“I’m here, Sybil,” he whispered against her. Pete was right. He could never be anything other than what he was: a vampire. But that didn’t make him a killing machine. He would find a way to survive now just as he had before. Nothing had changed.
The one woman he loved more than anything, and he had been unable to help her when she needed him. Not this time. Pete might have used a knife to drain her blood, but Canon could infuse her with the power of the gods. She might hate him if he turned her, but all he could think of was saving her. He wouldn’t let her down again. He wouldn’t allow her to die because of him.
Cradling her in his arms, he lowered his head to hers just as her eyes fluttered open.
“Do it,” she managed, her voice sounding strained as her life slipped away from her.
“You know not what you ask.”
“I know. Do it.” She turned her head to the side, offering her neck to him.
Flashes of memory came back to him. He’d seen her in Mermaid’s Lair at a time that seemed like years in the past, her neck bared to him, his inability to feed confusing him. Then he saw her today, her hair spread out before him, her body opening for him, her sweet juices pouring out in welcome. Then there was Chloe, his love, the woman she had been so long ago. He saw Chloe laughing in the Louisiana summer. Then he saw her lifeless body, dead at the hands of his father.
Not again.
As his fangs sank into her neck, he felt her heart stop. Her fingers dug into his arm, forcing him to continue to feed on the last of her blood. Then, in the last second, he pulled away. With his fingernail, he opened his wrist and placed it to her mouth, filling her with his life.
As she clung to him, he looked up, his eyes seeking his brother’s body. Pete had disappeared. He no longer lay near the altar where Canon had left him for dead. Somehow, Pete had survived.
He sat silently as Sybil fed, unwilling to tell her the truth. Her body would die soon, but she would be reborn as his bride. His undead bride. What had he done?
* * *
Sybil watched the moon sink into the horizon. She turned to Canon as the sun rose. “What is happening to us?”
“I don’t know.”
She strained her eyes against the rising sun, wondering how she could look into it and not turn to dust. “We aren’t changing. Look.” She stuck her hand out of the shadow where they were standing. Sunlight streamed across her skin. “My blood was drained. I drank from you. I… I died.” Her voice choked.
“Yes, you did. And I felt the strength of the ancients come back into me. What was in the potion you gave me?”
“You saw me mix it.” She wrapped her arms around her body, attempting to calm her shaky nerves. Something was very wrong. If they were vampires, they were unlike any she had ever known to exist. “Herbs. Voodoo. Old stuff.”
“Too old. Whose spell did you use?”
“Zombie’s. He was the master at reanimation.”
“So that’s it then. You and I are not vampires. We are simply reanimated.”
“We are not zombies,” she laughed, though the gesture was not an easy one as the sound gurgled in her throat rather than erupting as if it were true laughter. “What have we done?”
“I don’t know. But we will get to the bottom of this, I assure you. Where are his originals?”
“You can’t be thinking…” She stopped. There was no way they could break into the Voodoo Museum and not be caught. The place was heavily guarded by incantations and voodoo magic.
“Yes, I am. You and I both know the only way we can figure this out is to see it in his writing. He was a master of tricks. His spells often had hidden messages within them. Perhaps we can figure it out if we see his exact formula.”
“Perhaps.” She leaned against the wall where they stood. The shadows that protected them would be gone soon and they would walk out into the sunlight, just like everyone else. And if they could walk in the sunlight, so could all of Canon’s other creations. What happened to the master vampire trickled down to his progeny.
“Do not be afraid. You and I will find a way to understand this.”
“I’m not afraid for myself. I’m afraid for this city. If we have created something new, something as of yet unseen, what will it do to the vampire population here?” Her teeth tugged at her bottom lip as she looked up at him. He reached for her and pulled her into his embrace. He was no longer warm like the man who had loved her yesterday. Then again, she was no longer that woman who had opened to him and given herself to a man she didn’t think she’d ever see again.
“I will stop them from killing. I will stop Pete and the others. You have to believe that.”
“I do, it’s just that…”
“Do you think you and I are the only ones on the side of good here? There are many others who will help us. Sid and his friends, they know others who fight the demons in New Orleans. There is an organization here, one that stays underground. They fight to keep these streets safe.” He wound her hair around his hand and raised her face to his. “They won’t win.” Slowly, he lowered his lips to hers, sealing the promise, making her dizzy from the sensation as she clung to him, feeling the sincerity of his words. He would protect the city.
“Then we’d better go steal a book or two.”
They had created something they had never dreamed. The combination of her gold powder and the potion he had used to save her life had changed the vampire population of New Orleans. Now, all bets were off.
Sybil pushed on a pair of dark sunglasses and took his hand in hers. Together, they walked across the street, oblivious to the crowds of tourists around them. Because of her, a new breed of vampire had been born and would awaken before the sun set today. Soon, the rest of them would know how it felt to walk in the sunlight.
Canon squeezed her hand, as if he were able to read her thoughts. “We’ll find a way to stop them,” he whispered against her shoulder.
“I know. I believe you.”
“Good. Because we will do it.”
They walked into the Voodoo Museum easily enough. It was as if the powers protecting it knew they were here to stop a great evil they’d had a hand in creating. It was as if the Reverend Zombie’s spirit were there guiding them, knowing they had a mission. Destroy all vampires. Only then could they be truly free.
The End…
for now
Alicia Sparks
A Ph.D. candidate studying folklore, a university English instructor, and an Erotic Romance novelist, Alicia Sparks loves dabbling in the paranormal. She has a growing collection of books to her credit, most of which are available in e-book format. To find out more about Alicia’s work, visit her website -- www.aliciasparks.com.
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