Shadow School Ch. 07

"Don't have one," he said.

"There's a surprise. Did you cheat on her too?" Kris wondered how he'd take it if someone ever spelled out his faults to his perfect jock face. Well, now was as good a time as any.

"No, it just didn't work out okay?" He brushed a few fallen strands of hair away from Cameron's face.

The movement was enough to distract Kristie, her eyes catching her friend's expression. "How much has she had to drink?"

"Barely any," Trent answered, standing up and looking down at Cameron. The girl seemed to not want to look at him.

"You wouldn't be wanting to take advantage of her now would you, Trent?" Kristie phrased it jokingly but she was dead serious. She didn't think Trent was that kind of jerk but who knew how those assholes who slipped girls stuff in their drinks got their start.

"Like I said, she hasn't had much to drink. She just took a few sips then came up here for some fresh air."

"And you followed her."

"We were talking."

"Apologizing, I hope."

Trent scrubbed a hand through his short-cropped hair. "Well, yeah. Not that it's any of your business."

"She's my friend. You're not. It is my business if she's not capable of telling you to go away."

"It's okay Kris." The weak response came from Cameron. "The smell of the beer made me sick."

Kristie smelled her own beer and set it down on the small table near Cameron's chair. Hell if she was going to get sick from drinking it. Cameron eyed it warily so Kris picked it up and gave it to Dylan; better not to set it within smelling distance. Dylan sipped his, tasting it, shrugging.

As Kristie turned back to look at Cameron, her eyes passed over the crowd below. Three figures were winding their way around the deep end of the pool toward the guest house. Her eyes locked with Daman's even from this distance.

Well, there goes her plan to corrupt some pretty little bi-curious thing. Still... she wasn't sexually-encumbered like the last time she saw the dark-skinned vampire, so this night could have just taken a turn for the better.

Daman grinned up at her before disappearing under the balcony and into the house. She turned, a huge smile on her face, realizing Trent was still hovering over Cameron.

Oh shit.

Elias had been with Daman. And some other guy she saw at the ball.

"I got it from here Trent," Kristie said, stepping in front of him and kneeling down to feel Cameron's head.

"But-"

"Don't argue," Kristie sighed, exasperated. "You fucked up. She doesn't want you. And her college boyfriend just arrived so it would be a good idea if you skedaddled, got it?" Not that Cameron and Elias were dating... she probably hadn't seen him since their visit. But he was here now, and he certainly had more of a claim on her than Trent.

"Her college boyfriend?" Trent looked at Cameron. "When did that happen?"

"Dylan, a little help?" Kristie said, noticing now that Cameron was fully aware of the situation.

Dylan wasn't the fighting type, but the kid was wiley. He turned to Trent and dumped both cups of the cheap beer over the jock's head.

"Woops," Dylan said, looking at the empty cups. "Sorry man, it was an accident."

It was so not an accident. Kris wanted to laugh.

Trent was in shock; the likes of Dylan simply did not do something like that to a guy like Trent. "You little piece of-"

Trent's words were cut off by the arrival of the aforementioned boyfriend and two others. He didn't know which one of the older guys had a claim on Cameron, so he eyed Daman suspiciously. Daman simply glanced back at Elias, who was already scowling.

Shit, shit, shit... they could read minds. They probably read Trents... or Cameron's.

Looking back at Trent, Kristie realized that if he'd touched Cameron, he'd probably smell like her... then again, that beer just covered it up.

Daman looked at her. His eyes flicked to Trent then back to her.

Oh... fuck... yeah about that mind reading thing... That could work on her as well.

It's okay... Cameron's just sick... he was helping her. Kris added thoughts to the situation, trying to defuse whatever could potentially happen.

Elias' attention left the pale, beer-drenched teen and looked at Cameron, who was staring at him from the lounge chair.

"Uh, come on Trent," Dylan said. "Looks like I need a refill... you want one too?"

Trent didn't say anything; he simply stalked past Dylan, avoiding the third young man in Daman's group.

Kristie barely spared a moment to thank whatever deity let the jock leave without a fight; she turned back to Cameron. With just the five of them on the balcony, the two humans having an understanding about who was with them, Elias didn't seem to bother with the charade; he was at Cameron's side in a blink.

Kristie blinked. Seriously; one blink and he was there. It was bizarre having someone disappear and reappear beside you, especially knowing it was movement that the human eye couldn't see. For some reason she thought movies would have prepared her for this, but seeing it in person was... creepy as hell. And fucking cool.

"Are you ill?" Elias was asking.

"I don't think so... it was kinda sudden." Cameron leaned in to his touch, the vampire's hand caressing her face.

Kristie watched as some sort of silent communication went between Cameron and Elias... he was no doubt reading her mind.

"William," Elias said, not turning to the third guy in their group. "Taste the beer they have on tap. See if you notice anything different."

"None of the other kids here seem to be sick," Daman said, glancing at William as he left.

Kristie watched the guy go. He was kind of beautiful. Glancing sideways at Daman, she knew he'd heard her thoughts. Well, if he wanted to read her mind, she could put on a show: Kris crossed her arms then raised a hand casually to her face, slipping her index finger between her lips and biting it playfully. She threw in a few flashes of memory for good measure.

Daman grinned wickedly at her. The flash of white teeth from behind his dark lips sent her heart fluttering with exhilaration.

Elias brushed Cameron's hair back from her forehead. "Can you stand? I'll take you home."

Cameron nodded and let Elias pull her up. She didn't seem to wobble at all, though she did lean on the blonde vampire's arm.

"Are we leaving?" Kristie asked. Damn. She'd only been here like fifteen minutes. She looked to Daman who shrugged.

Oh to hell with this party.

William arrived at the door at the same time the others reached it. "Tastes fine. No one else is sick except for those who overindulged." He looked at Cameron who was leaning on Elias, then at Kristie. "Is Melanie here?"

So that was it. "She's with Roanoke."

William nodded. "So am I."

Kris glanced at Daman. This was part of the mystery of SVMC.

Daman leaned toward her and whispered in her ear, "Virginia likes playing matchmaker."

Kristie eyed William. Cute as he was, he was going to have a hard time winning over the virgin queen... strike that... ex-virgin. She had seen Melanie dance with this guy at the gala... maybe he could do the girl some good. "She's too good for a party. Try her house."

William's face took on a look of one whose task just got more difficult. Kristie wondered if he knew the address.

"1724 Sycamore Rd," he said, turning and walking back through the party. The others followed.

In the darkness, with only a few flashing party lights and blasting music, Kristie had to weave carefully through the crowd. It was going to be hard to find Dylan in the throng of student bodies

Or not.

Outside there was a group of people surrounding what every student instinctively knows is a fight at the center. Kristie groaned and started shoving her way through the crowd. Dylan had done Trent a favor by getting him off the balcony before he ended up in a fight. Now it seemed Trent was repaying him with punches.

The two guys were wailing on each other; Trent obviously having the upper hand but Dylan putting up a hell of a fight. Both were bleeding.

Oh fuck.

She couldn't help but turn around and eye Daman warily, wondering what that would do to a vampire. He eyed her, amused.

What? It wasn't like she knew everything about real vampires.

Dylan got shoved near to her and Kristie she took the chance of Trent's oncoming rush to fling an arm out and whack the jock across his neck with her wrist. It wasn't exactly a clothesline, but it made things pause for a moment while Trent caught his breath.

The crowd eyed Kristie in shock. You just didn't break up a fight like that; you either tried to put yourself between the combatants, hauled one off the other, or were a teacher and simply used your authority to stop the brawl. You did not use a cheap shot and join the fight.

Well they could all go fuck themselves.

Okay so maybe her bravado was a result of having two vampires behind her, but still, Dylan was her friend... and Trent had Brock and Kyle there to back him up. Fair was fair.

"What the hell?" Brock charged over to where Kristie was standing near Dylan. She glanced at her friend, who was wiping the blood from his nose onto his sleeve.

"Yeah, what the hell, Brock?" Kristie said, getting in the guy's face. He didn't expect that, taking a step back before realizing he was backing away from a girl; he stopped and glared at her. "Dylan keeps Trent from getting his ass kicked and he repays him by pounding his face?"

"Asshole dumped beer on his head."

"Yeah. And he deserved it." Kristie didn't add that it was Cameron who should have done it rather than Dylan but it was still true.

"Back off, lesbo, let Dylan fight his own battles."

"I'm sorry," Daman's deep voice came from behind her. She felt his arms wrap around her. "Did you just call my girlfriend a lesbian?"

Well that gave Brock pause. Kristie was out loud and proud, so it would only mess with his mind momentarily. She might as well kick him while he was down and confuse him even more.

"What, still mad that your girlfriend liked clit more than dick?" Kristie grinned wickedly at the jock in front of her. "Then again, with what I've heard of yours, it's no wonder." Okay so that was more of a "your mom" kind of statement... Kristie didn't know if any of Brock's exes switched teams but the blow to his ego was what she was going for.

"Fucking cunt!" Brock took a step toward her.

"Lay a finger on her and you lose it." Daman said, straightening and stepping in front of Kristie.

She usually would have told a guy to beat it and let her fight her own battles, but it technically wasn't her fight to begin with, and Daman... well Daman looked damn good defending her. She was suddenly at eye level with his massive shoulder muscles.

"This is how it's going to go," Elias said, stepping up beside Daman; he sounded different -- like he was a actually a college kid. Brock eyed the newcomer warily. Kyle stepped up beside his friend and Trent finally recovered, joining the other two. "Either back off and go back to your party, or we call the cops and end it now."

Oh. Kay.

That wasn't exactly what Kristie was expecting. To be honest, she was expecting some sort of spectacular throw-down to end all throw-downs. Instead, the vampires threaten to call the cops?

"You see, it would be better for your health if we didn't fight you. The cops would be called before we were done anyway, so let us save you the trouble of a possible hospital visit. This way your friends can continue to enjoy the party and you don't bloody your pretty faces." Elias glanced at Trent. "Well, any more than they already are."

"Who are you people? Why are you even here? Who invited you?" Brock held his ground... barely.

"No one invited us," Daman said, dropping the college boy charade. "We came to get what we wanted and now that we have them, we're leaving. Unless, you'd like us to stay for some form of imminent entertainment.

Jesus. Kristie hoped no one questioned why someone barely older than them was talking that way. Imminent entertainment? For Christ sake.

"Come on guys," Cameron said. "Let's get out of here. Dylan, you coming?"

"Sure," Dylan said, glancing back at Trent and his friends. He stepped back and turned, leaving with Cameron.

"Come on," Kristie said, grabbing Daman's hand. He followed her, smirking as the crowd parted just a little more for him and Elias.

"Don't even think about it, boy." Elias said, speaking without turning around.

Kristie turned to see Brock stumble as he halted. Was he seriously going to charge?

"It's cowardly to attack someone from behind," Elias added, finally looking back over his shoulder as he walked away; he'd dropped the college boy thing too. Something in the way they now walked and spoke made chills go down Kristie's spine... no doubt others were feeling the same. "I'd think you'd want to save what little face you have left among your guests."

And so they left the party.

Kristie was in awe. Her cell phone said she'd only been in the place for just over a half hour. And that... non-fight... was just... wow.

She and the others saw Dylan off; he said he was going to head toward his brother's house to drink off the aches in his face. Kris walked beside Daman, watching Cameron and Elias walk a little ways ahead of them. The road was lit by the party lights but the forest on their right was dark; the branches hanging over the road.

"Your bravery is fascinating to me," Daman said.

Kristie blushed. God; she was turning into a giggly school girl around this vampire. "It's easy to be brave when you have... well, someone like you standing there backing me up."

"Still. You could have asked me to break up the fight. You did it yourself instead." Daman glanced down at her and smiled. "So. You know how to fight as well? The move was cunning. Deliberate. Well-balanced."

"I have brothers. And we took karate when we kids. I don't remember what kind... it's come in handy a few times but I don't exactly remember the moves." Kristie paused. "You called me your girlfriend."

"Did that bother you?"

"No... it made a point. It confused the hell out of Brock, but... well everyone knows I'm a lesbian. I've never been shy about it. They'll know it's a sham."

"Is that what it is?"

"Define 'it.'"

"I try not to live my life by definitions."

Kristie smirked. "Like, 'Hello, my name is Daman Sokar and I'm a vampire?'"

Daman shook his head, a smile forming on his lips. "I am many things, a vampire is merely one of them."

"What else are you?"

"A fantastic lover."

Kristie stumbled, catching herself without looking at Daman. Well, hell.

She remained silent for a little while, glancing over only once to see the smirk on his face. She slowed when she saw where Cameron and Elias had stopped. Two gleaming motorcycles were parked behind the last car on the street.

"You ride crotch-rockets?" she asked.

"We like speed."

Kristie looked at the bikes. They were pretty. "But, can't you, like, run faster than these things?"

Daman chuckled. "Don't let Hollywood make you think too highly of us. Think of the physics of such a feat. Our clothing would catch fire with that much friction." He grabbed a helmet and handed it out to her. "These go much faster."

Kristie took the helmet, watching Cameron strapping on hers. The other girl met her eyes, almost a little worried at their means of transport.

"You do like motorcycles, yes?" Daman asked.

"Yes..." Kristie placed the helmet on her head. "Where are we going?"

"Your place."

"My..." Kristie watched Daman lift his leg and slide it over the seat, settling into position and giving her just enough room to sit behind him.

"I came for you, not your high school party. You are mine tonight."

Okay... a little possessive, but Kristie had to admit she found it kind of hot.

She buckled the helmet to her head and climbed on behind Daman just as Elias passed by with Cameron's clinging to his waist. The girl had her head dug into the vampire's back so she was clearly trying to block out the ride. Kristie couldn't blame her; they disappeared down the road way too fast.

Then Daman shifted gears.

Part of Kristie wanted to scream; the road was seriously a blur around them. The other part of her wanted to laugh. Never had she ever dared to ride at this speed -- not that her bike could actually go that fast; that kind of speed is what killed you dead.

They were home way before it was deemed possible by the regular road laws.

"Wow," Kristie said, heart pounding. "I never would have guessed I could get from one side of town to the other in less than ten minutes. Then again, I think you broke the sound barrier back there."

Daman chuckled, taking her helmet from her and placing it on his bike. "Are your parents home?"

"This is my dad's house... he's home, but on the other end of the house."

Daman looked at the home curiously. "So, you're a rich kid."

"Yeah, I came this close to being called Missy or Buffy or some shit like that." Kristie knew it was a bad joke but she had used it once or twice when the occasion called for it. The Buffy reference made Daman quirk and eyebrow before she even realized what she'd said.

"And your father won't call security on me if you invite me in?"

"Nah, my dad's a Republican and wants to be governor one day. I'm a tomboyish lesbo. I think dating a black guy is one step closer to marrying a stuck-up white politician who's just like him."

"Kristie." Daman stopped, grabbing her arm. "How much effort do you put into this image of yourself?"

Kristie's sarcasm left her. "What do you mean?"

"I mean the bluntness, the stereotyping, the bravado... I know it's not the real you."

Kristie eyed him warily. "Look, I'm not used to talking to a guy who can read my thoughts, okay? It'll take some getting used to."

"You're upset."

"No."

"But I've ruined your good mood." Daman stared down at her.

"No... this is just me, minus the sarcasm and wit." Kristie kicked at a rock on the pavement.

"What's your favorite book?"

Kristie blinked at the change of topic. "Catch-22."

"Wrong. It's Jane Eyre."

"I think I can say what my favorite book is."

"Yes, but the first thing to pop in your head was the Brontë novel. Favorite movie?"

Kristie hesitated then answered, "Silence of the Lambs."

Daman grinned. "Were you about to say 'Sound of Music?'"

"Shit."

Daman chuckled. "You see? I can see the real you. With me, you will not have to play games or put on a show. I'd rather you just be yourself."

"Hey, I've built up quite a reputation. Don't go messing with it."

"You will be in a new environment. Build whatever reputation you like. Just remember I know who you really are." He leaned in closer to her. "I can see your true passions and desires."

Kristie started walking and decided to change the subject. "Hey, um," she gulped, "when you asked about security being called when I invited you in... that inviting in part... is that-"

"An invitation would be nice, but it is not required. It's what humans tell themselves so they can sleep at night."

"Well, I guess now that I know vampires really do exist I should have trouble sleeping at night."

"When I am with you, you can count on it."

Kristie's mouth opened slightly; her mind was dirty enough to get his meaning. Daman said nothing after that, however; he simply walked a few steps behind her, studying the surroundings.

Neither of them spoke as they went into the house. Kristie didn't bother flipping any lights on; she knew where things were and she was pretty damn sure Daman's night vision was better than hers. She wound her way through the kitchen and into the pantry where the booze was stashed, and grabbed a few glasses.

"Do you drink?" she asked. Daman eyed her in the near-darkness. Kristie realized what she'd asked and added, "Alcohol. Do you drink alcohol?"