Blood Lure (10 page)

Jared nodded. “Yes, your intuition is correct.” He gave Roger a quizzical look. “Or have you been reading my mind again?”

Roger assumed an innocent expression. “No, no, wouldn’t do that. No, sir, not allowed.”

“Well, I have to admit that Joey’s presence in my life has made me rethink certain things I thought I had come to terms with, long since.”

“Aha! So, you’re seeing him this weekend?”

“Unfortunately, no. He has to go visit his parents. He asked me if I’d like to accompany him, but I thought it better that I didn’t. Apart from the obvious problems, his father is quite ill.”

“That’s too bad.”

“A form of dementia, Joey says. He also said something I found interesting.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“He feels as if his father is trying to tell him something but can’t find the words.”

“Mmm…” Roger gave him a quick smile. “You could find out, you know.”

“I know I could. I just don’t know if I should interfere.”

“I would,” Roger said firmly.

“Yes, we know you would, Roger.” Marcus, striding onto the veranda, fixed his lover with a cool look. “You have proven that capability over and over, if I recall correctly.”

Roger rolled his eyes. “Here comes the voice of reason.”

Marcus cuffed Roger lightly on the back of his head. “Just as well one of us has that gift, or heaven alone knows what devilment you’d get up to on a regular basis.”

Jared laughed. “You certainly have a handful there, Marcus.”

“In more ways than one,” Roger quipped, leering at Marcus. “Don’t complain about
that
, now, do you?”

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“Roger.” Marcus sighed heavily. “What shall I do with you?”

“We were actually having a serious conversation when you jumped in,” Roger said huffily. “I was merely agreeing with Jared that he should help Joey’s father.”

Jared chuckled. “Well, what I said was I didn’t know if I should interfere—”

“If it’s for a good cause, it can’t be interfering,” Roger interrupted. “You’d be a hero forever in Joey’s eyes.”

“Or a monster, should he find out how his father was cured of his dementia.”

“Horse pucky. There are ways to make sure he doesn’t find out.”

Marcus put a hand on the back of Roger’s neck and squeezed gently. “For once I agree with you, Roger.”

“You do?” Roger’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Amazing isn’t it?” Marcus smiled and leant against the veranda wall as he continued.

“Roger’s right this time, Jared. Interference for the sake of a good cause can be excused, especially in a case like this. From what I understand Joey’s father is still a relatively young man. If his descent into dementia can be avoided, it should be. Vampire blood would certainly stimulate his brain and arteries. He might still end up a trifle absent-minded, but that is preferable to sinking into near madness.”

“You’re saying I should give him my blood.” Jared looked away from them and sighed.

“But how can I do that without Joey knowing? I would have to be alone with his father long enough to have him drink my blood, not to mention that first, I would have to convince
him
to do just that.”

“Vampire persuasion…” Roger smiled slyly. “The very best kind. And didn’t you say Joey had invited you there to meet his parents? You could say you’d changed your mind, and decided to drop in.”

“Out of the blue?”

“Exactly.”

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Joey looked up at the darkening sky, then at his father who sat dozing quietly in his wheelchair. Joey had taken him to the park ‘for the breath of fresh air’ his mother had suggested. Joey had hoped that his dad would remember what is was he’d wanted to tell him on his last visit, but to Joey’s dismay his father seemed even more distant, more lost, than he’d been the previous weekend. He’d barely said ten words the whole time they’d been out even though Joey had pried him with several leading questions. His dad just didn’t seem to be inside himself anymore.

He was distracted from his gloomy thoughts by the sound of a ball bouncing nearby and the excited yap of a small dog as it raced after it.
Better get home, I suppose
. He stood, then paused, transfixed for the moment by the sight of a tall man with long golden hair walking towards him.

“Jared! But how…?”

“Hello, Joey.” Jared pulled him into a tight embrace. “I decided to accept your offer after all.”

“But how did you know where I was?”

“I stopped by your home and introduced myself to your mother. A very beautiful woman, by the way. She told me you had taken your father for a walk in the park, and gave me directions on how to find it.”

“I’m so glad you could come. Oh…” Joey stepped back from Jared’s arms. “This is my dad. His name is Bob. Dad…?”

Bob raised his head and looked first at Joey, then with widening eyes, at Jared.

“Dad, this is Jared Lantos, my new friend I told you about.”

Joey wasn’t sure if his father would remember him talking about Jared, but to his surprise, his father held out a trembling hand.

“I wondered when you’d come,” he said. “You’re a friend of hers, aren’t you?”

Jared took Bob’s hand then knelt before him and said very quietly, “I’ve come to help you, Bob. Do you understand?”

Bob nodded. “She said she would never forget me,” he whispered.

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“What the heck are you two talking about?” Joey asked, forcing out a weak laugh. “You sound like you know each other. Who’s this ‘she’ you keep mentioning?”

A nasty little thought occurred to him. Had his dad cheated on his mom at some point?

“Nothing like that, Joey,” Jared said, getting to his feet.

It took Joey a few seconds to realise that Jared had answered his unspoken thought.

“How—what’s going on here?”

“It’s all right, Joey.” Jared put an arm around Joey’s shoulders and pulled him close.

“I’ve come to help your father regain his memory.”

“You have?” Joey gazed into Jared’s dark eyes. “I didn’t know you’re a doctor.”

“I’m not.” He smiled. “In another life, I was a lawyer.”

“In another life?” Joey was feeling distinctly weirded out. He shrugged Jared’s arm off his shoulders and stepped back. “What are you talking about exactly?”

“I will explain everything to you in due course—”

“Never mind in due course,” Joey snapped, moving towards his father. “Explain it now.”

“Wait, son …” His father took Joey’s hand in his. “Jared was sent by the lady.”

“Lady?” Joey felt completely lost. His dad was rambling again, and Jared was acting like someone he didn’t know—someone he was no longer sure he wanted to know.

“Joey. Please don’t be afraid of me
.”

The thought inside his head made him jump. What the hell was happening? He looked at his father who was smiling up at Jared as if he were someone he’d known all his life. This didn’t make any sense—and now he was hearing voices in his head.

“Joey…”

There it was again! “It’s you, isn’t it?” He glared at Jared. “You’re able to read my mind,
talk
to me in my mind. How—?”

“Joey, I can explain everything. Can we go back to your house, and—”

“No!” Joey cut him off. “I don’t think I want you near my mom and dad. Something weird is happening, and I don’t like it!”

His father’s grip tightened on Joey’s hand. “It’s all right, son. He’s a good vampire.”

“What?”

Oh, Jesus, he’s really lost it. I have to get him home.

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“Look…” He turned to Jared who was staring at Joey’s father in amazement. “I really appreciate you coming up here, Jared, but I think you should go. I don’t understand what’s going on, but it’s clearly upsetting my dad, so—”

“He’s not upset, Joey,” Jared said quietly. “He simply recognised me for what I am.”

“Jared, for fuck’s sake, stop fooling around.” Joey stepped behind his father’s wheelchair and began pushing him towards the gravel path that led to the street. “No one loves vampire movies more than me, but even I don’t believe they actually
exist
.”

He jumped back, startled. Jared was suddenly standing in front of his father’s wheelchair. He hadn’t seen him move, yet there he was.

“What the…”

His father chuckled, then Jared was gone. Joey stood very still while a slow shiver ran down his spine and the hair on the back of his neck stood to attention.

“
Jared
?”

“I’m here.”

“Jesus!” Joey almost jumped a foot off the ground as he felt Jared’s hand on his shoulder. “What the fuck is this?” he raged. “I won’t let you hurt my father!”

He swung his fist at Jared’s head, and found it caught in a grip that was both gentle, yet immovable.

“Jared, please…”

“Listen to me, Joey.” Jared brought Joey’s hand to his lips and the cool, soft pressure on Joey’s skin made his knees grow weak. “Neither you nor your father are in any danger from me. I have come here not only to see you, but to help your father, just as I said earlier. My blood will cure him of his dementia.”

Joey couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You…your
blood
?”

“Look at me, Joey,” Jared murmured. “You and I have known each other in the sweetest of ways. Do you think that I would want to harm you after what we have shared together?

You mean more to me than possibly any other man ever has, or ever will…”

“But what Dad s-said,” Joey stammered, unable to take his eyes from Jared’s. “I mean, about you being a vampire, and you saying…”

“It’s true, I am a vampire.”

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“Oh, my God,” Joey moaned, seeing the truth in Jared’s eyes. Panic flared within him.

He was alone in a deserted, dark park with a man he knew to be a monster. A vampire, who could tear his and his father’s throats out in a heartbeat.

And then the near impossible happened.

Jared released his grip on Joey’s wrist, and instead cupped Joey’s face between his strong hands. For a long moment he simply gazed into Joey’s eyes, then gently, he kissed Joey on the lips.

Joey melted into Jared’s arms, his lips parted, giving Jared’s tongue access. No kiss or embrace had ever been sweeter or more longed for, and with that, Joey’s fear was gone—

replaced by a numbing embarrassment when he realised his father was watching them.

“Sorry, Dad,” he muttered, trying to step back from Jared’s arms.

His father smiled, his eyes clear and lucid.

“Let’s go home,” he said.

Joey’s mother did not look at all surprised when the three of them returned together.

Nor did she object when Joey asked if they could be alone in his father’s study for a few minutes. He had no idea just how long Jared’s ‘cure’ would take, or really what it exactly entailed, but he was sure this was not something his mother should witness.

She seemed very calm, however, and Joey wondered if Jared had used his strange power to soothe any unease his mother might have felt in having a stranger in her home, even one as handsome as Jared. He knew she was always a trifle nervous on meeting anyone for the first time, and worried unduly about her appearance and the state of the house. He noticed with a hidden smile that she had ‘tidied up’ since he and his father had left for the park.

“I’ll make a little supper for when you’re done in there,” she said, after giving her husband a gentle kiss on his cheek.

Joey pushed his father’s wheelchair into the study. He closed the door before asking,

“Can I stay?”

“Of course,” Jared said. “Now that you know what I am, there will be no more barriers between us.” He pulled Joey into his arms. “The blood that runs in my veins has been BLOOD LURE

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strengthened by an infusion of the most powerful vampire blood known to us. Marcus Verano, a dear friend of mine, whom you met a few nights ago, gave me his blood as a gift to your father.”

“The…the men I met in the bar are also vampires?” No wonder he had been so enthralled by them. He felt a warm flush flood his cheeks. “And I just rambled on about that awful movie. Jeez, what must they have thought of me?”

“They liked you very much, Joey, and Marcus was so moved by your father’s condition, enough to offer him this gift. Now, we should delay no longer.”

He released Joey, then went to kneel in front of Bob. Joey watched with wide-eyed fascination as Jared bit deeply into his own wrist, before offering the bleeding flesh to his father.

“Drink from me, Bob,” Jared murmured, “and be made whole again.”

Jared moved closer to Joey’s father and brought his wrist to the older man’s lips. Bob took what looked like a tentative lick of the blood then, almost greedily, his lips closed over the wound and he sucked hard and long.

Jared stared across the room at Joey. They shared a smile of complicity, and Joey felt as though a covenant of some kind had been forged and sealed between them.

Jared smoothed back the hair that had fallen over Bob’s forehead then gently pulled his wrist from Bob’s still eager mouth. He licked his wrist and Joey gasped as the puncture wounds disappeared, leaving no trace of blood or even a scar.

Joey dropped to his knees by his father’s side. “How do you feel, Dad?” he whispered.

“Good,” his father answered, although his eyes seemed glazed and distant.

“While he drank from me, his thoughts were filled with memories of the ‘lady’ he told us about,” Jared said.

“Who was she?”

“Your father believes her to have been a vampire. A beautiful woman he met in the woods when he was just a boy.”

“She kissed me,” Bob told them, smiling. “She told me stories of ancient worlds, of people she had known and loved and lost. Stories I told you, Joey—you and your friend Chris. Stories you loved, but didn’t believe, not really.”

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