Blood Martinis: The Gypsy Vampire's Curse

Ch. 14 ... Sixpence

“Is it working?”Christian asked, as himself and Kate grinded on the dance floor, adding,“The animal blood?”

“I think so,”Kate answered back.

“I think you'd know by now,”he said.

“Have you ever seen it kill a person?”she asked.

“Kill a new vampire, you mean?”he said.“No.”

“Then how do we know that one of us would actually die without human blood?”she asked.

“I haven't seen a lot of newly changed vampires, though,”he said.

“Neither have I,”she said.

They kept dancing- him twirling her and then her twirling him. Her straddling his leg, and him pretending to thrust her. It was quite the spectacle.

“You could ask someone else?”he suggested.

“Like who?”she asked.

“Like someone here who's not a vampire,”he said.

“Good idea,”she said, leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek.“Later babe.”And with that, she sauntered off the dance floor.

“Get ready, we're leaving,”said Kilian, as he walked in to the bedroom to wake Dylan.

“Did something happen?”Dylan asked.

“The crows came,”Kilian replied.

Brianna still hadn't put her knickers back on. Herself and Conor had laid there, side by side, chatting for what felt like hours. The sun was well and truly down, and yet there was no sign of her interest in him waning.

“So, what was your family like?”she asked.

“Kind,”he said.“They only wanted the best for me. Never seemed to know what that was, but god love them they tried.”

“Mine wasn't quite so kind,”she said.“My father was always either away on business or just busy with it. And my mother, well you know. I'm doomed to live in her giant footprints. She's so beautiful and charming, she's kind of like you… only, different.”Suddenly, she was thinking about her mother's mortality.“I suppose I won't have to live in her shadow forever.”

“That's grim,”he said, understanding her intention.

“There's no one in your family you'd wish dead?”she asked.

“Not one,”he said.

“Must be nice,”she said.

“It was,”he said, remorsefully.

“Who turned you?”she asked.

Clearly dodging her question, he asked cheekily,“Do you want to go again?”

“No,”she laughed,“I'm good.”

“Are you sure?”he asked.

“I don't know,”she said,“do you want to?”

“We're not here for what I want,”he said.

“We could be,”she said.

“Then let me go,”he said. She went quiet again, just as she had the first time.

Kate had sat herself down next to the fox eared man she saw the night before. Tonight, he had been busy in a conversation with two beautiful elfish looking ladies and seemed to have no time for her.

“Can I ask you as question?”Kate asked.

“If you must,”he said.

“Do vampires really die if they don't drink human blood?”she asked.

“Why are you asking me?”he inquired.

“I assume you have no vested interest in it, either way,”she said.

“I don't,”he said.

“Then you'd be honest,”she said.

“I have no vested interest in that… or you… either,”he said.

“What are you?”she asked.“Why are your ears like that?”She reached to touch them, but he started growling, so she pulled her fingers back.

“The Japanese call me a Kitsune. That's most likely what you've heard of me by,”he said, then added, “they make a lot of 'kitsune' anime.”

“I haven't,”she said, remorsefully.

Back in the jeep, the three brothers sat in silence on their way to London. Kilian drove the jeep onto the ferry and got out to go up on deck. Dylan and Bennet followed. The crows were sitting on the starboard rail by this stage, so the brothers joined them. The sea was calm, but they could feel a storm brewing.

“Tell me about your siblings,”Brianna said.“I've never had any, but I always thought it'd be interesting.”

“My siblings don't skirt questions,”Conor said, raising an eyebrow.

“I can't let you go,”she said, after some time had passed.

“You can,”he said.“You choose not to.”

“I don't know what would happen,”she said.“You might kill someone.”

“Might,”he said.

“Probably would,”she said.

“Is that worse than what you know is going on here?”he asked.

“Honestly, I don't know.”

“What are you?”Kate asked the beautiful woman who just walked in. She had a bird like beak, but other than that, she was astonishing. She could have made it on a runway.

“Not interested,”the woman said, quickly moving past her and to the bar.

“How are you doing?”Christian asked as he walked up.

“Not great,”Kate admitted.“No one wants to talk to me.”

“You're kind of awkward, alright. Let's see if I can help you out,”he said, taking her drink and putting his free arm around her waist, leading her toward a couple sitting at the bar.

“They're headed south east still,”Kilian said.

“Toward London?”Bennet asked.

“Yeah,”Kilian answered.

“They're crows,”Dylan pointed out,“They could be wrong.”

“Maybe wrong about who, but not what,”Kilian said.

“What if she's not there?”Bennet asked.

“Then we keep looking,”Dylan said.

“I can't spend all of my time on this,”Bennet retorted.“I just got married, I left my wife at home. She's just become one of us. What if she let's the Vamp Farm shrivel… or worse, let's them go?”

“She won't do that,”Kilian chimed in.

“Oh yeah,”Bennet asked.“Why not?”

“I wouldn't do it if I were her, she'd be too likely to get killed,”Kilian responded.

“Well, she's not you,”Bennet said, adding,“she doesn't know everything that's dangerous yet.”

With this, the three sat in silence again for a while.

“What if I didn't let you go,”Brianna posed,“but just let you into the house?”

“Why?”Conor asked.

“So you could get washed up, and have a more normal life,”she said.

“What? Until your husband gets back?”he asked.

“Maybe if you showed them you were different from the others, they would let you stay,”she said.

“… As their servant? House man? Your mister?”he asked.

Knowing he had a good point, she turned inward again.“I just don't know what to do otherwise. I can't let you go.”

“You can,”he repeated.“You choose not to.”

“This,”Christian said, nodding toward Kate, still with his arm around her,“is my good friend, Genie, and she has some wishes for you.”The two stood behind the couple at the bar, forcing them to turn inward toward each other to see them. They both had long, straight black hair, with grey streaks. The gentleman was shirtless, and his lower half was covered in what looked like fish scales. The lady was tattooed with a fluorescent blue in what looked like a foreign language, to Kate, all down her arms. She was wearing hip huggers, and smaller scales were showing through.

“Oh yeah?”the couple said in unison.

“Pray, tell,”the gentleman said.

“Is one of them a foursome?”the lady asked.

“Maybe,”Christian flirted.

“Do vampires really die when if they don't drink human blood?”Kate blurted out.

The couple looked a bit baffled.“Um, yes,”the gentleman said.

“You're new, aren't you darling?”the lady asked.

“Very,”Kate said.

“You look like you've already made your choice though,”the gentleman said, contritely.

“I haven't,”Kate said, following,“or at least I haven't bled a human.”

“But you look so healthy?”the woman questioned, insinuating that it was impossible for that to be a truth.

“I've been drinking animals,”Kate added.

“Mixed with lots of booze,”Christian reminded her.

“Yeah,”she laughed.

“How long has it been?”the gentleman asked.

“Five nights,”Kate said.

“You should be long dead by now,”the lady said.“Animal or no animal.”

“Well, I'm not,”Kate said.“Have you ever heard of that?”

“No,”the man and woman said, again in unison.

“What about with the Roma?”she asked. At that, ears around the bar began to noticeably perk up.

“The Roma are not vampires,”the gentleman said, sternly.“They make the supernatural,”he continued.“They have no need to become one.”

The lady looked around, then whispered,“are you one?”

“We're here,”Kilian said, pulling into a parking space.

“Where's here?”Bennet asked, having dozed off.

“Hyde Park,”Dylan said.“The crows are circling.”He pointed up to the sky, barely visible this time of night to all but werewolf eyes.

The brothers got out, Kilian grabbing a shovel, and walked to where the birds were overhead.“It must be here somewhere,”he said.

“That looks freshly turned,”Bennet said, pointing to a shoddy mound of dirt near a group of trees.

“I'm going to take a walk,”Dylan said,“See if I can smell her trail.”

“You want me to come with you?”Kilian asked.

“No,”Dylan said,“I'll call you if I find something. This is a better lead, so stay here.”

“Make sure you call me,”Kilian said.

“I will,”Dylan promised, but he didn't mean it.

“Fine, I choose not to,”Brianna snapped.

“At least now you're being honest,”Conor said, spitting out the words as if they were bitter.

“No, I'm being- finished with this,”she said.

“Time to lock me back up then,”he said, sarcastically.

She said“No,”but instantly felt herself wavering in this battle. Not wanting to let him win, instead of backing off she doubled down.“I was left in charge, and you're right… I'm your master now,”she said, while flipping over to get back on top of him.“I say when you're done. And I'm not finished with you yet,”she flirted.

“So, you are just like them,”he said, knowing how it would rip through her.

“Maybe,”she said, backing down for a moment to think.“I don't know what I believe is right or wrong yet. There are too many variables, and too much I don't know.”

“What do you lose by letting me go?”he asked.“You know there are vampires in the world… all over the world. What's one more out there?”

“I don't know,”she said.

“But you do know what happens to me if I stay in here,”he said.

“Maybe,”she said.

“No,”he said,“You know.”

“I know,”she said. She laid back down beside him.“They won't be back for days,”she said,“and they'll let me know when they're coming. Give me till then.”

“I could be hundreds of miles away by then,”he said.“Kilian knows how to find me.”