Summary: After Jax rescues newly-turned vampire Chloe from The Baron, they go together to check on Lily, and find she already has some visitors.
Chloe sprinted through the city, over rooftops and fire escapes, down dark alleys and busy streets when she had no other choice. The force of the wind in her face made her eyes water, the tears streaking backwards and pooling in her ears. She blinked her eyes clear, keeping them fixed on Jax, careful not to lose him as they made their way towards her apartment.
Please be OK, Lil…
Jax stopped suddenly and she almost ran right into him. She looked around, recognizing her own neighborhood. “Close?” he asked.
“This way,” Chloe answered, taking the lead. Realizing at the last minute that her purse and keys had all been left behind at The Shrike, she jumped and climbed up fire escapes instead, heading for the window of the apartment her and Lily shared.
Her breath caught in her throat when she saw the scene inside her apartment. Three men were in the living room with Lily, having a heated discussion. She looked so scared…
Chloe opened her mouth and lifted her first, ready to shout and bang on the window, when one strong hand clamped over her mouth and the other grabbed her wrist, pulling her down into a crouch. “They’re not hurting her,” Jax hissed quietly, releasing his hold on Chloe. She glared at him, annoyed at how easily she could be overpowered even with her newfound superhuman strength, reluctant to admit that he was right. Going in there and picking a fight while outnumbered would just put Lily in danger.
“I just feel like this needs to go to the police,” she could just barely hear Lily say, her ear pressed against the window. “If my friend is in trouble, we need to do something.”
“Please, I really think this is best handled quietly,” The Baron answered. “I would hate to betray Chloe’s confidence or embarrass her. I know this may be hard to hear, but the girl has many secrets. She may even be…dangerous.”
“Oh, please.” Chloe smirked as she could practically heard Lily’s eyes rolling. “She’s feisty but she’s totally not a danger to anyone.”
“You never really know a person,” The Baron answered, his voice hardening. “If you hear anything, do give me a call. I would hate for anything to happen to her. You never do know who you can trust.”
Footsteps, the door opening, then closing. Chloe moved to stand, but Jax pulled her back down to crouch below the window. “Touch me one more time, motherfucker,” she seethed, her sudden anger burning in her veins. He scowled but let go of her.
“How well do you know your roommate?” he whispered.
“Excuse me? Well enough. Lily’s on my side.”
“She’s not on anybody’s side. Leave her out of this.”
Chloe’s mouth gaped open, shocked and furious. “Are you kidding me? I can’t just vanish off the face of the earth. I need to talk to her.”
“No, you don’t.” He glared at her, his fists clenched. “This isn’t your world anymore. You’re going to come with me and lay low, where you’re safe. Your old roommate will get over it.”
She stared right at him, challenging him, as she pushed the window open – Lily, you naive idiot, why isn’t the window locked – and called out. “Lily! Over here!”
“Chloe!” Lily ran to the open window and threw her arms around her friend, squeezing her tight. “What the fuck, Chlo? What is going on?” Her eyes traveled downwards, going wide. “What’s with the grumpy samurai?”
Jax stood up wordlessly, staring daggers at Chloe as he stepped through the window and disappeared into the apartment, slamming a door behind him. “Hey, asshole!” Lily shouted after him. “That’s my room!” She turned back to Chloe, stunned. “Your new boyfriend is a real prick.”
“Tell me about it,” Chloe mumbled, coming through the window herself. “Forget him. What the hell just happened? Are you OK? Did he hurt you?”
“Who, your uncle? No, he was just worried about you.”
“My what?” Chloe bit her own lip, choking back her rage that kept threatening to boil to the surface. “That was my…boss.”
“Oh, that’s…weird.” Lily frowned, studying Chloe’s face. “Are you in some sort of trouble, Chlo?”
She frowned back, suddenly feeling lost. What am I supposed to say here? How can I possibly just tell my best friend that I’m a vampire?
“I’m a vampire,” Chloe said with a shrug.
Lily laughed, a little snort escaping as she slapped her knee. “OK fine, don’t tell me.” She flopped backwards onto the couch, reaching for the controller to unpause her game. “Wanna play? Or do you have to deal with Katana Hottie? Please take him to your own room first.”
Chloe frowned, still standing in the middle of the living room, tapping her foot nervously. “Lily, I think we should probably go somewhere else.”
“Oh…yeah that’s fine. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine here on my own.”
“No, I mean…we should all go somewhere safer. Where The Baron can’t find us.”
“The what? Your boss? What kind of asshole calls himself ‘The Baron’?”
“A really dangerous asshole!” Chloe yelled, losing patience. Before she could go on, the front door was kicked in, the sound of the deadbolt tearing through the doorframe echoing through the small apartment.
A smile spread across The Baron’s face as he stepped back into the room. “You’ve got that right, sweetheart.”
Before Chloe could open her mouth to respond, Jax was back, taking out one of the men with a swing of his katana. The other henchman charged at him, eyes glowing and fangs bared. Chloe’s eyes darted around the room, searching for a weapon. Jax beat her to it, whipping out a sharpened wooden stake from under his jacket and driving it straight into the vampire’s heart, turning him to ash.
The Baron scowled. “You. What the hell are you doing here, you son of a…” he deftly ducked under the swing of Jax’s sword, catching his wrist in his large fist as he returned to his full height. He jerked Jax’s hand away from his body, throwing him off balance as he stepped into him, driving an elbow into his ribs. The katana dropped from his grip and The Baron kicked it out of reach as he spun Jax around, pinning his arm behind his back.
Chloe watched in horror as The Baron kicked Jax in the back of the knee with alarming force, causing him to crumple helplessly to the ground. He loomed over him, still in control, and laughed. “That’s four of my clan you’ve murdered today. I’m going to take you and your whole fucking crew of half-feral scumbags out.”
Jax growled and struggled but The Baron’s grip on him only tightened. Suddenly a small paperback book struck the side of The Baron’s head, surprising him slightly. He looked at the book and then at Lily, smirking. “Did you just throw The Book of Mormon at me?”
“Some guy gave it to me! I don’t have a bible!” Lily yelled, panicking.
He opened his mouth to laugh but it turned into a wet gargle as the katana impaled him through the chest. Chloe dropped the handle and stood behind him, stunned at her own violence. Jax finally freed himself and jumped to his feet, driving the stake into The Baron without hesitation. Lily screamed as he dissolved into a pile of ash.
The three of them stood motionless around the mess of ash, blood, and prohibition-era gangster clothing in the middle of the apartment floor, shaken and breathless. The sound of sirens approaching in the distance finally snapped them out of it. ‘
“Now that we’ve drawn attention to ourselves by murdering one of the most powerful vampires in New York City and possibly the world,” Jax growled, “can we please ditch this goddamn apartment and go somewhere safe?”
They ran, slower this time, Chloe carrying Lily on her back. They didn’t make it far before Jax stopped and sat down on a park bench, wincing.
“It’s too far,” he croaked, his voice faltering.
“Oh my god, are you OK?” Chloe set Lily down and rushed to his side. He coughed into his hand, pulling it away quickly but not quickly enough to hide the blood spatter. Panicking, Chloe helped him out of his coat and lifted up his shirt. Lily gasped behind her.
“That’s…bad. That’s really bad,” Lily said, looking away. Chloe inspected the damage from The Baron’s blow. His side was completely mangled and caved in, half of his torso covered in deep, purple bruising. A broken rib had pierced through his skin, soaking his shirt in blood.
“OK, Jax, now is when you tell me you have magical healing powers. Or some sort of advanced vampire hospital I can call.”
He started to laugh but stopped immediately, doubling over in pain. “I have…magical healing powers,” he groaned, “but I need…”
“…Blood,” Chloe finished, frowning at how much he had lost. “Can you feed off of me?”
He shook his head. “Human.” They both looked to Lily.
“Oh…oh my god. Is this for real? You’re a vampire and you want my blood? I don’t know if I’m ready to turn into a vampire, guys…”
“You won’t,” Jax assured. “You’ll be fine.”
Chloe turned his face towards hers, staring him down. “You swear this won’t hurt her? You’ll just take a little and she won’t turn or get sick or die or anything?” He nodded.
“Please,” he whispered, his voice weak.
Lily sat next to him on the bench and nodded. “I’m trusting you,” she said sternly. “Take what you need. I can’t watch.” She turned, pressing her back against him, and closed her eyes.
She let out a small yelp as his fangs sunk into her neck. Chloe’s heart raced as she watched him, eyes red, ferociously feeding on her friend. His hands moved around her, holding her against him as he sucked at her neck, and her expression changed to one of absolute bliss. “Ooooh…” Lily moaned softly, melting into him.
Chloe looked away, fighting the ugly jealous feeling that took root in her stomach. He needs to do this to survive, she reminded herself. Did they need to enjoy it so much, though?
After a moment he pulled away, leaving Lily grinning to herself. He pricked his finger with his sharp fang and pressed the blood to her neck, healing the wounds he had left behind.
“Um…wow…uh…thanks?” Lily rambled, flustered and happy. “That was…”
“…it’s a little intense, yeah,” Jax finished, grinning back at her. He lifted up his shirt again to inspect the damage. The bruise had faded considerably, and somehow the protruding rib had vanished back into his body, leaving only a faint scar where it had pierced his skin. “Much better!” he exclaimed, jumping to his feet as if he hadn’t been mortally wounded moments earlier.
“Glad you’re feeling better,” Chloe muttered, irrationally annoyed. “Now, we were in the middle of escaping?”
Jax nodded, adjusting his coat and weapons. “So, I can take you back to the safe house we were at earlier. Or…”
“…Or, not take us back to a total dump to live in squalor?”
“Or,” he continued, ignoring Chloe’s interruption, “we can head back to my place. I could use a change of clothes and a good rest in my own bed after all that excitement.”
Lily squealed and clapped her hands. “Yes please, super hot vampire badass. Take us back to your secret lair. Will we have to sleep in coffins?”
“Just boring old beds, I’m afraid,” he said cheerfully, lifting Lily onto his back. “You ready, Chloe?”
She took a deep breath, wondering if she was going to be cut out for this: violence, murder, drinking blood to survive. It was going to be a hell of an adjustment.
“Yeah, OK. I’m ready.”