Page 25 of Vampires & Bikers

I told her I’d spoken to a nurse about moving her to another hospital. They would make some calls to find out if a bed was available. I would have to pay for the transfer and ambulance but if there was a bed, she would be able to continue her treatment there.

“But I like it here,” she said, troubled. “I know the nurses, everyone…” her voice trailed away. “Won’t it be much more expensive?”

“We can’t stay here,” I said. “Tomás will come looking for me. You won’t be safe. I can’t let anything happen to you.” My voice broke and she smiled faintly.

I spent the night at the hospital, sleeping in the chair next to my mother’s bed. It felt good being there with her. When she was awake, she asked me about the war and what I knew about Tomás involvement. She told me of the letters she and my father had exchanged. It sounded like they were getting along better now than ever before.

In the morning, I spoke to a doctor who said my mother could be moved to a hospital near the capital. There was a fee involved and it was more than I’d hoped to pay. All my savings would go into the hospital transfer, I had no idea how I would pay for her stay and treatment at the new hospital after she’d transferred.

Still, it felt good to think about life away from Buzzard Creek.

I couldn’t help thinking that even though I had no idea how I was going to get money or what I would do next, things were going to get better for me and my family. I had gotten away from that shithole.

Things were finally looking up.

Chapter 12

Luc

Humans are weak.

Vulnerable.

Their physical abilities are limited, their intellectual range is narrow. In every way, they are inferior to vampires.

All but one.

They have life.

And we need their blood, we crave it and we lust after it the same way we lust after their soft flesh, their warm bodies, the aroma of their bodies when they sweat.

Since human blood is regulated, vampires are not allowed to feed on people, not officially. Unofficially, blood donors, feeders and more nefarious activities thrive on the black market. Most vampires buy blood products, synthetic blood that has been boosted with various taste enhancers as well as drugs to boost performance or induce all kinds of sensory experiences but human blood is still the best.

Occasionally, there are reports of humans that were abducted and killed and as per our agreement with the authorities, we must hunt these vampires down and execute them.

Most of us remember being human, the families we had but our memories fade as we become older, they become like childhood dreams, something to be embarrassed about, not to be mentioned in public, certainly not around others like us. Vampire families go back centuries and the politics involved in the alliances and wars between us are complicated and intricate. Our wealth is vast and hidden, tied up in property and investments, land and companies.

We have always been part of the ruling elite, either behind the scenes or in a more visible role depending on public sensitivity but we have always been a part of the top tier. When the tide of favor turns against us, we retreat and wait it out. It always changes, that is one of the rules of humanity that is cast in stone. Not for us, though.

Little changes for us over time.

Horses give way to cars.

Cars give way to planes.

We adapt, but we don’t change.

Or perhaps, we do.

I hadn’t noticed it in myself over the past few weeks, ever since meeting Ruby, but then Alexandra had commented on it. She’d made jokes, off-hand comments that came across light-hearted, but I knew it was more than that. Alexandra knew me. She had found a weakness and I couldn’t trust her.

She would never forgive me for leaving her and ending our relationship.

She did not want me to be happy.

Happiness, though, what was that? Surely another childhood dream, belonging to human life, something long gone for me.

Only, I’d been happy with Ruby.

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