Pulse

Luciana Valdega

Year 2033

Los Angeles, CA

“What’s your name, girl?”

“Luci.”

“You got any experience, Luci?”

I nod once.

“Have you worked around our kind before?”

Swallowing the knot in my throat, I nod again.

The older man's beady eyes linger on my chest for a moment longer before slowly dragging up to settle on my face. Then, his thinning lips pull back over his teeth into a predatory grin, revealing razor-sharp canines, and it takes everything in me to suppress the shiver that threatens to run down my spine.

You would think I’d be used to these guys by now. Granted, most vampires aren’t nearly as creepy as Dracula over here. His too-pale skin and sunken cheeks make him look downright ghoulish.

“What’s a pretty little human like you doing in a town like this anyway?”

Taking a deep breath to expel my negative thoughts, I paste on what I hope is a dazzling smile. I need this job if I want to keep the shithole apartment that I leased this morning.

Plus, a girl’s gotta eat.

“I just moved here, actually. I thought Los Angeles would be a nice change of scenery.”

The hustle and bustle of Los Angeles is a stark contrast to the sleepy little town I grew up in. However, I haven’t set foot in Lanlier Falls since I was an angst-filled teenager. I have no reason to. My parents died before I was old enough to remember them, and the foster families I stayed with only hold memories that I no longer allow myself to dwell on.

I have no family, no friends, no true place to call home, but I prefer it that way.

It’s safer.

Being human in a world of bloodsucking monsters, it’s easier if I don’t let anyone get too close, so I never stay in one place for too long.

Every new town, every person I meet, it’s all temporary. In a few months, I’ll leave Los Angeles and move on to the next place. Just like I always do.

“Well, sweetheart, you are in luck,” Dracula says as he stands from his seat behind his mahogany desk. “We just so happen to have an open position for a pretty little human like yourself. The job is simple enough. All you have to do is serve a few drinks and look appetizing while doing so.”

He opens a drawer in his desk and pulls out a pair of tiny, black shorts along with a matching midriff halter top with the word Pulse wrote in deep red lettering on the front.

Inwardly, I roll my eyes at the name.

How original.

He walks around his desk before placing the skimpy garments in my hand. “Well, I haven’t got all night, girl,” he hisses. “Get dressed.”

Never having been one with regard to modesty, I quickly remove my jeans and t-shirt. Dracula’s gaze never leaves my body as I pull on the flimsy black scraps of cloth. The outfit, if you can even call it that, is so small that it barely leaves anything to the imagination.

Not really my cup of tea, but whatever pays the bills, and at least my black Demonia boots match.

After a few moments, Dracula begins to circle me, inspecting me before finally giving an appreciative nod. “Very nice, Luci. Very nice, indeed. No scarring or blemishes at all. Tell me, girl. Has anyone ever fed from you?”

I don’t even bother hiding the look of disgust on my face this time. “No, and I don’t plan on it happening anytime soon.”

The man shakes his head and clucks his tongue disapprovingly. “A shame to waste such beautiful flesh, but if you insist.”

Oh, I insist, alright.

I consider myself lucky to have managed to keep my skin and blood intact over the years. It feels crazy even to think it’s been over a decade since vampires first emerged from the shadows.

There were only a few at first. Of course, people were freaked out, but if they only knew what was to come soon after.

In a few short months, thousands of humans were turned into bloodsucking assholes. The macabre that ensued was nothing short of a slaughter. The newly turned vampires murdered thousands more in a fit of bloodlust.

In response, the original vampires created a council in order to preserve the human race. They need human blood to survive, but now they only take it when it is given willingly. Strange enough, more humans than not are more than happy to become a blood meal.

Not me, though. Not after what they did to Gabriel.

These fanged fuckers can rot for all I care.

I watch in silence as the man goes back around his desk and pulls out what looks to be a white leather collar. “Wear this,” he says as he holds it out to me.

I take it from him, letting my fingers graze over the smooth material as I look it over. “Why?”

“If you wish for your skin to remain the way it is now, then I suggest you put it on. It will let our patrons know you are not on the menu.”

Another menacing smile from him has me unbuckling the latch, and I bring it up to fasten it around my throat. It fits a little snugger than I like, but at least it gives me a sense of security.

After that is settled, I follow him out of his office and down a narrow, dimly lit hallway. The first riffs of a heavy rock song soon make their way to my ears, growing louder as we near the end, and I smile to myself as the bass vibrates in my chest. The familiar feeling exhilarates and comforts me at the same time.

Having worked in clubs since I was sixteen, the fast-paced environment and obnoxiously loud atmosphere are like second nature to me.

Soon, the small corridor gives way to the massive club area, and my lips part with a gasp. From my spot, I can see the entire club, and it is gorgeous. And packed.

I don’t think I have ever seen so many people in one place. Hundreds of humans and vampires alike, some openly feeding while some lurk in dark corners. People dancing, drinking, and just having fun.

Rapidly, my eyes try to take everything in all at once. From the scarlet walls to the dark colors that paint most of everything else. Sleek and gothic. Modern, but with a touch of something...ancient.

When my gaze drifts to the far back of the club, behind the throng of sweaty people on the dance floor, my heart begins to race. An odd assortment of equipment that looks like medieval torture devices is placed strategically along the back wall, and for a moment, I wonder what fresh hell I have gotten myself into.

I’m sure my eyes are as wide as saucers as I watch a towering man bind a fully nude woman to some sort of bench with shackles built onto it. With her ass on display, he spanks her with a wooden paddle, and even from here, I can see her skin blossom into a bright shade of pink.

My cheeks heat in response, a strange mixture of fear and desire pooling in my belly.

“Are you alright, girl?”

I turn to see Dracula smirking, so I offer a slight nod. “What kind of club is this?” I ask.

Another flash of fangs as the man holds his arms out wide as if to welcome a warm embrace.

“Welcome to Pulse, Luci. Where ecstasy is pain, and pain is God.”