An Angel Among Vampires

by M. Cheykota

  He looks up at me, smiling. “Finally you admit that I’m better than you.”

  “Did you slip with that knife, cut yourself, lose a lot of blood, and become delirious? I am better than you.”

  He laughs, shaking off his dark mood. “Let’s go get Christien, find these vampires and kick some ass.”

  Chapter 31

  Christien, Roman, and I are in the sitting room next to Christien’s bedroom making plans on how to find and kill Hassan and his vampires.

  Roman looks over at Christien. “How many vampires do you think Hassan has?”

  “I could not be certain. I have not been keeping track of his get for some years now. I am almost certain that Demetri and Jacques are his oldest, excluding myself, so any new vampires should be no more than 50 years undead and easily dispatched.” Christien replies.

  “I can ask around for some assistance. There are always Weres spoiling for a good fight.” Roman offers.

  “That may not be a bad idea. My own get will be coming to assist us in case he has more vampires than I imagine he does.” Christien replies.

  “How many vampires do you have in your get?” I ask Christien.

  “I have around 50 vampires here. That is not a lot by vampire standards, but the majority I have are old enough that they are not limited by sunlight.”

  “Is there any way that I can help? Maybe if everyone from your line took a sip from me, they’d all have enough power.” I say half-joking.

  The looks I get back from the men tell me they do not get or appreciate my joke. They especially do not find it funny.

  “There is no way I would risk any vampire near your neck, even if it would give us an advantage.” Christien replies sternly.

  I think about Christien’s response for a moment. “What if they don’t have to drink from me, personally?”

  Puzzled at my suggestion, Christien replies. “What do you mean? Only angel blood contains the property to give a vampire more power.”

  “What if my blood is bagged?” An idea begins to form in my mind.

  “That may work, but I am not going to harvest your blood. Plus, it would not be enough for 50 vampires.” Christien replies, dismissing my train of thought.

  Roman is watching me closely. “I know that look Jess. You’ve just thought of something.”

  I smile. “I think I have a solution.”

  I explain that Tyler and I have been harvesting my blood for a while, but I am vague about how much blood I have stored, only saying that I have enough to execute my plan. I inform them of the unique properties of my blood and all of its capabilities, according to my mother. Knowing that my blood does not spoil, cool or change properties outside of my body, I explain that I have begun storing it away until I could find a way to sell it on the Black Market to cure diseases.

  When I finish explaining everything to them and reassure them that I have enough bags stored for all Christien’s vampires, Christien jumps from his seat and roars.

  “Have you lost all sense of self-preservation? What were you thinking storing your blood? Do you understand how dangerous it is to have your blood just lying around for a vampire to take?” Christien scolds me animatedly.

  I cross my arms stubbornly. “Look, no one knows anything about it, except Tyler because he’s been drawing my blood. Tyler and I could not figure out how to get it on to the Black Market anonymously, so for now, I just store it until we do. I can’t dispose of it like normal blood. What else am I supposed to do with it? It’s in a safe and secure place that no one knows about except me. Eventually we will find a way to sell it and make billions. Rich people will pay obscene amounts of money for cure-all diseases.”

  Christien takes a few steps around the room to cool his temper while trying to get me to understand his point. “Tyler knows about your blood. If Demetri, Jacques, or Hassan search his mind and find this out, they will stop at nothing to get your blood. Where is your friend Tyler now?”

  “Do you think he’s really in danger?” I ask nervously. “He doesn’t know where I keep it. He only knows that I do.”

  Ignoring my question, Christien repeats his question more directly. “Do you know where Tyler is right now? Roman and I will go pick him up and bring him back here for his safety. Regardless, if he is in danger or not, he is human and knows about you. That makes him a liability.”

  Wringing my hands nervously, my worry for Tyler skyrockets. “He is probably at work right now. He works at the American Heart Blood Bank, downtown. I am going with you. I put him in danger. I should be the one responsible for keeping him safe.”

  “You are the one they are after. If they find out about the blood from reading his mind, they will need you to get it for them. It would be reckless and unwise for you to go out until we find out where Hassan and his vampires are hiding.” Christien pulls me into his arms and places several firm kisses on my mouth. He pulls back from me, holding my head between his hands and pleads with me using his eyes and words. “Please wait here Jessica. We will return shortly with your friend. Then we will talk about finding Hassan when your friend is safe under our protection.”

  I concede to Christien’s request to remain behind. After a short discussion, Roman suggests that I call Tyler to inform him that he’s in danger. Using Roman’s cell phone, I call Tyler and inform him that Christien and Roman are on their way to pick him up. Once he is here and safe, I will explain everything to him in further detail.

  Despite his protests that he can take care of himself, he finally agrees to come here for protection.

  Handing the phone back to Roman, I look into his eyes. “Keep him safe Rome.”

  “I’ll do my best. I know how much he means to you.” Roman replies sincerely.

  Christien and Roman take a couple of minutes to finish packing on weapons and walk out the door to retrieve Tyler.

  Knowing that they will not be gone long, I rush upstairs to gather all my weapons.

  Chapter 32

  Roman and Christien arrive at the blood bank in less than a half hour. They drive around to the back entrance as I suggest and park in the alley. When they open the car doors, they pause. Blood is thick in the air. The night is devoid of noise so they walk slowly to the back door where Tyler agreed to meet them. They are scanning the immediate area, including the sky and on top of buildings as they approach the door. Just before they get to the door, they hear a small moan coming from behind the dumpster on the right side of the alley. They exchange knowing glances. Hoping the sound is an inebriated transient moaning in their sleep, they approach the sound cautiously, keeping their senses on high alert. The scent of blood gets stronger as they approach the crumpled figure lying in the midst of black trash bags and cardboard boxes. As they suspect, Tyler is lying behind the dumpster.

  They carefully move his body to the middle of the alley in the beams of the headlights from the car so they can view his injuries in the light. Tyler has cuts, bruises, and vampire bites all over his body. He has been bitten a multitude of times, but not drained. The vampires that did this must have already fed earlier that evening or they could have drained him. Perhaps they wanted to leave him barely alive as a warning or message of some kind.

  They recheck the surrounding area and do not find any vampires. Unfortunately, there is no way to be certain exactly how long ago the vampires attacked so they return to Tyler in the middle of the alley to see what they can do for him.

  Tyler coughs, spitting up blood. His heartbeat is slowing. A small pool of blood is gathering under his body from the countless wounds he has received.

  Christien looks at Roman. “He will be dead before any human medical professionals arrive. How well do you know him?”

  “Not as well as she does. He’s seems to be a pretty decent guy from what I know about him.” Roman replies honestly. “Why?”

  Christien looks down at the young man struggling to breathe. “How will Jessica respond to his loss?”

  Roman shudders. “I don’t want to
find out. She is very close to him.”

  “It is now or not at all. I cannot make this decision because I do not know him.” Christien tells Roman, knowing Roman will understand what he is asking.

  Roman nods. “Do it.”

  Christien cradles Tyler in his lap and pierces the exposed vein in his neck with his fangs.

  Christien listens to the slowing beats of Tyler’s heart while he feeds. He waits until Tyler’s heart starts to stutter before accepting the knife Roman is offering him.

  Christien slices a deep wound on his wrist, keeping the silver knife in the cut to keep it from closing. He raises his wrist over Tyler’s mouth and unleashes the power that makes him a master vampire.

  Cool energy flows outward from Christien like static electricity, causing the air around them to thicken with power. Roman holds Tyler’s mouth open as Christien moves his wrist over Tyler’s mouth so blood falls into it. Seconds later, Tyler’s body convulses and he swallows the blood in his mouth. Keeping his wrist against Tyler’s mouth, Christien pushes his power into Tyler’s body, searching for the connection all master vampires have with every vampire they make. He finds the connection and stops Tyler’s convulsions. Tyler’s body settles enough to swallow more of Christien’s blood.

  Christien begins to chant in a ritualistic tone. “I drank your blood as you now drink mine. My blood is now your blood. With my blood in you, I become your master, your sire. With your blood in me, you become my fledgling, my vampire. You are now mine. You are mine to protect, mine to guide, and mine to command. Taking my blood, you give me your oath of loyalty. You give me your oath to protect me and mine, your oath to serve me and mine, and your oath to die for me and mine.”

  Christien removes his wrist from Tyler’s mouth and removes the knife from his arm, allowing his wound to heal. He gently lays Tyler on the ground and tries to stand, but stumbles from the loss of his own blood and the power consumption used from creating a new vampire.

  Roman catches Christien before he falls, steadying him on his feet. “Don’t ever tell anyone I gave it up without sex first.” He says teasingly while removing his shirt with one hand. He moves his head to the side, exposing his neck.

  Christien looks at Roman and smiles weakly. “You have my word.” He sinks his fangs into Roman’s neck.

  Even though he is feeling weak from the power loss, he only feeds on enough blood from Roman to regain enough strength to be able to control his new fledgling. Since Roman is a werewolf, his blood is more sustaining than human blood so he does not need as much as he would from a human. In his current state, he would likely drain a human if he fed from one now.

  Christien picks up Tyler from the ground and cradles him in his arms. He is loading Tyler in the backseat of the car when Roman reappears with an armful of bagged blood.

  Roman shrugs at Christien’s questioning look. “I figured we might need blood if he wakes up before we get back. I do not want to be on the menu for a newbie vamp.”

  “Good thinking. This should be enough.” Christien replies and climbs in the back with Tyler.

  Roman drops the blood on the backseat and shuts the door. Christien takes a bag of blood and pops it on to his fangs, draining it within seconds.

  Roman puts on his shirt before getting behind the driver’s seat. He starts the car and backs out of the alley, heading back to Christien’s place.

  On the way back, Tyler only wakes up once, screaming in pain. Christien extends his aura to calm Tyler’s blood thirst so he can feed him the remaining bagged blood Roman stole from the blood bank.

  The process of a human body changing from human to vampire is excruciating. The vampire blood attacks the human body by fixing any major repairs to the body first. As the sire’s vampire blood moves into the human body, it eats away at any diseased parts next. The pain feels as if bugs with sharp teeth are eating the body from the inside out. The vampire blood feeds on the red blood cells in the human body, then replicates.

  That is why the blood thirst is so strong in new vampires. The need to supplement the red blood cells used in their body is paramount and necessary so the vampire blood does not attack the organs inside of the body. If the fledgling receives human blood rich with red blood cells immediately after the vampire blood is in their body, the pain decreases dramatically and the vampire learns to control his blood thirst much faster once the entire process is complete.

  After the initial introduction of the sire’s vampire blood, the new vampire body changes to adjust for their new lifestyle. Within minutes after the fledgling receives their sire’s blood, the fledgling vampire grows fangs. Their vision, strength and hearing will continue to get better as the vampire ages, but after the first few hours of the change, their vision, hearing, and strength is already better than 90 percent of the humans on earth.

  The vampire blood cells eat away fat in the body and strengthens the bones, muscles, and immune system. This is what makes vampires harder to kill and assists the fledgling’s body in reaching its peak physical condition for hunting prey.

  During each of the stages of a fledgling’s change, the body continues to require blood. If the condition of the body before the change is weak, it will greatly decrease the fledgling’s chance to survive the change before their heart and organs fail. Many new vampires do not make it through the first part of the change.

  The first 24 hours are the most critical during the transition from human to vampire. If a sire does not help the fledgling through the process, the fledgling usually does not survive or they become blood-crazed monsters, usually losing their sanity in the process.

  According to vampire law, a sire must allow a minimum of six weeks for a fledgling to adjust to their new life as a vampire. The fledgling must prove to their sire that their blood thirst is under control during this time. If after six weeks the fledgling has not mastered their blood thirst, the Vampire Council can demand the sire kill the fledgling and declare them a rogue, one incapable of mastering their blood thirst.

  It is common for master vampires to sire only one fledgling at a time. A master can create more than one fledgling, but the power consumption required for creating a vampire and controlling the blood thirst is taxing on the master vampire. Often, master vampires wait longer than six weeks, sometimes years, before creating another vampire because of the energy expenditure.

  Chapter 33

  Roman, Christien and Tyler return, and I greet them at the car. When I see the condition Tyler is in, I scream in horror. The three of us work together to get Tyler out of the car and into the house. On our way to the front door, all hell breaks loose.

  Vampires attack us from every direction. Christien pulls my daggers from their sheaths and stabs the closest vampire, turning him to dust, before thrusting the twin daggers into my hands. He jumps into the air to thwart a group of vampires coming towards the car. Roman runs after another impending group of vampires in the opposite direction, partially shifting his shape along the way, giving him sharp claws and deadly fangs. Vampires rush from the house in blinding speeds to join the fray.

  The night air fills with swords colliding, grunts, howls, and shouts as more vampires pour out of the trees.

  I hear Christien’s voice calling out to me over all the commotion. “Jessica, get Tyler inside of the house and put him downstairs quickly.”

  Realizing it is up to me to get Tyler to safety I bolster my strength and drag him back out of the car by his shirt. Someone must have pushed him back inside when the fighting began.

  I stuff one of the daggers into the belt I am wearing, grab Tyler’s wrist and yell at Tyler. “Move! We have to get you inside.”

  Tyler holds his chest with his free arm and is unsteady on his feet. He looks mortally wounded and we are under attack by vampires. I have to keep my hands as free as possible in case vampires attack us so I can’t carry him. The door is not far, less than twenty feet, but vampires are everywhere. There must be hundreds of them.

  Tyler and I slowly
make our way towards the door. It seems like it is a tremendous effort for Tyler to pick up his feet and take a step forward. There is fighting all around us and getting closer. It looks like Christien’s vampires are creating a barricade around us to give us enough time to get inside. I want so badly to pick Tyler up and just run inside, but I don’t dare give up my hands in case I need them.

  Several vampires get around the barrier and run directly at us. Pulling my other dagger from my belt, I keep Tyler at my back as I am kicking, punching and stabbing vampires in our path. A vampire grabs Tyler by his arms. Tyler tries to struggle, but he is too weak and is no match for a vampire, even a young one.

  I sweep both their legs. The vampire and Tyler both go down hard. The vampire loses his hold briefly when Tyler lands on top of him. I pull Tyler off the vampire with my left hand while I stab and twist the dagger into the vampire’s heart using my right. The vampire turns to dust.

  I hear footsteps approaching fast behind me. I am still holding Tyler’s wrist with my left hand so I spin him around in front of me, leaving my back exposed to the oncoming vampire. I hike the dagger in my right hand behind me. It lands squarely in the vampire’s chest. Not a heart blow, but the action slows him down enough for me to put Tyler back behind me and spin around to face the vampire.

  One of Christien’s vampires breaks from the line to come and assist me. He engages the two closest to him while I do my best to prevent the rest from hurting Tyler. I want to attack, but Tyler is vulnerable so I can’t leave his side. With my only option available to me is defense, I limit myself to blocking and slicing the vampires when their limbs are within my reach.

  Damn I really wish I had my baby eagles right now.

  The vampire assisting me finally dispatches the two vampires he was fighting. He must be young himself because his fighting technique is barely adequate. He moves towards the ones I am keeping at bay.