7. Scotty
Scotty
STRUCK A NERVE
We take our dinner down to the sewers and feast like royalty until our stomachs are full to bursting and we can’t drink another drop.
I rub my stomach as I stare up at the ceiling thoughtfully.
Juliette puts on an old record on her “phonograph” as she calls it.
When I tried telling her it was a record player, she just looked at me like I’d suggested we go for a stroll into the sunlight.
Fine. Phonograph it is. Whatever makes her happy.
“What is your power, then?” she asks over the crackling tones of Pauline Viardot, who I hadn’t even heard of until Juliette told me.
Not my usual kind of music, but it’s nice.
Makes me feel like I’m sitting in a little café somewhere, sipping an espresso.
Hah. Didn’t even do that shit when I was alive. “You have not shown me.”
Normally, vamps don’t ask each other this question. It’s considered poor form. It’s basically asking someone point blank how old they are. But Juliette isn’t asking to be rude, or to exploit my weaknesses. She’s just curious, I guess.
I wipe my hands on my jeans and look anywhere but her face, unable to make eye contact. “I, uh, don’t have any,” I mutter.
Silence. Juli says nothing and everything all at once.
“Yeah, I’m your garden variety loser without a degree or any training who was working at the gas station before being turned forty-one years ago, so…”
Juliette crosses her legs and leans forward. “How old are you?”
Okay, so we’re straight up asking now. Damn, she’s blunt.
“Oh, who’s counting these days?” I rub the back of my neck. “Did it get hot in here? I think we should check to make sure the sewer doesn’t have a buildup of gas or something. Could be dangerous. You know, fire and—”
Her eyes narrow to slits. “Scotty. Stop deflecting. How old are you?”
I wince. “Sixty … five? Give or take?”
A baby, as far as vampires go. Most vamps are feral for their first few decades until they’re either staked and meet their true death or learn how to get their bloodlust under control.
Without a sire to guide me, it was a miracle that I made it to vampire adulthood.
I know how lucky I am, and I owe it all to my found family who took me in when they did.
One of the corners of Juliette’s mouth curves upward.
“You’re a child,” she says, but her tone isn’t patronizing.
More just … stating a fact. “I see. I’m sorry this happened to you,” she says, then grabs one of the drained bodies, drags it over to the water, and tosses it in.
She repeats the process with the other two bodies, though tin-can man doesn’t float like the others, obviously.
Good. I don’t want to look at him anymore, anyway.
When she’s done, she sits down in front of me again and frowns. “It’s not fair. You should have lived a full life by now.”
I swallow the lump that’s lodged itself in my throat and nod. “Y-Yeah. I guess so. But to be honest, my life wasn’t really going anywhere. If it wasn’t a vamp that got me, it would have been something else. Drugs. Accident. Bar fight.”
Juliette frowns again. “You had no family? No friends?”
I shake my head. “My parents and I stopped getting along after I turned fourteen, and I’m not great at making friends. I’m sure you can see why.”
She goes pensive for a few moments. Then she says, “I think you are sweet. Maybe a little too enthusiastic sometimes, but still sweet.”
Sweet, but too much? I’ll take it. I grin at her and lean back against the crate, settling in for a long nap. “Thanks, doll. You’re not so bad yourself.”
“Please do not call me that,” she murmurs. “You may call me Juli, though, if you wish.”
Huh. Touchy, touchy. Okay, seems I struck a nerve.
“Did someone in your life used to call you that?” I ask.
Juli looks away from me to stare at the phonograph. “My father did, yes. A very long time ago.”
I cross my arms over my chest and slump down.
The blood I gorged myself on is starting to put me into a stupor, and soon I’ll be asleep.
I want to ask her more questions, but trying to pull anything out of her wouldn’t be right.
No, I’ll wait until she opens up on her own accord.
“Juli it is, then. Well…goodnight,” I say, before letting out a yawn.
Juliette lies down in her cot and pulls the wool blanket over herself before turning to face the wall. “Goodnight, Scotty.”