Page 18 of Thicker than Blood
Ihave no idea what’s happening as Elias leads me to a door tucked behind the massive staircase. I should probably be scared, but my instincts tell me that Elias will protect me. As we pass the other man, I offer a smile, but he only gives me a curt nod.
He’s an interesting looking man. He’s on the shorter side but a little chubby, with tan skin and gleaming green eyes that stare straight through me. The shock of thick black curls on his head softens him somewhat, but he seems suspicious of me. Totally makes sense, actually.
Elias opens the door, and his eyes flash brightly, like a lamp going on and off. A scuffle of feet and murmured voices reaches me, and instinctively, I reach out to grab his arm.
“You’re safe with me,” he says. “Come now.”
I’m led down a darkened stairway, and the closer we get to the bottom, the louder the cacophony of sounds. Music, voices, moaning. What the heck is this place?
As soon as we turn the corner on the small landing, I’m faced with a group of… people? Let’s go with people. There must be twenty or so of them, staring at me with curious eyes, like I’m something they’ve never seen before.
As my eyes focus in the dark, right away I realize that yeah, they aren’t vampires, at least not exclusively.
Some of them have pink skin, or green or jet black. Some of them have unusually large or oddly shaped eyes. Some of them are completely naked, displaying bodies that are definitely not human, with unusual genitals and appendages. Oh, the research I’d love to do.
Elias stands behind me with his hands on my shoulders. “You’ve seen him.”
What a strange thing to be so objectively desired by these beings, and I’m positive it’s desire radiating from them. I’ve never experienced this from a human, much less a vampire, et al. I’m not sure if I like it or if it terrifies me, or both.
One guy—a crazy tall man who looks like he’s made of stone with his bulging muscles and the gray pallor to his skin—leans forward, sniffing the air. “Divine.”
Another androgynous being slinks forward. Their body is sinewy and a soft, glowing red, as if lit from within. Long white hair flows around them, and as they get closer to me, I have a feeling I know exactly what this is. The solid black eyes are a giveaway. Demon.
“How delicious,” they say. Their voice sounds like a chorus of several people, pleasant but otherworldly. They lean closer, sniffing me. “Where have you been?”
“I… I don’t know what you mean?”
“He’s been in a lab,” Elias says. “Safe from you horny bastards. He’s my guest and not available for any of your pursuits.”
“Obviously,” a female voice says from somewhere inside the group. “Very greedy of you, Elias.”
“It’s my home. Shouldn’t I have the privilege?”
Someone else chuckles. “Lucky,” they murmur.
“Would you like me to show you around?” Elias asks before leaning close to my ear. “Don’t forget that you’re entirely safe with me.”
“I want to see it, yes.”
The group of onlookers part down the middle, giving Elias plenty of room to lead me deeper into the darkened space. Red and gold strobe lights shine patterns around the room, illuminating various vignettes of scenes of people doing things I can’t quite focus on in the dark.
“I call it Paradiso,” Elias says. “It’s paradise for the supernaturals in my favor. Here they can be themselves away from the prying eyes and restrictive rules of the mortal world.”
My stomach flutters and the scent of sex tickles my nose. “It’s a sex palace?”
“Not just sex, lovely mortal. It’s anything we want it to be.”
Taking my hand, he leads me down a short passage to a room that is a writhing throng of moving body parts engulfed in blood. I know this because of the metallic scent, but it’s also tinged with a variety of scents unfamiliar to me.
“What’s happening?”
“A blood orgy,” Elias says, inhaling and then humming softly. “Delightful, isn’t it?”
I turn to gaze up at the vampire, to find his eyes glowing and fangs on full display. Well, shit. He’s even better looking in his truest form.
“It intrigues you, no?” With his long fingers and sharp nails, he brushes a lock of my hair behind my ear. “Your scent is sweeter now that you’ve seen it.” He steps forward until our bodies almost touch, and I move back to prevent that from happening. “How many vampires have had the privilege of tasting you?”
A shiver moves down my back. “N-no one. Other than you u-upstairs.”