A Fall of Water by Elizabeth Hunter
“I’m going to keep beating you up until you get this,” Tenzin said as she punched his shoulder. “You’re horrible today. Very distracted.”
“Hey.” He scowled and threw up an arm, instinctively blocking the strike she aimed at his face. “Can we take a break and watch them already? It’s kinda hard to concentrate.”
“What? Them?” Tenzin glanced over her shoulder at Baojia and Beatrice as they practiced with the new swords that Baojia had brought. Ben snuck in a quick jab to her knee while she was turned.
Tenzin’s leg buckled and she looked back with a smile. “Good. Opportunistic is good. Fine, we can watch them for a while. I’d better make sure that vampire doesn’t slice her up before Gio gets here anyway.”
Tenzin walked over to the wall opposite the weapons training area in the industrial building. When she’d moved to Los Angeles, she had bought the nondescript complex off Allen Avenue and gutted it, turning the majority of the large area into her own personal training studio. She had shipped many of her own weapons over from somewhere in China, and now Giovanni, Beatrice, Tenzin, Ben, and currently, Baojia, used the large space to work out and train.
Beatrice and Baojia were sparring in the corner, Beatrice using the curved dao she usually trained with, while Baojia used the twin blades of the shuang gou he had brought to introduce into her training regimen.
“Why isn’t she using them?” Ben asked. “I thought she was supposed to be learning.”
“Watch and learn. He’s showing her how to defend herself against them before he teaches her how to attack. Watching Baojia use them will be the most effective way for her to learn.”
The longer Ben watched, the more he could see the wisdom of it. Initially, Beatrice was cautious, weaving and ducking away from the other vampire, darting in occasionally with a quick thrust of her saber, but mostly, dancing around him. He saw Baojia hook the swords together in one swift movement, sweeping the blades over his head and then down toward Beatrice’s legs as she jumped to escape the broad reach of the wicked edge. He swung them around like a chain or rope, and the double-sided blades cut through the air, lethal from all angles as they sought their target.
Ben frowned. “He wouldn’t actually hurt her, would he?”
Tenzin only shrugged. “He won’t cut her head off. He’s more careful than that. If he slices her up a bit, well... that’s just part of training.”
Ben had a feeling that his uncle might have a distinctly different attitude about the whole matter, but that was probably why Giovanni rarely joined them when Beatrice was fighting. As cultured and calm as his uncle usually was, Ben had witnessed his rare fury once when he thought Tenzin had attacked his wife too fiercely. The flames from his outburst had singed the hair off Ben’s forearms from ten feet away. Beatrice was furious, but Giovanni only snarled and told Ben to run faster next time.
Secretly, Ben thought it was the coolest thing he’d ever seen.
“How long will it be before she’s really good with them?”
“Watch her now,” Tenzin murmured. “Watch, boy.”
It irritated Ben that Tenzin always called him “boy,” but he supposed he couldn’t really say anything about it. Even if she only looked a few years older than him, he knew she was the oldest vampire he would probably ever meet. The funny thing about Tenzin was she still acted like a little kid at times. Beatrice said it was because she was so old and didn’t get out in the modern world all that much, but Tenzin was still amazed by weird stuff like TV and cars. She hated cars, but she liked the television. She really loved going to the movies, and she and Ben had fallen into the habit of going to see one at least once a week. She liked 3D pictures the best.
Tenzin reached over and whacked his arm. “Boy, are you watching?”
“My name is Ben,” he grumbled, but turned his attention back to Beatrice and Baojia. He could see what Tenzin meant. Beatrice was no longer simply reacting to Baojia’s attacks, she was now actively attacking him, spotting tiny opportunities to throw the other vampire off balance, or make his grip on the shuang gou waver.
“Oh, wow,” he whispered as they picked up speed. Soon, both vampires were whirling in an almost sickening blur, whipping around each other, jumping and leaping, while the blades caught the glint from the overhead lights. Finally, Ben had to look away. He was starting to get motion sick from the speed of their movements.
“Ah... ah...” From the corner of his eye, he saw Tenzin lean forward and laugh. Ben chanced a look up, only to see Beatrice standing in front of Baojia. She had taken one of the shuang gou from him and held it, along with her saber, at the other vampire’s neck as he was pressed against the wall.
“And she’s got him,” Tenzin said. She turned to Ben with a grin. “Did you see? She’s very good. No one will stab her again.”
As soon as she said it, he saw the flicker of sadness in her grey eyes. Tenzin quickly looked away as Ben watched the expression drain from her face.
“Nope,” he said, teasing. “That’s my fake aunt, toughest vampire around.”
Tenzin turned back to him with a smirk. “Now, you’re just asking me to beat you up again.”
“What?” he scoffed. “You’re a little girl. What kind of—okay, ow!” Tenzin pounced on Ben and twisted his arm behind his back. “Ow, ow... Tenzin, I was joking.”
“‘Little girl?’ You are an infant.”
“I’m not going to be able to practice if you take my arm off. Ow!” His eyes rolled back until he heard a swift, whooshing sound. Suddenly, her grip loosened.
“Please don’t damage the boy, bird-girl. He whines when he’s in too much pain.”
Ben rolled on his side to see his uncle’s leather dress shoes by his face.
“Hey, Gio.” He looked up at Giovanni’s amused face.
“What did you say to piss her off?”
“I called her a little girl.”
His eyebrow cocked, and Giovanni glanced at Tenzin, who had flown over to speak to Baojia and Beatrice as they were putting the weapons away.
“You’re a brave fool, Benjamin.”
Ben snickered and took the hand his uncle held out. “You should have seen B. She was awesome. She totally beat Baojia with the hook swords.”
“Excellent.” Giovanni smiled. “I am almost sorry I missed it.”
“Yeah? Well, I’m glad I still have all my hair, so thanks for keeping away.”
“What are you doing tonight?”
Ben’s eyes darted away. “Oh... you know, just gonna head home and maybe hang out for a while. I got a history test on Monday. Stupid French Revolution stuff. Nothing major, but...”
“Ben, I can hear your heartbeat; I know you’re lying.”
He huffed. “I’m just... sheesh, man. I don’t ask you what you’re doing every hour of the day.”
“Are you meeting a girl?”
“What?” Ben’s face reddened. “No, I’m not.” This time.
Luckily, Giovanni must have decided that Ben was lying about his true intentions because he just grunted and leaned toward the boy. “Be careful. Be respectful. That’s all I require. And be in your bed by morning.”
“I’m not—never mind.” Let him think he was going out to meet Heather or Brianna. Ben walked over and picked up a towel, wiping the sweat from his forehead before he walked to the small locker room to wash up. “Whatever. I’ll see you guys later.”
Ben showered, grabbed his helmet, and walked out to his scooter. At fifteen, he was still breaking the law by riding it, but Giovanni and Beatrice both turned a blind eye since their schedules and his were so screwy, and Caspar was getting older. Besides, Ben just felt weird making Caspar drive him around when he was perfectly capable of doing it himself. With his height and his deep voice, Ben had never attracted attention riding the stripped-down Honda Ruckus, and he always kept it on surface streets. He couldn’t wait till he was sixteen, and he could finally get Beatrice’s old motorcycle.
Ben made a show of riding off, onl
Still, he waited.
Ben didn’t know why, but recently, the idea of how Beatrice and Giovanni were feeding was starting to bug him. Did they feed on random strangers? Criminals? He was starting to entertain crazy notions of them stalking gang members in dark alleys like modern day superheroes, and he knew he was being ridiculous. He felt awkward asking, so he decided that the easiest way to find out would be to trail them when they went out. It was Friday night, and he knew they would feed, because both of them always looked flushed on Saturday, and Beatrice usually slept a little during the day, which she rarely needed to do.
Ben waited in the shadows until he saw them walk out, hand in hand. They were on foot, so he left his scooter in the alley and prayed that no one would bother it. He followed behind them as they turned the corner and headed toward a clutch of storefronts. They must have walked a mile, both of them strolling at a human pace, chatting and laughing together like any other couple out for a date. Beatrice had her hand tucked around Giovanni’s waist, and his hand occasionally reached up to play with the ends of her hair. Ben envied the easy love he saw between them and wondered if he would ever find someone that loved him like that.
No matter, he thought with a grin. There was plenty of time for that and plenty of interested girls in the meantime.
Ben saw them turn a corner and walk toward a bar where a loud group of what looked like college kids gathered on the patio outside, drinking and smoking. They paused across the street, then looked at each other. Giovanni gave Beatrice a small nod, and they crossed the road.
“What are you doing?”
Ben almost fell over when he heard the voice at his ear.
“Dammit, Tenzin!” he gasped and spun around. “You scared me to death!”
“Why are you following your aunt and uncle?”
“I’m... not. I’m not following them. I’m just...” He cleared his throat and stared into her skeptical grey eyes.
She looked across the street, then back at him. “Yes, you are. And you are a bad liar.”
“You know, I’m actually a really good liar unless I’m talking to a vampire who can hear my heartbeat.”
She shrugged. “Well, it’s too bad that half of your family are vampires then. Why are you following Gio and B?”
“I’m just... I was just... worried.”
“About?”
“Them. You know, with all the danger and... stuff.” He was flailing. Ben could charm his way out of practically any situation imaginable. He could charm the harshest teacher at school with a flash of his smile. He could get any of the girls to do his boring homework for him by batting his long, dark lashes, but Tenzin...
He sighed. Tenzin was uncharmable.
She waited, standing with preternatural stillness that seemed to wrench the truth from his gut.
“I’m just curious, all right?”
“About?”
“How they... you know...”
She furrowed her brows. “Are you one of those strange boys who likes to watch people do personal things? A ‘Peeping Tim?’”
“Tom! It’s ‘Peeping Tom,’ Tenzin.”
“Oh, and you are one of them?” She didn’t look disgusted, just curious as she cocked her head to the side.
“No!”
“Then why are you following them?”
“I’m just curious about... the eating thing.”
“About what?”
Ben flushed to the roots of his hair. “The eating—feeding thing, you know? Who do they eat from? What do they... I mean, do they kill people? Do they... I don’t know!”
She scowled. “They don’t kill people. Why do you think they kill people?”
“I don’t think they kill people.”
“But you just said—”
“I’m just curious, okay?”
“So why don’t you ask them?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. It just seems rude.”
Tenzin curled her lip. “It’s rude to ask them, but following them is not? You are a very odd boy.”
“I’m not—”
“Come on.” She waved at him and started walking back down the street. “I’ll walk back to your bicycle with you.”
He frowned and started to follow her. “It’s not a bicycle, Tenzin.”
“It has two wheels, doesn’t it? Bi. Cycle.”
“You’re so weird.”
“I’m not the one following my aunt and uncle and being a Peeping Tim.”
“Tom.”
“Who?”
Ben reached over to tug at a chunk of her dark hair. “Never mind.”
“Is he gone?” Beatrice sipped a glass of wine and peeked at Giovanni from the corner of her eye as he sat across from her at the small table.
“Yes, she grabbed him. They’re walking back to the warehouse now.”
“Why do you think he was he following us?”
Giovanni shrugged and picked up the glass of Jameson she had ordered for him. “I heard him asking Caspar—in what he probably thought was a subtle way—about what we’re eating. He’s probably curious. He knows we’re not feeding from bagged blood anymore. Do you think he’s worried we’re draining the innocent and wreaking havoc on Southern California?”
Beatrice snorted. “Well, will you have a talk with him tomorrow, so we don’t have a repeat of this?”
Giovanni curled his lip, but nodded. “I avoided the sex talk, so I suppose it’s only fair.”
She looked at her mate, amused by the uncomfortable expression on his face. It was the oddest things that seemed to be an issue for him. Teaching Ben how to kill someone silently and with minimal blood spray? No problem. Telling him about sex or feeding? Immediate squirm.
Beatrice laid a comforting hand on his shoulder, but her ears perked up when she heard the booming voice of the college boy at the table next to her. The young man was regaling his friends with some highly unlikely sexual exploit. He was also, apparently, familiar with a surprising number of professional athletes, Hollywood starlets, and at least one dangerous African warlord.
Her eyes lit up, and she looked at Giovanni. “Go ahead,” he said with a smile. “He’s your favorite flavor.”
She grinned. “I do love the sweet taste of bragging liar.”
Her husband chuckled, shaking his head and leaning back to watch her work. As soon as the bragging boy went back to the bar, she followed him. He was taking a long draw from his imported beer when Beatrice sidled up to him. His eyes raked over her breasts before he finally looked up to her eyes. She smiled, careful to conceal her fangs.
“Hi, how are you?”
She held him by the neck in the back alley. “And what are you doing in your classes?”
The boy’s dazed eyes swam. “Well... not much.”
“So you’re wasting all the hard-earned money that your parents are putting into your education?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Do you think your mother’s proud of you?”
The drunk boy shook his head sadly. “Probably not.”
“But you’re going to turn over a new leaf, right, Dave?”
“Oh, yeah.” He nodded with a smile. “Totally.”
“Good. Make your parents proud of you.”
“Okay.”
“And the next girlfriend you have, you’re going to be respectful and faithful, right?”
“Right.”
She heard the back door open and felt Giovanni’s energy as he walked toward them.
“Are you being a guidance counselor again? Stop playing with your food.”
She glanced over her shoulder. “I get blood; he gets some good advice.”
“Can’t you just drink him so we can do other, more interesting
“Give me your wrist.”
He lifted his wrist and she grabbed it, turning to stare at her mate as she bared her fangs and struck. She heard the boy give a low sigh of pleasure as she drank from him, but she kept a firm grip on his throat, monitoring his pulse as she locked her eyes with Giovanni’s.
Her mate watched her with hungry eyes, pacing a short distance away, and she saw his fangs grow long in his mouth. His tongue darted out and licked his lips as he watched her drink, and Beatrice knew that she would not be the only one feeding that night. She took a few more deep swallows of the boy’s blood before she sealed the wounds and whispered instructions in his ear, keeping her eyes on Giovanni the whole time.
The mindless boy wandered back into the bar, and Giovanni waited for the alley door to click before he sprung on her. He shoved Beatrice up against the wall, pushing her arms over her head as he attacked her mouth. One hand held her wrists against the sharp brick while the other slid down her side, dragging her hips to his as he pushed their bodies together.
Beatrice hissed and bared her fangs, reacting instinctively to his attack. Her hands fought against his iron grip, and she finally worked one free only to reach around and drag Giovanni even closer, pulling at his shirt and digging her fingers into the hot flesh at the small of his back. He whipped her around so that he was leaning against the wall and she climbed his body, locking her thighs around his hips as they moved together.
“Home,” he snarled.
“Here. We’ll hear anyone coming.”
“Fine.” Giovanni grabbed her hair, angling her neck to the side as she gasped. “You listen, I have other things to do.”
Her eyes rolled back when his fangs struck. If anyone interrupted them after that, Beatrice just didn’t notice.
“They’re babies! It doesn’t count!”
“Yes, it does.”
Beatrice frowned when she heard Ben and Tenzin arguing from the living room as she and Giovanni walked through the kitchen door hours later.