by Jenny Frame
* * *
It was now early evening, and after dropping Amelia off, Alexis, Byron, and the rest of the guards went back to the house. The cars pulled up in front of the Debrek mansion, and Alexis was anxious to go talk to Katie as soon as Byron was safely inside. The funeral had brought her thoughts and feelings about Katie into sharp focus.
One day she would be attending Katie’s funeral. She’d already realized that she couldn’t just not be in a relationship with Katie. Loving Katie wasn’t a choice. Her heart would simply always be Katie’s. So if Katie was sure, Alexis had decided to help her turn, and then she could spend eternity worshipping her.
Alexis jumped out of the car and opened the door for Byron. Byron got out and straightened her black tie.
“I’m glad that day’s over, Duca,” Byron said.
Alexis was just about to reply when the guard she had put on Katie came running down the front steps.
“She’s gone, Duca. Katie slipped out while I was in the blood room.”
“Fuck. Principe, may I go and look for her?” Alexis asked.
“Of course. I’m sure she’s fine, Alexis. Take Bhal with you.”
Alexis sped off down the road towards the park. She knew that was Katie’s regular route, although she had told her not to cut through the park any more since she had discovered the suspicious dead animals there.
As she got nearer the park, Alexis picked up the telltale scent of blood, and her chest felt like it was under the weight of an elephant.
“No, no. Please, no.”
As she zipped into the park, she came across two dog walkers. She grabbed the first one she came across, looked deeply into his eyes, and said, “Leave the park now and go home.”
The dog barked incessantly, and the man repeated her words, “I’ll leave the park now and go home.”
She did the same with the other human and followed the scent of the blood, all the time her heart pounding with true fear. The scent took Alexis into the cover of trees surrounding the park.
The branches smacked against her body as she pushed through the trees at speed. She slowed down as the blood scent got stronger. She pushed past the last tree and came upon a scene from her worst nightmare—Josie hunched over Katie’s body, feeding from her neck.
The next few minutes were a blur. She grabbed Josie and threw her against a tree. She threw her so hard that the tree trunk cracked. Then she dropped to her knees beside Katie.
“Katie? Katie? No, no, no, please be okay,” Alexis pleaded.
Katie’s throat was worse than the last time Josie had attacked her. She reached out a shaking hand to feel for a pulse. There was nothing there.
“Please don’t be gone. Please, Katie. I love you.” Alexis felt tears running down her face.
Bhal dropped down beside her and felt for Katie’s pulse. She sighed and then placed her hand on Katie’s forehead.
“Bhal? Can you save her? There’s a fountain in the park. I can get you water.”
Bhal shook her head. “I’m sorry, Alexis. She’s too far gone. She’s dead.”
From behind them, Alexis heard the sound of laughter. She turned her head slowly and saw Josie slumped against the tree where she had thrown her, her face caked in Katie’s blood.
Josie grinned and said, “I told you she was mine.”
The words had barely left Josie’s mouth when Alexis was on her. She grabbed her then threw her against another tree. Josie cried out, and Alexis did the same again. Josie was moaning in pain. She might be immortal, but she could feel the full force of the pain until her bones knitted back together again.
Alexis was caught in a storm of red hot rage, like nothing she had ever experienced. This time when she grabbed Josie, Alexis began pounding her fists on her face and body, unleashing both fury and grief.
“No, no, stop!” Josie cried.
Alexis didn’t stop until Bhal pulled her off. “Duca, that’s enough. End this, and let’s take care of Katie’s body.”
Alexis stood on wobbly legs and held her hand out. Bhal took her sword from the scabbard on her back and handed it to Alexis.
Bhal then pulled Josie onto her knees. Josie’s face was a mess, her nose badly broken. Alexis walked forward and pulled her closer by the hair.
“You’ve just killed the kindest, most gentle woman, and for that I’m going to take your head.” She pushed Josie back and held up the sword.
“I’m sorry, please don’t kill me,” Josie said.
Alexis didn’t even consider her pleas. She swiped the sword through the air and cleanly took Josie’s head from her shoulders. Alexis’s breathing was heavy. She was so lost in her rage, her pain, she was unaware of anything around her until Bhal grabbed her and said, “Alexis, come here.”
She turned around and saw Katie gasping for air. She rushed over. “What happened? What’s going on?”
“She started gasping and coughing when you took Josie’s head.”
Alexis cupped Katie’s cheek. “Katie, Katie, I’m here.”
At those words Katie opened her eyes, and the whites were edged with red.
“She’s turned, Bhal. I don’t know—” Alexis then remembered the other night when Katie bit her arm. “I do know. She bit my arm the other night.”
Katie lifted her hand to Alexis. “Alex? What’s happening?”
“Her pulse is strong now,” Bhal said.
Alex pulled Katie into her arms and kissed her head. “You’re alive. I love you, I love you.”
Katie grasped into her tightly. “I feel strange, Alex.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll get you through this, okay?”
Bhal patted Alexis on the shoulder. “I’ll call and get a clean-up crew here. Let’s get her back home.”
Chapter Twenty
Amelia sighed in frustration as she again failed to tune in to her ancestors. She had been sitting in the witches’ circle with Magda for thirty minutes, and nothing.
“I can’t do this. It’s not working,” Amelia said.
Magda squeezed her hand. “Take deep breaths and try to focus.”
Another minute passed. “This is pointless. It’s like there’s a block in my head.” Amelia slammed her hand down on the floor, and a bolt of power came from her hand and scorched the floor within the circle.
Magda opened her eyes and said, “You see what happens when you don’t have control? There is a block. You were at your parents’ funeral today. Your grief and anger are getting in the way.”
Amelia got up and walked out of the circle. “What’s the point anyway? I’ve had four lessons with you, and all we’ve done is sit in this circle and try to listen to voices. I’m supposed to be fighting and defeating a great darkness that this Madam Anka is bringing. How am I meant to do that listening to voices?”
Without saying anything, Magda raised her arm. An object on the ritual table rose and then flew past Amelia’s head and was impaled into the wall behind her.
Amelia jumped in fear and looked behind her at the knife and contemplated how close it got to her.
Magda got up and walked over to the knife. She pulled it out of the wall and rested it in her hand.
“We are not tuning in to listen, Amelia. We are tuning in to our ancestors to harness their collective power. That’s why this basic level of understanding is key. Once your mind becomes more disciplined, you can use it to dangerous effect, I think you’ll agree.”
Amelia rubbed her forehead. “You’re right. I’m sorry for my outburst. It’s been really difficult. I shouldn’t have come.”
Magda put the knife down on the table again and came back to give Amelia a hug.
“I understand, and I promise you, I will teach you so you are well equipped for what lies ahead. I promise you.”
“Thank you, Magda. I’ll be more patient.” Amelia clasped her hand to her mouth and took deep breaths. “I’m sorry, I haven’t felt well today.”
Magda smiled. “No, you wouldn’t, but it’ll soon pass.”
“Why? Is it a magic thing?” Amelia asked.
Magda chuckled and stood up. “No, it’s a baby thing.”
Amelia’s stomach dropped, and she stood up quickly. So quickly that she felt a wave of dizziness and grabbed onto Magda. “What—what are talking about?”
“Can you not feel it? I did as soon as I touched you,” Magda said.
Amelia’s mouth went dry. The Debreks were the only vampire clan who could reproduce and the others coveted that skill, as every new generation became stronger than the last.
“I knew that the Debreks could have children but…I mean, we never discussed or planned when it would happen.”
Magda took her hand and rubbed the back of it. “Lucia was the Debrek life force until she died, and now it is you. Byron’s blood already flows within you from your blood bond, and from what I understand Debrek conceptions happen when you are the closest to each other’s love and touch the beyond. I would suggest you think back to your visit to the New Forest.”
When she and Byron had made love that night in the cabin, Amelia opened up her very soul to the beyond, the other side. It had been unlike anything she’d ever experienced, past or since. It must have been then if what Magda said was true, but deep down she knew it was.
“After all, it was a deal that the Grand Duchess made with her coven, with the ancestors, to allow her and her husband Cosimo to conceive all those long years ago. That night you were in direct contact with the ancestors.”
Amelia put her hand on her stomach protectively. “Magda, I’m supposed to be fighting a great evil. How can I—”
Magda must have seen the trepidation in her face. She gave her a hug and said, “Don’t worry, everyone on the side of good—werewolf, witch, fae, and vampire—will stand behind you.”
“But it won’t be safe.”
“When is the paranormal world ever safe?”
Amelia went over to her bag and got out her phone. She dialled a number and said, “Doctor? It’s Amelia Debrek. Could you see me at short notice?”
* * *
Katie felt cold and had the sensation of ants crawling under her skin. The worst thing was the deep hunger, worse than any need she’d ever had for food or water, but she felt safe in Alexis’s arms. She’d carried her like a baby all the way back to the Debrek house.
When they walked into the hallway, there was a crowd of vampires, warriors, and human staff waiting to see how she was. Byron rushed to their side and stroked her hair.
“Are you all right, Katie?”
Katie could only answer truthfully. “I don’t know. I’m so hungry.”
Byron looked at Alexis pointedly.
“She’s in transition, Principe. It wasn’t my doing, but it was my blood. I’ll take her upstairs and help her with what comes next.”
“Very well. Let me know if you or Katie need anything,” Byron said.
“I will.”
Alexis carried her up to her room and opened the door with one hand. Once they got into the bedroom, Alexis let her down onto her feet.
“How do you feel?” Alexis asked her.
“Empty, like I have no energy, like there is nothing holding me up, and it hurts in here.” Katie pointed to just under her breasts. “It’s painful, and I’m so hungry.”
Alexis cupped her face and leaned her forehead on Katie’s. “I’m going to make you feel better, I promise.” Alexis pulled back and Katie saw tears rolling down her face. “Thank God you didn’t listen to me. If you hadn’t drunk my blood, you’d be dead now, and I would want to die.”
Katie wiped Alexis’s tears away with her thumb. “I’m here and I love you.”
Alexis composed herself. “I have to ask you if you’re certain you want to complete the transition. You do have a choice, remember?”
Katie took a breath and said, “I’m never leaving you, Alex.”
Alexis smiled and led her over to the bed. Alexis sat down on the end and pulled off her T-shirt, leaving herself naked from the waist up. She then patted her lap.
“Sit here.”
Katie walked closer and touched the wound on her neck.
“Don’t worry—it’ll get better once you feed.”
Alexis held out her hand. Katie took it but didn’t move. “I’m scared, Alex.”
Alexis looked at her with eyes full of love and devotion. “I’m here, and I’ll always keep you safe. Do you trust me?”
Katie had no hesitation in saying, “Yes.”
She walked forward and sat on Alexis’s lap. Alexis put her arm around her and pulled her into a deep kiss. When they broke apart, Alexis said, “I love you.”
“I love you too, but I’m frightened of hurting you,” Katie said.
“You can’t hurt me—I promise you.”
“You were my first,” Katie said. “I’d never fed a vampire before. And now you’re going to be the first one I feed on.”
“And the only one, I hope. You’re my first as well.”
“What do you mean?”
Alexis tenderly stroked the hair from Katie’s face. “I’ve never let another vampire feed from me.”
“Really?” Katie was shocked. “In all the years you’ve been alive, you’ve never—”
Alexis shook her head. “No, it all seemed too personal. It was a part of me I didn’t want to give anyone, until you.”
Katie felt tears come to her eyes. Alexis furrowed her eyebrows and smiled.
“Don’t cry, darling.”
“But that’s so sweet,” Katie said.
“It’s just the way I felt.”
Katie kissed Alexis. “Then thank you for sharing it with me.”
Alexis lifted and kissed each of Katie’s hands, then guided Katie’s head to her neck.
“I can’t do it, I can’t,” Katie cried.
“You’ll be fine. Once you taste it, you’ll start to feel a million times better than you do on a good day. Here, let me help.” Alexis’s fangs erupted from her gums, and she bit her own lip making the blood flow from it. Alexis then kissed Katie, and the blood flowed into her mouth.
As soon as the blood hit her tongue, Katie felt a pressure in her gums and then a sharp pain as her fangs burst through. She sucked on Alexis’s blood like it was the last water on earth.
“It’s not enough,” Katie moaned.
“Bite my neck.”
Before she had time to think about it too deeply, every fibre in her being made her body act and bite Alexis’s neck. Her initial shock at the act of biting through Alexis’s skin was soon banished when the rush of blood entered her mouth.
Katie gulped and gulped it down, and as she did, the hunger inside her started to calm. The taste of Alexis’s blood was better than any indulgent food treat she had eaten to sate a physical hunger. It tasted like it was made for her. Despite the fact that Katie had no experience feeding from anyone else, somehow she just knew nothing would taste like Alexis.
Then something else happened. The weakness, the tiredness she had felt since waking from death was disappearing. Every cell in her body was being renewed, and it felt amazing. Katie had never taken drugs, but she imagined that high didn’t even come close to what she was starting to feel.
“Are you all right, Katie?”
Katie took her teeth from Alexis’s neck and gasped some calming air into her lungs.
“I feel like…” Katie stood and took stock of how her body felt. It was shocking. Every small ache and pain she’d ever had was gone. “I feel like every cell in my body is filled with bright, intense energy.”
Alexis smiled. “It’ll feel overwhelming for a while, but you’ll get used to it. You’re safe now. That’s all that matters.”
Katie’s nerves were jangling like she had taken an amphetamine. She had to do something with this energy or she might burst. She sped from one side of the room to the other, at top vampire speed. She laughed. “I can sneak up on you now.”
“You can. There’s so much to learn about your new abil
ities, but I’ll be with you at every stage,” Alexis said.
Katie touched her fingers to her mouth and saw the evidence of the blood Alexis gave her, and she experienced an unbelievable aching need in her sex. She leapt onto Alexis and pushed her back on the bed.
Alexis then used her strength to flip her on her back, but then Katie did the same. After a tussle Katie finally lay underneath Alexis, and they both laughed.
“I want you so much, Alex. I feel like I’m going to explode.”
Alexis stroked her head. “Feeding from someone you love does that to you.”
“I love you, Alex.”
“I love you. Thank God you didn’t listen to me about drinking some of my blood. Tonight would be very different otherwise.”
“Don’t think about that. I’m here, and I need you to make me come.”
Alexis kissed her, and the kisses soon became frantic as they tore at each other’s clothes. Without preamble Alexis pushed her fingers inside Katie, who was wet and ready for her.
Katie gasped and said, “Yes, Alex.”
Alexis thrust on Katie’s leg while she thrust two fingers inside her. It got fast and near the pinnacle very quickly.
Katie wanted more of everything. “Alex, I need more. Faster, harder.”
Alexis obliged and brought them both to the brink. Katie dug her nails into Alexis’s shoulder, and Alexis groaned. “Fuck, I’m going to come. Bite me, Katie.”
Katie bit deep into Alexis’s neck, and Alexis did the same to her. Katie didn’t think anything could make sex with Alexis better, but sharing blood did. As both their orgasms overtook them, Katie felt she was drowning in bliss.
“I love you, Alex.”
* * *
“Are you sure she’s okay?” Amelia paced around the bedroom.
After returning from seeing the doctor, Amelia got the news about Katie and was beside herself with worry.
“She’s okay, or she will be. Alexis will look after her. Come and sit. You’ve had a hard day.”
One of the maids had brought up some simple soup and bread, since Amelia wasn’t feeling great, and left the tray on the breakfasting table. She walked over and sat down with Byron at the table.
