[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

 Who did you try it with?
 A woman. A vampire. I... she s dead, now.
 I thought vampires couldn t die?
 They can t die. They can be killed.
Two wanted to ask more. Wanted to know who this woman was, how she had
died, why there was so much pain in Theroen s voice. Sleep denied her the chance.
In the darkness, Theroen sighed and closed his eyes. The woman next to him,
breathing soft and warm against his skin, couldn t know how hard it was to answer her
questions. How difficult it was to think of Lisette.
It had been nearly three hundred years since he had been with another vampire
like this. Mortals, surely. He enjoyed making love to the women he took for nourishment
nearly as much as Melissa enjoyed being intimate with her victims. But another vampire?
The feel of her skin, the sinewy strong muscles beneath it, the smell of the blood in her
sweat, in her kiss, in her sex. Two was everything Lisette had been, and more perhaps in
that it was his role to be the teacher. Lisette had been hundreds of years old when
Theroen had met her. He had been the student, then.
His love for Two, and the differences that separated her from Lisette in his mind,
did little to ease the pain, little to dampen the sorrow, little to drown out the screams.
* * *
Theroen was not there when Two awoke. As would be the case probably forever,
she suspected, he arose earlier, was forced into sleep later. Two could hear the shower
running in the attached bathroom, a mundane sound that made her feel comfortable. At
home.
Two sat up, shivering a bit. The warmth of the blood was long gone, and she
longed for it. She understood now what Theroen and Melissa had said. Some of the
concepts behind the vampirism were perhaps distasteful, but the actual experience was
quite the opposite. The blood was all that mattered, and it was beautiful.
Two got out of bed, opened the heavy maple doors of the wardrobe on the far side
of the room, found a nightgown and slippers. She heard a door close outside the room.
Curious, Two opened her own door and looked out. The bedrooms opened on the grand
chamber, overlooking the main foyer of the mansion. A crystal chandelier, easily twenty
feet in diameter, illuminated the area. Below it stood Melissa, pulling her hair back into a
ponytail.
 Hi Melissa! Two called, waving. The dark haired vampire looked up and bared
her teeth.
 Call me by that bitch s name again, and I ll find you some time when your
superhero s not around to protect you. I ll cut your fucking tits off.
Missy, then. Two fought the anger that wanted to rise inside of her. She tried to
think of the other woman who occupied the body, the one whose company she had
enjoyed the previous night.  Sorry. Missy.
Missy stared up at her, an expression of frank disgust on her face. It took Two a
moment to realize that it was her nightgown that Melissa was studying. Pink, with lace
trim, it was hardly the type of outfit Missy probably preferred.
 I m going out to eat and to find something for Tori. Tell Theroen that Abraham
wants him. He ll probably know, but tell him anyway, or I ll get into deep shit.
 Wouldn t that be a shame, Two commented under her breath.
 Keep it up with the attitude, whore. See how far it gets you.
Missy was gone before Two could respond. The shower was no longer running,
and she felt Theroen s presence behind her before he spoke.
 It s best not to approach Melissa, unless you re positive it s her. He pulled on a
pair of black cargo pants and a white t-shirt.
 No kidding. Did you hear? About Abraham?
 Yes.
 What does he want with you?
 I couldn t even attempt to guess. It could be something as simple as moving a
piece of artwork he has decided is no longer to his tastes.
Two thought of the elder vampire, whom she had met only briefly, and shuddered.
During the time she had been near him, his strength had been rolling off of him in waves,
undeniable. Even had this not been the case, she had seen those broad shoulders and
strong arms. Certainly he didn t need Theroen to take care of such things for him.
 Abraham needs no one. He has me do these tasks because it amuses him. It
proves I am still loyal to him. It proves I still serve him.
 What will he do when you leave him?
Theroen looked at her for a moment, as if the question had never occurred to him.
 Survive. Perhaps he ll attempt to make Melissa do his bidding. I doubt he ll have much
success.
 Would she stand up to him? If she can, why don t you?
Theroen smiled, shook his head.  No. Melissa is no more capable of standing up
to Abraham than I am. But she is afraid of him, and has less of a stomach for certain tasks
he might ask of her. Dealing with her would be more frustration for him than it s worth.
Half of her, anyway. The other half is almost wholly Abraham s child.
 Why doesn t he use Missy, then?
 She is his child, but not his favored child. Their relationship is strained at best,
and made all the worse by the fact that she does not own that body. No, Abraham does
not favor her. Theroen grimaced.  That particular honor goes to me.
 Is that why you stay with him? Do you owe him? Or is it fear? Can he hurt you?
Two s questions were not barbed. Theroen heard only honest curiosity in her voice.
 It s integral that you understand something: Abraham is more than capable of
slaughtering every creature that walks these grounds without even exerting himself. I am
powerful. Abraham... is something closer to a god.
 But you re not afraid of him. This was not a question.
 No. Not afraid of him and not afraid of what he might do to me. I am afraid,
Two, of what he may choose to do to you, should I offend him. That is, to the best of my
knowledge, the first thing that has truly frightened me in several hundred years.
Two was quiet a moment, head down, considering. She looked up at Theroen.
 Who is Lisette?
Theroen visibly flinched away from her, eyes widening. He turned his head, but
not before Two read what she needed from his expression.
 Oh, Two said.  Who was Lisette?
 Not now, Two.
 Theroen...
 Please, he turned his eyes back toward her, and the look on his face made Two
want to take it all back. She wished she had never mentioned the name, wished it had not
flashed into her brain in that moment before sleep.
 Okay, Theroen. I... She stopped. Theroen sat on the foot of the bed with his
elbows on his knees, back bent, hands laced behind his head, staring at the floor. His
expression was dark and miserable. Two felt adrenaline flood her system, then depart,
leaving her shaky and scared. She had never expected anything like this. She crawled
across the bed and stopped, unsure of how to proceed. She touched his shoulder.
 I m not going to hurt you, Two. Theroen sounded weary. He did not look up at
her.
 I m sorry. I m sorry. I didn t know! Two felt herself crying.
Theroen turned to her, wiped a tear from her cheek.  Don t.
 I can t help it. I m scared.
Theroen smiled at this, kissed her briefly.  Scared?
 I don t understand everything. You haven t told me everything, and now I hurt
you. I don t even know how I did it. I didn t know I could. I didn t think there was
anything I could ve done...
Theroen stood up, looked out the window, sighed. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]