“Come on, Olivia. You have to drink,” he commanded her. “You must do it now.”
She was still, staring upwards then. He could still hear her pulse, she was alive but just in shock.
“Liv, baby, please. The boys need you. I need you. You have to drink!” he explained to her in a panic.
When she still didn’t do anything, Gabriel pinched her nose closed and waited until her body instinctively tried to breathe through the mouth.
Finally, Ezekiel and Matilda were at his side.
“What are you doing? Won’t that kill the twins?” Matilda asked, shocked to see him feeding her vampire blood.
“Not if we get them out in time,” Gabriel muttered, still making Olivia drink. “We probably have an hour before it travels to them. We have to get them out before that happens.”
“We are removing them? Shouldn’t we take her to a hospital…” Ezekiel muttered.
“We can’t take her there. She’s going to start transforming. The vampire DNA will heal any wounds she gets, including caesarean wounds,” he explained, finally releasing her nose and removing his wrist from her mouth.
“None of us are trained to do that…” Matilda muttered.
“What other option do we have?” he barked. “Either we try and possibly save all of them, or we don’t and the twins die guaranteed. We need to give them a chance.”
Matilda and Ezekiel looked to one another with a weary expression.
“Go get towels and any medical supplies we may have. I think I may have an antique medical bag in with the artifacts.”
The two hurried to gather the supplies as Gabriel kneeled next to Olivia. Already, the venom from his blood was closing the wound on her neck. She was passed out from the blood loss. He only prayed it all worked and that all of them would be okay. The couple was back to him within minutes. Luckily the medical bag had a couple of scalpels along with forceps and other miscellaneous tools. Out of all of them, Ezekiel was the only one with any sort of medical training. While he had never delivered babies, he had managed to save a few humans before who were mauled by new vampires. So he was elected to do it. The man let out a shaky breath as he picked up a scalpel, dousing it in antiseptic before slicing between her hips. Gabriel stayed next to Olivia, holding her hand and kissing it repeatedly as he watched nervously.
Ezekiel managed to pull back the skin and muscles of her abdomen, finding her uterus easily from its swollen size. He glanced to Gabriel for confirmation before carefully slicing into it. After a few minutes, he managed to carefully remove one of the babies from its placenta and passed him to Gabriel. Gabriel stared at the bloody baby, unable to believe he was actually there. The little one wiggled in his arms, his tiny legs kicking at him. He couldn’t have been any more than four pounds with how small he was. His eyes watered at the sight of his son. It took him a moment to realize he wasn’t breathing, fluid still in his mouth. Gabriel quickly turned him onto his back and patted him until the tiny baby coughed out what had been blocking his throat. He then let out the smallest, shrillest cry Gabriel had ever heard in all his years. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard.
“Gabriel…” Ezekiel murmured. Gabriel looked to him, and his heart plummeted into his stomach immediately at the sight of his other son. The little boy was discolored, bluish in the face. The baby had been deprived of air somehow. Gabriel’s chest started to heave, inching towards a breakdown. But even before the tears could reach his cheeks, Matilda grabbed the tiny baby. Laying out a towel, she placed the baby on the floor and started to press on his chest with her index and pointer finger. Matilda counted under her breath to thirty and then ducked her head. Placing her mouth over the baby’s mouth and nose, she breathed into him twice. Once again, she gave him thirty compressions and then blew into his mouth and nose. When she pulled back to give him more compressions, the little boy took in a sharp breath. Matilda picked him up them, laying him against her chest and patting his back as he began to cry.
Gabriel was overwhelmed with relief. His family was going to be alright. The boys were so small and premature, but they seemed to be quite the little fighters. Ezekiel worked on stitching Olivia back together, and Gabriel and Matilda cleaned up the babies and dressed them. Just as they moved to go into Gabriel and Olivia’s room, further commotion came from across the warehouse. Several vampires were dragging Ethel and her gang back into the warehouse. Gabriel’s face fell into a dark grimace.
“What do you want us to do with them, Gabriel?” one of the vampires called to him.
Gabriel reluctantly turned and handed the baby boys to Matilda and then looked to Ezekiel, “Get them to the room. Start packing.”
Ezekiel gave a nod and picked Olivia up carefully. Gabriel turned back to the others, stalking over slowly.
He picked up Ethel’s chin, “You nearly cost me my entire family,” he growled at her.
“All because you’re upset over your brother’s death. Your brother was a pest, whether or not you are willing to admit it. You and your lackeys are pathetic and evil. How could you want to kill two harmless babies? My sons?” he questioned her.
“You’re weaker than I ever imagined,” Ethel growled at him. “You’ve been useless ever since Genevieve’s death. You’re spineless and weak. To think our leader was—”
Her words were cut short by Gabriel grabbing her head and twisting it violently. Her neck broke, and then he continued to turn it until the tissue began to rip. With his bare hands, he removed her head and threw it into the crowd.
“Fuck all of you!” he snapped. “You’re all selfish children! Time and time again I have sacrificed for the greater good of this nest. I have kept you all safe, drunk, and fed. What more do you want from me? Why can I not find happiness too?!” he screamed at them.
“I’m done with all of you. You can have the nest. I’m not your leader anymore. I have three people far more important who need me.”
Gabriel turned on his heel and walked into his room and shut the door behind him. He found Olivia resting in the bed, the twins in their carriers, and Ezekiel and Matilda buzzing around the room to pack. Slowly walking over to Olivia, he touched her forehead. The venom was giving her a terrible fever, but he knew by the next evening, she would be healed and would need to hunt. He didn’t think he was going to have to turn her into a vampire so soon, but it would be alright as long as she was.
“Gabe, she shouldn’t travel in her condition…” Ezekiel told him.
“We have to get away from here. If Ethel was willing to kill them, what’s stopping the other’s from lashing out and trying to hurt them?” Gabriel asked him.
“I was a fool for ever thinking this would work… But fuck them. They’ve made this bed themselves. They will either manage themselves, or else hunters will find them and kill them. Either way, as long as I have her, the twins, and you guys, we will be fine.” Ezekiel sighed and nodded, continuing to pack. Gabriel knew they would need to get the babies to a hospital as soon as possible so that they could be treated properly, but they needed to get them to safety first.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Olivia jolted awake, gasping for air. Gabriel put an arm around her and tried to calm her.
“It’s okay,” he breathed to her. “You’re safe.”
Instinctively, her hand went to her neck, finding herself absent of blood. Had that been a nightmare too? She went to rest a hand on her stomach when she looked down to find herself void of her enormous pregnant belly. Her eyes went wild, turning to Gabriel who was standing from their bed.
“There are some people you should meet,” he told her.
She watched with big eyes as he moved to the crib at the foot of the bed. He reached in and picked up the two sleeping boys, one dressed in blue and one in green. Her eyes immediately began to water at the sight. They were both okay.
Gabriel moved back to the bed and handed them to her. Both babies laid in her lap. They were so itty-bitty, they looked like baby dolls. Both of them wer
e rather pale, but still had a pink undertone to their skin. Tufts of black hair stuck out from their little caps; the one dressed in green had a bit of a red tint in his hair. Olivia sat speechless, just looking over them both in complete awe.
“You were out for a few days,” he told her softly. “Ezekiel delivered them for us three days ago.”
“I missed three days with them?” she asked.
“Well, for a good reason,” Gabriel muttered.
Olivia looked at him with an expression of confusion when suddenly a smell hit her. An aroma of iron filled her nose, making her mouth water. She then could hear tiny, rapid heartbeats. Her eyes fell to the twins. She could hear their pulses?
Looking back to Gabriel, he reached over and rubbed her back, “Changing you was the only way to save you,” he explained. “We really need to take you hunting. You lost a lot of blood and have been out for three days… You’re probably starving.”
It took her a few minutes to process what Gabriel had implied. The last thing she remembered was seeing Gabriel running towards her after another vampire cut her neck—and now both of her sons were born and healthy, and she was a vampire. It was a lot to take in.
After taking a bit of time to let it sink in, she looked back to the babies, “I’m fine right now… I want to spend some time with them.”
“You have all of eternity to spend time with them. Matilda and Ezekiel can watch them while we go hunting,” Gabriel assured her.
“I just got them… I want to spend time with them right now. You’ve had three days,” Olivia defended, letting a fingertip run across one of their cheeks.
“Yes, but we need to get you fed so that you can care for them properly.”
“I’m not leaving them, Gabriel,” Olivia snapped a little, growing aggravated with the fact that he was trying to take her away from her sons after just being introduced to them.
Gabriel let out a heavy sigh, rubbing his face.
“What if we take them along, then? Matilda and Ezekiel can come to help watch them while you feed and they will only be a few feet away. The ride into town is thirty minutes so you can have time with them on the way.”
Olivia pouted, still not liking the idea of being away from them for even a moment. However, the longer she sat there, the stronger the smell of their blood became. What if she got so thirsty that fed from them?
Frowning deeply, she nodded. “That’s fine.”
She sat with them on the bed as he called Matilda. Once he was done, he took the babies so that she could get ready. Olivia looked around the room then and realized they weren’t in a warehouse, but a cabin. It was small, but actually cozy. He had even gotten it furnished and had built all of the twins furniture. Her eyes fell back to him for an explanation, her heart melting at the sight of him holding their sons.
Gabriel looked at her with a soft grin on his face, “What is it?” he asked her.
“Where are we exactly?” Olivia asked.
“Maine. After they attacked you, I couldn’t stomach to be anywhere near them. I was an idiot for ever bringing you around them. From the beginning, I should have made you and these two my priority. But I was still trying to cling to a life that I didn’t even care about. I suppose I felt obligated to take care of them. As soon as I laid eyes on these two, though, I knew I needed to change my priorities. So we moved here, and I bought us this cabin. Ezekiel and Matilda have the one next to us. They’re our only neighbors. That way they can have a safe home to grow up in, and your parents and Emily can come to visit. We’ll be also isolated enough to live our lives without suspicion from locals,” he explained to her.
Her eyes glazed, walking over to him and giving him a kiss, “You ‘re incredible,” she breathed to him.
Olivia would have never admitted it, but she really disliked the nest lifestyle, and it wasn’t the sort of environment she wanted their sons to grow up in. She was glad he reached the decision to abandon them alone. She never wanted to force him away from his nest.
After giving him another kiss and then to each of the babies, she moved to the bathroom to shower. When she undressed, she looked at herself in the mirror and blinked rapidly. Her skin was so pale, just as white as Gabriel’s. Her strawberry blonde hair seemed brighter and her seafoam eyes greener. She really was a vampire… Olivia’s eyes then gazed down to her stomach, seeing a faded pink scar between her hips from the c-section Ezekiel had given her. Normally women took many months to recover from pregnancy, yet she felt fine. The baby weight was gone from her, even the small amount of weight she had gained in her legs and arms. Her breasts were still large from the pregnancy but they didn’t ache as they had before. It was so strange to see herself in basically peak condition. And to think that she would look like this forever.
Olivia quickly showered and then dressed herself in a pair of jeans and a blouse before finally moving back to Gabriel and the twins. She helped get them bundled up for the ride into town. They walked outside, Olivia carrying one baby and Gabriel carrying the other. Matilda and Ezekiel were waiting outside by their van. Matilda squealed and charged at her, hugging her tightly.
“I’m so glad you’re okay!” she gushed, peeling back and giving her a big grin, “Welcome to the Blood Club,” she joked, winking at her.
Olivia smiled at her but then looked at both her and Ezekiel, “Thank you both for all that you did for the twins. It means the world to me. I don’t know what would have happened without you guys.”
“We really care about you, the boys, and Gabriel. No need to thank us,” Ezekiel told her, which really surprised her.
Matilda had always been very forthcoming with her affection and love for her and the babies. Ezekiel, on the other hand, had hardly uttered a handful of words to her. She had no idea that he even liked her. Olivia gave them each a hug before moving to load the babies into the car. They all rode together, Ezekiel driving with Matilda sitting as passenger. Gabriel and one baby rode in the middle row, with Olivia and the other twin at the back.
As they rode to town, Gabriel called back to Olivia, “So which baby will get which name?” he asked her.
They had chosen two names for the boys just a week before they were born. Olivia looked down to the baby next to her. It was the boy with the bit of red in his hair. She thought about it for a long moment, trying to decide which of the names felt right for him. “I think this little one should be called Hale,” she told him.
Gabriel turned his head to grin at her, “I was thinking the same thing.”
He then turned to the baby next to him, “Hi, baby Kane.”
Olivia couldn’t stop smiling; she couldn’t believe they were finally a family. Due to the ‘premature’ birth, she knew they would have to wait a month or so before contacting Emily and her parents to let them know the twins were born. But she was fine with that. Honestly, Olivia just wanted alone time with Gabriel and their sons. To get used to being a family before bringing other people into the mix. She was excited that her family and friends would be able to be a part of the twins lives now that the nest was out of the picture.
The woman was nervous about adjusting to her life as a vampire, unsure how feeding from a stranger would be—and she wasn’t thrilled about Gabriel having to feed from other humans either. She still hadn’t confronted Gabriel about him allegedly feeding off other humans, but that was the last thing on Olivia’s mind. Just looking at her little boys, she knew that everything would fall into place. She truly felt like she had been given a second chance at life, and now she was also a vampire, she felt ready to do whatever it takes to protect her family and live an eternal life of happiness.
-THE END—
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Preview:
Elora Hutchens is a member of Gabriel’s nest—well, now Lance’s nest. Stuck in the body of a nineteen-year-old, the forty-one-year-old is content with life, but not exactly happy. Her mundane routine of drinking alcohol and blood is quickly thrown into a whirlwind when she stumbles across the handsome human drifter, Thomas. While Elora doesn’t know much about the blonde-headed, mysterious man, there is a connection between the two that confuses and amazes them both. Elora keeps their affair hidden from the nest as long as she can, knowing that they would never approve of her seeing a human. But, when vampires start turning up dead, Lance is quick to point blame at Thomas. But, is he pointing blame out of fact, or jealousy?
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Prequel (“Life In Between”)
Flora craned her neck to expose her neck completely to him. “Oh god, I can’t believe I-I’m doing this,” she breathed, alcohol heavy in her breath.
Little did she know, nothing was coming of it. Gabriel would take what he wanted from her and leave—and all he wanted was her blood.
For the past thousand years, Gabriel’s life had become a mind-numbing routine. He wondered the earth with his ragtag nest of vampires, ranging from ancient to just a few decades old. They drifted town to town, taking in the local culture—well, as much as you could gather from the inside of their ‘finest’ dive bars. Booze, blood, and running was all their lives contained. For some it was like an endless party, but for Gabriel it was a dark, empty cage. His heart still ached for the love he had lost so long ago, his wife Genevieve. But it had been nearly a millennium since her death and he has to decide whether he will continue to wallow in his depression, or pull himself from the darkness to be the strongest leader he can be.
A New World: A Vampire's Obsession: Book 3 Page 7
