Damn! With phone in hand, Roman watched Grace drive off. He waited until she was out of sight before continuing his conversation with Levi, head of the Elder Council, informing him of the Father Darius sighting at the club.
“Thanks for the head’s up. I’ll see what I can do on this end. Keep us updated. I’ll be in touch. You do the same,” Levi said.
“I will.” Immediately, after hanging up, Roman’s cell rang again. Alex’s name showed on the screen. “Yeah.”
“You better get your ass back here ASAP,” Alex said. “There’s a meeting.”
Being summoned back to the Ortega Research Institute usually meant vampire hunters were spotted in the area. “I’m on my way,” he said and ended the call.
Normally, Roman craved a good battle and welcomed a chance to slay the slayers.
But not tonight. Tonight was different. Tonight he’d met Grace. The most desirable mortal female he’d come across in a long time. She smelled of sweet jasmine and apple pie. And her kisses tasted even better.
Blondes had never appealed to him before. Totally not his type, yet he found her intriguing and he couldn’t deny the chemistry between them. Or how fervently and naturally his body responded to hers. He wanted her, right then, right there, in the club’s parking lot.
But he had responsibilities. Responsibilities that took him away from her. He narrowed his eyes, pounded his palms on the dash, and cursed.
After the long drive from the club, he drove to the institute, punched his code onto the keypad, entered the parking lot, and pulled into his assigned space. He raced toward the laboratory wing of the building, swiped his keycard in the card reader, and pushed open the door. In the hallway, Alex was waiting, leaning against the wall, cell phone in hand.
“Who died?” Roman growled.
Alex pocketed his phone. “What took you so long? We’ve been back about a half an hour.”
“What’d you do with your ladies? Slow down and drop-kick them to the curb?” He followed Alex down the hallway.
“Hardly.” He chuckled and shook his head. “Actually, Doc called and told us to get back ASAP.”
Doctor Riley Peters, Crawford’s assistant, was a straight shooter, a reliable confidant, someone Roman and his team trusted completely.
“Are the test results back?” Roman’s heart thumped.
Alex shrugged. “He wouldn’t say. Only that Crawford wanted to talk to everyone at the same time.”
Learning it was Doc who’d been behind him being called away from Grace, Roman’s mood switched from anger to curiosity and concern. “Is it bad news?”
“We’re thinking it’s about the program,” Alex answered as they strode shoulder-to-shoulder down the long, stark hallway. “With all the blood work we’ve had done lately, I’m beginning to feel like a damn pin cushion.”
“One way or another, I’ll find out what’s going on. So don’t you worry your pretty little head about it.” He tousled Alex’s long, black hair.
Alex batted Roman’s hand away. “Asshole. About tonight—”
“I lost track of time.” Even though it was the truth, somehow, even to him, the excuse sounded lame.
“When you weren’t with us, Doc started asking questions.”
Roman narrowed his eyes. “What did you tell him?”
Rounding the corner, he glanced at the security camera near the ceiling, blinking at him, reminding him of its presence.
Alex pulled Roman away from the camera’s eye. “You lucked out this time.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “I played dumb for the first few minutes, but then I had to make up some dumbass excuse about you needing to gas up.”
“He believed you?”
“Seemed to.”
Roman stopped in front of a closed door. “Thanks. I owe you big time.” He clapped Alex on his back.
“I sure hope she’s worth it.”
“She is.”
He pushed the door open and Alex followed him into the lounge which doubled as their living quarters. The lights were turned down. A sixty-plus inch plasma television covered most of the wall to the right. A row of four plush, crimson-colored recliners faced the screen. The recliners nearest the door belonged to Roman and Alex. Gabriel and Seth sat at the far end.
Playing on the large screen was one of their favorite vampire DVDs, Forty Days of Night.
Roman checked the empty, darkened laboratory to his right. At his insistence, whenever he was present, the door to the lab was kept open so he could keep an eye on what went on inside.
Gabriel switched his gaze from the movie to Roman. “We thought you were going to be a no-show.”
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
Seth muted the television. He jumped up and faced Roman. “You know you can’t miss any of the treatments or they won’t work.”
“You worry too much, Seth,” Roman said
“No shit,” Gabriel snapped, one of the few times the two were in agreement.
Roman pulled off his leather jacket and tossed it on the long, brown suede sofa to his left. He kicked off his boots and made himself comfortable on his recliner. His stomach growled. Alex eased into the recliner to Roman’s immediate left.
“Sit down, Seth, and take a load off.” Roman stretched and yawned.
Seth did as instructed and lowered himself back into his chair. He un-muted the television and immediately became engrossed in one of the movie’s graphic bloodbaths.
“I’m fucking starving, man.” Gabriel sat up, clutching the armrests. “This depending on others is bullshit.”
Their early morning meal hadn’t yet arrived. And empty bellies made it impossible to fall asleep. It was bedtime. They were tired. They were hungry. They needed to feed.
Footsteps echoed from the laboratory next door. Inside, someone turned on the light and started rummaging around.
From his vantage point, Roman craned his neck to get a look at who had entered the lab. “It’s Crawford. It won’t be long now.” He leaned further in his recliner to watch the doctor mix the formula.
Crawford stood at the stainless steel counter, pouring red liquid into a large metal pitcher. He stirred the solution, poured it into four metal tumblers, screwed lids on each, and lined them up on a metal cart.
He pushed the squeaky-wheeled cart into the lounge, and stopped in front of the recliners. Starting from the left—with Roman—Crawford handed each a tumbler.
“Drink up, gentlemen,” he said and picked up a clipboard. “Good news. Installation of the new fencing is now complete and will provide even greater security than before. We’ve also installed additional cameras in the rear of the building and the parking lot.”
Doc Peters entered the lounge. A head taller, much younger, and with twice as much hair as his boss, he greeted everyone before making a beeline to Roman.
He crouched next to Roman’s recliner. “Just a heads up. The exact time you returned and the fact you were alone when you finally decided to show up, did not go unnoticed.”
“Thanks for the warning. But something came up that required my attention.”
Crawford cleared his throat, signaling Doc to join him in front of the group. “I want to start out by reporting that the formula’s success has exceeded our expectations.” He nodded to Peters. “Since it’s your creation, would you make the announcement?”
“I’d be honored.” Doc sucked in a deep breath. “Since beginning the program, we’ve noticed several physical changes. Most notably, the ability to tolerate daylight and your cravings for food.” His voice elevated with excitement. “Naturally, we attributed these changes to your being weaned from real blood to the formula.”
Roman’s heart pounded, pumping hope for normalcy into his 230 year-old body.
“At first, we couldn’t believe it.” Doc began pacing. “So, to confirm our suspicions, we ordered more blood work.” A broad grin spread across his face. “And we were amazed to discover your blood had taken on human characteristics. In each of you, vampirism is diminishing. We’ve been unable to determine how or why this is happening, but we suspect you’re becoming—”
“Human,” Crawford said, finishing the sentence.
Silence and hope sucked the air out of the lounge.
Had Roman heard correctly? “Run that by us again?”
“By some miracle,” Doc explained, “it appears you are becoming living, breathing human beings. To verify…we need to run further tests.”
“That’s impossible,” Gabriel argued.
The announcement wasn’t a total surprise to Roman, he’d started noticing subtle physical changes in himself. At first, he didn’t dare believe what his body told him or led him to believe. A lump formed in his throat. Had God given them a second chance at a normal life? If the miraculous results were true, the vampires he’d moved out of the area to keep them safe could return to their homes in Orange County. The danger of anaphylactic shock destroying them would no longer be a concern. Their days of feeding on animal blood would be over and the hope of reclaiming their lost humanity would begin.
Crawford flipped to another page on the clipboard. “Going forward, we’ll be monitoring each of you more closely while we continue testing the formula. But the biggest kudos belong to Seth. Were it not for his constant nagging to create a more natural tasting formula, along with his complaints about the bitter aftertaste, we might never have discovered this miracle. His unrelenting protests were what drove us to improve the flavor, which in turn, perfected the formula. And so, you have Seth’s refined palate to thank for your emerging humanity.
“Yeah, the old stuff tasted stale,” Seth noted, shivering. “You know the old saying, ‘Nothing tastes better than fresh.’”
Gabriel lifted his tumbler. “To Seth.”
Roman and Alex did likewise and repeated, in unison, “To Seth.”
After toasting Seth, they drained their tumblers.
Crawford checked the large clock above the door. “I’m sure you have plenty of questions, but please hold them until Peters and I have more time to address your concerns. In the meantime, get a good day’s sleep and I’ll be back again this evening.”
On his way out the door, Crawford flipped a switch on the wall and dimmed the lights. He made a hasty exit, followed by Doc Peters.
Roman couldn’t believe his good fortune. He was becoming human. That would explain why human food started smelling less repugnant. Why he longed for a mortal female’s companionship. Were his dreams of finding true love finally becoming a reality?
While his team quietly discussed the possibility of becoming mortal, his thoughts returned to Grace. Being human would solve a major problem by eliminating the need to hide his vampirism from her. He smiled. How he loved the sound of her name. Grace.
The morning sun peeked in through the window blinds. Warmth from the outdoors drifted into the lounge. Sleep would come soon. And when evening came, he would wake up and visit her at the club. If he were very lucky, he’d hold her, kiss her, and taste her. His eyelids closed and he drifted off. Hopefully, to sleep and dream of Grace.