Blood Oaths

by Stein Willard

  Soft fingers wiped at her cheeks. Sandra realized that she was crying.

  “Mother loves us and will do anything to protect us. To do that she needs to be her true self.” Jenny pressed into Sandra’s body. “Please don’t be angry with her. I’m still too young to know what really happens in a marriage, but I know that she is gets very dangerous when any of us is being threatened. Maybe we should be the ones who should be stronger and take care of ourselves, so she doesn’t have to revert to her true nature to do so.”

  A sob caught in her throat and Sandra held on tighter to her daughter. When did her baby girl grow up to become so wise? Maybe she should start looking at Ira out of the eyes of her children. They simply loved her because she was their mother and Ira loved them in return. Why could she not just love Ira because she was her wife and the woman she loved with all her heart?

  “Took some clever pills tonight, didn’t you?” she teased her daughter.

  Jenny pressed a kiss on her cheek. “Mother says we all take after you.”

  Oh, Ira!

  ***

  With hooded eyes, Iramis studied the woman from across the room. She should have known that the ancient would put in an appearance with a new threat against the Vampire race looming. Iramis watched as the female vampire worked her way through the room. Tall, dark and exquisitely beautiful, Adata Mesur oozed power and confidence. The dark head lifted suddenly and Iramis found herself trapped by a deep amber gaze. The red lips parted. Iramis frowned when Adata gave her a toothy grin.

  The woman rarely attended gatherings and had for the past three hundred years preferred to hole up in her castle outside Istanbul. Iramis preferred it that way too. Millennia ago when she had come across the ambushed Mesuri royal family caravan in the Syrian desert, she had been tempted to turn a blind eye and move on. Back then, the Vampire Senate did not interfere in human affairs. Humans had their reasons for killing each other that had nothing to do with vampires. It was as she was walking around the decimated caravan, disgusted by the brutality of the scene, which she happened upon the mortally wounded Queen lying in a pool of her own blood, her body brutalized. Even with death hovering close Iramis was stunned by the woman’s beauty. She looked like an angel…a blood splattered angel, clutching the severed head of her husband. Not far from them lay the disembowelled remains of their two young sons. The poignant scene had made her ancient vampire heart constrict with pity. It did not strike her as fair that this beautiful woman had to leave this plane of existence without bringing to task those who had done this to her and her family. That night, she had sired her first and only vampire. It took them a couple of years to find the bandits and the master who ordered the assassination. Once revenge was dealt with, Iramis had taught the young vampire everything she needed to know to survive in their world. In return, the beautiful woman repaid her with nights of endless passion. They were like a drug to each other. Their hunger was insatiable, but Iramis’ duty to the Vampire Senate slowly drove a wedge between them. A fledging- as was the case with Adata- was not deemed worthy enough to claim the love of so ancient a being as herself. Nor did Iramis feel more than lust for the beauty to claim her as her own. After five centuries together, they had parted ways with Iramis settling in the New World and Adata returning to her native Turkey. Over the centuries they had met on occasion and assuaged the hunger they still felt for each other. For a year or two they would hold up in one of Iramis’ many castles and spent nights and days in torrid passion. But they always said goodbye afterwards and each went their own way.

  Adata winked before returning her attention to the grey-haired vampire elder she had been talking to. Iramis slowly brought her goblet to her lips. This would be their first meeting in over three hundred years, but even as she stood there taking in the gorgeous vampire, Iramis felt not even a sliver of desire. That part of her was already claimed.

  “This could prove a problem.”

  She turned to meet the dark grey eyes of her friend, Adomini. They both had been sired around the same time by the same vampire. They were part of two hunting groups chasing after a demon that tormented their respective kingdoms. Both of them brave, bold and undoubtedly stupid, disregarded the orders of their superiors and tracked the demon to a dark castle in the near impenetrable Carpathian Mountains. All they craved at that time was the glory such a kill would bring them and the prestige it would buy them and their families. That night when they stormed the demon’s fortress, they had anticipated their own honourable deaths. The demon was known to have obliterated large armies and villages. What could two heavily armed mercenaries do to such a powerful creature, except hope that they could somehow wound and thus weaken it?

  Instead of death, they had found life - a life so bright and painful that it stole all the human morals they had fought for for so long. They followed the demon, became its family, bathed in blood with it and in the end settled comfortably in their brutal existence. After years of death and misery they, together with a few others who had tasted the kiss of the demon, realized the danger of depleting their food source. Thus, came to life the Vampire Senate under the custodianship of the three elders. When their sire scoffed at the idea of coddling humans instead of showing their true power to them, together they embarked on the most painful quest of their existence. In the name of survival, they hunted down their sire and destroyed him. For centuries after, they would take a moment where they would stand together in silence and mourn the death of the one who had ‘brought them to life’. But the future was beckoning and there were many young untrained vampires running around, killing indiscriminately. The Vampire Senate swiftly and brutally dealt with them. As time progressed, so did the vampires. A more sophisticated creature evolved and adapted, one that could respect humankind and could still feed without killing. But small pockets of vampires remained true to the Olden Creed of kill and live. It was against the stubborn rebels that they were warring.

  Now almost four millennia later, they were about as comfortable as they could be amongst the humans. Yes, they would never completely belong, but the fact that humans were beginning to accept their existence, was a good start. The fact that she headed a human household was a dream come true for many vampires. A dream that many now strived for and many had achieved.

  “You seem to be quite far, old friend. I take it my remark was unwelcome.”

  Iramis shook her head slowly. “No, not unwelcome, but indeed unnecessary.”

  The dark headed vampire smiled. “I don’t doubt you, but I surely doubt her intentions. You could never resist each other in the past and I think she might still feel the same.”

  Draining her glass of wine, Iramis came to her feet. “That’s why, my dear Adomini, I’m leaving you to babysit.”

  A sly smile crossed over Adomini’s face. “It seems more like you’re taking flight, Ira. She might interpret it as such.”

  “Then so be it. I have a family and I need to check in with them.” She gave Adomini a curt nod and slowly made her way to the exit, greeting a few old friends along the way. Just as the exit was in sight, she felt the hair in her nape bristle.

  She turned slowly to face Adata.

  As a vampire, the woman would never change physically, but it was still unsettling to find her looking even more beautiful than the last time they had seen each other. Intense golden eyes studied her closely.

  “Were you going to leave without welcoming me, sire?”

  A small frisson ran down Iramis’ spine at the low, sensual tones. She smiled and stepped closer to engulf the tall woman in a warm hug. No matter what, this was still her offspring. She placed a gentle kiss on the cool cheek.

  “I was hoping that we could meet tomorrow,” she said softly as she studied the golden eyes. “I didn’t mean any offence.”

  Adata cocked her head to the side. “It’s been too long, Iramis. I’ve missed you.”

  “And I you,” Iramis answered truthfully. They shared a strong sire bond, strengthened further by the sexual
bond they had shared in the past. Although Adata was not always on her mind, the memory of her, although dimmed, was always with Iramis.

  Like a child happy to know she was missed, Adata snuggled into Iramis’ arms and held on for a long while.

  “Let’s share a drink together. I have so much to tell you,” Adata said as they moved apart. “A lot has happened since we last saw each other.”

  Iramis sighed inwardly. She would like nothing more than to hear what had been happening in Adata’s life. Any parent would be interested to know how their child had been faring in their absence… but not tonight. Tonight, she only wanted to talk to her wife and children.

  “I was hoping to call my family before it gets too late,” she said honestly and watched Adata closely for any reaction to this news.

  The dark-haired vampire bit down on her lower lip as she too studied Iramis. “I heard you had gotten married and that you are raising children with your human.”

  “Yes, I’m raising children with my wife,” Iramis said, putting emphasis on Sandra’s position in her life.

  ***

  Sandra looked at her mobile for the hundredth time, before she sighed and leaned her head back against the headrest. Usually Iramis would call every night when she was away. That had not been the case this time. For the second day in a row she had not heard from her wife. She felt her eyes burn, but she quickly blinked way the tears. There was no way she was going to cry in front of the children.

  “Are you okay, Mommy?” Oscar asked where he sat next to her.

  Smiling tenderly, she leaned over and kissed Oscar’s cheek. “I’m fine, sweetie. Aren’t you tired?” She threw a quick glance over to where her two eldest were fast asleep in their seats.

  “A little,” Oscar answered. “But I didn’t want to leave you alone while you looked so sad.”

  Sandra almost burst out in tears there and then. She would never stop being amazed by how wonderful her children were. They had such diverse personalities, but the one constant was their unbelievable caring nature. No one would believe that these kids were raised by a very deadly vampire. Where they could have turned out bold and arrogant, because of the immense power Iramis possessed, they were the extreme opposite. She leaned over and cradled her baby in her arms.

  “Thank you, honey, but I’m better now.”

  “Good,” he said, his voice muffled against her shoulder. “Mother asked me to take care of you while she’s away. I don’t want her to see you looking so sad.”

  Sandra’s heart jumped at the boy’s revelation. Iramis actually asked him to look after her. For the third time in less than ten minutes, she had to fight back tears. She gave Oscar another kiss and sat back.

  “I’m sure she’ll be proud of you. Now grab the pillow and put it on my lap, so you can sleep for a while.”

  Oscar did as he was told and a soon as his head landed in her lap, he relaxed and dozed off. She leaned her head back against the seat and sighed. Her hand gently brushed through the soft curls and Sandra smiled when the boy moaned softly and cuddled closer. Iramis also did that when she played with her hair. A memory flitted through her mind and she sighed deeply.

  The pleasure was almost unbearable as she arched her back and clenched her muscles, holding the skilful fingers prisoner and milking every bit of pleasure from the friction. She opened her eyes and gasped when she met the hungry, blue gaze. This sight never ceased to thrill her. Seeing Iramis like this always left her undone and she was not surprised when she felt the tingling starting in her toes. Locking her hands behind the vampire’s neck, she pulled Iramis into a searing kiss, using her tongue, lips and teeth to coax a delicious sounding gasp from her wife’s lips. Small bursts of lights exploded behind tightly closed eyes and she screamed as her body dissolved into an uncontrolled quake of release. Iramis wrenched her lips from hers and moved down until her warm mouth closed over her clit and sucked hungrily. Sandra pulled on the short, sweaty tresses, as she tried to ground herself, tried to pull herself from the maelstrom of pleasure threatening to drown her. But she could not. Not with the skilful lips, literally eating away at her control. It took a while, but suddenly the violent pleasure subsided, leaving in its wake a dull, delicious, throbbing ache. She lay, panting, savouring the gentle motion of Iramis’ tongue lapping at her spent sex.

  “I want another one,” she whispered fiercely.

  She felt Iramis smile against her sex before she lifted her head. Sandra almost swooned at the look of utter adoration on the vampire’s face.

  “Don’t you need to take a break first?”

  Sandra rubbed the wetness of her wife’s chin and licked her finger. A deep growl sounded as she met Iramis’ burning gaze. “Easy there, Fangs. I was thinking more along the lines of another baby.” Not knowing what to expect, she closed her eyes. A cool hand brushed over her brow. She slowly opened her eyes. Iramis’ eyes were dark with something more than passion. Intrigued, Sandra studied her vampire closely, trying to decipher that strange look.

  “You want to make me a mother for the third time, Sandra?”

  Sandra swallowed. Why the hell were vampires so difficult to read? “Uh, yes.”

  Sandra felt tears burn behind her closed lids. Oscar moved again and she resumed her gentle caress. He was the product of that discussion. She would never forget that night. It ended with her cradling a trembling Iramis in her arms. The vampire had never made her wish for another child known and her yearning for another baby was evident in the blood-streaked cheeks of her wife. After Brandon and Jenny, Oscar was their love child. He was the little miracle they had worked on diligently with a lot of courting from Iramis’ part.

  A smile lifted the corners of Sandra’s lips. Brandon was their first love, Jenny, their forever love and Oscar their unquenchable love.

  A teardrop fell on her hand and Sandra smiled widely. Their children were Iramis’ testimony that she would always love her.

  ***

  Adata quickly held up her hands. “My apologies, Iramis. I spend so much time around vampires back home that I’m even beginning to talk like them.”

  Iramis smiled at that. “You are a vampire.”

  Adata’s soft chuckle filled the air around them. “Yes, that’s true. The only difference between me and them is that they were once human not so long ago, but yet they talk like ancients.”

  Iramis frowned slightly. “You sired new vampires?”

  “Only one, my spouse. My daughter is not yet ready.”

  It was only due to millennia of self-control that Iramis’ jaw didn’t unhinge. Her interest piqued; she took Adata’s hand. “You have a family?”

  Adata gave her a dazzling smile. “Yes, we’ve been together for almost twenty years now. Our daughter’s sixteen.” Twinkling amber eyes looked at her and Iramis raised a questioning eyebrow. “You’re a grandmother.”

  Iramis snorted. “A grandmother, hah.”

  “Yes, and they can’t wait to meet you.”

  Iramis scanned the room. “Are they here?”

  “No,” Adata murmured. She leaned closer. “They still feel a bit intimidated by other vampires.”

  “But I thought you said…”

  “Yes, but since I’m the only ancient they’re used to, they’re still uncomfortable with all the power in the room. Would you like me to take you to them?”

  Iramis hesitated for a moment. Looking at Adata she saw the other woman smile.

  “Your family? You miss them.”

  Iramis nodded. She had not spoken to Sandra or the kids in two days. Not that she did not want to. Upon her arrival here she was dragged into meeting after meeting to prepare for the arrival of the elders.

  “We’ll be here for a while. I’m sure we can find the time.” Iramis said quietly. “I need to call my family.”

  A shadow crossed over Adata’s face. “I understand. Maybe we can do it some other time.”

  Iramis nodded and turned to away.

  “Did I do something to make you no
t want to be around me, sire?” The softly uttered question made Iramis spin around. Adata looked hurt, genuinely hurt. With their blood link she could also feel the vampire’s pain. At that moment nothing, not even their past together could stop the feeling of overwhelming love she felt for this creature she ‘gave birth’ to. She closed the distance between them and pulled Adata in a close hug and held her.

  “I love you,” she said urgently and placed a soft kiss on Adata’s lips. “I will never be able to stop loving you, even if I tried.”

  A soft gasp sounded and they slowly pulled apart.

  Iramis felt her body grow cold.

  “Sandra?” She moved away from Adata, warily studying her wife’s rigid face. “What are you doing here?”

  Sandra’s eyes were dark with pain as her gaze flitted over to Adata and then back to Iramis. Iramis watched as Sandra took a deep breath before she held out her hand to Adata.

  “Hi. I’m Sandra,” she introduced herself in a polite tone. Iramis sensed Adata’s confusion as the vampire shook Sandra’s hand.

  “We were just talking about you,” Adata said quickly. “I’m Adata.”

  There was a brief silence in which the two women studied each other. Adata was the first to break the silence. With a weak smile she turned to Iramis.

  “I have to go.”

  Iramis nodded. “Yes. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

  Adata smiled at a stiff looking Sandra. “It was a pleasure meeting you.”