“She’s currently an art history major, loves coffee, and has the most amazing hazel eyes, but I’m guessing at some point you compelled her.” Dorian reached behind and pulled the apple off the mantle using his limited powers. He snatched the apple out of the air, and bit deeply into its skin. Juice ran down his chin, and his eyes sparkled with demonic intent. He wiped his mouth with his sweater sleeve placing the apple on my desk. It leaked juice onto the open documents I had for the art show coming up at the Whitney.
It was his version of a threat.
I leaned back in my chair and queried my brother. To admit anything would be giving in and showing my hand. To deny it, well, he’d take that as free rein to do as he damn well please with an innocent I’d shared blood and a brief bond with.
“Why do I think I compelled her? Any vampire is capable of compulsion.” I crossed my arms over my chest waiting for his explanation.
“Because that’s what blood bonds do, even if their fleeting or one time. It cancels out the compulsion of another in the blood line.”
I scoffed at his explanation. It only worked with bondable mates and it wasn’t something vampires tossed around casually. Sure we could make unsuspecting victims do crazy and foolish things, but the compulsion wore off over time. It was only permeant in cases of siring someone for loyalty, or in protecting a mate. Besides, I would have felt something, wouldn’t I?
“Jane Wilder means nothing to me.” But as I stated the fact, my chest pinched and I winced rubbing the spot. Dorian cocked his head looking at me funny.
“You know, I might have believed you, but she did the exact same thing when I asked her out.” He pointed at me and I looked down at my button-down shirt, the place would a beating heart would have been if I was human.
“You did what?” I roared standing from the desk and forced to lean over it when my chest seized in anger.
Dorian picked up the apple again taking a bite.
“Oh brother, you have it bad don’t you. Taken out by a little lamb at slaughter.” He chuckled.
“Fuck you!” I yelled.
“She smells a bit like apples, is that why you keep them in the house?”
“Get out.” I growled pointing at the door. I was going to have to track down Jane, make sure she forgot everything about us, and sending her packing back home to where ever that was before she was branded by Dorian as his new toy to torture.
“I bet, you won’t be able to stay away from her.” He taunted.
“You don’t go anywhere near her.”
Dorian chuffed. “Funny, because I invited her to the club Halloween party. She’s bringing her roommate, sounds like fresh meat to me, but if she doesn’t mean anything to you then I guess we’ll find out won’t we.”
Dorian got up and laughed, the sound carrying all through my house. I should have torn him limb from limb leaving him out for the sun to turn to ash when I had the chance.
5 This was no dark and stormy night.
JANE
“I still don’t understand why we have to go to a party before the party.” I grumbled at Nina as I swung around the table to sit down with her. I worked at this slummy diner four blocks from our apartment between classes. I didn’t have to work, my parents were loaded, but knowing that things like my expensive art books or my cheap pink wine came from my own wallet gave me a sense of ownership and responsibility.
No one held a candle to the artists of my dreams. Leonardo, Rembrandt, Rubins, Vermeer, and Van Eyck. couldn’t wait to graduate and finally travel to Florence and Rome on my own without my disinterested family hovering, squashing my dreams in place of a MRS. degree. Just last week during my call home, my mother suggested someone my brother graduated law school with. I believed she called him a promising litigator, as if that was supposed to sway my mind to give up my dreams.
Nina rolled her eyes. “We have to go because everyone who is anyone will be there.”
I rolled my eyes back. I doubted this. Anyone who Nina thought was important didn’t register on my radar.
“Right. Okay.”
“It’s called pre-gaming. We can’t show up to the main event without having had a little fun beforehand.” She whined and I gave in. It was simply easier than having to fight with her over the same outcome anyway.
“Fine.” I huffed getting up when I saw the cook poke his head out to see me sitting with Nina. I didn’t him yelling at me or worse firing me.
“Tell me what costume you’re going to wear.”
“Angel.”
“Lame and cliché.”
“Also, inexpensive since all I had to buy were the wings.”
“Ugh, okay. I’m going as a hippie chic.” Nina spent the next ten minutes telling me all about her costume as I pretended to pour her coffee. She had the gift of gab and I appreciated the fact that she came to hang out with me until the end of my shift.
By the time I was done and we walked back to our apartment she called three other girls I sort of knew to come with us.
“You know, I’m not sure Dorian’s invitation was so broad and open.” I adjusted my halo and the strap for my feathered wings. Runway model I was not, but it was fun and would have to do.
“I still can’t believe you have class with Dorian Knight and that he invited you. If you hadn’t shown me his text message I wouldn’t have believed it myself. They say all kinds of weird shit about him. Good thing he’s hot as fuck though.”
I thought about my best friend’s objectifying commentary.
