by M. L. Briers
“You’re getting old. Things slip at your age.” Shamus grinned.
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I rounded the corner and there she was; looking like the first and last sunset I was ever going to see. It wasn’t that I didn’t believe I could take Cane- I had no other choice if I wanted to spend every moment of every day with the woman that I’d waited centuries for; it was just the thought of what if; what if I didn’t win?
Her eyes lit up when she saw me. It was a look that had always been there to a certain degree and yet now I could do something about it. Only I couldn’t; not right now. Her gaze flicked down to the knife I held in one hand and the silver stake that I’d had commissioned especially for Cane in the other.
Crap.
“He’s here?” A multitude of curses mixed with panic went through her mind and I wanted to end that spin cycle.
“I was just going out to have a look around.”
“You said the grounds were protected.”
Smart cookie. Too smart for me to bullshit her.
“He’s here.” More panic. More thoughts of me dying; her never seeing me again… At least I knew how she felt about it.
“Don’t go out there…”
To tell her the truth or keep her in the dark? She had a right to know and yet I needed to protect her on every level. This relationship thing was a lot damn harder than I thought it would be.
“He has Craig.”
I watched the fear come into her eyes and it twisted my gut. Craig; maybe the closest thing to a friend that she allowed herself to have.
At one point I thought they were going to become lovers and I wanted to kill him myself, but she’d detached herself from a romantic relationship with the man, and now he was likely to die anyway- just not by my hand.
“Vance…” She didn’t have to say it. I knew. She didn’t want me anywhere near Cane and yet she didn’t want Craig to die either.
“Just stay here with Shamus. Don’t leave. Don’t try to go outside. He’s a big guy and he will sit on you, literally, if he has too.”
Hell, I’d tie her up if I thought that didn’t pose a threat to her should Cane better me and get inside. Who was I kidding? If he got past me and Shamus then she didn’t stand a chance.
She nodded. It didn’t look too convincing.
“Take Shamus with you…” She rushed those words out on the same thought that I’d just had. Real clever cookie.
“That’s not going to happen.”
“It’s not a half bad idea.” Shamus. Nosey bastard; always listening in. “Cane won’t be expecting it.” I didn’t like for a lot of reasons.
“And who is going to stay and protect…?” I nodded towards Marjorie.
“I’d like to say I can take care of myself, but…” I loved her spirit. I loved her honesty and her independence. Hell, there wasn’t a damn thing that I didn’t love about her- maybe her stubborn streak and the not eating breakfast thing…
“As I said. Shamus stays here.”
I wanted to reach out, to kiss her one last time; just in case, but I couldn’t. I wouldn’t be able to walk away right now if I did and that wouldn’t be good for Craig. Cane had a short fuse and he didn’t like to be kept waiting. I turned away…
“No. If you die- and then he dies- I die anyway. Best to surprise him right from the start.” Too smart for her own good. Damn it to hell…
“She’s right, Vance…” Shamus annoyed me so.
“I know she’s right.” I wanted to punch him right in the damn mouth. “I don’t have to like it.” And I didn’t.
I needed to think this through, but time wasn’t on my side- or Craig’s side. I wanted to damn well kill Craig myself.
“We do this together, man?” Shamus was practically drooling at the chance to get his hands on Cane. Did that mean he was a liability? “It’s all good, Vance.” His eyes darted to Marjorie and back to me.
I know what he’s telling me. He won’t do anything to put her in danger… And yet, something is still bugging me about this whole damn thing.
“I’ll cower under the bed if that helps ease your mind.” Marjorie grinned and I melted.
She knew me too well. I rolled my eyes in my head and the dice on all of our lives…
“Fine. We go together.”
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I knew something was off. I’d had that damn feeling in the pit of my stomach, and I always trusted my instincts- until now. Craig hadn’t been the hapless human that I’d seen captured on the camera- he’d been turned by Cane. That was how everything had gone so badly wrong- by the time that I realised what was happening- I’d been blindsided…
Now I needed to rely on Shamus to defend Marjorie and save the day. Shit. That didn’t bode well for any of us.
I had a silver bullet buried deep in my thigh. The pain was almost unbearable, and yet the thought of Cane getting his hands on Marjorie kept me lucid, kept me going.
I’d killed Craig; taken his throat out with one swipe. The newbie had gotten too close. Rookie mistake.
Now I was being dragged by my damn collar towards my own house, caveman style. The shitter was; Cane had read the thoughts I couldn’t keep to myself about Marjorie because of the damn silver eating up my body. He knew about Shamus too…
“Going somewhere, Cane?” That Irish twang had never sounded so damn good.
“Shamus, how’s your mate…?” I flinched inwardly, knowing that was one way to rile the mad Irishman up enough to throw him off guard.
“Time to die, Cane.” Shamus announced. That sounded even better to my ears. I just hoped that the big man could live up to his words.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
MARJORIE.
“What the…?” I said it out loud, not that there was anyone in the damn house to answer me.
There he was. Cane- at least I guessed that was him unless he’d brought a friend. He was dragging something across the manicured lawn. I can quite… shit. It’s a body…
No, it’s moving… not a body. It’s… Vance. Oh my God, it’s Vance. Cane has Vance. That’s… shit…
I was about to move from my spot at the upstairs window when I saw Shamus come out of nowhere and get between Cane and the house. Now I couldn’t really see at all Vance, Shamus was blocking my damn view.
I went to move again when Cane launched Vance through the air and across the grass…
My eyes followed his path and I jumped in my skin when he made a hard landing. I’m sure I heard the thud.
He was just lying there. Why wasn’t he jumping up and joining the fight that had ensued between the other two? I watched as he reached for his thigh, saw the blood that covered his jeans…
He’d been shot or stabbed.
My heart leapt in my chest and my anger rose within me. I knew about silver. I knew it could keep a vampire down while it ate through their body… I knew it was the one thing that stopped the healing process in a vampire… Crap…
I took off on fast feet down the stairs. If Vance was to stand a chance in hell then I needed to help him.
Stupid? Maybe.
Irrational? Definitely.
Suicidal? Probably.
But there comes a point where you just don’t give a damn. A point where you just have to do something, and staring out of the damn window as Vance suffered wasn’t going to mount to a whole hill of beans in the grand scheme of things.
I didn’t stand a chance against a vampire. I knew that. I know that. But I stood even less of a chance a damned if Vance and Shamus were both dead- that’s what I told myself to rationalise my insanity.
I yanked open the front door and headed straight across the grass towards Vance. His head snapped around and his eyes took me in. I saw that rush of anger, a look of panic, and I ignored it completely.
If I lived- if he lived, then he could ball me out all he wanted. Right now; I ran as hard and fast as I could towards him. I didn’t even look at the ot
her two knocking the crap out of each other.
I expected Vance to call out. Warn me off. I guessed he didn’t want to draw any more attention to me than I was drawing to myself.
Still- it didn’t help…
I was gaining on him. I could see that his fingers were poking into the wound in his leg… gross, but I got it. Whatever was in there needed to come out… I could do that…
One minute I was so close I could almost reach out and touch Vance, and the next I was in a vice like grip being yanked backwards against a hard body and bad breath…
My heart wanted out of my chest. My brain wasn’t quite working right either…
Panic rushed me like a damned bull. It slammed into me and told me that I was going to die. My eyes never left Vance…
Not even as I drove the knife backwards through my side and into Cane’s body. I stared hard at him.
I heard the roar like a dam breaking against my ear. I felt his grip tighten until something inside of me popped… cracked, broke.
Pain… pain like I’d never experienced before fired through every vein, every nerve…
We were going down. My eyes were still locked onto Vance’s but the world was twisting onto its side.
A crushing weight slammed me into the ground and there was more pain, tearing at me, ripping my flesh as that weight was wrenched away…
My eyes searched for Vance again but I couldn’t find him. There was a sound like roaring thunder- and then… complete silence except for the rushing in my ears.
I felt strangely calm. I felt strange. Heavy and light all in one go.
I was tired- so damn tired that I had to fight to keep my eyes open. I knew if I closed them now I might never see Vance again…
So this was what dying felt like. Pain, yes, but I wasn’t afraid. I was pissed- I’d never get to do that forever thing with Vance…
There he was. Right in front of me- he looked a little worse for wear, but still looked damn good…
“I’m not going to move you, but you need to drink my blood…” Vance bit out. Wow, it must have been bad. He wasn’t bitching at me…
“That comes later…” He lifted his wrist and those fangs looked razor damn sharp- It looked good on him though.
He bit down into his flesh and I saw the blood… so much blood…
I don’t know if I can do this. Taste his blood. I didn’t mind a bloody steak but this was different…
“I’m not debating this with you…” Vance pressed his wrist against my lips and I hesitated… I could feel his blood on my lips, my skin…
“Drink!” Vance demanded. He pressed the point and I had no choice but to open my mouth…
Damn, that tasted good. It didn’t even taste like blood; it was sweet and tangy all in one.
I swallowed it down… Then more… more… I choked and yanked my head back.
He nodded. Took a long breath and then collapsed down onto his backside beside me.
I could feel it working through my body. It burned a little, but tingled a lot. The pain numbed…
“Now, I’m going to move you, woman…” He reached out and gently brought me towards him. There was pain, but it was more than offset by his touch, by the feeling of being close to him…
“Shamus?” I needed to know.
“Still here, love.” Shamus’s deep tones echoed through my mind.
“Cane…?”
“Dead.” Vance assured me, but I wanted to see for myself. “No you don’t. Shamus was a little over-exuberant… he can get a little excited at times.” Vance’s hands were moving over my body, cataloguing my wounds no doubt. I saw him scowl…
“Nothing he didn’t deserve…” Shamus’s voice came at me again.
“You stabbed yourself!” Vance growled down at me.
Oh yeah, that. I grimaced. I needed to get that damned silver into the guy and my side had kind of got in the way…
“She’ll heal… and as I said before; I like her.” Shamus chuckled.
“Are you insane?” Vance was growling like a damned bear with a sore head.
“Yes.” The look on his face was priceless. I couldn’t have gotten a better reaction if I’d slapped him with a wet fish. He shook his head.
“What were you thinking?” Vance growled at me again.
“I was dead either way, but you two weren’t.”
There it was. The truth. He could take it or leave it, but that was what had gone through my mind in those seconds.
I’m sure if I’d had time to consider what I was doing then I might have been too cowardly to do it… I hoped not, but that was the damned truth.
“Craig…?” I felt guilty that I hadn’t thought of him sooner. I saw Vance flinch and I knew.
“Don’t change the subject.” Vance berated me.
“It’s a dead subject…” I tried sarcasm, black humour, and Shamus laughed, bless him.
Vance’s eyes narrowed on me, but he didn’t smile.
“I told you to stay in the damned house…”
Here we go. I would have rolled my eyes if I didn’t think it would bring another snotty comment from my broody vampire.
“Your vampire?” One side of his mouth quirked upwards.
“My vampire. My man. My love…” I was laying it on thick now.
I wanted to see him smile. I wanted to see those beautiful eyes of his light up with happiness…
“I think someone else might have kissed the Blarney Stone once or twice herself.” Shamus teased. I chuckled. Vance grinned, and there it was- that look- that sexy damn teasing smile that made me as excited as a schoolgirl.
“There is going to be punishment…” Vance teased me, but I knew that he meant it, and I… well, I was looking forward to it.
CHAPTER TWELVE
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We hadn’t really talked about it. Correction; Vance had droned on, berating my choices that day and making me promise, over and over, never to put myself in harm’s way again. I’d sort of promised with my fingers crossed behind my back, over and over to always do as I was told in respects to the vampire world, but I think we both knew that I’d do the same damn thing again if I had too.
Shamus had left a happy man. They’d burned the pieces of Cane’s body and buried the ashes, and they’d added Craig to the pyre.
I’d healed in record time, practically by the time that Vance had carried me into the house and straight upstairs to the bathroom, thanks to the walking medicine cabinet that my lover possessed. Vampires were good for humans, sometimes.
We’d made out like rampant rabbits in the shower, against the wall, on the bedroom floor, and even managed to get on the damn bed… It was glorious. When he’d fed from me; I knew that every one of my prayers had been answered that day and more.
Life- went back to normal-ish. I had no Craig and that saddened me. But life always went on.
By the time I got home from work that night Vance was standing in my bedroom with everything already packed up around him. We took two cases with us and the rest followed.
I’d moved into the mansion. My new home with the man that I loved, adored, would die for, and almost had. Life was good, no- life was awesome.
“What’s this?” I walked into the dining room and found the table laid out like it was a palace dinner for royalty. And there he stood with a big old smirk on his lips.
“It’s time.” He gave a small shrug off his shoulders.
“For…?”
“Me to make love to you. Every inch of you as a human…” I knew what that meant. We’d talked about it. Me- changing. Dying and coming back as a vampire.
In truth it wasn’t a hard decision to make. I’d felt death snapping at my heels and I didn’t fear it as much as I thought I might. As for the making love part, we’d not managed to get around to that yet… too busy screwing each other’s brain out to even consider it.
“And I’m supposed to eat first?” I chuckled. I knew my man and his reasoning.
“It’s going t
o be a very, very, very long night.” He gave me one of those sexier than hell smiles and my heart leapt.
“I’m suddenly not hungry…” I moved towards him and he inclined his head to one side.
“I’m very hungry, and I’m going to feed until my heart is content…”
He was in front of me in a heartbeat. His arms wrapped around my body and I could feel his hard cock pressed against my stomach, twitching like it was banging a drum…
“Then you’ll change me?”
“Maybe…”
“Vance…”
“There’s no rush. I want to make sure that you’re ready…” Vance was teasing me again. He’d held out the carrot a few times now and snatched it away again as I’d reached for it.
I wanted to be a vampire like him. I wanted him to be able to totally lose control when we in bed without fear that he would break me.
“That’s not a good reason to change you…” Vance chuckled.
I used my hands to push at his chest. He let me go and I started to lower myself to my knees, my hands already on the material of the waistband of his jeans, when he scooped me back up.
“Not yet… eat first.” He scowled and I snorted my contempt for him.
“I’ve eaten today. A lot. I’m not hungry for food…” My hands started to move back down his chest and he groaned.
“You’re going to be the death of me, woman.” In a flash I was in his arms.
“Isn’t that the other way around, vampire?”
The world spun away, and I loved and hated that he moved so fast that my head spun. But when I felt the soft mattress beneath my back I wasn’t about to berate him for it.
“I need you.” He mesmerised me with those world. Not zombie mesmerised, just enthralled so damn much that wild horses couldn’t have dragged me from him.
“I love you.” There. I’d said it out loud. Not in my mind. Not in some backhanded way, but from the heart.
“I’ve loved you from the moment I saw you. I will love you forever.” Vance had kissed the Blarney Stone alright. “No, you are my heart, my soul, and my life.”