Blood From a Stone Page 2

  He nodded. “Okay then. I hope I see you later on, Ms. Dalton.” Willow moved closer to Sasha, as they headed back around the corner to the now much shorter line waiting to get into the club.

  Sasha gasped, “Who was that guy? He was really nice…and I’m sure you couldn’t have noticed what he looked like.” She raised her eyebrows. “You should have gone to the ER with him!

  “Well, I would have but I doubt he’s going…there’s not a scratch on him. You saw. I don’t have a clue on that one. I guess the jacket must‘ve protected his skin, like he said. What other explanation could there be?”

  The club door opened and they rushed in out of the cold. The inside of Velvet looked like a medieval castle, with red carpets, marble floors, staircases that led to an upper floor complete with bar, couches and dance area. The stage was off to the far left with a lightshow that practically rivaled anything from Pink Floyd, and the huge, circular bar that looked like a stone well in the middle of the floor lit from every side and below was an imposing fixture. The ceilings soared high above like a cathedral and stone pillars lined the outer perimeter. Crimson velvet curtains hung from the walls along with pieces of art and rock history….guitars, signed paraphernalia, posters, photos and other items of interest.

  Someone had dumped a fortune into the place and it was definitely one-of a kind as far as nightclubs go. She took off her coat, grabbed Sasha and headed towards the bar where a silicone enhanced blonde in a too-tight mini-skirt was getting a drink promised to her by a dumpy looking drunk guy, who was foolish enough to believe she wasn’t going to ditch him after he’d drained his pockets supplying her with free libations. Willow rolled her eyes and edged her way in closer.

  “What can I get you?” the bartender asked, leaning forward over the marble-topped bar towards Willow.

  “I’ll have a margarita please.”

  The bartender nodded. “And you, miss?”

  “Hmmm….just give me one too.” Sasha plunked down a $20 bill.

  “What? Are you buying for us both?”

  “Yep. You tried to protect me from the creature from hell out there in the alley, so I figure I owe you one.”

  Willow laughed. “Oh, so my being willing to cover you with my body, get maimed and disfigured…and get rabies to protect you is only worth a margarita?”

  Sasha handed her one of the margaritas and joked back, “You’re right. I’ll buy you two. You‘re such a lightweight….after finishing both of them you won‘t even remember any of it, and I’ll have done you a favor.” Sasha told the bartender to keep the change, and the

  two walked towards the stage where The Burning was finishing up their set. But their minds were not on the band.

  “My God,” said Sasha, gulping down a large sip of the tangy green liquid in her glass. “I still can’t believe what just happened out there. That guy comes out of nowhere, the dog practically rips his arm off, and then suddenly starts acting like it’s a puppy. How?”

  Willow nodded. “I guess it’s one of those things we’ll just never know.”

  But she wished she could have known a lot more about the handsome stranger she’d never see again. But that was just her luck. All the good ones were taken…or gay. Or got bit by snarling dogs and then told her to go enjoy her night and leave them alone.

  Sasha finally started bobbing to the music. She leaned toward Willow, nodding toward the stage. “Not to change the subject, but you said you don’t like these guys…for what reason?”

  Willow shrugged and sipped on her margarita. “I never said I don’t like them at all. They’re just not my favorite band. I like Vendetta. Their original songs are good, they play better covers, and they are way better looking!” She smiled sheepishly.

  “Speaking of that topic, are there any decent looking guys in this place? Not counting the one we met outside who had to run off, unfortunately! I feel like I just got out of jail after the week we had. Not that I’m looking or anything, but you know, sometimes it’s just nice to window shop.”

  Sasha rolled her eyes. “Well, that’s not likely to happen here tonight. The pickin’s are pretty slim. Looks like we‘re gonna have to settle for being groupies.” She playfully pushed Willow.

  After a brief few minutes the loudspeaker was booming again as the deejay announced Vendetta. The crowd was yelling and screaming so loud, Willow could barely hear the opening guitar riffs as the thunderous music took off.

  She pushed forward closer to the stage so she could see better, dragging Sasha with her. The band tore into their set with a vengeance and each song brought with it a thunder of applause. There were people dancing wildly and those few crowd surfers that everyone had come to expect and all too happily buoyed to safety. Sometime during the set Sasha wandered up to the bar and grabbed them each another margarita.

  “I see you are in fact trying to get us loaded?” Willow yelled. “You know that after two of these I’m toast!”

  Sasha laughed. “Yeah, but I have to finish paying off my debt. I promised two, so you get two.”

  Willow nodded, sucked on the straw and started

  moving to the beat. It was just so nice to let go and get away from all the pressures of work and have some time to herself with a friend and some good music.

  As the last song of their first set began, which happened to be her favorite, she turned 180 degrees on her heel expecting Sasha to be there behind her and yelled, “Time to dance!”

  Her wild abandon was quickly tamed when she looked up to find Sasha was headed toward the ladies room, and instead Samson was standing there.

  “Is that an invite?” he said, smiling.

  “What are you doing here?” She seemed shocked to see him and sounded almost irritated. It wasn‘t the greeting he‘d hoped for.

  She looked up at him, again in awe of how blue his eyes really were, and felt a blush creeping up her neck. She felt like a silly school girl.

  “What are you my mother?” he replied. “I called

  Animal Control. Everything is taken care of.”

  But the real truth was, that after she‘d gone into the club with her friend, he‘d torn off the bottom edge of his bloody sleeve and cuffed the remainder up over his forearm so no trace of the stain showed.

  And as he’d tried to leave the scene and go inside the club, he found that his new furry friend wouldn‘t stop trying to follow him. It refused to leave his side, so he‘d taken it to the back of the alley where it was warmer, found some leftover restaurant food for it to eat, grabbed an old box and some ragged towels and newspapers from the dumpster and after gently cleaning the blood and froth off its muzzle, he’d made it a bed, and told it to wait there ‘til he came out.

  The animal seemed to understand what he was saying, and although he‘d had no intention of taking on a pet that would get left behind when the Change came again, he figured if it was still waiting for him when he came out of the club, then he‘d take it with him, at least for the night, and figure out what to do with it in the morning. For now, it was comfortable and fed. And whatever disease, rabies or otherwise it seemed to have symptoms of, they were gone. For that he had no explanation, nor for the feeling of electricity that had coursed through him when the dog’s teeth pierced his skin and his blood poured into its mouth.

  He wagered it was just one more strange sensation he could chalk up to being the creature that he was. As for the dog, maybe the poor thing had just been cold, tired and hungry, and when it looked at him with its gentle brown eyes, he knew he‘d done the right thing by not calling Animal Control.

  So here he was. And in this moment, he couldn’t help but notice the flush that crept up Willow’s cheeks and how tongue-tied she seemed to be when she looked at him with those pretty hazel eyes of hers. “Are you okay?” he leaned in as he spoke.

  “Yeah. Why?” she said.

  “Nothing. You just seemed a little…flustered. Do I make you nervous?” His blue eyes sparkled with humor as he took a sip of his drink. “Where’
s your friend?”

  “She’s here. She had to go to the ladies room. And no, you do not make me nervous or anything else!” Well, that was a lie, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to let him know that. She looked at his arm again.

  “So how did you manage to do it? To get all cleaned up, take care of the dog and get here so fast?“ Her tone of voice and the way she was crinkling her forehead reminded him of an old schoolmarm from a couple of centuries back, scolding one of her wayward students.

  “You ditched the dog didn‘t you!?” She raised her eyebrows.

  He didn’t blink an eye and refrained from commenting on her expression. “Actually, if you want the real truth, the dog is taken care of. It’s got a warm bed, food and a place to stay for now. I wasn’t going to call and have it hauled off at this hour. And as for me, look again. You already saw,” he held up his muscular forearm. “Not a scratch. The dog was hurt more than I was.”

  She stared at him for a minute before finally nodding and looking convinced. She sighed and suddenly felt stupid. He had, after all saved them getting mauled. Although if the dog hadn’t torn him up, perhaps it wouldn’t have torn them up either. She doubted that, despite the evidence. Maybe it was the angle from which he’d taken the bite? Then again, maybe the dog really had just bitten itself instead.

  She sighed. Stupid to sit here trying to figure it out. It was over and done with.

  “I’m sorry. I guess I shouldn’t be giving you the third degree after what you did for us. Thank you again. I really mean it.”

  She smiled. “The band is going on break and I need to go find Sasha. Will you still be here when we get back for the next set?”

  “Yeah, if you’re coming back to this spot, then maybe I’ll be here,” he said playfully.

  “Okay then. Maybe I’ll be back,” she smiled, raising one eyebrow smugly.

  She brushed past him and he couldn’t help but drink in the smell of her perfume and the curve of her body as she walked by.

  Samson watched her disappear into the crowd.

  There was no maybe about it. He would definitely be seeing her again before the night was over. He knew it as sure as he was standing there and he smiled to himself before he turned and walked to the stairs to check out the balcony bar and seating.

  C HAPTER TWO

  He grabbed a cold beer and miraculously found an empty seat on one of the crushed velvet couches perched near the high railed balcony.

  His mind drifted back to the past several hours when he’d fully come to life, naked and freezing as he’d climbed down from his perch, just as he’d done so many times before. And as always, before he’d gone into his hard, stone-cold trance of the ages, he’d been of good sense enough to take the time to make sure his clothes and immediate necessities were buried close by under a loose stone in the mausoleum.

  He had prayed the precious items would remain untouched in the fire and weather-safe box, and was relieved beyond measure to find that it was indeed intact when he climbed down and he pulled forth his clothes; a long sleeved button-down shirt, some jeans and a long black leather duster and a pair of black boots.

  He hoped that would not be too out of style when he awoke, as had happened a few times to him in past Awakenings. Then again he didn’t really give a damned. Sure, he wasn’t going to go prancing around in breeches and a linen tunic as was the style in past centuries, but in recent ones, he pretty much wore what he liked and that was that, no matter what decade. His jeans, leather jackets and boots went with him everywhere. It was a simple and functional way to dress that he’d picked up in the past century and lucky for him, it was so far, a classic that hadn’t gone out of style.

  He’d also planned ahead and set aside a wallet, forged papers with the correct dates and other information he‘d need to get a drivers license and passport. And then there was the substantial stash of countless hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings bonds, gold coins, jewels and cash buried in several different graves around the graveyard.

  Though he’d enjoyed the life of a land baron’s son during his days as a human, none of that mattered once the Change took him and he’d Awakened to find his family dead and gone, with no way to lay claim to any of what should have been his. How on earth could he have reappeared, having not aged, claiming to be the long lost son of Lord Charles Bellmaine and not be hauled away to the gallows or burned at the stake? Not that he’d have minded so much, but back then, he hadn’t learned all the implications of his curse, including the part about not being able to die.

  And so, after some hard knocks he’d learned how to make his way via his wits….less often through true labor, and more often by winning large sums of gold at gambling…and sometimes a little highway robbery in past centuries. No matter the means, he was now a very wealthy man due to some smart moves on his part in taking up with an antiques dealer two Awakenings ago, through whom he sold some of his oldest coins and jewelry to collectors who’d paid hefty prices for the rare, one of a kind pieces. And on top of all that, he still had some coins and pieces that would be priceless in the market of this century. Money was not a problem. However, making sure it was buried in a safe place so he could get ahold of it when he woke up was.

  Yeah, he could have opened safe deposit boxes and such, but it was already a royal pain in the ass just getting together enough paperwork for a drivers license and any other identification and paperwork he’d need to survive, much less showing up at a bank to get access to an account that hadn’t been touched in fifty years with no explanation, and no relatives they could call to check if they had questions. Furthermore, what if for some reason the bank closed, changed location or name? How would he find it? He felt it was safer to just bury the bonds, money and any other collectibles in lead-plated fireproof boxes in a place where no one would touch it. Like a graveyard. Who, after all, would risk felony charges to disturb the remains of the dead? Likely no one, except himself…already worse off than dead anyway by his own estimation. And so, as always he would go cash in his bonds and get plenty of currently dated money together to spend during his Awakening, and then buy up more bonds and stash more cash before the Change came for him the next time around.

  So far this system had worked out very well. US savings bonds never lost their value and he could easily say his grandfather had left them for him in a will. Since they were in his name…no further questions were asked. He just had to go to different banks to cash more than a grand at a time.

  And cash…well, that was never much of a problem. In many cases whoever he’d bought goods from…at least in the past, hadn’t even bothered to look at the money he handed them because there was usually still paper money and coins from previous decades floating around anyway.

  He looked around him, drinking in the sights, sounds and colors as his muscles and body became fully functional in the night air. He inhaled deeply, lost in the feel of air moving in and out of his lungs.

  Once he was dressed, it was time to hit the road and find out what the world was like in this new millennium. Already he could see how much the cars, the buildings, the clothes and styles had changed. He marveled at the technological wonders he saw in a shop window along the city route he walked. There were television sets of all sizes on small, flat looking screens. People spoke on miniature phone- like devices that required no wires or attachments of any kind! How could this be? Restaurants, stores and high rises everywhere all around in the city.

  He wondered where the nearest pub or bar was, hoping beer and alcohol was still available and a good meal. Ah, sweet mother of Christ, to taste food again. His mouth watered and he walked down the sidewalk as he got into the downtown area. There was a place called Chico’s Grill…just what he was looking for.

  He walked inside, was offered a table, quickly sat down and ordered a beer and a sandwich. He marveled at the prices of the items listed on the menu. $12.95 for a sandwich and a beer? Back in 1961 that would take quite a chunk out of a normal man’s weekly wages, he t
hought. But then again, maybe in this day and age people made much more money. Was everyone wealthy? He’d find out soon enough he wagered.

  He inhaled the roast beef and swiss, and savored the taste of the beer as if it were sweet manna from Heaven. Never as good as his beloved English ale, but it would do. God, but it had been so long since he’d known such sweet sensations as taste and touch. And before the dawn, he would revel in and remember many more!

  He asked for and paid his bill, leaving a generous tip for the waitress, then walked out and looked around for his next stop. A store? Nah. A bar with loose women and some pool tables might be good. Or a nightclub with some kind of music.

  He stopped a passerby walking on the well-lit street….in fact there were many headed in the same direction towards some location a few blocks up that he couldn’t quite make out from where he stood.

  “Hey! Where’s a good place to go on a night like this?” he asked a young man who looked like something out of a bad alien movie from the era of his last Awakening. His hair was spiked and had two or three different colors. He had several metal rings coming out of his face too.

  What the hell IS that? Samson wondered to himself trying not to stare since there were others that looked like that walking by and it must be commonplace these days.

  The guy shrugged and said, “We’re headed up to Velvet. Vendetta’s playing tonight.”

  “Who’s Vendetta?” Samson asked.

  The guy looked at him like he was insane. “What? Are you from another planet, dude?”

  “Nah….I’m just from out of town.” Samson replied. “Oh. Well, Vendetta’s regional. Anyway, they kill it,

  man. Come down there and check it out.” the young alien- looking creature replied.

  “Yeah, dude. I will,” he said. It must be the current slang. It always proved quite the adventure keeping up with the language changes, especially here in America. He’d lost his heavy Welsh accent a few Awakenings back, simply by copying what he heard. It hadn’t been easy and sometimes he still struggled with it, but somehow he managed to get by.