Page 16 of Thirst

I beat them the way they beat Shawn, breaking a few arms, clavicles, kneecaps, and legs. The three who tried to run survived. I made sure the ringleader didn't, because when I read his thoughts at the end of the alley as he was telling me to leave, I learned that he wanted Shawn dead. Apparently, Shawn had been linking up with his wife behind his back, and that envy had him seeing red. To him, his revenge wasn't complete until Shawn was no longer breathing. He thought the same about his wife, but he hadn't acted on it. Not yet. So I made sure he couldn't.

As for the other three, I Influenced them to forget all about Shawn and I, because I thought it’d be funny when they dragged themselves out of the alley without knowing why they were broken into pieces. I imagined them being asked what happened by the police or paramedics, only for them to be unable to explain. That was the perfect revenge for me. One dead, three shattered and mangled with no memory of how or why. The perfect get back.

When I found Shawn, his breathing was already shallow. Those brass knuckles had done a real number on him, and I could tell his skull was fractured just by looking at him. He was suffering from internal bleeding, and if I didn't act fast, he was going to die. There was no time to lift him up and take him to a hospital. So, I did the only thing I could.

As I kneeled next to his crumpled body, I bit my wrist until my blood oozed out, then I put it to his mouth and forced it down his throat. He gagged and coughed for a while, but eventually swallowed it. Within minutes, every broken bone healed, every internal tear sewed itself back together, and his fractured skull sealed itself. He was healed, but drinking vampire blood changes humans.

I brought Shawn back to the penthouse with me and let him rest for a day, but when he woke up, I could feel a new connection between us. Our minds were linked, meaning I could speak to him telepathically. He was also stronger than most humans and could heal quicker, because the vampire blood had latched itself onto his DNA and altered it. The same DNA attachment made him obsessed with being turned, but our telepathic connection made it easier for me to calm him when the fixation became overbearing.

We’ve been in each other’s minds for fifteen years now. He knows me better than anyone ever has, and he's the only person in the world I trust. He is also the only person I allow to talk to me crazy, because he’s the only one I consider family.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” he asks as the elevator closes and we start our ascent.

I cut my eyes over to him, but then let them drop back to the floor.

“See?” he exclaims, pointing at me. “That right there. What was that? Since when are you quiet and uncomfortable around me? Something happen in that strip club? You've been acting funny since you came out of there.”

As memories of Aaliyah at the top of the pole play back in my mind, I stay silent until the doors open again. I walk into the penthouse with Shawn trailing closely behind me, turning around the corner and going to the bar again to pour myself a shot of tequila. Shawn stands on the other side of the counter, watching me with a bewildered look on his face. I knock back one shot, refill, and then do it again, unaffected by the taste and burn.

“Feel better now?” Shawn asks.

I finally look at him, nodding slowly before I pour another shot and kill it. “Not really, but maybe I will soon.”

“Oh, you remembered how to talk,” he quips sarcastically. “That’s good. Maybe now you can explain what the hell is going on. What happened in there? Did you see Von or not?”

I pour a fourth shot and carry it with me over to the couch next to the window. I look to the city lights for comfort but find none as I sit down. “Yeah, I saw him.”

Shawn sits next to me. “Alright, so what are you thinking? He owns that entire place. So how are you gonna get rid of him with all of that going on?”

“I don't know. I haven't decided anything. Just … let me think.”

“Amari, what the hell? You've been thinking the entire ride here, and you're clearly still confused. Try talking it out. Maybe it’ll help you stop being weird.”

“I don't know what to say. I saw someone, okay? There was a girl. A woman. I … I don't know.”

Shawn eyes me closely like I'm a specimen in a lab, his brow furrowed. Then his face smooths out as he leans back. “You're kidding.”

I frown. “Kidding about what?”

“You found your Companion in a strip club?” he asks as his face morphs into a wide smile. “Is your fated partner a stripper?”

“I don't fucking know,” I bark as Shawn laughs.

“What do you mean, you don't know? I thought you said you'd know it when you saw her. So, what’s up?”

“I don't know how it works Shawn. Damn. It’s not like I hang out with vampires all the time and have conversations about this. I don't have any guidance. My maker turned me and immediately left me on my own. She didn't leave a vampire manual for me to follow. Hell, I thought she was my Companion for decades. Then she never came back and I realized it wasn't her. I thought it would never happen for me.”

“I know,” Shawn says, wiping the smirk off his face now that he sees I'm serious. “So what makes this girl different from all the other women you've met in your life?”

I shake my head, thinking of her face and the way her smile lit up the booth.

“Everything. As soon as I walked in to look for Von, I felt it. It was like she was talking to me. I looked up at the main stage and there she was. I was in awe. Mesmerized in a way I've never been before. So I approached Von and asked him to have her come to my booth.”

“You talked to Von? Sheesh. I guess the Influence worked. He didn't recognize you?”

“Of course not. He thought I was just another customer. When she came, I was transfixed. Nobody else in the club existed anymore, and talking to her only made it worse. It was like I knew she was the one.”

“Wow. So this is it. You finally found her after all this time.”