Dark Rapture

by Hauf, Michele

  She looked up at Sebastian. He had moved closer and his hand was extended to offer help, but she defied him to dare touch her. She would bite his hand if he got any closer. Yes, that would teach him.

  The animal urges came so quickly.

  “You’re going to need more blood. That’s why you’re in pain. Trust me, Scarlet, you must do as I say or you will only suffer more.”

  She righted herself on the floor, glaring through long lashes at him, hating his pretty face and his calm, rational demeanor. But with the next piercing ripple of pain it was clear that she would need his help.

  “Don’t ever say that you love me again.” She pulled the sheet from her legs and stretched them out on the floor before her, pushing her toes into the hardwood.

  “All right,” Sebastian said. “For now, I promise you I won’t. But will you let me help you? I don’t like to see you suffer. There’s no need for it.”

  Controlling the pain was becoming more of a challenge. It felt as if her blood bubbled inside her veins. A peculiar feeling, not so painful as she concentrated on it more intensely, more like an effervescing beneath her skin.

  “What kind of help do I need?”

  He went on all fours, a panther stalking its prey. But to Scarlet’s relief, he didn’t touch her. “You need more blood. Once more this morning and you will be much stronger. Then you can leave.” He looked away. “If you wish.”

  Yes, she did wish to leave. But drink more blood? No, she couldn’t bring herself to do that. Could she?

  Remembering what she’d done last night disgusted her, the way she’d shamelessly drunk the blood from Sebastian’s neck like a vicious animal. She remembered feeling strangely at ease at the time. She sighed, mulling over his suggestion of drinking more blood.

  So this is how it must be? To survive I must become an animal. A blood-drinking demon.

  Sebastian stretched a leg out beside her and his arm brushed hers. The cool silk sleeve sent a shiver down her arm, and she felt a shock of desire. She jerked her head to the side, determined to fight the feelings that had gotten her into this situation in the first place.

  Again the pain arched her back. It was enough to make her decide to cooperate, if only to get away from him as soon as humanly possible. Human or monster. What was she now?

  “Am I still human?” she whimpered, not turning to look at him.

  “Yes,” he answered gently. “You are a human being, created by God. But now immortality has entered your life. You are not dead, Scarlet, but you’re something more than human now. Don’t be afraid. I’ll be here for you.”

  She wasn’t hearing him now. The pain was still there and her stomach ached. “I’m hungry,” she said, sniffing away tears. Finally she forced herself to look at Sebastian, although she wouldn’t look into his eyes. It was too hard to keep a rational mind when she did, so she concentrated on the fine black stubble that had appeared on his upper lip. “I think I’m hungry. I don’t know exactly what it is I feel.”

  “It’s the blood hunger. I know this is going to be hard for you. Acceptance will come soon enough. But for now you must trust me.”

  Trust? Is that what comes after you secretly conspire to make an innocent human being into a blood-sucking vampire?

  She wanted to express her anger by screaming at him, but she could only sigh and nod at his suggestions. Her body weakened by the second, and she wanted to get out of Vince’s house before they were discovered. The idea of Gary seeing her in this situation was unthinkable. But first she had to get away from Sebastian.

  He stood and walked around to the other side of the bed. She could hear a metal scrape the floor and he came back to her and knelt down, holding the bloodstained knife in his hands. It gleamed and flashed.

  “Trust me,” he whispered.

  ***

  “Shall I drive you to her house, master?”

  Francesco picked at the red thread hanging from one of the loose metal buttons on his coat. “No, we’ve other things to take care of first, Matthias.”

  I just hope you can hold out long enough to help me, he thought with a glance toward the boy. The lad was becoming more of a zombie each day; his movements were listless and his eyes fixed in a drunken gaze. All commands were obeyed immediately and mechanically. Francesco sighed. Poor child.

  “I need you to take me to one of the stores so I can get some clothing. I must blend in with the rest of the people. And I want to search out the blond man you told me about. From there I’ll know better what the future holds for Sebastian DelaCourte.”

  “Yes, master.” The boy bowed to the ground and using the bed to pull himself back up, he hustled to get Francesco’s coat from the window ledge and help him pull it on. “You’ll need money to purchase clothing, master.”

  “Oh, yes, I imagine I will.” Francesco thought of the gold pieces tucked within the black satin lining in his coffin. “First we shall go to a bank. I’m sure I’ll have more than enough to make myself a respectable member of this modern society.”

  ***

  The shower clattered in the bathroom as Sebastian pulled the sheets off Vince’s bed and bunched them into a pile. He would dispose of them, leaving no evidence of his evil doings. In the closet he found a fresh set of sheets, which he pulled out and spread over the mattress.

  He could already feel the new power swelling within his muscles. Creating blood children increased a vampire’s strength tenfold. This would certainly help in his imminent battle against Francesco. But it was hard to appreciate his new strength with Scarlet acting so coldly toward him.

  Why couldn’t his blood child grant him the unconditional love that he had expected? He sighed and smoothed the sheets out across the king-size bed. He would give her time. After all, he had an eternity. And so did she.

  ***

  Scarlet toweled off and combed through her hair. She had been disgusted when she’d seen the dried blood running off in brown pools from her hair into the shower. Yet, at the same time, she was amazed at her nonchalance toward drinking Sebastian’s blood. It already seemed natural to her.

  And what about Sebastian? Her feelings ran the gamut. Cringing and running from the monster was her first thought, but she also had the intense need to wrap her arms around him and renew their passion for each other. He had been an exquisite lover. But did she want all the complications that came with being his lover?

  Of course, it was too late, wasn’t it? She’d already fallen victim to a major complication of his love for her. Vampirism.

  She pulled her wrinkled silk dress over her body, hooked her fingers under her high heels, and started for the stairs, surprised to see fresh sheets as she passed the bed. I wonder where he got those? She looked around at the empty dressers and bare, freshly painted walls. Vince hadn’t moved in yet. Still wondering, she went downstairs.

  “So,” she said as she walked into the kitchen cautiously, avoiding a patch of sun puddled on the floor. “Do I have to stay away from crosses, holy water and the sun?”

  Sebastian laughed. “You’ve definitely seen too many movies.” He pulled the curtains away from the kitchen window, allowing the hot morning sun to come in full force. He stood before it, basking in its warmth, as Scarlet sat down at the table. “Au soleil. Does it look like you have to stay out of the sun?”

  “I guess not.” She was surprised, but her earlier suspicions had been proved.

  “Don’t worry,” he added, “it took me over a century to discover the truth, myself. Much of what you know about vampires, or at least what you think you know about vampires, is myth. Crosses, fire, and garlic necklaces make for exciting movies, but in reality, we are more human than monster. Although…”

  "Although?"

  "Are you baptized?"

  "Of course."

  "Hmm, well then. You will have to avoid religious objects. A baptized vampire can be destroyed with a holy object."

  "Great. Never did spend much time in church anyway."

  Scarlet
leaned back against the chair, crossing her arms in front of her. The clock was ticking, and she knew that Vince and Gary had planned to come here today, but she wanted to hear more.

  “As for the sun, it will not harm you as long as you don't stand in it for long. You won’t melt or burn or whatever else you’ve seen in the movies. Prolonged exposure will give you a nasty burn much sooner than a mortal and our eyes are more susceptible to strain when exposed to direct sunlight, but you’ll adjust. A pair of sunglasses will solve that problem.”

  “What else?" He leaned over the table. "Oh yes. You’ll no longer need to eat food of any sort to maintain your body. You’ll need liquids, but solid food is a mere luxury. So your grocery bill will go down.”

  “But you eat. You did the night I came to your house.”

  “Yes, I do occasionally, for appearances sake. And of course I’ll always have cravings for that delicious concoction called Jell-O. I love it.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh. Sebastian’s passions were as eclectic as his lifestyle.

  “Though I do wonder about the garlic thing,” he said thoughtfully. “That is one substance that I cannot bear to be around. Whether it’s the horrendous smell or if it does have some vampire repellent capabilities, I’m not sure. But I can’t stand to be around someone who has garlic on their breath.”

  “So, I guess that means no more pizza, huh?”

  “I’ve never tasted it, myself.”

  “You’ve never had—” Scarlet gaped. To have never tasted pizza?

  “I was never baptized, so I have no worry for crosses.” He plucked out the silver cross hanging around his neck and flashed it in the sunlight.

  Scarlet swallowed hard, remembering how the thin silver metal had trailed over her naked body last night, following his mouth as it moved slowly across her skin.

  “From the limited knowledge I have, vampires are not created by the devil. You were made from my blood, Scarlet.” He paused and tipped her chin up so she looked directly at him. “I created you from my soul. And my soul was once mortal.”

  “But what about my soul? Isn’t that what makes me . . . me?” She was trying to understand though it didn’t make sense. “With your soul inside me, wouldn’t I be more like . . . you?”

  “The soul is an entity, Scarlet. It exists inside of you and becomes your spiritual self. Your own individual personality is what makes you who you are and that is something that can never be replaced. It can change, of course, over time, as almost every person grows and matures, but the exchange of our souls won’t have a major effect on you.”

  “Hmm.” She fingered a wrinkle in the material on her leg and thought for a while. Sebastian’s soul was inside her now but her personality would make it her own. He had created her and supposedly the devil had nothing to do with it. But weren’t vampires of the devil, wicked and evil and cursed by all God-fearing citizens? “How do I know you’re not the devil incarnate?” she asked.

  To her surprise, this made him snicker. "L’homme n 'est ni ange ni bete.”

  She didn’t have the patience for his French today. “Meaning?”

  “Man is neither an angel nor a beast. I am not the devil, though it may seem that way to you right now, and the devil did not rise out of the ground to create me. I don’t have proof that a devil exists. I’ve never met him, or been called upon to do his bidding. We are human beings, Scarlet. We did not die and rise from the grave to become the living dead. We are flesh and blood. The only difference between you and the man next door is that you now have to drink the blood of others to survive.”

  “That’s quite a difference.”

  “Yes, but do you understand me? You are not evil.”

  “How do you know? Have you taken a vow? Are you schooled in vampire history 101?”

  “Scarlet, I’ve lived many years and though I’ve encountered few other vampires along the way, I’ve learned enough to know what I say is true.”

  Not created by the devil, she thought. Humph. God would never create such beasts. And he cursed the drinking of blood in the Bible.

  But she thought about it for a while, putting her hands on the table and trailing her finger through a slash of sunlight. Holding them there in the hot light felt good and her flesh did not sizzle and melt off as she’d seen happen in so many vampire movies. God had created the men and women that became murderers and rapists. It was a possibility, she thought.

  It occurred to her now that Sebastian may have walked the earth for quite some time. He looked her age but perhaps the vampire myth about eternal life was true. “How old are you, Sebastian?”

  “I was born in 1750, and I was changed into a vampire in 1769, right after my nineteenth birthday.”

  “Time has certainly been kind to you.”

  She was amazed that he’d been alive for two and a half centuries. How could one possibly fathom living that long?

  “A vampire’s aging process is nearly brought to a halt. Different kinds of vampires have longer life spans, such as the ones who are born vampires. I’ve barely noticed a change in my physical appearance over all these years, except that I’ve grown physically stronger and mentally I’ve expanded my horizons. Your depth and capacity for learning will astound you, Scarlet.

  “You’ve much to look forward to in your new life of wonder and learning. An eternity of new experiences awaits you. And I’ll be there to enjoy it with you.” He leaned across the table, his gaze making her squirm. “Oh, Scarlet, you can’t imagine how happy I am. Finally, after all these years of loneliness, I’ve someone with whom to share my life.”

  His words didn’t enter her mind. She was still stuck on the word eternity. The idea of being around to witness and take part in the future and all it offered did excite her.

  “When will I die? Or can I die? I mean, you know, a stake through the heart or something?”

  Sebastian laughed and took her hand into his. “A thick stake would cause your heart to burst and would kill you. But you’ve nothing to worry about regarding anything less than that. Don’t ask me how it works, but it’s a miracle I’ve been witness to.”

  “You have?”

  “Yes. I was shot once. Years ago, during a gang shooting. It was in the 1920s, outside a speakeasy I frequented. I was shot by a misdirected bullet. It went through right here.” He pulled his shirt aside, exposing the taut muscles on his shoulder. There were no scars, no marks of any kind. Only the tight, hot flesh that taunted her seductively.

  “And it came out on the other side. Within minutes of being shot, I could feel this intense, for lack of a better word healing sensation. My flesh closed up and healed right before my eyes. Just like my neck.” He rubbed the smooth circle of flesh where the knife had slashed through less than an hour ago to provide Scarlet with her morning nourishment. “Yours will too, eventually,” he said as she fingered her own neck. “Though you’ll have a bruise for a few more hours, I’m sure.”

  He spoke with great enthusiasm now. “Vampires are the supreme immortal, unable to be killed or stopped in any way, shape, or form. I feel that time is our only master.”

  “Well, who would try to kill us?” Scarlet asked. She was quite sure that no one actually believed vampires existed.

  “Perhaps a wild-eyed grave digger whose mind has been filled with evil vampire tales.” He hesitated. “Don’t worry, ma cherie, things are going to be fine. And don’t worry about going home today,” he said. “You’re the same person who came to me last night.”

  Came to me last night. I did come here, she thought. He didn’t drag me here against my will and force me to stay. This is my fault.

  “I don’t know. I don’t feel different, but what about Gary and Vince?” She thought of Gary’s volatile anger the night she had run home from Sebastian’s, and the worried look he’d given her when she’d told him that she wasn’t sure how she felt about Sebastian. “Am I going to want to drink their blood? What’s to keep me from attacking Gary?”

  “Scarlet.
” He put his arm around her and looked directly into her eyes. “You will only need blood a few days a month. But until you’ve matured as a vampire you’ll need to drink more often, about once a week. You’ll know when you need it; you’ve already had the hunger pangs.”

  She felt her stomach, and sucked in, feeling her ribs push against her fingers. “Like this morning?”

  “Exactly. That was the blood hunger. And it’s not as if you’ll need a donor as soon as the hunger strikes. You’ll have a chance to search someone out, and if you’re around Gary you’ll be thankful for that.”

  “A donor?”

  “That’s what I call the people I drink from.” He smiled shyly. “It sounds a lot better than victim. Besides, a person would only be a victim if I killed them. And that is something that you must never do.” He pointed a finger at her to reiterate his words.

  “Don’t worry, I won’t.” She said this, although she wasn’t sure that she knew the difference between taking a small amount of blood and actually draining a person dry. She asked, “Have you ever killed, Sebastian?” But of course, he had told her that he hadn’t.

  Now he hung his head, and she knew he had lied. He was very quiet and when he looked up she could see a tear shimmering in the corner of his eye. He spoke solemnly.

  “Yes, but it was when I was first created. I had no idea how or when to stop. But I’ve never done it since.” He sighed and went on. “You must never kill, Scarlet, because if you do your soul will suffer a bitter desolation.”

  She looked at him wide-eyed. He had lied to her again. He had killed. But somehow she wasn’t as angry with him. He was sincere and truly distraught at his actions and as she listened she watched his hands shake over the table.

  “When you take someone’s life, you also take their soul into your body. For days the nightmares of that soul will haunt you until finally it dies inside of you. Sort of a danse macabre." Sebastian brushed through his hair with his fingers and gazed at the bright sunlight painted across the tabletop. “Trust me, Scarlet, it’s not something you want to live through.”