by Emily Reed
Dimitri's hand tightened on my leg. His fingers moved up my calf, slowly traveled up my thigh, and held my hip. I shuddered around him. His fingers tightened as his pace increased.
Every time his hips rocked, power transferred from him to me. Dimitri reached forward, grabbing my hair and pulling me so that I looked up into the night sky.
Vitality coursed through the connections, pouring into me.
My back arched, taking all he had and offering everything I could. I felt both weakness and strength in that same moment. The duality of it—the exposure, the perfect pain of it—and the outpouring of energy made me scream. Dimitri thrust one last time, his hand tightening in my hair as he followed me over the edge into a pool of fathomless pleasure.
He curled around me, my back pressed against his chest. My heart still pounded as he kissed my ear, my hair, the back of my neck. I’d never felt so alive.
Power radiated through me, my vision saturated with colors. Sounds traveled to me from great distances. The crackling of the fires miles away, the individual steps and sighs of the zombies wandering the streets below. The blood rushing through my veins.
I rolled, turning to Dimitri. His eyes were gray, lids heavy with exhaustion. He looked like a man. Not a beast. I kissed him gently, afraid now that I could hurt him. That I could take too much.
We dressed silently. Dimitri occasionally reached out and brushed against me, his fingers playing with a strand of my hair, lightly caressing my ankle as he tied his shoe.
"Darling, I do not understand what you are." He kissed the top of my head, inhaling my scent. I leaned against his button-down shirt, wrapping my arms around his narrow hips, feeling his hard chest against me. So strong. “But in all my centuries on this planet, I've never known this before."
I tilted my head to look up at him. "Known what?"
He held my face and looked at me—his eyes gray blue now, like the ocean at dawn rather than the frozen depths of an iceberg. Dimitri kissed me, his tongue tangling with mine, more of his power drifting to me so that I rose on my tiptoes and pulled him closer. The strength within him intoxicated me.
I broke the kiss and took his hand, walking toward the door that led down into the apartment building.
The door was locked. "Let me." Dimitri reached around me. I stepped aside and saw his forearm strain as he pulled. The door didn't give, and Dimitri's brow furrowed. He glanced at me.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
Dimitri shook his head. "I need to feed." He put both hands on the handle and yanked hard. The metal gave and the door buckled. With one more tug, it opened.
It was dark inside. I reached for the railing. Dimitri wrapped his hand around mine. "Follow me," he said.
The door closed behind us and total darkness descended. I felt his hand on my cheek, his thumb running under my eye, his fingers gliding into my hair. His lips brushed against mine. "I want to drink from you," he said.
I imagined the delicious sinking of his fangs into my flesh, the pleasure of satisfying his hunger, nourishing him.
But I couldn’t. I wasn’t sure why, but I felt it in my gut. I couldn’t let him feed from me.
"I can't let you." My voice came out breathless but strong. His lips skimmed the skin beneath my ear as they traveled down my neck, his tongue flicking against my skin. "I'm sorry Dimitri," I said, "but I can't feed you."
"I understand." He backed away but kept hold of my hand. “You are Megan’s.” I didn’t argue with him. “You can't see in the dark. Shall I carry you?"
"I'm fine, just hold my hand,“ I answered, feeling strong and steady—I couldn’t see the steps, but I could see his energy all around us. I had taken a lot from him.
We started down, and at the first landing, Dimitri opened a door to a hallway. The lights flickered as we walked past apartment doors. "I need to find a human," Dimitri said.
"I thought all the people were moved by the army."
“Not everyone went. Some people are hiding in their apartments."
"How can you tell?"
A smile twitched on his lips. "I can smell them and hear them."
"Hear them?"
"Their blood, moving through their veins." Dimitri’s fangs descended slightly. He turned to me. "Yours is singing to me.” He made eye contact, and I saw a voracious hunger in his gaze, something that no amount of sex, touch, or feel could heal. He had to suck someone's blood—a life force—to sate it.
Dimitri dropped my hand and kicked a door open. I followed behind him into a living room. A worn couch and two chairs faced a large TV. Small lettering in the upper left-hand corner read "no signal.”
Three doors led off the living room, and Dimitri headed toward one of them. A gunshot rang out, the door splintering. Dimitri stumbled back, knocking into me. I fell to the ground and stayed there, covering my head with my hands as more bullets flew.
One ripped through Dimitri’s shoulder, and a mist of blood filled the air.
Six bullets and the shooting stopped.
I heard the sound of someone reloading, and Dimitri kicked the door in. I sat up to see a man fall back into the room, Dimitri upon him. The man's scream was cut short as Dimitri dove into his neck.
A woman started screaming. I stood up, feeling her fear grate against my skin, and looked into the bedroom. Dimitri was sucking at the man's neck, the sound strange and vaguely erotic. The man groaned beneath him, his arms coming around and embracing the vampire, pulling him closer.
Dimitri is going to kill him.
I turned my attention to the woman—her eyes were wide and she clutched what looked like a doll to her chest. There were no emotions around it, no spark of life. But it wasn’t a doll. It was her child. My heart hurt at the realization. “Dimitri," I said. He did not acknowledge me.
I watched from the doorway, my eyes focusing and unfocusing—trying to see that glowing map I’d seen before. There were cords wrapped around both humans—faint lines of light, thin, loose, almost like old-fashioned telephone wires leading off both figures. The man's ran to the woman and back, a crisscross of ties linking them.
Several ran off Dimitri and disappeared through the wall. Others sprung from him and wrapped around the man, pulsing with each suck.
I put my hand on Dimitri's shoulder and ran my fingers up into his hair. "Enough." I pulled him with my mind, twirling lines of my own around him.
The pleasure he was experiencing leaked through the connection. It sent shivers through me. I stepped closer, pressing my body against his. He slowed down. "Do not drain him.” My breasts rested on his arm, my emotions tugged against his, attempting to slide between him and his victim.
Dimitri raised his head. The wound on the man's neck was small, just two punctures that oozed blood. Dimitri lapped gently with his tongue and they closed.
He stepped away from the man who wobbled for a moment before dropping to his knees. The man’s eyes were glazed, a satisfied smile on his face, like a drunk who's had his fill. His wife whimpered. Her fear was turning Dimitri on. He wanted to feed from her too. I kept my attention on the husband as Dimitri moved toward the wife.
The woman fell silent. The sound of that gentle, erotic slurping started up again. I felt the pleasure they were both experiencing on my back like the sun's beams, a nourishing warmth.
The man's gun was still in his hand. I took it from him. "Where are the extra bullets?" I asked. He did not respond. Looking around, I saw them sitting on a dresser. We were in the couple's bedroom. The child's body was on the ground next to where Dimitri held the woman, his face pressed into her neck.
I put the gun next to the extra bullets. They were going to need it.
I looked down at the child. Skin that was once a deep mahogany now looked pale and gray. It was a girl, must have been about four years old. I didn't see any injuries. What happened?
Its eyes opened, and I jumped back. The child had turned. It reached for me, and I stumbled back, knocking into the man. We both tumbled to the gro
und. The zombie child crawled toward us, reaching out. I kicked it away, and the man snapped out of his haze.
He reached for the child. "Baby," he said, his voice tight with emotion.
"Don't," I said, grabbing for him. But he shrugged me off and reached for his little girl. "No," I said, feeling power pour out of me, the horror of that child biting her father too much for me. Not on top of everything else. I had to stop it.
And I did.
They froze—their fingers centimeters apart. The girl's jaw was open, eyes filmy, a faint green glow behind her irises. Her father’s expression loving and pained.
Dimitri's soft suckling continued. I looked over at the bed. The woman was on her back, Dimitri’s head buried in her neck, those ties that disappeared through the wall pulsing.
Fear zinged through me. What can I do? The spell broke, and they moved. I jumped forward, grabbing the girl but holding her away from me. She turned her small face toward mine and snapped the air. Then Dimitri was there. He took the child from me and, turning his back to the rest of the room, crushed the girl's skull. I recognized the sound.
Grief, limitless and impenetrable, expanded through the room. The father began to weep, his broad shoulders shuddering. Dimitri threw his influence over the man, but it could not quell the grief that thundered out of him. Dimitri thickened the cloak around the father until he calmed, his eyes going hazy again.
The mother lay motionless on the bed. Dimitri put the little girl's body down gently before bending down and licking the woman's wounds, closing them.
I turned and left the room. Crossing through the living room, I opened another door, hoping to find a bathroom, but what I found was a hospital bed. A child's hospital bed. I stared at it, the metal sides glimmering in the low light that filtered around me from the living room. Machines surrounded the bed, their lights off.
"I'm sorry," Dimitri said behind me. I closed the door and turned to him. "Blood lust," he said, as if in explanation. "I... it's been a long time since that happened to me." I didn't say anything. "I was very hungry."
"What will happen to them?" I asked.
He looked back at the open door of the bedroom behind him. "They will be taken to our camps, if they survive long enough to be picked up."
"Their little girl," I said, my throat closing as a lump of tears moved up from my gut.
"She died."
"Not from being bitten though," I said. "She was sick." Dimitri didn't say anything. "The dead turn no matter what?" I asked. He nodded. “Will they rise from the ground?" I asked.
“In time,“ Dimitri said. So calm. So fucking cold. I met his gaze—the gray was gone.
I pushed past him, opening another door that turned out to be the bathroom. I locked myself in and leaned against the wall. Closing my eyes, I took some deep breaths, pulling myself together. How did I stop them? Where did that power come from, and how could I use it? I needed to get to the hospital and talk to Dr. Issa Tor.
Chapter Fifteen
I splashed cold water on my face and pulled my hair back into a tight bun again. My eyes were red-rimmed from the tears, but I still looked good. Somehow better than I'd ever looked before. And I felt strong—powerful—and ready for whatever came my way. My mind was solid, unafraid, coming to grips with the trauma all around me. Somehow I was pulling energy from Dimitri. Maybe Dr. Tor would know what the what was going on with me.
When I came out of the bathroom, Dimitri sat on the couch, his hands resting on his knees. His eyes flicked to me. "Are you okay?" he asked.
I nodded. "I need to go to the hospital.”
He blurred to my side, his hand around my back, gently pressing me to him, his nose in my hair. Dimitri inhaled, smelling me. "Are you ill?" he asked.
“I need to find Dr. Issa Tor." I pulled the note out of the small pocket of my pants. He stepped back as I unfolded it. I read it over again before handing it to him.
Dear Darling,
I hope that you receive this letter. Please try to call me. Phones will probably be out soon but it's worth a try. If you cannot reach me by phone, please try me at the hospital. If the hospital has fallen, please go to 67 Adam's Way. They can help you. Explain that I sent you.
It is vitally important that you reach me, Darling. Try to find me. Use your strength.
I have information about your father, but more importantly, I think that you can save the world.
Dr. Issa Tor
"I know that address," Dimitri said. "67 Adam's Way. It is a warlock society."
"A what?"
He frowned. "You know nothing of witches and warlocks?"
A laugh bubbled up. “You’re kidding, right?” Dimitri did not look like he was joking—his lips were firmed into a tight line. “Are they like the stories?" I asked. Because really, what was I supposed to say?
"Depends on the story." Dimitri unleashed a wicked smile. "Are vampires like the stories?"
"Are you afraid of crosses and garlic?"
He didn't answer the question. "This warlock society is one of the oldest. They are record keepers. There is a vast library at 67 Adam's Way. More information about interdimensional beings, the immortal, and the eternal than any other I know of in this world."
“Interdimensional beings, the immortal, and the eternal, huh?” My head spun trying to take all that in. “So they might know what's going on."
"It is clear 'what is going on'," Dimitri said. "The vampire prophecies are coming true. Everything that was predicted is happening."
"What about this?" I pointed at my healed leg—the skin, smooth and flawless under the ripped, blood-encrusted pants. "Not a scratch on me. How is that possible?"
"I don't know," he said, his voice low. "But it does not matter."
"How can the fact that I got bit by a zombie and survived not be of any consequence? I'm immune or something."
"Or something," Dimitri agreed, his voice low. “There is something different about you. Highly intoxicating. I wonder if this warlock has put a spell of some kind over you." He cocked his head, examining me with those pale blue eyes.
I wanted to make them go gray again.
"If he could create a spell that let humans recover from a zombie bite, why wouldn't he do it to everyone in the world? Why me? I need to go to the hospital and find him," I said, turning toward the door.
Dimitri blurred in front of me, his jaw set. "It is too dangerous."
"Come with me then. Help me."
I saw those strings of light tug at him, they grew taut for a moment before loosening. "What are you looking at?" he asked, his eyes suddenly suspicious.
"Nothing." I brought my gaze to his. "Help me get to the hospital.”
He started toward the door. “I’m to bring you back to the house.”
I grabbed his hand, stopping him. “Please,” I whispered, raising on my tiptoes and kissing his lips softly. “Escort me to the hospital.”
His arm wrapped around my waist and one large hand grabbed my ass. Possessive. His lips met mine, and I pressed against the hard planes of him. “I will take you,” he said, and I wasn’t sure what he meant. “Then we will go to the house.” Oh right, to the hospital. He will take me to the hospital. Right.
He started toward the door but I held his hand, pulling him back for a second. “What will happen to them?" I asked, pointing toward the bedroom.
"Darling." Dimitri cupped my cheek, looking down at me, a hint of gray in the heat of his gaze. "They will die or they will live. Their daughter is gone, and the world as they knew it is over. There is nothing you can do for them."
We'll see about that, I thought as the door closed behind us.
Fires raged to the south and smoke filled the air. I hardly smelled the stench anymore. I was getting used to it.
Flat roofs, all attached, made for a wide and empty highway above the streets. When we reached the end of the block, Dimitri picked me up. I wound my arms around his neck, and he jumped, landing lightly onto the next roof. Wind from
his speed pulled my hair from its bun once again.
When he put me down, the hospital was close. There were snipers on surrounding roofs, firing down into a sea of zombies. The bodies below pressed together, all pushing forward, leaning into makeshift barriers of sandbags that surrounded the hospital.
Tanks and Jeeps faced the zombies. Soldiers in fatigues, their rifles firing into the crowd, stood behind the barricade. It was impossible to see their expressions, but the rapid rat-a-tat of the guns made it clear they were not taking much time to think. This was war, and they were trying to win.
However, from our vantage point above the fray, it was clear that the soldiers, the tanks, and the guns were not going to win. Zombies streamed down every street in the direction of the hospital. They came steadily, walking over the bodies of their fallen brethren, unafraid, unarmed, but persistent, deadly, and on the march.
They fought for no philosophy or religion—it was their nature to destroy, to attack and feed on what they'd once been. How could humanity survive such an enemy?
"Take me closer," I said.
"For what?"
"To find Dr. Tor," I said, annoyed.
"It will be overrun soon; there is no reason to risk your life."
"You promised."
Dimitri laughed. "I did no such thing."
I looked down at the melee below. "When will the vampires save these people? When will they destroy them?” I pointed at the zombies beneath us. "What about the camps—when will that be announced?"
“It is done. There is no TV or communications in Crescent City, so civilians don't know, but the army is taking people to them. We can't stop this, Darling. All we can do is save some.”
"We have to get to Dr. Tor. I think he can help."
