Chapter 4

Sometimes the variations of a color evoke a certain emotion. Take the color red, for example. The lighter the shade, the softer it appears. It brings me a sense of calm, reminding me of candy hearts or rose petals just before they wilt. The darker shades, however, appear dangerous and immediately evoke within me a sense of fear.

And staring into Bogdan's blood-red eyes right now is no exception. Fear curls around my chest, squeezing it so tightly I can barely find the strength to breathe. He doesn't blink. I have seen vampires' eyes a handful of times before, but they're usually in movies or textbooks. Even the few I've seen in real life have been dulled – a muddy red.

But Bogdan's eyes are a rich velvet smeared with fresh blood. And I know the cause behind this terrifying shade of red; he's hungry. I swallow hard and roll down the passenger window. The muscles tic along the side of his jaw and his nostrils flare. Amongst the flooding fear coursing within me floats a piece of driftwood made entirely of rejection.

He hates my scent.

I know Bogdan has the ability to communicate; he's showed that in spades with his witty and demeaning emails. But I've never heard a vampire talk before. Will he sound like a normal human? Will he have an accent? Will he –

"What are you doing here, human?"

Oh, hell.

A dusting of lust coats the surface of my fear, diluting it enough for my stomach to quiver with desire. His voice is as deep and rich as the very color staining his irises. All I can manage to do is to point a trembling finger towards the house where Kelly is providing his consort services.

Bogdan doesn't follow my finger. He doesn't move at all.

"H-how did you find me?" I ask.

My vampire tilts his chin up, staring down at me with disgust. I want to counter his look with one of my own, but I just can't manage it. The man is, bar none, the most beautiful creature I have ever seen in my life. Vampires are meant to be beautiful. It's one of their many traits that can be used as a hunting mechanism for their prey. Humans.

"Some humans claim they never forget a face. Correct?"

I nod.

"I never forget a scent."

My mouth makes the shape of an 'O' in understanding, but the actual sound never leaves my lips. "So, you were close by?"

Bogdan's lips part, and I can see the tips of his canines elongating into fangs. When vampires get overly hungry, this is what happens. They can't control it. Even though I smell repulsive, I'm still food in his eyes. I might not be what he wants, but his body is salivating for a taste. I swallow back the temptation to ask him to feed from me.

"No," he corrects. "I smelled yours before you made it into the city limits."

I flush. He doesn't say it with disgust. It's merely factual. There aren't a lot of humans around here, so it makes sense that having one or two trickle in unexpected would cause a stir. Another few vampires open their doors and poke their heads outside. Their red eyes almost glow in the secretive shadows of the night.

Bogdan tilts his head to the side. His eyes dance around the new faces of his fellow kind and he hums low in his throat.

"You need to leave."

"I can't," I argue with a fleeting courage. Then I nod to the house next to us. "Not without my buddy, Kelly."

He raises a brow and glances to the side. When he does I notice most of the vampires watching us have started walking down the sparkly cement of their driveways. Each one is slowly making their way towards my car. Fear claws at what little self-control I've managed to maintain throughout this situation. Why again did I think this was a good idea?

"I'm one of the strongest vampires you will ever cross," Bogdan hisses. "And one of the most well-respected. But they are not in the right frame of mind. They are far too hungry to listen to me tonight."

Too hungry? But...how is that possible? Every vampire has a consort – every single one of them. And it's a consort's duty to feed their vampire whenever needed. It doesn't make any sense. Why are so many of them hungry?

I can feel my pulse quickening as the vampires from the other houses near my car, closer and closer with every passing second. My veins feel like individual water slides, blood gushing at a pace so fast it makes my head spin.

Bogdan closes his eyes and tightens his grip on the side of my door. "You need to control your emotions. The faster your blood pumps, the further your scent carries."

"What about Kelly? He's still inside."

Bogdan's eyes snap open, and he glances around at the approaching creatures. His brows crease ever so slightly before he unlocks the passenger door and gets in my car. His long limbs scrunch into the compact vehicle. My eyes sweep up his attire – navy pants and a collared shirt. Bogdan points a steady finger ahead of us and tells me to drive that way.

"I'll make sure your friend is safe for the night," he promises through clenched teeth. "But we need to leave. Now."

I hesitate. This man, this creature, could be taking me anywhere. For all I know he's planning to take sell me off to one of his vampire friends. He doesn't like the scent of my blood. Maybe he'll trade mine for someone else's?

His voice lowers but there is still a razor sharp edge that keeps my fear intact. "I will not hurt you. But they will. We need to move."

I lick my lips and put a trembling hand over the gear to put my car into drive. My foot hits the accelerator harder than I intend, and the two of us propel away from the curb with a defiant squeal. Some of the vampires try to chase after us. Most of them just watch with hungry gazes as we pass.

A few times I look back in the rearview mirror, my guilt forcing me to seek out the house where Kelly is now trapped. But every time I do, all I see is red eyes. Red for hunger. Red for blood. Red for danger.

___________

We drive until well past the city limits of the Village. I nervously glance at my gas gauge, worried I won't have enough to make it back to Kelly tomorrow. Only when the florescent lights of the undead begin to fade does Bogdan tell me we're here.

He points to a gravel road I would have never seen otherwise. It's narrow and not well-traveled. My poor car bumps and wheezes over the rocky terrain. When we pull up to the small house, Bogdan tells me to wait in the car while he checks the perimeter.

"What for?" I ask.

He opens the door and peers out into the vast night. "To make sure any uninvited guests are properly redirected back to the Village."

Trepidation poisons my mind, but I try to remember Bogdan's words and calm my breathing. He hops out of the car and squints into the night. His torso becomes rigid, and in a blur of red and white, he disappears. I lock the car doors again.

I may have never traveled to the Village before, but something feels off about all of this. Plenty of people in my life have had live feedings. Granted none of them ever went to the Village, but I've never known vampires to want for anything. They have a constant food supply. They were given the cleaner and more modern living area even prior to when the Agreement was put in place.

So why did they look so...vile?

I shudder thinking of their striking faces and hungry expressions. If it wasn't for Bogdan, I would have probably let them open the car door and pull me right out. It's not that I don't have a will to fight; I simply would have been hypnotized.

My keychain brushes against my leg. The light, unsuspecting touch makes me flinch. What am I doing trusting a vampire I barely know? He promised me a night of safety. He promised the same for Kelly. But he's given me no reason to trust him. His eyes are just as red as the others I saw gracefully gliding down their respective walkways. Who's to say he won't do the same to me as they were planning on doing?

I chew on my bottom lip. During the drive I was so focused on Bogdan's proximity to me that I didn't focus on how we got here. Well, that and my dwindling gas gauge. Maybe, if I follow the city lights back into the Village, I can find my way back to the street where I left Kelly.

My shoulders slump. Even if I managed to find my way back, I don't think I'd arrive in one piece. If it wasn't for Bogdan's threatening gaze and presence beside me, I don't think we would have even made it here safely.

All the stress becomes focused on my lip currently lodged between my teeth. I chew on it so hard a small cut pierces the supple flesh of my bottom lip. I wince and allow my tongue to slide across it. The coppery flavor mats against my taste buds.

Only seconds pass and Bogdan is at the passenger door again. His eyes almost glow against the blackened sky. I roll the window down, attempting to put on a brave face.

"Did you catch all the lurkers?"

He doesn't respond.

His movements become so still he could pass as a porcelain statue. Then his eyes rake down my face until narrowing in on my bottom lip. Another miniscule drop of blood passes through the small cut. My tongue laps it up without thinking. Bogdan's gaze follows the action, and his fangs elongate into something more menacing than anything than I could have imagined.

My heart beats out of control when he opens the door with slow, predatory movements. I feel like a caged animal – one with no means of escape. Time becomes frozen when Bogdan gets in the car. He reaches for my face with hands as strong as vices and as soft as snow. Even if I wanted to, there's nothing I can do to stop him.

It's like I'm in another world. His red eyes lure me in, and his scent seduces my thoughts into a false sense of peace. My chest squeezes in anticipation when he pulls me towards him. He isn't just a shadow in the night. He's transforming into the night itself, taking the form of everything beautiful in nature to catch his prey.

And I am left helpless to it all. Helpless to him - a demon in disguise.