“Yes. I think he might. What if they find Dr. Shephard?”
“Vanessa, even if they do, I’ve erased his memory and they don’t have our real addresses. Besides, by the time they make it to New York, Dr. Shephard will be out of reach.”
“Then why do I feel like something very bad is going to happen?” I said, biting my lower lip.
“You’re just being paranoid. You want this to work so badly, that you don’t think that it will.”
“I hope that’s all it is.”
“It is. Now, go and find yourself a mortal to feed on while I go back in there and do what I have to do.”
“Are you sure you don’t need my help?”
“No and I think it would be better if it was just the two of us. She’s nervous around you and this way, I can calm her without distractions.”
I sighed. “Okay.”
He pulled me into his arms and looked down into my face. “Why aren’t you happy? This is what you wanted and now, it’s finally going to happen.”
“Do you really think so?”
“Damn right I do.” He kissed me. “This one is yours Vanessa. I promised you a child and we shall deliver.”
“I love you, Lucian. So very much.”
“I know.”
AFTER THEY LEFT, I got back into bed and turned the television on. As I began flipping through the channels, I found myself stopping at one of the News channels, where they were reporting about an incident at the Dublin Airport.
“Witnesses still aren’t sure exactly what happened,” said the female reporter, standing next to the main entrance of the airlines. “But as you can see from the broken glass, something flew through here. Something very big and extremely powerful.”
“It was a man carrying another man,” said one of the witnesses, a guy about my age. “I saw him fly through that glass like it was nothing. Then he shot up into the air and disappeared.”
“Did you get a good look at him?” asked the reporter.
“No, but it was definitely a fella.”
“Are you sure it wasn’t some kind of large bird?”
“No way. It could have been an alien, I guess. But there were two faces. I just couldn’t make either of them out.”
The reporter touched her earpiece and then her eyes widened. “Oh, it looks like we have a video from the security cameras. Let’s roll it.”
I leaned forward and stared at the screen as they ran the video from earlier. Unfortunately, it happened so quickly that all you could see was a distorted impression of shadowy movement.
“Obviously, it’s hard to make out what went through that entrance,” said the reporter as they re-ran the video. “But, if we slow down the video… yes, they’re going to slow it down.”
I jumped out of bed to stand closer to the screen as the video began to run. This time, they paused it right before the glass broke.
Time seemed to stop as I stared in shock and bewilderment at the image.
“Look, right there!” gasped the reporter. You can definitely see a face!”
Tears filled my eyes as I gazed at the familiar features. Although it wasn’t the greatest shot, I would have recognized Slade anywhere.
“Two men, the one holding the other appearing to be in his twenties, maybe? The other’s face is blocked, but he’s much smaller. These images were captured by the security cameras at the Dublin Airport, about thirty minutes ago. Let’s run them again.”
Thirty minutes ago? Slade was alive!
I headed toward the doorway, my heart racing with excitement. When I opened it, Lucian was standing there.
“Lucian, Slade is alive!” I cried, grabbing his arm. I jumped up and down. “He’s alive!
He gave me a weird smile. “What do you mean, he’s alive?”
I dragged him into the room and pointed toward the television, where they were running the tape again. “Look. It’s all over the news! He was as the airport. That’s him… do you see it? That’s his face!”
Lucian stared at the television, frowning.
“That clip was taken just thirty minutes ago,” I said excitedly. “He’s alive! He’s probably searching for me. I need to find him! Oh my God, I’m so happy!”
Lucian was quiet.
“I need to get to Dublin,” I replied. “Did you find me some clothes?”
He didn’t say anything but watched the screen in silence as they re-ran it once again.
“That’s Dr. Shephard,” he said, his eyes narrowing.
“Lucian, did you bring me something to wear?” I repeated. “I really need to get dressed and figure out a way to get in contact with Slade.”
He grabbed the remote and turned off the television.
“Lucian?”
“This is not going to interfere with our plans,” he said, more to himself then to me. “I won’t allow it.”
“What plans? Oh, you mean turning me into a vampire. Don’t you see? I don’t have to do it now! Slade is alive!”
“Yes, we’ve established that,” he said testily.
“To be honest, I don’t know if I’d have really gone through with being a vampire anyway. He didn’t want me to do it and I wouldn’t make that kind of decision without his input.” I sighed, feeling as if I was on Cloud Nine. “I’m so happy I could just scream!”
“Oh, you’re going through it,” he said, grabbing my wrist.
I frowned. “Lucian, stop. Let me go. That hurts.”
He pulled me against him and stared down into my eyes. “Relax. It’s Lucian. Remember, we’re friends,” he said, his voice soft now.
All of my anxiety disappeared. “Yes. We’re friends.”
“You can trust me.”
“I can trust you,” I said, feeling as if I was floating.
He licked his lips. “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered as his hands slid under my gown. When they touched my skin, I stiffened up. “I won’t hurt you.”
“Lucian, no,” I said breathlessly.
His eyes began to glow as his fingers moved to my breasts. He cupped them in his hands and groaned.
“I… why are you doing this?” I asked, trying to back away. Although I trusted him, I didn’t like having him fondle my breasts. It felt as if I was betraying Slade. “Please stop.”
He removed one of his hands and grabbed me by the back of my hair. “You will succumb to me. You will allow me to touch you anywhere I want. Anywhere,” he growled, staring down into my eyes.
Remembering Slade’s warning about being charmed, I reached inside and somehow found the strength to shut my eyes. “No,” I said, trying to pull away from him.
“Open your eyes,” he ordered.
“No!” I cried as he pulled my hair harder.
Grunting, he dragged me over to the bed and pushed me down.
“Lucian, what are you doing?” I asked, as he began unbuttoning his trousers.
Instead of answering, he climbed on top of me.
“No!” I cried, hitting him with my fists.
He took my hands in his and squeezed them tightly. “Look into my eyes.”
I quickly shut mine again.
He grabbed ahold of my chin. “Look at me!” he hollered.
“No,” I sobbed. “Please, Lucian… why are you doing this? I trusted you and you’re… scaring me!”
He leaned into me and I could feel his breath on my neck. “You belong to me,” he whispered, licking my skin. “And I’ll do with you whatever I want.”
“Please don’t rape me,” I begged, crying.
“Open your eyes and it won’t be rape,” he said, pulling my hospital gown up.
I struggled against him, keeping my eyes closed as I fought to get away. When I heard him unzip his pants, I jerked my knee up, hitting him in the crotch.
“You bitch,” he muttered and then laughed wickedly. “Good try though. We’re immortal, remember. Our threshold for pain is much higher than yours.”
“Please don’t do this. I’ll… I’ll… tell
Vanessa!”
“Vanessa? Do you think she scares me?”
Before I could answer, Lucian was ripped off of me and I heard him snarl in anger. I opened my eyes and found Vanessa, standing over him, looking furious.
“You bastard!” she cried. “What are you doing?”
“Leave us!” he hollered, getting to his feet.
She stared down at his zipper. “You were going to rape her?!”
He pointed to the door. “I said leave us!”
Her face twisted angrily and I watched in shock as she launched herself at him. They fell together to the floor but he quickly subdued her.
“If you don’t get out of this room right now, Vanessa, I’ll drain every last ounce of blood from your body. You’ll be nothing but a pile of skin and bones, just like your sister was. Is that what you want?”
“You’re a monster!” she yelled up at him as he held her down.
“So are you! Now, I’m not going to ask you again. Are you going to leave here peacefully or do I have to kill you?”
“Try it and I’ll take you with me,” she growled, baring her fangs.
He punched her in the face.
“No!” I screamed, scrambling out of bed. I got behind him and tried putting Lucian into a headlock.
He laughed and then elbowed me in the ribcage, making me fall backwards. “If you want to wrestle, we can do that,” he said, looking at me over his shoulder. “After I get rid of Vanessa.” Then he sank his teeth into her neck and began to suck her blood.
“No, Lucian!” I cried, getting up.
Vanessa struggled to get away, but he was much stronger and the more she tried, the more violent he was with her.
Frantic to help Vanessa, I looked around the room for something to hit him with. When I opened the closet, I found my ankle boots. Grabbing one of them, I rushed back over and hit him in the back with it several times.
“You bitch!” he snarled, raising his head. There was blood running down his chin and he looked like something out of a horror movie.
“Run, Chelsey!” yelled Vanessa, digging her nails into his throat.
Lucian roared in anger and began pounding her in the face with his fists.
I screamed. “No! Please, don’t hurt her!”
“Run!” she sobbed. “Get… away!”
Not knowing what else to do, I turned and ran toward the doorway. As soon as I opened it, however, Lucian had me by the back of the hair. He turned me around and stared down into my face, his eyes wild. “Enough of the games. It’s time, Chelsey,” he said, digging his nails into my forearms.
I stared at his bloody lips and jaw in terror. “No.”
“Oh, yes… I swear, you’re going to be even more beautiful as a vampire,” he whispered before sinking his teeth into my neck.
I gasped in pain, feeling his sharp fangs under my skin. Within seconds, however, the agony vanished and was replaced by a tingling of pleasure that spread to my stomach and into my pelvis. Then it moved through my thighs and down to my toes.
“No,” I moaned, ashamed of my body’s reaction, which was nothing short of an orgasm.
“It’s done,” he whispered, a few minutes later, as I lay limp in his arms. His slid his hand under my gown and touched my panties, which were moist. “I knew you’d like it. Now, I’m going to give you something you’ll enjoy even more.”
Before I could respond, there was an explosion of breaking glass, followed by an inhuman roar.
Lucian picked me up from the ground and held me by the throat.
“Get your hands off of her!” growled Slade.
“Too late!” Lucian laughed wickedly.
“Slade?” I gasped, trying to see what was happening. I was sluggish and so tired, that I could barely keep my eyes open.
“I’m here, Chelsey,” said Slade, his voice thick with emotion.
“I don’t think she cares anymore,” said Lucian, fondling my chest. “She has given herself to me. Look, she’s not even fighting it.”
I began to cry again.
Enraged, Slade growled and launched himself at us.
Lucian quickly pushed me away and I stumbled, landing on my stomach.
“Everything is going to be okay,” said a voice I recognized. He picked me up into his arms.
“Bradan?”
“Yes, let’s get you out of the way while Slade takes care of Lucian,” he said, carrying me across the room.
“Is he okay?” I asked, trying to see what was happening over Bradan’s shoulder. Unfortunately, all I saw was a blur of distorted shapes, moving across the room while striking at each other.
“He’s fine,” said Bradan as something crashed into the television, and if fell to the floor. It was obviously Lucian because he screamed in pain.
“Get him!” hollered Jimmy, now standing next to us, laughing.
“He’s mine, next round,” said Sean.
“I doubt there’ll be a next round,” said Jimmy. “Lucian is such a gimp.”
“See?” said Jimmy. “He’s done farting around now. Watch.”
“I’m so tired,” I whispered, my head lolling back and forth as the noises of their scuffle became louder. I was relieved that Slade and the others were there, but I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer.
Bradan looked down into my face and smiled. “It’s okay. I’ve got you. Sleep if you have to, little one.”
“What about Slade?” I asked, laying my head against his shoulder. “Is he going to be okay?”
Bradan chuckled. “Don’t go worrying about Slade. He’s having fun with Lucian. You’ll be back in his arms in no time.”
“Thank God,” I whispered, giving into my exhaustion. This time my eyes remained closed and I fell fast asleep.
WHEN I WOKE up, it took me several seconds to realize that I wasn’t dreaming and that I was back at Rylan Castle and lying in Slade’s arms.
“You’re awake,” he said, smiling down at me.
My eyes filled with tears. “Slade,” I whispered, touching his cheek. “Thank God, you’re alive.”
“Come on now, it would take more than Lucian Tepes to kill me,” he teased, kissing my forehead.
“No, you don’t understand. He told me that the Roamers had killed all of you,” I said, drinking in his face. “I thought I’d never see you again, or Melody, or Liam… it was horrible.”
“We’re all alive and well. He lied,” he said, tracing his finger along my jawline. “But don’t worry, he won’t get the opportunity to do it again.”
“Is he dead?”
He nodded.
“Good,” I said, relieved. “I guess that explains why I’m so happy that he’s gone.”
“You’ve been officially ‘uncharmed’,” he replied, smiling.
“I guess so.” I sighed. “Slade, when I thought you were gone, I was a total wreck. How in the world did you find me?”
He explained how they’d been able to locate Dr. Shephard and how Torin had hypnotized him.
“I saw you on the news,” I said, smiling. “That must have been Dr. Shephard you were carrying?”
“Yes.”
I suddenly remembered Vanessa and sucked in my breath. “What happened to Vanessa?”
“She’s okay. She has recovered and is probably in New York, as we speak, with her tail between her legs.”
“She tried saving my life,” I told him.
He grunted.
“She loved Lucian and he… he was so horrible to her.”
“He was even more horrible to you,” said Slade. “You do realize what happened, don’t you?”
“I know that he bit me,” I said, looking away. “It was…very weird. Embarrassing, actually.”
“It’s okay that you enjoyed it,” he said softly.
I glanced back up at him, still ashamed that I’d found it so pleasurable.
“He made it good for you, at least,” he said and let out a ragged sigh. “Dammit, if we could have found you five minutes earlier, ev
erything would be as it should.”
“Everything is as it should,” I said, smiling up at him. “We’re together. God, I’m so happy.” I squeezed him tightly, enjoying the sweet candy scent of his skin. I’d missed it so much. “You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”
“I missed you, too.”
“What is it?” I asked, noticing the deep lines of worry on his face.
“I have something to tell you. Something that you obviously don’t know about,” he said in a solemn voice. He got out of bed. “Come here,” he said, holding out his hand.
Confused, I got up and took it.
He pulled me over to the dresser mirror and stood behind me.
“Look at yourself in the mirror. Notice anything?”
I stared at my face and frowned. My cheekbones seemed thinner or maybe higher and my lips were different. Fuller? “I look like I’ve lost a little weight, I guess,” I said, turning my face from side to side. “To be honest, I think I look pretty good considering everything I went through earlier.”
Slade sighed and grabbed the bottom of my nightgown. He pulled it up and over my head.
“Slade,” I giggled, embarrassed to be standing in front of the mirror, naked. I covered my breasts. “What are you doing?”
He pulled my arms away. “Look at your reflection,” he ordered. “All of it.”
Noticing the seriousness of his expression, I did what he asked.
“You see what I mean?”
I frowned. My body wasn’t the way I remembered it to be. “Is this even possible?” I said, staring at myself in confusion. My arms and legs were toned, and I now had what looked like… stomach muscles. Then there were my breasts, which looked firmer and a little fuller. “I look like a… fitness instructor,” I said, turning sideways. “Who… just recently had breast implants.” Stunned, I dropped my hands. “I don’t understand…”
“Believe me,” he said, cupping one of my breasts. “These are all real.”
Our eyes met in the mirror. “Real? I don’t understand. A body doesn’t just change overnight like this. If it didn’t freak me out so much, I’d actually be happy. But, this is creepy, Slade. What’s going on?”
He smiled sadly. “Isn’t it obvious?”
I glanced back at my body in horror as my brain finally kicked in. “I’m a vampire, aren’t I?”
Toxic (Venom Series) Book Three Page 19
