From the dark I feel your lips.
008.
“Tell me where they went!”
“What makes you think I’ll ever tell?” The inebriated and foul smelling creature groaned out as a razor blade dragged slowly across his cheek. Blood didn’t pour, only a sludgy black substance oozed. He grinned, his teeth covered in soot and chipping like old paint. “I have a price,” He reached his scabbing hands to his cheek, touching the blackness with his fingers and sticking them in his mouth. “I always have price,” He whispered to himself.
“Blaine doesn’t need to pay you, he could just torture you till you speak,” Luther, a well-known henchman for Blaine let the razor blade slowly saw the creatures finger.
“I have a fondness for torture, its lustful and tantalizing to me,” He licked his lips and slammed the razor blade down onto his finger. Luther watched in horror as the creature stole the razor blade from his hands and began to saw the next finger. “Tell that Blaine, that if he wants to know where I saw Mr. Vengeance and that… human girl, he’ll have to pay.”
“That dinner was amazing,” Asher spoke softly as they walked hand in hand. They rounded the corner from the restaurant to a street that reminded her somewhat of Balboa Island. Tiny boutiques and dessert shops were lit up with twinkling white lights. Just past the street was the ocean and you could still hear the calming sounds of crashing waves just above the bustling town. Zacky smiled, his heart aching as he watched her face light up with adoration. Even though he knew that this was dangerous, being out in the open with a human, he couldn’t pass up an opportunity to make Asher happy once again. She seemed so depressed, cooped up in her small bare room all day alone.
“How about we get some ice cream or a small dessert,” Asher nodded and entered the first place she saw fit. The dessert shop reminded her of a Parisian café. The small metal tables and chairs were laced with fake pink and white flowers, a small candle lit on each one, and a famous mural was pasted onto the wall. It was quaint and soft music echoed throughout the emptiness of it.
“What can I get you guys?” A small girl, frail looking with choppy black hair and black rimmed glasses, smiled at the couple. She paused for a moment to inhale the scent around her. Her eyes clouded with something that looked like desire.
Zack tensed, he gripped Asher’s hand in his strong one. “Ms. Eloise,” He started, “I believe you were about to take our order,” His voice was demanding and fierce. Suddenly she snapped from her daze and cried out.
“Oh, Mr. Vengeance!” She almost fell to her knees, “Forgive me, please.” She was begging at this point and Asher was startled. Zacky looked directly at Asher, she softened him. She gave him humility.
“Eloise, my dear, calm down. We’ll have the bananas foster.” She nodded graciously and scurried into the back. Zack once again adorned his eyes onto Asher’s face. She was his humanity, his savior, and his grace. She had given him hope for so many years of his miserable exist that if she were to ever leave now, he would never be able to live. The desert was brought out but Asher remained silent. She took each bite cautiously and kept her eyes averted to the floor.
“What was that about?” She whispered.
“What was what?” Zacky asked innocently even though he knew full well what she was talking about.
“Why was that girl so terrified of you. “ Asher set her fork down and folded her hands on her lap.
“Ash…” Zacky groaned.
“No Zack, you promised me that you would let me in tonight. You have to tell me or else I will get up and walk right out that door alone.” Zack shook his head; he knew he couldn’t have her doing that, even though Jimmy and Brian sat only a block away in the SUV.
“I told you I run this town and I do what I have to do to keep things running smoothly. So if that means keeping people fearful then so be it. I teach lessons, I never kill purposefully.”
“Kill?”
“Asher, you have to accept the fact that I am not human, I kill for vengeance. Vengeance of the people that live in The City Of Evil. If someone is in trouble, we will help. That’s the way it goes here.”
“So you’re a business man and a vigilante.” Asher smirked and scooped up that last bite. “I don’t understand though. You run a majority of the business here, what else do you do? Do you push drugs, are you into racketeering?”
“I think it’s about time to wake you up a bit,” Zacky said darkly. He took her hand in his and pushed his way out the door without paying the bill. He opened the passenger side door for her then soon turned the ignition. They were off, his foot pressing dangerously on the accelerator. “I don’t do this for fun. I control these people here; I know exactly how everything runs. It’s like fucking clockwork. The slums, the middle class, the high powered. I take care of the fuckers that come in and try to disrupt the mechanism we have here. This man,” Zacky grunted as he pulled into a parking spot. Black letters hung just above the metal door of the huge industrial style building. “Dark Red,” they shined in the glowing light of the cars high beams. “The man that we’re about to meet is named Adrian, he has been stealing money from my club here. He stole about 15,000 dollars in alcohol but also money. This man is scum and I need to take care of him.” Asher gulped, she referred back to all the mafia movies she had seen and knew that phrase never meant well. The bouncer at the door immediately let Zack in, Jimmy and Brian sliding in right behind us.
“She we take Asher elsewhere?” Brian mumbled.
“No, she needs to see this,” Zacky nearly shouted over the heart pounding music. Asher looked around at her surroundings. Red and white lights flashed in every direction and the DJ that stood upon the stage waved his hands high in the air. Three circular cages that bore half nude women sung in each corner. The club kids were drenched in not only sweat but also a red liquid. Asher knew what that was. She followed closely behind Zacky, his hand always on her waist. “Val was right,” She thought, “Vampire women are slutty.” The girls brushed up against Zacky with their claws pawing at his groin. He ignored them, only gripping his hand onto her hip tighter. They finally reached the back room.
Private.
Brian trailed close behind Asher, his eyes scanning each step as they followed a winding hall way. “Here,” Zacky grunted, “Now you’ll see.” Brian shook his head and grabbed Asher’s hand, squeezing it tightly, before letting it go.
The room smelt like piss and mold. A puddle of dried blood gurgled by the drain in the center of the room and a single light bulb hung from the ceiling, similar to Asher’s room. A man, chained to a pipe sticking from the ground, groaned out. “I’m hungry you fuck heads,”
“Do you think we’re going to feed you after you steal from us?” Brian growled and advanced onto him. Zacky held him back and pulled out his infamous baseball bat.
“Now, now Adrian, you’re going to talk.” Adrian spat at Zack’s shoes and soon enough a crack echoed throughout the room. Asher coward back in fear, against the wall but her hands were covered in a red substance, once again, blood. She panicked, whipping her hands unfortunately on her dress. Suddenly she noticed it. Every single wall was splattered with blood some fresh and some caked perfectly on. She was shaking so much that she could barely even hold herself up. Another cracked echoed. “Who did that money go to.”
“Blaine!” He screamed. His cries sounded like broken glass in Asher’s ears. “I was in debt to him, I needed to pay him back or else he would kill me!”
Zack took one huge swing and slammed it against his head. Blood poured from his mouth and nose and soon enough a dreaded last breath was heard. Asher sobbed uncontrollably.
“Get me out of here!” Asher screamed, “I need to leave! I need to go now!” Asher bolted for the door and swung it open. She ran. Her feet feeling heavy beneath her and her eye lids fell like bricks. Asher’s feet slipped from under her and she slammed her head upon the concrete.
Asher lay lifeless in her bed as her dad made his way out of the room. She heard the loud, booming voices from outside of her door and knew what would happen next. Even as a nine year old, she was an old soul. She was so in tuned with her surroundings and was corrupted to all things innocent. “Hey there,” A hoarse voice spoke from the now open door. “Hey there Asher.” She didn’t speak. She never spoke unless she was with Zacky or her mother. “Remember me? I’m Uncle Jeff.” The delusion is his head to have her call him Uncle Jeff was disturbing and she could already taste the vomit inching up her throat. “I’m a friend of your daddies and you’re coming to stay with me for a while,” Asher cried. She knew that was never a good thing.
Asher reached the poorly developed house, several hours into their drive from San Francisco they hit the rural area of San Luis Obispo. The shingles were peeling off and the paint was cracking down the sides. Inside was just as bad, the house smelled of musk and shit. It looked like shit rather. The stairs were broken and sinking in and the kitchen wreaked of spoiled food. “Down here,” Jeff croaked and led her to a door just near the stairs. He kicked it open and shoved her violently in. Asher felt her feet completely leave the floor as she tumbled down creaking stairs. Her head hit the concrete and she cried out in pain. His face twisted in pleasure as he spoke tauntingly from the doorway, “I’ll be back later and I’m bringing friends to enjoy you too.” He hissed and slammed the door shut.
“Baby,” Zack cried, his hands pressing heavily against her skull to prevent the bleeding. Brian drove defensively back to the house as Jimmy stared at Asher from the passenger seat. She was laying in Zack’s lap regaining consciousness then surrendering. “Baby, please wake up.” Zack hands were covered in the blood that poor dramatically from the wound. He could feel his fangs extending in his mouth, piercing his bottom lip. He heart was racing and his desire to feel was almost over powering his will to protect her. He grunted staring down at his red palms. His hand inching slowly to his lips.
“Zack, don’t!” Brian warned, “You won’t be able stop yourself once you taste your mates blood. You haven’t learned control yet. You’ll kill her.” Zack stared for a moment, blankly and wiped his hands onto his jeans. He shook the desire right out of him and focused solely on protecting the one he loved. He pleaded for Brian to drive faster as Jimmy put his phone against his ear and phoned the in house doctor.
Asher’s eyes fluttered open and she gasped for breath. “Zacky,” She sobbed and pressed her hand against his cheek. “I’m the girl they were talking about in that letter, I know who Jeff is.”
“What makes you think I’ll ever tell?” The inebriated and foul smelling creature groaned out as a razor blade dragged slowly across his cheek. Blood didn’t pour, only a sludgy black substance oozed. He grinned, his teeth covered in soot and chipping like old paint. “I have a price,” He reached his scabbing hands to his cheek, touching the blackness with his fingers and sticking them in his mouth. “I always have price,” He whispered to himself.
“Blaine doesn’t need to pay you, he could just torture you till you speak,” Luther, a well-known henchman for Blaine let the razor blade slowly saw the creatures finger.
“I have a fondness for torture, its lustful and tantalizing to me,” He licked his lips and slammed the razor blade down onto his finger. Luther watched in horror as the creature stole the razor blade from his hands and began to saw the next finger. “Tell that Blaine, that if he wants to know where I saw Mr. Vengeance and that… human girl, he’ll have to pay.”
“That dinner was amazing,” Asher spoke softly as they walked hand in hand. They rounded the corner from the restaurant to a street that reminded her somewhat of Balboa Island. Tiny boutiques and dessert shops were lit up with twinkling white lights. Just past the street was the ocean and you could still hear the calming sounds of crashing waves just above the bustling town. Zacky smiled, his heart aching as he watched her face light up with adoration. Even though he knew that this was dangerous, being out in the open with a human, he couldn’t pass up an opportunity to make Asher happy once again. She seemed so depressed, cooped up in her small bare room all day alone.
“How about we get some ice cream or a small dessert,” Asher nodded and entered the first place she saw fit. The dessert shop reminded her of a Parisian café. The small metal tables and chairs were laced with fake pink and white flowers, a small candle lit on each one, and a famous mural was pasted onto the wall. It was quaint and soft music echoed throughout the emptiness of it.
“What can I get you guys?” A small girl, frail looking with choppy black hair and black rimmed glasses, smiled at the couple. She paused for a moment to inhale the scent around her. Her eyes clouded with something that looked like desire.
Zack tensed, he gripped Asher’s hand in his strong one. “Ms. Eloise,” He started, “I believe you were about to take our order,” His voice was demanding and fierce. Suddenly she snapped from her daze and cried out.
“Oh, Mr. Vengeance!” She almost fell to her knees, “Forgive me, please.” She was begging at this point and Asher was startled. Zacky looked directly at Asher, she softened him. She gave him humility.
“Eloise, my dear, calm down. We’ll have the bananas foster.” She nodded graciously and scurried into the back. Zack once again adorned his eyes onto Asher’s face. She was his humanity, his savior, and his grace. She had given him hope for so many years of his miserable exist that if she were to ever leave now, he would never be able to live. The desert was brought out but Asher remained silent. She took each bite cautiously and kept her eyes averted to the floor.
“What was that about?” She whispered.
“What was what?” Zacky asked innocently even though he knew full well what she was talking about.
“Why was that girl so terrified of you. “ Asher set her fork down and folded her hands on her lap.
“Ash…” Zacky groaned.
“No Zack, you promised me that you would let me in tonight. You have to tell me or else I will get up and walk right out that door alone.” Zack shook his head; he knew he couldn’t have her doing that, even though Jimmy and Brian sat only a block away in the SUV.
“I told you I run this town and I do what I have to do to keep things running smoothly. So if that means keeping people fearful then so be it. I teach lessons, I never kill purposefully.”
“Kill?”
“Asher, you have to accept the fact that I am not human, I kill for vengeance. Vengeance of the people that live in The City Of Evil. If someone is in trouble, we will help. That’s the way it goes here.”
“So you’re a business man and a vigilante.” Asher smirked and scooped up that last bite. “I don’t understand though. You run a majority of the business here, what else do you do? Do you push drugs, are you into racketeering?”
“I think it’s about time to wake you up a bit,” Zacky said darkly. He took her hand in his and pushed his way out the door without paying the bill. He opened the passenger side door for her then soon turned the ignition. They were off, his foot pressing dangerously on the accelerator. “I don’t do this for fun. I control these people here; I know exactly how everything runs. It’s like fucking clockwork. The slums, the middle class, the high powered. I take care of the fuckers that come in and try to disrupt the mechanism we have here. This man,” Zacky grunted as he pulled into a parking spot. Black letters hung just above the metal door of the huge industrial style building. “Dark Red,” they shined in the glowing light of the cars high beams. “The man that we’re about to meet is named Adrian, he has been stealing money from my club here. He stole about 15,000 dollars in alcohol but also money. This man is scum and I need to take care of him.” Asher gulped, she referred back to all the mafia movies she had seen and knew that phrase never meant well. The bouncer at the door immediately let Zack in, Jimmy and Brian sliding in right behind us.
“She we take Asher elsewhere?” Brian mumbled.
“No, she needs to see this,” Zacky nearly shouted over the heart pounding music. Asher looked around at her surroundings. Red and white lights flashed in every direction and the DJ that stood upon the stage waved his hands high in the air. Three circular cages that bore half nude women sung in each corner. The club kids were drenched in not only sweat but also a red liquid. Asher knew what that was. She followed closely behind Zacky, his hand always on her waist. “Val was right,” She thought, “Vampire women are slutty.” The girls brushed up against Zacky with their claws pawing at his groin. He ignored them, only gripping his hand onto her hip tighter. They finally reached the back room.
Private.
Brian trailed close behind Asher, his eyes scanning each step as they followed a winding hall way. “Here,” Zacky grunted, “Now you’ll see.” Brian shook his head and grabbed Asher’s hand, squeezing it tightly, before letting it go.
The room smelt like piss and mold. A puddle of dried blood gurgled by the drain in the center of the room and a single light bulb hung from the ceiling, similar to Asher’s room. A man, chained to a pipe sticking from the ground, groaned out. “I’m hungry you fuck heads,”
“Do you think we’re going to feed you after you steal from us?” Brian growled and advanced onto him. Zacky held him back and pulled out his infamous baseball bat.
“Now, now Adrian, you’re going to talk.” Adrian spat at Zack’s shoes and soon enough a crack echoed throughout the room. Asher coward back in fear, against the wall but her hands were covered in a red substance, once again, blood. She panicked, whipping her hands unfortunately on her dress. Suddenly she noticed it. Every single wall was splattered with blood some fresh and some caked perfectly on. She was shaking so much that she could barely even hold herself up. Another cracked echoed. “Who did that money go to.”
“Blaine!” He screamed. His cries sounded like broken glass in Asher’s ears. “I was in debt to him, I needed to pay him back or else he would kill me!”
Zack took one huge swing and slammed it against his head. Blood poured from his mouth and nose and soon enough a dreaded last breath was heard. Asher sobbed uncontrollably.
“Get me out of here!” Asher screamed, “I need to leave! I need to go now!” Asher bolted for the door and swung it open. She ran. Her feet feeling heavy beneath her and her eye lids fell like bricks. Asher’s feet slipped from under her and she slammed her head upon the concrete.
Asher lay lifeless in her bed as her dad made his way out of the room. She heard the loud, booming voices from outside of her door and knew what would happen next. Even as a nine year old, she was an old soul. She was so in tuned with her surroundings and was corrupted to all things innocent. “Hey there,” A hoarse voice spoke from the now open door. “Hey there Asher.” She didn’t speak. She never spoke unless she was with Zacky or her mother. “Remember me? I’m Uncle Jeff.” The delusion is his head to have her call him Uncle Jeff was disturbing and she could already taste the vomit inching up her throat. “I’m a friend of your daddies and you’re coming to stay with me for a while,” Asher cried. She knew that was never a good thing.
Asher reached the poorly developed house, several hours into their drive from San Francisco they hit the rural area of San Luis Obispo. The shingles were peeling off and the paint was cracking down the sides. Inside was just as bad, the house smelled of musk and shit. It looked like shit rather. The stairs were broken and sinking in and the kitchen wreaked of spoiled food. “Down here,” Jeff croaked and led her to a door just near the stairs. He kicked it open and shoved her violently in. Asher felt her feet completely leave the floor as she tumbled down creaking stairs. Her head hit the concrete and she cried out in pain. His face twisted in pleasure as he spoke tauntingly from the doorway, “I’ll be back later and I’m bringing friends to enjoy you too.” He hissed and slammed the door shut.
“Baby,” Zack cried, his hands pressing heavily against her skull to prevent the bleeding. Brian drove defensively back to the house as Jimmy stared at Asher from the passenger seat. She was laying in Zack’s lap regaining consciousness then surrendering. “Baby, please wake up.” Zack hands were covered in the blood that poor dramatically from the wound. He could feel his fangs extending in his mouth, piercing his bottom lip. He heart was racing and his desire to feel was almost over powering his will to protect her. He grunted staring down at his red palms. His hand inching slowly to his lips.
“Zack, don’t!” Brian warned, “You won’t be able stop yourself once you taste your mates blood. You haven’t learned control yet. You’ll kill her.” Zack stared for a moment, blankly and wiped his hands onto his jeans. He shook the desire right out of him and focused solely on protecting the one he loved. He pleaded for Brian to drive faster as Jimmy put his phone against his ear and phoned the in house doctor.
Asher’s eyes fluttered open and she gasped for breath. “Zacky,” She sobbed and pressed her hand against his cheek. “I’m the girl they were talking about in that letter, I know who Jeff is.”
2/24/13