The Crime of Protection

by Gloria Martin

  “How would you be able to test that?” Blayne asked me and I shrugged simply.

  “The scent of her blood, if it is rich that means she has a strong constitution, if it isn’t then it would be more than likely that she would not survive the process,” Blayne relaxed and I supposed the scent of her blood had to be rich the way he spoke of her.

  “Is she alone now?” I asked and he nodded. “Good, I will happen by as if I’m just another friendly neighbor… though not nearly as friendly as yourself,” I commented and Blayne laughed. I made quick work of approaching the human’s front door and I gave a friendly knock.

  “Hi, can I help you?” she answered the door politely and the first thing that enveloped me was her scent. It was indeed intoxicating, like rich wine and sweet, my own mouth watered. But then I met her gaze and the golden color of her eyes was difficult to look away from. Then shock registered in my mind and body because I realized that in an instant I had become intensely attracted to her.

  “Hello…I am Alec, a neighbor of yours,” I introduced myself and she smiled at me graciously and extended her hand for me to shake. Years of ingrained manners caused me to instead kiss the back of her hand in greeting. I hoped briefly that Blayne wasn’t watching this exchange, surely he would want to kill me for touching what he saw as his female. Though the more I took in her beauty and the very sound of her voice as she spoke to me about wanting to know her neighbors I came to the conclusion that I wanted her… Allison, for a mate.

  After all it would be me who would change her into vampire, she would have the regal ability of being able to change other humans from the effect of my venom. Hell she’d practically belong in the higher classes of our society and that may as well be at my side. Blayne was my friend, yes… but somehow this… what I felt all of a sudden trumped that.

  “It would be my pleasure to show you around the town. I know a great many locals and it would be good that you familiarize yourself with the neighborhood and such,” I told her and she smiled, seeming pleased, but also distracted. I wondered if Blayne had already offered to show her around Old Town.

  “How long have you lived in town?” she asked me.

  “My father is mayor here, soon I will follow in his footsteps, so I have lived here all my life,” she was impressed by this and I decided to move things forward. “Are you still settling into your new home?” I asked and she nodded.

  “Yeah actually my next door neighbor was helping me pack, but he stepped out for a bit…” she seemed unsure and captured her bottom lip in between her teeth. I caught her eyes slide down the length of my body and back to my eyes.

  “It would be no trouble of mine to help you if you’d like,” I told her and after a moment’s deliberation she gave an infinitesimal shrug and invited me in. Now all that needed be done was to woo her away from Blayne. “So where are you moving from?” I asked her.

  “New Jersey, I lived there pretty much all my life,” she said and I looked at her in surprise.

  “Why move then?”

  She shrugged and a troubled expression crossed her features. Wonderful, I would surely woo her away from Blayne by upsetting her.

  “To start over…” I wanted to ask more, but she turned away from me slightly and I could tell she did not wish to further that line of conversation.

  “So where do you need the most help here?” I glanced around the living room and saw that the room appeared furnished and decorated.

  “The back rooms, would you mind helping me with the family room?” she asked and I nodded.

  “Of course, what you’ve done so far looks very nice,” I commented and she glanced back at me and smiled shyly.

  “Thanks, you know I honestly never thought I’d meet more neighbors of mine. When I first met Blayne, my next-door-neighbor. He made the neighborhood seem a little unfriendly,” she told me and all I did was make a vague hum in the back of my throat.

  “That isn’t… entirely true,” I had to admit and once we reached the family room she looked at me curiously.

  “Can you tell me what’s up with this town then? Not to sound insensitive or anything. But I really want this to be my home,” she seemed a bit discouraged and I stepped closer to her and caressed her arm in comfort. Her eyes went to my hand and I pulled back, unsure if that was too forward.

  “Do not worry, this is just a close knit community, despite the amount of people that live here. You will fit in soon enough,” I assured her and that seemed to have the opposite effect than intended.

  “Fit in?” she asked and I sighed.

  “Truthfully… there is a… well it is difficult to explain,” I did not think then was the right time to tell her that she lived in a town, and region actually, full of vampires. Some communities were simply more tolerant of humans than others in the northeast. Especially in the city, don’t get me started on the hodgepodge that was New York.

  “Can’t you tell me? Of all people, the future mayor of this town should be able to tell me about it… I mean I came here because my parents, who were my only family in Jersey—they died. Suddenly and in a horrible car accident, so I came here for a fresh start in what I think is a beautiful state and city,” her words resonated with me and I felt for her. Impossibly not only was I attracted to Allison, but now my emotions were quickly becoming involved. What magic did this woman posses?

  “I’m sorry to hear this about your family… and I would hope that Old Town can be that solace for you. But I cannot explain things yet, can you trust that I will eventually tell you?” my words were cryptic and she saw that.

  “…Alright then…” she said and then sighed deeply. “Now I don’t even feel like unpacking honestly.

  “Don’t feel that way, I can assure you that Old Town will be the home you want it to be,” I assured her and she held my gaze and eventually nodded. The air was heavy between us and even I could not identify why, until I found myself moving towards her. Then to both our surprise I bent my head and pressed a kiss to her lips, they were so soft and her scent enveloped me, she tasted sweet and I could only imagine what other parts of her tasted like.

  “Oh my god I have to stop kissing my neighbors…” she broke the kiss abruptly and looked at me with wide eyes.

  “Blayne…” I said and she nodded, her eyes were full of confusion and I wanted to end that for her, simply tell her that she was mine and be done with it all. Then I’d help her heal from the loss of her parents and give her the solace she sought.

  *****

  Allison

  After Alec left Blayne didn’t come back and I felt like it was some sort of sign. I couldn’t have both of them, but then what was I thinking? I’d just met them both and I wanted them? How weird was that? Blayne was quirky and funny and ridiculously hot and Alec was more intense and beautiful with his pretty-boy features that weren’t too feminine. In fact, he had a strangely close resemblance to James Dean. Same silky-blond hair too, but his eyes were the deepest shade of green.

  Then there was the whole confusion about the town and after my few excursions to a couple of stores, the stares from people were enough to make me think that neither Blayne or Alec were exaggerating. I couldn’t make sense of my feelings about any of it. Worse, I was wondering if I should move back to Jersey or not…

  “Allison?” Blayne knocked on the front door and I looked over from the kitchen, I had been pacing around and wondered what took Blayne so long to come back. When I answered the door I found him and Alec standing on my porch.

  “Hey…guys…” I said, feeling slightly intimidated at the implications of them being together on my doorstep.

  “We need you to come with us, we have some things… to talk about,” Blayne said, he sent an annoyed glance at Alec, who was simply standing by in a stoic stance.

  “Okay, but where are we going?” I asked and Alec finally spoke up.

  “To town hall, to speak with my father,” he said and I became beyond confused. I just didn’t know what to think.

&n
bsp; “Why…” I began to ask why we were going to see Alec’s father, but Alec took my hand and Blayne closed the front door behind me. I wondered belatedly if I was being kidnapped. Then again both Blayne and Alec came across as sort of forward and take-charge.

  “You’ll see when we get there…” he said softly and then Blayne caught up with us as we were walking towards a sleek black jaguar. Blayne put his hand at the small of my back and I had a feeling that I would soon be stuck between the personifications of a rock and a hard place. I was surprised that both Alec and Blayne got into the back with me and there was a driver up front.

  “You really are the mayor’s son, huh?” I said to Alec and he smirked at me.

  “Does that impress you?” he asked and Blayne snorted sarcastically.

  “What a way to speak to a woman Alec,” he said and from then on I kept my mouth shut. Alec holding my hand still and Blayne with his hand on my knee a little possessively. Once we got to town hall they escorted me to the mayor’s office and a huge guy who looked a lot like Alec greeted us in.

  “You must be the famed Allison, allow me to introduce myself, I am Orin,” he said and took my hand in a firm handshake.

  “It’s nice to meet you, sir… I honestly have no idea why I’m here,” I said nervously and he laughed, then he gestured at Alec and Blayne.

  “Well we have some things to share with you, which you will surely find shocking.” Orin gestured to Alec who closed the door and Blayne sat me down at one of the comfortable sofa chairs near a huge fireplace towards the right of the room.

  “The world you know isn’t exactly… what you’ve been taught it is. Other beings—supernatural beings exist.” Orin paused after that strange opener and I glanced at Blayne, I almost wanted to laugh in disbelief. Surely this was some elaborate… joke?

  “Like vampires… and werewolves and such?” I asked and Orin actually nodded. His expression was deadly serious, as were Alec’s and Blayne’s. “Wait… so this is where you tell me that you all are supernatural?” my voice was higher than it needed to be, thanks to shock, and my eyebrows couldn’t seem to lower.

  “This town… is a vampire coven,” Orin said and it took a few beats of silence for that to sink in.

  “I don’t know… if I should believe you,” I said truthfully and Alec caught my attention from my left. He held my gaze and I gasped when his eyes turned icy blue that seemed to glow and he opened his mouth to reveal sharp fangs elongating from his teeth. “Oh, my god, oh, my god, oh, my god!” I said and jumped up from my chair. They let me pace around the room to deal with my shock, but I felt like cornered prey a little bit. The world had just expanded and taken on a new tint in my mind in a way that would never be the same.

  “Allison, we have more to discuss,” Alec said and he crossed the room and held my gaze. His once deep green eyes were still icy blue, like Blayne’s naturally were, though they no longer seemed to have that inner light and his fangs were retracted. Alec pulled me back to the chair and I looked at Blayne who was standing still and simply watching me with anxiety in his eyes.

  “Now, I’m sure you have questions and Alec and Blayne can explain our lifestyle to you, but for now we have a dilemma. My son and Blayne both want you for a mate.” Orin said bluntly and I actually wasn’t as shocked by that bit of information as I was for what came before it. “Of course for you to mate a vampire, you’d have to be changed into a vampire also I would give you the choice of choosing who you want to mate, if you’d like to have either male. Either would be a good choice,” Orin said, he spoke as if we were discussing pleasant weather or something.

  “Is being mated like…being married?” I asked and he nodded.

  “Essentially, yes,” he replied and leaned against the edge of the fireplace casually.

  “And I’d have to be changed into… a vampire,” I said and Orin nodded. I stood up abruptly, shaking my head back and forth. “I’m not doing that, I was born human, a human is what I should be!” I said and Orin seemed as if he expected me to react differently.

  “Perhaps you should take some time to think on this, yes?” he asked and I simply stared at him like he was crazy.

  “We’ll take her home, thank you, Father,” Alec said and Orin inclined his head. Then, numb with shock, I was shuffled off back towards the car and home. Alec and Blayne still on either side of me.

  *****

  Blayne

  Allison was quiet the entire ride back to her house. I could practically smell the shock emanating off of her. Even when I tried talking to her, it was like she didn’t hear me. Strangely enough when Alec and I got her safely home, we both stayed and she simply sat in the living room, deep in thought. Alec and I actually continued unpacking for her and she only spoke a few times when asked where she wanted certain things to go.

  “So what do you think?” Alec had the audacity to speak to me, we were both in the kitchen, watching Allison. She was still in her veritable Thinker pose on the couch.

  “What do you mean?” I asked him and he gestured to her.

  “Do you think she’ll decide to be vampire?” he asked me and I took a deep breath.

  “I’m not sure, would you still change her if she chooses me?” I asked and Alec fell quiet.

  “I would…we are still friends I think. Currently we are friends who have attachments to the same woman,” Alec actually seemed sincere when he said what he did. I briefly entertained the thought that Allison could choose both of us, how would that turn out?

  “Guys…?” she called us over and we were quick to her sides. Her expression was all wrong and I knew she was going to stick to wanting to be human.

  “Before you say anything, let us at least explain some things about what we are first. Maybe turning into a vampire won’t be as bad as you think…” I told her and she sighed softly.

  “Okay…what is being a vampire like?” she asked and then Alec and I launched into basically a sales pitch. Explaining to her that she could still eat normal food and her thirst won’t be too distracting, she doesn’t have to drink from humans directly, and feeding would only be like once a month. She’d have a considerably lengthened life span and heightened senses and such. Then we told her about vampire histories and how extensive our race was. Once we felt she knew everything we fell silent and she finally stood up from the couch.

  “I um… that’s a lot to take in, I need to uh… I need to think about this more guys,” she said and I sighed.

  “You’re killing me—hell you’re killing us,” I said and she threw her hands up in frustration.

  “I don’t know what to tell you! Okay, yeah, becoming a vampire doesn’t sound so bad now, but the whole basis of me being changed is to pick one of you two for a mate. I can’t—I don’t think I can choose between you two,” she spoke in a torrent and I knew that every word she said was true. “I don’t know what it is about you guys… I actually have feelings for both of you,” she said on a sigh and I think both Alec and I stood up at the same time. I didn’t like to see her distressed especially because we were causing it.

  “Don’t be upset over us Allison,” Alec said, he took her hand in both of his and kissed her knuckles. I caressed her arm and then rubbed her back and she leaned against me.

  “Is there a way where I don’t have to choose?” she asked softly and Alec looked at me pointedly. I sighed deeply and then kissed her shoulder before I answered.

  “Well I suppose Alec and I could agree to both be your mates,” I said slowly and she looked at me doubtfully.

  “How would that work?” she asked and I shrugged.

  “Well the mating ceremony does allow for multiple mates, or more specifically a mate and a consort. Plus, Blayne and I are friends, you just sort of shook up our worlds for a moment,” Alec said and I nodded when her eyes found mine.

  “You can have the both of us if you really want us,” I said and she nodded.

  “I do,” she said and then a moment later a grin stretched across her featur
es. “Weird how I didn’t freak out when I said that,” she commented and I laughed.

  “Now should we compete to see who will be mate and who will be consort?” Alec asked, funnily enough his expression was completely serious and Allison cracked up.

  “Well I’m pretty sure that the decision is already made by circumstance, you’d have to be mate because you’ll be the leader of the… coven soon,” Allison was obviously trying to quickly get used to the idea of the entire town being one coven.

  “So it’s settled then,” Alec said, a broad smile stretched across his face and Allison giggled, causing me to smile. The sound was musical and played on my senses.

  “One thing though, you didn’t tell me if it would hurt or not…” she told him and he tilted his head to the side in question.

  “The transformation,” she said and he glanced at me and then back at her.

  “Well you can be distracted from the initial discomfort, but you would be unconscious for most of it,” Alec said and she nodded, seeming relieved.

  “So we’re doing this?” I asked her, just to double check of course and she looked at both Alec and I before nodding.

  “Yeah, we’re doing this,” she said confidently and then ensued the group hug. Only when Alec and I pulled away, I caught the scent of Allison’s arousal and had to smirk.

  “Would you like to consummate our arrangement?” Alec asked, his voice a bit deeper than normal.

  “Consummate…?” she asked and Alec pulled her towards him, his hands on her hips and kissed her deeply. “Oh…yeah, okay,” she said breathlessly.

  *****

  Allison

  A part of me couldn’t believe that I was actually doing this, agreeing to be turned into a vampire and mating two incredibly sexy vampires. But the idea of setting out on a whole new life was so exhilarating and the prospect of having Alec and Blayne at my side was even more exciting. So many avenues opened up, the possibilities were practically endless for what I could do with an extended life or like…over four centuries.