1.4 - A Man Without a Heartbeat

The ringing phone woke her in the early morning hours. It was still dark outside and she struggled to open her eyes. “Hello,” she said groggily, trying to rub the sleep from her eyes.

There was a clearing throat on the other line before a shaky male voice responded, “Uh, yea. I, ah, saw your ad in this morning’s paper. And, well, I was hoping to avail you of your services.”

“Services?” Illdrid asked, briefly confused. “Oh right, that.” She blushed, thankful her client couldn’t see her.

“Yes, but see, the problem is, I don’t really get out often. I was hoping you could maybe…come here.”

Too tired to consider the possible danger in such a request, Illdrid gathered his information and assured him she would be there at their agreed upon time.

He let her in, but before they even went through introductions, she excused herself to the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror, and felt a moment of shame. She gulped and put on a face of determination.  “You can do this, Illie. Don’t chicken out now. Shae is counting on you,” she whispered to the pale face in the mirror. She took a deep breath and made her way back to the parlor.

She smiled shyly at the man sitting awkwardly on the couch. “Sorry about that,” she said. “I’m Illdrid, and I presume you are James?”

The man on the couch nodded and stood up. She approached him slowly and noticed that he had an unusual blue tint to the skin, almost as if no blood coursed underneath it.

She was unsure of herself; he was her first client, after all. She inched forward, keeping her arms stiff and wooden at her sides. Her lips were almost upon his when he burst out laughing. Shocked, she jumped back, unsure of whether she should laugh or cry. A small smile touched her lips.

“You seem really tense. Here let me relax you. I didn’t realize how uncomfortable this might be for you!” he said. He spun her around and began massaging her shoulders. “So, as you know, I’m James. I’m kind of new to this town and this whole lifestyle, really. I can’t go out during the day; I’m too nervous to go out at night. I don’t want people to think I’m a monster, you know. I still have urges like any ordinary man. I just don’t want to risk what might happen with a nice girl. Not to say you’re NOT a nice girl. I just thought I might try my luck out on a professional first and hope for the best.”

Illdrid felt all the tension melt away. She had no idea what he was babbling about, but his hands on her shoulders felt nice. Really nice. A little cold, though. He probably just had poor circulation. She hoped that didn’t interfere when things became more intimate. She felt her face flush just as he turned her around again. Looking into his eyes, she just felt this…magnetic attraction. She felt hypnotized; she couldn’t tear her eyes away as he leaned in to kiss her.

He took her hand and brought her into his bedroom. It was sparsely decorated, but she barely even noticed as he gently guided her to his bed. His lips felt like ice on her skin. And his teeth were so sharp, they kept scratching against her lips. There were alarms going off in her mind, but she barely noticed. Thinking had become too difficult.

It wasn’t until after their passion had been spent that she started putting the pieces together. She no longer felt spellbound. In fact, she felt kind of scared. She looked at the man lying peacefully beside her. He was practically translucent. Her heart pounded as panic set in. Before she could think better of it, the words started tumbling out of her mouth. “James, are you a vampire.”

He burst into laughter and smacked her with a pillow. “Of course, I’m a vampire. That’s what I was trying to explain to you. About how I still have needs and needed to test them out on someone to make sure my…bloodthirsty side didn’t take over. I have to tell you. It was a smashing success.”

Illdrid looked appalled at first. And then grinned. It was really her own fault for not listening to him. But he didn’t have to look so smug about it. She grabbed her own pillow and smacked him back. He jumped from the bed, pillow still in hand.

“Well then, my lady. If you think you're so tough, why don’t you come on over here and fight me like a real man!” Illdrid grabbed her pillow and held it up against her like a shield. Mirth bubbled up inside her. James was right. Her first assignment had been a smashing success. Maybe she’d even get lucky and start growing his seed inside her, if vampires could do such a thing. If a baby were born, it would have to have some sort of powers! And then they could trick the Council into letting them come home. If only. If only…

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So Illdrid has finally started her career, *wink wink, nudge nudge, if you can call it that.  I downloaded some Sims from other people's Legacy blogs to populate my little town, and James is actually James Weaver from the Sari Random Legacy. I just hope Cece doesn't mind that I stole her Sim and turned him into a vampire!