Mine...Yours Pt. 14

"That...hnngh! Depends, on the benefits package sir!" The black man said to me. Which made me laugh! Such temerity this human had. I made a motion and my blood stopped worming through him and he panted out a sigh of relief, almost sobbing.

"Full medical coverage while working for me. Which includes dental and vision. A small copay, but that is just to make things easier for my insurance company. Also I have a nice 401k program and I personally match 50%. Then again, that is only one paper. What is off paper is of tremendous value. Interested?"

He gave his head a shake, but I guessed rightly it was only to clear his pain. His eyes looked up at me with cautious interest.

"Salary?" he asked.

"What were you paid before?" I returned. He told me. I tsked! Were all wizards so stingy? I doubled it, and we shook hands on it.

Now, I have a new head of security Reginald Markus...who preferred to be called "Reg." Reg went about speaking to the other men. Most joined me, I found out that their benefits package was just as abysmal as Reginald's! Of the nine men...three did not want to join me. I went ahead and called back my blood, taking all of the rest that was in their bodies as well. At least this way I didn't have to taste it! Seeing they're ex compatriots exsanguinated in this fashion put a touch more haste in their steps and a little more respect in their voices. On my orders they loaded up the vans to dispose of the bodies. Then I told them to not go back to their home base, and instead meet me at my home.

One may think me foolish to hire such mercenary folk, especially since they had been trying to kill me less than half an hour past. I prefer as I said to you all before, to have enemies work for me and thank me for the pleasure. Which Reg, and the rest of his men did.

Such a sweeter victory don't you think?

I myself, sat down in the park and held Nancy curled up in my lap. I had a lot to think about where she was concerned. I absentmindedly called Suzanne and let her know I had retrieved my property and let her know that at least one wizard with three armed guards were in her city. I assume she hadn't given permission for them to be there since she hung up quickly.

It was at that point, with Nancy asleep in the crook of my elbow, I decided to go home.

Chapter 4

The walk home was uneventful, no one accosted a small man in a business suit holding a sleeping rat cradled in his arms. Though one patrol car slowed down and asked if I needed help. Police are so much nicer in this day and age than they were a hundred years ago!

I came home to see that my new men had cleaned up the mess inside my house and as I had requested were all eating and drinking in the kitchen and dining room. Very politely too! Must have been raised with manners by their mothers...commendable. Hmmm...I wonder if they would mind being test eaters for new dishes I wanted to prepare?

Reg saluted as I came in, the rest stood and did the same.

"At ease...the wizard?" I asked.

"We stripped him and placed him in the bathtub at your request sir." Reg said, and then reached into his pocket and placed the contents of Woolrim's pockets and his jewelry on the dining room table. I gently set Nancy down and opened up the wallet. Taking out the cash I handed it to Reg.

"Please go to the Embassy Suites hotel, I will call ahead and have rooms prepared. You are to use whatever facilities you wish. Rest and eat. I will be calling on you soon so we can work out the parameters of our agreement...is that clear?"

All 6 men saluted and gathered their things before heading out the open front door.

I carefully picked up Nancy and brought her into my bedroom and set her on the pillow next to mine, after taking off her leash and harness. Then I took off my jacket and rolled up my shirtsleeves for the next part would be a little messy. I opened a neatly concealed compartment beneath my bed and removed several clay vessels. I carefully checked the hieroglyphs and nodded that they were correct and walked into the bathroom where Matthew Woolrim lay unconscious in my bathtub. I set the clay jars on the counter and sat on the toilet lid and looked at the wizard.

So peaceful he seemed, my blood forcing him into slumber. Being wide, his shoulders nestled tightly in the porcelain walls of my tub. I sighed and then with a thought allowed him to awaken. He blinked and groaned, he tried to grip the side of the bathtub with his right arm and bumped his stump against the edge and howled before falling back in. He gripped the remains of his arm with his other hand, his eyes flying open and locking on my face.

"You bastard! I will kill you for this, we will kill you for this!" He groaned out between moans. I nodded my head in understanding.

"Always the same isn't it Matthew...?" I said quietly.

"You get put in a losing situation and then you turn to threatening me with some unseen enemies that will come and either save or avenge you. I have seen it all before. Next will come the bargaining...correct? You will say how you spared me when you had me at your mercy? That you never would have killed me but just wanted what information I have right?"

He was still gasping slightly, but grit his teeth as he stared at me. I nodded. His silence was answer enough.

I stood and stepped back to pick up one of the clay jars, considering it.

"You won't get any information out of me...Abernathy! You won't get shit!" He growled out. I nodded my head again.

"I am aware that to become a wizard you can withstand great amounts of torment, both physical and psychological. Are you aware that as a vampire I could just drain your blood completely, and then I could sift through your thoughts and skills to pick what I want to know?"

I sat back down, holding the jar in my hand and continued in a mild lecturer's tone.

"My old Sire loved music, sadly he never could play very well. He would prey upon traveling gypsies or minstrels and drain them dry. For a few hours after he could play just as well as they could in life. But soon the skill would wane as the blood of his meal was used up." I shook my head a little sadly.

"What a waste, years of training for a human, snuffed out for a few hours of stolen ability? How selfish my people can be." I looked back at my victim.

"I sought a more permanent solution, and used it on those who were about to die. My first was a vampire that had gone rogue...such a classy term that...Rogue! Makes one think of Robin Hood or the Highwayman doesn't it? I used a particular process of oils and acids to melt them, then drain off the excess fluid leaving salt crystals behind. Strange now that I look back on it, the essence of what he was filled the palm of my hand with white powder. I took this and after mixing it with a proprietary blend of blood of my own devising...I imbibed it."

I leaned forward, staring into the wizard's eyes, my tone was soft and dark..."Do you know what happened, Matthew?"

His own eyes were wide as he pushed himself back further in the bathtub. "N...N...No!"

I smiled, "I had all of his skills, I knew woodworking as he did from before he got turned. For example I made all of the cabinets in my kitchen. I knew everything he did! I had ALL of his memories, down to the first baby he snatched for their sweet blood, down to his last moments with me looking down at him the way I am looking down at you now."

I paused, thoughtfully. "I haven't seen myself like that in centuries. I wonder how I will look when I see myself through your eyes?"

I raised the first of the clay jars and poured it over the wizard and watched clinically as he began to thrash and scream.

************************************

I walked back to my study, got out my cleaning kit and carefully unloaded Talisman, before oiling him and putting him away. Once he was safe and secure behind several other small artifacts of power, I took the sapphire from my pocket, the one that had been in Woolrim's ear. It was a pretty bauble, and that faint dusting of magic it held from being exposed to the wizard made it a perfect gift to give Lucretia.

For Gregory, the gold chain bracelet might be a bit much...but after I imbibed the wizard, I would know better what it could do. I closed my study without adding too much to the clutter and walked back to the bathroom. Several minutes had passed, I had turned the ventilation fan on to suck the residue of the liquification process out. It always had an odd smell to it! Sure enough, the acid and oils had done their job and been absorbed by the body. A layer of dry crystals could be seen. Carefully I gathered every particle I could find, and scooped it all into a clear glass cup. I held it up to the light and marveled how the very essence of a body could be held in half of a cup of what looked like sugar!

I took it with me to the kitchen and pulled down from the cupboards a mortar and pestle of dark smooth marble. I began to grind by hand the crystals into a fine white powder. Then I began mixing different type of blood together. Of what animal you need not know, and in what quantities is unimportant.

What is important is that the powder flowed smoothly and mixed well. I braced myself, knowing what would come next.

A young vampire could be driven insane by what I was about to do. I was about to fill myself with the thoughts, memories and feelings of another individual. I would know his most sacred and inner secrets as surely as I would my own. I have over 700 years of life experience that anchors me into what I know is me. When I was merely a fledgling still I took the memories of that feral vampire and nearly went insane. Then I foolishly took on the memories of a Vampyre!

To this day I still am not sure which is me and which is him, if I am truly myself or an amalgam of what is very old and what is new. Whatever I am, I am at least sure of it. Which is more than most can say about themselves!

I tipped back the glass and swallowed gulp after thick gulp. It slithered down my throat and my mind started to pop and writhe inside of my skull! My heart beat faster and my skin tingled like hot then cold water was being sprayed over me in alternating patterns! Energy filled me first and I stood straight and tall!

I chuckled and held my hand up in front of my face. A memory came to me of what I could do and I snapped my fingers once. A black flame, like a negative photo of a candle appeared over my fingertip and I smiled at it in enjoyment.

What a wonder! I should have tried to do this before! I began to sift through memories that I knew were mine and which ones belonged to Woolrim. I saw his mother and father, their graves. A pet cat from when he was a child. His first kiss at 15 years of age and how her lips had tasted of chocolate covered cherries. I kept searching for more recent memories then came upon one that made me stop.

I gasped, and held my head. No! How could I have missed this? It had been right in front of me, the entire time! I scanned forward and back through thoughts and memories not my own and felt a prickle of tears come to the corners of my eyes. I stumbled to the corner counter in the kitchen and blindly picked up a sharp paring knife. Then I headed towards my bedroom where Nancy lay sleeping.

She looked so peaceful there, laying on her side, the harness and leash coiled up on the nightstand next to my bed. I stepped in closer, my hand tightening on the paring knife as I sat down next to her. She stirred in her sleep as I starred off to the side at the wall. I was still processing all of the new thoughts. Ritual workings, and the sundering of magic circles of power. The sapphire had been a trophy, like a diploma from college or an instructor's belt in a martial art. Maybe I would keep it for a little while.

The gold chain had been a gift from a friend. No magical value to it, except a symbol of friendship with...with...who? I see a face but the name escapes me! It...

"William...?" I feel her soft forepaws on my thigh and glance down at Nancy. She is looking up at me with an expression that I know from her months living with me that is of concern.

I try to speak to allay her concerns when those other memories rush through me and I grip that paring knife a little harder in my fist. If what I see is true in these memories, and if I have interpreted them correctly...

This is going to hurt!

"Nancy..." I say, trying to keep my voice calm. Though a hitch in it makes her ears swivel up and alert. I cough and try again.

"Nancy, I have some questions..." She shakes her head at me, which makes me stop and reconsider my words.

"Nancy, I have some statements, and hypothetical questions. More like I need to think out loud, would you care to remain while I do so?" I asked, looking down at her. My eyes were looking directly into hers as she stared up at me. I noticed her tail twitch at the intensity of my gaze.

"I want...to stay." She said meaningfully.

I let out a breath that I didn't know I had been holding, then stood up, and began pacing. I was tapping the flat of the blade of the paring knife in my palm as I walked slowly around the room.

"A rat, a talking rat no less, that has a life span of well on to 37 years is considered by most to be out of the question..." I glanced at her and saw her flinch, and carried on. "...even with the use of black geometry or other forms of dark magic it is preposterous. Even partaking of vampiric blood is not enough to allow non-sentient creatures to live so long past their regular life span."

I turned and pointed a finger at her.

"This leads me to conclude that you are either a shape shifter of some sort or are a being under some form of a curse...and not a rat at all!" I declared.

Nancy began shifting and making those little grunts as if she was trying to speak. It sounded like it was hurting her! I raised a hand and gave her a hard look, which silenced her.

"I am not done yet. So, further proofs of this are the late wizard...one Matthew Woolrim. I overheard him declaring you a compendium familiar. Something that through research and his own memories is a role impossible for a creature without sentience to become. Also from his memories one of the fail safes to keep said knowledge secret from all but the familiar's master is to have a geas placed upon said individual that renders them unable from divulging that knowledge to any Tom, Dick, or Harry that they choose too."

I glanced at Nancy again and she was frozen in place, except for her twitching nose and her eyes watching me as I paced.

I stopped and stood in front of Nancy looking down at her.

"You tried...so many times to tell me didn't you? But the words were unable to come out?" I heard a squeaky sob come from her.

"Saying to me, "A woman has to have her secrets" or constantly fetching me tea when it would be impossible for a rat to get to where you had gone to get those things for me? Let alone actually making a cup of tea. All clues to who, or should I say...what you were?"

Another sob, and she was struggling to make noise, anything at all. I put a hand on her back and gently stroked her fur...soothing her as best as I could.

"A simple, elegant curse really. Around anyone but your master you stay in the form of a rat? When in sight of him you change back to your original form? Makes sense...but even after his death you would remain a rat forevermore to the end of your days. A safety would have to be in place wouldn't it?" I said quietly. Nancy was still as stone. I could almost feel her hope welling up in her!

"It's how you could reach up into the cupboards and pull things around. When I couldn't see you, you would take your true form. But there had to be no chance at all I would be able to see you. Several times we would play games where I would blind fold my eyes and find where you were hiding, you were always a rat then...so there could be no chance of me seeing you at all..."

I raised the paring knife in my hand and Nancy saw it..."No William! NO!"

I stabbed the blade into my right eye and screamed, then quickly yanked it out and slammed it into my left one before I could consider how much this would hurt. I grasped blindly at the bed and my hand touched a warm smooth thigh. Small hands gripped the sides of my head, my blood spilling over fingers as my head was tilted back and thick lips like plump berries touched mine!

A ripping sensation, as if a sheet of cloth was torn in half. I didn't feel it or hear it, but I still know it had been done, the moment her lips touched mine. No, I didn't figure it was a kiss of True Love that broke the spell, but rather a Kiss of Acknowledgement. Most people would not kiss a rat. That is considered to be rather, well...disgusting!

But to kiss a person? Not hard to believe at all. As I rightly guessed from those memories, to know of the curse, and then to make it absolutely impossible to view with one's eyes the target, and then give the Kiss of Acknowledgment and believe that it was not a rat, but a person lips you would touch would break it. As I said before...simple, yet effective.

A curvy body with wide hips held me tightly in her arms and I heard a crying voice loudly saying, "Thank you! Thank you! Oh Thank You William!"

Slowly, over the course of a minute or two, my eyes healed from the damage done to them and I could now clearly see Nancy...who she really was, for the first time.

Slightly curly light brown hair falling a few inches past her shoulders framing a heart shaped face with thick lips still with a touch of my blood still on them. She was kneeling on the end of the bed, so her head was taller than mine but if she were standing she would be my height. Pert cute breasts that sat comfortably on her chest, and full luscious hips perfect for dandling small children on is enough of an explanation of her looks. Anymore and I would need to draw you a picture. I am simply not skilled at art.

Nancy immediately noticed she was naked and covered herself with her arms and hands blushing a furious red. Then she shrugged and let her arms dangle and smiled at me.

"I must look a fright with blood on my face!" I muttered, and called to it, pulling it back into my body, I saw some of it drift through the air from her to me as well. Which made me a little sad. I quite liked my blood on her skin. Made me feel possessive.

She was still staring and smiling, then began to tremble...her eyes welled with tears! I stepped forward and held my arms out to her and she fell into them.

"I can feel you William!" She said as she roamed her hands over me. She was constantly touching me, and then she yanked my hands to her own body.

"Touch me! Please! I haven't been touched like this in so long!" She demanded, pleading. I ran my hands over the outer and inner slopes of her breasts and something primal took over and I rolled her on to her back on my sheets. She cried out as I pulled my shirt off and she pressed herself against my chest. In short order I had my pants of and I was moving above her, kissing her and tasting her moans.

I was giddy! My Nancy, my little rodent secretary was a woman! She had been cursed and I still had questions, but now...now I wanted her to enjoy herself. I wanted her to enjoy her freedoms. Not to mention, as her thick lips sucked on my tongue, I wanted to enjoy her as well!

I am no sexual savant, or a re born Don Juan. I have, however, made certain conquests in my time. Among both the nobility and the gentry. My last conquest was more of a trade. Over three hundred years ago I summoned the Queen of all Succubae. There was a price to be had for her assistance, so I guess you might say I can count her as well among my amorous conquests. Truth be told in many ways it felt the other way around! It took a little over a month for me to fully recover from that ordeal. In many ways it was like being caught in a hurricane at sea with only a life vest to keep afloat!