The Lost Girls

The Lost Girls
by
Shi-Saiyan

There were three of them, with chestnut hair and beautiful faces. The oldest, Asha, had smokey, blue-grey eyes and was the cool one of the trio, hard to ruffle and always cynical. Cynder, the middle sister, was a little taller, with brown eyes and was fearless, flippant and bold. Embyr, the youngest, looked delicate, like a fairy, with eyes like ice and a sweet smile. They were sexy, they were smart and they were deadly and now was the time to claim their new hunting grounds.


David narrowed his eyes at the three girls that prowled through the crowd past the carousel. They were beautiful, sisters if he wasn't mistaken and though they looked like they were in their late teens and early twenties, something in their eyes said they were older than that. There was an unnatural grace to their movements, a certain something in their walk that screamed predator. They were hunting, but what they were after, he wasn't sure. The one in the front seemed to feel his eyes on her and swung her gaze to him, enerringly. Their eyes locked for a moment and she said something to the other girls. They sought him out as well, staring for a moment, as if sizing him up. The first girl spoke again and turned away, the smallest one following her, but the third paused, her brown eyes lingering on him and she flashed a grin that was an umistakable challenge. I dare you, her look said and then she was moving away with her sisters. Wary and more than a little curious, David stepped off the carousel and signaled to Marko, who was lingering near the ticket booth a few yards away. He stepped around the booth and returned in a moment with Dwayne and Paul, who were both licking the blood from their lips, leaving their victims in the shadows to join David.

The four of them wound their way through the crowds, following the trio of girls toward the less crowded area near the beach. The one who'd teased him kept glancing back, as if to make sure they were following and David increased their pace to get closer. They broke through the crowd as they stepped onto the sand, as if the edge of the pavement was some kind of barrier that kept all but the bravest of humans from wandering onto the beach. The shoreline was dotted with bonfires and small groups of teenagers, but wasn't crowded in the least. There, near the water, the three girls turned to face them. David and the others slowed, approaching them at a less hurried pace.

Once they were within a few feet of each other, they stopped, the two groups facing each other silently for a moment. Then, the girl who seemed to be the leader spoke. "Vampires," she practically hissed. The smallest girl's eyes widened and the other one grinned, her eyes dancing with mischief and excitement. David's eyes raked over them. "Shapeshifters," he said, quietly. "But what flavor?" asked Marko, cocking his head to one side. "None of your business," said the first girl. "Oh, but it is. This is our town," David said, taking a step toward them. "Not anymore," she retorted, meeting his step forward with one of her own, so they were almost nose to nose.


Cynder could feel the energy pumping through her body as she watched Asha face down the blond vampire. He was gorgeous, with blue eyes that flashed like the ocean in a storm, white-blond hair that was spiked on top and brushed his collar in the back. He wore a black leather trenchcoat that fell just past his knees and had a cigarette tucked behind his left ear. He looked dangerous- and very sexy. Asha didn't like the him, she could tell, but then, Asha didn't like anyone that challenged her authority and Cynder had a feeling this vampire had major issues with authority of any kind other than his own. She didn't mind; she could relate. Flicking her eyes to her left, she could see Embyr studying the pack of vampires, her eyes a little wide. Wondering just what her little sister found so fascinating, she looked at the three vampires standing behind their leader.

One was tall and dark, with black hair halfway down his back and a shadow of a beard. His eyes were dark and piercing, his chest bare and muscular beneath his leather jacket and she had the impression he might have Native American blood in him. The one in the middle was about average height, with blond hair that was wild around his head, falling just past his shoudlers. His eyes were pale blue and he was smirking a little, as if wondering what his leader was going to do. The third was openly grinning, his hair falling in gold curls almost to his waist, shorter on top and his dark green eyes were shiny with laughter. He was enjoying this little interlude almost as much as she was. Cynder bit back a laugh and looked back toward Asha.


Tension sang through David as he faced the girl. He could feel his body tighten in readiness for a fight and he could feel the boys' agitation at his back. He took a startled step back when the girl to her right stepped forward and pushed her sister to the side. The leader looked over with her eyes narrowed as her sister spoke. "Get over it, Asha, it's a big enough town for all of us." Asha's fists clenched at her sides as the girl turned to David. "I'm Cynder. This is Asha and our little sister Embyr." "David," said the blond vampire, after a surprised moment. "I'm Marko," said the smallest of the three vampires behind him. "Dwayne," said the dark one. "Paul," said the middle one. "Great. Now that we've all been introduced properly, tell me boys, where can we find a good party?" Cynder asked.

Marko laughed out loud and Asha sighed, rolling her eyes. "Cynder, we have more important things to do right now than party," she said. "Like what, Ash? Fight with these guys? They look like they'd be more fun to play with than fight with!" She flicked a glance over them again. "Yeah, they look like they know how to party real well." David was smirking now and Marko and Paul were both laughing. Dwayne's mouth was twitching at the corners in amusement. Asha still looked a little angry and the small one in the back, Embyr, finally spoke. "What about hunting?"

"What's your preference, shifter? Human or animal?" asked Dwayne. "Animal," said Asha, firmly, looking pointedly at Cynder. "There's plenty of deer in the woods, if that's what you're after," David said, wrinkling his nose in distaste at the thought. "It's too dangerous to go around slaughtering humans," said Asha, but Cynder was looking a little rebellious. "Whatever. We hunt first and then party," Cynder said with a shrug. "You know where the dunes meet the woods?" asked Marko. Asha sighed, but nodded. "That's where we'll be. Its always a good place to find a bonfire." "Great," said Cynder, flashing a grin, "We'll be there." "We'll be waiting," said David, as the girls turned to leave. He studied their retreating forms, silent for a few moments while the boys talked and teased among themselves behind him.

Asha was stalking down the beach, her boots covered in sand. Her pants were leather, as was her tight jacket, unzipped to just barely cover her breasts and the moonlight reflected off her as she walked. Embyr wore the same pants as Asha, shiny and black, with a purple shirt that clung to her petite form, sleeves ending between her elbows and wrists, neckline dipping low enough to tease. Her hair swung in the breeze as she glanced back at them, the look on her face something between apprehension and curiousity. Cynder was looking back at them as well, and he could hear her laughter at something Asha was saying. Her pants were tight and silver, dipping dangerously low on her hips and her shirt was a tight black tank top that hugged her breasts and stopped about two inches above her belly button. He watched them move, the flowing, liquid grace of their stride. The sway of thier hips. Feline, he realized. That boneless, casual, sexy way a jungle cat moved. "We'll see you soon, Kittens," he mumbled. Then he turned and led the way to where they'd left their bikes.


Blood. They smelled it long before they even came close to the edge of the trees. Asha put her hand on Embyr's arm and slowed thier pace, but Cynder kept moving quickly through the woods, until she broke into open ground and her feet sank into the sand. The light from the bonfire flickered over the trees and Cynder paused for only a moment before moving closer. David and the others were sprawled out over the area and the sand was liberally splashed with blood. As Embyr and Asha approached behind her, they too could smell the thick red liquid and, under it, the more stirring smell of flesh.


Blood. Non-human, but life-giving just the same. David scented it before the three girls stepped out of the woods. Marko threw a beer toward Cynder as she approached and she snatched it out of midair, pulling the cap off and taking a long drink. Her throat glistened red and David's eyes followed the bloody rivulets with his eyes. It had dripped from her mouth, down her throat, under her shirt and into the valley between her breasts. Her shirt showed darker where it was damp. Someone had been messy with her food.

Asha and Embyr followed more slowly, Asha accepting an offering of a bottle of beer from Paul and Embyr shaking her head shyly when one was offered to her as well. Marko just shrugged. "Suit yourself," he said, "I think they might've had some soda in the cooler." "They being whoever it was you fed on," Asha said, sitting on a log someone had dragged near the fire. "Of course," David said, lounging in the sand, his back braced on another log. Embyr was digging in the cooler for something non-alcoholic to drink and Cynder had swung her leg over the log David was leaning on, straddling it. Asha had left no evidence of her hunt on her clothes or skin, though Embyr had a small dark spot on the shoulder of her purple shirt.

"So tell us, shifters," David said, "Is it stripes or spots?" Embyr looked startled and Cynder laughed. "I knew he'd guess." "Shut up, Cyn," said Asha. She looked at David. "It's neither, actually." "Leopards, then," said Dwayne. Asha gave one nod and Cynder stretched out on the log, arching her back and bringing her arms up over her head, purely feline. "And what is it that brought you to Santa Carla?" asked Marko. The girls glanced at one another, even Cynder unsmiling and then Asha spoke. "Every preternatural being on the west coast knows about Santa Carla." "It's a haven for all us things that go bump in the night," said Cynder, with a saucy little grin. The vampires accepted their explination easily enough, though they also knew the leopards had left something unsaid. "Where are you staying?" asked David, taking a drink of his beer. "We rented an apartment down by the pier," said Embyr, glancing at Asha, as if to see if she would be reprimanded for speaking. Asha said nothing.

"Enough about us, what about you? Where do you sleep away the daylight hours?" asked Cynder, tossing her empty beer bottle into the trees and plucking David's half full one from his hand. Her eyes were dancing, inviting trouble, or something else as she swallowed the last of the dark amber liquid. "We have a place. It's quiet, out of the way, no neighbors to complain," said Paul, and the others laughed. Marko had produced a boom box from somewhere and pressed play. "Marko, turn it up," said David and the rock and roll filled the air.

Sometime after the darkest part of the night had passed and before the sky started to lighten with the approaching dawn, David signalled to the boys and they made their way to where they'd left their bikes. "So you'll be staying in Santa Carla, then," said David. Asha nodded and Cynder grinned. "Don't worry, I'm sure we'll be seeing you all again real soon." "That should be interesting... to say the least," David said, kicking his bike to life and leading the way over the dunes.