Amy Blankenship - Vampire Gemini стр 9.

“I’ll research it and let you know if I come up with a clue.” Was all her grandfather had said.

She’d stopped questioning why she had the power to hit them and actually hurt them… it wasn’t like they couldn’t hold their own sometimes though. She had limped home too many times to think she was indestructible. But she healed faster than anyone she knew and she could take a hard punch better than… okay, she didn’t know anyone who could withstand what she could… any human that is.

Now that she had a safe distance between her and everything she loved… Kyoko had a reason to be angry and a reason to fight. She blamed them for it… the demons that stalked her. They’d forced her to leave home and abandon everything that resembled a normal life. Now her family had moved into the home at the shrine. Granted, it placed them closer to Tasuki and that made her feel better.

“It’s not that bad,” She said aloud within the solitude of her apartment. Getting out of bed, she headed for the small kitchen and opened the refrigerator. “Okay… maybe it is that bad,” Kyoko smirked seeing it was still empty.

She would just have to go hunting for vampires tonight and if they had a wad of cash in their pocket when she killed them, then so be it… it wasn’t like they could take it to hell with them. Closing the door she turned to the one thing she knew she had plenty of. “Thank god for coffee.”

She lifted the cup to her lips knowing it was going to be a long night.

*****

Hyakuhei lay in the bed listening to his brother’s voice once again before it faded. This had become a habit… although in his opinion, it was better than being face to face. They would listen to each other’s thoughts most nights for the few moments it took for the sun to set… then the link would vanish. As of late, the silent conversations had become more and more disturbing.

He glanced up at the canopy that covered his bed… seeing the gift from his brother. The Mirror of Souls had appeared in his room over a month ago… he’d seen it before. It was the only mirror that could cast the reflection of a vampire. It had once been his brother’s prized possession.

When he had silently called to Tadamichi, asking why he’d given it to him, his brother had responded, “I only wish to remind you of what you are.”

He now gazed up at his own reflection and knew there was another reason for the gift. It was a way to see his twin brother as he gazed at himself. Hyakuhei flung his arm over his eyes, refusing the sight.

He’d thought Tadamichi would be angry when he told him that he was killing the half-breed vampires within the city for the mere fact that they were in his way… or in the wrong place at the wrong time. The knowledge hadn’t even fazed Tadamichi. His brother only reminded him that the power to rule the human city and the demons within it was theirs for the taking.

Tadamichi had even confessed that it pleased him. In some twisted way… his twin brother was happy he’d provided entertainment for him… something to kill… again reminding him of what he was. Hyakuhei glared back up into the mirror thinking about the manipulation. He and his brother were nothing but monsters in every sense of the word and he didn’t need to be reminded of it.

One thing Hyakuhei noticed over the last couple months was that when his brother turned a vampire, then that vampire turned a vampire, and so on, all it created was weak, needy half-breed vampires who were greedy and sloppy. Where he was pureblood… he only fed maybe once a year and left no evidence behind. He could survive on nothing if he chose to do so or even partake of human food. A newly turned half-breed vampire would feed every night and usually slaughtered their meal before they were through.

A true vampire didn’t do that… a pureblood vampire could seduce humans into their thrall then feed off them just enough to quench their thirst before leaving and taking the memory of it with them. No one was the wiser. In other words, the further down the line the vampire was from Tadamichi… the closer they were to being an ugly liability like city trash.

He could feel the need to step out into the city and become a part of it. He didn’t need Tadamichi reminding him of who he was… he could already feel the need for the hunt. His hunger was growing not only for the need to feed… but also for the need to feel a part of something. He blamed this craving on his brother.

Hyakuhei slid his black silk shirt on as he stepped to the window, drawing the curtain back now that the sun was gone. He narrowed his eyes at the view. “Nice wall,” he said sarcastically. His scenery was the side of a brick building across a small alley and there was a reason for that. Although he could stand the daylight for a few moments at a time… the last thing he wanted was it streaming in through his bedroom window.

He almost turned and walked away but something caught his attention and he glanced down into the alley.

There… leaning against the far wall just out of the reach of the street lamps was a young man maybe in his early twenties. Hyakuhei glared at the well-dressed college look knowing it was deceiving. He could smell the blood of the underling’s last kill even through the closed window. The shadowed face turned just a little and Hyakuhei could see the glow of unnatural light emanating from its eyes.

If there was one thing Hyakuhei could say about himself, it was that he was very territorial. Even he and his twin stayed on different sides of the city for this reason. He would not allow these greedy half-demons to feed so close to his building. If this was what his brother desired… to watch him kill a killer… so be it.

Hyakuhei reached out and slid the window open without making a sound.

Before he could jump out the window, Hyakuhei heard footsteps coming from the far side of the alley and paused. He waited for the stupid human to walk into the deadly trap. Whoever it was… they deserved it for traveling the dark alley.

Demons where not the only dangers of the city night… human riffraff like muggers and rapists also hid within the darkness of most city alleys. Maybe he would even let the vampire have its last meal before he killed it… it was the least he could do. It wasn’t like he owed the human population anything. He owed no one.

He leaned against the windowsill with dark brooding eyes. The first thing Hyakuhei noticed was the long auburn hair as the human slipped from the shadows into the dim light below. Half of it was up in a bouncing ponytail, leaving the rest to cascade down her shoulders and back in silken waves.

She wore a short black mini skirt with trails of black lace coming down lower and covering some of her lower thighs. The shirt was matching with black satin cloth that came down just above her bellybutton but also had the same V shaped trails of black lace that moved as she walked.

He didn’t miss a thing as his gaze caressed the small flashes of exposed skin. Her aura was the size of a hundred humans and it spread out covering most of the alley. As her aura passed mundane things, dull colors would become vibrant making even the darkness seem breathtakingly alive.

He was so enthralled with watching the girl that he momentarily forgot she was walking into her own death trap.

Kyoko walked slowly as if she didn’t have a care in the world. She knew she looked delicate and defenseless… little more than a child really. She was fine with that because she was a good target. The city night was alive and thumping but if you turned the wrong corner, it could turn into dark shadows with deadly edges… for humans.