My Girlfriend is a Vampire Ch. 03

I grunted and replied, "Sure. They're phobophages. They feed off fear. Although they're more commonly found in Europe than they are over here."

"Well, this particular panikmachen was living in a motel room on the West side of Chicago," Rochau offered, "and according to clues he left behind, he was part of a much larger organization. There is an army of panikmachen living here in the United States, all working together to sow fear and discord across the nation."

"What?" I exclaimed.

"I said that there is an army- "

I interrupted him in mid-sentence and insistently yelled, "Panikmachen are solitary creatures! They live underneath bridges or in the sewers or in spooky condemned buildings! They always work alone! They never work in large organized groups!"

"Someone has inspired them to change their ways," Rochau said, "It would appear that they now have a leader."

"Who?" I asked, suddenly very emotionally invested in seeing the panikmachen and their leader beaten to death, chopped into small chunks and then set on fire.

"That is an excellent question," Rochau admitted, "however, we have yet to learn the identity of this mysterious being. Of course, if we had Kelsey working for us, finding villains like him would be far easier. Her ability at finding people is really quite extraordinary."

"You've made your point," I said gruffly, "I'm interested in helping. I'll talk to Kelsey and explain how important this is."

"Your cooperation is appreciated," Rochau said, his face as impassive as ever. He had just achieved a victory of sorts, and yet there wasn't even the hint of a smile on his face.

"I'll call you after I've spoken to Kelsey," I said, "I should have an answer for you before the end of the day. Is that acceptable?"

"Quite acceptable," he agreed, "However, before you go, you should know that you owe the ordo sicariorum twenty-five thousand dollars."

I froze.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

My outburst failed to get an emotional reaction from him. He just sat there calmly and patiently answered my question.

"When you killed Pallas and her sisters, you left their bodies out in a public parking lot where anyone could find them. The mortal authorities took possession of their bodies and sent them off to the morgue. My people had to expend a considerable amount of time and money, bribing city officials to turn the bodies over to us and to falsify official records in order to cover up the truth about the corpses that you left behind."

"Yeah, but-" I began to protest.

"Miss Higgins, we live in cities built by humans," Rochau said, interrupting me, "however, we must always be discrete around humans. Leaving behind physical evidence of the paranormal is both reckless and irresponsible. I'll be expecting better from you in the future."

Something about his words or his tone of voice made me feel like a naughty schoolgirl. I was a centuries old immortal, however, he made me feel like a little girl who got caught sneaking out of the house after dark. How the hell did he do that?

In the end I did my penance and wrote him a check for twenty-five thousand dollars. He had me make the check payable to the M. Solomon Casket Company. I'm guessing that the M. Solomon Casket Company is some sort of front company that Rochau uses to launder money.

_____________

I had some doubts about the deal that I made with Rochau, but things could have turned out much worse. Kelsey was still alive, and I was still her protector. And Rochau seemed to be perfectly happy with things remaining that way. I was relatively pleased with the day's negotiations.

"And having concluded your negotiations, you're just going to leave so abruptly?" Lara asked warmly as I stood in her private office and attempted to say goodbye.

"Now that I've had my discussion with Rochau, I need to have a discussion with Kelsey," I replied, "More talks, more negotiations, more plans. I've kinda got a full plate today."

"And you have no time to spare for me?" Lara asked softly, "I set up this meeting with Rochau as a favor to you, and you have yet to even say a word of thanks."

"I'm sorry," I said, "These past twenty-four hours have been pretty crazy. Anyway, thanks for your help. It's much appreciated."

Lara gave me a look that was seductive and pouty. "Hannah," she said and there was something in her voice that sang with quiet, seductive power, "It would be rude of you to leave so soon."

I loved the sound of Lara's voice, however it sounded especially sweet and soothing at that moment, and her full, kissable lips demanded my undivided attention. She continued to speak, however, I somehow lost track of the words coming out of her mouth, and before I knew it my lips were pressed urgently against hers.

I don't remember making a conscious decision to kiss Lara, but suddenly she was moaning into my mouth as we fervidly kissed, and our tongues merged together. As we continued to kiss, Lara's hands moved all over my body, my shoulders, the small of my back, my waist, and then they cupped and fondled my buttocks.

I don't remember taking off any of my clothes, however, at some point I realized that most of my clothes were on the floor and I was wearing nothing but a pair of hip-hugger panties.

I supposed it was possible that Lara was manipulating me, using her vampire powers to inflame my libido and impel me into ignoring my responsibilities. Yeah, it was possible, however, at the time the sensation of Lara's flesh underneath my fingertips was so delicious and the tingling feeling of her tongue probing my mouth was so exquisite that I really didn't care.