and Dwayne looked back with a levelled disinterest at the boy still seated on his bike.
'You don't wanna miss this.' David cackled at him and he got off his bike and came and joined him in the tree and the boys continued to laugh at him. David kept his eyes on the prize as he spoke to Michael. It was time. 'Initiations over Michael. Time to join the club.' David laughed as he showed his true self to the increasingly frightened boy and the other's laughed even more at Michael's expression. Michael looked terrified and he turned to Dwayne to see him in full vampire mode laughing in his face, then he looked around at Marko.
'Hi Michael.' Marko said to him then his attention went to Paul who just laughed hysterically at Michael's shock. The boys continued mocking him and fucking with his head until David gave the signal and they flew from the tree to attack their prey. Paul grabbed the first one and all hell broke loose. There was screaming and Greg's boys were all scrambling to get away from the beasts that were upon them but the boys were all over them. Marko snapped the neck of one while Dwayne dragged another across the sand to his death and David sunk his fangs into the skull of Greg's best mate and tore a strip of his scalp off. Dwayne ripped into his one and howled like a wolf and the boys began calling out Michael's name. Marko threw his kill into the flames and cheered and David looked over to see Michael looking on with the ever familiar glow in his eyes. Paul dropped his butchered body and growled shaking his head and Michael screamed and fell out of the tree onto the sand. The boys threw the rest of their carcasses onto the bonfire and returned to normal before walking up the sand dune to look down on Michael. They stood next to each other covered in blood and breathing heavily after their ordeal and Michael looked up at them. David felt an unbelievable sense of superior satisfaction showing Michael the truth and the power he possessed.
'So… Now you know what we are, now you know what you are. You'll never grow old Michael and you'll never die but you must feed…' David wiped the blood off his face and laughed at Michael as his face dropped face first in the sand. The boys walked off still laughing at the lump on the sand that was Michael and they rode off. David was pleased with the way it had gone and it had actually made him feel a lot better. He had firmly put Michael in his place and he figured Michael's days of fucking with Star were over. Max had what he wanted and he'd be off David's case, now he just had to deal with the bitch and things would be right in David's universe again. At least until he got out from under Max's rule and Michael took his place. They rode back to their parking spot and David decided he'd walk the trek back to the cave.
'Is that it? Is he Max's problem now?' Dwayne asked walking beside David.
'Here's hoping. I've had a fucking guts full of the guy. But I'll give him one thing, he's got balls. He's probably gonna make a decent pack member.' David mused.
'Too bad he aint gonna be with us.' Paul mentioned and it really was too bad, Paul actually kinda liked the guy.
'Fuck it, if he can get Max off our backs, I'll happily help turn the dude. But I have no plans on hanging out with him for the rest of eternity.' David said walking ahead. 'Especially after last night.'
'Speaking of which, you want some privacy?' Dwayne asked him.
'No way man, I ain't missing this!' Paul rubbed his hands together laughing.
'Tactful Paul.' Dwayne said back.
'No, he's right. I want you guys there. She can try and talk her way out in front of everyone, including Laddie.' David smiled, looking forward to making this as awkward and uncomfortable and scary as possible for her. He walked into the cave expecting to see her there waiting for him but only found Laddie there alone, playing on a skateboard and he froze when the boys entered. David saw the look of coy shyness tinged with fear as soon as Laddie saw them and David knew something was up. 'Where's Star?' David asked him and Laddie's eyes went straight to Dwayne. David whistled at him to get his attention again and Laddie looked back at him. 'I asked you a question.' He said and he could practically smell the fear coming from the boy. David frightened Laddie when he was ignoring him but now he was demanding information out of him, information that was going to get Star in trouble. 'Now!' David barked at him and the child folded like crepe paper.
'She's gone out.' Laddie blurted out.
'Where?'
'I don't know but she said it was important and she had to go alone.' Laddie divulged and David stared at him hard, compelling all the information out of him. 'She told me not to tell you.' David lifted an eyebrow at this and looked at the skateboard at the kid's feet. It looked new.
'Where did you get that?'
'I stole it.' Laddie said simply and Paul spat out a laugh. It wasn't the answer David expected and he nodded approvingly. Dwayne walked over and shook Laddie's hair with one hand and guided him over to the other side of the cave.
'Bitch.' David said under his breath but loud enough for Marko to catch it. 'Where the fuck are you?!' He growled into her psyche but he got no answer, which only exacerbated his mood even more. She was pushing him too far and he was ready to snap. He stormed over to his chair and dropped into it pulling out a cigarette. He'd sit there and wait for her, she'd have to come back before sunrise and before long, a flurry of sequinned cotton and lace came rushing into the cave and drew all the boy's attention. Very rarely had they ever seen her fly and it interested them. She stood there looking awkward and guilty all at the same time and he watched her until she made the first move.
'I'm sorry.' Star said moving towards him.
'For what? What exactly are you sorry for?' He snapped back at her and she stopped and looked at him. 'For fucking Michael last night? Or for going to him tonight after I told you not to leave here?' His words were laced with venom. 'Which is it?' He stood up and pushed his chair back in one swift move and he caught her flinch. 'Hmm?'
'I had to see if he was OK?' She said quietly.
'And why would you want to know if he is OK Star?' He watched her face turn a deep crimson and he read her like a child's book.
'Because I don't want you to hurt him.' He could hear her voice begin to shake.
'He's not your concern.' He dismissed her need to know. 'You don't belong to him, we've established that.' This was doing his head in.
'I know, but I feel guilty when you hurt someone because of me.'
'Don't fuck them then.' His comeback was instant and the boys reacted as he knew they would. 'You were told to stay put, do I need to start tying you up?' He smirked at her reaction and the boys whistled and crowed at the comment. 'Paul, you got some handcuffs or rope or some of that kinky shit don't you?' He called over to Paul and Star closed her eyes. He had her where he wanted her.
'Sure do. You know me!' Paul laughed and she looked sick.
'David, please, I won't do anything again. I promise.' He stalked towards her like she was a possession and grabbed her by her hair.
'You think I believe anything you say anymore?' He was asserting his power and control over her and it made him feel good and he forcibly kissed her. He pushed his tongue inside her mouth and made her respond to him then he withdrew, smiling at her. 'Tomorrow night, you're mine. Or this ends.' He warned her, motioning between them and he spun around and walked away.