Vampires and Vixens (Psy-Vamp)

by Lawson, Cassandra

  “Why would I tell you?” she didn’t look up at him.

  “I’m your doctor,” he explained patiently.

  “You aren’t even in medical school yet,” she reminded him.

  Drew, who lay stretched out on her bed, laughed. “Justin is over two-hundred years old. He’s been through medical school more than once.”

  “Come on,” Justin urged Drew. “We don’t want to piss Nathaniel off today.”

  “You’re right about that,” Drew agreed, as he stood up. “I’ve grown fond of breathing.”

  He leaned close to Hannah, and she could feel his breath against her face. She refused to look at him. His voice was quiet. “Don’t worry, sweet little Hannah, we’ll have plenty of quality time together. When Nathaniel gets bored with you, and he will, I’ll be here to keep you company.”

  She could hear the door lock behind them. After a few minutes she walked to the door and tried to open it, but it was locked. She then tried the window but it wouldn’t open either. Hannah took her shoe off and threw it against the window with all of her strength, but it bounced back.

  It was all just too much. She collapsed onto the bed, and cried.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Hannah didn’t know how long she laid on the bed. She felt more alone than she had in her entire life. Almost everyone she trusted had lied to her. For the first time she actually wondered if she would have been better off marrying Scott. They may not have loved each other, but at least he wasn’t a freakin’ vampire.

  The doorknob turned, and she sat up. Her heart raced in an odd mixture of fear and rage, as the door opened slowly. Noah entered alone, looking uneasy. His eyes wouldn’t meet hers.

  When he sat on the edge of the bed, he finally looked up at her. His tortured expression was not what she expected to see, and it almost made her reach out to him. Then she remembered his deceit and she turned away, unable to stand the sight of him.

  “Hannah, I didn't know. Nathaniel told me that he would tell you everything before things got this far. I wouldn't have let him hurt you. I swear to you that I would have told you if I thought he was trying to manipulate you.”

  She looked down at her hands. “You lied to me.” Her voice was hoarse from crying. “I trusted you more than anyone, but you’re one of them. I wish I’d never met any of you.”

  Her pain was so intense she thought she would die from it.

  He cringed. “I'm not like them.” There was a pause, and he dropped his head. “Not anymore at least. Yes, we have the same DNA, but it’s Nathaniel’s father who made him this way, not his genetics. I really believed that he was going to be honest with you. You have to know that he couldn’t tell you right away. It would have put us all at risk, but he should have told you before you had sex.”

  Without looking up, she replied coldly. “You don’t need to make excuses for your brother. I’ve already been told that it doesn’t matter if I forgive him. Apparently, I have to stay with him regardless of how I feel. You are a different story. Give me one good reason why I should ever speak to you again.”

  “I want to help you, Hannah.”

  She looked up at him, her eyes still full of scorn. “Why should I trust you, Noah? You knew what they were capable of, and you didn't try to warn me. Dominic almost killed Lydia, or so I’ve been told. Why I should believe anything you say?”

  The harshness of her tone made him flinch again. He wanted to look away, but he continued to meet her gaze. “I'm the only person who can get you out of here. I will betray my brother to help you. I owe you at least that much.”

  Her face lit up with hope. “You’re going to help me get away from him?”

  He went to take her hand but stopped himself, uncertain of how she would react. “I will protect you and your child with my life.” He rose from the bed, and kicked the toe of his shoe against the floor. “I was so stupid. I wanted you both to be happy. I ignored the warning signs. You have every right to blame me for what happened; I let you down.”

  She examined his face carefully, and saw the genuine sincerity in his eyes. “Can we go now?”

  He shook his head. “Not yet.”

  The prospect of spending another second with Nathaniel disgusted her. “I have to get out of this place, Noah.” Curiosity hit her, and she found herself staring at his mouth.

  For a moment Noah seemed confused. “Are you looking for fangs?” he asked.

  She nodded.

  He opened his mouth to reveal a perfect set of teeth then gave her an uneasy smile. “I guess that doesn’t really prove anything. They’re retractable, but mine were surgically removed. Most of the Draksel family has had them removed. I think most of the other families have done the same, but we don’t socialize with the other families often. The fangs aren’t necessary anymore.”

  “How many are there?” she asked.

  “Fangs?”

  “Families,” she clarified.

  “Oh, there are only about a dozen families that I know of. There were more at one time, but a lot of them were killed off.”

  “Will my baby be a monster?” Her voice trembled slightly.

  “Just like humans, we can be monsters.” He paused to consider his words. “We look like humans, but we’re not. The males have never been human. The energy, that most consider a human’s life-force, can be used to extend our lives and our youth indefinitely. I look older because I no longer feed on energy. It’s hard to give up, because our survival instincts are strong. I stopped when I realized that I had completely lost touch with humanity. My own father was human, but I had stopped feeling any connection to the humans around me.”

  “Do I have to take people’s energy?” Hannah asked hesitantly.

  Noah shook his head. “You can, and it will extend your life, but you won’t crave it the way someone born into this existence does.” His mouth opened to speak, but he looked away and ran his fingers through his hair.

  “What are you leaving out?” Hannah asked.

  “Nathaniel could force the energy into you. It would be his energy, but he would have to feed more to give you energy as well. Even without it, you won’t age very quickly. I’m not sure what your lifespan would be without feeding. Apparently, I’m the first to try to die of old age.”

  “How do you get the energy out of people?” she asked.

  “The simple answer is we touch them,” he said, “but there’s more to it than that. We can sense the energy in others, and in ourselves. When we make physical contact with a human we can gather bits of that energy together and pull it out. It just comes naturally. We have enough control over our own energy to prevent others from taking it, but we can give it freely. Does that make sense?”

  She took a moment to process what he had said. “Yes, I understand what you’re saying. No, it doesn’t make sense. It shouldn’t be possible. Do you have special powers? I mean, can you fly, or turn into bats?”

  He laughed. “I don’t think it’s possible to fly or turn into a bat. We can control most human minds. It’s stronger in some of us. Nathaniel is the most powerful in that area. He can also understand any language, even if he can’t speak it. Justin has a knack for knowing what‘s wrong with a person, and it’s why he became a doctor. Roman can feel the energy that everyone has without touching them. He doesn’t need physical contact to feed. We are all stronger physically. I’m not saying I could lift a car, well not a large one, but you get my point.”

  “What is your special talent?” she asked.

  He seemed a little embarrassed. “My mind processes equations like a calculator. It’s not exactly a coveted skill.”

  That thought made her smile. “So you’re a human calculator?”

  He shook his head. “Not human.”

  Her smile disappeared with that reminder.

  “I need time to make some arrangements. For now, you must make Nathaniel trust you again. I can’t get you out if he’s treating you like a prisoner of war. As it stands now you’re locked in
with a guard just down the hall.”

  Her eyes closed tightly, and she shuddered. The mere thought of being close to Nathaniel sickened her. “I'll try,” she reluctantly agreed, “but I don’t know if I can pull it off.”

  Noah moved to the edge of the bed again, and sat beside her. This time he took her hand. When she didn’t jerk her hand away, he visibly relaxed. “It’s the only way.”

  She closed her eyes, and nodded. “Drew said Justin is more than two-hundred years old, is that true?”

  Noah nodded.

  “How old are you and the others?

  “I’m not exactly sure. We aren’t good at keeping track of years. I know that I’m younger than Justin, but not by much. Nathaniel is a few years older than Justin. Isaiah was born a few years after me. Drew is only twenty-one. His mother insists on birthday parties so none of us can forget his age. Roman, Nathaniel’s father, is more than five-hundred years old but I’m not sure how much more. Dominic is around three-hundred years old, I think.”

  “What really happened to my cousin?” Hannah asked. Part of her didn’t want to know the answer, but she had to know the truth.

  “Do you remember how you felt the night that Aiden attacked you?”

  She nodded.

  “He fed on your energy, but Nathaniel interrupted the process before it was complete. That is what Dominic was doing to Lydia.”

  This explained a lot to Hannah. “That’s why Lydia was so drained the next morning, and I felt fine.”

  Noah shook his head. “There’s more to it. You shouldn’t have regained your energy so quickly. Only a select group of humans can do that. You can also resist compulsions.”

  Hannah’s eyes lit with understanding. “I remember that I kept feeling like Aiden was trying to put thoughts into my head. I thought I was going crazy. He tried at the college first, and it’s why I was trying to avoid him the night of the party.”

  “That’s probably why he went after you. He wanted to claim you before anyone else figured it out. We can’t breed with just any human. They used to believe that it was only a select few humans that were strong enough to carry our babies. Some still do, but Justin did a lot of research that proves that we just can’t mate with the average human. That makes it very hard to find someone to settle down with. Aiden lost both of his parents a couple of years ago, and he has no brothers. He was very close to his parents, but no one else. I think he hoped you were the end to his loneliness. I’m not trying to justify his actions, just make you understand why he went a little crazy. It was pretty out of character for him.”

  He took a deep breath. “Now here is the part where it gets a little strange.”

  Hannah actually laughed. “Are you saying it wasn’t strange before now?”

  He smiled. “Not for me, but I guess it’s all strange for you.”

  “So what was strange for you in all of this?” she asked.

  “Lydia is not a normal human either. She’s like you.”

  Hannah looked confused. “Then why was she so drained the next day?”

  “Dominic obviously took way more energy than he needed. It’s very strange that he would feed on her, knowing her potential as a mate.”

  “Aiden fed on me,” Hannah pointed out.

  “True,” Noah conceded, “but I think he just wanted to weaken you. He didn’t want anyone else to find out about you. My guess is that Aiden was planning to take you somewhere away from the rest of the family.”

  “Maybe Dominic didn’t try to use a compulsion so he didn’t know that Lydia could resist them.”

  Noah shook his head. “He would have known when he fed. Her energy would have felt different. He even took her blood. There is no way he could have missed it. Instead of protecting her after he realized it, he fed on her so often that he nearly killed her. None of it makes any sense at all. Roman, Nathaniel’s father, is sending Dominic out of the country because he’s afraid of what Dominic might do to Lydia.”

  “How did you know Lydia was different?” Hannah asked.

  “I gave Lydia some of my energy last night at the hospital. It was a crazy idea, and I had no reason to think it would work, but I had to try something.”

  Her eyes widened. “You saved her life.”

  “I tried something that I was pretty sure wouldn’t work, and got lucky. I’m not the only one who gave her energy. Justin, Nathaniel, and Roman all donated. Justin isn’t sure if it will be enough,” he admitted so she wouldn’t get her hopes up. “She’s still in a coma.”

  “Thank you,” she said, and threw her arms around him. His arms wrapped around her, and she felt safe for a short time. It wasn’t easy to pull away from Noah, but she did.

  “What now?” she finally asked after a long silence.

  “You do what I told you, and trust me to take care of the rest.”

  Her head dropped, and she found herself staring at Noah’s hand which was resting on hers. “I'm trying to trust you, but I just don't know what to believe anymore.” She was struggling for the words to describe her feelings. Finally, she looked up and met his gaze. “My whole life was stolen from me in the last twenty-four hours. I’m confused, but mostly I’m mad. I don’t know if I can pull it off. I can’t handle Nathaniel putting his hands on me.” She cringed at the thought of his touch.

  “I’ll think of something, but for now just tell him you feel sick.”

  She nodded. “I won’t have to lie about that. I still can’t believe I’m pregnant, but at least I have almost eight months to get used to the idea.”

  “About that,” Noah hesitated. “For our kind pregnancy only lasts about five months.” He squeezed her hand. “I’ll tell Nathaniel that I've calmed you down, and you’re extremely sorry for overreacting. Whatever you do, avoid the rest of the family as much as possible.”

  That was a warning that she didn’t need after her earlier encounter with Drew.

  He knocked, and waited. Nathaniel opened the door, looked at him and then at Hannah. She forced herself to give him the most loving smile that she could manage, hoping it didn’t end up looking like a sneer.

  Noah placed a hand on Nathaniel’s shoulder. “She’s feeling much better now. I’m still pissed off that you didn’t tell her earlier and I think she is too, but she knows you didn’t do it to hurt her. She’s just had a lot of shocks today.”

  “Thank you, Noah.” Nathaniel looked across the room at Hannah once more, carefully looking for any sign of deception. “Your lunch will be here soon. Would you like me to stay with you?”

  She forced another smile. “I’m really tired. I think I’ll eat, and then take a nap.”

  Nathaniel hesitated, but finally said, “I’ll let you rest until dinner.”

  “I’ll see you later,” Noah said to Hannah. When he looked down the hall his face lit up.

  Nathaniel followed his gaze, and rushed down the hallway. He returned with her lunch tray and set it on her small table. He started to move toward her, but the woman who entered behind him made shooing motions at him.

  “Out!” she ordered in a soft voice. “You boys have given the poor girl more than her share of stress this morning. You will both let her eat her lunch in peace.”

  Nathaniel followed her orders.

  When the door closed, the woman turned to Hannah with a warm, almost grandmotherly, smile. That was a strange thought considering she didn’t look much older than Hannah. Her black hair was pulled back in a loose bun. What Hannah noticed most was the woman's smile, which was like a warm embrace. She wore a flowing pink tank dress that hit just above her ankles. Hannah wondered how someone who looked so kind could be a part of this world, and then remembered that she too had been sucked into it.

  “I am Ursula.” The woman spoke with a slight accent, like someone who had moved around a great deal. “You poor dear, you must be starving. Did you have breakfast this morning?”

  Hannah thought about it, and then shook her head.

  “You need to eat to keep your streng
th up,” Ursula insisted.

  “I’m a little nauseous,” Hannah said as she stared dubiously at the food, wondering if it was drugged. That was something she never expected to worry about.

  “Try to eat something,” Ursula urged.

  Hannah forced a smile, and found that it was easier with Ursula. “I haven’t seen you here before.” She sat down at the table and picked at her food.

  “I insisted on coming to help you with the baby,” Ursula explained. “Justin is a fine doctor, but you need a midwife to deliver the baby, not a cranky boy. I told Roman it was ridiculous to even think Justin could deliver the baby. Stupid boy still tried to argue with me about it, but here I am.”

  Hannah giggled. It was so strange to hear Ursula refer to these men as boys. Hannah knew that she couldn’t really trust Ursula. She was one of them. Still, she liked her.

  “Eat your food, and then take a nap,” Ursula ordered. “I won’t be far should you need me. Just tell one of the boys at the door to come get me.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Hannah’s nerves were on edge as it neared dinner time. She went through her closet and selected a dress. It was ivory, with an empire waist, and scooped neckline. Her selection of clothing was limited to dresses, which made her wonder who had done the shopping. It also brought about the creepy realization that a room had been prepared for her in this house before she had agreed to marry Nathaniel. That really shouldn’t have surprised her.

  Hannah stared out the window, as she gathered her strength for dinner. The sun was setting, and the sky looked like a painting with shades of violet, amber and pink. Seeing such beauty made the ugliness of the day seem almost impossible to believe. She was so entranced with the sky that she didn’t hear the door open. The feel of a hand on her shoulder caused Hannah to let out a startled squeak.

  Nathaniel stood behind her, dressed in a grey silk shirt and black slacks. His long-fingered hand rested on her shoulder. “Did I frighten you?”