Chapter 8

• Making their way down the corridor, Jefferson’s phone began to beep. He answered quickly and spoke lightly. He ended the call and looked at Simone with disappointed in his eyes.
• “I'm sorry, Lady Simone, but I must go. It is an urgent matter that I have to take care of.”
• “Oh no!, don't be sorry. You were such a wonderful help to me. Thank you, Jefferson.”
• “It was my pleasure, my lady.” He said before bowing his head and walking in the opposite direction they had come in.
• She turned the other way and stared down the hall; she felt a weird sense of familiarity. Then she remembered it was the same hall Darius took her through when leading her to the garage. She headed toward the black door and felt accomplished, entering the correct room. The lights automatically turned on as she walked inside to get a better look.
• The garage, like the whole house, was huge and fully stocked with cars and a few motorcycles. Everywhere she looked, she found sports car after sports car after luxury car. It was a sight to see. Simone knew her brothers would have died if they had been there and seen all of these.
• She advanced towards them and unconsciously began to graze her hand lightly over the shiny new-looking cars, taking in the beauty of them.
• “Trying to escape?” She heard a husky voice from behind. She literally jumped back, startled by his voice.
• “No,” she exclaimed, turning towards the voice, “And don't ever do that again. You practically gave me a heart attack. Stupid vampires and their silence.” She mumbled the last sentence.
• Damien chuckled at her. “Sorry, love, I didn't mean to.”
• She narrowed her eyes at him. “Sure you didn't. What was your intention? Was it to scare me to death 'cause I'm a human, and I'm still alive, not like some people I know?”
• He flashed her a wicked grin. “If I wanted to kill you, love, you would be dead by now.”
• “Yeah, or maybe you're one of those killers that like to torture their victims before they kill them.”
• “You have trust issues, don't you?”
• Simone clinched her jaw in anger. Was it that obvious?
• “Something like that, you could say.”
• “I know I kidnapped you and brought you here, but we're not going to hurt you.” He really wanted her to know and believe him when he says that. “That was never my intention.”
• “Intentions can change.” Simone knew that all too well.
• “Do you want to go for a spin?” He offered, changing the subject.
• “Depends.”
• Surprised, his forehead creased. “On what?”
• “Which car is yours? Or do you all share?”
• He huffed. “Guys never share cars. We all own several cars of our own. My personal favorite,” he said, pointing to a midnight blue one. “Is the Porsche Spider.”
• “How fast can she go?”
• “She hits 65 mph (104.61 km/h) in less than 1.3 seconds, and her top speed is about 200 mph (ca. 322 km/h).”
• She had never been in a Porsche before, especially one that fast and outrageous. This lifestyle was definitely new to her, but she was willing to explore it through even if it was just for the adrenaline rush.
• “So what do you say, love? Care to join me on a night drive?”
• In truth, she hadn't spent any time with Damien. She knew nothing about him besides his playful personality. Maybe this was her chance to get a few answers out of him.
• “I'm only going for the Porsche; so, don't think your special or anything.”
• Damien had to laugh at her constant denial. It was rather funny to say the least. “Whatever you say, love.”
• As soon as they got in the car, Damien peeled out of the garage, just like his brother had the night before with her. They loved the speed, apparently.
• “You like?” He asked.
• Simone took a second to respond. She had always been an adrenalin junky. It was in her blood to test how fast the eradicating beats of her heart could go without killing her.
• “It's addicting,” Damien confessed to her. “The rapid beating of your pulse, the pounding of your temples as your head gets knocked back into the seat.”
• “I enjoy the thrill of death.” Simone spoke, watching the outside world disappear behind them. “One wrong move and it might be my last. With the speed we are going, if this car turns over, I could die.”
• Damien was invincible. A human would most likely die on impact. He had to wonder where this was coming from.
• “You talk of death as if it is a sweet release of some sort.”
• “We can't all live forever. When there is nothing left to live for, what purpose is there to keep living?” Looking into her eyes, Damien could see the trials of a hard life. “We live because we are meant to leave this earth with something better. Not all of us have an eternity to find self-fulfillment.”
• “We can't change the world.” Corruption was everywhere, in everything, and just about everyone. “And you can't blame yourself for every bad thing that happens in life, either.”
• It was like he could see right through her. Simone had the tendency of putting things on her shoulder and blaming herself for them, even if it wasn’t her fault.
• Simone shut her eyes. “So, how did your date with Leah go last night?” She needed to distract herself with other things than this subject, as it was touchy enough as is.
• He was staring out the window, making it hard for Simone to guess what he was thinking. Damien tilted his head to the side for a moment. “It was nice. Leah is a beautiful, intelligent woman. She was effortless to talk to.”
• Simone was happy to hear it. Leah was an incredible person, and she had no doubt that Damien would figure that out, eventually.
• “How about you? Did you enjoy your date with Darius?”
• Simone thought long and hard. There was really no point in denying the way she felt about their date. Darius was different from what she thought he would be.
• “It went well.” She shrugged. “Plus, I got a free meal.”
• Damien turned off the road they were on. The city streets were quiet in this part of town. It was a bit further away from all the city chaos.
• Damien pulled up in front of a small ice cream shop. It was cute and quaint. It was nothing like Simone would have expected out of a vampire infested town. Not only that, but it actually looked like a normal, regular ice cream shop. She wondered if it tasted the same as well.
• “We're getting ice cream?”
• “Yup.” He said sliding out of the car, and Simone quickly followed his example. “I haven't been here in a while.”
• He came around the car and took her hand. She let him lead the way. For a brief moment, she thought of running away, but dismissed the thought when she remembered she was surrounded by vampires. Vampires that liked to drink human blood.
• Or was she really?
• What if it was just a stupid stunt they were pulling on us?
• What if they were still in the human world?
• Were there really two worlds, like the brothers were claiming?
• Or were the brothers just psychotic and trying to make them believe there was more than one world?
• Damien led her to the ice cream machine and handed her a bowl so she could fill it herself. She instantly went for the red velvet cake ice cream and then the dark chocolate. They were both her favorite. Then she took it over to the other stands where she threw on a few raspberries, Oreo crumbles, and cookie dough to the mix.
• Damien didn't even have to pay for their ice creams. He was a prince and everyone wanted to be in their good graces, so the princes were used to not paying for things. The red-headed girl at the cashier's desk took one look at him and drooled. It was rather amusing.
• Simone turned to Damien and asked, “Is she going to be okay?”
• “I think so.” He took her hand and led her to an empty table towards the back, where they could have some privacy away from prying eyes.
• She sat down and attacked her bowl, not even caring that he was openly staring at her like she was some sort of animal that hadn’t eaten before. She finally looked up after devouring half of her bowl. “What? Never see a girl appreciate ice cream before?”
• He shook his head, laughing. “Not like that. I haven’t lol.”
• “Just because you're a prince doesn't mean you're getting special treatment from me. You get that enough as it is.”
• He stared into her eyes, really holding her gaze. “And I wouldn't want any more from you. I like the fact that you're not afraid to say it how it is. So many people around me tell me what I want to hear because they fear what and who I am. Don't be like them, Simone.”
• She appreciated his honesty. Yes, she still held a grudge against him for abducting her, but maybe she could find a small sense of respect for him. Was it, truly, his fault? Did he want to steal her away and ruin her life deliberately? Perhaps he was forced to. She didn't have the whole story. Her mission was to investigate and find out for herself.
• They ate their ice cream with light
• conversations and jokes. They ended up making small sarcastic remarks about the people in the shop. Laughing at what others were wearing or coming up with a story to go along with a person's persona.
• Damien’s soft, low laughter filled the small shop, and Simone couldn't help but laugh too. “You are one strange character, love.” He said, short of breath from all the laughing they had been doing.
• “Me?” she huffed. “You're right behind me, coming up with all those strange ideas and theories.”
• “Yes, love, but who comes up with the idea of vampire Men in Black agent who is waiting for an alien attack to happen at an ice cream shop?”
• She threw her hands into the air. “If vampires can exist, why can't alien?”
• Damien scratched his chin in thought. “I guess you have a point. But you know, love, vampires can be boring too.”
• “I'll say.”
• “And what's that supposed to mean, exactly?” He said, leaning in, placing his elbows on the small table.
• “I don't know. I guess I've watched too many of the Underworld movies because I pictured vampires kicking werewolves' butt and just being outright vicious. Never would have I expected to be eating ice cream with a vampire and having a laugh over dumb stuff.”
• The edges of his lips curled. “You're not too far off, but Hollywood has been feeding you these ridiculous tales. You just go with it because you don't know any better.”
• “Exactly; therefore, you can't blame me for my thought process.”
• They finished their ice cream a while back and were now just staring at each other. Taking in her surroundings, Simone did have one question that was eating her alive that she wanted to ask Damien specifically.
• “Damien?”
• “Yes love.” She was getting used to his petty nickname that he had given her.
• “May I ask you something? But in return, I want you to be completely honest with me, okay?”
• “Of course, love,” he stared seriously into her deep golden eyes. “I'll try my best just for you.”
• “Why did you bring me here? Why me, Damien? What is so special about me?” She stopped talking and dropped her gaze to the table, fidgeting with her hands in nervousness. “I'm not as pretty as the other girls, so I know you didn't pick me for that. I'm not that athletic, I don't do so well with making friends, I'm rebellious, and I know I get on your guys' nerves because I do it deliberately, but I still don't understand why I'm here.” She finally built up enough courage and brought her eyes back up, only to look into his with interest. Since the moment he met her, he felt a pull towards her.
• His hands sought hers. They were somewhat warm to the touch, which surprised her. Weren't vampires supposed to be cold?
• “Simone, you are beautiful. All the girls look different, and I don't see how you don't see your beauty.” He raised his hand to brush a strand of her hair back. “Your hair is so soft; your eyes are so warm. You have eyes that seek the truth, and that is something that the other girls don't have. You are beautiful inside and out, and that’s a fact.”
• The soothing touch of his rubbing circles on her palm eased her hardship of the subject.
• “I chose you because of the life I saw in your eyes and the personality you showed. You're not afraid to live life the way you want to live it. Even now, knowing that we could easily kill you for the slighted disrespect, you still voice your opinion. Oh, and what opinions those are,” he snickered. “I love your mind and the way you think. I selected you for your witty remarks and carefree attitude. You live as if you were to die tomorrow. You live life in the present, in the now.”
• She accepted his answer and felt as if her carefree personality had betrayed her in some way.
• “So you like wittiness. You don't think I'm a mean bitch?”
• His eyes grew playful. “Oh you are, but I love your mouth. They lead my eyes to the best part of your body.”
• “Oh Yeah, what's that?”
• He leaned so close that she almost felt the need to bend back. “Your lips.”
• Simone snorted unattractively, perhaps purposely, and shook her head. “You're such a player.”
• “Hey," he said, getting up and grabbing their empty bowls. “I resent that. It's not called playing when the opponent is willing to play as well.”
• Simone rolled her eyes and watched him walk away to throw away their garbage. Her gaze slowly shifted to the couple a few tables down. The man was incredibly good-looking. He had dirty blond hair and brown eyes that were staring at the girl in front of him with lust; while she stared back with a lovey-dovey expression on her face.
• The girl looked enchanted and bewitched by the creature, reeling her into his realm. Simone couldn't really blame her. He was beautiful.
• He then took the girl's wrist and raised it to his lips. He kissed her fragile skin lovingly like a good boyfriend would. That was Simone’s mistake. She was shocked when she watched him scrap his sharp nail against her veins.
• His cut was deep and blood gushed out. The girl softly groaned, but did not pull away from the creature in front of her. Simone was at a loss and didn't know what to think anymore. He squeezed her wrist, forcing more blood to pour out and drop into his ice cream bowl. The man loosened his grip and stared back at the girl's face in what might have been compassion.
• She smiled weakly, but she didn't look upset at his actions at all. He licked and kissed her wounded wrist before letting it go. She pulled her long sleeve over the cut and went back to eating her ice cream. Simone couldn't believe that had just happened. The man did the same, bringing the deep red liquid from his bowl to his awaiting taste buds.
• He closed his eyes, savoring the flavor.
• Simone should have been repulsed by the grotesque scene, but she didn't feel any nausea at all, only a small pit in her stomach. Her eyes didn't want to believe what she had just witnessed.
• Simone suddenly felt the warmth of a body pressing against her open thighs. She was still sitting down, but Damien had decided to position himself between her legs. His face was hovering over hers, and she looked up to find his curious eyes searching hers.
• “What does it feel like?” She blurted out without thinking. She just couldn't comprehend what was going on in the girl's head. The girl showed no real fear and, in a way, enjoyed feeding the man her blood.
• Damien leaned his head down to her neck. She could feel his lips brushing across her skin. “Would you like to find out, love?”
• “No, not tonight.” She spoke casually, trying to hide the fact that she enjoyed what he had just did.
• He turned the engine on and glided onto the road. “You still believe this is all just a dream, don't you?”
• She was praying it was, and this wasn’t some sick reality she was actually stuck in.
• The night was fully upon them when he walked her to her bedroom.
• “May you sleep well, love, now that your stomach has enjoyed the delights of vampire ice cream.”
• “Oh yes, indeed I will. And you dear prince, may you dream of sugar plums and men in black agents.”
• “I wouldn't dare dream of anything else… well expect for you and Leah, plus me, minus the clothes-”
• She cut him off, “Only in your dream, prince, only. Now good night.” With that, she closed the door, and he walked away with a pleased grin on his face.