Caged Queen (Blood and Magic 1)

Aspen    Vampires.   There was more of them in the dance club than I thought there would be.  Which wasn’t surprising, the blood sucking leeches were everywhere.  What was surprising was how oblivious to them everyone but me seemed to be.   I didn’t understand it. How could my work colleagues, friends that I have known for four years be so blind? How could they look at them and see anything but a corpse? Yes, they were gorgeous to look at. With their porcelain skin and their too bright eyes.  But they were corpses.  Beautiful deadly corpses.   They knew what I was as well. I may as well have been wearing neon sigh around my neck that said witch.  I could tell that straight away by the way their eyes lingered on me.  Their hatred was almost palpable.  Rolling across my skin and making the hair on my arms stand up on end.  Their hatred for my kind almost equalled my hatred for them.   There was no doubt in my mind, that if I had been alone. I would have been attacked. They wouldn’t dare when I was surrounding my humans, but if I was alone? Yeah, if I was alone, I would have had my jugular opened to the sky before I could even blink. After all what was one dead young witch in the scheme of things.  My coven would want vengeance but not enough to actually go to war for me.  “Aspen.”  I shook myself, pushing away the morbid thoughts that had been plaguing me. I hadn’t even realised I had stopped dancing until someone had called my name.  plastering my face with a smile that was more a grimace I lowered my eyes.  I had been staring, and that was dangerous.  Staring openly at them could be seen as an invitation. Killing me when I was surrounded by witnesses might have been out of the question. But biting me. Sucking my blood? If they thought, they could get away with that they would.   A blood bag was a blood bag after all. Even if they happened to be their enemy. And I was most definitely their enemy. They just didn’t realise how dangerous I was too them yet. And they couldn’t.   Not ever.  I was my coven’s dirty secret. The skeleton in their closet. I was pretty sure they would keep me in a closet if they could.  The only witch in over hundred years to be born with an actual physical power.    I loved my family, but they were witches in name only. Tree hugging, crystal worshipping, wanna be hippies. I was the real deal.  My powers scared them. Hell, they scared me too.   “That man is staring at you.”  I stared down at her hand, where it is hooked through my arm for a second before letting my eyes lift. I don’t need to ask who is staring at me. I already knew. I had felt him staring at me, and for a second, I had let myself stare back at him. I had let his mind tricks tickle the edges of my conscious.   “He’s not my type.” I turned away. But I could still feel his stare scorching a line down my back.  Urging me silently to turn around, to smile at him. to go to him and offering him my throat to be kissed.   It was always that way with them. They didn’t need to hunt the city streets like the old days. The clubs were always full of willing victims.  Stupid people who invited their death just because they watched modern movies, of sparkling blood suckers with hearts of gold.  I doubted Vampires had hearts, an if by some miracle they did, they would dead black shrivelled things.   Tugging on my friend’s arm, I pulled her away the middle of the dance floor and towards the heaving bar in the corner. I was feeling to exposed out there.  She yanked her arm back, her face creased into a frown.   “What do you mean he isn’t your type?” Throwing a glance over her shoulder, she sighed heavily. And I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Why did humans always do this? make romantic something that was meant to be a thing of horror.  They were blinded by the ethereal beauty. Until it was too late anyway.  “He’s beautiful, Aspen. I can’t believe you don’t see it. and he was staring right back at you.  he looked like a model an...”  “Not my type.” I didn’t mean to bark at her. for a second hurt flickers into her eyes.  “Yeah, cos you have such high standards, right?” she quipped sarcastically.   I deserved that; I knew I did but I bristled anyway.  My standards when it came to men, might have been questionable but I needed my lovers to at least have a pulse. Being a pretty, talking corpse was a hard limit to me.  “Maybe I’ll go and talk to him.”  My hand came up, to clutch at her elbow. “No.” softening my voice I tried to smile. “Don’t do that.”   My brow furrowed I tried to think of an excuse as to why she shouldn’t.  and I came up blank. It wasn’t like I could turn around and say, he’s dead.   “He’s dating someone I know.” I blurted in a rush. “My cousin.” I added, hoping that would put an end to the conversation.  “He’s a bit of a creep.”  Her face creased. “He’s dating your cousin and was looking at you like he wanted to take a bite out of you? what an asshole.”  Just like that, the danger passed but I would have to be more careful going forward.  I couldn’t use the same excuse a second time.  Which meant no more inadvertently giving eyes at vampires, even by accident.   I couldn’t shake the feeling though, the feeling that something was going to happen.  I  should have listened to my instincts.