The Murders that Bind Us [S. Sakamaki]

The Vampire's Rage

"Is this the right place?" Murmured Jessamine as she trekked through the wooded area, grasping the diary in her dirty hands. She'd left her cane behind, since she had gone on this adventure as Jessamine and not 'Jensen'. Her brown skirt was dirty from where she'd slipped in the wet mud.

She was wandering in the twilight hours, searching aimlessly for Sheila Tanks' treasure. Jess was desperate for a lead in the case. She and Shu were meant to explore this tomorrow… but after their dinner together (which ended with her hauling the drunken man up to his room), she'd decided she had tired of his arrogance… and stupidity.

Part of her wished to tell the Sakamaki that she was, in fact, a woman… but she was waiting. She wanted to solve this case and to catch that monster to prove to him that a woman could do a man's job. She was so determined that she couldn't wait. And this was why she, a young woman, was alone in the woods in the pitch black night.

Luckily, her leg hadn't been hurting as much today, until she'd stumbled in the mud that was. Her lips pursed as she stepped over a large log, head whipping around to make sure she hadn't been followed.

She wasn't a Fae. She told herself that much. The Queen must have been deceiving her. Fae Queens weren't to be trusted at all; that was common knowledge. Besides, if she were truly Fae, she would have been considered beautiful. No man - other than Shu who made frequent comments on Jensen's 'sister' - had shown an interest in her. Of course, she never cared. Jessamine had her work to focus on… and the thought of marrying and settling down scared her. She preferred her freedom.

Besides, Fae could cast glamours. And even if there had been a slight chance that Jessamine were Fae, she wouldn't have been one of those pretty ones with the pointy ears. She would have been one of those faeries with tree bark for skin - just like her grandmother. The Fae Queen had obviously underestimated Jessamine; she would use that to her advantage.

A twig snapped and goosebumps raised on her skin, sending tremors of terror throughout her veins as she looked around anxiously. She closed the diary, slipping it into the satchel she carried before crouching slowly, unsheathing a rugged dagger from her boot.

Another twig snapped. Behind her.

She spun, not pausing to think as she plunged the metal knife into her stalker's heart.

Shu Sakamaki only raised an eyebrow, the corner of his lips lifting up as his icy hand wrapped around Jessamine's wrist. "Hello, Dearest." His voice was low, a gravelly whisper as his blue eyes glinted beneath the moonlight. "What's a lovely maiden doing out at night with a serial killer on the loose?"

"Are you going to kill me?" She whispered weakly, wide eyes dropping to the dagger in Shu's chest. "Are you okay?"

"Had the blade been silver, I would have died," he shrugged, letting go of her wrist and removing the dagger slowly. His blood squirted onto her face, causing her skin to pale as she watched the wound stitch itself together.

"Is that ability not a bit too overpowering?" She asked, "A little unfair to us humans, I must say."

"And yet your kind still managed to slaughter thousands of mine many centuries ago."

She squeaked as his hand caressed her cheek, grabbing her chin and tugging her forward. She stumbled, hands hitting his chest to steady herself as he smirked. "And to answer your humorous question: you are too much of a divine being for me to kill… also your brother might murder me had I ever laid hands on you."

"Your hands are on me right now."

"Oh," he pulled away, his smirk never leaving, "so they were."

A few moments of silence passed and Jessamine was lost in her thoughts. Hadn't Sakamaki passed out from too much liquor? Had she hauled him up those stairs for nothing? The woman scowled to herself as she looked through the towering trees, a sudden sense of eeriness washing her.

"How long were you following me?"

"Well, I was looking for your brother," Shu said, "but he wasn't at home, so I followed his scent and found you… oddly enough." The woman wanted to smack the vampire for being so dumb.

"Strange," said Jessamine, "Jensen said he had to haul you up the stairs - said you were completely and utterly wasted."

"Your brother is quite adorable when he's flustered." Shu replied with a twinkle in his eye, watching as her cheeks burned a dark red. "What are you doing out here?"

Should she lie or tell the truth?

"I couldn't sleep."

"Are you a Fae too?"

"Huh?"

"Well, your brother is Fae - one of the High Fae too." Shu sat himself on a log, dusting it off and watching as Jessamine hesitantly sat beside him.

"He wouldn't be a High Fae," she said, plucking some leaves from the forest floor, "woodland faerie at most. That's what our grandmother was."

"I saw it."

"How?" She pressed her lips into a thin line.

"In the faerie realm," Shu said with a smug smirk.

"Ah, yes, the realm most famous for its devious glamours." Jessamine snorted and Shu frowned at her statement.

"I hate that you might be correct."

"Why is that?" Because she was a woman, most likely.

"Because I hate to be wrong."

They spent the next hour idly chatting and Shu had earned a few laughs from Jessamine with some of his stories. "You cannot tell your brother that one."

"I think he'd be amused to know that you spent the entire dinner party smothered in strawberry trifles on your face." Shu smiled gently.

"Your brother is… extraordinary," he said after a while, "I've never been so fascinated by a human before."

"Is that such a bad thing?" Jessamine's heart was pounding at Shu's sudden confession.

"Yes."

"Why is that?"

"Everyone I get close to dies one way or another."

"Amabelle's death wasn't your fault."

"How do you know about that?"

Shu had switched from calm and relaxed to harsh and tense as he narrowed his eyes at Jessamine. "I should head back…" She murmured, standing up with a wince and taking a few steps forward. Shu was quick to grab her, throwing her to the floor and pinning her down with his hands.

"How much did he tell you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about-" She cried out in pain as he lowered his head, biting harshly into her skin. Tears rolled down her cheeks as the pain shot through her, making her head spin. "I swear," she whispered, "he didn't tell me anything."

When Shu pulled away, her blood was dripping from her lips, landing on her tear-soaked face. He grasped her neck with his hand next, squeezing it tight. "Don't lie to me, human."

"I swear!" She choked out, thrashing against him as his grip tightened.

"I could kill you right now," he hissed at her, any sign of kindness had vanished from his face.

"Eavesdropping!" She cried and his hand released her. She caressed her neck, coughing violently as he climbed off her.

"Vile woman." He spat, kicking her abdomen hard as he sauntered past, hands in his pockets.

Jessamine didn't move from the forest floor until the sun had risen. Her body was aching and she'd been lightheaded from his sudden attack. For the first time ever, Jessamine was truly terrified of Shu Sakamaki.