“I’m your twin, Xavier. I’m not allowed to visit you in your home?”
“You could have called. It’s not polite to let yourself in.”
Sebastian shrugged. “When have I ever been polite?”
He was still grinning. I was not. I hadn’t put my fangs away yet, ready for a fight if it came to that. It often did with Sebastian, or at least it did before he took off half a century ago.
“I see you haven’t changed much, brother.”
Sebastian seemed to glide across the room until he reached my big, leather sofa. He sat down, laying his entire body across it in almost a seductive manner. Everything he did looked seductive, a skill he’d acquired over the years to lure in the ladies, and one he often didn’t even realize he was using.
“I’ve actually changed a lot, Xavier. A lot of time has passed,” he said with a long sigh. He turned his gaze toward me with a serious expression. “Did you get the pamphlet I sent you?”
“I did.”
He waited for a second or two for me to elaborate, and when I didn’t, he threw his hands in the air. “Well? What do you think?”
“I didn’t open it once I saw it was from you. I’m not interested in another one of your schemes.”
“It’s not a scheme, Xavier. It’s a business idea. A legit one this time.”
“Oh, just like the last legit one? Where you took my money and ran off to the casinos to gamble it away?”
Sebastian chuckled and held a hand up as if to stop me. “Correction, I didn’t go to Vegas for the casinos. I’m not that trashy,” he scoffed. “I went for the women. And I swear, Xavier, it was worth every penny.”
“Was it worth screwing your brother over in the process?”
Sebastian’s face fell. He motioned at the house around us. “It seems you’re doing well for yourself regardless. I doubt I caused you any real harm.”
He hopped up from the chair and paced the room as if searching for something. Then he hurried out of the living room and into the dining room, then the kitchen.
“Are you looking for something?” I asked dryly, slowly following him after retracting my fangs.
“Yeah, something to eat. Who do I have to fuck to get fed around here?”
I grabbed my brother’s shoulders and stopped him from entering the next room. We stood face to face, staring into each other’s eyes. My rage filled the air, sucking out the oxygen. Sometimes it happened without me trying, but I wanted my brother to feel my wrath.
He stared at me. “What’s gotten into you, Xavier?”
“Do not fuck this up for me, Sebastian. I have a good life here, and I don’t want to run anymore. I’m tired of running every time you fuck things up and go on a feeding frenzy.”
“So you’re saying you don’t have anything to eat? Not even a kinky girl who’s into that sorta thing?”
“No, sorry, fresh out.” Sarcasm dripped from my tongue like poison.
“What do you eat then, because clearly you’re not starving yourself.”
I let him go, shoving him in the process. Any normal person would have flown across the room, but Sebastian barely budged from his spot.
“Ahh, animals, right? You’re one of those ethical vampire types.” Sebastian rolled his eyes. “Typical. My brother is a vegan.”
“Do you even know what the word vegan means?”
Sebastian looked bored, shrugging. “It means you don’t eat unethical things.”
“And that includes animals, you idiot. Or animal byproducts. Last time I checked, blood was an animal byproduct.”
“So you’re saying you don’t feed off animals either?”
“Only when necessary, and I don’t enjoy it.”
“You’re so fucking weird, Xavier. Do you realize that?”
“If by weird you mean I’m not a cold-blooded killer, then I take that as a compliment.”
“Hey, now, I don’t kill people anymore. There’s ways around that.”
He was right, but it still came down to consent for me. Since vampires weren’t out, we remained hidden in the shadows. We couldn’t advertise for willing donors to feed us. It was possible to find people who were into the vampire fetish, who didn’t realize it was real. But most of the time, some mind control was required, making them forget things that happened.
Besides, the entire act was far too intimate for me.
“Call me old-fashioned, but fooling around with random people, drinking the blood of God knows who, doesn’t appeal to me.”
“But drinking from animals does?” Sebastian smirked at me.
I turned swiftly away from him and left the room. I went back into the formal living room and took the leather chair he’d been sitting in earlier. Sebastian leaned against the doorway.
“Do you actually want something from me? Or are you here to just annoy me?”
“You know what I want, Xavier. I want us to go into business together again. But barring that, is it really so wrong to want to spend time with my brother? And to encourage him to eat better?”
I frowned. “I’ve been doing just fine without you for half a century or more. I don’t see why anything needs to change now.”
“Dude, you need to get laid and chill the fuck out. How long has it been? Please tell me you haven’t remained celibate ever since what’s her face died.”
I was out of my chair in a millisecond. I crossed the room, taking Sebastian by the throat and lifting him off the ground. He continued smirking, completely unafraid. I’d have smelled the fear on him. Either he trusted that I would never hurt him because he was my brother, or he was a lot like me - tired of living when there was very little left to live for.
It had to be the former with Sebastian. He considered random hookups and beautiful women reason enough to continue living.
“Do not ever breathe a word of Isabelle’s memory again, do you hear me?” I pressed him into the wall, lifting him even higher, my fangs bared in a snarl.
“Or what, Xavier?”
“You think I won’t kill you because you’re my brother?” I questioned, lifting an eyebrow. “Cross me again, and I promise to prove you wrong.”
I let him fall back to his feet. The floor crunched underneath him, his weight crashing into the hardwood, but he remained standing. And continued smirking.
“Now get the hell out of here.”
“Just look over everything I sent you,” he said, straightening his clothes. “I know you’re looking for a reason to live, something new to spice up your boring suburban existence. Well, I think my business idea is exactly what you need.”
Before I could say another word, Sebastian disappeared into thin air.
I could rest.
Ooo000ooo
I walked down the narrow stone staircase into the basement, my private lair. My sanctuary. The walls were made of stone, with only one door and not a single window, leading into the interior of the house.
In the middle of the room was a king-sized bed draped with black curtains, surrounding me in darkness as I slept. The bedding was luxurious and soft, made from some of the best materials in the world. I undressed and climbed into bed, as I always slept in the nude. I had thick, down comforters to wrap myself in, even though I never truly got cold. It helped me to feel less alone in such a large bed.