Created (Book 1 of the Created) (19 page)

I stuck to my side of the street, close to the heels of
Veronica to avoid them.
 

The GV13s were cunning and monstrous in size compared to the
other vampires on the street. Bulging muscles and exposed veins belayed the
rage within each of these killers. Devilishly friendly smiles were flashed my
way as I plodded past.

The Tortured Rabbit could not come into view fast enough.
Interlocking my pace with hers, we were sure to arrive in a couple of minutes.

A loud audible tone chimed in the distance followed by an
abundance of street lights going dark. At the sound, the other GVs moved in
unison in a common direction down a darkened side street guarded by soldiers.

"Veronica," I quietly called then I repeated.
"Veronica.”

She knew what I wanted to know. "Sometimes you are
better off not knowing. We are here."

Looking up, I realized she was right. She held the door open
as I entered the deserted front room of a disheveled pet store. Broken
aquariums and bent cages littered the floor and the shelves that remained. The
odor of death was long vacant. The room was odd. It almost appeared staged with
all the strewn glass and pet supplies lining the shelves in a tousled symmetric
fashion. It was as though a person with OCD was told to trash the place. It was
also obvious the building was much bigger than the room indicated.

Snaking through the scattered fragments, I continued
trusting my guide. She paused at a rear door to allow me to catch up.

Her hand on the knob she said, "Behind this door is how
we survive. I know you realize we need blood because I can smell the old
refrigerated type you have consumed on your breath this long after, but
vampires need fresh, live blood or we will slowly go insane. We have two
choices. Choice number one is easy if you enjoy hunting and killing animals,
but there is no way that is what we were created to need that kind of prey. The
other can be hard if the human side of your brain rationalizes that your
preferred food is human. Do not see yourself as one of their kind or you will
starve. These people in here are picked to be fed upon, but we do not kill and they
do not remember. Take only a little from each one then move on or risk killing
the subject. Always remember, we do not drink from the dead or the abominations
that we encounter here. To do so may kill us."

I swallowed hard. "Have we lost our kind to that?"

Veronica was surprised at my question. "Ah...yeah...no,
there have been no reported deaths in our generation or since the use of the
nanites to introduce the virus at the cellular level, however, past generations
suffered greatly for such folly and disrespecting our makers."

"So it is not toxic?"

Veronica ran her tongue underneath the bottom of her top
teeth, shook her head the answered. "It will make you sick enough you will
want to die and the base will make sure that you do."

We were killers and created for that purpose. The efficiency
and hunger for live victims would be diminished if vampires could exist off the
dead flesh. Vampires had to kill constantly to stay alive and thus safe guards
were introduced and reinforced.

Veronica smiled and opened the door. "I hope you are
ready for a night that you will never want to forget."

The interior of the back room of the Tortured Rabbit was
filled with two rows of empty metal hospital operating tables which bisected the
room. Along the outer walls were doors, five each side. Across the back wall
were plush chairs and couches upon which sat the rest of the members of my
team. Each of which were looking very relaxed. In the shadows to the right
stood an armed guard dressed in black and toting a Robinson XCR assault rifle,
to the left the same. Both were on edge as evidenced from their profuse
sweating and rapid heartbeats. A lesser concerned pair of gentlemen sat at a
table a few feet in front of Veronica and me.

Veronica led me to the table. She presented her right
forearm. "Veronica
Stace
and Ethan Castel are
here to check in."

The eldest of the two soldiers at the table removed a needle
containing a vividly yellow substance from a small metal case. The needle was
inserted into Veronica's arm injecting her with the liquid.

Discarding the needle to his partner, who placed it into a
heavy looking yellow box at his feet; he reached into the case and presented
another as he motioned for my arm.

Instinctively, I withdrew my arm. The room got tense as the
two soldiers on guard both charged their rifles alerting me to my mistake.

Delivering my arm to the soldier, the man hurriedly finished
his duty. He passed off the empty syringe to his colleague then produced a
small silver box covered with three buttons: red, yellow, and green.

The shot was painless, but the concern was overwhelming.
"What the hell did you just do to me?"

There was no response as he continued about his duties. We
were dismissed with a wave of his hand. He pressed the green, button on the
metal panel as we walked away. The button triggered the unlocking of the doors
to either side of us with a chorus of clicks.

I joined hands with Veronica as we walked to the back of the
room. "What just happened?"

She spoke softly, "There is now a tracking node inside
of you that allows them to detonate the nanites in your blood if things were to
get out of hand. It is a precaution. Consider it the final and ultimate
failsafe."

I looked at my forearm as a tiny light blinked momentarily
then dissolved beneath the skin. "Shit."

Veronica unclenched my hand as we got closer to the others.
"Don't worry that is normal. The diode is active for the next four hours
as we feed. After that time period, the transmitter dies then at hour six your
body will absorb the remaining organics."

The group looked hungry, but was in great spirits. Logan and
Darby were already in character with fangs and eyes transformed.

Chloe was sitting on a couch removed from the group with a
pouty expression upon her face. Any injuries she may have incurred from our
tussle in the afternoon were healed as were mine.
 

Liam greeted Veronica and me with a big hug for each.
"So glad you came. Man do we have a special treat for you Ethan. Come
on."

He pulled me from Veronica toward a door marked with the
number four. "This is going to be epic. Be sure to drink plenty because
you will need it all tomorrow night."

Why did you have to remind me about that, I wanted to ask?
He shoved me through the door into the small room followed closely by the
metallic sound of a bolt being reset within the door.

The room was sparse of decorative details and smelled of
honeysuckle. There was a lone purple leather recliner, bare grey walls and a
single, occupied metal table. On the wall behind me was an intercom that worked
by pushing a talk button. In the center of the room was another table, but this
one was covered in a stark white sheet. Under the sheet was to be my first
taste of something live, my first human.

I walked to the opposite end of the table to the covered
head of the victim. A box was embedded into the table top to monitor the vitals
of the individual lying on the bed. I scanned the body continuously for several
minutes as I waited to see if there was movement. My time and effort was
greeted with the steady rise and fall of regular breathing, but no other signs
of life. The form underneath was obviously female from the contours of the
body.

My mouth was becoming dry and my pulse quickening as I
became acclimated to the task before me. A soft classical song began to play
through a speaker in the ceiling. I was unsure of the next step.

So I began. The visual stimulation of watching the
repetitive nature of the breathing gave way to the sounds of her heart beating
in dull resonance. The sound was distant then would drown out all other in the
room then fade. I knew it was my mind and the situation playing tricks with me.

It was the simplest of things that were bothering me as I
delayed. It was the solitude of the cell which was what I thought of it though
it had only been minutes. Had it been only minutes?

I thought the closing of the door had been recent until a
robotic voice rattled through the intercom. "Two hours remained."

The beating was loud again. It was rhythmic and patient as
if playing a song to me. The sound was the perfect accompaniment to the sounds
of piano streaming into the room. The music was soothing at one with the beat
of the blood coursing through the body. Then the beat and rushing of her blood
was maddening as the tempo would change.

My mind was warping from the stress, I told myself. This did
nothing to relive my state of nervousness as I methodically turned down the
sheet to shoulder level. My methodical approach turned to desperation as I came
face to face with my intended meal.

The face was all too familiar. The girl I had saved today
was to become my nourishment tonight.

Now I knew what Liam was so jovial about. He had managed to
get
Sunnie
to the base for the feeding. I knew he
meant well, but I had been apprehensive before I knew who would be quenching my
thirst.

I looked away then back. I had hoped when my eyes fell upon
her again that it was a case of mistaken identity. Maybe I had identified with
Sunnie
so strongly today that I was projecting her face
onto the poor soul before me. Studying her intently, I came to one conclusion I
didn't want to acknowledge. It was definitely her.

I tried again as I ran my hand across her face. Her eyes
were closed so I couldn't determine eye color, but her smile was fresh in my
mind still. The smoky eye makeup was gone and there was no lipstick, but it was
her. The pumped up hair was not as meticulously placed and the textured tresses
not as sharp, but it was her. Damn, it was her.

The piano refrain tinkled in the air as I traced my
fingertips across her lips. Closing my eyes, I found myself stroking her cheek.
At least thirty more minutes had passed.

Sunnie
was so peaceful and
beautiful lying on the table.

My thirst was building the more I touched her. Soon I was
shaking. My fangs started growing without me having to think them into place.
The animal in me was in control. I wanted her more than I needed her blood.

I seemed removed from my actions as I cradled her head in my
hands. Sweeping her hair away, slowly I lowered my mouth to her shoulder
touching the delicate white skin with my mouth. Opening partially, the flesh
parted as the fangs pressed into her. She never acknowledged any pain nor did
she wake. There was a moderate change in the subtle sounds coming from the
monitor. It eventually stabilized as her heart rate leveled back into a resting
rate.

Blood started filling my mouth in drops then a flowing
stream rolled across my tongue into my throat. Deliciously, the rate of flow
increased bathing my mouth and face in warm, wet blood. A little escaped,
falling onto the table. The taste was stirringly salty and coppery with a hint
of metallic aftertaste, but it was the smell that was exhilarating.

Sunnie's
was a mix of aromatic
scents backed with the smell of pomegranate. Inhaling deeply as I drank, it hit
me. The smell in the room wasn't cleaner or piped in atmosphere. The Inhibitor
was no longer working which was fueling my desire for her.

Through the speakers another time reminder from the robotic
chimed. "One hour remaining."

I was no longer thirsty though I continued to consume her as
I stroked the skin of her neck and shoulder. The touching had become automatic
as I drank. The added sensation was exquisite.

I had to stop.
Sunnie's
vitals
were fine, but I wasn't sure how much more I could take from her without
injuring her.

Disconnection wasn't as easy as I expected. My mind moved
back and forth between the rational thought that I was bleeding her dry and the
need for survival. The thought that I needed to stay was possessive. The blood
was calling to me. She was calling to me. Further into her I fell, I realized I
was unable to stop.
 

A heavy thud at the door saved her life.

Liam slurred, "Dude, come on now. We are almost out of
time. Shit, I need some more. Give me some more."

Another voice I wasn't sure of responded, "I think you
have had enough. You have to leave some for us."

I heard him and others giggling as I disengaged. Rising
partially from her shoulder, I admired her slumbering. Intuitively, I lapped at
a single rolling drop of blood as it fell down her shoulder, catching it before
it slipped onto the table. The blood was starting to cool, but still the faint
scent of honeysuckle was present. It took all of my self-control to not drink
from her again.

My hands were covered in blood and there was a surety my
face was as well. Looking around I noticed a basin of water and stack of hand
towels on the second level. Taking a towel, I used the water to cleanse my face
and hands.

When I had finished, I turned to
Sunnie
.
The wounds I had inflicted on her shoulder were already closed. Blood was dried
to her skin which I gently scrubbed away. Tenderly, I repositioned the hair and
began to recover her face when a new feeling took hold of my heart. There was a
new bond between us that was unexplainable.

There was another lighter knock on the door.

The taste of her blood still upon my lips, I contemplated a
possible new future, but as I smoothed the skin of her face one last time I
knew the truth. Knowing the monster I had become, I knew that might never get
the opportunity again to be with her. I bent to feel her lips against mine. I
tried to step away, but I stumbled. The blood had made me drunk though not as
bad as when I had drunk from Darby. Regaining my composure, I recovered her
face before turning to the door.