Free Created Darkly by Gena D. Lutz

there’s a chance they may birth another Jeffrey Dahmer or Charles Manson?”
    “Are you kidding me with that crap?” I kept him pinned with my stare. “You’re only fooling yourself, certainly not me, if you believe that humans and vampires are the same in any way. Your vampires have to feed off of humans! They are their prey, treated like livestock in most cases. So your lame attempt at rationalizing your way into feeling okay about using your gifts to create them falls on deaf ears with me. Keep that crap to yourself, buddy.”
    “Even if I believed the same way you do, it wouldn’t matter. Can’t you see? We have been given an extraordinary power, the ability to create life where there is otherwise death and despair. We breathe hope into the depressed and despondent. I refuse to believe that these gifts I…no, we were born with as a species, is bad or not meant to be used.”
    He put his hand on my shoulder and I stepped back away from him. His head dropped forward in defeat, and he shoved both of his hands into his jean pockets. “We are not evil, Kris.”
    “Tell that to the ghosts that come to me. Do you know what they have in common? They were all brutally killed by vampires. That’s what. Oh, and here’s a fun fact for you. The female spirits and some of the males, too, tell a tale of torture and rape, sometimes one or the other, but most times, both. But no worries. The next time I’m listening to how a leech shoved his cock into one of his victims while ripping out her throat, I’ll be sure to tell her it’s okay, because Rush fucking Davis said that vampires are like cuddly little kittens, and we should just accept what happened to her, because that damn leech is the product of our brethren’s precious gifts!” 
    I felt a gentle hand come down to rest on my shoulder, and then I felt a squeeze. I could barely make out Jude’s words through my anger as he spoke into my ear, “Freaking out won’t accomplish anything. Let’s keep our focus and energy on Torra.”
    I sucked up my rage. I didn’t think Rush was evil. His actions weren’t bred from malice. We just believed in two very different things.
    I reached up and gave Jude’s hand a reassuring pat and took a few calming breaths. I’d just blown up on Rush, totally insulting him and his work. No matter what my beliefs were, it wasn’t my place to preach at him. He was entitled to his own opinions; he was of his own mind.
    Obviously, he didn’t have the same kind of ghosts visiting him that I did, so how could I expect him to understand? After a slight nod, I looked up at Rush. He seemed furious, but also confused and hurt. I waited for him to say something, yell at me…anything. But he remained mute. Somehow, that stung more than any confrontation or verbal lashing could have.
    “For now, let’s agree to disagree,” I suggested, deciding to squash the argument. I held my breath, waiting for him to tell me to go screw myself. In a way, I deserved it for my outburst.
    A weak grin ticked up at the corner of his mouth, and the deep furrows between his brows smoothed. “I’m okay with that, I guess…like you said, for now. But there is one thing I’d like to say before we table this. At some point, we need to discuss those feelings of yours. I would also like to know more about the ghosts you say visit you.”
    I smiled back at him and nodded once, agreeing to the terms of our temporary truce. “Consider it a date.” I turned around and began to walk deeper into the building, and after a few steps, I realized what I said. “Wait, I didn’t mean a ‘date’ date.”
    Rush walked by me, his weak smile gone, replaced with a big grin. “Too late. You’ve committed to going out with me…at least once.”
    “You’re actually going to hold me to a slip up?” My mouth dropped open. The idea wasn’t altogether bad. He was extremely nice to look at, but there was the small remaining fact that he was a Council member.
    Rush chuckled