Chapter 7

After a few moments, she sighed, "So... You wanted to know what a siren was," her velvety voice was enthralling, and she was making no move to push me away from her.

I simply nodded, unable to speak.

"Um... have you ever watched that movie, Twilight?" She laughed, "With the shiny vampires," She said under her breath.

"Do you shine?!"

She ignored me with an annoyed expression and continued, "Did you read the books?"

I managed to mumble an, "Mhm. I was obsessed with them."

"Well, you know how they explain the way Edward feels when he's around Bella? How her smell is irresistible to him. I believe they call it a singer there, la tua cantante, that's what the Volturi tells Edward. It means your singer. It's a person whose smell stands out over all the others'. And, well... it's true. It tends to drive us, vampires, crazy. The only difference is, in the story, each vampire has a different singer. In real life, a singer is a singer, and all vampires react to the same one. You will eventually realize we have things in common with many books and tv shows; some of these creators have met actual vampires.

"So, you don't shine?"

She sighed and said, "No, but do you want to learn about singers or not?" impatiently.

"We call it that because of the Twilight franchise now," She continued, "Only when it's mild, though, when it's annoying but bearable. A siren is what we call it when it's too strong, and what it's always been called before they started calling weaker ones singers. Only a handful of vampires have the amount of self-control needed to stand before a siren without killing it.

She sighed, "You're a siren, Annabelle."

My breath hitched, and my heart started beating faster, except this time, it was from fear.

"Why," I stammered, "Why a siren? I-- I thought that was some kind of bird-woman or a mermaid."

"It is. In Greek mythology, a siren is a mermaid-like creature whose enchanting music lures sailors to their deaths. Sometimes they are portrayed with wings, but what identifies them is their song. It lures people in, almost hypnotizing them. That's what your smell is like, Annabelle. So alluring and irresistible, most vampire sailors would be drawn to you, hypnotized. The smell of your blood is like a siren's call."

"Except they wouldn't be lured to their deaths, they'd be lured to my death," I said.

"Something like that," She replied nonchalantly.

"Is that why you kidnapped me?"

"Yes. You see, singers and sirens are very useful, their blood is much stronger, and thus makes us much stronger, and the peculiar thing is that if a siren were to be turned into a vampire, it would have some sort of ability, a superpower you might call it. If a vampire drains a siren to death, he or she gains this ability, so we must keep you from falling into the wrong hands."

I took a deep breath, "Well... shit," I said, rolling away from her so I could lie on the bed beside her, "Can't I turn it off? The... siren thing."

"I'm afraid not."

"So... why aren't you killing me right now?"

"I'm stronger than the average vampire. I used to be a siren once myself," She laughed bitterly, "But that was a long time ago."

"Really?" I turned to her, "So... what's your superpower, seducing people to death?"

She burst out laughing, "Oh... God, no... It's not that," She said between laughs.

"Teleportation?"

"No, I just move too fast for the human eye. Any vampire can do that."

"Hypnosis, which you use to seduce people to death?"

She laughed again, "No, Annabelle, it has nothing to do with seduction. That's just you being attracted to me because I'm a vampire. It's a method of catching our prey, my smell is alluring like yours, even though I've never had a human practically jump me, let alone try to kiss me or anything, they just feel the need to be near me."

I narrowed my eyes at her, "I knew you were doing something to me, you sneaky vampire, and here I was, thinking I was gay."

"You are gay."

I gasped, "Am not!"

"Then why did you kiss me?"

"You just said it! I... you... your smell lured me in!"

"I never said it causes sexual impulses."

"Oh, shut up, yes, it does. Anyway, why did you kiss me?"

"I'm bisexual. Most vampires as old as me are. Do you have any idea how boring sex with the same gender gets over time? Not that sex is ever boring, but--"

"Oh, will you quit talking about sex!"

"Did you know Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, said that humans are naturally bisexual, it's society that pushes them toward a specific gender. Well, it's true. When you become a vampire, you become more in touch with your spirit, and spirits have no gender. I can fuck whoever I want. "

"You mean spirits as in souls or dead people?" I asked.

"Both."

How would you kno-- "I was about to say 'know' when she cut me off.

"I see dead people."

I gasped, "Oh my God, is that your ability?"

"No, all vampires learn to see dead people over time, as they get more in touch with their spiritual side."

"Well, I give up! What is your ability?"

"I'm an empath."

"And that is? "

"Unlike human empaths who absorb emotions, I absorb the powers of those around me. I can also know what a siren's ability is even before they turn into a vampire."

"That is so awesome! Do you know what my power is?"

She laughed at my excitement, "I think that's enough for today."

"Aww, come on, tell me, please," I pouted at her, and she responded by kissing my bottom lip.

"You need a change of clothes and a shower."

I glared at her, "Are you saying I stink?"

She smirked, "No, not at all. In fact, you smell... edible," She replied, sounding amused.

She looked at me with a crooked smile and licked her lips. A shiver ran down my spine, "Don't do that."

She laughed, "Come on, I'll take you to my room so you can shower."

"Won't there be other vampires out there?"

"No, we're in a separate wing, just for people like you."

"You mean kidnapped people."

"Singers and sirens."

"Fine," I started walking towards the door, "Wait, what about your room? Is that in a separate wing too?"

"Yes, the royal chambers are separate, now come on."

"Royal... what?"

She suddenly looked like a little kid caught red-handed, "Um... Nothing."

"No, no, you said royal, are you, like... vampire royalty?"

"Forget I ever said that now come on."

"I can't forget it! You said royal chambers!"

"Fine, I'm a princess. Now drop the subject and follow me."

I just stood there with my eyes wide open. All of this was too much to take in.

She waved a hand in front of my face, "Hello? You in there?"

"Um, yes. Sorry your majesty," I giggled, feeling high around the vampire princess.

"Oh, quit it! You're not going to let me live this one down, are you?"

"Nope," I said, popping the 'p.'

She grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the room, down a long hallway.

"Ow, let go of my arm. I am perfectly capable of following you," I protested.

"Fine, just don't try anything stupid. If you run away, I'll catch you. And don't you dare enter any room, you don't know what you might find there."

"Okay, okay, jeez, I thought princesses were supposed to be sweet and delicate."

She glared at me, "I said, drop it."

After a while of walking down that fancy looking hallway, Stella stopped and sighed, "You are awfully slow," She said.

"Oh, well, excuse me for not having the ability to move at the speed of light."

She turned to me with a maleficent smile, "That gives me an idea."

Before I could say anything, she picked me up, and I felt a rush as the wind fly past my face. My insides felt weightless, as they do when you're in a roller coaster, and the car takes that first plunge.

We stopped in front of a fancy doorway, and she put me down, supporting me so I wouldn't fall from my sudden jelly legs.

When I regained my composure, I turned to glare at her, a mix of anger and confusion seething within me, "Don't. You. Ever. Do that again."

"Sorry, I'm a princess, I don't take orders from anyone."

"Not my princess, you're not the boss of me."

"I'm afraid that when you're in my castle, I am the boss of you."

Before I could make a comment about being in a castle, she pushed me inside her room, and if I had been a cartoon, my jaw would have hit the ground. It was amazing. It was huge and exquisitely decorated, with a huge bed on the back, and a huge flat-screen TV in front of the bed. It looked strangely hip and modern, not at all what I would have expected from an old vampire.

"The bathroom is over there. Use the shower, not the Jacuzzi."

When I walked into the bathroom, I was even more amazed than when I saw her room.

There was a colossal Jacuzzi right next to a window with a beautiful view. We must've been at least on the fifth floor from what I saw, and there were no houses anywhere near the castle, just grassland. There was a waterproof flat screen in front of the Jacuzzi. On the other side of the bathroom were a granite counter with three sinks, and a walk-in glass shower.

I stripped down and stepped into the shower, realizing that this was one of those showers that shoots water from all sides when I turned the water on.

And, boy, did this girl have all sorts of body washes and hair products.

I picked a lavender-scented body wash, and the first shampoo and conditioner I saw. I didn't really have to worry much about my hair. It was easy to manage and dried straight. When I was done, I walked out to see some clothes hanging from a hook on the door.

They were simple skinny jeans and a cute top with a pair of pretty sandals. She had left a hairbrush on the sink, and a toothbrush with a note that read, "They're both yours."

I brushed my teeth and my hair, feeling refreshed as I walked out of the bathroom. I found Stella sitting on a modern-looking leather sofa, watching TV. I laughed when I realized she was watching 'That 70's Show'.

"Ashton Kutcher is so cute in that show," I said.

"Oh yeah, he's a vampire," She replied as if she were saying the world's most normal thing.

"What?!"

"Come on, seriously, haven't you ever realized he doesn't age?"

"Oh my God, you're right. He always looks the same."

"Exactly," She replied.

"So, what is he going to do when people start noticing he won't get older?"

"Wear make-up, or fake his own death, like Heath Ledger."

"Heath Ledger is a vampire?! And he's alive?!"

She turned to me and smirked, "Oh, yeah, I dated him once, before he was famous."

"Bullcrap."

"No, it's true, I swear."

At that moment, I didn't care about being kidnapped for some strange reason, only talking to this mysterious vampire girl, "OHMYGOODNESS! Is he a good kisser?"

She laughed, "I guess. Not as good as you are, though."

My face must have looked like a tomato at that point.

She giggled, "You look cute when you blush. And you look even better in my pants, no pun intended."

I narrowed my eyes at her, "Ha-ha. You're too funny." I said sarcastically. I then took a deep breath, "So..." I said, "Before when I heard you arguing with your brother, he um--"

"He said you were his." She finished for me, visibly tense.

"Yes. What did he mean by that?"

"He was sort of the one who found you, so he claimed you as his. He wants you to be his, um, human consort."

She noticed my apparent confusion and said, "Blood donor, basically."

I widened my eyes in horror, "And what if I don't want to?"

"I'm afraid you have no choice." She said tenderly, looking like she genuinely felt bad for me.

I plopped myself down on the sofa next to her and rested my head on her lap, "What if I'd rather be yours?" I said softly.

She looked at me strangely, almost with awe, "I guess we could do something about that." She said as she moved me away from her lap, pinning me down, so I was lying on the sofa under her.

"Please," I was slightly out of breath because her body was pressed to mine.

She started kissing my neck, and I sighed as she placed feather kisses along my jaw, working her way up to my mouth. I happily kissed her back, even smiling against her lips. She responded by softly biting my bottom lip and then deepening the kiss. As the kiss became more passionate, I slipped my hands under her shirt and stroked the soft skin of her back.

She did the same, slipping one hand under my shirt, so she was stroking my stomach. Her lips left mine, and I moaned softly as she kissed her way down my neck, drawing nearer on her way to my chest. When I realized her hands were moving up my backside to unlatch my bra, I arched my back to make it easier for her, but as she was about to do it, we heard the door slam open.

"What the hell are you doing?!" It was the same male voice from before.

I looked up to see the handsome guy from the bar, except his eyes were now dark, almost black, and his face was contorted in an expression of pure anger. Stella stood up in a millisecond and moved to stand in front of him, blocking him from my view.

"Jace-- "She started but was interrupted by a slap across her face. I flinched at the same time as she did, and my fists clenched in anger.

"Have you lost your damn mind, Stella?!" He said.

She didn't move or say anything.

Jace walked past her, moving over to me. I was now sitting on the sofa, glaring at him, mad because he had hit Stella. He grabbed my arms and pulled me up roughly, making me stand up, and then backed me up against a wall. I grunted in pain.

"Leave her out of this, it's not her fault," Stella pleaded behind him.

"No, if little Annabelle Satcher's going to cause trouble, I might as well get rid of her now. You know what we do about liabilities, Stella. And who knows, maybe killing her right in front of you will teach you a lesson."

I looked at her over Jace's shoulder and noticed she had clenched her fists, and her eyes were darkening, her fangs stretching out. "Don't you dare touch her."

Before I knew it, Jace was flung across the room, hitting the wall on the other side, and hanging a couple of feet in the air, floating, and grabbing at his neck.

"Put... Me... Down...Stella," He said between breaths, then I realized she must have been choking him with her mind because she hadn't moved a muscle except for when she turned to face him.

I carefully moved over to her and wrapped my arms around her from behind. Her body was shaking with anger, and I hugged her tighter in an attempt to calm her down, "Calm down, don't kill him," I said, placing a soft kiss on her shoulder. She turned to look at me, and her pitch-black irises dialed down to a navy blue. She took a sharp intake of breath and slowly unclenched her fists. Jace hit the ground with a thud. The raw anger in her eyes would haunt me for a couple of hours, if not days.

There was an awkward silence as they seemed to be having a conversation with their eyes, the tension palpable in the air.

He finally sighed and said, "I'm sorry, but I'm taking her with me. She's making you act irrationally." He was standing before me in a millisecond, grabbing my arm and dragging me towards the door.

I turned to look at Stella, but she turned her face away from me, "Stella?" I said softly.

"Just go," She replied angrily.

I never knew two simple words could hurt so much. I felt betrayed and then angry. My mouth formed a tight line, but I didn't say anything; I just walked away.