Chapter Fifteen
Stephen stared at the silver dagger imbedded in Madeleine's heart and felt his own skip one of its rare beats. Too stunned to move, he watched Thomass fade into a mist and slide toward the exit. Stephen let him go. He would find him later.
Madeleine was gone. His feet were leaden as he stumbled forward.
"Oh my God, Maddie."
He dropped to his knees, aching to touch her but not knowing how. She was gone. His fingers traced the back of her hand. Her skin was warm but rapidly cooling. The stark silver of the knife glowed against the blood that stained her shirt. He couldn't stand it. He jerked the knife free and tossed it on the ground beside her body.
He had no hope of her return as Thomass had predicted. The silver in the knife had killed the vampire just as the blade had killed the human.
Tears burned in his eyes. He hadn't cried since he'd been converted.
His heart beat with a hollow thud, and the emptiness of his soul flooded in with each pulse.
"Stephen?" Gayle's voice broke the quiet. "I'm sorry."
He nodded but didn't turn around. He wasn't ready to see the sympathy. How pathetic, he mocked himself. A vampire mourning the loss of a human. He pressed his lips together and forced himself to stand.
What had he told Madeleine? He was a good vampire. He would do what needed to be done. Stephen crushed all emotion.
"We, uh, need to get rid of the body. This is what Thomass wanted, bad press. Two women killed in the same manner. Particularly these two. Cousins. The police will—" He went blank for a moment. He clenched his fists and continued. "Uh, the police will latch on to it. We need to get rid of it."
"I'll do it," Gayle offered.
Stephen shook his head. He would do it. It was the right thing for the Community. He would do what needed to be done.
"No," another voice said. Stephen lifted his head and saw Matthias. He hadn't realized Matthias was there, and he expected to see some light of triumph in his eyes, but there was nothing. "You're in no state to do it. You'll muck it up."
Stephen felt his lips curl back into an unconscious snarl but didn't act upon it. Matthias was right.
"Let Gayle take care of it."
Stephen nodded and started to walk away. He looked down one last time at Madeleine's silent body. She was gone. His legs were weighted with reluctance and an exhaustion that went beyond the physical. He didn't want to leave her, but he had to. Had to move on.
"Go with him." He heard Matthias' command, and seconds later Nicholas appeared at his side.
Stephen's first reaction was to send him away. He didn't want anyone with him—he didn't need their sympathy. Nicholas was silent, offering nothing but his quiet presence, and for once, Stephen was glad for the company. After two hundred years alone, Madeleine had entered his life and now it seemed empty without her. It didn't make sense. He'd only known her for two weeks, but there would be a hole in his life.
She was gone.
And the memory would linger. Forever.
***
Gayle watched Stephen and Nick walk away. He waited until they were out of hearing distance before turning to Matthias.
"Any brilliant ideas about where I should stash the body?" Gayle folded his arms on his chest and cocked one hip out to the side. "Most of my guests walk away from the encounter. I don't usually do this."
"I'll take care of it. You go with Stephen."
Warning bells went off in Gayle's head. "Matthias…what are you up to?"
"Nothing." The answer was too innocent to be believed, but before Gayle could respond, Matthias commanded, "Go. I'll handle the disposal."
Gayle started toward the door. He wanted to check on Stephen, but that didn't mean he was going to trust Matthias.
It would be interesting to see if Nick could keep up with the ancient vampire.
***
Madeleine felt the sun lift from her chest and the night close on the earth. She was awake—she burst from the darkness and bolted upright. Her body felt strange, foreign, powerful. She stared into the dark room. She knew it was dark even though she could see each line clearly.
"Good evening, Madeleine." Matthias' mocking voice greeted her. She shivered. The voice inside her head. In person.
"Where the hell am I?"
"My home."
"What am I doing…" She licked her lips, and her tongue brushed across the sharp spikes of her teeth. "Oh my God. I have fangs!"
Matthias smiled, showing his own extended canines. "Welcome to our world, Madeleine."
"Where's Stephen?" She needed him. A sudden longing, a desperate ache filled her chest. She would be safe with him. She suddenly felt very vulnerable next to this powerful creature.
"Looking to be rescued?"
His answer didn't tell her much. Hell, it didn't tell her anything. An instinctive growl welled up in her throat but stopped when her lips moved over the long spikes of her canines.
"What happened?" she asked.
"You were turned into a vampire."
"I remember that part. What happened last night?" She pulled her red-stained blouse away from her body. It was blood. Her blood. This was the second time in three days she'd woken up with her own blood on her shirt. She could remember the dagger fight between Stephen and Thomass but little beyond that. "I assume it was last night."
"Yes. There was a fight. You were killed."
Madeleine nodded. Nick had told her about this. To become a full vampire she either had to kill someone or die herself.
"Is Stephen okay?"
"I've never cared for him much personally, but—" He held up one hand to stop her next protest. "As far as I—" A deep pounding in the distance stopped his words. "Ahh, I expect that's him now." Seconds later there was a crash of wood and Stephen's shout.
"Matthias!"
"Downstairs," Matthias replied in a quiet voice that seemed to echo through the house. The door burst open, and Stephen stormed in.
Madeleine stared in amazement. She'd thought she'd seen Stephen upset on every level, but this was one step beyond everything she'd seen before. Not even during the fight with Thomass had rage flowed through Stephen's body as it did now. He was focused and furious. And he didn't look beyond Matthias, didn't even see her.
"Gayle just told me you took Madeleine's body. What the hell are you doing?"
Matthias smirked. "My good deed for the century." He tilted his head toward Madeleine.
Now Stephen saw her.
"Maddie? Oh my God, Maddie." He started to move forward and stopped. "How? The silver should have killed her."
"The dagger wasn't left in her chest long enough."
"It should have killed any vampire," Stephen still protested.
"Any vampire but you." Matthias curled his fingers and inspected the line of long fingernails, as if the conversation were only of mild interest to him. "You're immune to silver. If you'd been thinking correctly last night instead of mourning, you would have realized there was a good possibility that you transferred that to Madeleine when she was converted. There was at least some possibility. It appears I was right. I like being right. She's going to torment you for decades."
Madeleine waited, watching. She was a vampire, and she was Stephen's responsibility. She knew enough to know he would have to take care of her until she was strong enough to be on her own. On her own. She pressed her lips together. She didn't want to be on her own. She wanted to be with Stephen. But he'd never really planned on this. He'd even been willing to die to free her.
Matthias faded from her awareness as Stephen stared at her. Desire like she'd never felt before flooded her system. She felt her teeth extend long. And she was hungry. Hungry for more than food. She wanted Stephen. And something else.
A fire matching her own flared in the blue depths of his gaze.
"I'll leave you two alone."
Madeleine barely noticed the door closing behind Matthias. She could only see Stephen. Her mind raced to counteract the dictates of her body
. Throwing herself on him and dragging him to the floor kept coming to mind as her best option.
She tried to stop herself. You're a vampire! You have other issues besides the fact that Stephen would look really good without his clothes right now.
"Stephen, I don't know what's wrong with me—"
"Your senses are heightened. You feel everything more strongly."
She moaned as another wave of lust hit her. Her body tingled, tensing and releasing, preparing for Stephen's touch. The picture of their bodies entwined together was so clear in her mind.
Maddie, his voice whispered in her head, you're transmitting again.
She nodded and licked her lips.
Stephen groaned, and she heard it through her whole body, the sweet vibrations fluttering through her nerve endings.
"Maddie."
The plea, the need she heard in his voice was too much to resist. She flew at him and landed in his welcoming arms. Stephen continued to whisper as he covered her mouth with his. The first stroke of his tongue into her mouth sent orgasmic shudders down her spine. She could only cling to him, allowing the overwhelming sensations to move through her.
Stephen. She released the cry inside her mind, too enraptured to consider pulling her lips from his.
It's all right, love. It's new. The intensity will lessen.
He didn't add "a bit," but she knew it was there. Her new senses were strong, and with them came strong pleasures. Her mind turned hazy as Stephen slid his hands down her back, cupping her bottom and pressing her against his erection. Her legs spread to allow him contact with that sweet spot between her thighs. He made one slight thrust of his hips. Madeleine squeaked and threw herself backward.
Stephen released her. She bent over, clutching her stomach, though it wasn't precisely her stomach that was throbbing.
"Oh my," she whispered when her chest had relaxed enough for her to speak. "I almost… with just that."
Stephen smiled, pure seduction in his eyes. He walked slowly toward her. She wanted to back away, not from fear of Stephen, but fear of too much pleasure. She turned away. Sensations, feelings, emotions, in an intensity she'd never had to deal with. She wanted him. She could smell him, remember the taste of him on her tongue.
"Yes. With just a touch." His voice dropped to a husky whisper. "Imagine what it will feel like when I'm inside you." He stepped up behind her. Close but not quite touching her. She could feel his presence all around her, filling her. "Deep inside you."
She groaned and dropped her head back, the image forming easily in her mind and sparking wild fires of need in the center of her being. Stephen wrapped his arms around her, holding her, skimming his hands across her body. The tension that had started with the look in his eyes continued to build.
He gripped the edges of her stained blouse and tugged, efficiently popping off the buttons. She barely noticed, so smooth was his touch. He spread his legs and pulled her back against his chest, fitting her body to his. The hard line of his erection pressed into her backside. She arched her back, pressing up into his large hands as they cupped her breasts.
"Stephen!" He answered her cry by spinning her around and tearing at first her clothes and then his. In seconds they were naked. She couldn't think, couldn't speak, could only feel, the need vibrating through her. Stephen eased her down to the bed and followed her. There was no prelude, no long, teasing kisses. He covered her mouth, plunging his tongue inside as he drove his hardness into her depths. Her body shuddered to a fast, hard release, and her cry resonated through the room.
Stephen slowed his thrusts, and they moved together.
The physical intensity beyond anything she could have imagined as a human, each nerve ending seemed to sparkle and glow, every sensation magnified. But beyond that, beyond the powerful tremors through her body, was the light in Stephen's eyes. He stared down at her as he moved, as he loved her body—and he loved her mind.
They were connected by body and blood, part of each other. His voice in her head whispered while his body moved within hers. She relaxed and let his soft, sweet words flow through her.
The mind-melting combination of his words and his flesh pushed her to the edge. They moved together, faster now, still it wasn't enough.
"Stephen!" she cried, needing him, needing something.
Yes, love.
He placed his mouth against the base of her neck. The slice of his incisors and the slow suction of his mouth sent her spiraling out of control. Pleasure crashed through her, the newly excited sensations shimmering across every inch of her skin. She felt Stephen tense in her arms and thrilled to his harsh groan. His strength faded, and he sank down on top of her.
Madeleine wrapped her arms and legs around him and held on, holding him inside her body. After a moment, she felt him relax and bury his nose into her neck.
They lay there, listening to the silence of the room.
Her body was sated and a lingering tiredness filled her limbs, but she felt no desire for sleep. As the passion eased, worry filled the open space in her mind. The Council, the other vampires—they were still after Stephen. And what if now that she was a vampire, Stephen didn't want her? Oh, she knew he wanted her, but what if he only wanted sex? It was great sex but she wanted more. She needed more.
He had to know she was in love with him. No woman would go through what she'd been through without true love inspiring it. But Stephen had never mentioned love, had never shown any emotion besides passion.
A vulnerability she'd never felt when she was human came over her. If Stephen didn't want her, she would be alone. Forever.
"Madeleine, we must—"
A fist pounding on the door broke off Stephen's words.
"Are you decent? We're coming in." As the door was opening, Stephen threw a sheet toward Madeleine and grabbed his own trousers. They were barely covered when Gayle and Nicholas walked in. The cheeky grin Gayle sported made Madeleine smile. Nicholas looked worried, but she'd grown used to that look on his face.
Two more bodies filed in behind them, filling the cramped vault. Madeleine knew Matthias but not the other man. He was short and pudgy, completely atypical of what Madeleine expected a vampire to look like. She thought for a moment that he was human. But then she realized she heard only one true heartbeat—Nick's. The slow steady pulse of his heart pulled her attention, inspiring a craving deep within her. She licked her lips and stared at the long line of Nick's throat. She pressed herself up on her knees, eager to be closer to—
"Later, my sweet." Stephen's whisper into her ear pulled her back.
Gayle winked. Nick looked around the room, oblivious to the potential threat. Madeleine shoved aside this new urge and turned to the pudgy little man.
He had to be from the Council. Well, he wasn't taking Stephen. She'd been through enough to keep him alive—they weren't taking him now.
"You just back off there, mister." She held the sheet across her chest and scooted into position so she was in front of Stephen. "He didn't do anything wrong, and you're not taking him."
"Yes, so I understand." The smooth agreement startled Madeleine for a moment. He looked beyond Madeleine to Stephen. "Matthias and Gayle have given me a detailed accounting of what occurred last night. I'll pass along the facts to the Council. I'm sure they'll eventually want to hear from you. I'll give you a few days to get your stories straight," he said, flashing a mocking smile at Gayle and Matthias.
Gayle glared at Matthias. Matthias ignored the younger vampire.
"Thank you, Charles," Stephen replied.
"She's got quite a lot of spirit, I understand." He lifted his chin toward Madeleine.
"Yes, she does."
"She's also not deaf," Madeleine said, tension making her cranky. Stephen wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against his side. The warmth of his chest soothed some of the stress from her shoulders.
"No. Welcome, young one. Stephen's a good teacher. He'll teach you how to be a proper vampire." He nodded to the others i
n the room and walked out.
"So, what exactly did you tell him?" Stephen asked when Charles was gone.
"That Thomass was working with a human to kill vampires."
"Scott was helping him, wasn't he?" Madeleine interjected. "What happened to him?"
Gayle shrugged. "He seems to have disappeared."
Guilt spiked Madeleine's chest.
"We'll look for him, Maddie," Stephen said, answering her unspoken concern. "While we're looking for Thomass." Stephen looked up. "You didn't say anything about the silver?"
Matthias shook his head. "We decided if they knew Thomass could touch silver, they might continue to investigate."
And that might lead back to Stephen. Madeleine rubbed her fingers over the back of Stephen's hand, wanting him to know she was there with him.
"Well, we're off to the club. I have lots of gossip tonight." Gayle rubbed his palms together gleefully. "And some rumors to spread." He flipped his long hair over his shoulder and gave a dramatic sigh. "We can't have too much truth out there. What fun would that be?"
"And it's too dangerous," Matthias added.
Gayle rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Mister Practical. Oh, we should warn Stephen." He reverted back to the serious, commanding man who'd stood in Stephen's house and demanded answers. "It looks like Dylan's dead. He disappeared right after you and he had that 'discussion' at my club."
"Our guess is, he was going to be the next to be found," Matthias said. "We cleared it with the Council. You couldn't have done it."
"I made up some great alibis for both of you, but Matthias wouldn't back me up," Gayle said.
Matthias glared at Gayle. "Your lies are too elaborate."
"But more fun."
They turned and left, sniping at each other as they walked out. Nick followed but stayed just out of reach of both the vampires.
"Gayle seemed so normal for that short period of time," Madeleine mused.
"I think Gayle has depths we'll never understand."
The door swung shut and they were alone again.
Silence dominated the room—silence filled with unasked questions.
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