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Description
The police were soon to follow after my destruction, quicker than the last time. I hid in the club, watching from behind the humans, as a civilian-clothed man entered. Justin. I had seen him at all the crimes I had committed, though I would call them services, not crimes. He still couldn’t find the culprit, though I stood but ten feet away…

Justin was blond with black eyes so dark they almost match mine. He beat my five-eight height easily at his six-two stance. His body was built like someone who had fought many times and rode horses on a daily basis. He wasn’t human and he wasn’t a vampire nor was he like me. Different.

Justin intrigued me. Ever since I laid eyes on him, I knew we would be seeing each other very soon. Maybe ‘seeing’ isn’t the right word but at least I saw him. He was the expert that worked in preternatural cases. Humans knew vamps were out there, they just didn’t know what to look for. But Justin did.

“Is it the same creature again?” Detective Era, a stocky looking man asked. He had been to all the scenes with Justin.

I hated being called a creature. I am as much a person as they are, with a few extra bits.

“Do you see the claw marks on his chest?” Justin said, gloved hands moving the shirt aside. “Where’s the witness?”

The detective gave him a funny look. How did he always change tactics so quickly? “Over there,” he said gesturing to the stairs in the back of the club.

Justin rose to his feet and began walking through the crowd. He came straight at me. I moved back out of the way and tried not to look at him. He passed and then stopped. He turned back to me and I nodded giving a nervous smile. His black eyes bored into my back as I turned to look at the body like any other tourist. The expert turned but stopped once he spotted my wounded shoulders. Quickly, he strode back to me and grabbed my arms.

“You!” he exclaimed. “Where did you get those wounds?”

I looked at him, letting confusion show on my face. “They are but scratches, sir. I received them when I was walking through the woods.”

Justin didn’t believe me. My wounds matched the holes in the wall. Same width, same size and both bloody. His hands tightened on my arms and he dragged me over to the dark haired girl sitting on the steps. She had a blanket around her shoulders and she shivered. I could see now that her almost black hair had dark blue highlights in it, to mach her stunning blue eyes. She really didn’t belong here.

“Girl,” he called. “Was this the person who killed the man?”

I just blinked. The vampire had been a beast not a man and they were calling me a creature.

The girl lifted her head and took a long look at me.

“No,” she spoke quietly. “The woman had green and gold eyes and gold hair and claws and fangs and…” she trailed off.

Justin released me and I rubbed my arm even though it didn’t hurt. A human habit. My shirt rose up my wrist and my scar showed. I quickly tried to adjust it but Justin grabbed my arm and pushed the sleeve back.

“How did you get this,” he asked as he stared in wonder.

I winced. I didn’t want to tell him. “When they killed my fiancé, they tried to kill me too.”

“How did you escape? Did the creature save you too?” He looked me in the eyes.

“Yes,” I said softly.

“How?”

“I would rather not talk about it.”

“Of course. What is your name?”

I looked at him for a second. “Aniu Macabre.”

He let go of my hand and held out his, smiling. “Justin Night, Preternatural Expert.”

I took his hand. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Night.”

“I am sorry for handling you like that earlier.”

I shrugged. “It’s alright.”

He looked a little embarrassed. “Sorry again but I must get your phone number and address because you were here in the club during the murder.”

Psht. Murder? Killing these bastards didn’t count as murder. It should be a sport. “Sure,” I said nonchalantly.

Once I had given him the information, he excused me and began speaking to the witness. I had been dismissed but I wanted to hear what the girl said.

“She slammed into the room and the man threw the knife at her. I couldn’t see her because she moved so fast. She was very beautiful though, even with the claws and stuff.” She stopped for a second. “He pinned her to the wall with knives and said he was going to rape her and cut her and drink her blood. She didn’t say anything except knee him in the nuts. Then she pulled the knives out and almost cut his head off. He said, ‘You will pay for this…Anagua?’ I don’t remember how he said her name. Then he said, ‘The Great One is coming.’ She said, ‘Good.” Then she cut off his head.” The girl shivered.

I smiled. At least she thought I was beautiful.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once I entered the doorway of my second floor apartment in the city I knew something wasn’t right. I stared around the black room and saw a shadow move. Instead of jumping out of the way, I leaped at it. Claws shredded the table cloth and suddenly my nose smelled the black carpet.

“Surprised, my dear Aniu?” the voice sneered.

I didn’t know him…or did I? I took a millisecond to think and started to laugh. Kaleb, it was only Kaleb.

“Welcome home, Kaleb. I missed you,” I chuckled.

His body lay on top of me, holding my arms behind me and his legs pinning mine. A horribly vulnerable position. That was why he chose it. He growled against my ear and made me shiver.

“So I can smell,” he whispered darkly.

He put both wrists in one of his hands and then grabbed a fistful of black hair. A sharp pull had me gasping but his lips captured mine before I could protest. The kiss was deep and long. He was memorizing my mouth. He came up for air after a few minutes.

Kaleb turned me over so that I lay underneath him. He wriggled his hips against my lower body so that I knew he was happy to be there.

“You never change, Kaleb. Get off me.”

I pushed at his chest but he grabbed my wrists and placed them above my head, he mouth burrowing into my neck. I shivered. Then there was nothing but pain.

I screamed. He had bitten me, it shouldn’t have hurt this much. Unless… He had been turned! Kaleb was a vampire! Tears formed in my eyes. My vision started to go white.

Many humans think that darkness greats them when they die but light meets them. Bright, blinding lights. I bucked my body and the motion startled him enough to release my neck and loosen his hold on my wrists.

I pulled my wrists free and punched him with all my strength. Bone crunched and I knew his jaw had been broken. Tears flooded my eyes but I rose to my feet and faced him.

He rose slowly, laughing until he looked at me with his gray and red eyes.
“Your blood is so sweet, Aniu,” he said with a sneer.

“How?”

A smirk crossed his lips. “I wanted it. It’s amazing being so strong, so fast.” He touched his jaw. “To heal so quickly. Come on, Aniu. Let’s fuck and have a little fun.”

“Fuck you,” I snarled.

“Ah, but you did once, my little girl.” He lunged at me. A blade appeared in his hand, not a blade, a sword.

The black and bloody sword cut my side as I tried to dodge the attack. I gasped and he laughed. My claws elongated and blocked the next blow. He leaned into the blade and placed as small kiss on my lips. I bit him with my green fang and he howled in pain, backing away from me. My claws screamed through the air and bit deep into the flesh of his neck. Just before I tore his throat out, he wheezed,

“Run, he is coming.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I lay curled in a bloody ball on the couch when Justin and the police came in. If I hadn’t called them someone else would have and I might have been found out. Explaining the throat issue would still be difficult. Justin lowered his gun when he saw me. He walked slowly over to me and placed his hand on my forehead.

“Are you okay?”

His hand was too warm against my skin. I shook my head. Sometimes being part human had its disadvantages, shock for instance.

Justin moved my head to the side and touched the nasty fang marks. I winced.
“Get me some holy water,” he said to an officer.

Light leaked through the door as he left. The small beam touched the vamp’s body and suddenly there were blue flames engulfing the body of my best friend. Tears spilled down my cheeks. The fire didn’t spread but at least I wouldn’t have to explain the throat.

The officer returned before the flame had receded.

“Here you go, Justin,” he said while his eyes remained on the glowing blue ashes.

Justin took the bottle and helped me into the bathroom. He set me on the counter.

“This is going to hurt, a lot. Just breathe deep and scream if you have to,” he said softly.

He turned my head to the side, pulling my hair back. I knew what to expect because Kaleb and I had done this thousands of times. When the first drop of water touched the wound I snarled and grabbed Justin’s arms, holding tight.

I was like acid eating at my skin and blood. Tears returned on my cheeks and my head swayed forward. Justin’s hand kept it still. Another acidic drop hit me and my eyes opened meeting Justin’s gaze. He smiled softly at me.

I hissed at the third drop but it didn’t hurt as bad, it cleansed the wound. Once the water stopped bubbling on my skin, he put the bottle down.

“There,” he whispered. “All better.”

I hopped down from the counter and only his hands on my waist kept me from falling.

“Easy now,” he warned.

A sob caught in my throat and I leaned into him, my arms going around his neck and my face into his shoulder. I cried over my friend, my best friend since birth.

Justin didn’t know what to do at first, but after he realized that I was crying, he wrapped his arms round my waist and rubbed my back. One hand stroked the back of my hair.

“It’s alright,” he whispered in my ear. This was so beyond protocol. He should move away and send me out to the ambulance but he couldn’t let me go. It felt right having me in his arms and he couldn’t let that go.

After a few minutes I pulled away and smiled weakly at him.

“Sorry,” I said.

He shrugged. “No problem, that’s what I’m here for.”

I blinked and then smiled. “I thought you were here to solve a homicide?”

“That too.” A grin split his face.

I blushed. “Thank you, Mr. Night.”

“Please call me Justin, Ms. Macabre.”

“Then call me Aniu.”

“Aniu,” he said with a smile.

“Justin,” I smiled back.

A knock on the door made us jump.

“Sorry to interrupt you,” said a voice. “But there is something strange about the ashes.”

Justin and I separated and ran out of the bathroom. The ashes glowed still but they said something:

BLOOD IS SHED

DEATH HAS BEEN

HUMANS ONCE LED

NOW VAMPIRES WIN

RUN ANIU

WE ARE AFTER YOU…

Justin looked at me and my face was white. This had never happened before. What had changed? I fainted…Stupid human blood…

Description
The police were soon to follow after my destruction, quicker than the last time. I hid in the club, watching from behind the humans, as a civilian-clothed man entered. Justin. I had seen him at all the crimes I had committed, though I would call them services, not crimes. He still couldn’t find the culprit, though I stood but ten feet away…

Justin was blond with black eyes so dark they almost match mine. He beat my five-eight height easily at his six-two stance. His body was built like someone who had fought many times and rode horses on a daily basis. He wasn’t human and he wasn’t a vampire nor was he like me. Different.

Justin intrigued me. Ever since I laid eyes on him, I knew we would be seeing each other very soon. Maybe ‘seeing’ isn’t the right word but at least I saw him. He was the expert that worked in preternatural cases. Humans knew vamps were out there, they just didn’t know what to look for. But Justin did.

“Is it the same creature again?” Detective Era, a stocky looking man asked. He had been to all the scenes with Justin.

I hated being called a creature. I am as much a person as they are, with a few extra bits.

“Do you see the claw marks on his chest?” Justin said, gloved hands moving the shirt aside. “Where’s the witness?”

The detective gave him a funny look. How did he always change tactics so quickly? “Over there,” he said gesturing to the stairs in the back of the club.

Justin rose to his feet and began walking through the crowd. He came straight at me. I moved back out of the way and tried not to look at him. He passed and then stopped. He turned back to me and I nodded giving a nervous smile. His black eyes bored into my back as I turned to look at the body like any other tourist. The expert turned but stopped once he spotted my wounded shoulders. Quickly, he strode back to me and grabbed my arms.

“You!” he exclaimed. “Where did you get those wounds?”

I looked at him, letting confusion show on my face. “They are but scratches, sir. I received them when I was walking through the woods.”

Justin didn’t believe me. My wounds matched the holes in the wall. Same width, same size and both bloody. His hands tightened on my arms and he dragged me over to the dark haired girl sitting on the steps. She had a blanket around her shoulders and she shivered. I could see now that her almost black hair had dark blue highlights in it, to mach her stunning blue eyes. She really didn’t belong here.

“Girl,” he called. “Was this the person who killed the man?”

I just blinked. The vampire had been a beast not a man and they were calling me a creature.

The girl lifted her head and took a long look at me.

“No,” she spoke quietly. “The woman had green and gold eyes and gold hair and claws and fangs and…” she trailed off.

Justin released me and I rubbed my arm even though it didn’t hurt. A human habit. My shirt rose up my wrist and my scar showed. I quickly tried to adjust it but Justin grabbed my arm and pushed the sleeve back.

“How did you get this,” he asked as he stared in wonder.

I winced. I didn’t want to tell him. “When they killed my fiancé, they tried to kill me too.”

“How did you escape? Did the creature save you too?” He looked me in the eyes.

“Yes,” I said softly.

“How?”

“I would rather not talk about it.”

“Of course. What is your name?”

I looked at him for a second. “Aniu Macabre.”

He let go of my hand and held out his, smiling. “Justin Night, Preternatural Expert.”

I took his hand. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Night.”

“I am sorry for handling you like that earlier.”

I shrugged. “It’s alright.”

He looked a little embarrassed. “Sorry again but I must get your phone number and address because you were here in the club during the murder.”

Psht. Murder? Killing these bastards didn’t count as murder. It should be a sport. “Sure,” I said nonchalantly.

Once I had given him the information, he excused me and began speaking to the witness. I had been dismissed but I wanted to hear what the girl said.

“She slammed into the room and the man threw the knife at her. I couldn’t see her because she moved so fast. She was very beautiful though, even with the claws and stuff.” She stopped for a second. “He pinned her to the wall with knives and said he was going to rape her and cut her and drink her blood. She didn’t say anything except knee him in the nuts. Then she pulled the knives out and almost cut his head off. He said, ‘You will pay for this…Anagua?’ I don’t remember how he said her name. Then he said, ‘The Great One is coming.’ She said, ‘Good.” Then she cut off his head.” The girl shivered.

I smiled. At least she thought I was beautiful.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once I entered the doorway of my second floor apartment in the city I knew something wasn’t right. I stared around the black room and saw a shadow move. Instead of jumping out of the way, I leaped at it. Claws shredded the table cloth and suddenly my nose smelled the black carpet.

“Surprised, my dear Aniu?” the voice sneered.

I didn’t know him…or did I? I took a millisecond to think and started to laugh. Kaleb, it was only Kaleb.

“Welcome home, Kaleb. I missed you,” I chuckled.

His body lay on top of me, holding my arms behind me and his legs pinning mine. A horribly vulnerable position. That was why he chose it. He growled against my ear and made me shiver.

“So I can smell,” he whispered darkly.

He put both wrists in one of his hands and then grabbed a fistful of black hair. A sharp pull had me gasping but his lips captured mine before I could protest. The kiss was deep and long. He was memorizing my mouth. He came up for air after a few minutes.

Kaleb turned me over so that I lay underneath him. He wriggled his hips against my lower body so that I knew he was happy to be there.

“You never change, Kaleb. Get off me.”

I pushed at his chest but he grabbed my wrists and placed them above my head, he mouth burrowing into my neck. I shivered. Then there was nothing but pain.

I screamed. He had bitten me, it shouldn’t have hurt this much. Unless… He had been turned! Kaleb was a vampire! Tears formed in my eyes. My vision started to go white.

Many humans think that darkness greats them when they die but light meets them. Bright, blinding lights. I bucked my body and the motion startled him enough to release my neck and loosen his hold on my wrists.

I pulled my wrists free and punched him with all my strength. Bone crunched and I knew his jaw had been broken. Tears flooded my eyes but I rose to my feet and faced him.

He rose slowly, laughing until he looked at me with his gray and red eyes.
“Your blood is so sweet, Aniu,” he said with a sneer.

“How?”

A smirk crossed his lips. “I wanted it. It’s amazing being so strong, so fast.” He touched his jaw. “To heal so quickly. Come on, Aniu. Let’s fuck and have a little fun.”

“Fuck you,” I snarled.

“Ah, but you did once, my little girl.” He lunged at me. A blade appeared in his hand, not a blade, a sword.

The black and bloody sword cut my side as I tried to dodge the attack. I gasped and he laughed. My claws elongated and blocked the next blow. He leaned into the blade and placed as small kiss on my lips. I bit him with my green fang and he howled in pain, backing away from me. My claws screamed through the air and bit deep into the flesh of his neck. Just before I tore his throat out, he wheezed,

“Run, he is coming.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I lay curled in a bloody ball on the couch when Justin and the police came in. If I hadn’t called them someone else would have and I might have been found out. Explaining the throat issue would still be difficult. Justin lowered his gun when he saw me. He walked slowly over to me and placed his hand on my forehead.

“Are you okay?”

His hand was too warm against my skin. I shook my head. Sometimes being part human had its disadvantages, shock for instance.

Justin moved my head to the side and touched the nasty fang marks. I winced.
“Get me some holy water,” he said to an officer.

Light leaked through the door as he left. The small beam touched the vamp’s body and suddenly there were blue flames engulfing the body of my best friend. Tears spilled down my cheeks. The fire didn’t spread but at least I wouldn’t have to explain the throat.

The officer returned before the flame had receded.

“Here you go, Justin,” he said while his eyes remained on the glowing blue ashes.

Justin took the bottle and helped me into the bathroom. He set me on the counter.

“This is going to hurt, a lot. Just breathe deep and scream if you have to,” he said softly.

He turned my head to the side, pulling my hair back. I knew what to expect because Kaleb and I had done this thousands of times. When the first drop of water touched the wound I snarled and grabbed Justin’s arms, holding tight.

I was like acid eating at my skin and blood. Tears returned on my cheeks and my head swayed forward. Justin’s hand kept it still. Another acidic drop hit me and my eyes opened meeting Justin’s gaze. He smiled softly at me.

I hissed at the third drop but it didn’t hurt as bad, it cleansed the wound. Once the water stopped bubbling on my skin, he put the bottle down.

“There,” he whispered. “All better.”

I hopped down from the counter and only his hands on my waist kept me from falling.

“Easy now,” he warned.

A sob caught in my throat and I leaned into him, my arms going around his neck and my face into his shoulder. I cried over my friend, my best friend since birth.

Justin didn’t know what to do at first, but after he realized that I was crying, he wrapped his arms round my waist and rubbed my back. One hand stroked the back of my hair.

“It’s alright,” he whispered in my ear. This was so beyond protocol. He should move away and send me out to the ambulance but he couldn’t let me go. It felt right having me in his arms and he couldn’t let that go.

After a few minutes I pulled away and smiled weakly at him.

“Sorry,” I said.

He shrugged. “No problem, that’s what I’m here for.”

I blinked and then smiled. “I thought you were here to solve a homicide?”

“That too.” A grin split his face.

I blushed. “Thank you, Mr. Night.”

“Please call me Justin, Ms. Macabre.”

“Then call me Aniu.”

“Aniu,” he said with a smile.

“Justin,” I smiled back.

A knock on the door made us jump.

“Sorry to interrupt you,” said a voice. “But there is something strange about the ashes.”

Justin and I separated and ran out of the bathroom. The ashes glowed still but they said something:

BLOOD IS SHED

DEATH HAS BEEN

HUMANS ONCE LED

NOW VAMPIRES WIN

RUN ANIU

WE ARE AFTER YOU…

Justin looked at me and my face was white. This had never happened before. What had changed? I fainted…Stupid human blood…