Ancient Blood: Infernal

by Kate Hill

  “Oh, Matthew,” she whispered, burying her face in his shoulder. “I’ve been so worried about you.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said, his body warm against hers. Still clinging to each other, they sat on the edge of the nearest bed. “I’m so sorry.”

  Dulcie shook her head. “You did what you had to. I know that.”

  Glancing at him, she brushed tears from her face. He tugged a tissue from the box on the nightstand, dried her eyes and kissed her.

  “Your hair.” She ran her fingers through the silvery wisps mingling with the dark curls at his temples.

  “Does it bother you?”

  “No. Of course not. It’s rather sexy.”

  “I love you.”

  “I love you too.” She stroked his cheek with the back of her hand. “You need blood.”

  Behind them, Brett cleared his throat. He stood with Mercedes and Sage, who had stepped indoors.

  “Dulcie, this is Sage,” Matthew said.

  Sage offered Dulcie his hand. She shook it, narrowing her eyes at Matthew. “The Original?”

  Matthew nodded.

  “I’m sorry,” Sage said to Dulcie.

  She looked down at the child’s innocent brown eyes, amazed at the changes in the wild boy she’d seen in the video at the trial. The viciousness of Jay’s deeds suddenly struck her. Hard. Matthew had been right again, and he had been fighting the entire Network—plus the mortal authorities—on his own.

  “You have nothing to be sorry for,” Dulcie told Sage. “You’ve done nothing wrong.”

  “Come on, Sage.” Mercedes took the boy’s hand. “You and I will go out with Brett for a while and give Dulcie and Matthew some privacy.”

  “Enjoy yourselves.” Brett winked as he escorted Mercedes and Sage out of the room.

  As soon as they’d gone, Dulcie and Matthew fell onto one of the beds, locked in each other’s arms.

  Her face buried in his chest, she thought how good it felt to be close to him again, to feel his hard body pressed against hers and inhale his fresh, masculine scent.

  She unbuttoned his shirt, her fingers seeking his bare chest.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” she murmured as she kissed him from throat to abdomen. Her tongue lashed across his nipples and dipped into his navel.

  Matthew groaned, closing his eyes as his head sank deeper into the pillow. His heart pounded with need and affection, as desperate for her touch as for the taste of her blood.

  Unzipping his jeans, she freed his cock, so swollen with desire, and wrapped her hand around the warm, pulsing, well-veined staff. He growled deep in his throat, his hunger touching her heart yet making her libido shriek.

  He hiked up her dress and lifted it over her head, sighing as her naked curves molded to his body. Her breasts flattened against his chest, the nipples tickled by the mat of hair across his pecs. In seconds he’d discarded his jeans and pulled her to him as they slipped naked beneath the sheets. Dulcie tossed her thick hair over her shoulder, exposing her neck as she leaned over his lips. He bit so fast and sharp that she gasped in surprise. As he drank, pleasure washed over her and she clung to him. His beard brushed her flesh and caused new, erotic sensations to course through her. She closed her eyes, her fingers clutching his shoulders, loving the sensation of his sharp teeth and lapping tongue.

  “I love you, Matthew,” she whispered. “I love you so much.”

  Strong arms held her tightly. His scent filled her. The sound of his growls and the sensation of his bite made her shiver with desire.

  Their time together would be short, and she didn’t know when they’d see each other again. Every moment needed to last. She wished she could stop time so they could remain together just as they were for eternity.

  Matthew gently pushed her onto her back. She ran her fingers through his hair as he loomed above her, the tip of his cock rubbing and circling her slick entrance. Her eyes closed and she moaned softly as he entered her slowly, tenderly, until he was buried to the hilt.

  “Look at me,” he said in a husky voice.

  So filled with his steely erection, she felt lost in sensation. Opening her eyes was difficult, but she did as he asked. Desire stabbed her in all her most sensitive places at the look in his sapphire eyes. He gazed at her with more passion than any man who had ever looked at her.

  His gaze still locked with hers, he thrust, slow and gentle at first, then harder, faster, in the animal way she knew and loved.

  “Matthew!” she panted, gripping his shoulders and wrapping her legs around him. Her hips rose and fell, matching his rhythm.

  A low howl escaped his throat before he sank his teeth into her at the same moment she bit him.

  Black and red passion exploded behind her eyes as her pussy throbbed in magnificent bursts that seemed to go on forever. Matthew’s breath grew harsh and his growls ragged as he came, surging into her, every muscle in his gorgeous, powerful body tight and needy.

  For several moments they rested, her body trapped beneath his, their hearts beating in union, before shifting position.

  Slowly, he lifted his head and stroked her hair. “I love you, Dulcie. No matter what happens, my soul is yours forever.”

  “Just as mine is yours, Matthew Peter Winter. Forever.” She propped her cheek on one hand and cupped his face in her other palm. “Matthew, take me with you.”

  He narrowed his eyes, the idea far too tempting. He shook his head. “No, Dulcie, I can’t.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I have no idea where I’m going. I’m in danger, and I don’t want you to get wrapped up in whatever might happen to me.”

  “I’m already wrapped up in it!” She left the bed and paced the room, folding her arms beneath her breasts. Fury, fear and longing battled inside her.

  Matthew stood and drew her into his arms. Her anger turned to utter sorrow as she hugged him, her tears dampening his chest. “Matthew, I can’t let you go again.”

  “I don’t want to go. Can’t you see this is killing me, Dulcie? But I don’t have a choice. I have to give Sage a chance, and I have to find a way to clear my name.”

  “But if you went to Adam—”

  “Do you honestly think Adam can be impartial? Even if he wasn’t far too close to this situation, The Jury has the final say. You know they thought little of me before and mostly likely think less of me now.”

  “Those bastards!” She pulled away as they dragged on their clothes. “You’re the one who found the cure for that goddamn disease that almost killed Adam and destroyed countless other vampires! As old and experienced as they are, I didn’t see any of them finding a treatment and cure for their own worst illness!”

  “Dulcie, I’m not Jay Ashford. I haven’t been part of the Network for thousands of years. They don’t want to believe he can do any wrong because admitting one of the old ones might be imperfect would mean they’d have to reevaluate themselves. You know as well as I do how stubborn our kind can be. I have to go. Lie low for a while.”

  “Lie low?” Dulcie pushed away from him and pressed her hands to her temples. “Matthew, you’re talking like some kind of criminal. Look at you! You look worse than Vincent! All you need are the snakeskin pants!”

  “You don’t think Brett will buy me some, do you?” Matthew wrinkled his nose, then shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I’m supposed to look completely different than I normally do. I have to be in disguise, so to speak.”

  “Oh, sure.” Dulcie folded her arms across her chest. Her gaze raked his shoulder-length kinky hair with its silver wings, his full, wiry beard and his tall, muscular frame. “No one will notice a six-foot-four guy with a body like a brick shithouse and hair like a hippie devil. Damn it, Matthew, people might not recognize you from the picture they’re showing on TV, but you look like a…a degenerate.”

  “Believe me, where I’ve been no one would think I look out of the ordinary.”

  “Do you know what is driving me craziest of all?” She pressed a fist
to her breast, and when he looked at her in question, she leapt on him, her legs locked about his waist, her fingers clutching handfuls of his curly hair. “You look so damn sexy.”

  Suddenly they broke into laughter.

  “Oh, Matthew. I don’t want us to be apart anymore.”

  “Me either.”

  “But I understand why you have to do this.” She sighed and slipped down his body, reaching for her purse. She tugged out his grimoire. “I thought you might want this.”

  “You found it.” He took the book, flipped through it and kissed her cheek. “Thank you for bringing it. It will be very helpful.”

  “Matthew, I have to tell you, when Adam and I were looking for you, we read your journals. I’m sorry, but we had to look for clues.”

  He turned away from her and walked to the porch. She followed, and they stood together, gazing at the traffic coasting down the street below.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered, slipping her arm through his.

  “It’s all right.” He shook his head and embraced her. After a moment he asked hesitantly, “What did you think?”

  “I think I love you more now than ever before, if that’s possible.”

  “You weren’t disappointed?”

  She looked up at him and traced his cheekbone with her fingertips. “No. Never. I’m sorry you had to go through so much alone. I wish we’d have met sooner.”

  “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Dulcie. I know that sounds clichéd, but it’s true.”

  “I know, because I feel the same.”

  Together they walked back to the room just as Brett, Mercedes and Sage returned.

  “Here.” Brett dumped several shopping bags on the bed. Dulcie and Matthew searched through them, unpacking several pairs of jeans, some soft leather pants, various T-shirts, another pair of work boots and a worn leather jacket.

  “We were lucky to find that in a thrift shop,” Mercedes said. “There weren’t too many leather jackets in your size.”

  “I brought you money, too.” Dulcie handed him an envelope from her purse.

  Matthew glanced inside at several thousand dollars.

  “You didn’t withdraw it from the bank, did you?” Matthew asked. “If Jay has people watching you, they might wonder why you withdrew so much.”

  She shook her head. “It’s money I have hidden in the house.”

  “You keep money hidden in the house and didn’t tell me?”

  She looked sheepish. “I’m sorry. It’s just a habit I picked up from my mother. Ever since the French Revolution, she’s been paranoid and likes to provide for quick escapes. She raised me like that.”

  He kissed her mouth. “It’s time for me to go.”

  “So soon?” Mercedes looked as disappointed as Dulcie felt.

  “It’s better that way,” Brett agreed.

  “Thank you, Matthew.” Sage hugged Matthew’s waist. “I’ll miss you a lot.”

  Matthew stroked the boy’s face and smiled affectionately. “I’ll miss you too, Sage. I don’t have to tell you to be good. I know you will. I’m very proud of you.”

  “We’ll take care of him,” Mercedes said as she hugged Matthew goodbye.

  “If you ever need anything, you know how to contact me,” Brett said.

  Matthew nodded. “Thank you for everything.”

  Dulcie walked with him to the door, willing herself not to cry again. Since when had she turned into such a wimp?

  Matthew embraced her so hard she couldn’t breathe. She clung to him, memorizing the sensation of his chest beneath her cheek and inhaling his scent deeply.

  “I love you so much,” she whispered.

  “I love you too. If you ever grow tired of waiting for me—”

  “I’ll never grow tired of waiting! Never!”

  He kissed her deeply, but not nearly long enough, before he draped the duffel bag full of clothes over his shoulder and walked to the elevator. Dulcie stood in the hallway and waved to him as the doors slipped shut.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Matthew swallowed hard as he glanced over his shoulder one last time at the hotel where Dulcie remained with Brett, Mercedes and Sage. He’d always thought of the term “broken heart” as trite, an exaggeration, but at that moment, he understood the expression far too well. He was completely alone, but his decisions had brought about his situation. He had no one to blame but himself. Though he regretted the separation from Dulcie and his family, he knew he’d made the right decision for Sage.

  “Now all I have to do is clear my name and prove that Jay is evil.” His biggest problem was Adam would be looking for him. He feared Adam more than the Network, more than the mortal authorities and far more than Jay’s henchmen. Adam was his twin. They were part of each other, and he knew Adam wouldn’t relent until he got what he wanted.

  “You want to find me, Adam, I’ll make it easy for you, but you won’t bother looking in front of your own stubborn eyes. I’ll be in hiding in New York. So close you could bite me.”

  * * * * *

  “Where the hell were you?” Vincent demanded as Dulcie stepped into her house.

  “Vincent, quiet,” Adam stated from where he stood in the doorway to the kitchen. “Are you all right, Dulcie?”

  Dulcie, her heart still longing for Matthew, brushed past both male Immaculates and put on a kettle for tea. “Why don’t you two bloodhounds just back off?”

  “See what I told ya?” Vincent said to Adam. “Keeping an eye on her is next to impossible. She does whatever the hell she wants with no regard for—”

  “Shut up, Vincent!” Dulcie snarled. “I’m not a child and I’m not under arrest, am I, Adam? Do you want to hunt me down like you’re hunting your own brother?”

  “You’ve been with him, haven’t you?” Adam asked quietly. “Oh, you’ve washed off his scent, but I can see it in your eyes. Is he all right?”

  “Yes.”

  “What the hell is going on?” Vincent demanded. “You’ve seen Matthew? Where is he?”

  “I don’t know. He’s gone again.”

  “Where’s the boy?” Adam asked.

  “He told me nothing, except that Sage is not the monster Jay wants you to think he is.”

  “Sage?”

  “The boy has a name.”

  “Dulcie, you have to get me to Matthew. He might not believe it, but he needs help.”

  “Yes. I know.”

  “Then let me help him, damn it! The Network wants his blood! I can protect him.”

  “Can you?” Dulcie sounded honest, not bitter. “Adam, I know you care about Matthew, but you know as well as I do you can’t change what The Jury thinks about him or what they think about Jay. You’ll need solid evidence. Even that might not be enough.”

  “The Network will not give up on Matthew. Not only that, the mortal authorities are after him because they blame him for what happened at the research center. He’s in deeper than he can ever imagine.”

  “Oh, believe me, he can imagine.” Dulcie approached Adam and stared into eyes that were painfully like Matthew’s. “Adam, please, if you really care about Matthew, you’ll stop looking for him. You’ll try to convince the Network to concentrate on other pursuits.”

  “Dulcie, you know I can’t do that. The Network expects me to deliver justice.”

  “They expect you to deliver Matthew.”

  Adam drew a deep breath and folded his arms across his chest. He walked to the window above the sink and squinted at the rising sun.

  “Would it really hurt to back off a little?” Vincent asked Adam.

  “Hiding is not the answer. If he doesn’t face this, he’ll be running forever. Dulcie, I have to find him, more for his sake than for the sake of the Network.”

  She nodded slowly. “You keep telling yourself that, Adam.”

  “Whether you know it or not, it’s the truth.”

  “I don’t know where he’s gone, so don’t bother probing me. You wouldn’t get far,
anyway. I’m a better telepath than you, First Father or not.”

  “I believe he didn’t tell you anything. He’d never put you in that kind of danger. He is all right, though?”

  “As well as can be expected. Adam, he won’t be as easy to find or manipulate as you think. Matthew’s prowess as a vampire has been underestimated before.”

  “I know better than to underestimate Matthew. I know him as well as he knows me. That’s what hurts so much.”

  Dulcie watched Adam leave the house.

  “Damn—” Vincent lifted a thick black eyebrow, “—this emotional stuff really screws with my mind. I’m glad I don’t have a twin.”

  Dulcie glanced at Vincent. “Believe me, I’m glad you don’t have one either.”

  “Hey,” Vincent shouted as she ascended the stairs, “was that supposed to be an insult? Shouldn’t you be playing the part of the grieving wife? Why the hell are you insulting me? I’m on your side!”

  Dulcie ignored him and walked slowly to the room she’d once shared with Matthew. Though very young for one of her kind, she felt like she’d already lived a thousand years.

  “Oh, Matthew,” she whispered, “please be safe. Please.”

  * * * * *

  Matthew stepped off the train and walked the dark streets—the ones Adam had always warned him to avoid when visiting New York City, unless he was interested in a particularly violent hunt. Matthew had never been one to revel in the pain his Immaculate strength could cause others. The only rough play he enjoyed was between him and Dulcie.

  He strode past prostitutes and beggars. A man across the street paced back and forth, screaming to himself. The scent of dirt, blood, pain and disease hung on the air. The sounds of fighting, crying and thousands of heartbeats echoed around him. Every now and then, he caught the scent of other vampires. He wondered if they were from the Network, or perhaps those vicious fiends he’d helped Adam fight at the hospital a few short months ago. He and Adam had been close then, brothers, friends, partners against a world of violence. Matthew thought nothing could come between them. How wrong he’d been.