Some Day 06

Joel's dry chuckle danced over my nerves, and not in a good way. Amusement was too distant of an emotion coming from him and the sound was just damn creepy. Prickles of fear raced along my spine as an unasked response to his laughter. My humanity was repulsed by his mirth. I guess my survival instincts weren't totally gone despite my jaded existence. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. I was just weary.

"I must say that, Josie, you really aren't what I expected. Humans usually aren't so relaxed around us once they find out we're vampires." His tone wasn't mocking but amazed. Besides personally I wouldn't call my state 'relaxed' but more along the lines of a few steps past stunned. It wasn't like I was going to fill him in on that little tidbit.

"I can't change what you are but I certainly can control my desires and thoughts. Anyways, it doesn't matter because if you succeed in wiping my thoughts, at least I can content myself right now knowing that now you found me mildly amusing." I smiled softly.

I was going with my gut and trying to keep this vampire appeased. He had Babette, Billy and Oliver held captive on his whim somewhere and I only had his vague promise that I wasn't going to be joining them. My contrary nature was keeping him off balance, but that wasn't something I could keep going 24/7. My unusual temperament had kept me alive so far but I wasn't so sure how long I could keep him entertained. I kept envisioning a cat playing with a mouse. And I knew I was the mouse.

He laughed, sounding slightly more sincere and nearly good enough to be on a laugh track of a bad sitcom, "You truly aren't like most humans."

"Joel, pardon me, but you're basically a human. Granted with some physiological adjustment -- teeth and all -- but you started out like me. So all the 'I am vampire' crap doesn't hold much interest for me. You have my husband and his stupid friend held somewhere far away while also keeping dear old Babette under lock and cross, I figure." I waited for some information. My heart jumped a bit at the flash of emotions that ran over his face. His eyes locked on mine and he sucked in some air. I wondered if vampires had to breathe or it was an affectation.

It didn't take long, "How are you reading my mind?" It was his turn now and for a change he was stunned.

I laughed then stopped. He seriously didn't have a clue how I knew what was happening. He wasn't aware of his breathing and reactions to me. That slowed me down a beat as it dawned on me that I really wasn't like the humans he'd preyed on or met. Not my fault, but it slowed me down. I didn't want to get cocky and blow it. "Joel, I spend my most of my days figuring out all sorts of exotic number games and play with multi-levels of managers and sycophants of all types and skills. Your thoughts aren't exactly tough to figure out." My delivery was no-nonsense and direct. He really was stupid about women.

He raised an eyebrow in disdain. I guess he thought he was more complex. I wasn't going to even try to break that fantasy, and I carefully walled off those stray thoughts.

"You still know next to nothing about vampires," he said, gloating, aiming for the higher ground. I could see the sandy slopes of his arrogance and kept my face still. He was right I didn't know about vampires. Didn't mean I couldn't learn.

"True, but see I just found out about vampires today and you've been stalking humans a tad longer than that." I bitchily replied. I was getting restless and wanted to leave. The fang boy was beginning to get on my nerves and I wasn't so sure he was here to help. I kept picturing a sci-fi movie where a main character declared he was from the government and there to help. Any creature that seemingly existed on fears, erotic thoughts and blood wasn't exactly primed to be looking out for my best interests as far as I could determine.

Joel looked distracted by something. I thought that I had made a pretty good point about just learning about vampires, but that didn't seem to be what was catching his interest. The nape of my neck ruffled and I felt the tiny hairs standing upright. I was still seated in my spare office on the chair when Joel stood up, silently putting the frog back on the desktop in the corner where it belonged. I wanted to hide for some reason and that was disturbing. This was my home and I felt something was wrong.

"Did you call anyone? Are you expecting visitors? Josie, does anyone else have a key to your home?" The questions were hissed at such a soft level it took me a minute to put them into questions. And valid questions at that. Up until this morning I pretty much figured only two or three folks had access to my home, and I certainly wasn't expecting anyone. But then Babette hadn't been one of my invited guests but Billy's and who knows how many times the two of them had entertained without my knowledge and who else had joined them? Visions of Oliver and others raced semi-naked unasked through my mind and I shuddered. This truly was a nightmare. I pondered how much I could get for the place if I sold it lock, stock and barrel -- fully furnished. I was pretty much figuring Billy wasn't going to survive Joel's attentions, and if Billy did survive, he'd more than likely need round-the-clock attention and possibly a feeding tube with twenty-four hour care -- if he was lucky.

The images of all the sex going on in my home left some rather vivid impressions that pretty much guaranteed if nothing else I would definitely be burning the bedding and donating the bed before too much longer. As it was I wanted to scrub the house from top to bottom with bleach. I mentally made a note to call the realtor to start the process to list the house for sale. Midst my odd musings I finally heard what caused Joel to stiffen and get up. There was a footfall upon the stairs and a distinctive creak told me whoever was coming upstairs was about half way up.

Holding my breath then I noticed Joel's fangs had dropped back into his disturbing smile. But what really caught my attention was that nobody shouted up a greeting. Whoever it was kept trying to be quiet, but was not completely familiar with the house. The next creak was two steps below the top of the landing. Then I heard another creak lower. Soft whispers alerted me that there were at least two folks and not just one person going back down.

Joel's eyes glowed from within. My heartbeat quickened and I felt like the oxygen was being sucked out of my lungs. A quick dart of his surprisingly pink tongue in and out of his soft mouth made me aware that he was attractive. I shook my head at that thought and instinctively knew that it had something to do with his being a vampire. I concluded that he was using some sort of sex vampiric talent that came with being a vampire.

I scowled at him and made a distinctive slicing motion across my throat while mouthing the words, 'Cut that shit out now!'

A small smile played across his lips and he deliberately winked at me. I guess he did know what he was doing -- not that he knocked it off. He just scaled it back a notch and I no longer was wondering what he would look like naked. Which given my day, was a relief. I'd already seen a nude vampire and I had no desire to make it into a daily event.

Another creak, this time on the landing, and more muttering brought our focus back to the intruders. Mentally I added for Joel to hear, 'Possibly invited visitors'. He nodded and moved swiftly across the space until his mouth was nestled in my neck and he breathed, "Stay here."

He spun away from me and darted towards the landing like he actually believed I'd just blindly obey him. I had to chuckle while I tromped after him. It was still my house, after all. It wouldn't be cool if Joel killed my in-laws or somebody that I actually liked.

It wasn't the in-laws, I quickly discovered, since Joel was holding up two unknown women by their throats a good foot off the hardwood flooring. I didn't recall having ever met either of them but then neither appeared to be choking or even fighting his rough treatment. Nice little submissive sorts flashed unasked through my mind. By then I pretty much figured that Joel knew them. My mind flashed upon a kitten or puppy being held up by the scruff. Neither of them seemed to mind Joel's rough treatment.

"More of your vampires I gather?"

My dry comment made him whirl towards me in surprise while both females were still firmly in his grasp. Their feet swung out, and like a heavily digitalized martial arts movie, they both kicked up the walls and flipped over pulling free from Joel with that movement. I had distracted him just enough.

Landing flat-footed in front of me the taller of the two asked, "You Josie?"

She was trying to sound tough, but given her very light and young-sounding voice, that wasn't working for her. After witnessing her acrobatic move, though, I wasn't going to get in her face and ask her to speak up. If she was in fact a vampire as I suspected, she'd snap me like dry kindling. Or worse. It was the or worse that kept me from immediately responding nastily to them.

Both women were stunning. Maybe I understood a little bit more the attraction of becoming a vampire if you got prettied up after the vampiric transformation and sipping down some O positive blood. The one who'd spoken to me was amazingly long limbed -- slender nearly to high fashion model proportions. The woman's straight long naturally red hair ran over her shoulders a good half foot further down her back. The straight leg blue jeans weren't pricey but fit her well and the powder blue hoodie sweatshirt made her look like an innocent college girl.

That said, her eyes reminded me of all the nasty predators I'd ever seen. Sharks, tigers, hawks -- it didn't matter they all had the same eyes. She definitely wasn't a young playful coed. An arched eyebrow clued me in that I hadn't answered her question.

Oops, I didn't think that was a good thing with vampires. I had quickly gathered from the two vampires I'd already met with that they didn't much cared for being ignored or blocked. I never was good with following rules. With this new crowd it'd probably be the death of me, but I still kept silent. No need to deliberately poke the beasts.

Joel growled. I wondered why he hadn't known that the intruders were fellow vampires. I shoved that disturbing thought far back in my brain behind some charts and math from hell. Joel was right -- I didn't know much about vampires.

"Greta, back down, now!" She didn't look much like a Greta to me. Joel snagged the leggy redhead by the upper arm. His fingers dug deeply into her white skin but she still tried to yank free.

He completely missed the other gal zigzag around Greta and get right up in my face.

"You smell just like Joel." Her voice wasn't sweet but much huskier -- probably she'd been a heavy smoker as a human. I was just taking a stab at that because it was not like I'd be asking her. Her features were flawless, but not quite as delicate as the other vampire. There was no doubt in my mind what she was as I saw the fangs peeking out. I wasn't getting any fonder of seeing sharp nasty fangs, but then I'd only seen a few sets so far and for all I knew there were vampires without them. Besides I was pretty sure if I survived the next sunrise these wouldn't be the last sets. The other gal also had a lovely head of hair that flowed halfway down her back but it was blonde. She wasn't an exotic redhead but a Nordic beauty with a creamy snow frost ice-kissed type of complexion and those damned blonde locks. The eyes that danced in her face were really scary.

"Yeah, and you smell like rotten meat. Your point?" I got up in her face and hissed. It wasn't like I could back down now. I also was pretty sure it was the wrong move, but was exhausted trying to out guess these creatures.

To my surprise she laughed.

"And you think! Wow, you have a brain. Hey, Joel, she's a keeper," I wasn't exactly sure what she meant by that but smiled like it was a compliment.

"Why are you here, Tammy?" He wasn't pleased. But then he was still wrestling with Greta. I watched the drama play out.