~Until Your Heart Stops Beating~
-Edward's POV-
It was dark when I woke from my sleep. The streetlights outside shined through the unshielded window, its manufactured light dancing across Rosaline's face. She lay beside me with one hand beneath the pillow under her head and the other beside her lips. She was facing me though now. Her breathing slow and so soft that I can hardly hear it despite my excellent ears.
I lay there for a long while just to watch her. I want to observe how a human sleeps; how she sleeps; how I used to sleep when I was like her. It is peaceful as though she believes she is safe from everything inside her subconscious mind. I wish I could sleep like that again and I think that I might have been close this time.
There is something about this girl. She is… different. Not different because she is human or because her blood is so peculiar, but different in a special way. More so than anyone I have ever met or remember meeting; human or vampire. She is unusually compassionate and kind towards the creatures that lit her world on fire and forced her to watch it burn; creatures that continue still to haunt her. It confuses me, her willingness to trust, to care, and at the same time it amazes me.
I slowly reach out a hand to her. I brush back the hair that has fallen over the side of her neck from behind her ear. She sighs softly, contently like a babe feeling the touch of their parents' gentle hand, and then falls silent once more. She makes no noise, no movement apart from her eyes that creep from left to right beneath their lids. I brush her hair away from her face so it all rests behind her head on the pillow. I smooth it out, feeling just how silky it is.
I look over the black and blue bruise on her forehead, cursing myself again for not buckling her into the car. She is lucky she hadn't gone through the windshield. My eyes catch sight of something hidden towards the nap of her neck and behind the bottom of her ear. Two familiar circular scars. It was a bite; faint, but still visible if you look hard enough.
I feel anger well up inside of me. It is Bromley's teeth that had made the mark; his bite that she had hoped would turn her into one of the monsters.
I trail my fingers over it feather light and close my eyes tightly. I never believed in the idea of God. However, I thank whatever higher power there is for protecting her against the darkness that had overcome the world. She is the light in all of this; the single thread of hope I still cling to.
I pull my hand back to myself and then carefully climb out of bed. I don't want to wake Rosaline for two reasons. One: she looks like she could use the sleep. Two: I don't know what to say to her after what I had said before she fell asleep.
"You may not have fangs like you wanted, but you're one of us, Rosaline."
I pondered a moment about writing a note to apologize. I can't bring myself to do it though. Whether by pride or shame, I don't know the answer. Perhaps both. I quickly take a shower, laying my hands against the tiles on the wall and letting my head droop. I allow the water to wash away my sins and my nightmares.
I get dressed in a dark suit, watching Rosaline through the reflection in the mirror hanging in the closet as I fix my tie. She mumbles something in her sleep and rolls onto her back, sighing softly as she drifts deeper into her dreams. I can't help but smile slightly at the sight of her sleeping in my bed and in my clothes.
I have never hidden the fact that I have feelings for this woman. I had given up on denying my feelings for her the moment I first laid eyes on her in the Abyss. She was so… entrancing. I laugh at the image of her in my mind, thinking back to the day I met her. She was spritely and quick-tongued, unafraid to speak her mind to the guards and me. That is what I had meant when I told her she had fangs like us; was one of us. She is unafraid or at least pretends to be. She stands up against she finds wrong. She fights. She doesn't back down.
I will not allow her to know or anyone to know my feelings for her. It is too risky. The situation was already bad enough. The lion falling for the lamb... It is sick and I know it, but I cannot fight it. I am sick; a monster, a killer. The more I try to deny what is happening, the faster and harder I am falling.
I walk towards her side on the bed and kneel down. I place a hand gently against her cheek, the warm blood rushing through her veins beneath the pale peach flesh. I quickly kiss her forehead and walk to the door of the room. That was the closest I can ever get to being with her; to loving a human.
I take a look back at her as I close the door and then I'm gone. I think back to what I had said before about her being like us; vampires. I know my words had hurt her. I hadn't meant for them to, but they had none the less. She was like us, like me. She was forced to become something against her nature in order to survive. She assimilated, but in another way.
Frankie was gone when I got to the bottom of the stairs; duffle bag and all. I don't think he is going to be coming back anytime soon either, which is good because I had work. I hated the idea of leaving Rosaline home alone in a neighborhood full of vampires after the sub-sider last night and Frankie showing up out of the blue. I have no choice though. I had to go to work. It would be suspicious if I didn't show up. Especially since I knew that the entire building would be in an uproar about Rosaline missing or at least those few who knew of her existence at all.
The streets are bustling with vampires as I walk into the Bromley Marks Building. I can see several officers questioning everyone they can get a hold of. I can make out some of what is being said. The officers have no idea what they are really searching for. All they asked is if anyone had heard or seen anything strange yesterday.
As soon as I walk past the front desk, I hear my name being called. A woman I know to be Bromley's assistant hands me a note, telling me that I am expected on the top floor. So, I quickly stop by the lab to drop my things off and head towards the elevator, riding it till I reach the top floor. I am lucky to escape the officers. I'm not an expert at lying.
"Ah, Edward," Charles greets as I step out of the elevator. He walks over to me and places a hand on my shoulder. The urge to rip that hand off suddenly arises as Rosaline's words reverberate in my head.
"Charles Bromley is the vampire that turned my brother and killed my parents. He's also the first vampire I tried to have change me..."
"How are you feeling?" Charles's voice breaks me from my thoughts and my eyes move to his mouth, remembering the bite mark on Rosaline's neck, "The break-in must have been very... traumatic."
His words are insincere as he says them with a smile. I want to rip out his tongue and shove it down his throat. I look away from him, fearing that I may just follow the sinister ideas in my head. All I can think about is Rosaline and the pain Bromley caused her, but I take a deep breath and face Charles again with composure.
"I'm fine. Thank you." I nearly grit out, the words leaving a bad taste in my mouth. Charles smiles and leads me to a chair in the middle of his office. I take a seat and watch as he places his hands behind his back and stares down at the floor.
"Well, these attacks on everyday citizens are a cause for great concern." He comments and reaches down to a box that lay on the glass coffee table before me. He pulls out a cigar and holds it out for me in an offering. I shake my head and cross my legs, laying my arms on each of the armrests.
"All the more reason to push forward, wouldn't you say?" Charles asks rhetorically as he clips the end of the cigar in his hand and lights it.
"I would just like your guarantee that a blood substitute would replace our need for a human supply." I speak carefully, my eyes never leaving Charles. He stares back at me for a long moment and takes a drag from the cigar. He sits down on the couch on the other side of the coffee table from me and leans back, crossing his legs. An uneasy feeling washes over me. I push him, "Sir?"
"It's important that we allow the humans' time to repopulate." He answers simply and gives a false smile that somehow feels like a dagger being driven through my heart.
"That's not exactly what I asked." I breath out.
"The majority of the population will be fine with a blood substitute, yes." Charles starts and looks down for a brief moment. He raises his cigar to his lips and takes another drag, letting out a long streak of smoke. "But there will always be some who are willing to pay extra for the real thing."
I don't speak. I can't. I can't even move. I can only stare at him hard, showing my dislike… and my fears.
"Come on, Edward," Charles moves to the edge of the couch and leans his elbows on his knees. His cigar continues to smolder and releases little whiffs of smoke into the air. "We have to be realistic. If we don't cater to every market, then someone else will."
I sit quietly for a long while as Charles smokes his cigar. My jaw is clenched and my hands grip the edge of the arm rest tightly. I want to lurch across the coffee table and tear his head from his neck, but decide on another plan.
"How much do you think they would be willing to pay for your daughter?" I speak lowly, a growl nearly escaping me. The tone in the room changes and the tension builds to where it's hard to breathe. Even for a vampire.
Charles slowly looks up and matches my glare with a small smirk that holds rage behind it. He doesn't say anything for a long while. He wants me to back down, but I refuse to shy away. After another moment, he leans back into the couch again and takes a drag of the cigar that had nearly smoldered down to nothing.
"Are you aware that we had a break-out here last night?" He begins and I feel my hands shake ever so slightly. I can't tell whether or not Charles suspects me, but I wasn't going to take a chance.
"I heard the officer's asking everyone downstairs if they had seen or heard anything strange yesterday." I explain slowly. Charles nods his head and leans forward to put his cigar out in the ashtray.
"It was Rosie." His expression changes and I cannot help but to inwardly grin. Though, the nickname he uses for her sours my small victory.
"And you think she 'broke out'? You're giving her a lot of credit if you think she could pull something like that off." I quickly formulate an idea in my head to get him off of my trail. "Wouldn't it seem more appropriate that there was a break-in? Maybe a group of vampires or humans found out she was here and broke-in?"
"I thought of that, but no human would come within a mile of this building or the city. A group of vampires, maybe, but they got past every security system without even having to hack it." Charles finishes and lays his arms along the back of the couch. I pretend to think over what he was implying, knowing fully well what he was thinking.
"You think someone here broke her out." I speak slowly, pretending to think the idea was ludicrous. "Why?"
"Maybe they were paid or maybe they heard she couldn't be turned and they thought she would be an everlasting food source. I don't know." I could hear the frustration in his voice. He looks away from me towards his desk and narrows his eyes slightly. "Maybe he was paid to steal her for another company."
"He?" I ask and narrow my eyes. Charles looks back at me and gives a small smile.
"Private Jenkins was the last person to see her in the cell," Charles slips a hand into his suit jacket and pulls out an ID card, "and he was carrying this on him."
He slides the card to me and I see that it was my ID card. I pick it up from the table and stare at it. I don't remember dropping it last night. I narrow my eyes and look back at Charles.
"Where did he get it?" I ask, completely surprised.
"He said he found it by the south stairwell." He replies and watches me carefully. I look back down at the card again and hide my anxiety with mock confusion. I had been by the south stairwell last night. It was the quickest way to the parking lot. "We believe that he stole your ID, used it to get past the security systems, and took Rosie."
"Has Jenkins said where he took her?" I ask slowly, fingers nervously dancing on the card. Charles shakes his head.
"No, he hasn't, but we'll find out eventually." His tone was dark. I can only imagine what was happening to the innocent Private while I sat freely in a couple thousand dollar armchair.
A few minutes later, I am back in the elevator and heading to the lab. I sit down on a stool by my desk and pull out the note I had slipped into my pocket.
Gordon Creek
Noon
Wednesday
You AND Rose
It is still only Tuesday night and it is an hour till midnight. I look over at the phone on the desk and pick it up, dialing my house number. It rings three times and then goes to voicemail. I hang up and dial again. It goes to voicemail, but I don't hang up this time. I turn my back to the rest of the lab and cup a hand over the bottom of the phone.
"Pick up. It's Edward." I speak softly, hoping no one heard me. I don't know if she would be awake, but the phone's ringer was loud enough to be an alarm.
"…sorry. I didn't know whether or not to answer." Rosaline's voice comes through at the other end.
"It's alright. You didn't know who was calling." I look around the lab quickly and then turn my back to them all once again. "I'll be by around eleven. Be ready to leave."
"Okay..." She breathes out and I can hear that there is something more in her voice. "Edward?
"Yes?"
"...please be careful." She hangs up after that, leaving me a little confused. She didn't sound angry with me at all. It surprises me. She surprises me a lot. I hang the phone up and push the note deep into my pants pocket. I look around the lab, my mind not on my work at all. I only need to stall for a few hours and then I can leave.