“She’s fine,” Gali assured him. “Well, not exactly fine, but she will be.”
Tim was barely listening to the conversation. His eyes were on Bethany. He’d give anything to be able to do what she’d just done for Rachel. Jexin and Refeu were vampires like her, but Tim was just a human, far removed from her world, even though he was living in it. Worse, Rachel was now immortal, and he would die someday, leaving her to grieve him for him across the endless span of eternity.
“I want to be a donor.” The words sprang to his lips without thought, but he realized they were true.
Jexin and Refeu were both looking at him, and he hastened to explain. “I want to be a part of Rachel’s world, truly a part. I want her to be able to drink my blood.” He turned to Dasek. “Can you make me a donor?”
All of the vampires in the room were smiling. “It is a good idea; one I had thought to bring up with you myself.” Dasek turned to Gali. “Get your supplies ready to create a new donor, but don’t start the process just yet. Tim, I think you should talk to Rachel first, see what she thinks about this.”
“No. I’ve decided. I want her to be able to feed from me as she recovers. I want to be the one to give her strength.”
He suddenly realized that Bethany may be hurt to be cut out, but on glancing at her, he saw she was smiling widely. “It will be good to have a chirin.”
“Chirin?”
“It’s the word used for donors who are exclusively used by the same vampire. Roughly, it means fellowship.” Bethany gave him a dazzling smile. “Welcome, chirin.”
Heartened, Tim nodded to her before turning to Jexin and Refeu. “What do you think?”
They both smiled at him. “As Issa says, it’s a good idea. Though Assa may not be happy you did it without talking to her,” Jexin warned.
“She’ll forgive me. It’s the right decision.”
“Agreed.” Refeu clapped him on the back. “Let’s get you prepared.”
The preparations didn’t take long. Tim was given several medications to take and had to go through several tests to ensure he was strong enough to take the change, though it wasn’t nearly as risky as the change to a vampire. There was also a mandatory counselling session, where he was given a wealth of information about the lives of donors, as well as an opportunity to change his mind. He didn’t change his mind. He was decided.
All the while, Rachel slept. Gali assured them this was normal, and that she’d need blood in a couple of hours. Tim wanted to be there for her when she did. Jexin and Refeu offered to stay with him through the change, but he waved them off. “Go be with Rachel. If she wakes up early, you should be there. Bethany says she’ll stay with me.”
He lay back on a bed in the healing ward as Bethany spoke softly to him. “It will hurt at first, but not for long. When you wake, you’ll feel the blood moving through your body, and you’ll be more aware of it than you were before. A new donor needs to be fed on to consolidate the change. If Rachel isn’t awake by then, Refeu or Jexin can do it.”
Tim nodded distractedly, trying not to show how nervous he was. “What if the change doesn’t take?”
“That’s very unlikely. I’ve only ever heard of those cases recorded in history. The biggest risk is when it makes the changes to your DNA that allow your blood to replenish itself more quickly than normal. If something goes wrong, it will be then, but as I said, don’t worry too much about it.”
Before they had a chance to speak more, Gali came up to him, holding a steaming mug. “Tim, I have to ask you one more time. Are you sure about this?”
He was still nervous, but Tim was sure. “Yes. I want this.”
“Then drink this down, quickly. It’s hot and it will burn your throat, but it must be drunk at this temperature. I’m afraid I won’t be able to ease your pain, as that changes the chances of rejection from remote to probable.”
“That’s alright. It’s just a few hours. I’ll manage.”
Tim took the cup and downed the elixir in two gulps, gasping and coughing once it was down. It did burn his throat. Bethany was already offering him a glass of cool water, which he guzzled eagerly. It helped to dispel the burning but didn’t erase it entirely.
His body started tingling, from his skin right through to his bones. At first, it was merely strange, but it quickly became painful. Tim gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. He wasn’t going to cry out and risk waking Rachel from the deep sleep she needed.
Bethany squeezed his hand and murmured soft, comforting words to him. Tim felt his body jerking around on the bed. He wanted Rachel and almost called out for her but managed to stop himself just in time.
Suddenly, Bethany was gone and Refeu and Jexin were on either side of him. “Go back to Rachel,” he gasped.
“Assa will sleep for hours more. You need us, brother.” Jexin wiped some of the hair off Tim’s sweaty forehead. He found he didn’t want to protest. Their presence was comforting, and he surely needed the comfort.
“Then hold me down and stop me from screaming. Please.”
Jexin and Refeu looked hesitant, but Tim gestured urgently at them. “I don’t want to wake Rachel. Hurry.”
They did as he asked, one holding down each of his arms and legs. Refeu pressed a hand to his mouth. Tim’s body was no longer in his control, and he was glad for the restraints. Even as he thrashed, Jexin and Refeu spoke to him of inane things, simply to distract him, and he was grateful.
He heard about Jexin’s training to become one of the royal guards, and Refeu’s upbringing as a vampire prince. Sometimes he faded in and out, but whenever he came back to awareness, one of them was speaking to him. Their hands holding him down were constant, and Tim took comfort in that.
Eventually, the pain eased, and he fell into a deep sleep. He didn’t know how long he slept for, but when he opened his eyes, the pain was gone. Instead, there was a deep longing in him. He wanted his neck bitten into. He could feel the blood rushing through his veins, asking to be pulled slowly out of him. Bethany had told him that this urge would fade over time but being fed on would always be pleasant.
“Rachel?” He turned his head to see her lying on a bed next to him. Jexin and Refeu were still with him and they leapt up as he spoke. Jexin ran off and returned a moment later with Gali.
“I’m going to wake Assa up, Tim,” Gali explained. “She will feed on you, then. Jexin, move his bed closer to hers.”
Bethany was still there too and helped shift Tim into a more comfortable position. The blood pounded loudly inside him, demanding to be taken.
Gali put her hands on Rachel, who groaned slightly, her eyes flickering open.
“Here.” Refeu guided her head to Tim’s neck. “Drink, Rachel.”
Rachel did as she was told; it was clear that she wasn’t fully conscious.
When her teeth bit into his neck, Tim felt a flash of pain, but that quickly faded into a buzzing, tugging pleasure. He closed his eyes and tilted his head further toward her. Time seemed to stand still, and it was just him and Rachel. He would give her all his blood if necessary, to sustain her.
Too soon, it ended. Gali gently pulled Rachel back, and Bethany handed him a cloth to wipe the blood off his neck. The wounds had already closed, thanks to vampire venom. Rachel relaxed back into a deep sleep. Feeling slightly dizzy, but in a good way, Tim tottered to his bed. Refeu and Jexin stepped close. “How do you feel?” Jexin wiped away a stray streak of blood that he had missed.
“Amazing. I think I could sleep, though.”
“Sleep.” Bethany pulled the blankets up over him. “You need it.”
“We’ll wake you when Rachel wakes,” Refeu assured him.
Tim didn’t need any more motivation than that. He turned his head so that he could see Rachel. She was the last thing he saw before he closed his eyes.
Chapter Thirteen
Rachel
Her memories were disjointed and confusing. Rachel wasn’t sure what was a dream and what was real. She reached out,
trying to feel her surroundings, since her eyes didn’t want to seem to open.
Hands found both of hers. “It’s alright, Assa. You were hurt, but Gali has healed you.”
Jexin. She remembered him fighting to defend her, urging her to run. She hadn’t abandoned him, and she only hoped her recklessness hadn’t gotten him hurt. Rallying her will, Rachel wrenched her eyes open. “Jexin? Are you hurt?”
Someone on her other side snorted. She turned her head slightly to see Refeu holding her other hand.
“I’m fine, Assa. It’s you who is hurt.” Jexin slowly released her hand. “I’m so sorry, Assa. It’s my fault. I upset you on our date, and then I failed to protect you. I –”
“Jexin, stop. None of this is your fault. You didn’t do anything to upset me, and it’s my own fault that I let my mental freak out cause me to act as I did. I never should have left.” Just these few sentences exhausted her, but thankfully, Jexin didn’t argue.
“I think I need blood. Can someone call Bethany?”
Refeu and Jexin exchanged a look that Rachel was too tired to interpret. At a slight nod from her guard, Refeu turned back to her. “I think Tim would appreciate a feeding more than Bethany.”
What kind of drugs had they given her? Rachel could barely feel the pain in her side, despite the heavy bandaging, so they must be pretty powerful. “I can’t feed from Tim. It would turn him into a vampire.”
“No, it wouldn’t.” She spun around at the sound of Tim’s voice. He was lying in a bed next to hers, though he didn’t appear to be hurt.
“Tim! What are you doing there? You weren’t hurt too, were you?”
“No, I wasn’t hurt. I couldn’t keep up with Jexin and Refeu, so I stayed here. You were sick and needed blood. I wanted to help you, so I became a donor.”
Rachel gaped at him; sure she hadn’t heard correctly. She glanced at Jexin and Refeu, confused. “What does he mean? I don’t understand.”
“I became a donor,” Tim said slowly and clearly. To Rachel’s horror, Jexin and Refeu both nodded their agreement.
“You became a donor? Oh Tim, why would you do that! Bethany could have fed me, there was no need!” Rachel buried her head in her hands. What had she done? Tim’s life as a human was over forever, all because he’d thought he needed to help her when she foolishly got herself hurt.
In an instant, Tim was out of his bed and at her side. “No, Rachel, listen to me. I didn’t do it just because you were hurt; that only decided it for me sooner rather than later. I want to be a part of your life. As a human, I never truly can be. I wanted to be a donor. I know Bethany could have taken care of you; I wasn’t forced into this by circumstances.”
He was trying to comfort her, but Rachel could only shake her head in despair. It was bad enough that her old life had ended, but now Tim had to suffer the same fate. “What have I done…”
“Enough of that,” Tim said firmly. “I don’t regret my choice for an instant. I know you’re not feeling terribly secure about this life right now, but up until yesterday, you were fine. Whatever happened to make you have doubts isn’t permanent. Are you really telling me you’re unhappy with what you have here?”
Rachel opened her mouth to say yes, but the words wouldn’t come, because they weren’t true. She and Tim had been happy before all this started, but she was happy now, too. Even lying in this stupid hospital bed with Tim’s golden eyes staring at her, she realized that she didn’t want to go back.
“No,” she admitted. “I was just freaked out before. Everything is changing so fast…”
Jexin dropped to his knees. “Forgive me, Assa. I never meant to push you into anything you weren’t ready for.”
“It’s not your fault, Jexin. You can’t be expected to read my mind. I’ll be more careful in future.”
“We can go as slowly as you need to,” Refeu promised. “Long years of immortality are enough to teach anyone patience.”
“I guess so.” Rachel bit her lip. “Tim? Could you come over here? If you want to, that is. I don’t want to feed from you if you’re still too weak.”
Tim’s eyes lit up. “I’m alright.” He immediately moved over, eagerly baring his neck to her. “Apparently, the urge to be fed on is stronger in new donors, but it’ll never fade entirely.”
Rachel’s eyes sought Bethany, who was sitting next to Tim’s bed. Bethany seemed to read the worries from her face, because she gave Rachel a reassuring smile. “I am glad Tim has made the change, Assa. Don’t feel bad for feeding from him, though I would be honored if you still used me as well.”
“Of course. I’m sure the two of you could both use some extra time to regain all the blood I take from you.”
Tim was twitching impatiently, and Rachel smiled as she bit into his neck. She gasped as his blood entered her mouth. Tim’s blood was sweeter and more delicious than anything she’d ever tasted. It tasted like dessert after she’d been starving for day. She clutched him closer, sucking eagerly at his neck.
Too soon, Refeu was pulling her away. “Slowly, Rachel. You don’t want to drain him. Bethany, come here, it looks like she could use some more. You lost a lot of blood,” he explained. “You’ll need to drink often over the next few days to replenish it.”
Rachel nodded as she held out her arms for Bethany. Bethany took Tim’s place, and Rachel started feeding from her. Her blood wasn’t as delicious as Tim’s, but it was comforting and familiar, and Rachel took it gladly.
When she was finally done, Bethany went back to her quarters to lie down after getting them to promise to call her if she was needed again. Tim, Refeu and Jexin gathered around her bedside. They were all staring at her as though they expected her to pass out on the spot.
“I’m ok.” She smiled at each of them. “Just tired, but I suppose that’s to be expected.” She peered down at her side. Instead of an open wound, a thin, vivid red line was all that was left of her injury. “Gali did a good job. Why don’t vampires share their healing lore with humans? It could save so many people.”
“It doesn’t work on humans,” Jexin explained. “There have been discussions about modifying our knowledge so that it does work on them, but humans are so distrustful of vampires, they likely wouldn’t accept the help anyway, so the idea has always been shot down.”
“Well, I want to change that. People may say they don’t trust vampire healing, but when someone they love is dying, you can be sure their opinion is going to change.”
“Yes, Assa. Gali will be pleased; she has always supported that idea.”
“I can take word to the Alabsa palace, if you’d like.” Refeu leaned closer to her, idly resting his chin on his hand. “I can tell them it would help to seal the alliance between our two bloodlines if they offered assistance in the project. I’m sure I could get my mother to go for it.”
“Thanks, Refeu.” Rachel looked between her three guys. “You all look terrible. When was the last time you showered or slept?” There was no light coming from outside; it had to be the middle of the night. How long had she been asleep for?
Guilty glances passed between them and she Rachel winced. She didn’t know how long they’d sat up with her while waiting for her to wake, but it must have been at least half a day. “Go on, I’m fine. Take care of yourselves.”
To her surprise, both Jexin and Refeu glanced at Tim. Though Refeu was a prince and Jexin was captain of the guard, they both wordlessly granted him more authority than they held, simply because he was the closest to her.
“I’ll stay here with her. You guys get some rest. We’ll switch out later.”
Rachel rolled her eyes. “I don’t need a minder.”
“I know, but we need to know that someone is with you.”
“Gali won’t be far.”
“I’m staying.” Tim squeezed her hand. “I almost lost you. I’m not letting you out of my sight for long.”
To be honest, she didn’t really want him to leave. “Fine, as long as you promise to rest, too, when Jex
in or Refeu comes back.”
The two vampires got up to leave, but Rachel called them back. “Aren’t you going to give me a kiss goodnight?
Their looks of delight were almost comical. Tim moved aside to let Refeu lean close. He cupped a hand behind her neck and pressed his warm lips to hers. Rachel breathed in his scent, sighing in contentment. “Goodnight,” Refeu whispered. He kissed her once more, lightly and quickly, before moving aside.
Jexin looked hesitant, and Rachel hated the nervousness on his face. “I won’t ruin it again, Jexin, I promise. Come on, give your Assa a kiss.”
His lips were firmer than Refeu’s, but his touch was as light as a butterfly as he gently caressed her cheek. Rachel resisted the urge to open her mouth, keeping the kiss short and sweet. Jexin left the healing ward with a silly grin on his face.
She glanced sideways at Tim. He’d already told her he didn’t mind her dating Jexin and Refeu, but she wondered if seeing it would change his mind. She needn’t have worried. He looked almost as happy as the two of them.
“They’re great guys, Rachel. I’m so glad you’ve chosen them. Now, do I also get a kiss?”
“You get as many as you want.”
He laughed softly. “I’ll just stick with one for now. You still need to rest.”
“Then come and rest with me.” Rachel moved over, making space for him in the bed. Tim didn’t hesitate, climbing in carefully, mindful of her injured side. It would take some time getting used to his gold eyes, the eyes of a donor.
Tim kissed her lightly, his hands skimming down her arms, but doing no more. Rachel was having none of that. She put a hand behind his neck and pulled him in, deepening the kiss. He made a noise in the back of his throat and grabbed her ass, pulling her close against him.
Rachel would never get tired of touching Tim. He was short and stocky, unlike Jexin who was lean and muscled, or Refeu who was tall and dark. She let her hands play over his chest, relishing the familiar feel of his skin under hers. Tim lifted her top over her head, his hands sending little electric tingles through her.
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