The problem was that Steven was charismatic as hell. He was cute and funny and charming. He always said the right things. Every time she walked away somehow he would come right back in and sweep her off her feet. A couple weeks ago, he had convinced her to meet him at the end of his shift, after the warehouses closed down for the night. And she had fallen for it all over again. Two weeks of a whirlwind of passion and then a big “fuck you” at the end of it. She had just been a good time while he waited out another girl. He was seeing someone else now. The end.
Steven had made her feel like a used-up whore. No better than the run-down trash that they lived in. When Visage had approved her for testing shortly afterward, she had felt like it made sense. At least she would get paid for selling her body.
The door opened unexpectedly once again. “Excuse me. Dr. Trainer, you’ve been called to the east corridor. I was reassigned to number four hundred and ninety-two.”
The doctor faced the open door in shock. “What?”
“East corridor,” the man said.
The door opened wider, and Reyna got her first glimpse of the man. He was tall with a slightly more disheveled appearance than the doctor she had been dealing with. Though what he lacked in proper grooming, he made up for with the severity of his features. He seemed excessively stern and the haphazard state of his attire only gave off the impression of a mad scientist.
“Right. Of course, Dr. Washington,” Dr. Trainer said once she realized who it was. “Here is her file.”
They swapped information, and then Dr. Trainer left her alone with the new doctor.
“Welcome, Miss Carpenter. I’m Dr. Roger Washington.”
He extended his hand. Reyna looked down at it skeptically. No one had addressed her or acknowledged her as anything more than a subject to be tested and questioned. What was this, bad cop, good cop?
“Hi,” she said softly. She shook his hand once. It was chilling and made her shiver.
“After reviewing your profile, we’ve elected you to be a trial subject in our new program. Your blood type and specific history, build, and biology make you a great candidate for this new venture. I’m the head of the team, and we’re looking for interested participants. You understand that anything we speak about here is completely classified, yes?”
“Sure.”
A new program? Classified information? She didn’t know what any of that meant, but she was willing to hear more about this. It sounded like they wanted her, and if they wanted her badly enough, then maybe she could get more money out of them.
“For some time, Visage has been considering going to a more streamlined system of employment for our human subjects,” Dr. Washington explained.
“Streamlined…how?”
The man smiled, and her skin turned ashen. Sharp canines gleamed in the high contrast lighting. She tried to swallow but felt like her mouth was stuffed with cotton balls. She knew he was a vampire. She had known that both doctors were, but suddenly it felt different. This wasn’t some person in the papers or on billboards, but a real live vampire that could reach out and touch her.
He seemed to assess her discomfort and closed his mouth so that the stern expression was back in place. “You do realize, Miss Carpenter, that the company you wish to be employed by is run by vampires, and that if you are selected for this, you will live with vampires?”
“Yes, I’m well aware,” she said, regaining her composure.
“Good.” He nodded. “Now back to what I was saying. We’re working toward a more streamlined system. The current one places a subject with a Sponsor for one month. After that month, you are granted a week off to recuperate, and then you rotate to another blood match Sponsor. As an O negative subject, you would meet with a group of O negative Sponsors in your assigned region. The system then perpetually rotates. Everything is carefully monitored by Visage so that it is safe and orderly.”
Reyna had read all about this on the pamphlet when she had originally applied. Vampires needed to drink the blood of their individual blood type human match to continue functioning at high cognitive levels. Before when they drank from just anyone, the blood fed them only on a completely basic and primal level. However, it didn’t provide anything more than that. It contaminated their systems and made them corrupt, lethal, and animalistic. For generations, vampires had plagued the darkness, feeding on whatever or whomever they could get ahold of. Reyna couldn’t even fathom a world without vampires—lurking in the dark or out in the open as they were now.
When Visage came forward in the midst of the economic collapse, they promised a new horizon for humans and vampires alike. Visage wanted humans and vampires to coexist in a mutually beneficial atmosphere. Thus came the blood type cure. They registered all the known vampires and offered humans money to become their blood donors.
“How is the new system different?” she asked.
The doctor smiled once more, and her fingers dug into the paper on the bed. “Now the Sponsor requests a blood type match and a certain profile, and the subject stays with the Sponsor…permanently.”
Chapter 3
“Permanently?” Reyna gasped.
“Yes. The new system would place you with a vampire match. You would be placed in the home and share living quarters with your Sponsor.”
“Forever?” she asked in disbelief.
“Well, not forever, as if there is no other option, Miss Carpenter. The system is supposed to fix some of the issues with the previous functions within Visage. It allows less fluctuation and gives the subjects a better lifestyle.”
“So…we could never leave?”
“Of course not. If the Subject or Sponsor deems that the relationship is no longer functional, then another Permanent would be located and your contract made void. We have no grounds to hold you against your will. We are merely trying to find a more suitable lifestyle for our Sponsors. And if it makes you feel any better, all Sponsors who are selected into this program are top echelon candidates. You will be well taken care of.”
A permanent placement with a vampire. She couldn’t think of anything she would want to do less. It sounded like an easy way for vampires to take advantage of humans and eliminate the checks and balances of the previous system.
“It’s a better situation for the Sponsors, but what about us?” she demanded. “How do we know that we’ll truly be taken care of when there is no one to check in with once a month?”
“I can guarantee that every Sponsor has been carefully screened. They are very high-ranking officials within the organization. We would never place our employees in potentially dangerous situations.”
“Of course not,” she said dryly. “So, these Sponsors are bigger and better than the other ones. Does that mean the pay is better?”
He chuckled and then seemed to recover his expression. “Straight to the point, I see. How does double the monthly salary sound for this Permanent position?”
Reyna’s eyes were as big as saucers. Double? To stay at one vampire’s house indefinitely?
That was just…incredible. She wouldn’t have to work for Visage as long if she was able to make double the income they had originally reported. She could stay with the Sponsor just long enough to get her and her brothers back on their feet. With double the pay, she could even save up to go to college. With a shiny new degree someone might even employ her. It all depended on how everything actually went once she was there. She could handle that. And it didn’t matter what Brian or Drew said, she knew she had to do this. Then she would leave the entire Visage corporation behind forever.
“Are you interested in this new program?” Dr. Washington asked her.
“I…”
She was about to say yes, but the doctor’s eagerness stalled her. Why did he want this so bad? And what was it about the situation that put her on edge?
It wasn’t the obvious things. She knew she was surrounded by vampires and about to give her blood up to one on a regular basis. She had more or less come to terms with it, but something else bothered her.
“Why was I selected?” she asked instead.
He pursed his lips. “You fit the profile.”
“And what profile is that?”