9. Debt Collector
DEBT COLLECTOR
Alex
When I walked back home, my muscles ached and burnt, my eyelids weighed a tonne each, and my hands were shaking.
I’d become a criminal out of necessity and done things I wasn’t proud of, like stealing from a nun, a child, and a group of ladies collecting money for charity. Although in the last case, the money had really gone to someone in need.
But I’d never understood how deep my depravity was.
I wanted to…drink Miss Harlowe’s blood. Acknowledging that, in my own thoughts, disgusted me. I couldn’t linger on it for more than a second.
I didn’t necessarily want to drink from her. Anyone with a pulse would do just fine. Although her scent promised rich, flavoured blood. If I asked her nicely, she would say, “Yes,” since she’d been so kind to me.
Idiot.
What sane person would agree to let me drink their blood?
Those thoughts worried me, but at the same time, they didn’t because a part of me kept repeating those urges were right and natural.
My arse.
When I came home, I was glad Darius hadn’t arrived yet. I hadn’t seen much of him. He was taking his job at the docks seriously.
My deranged instincts might get ideas if he’d been here with me. Sometimes solitude was a blessing.
I opened the box with the sovereigns I’d set aside so far and stared at them. I had to endure the pain. It would go away, and I would keep my job.
The sound of footsteps thundered from outside, and I groaned at the loud noise drumming in my temples. With the footfalls came a strong, steady heartbeat. Since when did I hear heartbeats as if they were war drums? Since when did I find the sound enticing?
“Alex.” Darius appeared on the threshold, thin and pale as usual, jet-black hair sticking out in every direction.
“What are you doing here?” It came out angrier than I wanted.
“I live here.” He raked a long glance at me. “What happened to you? You look terrible.”
Hell. His pulse pounded in my ears. It was music.
I licked my parched lips, gazing at his neck. His smell wasn’t as good as Miss Harlowe’s but not repulsive either. “I’m not well.”
“So I see.” He came closer, but I held up a hand, stopping him.
“Don’t. I’m contagious.” I couldn’t tell him I wanted to drink his blood, could I?
He frowned. “What disease did you catch?”
“Something bloody.” If I bit him and drank my fill, he wouldn’t survive. He was too thin and weak.
His features hardened, giving him an older and stronger air.
“What is it?” I touched my neck.
His intense gaze made me uncomfortable. He stared at me without blinking as if he wanted to see inside my skull. “Show me your neck.”
I did as told so he would leave me alone.
His reaction was to leap back and gasp.
Good. He would stay away.
“It was supposed to be a myth,” he whispered.
“What?”
He shook his head. “You’ll think I’m an idiot.”
“Don’t worry. I already think that.”
He shot his gaze at the ceiling. “I’ll be back in a moment.”
He took a few coins from the box and left.
I sagged onto the bed and pulled the tattered curtain that separated the bedroom from the kitchen.
When someone was with me, I wanted to attack them, but when I was alone, I wished to be close to a human and hear a heartbeat.
Perhaps there was no point in questioning my sanity.
Perhaps my condition wasn’t a mere disease.
Darius returned a few minutes later. The smell of blood was painful.
“Let’s see if I am an idiot.” He handed me a plate filled with a bloody, raw piece of meat.
I didn’t need to think. Instinct dominated me. I devoured the steak, licking the blood off the plate. Sweet relief washed over me. The hunger and the pain in my throat were still there, but they were bearable. My mind was clearer, and energy flowed through me.
Darius leant against the wall. “Who is the idiot?”
“You know what’s happening to me?”
“I have a hunch. A crazy, impossible hunch.” He put his flat cap on. It was too big for his head, and it slipped down to his nose. “I need to do some research to understand how to help you.”
I licked another drop of blood from the plate, not ashamed of how much I liked it.
“Alex, listen to me.” He strode towards me, his voice so serious I had to pay attention. “If you feel sick again, have another raw steak. I bought four. They’re in the larder. But do not, for any reason, leave this room and bite someone. Is that clear? Your soul depends on that.”
His words were like a punch to my stomach. In the span of a second, I went from shock to incredulity to dismissal. My soul? What could he possibly know about that?
“How do you know?” I whispered the words like a confession.
“I’ll see you later.” He gave me a firm pat on the shoulder. “Remember, no biting.”
“Where are you going?”
He ignored me, but that was the least of my worries.
I wanted to drink someone’s blood so badly my gums hurt.
The sun had set, and I’d barely rested for a few minutes when someone kicked the front door hard enough to break the hinges. A cold gust of wind swept through the room. Three men strode in, Riley in the middle. Their heartbeats thundered.
I shot up, my head spinning.
Years ago, in a moment of desperation, my parents had asked Riley for money to pay the medical bills piling up faster than the sand in an hourglass. They’d never repaid him, not in full, and he’d asked for more after each delayed payment. The debt belonged to me now.
“Oh, were you asleep?” Riley’s dark coat stretched over his broad build, and his sturdy boots could crush a skull.
“I have money.” Shaking, I put the box on the table.
He cast an uninterested glance at it.
“Take the money.” I shoved the box towards him.
“You don’t give me orders!” His voice boomed in the confined space of the kitchen.
I flinched.
His eyes could have been chipped out of diamonds. Their disturbing white-blue colour glinted cold and unforgiving.
He pointed a finger at himself. “I give the orders. You obey.”
His hair was cut short, showing a half-moon scar on his scalp—a blade, perhaps. The blow should have killed him.
He opened the box and scoffed. “Four sovereigns. I demand eight for your insolence.” He slammed his palms on the table, causing the bowls to rattle.
“I don’t have that much.” I struggled not to stammer. “I’ll have more soon.”
Riley shook his head. “You’re late. Who is late always pays.” He clicked his tongue. “It’s a shame your beautiful sister isn’t here. I would have enjoyed her company.”
Anger shuddered through me. “You aren’t worthy of speaking about her.”
“I also enjoy fear and pain. I feed off them. And you’re frightened and in much pain.” His voice became more seductive. “Your fear is delicious.”
All the anger and pain boiling inside me came out. I lunged and bit his neck. The relief lasted a split second because only a drop of his blood landed on my tongue, and it tasted like rotten meat.
He yelled, and a green blast of light came out of him. Whatever the force was, it shoved me to the other side of the room.
Pure fury strained his face. “You filthy bastard.” He marched towards me. Each step caused the floor to shake. “You’re going to suffer for this like no other. I will curse you so viciously, you’ll wish to die. Your urchin friend will be next.”
He lunged with ferocity, and I was too weak to defend myself.