Blood on Bourbon Street

The bars and strip joints on Bourbon street were hopping tonight. He’d chosen a club to relax in, but it might as well have been a strip joint for all the lack of clothing everyone wore. New Orleans was the best kind of town for someone like him.

Even without looking back over his shoulder, Lucas could feel the press of life beating against him. Frantic, hot energy, as though the humans somehow knew that their lives were fleeting and they had to make the best out of it by partying as wild and hard as possible.

Lucas had to make sure he breathed shallowly out of his nose. Didn’t want to get too excited now. This was just a night out on the town. No fun stuff for him.

“You want another, buddy?”

Lucas slanted his eyes up without moving his head, making sure he didn’t look into the bartender’s eyes. Didn’t want to entrance anyone this early in the night. He grimaced. If he was going to be taking someone home, it wasn’t going to be this big, sweat-stained idiot.

“Yo, buddy? You hear me? You want another one?”

Lucas held up his full glass. “Do I look like I need another?”

“You didn’t seem to like it. I could get you something else.”

A quick shake of the head and Lucas turned back away, hoping the bartender would get the idea. The man muttered something rude and shuffled off while Lucas rolled his eyes. The bar was crowded with people demanding drinks, but of course the bartender would bother him. Not really his fault, Lucas supposed, but it was still damn annoying. Humans were just drawn to him and his kind even while they instinctively knew he was a predator. Lucas was the only person at the bar with a comfortable space of at least two feet on all sides.

He sighed again and surreptitiously tipped his glass over just a little, so that the beer would spill out on the already-wet and sticky bar top. He’d been nursing the full glass of beer for too long and he’d been noticed. But it wasn’t as if he could just tell the bartender that he’d rather a hot mug of O positive.

“Beer not to your liking?”

The voice was smooth and smoky as it floated over his shoulder. Instantly, he felt his body tense up, his nostrils flaring as he caught the scent of one of his own kind. Trying to look cool, he spun on his stool to check out the newcomer.

She was tall and her legs seem to stretch all the way to her throat. Her hair was a glossy black cloud that fell in waves down her back, her skin like rich caramel poured over a body to die for. Lucas caught her gaze in his, felt the spark, an acknowledgment. He was older than she was, more powerful, so she wouldn’t be a threat.

Grinning a hello, he waved to the seat next to him. The man seated there suddenly stood up and moved, looking confused as he did so.

“Why hello. Are you hunting here? If so, I did not mean to tread on any toes.” Lucas glanced down at her stiletto-heeled shoes. “Especially such pretty toes,” he added.

She tossed back her hair and slid onto the open seat, moving with the liquid grace that was customary for their kind. If she was worried that he was stronger than her, she didn’t show it.

“Not hunting, no,” she said softly, smiling a secret smile. “Are you?”

“No actually.” Lucas rubbed his hand against his chin, frowning at her. Did he know her from somewhere? She did look slightly familiar, but then again, after living for a few centuries, faces did get a little blurry sometimes. “Have we met before?”

Her eyes were limpid and dark, with a red undertones when the light hit them right. “What–you don’t recognize me? I think I’m hurt,” she teased.

Leaning towards her and feeling as though the night was actually looking up, Lucas grinned and raked back his own dark hair. “It does seem odd that I wouldn’t remember such radiance,” he flirted.

She held out a slender hand. He took it and tried not to shiver at the feverishly hot feel of her skin. She’d eaten not too long ago, stolen someone else’s warmth for the night. The idea turned Lucas on.

“Well, maybe you didn’t quite get my name last time we met, sugar.”

“I apologize for that. Obviously, my mistake.” Lucas thought hard but still just couldn’t place her face. He rubbed his fingers against her skin, enjoying the sensation.

She took her hand back and smiled beautifully, but not at Lucas. The bartender looked like he’d been hit in the face with a sledgehammer as he stopped in front of her. Lucas shifted and waited impatiently as the bartender hit on her and she ordered a drink that she would never even touch. The big asshole wouldn’t even get discouraged when Lucas gave him a glare that should’ve given the human nightmares.

The woman seemed happy to chit chat and smile with him and he finally, reluctantly, turned away to take orders at the other end of the bar. Lucas, annoyed with her attention to the human, turned to her with more determination. He shifted his stool closer.

“You know, you really do look familiar. Have we met before?”

She hunched one elegant shoulder. “Well, you did kill me five years ago.”

Lucas blinked, then smiled brightly. “Really? Wow, has it been five years! How have you been?”

She slanted her eyes up at him, a smirk on her full lips. “You’re flashing fang, sugar.”

He blinked, confused. “What’s wrong?”

She flipped her hair over her shoulder again, eyes flashing balefully. “Nothing’s wrong sugar.”

Lucas licked his dry lips, trying to find his footing in this slippery situation. This time, he spoke carefully. “You know, I’ve put my worst foot forward, sweetheart. Maybe we could start over? I’m Lucas Morales, originally from Philadelphia a little over three centuries ago. How about you?”

She spun to him and there was no denying the flash of anger this time. “We’re going to pretend to be all cordial this time around, Lucas?”

He shook his head, truly confused. “Um . . .”

She stood up. “I’m going to leave now, Lucas. The French Quarter is a part of my territory and I expect you to refrain from hunting until you leave it. Or else, you answer to me.”

“Hey, wait just a second–”

“No, I don’t think so.” She lifted her head, an imperious expression on her exotic face. “You had more than enough of a chance to fix the damage you caused.”

Lucas stood up. “Seriously,” he said, adding some steel to his voice. “You will hold on for a just a minute. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She smiled and it was brittle as she stood up too. “Okay. Here’s the story in a nutshell. Five years ago you rolled into town, you seduced me, you took my blood, and you left me, mostly dead. You went off on your merry little way and I woke up in an alley confused as all hell and so thirsty it hurt. But no water and no drink of any kind fixed me. I had no one to show me the ropes.”

Lucas grimaced and held up a hand. “Wait. If I had realized what I’d done to you I wouldn’t have left you, baby–”

She lifted a finger to shut him up. “I survived, Lucas. And I carved out a territory for myself. I know you’re stronger than I am, but I’ve made friends in high places. If you don’t leave my space soon, I’ll be forced to make you leave.”

“We could just talk for a minute–”

She smiled. “No more talking. Leave this town. You’re not welcome.”

His jaw dropped. How dare she? He was her senior, stronger and wiser and smarter. How dare she try to tell him where he could go?

“By the way,” she added, as she turned to go. “The name is Ali. You should remember it. When I’m stronger, I’m going to kill you.”

And then she slid like smoke through the crowd, disappearing. Lucas went through the club quickly, hoping to find her and set her straight, but she was nowhere to be found. Returning back to his seat, he slumped on the bar stool, thinking furiously.

He couldn’t help but feel piqued, intrigued despite himself. And he knew, despite her warnings that he would not be going anywhere. He was going to find his little Ali and show her that you didn’t give orders to Lucas Morales. And he was going to fix the little mistake he made by leaving her behind with no idea that she’d been turned into a vampire. He was actually a little sorry about that, and he hadn’t felt guilty about anything in centuries.

So, there was no way he was leaving New Orleans. Not when such an interesting little puzzle had just been dropped into his lap. With a grin, he turned to leave the club.