Ancient Blood: Infernal

by Kate Hill

  He left the studio, and Dulcie watched him from over her shoulder. She could scarcely wait to make love with him the following night.

  * * * * *

  Matthew liked his lab at night. Alone, he worked comfortably with dim or no lights, pursuing private research related to vampires. Best of all, he no longer had to keep such research a secret from those above him. Several years ago, he’d been teaching and conducting research at a top university when he’d been approached by Jules Kane, an unbelievably old and ridiculously rich hybrid. He’d founded a private research hospital. Familiar with Matthew’s work, Jules had also sensed the younger man’s Immaculate nature. Though Jules’s hospital cared for human patients to protect the vampires’ secrecy, research regarding their own kind was conducted and protected. Matthew enjoyed working with mortals, but he’d always wanted to learn more about his race. Suddenly a new world had opened up to him. He’d met Dulcie and her relatives, Jules had found him, and he wasn’t alone any longer. Still, it had taken some serious thought before he turned in his resignation to the university. His superiors had done everything in their power to keep him. He missed his old position for a short time, but the new atmosphere was more perfect than he’d ever imagined.

  In a short time, he’d made terrific progress in the study of his kind. Eight years ago, he’d played an important part in keeping his brother, Adam, alive when he’d been infected by a poison fatal to vampires. Though Matthew hadn’t actually discovered the cure, he’d since perfected it so any future cases of the disease were cured quickly, as long as the victim received treatment in time.

  Matthew walked to his office and shut off his computer. Already it was almost three in the morning, and he’d promised Dulcie he’d come home for a few hours before starting work. He smiled at the thought of his wife. Before meeting her, he’d constantly struggled with his emotions. For years, he’d suppressed his vampiric passions with an endless cycle of work and study. Though he still spent long hours at the lab, going home held a charm it never had before. Dulcie was home. He’d never been in love before and had feared harming a woman with his passion. Dulcie wasn’t an ordinary woman. Being an Immaculate vampire, she happily accepted the brunt of his bloodlust.

  At that particular hour of the morning, little traffic blocked the streets between Boston and his suburban home. Within fifteen minutes, he turned the key in his front door. Dulcie’s scent struck him as he entered the hall, a sensual, comfortable scent, just as beautiful as the woman herself.

  He walked to where he knew she’d be. She stood in her studio, her back to him as she put the finishing touches on a painting of a pirate ship tossing on a stormy sea. He narrowed his eyes and smiled. The ship’s Jolly Roger had fangs! Dulcie’s sense of humor.

  “Hello, darling.” Dulcie didn’t turn to him until she’d swept the last stroke across the canvas. She placed aside her brush and turned to him. “What do you think of it?”

  “I like it.”

  She smiled. “You say that about all my paintings.”

  “I like them all.”

  “Hmm, not all.” She tilted her face up to his. “I don’t think you were keen about the nude I did of you.”

  “I told you I didn’t want a nude.”

  “Then why did you give in?”

  He grasped her waist and tugged her to his chest. “Because you know I can’t resist you.”

  She smiled coquettishly.

  Using his thumb, he wiped a smudge of paint from her cheek. “I’m going to bed. Are you coming?”

  “I just have to clean up here first.”

  He kissed her and walked to their bedroom.

  * * * * *

  Dulcie hurried to clean her pallet and brushes. Matthew would only be home for a few brief hours, and she wanted to sleep beside him. Matthew required less sleep than any vampire she’d ever known. She guessed it resulted from years of conditioning due to his successful attempt to both fit into the mortal world and satisfy his vampiric nature. At times she missed him beside her when she woke, but she understood and accepted his dedication to his work. She respected his diligence and was very proud of him, yet at times she couldn’t help missing him. He was still young for a vampire, so full of energy and ambition. She doubted he’d change even if he lived a thousand years.

  Her stomach fluttered and she smiled as she considered the benefits she reaped from his dynamic nature.

  She climbed the stairs, walked silently down the hall, and stepped into the master bedroom. Matthew sat in bed, his back braced against the headboard, his knees bent, a black journal resting against them. The sheets stopped just below his waist. Dulcie’s gaze swept his lean, muscled torso. She licked her lips at the sight of his broad chest roughened with hair, powerful shoulders and long arms curved with muscle. She wasn’t sure if he noticed her as he scribbled in the journal.

  “I’m taking a shower,” Dulcie said. “Be out in five minutes.”

  “Okay.” He didn’t look up from his journal.

  “Matthew, what the hell do you write in those things? You must have twenty of them lying around the den.”

  He looked up at her. “Just thoughts. It’s supposed to be good therapy or something.”

  “I guess I can understand that. I feel that way about my artwork sometimes.” She folded her arms across her chest and narrowed her eyes. “Do you ever write about me?”

  He smiled wolfishly. “All the best parts.”

  “Do you have any idea how much I love you?”

  He winked. “Some idea.”

  Dulcie took a quick shower and brushed her hair. As she approached the bed, she noticed Matthew lying on his side, his eyes closed and his breathing even. Naked, she slipped into bed and kissed his temple before curling up beside him. His arms slipped around her waist as he pulled her close to his warm, hard body. Smiling, she snuggled against him and slept.

  Chapter Three

  An annoying beep woke Matthew from a pleasant dream that faded all too quickly. Eyes still half closed, he groped for the clock on his night table and shut off the alarm.

  6:00 a.m. Beside him, Dulcie still slept, undisturbed by the alarm. Her long, thick hair covered her face, and the sheets were pulled up to her chin. He touched her hair gently, careful not to wake her. Like others of their kind, she wouldn’t rise until later in the day. Many vampires refused to walk by day at all, but kept to the old ways which, Matthew admitted, better suited their constitution.

  He showered, dressed in an understated gray suit and a tie of pastel colors, then blow-dried and combed his hair. Dulcie and his family often teased him for his vanity, but he wasn’t egotistical. Not really. Being impeccably groomed had always been another way to keep control of himself. He hated messiness. Growing up, he’d looked like a lanky, raw-boned animal. His curly hair had been unruly, his cheekbones far too prominent for a skinny preteen. For the first years of high school, Matthew probably couldn’t have gotten a date if he’d wanted one, but he hadn’t been very interested in women. They didn’t appeal to him sexually. Neither did men. It wasn’t until years later that he figured out why.

  He’d spent his childhood studying, learning. Academics came easily to him, so easy that he’d taught himself to read before he began kindergarten. His adoptive parents knew he was gifted and worked hard to provide him an education at the best private schools. They loved him and were proud of him, and he wanted to return their love by continuing to excel. It was only in his mid-teens, when he began experiencing the first signs of his vampiric nature, that life changed. Daylight became uncomfortable, and he started thirsting for blood. Fearful he was losing his mind, terrified of disappointing his family, he immersed himself deeper in study.

  At fourteen, he had progressed so far beyond others of his age that he was already in medical school. At eighteen, he entered vampiric puberty. His strength increased, and so did his need for blood. Refusing to harm a person, he hunted animals, but their blood did nothing to stop the painful hunger that rose in him
nightly. He began drinking his own blood. That took the edge off somewhat. At least he was able to cope with his heavy course load and the increasing concern of his family. Becoming even more serious and withdrawn, he knew something was terribly wrong with him. Should his control slip, he could harm someone without intending to. He became a master of restraint, and eventually those closest to him accepted his rigid ways. He was, after all, a genius. Weren’t they all odd?

  No one realized his difficulty during hospital training, particularly surgery. Surrounded by blood, desiring it, starving for it, but unable to take what he needed, added anxiety to an already stressful regimen. If only he hadn’t felt so completely alone.

  Matthew stared at himself in the mirror. He didn’t consider himself ugly. He’d turned out fairly attractive. According to Dulcie, he was gorgeous. Vampiric maturity had banished the gawky youth. He possessed a height and build athletes would envy. He’d finally grown into all that sharp bone structure, and Dulcie swore she’d never felt anything as good as his thick, curly hair between her fingers.

  He smiled. Having a wife was definitely a plus.

  As he left the bathroom, he wondered if his brother, Adam, had similar feelings growing up. Probably worse, since his twin’s adoptive father had been physically and emotionally abusive. In spite of some rough times, Matthew realized his good luck. At least his human family loved him. He only wished he could confess to them what he was.

  Matthew grabbed a bottle of apple juice and a banana from the kitchen before walking to his car.

  Outside, his neighbor, a plump young accountant, called to him.

  “I don’t mean to complain,” said the man, “but I have to tell you, your dog kept me and my wife awake for most of last night. Think you could do something about that howling?”

  Matthew paused, one hand on the car door. He was in a funny mood that morning, so he turned to his neighbor and offered a pleasant smile. “I’m sorry, but we don’t have a dog.”

  The man’s pink brow furrowed, a questioning look in his eyes. “Oh. I guess it must have been someone else’s.”

  Matthew nodded, slipped into his car, and laughed almost all the way to Boston.

  In the lab, Nancy glanced at him over the top of her glasses as he joined her. “Were you working again last night, Matthew?”

  “Yes.”

  “Goodness, Dulcie must be so looking forward to your vacation next week.”

  “Vacation?” Matthew’s eyes widened. “Damn. I forgot.”

  “Forgot?” Nancy rolled her eyes. “He forgets his vacation. You were married how many years ago? And you still haven’t had a honeymoon.”

  Dulcie hadn’t mentioned the vacation since they’d planned it. She knew he hated taking time off. It wasn’t that he really hated it. He’d just become accustomed to his strict lifestyle. Since meeting Dulcie, he felt like a completely new person. She offered him a release from all constricting emotions, an exploration of every wild desire. He’d been promising her a vacation for years. The last time they’d been away was when they’d fled to Spain with Adam so the twins could train to destroy the First Father—hardly a vacation.

  “So are you two still going to New York to visit your brother and his wife?” Nancy asked.

  “Yes. We haven’t seen Adam and Mara in months. We’re looking forward to it.”

  “I think it’s so wonderful how you and your twin found each other after all those years.”

  Matthew nodded. Nancy didn’t continue the conversation. He guessed she’d worked with him long enough to know when he was thoroughly absorbed in his work. Conversation might come later.

  As usual, Matthew lost track of the hours until Nancy poked him in the arm. “Phone. Dulcie.”

  “I’ll take it in my office. Transfer it, will you?”

  He stepped into the office, his gaze fixed on the red light flashing on the phone at his desk. He picked up.

  “Dulcie?”

  “Hello, handsome. Are you extremely tied up, or can I bring you lunch?”

  Matthew smiled and leaned back in his chair. “Speaking of tied up, I’d like to tie you up again.”

  “Hold that thought for tonight.”

  “I plan on it. Come around three. That will give me time to finish what I’m doing.”

  “See you then.” Dulcie made a kissing sound through the phone before she hung up.

  The next few hours passed more slowly, now that he anticipated Dulcie’s visit.

  When he walked into his office at quarter past three, she awaited him, lunch on his desk. She glanced up, a spoon of tomato soup between her lips.

  “Sorry,” she said. “I’m starving.”

  He sat across from her, his stomach grumbling as he unwrapped the waxed paper from his sandwich. Peanut butter and raspberry jelly. He took a bite, savoring the taste before gulping skim milk from a single-size carton. For as long as he could remember, this had been his absolute favorite lunch.

  “And I’m glad it is,” Dulcie said, reading his thoughts. “Because after dusk, I don’t mind domestic stuff, but during the day, forget it. PB&J is all I’ll do, besides my own garden salad with tuna.”

  Matthew offered her a wolfish grin. “Cooking at night is all that counts.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “I’ll be home early tonight. By nine.” He wiped his mouth with one of the pink paper napkins Dulcie had brought. Pink. Since they’d gotten married, all their bathrooms as well as the kitchen dripped with pink. He’d told her his den was absolutely off-limits for the pink, and she’d agreed, as long as he didn’t touch a thing on the floor in her studio. When they’d first gotten married, he’d picked up a pile of clothes and silk flowers strewn across the carpet, and she’d nearly ripped out his throat for ruining the setup for her next painting. That was the first time he’d learned that artists were even stranger than scientists and he’d better keep his claws to himself when he stepped into her sloppy pink studio. In fact, the sloppy pink studio had even grown on him, particularly during the times they made love in it.

  “You know what I got, Matthew? Tickets to Othello for the first night of our vacation.”

  He smiled. “Wonderful!”

  They both shared a love of theater and went as often as possible. They always discussed the performances for days afterward. That’s what he loved about Dulcie—not only was she beautiful but she also possessed a very deep soul, though at times she tried to disguise it with excessive coquettishness. He knew she flirted as a form of self-protection. He’d met her family, and though he liked them all, they were a wild group of vampires, far more interested in the physical side of life than the emotional one. In spite of her own outward frivolity, Dulcie possessed a tender heart.

  “I hate to say this, but I really have to get back to—” The phone interrupted Matthew. He picked it up. “Hello?… Right now?… All right. Send him up.”

  Matthew muttered a curse as he slammed down the receiver.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “That was Dr. Simmons. He’s in charge while Jules is away. Jay Ashford is on his way up. Wants to have a look at my lab. Pain in the rear.”

  “I don’t like him, Matthew.”

  “I’m not keen on him either.” Matthew kissed her forehead and lips. “I have to go. Thanks for lunch.”

  “Anytime.”

  “Oh,” Matthew stopped halfway through the door and looked over his shoulder. “Did you take the train in?”

  “Yes. You know I love the train.”

  “Would you do me a favor?”

  Dulcie approached him, looping her arms around his neck. “You mean here? We haven’t done it in your office since the first night we…”

  “Tempting, but Nancy’s across the hall and Simmons and Jay Ashford are on their way up. I was going to ask if you’d mind taking my car home. I didn’t get a workout yesterday and I’d like to run.”

  Dulcie pretended to consider it. “Well, I suppose I could do that, as long as you don�
�t spend all your energy running.”

  “That’s never happened yet.” Matthew spoke seriously. “In fact, the only time I recall reaching a physical limit was when Adam and I fought the First Father and I was wounded by platinum. You know, it’s funny how for centuries humans have been under the impression that silver damaged us, when all along it’s been platinum. Jules is conducting a study right now in which…”

  Dulcie kissed him. He responded by dragging her tightly against his chest, stepping back into the office and slamming the door closed with his foot.

  “You’re trying to shut me up?” he murmured against her lips, his hands sliding up her back. Her tight nipples pressed through their clothes and poked against his chest in a way that made his cock leap.

  She giggled. “Is it working?”

  A knock sounded on the door, and Matthew glanced skyward. He wasn’t quite in the mood for Jay Ashford or Dr. Simmons.

  Dulcie returned to his desk and collected the remains of lunch while Matthew opened the door and donned a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

  “Matt.” Dr. Simmons nodded. Matthew resisted the urge to choke him. He loathed the name Matt. Why had Jules allowed such an irritating, arrogant man to invade their hospital, let alone award him such a position of authority? However, since Jules had been away, the hospital had fallen into the hands of human beings and human rules. Simmons continued, “You know Jay?”

  “Yes, we’ve met.” Jay extended his hand to Matthew though his gaze fixed on Dulcie’s shapely posterior in her faded jeans as she leaned over the desk. Matthew’s ultra-firm handshake forced his attention back to the young doctor.

  “Dulcie, how are you?” Dr. Simmons called. “Did you enjoy the party last night?”

  “I had a wonderful time. I’m on my way out. I was just bringing Matthew lunch.”

  “Must be nice to have a wife who’s an artist, Matt,” Simmons said. “She can just bend her schedule to accommodate you. Not like my marriage. Leah’s always at the office and I’m always here.”