Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Eli let Felix drive for two reasons. First, in the event that Eli picked someone up, Felix had a way to get back to campus. Second, if he didn't pick someone up, unlikely as that may seem, he had a designated driver. With two shots of tequila already in him, the roads were much safer without Eli behind the wheel anyway.

It was early Friday evening, during the second month of their first year at college. The sun hung low in the Western horizon, and Halloween decorations were already dotting yards and clinging to house windows. Some residences even sported fake Jack-o-Lanterns with ghoulish faces smiling out in electric wonder. Trees and bushes were taking on the magical colors of autumn everywhere he turned. After an hour arguing with his parents, magic was just was Eli needed, preferably in the form of a random hook up. Even better if the guy was kinky enough to let Eli get in a bite or two.

He had dressed for a night on the prowl, sporting a tight crimson button down that shimmered when he moved, black slacks that were easy to get out of and a blazer to match. Felix had gone for simpler attire, but was less concerned about picking up girls than he was about keeping Eli out of trouble.

"All I'm saying," Felix remarked, picking up the thread of conversation Eli had thought was cut off two blocks ago, "is that your Dad has a point, Eli. I'd jump at the chance to have a thrall. I've got calluses on my hand."

Eli groaned. "Don't remind me. I think the only place it's safe to sit down in our dorm is between the couch cushions."

Felix shot him a guilty look, then grinned mischievously.

"Oh God! Really?"

"Gotta get creative," Felix quipped. "Not all of us can take hours long showers or change our sheets every other day."

"I could help you out with that, you know," Eli countered. He leaned toward Felix, dropping his voice to a seductive whisper. "No one has to know..."

"I'm not falling for that," Felix laughed, pushing him away. "It didn't work in high school, and it definitely won't work now. I've seen your handy-work. Poor Matt Simons couldn't touch himself for a week, he was so swollen."

"Oh yeah? And when did Matt show you his dick?"

Felix sniffed. "Gym class, in the showers. I caught a glimpse when he dropped his towel."

"A likely story. Just admit you love me, and we won't have to go to this party."

"I love you. But I'm not fucking you."

It was the same banter they'd been having for years. Eli flirted, Felix denied him, and they moved on. Felix was more than just Eli's friend. They were like brothers. Though they joked about it, Eli knew he could never really sleep with him. Vampires needed alliances with other vampires, not relationships that lasted maybe one, or two centuries before dissolving under the weight of time. His own parents had been together less than thirty years and they were already starting to show the strain of it.

"Seriously, though," Felix added, "a Thrall might be good to have. You wouldn't need to go to clubs and parties any more. And our shower will appreciate the break, I'm sure."

Eli sighed, looked out the window and the landscape crawling past. They were in one of the neighborhoods near the school, where the majority of fraternity and sororities took residence among the regular people of the world.

"Like I told my dad, the only way for me to have a Thrall is if I move into Theta Pi. And like I told my dad, I would rather cut off my dick than become one of those arrogant fuckers."

Theta Pi, the world's only fraternity exclusive to vampires, were mostly populated by people like Eli's older brother Michael, whose families were rich and powerful in more than just the vampire world, and who loved the taste of power more than the taste of blood. They looked down on humans and were too interested in building up their individual kingdoms to contribute much of anything to society.

"It would suck having the dorm all to myself," Felix said, "but I'd be willing to sacrifice for your happiness. And a little privacy."

"You just want to jack off on my bed," Eli said.

"True. Like I said, you gotta get creative."

"Well, anyway, it ain't gonna happen. I've gotten along fine without owning a slave."

Felix slowed the car, eyeing a large mansion at the end of a cul-de-sac. Loud music rattled the windows of the vehicle, and every house nearby looked to be deserted. A line of cars, trucks, vans and motorcycles pointed to the party. No one was passed out in the front yards yet, but it was early. The Greek letter Gamma was proudly displayed on the sloping roof of the house.

"You didn't tell me it was a frat party," Felix moaned. "You've got to be invited to get in.

Eli smiled, his vampire teeth gleaming in the drowsing sunlight. "These are our invitations," he said. "Come on."

Felix found a parking spot, wedging his aged hatch back between a Hummer and SUV. At the entrance, they were stopped by a muscle bound youth in a skimpy Tarzan costume.

"Halt! This is a private costume party. Invitation only."

Eli showed him his teeth. "These are our costumes," he said, turning to Felix. His friend rolled his eyes, then gave the guy a good look at his own set of deadly dentals.

The young guard fell for the costume trick and picked up his clipboard.

"Names?"

Eli flexed the power hidden deep within him. A low, whispering rumble built in his chest. The doorman froze, eyes glazing over. A girl passing nearby stopped dead in her tracks and had to be pulled away by a friend.

"Eli Rose and Felix Alcazar," Eli replied softly. "Go ahead and add us to the list. And any other parties you have."

Competing thoughts played out in micro expressions rippling across the young man's face. Part of him knew he was being manipulated, and tried overriding Eli's command. But the basest, most primal centers of his brain were firing in full force; infecting the young man with fear for survival. Safety was found in Eli's eyes, security in following his command. He jotted down their names, welcoming them like honored guests.

"That wouldn't have worked if he really was only letting people on the guest list in, you know," Felix observed, following Eli through the crush of bodies.

"Always trust in human psychology," Eli replied. "A guy like him is more likely to open the way for the remote chance of getting laid and, considering the male to female ratio here, I'd say most of these girls showed more than just their teeth to get in."

His insightful words, however, were never heard by Felix who, Eli discovered when he looked over his shoulder, had inserted himself into a conversation between a group of girls in French maid costumes. Even without his vampire glamour, Felix was charming the women easily. This gave Eli a moment's pause. In the event that Felix was the one to find companionship that night, how was he, Eli, going to get home? The question stayed with him right up to the point of finding the bar, and a clutch of attractive gay men doing their best to catch his eye.

With red solo cup in hand, he approached, sensing their desire with each step. They were all older than him, juniors and seniors if he read their scents correctly--it was difficult to hone in on them completely while surrounded by so many humans. From the way they looked at him, he could read their notion of him: a young, virginal freshman unsure of his place and desperately in need of sexual education.

Eli shifted his body language in mid stride, changing his trajectory to head for an empty corner of the room. He threw them a shy glance and false blush as he passed.

"Hey, where ya going?" the leader of the pack, a whip thin blonde with a preadatory gleam in his hazel eyes. He was dressed as Dracula for the party, though the cheap cape he wore looked like it had been made for a child.

Eli smiled to himself, then turned, adopting a surprised, unsure expression. His subterfuge had worked like a charm.

"M--me?" he stuttered, keeping his eye contact to a minimum.

"Yeah," the blond said. "I'm nick. What's your name?"

***

Off campus and across town, Lucas was stepping out of the car belonging to Alic Rose, father of Eli, and one of the most influential citizens of vampire society. The moment his foot touched the driveway pavement, his mind was flooded with a fast moving reel of images that moved through Eli's life up to the moment he bid his parents farewell to live in the studying housing at his university. In total, it lasted less than a second's span of time, but left him feeling fatigued with tension in his shoulders and back. Already, he was homesick for the unit he had shared with his brother, for the etheric feel of his bond to Eli that was more fantasy than reality. Here, at the place Eli had grown up, the bond felt almost physical, like a hook had been snared behind his navel.

He'd known this day would come eventually. Once the enthralling had taken effect three years ago, the Venom addiction made firm, his reliance on Eli was set into his very bones. When his brother was picked to be a simple servant to a family friendly to the Rose House, leaving Lucas with nothing useful to do but studying, he had even started desiring the moment to hasten when he would first set eyes on the vampire he had devoted himself to in the flesh. Eli, however, was not there to pick him up from the warehouse, nor was he in the mansion looming before him. He was away, at college, and though dimmed by distance, Lucas sensed his Master's excitement along the psychic link connecting them.

The arrangement had been explained by Doctor Howard that morning, just after breakfast when Lucas was told to start distributing his belongings to the other Thralls. Eli was not yet ready to take a Thrall, but Lucas was to make him see reason. He would stay with Eli's family and serve him when he came home to visit. Lucas would continue receiving his Venom from the stores collected over the last few years; stores that were already starting to dwindle. This was as much about Lucas' survival as it was about Eli taking on the responsibilities of a vampire of his stature.

"You'll be staying in Eli's room," Alic said as they entered the house. "If you need anything, let us know."

Generosity of person and belongings was a trait of the Rose family, one not often found among vampires. Before he became enthralled to Eli's venom, Lucas had learned how to fend for himself and protect his younger sibling. Since that time, however, a steady flow of necessities, and even a few luxuries had made their way into his hands, thanks to Alic's patronage.

"Thank you, sir," Lucas replied. "If I can be of service to yourself or my Master's Mother..."

"That's very kind, thank you. We'll be having guests tonight. Once you're settled, feel free to join us."

Lucas nodded, but his mind was already up the stairs, travelling along the hallway in the South Wing to Eli's bedroom. When he arrived there in person, he found the door open. Lucas set down the bag he carried over his shoulder which was filled with a few slips of clothing, a couple of photographs of his family, and a very large image of Eli.

It was a room fit for a king, Lucas thought as he closed the door behind him. A teenage king, specifically. The walls were covered with posters of attractive pop stars and half naked athletes. A rainbow flag had been draped behind the bed, which was covered by crimson dressings. A stuffed toy bear sat on the pillows, staring out of black eyes at Lucas, begging to be cuddled. To his left were a walk in closet and, a little further along the wall, a private bathroom. To his right, a two-seater sofa, facing a television. Beside the bed was an empty, glass faced refrigerator and to the right of that, a clean desk that looked out the window to the front yard.

The scent of Eli lingered like a happy memory, filling Lucas with a deep sense of calm and the ineffable quality of being home. It was intoxicating being so near to his Master's belongings, seeing what Eli saw, touching what he touched. Erotic tension clung to the sofa, the desk chair, but most of all, to the bed.

Lucas kicked off his shoes beside the door and peeled off his socks. Fluffy and soft, the carpet tickled his bare feet and let him see a ghostly afterimage of one of Eli's visits to the room. The shadowy specter stood beside the bed, caught up in an intensely emotional moment that had imprinted on the psychic plane of the room. He faced the bed, thumbs hooked beneath the waistband of sweat pants, his top bare, looking down at something that was making him smile. Lucas approached, hoping to glimpse the details, but the instant he lifted his heel, the image blew away. His excitement, brief yet firm, had changed the viscous thought stuff of the room.

Fully clothed, he slipped beneath the covers and pulled the toy bear close to his nose, letting himself fade away into his Master's absent presence.

***

It had taken the better part of an hour of flirting and innuendo for Nick to suggest they take a break from the party. Eli went along, let the man push him roughly against the back of the house, and had just guided Nick's hand to the button of his jeans when Felix appeared.

His shirt was on inside out, and there was real anger behind his eyes.

"We're going," he said, pulling Eli from Nick's clutches, using the full force of his vampiric strength. Any question about why was silenced as a gang of young men, all in excellent condition and all dressed like Tarzan, emptied onto the deck. A few carried baseball bats.

Nick high tailed it out of the way, taking an alternate route back to the party, and leaving them to deal with the angry gang, who were bearing down on them with murderous intent.

Eli stepped between Felix and the mob. "Guys," he said, "whatever happened, I'm sure my friend is sorry. Okay? We'll leave."

"Oh, you'll leave," one of them snarled, "in body bags."

That was all the warning given. A bat swung out glinting in the light coming through a window. It connected with Eli's head, making a loud crack as it splintered. The pain was nothing compared to the fury that overtook Eli. He launched at his attacker, punching him hard in the jaw. He felt bone shatter beneath his knuckles. The youth dropped and lay bleed, unconscious. Eli licked the blood from his hand, sizzling with power. He turned.

Felix was being held against the house by two guys while a third landed blow after blow with his fist. In the fury of the moment, Eli forgot himself; forgot that Felix was just as immune to the human's attack as he was. In the blink of an eye, he grabbed the attacker by the hair and pulled him away, yanking a fistful of hair out as he did. The men holding Felix released him while their companion howled in pain. And then, it struck him.

Eli had just outed himself.

Through force of will, he reigned in the pleasurable impulse to kill the humans. He looked around, saw the unconscious man, the group of onlookers gathering, and cursed.

"Do not see me," Felix commanded, his voice reverberating through the minds of everyone present. "Forget us," he added, pulling Eli away.

They had made it all the way to the dorm, closing and locking the door before speaking. Felix was on his bed, guzzling a jug of blood that would normally last them both a week. His scent was strong, dangerous, and Eli waited until his thirst had been sated.

"If you hadn't been such a god damned idiot," Felix said, throwing the empty jug at the wall near Eli's head, "none of this would have happened!"

"Me? I wasn't the one fooling around with some hot headed jock's girlfriend!" It was the most reasonable explanation after all.

Felix rose to his feet, growled.

Eli stood, caught his friend's eye, and stared him down. He didn't release the penetrating look, the exertion of dominance and authority, until Felix was back on the bed. It was the first time he'd ever had to use the Gaze on Felix. His stomach turned.

Without another word, a silent agreement passed between them. Felix turned his back to Eli and lay down. Eli grabbed the keys to his motorcycle, his helmet, and his jacket, and then slammed the door behind him.

He awoke the next morning under the covers of a strange bed in a cheap no tell motel. Through the thin walls, he heard a couple fucking at the top of their lungs. At first, he thought their antics had awakened him. Then, he heard the buzzing of his cell phone's silent setting on the night stand beside him.

It was Felix.

"Turn on the news," he said.

Groggy and slightly hung over, it took Eli a minute to find the remote control for the ancient, wall mounted television, and a few moments more to find a local news station.

"...will require reconstructive surgery, but remains in stable condition. Several other members of the fraternity were also injured in the attack. Eye witnesses have given a number of conflicting accounts, and the police haven't been able to get a solid description. They're asking anyone with knowledge about the event that happened last night at the Gamma fraternity, to contact them."