by Renee Rose
Do I actually have the guts? Strengthening my resolve, I take my beam and smack it against his head. The wood erupts into a spray of splinters as it breaks off against him. He staggers a bit, but stays upright. Damn. His adrenaline must be strong. My own is in overdrive, at least. John lumbers back towards me, his large frame blocking out a lot of the light from the candles. Apprehension skitters along my spine and fires up my brain.
His movements are slow, that’s a positive, at least. He’s just a few steps away, his eyes peering into mine. As he opens his mouth to speak, my body jolts into action, as though I have no control over it. With a loud yell, I charge at him with what’s left of the rotted wood. Before I can even stop myself, a sickening squelch fills the room.
Bile rises up my throat. He freezes, his mouth stuck in a ‘o’ of surprise. Though not super long, the rotted wood seems to have done the trick. It juts out from his chest, perilously close to his heart. The thud as his body hits the floor sets my insides quivering with fear and nausea. I bite down on my lower lip to keep from throwing up.
I stand there watching him, my breaths coming in soft pants. I have to leave. I have to get out of here. But, I have to find my phone. If he is indeed dead, I don’t need anything tying him back to me. Skirting around him, I go back over to where the wine bottles are and start pulling at any object that either looks like a phone or could hide one. My fingers tremble. I can’t seem to stop shaking.
A soft groan startles me, making me bump into his half-drunk glass of wine. As it tumbles down, it covers me in the fragrant, dark-red liquid. The hell with this. I can always get a new phone. I turn back towards the stairs, and race up and out of the crypt. I need to put as much distance between me and that monster as I can.
Chapter 2
Halloween is the hardest holiday of all. While children dress up as their favorite characters, action figures, and heroes, and adults dress up in whatever will get them laid, I’m stuck remembering the real reason for this holiday: All Souls’ Night. Looking up at the sky, I peer into the dark expanse. Is my wife still looking down on me? Does she still even care?
Though I’m far from home, the need to be with her drives me forward every year. Even centuries later, I find myself wandering through whatever cemetery I’m near, just to possibly get a glimpse of her. The veil is thinnest around this time, after all. What does it mean if a loved one died near All Hallows’ Eve? Shouldn’t that grant them extra time back on Earth?
Kicking at a rock in front of me, I squat down in front of a worn tombstone. The words are faded, just like the memories I so desperately cling to. How many more centuries before I forget the color of her hair? Her smile? Her warm embrace? Already, the smaller details are lost. Soon, I will have nothing more to keep me company.
A loud shriek pierces the night, startling me out of my morose thoughts. Tilting my head up, I scent the air, picking up on a faint scent of a woman. My fangs pulse as I follow her smell. She isn’t alone, and if what I’m smelling is correct, she’s most certainly in danger.
Up ahead, I see a large crypt with candlelight spilling out of it. This has to be where the other vampire has gone to ground. I hope what I’m smelling is incorrect, but my gut is telling me otherwise. Growling softly, I ease my way even closer, my body humming with adrenaline. He doesn’t smell like anyone I’ve met at Club Toxic, so, until proven otherwise, he’s a threat to be dealt with.
Taking the steps two at a time, I come upon the bloody scene. Two people—one a vampire and the other obviously human—converge close together in the cramped vault. Her tiny frame is as far away from the predator as she can get, but in such close quarters, it’s not nearly far enough. The vampire, paralyzed, but still very much alive, lies prone on the floor, a large wooden beam sticking out of his chest. I stare down at him, my body stilling. Though incapacitated, he could still be dangerous.
She’s so small, clearly not helpless, but I’m still overwhelmed by the need to keep her safe. As I edge closer to the woman, I reach out to make her aware of my presence. Her shriek of fear fills the chamber, and damn it if my cock doesn’t twitch. Clearing my throat, I grab her arm and put myself between her and the other vampire. With her safely behind me, I look down at him. Definitely no one I recognize. The glazed look in his eyes still holds a glimmer of evil.
“It was an accident. Just an accident,” she mutters, her voice frantic. I glance over, and her slender arms are wrapped around her body as she rocks back and forth. I need to get her out of here, and fast. Pulling her into my arms must have snapped her out of her panic because her small body becomes a flurry of movement. Tiny fists rail against my chest. I can barely feel the impact, but she’s fighting me in earnest. Smiling, I grab her wrists.
“Calm yourself. Mio Dio. I’m here to help you. Now, let’s get out of here before he gets back up.”
Her face tilts up and her eyes lock onto mine. Candlelight dances across her face, shadows dipping and swirling like a lover’s caresses. Unable to stop myself, I reach out and slide my fingertips across her cheek. It’s just as soft as I imagined it to be.
“Alessandra.” Her name slips past my lips before I can stop it. Pain and longing flow through me as I take in this woman standing before me.
“It’s Dahlia, you freak. Now let me go!” She twists her neck to frantically look behind her. “Is he actually going to get back up?”
Shaking my head, I clear my vision. This isn’t her. This isn’t my precious Alessandra. Once I can think rationally, the differences are noticeable. However… her eyes. Every time her eyes lock with mine, I’m brought back to memories of simple nights filled with love and laughter.
Hauling Dahlia back to me, I clutch her tightly. “Shh. You’re safe now. He’s not going to hurt you. I promise.”
Her fists pummel my chest again, but I simply hold her tighter.
“You just said he could get back up. You can’t promise me shit! We’ve got to get out of here.”
Frowning, I look back down at her. “Language, bellissima.”
I slide my thumb across her bottom lip, reveling in the petal softness before pinching it lightly. Just enough to get my point across. I’m playing with fire, and I know it. But, for the first time in centuries, I finally feel something: a small spark of desire burning from what was once nothing but ash.
Her eyes widen again. Perhaps I’m scaring her, but a quick sniff of the air tells me that’s not the only thing affecting her. Resisting a growl, I pull at her wrists, trying to get her away from danger, to get her somewhere safe.
Tears pool in those gorgeous eyes as she tugs back from me.
“I-I don’t know you. I can find my own way home, okay?”
She sneaks a quick glance back over at the other vampire, and shudders. Her body shakes violently as tears stream down her face.
“I killed him, didn’t I? We have to call the police. Do something. I-I can’t…”
Without pausing to get her permission, I stoop down low and toss her over my shoulder. Her squeak of protest is music to my ears. My cock instantly responds, and gets harder with every movement of struggle she makes. I’ve been spending way too much time in Club Toxic’s dungeon. Or maybe not enough.
Groaning, I heft her up a little higher, trying to ease the pressure of my shoulder in her midsection. My left arm holds her legs securely to my body. Unfortunately, that also put her ass right on my arm. The heat from her body sears me, robbing me of thought for just a moment.
I shake my head, and send messages downstairs that she’s not up for grabs and to calm the fuck down. It takes little time to race back up the stairs and into the cemetery proper. An eerie silence fills the space, invading every tombstone, every resting place. It’s enough to put me on edge. What was she thinking, coming out here this close to All Souls’ Night?
I may have been here as well, but I’m a predator, damn it, not a beautiful mouthful of prey just begging to be eaten. My cock stirs again. It’s going to be a long night. Pulling out my pho
ne, I call Lucius. This isn’t my jurisdiction. If anyone’s going to take care of this mess, it’s him.
“I have a car over here, let’s go before he gets back up,” I say.
“I told you, I don’t want to go with you! Wait, is that the cops? Are you calling the cops?” She struggles a bit more and twists her torso, planting her hands onto my back.
“Hey, Lucius?”
His commanding voice fills one ear just as her loud, screeching fills the other.
“Hey!” She screams, her wiggling becoming more frantic. “I’m being carried off by a madman! He won’t let me go. Help, help. Somebody!”
“Are you actually kidnapping her?” Lucius chuckles.
I want to reach through the phone and smack the smug look off of his face—the one that’s clear as day through his voice. “No, I’m not kidnapping her.”
“Yes, he is!”
“She had a run in with a vampire. Someone needs to take care of it. She says she’s wounded him but—”
“I did! He’s dead, but this guy won’t let me go!”
“Hold on one moment, please,” I tell Lucius.
Tucking the phone against my shoulder and ear, I take my free hand to her ample backside, giving her a hard swat on each cheek. Silence. Her body freezes, even her breathing stops for a moment. After a few seconds, she drops back down onto me, muttering under her breath. But at least she’s not screaming kidnap anymore.
“Evergreen Memorial,” I say into the phone.
“Ahh. I know the one. Weird that there’d be a vampire holed up there. I didn’t realize there were areas to nest.”
Sighing, I look back over my shoulder. “It’s in the large crypt. Once you come into the cemetery proper, and go back a little ways, you’ll see it. You won’t be able to miss it. Little miss weirdo over here has candles all lit inside.” My lips curl up into a grin as her struggles begin anew. I knew that would strike a nerve. After her banshee wailing, it serves her right that I get back at her a little. Lucius must have picked up on her writhing in my arms because he stifles a quick laugh before returning to business.
“How many do you think we need?”
“Just one should suffice. She got him pretty good.”
“Very well. What do you intend to do with the mortal?”
Pausing, I grip her a touch tighter to me than necessary. What am I going to do with her? Just because I rescued her, does that automatically make me responsible for her? Yes, it does. It’s not her fault she was attacked by a vampire. Sighing, I shift her again in my arms. “I’ll take care of it.”
“I’m sure,” he murmurs.
I turn the phone off and slide it back into my pocket before curling that arm around her to meet my other. Her yoga pants leave very little to the imagination, and it’s all I can do not to slide my hands up her thighs and back up to that luscious ass.
“You spanked me,” she whispered.
“That I did, belissima.”
“You have no right to fucking touch me, you perv.”
Tsking softly, I grip her legs and again deliver a swat, much harder this time, to each sit-spot. I didn’t think I could get any harder, yet her howls of pain and the ferocity with which she bucks against my arm make me swell even larger. Grimacing, I reach down and adjust my pants, tucking the head back behind the band of my underwear.
“Did I not tell you to watch your language? Such a beautiful mouth shouldn’t be tainted with such words. Be grateful I don’t wash your mouth out with something. A swat is nothing. A burn, then it’s over. Not so easily done with the mouth.”
Closing my eyes for a moment, I picture my cum coating her tongue, washing the filthy words down her throat. Oh yes, that would be a much more pleasant way to punish her.
“You’re not my father. I don’t have to listen to you!”
Sighing, I open the back door of my car and ease her inside. She’s not going to let me rescue her easily, is she? As if reading my thoughts, she kicks out with her feet. Unfortunately for her, my reflexes are way faster than anything she can anticipate. I grab a foot in each hand and shove her in before slamming the door.
In a flurry of motion, she claws at the closed door, her beautiful lips spewing a long line of profanities. That simply will not do. Easing my way inside the driver’s seat, I dodge her hands as they reach out to grab me. I must say, under normal circumstances, a woman scratching and clawing at me would be absolutely delightful. However, this hellcat is bent on destruction instead of pleasure.
“Desist, woman!”
Her hands get close enough for me to grab them in my large grip. Grunting, she tugs and squirms, but to no avail. Instead of lying peacefully in my backseat, she’s now pinned to the driver’s side seat with her arms stretched out in front of her. It takes her a moment to recalculate, but soon she stops squirming and starts trying to bite me. A long canine grazes my ear, zipping pleasure down my spine to settle heavily in my balls.
Glancing up into the rearview mirror, I spot her long, sharp fangs. Frozen, I simply stare at her, trying to make sense of what I’m seeing and smelling. She has all the markers of a human. Even now, her carotid is pulsing at a tantalizing rate, beating hard just below the skin of her delicate neck. My length hardens again as I watch the show her heartbeat is putting on for me. Each jump sends yet one more pulse of pleasure down my shaft. It would be all too easy to turn the tables and consume this little morsel.
But that still doesn’t answer the question about her fangs. Shifter, perhaps? I scent the air again. Maybe I just missed her subtle notes. As I breathe in deeply, my head is swamped by Dahlia’s scent. It’s intoxicating, maddening. A spicy mixture of cinnamon and vanilla infiltrate my brain, mixed with the scent that is completely hers.
But, underneath it all, there’s still that one scent that calls to me completely. She is entirely human. Her struggles increase as I pull my face away from hers. It would be funny if she wasn’t actually fighting me in earnest.
“Let me out of here!”
Suddenly, she lets go and tries the doors again. Ignoring her, I start up the car and head to my hotel room. Her shrieks of indignation and rage fill the car as her fingers grip and tug at every inch of the door.
“It’s not going to open cara. Child locks. It came standard with the car. Seeing as you’re my first passenger, I never felt the need to undo them.”
Glancing back into the mirror, I watch as her form slumps against the seat. Resignation fills her eyes. Those eyes, so close to my Alessandra’s, well up with unshed tears. My heart breaks just a little more.
“I promise I won’t hurt you. I just want to get you somewhere safe.”
“Safe? How do I know you’re not a murderer yourself? What kind of a wacko goes strolling along in a cemetery, anyway?”
Staring her down in the mirror, I remain silent, but simply raise my eyebrow. She ducks her head, a faint blush staining her cheeks and creeping down over her throat. Gods, I want to see just how far down that blush could go. Shaking my head, I try to dispel her, this temptress with eyes not her own.
“I was there for a purpose.” She sniffs. It’s different. I—”
My phone interrupts her, shattering the tenuous trust being built between us. I hit the answer button, letting it go to the car’s speaker.
“Hey, I—”
“He’s kidnapped me!” Dahlia erupts from the seat, her voice fast and earnest. “Please, someone rescue me! He’s holding me against my will!”
Anger flares through me. Enough is enough. Jerking the car over, I turn in my seat and pin Dahlia with a deadly glare. Thankfully, she has enough self-preservation to look ill at ease and slink back into the seat.
“Sleep,” I growl, watching her eyelids droop. “You’ll awaken in one hour.” After a moment or two of her fighting it, her eyes finally close. Her body stays upright for a few more minutes before slumping over in a dead sleep.
“Did you really kidnap a girl?” Augustus chuckles through the speakers. “Becau
se, you know, we’ve got women here you can partake of. No need to take helpless females against their will.”
“Helpless. Bah. If she’s helpless, then I’m a kitten.” Shaking my head, I glance back into the mirror and watch her sleep. Her breath is coming out in small snores. It is cute, actually. And once more, the band around my heart starts to ease open.
“We got the vampire. Not one we recognized, either, but others have been having issues as well. Stay alert and keep her safe. I’m not sure what these rogue vampires are after, but we don’t need humans as collateral damage.”
“Don’t worry,” I reply, my fangs lengthening, “no one will touch a hair on her head.” Except me, of course.
I don’t dare look back at her as thoughts of using her body for my pleasure roll through my brain. She was so wild when she tried defending herself, I can just imagine what her reaction would be if she woke up cuffed to my bed.
Shaking my head, I dispel that notion as soon as it enters my mind. I’ve never forced myself onto anyone before, and I’m not going to start with her. Besides, after I’ve fed her, looked her over, and made sure she’s okay, I’ll be taking her right back to where she belongs. But why does my heart hurt at that thought? She’s not Alessandra. As much as she looks like her and has her spirit, keeping this human will just result in the same course of action. Death.
Taking a deep breath, I close my heart and mind off to this slip of a woman, who is drooling on my leather seats. I haven’t allowed myself to tangle with humans in centuries, and Dahlia isn’t going to entice me to relive that pain.
As I approach the hotel, I park my car and look up at the building. How am I going to get her inside without raising suspicion? Humans will be wary enough, but if some of the other vampires there saw us, that would certainly raise some questions. Besides, she screamed out ‘kidnapped’ loud enough that I’m sure vampires all the way over in New York heard her.
I ease the back door open and scoop Dahlia into my arms. Her weight is insignificant, and I’m once again reminded of her mortality. Who am I kidding? Like I could ever forget. Shifting her a little in my arms, I check the time on my watch. I need to get her inside and check her over before her hour is up. Heaven knows I don’t need her shouting as I bring her into the hotel.
