Ancient Blood: Infernal

by Kate Hill

  As he parked his car and approached the front door, he hoped Lisa had accompanied his parents. She’d recently had a son whom she’d named Buck Matthew, after her father and brother. Lisa hadn’t married her son’s father, and the man—if one could call him such—had little to do with her or the baby. Still, she often said she preferred it that way. Her ex-boyfriend had turned out to be a first-class idiot.

  Matthew couldn’t imagine a man avoiding his own child. Perhaps because the chances of him and Dulcie having a baby were so slim, he felt a touch of envy toward men with children. Vampires’ cycles occurred very seldom, and the chances of conception were slight. He and his brother had been flukes. Immaculates were born on occasion, as Dulcie’s entire family proved, but twins were next to impossible.

  “Matthew!” Dulcie greeted him in the hallway. He accepted her embrace, inhaling the scent of his parents, Lisa, and his nephew. Good. “I’m so glad you’re home early. Your family’s staying for dinner.”

  Hand in hand, they walked to the living room. He greeted his parents, noting they both looked well, but his father’s hair had a bit more gray at the temples, and his mother’s glasses appeared slightly thicker. Like all mortals, they were aging.

  The thought that his parents, brothers and sisters, even his nieces and nephews, would all grow old and die disturbed him. As a doctor, he had learned quickly to accept death, but as a vampire, part of him still rebelled against it.

  “We wanted to see you two before you left for New York,” said Matthew’s mother, Julie.

  “It’s about time you took a vacation,” his father, Buck, scolded, though his eyes shone with pride for his oldest son. “I can’t believe you never took your wife on a honeymoon. Didn’t I teach you anything?”

  “Yes,” Matthew smirked, “how to unblock toilets.”

  “Don’t laugh.” Buck wagged his finger in Matthew’s direction. “You would have made a decent plumber, but no, you wanted medical school.”

  “Honestly, Dad!” Lisa laughed, passing the sleeping baby in her arms to Matthew.

  His nephew was a soft, warm weight. He smiled at the scrunched little face as he told his father, “I’ve taken care of every pipe in this house.”

  “That’s why it smells like a sewer in here,” Buck teased.

  “Speaking of sewers, dinner is just about ready,” Dulcie told them. “This is my first vegetable lasagna, so I hope it tastes good.” She glanced over Matthew’s arm at the baby. “He’s so cute.”

  “Why don’t you hold him, Dulcie?” Lisa said. “I think you’ve picked him up once since he was born.”

  “Oh, no.” Dulcie backed away, nervousness in her wide-set, slanted eyes.

  Matthew laughed. “You look like he’s an explosive instead of a baby.”

  “You should get used to it,” Julie said to her. “What if you and Matthew decide to start a family?”

  Dulcie and Matthew exchanged an uncomfortable look before she smiled at Julie and walked to the kitchen. “Everybody better come on before the lasagna gets cold.”

  “I’ll put him in the carrier, Matthew, so you can eat,” Lisa said.

  “I’ll hold him a while longer.” Matthew winked at her. “When he starts screaming, you can have him back.”

  “You know, I think Ma’s right.” Lisa folded her arms across her chest. “You should probably get used to the crying and dirty diapers, just in case.”

  I wish, Matthew thought as he followed the others to the kitchen, but he said, “Used to it? Who gives you a night off once a week by watching the kid?”

  “I know.” Lisa glanced at her brother. “You’re the best. Why do you think I named him after you?”

  “But his first name is Buck.” Buck pointed his fork in Matthew’s direction. “Don’t anybody forget that.”

  “Don’t think you’ll let us, Dad,” Matthew said.

  The family sat around the kitchen table as Dulcie served the food. As she placed a dish of the aromatic lasagna in front of Matthew, she kissed the top of his head. He listened to his parents engage in a brief spat while Lisa discussed her photography job with Dulcie. Even as his nephew’s soft cooing finally exploded into full-blown wailing, Matthew thought how glad he was he’d left the lab early. Never had he imagined being so happy with his life. His family might not know what he was, but he loved them, and he had Dulcie, who knew everything about him. She meant the world to him. He remembered how he’d felt years before meeting her, the times when he wished he was dead because he felt so far removed from everyone else. His mother had once remarked on the changes Dulcie inspired in him, how much happier he seemed since meeting her. At times he wished he could tell them the truth and introduce them to his vampire family, but such a meeting was impossible.

  Of course, his mortal family knew about Adam. He could think of no way to explain his twin other than to say Adam had searched for him. Still, it would be liberating to finally be honest with Julie and Buck. Maybe someday…

  Chapter Five

  Later that evening, the front door had no sooner closed behind Matthew’s family than he swept Dulcie into his arms and carried her up the stairs.

  “Umm,” she smiled, one hand looped around his neck, the other curling in his hair. “I guess you’re in the mood for a little relaxation.”

  “I’m in the mood to fuck you until you can’t walk, my love.”

  “Such lofty ambitions you have.”

  “Think I can’t do it?”

  She giggled, rubbing her nose against his. “I’m looking forward to having you try.”

  In their room, he placed her on the bed and sat on the edge of it, stroking her face. She took his hand and nipped it, just enough to draw a bit of blood. His eyes turned from dark blue to lavender as his passion ignited. Still, his movements were slow and tender as he unbuttoned her blouse and slipped it off. His hand swept her bare belly before he unsnapped her bra and slid the straps down her shoulders. She raised herself slightly to accommodate him as he removed her bra and placed it on the night table.

  The sight of her full, firm breasts tipped with dark pink nipples already hard and waiting for his lips was enough to inspire a full erection.

  Using the tips of his fingers, he swept the creamy globes, avoiding her nipples until she squirmed and thrust them against his palms. Extending one claw, he brushed one of her nipples, his touch nothing more than a tickle. He licked his lips and bent, swirling his tongue around the other nipple.

  She felt so warm and smooth. The glow of her beautiful eyes told him she was as ready for loving as he. He hadn’t been joking about fucking her until she couldn’t walk.

  Standing, he shed his clothes quickly and returned to her, covering her body with his.

  “Oh, Matthew, I love you so much.” She kissed him, sinking her teeth into his lower lip. Gazing into his eyes, she ran her fingertips over his face, stroking his brow, cheekbone, and the length of his nose. She touched his lashes, entranced by his gleaming lavender eyes.

  His thick cock pressed against her thigh. He shifted his hips, loving the sensation of his cock head against her smooth flesh. Once he was buried deep inside her, it would feel even better, but there was time for that. All night.

  Sliding off her, he rolled her onto her stomach and swept tendrils of hair away from the back of her neck. Beginning at her nape, he kissed her from spine to tailbone. He ran his lips over her firm, soft-skinned bottom. Unable to resist, he sank his fangs into one of the plump cheeks.

  She gasped, wiggling a bit, and groaned with a combination of pleasure-pain.

  While he continued licking, kissing and nipping her posterior, Matthew slid two fingers into her moist pussy. Dulcie mewled, murmuring breathless words of encouragement.

  The stroking fingers slipped from her warm slit and pushed underneath her, stroking her clit.

  A shiver ripped Dulcie from head to toe. Matthew rose to his knees, bracing a hand on either side of her and sliding his cock head over her back and buttocks. Taking her e
arlobe between his teeth, he eased himself down her body, his steely rod slipping between her bottom cheeks.

  “Are you ready?” he growled in her ear. “Ready to be fucked, kissed and loved?”

  “Oh, yes, my love! Oh please!”

  “Please.” He purred, raking his claws down her arm and licking her neck. “You beg so beautifully. Say it again.”

  “Please! Please!” She shivered as he rolled her onto her back and pinned her wrists on either side of her head. Her breasts scraped against his hair-roughened chest and her legs spread wide for him. “Oh, please, Matthew! I want you so badly!”

  With a single fierce thrust into her passion-drenched pussy, he covered her mouth with his. His hips rammed her as their tongues battled, stroking, thrusting, demanding fulfillment. Their fangs drew blood from their lips, nourishing one another as their bodies pounded together in a savage rhythm. Dulcie’s legs locked tightly around his waist. Her claws extended as her fingers twisted, her hands still pinned by her head.

  They growled and groaned, their mouths fused and bodies moving as one. Dulcie exploded in orgasm, gasping into his mouth since he refused to let her tear her lips from his.

  His constant thrusting drew out her orgasm to the last exquisite shudder, but he didn’t stop there. His unceasing rhythm pushed her toward another climax, his cock, slick with her juices, rubbed her where she was most hot and needy.

  As the second orgasm passed to a third, Dulcie’s eyes squeezed shut, lost in a black and red haze of sensuality. Nothing existed but Matthew, his breath in her ear, his blood on her lips, and his big, sleek body taking all she had to offer. Her very essence was his. She knew it and loved it. Nothing matched being possessed by this handsome Immaculate who gave her his heart.

  Outside the moon rose higher, inside Matthew slipped his thick, aching cock from Dulcie only to roll her onto her stomach and take her from behind. When he grew tired of that, he turned her again, thrusting fast and hard, feeling her claws sink into his back. Every muscle in his body strained for release. He marveled at his own restraint. Panting beneath him, Dulcie opened her eyes the slightest bit, her body trembling in another orgasm. Her hot pussy clamped around his rod, swollen to the point of exploding. The taste of her blood on his tongue aroused him, yet he kept his lust in check.

  “Please,” she murmured, her head arching into the pillow. She gazed at him, looping her arms around his neck. Her hips lifted to meet his. The tips of her fangs, tinged red with blood, glistened against her full lips. Perspiration misted her face. A droplet of sweat dripped from Matthew’s forehead onto her cheek. Their moisture-slicked bodies slid together in a sensual dance.

  His mouth covered hers, their fangs clicking and biting as they exploded in a mutual orgasm that left her trembling and semiconscious beneath him, aware only of the hiss of his breath in her ear and the slamming of his heart against her breasts.

  * * * * *

  Matthew lay on his back, staring out the window at the moonlight. Dulcie dozed beside him, her head close to his shoulder, one of her smooth legs draped over his. She uttered a soft sound of contentment and turned her back, revealing the red tracks of his claws across her smooth skin. His chest and back were crisscrossed with her scratches. He grew hard again as he recalled the fun they’d had leaving such marks.

  He doubted Dulcie would sleep for long. Then they could continue where they’d left off. The sweet taste of her blood still lingered on his lips. His entire body tingled with her essence. Until he’d met her, he had no idea how physically deprived he’d been, not just for sex but for blood as well. Since meeting Dulcie and accepting the nourishment his Immaculate body required, his strength had more than doubled. He’d had no idea the extent of his own power, and at times it disturbed him. The only vampire he’d met with his physical power was his brother. Adam was in a strength class of his own. He’d once killed a tiger with his bare hands, a next-to-impossible feat, even for an Immaculate vampire. Adam’s entire life had been spent developing his physique since, according to prophecy, he was the one chosen to destroy the First Father. Though Adam had done the actual killing, Matthew had been very much a part of it, using magic—something he’d never believed in.

  He’d sought explanations for the power he’d summoned, combing every scientific resource, but had gotten nowhere. For several moments eight years ago, the world had turned upside down. Matthew had been the cause. Members of the vampire community suggested Matthew’s spell had created some sort of mass hypnosis.

  For months, he’d not so much as mentioned an incantation or a spell, but his curious mind had eventually gotten the better of him. On occasion, he allowed himself to delve into the occult, first using spells—harmless ones—created by other magic users, then he’d started testing some of his own invention.

  Each time, he’d tell himself never again. It was foolishness. A logical, educated man should not play with something as archaic as magic. He was not some teenage twit seeking the illusion of power, but a researcher at the top of his field.

  Matthew tugged on black cotton pants and absently tied the dangling drawstring. Barefoot and shirtless, he walked out of the bedroom and into his study. From the bottom drawer in his desk, he removed a plain wooden box about the size of a shoebox and carried it to the backyard.

  From inside the box, he chose a light blue pillar candle and placed it on the wrought iron chair. He knelt before it and closed his eyes, clearing his mind. Such a task wasn’t simple for him. His thoughts constantly raced about work or Dulcie. Unlike most people, if he wasn’t preoccupied, he wasn’t relaxed. Practicing magic forced him to alter his ways, change his thought process. He told himself magic only interested him because it presented a challenge, and he loved challenges.

  “Warmth of wax. Cinder of time,” he said. “Hephaestus! Essence of power most sublime. Vulcan! Power I have no right to claim. Loki! Grant the timeless warmth of a single flame.”

  Slowly, he opened his eyes, and his heartbeat quickened at the sight of the glowing flame above the blue wax.

  “I knew you wouldn’t be able to resist.”

  Matthew’s head snapped over his shoulder. He stared at Dulcie, who stood naked, her arms folded beneath her full, pink-tipped breasts.

  She smiled and stepped closer, dropping onto the grass beside him. “So how long have you been practicing this?”

  He shrugged. “Not long.”

  She lifted an eyebrow.

  “All right. About a year and a half.” He sighed. “There has to be some logical explanation, some tangible reason, for vampires’ mind control. Also, why can I do this—” he gestured toward the flame, “—but have almost no telepathic powers?”

  “Oh, Matthew.” She looped her arms around his neck. “All this is because you’ve been told you’re telepathically deficient. You can’t stand that word, can you? Why can’t you just accept that maybe you can’t read minds? You’ve got an IQ that’s higher than most people can count, you’re physically powerful, and you can work magic. What more do you want?”

  He stood and paced the yard. “I want to know why magic works. Why so many vampires, and some mortals, are psychic.” He stopped and sighed, squeezing his temples with his thumb and forefinger. “I want to know if I should leave the hospital and take Jay’s damn offer.”

  Dulcie laughed.

  “What the hell is so funny?”

  “Matthew.” She leapt to her feet and hugged him. “Aren’t there enough real problems in life? Why do you insist on creating more?”

  “I’m not creating them. They find me.”

  She cast him a skeptical look, and he smiled, finally seeing the humor of the situation. “I’m obsessing, aren’t I?”

  “You?” she teased. “Never.”

  As Matthew smothered the flame, Dulcie howled softly. He glanced at her, a thrill coursing through him. Standing naked, her long, dark hair draping her shoulders and back like a silky cloak, she tilted her beautiful face upward as she wailed to the moon. Matth
ew knew he’d never seen a more sensual creature. She smiled at him, her fangs glistening in the dimness. Standing behind her, he wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her neck before his own gaze fixed on the moon and he howled, long and deep. Dulcie’s voice, high and fierce, joined his, and together they sang their wild moon song.

  * * * * *

  Early the following afternoon, Matthew and Dulcie arrived at his twin’s house in New York. Mara greeted them in the driveway.

  “I’m so glad to see you guys!” Mara embraced them both before she helped them carry their luggage inside. “What’s going on in Boston? How are Charlie, Jocelyn and the kids?”

  “Everyone’s great,” Dulcie told her. “I’m so excited to be here. There’s so much to see, and I want to sketch everything.”

  “Oh, sure,” Matthew said in mock anger. “You tell me to leave my career behind, but you plan on working the whole time we’re here.”

  “Quiet, or I’ll put the nude I painted of you in my next exhibit.”

  Matthew narrowed his eyes at her. “And you’d do it, too.”

  “Absolutely, handsome.” Dulcie stood on tiptoe and pressed a quick kiss to his lips.

  “How’s Adam?” Matthew asked as they stepped into the house and piled the bags in the hallway.

  Mara cast him a concerned look. “He’s managing.”

  “I know. I haven’t many fond memories of residency.”

  Mara shook her head. “You’re not going to believe what’s going on.”

  “Well, don’t leave us hanging!” Dulcie said.

  “This city suddenly seems to be crawling with immortal trash.”

  “From what I hear, New York’s crawling with all sorts of trash,” Matthew told her.

  “It’s not so bad.” Mara shrugged. “Adam’s lived here all his life, but he says he’s never seen it so bad. I know he’s always kept it fairly clean of dangerous hybrids, but there’s been like an epidemic. There’s trouble almost every day at the hospital. Hybrids are all over the place, sneaking in patients’ rooms at night, even stealing blood in broad daylight. The humans have no idea what’s going on, but Adam’s losing his mind.”