I Accidentally Hooked Up with a Vampire (Accidents Happen #2)

11. Jackie’s Bag

11

Jackie’s Bag

J ackie stood in my doorway, head cocked to the side, bonnet sliding down her twists as she dropped the bag. It fell to her feet with a thud. She’d also changed out of her ‘ass whooping’ sneakers and instead had on a pair of combat boots.

“Jackie, what the hell?” I pointed to the weapon in her hand. “Is that a damn stake?”

“You know anything better for killing vampires?” She twirled it around her hand like a skilled assassin. “If you do, I would love to know what it is.”

“Okay, clearly, there are some things we need to tell you.” Lena stood. “Is it okay if I get another cup of coffee before we start? Girl, this new blend is amazing.”

“That’s it. I’m not the one who lost my mind. It’s you two bitches.” I pointed at Jackie. “You’re standing over here like some black vampire slayer.” I pointed at Lena. “And you’re over here acting like it's no big deal that our friend apparently drives around with a vampire killing kit complete with combat boots!”

“The jeans and jacket are at the cleaners.” Jackie winked and kicked the door closed behind her.

“Whitney, the truth is out there now. There’s no going back. The only thing we can do now is lay it all out.” Lena poured another cup. “I’m a witch, you know this. I never practiced, but it's in my blood. And Jackie, well, she is, in fact, a vampire slayer. Only, she hunts all kinds of shit, not just vamps. You should see the jacket. It has the cutest logo on it.”

“Logo? You have a monster-slaying logo?”

“What business doesn’t have a logo?” Jackie huffed.

“Business?” I sat on the chair next to the counter and rolled my eyes at Lena, who headed for the couch with her coffee in hand. “You’re running a business?

“It’s the family biz. I only recently took over. That’s why I’ve been so busy. Sorry I didn’t call you back, but I was actually out on a mission to deal with some nasty werewolves. They can be the worst!”

“Remember that guy in college? What was his name?” Lena snapped her fingers.

“Matt!” they yelled in unison.

“The football player?” I scoffed. “He was a werewolf?”

“The one who smelled like ass all the time? Yes, him. Don’t get me wrong, they don’t all smell like that, but he liked to go get freaky with the actual wolves. The ones that don’t turn into humans. They say that’s what makes them stink like that.” Jackie flopped down on the couch next to Lena, and Maverick jumped into her lap. “Still, it’s a nasty practice.”

“There were werewolf football players at our college.” I dropped my head in my hands. “I’m going to throw up. Wait, is that bestiality?”

“Depends on who you ask.” Jackie ran her hand along Maverick’s back then twirled her fingers in his tail.

“Look, we didn’t want to keep this from you, but we didn’t have a choice,” Lena explained. “You know back in college how there was a mix-up and the dumbasses in administration assigned you to our dorm instead of that girl Penelope?”

“Yeah.” I remember being so nervous to meet my first college roommates, but when I opened the door to find the two of them decorating the room, that all melted away. It crushed me when the woman came by just a few hours later to tell us they had made the mistake.

“Well, you were in a magical dorm. Everyone in that building was, in some way, supernatural,” Lena continued. “You weren’t supposed to be there.”

“So why did they let me stay?” I asked.

“Two reasons. One, I really liked you,” Jackie boasted. “And two, we realized there was something special about you. We didn’t know what it was exactly, but we could just feel it.”

“So we petitioned for you to stay with us and promised to protect you,” Lena added. “They came back a few times offering to fix things. But by then, I had got a taste for the real Penelope and wanted nothing to do with her uppity ass. It’s also why we had to move off campus after the first year. But it was worth it. I mean, you remember how dope that apartment was!”

“Why would you do that? Fight to keep me around only to hide all this from me. It couldn’t have been easy to keep this a secret for the last sixteen years!”

“It wasn’t. And it took a lot of work to shield you,” Lena said. “I don’t do magic, but I did for you.”

“You did?” I looked at her.

“Happiest day of my grandmother’s life was when I went to her asking her to teach me how to put a protection spell over you.” Lena smiled the way she always had when she spoke of her late grandmother. The woman was truly her best friend. “She was so happy telling me the things I needed to gather, including a lock of your hair.”

“Good thing she used to shed so much!” Jackie laughed. “Like a damn German Shephard!”

“I did not!” I touched the braids in my head. “I mean I had breakage, but it wasn’t that bad.”

“Whitney, you left enough hair to make a damn stuffed animal in the shower every time you washed your head!” Jackie pointed at me. “But that didn’t matter to us. You were adorable, and we wanted to keep you around.”

“So you just voluntarily became my protectors?” I narrowed my eyes at them expecting another secret to drop on my overly shedding head. “No one made you do it?”

“Of course no one made us! The only other person who knows about you is my grandmother,” Lena said. “We’d already made up our mind before we talked to her. If you were going to be our friend, you wouldn’t be exposed to the freaky shit by association. That way, we could keep the other supernatural beings from knowing about you while not having to drag you into our world. That didn’t seem fair to you.”

“I told her it was a bad idea.” Jackie checked her nails. “I said we should have told you everything from the jump. This way, you would be prepared when this all inevitably fell into your lap.”

“Jackie, you protested for half a second.” Lena threw her finger in Jackie’s face. “And when she showed up with those cheesecake brownies with the caramel syrup, you stopped!”

“They were good, weren’t they?” Jackie grinned as she looked at me. “You think you can whip up some of those now?”

“Excuse me! Existential crisis here!” I waved my hands in the air and started pacing, because the cute little bar stool I bought for my counter was starting to hurt my ass.

“Oh, yeah, sorry.” Jackie chuckled. “They were good, though.”

“What does this mean?” I asked.

“Let’s start with the most important thing.” Lena sipped her coffee. “Domino said your blood is special, right?”

“Yea, so?” I glanced at the door. Would the vampire emerge at the very mention of blood? No. No, he wouldn’t.

“Did he explain why?” Jackie stroked Maverick, and the big guy purred in her lap.

“No,” I answered.

“We should do that, right?” Lena looked at Jackie, who dropped her head back dramatically.

“You want to let the vampire guy, do it?” she laughed. “He’ll try to make it all sexy and shit. That’s how the vampires are. Oh, your blood, it calls to me. ”

“You’re right.” Lena’s eyes snapped to me with glaring suspicion. “And she’s already falling for him.”

“I am not!” I held my hand up. “Who said anything about falling for him?”

“Whitney, please.” Jackie scoffed. “Lie to your mama, not me! There is a man in your bed who you know for a fact is a vampire. If you weren’t falling for him, he wouldn’t be here. All you have to do is tell him to go, and his ass would go flying out the door.”

“Anyway…” I rolled my eyes.

“Delusional ass,” Jackie muttered.

“Can I finish?” Lena waited.

“Oh, yeah. Sorry.” Jackie snickered. “Not my fault. She enjoys lying to herself.”

“Okay, don’t freak out, but Domino told the truth.” Lena held her hand up. “And before you go off, the only reason we know about this is because of the initial spell we had to do to protect you. Your hair reacted funny, so she had to adjust it and, in doing that, she figured out what you are.”

“What am I?” I leaned forward. “What do you mean, she figured out what I am?”

“Whitney, you are a descendent of aliens.” Lena glanced at Jackie and back at me. “They were magical beings from another world who came here to live.”

“I’m just going to nod and accept this as a fact so you can continue your story.” My hands gripped the edge of the counter. “I will not panic about being told that my family were aliens. I’m going to get through this moment.” After a deep breath, I waved at Lena for her to continue.

“Good enough for me.” Lena took another sip of coffee. “Your bloodline is rare. I mean, over the years, their genetics were either killed off or so diluted by the human gene pool, it’s pretty much undetectable. But there are a few of their descendants who, for some strange reason, still have heavy traces of that original DNA, and you are one of them. I mean, it doesn’t mean you have any of their abilities, but it means you are special.”

“Why is my blood so special for vampires?” I focused on the facts and not the tightening feeling in my chest or the way my stomach twisted in knots.

“They drink it and they change. The outcome varies. Either they become day walkers, an evolved form of vampire, or they devolve into something so disgusting, they literally eat themselves alive.” Jackie provided the answer. “So there were vampires who hunted your people down, some to drink and some to kill. I guess they figured it was worth the risk to be able to walk in the sun again.”

“How is that possible?”

“From what I could tell in my research, it has something to do with human DNA. There are different strands, and those strands react differently to being mixed with alien DNA. Some mixed and became miracle juice while others became toxins,” Jackie said. “I still have the research papers if you want to read them.”

“And how do you know what will happen?” There it was again, that strange concern for a vampire’s well-being. What if my blood was toxic to vampires? That would mean Domino would be at risk simply for being around me.

“There are a few ways to find out. We can draw your blood and run a series of tests. We can take you to a more powerful witch and let them work their magic. Or, we can just let a vampire bite you and see what happens.”

“You think Domino wants to risk it?”

“Funny.” I chewed my lip. “Is there anything else I should know? I mean, any other freaky secrets you’ve been keeping from me? Lay it out there now, because I don’t want any more surprises.”

Just then, Maverick jumped down from Jackie’s lap. He strutted across the room, as if making a show of himself.

“Um…” Lena looked over her shoulder at the cat, who had climbed to the top of his tower.

“Maverick?” I pointed at him.

“Yeah, so, about the cat.”

“Don’t tell me my cat is really some dude who can change shape and has been watching me get undressed for ten years!”

“Do you really think we would let some creepy dude do that to you?” Jackie ripped the bonnet from her head and threw it at me.

“Well, you let me walk around being vampire bait and you said nothing about that!”

“We did a protection spell!” Lena threw her hand up in the air. “It’s like that counts for nothing.”

“A spell that failed!” I pointed at the bedroom door. “Or is this what you intended?”

“Back to Maverick.” Lena pointed at Jackie. “It’s her fault.”

“How is it her fault?” I looked at Jackie. “What’s up with my cat?”

“He’s a demon.”

“WHAT?!”

“Yeah, he’s not from Earth. I mean, he’s adorable, just slightly modified.” She looked up at him. “I met a witch who needed help. I solved her problem, and she gifted me with a cat. The thing is, he’s actually fantastic at detecting creatures we don’t want around you, so I gave him to you as a gift.”

“You have got to be shitting me!” I looked at Maverick. “You’re a demon?”

Maverick stretched his body across the top platform of the tower and let his paw drop. It was as if he was bored with the topic.

“There are actually a lot of them around Earth now. They really hate vampires!”

“She said he tried to rip Domino’s face off!” Lena giggled. “Man, I wish they showed up on cameras. I would have loved to see that!”

“What is it about the cameras? I mean, I’ve seen Domino’s reflection,” I paused to think, “at least I think I have. Why can’t I see him in the video?”

“It’s not all vampires, only the really old ones, which means your guy is ancient,” Jackie explained. “Mirrors aren’t the same as they used to be. They don’t use silver to back them, so you can see their reflections, but there is something about the old ones. After a while, they emit these electromagnetic fields. It’s a part of the magic that keeps them alive. I don’t know all the science behind it, but it messes with the functions of most cameras.”

“They sell special ones now for that, but they are really expensive,” Lena added.

Jackie squinted her eyes at me. “Do you need us to slow down? I mean, if you need time to process, let us know.”

“No, don’t slow down, because there is a damn vampire in my bed that’s going to wake up when the sun goes down and there are other vampires out there who know where I live and want to drain my blood.” I paused. “Wait, Nyesha. She tried to drink my blood.”

“What?” Lena straightened in her seat, and Jackie hopped up. “Someone tried to bite you?”

“Yeah, you said my blood could either fix them or fuck them up, right?”

“Yes,” Jackie said.

“So why would she take the risk unless she absolutely knew it wouldn’t hurt her?” I glanced at the door. Nyesha wouldn’t be there, not while the sun was up. I was safe.

“She wouldn’t.” Jackie looked at Lena.

“Unless she knows for sure.” Lena looked at me. “Did you leave anything out? Anything at all. I mean something had to have happened. Maybe her blood got on you while you were fighting?”

“What would that do?” I frowned.

“It’s like an early detection thing. They figured out a while ago that if your blood is toxic to them, theirs is toxic to you. If even a drop of vampire blood got on you, you would have an instant reaction, like the ugliest rash you have ever seen in your life!” Lena explained. “But on the other hand, if your blood makes them better, their blood strengthens you. Think temporary Wonder Woman-level strength.”

“Shit.” I paced the floor, fanning my face, which was warming with each passing second.

“What?” Jackie asked. “What’s wrong?”

“Domino.” I pointed at the door. “Nyesha said she could smell him on me.”

“What about him?” Lena asked.

“Um. Well.” I was on the verge of hyperventilating. “Kinky sex shit. It was an accident at first. I bit him too hard but, it was weird—I liked it.

“Slow down and explain what that weird ass sentence means,” Jackie said.

“While we were having sex, there was some playful biting. And then, I bit his lip a little hard, and his blood got in my mouth.” I dropped my head. “I sucked the blood from his lip.”

“Gross!” Jackie screamed.

“You sucked his vampire blood?” Lena gasped. “You freaky bitch! First the spy thing, now this? What else is there?”

“I don’t know what took over me! It just happened.”

“Well, that’s how they know. She could probably smell his blood on you.” Lena looked at Jackie. “And if she went to the king to tell him about it, that’s going to be a big problem.”

“Which means we have to work twice as hard to protect you from them now.” Jackie looked around. “Good thing you lost your job.”

“Hey!”

“What?” She shrugged. “It's one less thing for us to worry about.”

“I know, but dang.” I looked at the couch where Lena sat then out the window. “It’s not fair. I just got it all, and now I have to lose it.”

“We’ll have to gather your things. Pack up what’s important to you so we can get out of here.” Jackie scanned the space then landed on the office door. “I’ll check the office for anything. Your laptop in there?”

“What about Domino?” I asked, halting my friend's movement toward the office door.

“What about him?” Jackie turned on her heel to face me.

“We can't just leave him here.” I looked at Lena, who shook her head no. She wouldn’t help me reason with Jackie.

“We can, and we will.” Jackie crossed her arms over her chest. “What about a vampire who wants to suck you dry says bring him along for the ride?”

“Jackie...” Lena spoke her name with the gentle touch of a mother trying to stop her child from having a tantrum.

“You expect me to play nice with a vampire?” Jackie looked at Lena just as Maverick jumped from his tower, landing next to Jackie. I guess he was on her side.

“Until we figure this out, yes,” I answered. “Look, I love you guys, but you kept all of this away from me for years. As far as I can see, having a vampire on my side is a good thing. He protected me last night.”

“My family has been taking down vampires for years. I don’t need to partner up with one to keep you safe.”

“He said he can find me now. I mean, I’ve had his blood.” I took another route. “Do you think he will stay away from me just because you said so?”

“She’s right. It’s like a tracking system, and the shit is going to last longer because of what she is.” Lena frowned at her cup, which was empty again.

“Fine.” Jackie shook her head. “Order food. If she has one more cup of coffee, she’s going to be useless to us. I want pancakes. I deserve pancakes!”

“You do that, and I’ll make some phone calls.” Lena took her phone and headed out the front door.

“Great. Pancakes.” I pulled out my phone and opened the food delivery app.

I spent the day watching my friends eat and make phone calls while I packed my bags with what I thought I couldn’t live without. Nothing felt too important to leave behind when my life was on the line. I packed my devices and chargers, a few changes of clothing, and my skincare routine. I’d just gotten my late-stage acne under control, and I wasn’t going back to pimple patches.

The last few hours of the day were the worst, waiting for the sun to set so we could talk to Domino again. At least he would be well-rested. I’d dozed off on the floor twice but woke up at the slightest noise. Just as my head fell back against the wall next to Maverick’s tower, he jumped on me.

“What the heck, Maverick?” I groaned. “Why did you do that?”

“The vampire is waking up.” Jackie bit into one of the burgers we’d ordered for dinner. “He can feel his presence again.”

“Oh.” I glanced out the window, and the sun was almost out of the sky. “I should go in first. Talk to him before he comes out here.”

“Yeah, let him know he has visitors.” Jackie winked.

“Play nice,” Lena said.

“I said I would, didn’t I?” Jackie took another bite and waved at me. “Go on, let’s get this over with.”

I left my friends in the living room, joking about Jackie’s reaction to Domino. When I closed the door, he was still sleeping. I’d been in a few times while packing my bags, and he hadn’t changed before. But as I approached the bed, I could see the color was returning to his flesh and his chest moved with slow intakes of air.

I climbed into bed next to him and lay down just as I was when he went to sleep. The woodsy scent filled the room again as Domino took a deep breath, and then his eyes opened.

“Whitney...” he spoke my name.

“I’m here.” My hand moved toward him, but I stopped myself. Was it smart to touch a vampire just as he woke up? What if he was hungry?

Domino looked over at me with a smile that quickly vanished. He sat up and looked at the door. “Someone’s here.”

“It’s okay. They’re my friends.” I sat up next to him.

“You invited friends over?” He frowned at me. “Why would you do that?”

“Because I wasn’t going to deal with this on my own,” I answered.

“And they’re okay with this?” He raised a brow. “You must have really great friends.”

“I do.” I smiled. “But apparently, they knew you existed — vampires, I mean.”

“Alright. That’s opening a lot of questions, but I’m sure I’ll get the answers I need faster by going out there.” Domino stood from the bed.

“Wait.” I held my hands up as he started dressing. “You’re not going to eat them, are you?”

He laughed and patted his stomach. “No, Whitney. I will not eat your friends. I’m good. Besides, I won’t need to feed for another few days.”

“Oh. Okay, good.” I waited for him to dress, and when he finished buttoning his shirt, he joined me at the door. “Ready?”

“Yes,” he said. “Open it.”

The moment I crossed the threshold, the piercing sound of metal screeching through the air filled the room. A second later, Domino dodged the dagger sent flying at his head. It landed, blade first, in the door frame.

Instinctively, Domino pulled me behind him and prepared to defend me. Then, he paused and looked at me with what seemed like disgust. “You’re friends with a hunter?”

“That’s right, vamp, so you better watch your ass!” Jackie held a stake in her hand and pointed at him.

“Seriously, Jackie?” I asked. “You’re paying to repair my wall.”

“Worth it to see the look on his face!” She sucked her teeth. “Chill, my aim is better than that. If I wanted to hurt him, I would have.”

RAWARRR !

“Maverick, no!” I held my hands up, but the massive feline pushed right by me.

Once again, the cat attacked, and all Lena and Jackie did was laugh. It took some doing, but we got Maverick off Domino’s face and into his carrying case.

“So you’re the vampire fucking up our friend's life?” Jackie kicked her duffel bag full of weapons.

Domino’s jaw tightened. “And you’re the hunter who couldn’t detect a vampire?” He chuckled. “What are the odds of that? I knew about the witch, but you caught me off guard.”

“Excuse me?” Lena stood from the couch. She’d made it her home for the day. “What do you mean you knew about the witch?”

“You’re the author, right?” Domino nodded. “I looked into your history.”

“You did?” Lena asked. “Why?”

“It’s standard business practice.” Domino sat on the stool next to the counter. “I do the same for everyone who has an event in the space. We make sure there are no conflicts. Your family, while full of witches, has had no issues with vampires in the last four decades, so I let it slide. I have plenty of allies who are witches. I actually considered feeling you out for it, but I realized you’re not that connected to your magic.”

“I don’t even know how to process that last line.” Lena looked hurt. Despite being so adamant that she wasn’t a practicing witch, it was like Domino having said it upset her.

“Are you going to help me convince her she needs to leave?” Domino didn’t address Lena’s statement and pointed at me. “She thinks she can stay here.”

“Her bags are packed,” Jackie said. “We realized there is another level to the threat.”

“Her blood.” He nodded.

“Yes. And apparently, your little friends have figured out how special she is.” Jackie said. “So we’re moving her to somewhere safer. If I had my way, we’d already be gone, but she insisted on waiting for you to wake up.”

“I would have found you.”

Jackie huffed. “That’s what she said.”

“Excuse me?” I stepped in between the hunter and the vampire. “Can you not stand here talking about me like I’m not right here?”

“My bad.” Jackie shrugged.

“I thought you were supposed to hate vampires!” I pointed at her.

“Hey, this one was talking some sense.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “That doesn’t happen that often.”

“We still don’t know where we’re going,” I pointed out.

“Yes, we do. We’re going to going to my place.” Jackie glanced at Lena, and Lena nodded in agreement. “It’s the best option. Safe and warded against vampires.”

“I’d prefer somewhere else, but it sounds like the best place. There aren’t too many vampires who would be eager to go knocking on a hunter's door,” Domino agreed. “You’ll have to adjust the wards.”

“Why the hell would I do that?” Jackie snapped.

Domino’s brow lifted. “How do you expect me to be there if you don’t?”

“I never said you could come with us. I agreed to let you wake up and know where we’re headed, but I’m not letting a vampire kick it at my place.”

“Jackie.” I stepped closer to her. “What happened to playing nice?”

“I am playing nice. Whitney, I love you, but you don’t know what you’re asking me to do here. If I let him into my home, he gets access to all my information. I’m not doing that.”

“What about the guest house?” Lena asked from the couch. “He could be there, but he wouldn’t be in the main house, which means no access to your secrets. I’m sure there is a spell we could do to grant him limited access to that area only.”

“Why?” Jackie rolled her eyes at Lena, sending a silent curse at her for opening her mouth. “Now she wants to talk about modifying spells after dodging her abilities for years.”

“Just trying to be helpful. Though I’m not sure how much help I can give you, considering I’m apparently disconnected from my magic.” Lena rolled her eyes at Domino, who either didn’t notice or didn’t give a damn.

“Great.” Domino stood. “Sounds like we have a plan. Are we ready to leave now?”

“No sense in putting it off, I guess.” Jackie pointed at Domino. “You’re not riding with me.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it. Wait.” Domino suddenly reached for me, causing Jackie to pounce and pull me to her side. “We aren’t alone.”

“What?” Lena stood. “What is it?”

“There are vampires here,” Domino announced.

“Seriously, Lena?” Jackie snapped. “I thought you reinforced the wards.”

“I did!” Lena said. “I don’t know what’s wrong.”

“Now is not the time to figure it out. We need to get her out of here!” Domino looked at Jackie’s hands on my shoulders. “The wards at your place better be a whole lot better than this.”

“They are, trust me.”

“I’ll distract them. Is there another way out?” Domino asked me.

“Service elevator.” I nodded. “It takes us down the back and out to the parking deck.”

“Go,” Domino ordered. “Hurry, I’ll hold them off long enough for you to get out. They’re in the stairwell. Sounds like they sent someone up the elevator as well.”

“Are you going to be okay?” I looked at him, worry twisting a knot in my stomach.

“Are you more concerned with the vampire’s life than your own? Because I swear to God, Whitney, I will whoop your ass when we get home!” Jackie fussed.

“Jackie.” Lena picked up one of the bags I packed. “Chill.”

“I’ll be fine.” Domino smiled at me. “Go.”

“Why do you care so much?” Jackie picked up the cat carrier in one hand and her duffel bag full of weapons in the other.

“I don’t know. Can we just blame it on the blood thing and drop it?” I grabbed the last of my things and we all headed out the door. While Domino went to the left down the hall to face off against the vampires, we headed right. Luckily, the service elevator came as soon as we hit the button.

My heart pounded as we rode down. Each floor we passed felt like a new threat. They could have realized what we did and cut us off.

That’s exactly what happened. When we stepped off the elevator exiting into the parking garage, we came face to face with two vampires stalking my car.

“Shit.” Jackie handed Maverick to Lena. “Get her to the car. Now!”

“Let’s go.” Lena pointed to her Jeep, which was parked on the opposite side of the deck in one of the visitor’s spots.

“Wait, we can’t leave her!” I looked back at Jackie. “There are two of them.”

“Trust me.” Lena pushed me forward. “She’s got it.”

We made it to the car, and by the time Lena opened the door, Jackie had staked the first vampire. As she pulled the weapon from the chest of the woman, who turned to ash and blew away on the night breeze, the other vampire attacked her.

I watched in awe as Jackie dodged a fast punch, dipped to the right, and punched the vampire in the throat. He choked on the impact, holding his neck and leaving his chest wide open. Jackie was faster than I thought she could be.

With the second vampire down, Jackie tossed her bag over her shoulder and jogged over to Lena’s ride.

“Watch out!” I yelled as I saw the man appear behind Jackie. He sneered, revealing his fangs, and ran at her.

The blood-covered hand came out of nowhere, crushing his windpipe and sending him hurtling over the parking deck's edge before he could reach Jackie.

“Go!” Domino yelled.

Jackie jumped into the back seat, and Lena sped off. When I looked back, Domino was gone.