Chapter 13: Gabriel: The Vampire King (1)

Esme walked past Paul and Nathan, who only glared at her and returned early from her break to the bar. Leo looked at her curiously, but she ignored him and took to the floor with a tray, set out on retrieving empty glasses. Esme glanced at Leo, who continued to work like nothing had happened earlier; she shivered at how quickly his mind was controlled by the vampire. Compulsion was quite a scary power and one that was allegedly illegal to use unless it was vital in protecting the creature's existence.

Though that never stopped vampires from using it.

It was a slow night at ONYX, making Esme even more agitated as she kept checking her phone for the time. She was really struggling tonight. Her body temperature was rising to an uncomfortable heat, and her head was pounding along with the throbbing pain of her newly injured hand. Maybe she should tell Niko she wasn't feeling well so she could run off the fever.

With that in mind, she returned to the bar, leaning onto it and called Leo over. "Where's Niko?" She asked while grabbing an ice cube from a bucket holding a chilled champagne bottle, and placing it at the back of her neck. Leo watched the action with his brows drawing together.

"A VIP has come in. He's seeing to them," Leo replied before putting the back of his hand on her forehead. Esme flinched at the sudden skin contact but casually pulled away and stared at him questionably. "You're burning up. Head home, I'll tell Niko."

Esme shook her head, "I can't just take off without telling him myself." Unlike her previous bosses, she liked and respected Niko. He accepted her without faulting her for being a werewolf, talking to her like a normal person, and he put up with her teasing.

Leo leaned forwards, placing the towel he was holding over his shoulder and pouted. "I swear he's the only one you're nice to."

Esme raised a brow in response, "He pays me," She deadpanned, earning a wolfish grin from the bartender.

"It seems I don't pay you enough if you stand around doing nothing," Niko's low voice reached her ears as he walked towards them. Esme opened her mouth to reply, but Niko stopped her by putting his hand up. "You are needed in the VIP room."

"Lenny-"

"It is not Lenny Travine. Someone of much more importance that will require the utmost respect," Niko replied sternly as he stared down at her.

Esme's eyes widened in response. "Niko, I can't. I'm really unwell, look I'm burning up!" She exclaimed and reached for his hand, but the vampire swiftly moved his hand out of the way and walked towards the staff room. Without another word between them, Esme followed behind him, understanding that he wanted to speak to her in private.

Once they were in the room, Esme and Niko swept the room with their eyes before Niko turned around to face her. "What do you mean you're burning up? You're a were-"

"We do get sick as well, you know!" Esme interrupted and rubbed the temples of her head with her fingers to make a point.

"You don't look that ill to me," Niko replied as he stared intently at her face. Esme blushed and turned away; she didn't like people staring at her for too long. Plus, it meant anyone who was getting close to her would start to read her better, something she would rather not go through.

"Niko, please. It's not busy; you can handle tonight without me. I'm gonna go mad if I don't leave," She instinctively reached for the rubber band on her wrist but paused when the vampire was suddenly just one meter in front of her.

"Serve in the VIP room, then you can finish," Niko ordered as he crossed his arms, waiting for her response with a stern expression.

"How long will that take?" Esme whined with a sigh as she took her hair clip out and began to pull her hair back into a high ponytail. She grimaced slightly from her hand and gave up on re-doing her hair, letting her dark wavy locks fall down her back.

Niko stared at her injured hand then met her eyes once more. "You leave when he tells you to," He said irritably. "He asked for you."

Esme paused and looked at her boss. Who was this VIP? Niko was sterner with her than usual and insisted on her going to the VIP room. Her heart picked up its pace as she began to feel anxious. Her instincts told her to leave now, but Niko looked calm and was merely handing out an order.

Esme dropped her hair clip onto a table and sighed, "Fine." She began to walk past him, then paused with her hand on the doorknob; looking back at him, she said, "You should lighten up, Niko. You'll get wrinkles and ruin that pretty face of yours."

Esme held back a smirk when she saw her boss blush before he cleared his throat and ignored her comment. He opened the door for her, his eyes looking anywhere but at her. She walked through, past the bar and headed to the VIP room. In the time that she worked at ONYX, she knew there were more than five VIP rooms, all of which made her nervous. Even if she did work in the human bar, it didn't mean the vampires were completely separate.

In fact, the club was a perfect excuse for people to go missing for a few hours. Though she had not yet worked in the vampire bar, she was pretty sure everything was kept on the down-low. The VIP rooms were mainly paid for by vampires who wanted more privacy. Unless a human rented the room out, Esme, Leo and other staff members in her section would not work there. But so far, she only knew of one human to rent out a VIP room, and that was Lenny.

Niko led her through to the farthest VIP room, meaning it was the grandest one of them all with its own bar and glossy black stage for pianists and bands. Esme waited behind Niko, who stood outside the door and knocked gently, waiting for a response.

"Come in, Nikolaos."

"I recognise that voice," Isana whispered apprehensively.

Niko opened the door and held it open for Esme to walk through. The room was large, the décor a dark navy and copper, stylish like the rest of the snazzy club, the lighting was low with two large crystal chandeliers. At the back of the room was a wall-length waterfall that was lit up with plants and falling down the sides.

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Esme halted her steps when she saw the back of a man's head, his white hair brushing against the top of his suit jacket. One arm rested on the back of the brown leather sofa, the other holding onto a glass resting in his lap.

Before the white-haired vampire was another man, his demeanour nervous as his hands shook by his sides. Esme looked back at the man, whose face she could not see, and knew from his chillingly calm exterior that he was indeed the VIP. There were four other men in the room, two guarding the door and two standing by the bar. Was she really meant to be here?

Wait, was this Gabriel? His demeanour was different from earlier; though she could not see his face from where she stood, she tried not to cringe from how rude her attitude was towards him. She shook her head; there was no point overthinking it. If there was an issue, she would have been attacked by now. Her eyes unconsciously roamed the area, seeking escape routes, but there was only the one door she walked through and wherever the stage door led.

Niko bowed at the man's back then silently gestured for Esme to tend to the bar. His face had soured at her lack of movement. He took a step towards her which snapped her out of her daze, and she headed for the bar.

Esme stood in front of the two men and offered them a smile. "Can I get you, anything gentlemen?" She asked politely, ignoring the quivering man behind them who was now kneeling. This was none of her business anyway; as long as she wasn't dragged into it, she was happy to keep her mouth shut.

"Large red wine," The golden-haired vampire smiled back at her. She couldn't help but stare for a second longer than necessary; he was another good-looking vampire who knew how to dress well. All of them were dressed well in their suits, as expected from a high-end bar for vampires.

Esme glanced at the vampire next to him, expecting an order, but he shook his head and kept his gaze on the man seated on the sofa, his arm resting on the bar, his body facing away from the golden-haired vampire. The she-wolf turned around and searched for the red wines and spoke over her shoulder, "Any particular brand?"

"Ah, that is why I don't recognise you. You're new, right?" He replied, then added, "There are only selected brands in here suited to our tastes."

Of course, they were; it was a VIP room after all.

Esme turned around and smiled again, "Thank you, that's saved me some time."

"My pleasure, what is your name?" He asked, placing an elbow on the bar and leaning his head on his hand showing intrigue.

Esme found the bottle and a glass and began filling it up in front of the vampire. "Esme," She replied, feeling her stomach knot at the idea of another vampire knowing her name. From the atmosphere of the room, Esme knew these were no ordinary vampires.

"Ah, Esme, that is a beautiful name, matching to a beautiful lady. French? Meaning beloved, or to love. Quite a romantic name," The vampire smiled charmingly. If she was any other girl, she was sure to have blushed by now.

Esme slid the glass closer to him. "I haven't spent much time thinking about such trivial things," She muttered, then bit her tongue. She was meant to be on her best behaviour.

The vampire chuckled at her response. "You have polished up your behaviour. Don't be too polite though, it's quite refreshing having a she-wolf and one that bites back," He winked. "I'm Luther, and this here is Vinnie." He gestured to the vampire next to him, who nodded at her without sparing her a glance.

"Luther.. And does your name have any meaning?" Esme asked politely, continuing with the small talk.

"Oh no, nothing in particular. But.." Luther leaned closer to her, his eyes full of mischief, "it is short for Eleutherius, which is latin for free."

"Ahl-Uw-Dhiyriyah.. " Esme pronounced it correctly, earning a magnificent smile from the vampire in return.

"Please! Sire, mercy! Show me mercy!" Esme looked at the man who had been kneeling on the ground, now being dragged away begging, his cries turning to echoes through the stage's door. The white-haired vampire did not give the man a second glance as he sipped nonchalantly on his drink.

Esme inhaled sharply, then stared at the white-haired vampire who slowly looked her way. A smirk played on his lips.

Gabriel..

No, no, no..

No fricken way.

Her mind finally caught up to her and where she heard his delightful voice from before. Gabriel was THEE Vampire King and the man in charge of ONYX. Her mind raced to what had happened earlier. Did she insult him at all? Her eyes flickered to the door, already thinking about running without her backpack that was in her locker.

No, stay calm.

While she was in inner turmoil, her face was composed.

Gabriel continued to stare at Esme; his face was expressionless, but his eyes alluring, she couldn't look away. "Luther, bring Paul and Nathan in here. Esme, come here.." His voice was quiet yet commanding and sent a shiver down her spine.

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