Blood and Chocolate

Willem shrugged, a frown touching his face. He kicked at the log with one of his engineer boots. "Oh, Finn thinks he's hot shit - pushing us around 'cus Rafe's not there to slap him down. I mean, Rafe's bad enough, but at least he doesn't make us do dumb-ass stuff to prove he can make us do it. Greg doesn't like that either so they're always arguing, and you know Ulf - dumb little turd'll go along with anything. At least Finn isn't screwing his mother."

"Rafe's always off with Astrid?" Vivian asked.

"Yeah. At her place. Helping her 'recuperate.' He thinks the sun shines out of her ass. I don't get it." Willem shook his head. "I don't blame him for staying there, though. His dad's being weirder than ever."

They sat in silence for a while as the night darkened around them.

"We used to have fun, Viv, didn't we?" Willem said finally. "Now I wonder who's looking out for me besides me. Those older ones, all they do is talk. And Gabriel, who's he? Is he gonna make us do stupid shit like Finn does, just to show he's boss? You know what? I think you're the only person I trust. You're cool. You never let us talk you into doing stupid shit." Willem fell silent again.

Oh, yeah. I'm so cool, Vivian thought.

"You know who did that killing, Viv?" Willem said suddenly.

Vivian's stomach turned over.

"Nobody knows," he continued. "That weirds me out. One of us killing, and nobody knowing who. Killing used to be something we did together."

A faint breeze picked up and heat lightning patch-worked the sky. Willem sighed.

Vivian gently punched him in the ribs. "Get out of here. Tell Finn where to stick it. Stand up for yourself, asshole."

He grinned sheepishly. "Maybe I will."

"Well, go do it now," she said. "I need to be alone."

"Okay, okay." Willem got to his feet. He hesitated. "But you stand up for yourself, too, okay?"

"Yeah, sure."

Vivian walked down Lincoln Avenue toward the park. She was going to stop moping and stand up for herself, like Willem had said. There was a free concert this evening: six local bands hoping to draw new fans into the college bars up the road. The Amoeba would certainly be there, and Aiden with them. She'd been making life too easy for him; it was time to make him look at her and remember how beautiful she was; then maybe he'd realize what a fool he'd been for rejecting her.

She had brushed her tawny hair until it shone, and summer highlights made it shimmer with silver fire. Her cropped shirt revealed her flat, taut belly above her low-slung skirt. Her flesh was smooth, soft, and golden.

A sign on a telephone pole caught her eye; it was the third one she'd passed. This time she stopped to read and discovered a message from the police, warning the public to avoid any large dogs they saw running loose. She snorted with amusement. She suddenly felt better than she had for days.

Vivian was walking under the raspberry sherbet froth of a crepe myrtle when she heard the growl of a motorcycle approaching. She expected it to scream past and was surprised when it slowed to a grumbling presence beside her. She glanced over to see Gabriel's black Harley pacing her. Gabriel's expression was dark and brooding and a streak of fear ripped through her. Then he grinned and cut the engine.

She stopped when his bike stopped, as if unable to control her movements.

He looked her up and down, the admiration clear on his face. "All alone, baby? I find that hard to believe."

"Then don't," she said. Why had he come to ruin her good mood?

He ignored her terse rudeness. "Rumor has it your boyfriend broke up with you."

"Does everyone know my business?" she snapped.

"What puzzles me," he continued, "is why?"

"That's nothing to do with you," she said, and began to walk again. Inside she quivered. What was he getting at?

Gabriel pushed his bike along beside her. "I mean, look at you. He must be out of his mind. Where would someone like him find another like you?"

Vivian walked faster.

Gabriel matched her pace.

"You'd have to work hard to put off a horny young guy like that."