BIRD OF PARADISE ~ PART 3
Happy Saturday, awesome nerds, and welcome to this last part (at least for the time being) of Bird of Paradise.
We’ve been working our butts of these past couple of weeks, editing and trying to polish the entire book as much as possible. I do hope that I will be able to share more about this with you, dearies, later this year, but for the time being, just enjoy the third chapter of Fay’s story; my story.
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Bird of Paradise
GLUTTONY
“Now, is that my favorite witch, or did the Messenger steal my sight at last?” Fay heard a familiar, deep voice purring inside her ear, strong hands catching her by the waist, the male’s breath tickling the sensitive skin of her lobe, as a fruity, inviting scent wafted in the air and through her nostrils.
“Lucas!” Fay exclaimed, turning around to come face to face with her undead friend. “You smell delicious! What did you drink tonight, you little bloodsucker?”
“Only the finest wine here in Changeling!” the vampire said, his red eyes glistening under the spotlight’s bright light. “Do you know how many fallen angels in here are eager to share their blood with me?”
Fay couldn’t help but smirk. Maybe the majority of the vampires living in the city weren’t picky about whom they might feed on, but that wasn’t the case with Lucas, the leader of the local clan. She could see the blood flowing in his indigo veins, his olive skin gaining some color back, despite his usual paleness. As if he were almost human, like he used to be centuries ago.
“What is it?” Lucas asked, seeing the smile on Fay’s face.
“Nothing,” she murmured. “I just think you’re really brave. Feeding on fallen angels on a night like this. Especially with Gabrielle here!”
“I don’t even care about that little, flying minion,” Lucas barked, his eyes flying over to the Messenger for just a second. “She’s simply here to show off. I can’t keep my kin starving all night, just to make a good impression on her, now, can I?”
Fay turned around to stare at Gabrielle again. She’d do whatever it took to make a good impression on that divine woman, whatever it took to be on her good side, whatever it took to prove to her…
What the Hell is the matter with you?the snakes lurking under her enchantment hissed inside her ear, waking her from her reverie.
You’re here to steal her soul and get it to your father, not become one of the Creator’s sidekicks.
It was as if she had used her icy powers on herself, shivers going all the way down her spine, ice piercing into her rotten heart. She was a witch, for crying out loud. Not some foolish angelic being who wanted to climb up into the Garden of Eden again. But her mother was… Not a fool, still a fallen angel anyway. And if Fay wanted to save Eugenia from her father’s malice, she should do exactly as he had asked her to.
Even though this felt completely, utterly wrong…
“Fay! Are you even listening to what I’m saying?” Lucas snarled, snapping his long, delicate fingers in front of Fay’s eyes.
“Sure…” Fay whispered, aware the vampire could hear her, despite the loud music. “What exactly were we talking about?”
“Oh, Hell no!” Lucas exclaimed, his palms locking upon Fay’s alabaster face, forcing her to look him in the eye.
She blinked, taken aback by her friend’s bravery. Even Lucas didn’t dare to make moves on her, and he’d known her since the day she was born. Fay put her palms on Lucas’s hands, sending a gust of ice directly to her friend’s undead core. He flinched, still his firm grasp didn’t loosen not even one bit.
“Please don’t tell me you fell for her!” Lucas hissed, staring her deep inside the eyes.
“Her who?” Fay echoed back, as a crazy idea started taking shape inside her mind.
“Gabrielle!” Lucas snarled, cocking his head towards God’s Messenger. “I am aware of what she can do to creatures like you.”
“Creatures like me?” Fay chuckled. “You better keep that vicious tongue of yours under control or I’ll gladly cut it off and use it for some sleeping potion, Luc!”
“Threaten me all you want, my little, fallen Bird of Paradise, but creatures like you, Satan’s children, are drawn to every forbidden fruit there is,” Lucas whispered, never blinking, never pulling his hands back away from Fay’s face. “God has a very peculiar sense of humor, that I have to admit!”
“What are you talking about?” Fay asked, never failing to be surprised that vampires were able to speak the Creator’s name out loud. “I’m not drawn to anyone, especially not that wanna-be version of me. We both know I’m way hotter than Gabrielle.”
“The Hell you are, girl, but just don’t let her come close to you,” Lucas said, finally pulling back, his eyes flying somewhere behind Fay for just a second. “She has her way of getting into people’s hearts and leading them to Heaven, whether they want to or not.”
“And what if I told you I’m planning on driving herto Hell instead?” Fay hissed. “Interested to help?”
Lucas gasped, his full lips spreading into a genuine grin an instant later.
“What do you have in mind, little enchantress?”
* * *
“Are you sure this isn’t going to end up in a bloodbath?” Lucas asked, walking right next to Fay, towards the dance floor, right across from the Messenger’s private balcony.
“Why do you care? This would be like the twenty-fifth of December coming early this year for you,” she chuckled.
She couldn’t help but smirk. Partly because of Lucas, who was trying in vain to swallow his groan, and partly because it felt bittersweet the least that, although this particular holiday was her favorite, she just couldn’t even mouth the name of it. She was the Devil’s daughter and He was the Creator’s son, after all.
“Still, I don’t want to infuriate Gabrielle. Or Michael, for that matter. You know how he can be about his former bestest bro,” Lucas whispered. “If things go out of control, I’m out of here. And so are my fledglings.”
“Oh, please stop! For the love of Lucifer!” Fay snapped. “Don’t be such a wimp! Your fledglings get to drink some more, the lycans will feast on the bloodless corpses, and when they make their mistake, it’ll be us the ones that’ll break the news to the Messenger. You’ll gain some more free space to drink and I’ll seem like someone who doesn’t want to follow in her father’s footsteps. It’ll be piece of cake, Luc, I promise!”
“That’s what your father said, too, Fay, and look where we are now!” Lucas snarled, and for a second, Fay thought he’d bail on her. “Whatever… I’m going to Hell anyway. At least, let’s just do it the old-fashioned, glamorous way!”
She let a low breath out and blended in with the clueless dancers around her, the music echoing like the nightingales’ song inside her ears. As if it wanted to bring some balance in the grotesque, scarlet setting that would reveal itself in a few moments.
“Do your thing, Luc,” Fay murmured, mist pouring out of her fingertips, the temperature dropping drastically around her. “And I’ll do mine.”
“You got it, Fay,” was all the vampire said.
She felt rather than heard it–the vampire’s incantation. The mesmerism… The power of submission all vampires had. Although Lucas’s could be extended to those of his kin as well. No wonder why he was the lawful leader of his clan.
The fledglings stood still the moment their sire sent his order, her order, to them.
Tell them to feed on the humans, just make it look as if the lycans were involved. Make it more grotesque, less… aristocratic.
That’s what Fay had told to Lucas, and that’s what Lucas said to his children. And so the fledglings, immature, hungry and impulsive, went straight to the humans that were dancing closer to the lycans’ territory, almost hidden in the darkest corners of Changeling.
Fay locked her gaze upon the undead creatures and the humans that would soon become the bloodsuckers’ appetizer. They were the ones Alex had let inside Changeling, after her instigation. She felt an abrupt heaviness inside her chest but she repressed it an instant later. She had work to do. She wouldn’t let foolish things such as remorse to distract her from her ultimate goal. Besides, that leather-dressed girl was basically walking on thin ice a few minutes earlier, begging Alex to let them get inside the club.
The vampires were quick, that she had to admit. But she was even quicker. And so the moment their sharp fangs touched the soft mortal skin, Fay sent out a gust of ice, turning those little holes into infected frostbites, wounds that resembled those caused by lycan venom.
Lucas glanced at her, a sardonic smile spreading upon his face.
I’m doing you a favor, Fay. Don’t forget that, he murmured inside her head.
I won’t. My father will learn of your involvement. I’ll make sure of it.
Everything else happened in the blink of an eye, faster than the Devil and his followers had fallen from Paradise. For as quickly as the vampires had bitten the mortals, just as quickly they returned to where they were before, dancing at the center of the club, moving faster than the light itself, invisible to weaker eyes–invisible to Gabrielle, who was inspecting the fallen angels, those who were trying to rise up again in her eyes, in God’s eyes, and win their place back in Eden.
Fay stared at the lycans, their nostrils flaring at the smell of fresh blood. The older ones flinched, yet didn’t make a move. She didn’t mind. It was the younger ones she was after, those less able to resist the scent of fresh blood. And, thank Lucifer, they did exactly as she’d planned!
Cracks, shrieks and scarlet rivers consumed the dance floor.
“MESSENGER!” Fay yelled, her voice echoing loud, covering the club’s music. “A rebellion has broken out!”
Gabrielle turned to look at Fay, the Messenger’s blue eyes locking upon the witch’s cerulean ones. An instant later, they flew to the bloody feast that was occurring on the dance floor. And somehow, Fay felt what Gabrielle was thinking.
Gluttony!
© Victoria Moschou. All Rights Reserved 2019.
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Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
Till next time… Toodles!
