Night Hunt Ch. 05

Anya frowned at her computer screen in annoyance. She had spent the past afternoon searching for all she could find on vampires, but all that her efforts returned were goth forums with vampire wannabes, plus a seemingly endless stream of movie reviews and fanfic stories.

She sighed and clicked the browser closed. It was the same every time, yet she kept trying. Whenever she stopped work, her mind wandered to Tyrus. Their brief encounter had left her with a desperate need for more. She didn't even know him, but somehow she had felt such a strong pull to the enigmatic vampire.

What would it mean to be with a vampire? How would it work out, with him being immortal and her growing old? She didn't have any of the answers, but she knew that she wanted to find out. How could she accept that she would never see him again? It seemed unfair that he had the final say in the matter.

She had never had any experience even close to what had happened last weekend. She wished she had someone to tell about it, but she had no family left, and since her best friend had died, she'd slowly let herself drift from everyone else, sick of their faces of concern and their failure to understand that she was okay being alone.

She'd shied away from any form of a social life, and eventually got used to the peace and quiet of her home. Now, four years on, she found herself a recluse. Her only human contact was her boss, a university lecturer in linguistics who saw her once a month, and allowed her to carry out her work as her research assistant at home.

Recently, her boss, Julia, had gotten married, and was currently on a mission to find a partner for Anya too. Anya had just found out two days ago that Julia had signed on to a dating website on Anya's behalf. Despite Anya's vehement protests, Julia had used the account to set Anya up on a date.

"I know you can make it, you're never out! Look at him," she coaxed enthusiastically over the phone, "he looks nice! What's the worst that could happen? It's just one little date. If you really need to get rid of him, you can text me, and I'll call you away for a 'work emergency'."

For every excuse Anya could think of, Julia had a comeback. Eventually, Anya had decided that it was less effort to give in to the date than to argue with Julia.

The date was for tomorrow evening, on a Saturday. One week from when she'd had mindblowing sex with Tyrus. She really wasn't in the mood for more male company. She groaned inwardly. How had her love life, if you could call it that, become so eventful?

She needed a cold shower.

****

The evening went smoothly enough. Anya had to admit, Julia had done her a favour. Her date, Luke, was handsome in a boyish sort of way. He was twenty seven, just a year younger than her. He was tall, with cropped, sandy blonde hair. His bright blue eyes creased cutely whenever he smiled. His clothing was a thoughtful combination of smart yet relaxed, in a crisp blue shirt and khaki chinos. He looked a little too preppy for her taste, but she decided that she could overlook that.

Luke had picked a small, family run Italian restaurant for them to meet. Its warm and cozy ambience had put her at ease, and after a glass of red wine, she was chatting freely. She learnt that Luke was a dentist, working in a private clinic with a handful of colleagues, with the hopes if branching out on his own in the future. He enjoyed hiking during his time off, and often went on trips to nearby mountains with his friends.

He was obviously attracted to her. He kept a flirtatious tone, finding excuses to brush his fingers along her arms as they talked. Although he tried to hide it, she noticed him checking out her body in her tight black dress. It was a staple in her closet for times like these, on the few occasions where she needed to dress up. She'd forgotten how short it was, revealing more of her legs than she'd intended. The neckline seemed more scooped than she remembered, and whilst it remained modest enough, still showed a bit of cleavage.

She'd let her long brown hair down for a change. It fell around her shoulders in soft waves. She'd put some effort into her makeup, making her eyes dark and smokey and choosing a soft pink lipstick to match. She wasn't a vain person, but she knew that she looked good tonight.

She realised that Luke had been keeping her mind off Tyrus, whom she'd only thought of twice that night. Maybe Luke was what she needed, some normalcy instead of the confusion and mystery that surrounded the vampire, who had made it clear that she would never see him again.

Who are you kidding? She asked herself. She knew that ever since the dark haired vampire with glowing eyes had entered her bedroom and her life, she was doomed. That was the first time that she truly understood what passion should feel like. His touch was electrifying, and his lips had melted her in the instant they met hers. Now, anything else she found would feel like she was settling.

"...what do you think?"

She smiled politely as she tried to recall Luke's last words. Had he noticed that her mind had drifted? She thought he had mentioned something about meeting his friends later that night. She thought of how empty her apartment had been feeling lately, and shrugged. She certainly didn't need another night alone with her thoughts.

"Convince me," she said, trying to mask the fact she was trying to dig for the details that she had missed.

"It's at that nightclub, Le Bastille. It's been around for ages, but it's still really popular. I've never been there myself, but my friend is a member. He'll get us in easily. It's just three of them. My friend, his girlfriend, and her brother, who is in town for the week. We'll drink and dance.. It'll be fun!"

She thought it over, looking down at her plate in contemplation. It did sound like fun, and she had been keeping things friendly all night, afraid that she was leading Luke on. She did want to go out, and it wouldn't just be the two of them. She looked up and smiled, "okay, okay, I suppose a drink wouldn't kill me."

Luke grinned like a boy who had just blown out the candles on his birthday cake. He called for the bill and ushered her to the door, casually resting his hand on the small of her back. They stepped out into the crisp night air. She shivered, and he moved closer, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. It felt nice, she decided, but stepped away quickly. She didn't want to give Luke any ideas.

They waited for a taxi. He had not driven, having planned beforehand to meet his friends at the club after their date. Fifteen minutes later, they were at the entrance of the club.

Le Bastille was housed in an intimidating looking building made of dark tinted glass, situated in a prime area of the city. The building was many levels tall, keeping in height with the surrounding skyscrapers in the area. Anya wondered what else the building was used for, there were no signs or indications from the outside walls.

It was still fairly early for clubbing, but a long queue had already appeared, snaking around the building corner. The muted sound of a heavy bass beat could be heard from outside. Anya felt intimidated by the chic and attractive crowd. Every single person looked like a model or movie star compared to her.

At the front of the queue stood two bouncers in expensive looking black suits. They looked alert, scanning the crowd for any possible misconduct. One was fair with black hair and a scar on his upper lip, the other was olive skinned with dark, glimmering eyes and a hard set mouth. When they moved, it was obvious that both were well-built beneath their smart clothing. They had a seriousness about them, never smiling as they let people through. She had never seen two more scary looking men in her life.

Luke looked about as intimidated as she felt. His preppy outfit looked a little out of place in contrast to the glamorous people waiting in line. He gave her a nervous grin as he dialled a number on his handphone.

"Alex? Yes, we've arrived," he spoke into his handphone, scanning the queue, "oh there you are!"

An attractive man in a tailored white shirt stepped forward from the side of the building, an equally beautiful blonde girl in a short, silky green dress on his arm. Following behind them was another man with blond hair in a smart black shirt and jeans. When he came to stand by the girl, there was no doubt that the good looking pair were siblings. Luke quickly introduced them as Alex, Jenna, and Jude.

Jenna took a glance at the Luke and Anya and smiled, amusement in her eyes.

"Luke, you didn't say you were bringing a friend," she exclaimed, causing Luke to look away shyly, "I'm glad you haven't scared her off by now."

She turned to Anya, extending her hand, "I'm not sure where his manners have gone, he's forgotten to introduce you! What's your name?"

"Anya," she blinked, not used to the overt friendliness that Jenna exuded. She took Jenna's hand and immediately, the girl pulled her towards the club.

"Come on," Jenna coaxed, "we've been waiting long enough. I want to daaance!"

Alex stepped forward, leading the group to the front of the queue. He presented a gold coloured card to the bouncers. They nodded and, after scrutinising it for a moment, passed him through.

"They're with me," Alex gestured to the rest of them, waiting hopefully on the other side of the bouncers. Anya thought she saw the black haired one take a sniff at them. She figured it was just her imagination. One night with a vampire and she was already getting paranoid.

The bouncers looked at each other, and the black haired one nodded. They let the group through without any further discussion.

The inside of Le Bastille looked like a mixture of old and new. It had high ceilings and a large, spacious dance floor. The place was already filled with people. Sexy electronic dance music was pulsing through the club. A spectacular laser light display would go off across the space at regular intervals, in time to the music. The DJ booth was above them, on an upper level, where the DJ could watch the crowd dancing.

Ornate, black marble pillars provided detail to the dark walls, with plush, velvet sofas and chairs lining every available nook and cranny. The tables were of a sleek modern design, made of glass with dim lights on their underside. The decor looked mysterious and luxurious at once. There were private booths off to one side, shielded by translucent gauze-like curtains. Anya could barely make it out, but she saw shapes moving within them, indicating that they were occupied.

"I'll get drinks," Alex yelled above the noise, "go ahead, I won't be long." He gave Jenna a playful push towards the dance floor before disappearing into the crowd. Jenna laughed, taking Anya's hand and pulling her along.

"Come on, let's show the boys what we've got," she said, winking mischievously at Anya.

Anya had no choice but to follow, with Luke and Jude in tow.

****

Tyrus sat in the club, watching the men and women gyrating on the dance floor, oblivious to the fact that not all of them out there were human. His companion, Connor, had picked up by now that he was in a foul mood, but had yet to figure out why.

The werewolf was on the verge of leaving Tyrus alone with his thoughts, except that Connor was the one who had coaxed him to come out in the first place, and so had decided to make the most of the night with his miserable company. Connor sipped silently at his beer, wondering what could have caused this change in his friend.

Tyrus sighed to himself. Never one to follow conventions, he had befriended Connor amidst tensions between the different species of the supernatural community. They had met at a time when there was little respect for rules governing the supernatural, just after the Governance had been founded, as a joint attempt across species to keep the peace and prevent detection by the human world.

Connor had come from a fairly conservative pack who had strict traditions and no freedom for its members. He'd been a werewolf by birth, and had had no say in who he was in the hierarchy and what he wanted out of life. He was practically a pup then, rebellious and head strong, and yearning to break free to find his own identity.

When he'd met Tyrus, they found that they had a lot in common. Both were trying to deny what they were, and were looking to start anew. They'd become fast friends. Now it was almost eighty years on. Connor had found a new pack, and Tyrus remained, well Tyrus.

Tyrus didn't know if he could tell anything to Connor. He wouldn't even know where to begin. After he had left Satine's apartment, all he could feel was disgust. After so many years living the way he had, he'd confused what he needed for sex. He wasn't sure if he was ready to admit to himself what he was really missing. He realised now how empty his life had become.

He contemplated how it had come to be this way, sinking deeper into his reverie. He hadn't always been like this. As a human, he had lived for simple pleasures. He'd been a farmer, having lived on a farm all his life. He had worked hard, and had married a girl whom he'd thought was the most beautiful girl in the world.

Tyrus closed his eyes at the painful memory of Charlotte. He had fallen hopelessly in love with her. They had married at eighteen, and she bore him two lovely children. They were the light of his life.

One night, a pair of Vampires passed through the small town and caught sight of them. The male, which he later learned was named Degare, took a fancy to his wife. Satine was his travelling partner, and had decided that she wanted Tyrus for herself.

For a whole week, Tyrus had been unaware of the presence of the two vampires in the village. He recalled how he had come home one night to find Degare in bed with his wife. From the looks of it, she had let him into their bed willingly, and was screaming out her passions when he arrived.

The betrayal had driven Tyrus into a fit of rage. He'd gone after Degare, but quickly learnt that he was something other than human. Degare injured him badly, and left him within an inch of his life. It was Satine who had found Tyrus and turned him into a vampire, wanting to keep him around for her own selfish reasons. He awoke into his new life, confused and hurting.

He found his wife and children dead, killed by Degare and Satine, for the simple reason that they did not want to leave behind any witnesses. The discovery was more than he could bear. Degare, unconcerned with the aftermath of his actions, left for another village, already bored with what had transpired.

Satine remained determined to change Tyrus' mind about her, but he'd refused her advances. She'd taken that as a challenge, wanting to convince him to choose her. He'd never understood it, but, thinking back, she'd always had an interest in him. She took Tyrus back to her home, keeping him a prisoner there against his will.

For the first ten years Tyrus was inconsolable, having lost faith in all that was good. He'd had to deal with his loss, and come to terms with what he had become, all at the same time. He was repulsed by himself, his need to feed, and the other creatures of the night around him.

Eventually, he tolerated Satine's presence. He allowed her to teach him everything there was to know about their kind. He knew that if he stayed with her, his knowledge, and therefore his powers, would continue to grow. For the next few years, he plotted his revenge, all the while keeping his intentions hidden from Satine. His heart had turned cold, changed forever by betrayal and anger.

He eventually let her into his own bed, seeing it as an opportunity to bring her guard down. One night he saw his chance, and he placed his fangs to her throat, ready to rip it out.

However, he had underestimated the centuries old Vampire. The moment she realised what he was doing, she overpowered him. She controlled him with her mind, and forced herself onto him, letting him know how much more powerful she was. He was helpless as she took away his dignity, coaxing his body to respond to her, even as his mind resisted.

They never spoke of that night again after that. Tyrus shut himself off from then on. Bitterness took over, and he gave in to everything that the monster inside him craved. He took pleasure in his human feeds, and allowed sex to become an instant gratification of his desires. Satine saw the change in him and was pleased. She encouraged him, opening up her world even more to him.

Eventually his powers did grow to match, and perhaps surpass Satine's, but by then he had lost the motivation for revenge. He split from Satine, ignoring her displeasure, and set out on his own. That was when he'd met Connor.

Although his friendship with the werewolf had brought him much relief, Tyrus felt as though he had barely been living. For the past century, he'd felt as though he'd been going through the motions from day to day, moving from one worthless distraction to the next.

That is, until Anya had entered his life. One kiss from her and he remembered what it was like to feel again. That look that she had given him, that had looked right through him, seemed to have awoken something in him. He had a connection with her, he knew. No one, not even his wife in his human life, had ever come close to what he had felt that night.

Maybe it's love.

His own thought taunted him. Love? As if he knew anything about love. After all he had been through, was he even capable of it? So much had changed since he had turned. He'd shut himself off for far too long.

"So it's about a woman huh?" Connor's voice caused him to jump. As far as he could tell, werewolves could not mindread. In fact, only the strongest, most ancient vampires had that skill. He looked at Connor, wondering how he had done it, feeling caught.

Connor laughed, "I knew it! It was a stab in the dark but I had to ask. You have that lovesick look on your face, like a wolf who has scented his mate but hasn't figured out how to ask her for a lifetime commitment yet."

Tyrus growled. If he had let his guard down, then Anya had a stronger grip on him than he cared to acknowledge.

"Which vampire has gotten you in this state?" Connor asked, his eyes dancing.

Tyrus shot him a look.

"Werewolf?"

Tyrus shook his head.

"Don't tell me she's a witch? Or a succubus?" A frown was starting to show on Connor's face.

"Human," Tyrus muttered beneath his breath, just audible enough for Connor's sharpened hearing to pick up. He'd decided that he might as well tell his old friend. If he couldn't trust him, there was nobody else for him to turn to.

The hard line that formed on Connor's lips was confirmation of what a bad situation Tyrus was in.

"You know that it's..."

"Forbidden, yes." Tyrus clenched his jaw, controlling his frustration, "I've tried to leave her alone. That's all I want, to have her safe and away from this life. I need to forget her, but it's proving more difficult than I thought it would be. She's special, Connor."

"She must be, my friend. I've never seen you like this before. What can I do to help?"

"Nothing," Tyrus sighed, "There is no way for this to end well."

They sat in silence, neither one of them knowing what else to say.

A familiar scent reached Tyrus, causing him to look up sharply, scanning the dark club. His heart twisted when he spotted her, looking more beautiful than he remembered. She was dancing with a group of humans, laughing and carefree. He saw that more than one other supernatural being on the dancefloor had noticed them, a hungry look in their eyes. He let out a slow exhale.

"She's here," he whispered, his face turning white.