Graham Donovan (_backfire) wrote in light_of_may, @ 2010-03-21 02:01:00 |
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Entry tags: | 2009-07-07 |
And without trying to praise you, I feel like I could raise you as my own
Who: Graham and Jezebelle
Where: Random jazz club for starters
When: Evening
Warning: NSFW
There was one thing that the east coast didn't have and Michigan did, and that was a decent jazz club. Some place where someone could kick it back, enjoy a few drinks, listen to some music, and actually get away with smoking a cigarette. It looked like a hole in the wall from the outside, but inside the music was echoing off of the walls and the room smelled thick of liquor and smoke. Didn't bother Graham one bit, especially seeing that he was indulging himself in such vices.
With a martini glass in one hand and a lit black in the other, Graham sat back in his lone booth while basking in the exquisite sounds from the live band. He was wanting some alone time, which was odd for a fire elemental, though at least it explained why he surrounded himself with strangers. His mind had been swimming with thoughts, probably horrible thoughts since he came back to Scarlet Oak. After the disturbing words he wrote in his journal, he couldn't help but think that maybe such a drastic change would suit him, though at the same time he wasn't sure if that would be more helpful or hurtful to him. Would people just start fearing him for different reasons altogether? Graham wasn't sure and each time the thought came to mind, he took another drag from his cigarette or a sip from his dry martini and wished for it all to disappear.
Jezebelle had needed some time to pull herself together, and then she went on a search for Graham. She didn't have the patience to wait for him to come to her, not after Saoirse paid her a visit; she wanted some answers and she wanted them now. After his last little disappearing act, Graham had told Jezebelle about some of his favorite haunts, should she ever need to track him down. That was probably something he would regret now, since she'd have never found him otherwise. Scarlet Oak was small, but not so small that they couldn't miss each other in passing.
As she stepped into the club, her eyes scanned the room through the smoke, locking on Graham in his back booth. No one was paying her any attention, so she took advantage of the shadows, jumping from one to the other so that she was across the room in a blink of an eye. "Who is Saoirse Shaddock and why the fuck does she know about me?" Jezebelle asked as she slid into the booth beside him, pinning him in. She tried to keep herself calm, but her jaw was tight, her nails scraping across the table top as she glared at Graham.
Not that Graham didn't like seeing Jezebelle or anything, but her sudden appearance and abrupt demand completely threw him off guard. His eyes were wide with a mixture of emotions as Jezebelle pinned him in. Well, there went trying to enjoy the night by himself. Though he couldn't answer Jezebelle at first, predominately because she brought up a name that he never, never, NEVER wanted to hear her or any other girl utter - Saoirse. She wasn't suppose to know about his ex. That was just a horrible subject to talk about, regardless of when or where. And there was Jezebelle, being intimidating as fuck and demanding who she was. Didn't help that he was having flashbacks to the night she took on Lex without a sweat.
And even after blinking and going to talk about ten different times, each one complete with a different facial expression, Graham wasn't sure what to make of this. The only thing that was certain right then was his heart was going a mile a minute and he was pretty sure he was going to die tonight. "...wait, what?! You're asking me about Seer? How do you even know her?! Do you vampires have like, some fucking stitch and bitch once a week thing that I'm not even remotely fucking aware of?! I... don't know what to tell you, Jez, except Seer is... an ex of mine from years ago, back when she was alive, and completely hates me now. Doesn't want a fucking thing to do with me. Last time I saw her was-" His eyes twitched while trying to do the math then rolled his eyes. "You know what, fuck it, I don't remember, but it was several weeks ago and she was-" Bitching me out because I had vampire bite marks on my neck and was not happy to see them. Graham couldn't even remember the whole conversation he had with Saoirse, and honestly, he didn't want to. The girl ripped him a new asshole and wanted nothing to do with him. Why the fuck was she suddenly popping into his life now? "Fuck, she was NOT happy with me. I'm surprised I walked out of Heme alive. Shit, I'll be happy if I walk out of here alive." That said he downed the rest of his drink, knowing he was going to need more than that to live.
The silence that followed her question, and the faces he made as he tried to answer, earned a raised brow from Jezebelle. She'd not put thought into how she would handle things once she found Graham, and it then crossed her mind that she might have been a little too much to the point. When he finally started babbling, Jezebelle's brows drew together at first, as she tried to figure out what he was going on about, and then he got to the part that mattered. His ex. The bitch was his ex and, even if she was pissed at him, she still seemed to think she had some claim on him.
"She paid me a visit yesterday," Jezebelle said as he downed his drink. She could have used one herself, but they weren't going to serve her what she wanted and biting him in the mood she was in was a bad idea. "Showed up on my doorstep and started making demands. When I refused to give in, the demands became threats." Beneath the table, her hand rested on his leg, slowly sliding up his thigh. "I don't like to be threatened, love." He'd seen her handle a threat when she'd fought with Lex. Jezebelle's theory was that the first time they deserved to be taught a lesson. The second time, they deserved the worst.
If his eyes weren't wide before, then they were about to fall out of their sockets right then. He didn't believe Jezebelle at first when she explained what was going on. Saoirse paid her a visit and started threatening her!? As far as he was concerned, the girl had no reasons to be invading in his life. Didn't she want nothing to do with him? Well, she was just making shit more complicated by interfering, though right then he wasn't upset with Saoirse. Instead he was confused as fuck as to how she managed to find Jezebelle. "What?! Are you serious? God, the fuck am I saying, you have that look right now, you have to be serious." He lowered his head while sighing hard, rubbing his temples in the meantime. "Look, I told her nothing about you. NOTHING. The closest she got to knowing about you was when she spotted the bite marks on my neck weeks ago. She wanted to know where I got them and all I told her was that I was trading blood for drugs. That was it. I didn't give her your name, your address, nothing. Shit, this was before your place even burned down." He looked up to eyed Jezebelle, obviously still in a state of disbelief and panic. "I'm not lying to you when I say I have no remote fucking idea how she found you or even why she did. We're over. Fuck, we were over four years when I fucked up. She has zero reason to give a shit about me and she made that quite clear to me last time we met up."
If he was lying, he was an awfully good liar, though Jezebelle didn't think he was. He seemed much too confused to be building the story from scratch, and his heart sounded like a cornered rabbit. The jealous part of Jezebelle, the part that liked to think of Graham as hers, calmed just slightly as he claimed he and Saiorse were over, but that wasn't the bulk of the problem. That was something that could be settled after Jezebelle had some answers, which were still missing in Graham's explanation. "She knew of our agreement," Jezebelle said, keeping her voice down so as not to draw attention. "She wanted me to stay away from you. Said that if I didn't, she'd tell the authorities, attempt to shut down my operation. That kind of negative attention is not something my house accepts. And maybe I'm out of line, but I don't intend to give you up without a fight. She knew where to find me, though. She had to have known something in order to narrow down the search." Drug dealing vampires weren't common, but they weren't limited either. Saoirse had been sure it was her.
Hearing Jezebelle's side of the story just made Graham stare at her even more. It was difficult trying to wrap this concept around his head for even a second. Saoirse wanted Jezebelle to stay away from him? Why? What was she going to gain from that scenario? Aside from a twisted sense of pleasure, there was nothing to gain. This was Graham's life and he hated it when people interfered with it. No one was going to tell what to do or not do. If he wanted to keep doing drugs, then he would. If he wanted to exchange blood for said drugs with Jezebelle, then he would. No one was going to stop him from changing his mind, even someone like Saoirse. Sighing hard again, Graham brought his cigarette up to his lips for a long, much needed drag. His confusion and anxiety was starting to turn into something else, evident in how he exhaled the smoke with pent up anger.
"This is fucking ridiculous," Graham spat out, not eying Jezebelle at first. The cold words weren't meant for her, but more for Saoirse, as if she could somehow pick up on them. After tapping at his clove, he looked back to her with the same widened eyes. "Trust me, I don't like the concept of you shutting down, either." Nor did he like the concept of Jezebelle fighting Saoirse, knowing the girl didn't deserve that, though Jezebelle had every reason to fight. Saoirse was obviously being a threat in more than one way and ultimately Graham didn't want to lose his primary source of drugs due to his ex having a power trip for no fucking reason. Didn't matter how much he was in love with the girl; no one fucked with an addict and his drugs. "Fuck, she has no reason to be doing any of this bullshit. I mean, does her house or line or whatever the fuck you guys call it have some mind reading tricks or something? That's the only thing I can think of because I didn't tell her shit. Either that or mind rape my dreams for information or-" And then Graham froze, recalling quite clearly the lucid dream he had with Saoirse... and telling her pretty much everything about Jezebelle. "They can't do that... can they? Like, go into your dreams and do shit. I'm just making this shit up, right?" He laughed, trying to ease the tension, though the twitch in his arm displayed otherwise.
As Graham started to hone in on the source of the leak, Jezebelle's nails dug into the wood of the table top, peeling in groves as if it were clay. Though she was generally a lady, the snarl of fury that followed was nothing of the sort. "That bitch," she hissed. "I should have never let her go!" There was little that got Jezebelle's blood to boil like rape of any sort. She knew how it felt to be forcefully taken advantage of and, even if this wasn't the same, the comparison was enough to make her livid. "Her house can dreamwalk, I believe. Project their consciousness into the dreams of others, manipulate from the inside. I'm not familiar with the extent of their abilities, but if you saw her in your dreams, if you told her something there, then it's quite possible that it was more than just your imagination." Graham might have been trying to ease the tension, but for Jezebelle it was just getting worse. She was about to the point that she'd need to kill someone, preferably Saoirse. "You said she was at Heme?" Perhaps she should paid Saoirse a visit...
So it was Saoirse that he saw, like the real thing. The sudden realization made Graham sick to his stomach and not just because he told her about Jezebelle, but he told her other things that she was not meant to know, like the fact he was in jail and why he really left and that he still wanted to be there for her. Saoirse was better without someone like him in his life. She didn't need that line of bullshit. And the words she screamed at him hurt even more than the one she gave to him in person. They were nothing but the truth, but still pained him. Resting his face in his palms, Graham began to shake, and it was far from a withdrawal episode. Right then he was pretty damn petrified of what Saoirse was capable of and the concept of sleeping was going to be foreign to him for a long while.
"What?" Graham lifted his head up after a second, processing the last bit Jezebelle mentioned with Heme. "...why does it matter where she is? What are you going to do, Jez?" Probably the same thing she did to Lex, but at least ten notches worse. As scared and pissed off as he was at Saoirse, he didn't want any harm her way, just like he didn't want Jezebelle to be placed through any sort of hell. Why did this always have to be complicated? He tried to bring his clove to his lips to take a drag, though his shaking hands were making it far more difficult than he thought. "Fucking christ... can we take this outside? I need more than a cigarette to calm the fuck down and I can't light up a joint in here."
Jezebelle's eyes were dark as she looked up at Graham, but she wouldn't say aloud what kind of thoughts she was entertaining about his ex. They involved more medieval forms of torture, being drawn and quartered, or even fed poisoned blood. She could think of a thousand different methods of making Saoirse disappear, but none of them seemed suitable. "Outside then," she said, sliding out of the booth and leading the way out the door. She assumed he was following, in no mood to wait and see. The night air was warm, but she still felt cold. Her nose ached. Jezebelle licked her lips and ran her tongue across her fangs. She needed something to calm her down, and pot wasn't likely to do the trick.
Graham was hot on Jezebelle's trail as she led the way out. The second they were outside, he rummaged through his jacket pocket to pull out a small baggie with some joints already rolled up. If he was in the mood to get high, he didn't want to waste several minutes trying to make a joint, and thank god they were already done up for him. Using the lit end of his clove, he lit up a joint and flicked the cigarette away, instantly taking in a long drag of the marijuana. He held the smoke in for a second, savoring the taste, then tilted his head back to exhale. It was going to take a second for the pot to hit him hard, but the initial hit was already easing the jitters he head. Graham then looked on over to Jezebelle, noticing she was still all sorts pissed off. At first he contemplated pulling her in for a hug, but decided he liked being alive for a bit longer, so instead leaned against the building. "Listen, Jez, I'm sorry this shit had to land in your lap. I know you're the last woman who deserves this line of fucked up shit in her life. I just wish I didn't say anything. God, what the hell am I saying, it was my fucking dream. Not going to sleep for a week now, fuck..."
"You shouldn't take the blame for this," Jezebelle said as she turned to face Graham. "She invaded your dreams. She took information from you that you'd have never given willingly while awake." Watching him take a drag, she craved that same sort of calm, something to take the edge off. It was too bad she didn't know a blood dealer, or she'd be seeking one out right now. "There are ways to mute dreams, but it shouldn't have to come to that. Soairse--" A thought occurred to her, and she paused. "She's young, isn't she? You knew her as a human?" Jezebelle smirked as a thought occurred to her. "She's never tasted you?"
It was great to have some sympathy from Jezebelle, even if it was a single drop of it. As much as he didn't want to put the love of his life at fault, it truly was her fault. He didn't ask for her to come into his dreams. It was the biggest invasion of his privacy that he experienced since his days in prison. "Young? Yeah, she was about eighteen or nineteen when I first met her, give or take. She doesn't even know I'm a fire- no, scratch that, I blabbed about that in the fucking dream, too. FUCK!" And with that, he spun on his heel and slammed his fist into the building, doing more damage to his clenched hand than to the structure. Graham didn't cringe at the pain or the blood that was now seeping out from his knuckles. Resting his forehead against the building, he heaved out a massive sigh. "No, she's never tasted me. Not my blood, anyways. I doubt my blood tastes like my dick." Rolling his eyes, he took in another inhale from his joint, hoping the drug would consume him faster.
The last thing Jezebelle needed right now was Graham's blood in the air and, as the scent hit her, she found herself pinning him against the wall of the building. Just as he'd been facing it, she pressed her front to his back, her lips brushing softly across his neck as she whispered in his ear. "I've had a lot more than your dick in my mouth." It came out as a pleased laugh and she reached around him to pull his bleeding hand to her mouth. It wasn't as good as biting him, but it was far more acceptable considering where they were. "You always play with fire, don't you? In more ways than one..." Her tongue brushed across his knuckles and she smiled, calming just slightly with the taste of his blood. "I don't like sharing you, love, but I know I must. You're not my pet. But this girl... I won't let her take you away from me."
Graham slowly looked over his shoulder to eye Jezebelle licking at his blooded hand. The delayed reaction of the pain was finally starting to flood his senses, causing him to wince in agony when just her tongue ran over the wound. Leave it to a fire elemental to be impulsive and violent when upset. He didn't like that side of him and hoped he didn't scare Jezebelle, though from the looks of it she was far from it. "Hell will freeze over and bring about the apocalypse before she even thinks of taking me back into her life. We would never work out, even if we tried." Regardless of how much I want it to work out. "No one's going to take me away from you, Jez. I'm not going anywhere." Graham turned slowly to face the vampire, pulling her into him and wrapped his free arm around her. His hand stroked the back of her head idly, only leaving to bring the joint to his lips. There was something unnerving about the whole situation and it was ticking Graham off that he couldn't put his finger on it. Was it the fact Saoirse was screwing around his his life or the fact Jezebelle was jealous over the idea of sharing his blood? He couldn't make sense out of anything.
"Jesus fucking christ, why does life have to be so fucking complicated," he murmured while bringing his forehead down to rest against Jezebelle's head. He didn't expect an answer, knowing it was a loaded question. For the moment, Graham needed to vent and hopefully Jezebelle wouldn't flip out anymore, unlike Saoirse. Oh no, his ex would have been screaming at him for being a pathetic prick who did this all to himself. Why couldn't he have a firmer grip on the reigns of his life?
There was something about Graham's comment that made Jezebelle ache inside, an unsaid feeling that her heart picked up but her brain did not. In that moment, she missed Dixen and all that she'd given up for a bit of freedom. Had it been worth the price? She had to answer yes because she couldn't bare it if the answer was no. There was no going back to the man she'd loved for so long. There was no forgiveness. She would hold her head high and remain strong... and fight off anyone who tried to come between her and all she had left. What Graham meant to her Jezebelle wouldn't dare to put a label on, knowing that was likely to drive him away. "It's life," she said simply. "Even when you're dead." It never got easier, in her opinion. It was never the simple, happy dream that others made it out to be.
The tone in her voice threw Graham off momentarily, fluttering his eyes as he trailed his hand down her cheek and to her chin, lifting it up enough to stare into her eyes. "Jez, I'm sorry all of this shit had to happen to you. You truly don't deserve any more hell than what you've already been through. I didn't mean to drag you through this fucked up nonsense." Because honestly, had he not met her then perhaps none of this would have happened. Perhaps her shop wouldn't have burned down and Lex wouldn't have attacked and Saoirse wouldn't have threatened her... but would she have been happy without all of that? Without him? In such a short period of time, Graham had found himself confiding in Jezebelle more than he had with people he had known for years. Without her, he wouldn't have his cocaine or someone to give him unbiased opinions or even a lover of some sort. They didn't need labels. The bond between them ran deeper than a typical junkie and dealer and Graham didn't want to break that bond anytime soon, and not just because she was his only source for his addiction. Trying to imagine not meeting her and not having a single moment with her was impossible. To Graham this was all worth it.
The anger she'd been holding on to began to drain as she looked up into his eyes. He hadn't sent Saoirse to her, and the bitch had already been taught a lesson. Honestly, if she did any more, she'd probably find herself in more trouble than she could deal with. It was just hard to let it go when everything that remained felt threatened. "You're sweet," Jezebelle said with a little smile, her hands moving to rest gently on his chest. "I don't know that you'd believe that if you knew everything I've done. Even when living, I..." She couldn't bring herself to speak of the past out there on the streets, where she felt so vulnerable and exposed. Even if everyone involved had now passed away, Jezebelle felt that her secrets should be kept safe. "You wouldn't be so kind if you knew what I did to your Saoirse," she sighed. It had to be said. He'd find out eventually, and better for him to hear it from her than from Saoirse herself.
"She's not mine," Graham quickly corrected her, rolling his eyes slightly before bringing them back to Jezebelle. "She's none of my concern, or at least she shouldn't be. She just needs to get the fuck out of my life so I can finally forget about her and move on with my shit life." Though Saoirse was still a concern of his. It was hard to forget about a first and only true love. He wanted her to be happy and it pained him greatly that it would be without him. Though Graham accepted that fate the second he walked out of her dorm room years ago. He had to let go eventually and stop caring, just like Saoirse had, so why not now? "Jez, I hate to break it to you, but you're not scaring me with this shit." He paused to scrunch his face together, then chuckle lightly. "Ok, I lied, you scared the shit out of me back in the club, but you didn't kill me... like, literally... so it's fine. Not like you're a ninja or some shit killing people, right?" ....right..?
His quick response earned a little smile from Jezebelle, though she still believed he held feelings for the girl. Or, at least, she held some for him. Saoirse had made it rather clear that she was concerned about Graham's safety, which was almost a laugh because Jezebelle felt the same way. She'd do nothing to endanger him... other than give him drugs and drink his blood. Jezebelle failed to see either of these as being life threatening. "I'm not a ninja," she answered, shifting slightly. The later part of the question... well... it could be debated. She'd killed enough people to be considered a murderer in most books, an assassin in others, and occasionally a psychopath. Jezebelle just considered herself to be a proper Shade vampire and didn't like to question it further. "I don't want to scare you. I'm just worried about the day you stumble over the skeletons in my closet and run away screaming."
Raising an eyebrow at her words, Graham lifted the joint to his lips to take in a deep inhale, then smothered the end with his tongue before flicking it to the ground. "Jez, I've killed over a hundred people and injured more than quadruple that number over fucking around with nitroglycerin. I went to jail for that for seven years and was released only because I made a deal with the military to help improve their own explosives to kill even more people. And I've had a sudden epiphany the other day that I actually, truly, honest to whatever god do not care about those who died. Just because it was an accident and I didn't mean for it to happen didn't mean I was sorry. That's my biggest skeleton, along with Saoirse, and you're not running away screaming from me, so honestly, Jez? Try me."
As a human, a hundred years ago, she might have backed away. She'd looked at life differently then, before she'd killed for the first time. Before she'd become a vampire. But now all she saw was an accident that Graham was punished for, one that he didn't regret, despite the lives that had been taken. Maybe that was a bad thing, but when she compared him to herself, he didn't seem bad at all. The fact that he had a crazy ex shouldn't have surprised her, since she obviously had her own issues there as well. "There are two many ears here, and I have a past too long to detail out in a matter of seconds," Jezebelle said softly. "So let's just say, I've killed at least double what you have, some for my own personal pleasure, and some because others paid me to do so."
Thank god he flicked the joint away when he did or else he would have lost grip of it after Jezebelle dropped that news on his head. Before him stood a sophisticated, gorgeous woman, who never in a million years would he have suspected to be a killer. Or a drug dealer, but that was besides the point. Graham stood there, jaw hanging ajar while he stared at Jezebelle with a mixture of awe, confusion, and panic. He wasn't sure if he should have been impressed or scared that he would soon join the ranks of those she had killed. Probably would have ten minutes ago or so. Then again, it explained why she wasn't moved by his criminal record by an inch. He clamped a hand over his gaping mouth and tried his best to recompose himself, fluttering his eyes while eventually dropping his hand. "...really?"
Jezebelle swallowed hard as she watched him process that information, her nervousness barely visible on the outside. On the inside, however, she was close to having a panic attack. Graham was the first person she'd ever told that wasn't already looking to have someone killed. He wasn't a customer, he was a friend, and now he knew that he was standing before someone that really could kill him if she wanted to. The thing was, Jezebelle didn't want to kill Graham, and would likely take out anyone who tried. He'd seen as much when Lex had posed a threat. "Really," she whispered. "The first two were... before I became a vampire. The rest were a result of my trade-- I dealt in poisons long before I got into drugs." Slowly, her fingers slid down his shirt, then reached out to take hold of his own. "You know I'd never hurt you, right?"
Graham initially flinched as she held his hand, realizing that it was still bleeding and obviously in pain. Ignoring the wound, his eyes looked down at Jezebelle. "I sure as hell hope so. I mean, I was pretty convinced you were going to kill me back in the club, but that aside I'm not worried about you hurting me. Besides, I'm sure whoever crossed your path probably deserved what was coming to them." Except for those that she was paid to pick off. Though that wasn't entirely the point. "Jez," Graham brought his voice down to a whisper, bringing his free hand up to cup her face, "it doesn't scare me. Ok, the initial shock is still washing over me, but honestly? I... don't care.... Shit, did I just say that?" He shook his head and tried to laugh it off, but he found himself figuring out that it didn't bother him that he was laughing about people being killed. "No, I guess I don't care, though I guess this means we have a lot more in common than we both thought. Not like I'm killing people right now or... whatever... but, it's not... bothering me." Thankfully the marijuana in his system was calming him down or else he would have been shaking while he said that.
Some of those she killed deserved it. Others just made a tasty meal. Prior to the light of May, it was much easier to get away with draining someone to the point of death, though her house didn't recommend doing that too often. They needed humans to live and killing them off didn't help that cause. At some point it had scared her how easy she found it to kill, and though it had been a long time since those thoughts had haunted her mind, she knew what Graham was feeling. It was frightening to realize you didn't care so much about the lives of others if they meant nothing to you to begin with. "It's normal to be frightened by that concept," she said with a little smile, thinking that must have been what was going through his mind. "I was horrified at first... when I realized what I could do. I think what keeps me sane is knowing that, while I can kill, I don't have to. I don't need to. And that I have my limits." She could not bring herself to harm a child, for instance, and in her mind a monster wouldn't set such boundaries.
"You don't need to go about ending lives, but you do it anyways?" That was probably logical in someone's book, and somehow Graham understood it. Like he didn't need to play with fire and burn things, but he did it anyways. It was a rush in that sense, borderline addictive. Now that his mind was on explosives, it wasn't going anywhere else. He was a pyromaniac, after all. "You know, I'm kind of envious of you, being paid to do something you enjoy... or what not. I can't remember the last time someone wanted me to put an explosive together or set one off at a certain location and get paid for it." That was the underlying key point right there. He blew up shit for fun all the time, but there were rare moments when people were willing to pay him to indulge in his passion. His eyes were starting to scan the area, looking for something reasonable to light on fire or blow up right then and there. Now that would calm his nerves far more than marijuana ever would. "Shit, I'm willing to do it right now for free."
"You would make such a wonderful Shade," Jezebelle said with a little smirk. She couldn't help but let her mind drift there upon hearing how he would like to be paid for blowing things up. Graham had a natural talent that would make him perfect for her house, the only problem being that he would lose his immunity to fire in the process. For someone that played with it as much as he did, that might make him a vampire with a very short lifespan. Plus, she'd lose her favorite blood source. It was a toss up in her mind, a difficult decision that she didn't have to make but enjoyed pondering. "I'm sure we can find you something to blow up, maybe even after we find me someone to kill. You'd do a better job of getting rid of the body that I would, setting it on fire."
Was she actually propositioning him to be an accomplice with a murder? In the past, he had worked with all sorts of criminals and was used to this sort of dirty work, but he never actually helped out with killing someone. Such an odd thing when he had killed hundreds in one blow in the past. Though Graham didn't see moments like this as either good or evil, but instead saw it as an opportunity to experience something different. Who knew, maybe he'd like walking down this side of life. "Really now? That sounds like quite the experience. Why don't you lead the way and I'll follow then." Graham pushed himself off of the structure, releasing his grip on Jezebelle as he hissed in a sharp breath while glancing down at his injured hand. That was going to take a while to heal. "While we're searching, maybe you can enlightening me with uh... what was it you said I'd make a good something or other? Shade?"
He was so accepting of the suggestion that Jezebelle didn't know what to say at first, looking up at him curiously until she pressed her lips to his. She'd always known that her kind were unique, but she'd never considered how they might appear as a human. Having stumbled across Graham without even looking seemed like a miracle. "Why don't you tell me who I should be looking for, hmm?" she asked as she took a step back and removed a small knife from her pocket. "I do not kill children," she said as she pricked her finger. "Ever." That was her one rule. She'd drink from them, maybe, but she would never kill them. As her blood pooled at the end of her finger, she took Graham's hand her in hers and smeared the blood over his wounds. "That will help accelerate the healing," she said, pulling her hand away. She licked the blood off her finger, then began to lead him slowly down the street. "The Shades of Death, or Umbra Mors Mortis. It is my house's name. Do try and not tell your ex if she doesn't already know," Jezebelle teased with a small smile.
Graham stood there for a moment, a bit blown away by the fact she was asking him to find someone. Wow, this was actually happening. All those times he wished someone were dead and he never bothered to keep a lit of names. Quite a shame. Or maybe it was better off to find someone who he didn't know, just to make it more fun. After examining his hand, which was actually starting to heal remarkably fast, he caught up with Jezebelle and leaned in to plant a kiss on her forehead. "Trust me, I don't plan on sleeping for a while, let alone bump into her, so your secret is safe with me." His eyes began to scan around the area, try to find someone for Jezebelle to have fun with. "So is that why you don't want her outing you or what not, because of what your house does?" Was rather fascinating and Graham couldn't help but be intrigued. "How about that one?" He motioned with his chin over to some rich snob walking over to his BMW. No one would miss someone like that, right?
Jezebelle looked over at the man and took a moment to analyze the situation. A high profile kill was something she'd usually avoid, but if Graham could blow up the car and destroy the evidence, then it wouldn't like a vampire murder in the end. "We are assassins. All of us," she whispered. "It is a prerequisite to being turned. If I take him out, you can blow up the car?" She knew she was jumping around the conversation, but if this was their target, then she didn't want to waste time with something that could be discussed later. "Are you sure you can go through with this?" she asked, threading her fingers through his as she looked up at him. Jezebelle had been ready to kill someone from the moment she'd stepped out of her house that evening. She just hadn't excepted to have Graham beside her as an accomplice.
"Sounds like an exclusive club," Graham replied while eying the car. Blowing it up was no problem for someone like him and from the looks of it there weren't any closed circuit monitors in the vicinity, thus making it even better. He might not have been familiar with killing, but he was familiar with illegal dealings and knew the typical drill when keeping low under the radar. "Only one way to find out, right? Nothing's stopping me so far. You focus on what you do and I'll worry about the car." Though his heart was starting to race faster than normal, it wasn't due to anxiety, but more of an adrenaline rush that was slowly starting to build up.
The smile he earned was quite vicious in nature, Jezebelle's excitement building along with his own. Her heart would have been picking up the pace were it still able to beat, but since it couldn't she just listened to his. "Count to ten, then climb into the passenger seat," she said as she released his hand. Across the street the man unlocked his car and slid into the driver's seat. "We're going for a ride." As Jezebelle took one step into the shadow behind her, she disappeared, only to reappear seconds later inside the car. At night, shadows were everywhere, making it so much easier to jump between them, and it was obvious from the man's shout that she'd caught him by surprise. That was the only noise he was able to make before she climbed into his lap, straddling him as she bit into his neck, her other hand clamped over his mouth. He continued to struggle as she drank, giving into the feeding frenzy that had been chasing her all evening. While she was normally careful, this time she had no reason to be, drinking until she was full.
Before Graham could even say anything in reponse, Jezebelle was gone, leaving the fire elemental and alone. He blinked for a moment, staring at the shadow, then turned to look at the car across the street. Even though it was muffled, he could vaguely hear something coming from it, and he could only imagine it was Jezebelle. Did she just slip into the shadows and teleport over there? Seemed like all vampires were different, ranging from Jezebelle's shadow jumping to Saoirse's dreamwalking. Now wasn't the time to dwell to much on the concept, and instead he removed his hat to twirl it about on his finger while whistling to himself to pass the ten seconds that went by. Once that was over, he plopped his hat back onto his head then joined Jezebelle in the car on the passenger side, raising an eyebrow in the process. "Enjoy yourself?"
While she heard Graham climb in the passenger seat, Jezebelle didn't let that stop her from feeding. It was only when he spoke, and her victim's heartbeat stopped, that she pulled back and licked her lips with a happy hum. "Yes," she said, wiping an arm across her mouth. It had been a while since she made this big a mess. Reaching down beside the seat, she grabbed the lever that leaned the seat back, then pushed the body into the back seat. With that out of the way, she turned in the driver's seat and started the car. "Thanks for waiting," she smirked. "Now, what were you saying?" she asked, putting the car in drive and heading out to some place less public. They needed to stage an accident, which wouldn't be too hard with Graham there to help her.
Here he thought she would have pulled some fancy, assassin moves on the man, but it looked like draining him dry of blood was just as good. Hey, whatever worked. Now wasn't the time to worry about that and now they had to figure out how to hide the evidence. Crashing the car into a building of some sort would work, though that wouldn't exactly get the desired effect. Instead something else came to mind and he looked on over to Jezebelle with a smirk. "Just take the car somewhere with a lower profile and I'll get rid of this." That said, he pulled out his pack of matches and began toying with the package, growing anxious with the impending explosion.
"Sure thing, love," Jezebelle said as she began to drive. The weird thing about killing as she had was that it left her feeling so much more alive afterwards. It was like she'd stolen his life-force and made it her own, like her heart could now beat because his could not. Jezebelle knew it didn't work like that, but that didn't stop her from feeling wired by the experience. Heading out of town, Jezebelle looked for some place they could pull over and play, where they wouldn't be bothered and Graham could do whatever he wanted. With the moon full in the sky, it wouldn't be too off base for the man to get in an accident. Bad things were bound to happen, even if they had nothing to do with werewolves. "How's this?" she asked, when it finally looked right. "Do we need to wreck it? Or drive into a ditch?"
"No, this should be fine," Graham reassured her, checking out the area before propping his open. "Keep the engine on and find some cover while you're at it." That said, he slipped on out and closed the door behind him, rubbing his bloodshot eyes in the process. He had done a variety of crazy things while he was high, though murdering a man and blowing up a car shortly after was now topping the list. Walking around the car slowly, he whipped out his pack of blacks and briskly lit one up. After taking in a deep inhale, he rested against the car by the gas tank and exhaled. Graham then struck up another match and darted his eyes up to make sure Jezebelle was clear from the area. Didn't want the vulnerable vampire being harmed in the process. If he survived his dorm blowing up in his face, then he could survive a car being blown up.
She was willing to leave the explosive expertise to Graham and quickly vacated the car as soon as he said to. All she did before leaving was pull the body back into the driver's seat, knowing that if it was in the back when the cops came that that would cause suspicion. While she knew that a car on fire might do the same, any evidence of a vampire attack would be gone if the body was burned in the explosion. Jezebelle moved to the other side of the road and found cover behind a tree, though she couldn't help but watch Graham as he worked. Fire was one thing she didn't mess with and as soon as she realized what he was going to do, she ducked back to safety. He might survive the explosion, but she didn't need to get charred in the process.
With Jezebelle far enough away from the vehicle, Graham pushed himself off of it and glanced at the slowly burning match in his hand. His eyes then glanced down to the gas tank door, prying it open immediately and placed the match on the edge, though not directly into the gas tank. Any idiot who wanted to blow up a car would have chucked it in and be quickly disappointed when nothing happened. The gasoline itself wasn't explosive, but the fumes it produced were. And from what he saw when inside the car, the gentleman had filled it recently, which meant Graham didn't have much time. Spinning on his heel, he walked backwards and watched the car. First the fumes would react to the flame and that would travel right to the main engine and then- BOOM. Graham fell to the ground as the car exploded, sitting there completely awe-stricken. The flames captivated him completely and it didn't bother him that a few pieces of debris had whacked him in the shoulder. No, he was too busy staring with wide eyes at the spectacle. With his cigarette still in hand, he brought it to his lips for a drag, only to exhale the smoke out with tremendous laughter.
The explosion shook the ground and Jezebelle gasped, still unfamiliar with this type of destruction. The heat was quick to follow as fire quickly engulfed the vehicle and it's occupant. For a second, Jezebelle just stood there, her body shaking with the exhilaration of the moment, and then she heard Graham laugh and it made her grin. They were crazy, both of them. Absolutely insane, she was sure. But it didn't seem to matter in their world, where she could kill a man and Graham could light his car on fire. Jezebelle knew they'd get away with it, because how could they get caught? It was virtually impossible to link them to the killing when they didn't even know the man's name, so long as they left no trace of themselves behind. Once the heat had died down a touch, Jezebelle leaned out from behind the tree and called to Graham. She still couldn't come close, but if he'd move away just a bit they could share this moment together.
Still laughing maniacally at the display of fire, he tilted his head back enough to peer at Jezebelle upside down. Heeding her words, he jumped to his feet and tried his best to suppress his amusement, which resulted in a wide, unnerving smirk on his face. Once he reached Jezebelle, he lingered over her, resting his free hand against the tree while indulging on his clove for a second. "Such a fucking rush. I could get used to this." And it was a rush, seeing his heart was racing out of control at that point. His eyes kept flickering over to the smoldering remains of the car, then back down to Jezebelle. "So do you do this often? Perhaps next time you should clue me in. Light more shit on fire."
"Can't do it too often," she said, reaching up to brush a hand down his cheek. His skin was so warm and his heart was so loud. His smile was contagious and she found herself grinning in kind. "Killing attracts attention. My personal specialty is poisons, but that wasn't necessary here." Poisoning the man would have been silly, let alone wasteful. If they were going to blow him up, she might as well have her dinner first. "We lost our ride," she laughed, leaning in to kiss his neck. Was it horrible that murder made her horny? The last time that she'd gotten this excited over a kill had been way too long ago. Then again, it had been years since she'd had an accomplice she enjoyed killing with. That had to be the difference.
Made sense to only do something like that sparingly. Explosions tended to gain attention, sadly. The bigger they were, the more attention there was. Graham knew from experience when the incident in Chicago happened. Never a fun time to be watching that on national television. Well, not from a hospital bed, anyways. Perhaps if he was some place safe it would be more amusing, but for now he was enjoying the aftermath with Jezebelle, who also seemed to be enjoying herself. Graham laughed along with her, leaning in to nuzzling into her face. "That we did. Nothing wrong with a night stroll, now is there?" He kissed at her face, slowly making his way to her lips, where he finally locked onto her lips deeply.
By the time his lips reached hers, Jezebelle was breathing heavily, his fingers sliding up into his hair. She had a lot more on her mind than a midnight stroll, but from the way he kissed her she thought Graham might say the same. This was one of those instances where Jezebelle was pleased to favor skirts, and as she pressed her body against his she moaned softly. "I'm up for more than a stroll," she said between kisses. They'd be short on time, sure, but that was all part of the rush.
"I noticed," Graham murmured against her lips. It was always hard to say no to a woman who was lusting for such attention, even more so given their situation. He didn't have the slightest idea when he went to the jazz club that he would bump into Jezebelle, let alone aid her in murdering a man, then proceed to indulge in one another. In the back of his mind was a small voice telling him to stop, knowing full well the police would be there soon to investigate on the explosion. Then again, that only added to the thrill. "Think we can finish before the cops arrive?" He raised his eyebrows with a smirk before stealing another kiss from her.
"Isn't that up to you?" she asked with a grin. Jezebelle was confident that he could get her off before they had to run, but she was already wound up from the kill and boys were unpredictable. She knew how frustrated Graham would be if he didn't get to finish before the police arrived. It was too bad he was human and couldn't just disappear into the shadows like she could, otherwise it would hardly even be a concern. Not that she was all that worried. If she was, she wouldn't have been loosening his belt as she spoke.
Well, she did have a point, Graham wasn't going to lie, and if that was the case, then they were going to have to make every second count. He caught a glimpse of her already working at his belt, greatly appreciative of her actions, and proceeded to lift her up enough to be on level with him, keeping Jezebelle secure against the tree. Perhaps not the most comfortable situation, but it was the whole concept of potentially being caught that kept Graham going. "Maybe we should take bets to see when they show up," he murmured to her while bunching up her skirt to hike it up her leg. "I'm guessing ten minutes." It was a full moon and there might have been more important things for people on 911 call to worry about.
A fire in the forest on the night of the full moon? Jezebelle wasn't sure if they'd give that more attention or less. One this she was sure of was that the cops were already on guard, which meant they'd have to run if they didn't want to get caught. For being already high on adrenaline, it seemed like a perfect reason to stay. "Fifteen," she grinned as she pushed his pants down over his hips. "They've got to notice it first, then get here." Her teeth scraped over his bottom lip, biting just enough to drop blood. "Fuck me," she whispered. She doubted he'd turn down an offer like that.
After letting out a shaky moan in response to her teeth dragging over his lip, Graham simply grinned at her with a chuckle before replying, "Gladly." As his hand traveled up her thigh, his fingers bumped into the edge of her lingerie, which he immediately tugged down her legs enough to make room for himself. He managed to glance down to see she was wearing another black, lacy get-up. Suited Jezebelle quite well, but it was such a shame he couldn't enjoy her wearing it for a while longer. Taking one last, hard drag from his cigarette, he smothered it with his fingers and dropped it to the ground. He made a mental note to remember to retrieve it once they were finished, not wanting to leave any evidence behind, but until then he busied himself with undoing the rest of his pants. "So you say fifteen? You're giving me more time than I gave myself."
"Fifteen till they arrive," she laughed as reached down between them to stroke him once. "Ten before we need to run." The last thing they needed was to be still in the act when the police showed up, fire trucks behind them. If they were still at the scene when they could hear the sirens, they could find themselves in quite a bind. It was something Jezebelle decided to worry about when it was actually a problem. She'd rather focus on Graham at the moment, plus not falling on the ground. Though the tree was uncomfortable behind her, Jezebelle knew she'd heal fast, should it end up scratching her. Hitching her leg over his hip, she kissed him deeply, unable to wait any longer.
"Oh, so you're giving me less time," he chuckled into her lips. Either way it was going to be a quickie, so there was no getting around that. Hopefully the police were busy with some bitten were on the loose than this. Bought him more time to fool around with Jezebelle. Once he was finally done with his pants, he brought himself in closer, taking a second to position himself properly, and then finally found home inside of her. A sharp moan escaped his lips, not taking a moment to adjust to the difference in heat between the two. He was used to her being high on his blood, thus being warm, though now she wasn't. Graham knew he could get used to it and ignored it for the time being, instead focusing on relentlessly thrusting into her.
Just as Graham noticed how cool she was, Jezebelle now realized just how hot he was when she wasn't made halfway warm by his blood. It was a sensation she wasn't expecting, though it only took seconds for her to adjust and enjoy. So long as Graham couldn't burn her, she had nothing to worry about. Jezebelle's arm wrapped around his neck, the other braced against the tree as he thrust into her, already wet and ready for him. This wasn't anything she'd done before, all those years with her past lover relegated to the bedroom. Sex had always been so traditional, despite the lack of rules in other parts of their lives. It felt good to push the limits there now as well, and Jezebelle was sure Graham was a huge part of what made it so enjoyable.
There was one thing Graham was always for and that was breaking the rules. Being restrained by them was like trying to smother a roaring flame. Wasn't going to happen. Graham was more than happy to break those rules with Jezebelle, maybe even show her a new thing or two. Besides, how could they say no to an opportunity like this? Some place public and the rush of being caught by the authorities just turned him on even more, and from the feel of it the same also applied to Jezebelle. He smiled against her lips before easing in for a hard kiss, devouring her mouth as he continued to pound inside of her. A hand trailed up her side, caressing her through the fabric of her outfit, then proceeded to knead into her breast. If he had it his way, he would have ripped everything off of her, but the last thing they needed was for police to nail her for indecent exposure while running away.
Though she'd thought murder was a rush, she'd never experienced sex on the spot immediately afterwards. It made Jezebelle wonder if she could bring Graham along every time she killed someone, but then that would take more planning. Then again, it would be worth it to feel his cock inside her when she was already so wet and ready. Jezebelle moaned, her hips jerking against his as he pounded into her, already so close. Now it wasn't only the heat of his body she felt, but the fire raging close by. For a moment, her eyes opened to watch it burn, the corpse inside melting slowly as the skin cooked down to the bone. She should have been disgusted, but was instead enthralled. They'd done this together, her and Graham. This beautiful destruction of blood and fire.
If Jezebelle wanted him to tag along with her for every murder, he would have gladly accepted her offer, especially if each one ended up with the two of them fooling around shortly after. Graham could never say no to his pyromaniac tendencies. It was just as addictive as cocaine to him. Sex with Jezebelle was equally addictive, too. There was something exotic about it with a hint of danger added to the mix. He knew Saoirse completely disapproved of the two, but part of him wondered if she was simply jealous that it wasn't her. Then again, Saoirse wouldn't have committed murder or have sex against a tree, though the lovely woman he had pinned against said tree would, which gave Graham more reason to favor her and continue pumping inside of her. His heavy breathes pounded against her skin as he skimmed his lips down to her neck, nipping and lapping playfully at her cool skin. The sensation of his warm lips against her cold flesh made him quiver against her, only fueling his lust for her more. "Doubt you feel this cold right now," he cooed to her, biting at the nape of her neck, though not hard enough to break her skin.
"Not cold at all," Jezebelle said between gasps for air. With the fire nearby and the heat of Graham's skin, she was as close to sweating as a vampire could get. She was even willing to say she was hot, though she knew it wasn't the same thing that a human might feel. What she was was wound up tight and about ready to pop. Jezebelle whimpered as his teeth scraped her, enjoying the feel of the bite, even though it didn't hurt. It was the threat she enjoyed, the possibility, though even if he'd done worse she wouldn't have minded. In the distance, she thought she heard sirens, though they were still a ways off, hopefully too far for Graham to hear them. She didn't want anything to stop him at this point, just as long as they both finished in time to escape.
Graham didn't hear a damn thing except their desperate gasps and moans for one another, and honestly? That was all that mattered right then. He didn't bother to pace himself with her and simply ravaged her delightful body, building up his own arousal. His hands kept groping at her while he progressed, caressing at both her breast and exposed thigh. How she managed to not feel cold was beyond him, though he was content with knowing that he was possibly warming her up without the aid of his blood. The very thought put a smile on his lips, kissing down to her collarbone before trailing back up to her lips, slipping his tongue into her mouth to meet her own.
This was one of those times that Jezebelle didn't want Graham to pace himself, and was perfectly happy to be ravaged. Her hands reached for whatever part of him she could grasp, loving the warmth of his skin beneath her finger tips. She kissed him with abandon, forgetting about her fangs for the time being, hoping that maybe he could exercise a bit of caution when she would not. It was hard enough for her to keep her legs beneath her when her body was trembling, just on the brink of orgasm. Somewhere far away, the sirens doubled, and Jezebelle screamed Graham's name, arching against him as she came.
Having her come completely undone around him was one way to push him that much closer to edge. Another was hearing her scream out for him, which was helpful seeing that Graham was finally starting to hear the sirens in the distance as well. He was too stubborn to stop now, especially when he was so close. Graham refused to slow down and instead pinned her roughly against the tree, taking full advantage of her body. "Just a little longer," he groaned into her in between gulps of air, convinced that they had enough time to finish. It was either that or be frustrated as fuck for the rest of the night.
Jezebelle wasn't willing to stop him, sure they'd find some way to escape in the nick of time. If not, then she'd find some way to help him hide. Whichever it was, she refused to leave him without completion, instead enjoying those last moments right after finding her own. She moaned, holding tightly to him and ignoring the pain that came from bracing herself against a tree. It would heal. "Come on, baby," she whispered before kissing him deeply. She could hear his breathing and his blood pumping through his heart. She knew he was close.
If he wasn't close after her moment of ecstasy, then there was something seriously wrong with him, because the influence she had on him from that act alone drove him crazy. Graham never paused for a moment, not even when the sirens gradually grew louder. He was determined to finish this before they were caught, and after hearing Jezebelle's words coaxing him, it only took a few more thrusts and he fell right over the edge and quivered against her while experiencing his orgasm. His breath hitched hard as he got off, bracing himself against her as he basked in the fleeting moment, then finally slowed down as his body relaxed, finally releasing Jezebelle and lowering her to the ground. "Fuck..." He gulped down air before looking back down at her. "So, who won the bet? I lost track after the first few minutes."
She groaned as he withdrew, certain she was going to be sore after a ride like that. It was well worth it, though, high on her list of the best rushes ever. As Jezebelle slid to the ground, she reached for her thong, wadding the little piece of black lace up in her fist. She also grabbed Graham's cigarette butt, knowing that was not something they needed to leave behind. "You think I was counting in all that?" she asked with a grin. Pulling off her heels, Jezebelle rose to her feet. She'd have more wounds to care for when she got home, but running in heels was not going to happen. "We've got to go."
A soft chuckle slipped past his lips as he leaned against the tree to support himself while adjusting his pants. "Fuck if I know, but glad to see I had you too distracted to count." As he buckled up his belt, he leaned in to kiss deeply into her neck, moaning into her skin as he nuzzled. "Think you can run after that?" Graham smirked slightly as he straightened up, peering around the tree to spot a glimmer of red and blue lights flickering from afar. Perfect timing. "Either way we're going to have to run." Turning his attention back down to Jezebelle, he reached out to tuck some of her tousled hair behind her ear. "Ready whenever you are."
"I didn't make it past three," she laughed lazily, rocking back on her heels. She wasn't entirely sure she could run, but she could shadow jump, which would be far quicker than anything Graham could do. Too bad she couldn't pull him along with her. "Ready," she said, sinking into the shadows, then appearing twenty feet away, leaning against a tree. "Hurry up, slow poke," she teased. She was in one of those moods were everything made her laugh, almost like she was drunk. Drunk on blood, or drunk on Graham, either seemed possible. Both made her giddy and giggly. "If you can catch me, you can have me."
Ok, that had to be cheating. As much as Graham wanted to stand there in awe with his dropped jaw, he didn't favor the idea of being caught by the police, therefore leaving him with no option but to run. Plus there was the incentive given to him by Jezebelle that if he could catch her, than she was his. That definitely tugged a grin on his lips. After several steps forward, he suddenly broke into a sprint to chase after the shadow jumping woman. It had been forever since he was running from the cops, even though they weren't chasing after them... or at least he didn't think they were. Graham was too focused on Jezebelle and catching up with her to ever care.