Chapter 3
Chapter Three
My father handed me a crystal glass, its surface gleaming, filled with a rich, amber liquor. A large cube sat in the middle, like an island in the vast ocean. I felt a sudden surge of anticipation for the celebration as he smiled and lifted his glass in a toast, inviting Gabe and me to follow suit.
With our arms raised like a pyramid, my father proclaimed, “To Vincent!”
We clinked our glasses together, and a bright, cheerful sound echoed through the room as the cool, smooth glass touched my lips.
A fiery sting shot across my dry lips as I tasted the alcohol, followed by a rich, smoky caramel sweetness that filled my mouth.
It felt as if a scorpion injected poison into my throat, and the sharp, burning pain made me cough uncontrollably while my face contorted in agony.
I hated his alcohol; I much preferred wine.
“A delicious vintage I’ve been saving for a special occasion.
” My father quickly finished his glass, a satisfied look of wistfulness on his face as he set the glass on the bar.
He smacked his hand against his forehead.
“Silly me, I forgot something.” He approached the mahogany desk, and I heard a drawer open.
He beamed with a child-like smile as he clutched a small square box with a red button to his chest. “Go ahead.”
My father’s flair for the dramatic made me stifle a laugh. He watched, eyes alight with anticipation, as my finger pushed the button. A light glowed from the center, and within a second, the air filled with confetti, and balloons rained down from the ceiling.
His lips curved into a gentle smile as the vibrant, confetti-like pieces of paper fluttered down, blanketing his suit. “Isn’t that fun?” Warmth and happiness radiated out of him, emotions he doesn’t feel very often. He placed a hand on my shoulder. “What are your birthday plans?”
I shrugged, shaking the confetti from my hair. “I’m hoping now that I am officially twenty-one, even after sixty-five years of birthdays, I can do more outside my room?”
My father’s smile faded, his eyebrows furrowed as his face fell, worry etched deep into his skin. Clearing his throat, a nervous cough echoed the tension in his shoulders. “Is your room no longer comfortable to you? I can fix whatever you don’t like.”
“The room is amazing, Dad. I appreciate you creating everything to make me comfortable,” I began, “but I really want to create relationships with the other people in this Elysium, maybe even get a job.”
His eyes grew wide. “A JOB? Absolutely not, I vowed to take care of you for the rest of your life. I am sorry, but that’s simply out of the question.”
I watched Gabe’s fingers fidget in his hair, a clear sign of his unease, but I didn’t care. “This may come as a surprise, but I’m not your prisoner. Let me actually do something.”
“Sir,” Gabe’s deep masculine voice interjected. “My apologies—”
“Don’t apologize for my son’s outburst.” His calm voice, devoid of any emotion, sent shivers down my spine more than any raised voice ever could.
He lifted his face to the sky and squinted before another sip of his drink.
“You’re right, my boy, you are responsible, and I should recognize that to show you my trust. So how does this sound to you?
” He turned to me, both his hands gingerly on my shoulders.
“I’ll allow you to leave your floor, but only if Gabe accompanies you.
” He paused, a smirk playing on his lips. “Do we have a deal?”
I knew he was lying to me. This was his way, always saying exactly what I wanted to hear. I forced a smile before answering. “Deal.”
His lips curled into a smirk, and he winked at me, a triumphant glint in his eyes.
“That’s my boy, you never give up.” He turned to Gabe.
“I’ll give orders first thing in the morning to halt all other responsibilities he has to focus on you and your protection.
” He turned to the muscled man. “Please ensure you report to me tomorrow to discuss your new role.”
He nodded to my father, his hands fidgeting behind his back.
“I was going to ask your permission in private, but with this new development, I think it’s appropriate.
” Clasping his hands behind his back, he puffed out his chest. “May I ask for your permission to take Vincent to Smoke for his birthday tonight? Rest assured, I’ll request an exclusive table in the VIP area so we’ll not be bothered. ”
I knew Gabe was essentially calling my dad’s bluff and could practically feel the tension in the air.
If he doesn’t let me leave this floor, his lie will be obvious; however, if he does, I know this is a single exception.
The thought of having a meal at Smoke, the chicest place in Elysium, sent my heart soaring.
Getting a reservation at this restaurant is nearly impossible.
It’s one of the most exclusive in the world, with a menu curated by top chefs, each dish a masterpiece.
Regardless of my father’s response, a rebellious determination to break free from his watchful eye was coursing through me.
Even if he allowed Gabe to take me out, I knew it would be a temporary freedom, and I’d soon return to the suffocating confinement of my floor.
I’d be stuck in the same endless cycle that had trapped me for another sixty-five years.
A stern look crossed my father’s face as he raised his chin, a sharp tutting sound escaping his lips.
His eyes lingered on my boyfriend’s face, a silent question in their depths, before lightly patting him on the shoulder.
“Of course you have my permission. This will be a birthday to remember.” He stuck out his forefinger sternly.
“Be careful with him tonight, our enemies have been quiet, and the Dogs still roam outside Elysium.”
Gabe put his hand over his heart. “You have my word.”
“Ah, to be young again.” My dad got a faraway look in his eyes, like he was recalling a long-forgotten memory.
He always says we’re young, but maybe he’s too old to remember. Like everyone in Elysium.
The Dogs were always a concern. During the war, the government told its citizens they were created to keep an eye on their enemies, although they also monitored their underlings.
The Dogs were cold, metallic figures made of hydraulics and steel with brains programmed to record and relay all interactions back to their controllers.
Once the government began to fall, the Dogs turned against their own creators, turning feral and deadly.
Once they went rogue, they formed vicious packs and were determined to kill anyone who stepped in their path.
We have one rule known to all: stay inside, and they’ll leave us alone.
“We know our enemies control the Dogs, so their silence concerns me. Please be alert, you know how I feel about them,” my dad almost spat his words.
Though he remains silent, the rumor persists that his closest companion, Dante, allied with the humans in their war against us.
In the early days, my dad used to say it was the biggest betrayal against him, and we dared not speak his name around my father.
A century is a short time for vampires, yet long enough for Dante to surely be dead.
We haven’t had an attack from the humans in years, but that didn’t stop my dad from being constantly paranoid.
There was a brief moment of silence before my father turned and embraced me one more time. “Don’t stay out too late tonight, you have Extraction first thing in the morning.”
Even though I’ve helped to give him his empire, he knew how to deliver my fear.
There was nothing I hated more than Extraction, and sometimes I wished my blood wasn’t the cure.
I didn’t ask to be the savior, but our scientists say I’m an anomaly, healing the sickness and turning everyone into blood-drinking beings was something that just…
happened. Unexplainable. There might be others like me in the world, but so far, none have been found, and even if they were, they’d probably face the same fate as I: locked up and drained once a year.
The day after my birthday, when my blood is at its most potent, I’m taken to a sterile lab.
During the Extraction, they meticulously drain my blood, leaving only the barest minimum.
For days afterward, I’d feel like a snail covered in salt: withered and used from the outside in.
From there, the doctors replicate my blood in mass amounts and send it to all of the Elysiums across the world to continue the vampire line.
Only my blood can satisfy the hunger that dwells within each of their souls.
“Do I have to?” I asked, exasperated.
My dad’s nose wrinkled. “You know that all the blood we make has an expiration date.”
After a year, the replicated blood begins to degrade, losing its life-extending properties and making wrinkles more noticeable, a tangible reminder of its potency. Despite our fangs and thirst for blood, we share a common trait with the humans: vanity.
Plus, expired blood tastes terrible. Needless to say, if they don’t have to drink it, they won’t.
“You’re special, Vincent.” His voice softened, like he was complimenting me. “Only you were able to save humanity.”
“Special?” I asked, lifting my lip. “I don’t even have fangs! It’s like I was half-baked compared to everyone else.”
He smiled, a twinkling in his eye. “But how good does your blood taste?”
He has a point. I was able to drink the blood he made in his lab after the Extraction, and it’s delicious—an indescribable taste, but one that’s completely intoxicating. With one touch to your lips, you needed more.
My father’s receptionist entered, advising he was being summoned to another meeting, and we were quickly ushered out of The Room of Empty Promises. Before dismissing me to my penthouse prison, my dad beamed one last smile. “Happy birthday, my boy, I hope it’s one to remember.”
Me too, Dad, me too.
The elevator doors slid shut, and as we ascended, the smooth, metallic walls reflected the artificial lights while my amazement at my own naiveté grew.
It was miraculous how much I still loved my dad, even though he gave me every reason not to.
How can he go anywhere he wants, but I’m stuck on my floor of the building?
In my heart, I knew his actions, though sometimes confusing, stemmed from a profound and protective love. We only had each other.
Opening the door to my penthouse, Gabe pulled me close and planted a kiss on my lips. “I have to get back to work, but I’ll see you later.” He smiled and bit his bottom lip. “Happy birthday, handsome.”
The sun was beaming on the frozen landscape outside, and I knew exactly how I wanted to spend my afternoon.
Years ago, I told my father I wanted to learn how to swim, so he ordered our engineers to design a solarium outside my penthouse, complete with a pool and hot tub.
It may be in single digits outside, but in my solarium, it was warm.
I slipped into my bright red Speedo and tossed a fluffy towel over my shoulder.
The humid, warm air from the solarium rushed into my penthouse, and a wave of heat pushed against my face.
With a contented sigh, I plopped into a beach chair, tilting my face toward the sun’s warmth shining through the clear glass.
I’ve never really been sure why I have always been able to go into the sun, but nobody else in Elysium can.
One time, a vampire stepped outside during the summer, and within minutes, their skin started melting off, probably due to our extended age and how pale we all were.
But no matter how long I basked in the rays, I never tanned; my skin absorbed the heat, untouched by any color.
I suppose being pale was preferable to being dead.
I loved the feeling of the sun on my skin; my cold body craved its penetrating warmth.
Once my skin vibrated with heat, I stood from my chair and lowered myself into the inviting pool.
The cool water enveloped my body, each ripple parting as I moved, a gentle caress against my skin.
Swimming to the far end of the pool, I rested my arms on the cool, smooth brim, allowing my body to gently float behind.
The barren world outside Elysium was both beautiful and sad at the same time. The war demolished everything in sight, and there weren’t enough humans who found it worth rebuilding. Although if they tried, the vampire army would likely take them out.
In the distance, I caught sight of movement. I removed the designer sunglasses from my face to get a better look and see a pack of Dogs running together around a cluster of rusted automobiles that had been taken over by the elements.
As much as I despised the Dogs for what they did to my mother, I have a deeper hatred for the humans.
They’re still out there, plotting to take my father down.
Blaming him for their misfortune. Despite their small size, their repeated attempts to attack Elysiums across the globe have all failed, highlighting the strength of the vampire army.
The continued activity of the Dogs suggests that some humans still survive, though it has been a long time since anyone has reported seeing them.
It’s disgusting they use the Dogs as a fear tactic to keep us locked inside, although what better place to be than a self-sustaining paradise?
Sixty-five years ago, amidst the ashes of a broken world, the desperate humans forged a rebel group and called themselves Unicorns.
Initially, this devout group, believing themselves untouched by evil, fought vampires in God’s name, coining their name to reflect this perceived purity.
A battle of the strongest ensued, but my father’s army was greater than theirs.
Their only upper hand is their control over the Dogs.
Once the vampires forced the humans into hiding and their religious beliefs crumbled, they left their mechanical mutts to keep surveillance.
Even though I hated them, I sometimes identified more with humans than with vampires, which is why I felt the need to do something rebellious.
The excitement of sneaking out from my floor was too enticing, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
I craved going to the party at The Carlton, simply to dance and feel free.
I got lost in thought, formulating my plan, completely entranced by the pack of Dogs running together in the distance.
Not much could be seen from my vantage point, but their powerful hind legs propelled them forward with each powerful leap over the snow-covered wasteland below.
At night, you’re sometimes able to see the Dogs’ glowing red eyes, and whenever I see them pierce through the darkness, I’m reminded of that fateful night.
Like my father, they’re biding their time, waiting for me.
Well come get me, mother fuckers.